"Miss, under Shin-chan's name, some shares suddenly appeared."
"Oh?" Suotome Ai put down the proposal in her hand, looking toward Maeda with interest.
"Fushikawa Publishing, a second-tier publishing house developing fairly well. This is the related information."
Taking the documents, Suotome Ai quickly skimmed through the relevant information about Fushikawa Publishing.
A very ordinary publishing house, nothing particularly special. Though the development momentum is decent, the company's management lacks long-term vision, so it's merely scraping by under the suppression of the Big Three publishing houses.
"That's all?"
She flipped through it and found only information about Fushikawa Publishing, no share transfer contracts, no financial transaction records.
"Yes. We couldn't find out at all how these shares appeared under Shin-chan's name. It's like they suddenly appeared, records were erased."
Hearing that, Suotome Ai finally became interested. "Keep investigating. To do something to this degree, it's got to be one of those few families. Maybe one of those sneaky cats has taken an interest in little Shin-chan again."
"As for this publishing house, just buy it for fun."
"Understood." Maeda nodded. For the Suotome family, acquiring a publishing house was a piece of cake.
"After acquiring it, give the corresponding dividends to Shin-chan monthly based on his shares. After all, his pocket money isn't much."
Although Ai was curious about who transferred those shares to Shin-chan, this was a good chance to ease his financial situation.
If she directly gave Shin-chan pocket money, he definitely wouldn't accept it. After all, he wasn't someone materialistic and wouldn't casually accept other people's charity.
The two weren't even in a romantic relationship yet. Although Ai really wanted to keep Shin-chan as a sugar baby, she'd have to wait until he married into the Suotome family.
Before Fushikawa Publishing even realized what was happening, 90% of the remaining shares had already been acquired by the Suotome family through various channels. They immediately restructured the company's management, changed the development strategy, and injected capital into it.
While such rough methods wouldn't make Fushikawa Publishing equal to the Big Three, at least with enough funding, the editors and authors would live a bit better.
"I don't even know what Shin-chan is up to lately. I keep feeling a strange sense of crisis."
Suotome Ai sighed. She didn't understand why she felt this way. Could there really be something beyond her control?
'Even if there was, so what? Shin-chan is definitely mine!'
———
Yukinoshita Yukino just realized the apartment she lives in was actually called "Elbow Pain Apartment." 'What kind of low-grade name is that? It's clearly a high-end complex!'
Yukino had just finished a morning of kendo training at the Musashino Dojo and was wearily walking back to her apartment.
Ever since she came to Shuchiin and realized the gap between herself and true geniuses, she had started to understand her own powerlessness.
There were too many people more outstanding than her. Why weren't they shunned like her?
Could it really be her problem? No, it couldn't be that simple. People are different. Different circumstances and experiences lead to different outcomes.
Yukino still wanted to find her own version of truth.
As she walked, melancholic and deep in thought, she suddenly noticed something seemed to have passed by her.
Looking down, it was the little dog raised by Shin-chan, Shiro.
Shiro had a basket in his mouth and a tiny backpack on his back. Inside the basket were a piece of paper, some bills, and coins.
'...What is this dog going to do?' Yukino was confused.
Last time when they visited Eriri's house, it was this dog that opened the door. It seemed to be way too smart.
Recalling her fear of dogs, Yukino made a decision, she would secretly follow Shiro and find out what this weird dog was up to.
Very soon, Yukino was shocked. This dog was actually running errands, buying groceries for Shin-chan.
Just how lazy must one be to teach their pet this kind of skill?
Yukino was baffled, was this dog just insanely smart, or was Shin-chan just that lazy? He actually trusted a small dog to handle this?
'Also, didn't Shin-chan just move here a few days ago? Why was this dog already so familiar with the shopkeepers in the shopping district?'
'Strange. Just... way too strange.'
"Akari, I'm going to check on your big brother. Want to come?"
———
It was the last day of the weekend. Hiroshi was still working overtime. After finishing the housework, Misae was feeling restless, she finally couldn't help it anymore.
"Sure! I don't have anything to do anyway."
"Do you think Shin-chan might've made his room a complete mess? Clothes everywhere, total chaos. I knew I shouldn't have let him live on his own!"
"Don't worry, Mom. Shiro will help clean. No need to worry so much."
Himawari was helpless. Her mom was way too worried about her brother. Shin-chan was already 18, no need to hover so much, right?
"But Shiro's getting old. If your brother keeps troubling him, it's not okay."
In the end, Misae couldn't hold back. She decided to drive Himawari to Shin-chan's apartment to check whether her son could really live alone.
If his room was really a mess, dirty laundry thrown all over the place... Misae clenched her fist. Then immediately relaxed.
Well, she'd help him clean. After all, she was his mother.
———
Following Shiro all the way, they saw him buy lots of veggies and meat. A good portion of it was gifted by shop owners, in appreciation for how Shiro helped attract customers.
The bills and coins in the basket were all spent, and both the basket and backpack were stuffed with ingredients.
When Shiro spotted Yukino, he even greeted her with a little bark.
'Is this really a dog? A superpowered pup? A genetically engineered experiment?'
She followed Shiro into the elevator, even helping press the floor button. Yukino was no longer afraid of him. At least, in her eyes, Shiro was no ordinary dog.
Yukino even had the urge to pet him. Fluffy like cotton candy, he must feel amazing to touch...
Ding!
With a chime, the elevator doors opened, and a familiar voice rang out.
"Master! Master! I'm here! Open the door!"
Yukino and Shiro walked out of the elevator with curious looks, and saw Eriri Spencer Sawamura holding a painting, super excited, knocking on Shin-chan's door.
'Wait a minute. Did Eriri just say... Master?'
'Strange. Just way, way too strange.'
Eriri also heard the sound behind her, stiffly turning her head.
'Please don't be someone I know!'
"Yu-Yukinoshita-senpai!"
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