Chapter 192: What Happens After the Embers Burn Out? (4,600 words) (Patreon)

Since the Japan Drama Academy Award had first been held, no one had ever heard of a category called the Lifetime Achievement Award.

That was only natural.

This was an annual award, meant to crown the year's best actor.

Slapping a 'lifetime achievement' label on it would run directly against the whole point of founding the award in the first place.

And when it came to prestige and sheer attention, what could possibly outshine a brand-new award category?

The moment the words "Lifetime Achievement Award for Best Actor Award" were announced, everyone in the room caught the implication — wasn't this worth more than an ordinary Best Actor Award trophy, and by more than just one tier?

Wait... what exactly was going on here?!

Moments ago, plenty of agency representatives in the audience had been beside themselves with joy — now their expressions had all gone strange.

Honestly, who could keep a straight face through this?

Hadn't there been an internal agreement to make adjustments? To cross Minami Yuji off the winners' list?

So why were they practically deifying him instead?

The instant he claimed the Lifetime Achievement Award, wasn't Minami Yuji drawing even more eyes than Himekawa Taiki, who'd actually won Best Actor Award?

And to think, just a moment ago they'd been celebrating Minami Yuji's loss!

And the very next moment — "the great Minami Yuji arrives at his Academy Award"?

Did the whiplash really have to be this severe?

How were they supposed to process this?

But while most agency staff couldn't come to terms with it, a small handful had already collected themselves. Frowning, they worked out exactly why the Academy Award committee had made this arrangement.

Maybe the committee wasn't trying to deify Minami Yuji at all.

The truth was, they simply had no other option.

As mentioned earlier, the committee really had made adjustments to the Best Actor Award category — the fact that Himekawa Taiki, who'd delivered a standout performance the previous year, took home Best Actor Award was the clearest proof of that.

But the committee couldn't very well give Minami Yuji nothing at all.

The reason was simple: attention from the internet, newspapers, and every magazine imaginable had been overwhelming.

Surveys showed that across X (formerly Twitter), every kind of SNS platform, and even traditional newspapers, attention on this year's Academy Award had reached an almost unbelievable level.

Attention that intense was bound to translate into unprecedented ratings.

Viewers had come in high spirits, and if they weren't shown what they'd tuned in for, the fallout would be severe.

More critically, the results Minami Yuji had racked up over the past year were simply too dazzling to ignore.

Every one of last year's top three national hit dramas had him in the cast.

Such a brilliant track record, combined with his terrifying current level of buzz and attention—

if they didn't pick him, what would the audience think?

Viewers weren't industry insiders — they had no patience for backroom favors and unwritten rules.

The moment they sensed unfairness, they'd almost certainly rush online to accuse the industry of shady dealings.

And that would inevitably lead to one outcome.

The Academy Award's credibility would take a massive hit.

And for any award, credibility was everything.

Put simply, people only lifted an award up because they trusted it. But if word got out that the results were rigged behind the scenes — well, sorry, there were plenty of other awards in the world, and nobody needed to keep paying attention to this one.

So, all things considered, even if the committee had no intention of reversing its internal decision, it still had to do something.

What they finally settled on was a brand-new category: the Lifetime Achievement Award.

Just as the name implied, "Lifetime Achievement" meant that whoever won it would carry the title of Academy Award Best Actor Award for the rest of their career.

And since Minami Yuji would be the very first actor to receive it, the prestige attached was terrifying.

But there was a catch — a hard rule that applied to this type of award across Japan's award circuit.

Once an actor won it, they would be permanently barred from ever competing for that category again.

After all, once you'd already been granted the title for life, nominating you again would be pointless.

In other words — as the saying went — he'd been put on the ban list.

This way, they wouldn't offend the audience, wouldn't disrupt the arrangements already made, and could still cleanly send Minami Yuji off to a permanent ban.

Why not do it, then?

Thinking it through this far, they couldn't help but curse silently.

Truly, a bunch of old foxes.

Leave it to them to come up with a compromise like this.

But here was the thing—

Sure, it was a "compromise" — but who was going to stop that guy from here on out?!

Anyone sent to attend as an agency's representative was naturally no fool.

And neither were the industry's investors.

When there was an actor whose acting skill was off the charts, whose popularity was off the charts, and who'd just claimed a Lifetime Achievement Award at the very peak of his buzz — as an investor, would you back him, or some other agency's talent?

There wasn't even a decision to make.

Speechless, they cursed under their breath — and yet they had to admit it.

As an actor, this guy Minami Yuji had stats that were simply off the charts.

The Academy Award had made its internal adjustments.

Any other actor, no matter how unhappy, would have had no choice but to swallow their resentment and fall in line.

But Minami Yuji?

He'd simply muscled his way through on raw stats alone.

No maneuvering required, none at all!

Over there, they sighed and groaned amongst themselves.

Meanwhile, on the other side—

So... I've been put on the ban list?

Sitting in the front row, chatting with a few veteran actors nearby, Minami Yuji froze for a second when he heard the emcee's announcement, and pointed a finger at himself.

The camera caught that stunned moment and projected it onto the big screen.

This wasn't Yuji putting on an act — he was genuinely caught off guard.

He'd honestly never imagined he'd live to see the day he ended up on a "ban list" — that kind of honor was usually reserved for veteran actors who'd made towering contributions to television and film.

What had a small fry like him done to earn that kind of pedigree?

Still...

Whatever.

Yuji shook his head, flashed a practiced, camera-ready smile across his handsome face, waved at the camera, and rose to his feet.

Since he was here, he might as well roll with it.

If he was getting banned, then so be it!

After all, this was the Academy Award's Lifetime Achievement Award!

It wouldn't be an exaggeration to call it the award countless actors dreamed of.

Grab it first, worry about the rest later!

The lights dimmed.

A white spotlight converged on him.

Standing tall on the red carpet, the black-haired young man radiated triumphant confidence.

But compared to his triumphant swagger...

"Oh no, oh no, oh no! This is bad, this is bad, this is bad!"

Shiranui Frill pressed a hand to her forehead.

She was still keeping up her cool, glamorous image—

but her mouth kept twitching uncontrollably.

Because—

the old Minami Yuji had already been impossible enough to deal with!

Never mind a Minami Yuji who'd just won the Lifetime Achievement Award.

Part of the reason she'd come today, aside from checking her own odds for Best Actress, was to see whether Minami Yuji would actually win Best Actor Award.

If he'd missed it, she'd have had the chance to offer a bit of consolation — and sneak in a jab or two while she was at it.

After all, on set, this guy had given her nothing but grief.

Basically, every time they crossed paths, Minami Yuji would flash that grin and dangle her old humiliations over her head, making her do this and that.

But... this wasn't right, was it?!

Sure, he hadn't won Best Actor Award — but he'd walked away with the Lifetime Achievement Award instead?

As one of the new generation of actors herself, she knew exactly how much weight the words "Lifetime Achievement" carried.

With this in hand, there was no telling how insufferably smug Minami Yuji would get around her!

"Shiranui, is this really necessary...?"

Kana Arima, who'd been watching her expression shift the whole time, was at a loss for words. "Isn't it a good thing that Yuji got the Lifetime Achievement Award?"

As mentioned before, the new generation of actors basked in reflected glory — Minami Yuji winning only underscored the caliber of the peers who'd competed alongside him.

Wasn't that a great thing all around?

But to Kana's surprise, the moment those words left her mouth, Shiranui Frill's composure cracked completely.

"That's exactly why I call you a Yuji simp — you have no idea!"

She thrust out both hands, her usually placid emerald eyes fixed on her own palms.

Yes.

Anyone who hadn't been on the receiving end of Minami Yuji's teasing simply couldn't understand!

That feeling of being played completely, of getting sold out and then thanking him for it while counting his money!

Just thinking about how she wouldn't even get to mock him now — instead she'd have to bow her head respectfully and choke out some cringe-worthy line like "Congratulations on your Lifetime Achievement Award, Senior Minami"—

Shiranui Frill felt a headache coming on.

Just then, Sakurajima Mai spoke up.

"Still, whatever else is true, winning this award proves Yuji's ability as an actor, doesn't it?"

"Well... that's true, I guess."

Dragged out of her "painful" memories, Shiranui Frill gave a small nod.

No matter how hard it was to stomach, Minami Yuji winning this award was unprecedented — and likely, no one would ever match it again.

So no matter what anyone else said...

tonight's Academy Award stage—

belonged entirely to Minami Yuji.

Following Kana Arima and Sakurajima Mai's gazes—

the black-haired young man's lean silhouette came into view.

A column of white spotlight fell across him,

setting off that handsome face.

From a distance,

he looked every bit the star!

"Congratulations, Minami-kun, on your Lifetime Achievement Award."

"You flatter me — this is thanks to our past collaboration with your company as well."

"Ha ha... and congratulations to President Saitou and Ichigo Pro too, for having a talent like Minami-kun."

"Heh, and my thanks to all the directors and screenwriters for their help, for giving our Yuji such great roles... Don't forget our Yuji when better opportunities come along, will you?"

"Of course, of course."

"Whew... that really wore me out."

Having finally managed to extract herself from the crowd of agency reps, directors, and screenwriters, Saitou Kyoko let out that sigh as she settled into the private booth.

Social occasions like this were, honestly, the ones she handled worst.

After all, she knew perfectly well—

aside from the directors and screenwriters who had no rivalry with Ichigo Pro, most of the other agency representatives had been dying to see Ichigo Pro take a hard fall today.

And yet she still had to keep up appearances, so nobody could talk behind her back afterward.

Thankfully, all that tedious business was finally over.

So, then—

"Let's get this celebration dinner started!"

Perking right up, dropping any pretense of being company president, Saitou Kyoko slapped the table.

The reason was simple.

It had been over an hour since they'd left the awards venue.

Just about everyone present now was from Ichigo Pro!

So naturally, there was no need to keep up appearances anymore.

Grabbing the menu and scanning the dishes, Saitou Kyoko spoke up.

"Come on, come on, dig in — premium wagyu, sashimi, Western, Japanese, whatever you like! No need to save me any money tonight!"

The restaurant they were in was a rather upscale establishment in Ginza,

which meant the per-person cost was terrifying.

Normally, Saitou Kyoko wouldn't have dared splurge somewhere like this.

But today was different!

She was genuinely happy!

Because Minami Yuji had actually won the Lifetime Achievement Award!

That was even rarer than Best Actor Award!

Of course it was worth splurging for.

She kept right on ordering.

Watching her, Yuji just laughed and shook his head.

Saitou Kyoko was fine in every way, except that once she got excited, there was no reining her in.

For all her bravado right now, she'd probably regret this impulsive spending plenty once it was over.

Just as he was about to warn her not to order too much, in case they couldn't finish it all—

beside him, Ruby Hoshino, phone in hand and gesturing at the screen, suddenly let out a surprised sound.

"Yuji-nii! You're all over the internet now!"

The Hoshino siblings had both actually attended today.

Ruby Hoshino had come as an accompanying family member, while Aqua Hoshino's multi-hyphenate credentials didn't quite meet the bar, so the two of them had been seated fairly far back.

And now, hearing Ruby's words, before Yuji could even respond—

Aqua Hoshino, expressionless, had already picked up the paperback beside him and rapped her firmly on the head with it.

"Ow— that hurts!!! What was that for, Aqua?!"

"What do you mean, 'all over the internet now'? Yuji-nii was already famous, wasn't he?"

Aqua Hoshino shot a sidelong glance at his sister, who was clutching her head, and let out a sigh he couldn't hold back.

He was, by any measure, a fairly sharp person himself.

So why did his own sister sometimes seem like such an airhead?

"Ahem..." Clearly realizing she'd phrased it badly, Ruby cleared her throat and put on a serious face. "What I meant was, even more famous than before! Look, practically every trending topic and news discussion right now is about Yuji-nii!"

"Is that so?"

Everyone's interest was piqued at once.

As industry insiders, they naturally understood exactly how much weight this award carried.

But it had only been half an hour since Yuji won.

Had it really already stirred up this much buzz?

Curious, they leaned in to look,

and then, with a touch of shock, they realized — it was exactly as Ruby had said.

This time, Minami Yuji had truly gorged himself on buzz and traffic.

Whether on X (formerly Twitter) or every other SNS platform out there, news of Minami Yuji winning the Lifetime Achievement Award for Best Actor Award had all but taken over their screens.

Even...

"Even the LINE group chat for Youtou High School on my phone is talking about it."

Pulling out her buzzing phone and glancing over the messages, Kana Arima looked equally amazed.

Youtou High School.

It wouldn't be an exaggeration to call it Japan's star-making factory.

And the fact that even a star factory like that was buzzing about Minami Yuji showed just how massive the traffic and attention he'd pulled in really was.

But what Kana hadn't expected—

was that faced with this overwhelming wave of buzz and traffic, Minami Yuji just laughed and shook his head. "This alone still isn't enough."

"Not enough?"

Now it wasn't just Kana — even the usually cool and detached Aqua Hoshino turned to look at him, a little confused.

Winning the Lifetime Achievement Award for Best Actor Award, sealing his eighth consecutive win in the process, Minami Yuji had achieved something most actors could never accomplish in an entire career.

So what was he even talking about?

Not enough?

This guy...

"Aren't you setting the bar a little too high for yourself, Yuji?"

Setting down the menu, and under Kana Arima's murderous glare, Sakurajima Mai casually scooted closer to Yuji before finally voicing what everyone at the table was thinking.

Whether you looked at buzzworthiness or sheer traffic, Minami Yuji's popularity right now was easily top-tier in the industry.

As long as he kept up this level of hype and attention,

there was no question the earnings he'd rake in during the second half of the year would be substantial.

So what could he possibly still be unsatisfied about?

"Well... my personal buzz right now is definitely already enough. But I keep feeling like the fire could burn even hotter."

"Burn even hotter?"

The Ichigo Pro crowd was even more baffled.

Winning the Japan Drama Academy Award's Lifetime Achievement Award — that fire was already burning plenty high.

And he wanted to pour oil on it?

How was that even possible?

Faced with everyone's confusion,

Minami Yuji didn't bother building suspense.

He just smiled and held up a finger.

"I'm thinking of publicly revealing my role as president of South Shorts and South Virtual Capture Technology."

He tapped the table.

That was how he put it.