Rich Girl Caretaker Vol. 6 Afterword

Afterword

I'm Yusaku Sakaishi.

Thank you all for purchasing Volume 6.

Since many people start reading from the afterword, let me just say this—I worked really hard this time! I did a ton of research to write this! This isn't the kind of stuff a STEM guy is supposed to be writing!

Anyway, I struggled through it, so I hope you'll enjoy my humble work...

I have a lot to write about in this afterword, so my pen isn't stopping. It's been a while since I've been able to write one so refreshingly.
The Management Tournament Arc

The content of Volume 6 is a bit different from previous Rich Girl Caretaker, and there's a reason for that.

I think you all vaguely sensed it, but my humble work "completed a lap" in Volume 4. Hinako, Tennouji-san, Narika, Yuri... all four of their individual arcs ended. Volume 5 then depicted the changes in Itsuki and Hinako.

I was racking my brain over how to develop the story after Volume 6. The classic route would be to start a "second round." But I was always bothered by one part of this work: Rich Girl Caretaker's world-building isn't exactly a mainstream, "trendy" setting, yet the plot has leaned toward a standard romantic comedy.

You could say this was well-balanced, but I also had the nagging question, "Doesn't that mean I'm not using the world-building to its fullest?" Surely there's a rom-com plot that only Rich Girl Caretaker could create, right?

After much trial and error, the Management Tournament arc was born.

The characters in this story will all run large companies in the future. Hinako, Tennouji-san, Narika, Yuri, Itsuki, Asahi-san, and Taisho... How will they manage their companies? One goal of this arc was to answer that question.

This volume became a bit of a special category, "Business × Rom-Com," but thinking about it, Rich Girl Caretaker has had this vibe from the start. In fact, it's because of everything that's been built up that I was able to write this story.

Trivial bits of foreshadowing from the past, which even I, the author, was unaware of, automatically built up and then exploded all at once... I feel that's how this arc came to be.

Of course, I was also careful not to destroy the existing Rich Girl Caretaker style. My editor was very clear on this, so we managed to get through it, working three-legged. Therefore, even though this is new content, I believe it will still resonate with readers who liked the previous volumes.

If I had tried to write this in Volume 1, I probably would have gotten carried away and written the business stuff too solidly... to the point of being smug about it. The Rich Girl Caretaker I have now stopped that disaster from happening. Thank you, Rich Girl Caretaker...

So, this was content that took some courage, but I hope you all enjoy it.

I will also work hard on the continuation in Volume 7.
Everyone's Companies

By the way, in Volume 6, the name of Narika's family's sporting goods company appeared for the first time. I think some readers may have guessed from Asahi-san's and Taisho's family businesses, but almost all the companies in this work are based on something. The Konohana Group, the Tennouji Group, and Suminoe-san's SIS all have real-world corporate prototypes. However, I'm careful not to be too influenced by them, so the numbers and things aren't a perfect match.

Only Itsuki's company has no reference, but there are several similar companies in the real world. Itsuki noticed the niche market of gift-giving. In reality, this market has seen a bit of a boom due to the pandemic. It might be fun for you to look into it.
Company Names

In the main story, Itsuki gets teased by Asahi-san and the others for his casually chosen company name.

As mentioned, the companies here have prototypes, so the names often match. But I'm not super strict and will adjust as needed.

As for real-world company names, one that personally moved me is Bridge○tone. It supposedly comes from the founder's name, Mr. Ishibashi (Stone-Bridge). They were considering "STONE•BRIDGE" for the overseas market, but it didn't roll off the tongue, so they reversed it. The fact that it ended up sounding so stylish is just genius.

This is a total tangent, but I used a Bridge○tone racket when I was in the tennis club. It made me feel like a pro for some reason... but man, was it heavy...
Acknowledgments

I received a great deal of help from many people while writing this. To my editor, I'm sorry for challenging a new genre when Volume 6 should have been a stable period. Thank you for agreeing to it anyway. To miwabe sakura-sensei, thank you for drawing the heroines so charmingly again. The new character, Suminoe-san, is so pure and cute. And the Bunny Girl Tennouji-san tapestry is so gorgeous, I'm deeply grateful.

Finally, to all the readers who purchased this book, you have my deepest thanks.

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