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Chapter 144. I've Found a System Bug!
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If you were to look at the view count of "Stardust Crusaders" right now, you'd notice something odd.
Unlike other works where the view count either increases or decreases steadily, "Stardust Crusaders" shows a strange pattern. Its viewership graph fluctuates dramatically.
At times, it's high, then low. At times, just as Akiyuki Shinbo feared, the audience, disappointed by the lack of prominence given to the new protagonist Jotaro—especially compared to the strong presence of the former protagonist Joseph and the antagonist DIO—left, lowering the view count.
At other times, despite Jotaro's underwhelming development, Joseph's impressive performance and the suspenseful possibility of DIO's return piqued the interest of fans of "Phantom Blood" and "Battle Tendency". As word spread, more and more fans flocked to "Stardust Crusaders", boosting its viewership.
And then, when people realized that DIO had survived by seizing Jonathan's body, living for a hundred years until he was recovered, some "Phantom Blood" fans couldn't accept such a bleak outcome for what had been such an epic and tragic ending. Many of them left, and the viewership dropped again.
But after a while, the introduction of the Stand battle system, combined with the new full-dive filming technology, drew industry professionals, further increasing the view count.
For industry insiders, watching shows is no longer just about enjoying the content itself, but also about analyzing the filming techniques, story structure, and new technologies used in them. Through this, they learn and draw inspiration for their own projects. Their approach may be unconventional, but it doesn't change the fact that they were contributing to "Stardust Crusaders'" view count.
Due to the overwhelming interest in the new technology, what started with a few insiders looking to learn quickly snowballed into a large swarm of industry professionals and veterans tuning in to watch "Stardust Crusaders", driving the viewership even higher.
...
These constant ups and downs in the viewership were strange.
Even though the final statistics looked average compared to other shows—neither good nor bad—anyone who dismissed it as an ordinary series was in for a surprise.
Just like Cujoh Jolyne at this moment...
Although she was technically part of the industry, she hadn't been keeping up with it. She was only focused on the audience's reactions to the new episodes of "Stardust Crusaders", and since they aligned with her own thoughts, Jolyne became quite confident.
"The budget for "Stardust Crusaders", the cost of developing the new technology, and the actor fees for my dad and the others… Oh, and system!"
Feeling great, Jolyne decided to push her luck: "Look, my dad and the others are all CEOs or managers of major companies. Now they're taking extra time to work in my little studio on a small, unknown project. Isn't it only fair to compensate them with a little mental anguish fee?"
"After all, they're billionaires who make huge sums every second. If I don't pay them accordingly, it won't do justice to their stature!"
[…]
The investment rebate system inside Jolyne remained silent.
It seemed to be considering whether her argument made sense.
Looking at its increasingly inactive system panel since activation, and knowing that Jolyne's continuous failed investments might have triggered a hidden achievement, the system decided to grant her request.
Thus...
[After evaluation, your request has been deemed valid.]
[Due to the unique status of Kujo Jotaro and others, appropriate compensation can be considered in their actor hiring fees.]
"...?"
What the—!?
Jolyne, who had only been testing the waters, was stunned by the system's response.
"Stardust Crusaders" was going to lose so much money that it would recoup all the losses she hadn't incurred yet!
And with this clause that actors with special status could get extra compensation...
According to this, couldn't she just hire all these inexperienced, unpopular actors with "special status" and pay them far beyond market rates, allowing her to constantly lose money?
After all, as Joseph's great-granddaughter, inviting these "special" actors should be a piece of cake!
But then...
[Additional note: Once compensation is completed, this bug will be fixed. Please refer to the "Notes" section for details.]
'..."
"Foiled before even starting, my tears wet my sleeves."
"Tch, stingy."
"But it doesn't matter!"
Looking at the cast of "Stardust Crusaders", nearly filled with her father, great-grandfather, uncles, and aunts, Jolyne could already imagine how astronomical the show's budget would become!
No way they could ever make that money back!
"Ugh, if I'd known this earlier, I'd have asked Pucci to slow down filming. If I could've waited for "Battle Tendency" to break even, I could've funneled all those profits into "Stardust Crusaders"' bottomless pit instead."
Jolyne sighed regretfully, "Now I have to scrimp on compensating Dad and the others…"
As for the possibility that "Stardust Crusaders" would not only break even but also profit from the promotion of the new technology?
Impossible! Absolutely impossible!