I’m a female member.

I’m a male member—and a total loser. I’m obviously not popular in real life either. I was so hopelessly unpopular that I had no idea what to do, so I joined Universe as a last resort.

I’m Flagmaker, a columnist. I can’t speak for anyone else, but I’m not popular with women. The last time a woman confessed her feelings to me was when I was in sixth grade and serving as student council president. So, I’m excluded from the discussion.

I’m Paper Airplane, a male club member who has definitely been more popular in real life than through a dating club. The reason is simple. In real life, you’ve already met the other person—whether for a few minutes, hours, or days—and they’ve had a chance to pick up on your voice, the way you speak, and your overall vibe. You can also get a sense of whether you’re compatible. So you’re not approaching someone the way you do at a club, without knowing anything about them. Also, at a club, I think “being welcomed” is a more accurate way to put it than “being popular.” I assume the question is asking whether any of the respondents or club members are popular as well? I’m not handsome, but lately I’ve gradually come to think that it’s actually better that way. These days, I genuinely feel that it was a good thing. Because if I were handsome and lots of women came after me, it would make it harder to find my way to the right woman. I might not be able to identify her. I might not even bother looking for her myself. Instead, how much smoother is it to approach a beautiful woman who’s exactly your type and with whom you already sense good compatibility? And since women like that usually aren’t fixated on handsome men—and don’t approach men themselves—if other men find them intimidating and make fewer approaches, they’ll be almost completely overlooked, which increases your chances. A 100% success rate isn’t necessarily impossible. Rather than being popular with 30 out of 100 women, being popular with just one is enough. No—being popular with the one woman I truly want would make me far happier. When I said at the beginning that I’ve been popular in real life, I didn’t mean “with everyone.” I meant with the person I was genuinely interested in.

I’m Nana Ayase ♡ When you say “popular,” do you mean good-looking guys? For now, why not send reverse offers to everyone you can through Maezawa-san? Someone might make you an offer. Of course, be prepared for the possibility of being turned down.

I’m Kazu, a male member. What exactly do you mean when you say the person “would definitely be popular in real life”? There are many different ways a man can be popular in real life—he might be funny, offer exciting experiences, be wealthy, or be someone a woman would feel proud to date. And, of course, every woman has her own preferences. I think the qualities that make a woman like you in papa-katsu (compensated dating in Japan) are much the same. The way you’re stating your preferences comes across as rather blunt.

Maezawa from the CEO’s Office here, answering as well. I’m not really sure whether there’s much of a network among us, but when I answer questions, I somehow feel like there is one. (笑) And judging from the answers, I get the impression that most of the people answering are probably popular. That said, even if someone sent me a reverse offer just because I seemed popular, I feel like most people wouldn’t actually want to meet them. After hearing this, if someone said, “I’d like to have that kind of experience too, so please choose me,” I think that would make me more interested. If someone is popular, I might want to send them a reverse offer—but I can also imagine becoming interested in a strange woman like that. Still, I’d like you to explain in a little more depth why you want to meet someone who’s popular. Though I suppose that’s fine when you send the reverse offer.