ALL NOVEL Chapter 353
“Hello everyone. This is Hagiwara Ruka….”
What should I say about Hagiwara?
She was a free spirit.
With a light greeting, Natsune and I were about to return the greeting when she said, “I already heard it from Miss Code, so it’s fine…,” and took a seat.
Then she said, “I’m a bit sleepy, so I’ll sleep until everyone arrives…,” and actually lay down on the café’s floor, closing her eyes.
Ha ha…
At that situation, Natsune was laughing awkwardly as if she felt troubled.
Is she feeling awkward being alone with me?
Well, Natsune must have wanted to get closer to her future fellow members, but with someone who has this social anxiety…
Even the one who came to change the mood, Hagiwara, fell asleep for real.
It’s probably confusing and awkward.
…Well, to be honest, it’s rather comfortable for me.
Yeah.
It’s much better than trying to break the awkward atmosphere and ending up making it even more awkward.
Hmm…
In the end, Natsune turned her attention back to her phone.
Sorry for being someone with social anxiety who finds even simple conversations to be torture….
That aside, both Natsune and Hagiwara are incredibly beautiful….
It makes me think, ‘Is appearance also one of the pass criteria for Star’s Flow?’
Of course, I’m the universe’s strongest S-rank super cutie, so I don’t feel envy or anything like that…
“…Kayanoh, do you have something you’re curious about?”
“Hieeh…? W-what, yes…?”
“I feel like you’ve been looking at me.”
“I-I’m sorry… I never meant to… I-I’m really sorry for being rude….”
“…Huh? What does that mean….”
As I was about to apologize immediately with a dogeza to Natsune,
“Yay~! We finally arrived! I happened to meet Akasaki-san in front and came together!”
“…Nice to meet you.”
With the door opening, new voices entered.
★
“I am Komachi Yuyika. I’m 24 years old. I’ll be active under the name Koga Suzuha.”
“Hagiwara Ruka…. 21 years old. I heard you go by Aki Nekoto….”
“I’m Utaka Ren. 22! My birthday is January 29! I heard you’ll be using the name Utsumi Ayaka! Everyone, please take care of me from now on?”
“I’m Sakura Akasaki. 20 years old. My name at Star’s Flow will be Yukari Akabane. I look forward to being your fellow member.”
“K-Kaya…Kayanoh Mina here…. I’m 15 years old… I heard I’ll be using the name Kainoh Izumi….”
The Star’s Flow second generation members, who are set to debut in July, lightly introduced themselves and began personal conversations.
Yuyika and Ruka chatted about their hobbies.
Ren and Sakura, both interested in fashion, continued on that topic.
….
But only one person.
Mina sat quietly, looking at the floor in the midst of all the noise.
‘Wow… As Yuyika-senpai said, she’s really pretty… At 15 she must be a high school student? Totally my type, but can I get closer? But it feels too awkward to start a conversation! I’ll have to take it slow. Yeah.’
‘Kayanoh Mina… was it? Everyone else seems to be making connections, but this child might be a bit tough.’
‘Kayanoh… I can’t figure out what she’s thinking. Does she really not want to be friends with us? But since we’ll have to stream together later, wouldn’t it be better to get closer…?’
‘I’m sleepy….’
The five gathered here are going to be fellow members, which means they are equal among each other.
Yet right now.
Four of them were watching one person’s reactions.
That too, the reactions of the youngest girl among them.
‘I wanna go home already. If I bring up a topic, it’s gonna ruin the vibe for sure. Everyone seems to get along already, so I’m envious. I want to get closer too… But isn’t being a VTuber a job for socially awkward otaku? Everyone looks so sociable…? Ah. Why am I even here….’
Of course, the very person who caused this situation, Mina, was crumbling inside.
But without saying a word and with half-closed eyes staring at the floor, the cold vibe kept flowing from her, leaving no one who could mindlessly approach her…
“Hey… Kayanoh?”
Ruka was there.
And at the same time.
“Hgya?! Ah… y-yes? Did you… want something from me? I-I’m sorry… about my… inability to communicate….”
The four’s fantasy shattered in an instant.
“Hee….”
“Huh?”
“Huh?”
★
…What happened here?
“I misunderstood~.”
The moment I answered Hagiwara’s words, all eyes turned to me.
And the one who moved first was Utaka.
She quickly moved to sit beside me and started asking me a ton of questions.
“I want to get close to Kayanoh from now on… What do you think, Kayanoh?”
“Ah, um… that’s um… I-I also want to… get close…”
“Let’s collaborate a lot once we debut. What are your specialties, Kayanoh? I like chatting casually~. Do you like ASMR?”
“I like… games and drawing…”
Forget what I just thought.
Getting close to all my fellow members is absolutely impossible.
Especially getting close with Utaka is beyond the realm of possibility.
No matter how much I have a mental age of 40, it won’t work.
Yep.
I just melt away in front of these brilliant social butterflies.
I wish someone would save me. Why has God given me such trials?
“Then do you like manga or anime? I feel like I used to watch a lot, but recently I haven’t watched much.”
“Uwa, huh? I-I…”
“Wait a minute. Stop, Utaka. Kayanoh seems overwhelmed.”
As I was melting under Utaka’s immense barrage, it was Natsune who rescued me.
Utaka then briefly shifted her gaze away and said,
“Okay, Natsune. I feel like I’m going to like all our fellow members, so I’ll share this affection with you too!”
With that, she gently patted Natsune’s head.
“Hah?! What’s m-m-m-m-m-m-m-m-m-mat-”
“Yeah? Wasn’t it asking for attention?”
“That can’t be right! Don’t forget to respect your seniors!”
“Yeah? But we’re fellow members, right?”
“Ah, um… but still…!”
Natsune glared at Utaka, who casually brushed off the glare.
It feels like a clear proof that they’ve gotten really close, which aches my heart….
“They’re having a good time. …By the way, Kayanoh.”
“Ah…? W-what…?”
“Don’t be too nervous. I might feel sorry for you. …Hmm. I think I misunderstood. I saw you saying nothing and thought you weren’t interested in us. I’m sorry.”
“…Eh? Uh?”
There’s no need to apologize since I don’t even know what’s going on…
I thought that, but Akasaki’s eyes were honest.
Akasaki seems to be a very straightforward person…
“Let’s get along from now on?”
“Ah, um… sure….”
After finishing my conversation with Akasaki, I quietly turned my gaze away.
Seems like Hagiwara was the one who called me first….
In that thought, I looked around.
….
Hagiwara was sleeping in the corner.
★
“Now, before we part ways! Is there anything anyone wants to say?”
At Natsune’s words, I quietly raised my hand, and everyone’s gaze turned to me.
An overwhelming pressure with rising tension.
I wanted to put my hand down and run away at any moment, but I closed my eyes tightly and shouted loud and clear.
“W-what about when we’re together! Can we not call each other by our real names but as VTuber names…?”
“…Huh? What does that mean?”
“Our connection is Star’s Flow, so… I’m someone with social anxiety who finds it hard to face people and communicate… and I want to get closer… So I want to cherish the name ‘Kainoh Izumi’….”
They might laugh at what I said.
But still, I want to cherish these bonds.
To my words, the other four responded.
“…Okay! I look forward to working with you, Izumi!”
“I’m looking forward to working together, Izumi.”
“…What a nice sentiment, Izumi.”
“Sleep well, Izumi….”
Fortunately, they welcomed it happily.
“I’ll look forward to it too…! Koga, Akabane, Utsumi, Aki…!”
“Hmm? So Izumi is calling us all by surnames now?”
“Are we supposed to call Izumi by name here too…?”
“Ah, I’m sorry. That’s really too much for me.”
“You’re assertive at times like this….”
★
[Right, right. The quality of that last battle scene was amazing, right? The desperate sincerity of Uncle Satoru was incredibly moving, you know? Besides that, there was that emotional exchange with the heroine in the middle, and honestly, they represented the emotional lines from the manga in a way that exceeded the original in the anime, which was immensely touching. I watch it again at least once a week. For anyone who hasn’t seen this yet…]
Izumi’s first stream ended.
Starting off by ruining the RP, going on a wild spree by herself, and ending the stream without saying anything.
It was clearly a Yeo-sang broadcast.
The four fellow members watching it reacted differently.
“…What a disaster.”
“Puhahaha…! It’s so Izumi-like, I love it!”
“…I guess it’s time to sleep.”
“It’s beyond my imagination….”
Each expressed different reactions.
★
“Is that really true?”
“Yeah. Isn’t it super cute?”
“Typical of Izumi-senpai….”
As I entered the waiting room, Ayaka was happily chatting with the members about something.
“W-what were you talking about…?”
“Hmm? It was the story of when we first met Izumi. Remember, when we first met, we all thought Izumi had a cold personality? We were all mistaken, though.”
“Wha…? T-t-that story was forbidden to tell other people…!”
“Come on, what’s the big deal? It’s not embarrassing or anything.”
“But it might be different for others… Phantasm and Aster members probably have this image of me as a quiet, cool senpai…!”
“…Huh? Are there even members who see Izumi that way?”
At Ayaka’s words, everyone shook their heads.
Huh? Why…?
Am I not a super cool senpai…?
That’s shocking.
I’m so shocked that I want to run home right away….
“Come on, stop with that sad face and let’s get ready, Izumi. It’s right in front of us now, isn’t it?”
As I stared at the ceiling with a sense of defeat, Suzuha poked my cheek with her finger and said,
“This is the stage that Nana-se and Izumi have been dreaming of together, right?”
…So it is.
I finally made it this far.
To be honest, it still doesn’t feel real.
“Hah…”
I take a deep breath and calm my racing heart.
“Are you ready? Everyone, let’s go!”
“…Yes!”
And with the voice of her… Natsune in the back, I stepped forward with all my might.
Towards the shining stage.
Towards the admired her.
And it was time to move forward together with my precious friends.
As Kainoh Izumi, the VTuber.
The End of the Ultimate Wallflower VTuber Side Story and Epilogue