From VTuber♂ to VTuber♀ - Chapter 33

Broadcast Observation Day 3. (2)

“What were you doing, Totomo-chan?”
“Hmm? Uh… nothing, really.”

The moment she heard my voice, Yeoreum flinched with a sluggish motion, clearly startled.
Maybe she wasn’t fully awake yet.
Toya, who had been moving around just a second ago, was suddenly still.

I really want to see it someday—Yeoreum controlling Toya’s avatar.
“Alright, Toya’s back~ Nothing weird happened while I was gone, right?”

– Now I’m really curious when Totomo-chan’s gonna debut as a VTuber.
– Maybe there’s some deep story behind her?
– Her voice sounded like she could disappear at any moment…
– A child who already sounds like that… poor thing…
– Isn’t Totomo-chan the same age as Toya? wwww
– 草
– 草

Did she say something?
I tilted my head, puzzled by the chat’s reactions.

[¥10,000]
– A red superchat in advance for Totomo-chan’s debut!

“What.”

No way she said she was debuting or something, right?
She didn’t seem awake enough to say anything that clearly.
When I stared at Yeoreum’s face, her drowsy eyes blinked slowly.
Well, I can just check the VOD later to see what was actually said.

– You better not skip over that one, Toya-chan!
– wwwww
– That’s a tribute to the Totomo goddess from her loyal Totomo followers 草
– Totomo-chan, hang in there! You’ll definitely achieve your dream someday!
– More like, it’s not a dream—she should just come back already ww
– Wishing for Totomo-chan’s glorious VTuber comeback.

“Okay okay, enough already! Anyway, where was I—”

There was a lot on my mind, but for now, I decided to focus on the stream.
Yeoreum’s eyes, the ones I caught a glimpse of earlier, were full of life.
Like someone who had found their spark again.

—

[Today’s Totomo-chan]
[(A wistful clip of Totomo-chan saying “I wish I could be a VTuber again.” AVI)
She woke up next to Toya and saw the broadcast screen, thought it was a dream, and said that.
But the way she said it… it hit different, seriously lol]

ㄴ[That’s so emo.]
ㄴ[Emoooo…]
ㄴ[I don’t think I’ve ever heard a VTuber with a voice like Totomo-chan’s.]
ㄴ[ㄴMaybe she was just a nobody indie?]
ㄴ[ㄴIf someone with that voice was a nobody, then literally all VTubers are nobodies ㅇㅇ]
ㄴ[ㄴOn that note, should we go watch our lovely indie Renew-chan? https://www.itube.com/live/renew=fe12]
ㄴ[ㄴOne more viewer and she’ll have 30 live, go go]
ㄴ[ㄴlolol]
ㄴ[Her voice really was kind of haunting. Made me feel weird in the heart.]
ㄴ[ㄴThat’s just you being a ped—]
ㄴ[ㄴ(Pedo-purge cone)]
ㄴ[ㄴShe just sounded sleepy, that’s all lol]

[Did Totomo-chan reincarnate from another life? Here’s the evidence.]
1. Totomo-chan used to be a VTuber but quit. Han Yeoreum also used to be a VTuber but quit.
2. Totomo-chan wants to be a VTuber again. So does Han Yeoreum (said in a public notice).
3. Totomo-chan only appeared on stream after Toya came back from Korea (and Toya went to Korea because she was worried about Han Yeoreum).
4. Totomo-chan is Toya’s precious friend (never mentioned anywhere else—not even in member-only streams).
5. Toya’s only friend is Han Yeoreum (mentioned in member-only streams).
Conclusion: Totomo-chan = Han Yeoreum ㅇㅇ

ㄴ[Bro really lined up the tin foil perfectly lol]
ㄴ[But doesn’t it kinda make sense though?]
ㄴ[Wait, are you telling me Han Yeoreum transitioned just to become a VTuber in Japan?!]
ㄴ[ㄴngl, kinda hot.]
ㄴ[ㄴ(Han Yeoreum is NOT a girl cone)]
ㄴ[ㄴ(Han Yeoreum is NOT a girl cone)]
ㄴ[ㄴ(Han Yeoreum is the TRUE MAIN WIFE cone)]
ㄴ[If Totomo-chan really was Han Yeoreum, forget 500k subs—she’d be over 1 million by now lol]
ㄴ[ㄴFacts. I’d hit subscribe 1 million times.]
ㄴ[ㄴDon’t you dare disrespect Han Yeoreum, who got 500k subs in VTuber hellzone Korea.]

—

After Toya’s stream, we naturally slipped into a kind of “debrief.”
Though “debrief” makes it sound serious, the atmosphere was soft and cozy.
Or rather, just comfortable.

Not that the word “soft” came to mind because of anything specific.
It’s not like I thought of it because—

“Soft and squishy~”
“Ehh.”

Toya kept squishing my cheeks while saying “soft and squishy~,” so the word just popped up in my mind.
Still, is this really how a debriefing is supposed to work?
We weren’t even sitting face-to-face—I was completely snuggled up in her arms.
It was warm and nice, sure, but my cheeks were under constant assault.
Not that I disliked it. Definitely not. Nope.

“So? Did your mind change a little?”
“T-That was just something I said half-asleep!”

With the wonders of the archive, it was easy to find out what I’d actually said.
I wanted to go back to the days when I was a VTuber.
Even if I was half-asleep, I clearly said that.

I didn’t realize how badly I’d wanted to return.
…Well, maybe I did know, but just didn’t want to admit it to myself.

“…Just give me a little more time. It won’t take long.”
“Huh? I mean, I’m not pressuring you or anything, okay? Take your time, really.”

“Thanks, Toya.”

But… could she maybe stop squishing my cheeks already?
It’s like she thinks my cheeks are made of mochi or something—the longer we sit here, the more she keeps touching them.
At this rate, she might even start doing it in her sleep…

The worry crept up on me a little, but I brushed it off. It wasn’t a big deal.

“Oh yeah, Yeoreum.”
“Yeah?”

“One of my colleagues said they wanted to meet you. I told them no already, but they really wanted me to at least ask…”

“…Hmm.”

Meeting someone new was already nerve-wracking—especially when I was this small.
No matter how hard I tried to act normal, the size difference always made me flinch instinctively.
Still, since it was one of Toya’s colleagues, maybe it’d be okay.
I wasn’t scared of Toya, so maybe her close friends would feel the same.

“Maybe… I’d be okay?”
“Really? I mean, I know this might sound weird, but I think you should think it over more seriously…”

“? Huh? Why?”

I tilted my head at Toya’s hesitant tone.
She didn’t seem all that thrilled about me meeting this colleague.
Was there something off about them? If there were, Toya probably would’ve told them no outright.

So maybe it was something else…
I should’ve watched more of Toya’s colleague’s streams or clips.

“Uh, here… Want to see this first? I don’t think I can explain it very well in words…”

“Okay.”

Toya picked up her phone and held it at a comfortable angle for me to watch.
I could’ve held it myself, you know.
When I looked up, she answered that holding it was the price for hugging me.
What the heck, pfft. Toya really is a weirdo sometimes. Or rather, most of the time?

Anyway…

[‘What kind of person is your type…? Hmm, that’s a tough one!’]

The moment the video started playing, Toya buried her face in the back of my head.
Like she couldn’t even bear to watch it.
Toya? Reacting like this? What kind of person was this colleague?

They spoke just fine, and didn’t look weird or anything.
Cute character, too.

A fox girl, somewhere between adult and child, with fluffy ears and a tail.
So her name was… Inari?

“This girl is your colleague? She’s pretty cute.”
“You’re cuter, Yeoreum.”
“…”

“I’m serious.”

That’s not even the issue here.

I let out a sigh and turned my attention back to the screen.
What kind of person is your type… That is a tough question.
Since it was a Marshmallow question, she couldn’t just give a throwaway answer—but going too long would be weird too.
Was she going to skip to the next one?

Wait, the clip’s title was “Inari the Fox’s Type.”

“Yeoreum.”
“Yeah, Toya?”
“She’s not weird, okay? She’s actually really sweet. I promise.”

Was that reassurance for me, or was she just trying to defend her colleague?

As she repeated herself, I nodded slowly.
There’s a saying, right? When someone’s too shocked, they can’t even speak?

[“My type is… definitely lolis!”]

“…”
“…”

Yep. This was exactly that kind of moment.

If I had to put this feeling into words—
…This is Toya’s colleague?