Chapter 64

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V-Spe Gamers! (2)

When I opened my eyes, the room was super noisy.

It felt like there were people talking all around me.

I blinked hazily, recalling the touch I had felt just a moment ago.
Wait… don’t tell me I fell asleep?

I remembered being carried in Toya’s arms all the way to the office, but after that—nothing.

“Natsu, come on, wake up! The stream’s already started, you know?”

“…It… has?”

I slowly looked up at Toya’s gentle voice.
Oh, right. We were supposed to stream today.

Turning my head, I saw Nagisa-san smiling at me softly. Inari-san was beside her too.
Was the stream just about to start?
No—wait. She literally just said it already started.

…Wait, what? Already started?

“Y-you could’ve woken me up!”

“Sorry! You just looked so peaceful I couldn’t bring myself to do it!”

“You really don’t have to apologize?!”

That realization snapped me fully awake.
I mean, if the stream’s going live, a little heads-up would’ve been nice?!

I quickly sat up and instinctively wiped my mouth.
I didn’t drool in my sleep or anything, right…?
Ugh—nope, I didn’t. Thank goodness.

> wwwwww

Don’t sleep when the others are already streaming! lol

Nacchan’s such a sleepyhead.

They say beauties need their sleep. Maybe Nacchan’s actually a hidden beauty?

Nah, probably just a kid. lol

I mean, at that size, you probably do need extra sleep.

“Pfft! ‘She needs more sleep because she’s tiny’—isn’t that hilarious?”

“…”

“…Ah. Not funny, huh. Sorry…”

Inari-san had been laughing at the comments, but suddenly apologized after seeing my expression.
Not that I thought she did anything wrong.
Honestly, just based on how I am now, I probably do need more sleep…

Maybe I made a weird face because I was still half-asleep.
Ugh, that’s what happens when someone else wakes you up. You can’t get your brain working properly.

“Natsu, want me to carry you?”

“I’m fine—ah!”

With a little “hyup,” I leapt off the sofa.

Inari-san’s eyes widened as she watched me jump down.
Come on, it’s just getting off a sofa. Don’t look so surprised.

The height wasn’t exactly low considering my current size, but it wasn’t that high either.

“Nacchan, are your legs okay? Nothing’s broken, right? It wasn’t too high for you to jump from, was it?!”

“Um, that really wasn’t high enough to worry about?!”

My soles stung a bit, but it’s not like I broke anything.
If I broke something just from that, I’d already be in the hospital.

> Treating her like a total kid lol

Honestly if I had a friend Nacchan’s size, I’d be super worried too

Nacchan-sized friends should just ride in a kangaroo pouch or something

A kangaroo pouch, really? lol

So the next outfit is confirmed then, huh?

“…Hmm.”

“Why do you look like you’re seriously considering that?!”

That dead-serious look shocked me.

Her face made it seem like she was about to go buy a custom kangaroo pouch just to carry me around.
It had to be a joke, right? Right…?

Judging by her face alone, I couldn’t be sure.

At this rate, she really would bundle me up like a newborn in a swaddle and carry me everywhere…

> lol

Nacchan’s legit scream though

I want a tiny friend like Nacchan too… someone I could carry around…

That’s not happening, so I’ll just settle for watching Nacchan lol

Wait, are we not gonna see Nacchan’s model today?

“Oh—right.”

I walked over to the streaming computer, realizing my avatar wasn’t even on screen yet.

…But, uh, the desk is way too tall.

Back at Toya’s place, I streamed from a desk built for my size, so I hadn’t noticed…
But regular desks were huge to me now.

Ugh… uh…

From this angle, all I could see was the underside of the desk. I sighed.

“Um… could someone help me, please?”

“Of course!”

“Ah—doing it without asking again!”

I hadn’t aimed that request at anyone in particular, but Nagisa-san swept me up faster than anyone else.

S-sorry for just letting you pick me up like that…

I mumbled a small apology and used the mouse to open the file for Ichinose Natsu’s avatar.

Hmm… there it is.

“Ah—”

> Whoa lol

That sudden avatar appearance!

Is this secretly Nacchan’s dream size being manifested? lol

Don’t worry, Nacchan. You’ll grow eventually.

But didn’t her growth plates already close?

“Um… I think it’s rude to say things that could hurt others so casually, you know…”

People who never had something probably feel sad, but losing something you once had is even worse.

Yeah—height.

If I had been small from the start, it would’ve just been a mild inconvenience.
Even if people teased me, I would’ve brushed it off with a small complaint or two.

But I wasn’t like that. I had it. I lost it.

I wasn’t exactly tall before, but compared to now, I was huge.

I literally shrank to half my height overnight. How could I not be sensitive about that?

> [¥1000]

A donation for Nacchan’s future growth.

“Ah, thank you! But I mean, I’m not gonna grow from donations, so let’s use this for Gamers snack funds instead!”

“It’s fine! We care more about your height than our appetites, Nacchan—”

“Move, you dumb fox.”

“Gah—!?”

Whether she was teasing me or not, Toya shoved Inari aside and began gently patting my head, silently comforting me.

Um… thanks, but that still kinda stings for me too.

I subtly leaned away, slipping my head out of her hand.
Toya looked absolutely heartbroken.

Sorry, Toya. What I need right now isn’t comfort.
It’s someone who won’t say anything at all.

In the end, Nagisa-san, who didn’t say a word, was the only one smiling.

…And you know what? That wasn’t too bad.

“By the way, weren’t we supposed to all play a game today?”

“Yeah… though somehow, this is what it turned into.”

> Naginatsu teetee~

A lady caring for a tiny kid is so wholesome!

‘Tiny kid’ lol

You mean ‘tiny adult,’ right?

…Somehow ‘tiny adult’ sounds even more tragic lol

I came here excited to see what game Inari-san and Toya had picked out—
But all we’d done was talk.

…Wait. Do they see me as some plush toy to hold?

The chair was too tall, so I stood beside Nagisa-san—
And somehow, I ended up in her arms again.

Huh? Why?
Well… I had already accepted it, so I didn’t really feel that flustered.

“Hey, you two. Stop moping and come over here to actually talk.”

“So cold! First you dodge Toya’s touch, now you’re using polite speech with me too, Natsu?!”

“No, I mean… I’m addressing both of you, so—”

“Oh, I see. Nacchan thinks she has to use honorifics with me. Our relationship is nothing more than business, huh. I wanted to get closer, even lost sleep thinking about it…”

> This one’s on Nacchan.

Come to think of it, Nacchan still uses honorifics with Nagisa and Inari.

Don’t tell me they’ve never hung out one-on-one before?

Inari feels distant from Nacchan…

I figured they’d get close since she’s Toya’s friend, but I guess not.

Maybe Nacchan just doesn’t want to get close. I mean, Inari is a pervy fox, after all.

Why… why did it feel like people were making up way worse stories than reality?

It’s not like I didn’t want to be friends with Inari-san.
I just thought it was more polite to maintain some distance… you know?

“Th-that’s! Um! It’s just that… I’m a shut-in, so I have trouble getting close to people!”

“…Natsu?”

“I mean! Uh! In the digital world, I can’t meet people in person, so—yeah!”

> Ahh, I get it now.

So that’s what it was. Nacchan’s one of us, huh?

Starting today, Nacchan is my best friend.

Yeah, I used honorifics too when I first watched Inari’s stream lol

All us shut-ins are the same… One more thing I have in common with Nacchan lol

Panicking, I blurted out whatever came to mind.
Ugh. That was a mistake.

Looking at the chat, for some reason, the viewers were overflowing with empathy.

No, you don’t have to relate to me that hard, okay?!

A stream by a shut-in VTuber being watched by other shut-ins who now feel a deep connection with her—
That’s… kind of sad, isn’t it?

“Hehe, but you know? Online Natsu is super outgoing! That’s how she got so close to Toya too~”

“…Was I?”

“Weren’t you? You only sounded awkward at first, but soon you were speaking casually and everything.”

“Ah.”

That was actually just a result of my weak Japanese skills…

I didn’t want to ruin Toya’s sweet memory of it, so I quietly closed my mouth.

…Yeah. Let’s just say I’m super outgoing online.