Chapter 46

Rea​ｄ ​on​ ̃K̂ａ​tR̂&e;aｄi​ngCâ&f;é

D-DAY (3)

Being a VTuber doesn’t end at just debuting.
Once you’ve debuted, it’s only natural to start streaming, too.

Right now, the most important thing was crafting the on-stream persona.
Honestly, back when I was Han Yeoreum, I just carried on my usual streaming style into VTubing, so I never had to think much about that.

“Natsu goes live starting tomorrow, so please show her lots of love! But hey—don’t skip my stream to watch hers, got it? If you do, we’re over~”

“If you can, please watch both… yes…”

As Toya patted my head, I waved my hand with a little smile.
For now, I’d only shown up to greet everyone—nothing more.

One by one, the others wrapped up their goodbyes as well, and not long after, the stream came to an end.

Strangely, it didn’t feel as emotional as I thought it would.
Actually, I felt… more relaxed.

“You did great, Yeoreum~”
“Thanks, Toya.”

My whole body felt heavy, weighed down by all the motion capture sensors stuck everywhere.
I barely moved during the stream—thank goodness. If I’d had to actually dance in all this…

…Ugh, the thought alone is terrifying.

Back in the day, maybe I could’ve handled it, but now? No way.

Toya and the others had to wear all of this and still sing and dance live. It was honestly impressive.

“Nacchan’s finally debuted~!”
“Yeah… um, Nacchan?”

“Of course it’s your nickname! Na-chan, Nacchan~! What do you think?”

“Being called that feels a little weird—Wha?!”

Just as I frowned at Inari for the weird nickname, I suddenly felt myself lift off the ground.
That floating sensation again—for what felt like the hundredth time today.

Except… this time, it wasn’t Toya who picked me up.

“…Nagisa-san?”

“Ah, sorry—reflex. I’ll put you down right away if you’d prefer.”

“No, it’s just…”

I glanced over and saw both Toya and Inari with wide, stunned eyes.

Was it really that shocking to see Nagisa lift me?

I guess someone so elegant and ojou-sama-like lifting a whole person—kid-sized or not—was unexpected.

So Nagisa works out, huh.
…Actually, if you want to dance and sing with all those sensors on, you’d have to stay fit.

“I-I want to hug Nacchan too! Nagisaaa, give her to me~!!”
“Would you prefer to stay here?”

So now it was between staying in Nagisa’s arms… or braving Inari’s.

Why the dilemma?

Because the moment Nagisa put me down, Inari would 100% lunge at me to snatch me up.

Toya, meanwhile, had already composed her expression and was grinning mischievously—clearly planning to tease me the second I ended up in Inari’s grasp.

‘Alright. It’s awkward, and a little embarrassing… but I guess I’ll stay right here for now.’

“…I think I’ll stay here.”

“WHYYY—!!”

I replied coolly, and Toya’s eyes widened again.
Score! Two shocked Toya faces in one day.

Inari, on the other hand, looked utterly devastated—like a mother who’d just lost her child in a custody battle.

Whoa. Chill, Inari.

“Uuugh… Nacchan… why only me… sniff…”

…I didn’t think she’d get this emotional, honestly.

It’s not like I disliked Inari.
It was more of a reflex thing—her chaotic first impression had my body instinctively scream “danger!”

And okay… maybe I found her reactions kind of funny too.

“If you promise not to randomly grab or hug me anymore, I’ll think about it.”

“I promise! I swear I’ll behave! P-please have mercy…!”

“Mercy’s a bit of an exaggeration…”

I did think about making her sweat a little more, but with how desperate she looked, I just couldn’t.

She might be a weirdo, but she wasn’t a bad person.
…Although, thinking about it, maybe being a weirdo is enough to qualify as trouble?

“Natsu?”
“Um, Nagisa-san? Would you mind putting me down now?”

“Of course.”

Nagisa gently lowered me—unlike certain someone(s), she listened the moment I asked.

Because I was so short, she had to bend pretty low, and just before my feet hit the ground…

…Something soft pressed into the top of my head.

…No. Don’t think about it. You know what it was, so don’t think about it.
Don’t think about it, don’t think about it, don’t think about it.

I almost looked up out of instinct, but stopped myself.
That would’ve been way too rude.
It was only for a second anyway…

Poke.

“…Huh?”

“Aren’t you gonna hug me?”

“A-ah! I will!”

I stepped toward Inari, who looked stunned—like she couldn’t tell if this was a dream or real life.

It’s real, lady. If it were a dream, I wouldn’t be here offering.

When I took a little step back to tease her, she immediately moved closer.

‘Wow… our “one step” is very different.’

Her legs were easily three to four times longer than mine, so my four steps barely matched one of hers.

When she made her usual goofy pervy face up close, it was a little intimidating…
But seeing her overwhelmed with emotion now? Much better.

“Here.”

She still hadn’t moved, so I stretched out my arms to urge her forward.

This is your one shot. Don’t miss it.

Once I met her eyes, she finally inched forward… slowly, cautiously.

The same person who normally charged in like a maniac was now hesitant after getting permission.
It was kinda cute, honestly.

Squeeze—

“Uu… woah…”

“You’re acting like this is the first time. Didn’t you already hug me before?”

“I-it’s different! That was without permission! This is with! This one’s official!”

Toya, watching from the side, sighed like she’d seen enough.

And honestly, I agreed with her.
But I didn’t say anything. Sometimes, you just gotta let it be.

I’d probably have to keep this mindset whenever dealing with Inari moving forward.

…Oh, tears?

“Now I can die without regrets…”
“Please don’t.”

“Even her heart is kind…”

Okay, this one might be too far gone.

Inari was spiraling. If we didn’t stop her soon, she might go full-on worship mode.

I glanced at Toya.
Okay, time to rescue me now?

“Okay, okay! Yeoreum-chan rental service is now officially over~ Return her to the front desk!”

“Ah… Aaaah…”

Leaving the sobbing Inari behind, I returned to Toya’s arms.

Calling it “returning” felt kinda funny—but not wrong.
Because this… was where I belonged now.

“You did great today, Yeoreum.”

I didn’t feel like I’d worked hard.
If anything… I’d had fun.

—

[I saw the qualities of a king in Natsu…]
[(Fanart of Ichinose Natsu being held up by Toya.JPG)
Fanart already flooding in LOL]

ㄴ [They drew this already??]
ㄴ [Do artists have motors in their wrists or what LOL]
ㄴ [Now that her look’s official, everyone’s going wild.]
ㄴ [Because Totomo-chan has a face now.]
ㄴ [ㄴExcuse you—it’s Ichinose Natsu now.]
ㄴ [(“Not Totomo-chan anymore” emote)]
ㄴ [When did we even get an emote like that LOL]
ㄴ [Artists are fast, but meme-makers are faster.]
ㄴ [This is the start of V-Spe’s golden age, marked by Natsu’s debut.]
ㄴ [ㄴAssuming she doesn’t run away LOL]
ㄴ [ㄴHey! We don’t talk about that!]

[Shortest VTuber in history debuts.]
[(Ichinose Natsu height comparison sketch.JPG)
I think Ai-chan was like 130cm, but Natsu’s definitely smaller lol
Not just smaller—way smaller LOL]

ㄴ [She’s elementary-schooler size;;]
ㄴ [No, like actually 7 years old levels??]
ㄴ [Good thing Natsu isn’t Korean then.]
ㄴ [ㄴWhat were you planning?! LOL]
ㄴ [ㄴGuys like you are terrifying lol]
ㄴ [(Inari pedo-smite emote x2)]
ㄴ [But seriously, how is she that tiny?]
ㄴ [Even now I can’t wrap my head around it.]

Fables