The last bell of the day had just rung when I started packing my things as fast as possible.
I just wanted to get out of there.
My brain had been running at thirty percent since morning.
Math.
History.
Classical literature.
It was hard enough back when I was actually a student. How was I supposed to remember any of this now?
While I was stuffing my notebooks into my bag, a shadow appeared at my desk.
I looked up.
The math teacher.
Gray-haired.
Tired.
Serious expression.
"Shimizu."
I felt instant dread.
"Yes…?"
"Come to the faculty room for a moment."
Ah.
Great.
Five minutes later I was sitting in front of a desk feeling exactly like when my old boss used to call me in.
The teacher adjusted his glasses while looking through several papers.
"Your grades are quite concerning."
…I saw this coming.
"Math and English especially."
…God abandoned me even after I died.
The teacher kept talking with a grave expression.
"You've also missed several days recently. At this rate it'll be difficult to pass the semester."
My soul slowly left my body.
I looked at the papers on the desk.
The grades were genuinely terrible.
Red marks everywhere.
The original Aika had been competing with me for who was worse, apparently.
Incredible.
Why do I have to go through this again?
"Are you listening, Shimizu?"
"Yes!"
Too loud.
The teacher blinked.
So did I.
Damn it.
"S-Sorry…"
The man sighed.
"You don't need to apologize. I just want you to understand that you can still recover if you start putting in the effort now."
He handed the papers back to me.
"Talk to your teachers if you need help. But you need to take school more seriously."
I nodded slowly.
"…Yes."
I walked out of the faculty room with my morale in pieces.
I looked at the papers again as I made my way down the hall.
I sighed in defeat.
"I'm done for…"
"Shimizu-san?"
I jumped slightly.
Mei was behind me.
"Huh…?"
She tilted her head a little.
"Is everything okay? You look down."
I looked slowly at the papers again.
Then at her.
Then at the papers.
And finally answered with zero enthusiasm.
"My grades are a disaster…"
Mei blinked.
Then glanced down at the papers.
"Ah…"
Silence.
I felt like throwing myself out a window.
"I don't understand anything in class," I muttered. "Math looks like it's written in an alien language…"
"But it's just regular math…"
"THAT'S THE WORST PART!"
Mei stared at me for a few seconds.
Then let out a small laugh.
Soft.
Natural.
My brain froze for a moment.
Because… it was cute.
Not 'explosive internet waifu' cute.
Just normal.
Warm.
The kind of person who probably reminded you to bring an umbrella when it was going to rain.
"Well…" she said, smiling a little. "We could study together if you want."
I blinked.
"Huh?"
"I'm good at explaining things. And as class rep, helping classmates is part of my job anyway."
Who is this girl, some kind of saint?
The idea sounded good.
Too good.
Because I was completely lost.
And also…
Someone was offering me help.
Real help.
No yelling.
No insults.
No clients changing specs at three in the morning.
I felt something strange in my chest.
Like relief.
"…I'd like that," I admitted honestly.
Mei's smile got a little brighter.
"Then after cla—"
And that's when I remembered.
The stream.
The system.
The mission.
I wanted to drop to the floor and roll around in despair.
"…Ah."
Mei tilted her head, confused.
"Shimizu-san?"
"I can't today…"
She blinked.
I quickly raised both hands.
"N-Not because I don't want to! I just have… something important to do today…"
Something extremely humiliating and possibly traumatic.
Mei seemed to think about it for a moment.
Then smiled again.
"Tomorrow works then."
"Huh?"
"We can study tomorrow after school."
My brain took two seconds to process that.
"…Really?"
"Of course."
She smiled softly.
"Besides, I'm glad you seem to have more energy lately."
Aah… do people like this still exist in the world?
Mei-chan, my heart can't handle this much kindness…
I thought to myself while crying internally.
"T-Thank you…"
Mei nodded happily and said goodbye.
"See you tomorrow."
Forty minutes later I was in a discount store staring at a cheap tripod like I was purchasing military equipment.
"Three thousand yen…"
My wallet wept internally.
The system appeared in front of me.
[Investing in audiovisual quality increases audience retention.]
"Since when do you talk like a marketing consultant?"
[Since the user tried to do a stream using a tissue box as a phone stand.]
"…"
I didn't respond because it was right.
That irritated me even more.
I ended up buying:
A cheap mini tripod, a small ring light, and a convenience store dinner that destroyed the rest of my finances.
When I saw the remaining balance I nearly had a spiritual cardiac arrest.
"I'm going to end up selling organs…"
[The user's organs currently have high market value.]
"THAT WASN'T AN INVITATION."
I got back to the apartment shortly after dark.
Opened the door.
Silence.
Small.
Empty.
But…
Cleaner.
That still felt strange.
I set the bags on the table and looked around.
Still a miserable apartment.
The walls were still old.
The space was still tiny.
But it no longer looked like a place abandoned by humanity.
…I guess that's better.
Then I remembered the mission.
And felt like throwing up.
PIIING.
[Main Mission] [Complete your first livestream.] [Time Remaining: 05:12:33] [Reward: ¥100,000] [Penalty for Failure: ¥50,000 fine]
ONE HUNDRED THOUSAND.
ONE HUNDRED.
THOUSAND.
YEN.
That was more money than I'd had at once in a very long time.
I could pay part of the rent.
Buy food.
Survive.
My gaze drifted slowly to the phone.
…Damn it.
Two hours later I was rearranging the apartment for the twentieth time.
"No, no, no… that corner looks terrible…"
I moved the ring light.
Then the phone.
Then the table.
Then the phone again.
"Why does it look so depressing…?"
The camera was showing exactly what I was trying to hide:
a poor apartment.
Small.
Sad.
"Maybe I should stream outside…"
Silence.
I blinked.
Then grabbed a pillow and threw it at the wall.
"WHY DO I EVEN CARE?!"
The pillow slowly fell to the floor.
My breathing was unsteady.
…Because I need the money.
Just do the bare minimum and get it over with.
I opened the wardrobe.
Looked at the clothes.
Then looked at my body in the mirror.
And sighed deeply.
"I can't stream in the uniform…"
After that first photo I already knew that showing too much of the school was dangerous.
I needed something more casual.
I pulled out a loose gray hoodie and some black shorts.
I stared at the shorts for several seconds.
"…Women voluntarily live like this."
The system appeared.
[Suggestion: comfortable and slightly adorable clothing increases emotional connection.]
"'Slightly adorable'? What does that even mean?"
[Alternative suggestion: extremely adorable.]
"Go to hell."
I got dressed in exactly that anyway.
Because sadly…
it worked.
The hoodie was oversized, but every time I moved it slipped a little off one shoulder.
And the shorts…
Well.
Let's just say my legs stopped looking entirely legal.
I finally opened the Lonely Fans app.
The pink interface appeared on screen.
[Start Livestream]
My finger hovered over the button.
Silence.
My heart started racing.
This wasn't posting a photo.
This was people watching me.
In real time.
Real people.
Looking at me.
Listening to me.
Judging me.
Start Stream.
I couldn't press it.
My finger trembled.
I stepped back.
Paced around the room.
Drank some water.
Came back.
Again.
Couldn't do it.
"I want to die…"
[Penalty for Failure: ¥50,000.]
"I KNOW!!"
I breathed deeply.
Sat down in front of the phone.
And pressed the button.
LIVE.
The counter appeared at the top.
0 viewers.
Absolute silence.
"…"
"…"
"…Hello?"
My voice came out small.
Strangely soft.
Nobody responded.
I wanted to evaporate.
Then the counter changed.
1 viewer.
I felt my soul leave my body.
SOMEONE WAS WATCHING.
"O-Oh… good evening…"
The chat appeared slowly.
first cute new streamer?
My brain stopped working.
Was I supposed to respond to everything?
One by one?
In chronological order?
"Thank you for your comment."
Silence.
The chat exploded.
LMAO so formal office worker energy robot girl she's so precious
My dignity died on the spot.
More people came in.
5 viewers.
8 viewers.
12 viewers.
The chat started moving faster.
So did my anxiety.
"U-Uh… thanks for coming…"
[Smile.]
The smile came out so stiff I looked like a hostage in a political statement.
The chat got worse.
SHE'S NERVOUS protect her gap moe oh my god LMAO
I wanted to throw myself out the window.
Then he appeared.
VIP_Kuro: do a dance
No.
I ignored the message.
Kept talking awkwardly.
"O-Oh… it was cold today…"
VIP_Kuro: dance dance spin around come on let's goooo
My eyelid twitched.
"I don't do dances…"
I smiled.
Fakely.
Very fakely.
"N-Not right now…"
boringgg just one dance for us spin princess
I felt a vein throb in my forehead.
VIP_Kuro: dance for us princess
Something inside me snapped.
"I ALREADY TOLD YOU I'M NOT DOING ANY DANCE YOU SON OF A—!!"
I froze.
Absolute silence.
The chat stopped moving.
My eyes opened slowly.
Crap.
CRAP.
CRAP.
I immediately forced a shaky smile.
"A-Ahahaha… I have quite a temper sometimes…"
I raised both hands nervously.
"B-But I won't be doing any dances for now, okay~? ♡"
My voice came out absurdly cute.
The contrast was SO violent that the chat exploded.
SHE GOT MAD LMAOOO TSUNDERE MODE THAT WAS ADORABLE PROTECT THIS WOMAN I LOVE HER
I covered my face with both hands.
"I want to disappear…"
And then something worse happened.
I started getting used to it.
Not to the stream.
That was still awful.
But…
to the chat.
Responding.
Reacting.
Improvising.
When someone asked:
favorite food?
I answered without thinking.
"Curry."
BASED curry saves lives wife material
And I laughed.
Actually laughed.
Just a little.
But real.
My smile came out natural for the first time.
The chat exploded again.
SHE SMILED OH MY GOD CLIP THAT
…Clip?
The stream kept going.
More viewers came in.
Some were normal.
Others desperately needed therapy.
MilkTeaLover: your eyes aren't real Salaryman_Destroyed: this stream is curing my depression GremlinLord99: i need you to step on me
"WHAT KIND OF PEOPLE USE THIS APP?!"
[Standard demographics.]
"THAT DOES NOT REASSURE ME."
An hour later I was mentally destroyed.
But the counter kept climbing.
58 viewers.
WHY WERE MORE PEOPLE STILL COMING IN?
"W-Well… I think I should wrap up for today…"
The chat exploded immediately.
NOOO stay longer it's just getting started one more topic don't leave us
"I-I need to sleep too…"
I reached toward the phone.
Ready to end the stream.
And then a massive notification appeared on screen.
[SHADOWKING DONATED ¥30,000]
The chat erupted instantly.
NO WAY SHADOWKING??? THE FINAL BOSS
I blinked, confused.
"Huh…?"
THIRTY THOUSAND.
WHY?
FOR WATCHING ME SUFFER?
The chat was completely out of control.
HE BLESSED HER IT'S OFFICIAL SHADOWKING IS A LEGEND THE NEXT MONSTER STREAMER
I swallowed slowly.
"I-I… oh…"
I didn't know what to say.
Then ShadowKing's message appeared.
ShadowKing: "That was fun."
Silence.
And then:
"Will you stream tomorrow too?"
The chat started spamming instantly.
TOMORROW STREAM YES YES YES SAY YES DAILY STREAM ARC
My smile wavered.
Don't say it.
Don't say it.
Please don't say it.
PIIING.
[New Mission Unlocked.]
I slowly closed my eyes.
"…I want to quit life."
And the chat exploded thinking it was a joke.