"And that's all for today, guys… uh… thanks for joining me again."
I smiled awkwardly at the camera while the chat kept moving at an absurd speed.
【LILAC_AIKA WE LOVE YOU】 【ShadowKing: get some rest】 【MilkTeaLover: YOUR VOICE CURES DEPRESSION】 【HazUnBaile: THE DAAAANCE】 【VIP_Kuro donated ¥2,000: tomorrow too, princess】
My eyelid twitched.
"I-I'm not a princess…"
【yes you are】 【100% princess】 【literally yes】
Damn internet.
I forced another smile.
"Well… good night, everyone."
I gave a small bow toward the camera and cut the stream.
CLICK.
Silence.
The room went quiet all at once.
And I let myself fall backward onto the futon like a freshly run-over corpse.
"…I survived."
PIIING.
[Stream completed.]
[Objective fulfilled.]
[Reward delivered: ¥30,000]
[Donations received this session: ¥41,000]
[Current funds: ¥176,300]
My eyes opened slowly.
Then I sat up all at once.
"One hundred and seventy-six thousand…"
That was real money now.
Money as in I can buy food without calculating whether I'll die tomorrow.
Money as in maybe the demon landlady won't throw me out.
I pressed both hands to my head.
The reward wasn't as big as the first stream, but the donations made up for it. That much money for just over an hour…
"Should I start considering myself rich…?"
[Correction: you're still poor.]
"Let me enjoy five seconds!"
I dropped back onto the futon and stared at the ceiling.
ShadowKing had donated another absurd amount.
Thirty thousand yen.
THIRTY THOUSAND.
Who the hell was that guy?
A millionaire businessman?
A depressed yakuza?
Some weird CEO with a thing for high school girls?
Because honestly I couldn't find any other logical explanation.
"Do people really just throw money around like that…?"
PIIING.
[Viewers pay for emotional attention.]
"That sounds so much sadder when you put it that way."
Just then a horrible noise tore through the apartment.
CLONK—KRRRRRRR—GLOOOONG.
I jumped.
"What the hell was that?!"
[The pipes in the upstairs apartment.]
The ceiling vibrated again.
GLOOOONG.
…Ah.
Right.
Because this building looked like it had been constructed during the Japanese feudal era.
I sighed and looked around.
Still a miserable apartment.
Just a miserable apartment that was… slightly cleaner now.
My eyes drifted toward the script sitting on the table.
Letters of Spring.
I stared at it for a few seconds.
Then sighed again.
"Me… an actress?"
The word sounded ridiculous.
Though…
A week ago I was an overworked salaryman.
And now I was a high school girl doing late-night streams and acting in romantic plays.
Nothing could top that anymore.
I slowly looked down.
Silence.
…My chest was still there.
Large.
Heavy.
Ridiculously soft.
I touched them absently while I thought.
"This is still illegal for my mental health…"
A few seconds passed.
Then I snapped back.
"…Why have I been touching them for so long?"
I turned red instantly and yanked my hands away like I'd been electrocuted.
PIIING.
[Progressive bodily adaptation detected.]
"SHUT UP!"
I grabbed the script to change the subject before I had an existential crisis.
I settled onto the futon and started reading.
Haruto.
The male lead.
A general's son.
The family's failure.
Too soft to meet expectations.
Too useless to be admired.
…Yeah.
Still felt uncomfortably close to home.
I swallowed.
"I just have to memorize a few lines…"
I cleared my throat.
Tried to put on a serious voice.
"'If disappointing you was inevitable… then perhaps I never should have been born…'"
…
…
My delivery sounded like an NPC dying in a cheap soap opera.
I stared at the wall.
"Oh my god."
PIIING.
[Terrible performance.]
"I DIDN'T ASK FOR YOUR OPINION!"
I tried again.
"'Akari-sama… I…'"
My voice cracked.
I stumbled.
I embarrassed myself in front of myself.
I grabbed a pillow and smashed it into my face.
"AAAAAAAAH."
HOW DO PEOPLE ACT WITHOUT DYING OF SHAME?
PIIING.
[Suggestion: express authentic emotions.]
"Authentic emotions? I'm expressing authentic suffering right now!"
I got up in frustration and threw the script onto the futon.
"I'm so done with this crap— balls."
PIIING.
[Warning.]
"…Huh?"
[Avoid masculine expressions.]
I blinked.
"…What?"
[You are a woman.]
My eye started twitching.
"Who the hell cares? There's nobody here!"
[Potential fine for identity resistance: ¥50,000]
"FIFTY THOUSAND?!"
I straightened up instantly.
"O-Okay! Understood! Sorry! I meant— ovaries! This is a pain in my ovaries! YOU are a pain in my ovaries, YOU DEGENERATE AI!"
PIIING.
[Correction accepted.]
"I hate you so much…"
I collapsed back down in defeat.
And so, somewhere between economic threats and identity crises…
I fell asleep.
The next day…
The drama club was unusually lively.
The moment I walked in, Fujii Rika practically launched herself at me.
"Shimizu-senpai!"
The small first-year girl beamed at me with absurd energy.
"Good morning!"
"G-Good morning…"
I still wasn't used to being greeted like that.
President Harada raised a hand from the back of the room.
"Thanks for coming again, Shimizu-san."
"Ah… yeah."
Mei was organizing some scripts near the window.
When she saw me, she smiled softly.
"Good morning, Shimizu-san."
"G-Good morning, Hirano-san."
And then I felt a cold stare cutting straight through me.
I turned my head slightly.
Kanzaki Yuuna.
Black hair pulled back elegantly.
Straight posture.
Serious expression.
And clearly… a face that said I don't like you.
The moment our eyes met, she turned away with cool indifference.
…
…Okay.
That stung a little.
I pretended not to care and went to find a seat.
Rehearsal started shortly after.
And it was a disaster.
"'Akari-sama… I…'"
I stumbled.
Again.
Harada pressed a hand to his forehead.
Rika was trying to cheer me on from behind with little you've got this! gestures.
And Mei…
Well.
Mei was being unreasonably patient.
"You don't need to rush, Shimizu-san."
She smiled calmly.
"Just try to respond naturally."
Naturally.
Right.
Sure.
Easy to say when you're not the one destroying a school play in front of forty people.
I took a deep breath.
Tried again.
It came out weird again.
Yuuna slowly closed her script.
"You're thinking too much."
Silence.
I went rigid.
She looked at me directly.
"You don't sound like a person talking. You sound like someone reading words."
OUCH.
Critical hit.
"Kanzaki-san…" Mei murmured.
But Yuuna kept going.
"If you're going to act, then act seriously."
The room went quiet.
Heat crept up my face.
I wanted to defend myself.
Say something.
But honestly…
She was right.
I could hear it myself — how artificial it sounded.
I gripped the script a little tighter.
"…I'm sorry."
Yuuna looked away.
"I don't care that you're new. Just don't ruin the play."
…Okay.
She definitely disliked me at least a little.
Rehearsal continued.
And strangely enough…
The only times my lines actually worked…
Were when I stopped trying to act.
When I just responded.
When I forgot people were watching.
Then the emotions came on their own.
A little too much on their own.
Especially in the scenes where Haruto talked about disappointing his father.
Or feeling useless.
Or pretending to be fine while falling apart inside.
Those lines…
Came out natural.
Uncomfortably natural.
After one particularly quiet scene, nobody spoke for a moment.
Rika was the first to react.
"T-That was amazing!"
Harada nodded, visibly surprised.
Even Mei looked stunned.
And Yuuna…
Yuuna was staring at me strangely.
Like she was trying to figure something out.
That made me even more nervous.
Later, during a break…
I was standing in front of a vending machine studying the cheapest options.
"…Why does water cost more than tea? What kind of evil economy is this?"
I slowly pulled out some coins.
My ex-poor-adult brain was running calculations automatically.
If I bought this today…
Then tomorrow…
"Shimizu-san."
I turned around.
Mei had just walked over.
Before I could react, she bought two drinks.
Then held one out to me.
"Here."
I blinked.
"Huh? You don't have to—"
"I already bought it."
She smiled.
"So it'd be a waste not to take it."
…
"W-Well…"
I slowly accepted the can.
"Thank you…"
We stood by the machine for a few seconds.
The distant noise of the club drifted out from inside.
Then Mei spoke softly.
"Kanzaki-san doesn't hate you."
…Ah.
So it was that obvious.
I took a sip of tea.
"She has a funny way of showing it."
Mei let out a small laugh.
"She just loves acting. A lot."
She glanced toward the hallway window.
"When something matters to her… she gets too strict about it."
I stayed quiet.
Then murmured:
"She's still right though."
"Huh?"
I looked at the can in my hands.
"I'm pretty lost."
Silence.
Mei watched me for a few seconds.
And then she said something I wasn't expecting.
"But when you stop overthinking…"
My heart gave a small lurch.
She smiled softly.
"Your scenes feel real."
…
…
"Like you actually are Haruto."