“Hmm… Is there something you’re dissatisfied with at the company, Izumi-chan?”
“Not at all.”
There’s no way I would have any complaints.
I’m actually only grateful to Star’s Flow.
“I heard a rough explanation from Aozaki. But I want to hear directly from you, Izumi-chan, why you decided to graduate.”
The manager’s eyes were serious yet warm.
If it’s the manager… I suppose I can tell her everything.
“So, we’re friends, right? You and my mom?”
“That’s right. Although, from Seona’s side, it could be said we were friends.”
When my mom talked about the manager, it didn’t seem like that kind of vibe…
But, that’s not really the important part.
“Well then, do you know that Star’s Flow was established for my d, dream?”
“…What? I’m hearing that for the first time. All I heard was that Seona was starting a new business at the company and thought she’d challenge the VTuber market since there was still hope…”
The manager looked at me wide-eyed, clearly surprised.
I awkwardly smiled and continued.
“Well, it was all a misunderstanding… You thought I was interested in VTubers because I was looking into them. I was just curious, really…”
“I see. …But ultimately, you applied to Star’s Flow, so doesn’t that mean you had at least a little desire to become a VTuber? You said in your application video that you really liked VTubers and that you applied because you thought it would be a way to connect with people.”
At that, I quietly shook my head.
“No… I mean, I truly love VTubers! I still do… But the reason I applied was that my mom encouraged me. She said it could be a way for me to overcome my shy personality…”
And it really was just like my mom said.
I no longer avoid eye contact when talking to someone or shrink away.
I’ve formed so many precious connections.
Of course, I still stutter a bit when I speak…
“In the end… it was all a lie. Because my mom wanted me to… Because she thought I would make connections… It was all, all lies.”
“…So, you want to quit Star’s Flow? Since it’s not what you really wanted. You were forced into it because of Seona’s request?”
At that, I shook my head once again.
“Manager… You know what? After Natsune’s live ended, I went home and cried a lot. I was jealous of Natsune… No, I was jealous of all the members. I felt that way because I was doing what my mom asked. I mean, it’s not like it was against my will… But in any case, I didn’t choose this path on my own. Everyone applied to Star’s Flow because they liked it, wanted it. The members doing what they love are truly amazing, beautiful, and shining… It was so dazzling that I cried a lot.”
“Izumi-chan…”
“But even more than that, I was frustrated. I want to shine like that too… I want to stand with everyone… I want to let the Izutomos know who I am… But I can’t. To deceive those who are working so hard for their d, dream, and to the people who like me so much, that wouldn’t be right.”
It’s not just the members.
My mom said it.
All the employees of Star’s Flow are people who really love VTubers.
I know the reason.
Before Star’s Flow was established and grew like this… the VTuber market was literally on the brink of collapse.
To jump into such a market, they had to be people who really loved VTubers.
I had been deceiving those kinds of people.
“I want to be someone who shines like Natsune… No, I want to be someone who shines like our members. I want to be an idol that the Izutomos can genuinely like.”
“Then, shouldn’t you postpone your graduation?”
“No. I want to graduate, that’s what I mean. I can’t do it in my current state. I can’t smile confidently. I want to try what I love and what I don’t like… I want to experience many things. And if in the end, what I really wanted was to be an idol, if the desire to be a VTuber doesn’t fade away… then I want to come back.”
Of course, saying I want to graduate means I can’t come back.
It literally means leaving the company.
“Then, wouldn’t it be better to take an indefinite hiatus like Aozaki suggested? There’s no need to graduate.”
I know that the manager and the president are offering me such suggestions because they understand that.
“No. That just means… that I’m setting up an escape route if I have a hard time.”
“Izumi-chan. Originally…”
“I know. I know how extravagant this story is. It’s a story that I wouldn’t have been able to tell in the first place… I understand. So please.”
Please let me graduate.
I bowed my head and pleaded with the manager.
“It’s only been 4 days since HatsuYuki-chan… no, Natsune-chan’s live ended. It seems really sudden… but did you decide on this impulsively? If you think hard about it, there must be another way.”
And I didn’t lift my head at her words.
“There will be many people who will be sad.”
“I know.”
“Even if you want it, and even if Seona asks… you may find it hard to use the name ‘Kainoh Izumi’ again in the VTuber industry after graduating. That’s what graduation means in the VTuber world.”
“I understand.”
“Is that so…”
Haa, the manager sighed.
“How many people know about your graduation story, Izumi-chan?”
“My mom, my older sister, you, the manager, and my, my classmates…”
The day after Natsune’s live.
The moment I got back from school, I called the second generation group chat of Miss Code and told them.
That I want to graduate.
But I don’t know if this choice is correct.
Suzuha, Yukari, Aki, Ayaka.
They listened seriously until the end, to my sudden story.
“What did the other second-generation members say?”
“At first, everyone said let’s find another way. I’d also want to go along with a good solution if possible, but in the end…”
“Izumi-chan concluded that this is the answer.”
I nodded at that.
“Yes… So in the end, Suzuha convinced everyone. She said if this is really what I want, then they should support me.”
“Oh. That’s unexpected. I thought Suzuha would be the most opposed.”
…Is that so?
I thought Suzuha wouldn’t oppose from the start.
Even if she did, I believed she would eventually support me.
Thinking back, Aki also said the same thing as the manager yesterday.
…What kind of image do people have of Suzuha, I wonder?
Well, anyway, Suzuha ended up supporting me first, just as I expected, and smiled while saying it.
And I was so grateful for that that I cried once more.
Well, I suppose it’s fine not to mention this part.
“Okay, I understand, Izumi-chan. If you’ve thought this through so seriously, then there’s nothing I can do.”
“Thank you…”
“But I do have a suggestion. No, rather, I have a request. Since there’s a lot to prepare for graduation, it’s difficult, and if you do it as quickly as possible, it will be around mid-October. However, if you’re okay with it, I’d like to set the date for March next year.”
March?
It’s not particularly important, but why March next year?
At that question, the manager smiled and replied.
“Because you’re a high school student now. Graduating from high school while also graduating from Star’s Flow… wouldn’t that make for a wonderful story?”
…That might indeed be so.
In any case, the conversation with the manager concluded like that.
I…
The second generation member of Star’s Flow, Kainoh Izumi, has decided to graduate from Star’s Flow.
“Oh, one last thing.”
Just before I left the reception room,
the manager suddenly brought it up.
“…Yes?”
“I mentioned before, didn’t I? Seona and I had a bad fight before we parted ways.”
Oh?
Is that a story I have to hear?
If it’s something that happened because my mom did something wrong…
It would definitely make the atmosphere awkward.
“Hehe… Seona didn’t do anything wrong. Seona said until the end that she understood me.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes. And I deeply regret that fact. Seona had her path, and I had my dreams, but back then I felt betrayed by her, and I was incredibly angry. Looking back, I was really young and foolish back then.”
And the manager chuckled as she continued.
“So this time, I don’t want to do anything foolish like that, Izumi-chan.”
“Yes.”
“I will sincerely support your choice this time. I will support the path that you will take, and more than anything, I’ll support your journey to find your dream…”
“Thank you…”
★
‘I’m sorry, Lenka-chan.’
‘That’s unfair, Seona. I believed we’d be together until the end…’
‘Aikawa….’
‘Yuzuru-kun. Because of you, Seona abandoned me. You ruined our dream…!’
‘I’m sorry….’
Left alone in the reception room, Lenka sipped her tea and recalled past memories.
And she smiled bitterly at her younger self.
Lenka, who dreamed of being an idol in college.
Seona, who said she would help Lenka by her side.
But Seona married young, and Yuki was born.
And for Yuki, Seona chose to join the current company.
At that time, Lenka genuinely hated Seona and deeply resented Yuzuru.
To think she’d say she wanted to become an idol in college.
Even knowing it was a dream that came too late, she poured all those negative feelings onto the two who had been friends since middle school.
Eventually, Lenka ended up not as an idol but as a manager in an idol production company, and after being drawn into the VTuber industry, she now runs a virtual idol production.
And the biggest regret for Lenka remains… that she never apologized to Yuzuru.
“Should I contact him…?”
Let’s meet up for drinks after a long time.
Lenka thought that way.
And I’ll also apologize to Seona once more.
To apologize for Yuzuru’s sake once again.
Then surely, her long-time friend, who has always been more mature than herself, Seona, will definitely…
“I’ve never hated you, Lenka-chan. Yuzuru probably feels the same.”
With that same expressionless face as before, she would say so.
Knowing that, Lenka quietly resolved to sincerely apologize.
“But before that, I guess I should prepare first…”
Since I promised Izumi.
To genuinely support her choice, the path she’ll take, and above all, to support her in finding her dream.
So, I had to create the most wonderful graduation ceremony.
I needed to send off the first graduate of Star’s Flow with heartfelt support.
“Well, where should I start…?”
And with that, the president of the virtual idol production, Aikawa Lenka, finished her tea and stood up.
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