Chapter 54. [Unsatisfactory Day]

After a strangely long first junior high school day, I went home.

I fell into bed without changing my clothes.

“Huh.”

I let out a big sigh.

In times like this, watching VTubers is the best thing to do.

Yes, that’s what I usually do.

But for some reason, my arms felt heavy today, and I couldn’t bring myself to take out my smartphone.

“What’s wrong with me?”

“Is something wrong, Iroha?”

“Oh, yeah. What’s wrong, Iroha-chan? I feel like my junior high school life is not enough for me. Mamamam Maiii!!! Why are you in this room?”

I jumped back as if I had just discovered that black thing.

I pointed my finger at Mai, who crawled from under the bed.

I’m freaked out! My heart is still racing. Oh, hey, I’m leaking… No, no, I didn’t!

“Fufufufu, were you surprised~? I wanted to surprise Iroha-chan, so I waited for him~!”

“If you do it again, I’ll sue you for trespassing! Really! I’ll never forgive you!”

“What? I got permission from auntie, too. She asked me to [stay at home for her] while she went shopping.”

“That’s not permission to scare me!”

Ah, I’ve finally calmed down.

But I see.

I’m sure she’s probably shopping for foodstuffs for the school entrance party.

After the entrance ceremony, my mom had already left. That’s the efficient use of time.

“Heh heh heh, but I see…”

“What’s with that face?”

“I’m just happy.”

“What?”

“Because, Iroha-chan, you seemed to miss Mai…”

“… Haaaaaaaaaa!?”

No no no, no no no no! Not!

“You’re wrong!”

“Eh~? Is that so~? I don’t think so~?”

“I’ll get angry if you say it again.”

“Okay, okay. But don’t worry. Even if we go to different schools, Mai will come to Iroha-chan’s room, and we’ll always be friends.”

“Annoying.”

Oh, shit!

Why is my face so hot?

And Mai is Mai, too. How can you say such embarrassing things like that?

“Oh, wait a minute, I made a mistake! Mai and Iroha are more than friends… They’re more than just friends, they’re more than just best friends!”

“Don’t get carried away.”

I poked Mai in the head.

“Iroha-chan, your middle school uniform looks good on you.”

“Mai, well… I think it’s a good costume too.”

“Isn’t it fine if you honestly praise me~!?”

We looked at each other and gushed ‘pfft’ as if we couldn’t take it anymore.

The melancholy I had been feeling earlier had vanished when I realized it.

***

Oh, yes. And I have one more thing to report.

I have one more VTuber who has recently become a favorite of mine.

Her name is “Ilena”.

Her name means “Peace” in Ukrainian.

She’s a beautiful silver-haired VTuber, but to be honest, she has just made her debut and is not very good in many ways. Her 3D model is just a combination of existing parts, freely distributed screen materials, and a microphone with poor sound quality.

But still, it is strangely eye-catching.

There is something I love, and I’m just going straight for it!

Watching her stream, I can feel that kind of feeling.

And what’s more! She is bilingual in Ukrainian and Japanese (rumor has it that she also speaks a little Russian?) She is also a junior high school girl.

This story makes me feel very close to her.

Multilingual and a real junior high school student, just like me!

I am not sure if she is a real junior high school student or not.

I can’t rule out the possibility that this is role-playing.

There are people in the world who call themselves 17 years old but say, There are even VTubers who claim to be 17 years old, but say, “There is a demand for 30-year-olds!” No, the world is big. Well, I don’t care about “three dimensions”.

It’s an undeniable fact that they are junior high school students in the virtual world.

<When I saw this VTuber, it reminded me of my elementary school days, so I called her.>

[… Pien!?]

Kun? What’s wrong? What’s wrong?

“Nothing is wrong desu yo!”

<Oh? And that girl was so cute! She’s on my list of favorites by a comfortable margin! I can seriously recommend her! And it’s also very informative, so you should watch it! And she’s cute and smart, and she’s “good” in that way~>

[Agh? Ugh! Hi, hi, hi!? I’m sorry, but I can’t help it. My heart can’t take much more of this! I’m so embarrassed. I can’t stand it!]

<An? Embarrassing!? I can’t bear it any longer! You’re making fun of my oshi!>

“That’s not right!? That’s not it desu yo!?”

<Well, I have to tell you something more. Ilena-chan is.>

[Auauauau ~~~~!?]

And so, I told her all about the merits of the new VTuber Ilena-chan.

Yeess~, it feels good to do missionary work!

Now Ilena has a new viewer, and I’m sure she will help the former transfer student in her Japanese studies.

It’s a win-win situation.

I thought the new year was “not bad”.