[Vol 1] A Romantic Comedy About Flirting and Getting Married to a Popular Voice Actress Epilogue
“S-Sorry for talking like thattt──!”
Inside the agency’s meeting room. In front of us as we sat on the sofa, Kisaragi-san performed a dramatic dogeza, pressing his forehead to the floor.
[TLN: Dogeza (土下座) is a traditional Japanese act of deep prostration, kneeling on the ground with your head touching the floor]
The reason was simple—he had learned that Ai-chan had passed the audition for 『Kimizora』.
After that, Ai-chan had mercilessly piled on the sarcasm, saying things like, “Didn’t you say it was impossible for me, Kisaragi-san?” and “Isn’t that strangeee? I passed anywayyy?” and “Maybe you don’t have much of an eye for talent as a manager?” Unable to endure it any longer, he finally started apologizing.
“I-I never imagined Ai-chan would actually land the main heroine role…! I was completely wrong in my evaluation of my Ai-chan! I’m really, truly sorr—ryyyy!”
“U-Um… you really don’t have to go as far as dogeza…”
Unable to watch any longer, I spoke up from beside Ai-chan.
“As long as you evaluate her abilities properly from now on, that’s enough, I think… Right? Ai-chan? That’s fine, isn’t it?”
“Hmm… yeah, I guess this is enough. But from now on, please don’t say things like that to anyone anymore, okay? Stuff like that actually hurts quite a bit…”
“I got ittt! I’ll never say things like that againnn!”
Saying so, Kisaragi-san bowed his head once more. His tone felt a bit too light for my liking, but the fact that he was apologizing at all probably meant he truly regretted it.
“More importantly, this means we can extend the contract like promised, right? Kanata’s not getting fired either, right?”
“Of course! For now, Ai-chan will be renewing her contract for one more year! I won’t say anything about ending it anytime soon! And Kanata-kun, you’ll keep working hard as well!”
“I see… thank you very much.”
Hearing that clearly must have put her at ease, because Ai-chan let out a small sigh of relief.
I’m seriously relieved too… Looks like I won’t have to drop out of high school after all…
“And depending on how things go from here, we might even move you to full affiliation! For the sake of the agency, I want you to be super active out there!”
“Understood… Then, if you’ll excuse us, I’d like to check the script.”
“Okay! Do your best, Ai-chaaan! I’m cheering for you toooo!”
With Kisaragi-san waving his hands like a cheer squad—“Go! Go! A-i-cha-n!”—we left the meeting room.
The moment we did, Ai-chan’s face visibly sagged.
“I think… I really don’t like that person after all. The way he talks just really gets on my nerves…!”
“Easy there… Let’s not badmouth people inside the company…”
That said, I totally agreed. If possible, I’d rather not deal with him again.
“Oh? Kanata-san, Ai-chan—so you were here?”
Suddenly, someone called my name. When I looked over, Maya-san was standing there.
“Kanata-san, you were supposed to be off today… Could this be about the audition?”
“Yes! I passed, so we came to report it to Kisaragi-san! And it looks like my contract will be extended too!”
“Really…!? Well then, that is wonderful…”
Maya-san’s lips softened slightly as she listened to our report—her expression, which was usually so composed.
“Congratulations, Ai-chan. Please continue to do your best from here on out.”
“Maya-san… thank you very much!”
“You did well too, Kanata-san. For a first-time manager, I think you worked very hard.”
“N-No, it wasn’t anything special… This is all the result of Ai-chan’s efforts!”
No matter how desperately I tried, the one taking the audition was Ai-chan. The good result was entirely due to her hard work.
“Fufu… I’ll give you points for your modesty as well. But the real challenges begin now, you know?”
“Eh…?”
“I believe Ai-chan will continue to grow little by little from here. 『Kimi to Mita Sora』 is a highly anticipated work. There will likely be various promotional activities, and you may be invited to many events. More than anything, since this is her first time playing an important role, there will surely be many hardships. And when that happens, the one who must support her is you, Kanata-san, as her manager.”
“……!”
“If you intend to keep being her manager, it would be wise to prepare yourself mentally. And of course, Ai-chan, you should also be ready for how busy things are about to become as you take on your future work.”
『Y-Yes!』
We answered in unison. Right after that, a question popped into my head.
“Um, Maya-san… Were you perhaps a manager yourself in the past…? It just feels like your advice has always been very specific for someone who works in the office…”
“That’s not the case. I’m just a humble office worker. ──Though long ago, I was chasing a dream, just like Ai-chan.”
“Eh…? Just like me—don’t tell me──”
“In any case, please continue to work hard together as a team. I look forward to seeing your success.”
After bowing her head, Maya-san returned to her desk. Ai-chan and I silently looked at each other after watching her back fade from view.
※
“Yeah… Maya-san is right, after all…”
After leaving the agency, on our way home, I spoke while recalling the conversation from earlier.
“What’s wrong…?”
“Well… just like Maya-san said, Ai-chan is definitely going to get busy from here on out. So I figured I need to get my act together too…”
I’m still far from being a capable manager. I lack knowledge, and I don’t have enough experience. Even this time, if you asked whether I was able to fully support Ai-chan, the answer would probably be no. I need to properly reflect on that, and as soon as possible, become someone who can truly be useful to her as a manager.
“Is that so…? Kanata, you’ve already done more than enough.”
But she denied it.
“Hey, Kanata. You said it earlier to Maya-san, right? That this whole thing was the result of my own effort.”
“Eh, y-yeah… I did…”
“Well, that’s absolutely wrong to begin with! More than half of it happened because you were there!”
Ai-chan pointed her index finger sharply at me. Huh—what? Am I getting scolded here…?
“I know, you know? I know exactly how hard you worked every single day just to give me a chance… You bowed your head to so many people, didn’t you?”
“Eh…? No, it wasn’t anything that serious…”
“It totally was serious! Are you stupid!?”
Her sudden shout made my body jump.
“If that hadn’t happened, I wouldn’t have even been able to take the audition in the first place! And the reason I passed safely was thanks to the advice you gave me!”
“No… I was just saying what I thought as a fan…”
“Even so, the fact that your advice helped doesn’t change, right? It’s true that I was the one who actually acted, but if you hadn’t been my manager, I definitely would’ve been fired. So honestly, this result is mostly thanks to you. Because you stayed my biggest fan, Kanata…”
“A-Ai-chan…!”
“So hold your head up higher! Just the way you are now, Kanata is already supporting me more than enough. Okay?”
Ai-chan gave me a gentle smile.
My favorite voice actress is sincerely acknowledging me as her partner… To me, that’s the greatest reward there is…!
“Hey, Ai-chan… What kind of voice actress do you want to become from here on?”
“Eh…? What’s with that all of a sudden…?”
“It’s fine. Just tell me.”
When I asked again, she tilted her head slightly, looking puzzled, then went “Hmm…” as she thought about it.
“I… want to reach the very top.”
“The very top…?”
“Yeah. I want to reach the peak as a voice actress. I want to play all kinds of characters, appear at events and lives, and become someone whose name everyone knows… I want to become that kind of voice actress! And someday… I want to win the Best Lead Actress Award at the Popular Voice Actress Awards!”
My oshi spoke of her dream with a face full of hope. Then she smiled a little shyly.
“That’s about it… that’s my goal right now! Well, with how I am now, it might just sound like a pipe dream, though.”
“That’s not true. At the very least, you’re closer than you were back then. Compared to when I first met you.”
Thinking back, she had said it even back then—『I want to work hard and become a voice actress who wins Best Lead Actress at the Popular Voice Actress Awards』.
“You think so…? Compared to three months ago, do you think I’ve grown even a little…?”
“Of course you have! You passed the 『Momoiro LIPS』 audition and even won the main heroine role in 『Kimizora』. In just these three months, you’ve gotten closer to becoming an amazing voice actress!”
“R-Really…? Ehehe… If that’s the case, that makes me really happy…!”
“But I’m not letting it end here! I’ll absolutely make Ai-chan’s dream come true!”
I shouted the resolve welling up in my chest so loudly that people around us turned to look.
“Eh…?”
“I will definitely make Ai-chan a famous voice actress. I’ll work my hardest as a manager, gain more and more experience, and I swear I’ll make sure you win that Best Actress Award! That’s how I’ll repay everything Ai-chan has given me!”
Now that my beloved voice actress has acknowledged me, I want to answer that trust in the biggest way possible!
“Kanata…! Geez… If anything, I’m the one who should be repaying you…”
Ai-chan let out a weary sigh, then looked straight at me and spoke.
“Then I’ll work even harder for your sake too, Kanata! Even when I was about to be discarded, you supported me—as a fan, and as my manager! For you, I’ll give everything I have to my current work, pass auditions one after another, and make everyone acknowledge me! And then, I’ll absolutely become a top voice actress!”
“Ai-chan…! Yeah, that’s the spirit!”
“I really feel like we can do it if it’s the two of us! Just like this time, if you’re by my side, Kanata, I feel like I can grab hold of any dream. So… please keep taking care of me from now on too! Kanata!”
“Yeah…! Got it! Let’s work together again and achieve our goals!”
Reaffirming our vow, we shook hands once more—just like the day we first met.
──And then, three years later. Having walked this path together, we finally got married.
Ah… I’m happy. Truly happy. After all, I was able to be together with the person I love and admire more than anyone.
But I won’t be satisfied with just this. I’ll protect this happy life for the rest of my life. And together with Ai-chan, I’ll grab hold of even greater happiness.
After all, my joyful newlywed life with my favorite popular voice actress has only just begun.
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