[Vol 2] A Romantic Comedy About Flirting and Getting Married to a Popular Voice Actress Chapter 2

Chapter 2 - Interviews and Photo Shoots—Bring It On!

 

The day after receiving 『Seiyuu Champion』 from Nene-chan.

Since today was a day off, I immediately used the magazine as reference and started practicing interview responses with Ai-chan.

“Ahem—then, let’s begin the interview. First, please tell us your name.”

“Y-Yes! I’m Ai-chan’s voice actress! Um… Shinonome Mikoto!”

Probably because of her nerves, Ai-chan messed up right from the start. Her role name had completely overtaken her real name.

Ignoring that for now, I continued with the questions.

“Alright… then please give us a self-introduction.”

“Yes! Um… my strong point is my persistent mental strength! In order to build even a small track record as a voice actress, I kept studying different acting styles and methods suited to me without getting discouraged, no matter how many auditions I failed. Thanks to that, I’ve been blessed with wonderful encounters with my manager and fellow voice actors, and recently my efforts have finally begun to bear fruit. In today’s interview, I’d like to talk about those experiences in detail!”

Ai-chan said all that with a stiff, tense expression. Uh… is this a job interview? Are you job hunting or something?

“Um… don’t you think that’s a bit stiff? You can be more casual, you know.”

“Eh? Casual…? Um… um…”

“Like… for example, your favorite food or something…”

“Ah! I see…! My favorite food is strawberries!”

Whoa, that’s kind of a cute answer. But… does Ai-chan really like strawberries that much?

“And um, um… my hobby is collecting stuffed animals, and my special skills are knitting and sewing. Also, animals tend to like me!”

Yeah, yeah. That’s starting to sound pretty good. It’s becoming interview-like. Though… did Ai-chan really have those kinds of skills?

“And then, and then… my sizes are eighty-seven, sixty-two, eighty-four—”

“No, wait, that’s way too casual! Why did you start saying that!?”

What’s wrong with this girl all of a sudden!? This is a Voice Actor magazine interview! Not one of those interviews you see in adult videos!

“S-Sorry… I couldn’t think of what else to say…”

“Even so, revealing your measurements is still… Anyway, you don’t need to be that tense, okay? The questions they’re likely to ask don’t seem that difficult.”

According to the materials we received beforehand, the article would be titled something like: 『A Close Look at the Main Heroines of KimiZora! Exposing the True Faces of the Next Breakout Rookie Voice Actresses!』 It would include various questions about Ai-chan and the others’ private lives.

That’s why I thought we should start by practicing talking about herself. Though… at this rate, it might be tough.

“By the way, Ai-chan… aren’t you kind of making up answers? I mean, you sound a bit too perfect…”

“Eh!? I-Is that so…? T-That’s not true…?”

Her tone suddenly turned robotic. Suspicious beyond belief—and somehow adorable.

“Also, there are some obvious lies mixed in. Your favorite food isn’t strawberries—it’s ramen, right? The super-rich, extra-heavy kind.”

“Hau!? ”

She always looks ridiculously happy when she’s eating ramen. I really do like girls who eat a lot.

“And your hobby is watching anime, and your special skill is pulling SSRs without spending any money.”

“H-How do you know that…!?”

Ai-chan trembled in shock.

Well… we’ve been living together for several months now. If you spend that much time with someone, you’re bound to learn a thing or two.

“You don’t have to force yourself to answer in a cute way. If anything, it might come off as trying too hard and turn people off.”

“B-But… Kanata, you said it yourself, right? Increasing fans through this job is important for getting results in the 『Popular Voice Actress Awards』. If I want readers to become my fans, I have to give cute answers…”

“No… that’s actually the wrong move. Cute or not aside, what really matters here is giving answers with impact—something people will remember.”

This was just my personal opinion, but what mattered most in an interview was how much impact you left. Safe, template-like answers don’t stick in people’s memories.

That might work for already famous voice actresses, but Ai-chan is still on her way up. It’s better for her to give answers that leave a strong impression.

“For now, try focusing on impactful answers rather than cuteness. Even if it’s not entirely true, impact matters. Also, the self-introduction format seems to make you go off the rails… So let’s do this. I’ll ask you questions one by one, and you answer them.”

That should be closer to how the real interview will go, and it’ll probably be easier for Ai-chan too.

“O-Okay! Got it! I’ll try!”

Ai-chan nodded firmly. I turned to her and began the questions.

“Alright then. First, what’s your favorite food?”

“Yes! My favorite food is… humans!”

An absolutely insane answer came flying out.

“When I see cute little boys, I can’t help but want to pounce on them♪”

In a sexual way, too!?

“…Okay, next question. What’s your hobby?”

“Mainly observing humans! I’m always watching my surroundings to see if there are any tasty-looking children!”

Officer, it’s this one right here.

“…Then lastly, do you have any special skills?”

“Getting close with boys! I’ve formed intimate relationships with many boys so far♪”

“Yeah, sorry… maybe you don’t need to think about ‘impact’ after all.”

Faced with this disaster, I cut the interview short. At this rate, she’d turn into some kind of monster that sexually devours younger boys. This was way beyond a simple problem.

“Let’s just try answering honestly, as yourself.”

“Yeah… I think that might be better too…”

“Just to be clear… you don’t actually have tastes like that, right?”

“Of course not! I don’t have hobbies like that!”

Thank goodness… I’m really glad my oshi is mentally normal…

Anyway, even if we wanted impact, it’d be better to base it on Ai-chan’s real traits and adjust from there. After discussing that with her, we were about to resume practice.

That’s when I noticed the time. The clock hands pointed to 10:50.

“Ah! Sorry, Ai-chan. Can we pause practice for a bit?”

“Eh? Sure, but what’s wrong?”

“I actually have somewhere I need to go now… There’s something I have to take care of. So we’ll continue practice after I get back, okay?”

“I see… Uu, that’s a little disappointing… I’m still really anxious about a lot of things…”

“Sorry… When I get back, I’ll practice with you properly again. Can you wait until then?”

“Yeah… it’s okay…! It can’t be helped! I’ll think up different response patterns on my own in the meantime!”

Perhaps trying to reassure me, Ai-chan quickly put on a bright smile.

I really do love that kindness of hers. To repay it, I needed to finish my errand properly and then support her as best I could afterward.

“Thanks, Ai-chan…! Then I’ll head out!”

“Yeah! Do your best too, Kanata! I’ll work hard on my interview prep as well!”

Ai-chan gently saw me off. Grateful for her words, I left the house right away.

 

※

 

“This is bad…… I might be a little late……!”

Leaving Ai-chan at home behind, I sprint forward in a panic. Our meeting time was 11 o’clock. I probably wouldn’t make it. Still, I had to get there as fast as possible……!

Heart racing, I desperately headed for my destination. Running along the road that led to the station, passing through the nearby shopping street, then slipping into a back alley and aiming for the building beyond it. A small, modest bookstore. Yes. The place I had to go was Tsubasa Bookstore. And the promise I’d made was about becoming Nene-chan’s temporary boyfriend.

Starting today, I was supposed to act as Nene-chan’s stand-in boyfriend and help her gain romantic experience. So that she could play the role of a girl in love.

“I’m sorry, Nene-chan! I’m late!”

I rushed inside the shop and called out to her, assuming she was somewhere inside. I’d arrived more than ten minutes past our promised time. She might be angry.

“Huh……?”

But Nene-chan was nowhere to be seen. No one stood behind the counter, and even when I looked around the store, there was no one there.

“Nene-chan……? Nene-chan, where are you—!?”

I called out loudly. But there was no reply. Had she gotten angry because I was late and gone somewhere……? That uneasy thought crossed my mind.

“Fufu…… over here♪”

A voice whispered right by my ear. Immediately after, I felt arms wrap tightly around me from behind.

Slender arms hugged my chest, and something soft pressed against my back.

This is…… could it be…… Nene-chan’s……!?

“Welcome, Kanata-kun. Hugー♪”

“N-Nene-chan!? What are you doing all of a sudden!?”

“What do you mean? I’m just hugging you. From today on, we’re lovers, right? Then this much is normal.”

“No, but this is just an act……! Physical contact like this is…… I mean! Your chest is pressing into me really hard……!”

“Eh? You didn’t notice? I’m doing it on purpose.”

“ＮＡＮＤＥ!?”

I was so shocked I almost reincarnated into a foreigner.

“Because lovers spend time being all lovey-dovey like this, right? This is just natural skinship, isn’t it?”

“It’s not natural! This is too much! Normal girls don’t do this!”

Hugging someone from behind might happen, but deliberately pressing your chest against them? That wasn’t something an ordinary girl would do. If she wanted to learn the feelings of a pure girl happy about getting her first boyfriend, she should be acting more like that.

“Muu…… is that so? I think it’s normal, though……”

Looking disappointed, Nene-chan pulled her chest away from me. Why does she look dissatisfied?

“Well then, once again…… Kanata-kun. From today on, let’s get along as 『lovers』. Thank you for going along with this.”

“No, it’s fine. I’m just not sure I can really play the role of a boyfriend……”

I had no romantic experience at all. A rock-solid virgin, through and through. Whether someone like me could really help her gain experience was questionable.

“It’s fine, it’s fine. Things like this are all about taking on the challenge. Besides, in the original novel, the MCs are also experiencing their first love. If anything, it’s perfect, don’t you think?”

“You think so……? Well…… I’ll do what I can.”

“Thank you. For now, come inside. It’s our day off, and my parents are out, so you don’t have to worry about anything.”

Nene-san winked playfully. I wondered if it was really okay to close the shop in the middle of the day, but if that was normal for them, then maybe it was fine……?

In any case, I followed Nene-chan inside her house. I was familiar with the bookstore area, but stepping past the counter was a first for me. Between nervousness and anticipation, I felt restless.

Just past the counter, there was a staircase on the left. Nene-chan went up, leading me into a room at the back of the second floor.

“Come on in. This is my room.”

“Nene-chan’s room……!”

My first time entering a girl’s room. Heart pounding, I followed her as she opened the door.

“Whoa……!”

It was a world I had never known.

The first thing that caught my eye was a large bed covered with pale pink sheets. Next to it was a study desk, and on a nearby shelf, teddy bears were neatly lined up.

By the wall stood a hanger rack holding several dresses and skirts—her everyday clothes. In the center of the room was a small table, surrounded by plump pink cushions. Combined with the clean white carpet, the color balance was really pleasant.

So this is…… a girl’s room……!

“I’ve never let anyone besides my family in, so it’s a little embarrassing…… but what do you think of my room?”

“Uh, well…… how should I say this…… Nene-chan’s room is even cuter than I expected……!”

It was exactly what you’d imagine when you hear 『a girl’s room』. Even the curtains had heart patterns—they were adorable.

“Muu…… that makes it sound like I’m not cute usually……”

Nene-chan puffed out her cheeks, looking sulky.

“N-no! That’s not what I meant! It’s just that you give off more of a sexy vibe normally, Nene-chan! So this kind of atmosphere feels unexpected……!”

“Is that so? Then I’ll let that slide. For now, let’s both relax.”

She smiled and sat down on the bed. I sat on one of the cushions she offered.

Wow…… I’m actually sitting in a girl’s room……! Not only did I step inside, I even sat down on a cushion she probably uses every day. Is this really allowed? Am I going to get billed later?

“Fufu. You don’t have to be that nervous. We’re lovers right now, remember? If you’re like this already, I worry about what comes next.”

“T-that’s true……!”

If I got flustered just from entering her room, there was no way I could act properly as her boyfriend. I steeled myself internally.

Then Nene-chan reset the mood.

“For today, let’s spend the whole day being lovey-dovey as a couple! To understand the feelings of 『Himemiya Shino』, who’s dating her first boyfriend!”

“O-okay……! But ‘lovey-dovey’ is kind of vague…… Do you have something specific in mind?”

If we were doing this, we shouldn’t just sit around together—we should do something that actually felt like a couple. I’d even come up with a few ideas myself. But if Nene-chan had something in mind, I wanted to prioritize that.

“Yeah. I actually thought about it too. Things that couples would do.”

She laughed happily.

“Oh? Like what?”

“Simply put! First, let’s play a game!”

A game…… That did sound like something couples might do together. Though whether it felt romantic was another matter……

“It’s fine! I’ve thought of a game—or rather, a way to play—that’s properly couple-like!”

I see. In that case, maybe it was fine.

Besides, easing into things with a game was probably easier on my nerves than jumping straight into couple-only activities.

“Alright. Let’s try that game first.”

“Yay! Then wait a bit—I’ll get things ready!”

Saying that, Nene-chan left the room. She was probably going to grab a game console or something.

A handheld game? Or maybe a board game? Left alone, I looked around her room again, wondering what kind of game it would be.

The room was neatly organized, without a speck of dust. The fact that it was kept so clean somehow felt very Nene-chan-like.

“Hmm……?”

I noticed something lying on the bed. Curious, I looked closer—it was a familiar printout.

“This is an audition script……”

Without thinking, I picked it up. It was just two stapled pages. On the first page was the title 『Satou aji no wan ruumu』 and the character profile of Himemiya, the role Nene-chan was auditioning for.

Scripts like these are given to voice actors before auditions. They include the lines to be performed and a brief profile of the character.

“Come to think of it, I don’t really know what kind of character she is……”

With everything happening so fast, I hadn’t had time to read the original work. I’d barely touched this series at all. At least I should understand Himemiya’s character.

Thinking that, I read through the profile.

From what was written, she seemed to be a somewhat introverted and passive character. She had no experience dating boys, and the only male she was close to was her childhood friend—the protagonist who would become her first boyfriend in the story. Her hobbies were things like reading and handicrafts—very indoorsy.

“I see…… She really feels down-to-earth. Pure, and kind of plain as a character.”

Maybe that was why portraying realistic feelings of love was so important. It sounded like a difficult role.

“I might as well check the lines too……”

It felt wrong to look through Nene-chan’s script without permission, but it would probably help if I knew the audition lines too. I might be able to give her some advice.

Wanting to support her, I looked at the second page. And──

“……!”

──I was left speechless.

It wasn’t because Himemiya’s lines were strange. If anything, they were very simple, like "I…… I’m really happy……? To be your girlfriend, Mononobe-kun……!"

But there was another reason I was shocked.

“Nene-chan…… this is amazing…… these notes……!”

What surprised me wasn’t the lines, but the insane amount of notes Nene-chan had written. She’d circled words and added comments like 『Put emotion into this!』 or 『Sound happy』 『Maybe a bit frustrated?』—you could tell she’d tried many different ways of reading them. The script was so darkened with writing that it was obvious she’d rewritten and revised it countless times.

I’d seen Ai-chan’s scripts before, so I knew voice actors making notes like this was normal. But Nene-chan’s notes went far beyond normal.

That meant she was struggling. And that meant she was seriously trying to win this role.

“Then I have to respond seriously too……!”

I renewed my resolve to support Nene-chan. She was genuinely working hard. She was seriously worrying—right now.

If I was the only one who could help her, then I wanted to do whatever I could. I wanted to properly stand by her sincere, earnest feelings.

“Kanata-kun, sorry to keep you waiting! I’m ready!”

Nene-chan’s voice rang out as the door opened. I turned toward her.

“Sorry~ it took a while to get everything ready.”

She stood there holding what I assumed were game items—things like a stethoscope, a syringe, and bandages.

…………Huh? A stethoscope? A syringe? What……?

“Alright, let’s begin, Kanata-kun. A fun game, as lovers!”

“U-um…… wait. What is all this supposed to mean……?”

Completely confused, I stared at the items in her hands.

No—there was something even stranger.

For some reason, Nene-chan was dressed in a pink nurse outfit.

And not just any nurse outfit. The chest area was dangerously open, clearly showing the deep cleavage formed by her ample bust. The skirt was so short that if she crossed her legs, her underwear would be visible.

“Why are you dressed like that……!? Weren’t we about to play a game……?”

“Yes, that’s right. That’s why I changed. We’re going to play doctor.”

“Hah!?”

Playing doctor!? Why would you choose that!?

“You see, I looked it up online yesterday. What couples usually do together. And I found an article that said, 『For couples who are really close, playing doctor is highly recommended! With her stimulating outfit, the bond between boyfriend and girlfriend will deepen instantly!』 So I thought, if we play doctor, I’ll understand how couples feel!”

No way! Sure, maybe some erotic couples do that, but 『Himemiya Shino』 definitely wouldn’t! Practicing this would never help with 『Experiencing a pure relationship and getting closer to her feelings』.

I tried to stop Nene-chan and say as much.

But it was already too late. She was moving.

“I’ll examine your body very thoroughly…… fufu……♪”

“Whoa!?”

With a suspicious smile, Nene-chan pushed me down. I fell onto the carpet, and she straddled me. Then she started lifting up my shirt.

“H-hey, Nene-chan!? What are you doing!? Please get off!”

“It’s fine, it’s fine. Just stay still, okay? Now then, let’s start the examination.”

And just like that, the doctor play began by force. She pressed the stethoscope against my chest.

"『First, I’ll listen to your heartbeat. The most important place of all…… I’ll examine it very carefully, okay?』"

“……!”

Nene-chan whispered right into my ear. My body shuddered instantly.

T-this…… this voice is dangerous……! If Nene-chan’s sexy voice actor whispering voice comes right into your ear……!

"『You’re beating really fast, aren’t you~? Are you that nervous? Fufu…… don’t worry. I’ll be very gentle with you……』"

“Guh……!”

Her sweet voice melted my brain as it softly brushed against my eardrums. This tingling sensation was like listening to a high-quality ＡＳＭＲ piece.

As expected of a professional voice actor…… Just a little whisper, and I couldn’t think straight anymore……!

"『Does anything hurt anywhere~? Don’t hold back—show me everything…… okay?』"

With a soothing voice that drained strength from my body, Nene-chan moved the stethoscope, and lightly traced my chest with her fingers, as if teasing me.

“Nngh……!”

"『Fufu…… holding back your voice—so cute……♪ You can feel even better, you know? Come on, let your voice out♪ Let it all out♪』"

She teased me provocatively. Her overwhelmingly pleasant voice sapped all strength from my body.

This is bad…… right? This situation is bad…… right? It feels like something obscene is already happening……! If this goes any further……!

Just as that thought crossed my mind, Nene-chan reached for my pants.

"『Then next〜…… let’s examine down there too, shall we〜?』"

“No way in hell that’s happeningggg!”

I couldn’t allow that. Driven by a sense of danger, I somehow broke free from Nene-chan’s hold, pushed her off me, and hurriedly retreated to the wall.

“Kyah. That’s no good—running away all of a sudden. The examination isn’t finished yet.”

“Like hell I’d let this continue! Just what were you planning to examine anyway!?”

“Oh? Or would you like to do the examination next, Kanata-kun? That’s fine too. Then it’s your turn.”

Saying that out of nowhere, Nene-chan tossed the stethoscope toward me. Then she unfastened the buttons of her nurse outfit, opening it completely.

“Examine my body thoroughly, okay?”

With black underwear on full display and her face slightly flushed, Nene-chan said that. As for me……

“This isn’t pure at aaaall───!!!”

I shouted at the top of my lungs, surprising even myself.

“W-what’s wrong, Kanata-kun!? Why are you shouting all of a sudden……?”

“Of course I’m shouting! What do you think you’ve been doing this whole time!?”

“What do you mean……? I was giving myself a pseudo-experience of a pure relationship so I can play Himemiya Shino……”

“How is any of this a pure relationship!? The role you’re playing is a pure, normal girl, right!? Even with her boyfriend, a girl like that would never do this! All you’ll learn from this is your usual sexy—or rather, erotic—acting!?”

“I-is that so……? This isn’t normal……? I thought lovers naturally did things like this……”

“It’s not normal! They absolutely don’t! Stuff like this is for brain-fried lovey-dovey idiot couples, or lovers who’ve hit the bored phase!”

“……Seriously?”

Nene-chan looked so shocked that even her tone changed. This woman is hopeless……! She’s completely off when it comes to what’s considered normal. She seriously thinks ordinary student couples casually do erotic stuff……

“Anyway, this is seriously not happening. Let’s do something else.”

“I-is that so……? Alright…… It’s kind of frustrating, though……”

Having her sense of normalcy rejected, Nene-chan looked a little dissatisfied. Still, for her own sake, I had to put a stop to the doctor play.

 

※

 

“Then next, let’s cook together!”

After changing out of her nurse outfit and back into her regular clothes, Nene-chan made another suggestion.

“Cooking… together? What’s the idea behind that?”

“Because it’s nice when lovers stand in the kitchen together and cook side by side, right? It feels like you’re really close.”

Ahh…… when she puts it that way, she might have a point. Going shopping together or cooking together has that everyday feeling to it. Doing something as a team feels nice, too.

“And after that, we can feed each other while going 『ah—n』 That should be pure, student-couple-style flirting!”

“That does sound pretty nice. Being fed like that would make me happy too……”

Memories of the other day, when I ate together with Ai-chan, came back to me. Yeah…… that really was wonderful. Eating with a girl is the best.

“……What’s wrong, Kanata-kun? Aren’t you smiling a bit too much?”

“N-no! It’s nothing like that!?”

That was close. If she found out I’d done something like that with Ai-chan, she might get the wrong idea. It’s not like I did anything wrong, but it’s not something to go around telling people either.

“It’s just past noon anyway. Why don’t we make lunch together now? I’ve already prepared all the ingredients in the kitchen.”

“Alright. Let’s do it then. By the way, what are we making?”

“I was thinking of omurice today…… is that okay with you, Kanata-kun?”

“Yes. I like omurice too.”

That’s something I could manage. If you wanted to get fancy, you could go all out, but for something normally edible, you just need to stir-fry ketchup rice with ingredients and put an omelet on top.

“Then it’s decided! Let’s head to the kitchen right away!”

After that, we moved from Nene-chan’s room to the kitchen. It felt like we could finally do some proper flirting.

The kitchen was located at the back of the first floor. It wasn’t very big, but it was clean and tidy. The sink was spotless, and cookware like frying pans and seasonings were neatly put away. Just like her room, it was a well-organized space. Maybe Nene-chan cleans here regularly too.

“Alright, let’s take out the ingredients we’ll use first! ……Ah, but before that, I need to put on an apron…… I’ll go get one, so can you wait a bit?”

“An apron? Isn’t it fine without one?”

“Nope, not allowed. In light novels and manga, people often wear aprons in scenes like this, right? And matching aprons feels very couple-like too.”

Oh…… so it’s a kind of couple look. That actually sounds kind of pure. A little bit like a silly lovey-dovey couple, but still.

“I’ll be right back, so wait here. Umm, it should be in the storage case……”

With her slippers making soft noises, Nene-chan left the kitchen.

Cooking together, huh…… I’ve never done that with Ai-chan. When she’s not working, she always says things like 『Leave it to me! I’m staying at your place, so at least let me do this!』 or 『It’s fan service too!』 and never lets me help.

Thinking about it like that, I couldn’t help but feel excited. Cooking together with Nene-chan, getting along…… it really felt like being lovers, or even a married couple, and my imagination started running wild……

“Okay, I’ll prepare the ingredients. Kanata-kun, crack the eggs and mix them.”

“Got it!”

Following her instructions, I took several eggs out of the fridge, cracked them, and put them into a bowl.

“Oh, Kanata-kun. You can crack eggs with one hand. That’s impressive.”

“Anyone can do it once they get used to it. I think you could too, Nene-chan.”

“Nope. I probably can’t. You’re amazing, Kanata-kun. I really admire you.”

“You’re praising me too much. Well, I don’t dislike it, though.”

Standing side by side and chatting, I added salt and pepper to the eggs and mixed them.

Meanwhile, Nene-chan prepared the mushrooms, mixed vegetables, and sausages for the ketchup rice.

“But…… standing together like this in the kitchen feels kind of strange, doesn’t it? It really feels like we’re dating.”

“That’s the whole point. When you’re making something together, it really does feel special. You wouldn’t do this with just anyone.”

“You’re right. Fufu…… hey.”

“Ah—Nene-chan?”

All of a sudden, Nene-chan leaned against me while cutting the sausages into small pieces.

“H-hey, that’s dangerous while using a knife, you know? Wouldn’t it be better to step away for a bit—”

“It’s fine. I want to stay like this right now. We’re finally alone together……♪”

Saying that, Nene-chan looked up at me with upturned eyes. Her smile clearly showed how she felt about me.

When she looked at me like that, I couldn’t just brush her off. I gently placed my hand on her head and softly stroked her hair.

“Hey, Kanata-kun…… do you like me……?”

“Of course. I’ll always cherish you.”

“I’m glad…… I like you a lot too, you know?”

 

……If only we could actually have an exchange like that.

Pure, innocent moments like that with a lover—everyone dreams of it at least once. Even if it’s just pretend, I’d like to experience something like that at least once……

While I was lost in those fantasies, I heard the sound of slippers again from the hallway. It seemed Nene-chan had come back.

“Sorry to keep you waiting, Kanata-kun. I brought them.”

“Ah. It’s fine, Nene-chan. I wasn’t waiting that lo—ng……?”

I turned around to greet her.

And then froze at the sight before me.

“Ehehe. I went ahead and put the apron on.”

Nene-chan said that with a gentle smile. Indeed, she was wearing an apron. A light blue, very cute apron.

But Nene-chan…… she wasn’t wearing anything else.

The clothes she had been wearing just moments ago—the low-cut blouse and long skirt—were completely gone. In other words, she was wearing nothing but an apron.

Because of that, whenever she turned sideways or around, her beautiful back and plump hips were completely exposed.

“Ta-da♪ What do you think? Does the apron suit me?”

“What the hell are you doing────!!”

This isn’t about aprons anymore! Why does this woman keep appearing in front of me dressed in absurd outfits!? Is she cursed to only show up while doing something ridiculous!?

“Why are you suddenly going for the naked apron!? Are you a pervert!?”

“But when you think of lovers, this is it, right? I researched it properly♪”

“No, it’s not! Absolutely not! This is definitely not normal!”

“Come on, Kanata-kun, put on the matching apron too. You need to take everything off properly.”

“I have to get naked too!? Is that what you mean by matching!?”

Why would a guy even do a naked apron!? There’s zero demand for that!

“Huh……? But close lovers do couple looks, don’t they?”

“Even then, don’t do matching naked aprons! Naked aprons themselves are weird!”

“Eh…… eeh? This is wrong too……? Why……?”

This woman really doesn’t get it! She seriously thinks naked aprons count as normal, pure flirting! Her understanding of flirting has been completely off this whole time!

“Showing your chest or butt to your partner isn’t normal flirting! Even lovers don’t do that so casually!”

“Whaaat!? Is that so!? I-I thought lovers normally show each other their bodies all the time……”

So that’s why she’s been acting like this……

“Oh man…… why would you misunderstand things that badly……”

“B-because…… I thought it was a girlfriend’s duty to make her boyfriend happy…… And a book I read said, 『A girlfriend should show her body to her boyfriend twenty-four seven』……”

“There’s no such thing! What kind of book says that!?”

“Um, let’s see…… I think it was called 『Roshutsu no susume (The Recommendation of Exposure)』……?”

“That’s straight-up an erotic book! You picked the wrong reference!?”

This woman really has some surprising airheaded moments…… What kind of book does she use as study material……

“Stuff like that is for adults. What you want to know is high school romance, right? This is a complete category error!”

“But I saw online that high schoolers these days are pretty advanced? So I thought naked aprons might be normal……”

“They’re not doing that! Probably! Most likely……!”

Since I don’t have a girlfriend, I can’t say for sure, but there’s no way something this niche is common. At the very least, the characters in 『Satou aji no wan ruumu』 definitely aren’t doing it.

“Anyway! Erotic stuff like that is banned! Let’s think of a healthier way for couples to spend time together!”

“H-healthy……? Healthy……? Um……?”

Hey, why does she look so lost? It’s like she can’t think of a single thing a healthy couple would do. Are all her brain synapses connected to erotic thoughts or something……?

“Ah, whatever…… I get it now…… When it comes to romance, you’re kind of hopeless, Nene-chan……”

“U-uu…… I’m sorry……”

I never imagined she’d misunderstand things this badly…… Maybe she should just give up on the 『Himemiya』 role and stick to erotic-comedy characters?

But she’s genuinely serious about the audition…… I guess I’ll have to do something for her……

“Um…… for now, why don’t we just cook the food? I’m getting pretty hungry.”

“Y-yeah…… Let’s think about the details after lunch……”

“Also, please go change first…… I can’t look at you properly like that……”

“Okay…… I’m sorry……”

Nene-chan drooped as if you could hear a shoboon sound effect and left to get changed.

And then, together with the changed-and-returned Nene-chan, I made omurice.

 

※

 

After that, we were able to cook together in a fairly proper, lover-like way.

And after finishing the meal with a slightly downcast Nene-chan, we sat down again to discuss our plan going forward—how exactly we should flirt so that she could genuinely experience feelings similar to those of “Himemiya Shino.”

However, the ideas Nene-chan came up with during that discussion were things like 『sleeping naked together under the futon』 or 『getting really into a game of Twister』—all of them heavily skewed toward the erotic.

“Uu…… when I look at Chuitter, there are illustrations of couples playing nipple-touch games just casually posted……”

“That’s because…… those are that kind of illustrations……”

It seemed that, for some reason, the information she usually picked up was biased toward erotic content. That skewed her sense of what was normal. Maybe, because of her job, she was always checking what kinds of topics were trending among otaku.

“At this rate, it doesn’t seem like anything normal will come out when Nene-chan thinks about flirting……”

“I’m sorry…… I was confident in all of them, though……”

No wonder Nene-chan was always so good at sexy performances. Her ideas themselves flew way too far down the sexy route. To her, lovers flirting meant doing erotic things. What is she, a middle school boy? With that mindset, it’s only natural she’d struggle with playing a pure character.

“But…… then what kind of flirting would actually be considered normal?”

“There are lots of things. Studying together, or playing games together that aren’t doctor-play. And above all…… how about going out on a date?”

That had actually been what I was planning to suggest to Nene-chan from the start.

I don’t have any experience myself, but student couples probably study together for homework or test prep. Teaching each other problems, taking breaks with lap pillows or kisses—at least, that’s how I imagine it. I have no experience, though.

As for games, they probably play normal versus games together, or spin gacha in social games side by side. And dates go without saying. Yes. Of course, I have no experience with that either.

“A date……! You’re right, that does sound nice! Somehow, that was a total blind spot for me!”

Nene-chan immediately latched onto the word “date,” her voice bright as she eagerly suggested that we go out somewhere together.

“But going on a date right now would be tough, wouldn’t it? It’s already this late.”

Before I realized it, the time was already six o’clock. Between all the erotic antics and discussions, evening had arrived. Going out leisurely at this point would be difficult.

“I see…… then it can’t be helped…… I wanted to go on a date too……”

Nene-chan looked genuinely disappointed. As a girl, she must have her own longing for dates.

“It’s fine. We should be able to make time at least once before the audition. Let’s go on a date somewhere then!”

“Really……!? Kanata-kun, you’ll go out with me again……?”

“Yes. We still haven’t solved Nene-chan’s problem yet.”

Once you’re on the boat, you might as well ride it to the end. Or rather, I’d intended from the start to stick with her until her worries were resolved.

“Thank you, Kanata-kun. I’m happy. Then, sorry to ask, but could you do it on your next day off?”

“Of course! Leave it to me!”

And with that, we made our next promise and headed home for the day. On the way back, I thought through various plans for what kind of date it should be.

 

※

 

“『Kanata-kun…… welcome home! I’ve been waiting for you this whole time, you know……? I’m really, really glad you came back……!』”

“Uooooohhh! I-it’s Kana-chan’s voiceee!”

Greeting me as I came home was my oshi, speaking in Kana-chan’s voice from 『Maji☆Mari』. With a level of reproduction so perfect it felt like the real Kana-chan was standing right there, she acted out a scene straight out of the anime.

This 『being welcomed home by my oshi character』 was truly my greatest privilege—one I could only experience because I lived together with Ai-chan.

“Ehehe. I’m glad you liked it♪ But won’t you get tired of it if I do it every time?”

“As if! An oshi’s voice and acting never fade, no matter how many times I hear them.”

“Really? Ehehe…… thank you! Then maybe I’ll give you a little extra service!”

Saying that, Ai-chan gently hugged me and reached up to touch the back of my head.

“『You worked hard again today, good boy〜. There, there〜. I really love how hard you work, Kanata-kun〜』”

Head pats and an 『I love you』, all in Kana-chan’s voice……!?

“A hug and head pats—special service〜♪ I hope it makes you happy!”

“Y-yeah! I’m happy! Way too happy!”

I’d thought this for a long time now, but Ai-chan’s fan service level was way too high. If most fans were treated like this by their oshi, they’d probably be so happy they’d ascend straight to heaven. She really should be more careful.

But…… doing something like this right after spending time with Nene-chan as her pretend boyfriend…… somehow makes me feel like I’m doing something wrong……

“When Kanata is happy, it makes me happy too〜. A fan’s smile is my source of energy, you know〜”

No…… interacting with them like this is also for their sake. Even if I have love for my oshis, I don’t have a single impure thought!

“I’ll pat you a little more, okay? There, there〜”

“A-Ai-chaaaan! I’ll keep supporting you foreverrr!”

I don’t have any impure thoughts…… really……

And after fooling around like that for a while, we once again began preparing for the interview, just like we had that morning.

 

※

 

And then, Sunday—one week later arrived.

At last, the day of the interview itself was here.

“Ai-chan…… are you ready?”

“Y-yeah……! I’m fine……! When it counts, I can do this……!”

The two of us rode the train together and arrived in Akihabara, where the studio for the interview was located. As we walked toward the studio, we did one final check together.

“Like I said before, today is an important day if you want to gain more fans. But try not to get too nervous, okay? No matter what they ask, just stay calm.”

“I know. And all I have to do is answer what they ask me, right?”

In the end, we decided that Ai-chan would just talk about herself as she truly was during the interview. It would be a problem if she tried too hard to say something impactful and things went strange like during practice.

Besides, there’s no point in people supporting a fake version of Ai-chan. She’s wonderful just the way she is, and I want them to like her real self.

“There’s no chance of failing like in an audition, so that makes me feel a bit more at ease. If anything…… I’m more worried about the photo shoot……”

“The photo shoot, huh……”

Apparently, there would be a pin-up poster of Ai-chan and the others included with the interview article, but we hadn’t heard any details about what kind of photos they would take.

“I think that’ll be fine too. You’ll probably just wear whatever outfit they specify and follow the photographer’s instructions. If you act normally, it should be okay.”

“Yeah…… but it’s my first time doing a shoot, so I’m nervous…… And it’ll be printed in a magazine, right? I wonder if I’m really good enough……”

Ai-chan muttered anxiously. Hearing that, I raised my voice without thinking.

“What are you talking about!? You’re an amazing voice actress, Ai-chan! I’ll personally guarantee your cuteness! If anything, the magazine’s value will go up just by having you in it!”

“C-come on…… that’s definitely an exaggeration……”

Ai-chan blushed and looked down. No, it’s not an exaggeration at all. If anything, I’m still not praising her enough.

“But…… thank you. I feel a bit more confident now. If my manager says that much, I should carry myself with confidence!”

“I’m glad to hear that. Don’t put yourself down too much, okay? If you’re confident, you’ll probably take better photos too.”

“You’re right……! Okay, I get it!”

As we talked, we arrived at the designated studio. It was a place called 『Sunlight』, located inside a multi-tenant building.

When we passed through the entrance, the other two had already arrived.

“Ah! Ai-chan! And Kanata-senpai!”

Rinrin waved and ran over to us, with Nene-chan following behind her.

“Good morning, you two. Let’s do our best today. For the success of the 『Kimizora』 anime.”

“Yeah! Let’s make sure all the magazine readers end up watching the anime!”

“By the way, are the editors not here yet? It looks like it’s just you two.”

“Yeah, not yet. We just arrived ourselves.”

I see…… According to what we were told beforehand, we were supposed to meet the magazine staff here. Maybe we should just wait.

“Hellooo! Nice to meet you all!”

Suddenly, a woman’s voice echoed through the room. Turning around, we saw a petite woman walking toward us.

“You’re the voice actresses for 『Kimizora』, right? Thank you so much for coming all this way! I’m Iijima from 『Seiyuu Champion』, and I’ll be interviewing you!”

The woman who introduced herself as Iijima handed out her business cards to all of us with extremely high energy. We each greeted her in turn.

“Sorry for keeping you waiting! My train got delayed a bit! Let’s get started right away—first up is the photo shoot!”

The photography team was already preparing in the studio room. Following her lead, we headed there first.

“S-so it’s finally the shoot……! I’m getting nervous……”

“It’ll be fine! I was nervous too earlier, but if we go in confidently, I’m sure we’ll get great photos!”

“Ai-chan’s right. Let’s smile and not be afraid.”

With their first real job right in front of them, the girls encouraged each other.

In the middle of that, Iijima-san spoke to me.

“Um, excuse me. You’re the manager…… Kanata-san, right?”

“Huh? Ah, yes, that’s me……”

“You look like a student, don’t you? That’s impressive, being a voice actress’s manager at such a young age.”

“Ah, well…… there were various circumstances…… haha……”

Explaining how I met Ai-chan would take too long, so I dodged the question.

“But isn’t it tough? Even if it’s work, being around such cute girls all the time…… doesn’t it build up, you know?”

“Huh!?”

“You’re a teenage guy too, right? You must get, you know…… worked up sometimes?”

“N-no, not at all! Especially Ai-chan—she’s an important partner, and my number-one oshi! I’d never look at her in such an indecent way!”

“Ehh? Getting that defensive is kinda suspicious~. Well, I’m just joking~. Hehe.”

Iijima-san laughed suggestively. She seemed to have a very blunt personality. I’d talked with her on the phone before, but meeting her in person made it very clear.

While chatting like that, we entered the photography room. Cameras and other equipment were already set up, and several female staff members were on standby. We exchanged greetings with them.

“Alrighty! Looks like everything’s ready, so let’s start shooting right away! First, we want photos for the feature page—Ai-chan, Rinrin, and Nene-chan together! Then we’ll also take solo shots for the pin-up poster!”

“U-um…… Iijima-san, may I ask something?”

Ai-chan timidly raised her hand.

“What kind of outfits will we be wearing for today’s shoot……? I brought some of my favorite casual clothes, just in case……”

That was something all of them were concerned about.

In response, Iijima-san grinned again.

“We’ll decide that while trying different things out! We’ve prepared lots of outfits!”

As she said that, Iijima-san pointed toward the wall.

Following her finger, we saw several clothing racks lined up, each filled with outfits.

“You’ll choose from these! We want to shoot you in whatever looks cutest on you!”

“F-from all of these……!? That’s a lot……!”

“Yeah…… it’s like a clothing store. I’m kind of excited.”

The four of us walked over to the racks.

Just glancing over them, there were maid outfits, shrine maiden robes, princess-like dresses, and even cosplay outfits from famous anime characters. There had to be over a hundred different outfits.

“T-this……! Can we really wear any of these!?”

“Of course! Take your time and choose!”

As Ai-chan’s eyes sparkled, Iijima-san gave a thumbs-up. As expected, they were all girls—faced with so many outfits, their excitement was obvious.

“But it’s hard to know which one to pick. Should we just try them on one by one?”

“I’d like to try lots of different clothes too! But I’m worried about whether they’ll suit me……”

“There are quite a few bold outfits. That part worries me a little too.”

Even while having fun, the three of them looked uneasy about whether the outfits would suit them.

Seeing that, Iijima-san made a suggestion.

“Ah! Then why not have Kanata-san choose?”

“Eh……? Me……!?”

Why me? Shouldn’t the editor or the photography staff be giving their opinion……?

“You’ve got a guy their age right here! If you pick the outfits, the readers will love it! So I’m counting on you, Kanata-chi!”

She said casually, patting my back repeatedly.

Hey, what’s with this woman? She’s closing the distance way too fast. She’s already calling me『Kanata-chi』, and we just met, didn’t we?

But Ai-chan and the others agreed with her.

“That’s true! We can try on different outfits and let Kanata pick which one was best!”

“If that’s the case, I’ll feel more confident! Senpai, please take care of us!”

“Depending on what you choose, we might learn something about your tastes, Kanata-kun. Hehe, I’m kind of looking forward to it.”

S-seriously……? I’m really choosing……? That’s a lot of responsibility…… The readers’ impression could change depending on what they wear……

“It’ll be fine. They’ve all got great base qualities, so there aren’t any bad outfits. Whatever you choose will look good.”

“Well…… if you say so……”

While feeling puzzled by how overly friendly she was toward me, I replied. She was right—no matter what these three wore, it wouldn’t turn out badly.

“Alright then…… everyone, pick some outfits to try on. I’ll help choose while giving my thoughts.”

『Okaaay!』

Ai-chan and the others replied energetically and turned toward the racks full of outfits.

“Hmm, what should I pick first~? Maybe I’ll close my eyes and choose randomly.”

“Oh! That sounds fun! You might find something that surprisingly suits you!”

“There may be charms we don’t notice ourselves. I’ll go for something unexpected.”

The three of them chatted excitedly while choosing clothes. Before long, each of them picked an outfit and disappeared into the changing area, which was really just a space separated by curtains.

But…… that means Ai-chan and the others are changing right behind those curtains right now…… Everyone else here is female, so maybe it’s not a big issue, but on the other side of a single piece of fabric, they’re changing into cute—and possibly indecent—underwear. Just imagining that makes it impossible for me to stay still. At this point, maybe I should just charge in through the curtain and—

“—Such criminal thoughts ended up taking over my mind……”

“Um…… could you not fabricate psychological narration without permission……?”

I said with a deadpan expression to Iijima-san, who whispered in my ear.

“Ahaha, sorry. But you’re thinking it, right? ‘Man, I wanna see those girls in their underwear,’ or something like that.”

“I’m not! That’s rude!”

That’s right. I’m not thinking anything lewd. They’re my oshis. At the same time, they’re important work partners, juniors, and seniors. I’d never feel base desire toward them……!

“Huh? Kanata-kun, do you want to peek? If you want, you can come in, you know.”

“Nene-chan!? What are you saying all of a sudden!?”

“S-Senpai! No! You can’t come in!”

“Y-yeah! Even if it’s you, Kanata, you can’t look while we’re changing!”

Their voices came from behind the curtain. I mean, we’re all in the same room, so of course they can hear us too.

“Talking like this while they’re actually undressing right now…… that’s kinda exciting, isn’t it?”

“Please just be quiet!”

If I let Iijima-san keep talking, something really bad would happen. I had to stop her, even if I had to shout.

“Okaaay, sorry about that. I’ll be in the other room talking with the photography team.”

Laughing teasingly, Iijima-san moved to another room with the camera crew.

This woman might be using me as a stress outlet before work.

“By the way…… Ai-chan, you’re really wearing that!? That takes a lot of courage……!”

“Uu…… choosing without looking was a mistake…… But aren’t your outfits pretty extreme too……?”

“Hehe. They certainly have… personality. I wonder what Kanata-kun will say……?”

That conversation sounds ominous…… What kind of outfits did they pick……?

On top of that, I could hear the faint sounds of clothes rustling. Just like Iijima-san said earlier, they’re right next to me, in their underwear…… Even if I try not to think about it, my imagination runs wild—my oshis in their underwear. The curves of their chests wrapped in bras, panties clinging tightly to their hips…… The images flood my mind and take over my thoughts……!

“U-um…… Kanata…… can I ask you something……?”

“Hwa!?”

While I was lost in those thoughts, Ai-chan suddenly spoke. She peeked her face out from the gap in the curtain, completely red, looking at me with moist eyes.

“Well, um…… I’m done changing…… but before I show you, I want you to promise me something……”

“A promise……?”

“Um…… no matter what I’m wearing, don’t laugh or pull away, okay……? I picked this with my eyes closed…… I didn’t choose it because I wanted to……!”

She said that, laying down a defensive line. Just how bad is this outfit……? Feeling a bit scared, I nodded and agreed.

“Really……? Absolutely…… absolutely promise……?”

She asked one more time to be sure. Then Ai-chan took a deep breath, her face turning resolute.

“O-okay…… here goes……!”

With a reckless tone, Ai-chan stepped out from behind the curtain.

The moment her figure entered my field of view, I froze completely.

“Eh……?”

What she was wearing was an extremely impactful micro bikini. A black micro bikini with the chest straps crossing in an X shape. Down below, a V-shaped piece of fabric dug tightly in to barely conceal her most vital area. Even at a glance, the sheer destructive power was overwhelming.

But this outfit wasn’t just an X-shaped bikini. Her thighs were tightly wrapped in black tights, small horns adorned her head, wings sprouted from her back, and an arrow-shaped tail was attached to her hips. In other words, she was dressed as a swimsuit succubus.

A succubus that seduces men, clad in a bikini designed to stimulate every man’s libido—truly the strongest possible form. Like giving an ogre an iron club… no, giving a succubus a bikini. Seeing Ai-chan wearing such an ultimate, perfected outfit felt like my head had been smashed with a hammer—a single, heavy blow that left me reeling.

“K-Kanata……? Uu…… say something…… please……”

Ai-chan spoke with teary eyes, unable to endure my gaze as she tried to hide her body with her arms.

Even so, the side of her chest—soft and ready to bounce—couldn’t be fully covered by a micro bikini, and it stayed firmly within my field of view. If she were to turn her back, I’d surely be treated to the sight of her firm, rounded hips emphasized by how deeply the bikini dug in.

“How should I put it…… that’s incredible……”

It was a bewitchingly lewd appearance I never could have imagined from her usual cute self. The gap between her normally pure image and this extremely erotic outfit made my heart stir uncontrollably.

“I-I knew it…… it’s weird, right…… this outfit…… It’s too lewd, and it doesn’t suit me…… Uuuh…… I shouldn’t have worn it……”

“N-no! It’s not that it doesn’t suit you! I was just shocked by how bold it is!”

Anyone would be overwhelmed if their oshi suddenly appeared right in front of them dressed as such an erotic succubus. But honestly speaking, it definitely wasn’t unsuited to her. If anything… it was insanely ero-cute. Yeah. Truly ero-cute. I just wanted to shout “Bravo!” at the sight of my oshi dressed like this. Seriously, my heart was pounding so hard I thought something might happen…!

“R-really……? If it suits me, then that’s good…… A-ah, but wait. Being told this outfit suits me somehow feels complicated……”

“N-no! I think it’s a really good thing! Besides, you might have a succubus role audition someday! It wouldn’t hurt to get into the mood now, right?”

“That’s true…… I can’t say it’ll never happen……!”

“Since we’re at it, wanna try some succubus acting……? Like seducing a man……”

“Eeeeh──!? I-in this outfit!?”

To be honest, I had ulterior motives. I genuinely wanted to be seduced by Ai-chan dressed like this. Of course, there was also the manager-side reasoning of wanting her to practice acting—but the ratio was probably seven to three, with desire winning out when I made that suggestion.

That said, if Ai-chan didn’t want to do it, I had no intention of forcing her…

“……O-okay. I’ll try……! This is also for winning the 『Popular Voice Actress Awards』……”

She made a brave decision. Taking a deep breath to steady herself, resolve filled her eyes. She lowered the hands that had been hiding her body and took a step closer to me.

“Hey…… Onii-san. Are you alone right now……? Wanna do something fun with me……?”

Ai-chan looked up at my face with an upturned gaze. Whether from embarrassment or acting, her eyes were lightly moist, appealing directly to my heart.

That alone nearly rendered me incapable of functioning from how hard my heart was pounding, but since I was the one who suggested this, I had a responsibility. I gave the bare minimum response to make it easier for her to act.

“Something fun……? What do you mean……?”

“You don’t know? Ahaha……♪ Onii-san, are you that dense~? Haven’t you ever played with a girl before~? Waa~, how lame♡ Mr・Vir・gin♡”

Apparently, Ai-chan was playing a bratty succubus type. Ai-chan…… where did you even learn about a character like this?

“Then I’ll teach you lots of things, you pitiful, pathetic onii-san. What ‘fun things’ really are……♪”

Ai-chan twisted her body sinuously, as if to emphasize her curves.

This is bad…… I know it’s just acting, but if she moves like that in this outfit, I don’t think I can keep my sanity……!

“Haa…… haa…… Nn, ah……♡”

Ai-chan herself seemed aware of how extreme this was. Her breathing gradually became rough and indecent.

And then, the act escalated even further.

“Ahaha……♪ Look, look, Mr. Virgin Onii-san♡ My boobs are amazing, right~?”

As she spoke, Ai-chan shook her chest up and down with both hands, deliberately showing it off. Her chest was already barely covered by the micro bikini, with her side cleavage completely exposed. When she shook them like that, the overflowing parts bounced obscenely, locking my gaze in place.

“Waa~! Oni-san, your eyes are scary♡ You’re trying to pounce on my boobs~♡”

“N-no, that’s not it! I’m not thinking that……!”

“Fufu…… That’s right, isn’t it~? You don’t have the guts for that, do you~? Weak, weak Mr. Virgin♡”

Ai-chan launched bratty attacks at me when I answered instinctively.

“But it’s okay~. I want to do pleasurable things too……♡”

She gave a suspicious, succubus-like smile—and then hugged me straight on, pressing her chest firmly against me.

“Wha……!?”

“See, see~. It feels good, doesn’t it, Onii-san~? A girl’s boobs for the first time…… You can squeeze them as much as you want, okay~?”

Wait, wait, wait! This is way too much, even for acting! Letting me actually touch her boobs is something the usual Ai-chan would never do!

Could this be…… that infamous runaway state……!?

“Ai-chan, um…… the acting is fine now, so could you step back for a moment……?”

“Hmm~? Don’t hold back~! Instead, let me gulp down your vitality…… okay?”

“She’s definitely gone off the rails—! Ai-chan, stop! Come back to your senses!”

When Ai-chan gets too absorbed in erotic acting, she sometimes loses herself. When that happens, she unconsciously tries to cross the line.

“Please stop! This is my fault for making such a weird suggestion!”

“Onii-san didn’t do anything wrong, you know? The bad one is me…… a perverted succubus who attacks virgins like you……♡”

“That’s enough with the succubus already! Come back to the pure Ai-chan you were before!”

“Then…… I’ll take it now, okay? Your precious first time……♡”

Ai-chan reached for my pants. At this rate, she was going to use force……!

I tried to push her away, but Ai-chan was strong at times like this. No matter how hard I tried to pull back, she pressed in with even greater strength.

Is this the end……!? Just as despair filled me, that moment──

“Okay, Ai-chaaan! Stop right there!”

Suddenly, Rinrin cut in between us. She placed her fingers against Ai-chan’s exposed side.

“Let’s stop here~? Tickle tickle tickle~”

“Eh? Ahahahahahaha! Wh-what!? Nn, kuh…… ahahahahaha! Ahahahahahahaha!”

Confused but overcome by ticklish laughter, Ai-chan’s acting finally came to an end.

“S-sorry…… Rinrin…… You saved me……”

“Don’t worry about it. If Ai-chan went any further, she’d have a hard time remembering it later.”

Rinrin had seen Ai-chan lose control before. That was probably why she could handle it so calmly.

“Haa…… haa…… Huh……? What was I……?”

“You didn’t do anything at all, Ai-chan. More importantly, you should probably change soon, okay? If you keep your stomach exposed like that, you’ll catch a cold.”

“Eh……? Ah, you’re right…… Thank you! Next time, I need to choose a different type of outfit……”

Ai-chan hid her body shyly again and returned behind the curtain. Honestly, even after everything that happened, I felt a strange sense of regret watching her change.

“Hey, Senpai! How long are you going to keep staring at Ai-chan!? Look at me too!”

“Huh……?”

At her words, I turned my attention back to Rinrin. Only then did I realize—thanks to Ai-chan’s rampage, I hadn’t noticed earlier, but Rinrin had changed too. A white shirt paired with a black tight skirt. The shirt was designed to open at the chest, and the skirt was extremely short. On top of that, there was a slit, revealing her thick, shapely thighs. She also wore a pair of fake glasses, giving her an intellectual air.

It seemed to be a female teacher cosplay. The prop riding crop she held in her hand also clearly told me that she was supposed to be a teacher.

But—between this and the succubus outfit earlier, why are all the costumes here kind of erotic? Are they filming an A〇 video or something?

“Fufu. So, how is it? Kanata-senpai—no, Kanata-kun. Do I look cool dressed as a teacher?”

With a smug expression, Rinrin adjusted the position of her fake glasses in a very teacher-like manner.

“Kanata-kun? Let me teach you something. To find the area of a trapezoid, it’s (top base + bottom base) × (height) × two. Did you know that?”

Proudly presenting what was apparently the best knowledge she could come up with, she seemed to be fully immersed in her role as a teacher.

“I see… thanks. By the way, the correct formula for the area of a trapezoid is (top base + bottom base) × (height) ÷ two. Got it?”

“Eh!? Huh…? Was that how it went…?”

Nope. This girl is hopeless. That’s not cool—that’s just foolish.

“Alright then, I’ll ask you one instead. What’s an English word that means 『to influence』 or 『to have an effect on something』?”

“Ah, umm…? What was it again…?”

“Question two! Name a famous event that occurred in the year 1467 during the Muromachi period.”

“The Muromachi period!? Auh, eh…? Which era is that…?”

“Question three! What was the most shocking excuse Yamada-kun, a habitual latecomer, gave to his teacher?”

“An improv comedy question all of a sudden!? Umm, umm… I thought you opened at ten o’clock!”

“Time’s up! Zero points!”

“Zero points!? Is that because the last one wasn’t funny!?”

No, I want you to be more depressed about your lack of knowledge. I messed around at the end too, though.

“Rinrin… sorry, but being a teacher is impossible for you. You’d just end up being the students’ toy…”

“Waaah! Senpai, you’re so mean! I want to stand at the podium and make a smug face too!”

Don’t aspire to be a teacher for such a reason. I feel sorry for the students.

“But… I do think that outfit suits you. How should I put it… it’s kind of sexy.”

“Eh…? R-Really!?”

“Yeah. You look intelligent and cute in a way that’s different from your usual self. Or rather, it’s like a cheerful, energetic, slightly airheaded girl trying too hard to act mature—that mismatch is really charming.”

“Um… should I be happy about that? Or should I get angry about being treated like an airhead?”

“N-no! That was just a metaphor! A metaphor!”

Rinrin clenched her fist with a smile, and I hurriedly tried to smooth things over. But honestly, her outfit wasn’t bad. No, it was really cute…! If I were allowed, I’d love to take photos for myself.

“If you like it, I think it’d be fine to use it for the shoot. At the very least, I like it that much.”

“I see… Then I’ll be honest and be happy! But I’ll look at a few more outfits before deciding!”

Rinrin smiled brightly. Yeah—this kind of expression suits her best. As long as she’s smiling like that, she’d probably look good in anything.

Then Rinrin went back behind the curtain.

Almost as if swapping places with her, Nene-chan peeked her face out next.

“Well then, how does my outfit look?”

“Ah, Nene-chan. What kind of clothes did you cho—Whaaaaa!?”

The moment I saw her, I shouted in shock.

Because she was wearing a camisole and a mini skirt… along with a bright red randoseru backpack and a yellow school hat.

“So…? Do I look cute in this? Fufu…”

“No, what on earth are you wearing!? Why are you carrying a randoseru!?”

“Of course it’s this kind of cosplay. An elementary school outfit—randoseru and hat♪”

No, that’s weird… absolutely weird…! And why do you even have a randoseru!? Iijima-san said there weren’t any strange outfits here, didn’t she!?

“Honestly, I’m really embarrassed… but I thought the unexpectedness might be nice.”

Yes. It’s unexpected. It’s unexpected incarnate.

Nene-chan’s body is completely that of an adult. Seeing someone like her carrying a randoseru gives off an extremely dangerous vibe.

And with the backpack pressing against her, it somehow emphasized her large chest, making my eyes drift there despite myself.

“So? Does it suit me? This randoseru look of mine.”

“I-I mean… that’s…”

It’s strange… I want to say this is absolutely not okay, but somehow I can’t deny it outright.

The contrast between the randoseru, a symbol of childhood, and the glamorous Nene-chan… Maybe that gap is what tugs at my heart, because I find myself slightly drawn in…!

“How should I put it… I feel like I’m about to awaken to a very dangerous fetish…!”

“I see… As expected of you, Kanata-kun. You’re such a high-level pervert that you can even approve of this outfit?”

“I’m not a pervert! And I don’t want to hear that from the one who chose that outfit!”

If I kept looking any longer, my preferences really might get warped. I turned my gaze away and asked her to change quickly.

But she refused.

“Now, now. Don’t say that. Since we’ve come this far, let’s play around a bit in this outfit. …Who knows, it might be good practice for lovers flirting♪”

The last part was whispered into my ear, probably so the other two wouldn’t hear. No way. There’s no way a pure high school couple would do randoseru play.

Before I could even voice that rebuttal, Nene-chan leaned against me.

“Fufu… Kanata-kun, I love you, you know? Please spoil me.”

“っ!?”

“I want you to pat me lots… stroke my head and say ‘there, there’ with your hands… okay?”

Nene-chan… acting spoiled!?

The Nene-chan who always teased me and made lewd advances was now clinging to me like an elementary schooler. The sheer gap left me completely confused.

But there was one thing I understood.

Right now, she was unbelievably cute.

“Kanata-kuuun… hug me tight…?”

“…………!!”

My heart skipped a beat. Her coaxing voice stirred something like paternal instinct deep inside me.

Before I realized it, I was lightly hugging her and gently patting her head.

“G-good girl, Nene-chan… there, there…”

“Wow… thank you, Kanata-kun. I’m so happy♪”

Nene-chan smiled happily. Ah… this expression of hers is nice… That completely relaxed, spoiled look from someone usually so cool and composed. For the sake of seeing this face, I could keep spoiling her forever…

“Uuu…! I’m so jealous, Nene-chan…!”

Suddenly, I heard Ai-chan’s voice.

Looking over, she was peeking out from behind the curtain just like before, watching us.

“Ah, Ai-chan. Looks like you’re done choosing an outfit. Then I should switch with you.”

Nene-chan noticed too and pulled away from me. Ah… I wanted to spoil her a bit more…

But if things had gone any further, I really might have awakened to something strange. Maybe it was better that it stopped there.

“Kanata likes Nene-chan’s outfit…! I absolutely can’t lose…!”

What kind of battle are you even fighting…?

Thinking that, I waited for Ai-chan to come out. But she only kept her face peeking out and didn’t seem willing to step outside.

“…Ai-chan? What’s wrong? You can come out.”

“U-um… yeah… I want to, but… this is a bit too embarrassing…”

Embarrassing…?

After wearing such an erotic outfit earlier, for Ai-chan to still be embarrassed… What in the world is she wearing this time!?

“Well… no matter what you come out wearing, as long as you’re not completely naked, I won’t be surprised, okay? The last one already had a huge impact…”

“R-really…? You’re sure…? You won’t pull away or laugh…?”

“I’m telling you, it’s fine. I didn’t laugh or recoil earlier, right? So trust me.”

I smiled and tried to reassure her, just like before.

That seemed to help a little, as she gave a small nod.

“Okay… then… look at me…”

Slowly opening the curtain, Ai-chan stepped out.

I braced myself, ready for anything, and waited for her to fully appear.

Then Ai-chan revealed herself.

“O-oooo…”

An unconscious gasp escaped my lips.

She was wearing a pure white wedding dress.

A soft yet luxurious-looking dress. The length was long enough to completely cover her legs, just like a proper wedding gown. Floral embroidery decorated the entire dress, with plenty of frills. Around her waist, slightly above it, a large ribbon stood out—whether decorative or functional, I couldn’t tell.

Completely different from her earlier, deeply erotic outfit, her pure white, beautiful figure filled my vision—and my thoughts instantly froze.

“E-ehhehe… I tried choosing something a little more extravagant…”

Ai-chan smiled shyly. I stared at her, unable to say a single word for a while.

No—more accurately, I couldn’t say anything.

That’s how purely beautiful she was.

“D-does it suit me…? A dress like this… on me…”

She asked timidly, either lacking confidence or overwhelmed by embarrassment.

At that, I finally opened my mouth.

“What are you saying!? It suits you perfectly! Ai-chan, you look amaaazing!”

Even I was surprised by how loud my voice came out.

“Ai-chan in a wedding dress is the best! It’s beyond just ‘cute’—this is on a whole other level! ‘Beautiful’ is the only word that fits!”

“I-isn’t that a bit too much…?”

“Not at all! No amount of praise would be enough! Any artwork in the world pales in comparison to you right now! I want to preserve you forever as a national treasure!”

“Ah… uuu…”

“Ai-chan wearing a wedding dress… that’s basically the ultimate equipment! There’s no guy who wouldn’t fall for this! I’d marry you myself!”

“M-marriage!? Awawawawa…”

Ai-chan’s face turned red all the way to her ears. I could almost see steam rising from her head.

“I-it’s so embarrassing… Kanata, you’re really saying too much…”

“Ah—s-sorry! Was that too much…?”

Praising her like that might come off as harassment from her point of view. And saying I’d marry her so casually wasn’t appropriate. I hurriedly apologized.

“N-no… it’s not that I dislike it… it’s just… I’m too happy… eheh…”

Stumbling over her words, Ai-chan gradually broke into a smile.

Th-thank goodness… she really does seem happy…

“But if you praise me that much… maybe I’ll use this outfit for the shoot?”

“Yeah! I think that’s perfect! This will definitely win over tons of fans!”

I nodded confidently. Anyone who wouldn’t become an Ai-chan fan after seeing this probably wasn’t interested in women to begin with.

“Ai-chan… I guess you really are one step ahead. …Maybe I should go with a dress too.”

“As expected of senpai’s top favorite… I should choose something dress-like as well…”

Watching the scene, Rinrin and Nene-chan muttered to themselves.

And in the end, they decided to go with dress-style outfits just like Ai-chan.

 

※

 

“Okaaay, that’s great! That expression is really nice!”

After deciding on the outfits to wear. We called Iijima-san and the female photographers into the room and had them start the shoot right away. They took individual photos in order—Rinrin first, then Nene-chan, and finally Ai-chan.

As expected, this kind of thing made people pretty nervous. All three of them ended up facing the camera with stiffer expressions than usual.

But the photographers were professionals. While praising them and actively talking with them, they skillfully drew out brighter expressions.

“Rinrin-chan, you’re a first-year high school student, right? So nice~ You’re right in the middle of your youth! You’ve got someone you like, don’t you~?”

“I-I don’t have anyone I like~! B-but… there is one senpai I’m close with, though…”

“Ah! That’s good—let me get that embarrassed face!”

“Ahh! Please don’t take that one! That’s embarrassing!”

“No way, of course I’m taking it! Rinrin, you’re suuuper cute! Such a maiden~!”

“R-really…? Eheh… if that’s the case, then I guess it’s okay if you take it…”

“If you show that face, the person you’re close with will fall for you instantly! Seriously!”

“R-really!? That gives me confidence!”

“Ah! That smile’s great too—got it!”

Wearing her red dress, Rinrin showed off shy expressions and lively, innocent smiles—

“So Nene-chan, your family runs a bookstore~? That explains why you’ve got such a calm vibe~”

“Fufu. That might be true. My friends sometimes say I’m like a queen.”

“Hah—! Lady Nene-chan! Please allow this humble one to take your photo!”

“You may. Now, kneel. I grant you permission to photograph me.”

“Ahahaha! Nene-chan, you’re way too into it~! So you like that kind of play?”

“Rather than that, I prefer teasing boys. There happens to be a boy close to me who gives such great reactions. Just thinking about him… fufu. It makes me tingle a little…!”

“Nice, nice! That expression is perfect!”

In her blue dress, Nene-chan was skillfully guided into cool, sexy expressions, as well as slightly sadistic ones.

Wait—aren’t the people those two are talking about obviously me? Well… I guess it’s not guaranteed, but still.

In any case, the shoots for those two wrapped up smoothly.

However… Ai-chan struggled a bit.

“Alright, Ai-chaaaan! Your body’s stiff~ Try taking a cuter pose!”

“Eh!? A-a cute pose!? Um… what should I do…?”

“Ah, don’t have a signature pose? Then how about pretending to be a cat?”

“A cat…! F-fshaaa!”

“Ahahahahaha! Why are you hunching your back and doing a threatening pose!? Normally you bend your elbows in front of your face and curl your fingers like this!”

“Eh, eh…!? Th-that’s how you do it…!?”

“Okay, then let’s try an elegant pose! Lift up the skirt of your dress, like a young lady greeting someone!”

“L-lift the skirt…? L-like this!?”

“Too high! We can see your panties! That’ll turn into an erotic photo! Ahahaha!”

“I-I’m sorry! I’m sorry!”

Ai-chan kept responding off the mark to the photographer’s instructions. Unable to pull off the requested poses, she struggled far more than the other two.

Ai-chan… she’s trying too hard and completely spinning her wheels…

Between this and the first audition, she might actually be the type who’s pretty weak under pressure. If her goal is to win a Voice Actor Award, then she’ll eventually have to deal with becoming famous too. She’ll need to overcome this… When they took group photos later, she had relaxed a bit, but even then, Ai-chan’s expression was still slightly stiff.

Still, all the shooting wrapped up in about two and a half hours.

After that, they took a short break, changed clothes, and moved on to the interview.

“Uu… why did I end up doing such off-target poses…?”

“I-it’s fine, Ai-chan! You redid the cute poses properly too! I’m sure they got great photos!”

“But because of me, the shoot dragged on longer than it needed to…”

Ah… well, yeah, that might be true…

Really… it’s a good thing the photographers were professionals. If they’d been inexperienced, it probably would’ve taken even longer…

“Sorry, everyone… I couldn’t do the poses properly and made you all wait for quite a while…”

“It’s totally fine! Don’t worry about it, Ai-chan!”

“Exactly. It’s only natural to be confused during your first shoot. More importantly, let’s get ready for the interview.”

“Y-yeah… thank you…!”

Ai-chan calmed down after hearing their words. Good. Like Nene-chan said, right now she needs to focus on the interview.

“For now, you should all go change. There’s still time, but it’s better to relax as much as you can.”

“O-okay! Got it! I’ll go!”

“Then, senpai! See you later~!”

“If you’d like, Kanata-kun, you can come with us too.”

“No thanks. Just hurry up and finish, okay?”

And just like that, the three of them disappeared behind the curtain again. They all looked so beautiful that it felt like a waste for them to change back, but I’ll just enjoy seeing them again in the magazine.

Thinking that, I tried to step out of the room while they were changing. Even with a curtain dividing us, being in the same room as girls changing isn’t great for one’s mental health.

“Huh…? What’s this? The zipper won’t go down…”

Suddenly, I heard Ai-chan’s voice. She sounded flustered.

“The zipper? Maybe the fabric got caught?”

“That might be it… nn… nnn~… ugh… it seems pretty tough…”

“Wait a moment. I’m almost done changing, so I’ll help you.”

“I’ll help too! These things are hard to deal with alone!”

From the sound of it, Ai-chan was having trouble taking off her dress. Hey… is she okay? I couldn’t help but stop walking.

“Ai-chan, can you show me the zipper? …I see. Yeah, the fabric’s definitely caught. If we force it, it might come down, but…”

“Then I’ll try! Here I go—seiyaaaaa!”

It sounded like Rinrin was trying to pull the zipper down instead. I could hear the determination in her voice. But—

“Haa… haa… it won’t budge at all…!?”

“Uu… yeah, it really is hard… it’s completely stuck…”

“It might be impossible with just a girl’s strength… If only we could pull it down in one go…”

Nene-chan said seriously. Seriously… is it that bad? What are you even supposed to do in situations like this?

As I was thinking that, Rinrin suddenly called out to me.

“Ah, that’s it! Senpai! Could you come here for a moment!”

“Eh!? Me!?”

“Yes! You heard everything, right? Please help Ai-chan!”

“Wait, Rinrin! You’re calling Kanata!? I’m still changing, you know!?”

Ai-chan’s voice rose in panic. Well, yeah—anyone would hate having a guy come in while they’re changing.

“But you’re not in your underwear or anything! And at this rate, you won’t be able to change at all!”

“Yeah… there’s nothing we can do on our own. We might have to rely on Kanata-kun…”

“U-uu… well… I guess that’s true…”

Ai-chan let out a small groan, clearly conflicted. She couldn’t exactly do the interview in her dress, and she wouldn’t be able to focus anyway. Plus, it could end up causing trouble for Iijima-san.

She was probably thinking the same thing. After a short pause, she spoke.

“Sorry, Kanata… could you help…?”

Even without seeing her, I could tell how embarrassed she was from her voice. Still, she must’ve been in real trouble to call me.

Hearing her say that, I couldn’t refuse.

“O-okay… then I’m coming in, alright…?”

I slowly approached the changing area, called out, and slipped behind the curtain.

Inside were Rinrin and Nene-chan, already changed, and Ai-chan in her dress, her face bright red.

“K-Kanata… sorry… for calling you into a place like this…”

“N-no… I’m sorry too… I’ll leave as soon as the zipper’s down…”

“Y-yeah… thanks… sorry for always causing trouble…”

“No, I get it. It’s fine…”

The conversation felt more awkward than usual.

But that was only natural. Just being in a girls’ changing room made me restless and unable to calm down. Ai-chan probably felt the same way.

I should help her quickly and get out. With that in mind, I asked her where the zipper was.

And with Rinrin and Nene-chan watching, I grabbed hold of it.

“Nngh… kuh… uooooh…!”

It really was stiff…! The zipper refused to budge.

Still, it didn’t seem completely hopeless. Being careful not to damage the dress, I put strength into my fingers.

Then I pulled down in one go.

“Uryaaaaaaaah!”

The moment I shouted, I felt resistance give way. The fabric that had been caught came loose, and the zipper slid down all at once.

“A-amazing! As expected of you, Kanata-senpai!”

“You did it! Now you can change!”

Rinrin and Nene-chan cheered. I shouted “Yes!” in my head.

But no sooner had one problem been solved than another appeared.

“Eh… ah…!”

Ai-chan let out a small cry. It was because the dress suddenly moved.

Maybe it was a simple dress made just for the shoot, or maybe all the other fastenings had already been undone. With just the zipper lowered in one place, the dress slipped off on its own.

As a result, right in front of my eyes, she was left standing in nothing but her underwear.

“Ah… aah…!”

Ai-chan froze, eyes wide, mouth opening and closing soundlessly as she stared at me—her matching pink underwear fully exposed. Then her cheeks flushed red all at once—

“Kya──────!!!”

She screamed at the top of her lungs.

After that, I was witnessed by Iijima-san rushing over to the scene, and I ended up being mistaken for a molester who had charged into the girls’ changing room.

 

※

 

“Man, that really surprised me. I never thought Kanata-chi would be the kind of challenger who’d charge straight into a talent’s changing room.”

“I already told you, that’s not what happened……”

I reply in an exhausted voice to Iijima-san, who’s grinning smugly after taking one look at my face.

After that incident, I was suspected of molestation and desperately explained the situation. Thankfully, Nene-chan and the others firmly defended me. Thanks to that, even Iijima-san—who at first muttered, ‘Whoa… so this guy’s actually a real pervert…’ while looking at me like trash—should have cleared up the misunderstanding.

Still, it seems she’s just teasing me because it makes for good material.

“Come on, come on, no need to get so worked up. But hey, it was good for the eyes, right? You don’t get to see a voice actress in her underwear that often, y’know? You should be thanking the god.”

“It’s not like I wanted to see it……”

By the way, right now we’re in a room prepared for interviews in the same studio. Ai-chan and the others all went to the restroom together, and once they’re back, we’ll start the meeting.

Just as I’m thinking that, the door to the room opens. Looks like all three of them are back.

“S-sorry for the wait! We’re r-ready for the interview…!”

Ai-chan, standing at the front, says this as the other two bow their heads as well.

She was pretty shaken earlier, but it looks like she can handle the interview for now. Though she does seem really nervous……

“Likewise, nice to meet you! For now, please have a seat!”

Prompted by Iijima-san, the three of them sit down facing her. I stand a little ways off, watching over them.

Alright, Ai-chan… everyone… do your best. For Rinrin and Nene-chan too, this interview is a big chance to boost their name recognition. I want them to make a strong appeal.

“Okay then, I’ll start recording the audio! It’s just for transcription later, so no need to worry. Also, today’s interview is for a feature that’ll be published in next month’s 『Seiyuu Champion』 titled 『A Close Look at the Main Heroines of KimiZora! Exposing the True Faces of the Next Breakout Rookie Voice Actresses!』. I’m sure you already know, but just to go over it again.”

After explaining that, Iijima-san turns on the voice recorder and prepares her notes.

At last, the tense interview begins.

That said, we were given specific details about what kinds of questions would be asked a few days ago. Of course, I shared them with Ai-chan and we did some light practice, and Rinrin and the others should have prepared in advance through the agency as well.

There shouldn’t be anything to worry about. Me panicking won’t help anyone, so I’ll just calmly watch over the three of them.

“Alright, let’s start with the first question! To begin with—what are your favorite foods!?”

She adds that they should answer in the order of Ai-chan, Rinrin, and Nene-chan, then waits for Ai-chan’s response.

Okay…… it’s Ai-chan’s turn right away! In yesterday’s final practice, we decided she’d honestly talk about her love for ramen.

Alright, nail it! Spread Ai-chan’s tastes to the world!

“Ah, u…… au…… auuuh, au……”

Huh?

“A… yau…… awawa…… auuua, auaauuaaaaauuu……”

Is she a broken radio?

“Yauau, uaa…… a, awa…… awawa…… awawawawawawawawawa……”

Ai-chan is fumbling so badly her tongue won’t even work—bad enough that you’d think, ‘That’s not okay for a voice actress.’ This is bad. She’s obviously extremely nervous. Looking closely, even her hands and legs are shaking. She’s like a small animal.

“U-um……? Ai-chan-san……? You can calm down, you know? Just relax and answer……”

“Ah—hyah, hyai…! Um…… th-the question…… what was it again……?”

“Your favorite food. Please tell us your favorite food, Ai-chan.”

“F-fa-favorite food……? What… what was food again……?”

Ai-chan is experiencing an unbelievable level of memory loss. Yeah, her head’s not working at all.

Damn it…… I want to help her, but I can’t interfere with the interview……!

“W-well, whatever…… let’s put Ai-chan on hold for now—next up, Rinrin, please!”

“Yes! My favorite food is—without hesitation, banana milk!”

No, Rinrin…… that’s a drink. Your lack of brainpower is showing.

“I-I see……! Well, I guess drinks are fine too……! Then lastly, Nene-chan, please!”

“My favorite food? Let’s see……”

Nene-chan pauses thoughtfully for a moment. Then, she speaks in a tone different from usual.

“After all, number one would have to be pancakes desu wa.”

…Desu wa?

[TLN:It’s a feminine, high-class way of speaking in Japanese]

“But I also like pasta, and tapioca as well. I simply can’t narrow it down to just one♪”

Uh…… what is she doing? Why is she suddenly talking like a rich ojou-sama?

“O-o-tapioca……? Ah, ahaha…… you’re all quite unique……”

No, Iijima-san is totally put off now. Rinrin and Nene-chan both look proud, but Iijima-san’s making a ‘ugh…’ face.

Huh? What? Are these two nervous too? They don’t look like it, but are their answers getting weird because of the pressure?

“O-okay then…… let’s move on to another question! Please tell me your specialitys!”

“Eh!? M-my specialitys!? Au, hau, hawawa……”

Hey, Ai-chan! It’s about time you booted up! We’re in trouble if you can’t even talk properly!

As if my thoughts reached her, Ai-chan somehow manages to recover her language function.

“U-um…… my speciality is my strong mental fortitude! Through auditions and recording sessions where failure isn’t allowed, I’ve gained the mental strength to stay calm no matter what—muhihya!”

Hey, hey, that has zero credibility. You’re messing up nonstop right now. You’re not calm at all.

And she even bit her words at the end. That’s a mistake a voice actress should never make. Still, I love Ai-chan even like this.

Next, Rinrin gives her answer.

“My specialty is~…… that I’m very cu-cute! Ehe♪”

Ah, I see. She’s going with a cutesy persona. It’s different from her usual self. She’s not the type to just call herself cute.

She probably thought hard about how to present herself through this interview…… though I have no idea why she settled on acting cutesy.

Come to think of it, that banana milk answer earlier must’ve been part of it too. You hate milk, don’t you? When I asked if you wanted a café latte before, you forced yourself to drink it and went 『Ghob!』 I know everything, you know.

And then comes Nene-chan’s follow-up.

“As for my o-speciality, I’d say it’s my refined upbringing♪”

Yeah, no. People with refined upbringings don’t say they have refined upbringings. Also, Nene-chan, haven’t you been using ‘o-(お)’ wrong this whole time? I’ve never heard ‘o-speciality’ before.

Or is this it? Is Nene-chan trying to present herself on a rich-lady route?

Now that I think about it, the role Nene-chan is auditioning for, Himemiya Shino, is a well-bred girl. Is she answering like an ojou-sama to appeal as a voice actress who can play that type of character……!?

But Himemiya isn’t like this. 『A well-bred, quiet, ordinary girl』 and 『eccentric rich lady』 are completely different. There’s no way she’d perform the audition like this, but I should probably warn her later……

“I-I see~…… ahahahaha~…… wow, these girls are kinda nuts.”

Iijima-san’s forced smile disappears, and for a moment she goes expressionless. Honestly, I agree. Can we just stop the interview already?

But apparently, that’s not an option. After that, Iijima-san continues asking Ai-chan and the others various questions according to the schedule she received in advance. In response, Ai-chan remains extremely nervous, Rinrin goes all-in on being cutesy, and Nene-chan keeps answering like a rich ojou-sama.

After about an hour of that chaotic time, Iijima-san speaks up with a tired look.

“Um…… thank you, everyone…… For now, that wraps up the individual questions…… and lastly, may I ask some questions about the work itself?”

Questions about the work…… in other words, something related to the highly anticipated anime they’re appearing in, 『KimiZora』.

“What I want to ask the three of you is, simply put, your enthusiasm for 『KimiZora』. You’ll each be playing one of the heroines in this work, but is there anything you were particularly conscious of, or worked hard on?”

“Let’s see…… as for what we worked hard on…… I suppose it would be that we practiced acting together, all of us, even before the audition?”

“That’s right! It was fun, but it was tough too!”

Nene-chan and the others answer, forgetting their personas and speaking as their natural selves.

“Huh? You practiced together as a group even before the roles were decided? That’s incredible! And all of you ended up passing, right?”

“Yes! We just happened to be auditioning for different roles, so we worked hard together! Right, Ai-chan? That’s how it was, wasn’t it!”

“Eh!? Ah, y-yeah……! Th-that’s right……!”

Being spoken to by her friends, Ai-chan somehow manages a proper reply.

“A-and…… the three of us even went on a pilgrimage to the real-life locations where the story is set.”

“You went all the way on a pilgrimage!? The setting of this work was pretty rural, if I remember right?”

“Yes, that’s right. But it was Ai-chan who invited us. We practiced acting together there, recreating the audition scenes—right at the same places shown in the manga.”

“Thanks to that, it became an amazing experience! I’m sure it was a huge plus for playing our roles this time!”

It’s true. Because they had that practice together, they might have all landed their roles. Ai-chan had her doubts about her acting back then, but there’s no question she gained a lot of experience. Recreating the scenes on location must have really solidified her image.

“I-I see! So that means your enthusiasm for this work is just that strong……!”

“Y-yes! All of us really love our roles! So, um…… we’ll act in a way that makes sure everyone watching the anime can fully feel all of the heroines’ charm!”

Even while stumbling over her words, Ai-chan clearly expresses her determination. Nene-chan and Rinrin nod in agreement.

“Ohhh……! You suddenly got really serious once we started talking about the work……! Then please tell me a bit more in detail!”

And so, Iijima-san continues asking deeper questions about 『KimiZora』, while Ai-chan and the others answer together, chatting and laughing as they go.

 

※

 

“Alright then, thanks for your hard work today~! Whew…… how am I supposed to turn the first half into an article……”

The interview over, we part ways with Iijima-san in front of the studio. She’s probably got a rough time ahead of her…… honestly, I can’t help but sympathize.

But we didn’t have the luxury of worrying about her.

“Uuu…… I couldn’t give an honest self-introduction at all…… I couldn’t even say that I like ramen…… I couldn’t even answer properly……”

As the four of us head toward the station, Ai-chan mutters this with tears welling up in her eyes. Combined with how poorly things went during the outfit photoshoot, she’s really shaken by today’s mistakes.

During the final discussion about 『KimiZora』, Ai-chan managed to talk decently enough. But even so, what weighed on her mind far more were her failures.

“It was such a good chance to gain more fans, but I couldn’t talk about myself at all……”

“But overall, it looks like it’ll be a great feature! So please don’t feel so down!”

“That’s right. Our articles will all be published together anyway, so I’m sure we’ll gain fans without any problems.”

How can you two be so confident? Honestly, more than Ai-chan panicking from nerves, I want to tell you two—who were naturally kind of disastrous—to reflect on yourselves.

Rinrin’s blatantly cutesy act and Nene-chan’s strange ojou-sama route could both easily turn people off. If you’d just answered normally, there wouldn’t have been any issues……

“Ah, we’re at the station. Then I’m taking this line!”

“I’m going to scout out a nearby bookstore today, so I’ll head off too. Let’s meet again for work.”

Waving their hands, the two of them run off toward their respective destinations. Since Ai-chan and I live in the same place, we’re naturally left alone together.

“…………”

Alright, what should I say to her……? The last time I tried to encourage her after she failed an audition, I completely messed it up. Above all else, I need to choose my words carefully and avoid upsetting her……

“Hey, Kanata…… I’m really sorry……?”

While I’m still searching for the right words, Ai-chan speaks up first.

“Even though you helped me practice so much, it all ended up being pointless…… You even helped me build confidence so I wouldn’t get nervous during the real thing……”

“Ai-chan……! You really don’t need to worry about that! People mess up sometimes—it happens!”

If your beloved oshi makes a mistake and reflects on it, a fan’s job is to smile and forgive. I have no intention of blaming her.

But at the same time, I’m not just a fan—I’m also her manager. To keep mistakes like this from happening again, we need to come up with some kind of countermeasure. With that in mind, I ask her.

“But why were you so nervous today? During auditions or recording sessions, you can speak confidently.”

Normally, Ai-chan doesn’t get that tense at work. Even during her first audition in a while, she performed just fine.

I know she’s somewhat bad with nerves, but today was clearly unusual.

“It’s true, during auditions or afureco, I can talk properly, you know? I’m always nervous, but not to the point where I can’t act. But…… interviews seem to be impossible for me……”

“Why……? Why only interviews……”

“Rather than interviews…… more accurately, it might be that I’m bad at jobs where I have to show myself…… When I’m not acting as a character, but appearing in public or working as Aizaki Yuka, I think I suddenly get extremely nervous. Today’s interview made me realize that……”

So she’s fine with acting, but embarrassed about showing her ‘real self’ in exposure-type jobs……? Honestly, I don’t fully get it. But maybe that’s a feeling unique to performers.

Still, that could become a problem down the line……

For now, most of her work is still anime afureco, so it’s fine.

But if Ai-chan continues aiming to win awards like the 『Popular Voice Actress award』, then at some point, exposure-type jobs will definitely increase. Handshake events, stage events—those kinds of things too. If she gets as nervous as she did today, it’ll cause trouble for others. And she probably won’t gain many fans either.

“But…… it’s good that we figured out your weakness. If you can become aware of it early on, we can think of countermeasures sooner.”

If we can use today’s experience next time, then this failure won’t be meaningless. I want Ai-chan to think that way and keep moving forward.

“For now, let’s think about some way to keep you from messing up during exposure-type jobs in the future. There’s no need to worry too much—those kinds of jobs probably won’t come in for a while anyway, so we can take our time. Of course, I’ll help you too.”

“Kanata…… thank you. For always supporting me…… you’re really so reliable.”

“That’s my job. For now, let’s just rest properly today. You worked hard.”

“……Yeah.”

Nodding, perhaps finally relieved, Ai-chan leans against me. I gently pat her head.

While thinking about what we can do so that she’ll be able to show her ‘real self’ without getting nervous—even outside of acting.