We start recording at the studio. I end up standing in front of a microphone in place of the Disciple we drove off—Himegami, was it? At first, I was only supposed to be participating as a guest, but they rewrite the script to make me a main member.
Either the staff is really good at writing scripts, or Ochiba Kareki is a good fit to replace this Kuon character. Whatever the case, they’re able to adjust some lines, and we began recording.
“Ohhhh-ho-ho-ho-ho-ho! What luck, drawing such a good item! Then again, I would expect nothing less from someone of my caliber! Now, who’s driving in front of me? Oh, Rolling? Yes, just stay right there. Perfect.”
“No! No no nooo! Don’t shoot! You’re not allowed to use the red ones behind meee!”
“Oh, sorry. My shell is going for Kihouin…”
“Hwaaahhh?!”
In order, that was Kihouin, Rolling, Kareki, and then Kihouin again.
Kihouin’s 3D model is a rich-girl character with a distinct, high-pitched laugh and an appearance to match. She wears an extravagant dress, her hair falls in big, silver sausage curls, and she has dramatically large breasts. I assume the character is supposed to be around twenty years old.
Rolling, on the other hand, is playing a little girl who looks like she could be in elementary school. She appears European, with long blond hair and blue eyes. She’s wearing gothic lolita clothes, mostly black, including a frilly one-piece dress. Now I’m sure their strange speech and behavior is an extension of their characters.
As you might guess from our chatter, we’re currently playing a video game. It’s a new one that just got released, in which a certain company’s various characters ride in go-karts around a looping racetrack. Several people can race against one another at once, and today’s script involves us all duking it out.
I remember playing this game at my classmate’s house during the welcome parties they threw for Robot Girl and the other magical girl, so I already know how to work the controls. Otherwise, I probably would have caused a lot of trouble for the other participants.
There are ten people taking part, including myself. About a third are top earners, while the rest are newcomers who only recently debuted. This event seems to be the company’s way of promoting the latter group—particularly the ones who are having a hard time getting ahead. At least, that’s what I heard from my neighbor. I figure that’s probably why they asked Ochiba Kareki along.
“Kareki, darling, are you sure you’re paying the proper respect to your senpai?”
“I’m sorry. I promise I wasn’t aiming for you.”
“And yet just before, you tossed a banana right in front of me. You aimed very carefully, and I slipped on it. I won’t forget about that! At least not for the next six months!”
“Actually, I just threw that at random. Oh, not again. I’m sorry, I—”
“Haaahhhhn! That explosive—I’ve been bombed! Nooo!”
The attack items I launch seem to be hitting Kihouin an awful lot. I’m really not aiming for her, though. Her character is known for her comedic overreactions, and it seems like a lot of work for her to keep putting on a show for the viewers. But the staff members are really good at supporting us, so I probably don’t need to worry too much.
Eventually, the recording reaches the halfway point, and we take a break.
We head out of the recording booth and into the break area. The two popular girls sit down near the center of the room and relax, while the newcomers stand off to the side in their own group, like prey trembling under the gaze of terrifying predators.
I follow suit, making myself small in the corner. My neighbor must have gone outside; I don’t see him around.
After a few moments, Kihouin gets up and walks over to me. “Do you have a moment, Miss Kareki?”
“Sure. What is it?”
“I was just surprised at how calm you are, despite your recent debut.”
“You think?”
“This is your first time recording, isn’t it? Most people would be at least a little bit nervous.”
She’s right—I’m not nervous. It doesn’t feel very different from when I played the same video game at my classmate’s house. In fact, it’s a lot more pleasant, since Robot Girl isn’t with us.
But I know why I’m so calm. I think about the wicked demon hovering next to me, even now. My experiences with him, fighting in the death game, have toughened me up mentally. If I fail here—well, it’s not like I’ll die. Of course, if I make enemies of influential people, that might be the death of my career in this industry. Abaddon came into the booth during recording, too, floating close enough that I could reach out and touch him.
“You clearly stand out from the other second-strings.”
“……”
I look over at the other participants.
When Kihouin says “second-strings,” that’s no metaphor. The company I’ve joined divides its talents clearly into two ranks. The favorites and top earners are the first-strings, and the others are second-strings. Naturally, as a newcomer, I’m a second-string, and Kihouin is a first-string.
She and her ilk are sitting down and chatting, while my group is standing around watching them. I was trying to make myself small like a second-string should, but apparently, I hadn’t convinced Kihouin.
“Oh, I do hope you’re not getting full of yourself just because your family has money.”
“I wasn’t…”
Is this what I think it is? Is my senpai picking on me? Maybe she simply wants revenge for how many attack items I hit her with in the video game.
“I hate to even suggest this, but could Kuon’s absence today have been…purposeful?”
This woman’s pretty sharp, I think. We ordered the angel and her Disciple to stay silent, threatening them with punishment if they divulged our identity to anyone else. I doubt they’d ever tell her the truth. And if she suspects us purely on instinct, then she has to be obsessed.
“Don’t you think that’s going a little far?” I reply.
“Winterfest, perhaps? Is that what you’re after?”