My Childhood Friend, a Vtuber, Treated Me Like TrashโIโm Never Producing For Her Again
Fortunately, once sheโd finished introducing herself on that suspicious-looking bed, Mizuta-san went into the kitchen and started cooking as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
She even put on an apron.
(โฆโฆHer figure is seriously off the charts.)
Her overwhelmingly large breasts and tightly cinched waist.
A smooth stomach without an ounce of excess fat. A firm yet voluptuous butt. Slender, long legs.
Her figure put even your average gravure idol to shame.
It finally made sense why sheโd been so confident.
โW-what do you thinkโฆ!?โ
Mizuta looked at me with eyes full of anticipation.
Leaning forward, she slowly closed the distance between us.
S-sheโs so closeโฆ
I carefully chose my words in my head before cautiously broaching the subject.
โMizuta, do you usually prefer to hear the good news first? Or the bad news?โ
โEhโฆ? The good news first.โ
โFirst off, youโre much better with the camera than I expected.โ
โR-reallyโฆ?โ
โYes. Your composition is solid. Youโre showcasing the food properly, and you fit naturally into the frame yourself.โ
For a professional cooking livestream, youโd normally want two cameras.
If you can pull this off with just one, itโs more than good enough.
Come to think of it, when I checked Mizuta-sanโs livestream archives, there werenโt any noticeable flaws in the framing either.
She probably hasnโt studied production techniques in earnest.
If thatโs the case, this must be Mizuta-sanโs own natural talent.
โThe composition is well thought out, too. The editing cuts and inserts were all placed exactly where they needed to be.โ
โHehe, eheheโฆโ
Mizuta once again wore a dreamy expression.
โฆSheโs really susceptible to compliments.
Maybe she has a strong desire for validation.
โBut, well, first of all, Iโm concerned about your slumped posture.โ
โUghโฆ Is this where the bad news starts?โ
โFor the sake of your back health, Mizuta-san, letโs work on correcting that slouch little by little.โ
There are certainly some VTubers who make a running gag out of having a straight neck, but thatโs something they can only do because theyโre already famous.
For a newcomer like Mizuta-san, where first impressions are everything, itโs more likely to work against her.
โWaaahโฆ It feels like the list of things I have to do just keeps getting longer and longerโฆโ
โWell, VTubersโor streamers, for that matterโare kind of like idols in a way. Itโs that whole โthe road to stardom isnโt easyโ thing.โ
โSo, without even realizing it, Iโve been trying to become an idolโฆโ
Mizutaโs shoulders slumped.
And the bad news is only just beginningโฆ
Well, I canโt fix everything at once.
Letโs just focus on the high-priority issues this time.
โThe other issue is your vocal projection.โ
โHuh? V-vocal projectionโฆ?โ
โYes. I noticed this while watching your stream archivesโyour voice sounds muffled and a bit hard to make out.โ
Itโs not simply a matter of having a soft voice or anything like that.
The sound gets trapped deep in your throat and comes across as if itโs spinning its wheels.
โIt looks like you should practice a bit so your voice can project smoothly forward.โ
โGulpโฆ How am I supposed to practice that?โ
โThe best thing would be to take lessons from a professional voice coach, but you probably donโt have the time or money for that, right?โ
โYeahโฆโ
Weโre not aiming to be voice actors.
We donโt need to master perfect diction and vocal projection like voice actors do.
โDo you happen to have hay fever or something that makes your nose get stuffy often?โ
โOh, no. I donโt have hay fever or anything like that either.โ
โIn that case, the problem might be that youโre tensing your throat too much.โ
โHuh? R-reallyโฆ? Donโt you think it sounds better if I tense my throat a bit?โ
โNo, thatโs not right. In fact, tensing it too much will just strain your throat unnecessarily. Weโre not performing on stageโweโre projecting our voices through a microphone. Itโs better not to force yourself to speak loudly.โ
โO-oh, I seeโฆโ
Iโm no expert myself, so my knowledge on this kind of thing is limited.
Still, Iโd once helped Yue with a similar vocal issue.
Recalling that experience, I said to Mizuta-san.
โTry imitating me. Fuuueeโฆโ
โFuuueeeโฆโ
While still seated in my chair, I let all the tension drain out of my body.
Then, I opened my mouth a little wider.
โMake a sound in this position. Mmm~ Ah~โ
โMmmโฆ~ Aaahโฆ~โ
Thatโs weirdโwhy does that sound so sexy?
Is my brain rotting?
I managed to keep up a calm facade as I continued talking.
โOh, if you add a little resonance through your nose here, itโll naturally sound cuter. Like this. Hmm~โฆ Han~”
โHmm~โฆ Ahh~โฆโ
โโฆโ
Sheโs not doing this on purpose, is she?
ใโ
โH-hello. Itโs raining today, isnโt it?โ
โYouโve improved quite a bit. โฆAlso, as Iโve said before, talking about the weather is a no-go.โ
โS-sorryโฆโ
It seems my teaching method wasnโt wrong after all.
Of course, it wonโt be completely resolved in just one session.
Iโll need to keep training her steadily from now on.
โBe sure to warm up your throat before every stream. Also, review the archives frequently and check your own voice.โ
โY-yesโฆ!โ
Honestly, there were a ton of other points I wanted to point out, but Iโll stick to these two for now.
Thereโs no choice but to take it one step at a time, without rushing.
Telling myself that, I finished off my bento.
As Mizuta-san put her bento box back in its bag, she muttered,
โU-umโฆ Actually, I have one favor to askโฆโ
โYes?โ
โI got a lot of stares on my way to school todayโฆโ
Well, I suppose thatโs to be expected.
After all, anyone could see how much cuter sheโd become.
โS-so, for the first time ever, I got hit onโฆโ
โOh, that mustโve been a bit of a problem.โ
โYesโฆ I was a little scaredโฆ He didnโt have a face like yours, Komachi-sanโhe just looked like a bad sort of guyโฆโ
What on earth did she mean by โnot a face like mineโ?
Does she mean I donโt look manly?
It definitely didnโt seem like she meant it as a compliment.
โS-so, anywayโฆโ
Mizuta-san fidgeted with her fingertips in front of her chest.
โW-would you walk to and from school with meโฆ?โ
I couldnโt help but widen my eyes in surprise.
Huh? Is something straight out of a romantic comedy happening to me too?
Sure, weโd walked home together once before, but that was strictly for setting up the mic.
When I hesitated to answer, she started rambling frantically, as if flustered.
โO-o-of course, since youโre walking with someone like me, Iโll do something in return in my own wayโฆ!โ
โNo, thatโs not what I meantโฆโ
โW-what about this? Weโre neighbors, so Iโll try to act like a childhood friend character from a galgeโฆ!โ
โHuh? What does that mean?โ
To be honest, even though Iโm an otaku, Iโm not very familiar with galge.
So I didnโt really understand what exactly Mizuta-san was planning to do.
โOh, Iโll wake you up in the morningโฆ!โ