13 The return of Miko

(I decided that using another name for the Vtuber character will be too confusing, so just assume their name when mention in the stream is actually their character's name)

Sometimes Anemachi wonders why God allowed her to reincarnate again in another world, as a female too especially.

It's a weird feeling, as in not having your dingdong anymore, dealing with the menstrual cycle and having subconsciously worry about your look evermore. Females are quite different from male, both physically and mentally.

But moreover, she reincarnated as a normal person, without any special knowledge or power, working from nine to five like any other functioning adult.

This reincarnation is quite boring, Anemachi must say.

Well not like she has a choice in the first place, and working in Hololive is fulfilling in some sense at least

"Anemachi-san, could you help me contact Yuichi sensei for the due promotion banner for Sora-san? Tell him that if he doesn't deliver it within 3 days we will have no choice but to find some other artist to replace him."

"Alright A-chan, right away." Replying immediately, Anemachi picked up her phone on her desk.

Pressing in the phone number of the procrastinating artist, Anemachi has been in the company for already a week, familiarizing herself with the environment and her work. And to be frank, the workload really isn't small.

The logistics of a virtual idol agency aren't easy, and without proper management and networking, it's hard to get anything done.

You want to record a new album? Where do you want to record it? Who will create the new song? How is the song going to be presented? What kind of style do you want? How many artists will be involved in the creation of the MV? Is it going to be commercialized? When will the release date be? Will it clash with the other talent's arrangement?

This is why they have a tight schedule to work with, and keeping everything in check is not as easy as it seems.

"Yes, yes. I understand it's hard, but you had already been given plenty of time beforehand. ...Wish you luck then, alright bye." Hanging out the phone again, Anemachi sighs from the lack of progress by the artist.

"A-chan, Yuichi sensei says he will try to finish it within 3 days, but he can't make any guarantees."

"Urgh damn it, alright, you can go back to your work again then." Sighing from the result, A-chan can only hope it will make it on time.

"Be aware of a call coming later by the way, some studios want to make an arrangement and visit our office, they have emailed us in advance already."

Nodding, Anemachi takes down a note about the possible call and focuses on the computer in front of her which is full of sheets and data, a boring yet essential job.

But if you look close enough, you can see a browser that doesn't seem to belong on it, one that contains an anime girl moving around.

"Nya-hello~Sakura Miko desu!" And with an energetic smile, Miko greets everyone that is viewing her stream, starting the stream with an outburst of energy.

Yup, Anemachi is viewing Miko's stream while working at the same time. Suggested by A-chan by the way, since Anemachi is Miko's manager after all. Of course, she still has to get her work done for the day, but she is encouraged to check up on the talent's stream as often as she can.

Sipping the cheap coffee on her desk that is provided as refreshment definitely not to drain the last of their employee energy, Anemachi while working anxiously watches Miko's stream hoping everything will be fine.

Miko has been taking a short break since the last accident, and today is her returning stream announcing that she will be back from it. With around 500 viewers watching, Anemachi really hopes that nothing bad will happen.

Some pain doesn't heal so easily.

"Sorry about the sudden break everyone. I had to take it due to a mental and physical related health problem, but I'm back now! I hope I didn't make all of you worry too much." Moving her model while talking, Miko speaks as if it's just a small thing that had happened.

Yet Anemachi knows that this stream could very well fail to happen if A-chan hasn't sent her off to Miko's house.

Shaking off the negative thought, Anemachi leave the small window which has Miko streaming in it on the corner while continuing working on other things

She just wanted to make sure Miko is doing fine, Anemachi still has plenty of work to do.

With that, time passes by with Anemachi finishing her work. The office as noisy as usual, A-chan off to meet some client, colleague passes by her desk to hand her document of importance.

"Ah, finally…" Stretching her waist, Anemachi finally finishes the work she is assigned to. "...Huh, it's this late already."

Looking over at the clock it's already late afternoon, and Anemachi hasn't had her lunch yet.

"Anemachi-san, want me to order a delivery for you? We already had our lunch just now." Noticing Anemachi finally free, a female colleague wanted to help her.

"Uhmm...Never mind, I will handle it myself." Kindly rejecting the order with a polite smile, Anemachi would prefer to do it herself.

"How about you bring something alone to Miko-san and have it with her? Your work is done anyway." This is when A-chan suddenly appears out of nowhere, just finishing settling loose ends. "We will handle the rest, you can discuss with her about her schedule for this month too."

"But will you all be alright?" Anemachi is doubtful that they can handle it all by themselves though. "I still see mountains of work that are yet to be done…"

"Don't worry, just spend some time with Miko-san, streaming is tiring after all." However A-chan assures her once again. "And this is your job after all, communicating with the talents, leave the rest to us."

And thus, Anemachi is once again sent off to Miko's house

"Miko-san! It's Anemachi! I bought you some food for lunch." Pressing the bell, Anemachi shouted through the door, knowing Miko had ended her stream a few minutes ago. "Miko-san! Are you there?"

"C-coming! Give me a minute!" And unlike last time, Miko manages to respond to Anemachi in the blink of an eye.

"Sorry for the wait, Anemachi-san!" Miko in her t-shirt and short pants greets Anemachi at the door.

Long hair tied into a ponytail, Miko is clearly surprised by Anemachi's visit judging from her widened eyes.

"Yeah, brought you some lunch, mind inviting me in? The weather is quite hot today." Lifting up the plastic bag in her hand, Anemachi with a smile asks. "You just ended your stream right? Must be hungry after that."

"O-oh, yeah. Come on in." With complex feelings and a polite smile, Miko welcomes Anemachi into her house and leads her to the living room. "Would you prefer tea or coffee?"

"Green tea please, thanks." Shortly after, Miko comes back in with two cups of tea in her hand.

"Here is your tea. Thanks, by the way, Anemachi-san for bringing me lunch, what did you get by the way?" Putting the tea on the table, Miko looks towards the bag curiously.

"Oh, just some onigiri actually. I brought quite a lot since I'm not sure which one you like. Here, pick some." Replying, Anemachi shows Miko the bag of onigiri.

"Hmmm...I will take the salmon and egg one, thank you."

And with the two girls settling down for lunch, the two try to get themselves familiar with each other.

They will have to work with each other more after all in the future, a trusting relationship will make it much easier for both of them.

"I didn't expect you to come though to be honest, but I appreciate it." Miko thanks Anemachi while her mouth is moving, again enjoying Anemachi company. "Eating alone really makes people feel lonely from time to time."

"Ahaha, it's part of my job after all to look after you your well being, so don't worry." And with a smile, Anemachi responded back to Miko. "So how is your stream? I saw quite a lot of people joining just now."

"Yeah, many people are there to support me...I didn't expect that to be honest." Visible joy is emitted from Miko, knowing people are supporting her. "You might not know this since you are new, but disappearing for a while really hurts the progress you had to make so far, it's easy to lose your viewer."

"There are also a few trolls there...But it's not too much of a deal."

"Troll? What are they up to?" Raising her eyebrows, Anemachi isn't aware of the situation in the chatbox.

"Not sure where they come from, just complaining that I've disappointed the fan for taking a break without any announcement." Shaking her head, trolls aren't something new, but she never gets used to it. "But the number is only a few, nothing too concerning."

"I see...Troll huh?" Taking a sip from the tea, Anemachi thinks deeply about it.

Troll is something that every streamer is bound to deal with. And to be frank, there aren't many ways to deal with it.

Until now, all Anemachi has to deal with is the logistic side of Hololive which although isn't easy is still something Anemachi is familiar with. But publicity...that's another thing.

'Well, it's not much of a problem now, so we can let it be. The mod can handle it without any problem.' As Anemachi is thinking to herself though, Miko's face is filled with hesitation.

"Hey Anemachi-san, regarding what happened last week, would you want to know the reason?"

"Hmm? O-oh…" And with Anemachi coming back from the thought, she instinctively answers. "S-sure."

"Promise me you won't tell anyone alright?"

Sighing, Miko continues.

"Well, I just feel like I should tell you the reason since we will be working with each other from now on. And...You saved my life after all." With brief silence setting in for a while, Miko continues. "The reason is quite dumb actually, please don't laugh."

"Well... It's just that I've been dumped by my boyfriend."