The Business Trip to Japan
The long, long Chuseok holiday finally came to an end, and I was thrown straight into my next schedule.
"Yes, Manager. Heading out now."
For the first time in my life, I was going abroad! To Japan!
Sure, it was technically for work.
But a trip was a trip, when you got right down to it.
And she'd said we'd have free time once the work was done, too.
Anyway, the Manager had asked a coworker to drive me to the airport, and she'd just called to say they'd arrived at my apartment's parking lot.
I gave my pre-packed bag one last check for anything I might have missed, then stepped out of the apartment.
"Is that it?"
The moment I entered the parking garage, I spotted the car I'd been told to look for.
"Yeonwoo, hello."
"Hello."
"Ah... wait, do you not have any luggage?"
"Excuse me? You don't see the bag right here?"
I turned around and held the bag up for display.
"Oh... I'm sorry, it just didn't occur to me that you'd bring a backpack instead of a suitcase, so I didn't even look...."
"A bag is more convenient."
"Is it?"
"Yes. Besides, if I wanted to bring a suitcase, I'd have had to buy one first."
"Then... that bag?"
"It's the one I used in high school?"
"Ah. I see."
After that brief exchange, I got in the car.
"Hello."
"Ah, um... y-yes... hello there...."
Hm. Must be someone from a different department.
The people in my department actually smile and greet me back when I say hello to them.
...Even if they don't quite meet my eyes while doing it.
On the way to the airport, the sleep I'd been missing all week came crashing down on me, but if I dozed off now, I'd never be able to sleep on the plane — a genuine crisis — so I fought it with everything I had.
"Yeonwoo, have you... had a bad day today, by any chance?"
"No? Why?"
"...You're making a rather frightening expression right now."
"Ah."
Apparently, "fighting it with everything I had" included prying my eyes wide open, which had only amplified the terrifying aura.
So if I'd greeted that employee with my usual energy, would he have responded normally?
...Yeah, no. That was just wishful thinking. I ran the fantasy through my head once and discarded it.
"I'm just sleepy."
"...Wouldn't it be better to sleep, then?"
"Then I won't be able to sleep on the plane."
Once I'm woken up, I simply cannot fall back asleep.
"No. I'm not sure I can bear watching this."
"Hm...."
...Maybe I should just sleep, then?
My exhausted brain wasn't turning properly, and now that a second reason to sleep had been added to the pile, I felt myself tipping that way.
"Sleep well, then."
"Okay."
Mind made up, I fished my sleep mask out of my bag.
Once the mask blocked out even the faint pre-dawn glow, the hum of the engine, the vibration of the car against my body, and the pressure of the mask over my eyes all grew sharper, more distinct.
I was savoring those sensations when, at some point, the Manager began tapping my shoulder.
"Yeonwoo, we're here. Time to wake up."
...We're here already?
I pulled off the sleep mask, stuffed it back in my bag, and half-asleep, offered my thanks to the employee who'd driven me to the airport.
"Thaaank you... for the ride...."
"Yes?! Yes! Haha! The honor was all mine! Have a safe trip!"
...Why is he like this?
Wasn't this the same guy who nearly jumped out of his skin at my greeting earlier?
Shaken by something I'd never experienced before, the last traces of sleep evaporated and my mind snapped awake.
"Ah, um... goodbye, then...."
What the...? He's back to normal again.
Could he have a split personality?
Hey, there's TS and regression in the world already, so it's not like a split personality around me would be impossible, right?
Ooh... my first time seeing a split personality.
"...Let's get going."
While I was busy entertaining useless delusions, the Manager steered me out of the car.
"Hwaaah...!"
I stretched to loosen up, then asked the Manager about what had just happened.
"Is that guy a split personality, by any chance?"
"...No?"
Not a split personality?
"Then why did his personality suddenly change just now...?"
"...May I say something you'll probably hate hearing?"
"Sorry? ...Sure."
What does his personality change have to do with anything I hate?
"When you woke up from your nap, Yeonwoo, your eyes go all soft, and your voice gets this drowsy, languid quality that's really... adorab—"
"Let's stop right there, shall we?"
"Yes."
I understood what had happened, and I also understood why the Manager had warned me I'd hate hearing it, so I hurried onward toward the terminal.
"I hope you can sleep on the plane too."
"Why?"
"Because you were so adorable earli— I'm sorry. Please relax your eyes."
Tch... So now I can't even sleep in front of other people freely?
I never really did sleep in front of others to begin with, but still. Sad.
"By the way, have the other members ever seen you right after you wake up?"
"Sorry? Of course not."
I was always the first one up.
"That explains it...."
...Something about that feels ominous.
But there was nothing I could do about it right now, so I made a mental note to remember it and moved on.
And so we boarded the plane and settled into our seats.
"Oh...!"
"Is this your first flight?"
"Yes."
"Your shoes—"
"We've already taken off. Don't you think you're a little late for that?"
"Hm... shame."
Before long the in-flight announcement played, and we were off.
"Whoa...!"
It felt like the moment a drop tower lifts you up at a theme park, and I found it fascinating.
"What a shame."
"...About what?"
"If I'd filmed you like this for a vlog, the Zeros would have absolutely adored it. Sadly, I didn't bring a camera."
"If you had, I would have smashed it and made you pay damages, so count yourself lucky you didn't."
"On a ten-million-won camera?"
"Yes."
"...I didn't expect you to confirm the figure so readily."
"That's how serious I am."
We ate the in-flight meal, watched a movie or two, and before we knew it, we'd landed in Japan.
"Oh..."
It's hot?
I already knew Japan ran hotter than Korea, so I'd worn light clothes, and it was still sweltering.
But it wasn't unbearable, so it'd be fine.
Even if the buildings were stuffy, a nice cool breeze outside would fix everything.
...Nope. Not a breeze to be found.
The moment we stepped out of the airport, brutal sunlight greeted me like a welcome party.
Tch... if mornings are like this, it'll cool off by evening, right?
Deploying maximum positive thinking, I followed the Manager.
We took a taxi to our lodgings, checked in, dropped off our bags, and headed straight out to work.
"Whoa~"
This is a VTuber company?
Our company is a second-tier agency, so of course we're small, but this place dedicates itself entirely to VTubers and uses this entire massive building for it?
While I was still gawking, the Manager finished talking with a security guard at the entrance and waved me along, so I followed.
"Here we are."
"Ooh."
When she opened the door, a man and a woman were waiting inside. The man greeted us first.
"Hajimemashite. I'm Funatogawa Haruji, team leader of the Technology Department."
My listening skills, forged through years of Japanese anime, caught the gist: a first-time introduction from the tech department's team leader.
"Hajimemashite. I'm Min Jiyu, team leader of Gaon Entertainment's VTuber division."
Once the Manager finished her introduction, the woman introduced herself.
"Hajimemashite! I'm Miekocoa, a VTuber!"
Hm? Miekocoa?
Is she... that Miekocoa?
The one I looked into back when I decided to become a VTuber and started researching the big-name streamers in Japan?
She was one of my reference points, after all — one of Japan's hottest fourth-generation rookies right now.
Wasn't her debut anniversary just coming up?
"Um... and who might that person over there be...?"
Ah. She startled me so badly I forgot to introduce myself.
Hm... she introduced herself by her VTuber name, so I should probably go with mine too, not my real name.
"Hajimemashite. I'm Roze. I do VTubing."
"EH???!!!! Roze-san??!!!!"
The moment Cocoa heard my name, she gave a reaction straight out of an anime.
Wow... hearing that in real life is surreal....
No, wait. That's not the point.
She knows me? How does she know me?
"Ho, honmono no... ah! Yo-you're the real Roze-san, isn't that right?!"
Wait, she speaks Korean?
Miekocoa... I suppose that's what I should call her.
"Hai, Mie-san."
Even though she'd asked in Korean, answering in Japanese seemed like proper etiquette, so I used Japanese.
"EHH!!! HONMONO!!!!"
...Enthusiastic, isn't she.
It'd be perfect, if only she weren't so enthusiastic it hurt my ears.
"I... I'm watanoshi... your fan!"
No, seriously — how do you even know who I am?
"And! I can't believe it! You're such a! devastating beauty in person!"
"Uh, um...."
What am I even supposed to say to that....
My crack Japanese, learned entirely through anime, simply cannot handle this kind of everyday conversation....
While I was still racking my brain, the Manager stepped in to help.
"Roze, you did that game full-clear a while back, remember?"
"Sorry? Oh, right, I did."
"Well, it caused quite a sensation over here in Japan."
"Ah."
Okay. Situation understood.
"Thank you. Thank you very much."
But even with the situation clear, my anime-learned vocabulary wasn't going to magically grow, so a simple word of thanks was all I could manage.
"Roze-san!!! Watashi!!! There is something I have always wanted to say if I ever met Roze-san, desu!!"
Huh? What is it now?
Something like an autograph request?
"Please marry me!"
Hm... What fresh, avant-garde nonsense is this?
While I did wonder what on earth she meant, an even more pressing question came first, so I turned to the Manager.
"Manager."
"Y-yes?"
The Manager, equally blindsided by this turn of events, was stammering, but my curiosity was far too urgent to wait, so I barreled ahead anyway.
"Is same-sex marriage legal in Japan?"
"...Excuse me?"
Huh. I didn't know either.