Mama Reiko's Eye-Level Education
As usual, I was gauging the market while indulging in my refined hobby, when I heard a sound that absolutely shouldn't have reached my ears.
Ding-dong~
"..!?"
I jumped in shock, quickly cranked the speaker volume down to zero, and froze like a dead mouse, not even daring to breathe as I cautiously assessed the situation.
What the hell? Did my speakers blare too loud and piss off the neighbors? If I opened the door, would some massive bald brute loom over me, barking at me to keep it down? With this frail little body of mine, facing something like that would shatter my sanity for sure.
As my mind spun through dozens of horrifying scenarios, the phone I'd been clutching started vibrating. A quick glance showed Reiko on the screen.
A call at a time like this..? I picked up gingerly.
"H-hello..?"
"Yes, this is Yagami. Ito-san, are you out right now?"
"N-no.. I'm home.."
"Good. Could you open the door? I'm starting to struggle a bit."
With that, the call ended. Tension drained from my body all at once.
Oh. It was just Reiko dropping by. No big deal.
I let out a sigh of relief and scurried to fling open the front door.
"Hello.. wh-what is that..?"
"Good morning. Nothing much—just some essentials I've brought along."
What Reiko held was.. a plastic storage box. I'd forgotten the exact name—something like a BT box? Anyway, one of those handy stackable containers you see at moving companies or hardware stores.
Should I help? I dazedly reached out, but Reiko shook her head, slipped off her shoes, and stepped inside.
Yeah, no way could I lift that thing. Lucky if I didn't get crushed and hurt.
Actually, getting hurt was pretty much guaranteed. Anyway, after neatly arranging her shoes, I followed her. She set the box down in the middle of the room and peeled off the tape on top. Then she started slowly unpacking the contents..
"Th-those are.. pills..?"
"Nutritional supplements. One a day—take them all."
"Th-this many? That's.. way too much.."
"After reviewing your test results, both I and your doctor agreed: your malnutrition is severe. Increasing your meals right away would be tough, so this is the way."
"I-is that so.."
I couldn't exactly claim I hadn't seen it coming, but hearing it straight-up was still deflating. Who wouldn't shrink a bit from "You've got health issues"?
Of course, after years of one skimpy meal a day—or skipping proper food altogether—it wasn't news. Still..
As I puzzled over where to stash all these supplement bottles Reiko was pulling out, the next item appeared..
"I-is that a.. rice cooker?"
"Yes. A small one."
It was a tiny electric rice cooker—super compact, probably good for one or two servings max. Kinda cute, size and shape-wise.
Reiko scanned the room, spotted an empty outlet, and set it down nearby.
"You know how to use it, right?"
"Y-yeah, sure.."
"Good. From now on, make at least one proper meal a day yourself."
With that, she dug back into the box and produced what looked like sealed containers of side dishes. They filled up my tiny fridge—which had barely held a few drinks—stacked neatly.
Man.. getting pampered like this felt almost embarrassing. I'd figured she'd just drill me on work stuff, not micromanage my daily life from top to bottom..
"No need for this with the other members. You're the one who'd end up carted off mid-stream if left alone, so better to manage you preemptively."
"D-did it show that much?"
"To some extent."
Hmm.. Guess my face gives everything away. Never really hung with people like that before, so no clue how to hide it. I rubbed my squishy cheeks as Reiko unpacked a few more items, finally emptying the box.
She'd brought a ton..
The last ones were clearly cleaning supplies—a mop head thingy that held wet wipes or whatever for easy floor wiping.
Before I could protest, Reiko assembled it in seconds and started swiping at my floor. She moved so naturally and familiarly that I couldn't help a little laugh slipping out.
She noticed, pausing to give me a puzzled look mid-swipe.
"..?"
"N-no.. I just.. um. Kinda.. mom-like, y'know?"
"Do I look that old..?"
"N-no! Not like that—"
"Kidding. I'll take it as a compliment on my homemaking skills."
Reiko chuckled softly and resumed cleaning. I patted my chest in relief and shambled around, gathering the trash—mostly PET bottles, cup ramen cups, and takeout containers from the local chain. It didn't take long.
The room wasn't big, furniture sparse, so cleaning wrapped up in a flash. Seeing the mop pads turn pitch black after two swaps hit me: My room was that filthy?} My jaw dropped.
Then I heard Reiko stifling a laugh.
Yeah.. gotta clean more often from now on. No idea how long that'll last, though..
Part of me wanted to beg Reiko to do it forever, but come on—gotta have some shame. She's got work; can't waste her time babying a slob like me.
"Alright, room's tidied up. Shall we get to business?"
"Sure.."
Whew. Not here just to clean, then. A bit of weight lifted—nope, not really.
Business talk could've been a call or chat app. Why trek all the way here..? I nodded inwardly with thanks and agreement.
"Today's topic.. could be called the most crucial for any broadcaster. Not just internet streamers—applies to famous actors, geinin comedians, rakugo storytellers, idols.. everyone."
"What is it..?"
"Simply put, character building. You've heard the term plenty, right?"
My mind flashed to game character creators first, but context said no. I knew what she meant.
"Like.. airhead or foodie.. that kinda thing?"
"Exactly. The fool character is the most famous and reliable. Shows up in every variety show, hooks audiences.. Same in VTuber land. Side note: you listed poor conversational skills as one reason your streams flopped. Why do you think that was?"
"Uh.."
The sudden question jammed my brain. Why was I bad at talk? 'Cause I'm a friendless loser? Nah, probably not the answer she wanted..
I hemmed and hawed until Reiko continued.
Strictly speaking, lacking eloquence and boring viewers are separate. Delivery tempo, pacing, engagement.. many factors, but they all boil down to "not normal enough."
Droning like a dry real-life chat won't reach viewers beyond the mic and screen. Actors, comedians, storytellers—they all amp up emotions with performative flair. That was her point.
"S-so.. put on an act..?"
"That's another layer. Let me illustrate."
Reiko pulled a diary and pen from her bag, drew a small circle, and wrote Ito Yui in cute, rounded hiragana atop it. Surprisingly girly handwriting..
"Simply: this is your true self, essence—honne in Japanese terms. Anyway. Nobody shows their raw self completely to others, right? We mix, mingle, but hide parts."
"R-right..?"
She nodded faintly, drew a larger circle around it, labeling it social skills in kanji.
We suppress our true selves to bond easily, hide embarrassments, match vibes— that's sociality. She skimmed psych jargon, just get the gist. Then another, bigger circle: broadcaster persona.
"Everyone performs daily. Broadcasters layer more: act fun, lovable, aspirational. To captivate, or hide their offline self. Yuri salesmanship falls here too."
Without waiting, another big circle. Finally, a huge one labeled RP.
"Everyday acting, topped by broadcaster acting, topped by VTuber RP. Easy to confuse with the prior, but say a common setup: "centuries-old vampire." Does that reveal the streamer's playstyle or prefs?"
"Not really..?"
"RP means many things, but bottom line: you need "broadcast-suitable" performance."
"I.. think I get it."
It was so obvious, I couldn't fathom why it hadn't clicked before.
Those yelling variety show staples? They don't scream everywhere IRL. Streamers raging at games, blaming others, cursing devs off-stream? Nah. Everyone knows they exaggerate for entertainment and fame.
Yet somehow, during my streams—and even moments ago—I'd drawn a blank on it. Weird.
And VTuber identity is separate. A 1200-year-old demon lord? Doesn't clue you into their gaming habits. Depends on what they actually stream.
Boils down to: broadcasters must wear a mask for success. RP is the VTuber-specific mask atop that. The latter felt a tad philosophical.
Chewing on this chat, another reason my streams tanked clicked: mindlessly gaming, mumbling to myself, rare chat reacts in deadpan tone..
Hell, I owed those few loyal viewers big time for sticking around that slog.