The Beginning of a Chance Encounter

Why did I talk to her?

Because she looked like she was struggling?

It was something a little different from that. The only thing I knew for certain was that even I didn't know the reason.

"Um... do I know you?"

"No. First time seeing you."

"Then why are you talking to me?"

"Doesn't seem like love at first sight, either."

Still, helping someone wasn't a bad thing. If she found it awkward and turned me down, I was ready to walk away without a second thought. If a complete stranger offered to help me, my first instinct would probably be to refuse, too.

"Hmm..."

She listened, thought it over for a moment, then looked at the boxes still stacked in a pyramid.

"Well then... could you give me a hand?"

In the end, she accepted my help. I nodded and headed for the biggest box.

"Ah — I'll move that one last, myself."

Something private, probably. I understood and picked up the next-largest box instead.

"Alright. Where to?"

"Unit 105. Do you live here too?"

"Yeah. I'm in 201."

"Then don't you have your own stuff to move?"

"I already finished. I'm good."

"You're diligent. I'm the type who puts everything off until the last second. Oh — I'll get the door."

And so began the move into Unit 105.

I still hadn't asked her name or age, but judging by the textbooks that looked like major-specific volumes among the boxes, she was probably a college student. And since our university was the only one in the area, she was likely a student there too. Not that there was any room to ask.

"You work out, don't you? You're strong, and you've got a big build."

"Yeah. More precisely, I was a soldier. Got discharged not long ago."

"Oh — a returning student?"

"No. I took the CSAT after discharge. I'm a freshman."

"Wow, so you enlisted right after graduating high school?"

Her audio never cut out. No matter what I answered, she carried the conversation forward, and she always wrapped each exchange in a way that made it easy for me to respond.

"By the way, are you always this quick to help people out?"

"I'm not that much of a nice guy. This time was just... a whim."

"Ooh, a whim. Is that flirting?"

"It's not."

Which made talking to her surprisingly comfortable. I wasn't exactly the silent type, but this was the first time I'd kept a conversation going this long without a break. That was how good she was at steering a dialogue.

"Haha, I'm kidding. But you must be popular, right?"

"Do I look like it?"

"Yeah. The build, for one thing, and you come off mature. There's this... presence to you? Like you've got gravitas?"

I was about 183 centimeters, and daily training in the military had left me pretty well pumped. My face looked relatively older because I'd enlisted young. Apparently that combination read as "gravitas." Not a word you heard every day.

"...You like anime, don't you."

"Ah, busted? Heh."

She took the hit without a shred of embarrassment. I hadn't meant it as a dig anyway — plenty of people watched anime these days.

"Do you like it too? Honestly, you don't look like the type who'd be into anime or manga."

"Well, it's less that I like it and more that I ended up knowing a lot about it."

"Oh — because someone you like is into anime?"

Seriously, her audio never stopped. We were almost done with the boxes, and at this rate the conversation would keep going even after we finished.

"Something like that. My favorite streamer loves anime and manga, so I end up watching along."

"Ah... a streamer..."

Huh. Something shifted.

For the first time, her words cut off.

"What kind of stuff do you watch?"

"Well... not sure if you'd know it. Have you heard of VTubers?"

"V-Tubers?"

"Yeah. There's a group called Utopia. My oshi is a VTuber from there named Eve."

"Ah... Eve? I, uh... know her pretty well, actually."

She nodded stiffly, avoiding my eyes. The sudden change in atmosphere made me freeze mid-motion without meaning to. Then she said:

"By any chance... no. Never mind."

Like she wanted to ask something.

"Even so... that would be rude, wouldn't it."

She murmured it so quietly I almost didn't catch it, and she didn't direct it at me. Then she half-forcibly took the box out of my hands.

"This is enough. Thank you. I'll handle the rest."

"...Okay. Then."

I'd never had any obligation or right to help her in the first place. If she didn't want more help, there was no reason to push.

Still.

That reaction just now — I couldn't help but wonder about it.

Back in my room, I took a quick shower, changed into loungewear, and lay down on the bed to wait for Eve's stream.

"Didn't expect to get a workout today."

Compared to military training or the work I'd done before enrollment, it hadn't been hard at all.

"Never even got her name. Not that I care that much... but."

Whether I truly didn't care was another question. She was the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠kind of person my eyes kept drifting toward.

Was it really love at first sight?

"I don't think so..."

Falling for someone. It wasn't like I didn't know what that meant. Back in high school, I'd had someone I liked too.

An unspoken promise to start dating once we got into college. Encouraging each other right up until the CSAT began. Checking in on each other's feelings, little by little, until the score reports came out.

My first love.

"Well. That flutter's long gone now."

The scores came out, and I realized I was a failure. I lost contact with every friend from high school. Including her.

I couldn't speak for anyone else, but I did feel a little hurt where she was concerned. Still, I couldn't blame her. It was my own mistake, and our relationship had only ever been that deep to begin with.

More than anything—

"I've got Eve now."

Ten minutes until her stream. Today's broadcast was a full Utopia collab.

Utopia was a four-member VTuber group, each inspired by a figure who had lived in paradise: Eve of Eden from the Bible, Titania the queen of the fairy forest, Vivian of Avalon, and a Valkyrie of Asgard. In other words, all of them had settings tied to paradise. The group's story was that they had come together to create a new one. That was Utopia.

"A full collab's been a while. First one since the New Year's special."

I only watched Eve's streams, so it shouldn't have mattered who she collabed with — but they were the same group, and the chemistry between them was real. I was looking forward to it.

Within Utopia, Eve's chemistry with Kiri — the one modeled on a Valkyrie — was especially good. Bright, outgoing Eve, who thrived in just-chatting streams and got along with everyone in collabs, paired with mature, embracing Kiri, who had a way of looking after people. The two of them often came off like a little sister and an older sister. Kiri was also good at games, so when they played together she guided Eve well enough that they called each other their "main wife."

"Looking forward to the Kiri chemistry today too."

A big guy lying in bed watching a VTuber stream — how did that look from the outside? At some point I'd stopped caring. I'd just proudly told a woman I'd met for the first time that I watched VTubers.

Had I stopped worrying about other people's eyes? Or was it more that I simply didn't want to hide how much I liked Eve?

"Oh — it's starting."

Eve appeared on screen, and a greeting that blasted away every scrap of leftover fatigue filled the room.

Eve did a short just-chat segment. She still had that gift for drawing out chat reactions, and her responses were so cute that just watching made me smile.

And then the collab began. Today's format was a rhythm game — two teams, combined scores deciding the winner.

"Ooh. All four on screen."

It had been a long time since the full Utopia roster shared one frame.

First to greet was Kiri — Eve's main wife and the member she got along with best. Blonde hair, blue eyes, silver armor. The warrior aesthetic suited the Valkyrie concept perfectly, and she always carried that same strong-player energy into games.

Next was Bibi. Modeled on Vivian, the Lady of the Lake of Avalon, with a striking silver-haired avatar. Her calm voice was widely considered the most beautiful in Utopia. She'd also been the last member recruited — Utopia had originally been a three-person group.

Third was Tita. Modeled on Titania, queen of the fairy forest — brown hair and green eyes that called the woods to mind. Not quite at Eve's level, but famous for high energy, and the best singer in Utopia.

And last — my oshi, Eve.

Blue eyes, blue hair, and a voice that melted right through you. Was it just my bias that made her shine brighter than the rest?

I'd expected to keep my eyes locked on Eve the whole time. And yet—

"..."

For some reason, my attention kept snagging on the other members for brief stretches. There was a voice that tickled at my ear. One I couldn't help noticing. I didn't know whose it was — just that when the members all talked over each other, it would surface now and then.

One thing I was sure of.

It wasn't Eve.

"...What is that?"

I watched the Utopia collab with a strange feeling I couldn't place. Separate from that feeling, though, the stream itself was more than satisfying.

"Today's looking like a ninety-plus out of a hundred."

The four of them split into two teams. Eve was, of course, paired with Kiri. The two of them still had great chemistry as they played.

"Hahaha."

For reference, Utopia had an official chest ranking. Biggest was Bibi, then Eve. Dead last was—

Right as she yelled that, Kiri made her first mistake of the night — and Eve pounced on it like she'd been waiting.

Bibi and Tita, on the other team, chimed in like they felt sorry for her. Kiri let out a hollow little laugh, sounding thoroughly done.

The last game wrapped up. Despite that one slip, Kiri's overwhelming carry sealed the win for her and Eve's team. Eve immediately flipped her entire attitude and started singing Kiri's praises.

At Tita's question, Kiri made a little groaning sound.

Heavy stuff.

Did she move apartments or something?

The fun collab ended, Eve wrapped up with a short just-chat, and the stream was fully over. No ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠matter how enjoyable a broadcast was, this particular stretch of time always left me suddenly depressed. Couldn't be helped, I supposed.

"Hmm... still, a ninety-six out of a hundred. Eve really does look brightest when she's with Kiri."

There was a reason Eve was so fond of her. She'd once told a behind-the-scenes story from before debut — how the person she'd relied on most, the one who'd encouraged her, had been Kiri. Hard to imagine looking at her now, but back then Eve had no confidence, nothing she was particularly good at compared to the other members, nothing but worry. Kiri had told her that just having her there was enough to make her happy, and Eve said those words had saved her. Because of that confession, we Adami all recognized Kiri as Eve's main wife without complaint.

"Just having you here is enough to make me happy... Yeah. Those two really are on the same wavelength."

Not that I'd ever met either of them in person.

"Is it already this late?"

A stream that had run nearly seven hours was over. Outside the window, the sun had set and the night sky was out. Lost track of time again today.

If I slept now I'd wake up early enough, but it was orientation day — no real need to rush. Orientation day prioritized the freshman welcome party anyway, so as long as I wasn't late for that, I was fine. I'd browse the cafe a bit and then sleep.

"As expected, the board's full of collab posts. Let's see... anything about Eve."

I opened the Utopia cafe. It was plastered with posts about today's collab. One titled Kiri Carries the Games, Eve Carries the Fun caught my eye, so I clicked in.

It was packed with exactly the Eve praise I'd been looking for. No one was tearing down the other members — just a chorus of Eve is the best. Naturally, I hit like and dropped an Eve-ticon in the comments.

"Plenty of people who get it. Though yeah — Kiri really is good at games. Honestly, with Eve's skill level the team power is basically zero, and she still carried them to a win."

The stream was definitely fun, but Eve's game skill was dead last in Utopia. In FPS her aim meant more bullets missed than hit; in AOS her deaths always outnumbered her kills; and in strategy games she just pivoted the whole thing into a comedy bit.

I added that reply, browsed the cafe a little longer, and went to sleep.

Whether tomorrow was orientation or anything else didn't really matter.

The top priority in my life was Eve.