Chapter 7. A Hero That Looks Familiar Somehow
Chapter 7. A Hero That Looks Familiar Somehow
[ Viewers: 20 ]
"What the... why did twenty people come in?"
It was a lot of people for a streamer starting her first broadcast.
And someone had even donated right at the start.
"Did my parents promote it to their employees?"
I shook my head almost immediately.
They had helped me get the equipment, but they weren't the type to openly advertise to people around them like this.
[Please read the chat!!!]
[My e... eyes are dying!!!]
[They said your voice is that good so fucking say something!!]
[Is this some kind of study stream?]
Maybe I should subtly tell Laila to interact with them?
I figured that was better than barging into the stream right now.
So I discreetly tried to send a message to Laila on my phone.
[ Overflowing Holy-Power Pouch has donated 10,000 Watts! ]
- Saintess, your voice... please let us hear your voice.
I immediately closed the messaging app.
Maybe gathering people with this kind of concept wasn't so bad?
"Oh my, so many people have gathered already? I didn't even notice—I was just reading my book."
[Wow... what's with that voice?]
[My body felt warm the moment I heard it.]
[Did you just get chills?]
[Is this guy crazy lolol]
Tsk... I decided to let comments like that slide for now.
[So what is this stream about?]
"Um... I don't have anything specific in mind. I was originally planning to stream going through gates."
[Huh? Gates?]
[Is the Saintess a hunter?]
[So you're saying you beat monsters to a pulp with that face?]
"I'm not the one catching them directly. Hero will be doing the catching. My role is to support him!"
[Lolol right, a Saintess and Hero are a set]
[Ah, so that's the concept...]
[Concept? You bastard]
[So when will Hero appear?]
I made a big X sign with my hand to Laila, who was glancing at me.
"Hero is busy, so he'll likely appear when we go into the gate."
[They haven't been able to cast the Hero concept yet]
[Forget the concept lol]
[But why does your nickname have such an old man vibe?]
"What does 'old man' mean...? And Hero personally chose the nickname for me."
[Did you use a wig and contacts? The quality is insane]
[The outfit looks like an expensive custom order too?]
Laila fiddled with her own hair, then opened her eyes wide and leaned her upper body forward, shoving her face toward the camera.
And she naturally made it clear they were her real hair and eyes.
[Whoa... I almost stopped breathing]
[I am filled with holy power]
[Puwahaaaaang lol]
"Hmm... it's about time for dinner. I'll be ending it here for today."
[?]
[You're leaving already?]
[You've only been on for three hours?]
Despite the viewers' protests, Laila ended the stream.
And right before it ended, the viewer count had soared past fifty.
---
After Laila's stream ended, I spent time until the next day checking various places online.
[ Author: Anonymous ]
[ Title: My eyes... I'm dying... ]
[ Content: (A close-up picture of a face pushing toward the camera) Heuuung... ]
└ Cut the viral marketing, fuck!!!
└ I saw her too, she seemed really innocent?
└ A Saintess should be innocent
└ Huh? Not according to Hitomi?
└ Malicious slander no!!!
Talk about Laila's stream popped up here and there on major communities.
[ Author: Table Flip ]
[ Title: Puwahaaaaang! ]
[ Content: (A gif of her face getting close to the camera) ]
└ Basically the same comment telling them to cut the viral marketing.
└ Is this person a professional cosplayer?
└ I dunno? When asked about a wig or contacts, she said it was her natural hair and eye color
└ But this was the first time I've seen someone commit to a concept like this who isn't even a VTuber
└ It's not a concept!!!
Laila was beside me, watching the stories about her come in.
I was worried about how she'd handle any malicious comments, but thankfully most were positive.
"Laila, how was the stream?"
"It was great. Chatting with people about this and that was fun, you know?"
Laila smiled brightly.
But not all the posts would be good.
While streaming, there would definitely be times she'd get her feelings hurt.
"Laila, if it ever gets hard, it's okay, so tell me."
"Hehe, I like that you worry about me."
I couldn't help but worry that tender-hearted Laila might get hurt.
Whether she knew how I felt or not, Laila was already launching the streaming program.
[ A Bit of a Fucked-Up Hero : Saintess's Casual Chat. ]
Her stream turned on immediately, and at the same time, a Pajijik notification rang from my phone.
[I shall pray...]
[Saintess, my pp hurts...]
└ Clean Bot detected an inappropriate expression.
[You, get lost lol]
[The eyes are back again!!]
Her unique concept (?) was definitely working, as the viewer count exceeded triple digits.
"I'm so grateful that this many people came to see me."
[Heuuung... my ears are going to melt]
An excellent AI was automatically filtering out the truly horrible comments.
My job was just to block the ones who made sly, roundabout remarks.
[ Overflowing Holy-Power Pouch has donated 5,000 Watts! ]
- Saintess, what are you doing today?
"Hmm... I haven't thought about it. Should we just share a conversation?"
I was watching her from a spot the camera couldn't see, and she was laughing and communicating well.
[ Saintess's Hero Candidate has donated 1,000 Watts! ]
- Didn't you say you were going to a gate?
"Yes, we're making plans now. I'm not sure where would be good to go."
[What I'm curious about is what rank is the Saintess?]
[Is she high?]
[If she was high, she'd be hunting, not streaming lol]
[Fr, the amount hunters make is on a different level]
"Oh, just a moment."
Laila started rummaging through a drawer for a moment.
Then she pulled out a small card the size of a business card and showed it to the camera.
[???]
[C-rank? You're C-rank?]
[Oh my, a distinguished person in such a shabby place;;]
[You think Pajijik is shabby???]
[Why are you streaming instead of joining a guild?]
Everyone questioned Laila's rank.
A C-rank earns at least as much as a starting salary at a major corporation.
That was why everyone thought it was strange Laila was streaming.
The chat burned with talk of Laila's rank for a while.
But no one raised an objection.
Hunter licenses were impossible to forge; forgery was a serious felony, and viewers assumed no one would brazenly reveal a forgery on stream.
[If you have a brain, think for a second;; you think she'd blatantly show it if it was a lie?]
[An ultra-top-tier beauty and she's C-rank? Life really is unfair;;]
[Any thoughts on keeping me as a pet? I'm very well potty-trained]
[Get in line back there lol]
Laila was running the stream skillfully.
There were occasional idiots asking weird questions, but I was mercilessly cutting them out.
And at the same time, I started spreading clips of her everywhere with practiced ease.
I was meticulous in my actions, even using a VPN.
[ Overflowing Holy-Power Pouch has donated 10,000 Watts! ]
- But honestly, I'm most curious about this Hero the Saintess talks about lol
[They've gotta be a super handsome guy like the Saintess, right?]
[Lol a blond, handsome man is the classic image for a Hero]
[What, did they already cast someone for the Hero concept?]
[Go!!! A Saintess and Hero are always a set]
Laila glanced behind the monitor at me.
"Hmm... I think I have a picture I took with Hero?"
And then her eyes asked if it was okay to show people.
My face was going to be known eventually once we entered the gate anyway.
I made a circle with my hand to signal it was fine.
"Just a moment... let me look for the photo."
[Here it comes, here it comes, something big is coming]
[I'm really curious lol]
[Hero and Saintess is a universally accepted combination]
Seeing people's reactions, I felt relieved.
Usually, female streamers have to be careful about dating.
If they get caught, their fanbase could crumble and scatter away.
'Was it okay since Laila and I had a business (?) relationship for the stream?'
I wasn't sure, but maybe it was fine because we were pushing the two-person system concept of Saintess and Hero from the start.
By nailing down this premise from the beginning, people who wanted to feel pseudo-romantic emotions toward a female streamer wouldn't watch from the start.
'Rather than revealing it later and causing a controversy...'
In the end, it was better than being accused of betraying the viewers or lying to fans and causing a whole scene.
'Ah, but do we still need to hide that we're living together?'
Oh, whatever...
The people who were going to watch would watch, and the ones who won't, won't.
Honestly, revealing everything and streaming openly felt refreshing, and I had nothing to be ashamed of personally.
"Oh, I found it!"
[I almost stopped breathing;;]
[Saintess, what is your previous existence]
[This house is well-trained]
Laila pushed her phone screen showing the photo toward the camera.
It was a picture of her and me taken together.
And then the chat instantly stopped.
[...?]
[Well, he is blond at least...]
[Ah shit, I've seen this composition somewhere before lolol]
At the same time, I was watching Laila's stream and didn't feel anything off.
It was a photo my parents had taken when our family went on a trip to the sea.
Laila was blushing shyly and making a peace sign, while the photo showed me with my hand resting on her shoulder.
'Was my expression or posture weird?'
I scrutinized it, but I couldn't sense anything strange.
Laila in casual clothes with her beautiful hair.
Me, with my dependable build hinting at lean muscle and a healthy, bronze-toned complexion.
'Was my smile weird, maybe? I've always had trouble putting on a smile for photos...'
[ Saintess's Foot Wiper has donated 10,000 Watts! ]
- If I saw this on Hitomi I'd give it a recommendation lolololol