The Lady and the Maid
"So you're saying the two of us—Chell and I—should perform a two-person play?" I asked. Rion nodded vigorously.
"Yeah. The recording wrapped up way faster than expected, so we've got plenty of time left."
Rion explained that, under normal circumstances, Chell and I were supposed to record last. The staff had assumed we'd make plenty of mistakes since it was our first time participating, so they'd reserved extra time for retakes. Instead, we'd finished everything in a single flawless take. The result was an unexpected surplus of time.
"You two did great with pure ad-lib, no script at all. So I thought, why not try an impromptu play?"
"That's not what I heard earlier. There was no mention of a two-person play."
"Well, true, but… you were both so good."
Rion glanced sideways at the other staff and VTubers.
"If it works, great. If not, no big deal… We just have time to kill, so it seemed worth a shot. You get it?"
"Will this be included in the winter voice drama as well?"
"Not really. If the result turns out decent, they might sell it separately later."
"Hmm."
From what I could gather, this voice drama was never part of the original plan. It was simply that our acting had been excellent, time remained, and the venue and conditions happened to align. A spur-of-the-moment idea born from several coincidences.
That means we can refuse without consequence.
This hadn't gone through any higher approval. The staff on-site had simply thought it might be fun if Chell and I did a voice drama together. If I declined, they'd be mildly disappointed at most. There was no real risk involved.
Then what would be the benefit of accepting?
If the voice drama records successfully, we'd earn a bit more money.
And if the "decent result" failed to materialize, the worst that could happen was a little embarrassment and wasted time. Prioritizing money wouldn't be a bad idea, though truthfully, I wasn't exactly strapped for cash anymore.
"I'd like to do it."
While I was still mulling it over, Chell suddenly spoke up.
"Chell, you want to?"
"Yes. Sora probably won't like it, though."
I had no idea why Sora's name came up there. Chell stared straight at me. Her expression remained as blank as ever, yet her intent—that I must accept this—was crystal clear.
"Very well. Then let us give it a try."
We entered the booth. This time, not alone—together with Chell.
"……"
Chell stood before the microphone with a vacant expression, waiting. It was impossible to tell what she was thinking. She might have been deep in thought, or perhaps thinking of nothing at all.
[Why don't the two of you just start talking about anything?]
Rion's voice came from outside the booth.
Conversation, was it?
Conversation is necessary.
Nothing had been decided—no theme, nothing. We had to complete a short drama using only ad-lib. Put that way, it sounded like an absurd task. Rion had placed some strange expectation on me, which was why this was even happening. Chell was strangely motivated, which was also why this was happening. The other staff and VTubers probably had no expectations whatsoever. They were surely just watching for entertainment.
"Chell, do you have anything you'd like to say?"
Since they'd told us to try any conversation at all, I decided to speak first. We needed to decide on a theme for the drama, at the very least.
"You can decide, Laura."
She seemed reluctant to lead the conversation and pushed it onto me. Just as I expected.
"You were quite good earlier. Did you study acting?"
"Yes."
"Where?"
"I was a voice actor."
A voice actor. It was surprising, yet somehow not. She lacked social skills and didn't possess exceptional gaming physique. Chell's only strength lay in her voice. So the fact that she'd been a voice actor wasn't particularly strange.
"Then why did you become a VTuber?"
"To survive."
…What?
"Did someone threaten you with a knife to become a VTuber?"
"No. Voice acting didn't pay enough."
"What kind of work did you do?"
"Just one minor role. That was all."
That certainly wouldn't have paid well.
"There must have been other jobs. Why choose to be a VTuber?"
"Because being a VTuber seemed like the best way to be loved."
"Loved?"
"Yes. I want to be loved, and I want the things I love to be loved as well."
Chell spoke. She loved subculture. If the various works she enjoyed gained popularity among the public, media mixes would follow. That might open new dubbing opportunities even for someone like her, who had only ever played minor roles. And Chell Sumeragi herself needed to be loved. If more people came to like the person named Chell, if more people came to love her voice, then perhaps more opportunities would arise afterward as well.
"So that's why you became a VTuber."
"Yes."
Chell nodded. For her, being a VTuber was both survival and a way of life.
"Therefore—please love me."
Chell's tone shifted. A single line in an undefined conversation. An opening move, as if to say, "Let's see what you've got."
So that's how you want to play it.
I understood what Chell was thinking. Time was not infinite. Rather than painstakingly deciding on a theme, she wanted to begin acting immediately, whatever the result. It was both a display of confidence and a declaration of her determination to complete this ad-lib voice drama no matter what. So she was provoking me—challenging whether I could respond to that line.
"That cannot be, Lady Chell."
I spoke. Chell's eyes widened at my line. I smiled faintly in return.
Role reversal. Aurora, who usually maintained the RP of a ducal daughter, now taking the exact opposite role. What could be more entertaining for the viewers than this?
You underestimated me.
The "ducal daughter" was my way of life, but while I could choose my way of life, my chosen way of life could not dictate me. Being a ducal daughter was merely one of many labels I possessed. If necessary, I could set it aside at any time. Restoring it afterward would not be difficult either. Of course, the price was not cheap.
I erased every trace of the "ducal daughter" from my face, faintly reflected in the glass window. I replaced elegance with coldness. Grace with precision. I drew my hands and feet together and stood motionless in place.
Fortunately, I had seen plenty of maids until now. So playing the role of a maid was an exceedingly simple task for me, a ducal daughter.
"How could someone as lowly as I possibly love you, my lady?"
"I shall pretend I did not hear that."
"Please forget today's events as well, Lady Chell."
If we were going to do this, we would do it thoroughly. And perfectly.
The voice drama recording ended. Honestly, I wasn't sure if this could even be called a voice drama. It felt more like Chell and I had been striking at each other with tongues instead of swords.
"If this was how it would turn out, I never wanted to be born as the daughter of a ducal house."
"What use are family glory and authority? I cannot even fulfill my smallest dream."
Chell had been no pushover either. Especially with many lines that blatantly provoked me, who was maintaining the ducal daughter RP. I couldn't tell whether she was acting or picking a fight.
"Lady Chell, you are the treasure of the great ducal house."
"Serving you is my joy, and the very fact of your existence is the glory of our house."
"Furthermore, are you not the hope that will open the empire's future?"
"I understand your marriage to His Highness the Crown Prince is not far off."
"With you, Lady Chell, I know you will care for the wise people of the ducal house and the empire's subjects."
So I added new setting details and countered. Can you handle this? In that manner… the story somehow kept rolling forward, though it did feel a bit like a morning drama. In other words, a mess. And so, something thoroughly saturated with stimulation was completed.
And the result was—
"We'll have to show it to the president first. Whether we can sell this or not…"
So they said. Naturally, a company would go through various procedures before selling a product, but this had been an impromptu attempt simply because time remained. Rion would take the result to the company and have the president review it. Then an internal meeting would be held, and if they gave the green light to sell, the voice would be processed. They'd also need to hire an illustrator to draw the key visual. The winter voice drama we'd recorded today was scheduled for sale in November, so this one wouldn't release until next year at the earliest to avoid overlapping sales schedules.
"How anticlimactic. The result comes out so much later. Don't you think so too, Chell?"
"I agree."
"…If it has no commercial value, the voice drama might be scrapped. Keep that in mind, both of you."
Rion said. At the time, we had no way of knowing that approximately three months later, the voice drama would be safely released.
【Aurora × Chell Sumeragi】
Voice Drama: The Secret Meeting of the Lady and the Maid
Our voice drama sold far better than expected. We had no way of knowing at this point that it would become a minor sensation in certain communities.
"Huh…? What is this?"
Nor could we have known that when the voice drama was released, Sora would be left breathless. That was all still in the future.