I Joined the Agency as a Manager to Support a Vtuber, but Somehow I Ended up Becoming the Face of the Company as an Official Staff Member? - 11

Chapter 11: Long Story Short, The Scandal Has Reached the Talent

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“Damn. Speak of the devil, and he comes, huh?”

“Isn’t it more like, speak of the devil and he shall appear?”

“We don’t have time for that right now! Vitter’s getting pretty wild!”

“Actually, I have a question. I’m not really following, but why is the manager of Kohaku Toudou’s scandal affecting Amairo-san?”

I voiced a sudden doubt that came to mind.

“Listen, Ren. A flame war doesn’t always stop with the person at the center of it.”

“Aoi’s listeners are… Well, overprotective, or maybe just plain intense…”

Kurama-san hesitated as she shared a certain incident with me.

About half a year ago, a certain male streamer apparently reached out to Aihara-san for a collaboration. That streamer didn’t exactly have the best reputation. In fact, he was categorized among the so-called “flame-bait” streamers. Despite this, HoloEco approved the collab under administrative supervision.

And so the collaboration was approved, but… That streamer spent the entire session persistently asking about Amairo-san/Aihara-san’s real-life appearance.

In this industry, talking about a VTuber’s real-life identity—especially their appearance—was a serious taboo. Some people chose to hide their faces when streaming because they were self-conscious about their looks. But this streamer ignored all of that, and in the end, went so far as to say, “VTubers are just ugly people hiding their faces and sucking up to fans like beggars.”

He said it. The day after the collab, that man’s personal information was leaked online. His academic history, job history, annual income, even the misdeeds he left behind during his delinquent student days—everything was out in the open.

Of course, “that man” referred to the male streamer who had just done the collaboration with Amairo-san. Afterward, “a certain part of the internet” went after him relentlessly, and it blew up into a full-on flame war, ultimately driving him to quit Vtubing entirely.

“A lot of the people in that ‘certain part of the internet’ were self-proclaimed hackers or lawyers. Actually, maybe they weren’t even self-proclaimed…?”

“Uhh, so basically… Aihara-san’s fans dug up a guy’s entire past in just a few days and completely destroyed him socially?”

“Yeah. That’s what happened.”

“Hm… Is it okay if I go write my resignation letter and suicide note now? I’d like to go home and sort through my belongings too, if that’s alright.”

“Don’t die, okay!?”

“There’s no need to go that far. At least, not the suicide note. Hopefully the announcement from management will calm things down… Though in these cases, some people just won’t listen.”

“Wait, hold up? Ōno-san, are you saying that in the worst case, Hiori-kun might end up quitting!?”

“Worst case, yes. That’s a possibility. Anyway, once the stream’s over, Kurama-san, go get in touch with Aihara-san right away. Ren and I will go talk to the president.”

“Got it!”

With the immediate plan set, we left the meeting room to take action. Before that, Kurama-san grabbed my sleeve to stop me.

“Hiori-kun. Because of that whole flame war earlier, Aoi’s gotten really uncomfortable talking to men.”

“Really…?”

I might actually understand how she feels.

“During our previous collaboration, Aoi asked a lot of questions about you, Hiori-kun. That’s really rare for her. So, uh, I know I might be putting pressure on you, but… Could you try talking to her sometime?”

I couldn’t see Kurama-san’s face, but her voice sounded worried.

“Yeah, I understand. Next time I’ll try to make some small talk or something… I’m not great at talking to girls, though.”

“Oh really…! Thanks, I appreciate it.”

“Ren, let’s go.”

“Right.”

I headed to the boardroom with Ōno-senpai.

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“I figured you’d come. Now then, could you explain the situation?”

“Yes. Here’s what happened, more or less.”

“Hm. I see, basically it’s like that, is it?”

“That’s about the size of it.”

“Ren!? Don’t go along with him, Iketani-san!”

“I’m just trying to lighten the mood, okay?”

“Exactly. That’s what I did.”

“…What’s with these two? They’re getting along way too well…”

Putting that aside, we got down to explaining the current issue.

“I see… So, in other words, there’s absolutely no truth to the rumors, correct?”

“Yes. We haven’t done anything remotely resembling a criminal act like what XY had claimed.”

“Understood. Then we’ll issue an official statement from the company account to clarify that.”

“Sorry for the trouble.”

“No, the real trouble is whoever started spreading these rumors. We’ll take immediate steps to handle that too—”

“Please leave that part to me. I may be new here, but I can take care of my own problems.”

“…Understood. If there’s anything you need help with, just say the word.”

“Will do.”

“Ren… I’m impressed you could talk so confidently with someone like Iketani-san.”

“I pride myself on at least having guts.”

“Alright, I’m going to check in with Kurama-san. You head back to your desk and sort through the paperwork.”

“Got it.”

After leaving the boardroom, I parted ways with Senpai and returned to the room with my desk.

“…Ah.”

There was a figure standing near the door.

“Hello, Aihara-san. Is something the matter?”

It was Aihara-san herself.

“…I wanted to talk for a bit.”

“If you’re looking for Gomi-senpai, he’s not here right now.”

“No, not him.”

“Hm?”

She pointed a finger at me.

“I want to talk to you, Hiori-san.”

“…I see. Just a moment, okay?”

I went to drop off my things at my desk, then returned to her.

“Sorry to keep you waiting. Where should we talk?”

“Let’s go to the break room.”

“Alright, let’s go.”

“Yeah.”

Following the sound of her small footsteps, I quietly walked after her.

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