Vol 1 Chapter 16 – The Cult’s Aria【Vol 1 – Turning Point】

『Yo, everyone! Y’all gathered!? Let’s get this show on the road! Vibe check—y’all hyped!? I’m at my peak, and it’s all thanks to my baby bro! First off, feast your ears on this angel’s soprano!』

Ryu-kun’s tone came off super aggressive. His avatar—a blond delinquent-type—didn’t help.

BenToben: Yo! “Angel’s soprano” has me hyped, but you sure this’ll deliver?
Babba: First time hearing Ryu call someone an “angel.” Should I get my hopes up?
HatsuBread: Came running when I heard Ryu’s composing!

Ryu-kun’s audience seemed totally different from Micchi-Mama’s. Not a single name I recognized in the chat.

“Is… Ryu-kun always like this?”

I barely knew him—just that he was part of the Akiha VTuber family. Judging him felt unfair, but his intensity was kinda scary.

“Listen close. Ryu-kun’s all bark, no bite,” Miss Michi reassured me.

We were watching Ryu’s stream together.

Micchi-Mama: Mama’s so happy Ryu-kun’s in top form today!

Miss Michi typed that out.

『Yo, Mama! Thanks for crashin’ my party! Kick back and enjoy! Now, let’s drop this track! Get ready to shiver!』

Once I actually listened, I realized… he wasn’t scary at all.

“Huh? He’s… nice?”

“Yep! Rough around the edges, but a total sweetheart.”

As we chatted, my a cappella recording of COSMOS started playing. No伴奏, just raw vocals. Hearing myself made me cringe.

The chat froze.

Then, the moment it ended, comments flooded in.

BenToben: …An actual angel.
HatsuBread: Can I send a piano伴奏 track!?
Babba: HatsuBread, I’ll handle violin!
Chai-ga Suki-!: Let’s start a band! Rin-chan on vocals!

『See!? SEE!? This raw, unedited clip straight-up stole my soul! That’s why I’m doin’ it—makin’ a song dedicated to my baby bro, Rin! But y’all get it, right? This kid’s range is W I D E! Bet he could nail the Queen of the Night’s aria!』

I’d heard about the Queen of the Night aria in middle school music class—a solo from Mozart’s The Magic Flute. Insanely wide range, notoriously difficult.

Hearing such cultured words from Ryu’s delinquent avatar shocked me.

“Try singing along! Let’s see if you can handle it,” Miss Michi said, pulling up the aria.

I hummed along to the notes.

『To do this justice, Japanese lyrics won’t cut it! Mama, send me some visuals to lock in the vibe!』

As I vocalized, I realized Ryu-kun’s “commands” were actually polite requests. Not what I expected from a tough-guy act.

“Can I send this?”

“Uh, sure?”

I paused my humming to answer.

I should’ve noticed sooner. Miss Michi wasn’t sending my illustration—it was a photo.

『BWUH!? The hell is this!? Bro’s a legit angel… Wait, MA—er, Mama, seriously!? A photo!?』

That’s when it hit me.

“Mi—MAMA! Why’d you send a photo!?”

“Ryu-kun’s super trustworthy! Anyway, you could totally sing the Queen of the Night aria with practice, right?”

That’s not the point! But if Miss Michi trusted him, I doubted he’d misuse it.

“Uh… yeah…”

Honestly, I could mostly hit the notes. Whether my voice suited it was another question…

Chai-ga Suki-!: RYU, SHOW US THE PIC!

『Nuh-uh, no can do! Let’s just say… it’s a stunning girl. Wait, he’s my bro, right…?』

BenToben: You sure it’s not a sister?
HatsuBread: With that voice, no way it’s a guy…
Chai-ga Suki-!: Tch, no dice…
Babba: Obviously they won’t show it lol

Amid the chaos, Miss Michi chimed in:

Micchi-Mama: By the way, Rin-kun just tried the Queen of the Night aria! With practice, he could totally nail it!

『Called it! Mama, you struck gold with this baby bro! Alright, time to cook up a song so hard it’ll break humanity! Brace yourself!』

The screen switched to…

“What’s this?”

No clue—I’d never seen it before.

“It’s a DAW—software for making music on a computer! They call it DTM!”

Ryu-kun’s hands flew across the interface—a grid like stretched piano keys, filling with notes.

『YEEEEAH! Melodies explodin’ in my skull! Rin, you’re my hero! Theme’s set: a cult’s hymn!』

BenToben: WAIT—CAN A HUMAN EVEN SING THIS!?
Chai-ga Suki-!: STOP, DUDE!
HatsuBread: ASK RIN FIRST!
Babba: Hold up—Rin-chan can handle the Queen of the Night!

Ryu-kun’s stream raged on. He kept asking if I could sing each section. Every time, I tested it… and somehow nailed it.

The final product? A song with lyrics at the Queen of the Night’s highest note—a vocal trial by fire. The track hit Miss Michi’s inbox right as the stream ended.