Do I even need to describe what it's like for a group of die-hard MyGO!!!!! fans to see their favorite characters appear right in front of them?
The scene descended into chaos for a moment.
In the end, it was Kamijo Mutsumi, the boss, who had to step in and disperse the group of "fanatical women."
Please, boss! If we can't get close to Tomori-chan and the others, then what will become of me~
What do we have to do for you to let us get close to them again? We'll do anything you ask!
This was the thought clearly written in the eyes of Mya-mori and the others.
But as working adults who had left the ivory tower of school, they knew how to prioritize.
So, in the end, they could only reluctantly return to their workstations.
"Kamijo, what's the deal with your employees?"
Seeing them leave, Ano-chan, still a bit shaken, cautiously sidled up to him.
"Their enthusiasm was a little... excessive... It's just too weird!"
The animation department had the most Anon fans, so she was the one surrounded by the most people asking for autographs and photos.
Although she was feeling a bit giddy from all the praise, the girl hadn't lost her mind.
I'm just a normal high school girl. How could I have so many fans?
And even though we've never met, why does it feel like they know me so well?
If you thought about it carefully, it was actually a little horrifying.
Besides Anon, Taki and Soyo also had expressions that said they were waiting for an explanation.
"Ano-chan is so cute. Isn't it normal for her to have fans?"
"I'm not that... Wait, don't think you can get away with it just by complimenting me!"
"You know, from the moment I first saw you, Ano-chan, I had already thought of a name for our daughter."
"You were thinking that much the first time you met me... wait, who wants to have a child with you?! And why are you specifying a daughter?!"
...Are these two performing a comedy routine? Soyo thought to herself, watching the two bicker.
However, she could also see that Kamijo Mutsumi had Anon completely wrapped around his finger, so she probably wouldn't get any useful information from her.
...Forget it. It's not like I really care anyway.
After dealing with Ano-chan, Kamijo Mutsumi called over the girls who hadn't signed their contracts yet.
As it turned out, they all signed their names without even really looking at the documents, which made him deeply worried.
Being this naive won't do. What if they get scammed in the future? To prevent these innocent girls from being taken advantage of, I'll just have to wrong myself and scam them for a lifetime.
Thinking this, he didn't realize that the girls weren't being naive; it was just that the person they were dealing with was him.
Of course, Taki-chan was just blindly following Tomori-chan, no thoughts involved.
Once everything was ready, it was finally time to start the voice recording.
"Um... are we starting right now?"
In the recording booth next door, Anon clutched her script and sidled up to him nervously.
"Shouldn't you let us go home and practice first..."
After all, this wasn't the amateur school club she had originally envisioned. This was a proper, ten-plus-story animation company, and they were recording for an anime that might actually air on television!
As a normal high school girl who had never had any contact with this industry, Anon instantly felt the pressure.
"Don't worry, I believe in you all!"
Why would the real people need to practice? Just act naturally!
Hey, you may believe in me, but I don't believe in myself!
Looking at his thumbs-up and his healthy smile, Anon was cringing hard.
But after struggling for a while, she ultimately chose not to run away halfway through.
The worst that can happen is that I get laughed at. He's the one who insisted I do the voice acting, anyway.
"Mutsumi..."
After Anon came Mutsumi Wakaba, but she wasn't hesitant because of a lack of confidence.
"This line..."
「I've never had fun playing in a band.」
Just like Sakiko, Mutsumi Wakaba snapped at the very first line.
She never thought that she, the "Cucumber Sword Princess," would one day be on the receiving end of a critical hit from someone else.
"I refuse to answer, because I've never had fun coaching voice actors on their lines."
"..."
Seriously? You're even trolling your own fiancée?
After being hit with a point-blank ultimate move, the fuming Mutsumi Wakaba gave him a glare and walked away.
"Kamijo-kun, these lines... is there something wrong with them?"
The third person was Soyo, and she... voiced the real problem with the script's content.
Although there were a lot of fake lines mixed in—after all, where's the fun if they know everything now?—some key content couldn't be changed, and Soyo couldn't ignore it.
"Soyo-chan, I told you before..." Kamijo Mutsumi had his excuse ready. "This is an anime based on CRYCHIC..."
So you didn't even bother to change our names?
But that wasn't what Soyo really cared about.
"You said it before..." Seeing that no one was paying attention, Soyo dropped her cutesy act. "...that Sakiko is also a voice actress for this anime."
The girl's meaning was obvious. I'm here for the recording, so where is Sakiko?
After all, she had only agreed to his request because of Sakiko in the first place.
"Don't worry. There will be bread, and there will be Sakiko too... I'll have her come over right now."
...What a strange comparison.
But having received his promise, Soyo felt somewhat reassured.
The thought of seeing her "unattainable dream" again soon made her heart pound with excitement.
As long as I see Sakiko, everything will be alright.
And I will definitely be able to get the old CRYCHIC back. Definitely!
Meanwhile, Kamijo Mutsumi began sending messages to Sakiko.
After all, the MyGO!!!!! voice recording couldn't happen without her.
「Babe, u there?」
In a cramped and damp room, Sakiko, who was cleaning up empty beer cans, noticed her phone suddenly light up.
"..."
In truth, although it had felt like the sky was falling at the time, nothing much had changed since that day.
And now, he was finally contacting her again.
Because her attitude towards a certain someone had undergone a subtle shift, she surprisingly felt no negative emotions.
「u there? u there? u there? u there? u there? u there? u there? u there? u there? u there?」
The girl had only hesitated for a moment before the message spam began. It seemed to remind her of some unpleasant memories, and she shuddered slightly.
「No!」
Even Sakiko herself was a little surprised that she would send such a "willful" reply.
「Is this Sakiko's dad?」
And then Sakiko began to regret her "willfulness."
「Don't mention him!」
Just like that, Sakiko's defenses were already starting to crack.
「What do you want?」
「Come to the company for voice recording. I've already sent a car to pick you up.」
「And... I have a surprise for you!」