[yearningLard] Ooh! Azu-chan’s even prettier today!
[solidSeagull] THIGHS.
[mercifulMagpie] Down, boy! Down!

Azura glanced at her legs and laughed. “Right. Sorry about that. My pants ripped today, and I haven’t had the chance to change yet.”

[sincereLollies] No problem!
[debonairWildfowl] We don’t mind at all!
[needfulPretzels] 😤

Azura crossed her legs and leaned back to stretch, causing her assets to press against her tight dress shirt.

[grizzledOtter] Those buttons are holding on for dear life.
[somberMallard] As expected, the fanservice doesn’t miss.
[needyPaella] Mmhm. Can’t miss me with that fanservice.
[blissfulDingo] I don’t think you’re using that phrase right.

"Anyway." Azura pouted and said, "You won’t believe what happened to me today. Ugh. I still get annoyed thinking about it."

[curiousLion] What? Did you have a fight with your boyfriend?
[mereHare] Ooh, spill the tea, girl!
[pluckySardines] Vent as much as you want. And feel free to vent your shirt too.
[ardentRaisins] …Isn’t Azu-chan a teenager?
[drearyTomatoe] …Age is just a number?
[truthfulHyena] And jail is just another room, right?
[sadDinosaur] 😰

Azura crossed her arms and said, “Stupid guy wouldn’t let me hit him. It’s his fault that everything went all crazy, so you’d think he’d at least take a punch or three.”

[debonairLollies] …Should we report this?
[cynicalZebra] Domestic violence is NG!
[ashamedCaribou] Azu-chan. Even if you’re a tsundere, that’s a bit much.

Azura rolled her eyes and said, "It was during a spar in gym class, alright? It’s not like I go around hitting or hitting on guys everywhere I go." She leaned back in her chair and said, "It’s more like they keep hitting on me. Even girls these days, I swear… So annoying."

[crushedCaviar] Weird flex, but okay.
[curiousBagels] Sasuga, Azu-chan.
[truthfulRice] That’s because Azu-chan is super cute!
Azura glanced at the chat and clicked her tongue. "I’m not cute! I’m pretty, adorable, and pretty adorable, but not cute!"

[solidSeagull] ...
[wakefulSardines] Sure?
[lyricalpanda] Azu-chan is Azu-chan. Just like how the sky is blue.
[forsakenCamel] @lyricalpanda Are you a bot? Cuz that made NO sense.

Azura let out a deep sigh and waved her hand. “Anyway… Enough chatting. I’m here to sing, vent, and sing while venting. If you guys wanna cheer me up, I’d love some superchats. You don’t *have* too… But you can do that much for your oshi, right?” She leaned forward and winked, blowing a kiss.

[debonairSalt] <100 USD> YES, MY QUEEN!
[truthfulHyena] <100 CAD> LONG LIVE THE QUEEN!
[wakefulCordial] …Isn’t that in bad taste, Canada bro? Didn’t she just die like a few years ago?

Azura stretched and then picked up a mic from off screen. “Let’s see… I think I got an email saying there was a new feature… Oh! There it is.”

A splash of blue light filled the screen, causing the room to change. Instead of the typical bedroom, it vanished, revealing a stage with sparkling headlights. Not only that, but blue ribbons of light wrapped around Azura’s body before dissolving into a frilly white idol outfit.

Azura laughed and held up her mic to her mouth. “Hey, hey yo. I’m a real idol now, deshou!”

[colorfulWonder] 👏👏👏
[pacifiedSmelt] Magical girl idol ftw!
[hushedCheese] SO CUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUTE!

Azura paused, her face suddenly turning red. After that, she cleared her throat and said, “A-Anyway. Singing! Song! Singing a song! Um… Nothing really in mind, so let’s just sing whatever!” She snapped her fingers and said, “Alice! Play me something random to riff on!”

A smooth, but slightly robotic voice echoed. “Understood. Now playing: <All Barz> by PunchLip.”

Azura blinked. “All Barz? What the heck-”

[Play: All Star but acoustic (from Shrek) <covered by Anna>]

“Oh. Well… Sure.” Azura cleared her throat and started singing.

*Some bodies I folded, those idiots got told that
They ain’t the all stars they thought they were.*

[shyCoconut] LMAO
[sugaryChamois] Azu-chan folded some people today?
[insecureRelish] What idiot tried to hit on Azu-chan lol?

Azura grinned and kept singing.

*They were looking for some fun with that stupid silver tongue and the cringe words that they said were all bad. Well.*

Azura spun around and started to dance, gold sparks and musical notes flying in the air as she did,

*The fears start coming and they don’t stop coming. Mess with the wrong girl, now you’re all running. Did it make sense just to live for fun? Your brain’s not smart and your head’s still dumb.*

[debonairSalt] Of course it’s a parody song.
[worldlySnipe] Well, Azu-chan’s definitely venting.
[thriftyMacaw] Who hurt you, Azu-chan?
[peskyRelish] The real question is who Azu-chan hurt.

*So much to shoot, so much to beat, so don’t you go look at the backstreet. You’ll never know if you don’t go. You’ll never find them for sure~*

[gutturalCheese] …
[aloofStork] Oh god.
[vengefulOatmeal] Sasuga.

Azura giggled and spun around, twirling her skirt before going back to singing.

*Hey now, spittin’ all barz, roasting gamers today. Hey now, you ain’t all stars, all you virgins, get laid. All that glitterz ain’t gold. All these shooting stars, they gon’ all fold~ Whoo!*

The music stopped and Azura lowered her mic, laughing. “That’s enough of that. Don’t wanna get copyright strikes from YouTube-kun.”

[sheepishCamel] Are you gonna sing just parodies today? Because I’m 100% down with that.
[puzzledDonkey] Cute and sexy anime girl singing a parody of Shrek? Bet.
[puzzledHare] <10K yen> Encore!
[adoringFerret] <20K yen> More!

Azura swept her free hand across the air, pulling up a holographic chat in front of her. After scrolling through it, she giggled and said, “You liked that, huh? Maybe we should do a watchalong of Shrek when memberships open?”

[gladiator_fox] AYO?!
[deadbeat_dad] BET.
[redRooster] I’m down with that!

Azura stretched and then rolled her neck. After that, she waved her hand and pulled up another holographic window. “I’m still in my feelings, so…”

[fireDrake] Kiki?
[waterDrake] Do you love me?
[carDrake] Are you riding?

Azura rolled her eyes and said, “You guys still stuck in the 2010s or what? But no. The song I’ll be doing now…” She swept her hand, causing the screen to turn monochrome.

At the same time, a percussion beat started playing.

[Play: Bad Apple! PV]

Azura held up her mic, silhouetted black against a white background. “Here we go.”

*Ever on we go in the dark, times vanishing til slowly we forget all we have and all we ever had so…*

[truthfulOcelot] Ooh, a classic!
[aloofThrushe] Ayo!

*Everything right now, all my heart, just torn in two I look upon the stars and I ask who are you?*

Azura reached out her hand to the screen before it shattered, laced with white cracks.

*Slipping through the cracks, fractured time now washes away everything I am, slowly ground away like grains of sand and I just still don’t get who I am, the mirror beckons slowly out to me asking ‘Are you still me?’*

The cracks exploded before turning Azura into white sand, falling down through the ground. But then it broke through a black screen, tracing out her silhouette against black.

*Is it all a dream? Is there nothing as it seems? Even all the words right now, are just soulless empty vows.*

The camera turned, revealing a white Azura reaching out to a black Azura.

*I so tired of being blue, if it’s true I can’t see you. Then just wash it all away, let me fade into the gray.*

The mirror cracked and the two Azuras fell towards each other, mixing into a single gray Azura staring at the sky.

*Even if that’s all the truth, even though I can’t see you, I’ll just tell myself a lie as I stare upon the sky.*

Azura reached out her hand towards a white sky filling with black stars.

*Because what you said to me, that I should live ever free. I’ll soar into the sky as I embrace the white night…*

[finickyWasp] <200 USD> WHOOOOOOOOOOO
[cynicalPear] <200 CAD> AZU-CHAN! AZU-CHAN!
[first_daddy] <100K yen> Keep working hard, kiddo.

xxx

I smiled and waved at the camera. "Bye~! Thanks for listening and helping me vent, everyone~! I'll see you next, time, kay? Don't forget about me!"

With one final wave, the stream shut off, ending the broadcast.

After that, I let out a deep sigh and took off the VR visor before pulling off the tracking straps on my arms and legs. "That was more exhausting than I thought."

Super cool, but also really weird.

I reached up to rub the back of my neck and muttered, "I might have put a bit more into Bad Apple than I intended."

They were fan lyrics. I didn't want to do a complete parody, but I also couldn't just use the direct lyrics either.

It was all improv though. And from that improv, I learned two things.

One: my skills were op.

Two: identity crisis was a thing.

"...Meh." I shook my head and said, "I can think about that later."

I was still me. Kind of. Maybe.

Azura seemed to be taking on a life of her own when I was streaming as her, but at the end of the day, despite everything it was still me.

Just like Frisk and Chara.

But anyway...

"There's the stream for the week. Should probably ramp that up since we're gearing up to start our idol company. Celes is on board already, and Yui said she'd help. Cici... well, it's obvious what she wants, but it's best if she sticks to management. Then there's Sensei..."

Altogether, that was four of us idols including me.

I tossed off the straps and flopped onto my bed, staring at the ceiling. "Should I rent an office space?"

There wasn't anything against part-time jobs at Zenkai Academy. But it'd be kind of hard getting a studio nearby too...

[Help: Would you like me to help?]

I glanced at the floating message and laughed. "I'd love it if you could help, but you're already doing a lot, aren't you?"

[Help: Well. Since Senpai broke the rules, I get a bit more leeway. And HR says that you should get a break because of Senpai.]

I blinked. "...Huh?"

[Help: Also, Senpai's an idiot. If there isn't someone to keep her in check, she might do something against more than just company policy and ruin our entire reputation.]

"Um... Help-chan?"

[Help: Do you want help?]

"...I mean, if you're offering...?"

I had to admit, it *was* overwhelming handling everything. Even if I had memories of being an adult, I... admittedly was just a giant manchild, so...

[Help: Got it! That's definitely provable consent.]

"Um. What-"

[SYSTEM: Due to the harsh difficulty scaling, an adjustment will be granted.]

[SYSTEM: <Ideal Form: Zenki Mura> will join as CEO.]

[SYSTEM: <Ideal Form: Sena Muraki> will join as a Manager.]

[SYSTEM: Please schedule a time to meet Zenki and Sena. Their contact information has been added to your phone.]

[SYSTEM: Congratulations on completing your team! Rewards will be granted after your idols complete their debut streams.]

[Help: 😤 Take that, Senpai!]

'Sennieeeeee! Stop replacing meeeeeeee!'

...

xxx

Celes' room. The lights were off and she was just about to drift off into sleep. But just as she did, she felt a familiar presence sidle up to her. "S-Sen?! W-W-What-"

"Just hug me for a bit. I've got a headache."

Celes was confused, but she did as she was asked.

"...Thanks, Celes. Night."

"U-Um. Good-"

Before she could finish, Sen fell asleep.

Celes was confused. But she wasn't about to complain. Shrugging, she closed her eyes and went off to sleep.

xxx

In Cici's room.

"MMMPH! MMMPH!"

'Now, now, Senpai. That's no good.'

Cici was wrapped up in her bed, sheets tied around her like certain cultured videos and binding her in place. Her iridescent eyes wide with panic, she struggled against the bindings and tried to inch her way to the door.

"MMMMPH! MMMMMMMMPH!"

'Calling Mister Sen is no good. He deserves his rest. And Miss Celes too. So, Senpai. Why don't you...'

A sheet crawled up around Cici's neck before slowly wrapping around it.

Cici panicked some more and tried flailing, but the ropes tightened.

'...go to sleep?'

A sudden tightening.

Cici desperately flailed for a bit. But then she went limp.

The sheets suddenly relaxed and tucked Cici into bed. And from the way Cici was calmly breathing with her eyes closed, it was just like that panicked struggle never happened.

'There we go! Now Mister Sen can get a nice and relaxing sleep. Yay! In the mean time... Let's see. I should fix up the quest lines and the gacha banners. Then there's the skills... Ooh, maybe a radar for talents...'