Gura was laying down on the sand, keeping her tummy from exploding since she was laughing like a hyena.
Right now in this island, I was surrounded by five girls who could literally destroy it in mere seconds.
"You're saying you want to make a fellow v-tuber along with her fanbase forget artworks of your back because they spammed it in chat?!" The shark bellowed out with a whistle, her razor-sharp teeth in full display. "I-I can't... HAHAHA! Why do you want to erase that?! Your back on the Internet's glorious!"
"G-Gura! Geez... This is why I told everyone not to laugh when I explain..." Ina's flaps on top of her head lowered themselves like they would a puppy. "Yes, that's the sole reason why I'm on this island... Pursuing a pure magic like rendering one's memory may sound simple but this one does not have any consequences. It's a rarity. And I'm not saying I want to completely erase it on the Internet. I meant only with her fanbase..."
"Are all magic supposed to have consequences?" Amelia picked her nose. "Hm... So if I learn how to make cash out of thin air, I suppose I would be arrested."
"Is that the only thing in your mind?" Calli asked with boredom in her eyes.
"I like the color green, after all~"
"There are a number of views in the way people handle magic. Fundamentally speaking, every spell we learn has a price. It could be time or even sacrificing a life to achieve results. In basic things like creating fire or enchanting, the consequences merely do not outweigh the reward." Ina explained. "The one responsible for creating this spell is on this island. I happen to know the witch since we dabbled in some experiments before. She's quite the prodigy. I just hope she can help with this dilemma of mine and end it peacefully..."
"If you're that embarrassed about it, why go through the pain of inviting us on this short trip?" I asked. I mean, if I wanted to handle an awkward problem, I wouldn't want anyone knowing.
"You're already my friends. I figured it would be nice doing this rather than alone."
That was understandable. "Let me get this straight. A fellow v-tuber was minding her own business, said something about your back as a casual joke and her chat wouldn't stop sending links of your back afterward? Is that what you're saying? Now that we found out, are you fine we know of your awkward issue at hand?"
"Way to shorten that up, Clay." Calli slapped my upper back.
"Precisely," Ina's shoulders sagged. "I know it's a miniscule reason but this has been going on for a week now... She's still being spammed and technically it's all my fault... She even told me she became famous for it and not because of her speed-run videos..." She turned to face Amelia, square-like tears pouring out of her eye sockets. "I wantch chu do shamting abouch ith. I don't wantch her chu bi recognized only bekosh of my back... Waaa~"
Kiara held her from behind, patting her hair like a mother. "There, there, Ina, we're on this island to help you right?"
Ina sniffed. "I asked all of you for help since I don't really mind you guys not knowing."
"Wait... We're visiting a witch? Does she happen to be Murasaki Shion?" I confirmed.
"Indeed. You know her?"
"Not really but it just clicked to me. She's also an idol so I just put two and two together. As for the reason why she's here... How do you know it's her?"
"Makai Academy has a lengthy record of investigating the unknown related to magic. Murasaki Shion is a student of that academy and right now, her duty's trying to find out the cause of this island being strange. She reports these anomalies loyally to the academy. Not only that, she's well-versed with a myriad of spells that contain low-consequence." Ina showed her phone and showed a glimpse of her conversation with the witch.
"She talked about it to me. Where she's going and the like. On the first day the v-tuber was getting spammed constantly, I had texted Shion about teaching me the spell asap but she hasn't messaged me since which leads me to believe something has happened. She usually replies right away but more than a week has already passed after she told me she was in this island...If all ends well and we find her, she might teach me the spell if she wants."
"Hm... Idols like her are still in school. Alright, I can understand the situation now," I said. "Why don't we split ourselves to groups? Finding her would be easier that way. Since she's not a regular human, we might have to explore areas in special circumstances. I'll stick with Calli."
"I'm going with Watson then!" Gura volunteered.
"Let's be a duo, Ina!" Kiara cheered.
"Let's not forget the island isn't normal. Keep our heads up and only focus on finding Murasaki Shion. If you find her, text in the group chat immediately. Our fellow idol's crisis will be resolved today as fast as possible." Calli added as everyone agreed.
"Do we even have signal around here?" Gura asked.
Calli yanked at Amelia's collar as the detective didn't mind being dragged. "Watson. Do something about the service."
"I love being ragdolled, wait what- I mean I'm on it."
~*~
"I must've stepped on a poisonous lizard..." I could feel something squishy underneath.
It wasn't mud or a mushroom.
I craned my head towards Calli like how a rusted and broken doll would. My face was turning blue from all this. "I think it's a lizard..."
"Could be a Komodo Dragon..." she suggested, a 'tee-hee' escaping her lips. I shivered at the thought. Calli whistled and twirled her scythe with one finger. Unlike me who was being cautious with every step, she didn't fail to show her blatant disregard for any sort of danger. That was a given since life was supposed to be frightened of her. It worked the other way around. Meanwhile, I was trying my absolute hardest to remain composed. She laughed with delight at my wariness. "Calm down Clay, this is a short vacation. Want me to make you a garland?"
I think little spiky leaves were clinging onto my pants now. I was wearing a backpack behind me filled with food and extra clothes. I didn't know what kind of stuff we would be going into but since it was never normal with them, I decided to play safe and bring five shirts in case one of them get ripped apart. My tight-fitting black shirt and short pants made it easier to move around. If I came here in a suit, it would've been the funniest blunder Calli would witness.
"Hey, did you know that when a person's corpse is buried underground, Komodo Dragons would still eat it because of their willingness to eat anything?"
"We came here to fix your friend's back problem, not learn chalk facts about a lizard I'd rather not meet." Throughout the days, my conversations with Calli would tend to cross that border of friendship. You could say my efforts were lustrous when it came to forming a bond with her.
Forming cooperation within relationships were integral.
As we walked in a seemingly unending forest full of greenery, vines, and curious monkeys, me and Calli shared the same wavelength of wanting to interact.
"You wanna talk while we look for the witch?" I recommended.
"Unless you want me getting bored of all this greenery, talk away my assistant."
"So, how long have you been friends with the girls?" I asked, getting smacked in the face by loads of branches.
"I've lived a long time but surprisingly, only almost two years since we debuted in September in 2020," she answered, creases on her jacket making her look more beautiful being surrounded by nature. "A lot happened. You? How's your friends at work? Eri and some dudes, right?" she remembered.
"They're doing well. We eat outside from time to time. Eri basically worships you."
"Huh. That's a shame. Religion isn't my thing."
"I mean she thinks you're a great person."
She smiled, causing my heart to beat slightly faster. "I appreciate it." Of course you do.
"I don't doubt it. Though your drunken side leaves much room to accept."
"I'll pay for throwing your television out of the window in a drunken stupor..."
"It's okay. My favorite team lost the first preseason game anyway." I'd hate knowing she'd cover my expenses but she was the one at fault for being reckless. All things considered, I decided we'd split the bill since I did buy five bottles. What was I even hoping for in that situation?
"Was it a dream to work in Hololive?"
"Actually, I never thought I'd be accepted. I submitted an application without thinking too much. Prior to getting into Hololive, I really just wanted to be in this world because the Underworld was a drag. I met good people here before I became an idol. We shared the same tastes on what to sing and eventually we'd kill everyone with our lyrics. When the time came for the results, I was miraculously accepted by Hololive and I was ecstatic to share the news with my human friends."
"I take it a celebration happened." I got smacked by a tree branch again. "F**king... Ow... That'll turn red later..."
"I only tried this for the heck of it. If I didn't pass, I would've continued reaping like how I usually do and hang out with my friends, sing songs until the city died," she said. "On the contrary, my friends hated me. Said that I only got in out of pure luck and that they were much better because they had to prove themselves through the songs they wrote every single day while I was only doing it for fun. Saying I only got in because of my looks was harsh." She breathed out a sigh. "In the end, I couldn't repair my friendships with them. I felt like trash." she tossed out an even bigger sigh after. "Can you imagine me reaping lives without sparing a single thought for humans just like my master?"
"Not really. Also, if your friends left you like that, could you really call it a friendship? I don't think you're worth leaving just because you made it big."
"Really? Let's say if your ex rose to the top in her profession, you wouldn't feel even an ounce of envy?" she doubted my words.
"I don't really think I'm cut out to be like that. I might just move on and do things my way. I was raised to think all of us have a role we slide into and get comfortable with." I gesture to my outfit and current standing. "This is me. In slippers and a ton of water bottles inside my backpack. The only person I'm fighting is myself without comparing myself to others. You happen to be in this role because you have a lot going for yourself."
"Such as?"
"You're smart, cute, and funny. If you encounter mistakes along the way, you don't let it get you down so easily. You're commendable when you work and you never leave until you're done. You can wear anything and you'd still be just as amazing. You snore when you sleep on your chair. As funny as it sounds, you help children cross the street. A lot of words come out of your mouth as soon as you rap your heart out without breathing. Need I say more?"
She didn't say anything.
"The point is, I try to be a good friend. I'm cheering for your future successes and I want you happy with your decisions. Watching over people achieve what they want is a joy selfish people can't understand."
"Clay, stop for a second."
My feet acted accordingly to her words. I didn't expect she'd walk towards me and hug me. She took off her cap so her pink hair was grazing my chin. Should I put my hands behind her back? A pervert would've definitely went for the butt. I was an even bigger pervert for thinking that.
"I was once that merciless monster. Reaping lives and not caring about anything else. I was naive. I didn't know a whole lot about compassion. I didn't understand why they hated me. We were singing to the top of our lungs and all of a sudden, all of that died."
"I'm fine being friends with a monster. Said monster knows about fifty ways to roast me in one song." she chuckled at that, pressing her face closer to my shirt.
"About your friends in the past... Do you happen to know where they are now?"
"Wherever they are, I hope they're well. I don't hold grudges. What about you, Clay?" She could feel my heart beating fast, right?
I might as well return the hug. Calli and I were really becoming better friends. I placed my hands on her back, leaning my head closer to the side of her ear. I wanted her to know I wouldn't leave. We would always be connected no matter what even if the day came I would no longer be her assistant.
"Hm? What about me?" Was brushing her hair with my fingers fine? She didn't seem to mind. Was I going out of bounds? I just didn't want her feeling pathetic over something like the past. Only the gods know how much I bawled over mine. "If you can tell me anything on your mind, I should do the same. What do you want to hear about, Calli?"
Did friends hug for this long?
"I can trust you, right?" she said. "If you dare leave, I'll crush you to the point you won't remember your name."
"You think I'd leave when the pay's good?" I joked with her slapping my arm. "You can. I trust you a whole lot already. Just don't get drunk in my apartment anymore. Anywhere besides my home turf."
She saluted. "I never really asked you downright but before you started working, what were you doing?"
I could trust Calli. Who else would she talk to about this? It was only a matter of time before we ventured into this conversation considering our friendship was growing larger by the day. As long as I controlled my emotions, I would be fine.
"Well, I was a-" A snake appeared in my vision.
Pushing Calli down along with me, I was on top of her as she laid down on the grass like she would a bed.
"In a forest huh? You have balls."
"I didn't mean to. I'll get up... I just saw a snake..." For some reason, the ground was slippery causing me to stay back in place with my hands on both sides of her head, my legs in between her waist. I was on all fours once more, staring at her with an expression that yelled out 'It's nature's doing'.
"I'll try to get up for real..."
"I don't mind if you keep falling down like this."
"You realize what the hell you're saying?"
I could see a red in her cheeks. "I meant that out of concern... I meant-I meant I'm not at all troubled if you do things like that since this isn't terrain you're usually exposed to on the daily. Don't think I'm vulgar or I'll rip your throat." Well that was a full 360.
I got up and she instantly hopped off the ground without using her arms or legs.
"I'm finally standing..."
"Since you're perfectly erect, we should get a move on and do this quickly."
"CALLI WHAT THE HECK!"
She laughed, sticking her tongue out at me as she walked at the front. The snake vanished. I was beginning to think that snake only had one purpose in life which was to make Calli think I'd force anyone down to the ground.
Any hope of continuing to talk about my circumstances came to a halt. I could see a huge gate in front of us without any walls to support it.
"Ready yourself, Clay! This is our first clue!"
"Are you even sure Murasaki Shion's in there?"
"Maybe? It could be the anomalies Ina was talking about that surround this island. Anyway, aren't you curious? All we see are two huge doors floating on its own."
"If I weren't human, I could probably resonate with the same amount of fascination as you. But only a little bit since I'm still skeptical. What if a monster pops out?"
"Didn't I tell you? As long as you're with me, I won't let anything happen to you." She raised her eyebrows at me, gesturing for me to take something out. "Use the phone to call Ina and the others. Notify them where we are. I think Watson's already established a network signal for us to communicate."
"On it."
"Since you're perfectly erect, we should get a move on and do this quickly."
I should take a cold shower when I get home...
What was I feeling?