Idol Gunner [Yuri Villainess LitRPG]

“KanKan. Not coming up?”

Kana did not look back at Emi. Chair turned to look out at the bright Neo-Edo night view, she tried to make sense of things. She tried to convince herself that this would not affect their work in any way, even if she knew better. For once, Kana hoped that she was wrong. She wished that that goth wolf-cut girl, who had locked herself in her room since the afternoon, would be over it by tomorrow morning.

In the streets below, she saw people walking around like ants. She witnessed them. Loners smoking, couples walking hand in hand, salarymen returning home. None of them had anything to do with her world, and they still occupied her eyes. To her, Jina had been the same. Not even once had Kana expected something like this to happen.

A hand touched her shoulder, and she almost jumped. Almost. The weight of it was too much to handle. The possibilities, far too many to go through so quickly. Yet, the touch was helpful. It let her breathe and remember that she was in the right. If anything happened, she had the high ground. Putting her hand on Emi’s, Kana waited for something to happen.

Anything would be fine. As long as it helped her navigate this, it was good. If only she could actually tell Emi. The one person who could genuinely help her right now was out of reach. She was right there, and still not even in the same room. How would she react to finding out what had happened? Kana felt a bit ashamed to admit she didn’t know. She had never thought that far ahead.

“What…happened?”

“Huh?”

“You’re quiet. Did something happen?”

“No!” Kana shook her head, smiling as she finally looked into Emi’s eyes, “Nothing. I’m just thinking. There’s a lot going on recently, so there’s a lot to think about.

Emi crouched down, putting her second hand into Kana’s. Leaning against her waist, she sighed and gave it a squeeze.

“Kana…”

Not KanKan, then?

“Yeah?”

“Kana, you…why are you doing this? I mean, I know why. But…why like this? It’s not healthy. Look at you. It’s tearing you apart from the inside, isn’t it? There’s better ways, you know? Like, you could…bring it to everyone’s attention! Tell everyone how bad things are, and then bring about change.”

It must’ve been nice to think like that. Kana looked at her and stopped smiling. She wanted to see this girl happy, but she could not force herself to smile when it wasn’t true. Not in front of Emi.

“You think they don’t know?” Kana slipped her hand out of Emi’s and put it on her head, “They know, Emi. It took me almost a year just to prepare at the training centers. How do you think I found out about them? Rumors on the internet. Forget the industry being horrible. People out there know everything.”

“But then…”

“Too outlandish, Emi. Idols fighting monsters from another dimension? You think people are going to buy into it?”

“You did.”

Kana laughed, stroking her head, “Because I’m insane. And it just sounded too outlandish to be a story. Other people have tried getting in as well, just to check. But they usually leave too much evidence behind. If they feel like you’re getting in just to spread it on the internet, they make it seem like it was all a lie. Or a prank. And, well…”

“Mhmm?”

“They aren’t banking on the fact that people won’t find out. They’re just betting that even if they do find out, there’s nothing they will be able to do. The Coalition has government support. Find out, and it just becomes an official competition. Stakes, bets, stocks.”

“But isn’t that just more money, then? They should totally do that!”

“Don’t give them ideas! And no, they won’t. Go official, and there’s a million people trying to take advantage of the system. Keep it quiet, and only the Coalition and the government get the profits. Think…Apple? Keep your cards close to your chest, and nobody’s taking your profits from you.”

“Ahh!”

That analogy had gotten through to her. It was good that it had, too. Kana needed to remind herself of that. Getting where she was had sometimes blinded her to the origin of it all. Sometimes, she found herself forgetting that none of this was something to celebrate. That in the end, nobody in this industry really cared about the music.

Not Sakai. Not Tanaka. Not Akiko Hara. Nobody. Not even her own people really cared. Why was Kelsey here? Why was Jina?

Jina…

Kana’s hand stopped as soon as she remembered the girl once more. She gritted her teeth and stood up. A quick shake of her head, and she waited for Emi to get on her feet.

That was it. She wasn’t going to let it bother her any more than that. If Jina woke up on time tomorrow, then things would be fine. If she stayed in, then Kana would make things fine. There was always a way to set things right, no matter how bad the situation was. With or without her help, Velvet Beats was going to win. Kana mentally thanked Emi for reminding her of that.

As they headed up the stairs, Emi gave her a tight hug.

“KanKan, what are you going to do about it, then? How are you going to change it all?”

“Huh? I’ll get to the top.”

“And then?”

Then? Kana hadn’t thought about that either. After all, the answer was simple enough. In her head, at the very least, it could not have been easier.

“After that? Well, I will be on top. So…aren’t things automatically better?”

_____________

It turned out that there was no need to panic. Despite all of Kana’s worries, Jina had proved herself as resilient as ever.

In the morning, when Kana and Emi woke up, breakfast was ready as usual. There was no telling what Jina had told herself in her own room, but it seemed to have helped. With her mood, at least. It hadn’t helped with her obsession with egg-based breakfast, which was a tragedy, to say the least.

Once she was done with that and said goodbye to Emi, she left for work.

Monday meant that the competition would start again. She would return late the entire week, which was something Emi was not used to. Maybe she could warn her about that later, when she showed up at the agency for dance practice. But then again, what if she acted all corporate once more? Kana leaned against the window without a word.

Yamada drove the car, also as quiet as her. She didn’t want him to be here, and she guessed he was picking up on that. Kana needed Yamazaki back, and something needed to be done to facilitate that. Out of everything Sakai had done, this had been the decision that had pissed her off the most. To take away her strongest card like that was inexcusable.

Getting to the office, Kana was confronted with the consequences of it even further. From the moment she got out of the elevator and onto the third floor, that vivid purple stood out. Sitting on one of the benches in the hallway, Naomi Yamazaki played with a coin in her hand, twisting and flipping it to pass the time.

When she noticed Kana get out, she stopped and stood up.

“Kana Minami?” She asked.

“Yeah?”

“Hi. Uh, I’m Naomi. Naomi Yamazaki? I’m the younger sister of Ju-”

“I know.”

She nervously nodded and came closer, immediately cupping Kana’s hands between her own, “Can I talk to you? I really need to talk to you about something important. Look, I can convince you, alright? You know why I’m here. Just…just take him back.”

“You are talking to me. Right now. And what do you even mean? Take who back?”

“Jun. Please, please? Please take him back? I’ll do whatever you want me to do if you just take him back. Alright? Look, I know I’m not a great person, and I cannot be trusted, but please don’t do anything to him because of me. It’s not his fault. Really. He…he t-tried his best to save me, but I messed up a-”

“Stop!” Kana groaned and pulled her hands away. Moving around the girl, she started walking to the makeup room, “Just come in. I’m confused.”

Clutching the brown handbag on her shoulder, Naomi took hurried steps beside her. Kana entered the room first, pausing for just a moment as she locked eyes with Jina, and then letting the visitor come in as well.

As Yamazaki’s sister took her place, Kana kept looking at Jina. In return, the wolf-cut girl acted like nothing was wrong. She stared at Naomi with a confused expression – recognizing her, but not understanding why she had made her way all the way over here.

“Alright.” Kana sat down in her chair and turned to face her, “What do you mean? We didn’t do anything to Yamazaki-san.”

“What?” Naomi cleared her throat and then took out a bottle of water from her bag. Chugging it in less than five seconds, she gasped and continued, “What do you mean? You…fired him. Didn’t you? You’re the one who fired him, and…it was probably because you didn’t want to be associated with someone who knows a junkie, right?”

“I never said that, but sure. Believe what you want. We haven’t fired him. He’s still working for Sakai Entertainment.”

“No…” She shook her head, looking at Jina for help, “No, he is not. Why are you lying? He came home and told us that you fired him. He…said. He said that he’s not your manager anymore, and he is looking for another job. That’s what he told us, and…now everyone is panicking because now I am in the house, and…”

“Whoa, calm down.” Jina held out her hand, “This is the first time we’re hearing of this, so just…calm down. Are you serious? You’re telling me they fired Yamazaki?”

Naomi meekly nodded.

“No, they did not.” Kana groaned, wiping the sweat off her face, “Jina, turn the cooling up. It’s hot. We have not fired him, and we do not plan on firing him, either. Are you sure he wasn’t just lying to you, or trying to make a joke?”

“Joke?” The sister chuckled, “Joke? You think….having a fight with his wife is a joke? You think being slapped by her over and over is a joke? No. He…he got fired because of me, and I should not have been here in the first place. Now…he needs to worry about me. As if that’s not enough. He doesn’t even have a source of income anymore.”

None of it made any sense. Not immediately, it hadn’t. But now that Kana could see the entire picture, and just how badly his family had reacted, she thought she understood.

“Aiko Taira.”

Was the only thing that she could whisper.

“What?” Jina and Naomi asked at the same time.

Kana shook her head, turning just to her partner, “It’s a Taira situation. He is not officially working here, but…”

“Ah.”

“What do you mean?”

“Alright, Naomi Yamazaki-san.” Kana leaned in, “Your brother is fine. His job is fine, and his income has never been better. He’ll be great, and you’ll be great. Do you understand that? We just can’t explain it right now. But I promise you, he is not fired. He just has to say that because of certain…background processes.”

“Background processes. Right. Of course.” She gulped, “No, of course. Yeah. What else could it be, right? You…ruined his relationship, and now I am not welcome in that house once more. That’s because…background processes. That makes complete sense, doesn’t it?”

“Naomi-san…” Jina whispered, walking up to the woman and grabbing her hand, “We weren’t involved in this, trust me. We don’t know what the leadership is doing, either. But…we’ll figure it out, ok? We’ll find out what’s going on, and we’ll make sure that nothing bad happens. We rely on Yamazaki just as much as you do.”

“Oh, you do, do you?”

“Alright. No need to get aggressive. She told you we would figure it out, didn’t she? We can’t tell you what we don’t know.”

“I thought you knew very well about those background processes till now. What happened all of a sudden?”

“You wanted an answer, and I made one up to satisfy you. Does that make you happy?” Kana turned back to the mirror and started cleaning her face now that the room was colder. “She put it best. We need Yamazaki-san as well, so we will do something about it. Just leave for now, and trust in us.”

“Trust in you?” Naomi laughed, “You? I remember you. Don’t think that I don’t know what happened because I was high. You punched me in the face.”

“Well, not exactly…”

“Give me a job.”

“Whaaaat?” Jina was the first one to react. Taking her hands off the woman, she backed away and raised her eyebrow.

Kana laughed as she applied her eyeliner.

“No, I am serious.” Naomi explained, “Look, I was being honest. I’ll do whatever you want me to do. Anything is fine, no matter how menial it is. I’ll…do it. Please? If this whole thing is true and you’re gonna figure it out slowly, then we just need a little bit of leeway. His wife…she is worried. I need to show her something. Please.”

“You switched up fast, didn’t you?”

“Yeah, I did. Do you just want me to admit here? Here you go. I did. I need this. We all need this.” Naomi coughed, taking out another bottle of water and drinking it, “I…made some bad decisions. I know. Everyone in that house knows. And I’m grateful to you for helping me out, though that punch was uncalled for. But…I need this.”

The room went quiet. Kana sighed, focusing on her makeup.

“Just one chance, Minami. One. You’re in this industry, so you know what that is worth, right? It’s all I need.”

Kana tilted her head just a little to look at the woman. It was an honest face and posture. Not that she needed visuals to know that. Her words had been enough. But that didn’t make Kana a person who could give jobs to other people. At the end of the day, it was the company that decided that.

Naomi had been right about one thing, though. Kana knew what it meant to give someone another chance. She might not have been here if not for a dozen different second chances. And somehow, just like RiRi, she felt responsible. She had said it to Emi herself, hadn’t she? If she was at the top, then things would be better.

She started to reply, but the door swung open right then.

Kelsey stepped in and looked at the three of them. Eyes locked on Naomi, she spoke.

“We need to go. Kitamura’s here for the dance practice. Then we’ve got the competition. Ready up.”

“Uh…yes.”

Still looking at Naomi, she closed the door behind her.

“So…?” The sister asked.

“I’ll figure it out.”

“What?”

“I’ll figure something out, so just go for now. We’re not free right away. Give me a few days, and I’ll get back to you.”

Naomi stood up and bowed down. Thanking her one last time, the woman left the room. Kana scoffed and got back to finishing up her makeup.

Jina looked at her, opening her mouth. No words escaped her, though. After a while, she collected herself and got back to finishing her makeup. Kana didn’t want to address anything either. That wasn’t her job. She had made herself clear with the rejection yesterday. She had Emi, and that was enough.

The competition. The next song and dance. The marketing that would start soon. That secret collaboration plan the Coalition had. This whole situation with Jina. And now…Naomi Yamazaki. How much more were they going to throw at her?

Since she could not do anything about it right away, though, Kana Minami put her efforts into putting that lipstick on.