Chapter 1 - A call from an old friend

Where is the line between fiction and reality? Where is the boundary between love and obsession? What do we consider human and item?

Questions like these often plague my mind, they seem simple to answer at first, but the more I watched people go through their lives the more difficult it became to answer those questions.

Every day I would listen, watch and talk with people who made me wonder whether we truly viewed each other as equals or not and when I asked those questions, some were like angels, believing that we as a species always knew to treat one another with the same importance as we would ourselves, regardless of who or what the other party were. However, there were also those who believed the opposite… I have shared this opinion for a long time.

Humans have always loved to believe that we are intelligent and that we have always treated one another with the love and respect one deserves towards an equal.

But that is not the truth at all.

Place a human in a situation where their minds and body would not need to run, where their desires could run rampant. That human will surely devolve into their most basic instincts and forget that in that space they are still meant to keep their basic form of etiquette.

This may all seem like mere fiction, but in reality, it has always been a part of society and in modern times, that concept had become more alive than ever before.

It would only take mere seconds to find something that eases the mind and body to become primal, food, shelter and most importantly, entertainment. Whether it is films, books or games, there are many things that could distract one from the endless burden of reality.

One such form of entertainment I've gotten well acquainted with was the bright, sparkly world of idols. These walking, singing and dancing dressed-up boys and girls had been often hailed as the perfect, pure and untouchable pieces of treasure for years, their fanatics had stated that these treasures should be held on the highest of pedestals for the entire world to see.

In other words, they are nothing more than glorified dolls.

It should be stated that I never had an issue with their existence, in fact I always held the opinion that they are a good piece of media and entertainment. But a part of me never denied that people have treated them like glass statues rather than people.

It never mattered whether they were male or female, so long as they were an idol, they would always have someone protecting them like a knight in shining armour.

Through my experience of the medium, I learned there truly was a fine line between idolatry and obsession.

How was I so sure? Well, I got to witness these treatments firsthand and in more ways than one.

------------------------------------------

My most recent experience happened a while back when I was hired by a company that had an all-female idol group that was being driven out of the industry by a wave of haters, or antis as they called it, and they needed someone to be a bodyguard for them.

Normally I wouldn't have taken it, but the person who called me in the evening just before my nice cup of coffee was begging me to take the job of being a bodyguard. Her name was A, that was her name, just the letter. It was weird but apart from that, she was a normal girl and an old friend from when I was in high school.

A called me to beg for my assistance, I refused countless times beforehand, but she was insistent and desperate beyond all measure.

"Please just take the job."

"Why?"

"Because there's no one else I can turn to!"

"Ok, but why me? Fighting has never been my strong suit."

"That's a lie and you know it! I know you know martial arts."

I wasn't lying when I said I wasn't very good at fighting, I hadn't fought in years so I was definitely rusty in that field. But it seemed that A didn't believe that one bit and kept pushing for me to take the job.

"Come on please, just one interview."

"I'm quite busy."

"With what? Your club that your father owns and you run from home?"

"Yes."

"You're unbelievable."

I thought that was enough, we'd been at it for hours by that point and she knew I was going to just keep trying to find loopholes out of that conversation, so I was confident that she would just give up. But then-

"How about we make a deal?"

"Huh? What are you on about?"

"Are you still trying to hunt down that person?"

My body tensed. She was losing me for a bit there, but she got my attention in earnest.

So much for enjoying the coffee I made.

"If I am?"

"Then maybe we can help each other. We're after him too, maybe some of our connections could help?"

"You mean the connections you barely have?"

"Um…"

She could bluff all she wanted but it didn't erase the fact that the company she worked for was still far from stardom. They were well-known in their own sphere of entertainment and definitely had a good number of connections, but I highly doubted that they had power over others. At best, they could ask other companies and have a 20% chance of being considered.

A wasn't giving up though, she wasn't going to stop unless I said yes, so I had no choice but to humour her and agree to take an interview. Besides she now actually piqued my interest.

"Really?! Thank you so much."

I never knew doing an interview would bring so much joy to a person, but I guess if I was as desperate as A was I would've been thrilled as well.

After taking the time and location, the call was dropped and I enjoyed my now cold cup of coffee before taking a shower and heading to bed early. I would've stayed up later, but the interview was, unfortunately, the next day, so a good night's rest was warranted.

The next day, I was up and out early in the morning. I didn't have a car so I commuted by train to where my interview was being held. The trip wasn't so bad, the train was crowded but that was normal, students and salarymen were making their way through the city after all, but luckily I managed to get into a car that didn't give off the feeling of being sardines in a can.

It was a short trip too, only about 20 by train then around 15 minutes of walking before I managed to arrive at A's office.

On the outside it wasn't all that different from the other buildings around it, 5 storeys tall with their logo plastered on the entrance. I questioned whether that was actually safe for the talents if people just knew where their offices were, plus without any guards, there was a serious breach of safety there, especially considering even staff members were also popular with the public.

Well, that wasn't my problem, so I decided to not overthink it and just headed inside.

Much like their logo, the interior was washed with blue and white, it was fairly spacious but emptier than a roadside diner in the middle of nowhere.

I thought I came too early so I checked the clock on my phone and sure enough, I was an hour early for the interview. No one in their right mind would come that early, but maybe it showed I wasn't tardy, or that I was eager to take the job. Either way, being early was a better choice than being late.

I checked in with the receptionist and she told me to sit down while she contacted A. During those long minutes, several workers came through the doors. They were all talking about the recent situation their idol group, Hololive, was facing in regard to a wave of online hate washing them out of the scene.

At first, I thought that it was due to a slip-up by one of the talents, it was never unreal for a small mistake to be a career-ending controversy. It always applied to anyone really, a small mistake, a wrong choice, or an ignorant act was all it took to ruin a person's life.

Still, despite the difficulties the group was facing it seemed as though the support of the company had yet to leave them, which meant that the wave those employees were saying was either something common and therefore no trouble, or they were confident that the company was capable of handling the situation and the talents will be back online in no time.

Which sprung the question… if they were so used to it, why was I called there?

I would've thought that if they regularly got waves of disdain they would've already made measures to ensure the safety of their talents, so why was I needed as if they were short on staff?

It was possible they were, I mean there were no guards in the entrance lobby, so clearly they were short on something, but seriously? They were a studio that housed idols, did they not think that they would have stalkers or something? Or was I just missing something?

Unfortunately, I could only ponder for so long before I was interrupted by a familiar voice.

"You sure came early."

Turning over and then looking up, I was greeted by the sight of a tired, blue-haired lady wearing glasses.

"Morning."

"Morning, now come on, let's get you to your interview."

"That's the first thing you say to a friend?"

"Since when were you a fan of small talk?"

I looked away, she got me again, she knew I liked to cut to the chase, but still, it wouldn't have hurt for her to try and have some small talk with me, I would've engaged in it… maybe.

We headed up a couple of floors before we exited the elevator and began to walk down a long hall to the CEO's office. I didn't think I'd get interviewed by the boss, but it gave me an idea of how dire the situation was if the interview needed to be that personal.

"How do you feel?"

"Really nervous."

"Really? You sure don't look like it."

Maybe it was because I tried hard to stay calm, but I was starting to become somewhat nervous, however, it wasn't something I should have freaked out over since whether or not I got hired, wasn't going to make me lose a thing.

Continuing along the way, I took a glance at the employees in the department and saw the very image of what office workers look like, tired and busy. Everyone was hobbling like they were forcing their bodies to move as they went from person to person to talk about paperwork, if they weren't doing that they would be stuck to their computer screens like they were an extension of the device, tapping away at their keyboards till the end of the day.

Even though it was still early in the morning, they already looked drained, or maybe, they haven't left the office. What a sad world to be in.

"It's been so busy here that no one has had proper rest in weeks."

"Huh?"

"You were looking around, so I thought you'd have some questions regarding this place."

"Oh, uh, I guess so."

"Relax we're not going to work you to the bone, you're just a bodyguard after all."

"Right."

We soon arrived at the office and A knocked on the door before a voice from the other side told us to come in.

I knew very little about Hololive, but from what A told me in the past, their boss was a hard worker and did basically everything in the company. He modelled for merchandise, handled venues for concerts and greets, and was the one who found artists, riggers and music producers for his talents. The man worked to the bone and was heavily respected in and out of the company by everyone.

So it should've come as no surprise that when I first came into contact with him that day, my first impression was a man who loved what he did. A smile was painted on his face and despite the dishevelled clothes and hair, he didn't feel like he had lost his drive to work.

"Welcome, you must Rio Kanzaki, A has told me all about you."

I glanced back at A, hoping whatever came out her mouth wouldn't give a misunderstanding.

"I didn't say anything bad don't worry."

"That is not my concern."

"Then what is?"

"You overselling me."

The boss laughed at our exchange, but was it really that humorous? I was only pointing out a concern I had with A as an agent, she always told people that I was this amazing, superhuman when in reality I was as human as the next person.

"Well I can definitely see your friendship, but we don't have long so let's get this interview started."

A and I nodded before we made our way to the desk. I sat down on the armchair in front of the boss while A stood off to the side to listen.

It was a standard interview, nothing to write home about, the boss asked me about myself, my resume, the job and other things that a person would go through every time. But, I couldn't shake the feeling that there was something more to this interview than just a regular test.

"Well everything seems to be in order, if it's ok I'd like to ask something else."

"That is?"

"Do you know the name Shuu Takamura?"

I don't know how my expression changed when that name entered my ears, but it was clearly something terrifying, judging from the way the boss reeled back in his seat. I relaxed back onto the chair and took a deep breath before leaning forward and locking my fingers together as I stared into the boss' eyes.

"How do you know that name?"

"Um… I don't know if you've heard, but currently, the talents are facing a crisis in their careers. We believe Shuu Takamura may be behind this."

"Do you have proof?"

"No, but an idol group under his wing had suddenly surfaced the week after this company's idol group, Hololive, was taken out of the scene."

I could see why he would conclude that Shuu Takamura would be a likely suspect, it wasn't far-fetched to think so… however.

"What reason would Shuu Takamura have in attacking you?"

"You see he visited us during one concert and asked one of the girls to become a part of his group. She refused."

I could feel the veins in my head start to pop up, this situation was all too familiar.

"Is that girl still here?"

"Yes."

I then glanced over at A, who was now refusing to make any eye contact with me.

"I see, and I'm guessing A told you about me and my connection to Shuu Takamura."

"Yes, she told me what she knew."

Of course she did, well it wasn't like their intentions weren't obvious, I knew they never wanted me to come to the office to do a formal interview, and judging from what A used as bait to get me to take the interview, it was all too clear they wanted to know more about Shuu Takamura.

"This talent who are they?"

Just as I asked, a knock then interrupted the meeting and A went to answer the door. Upon opening it, her expression lit up before she stepped over to the side.

What came in was a young brunette girl with blue eyes, though clearly, they were contacts, she wore an idol-like outfit with a cropped shirt and vest, a short frilled skirt, and some thigh-high socks. Her entire ensemble was blue but white, red and gold were also there as part of her accessories.

"Mr Motoaki we finished- oh!"

That sweet, gentle voice, that soft expression on her face, they were all unforgettable.

"Well… this is a surprise."

Her expression was a mixture of awe, uncertainty and fright, almost as if just been caught doing a crime or something.

"Um, A did you bring him here?"

"Yes."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"If I did then you would have done everything to stop me."

The two continued to have an exchange amongst themselves while I stood there in front of the boss just rearranging my thoughts and that's when it hit me.

"It was you wasn't it?"

The girl stopped and turned back to me confused.

"Were you the one who refused Shuu Takamura's offer, Sora?"

Sora's eyes widened and she quickly asked how I knew, so I glanced over to A, who had now sheepishly lowered her head.

"You told him?"

"I needed to because no one else can help us."

"I told you I'll be fine."

"Sora-"

"A why would you-?"

I got tired of the bickering and so cut the two off to ask if Sora didn't want me there. But A was insistent for me to stay.

"Do you actually need me?"

"Yes."

I then turned to Mr Motoaki.

"Mr. Motoaki."

"Yes?"

"I'll take the job."

Everyone in the room gasped at my decision and while Mr Motoaki and A were all smiles, Sora could only stand there with her eyes full of her horror. It seemed that she had a feeling me being involved would cause distress rather than relief… well, she wasn't entirely off the mark.

But why would Sora want me away from that man, who presumably hurt her and her group? Well, let's just say for years, he's been my one and only target for revenge.