Ch 57 - Taking My 1st and 2nd Pt. 8

~~Before I start this chapter, I just wanna apologize for UPLOADING THIS CHAPTER 2 DAYS LATER!!! Q-Q. I'M VERY SORRY, SQUAREY BOIS! Behind the scenes, some school stuff came up as well as me procrastinating by watching anime and all that (I was on a writing learning spree). More details will be explained in the "Author's Thoughts" section at the end of this chapter. For now, enjoy reading this chapter!~~

"Phew...thankfully they're willing to take care of Hanako. Hopefully she'll be fine when she goes home tomorrow…" I scratched my head and sighed while leaning towards the window.

It finally hit 8 PM, and I went back to the Holohouse. I already took enough pictures for the Hololivers to see, I had a good time with all of them at the house, and in the next hour, I'm finally able to play Minecraft. Daijo already sent me a text through Discord regarding my Minecraft skin, so I just need to download it, upload it to the files of Minecraft, and then just stream and see what my senpais have as a surprise.

I also made sure to go to the nearby convenience store and buy a dozen beer cans for me and Aki. Good ol' Chu-Hi. Can't wait to see Aki's flushed face and see what embarrassing moments she'll have on stream.

"...Oh? Now that I think about it, I just took pictures of Hanako just for the Hololivers…"

Although I didn't fully agree to it, I didn't exactly decline it either. I also didn't even ask Hanako herself as she was the one who took my phone and wanted to do selfies together. It all happened because I was replying a bit half-assed, but thinking back to it, I wonder what might've caused me to just go like that?

"...Heh. Is my trust for girls starting to come back, I wonder? ...Well, hopefully they'll like the pictures. Hanako's a beauty, after all...Gotta keep an eye out for the thirsty ones though, especially Marine and Matsuri." I deadpanned out the window.

Though, I wouldn't say it's a bad thing. I bet Hanako would befriend every Hololiver too. She's just that friendly. Too friendly that I'd suffocate from being hugged too much. Luckily I'm not her actual little brother or she'll just pester me everyday and my private life would be no more.

I came back to the Holohouse, and the instant I set foot in the lounge, a lot of girls pounced at me like a predator finally getting its prey.

"A-Ah-" I got cut off.

"SHIRO, WELCOME BAACKKKKK!!!" They said as I was instantly swarmed by girls at the entrance. This is comparable to a tidal wave. Can't remember the last time I went to the beach and a huge wave hit me so hard that it sent me quite far back.

"GUHAGH! Get...off, please...You girls are fucking heavy...!" I shouted, putting my hand against some of their faces while trying to move with my feet.

"So, so...!? Did you take pictures of Hanako?!" Iofi asked.

"It's here, ya damn small alien. Take it!" I said, shuffling through my phone and looking for the most recent photos.

"Oh? Aha! We can finally see what she looks...like…"

"...Oh?"

"...AAAAAAAA!!!! SHE'S SO PRETTY!!! HOLY CRAP, SHE'S ACTUALLY SO PRETTY!!!" She shouted in Indonesian as her eyes turned to hearts and she held her face while drooling a bit.

'...Ya be. A rabid dog is on the loose.' I thought in my mind while deadpanning.

"THAT FACE! THAT BEAUTY! THAT CUTENESS! THAT BODY FIGURE! I'M SURPRISED YOU NEVER HAD A CRUSH ON HER, SHIROOOOOO!!!" Iofi bursted to euphoria as she kept looking through the pictures.

"a. Iofi, calm down-" I put my hand out, but I got interrupted again.

"Eh? She can't be that pretty...-HOLY SHIT, SHE'S FRICKING BEAUTIFULLLL!!!!" Ollie shouted in Indonesian too as she took my phone.

"SHE'S EVEN PRETTIER THAN MOONA-SENPAI, AND NOBODY'S AS BEAUTIFUL AS HERRRRRRRR!!!!! AAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!" Ollie had hearts form on her eyes and held both of her cheeks as my phone flew out of her hands.

"OI! MY PHONE!" I shouted, instantly standing up and running through the pile of ID and JP mess we call 'idols'.

"WAH! Hah...Hey, Shiro. I got your phone-...OH MY GODDDDDDDDDDDDDDD!!!!! HOW IS THERE A PERSON OUT THERE THAT'S SO BEAUTIFUL...!!!!!!" Moona shouted as hearts formed on her eyes.

"HEY! I KNOW Y'ALL ARE BISEXUAL OR LESBIAN OR WHATEVER, BUT THAT'S ENOUGH! GIVE ME MY PHONE BACK!" I shouted.

"Hey! I wanna see it too!" Matsuri said.

"Hey, if you girls are really gonna take turns with my phone, do it quick. I still got work to do. And hey, handle it with more care, y'all!" I said as I got my phone and handed it to Matsuri.

"...." Matsuri's reaction was at least new, so it didn't bother me as much...At least, I was half-right.

Her nose was starting to bleed, and she started to make this weird grin on her face, like she was blushing to the maximum limit, and it started to get wider and wider, before it all went to a case of tension and release, exploding her feelings at once.

"CUTE! CUTE! CUTER! CUTESTTTTTT!!!!!!!! I CAN'T BELIEVE SHE'S STILL SINGLE AFTER ALL THIS TIME! HEY, SHIRO-KUN! CAN I PLEASE BE HER GIRLFRIEND?! I PROMISE TO TAKE GOOD CARE OF HER!-"

"LIKE HELL I'M HANDING HER TO THE LIKES OF YOU, DUMBASS BITCH!" I punched her head, making the phone jump out from her hands.

"OUCH!!" Matsuri held her head.

"O-Oh, caught it...E-Eh? EHHH?!?! SHE COULD BE AN IDOL ANYTIME! HOLY BLUE! I ALMOST BECAME GAY!" Suisei looked, taken aback.

"I know, right?! Hanako-neechan used to be very popular back in her school days!"

'Also, aren't most of you Hololivers somewhat gay...?' I sweat dropped and deadpanned.

"Eh...? If you're not attracted to that beauty, then I don't know what your type even is, Shiro." Civia put her finger against her mouth.

"So he's not that attracted to milf-like bodies like mine...Noted…" Rosalyn said.

"Oi. Just so y'all know, I can understand some Chinese." I said in Chinese.

"Can I see? Can I see...?" Noel asked.

"Ah, here. Noel-chan." Suisei said.

"Thanks...SHE'S LARGE!-" Noel almost said before slapping her hand against her mouth.

"She's just #3. You're still the #2 biggest oppai girl to me, Noel." I deadpanned.

"THERE'S A #1 THAT'S NOT HANAKO-SAN?!" Noel shouted.

"EEHHHH?! SHE'S BOING BOING AND HAS A VERY SLENDER WAIST?!" Marine shouted as her eyes rolled to the back of her skull.

"Ah...it's over...My dignity and status as a woman is no match for that goddess…" Marine got on all fours and sobbed.

"She's just a normal human. Stop exaggerating." I deadpanned.

"Hmm...guess I'll have to drink more milk!" Roboco shouted.

"Roboco, your body is fine. Don't worry about it." I deadpanned again.

"Say, if she's that beautiful, how are there not any men going after her all this time?" Iofi asked.

"Beats me. I'm just glad no creeps are going after her. Heh…"

I put my fists together as some emanating aura resembling fire was coming out of me. It almost felt like the room got hotter all of a sudden.

"Besides, if there were, I'd beat the crap out of them. Hell, even killing them is too merciful. I'd need to personally torture them for at least 6 months. Ah, just thinking of it makes my blood roil...!"

"Y-YOU'RE WAY TOO SCARY!" Everybody said.

"Well, in any case, I gotta go back to my room. I need to prepare for the stream. I also promised Aki that I'd be streaming with her later to talk about the release of her song." I said, picking up the plastic bag full of beer cans on the ground and going to my room.

"Ah, if that's the case, good luck!" Iofi waved.

"Yeah. Hopefully y'all had enough looking at Hanako...right, Matsuri?" I looked at Matsuri with a smile.

"E-Eh?" Matsuri said as she looked around and saw the other Hololivers looking at me confused.

"W-W-Why are you looking at me like that?" Matsuri sweated profusely.

"Oh, nothing. I'm just playing with ya." I giggled a bit, making my way to my room.

"Well then...! Time to prepare for the stream...!" I said while stretching my hands and fingers.

I took care of my minecraft skin, set up OBS, made sure both of my phones were charged, and opened Discord to make sure I could communicate with everybody if needed to. All was done, and I just ended it all with a relaxing sigh while leaning back on my chair.

"Ah...introduction to the Holostars server, huh? Man, what could I even do in the Minecraft server anyway? I'm average in building, somewhat decent in redstone...I can't even make automatic farms 'cause the others could be building that...what could I do, I wonder...?" I said, pulling a certain handle under the chair to lay down.

"...Well, I guess I could make some sort of music company in the server, using noteblocks and shiz. Maybe make a small 'shop' and just display jukeboxes and whatnot…" I said, going back up and seeing my discord.

"...Oh? A ping...Ah, it's from Astel." I said, looking at our DMs.

Astel: Hey, man. You there? Done with hanging out and handling the chaos in the lounge?

Shiro: Oh, so you heard it, huh? Yeah, I'm done doing shit.

Shiro: It was chaotic, you know? I have to make sure to keep Hanako safer. Who knows if they might do something weird to her. She's my onee-chan, you know?

Astel: I know, I know. You're protective as hell wwwww

Astel: Though, do you not trust the Hololivers?

Shiro: It's not like I don't trust them, but I also can't say I trust them either.

Astel: Does that mean you hate them? wwww

Shiro: Of course not, you idiot wwwww

Astel: Well...I always knew you didn't. You would always pick fights with them everyday if that were the case

Astel: Say, you feel ready to join the server in the next couple minutes?

Shiro: Of course! I mean, it's exciting to finally play with my senpais, you know?

Astel: Un. I hope you'll have fun. We worked hard on the fancy crap, just so you know!

Shiro: I know, I know

Astel: You know, I'm aware most people have preferences when it comes to games. You're not that fond of Apex, right?

Shiro: Yeah. I like Valorant more. Apex is fun too, but it's just not my cup of tea.

Astel: I know

Astel: But even so, I hope you'll at least find it fun in the server. Maybe even leave something inside to let us remember your time spent there

Shiro: Hmm? The hell you mean?

Astel: It'd be pretty boring and sad if you just went there and did nothing. How about you try to do something fun there? I built Taj Mahal there, and it's still standing good in the server. Izuru made his own island, Temma built his trap tower, Miyabi made his house and decorated the whole server, and Aruran made a castle. What're you gonna do?

Shiro: Me?

That's true...what is it? I could make a company making music using note blocks and all...but that'd end up repetitive soon. Besides, if all I'm gonna make in the server is just music, I would stream Minecraft rarely then. I could try to do the hardcore minecraft series, but I wanna do something while interacting with everybody else.

Shiro: Hmm...Who knows? At the top of my mind, I'm planning on making a music company where I recreate Hololive songs using note blocks.

Astel: Sounds ambitious! Though, are you contented with that?

Shiro: Probably.

Astel: That's not a viable answer, you know? Like...obviously that could be nice, and I can see it thriving, but what if there are other ideas you wanna try?

Shiro: Hmm? Like what?

Astel: Something you wanna do for yourself and plan to expand and connect with others. Of course, you can keep the idea of making music, but what about something like Watame-chan's statues? Something to really imprint onto the server?

"Oh? Imprint into the server? Something like Watame's...?"

Are there any, I wonder? I'm not that amazing at building, and even if I were to make a huge redstone monument or something, it can easily be destroyed by some possible trolling...Now that I think about it, everybody's been building a lot of stuff on the surface. I wonder if there's still a lot of space there for me...

"...Oh? Space on the surface, huh...? That...That gives me an idea...! Holy shit!" I chuckled as I went back to the keyboard.

Shiro: Ah! That gives me an idea, actually!

Astel: Oh? Mind telling me?

Shiro: Secret~

Astel: Tch. You're boring (-_-

Shiro: WWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW

The reaction Astel gave made me laugh to the point where my stomach was tightening a lot, but thanks to what he said, I think I found another reason for streaming Minecraft for a long time other than just making music. Matter of fact, maybe it'll even overrun it at times.

There was no time to waste though. It was just a few minutes, but my heart was getting ready to jump into action as this would be a new mark in Holostars' history. Another piece of the server that would soon leave his traces all around for his future kouhais to see.

"Shiro on the mic, Shiro on the beat, Shiro with the heat, everybody, thanks for coming to my stream! Yeah, and you know I got the heat, bro. What's my name? Ishijin Shiro!" I clapped.

"Guys! It's finally happening now! First, the song me and Aki made together, 'Nagareboshi', is finally out! Please give it a listen! We worked hard on it! Second, I'm finally gonna be in the Holostars Minecraft server! Hopefully it'll work out well, and we can have fun! I heard my Holostar senpais have worked on a big surprise for me, so I can't wait to see it! Without further ado, let's go!" I said, rubbing my hands together and waiting for the whole server to load.

"Oh yeah, I also gotta get accustomed to the server and know where the resource gates are, 'cause I might have to do some farming off-stream too." I chuckled.

"...And we're in!" I said, shaking the camera everywhere.

"Yeah, boi...Ooh, I'm somewhere near the area where Chibistars made their house. Yes, I watched a couple Minecraft clips of the Holostars, so I know a bit of some history...Wow, this is fricking amazing…" I said, roaming around and looking at all the structures.

The giant tree, Aruran's giant castle, the nether gate, the giant statues of the Holostars' Minecraft selves, and Temma Village as a whole. Sure, it wasn't the best of servers, but it's full of happy memories and laughter shared between friends. It's a server that can definitely last for a long time as a historical piece of art.

"Man...Oh? Here they come!" I said, getting a discord call from Astel and the others.

"...Konbanwa!" I said.

"Konbanwa!" Astel, Aruran, Temma, and Roberu said.

"Say, where are you located so we can start finding you?" Astel asked.

"I'm near the nether portal. The one where there's like a long bridge of some sort. I'll just wait at the nether portal though."

"Ah, okay okay. Just wait there. We'll get there in a jiffy." Astel said.

I kept looking around in the meantime. Though, I didn't stray too far in case they already arrived and are currently wondering where I went. Once they did, we all did our usual greetings, and we did a head count to see that nobody was missing.

Of course, they can't just let me go into the server blind, so before the main course, they toured me around the place to get familiar with some landmarks.

Once that was done, it was time for the action.

"Alright! Everybody stand in line!" Astel said.

"Is everybody here?"

"Yup!" Me and the others said.

"Alright! Let's go to the underground base!" Astel said as he put down a lever and then pulled it.

"...Eh? OI OI OI, WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS-" I shouted in English instinctively.

I noticed that Astel and the ground were rising until I looked down, and panic ensued when I saw lava underneath about 30 blocks away.

"OH- WOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!" I instantly shifted from panic to excitement when I knew that Astel and the others wouldn't do something like this, especially when they're also caught in this trap.

Of course, we burned 'cause it's lava, but underneath it was water, so we got extinguished rather quickly.

We finally sank to the bottom and saw what seemed to be an iron door with stone as the walls.

"Welcome, Shiro! As you already know, you're a part of Holostars! However, you need to overcome a few trials in order to prove yourself as a true Holostar in the Minecraft server!" Astel said.

"Oi, we worked hard in trying to build this, so be thankful, okay?" Aruran said.

"Your building is hella disgusting." I joked, making all of us laugh.

"Oi, you better take it back." Aruran said, swinging his sword at me.

"OW!" I shouted.

"Watch out who you attack, omae! I also got hurt!" Roberu said.

"Then get out of the way next time!" Aruran replied back, making all of us laugh again.

"Anyway, let's all go through the iron door and start your trials, Shiro!" Astel said, leading the way as he stepped on the pressure plate, making the door open.

We all went inside, and the first thing I was greeted with is a chest in the middle of a little space, and a button that's located far away from where we were. The little space and the button were separated with glass. When I opened the chest, I was greeted with a bow and a few stacks of arrows.

Since there was a hole in the middle of the barrier that separates me and the button, it should be clear what the first trial is.

"So, there's a bow and arrow in the chest. There's also a hole in the glass, and a wooden button at the far end. Your goal is to shoot an arrow through the hole and make it hit the button! There's a lot of arrows in the chest, so don't worry if you don't get it on the first try."

"Ah, don't worry. This'll be easy…" I said in a joking manner.

...Or so I thought. The chances of it hitting on the first try was so slim, yet somehow, it actually landed. Bullseye right on the button itself. It proceeded to drop the lower 5 blocks in a row, so we could pass through the middle now. It also seemed to open an iron door to the right at the far end.

"WHAT THE FU-HEY, I ACTUALLY HIT IT!" I shouted, turning to the others and jumping.

"WOAH, FIRST TRY! YABAI!" Roberu said.

"I TRIED THAT WHEN WE WERE TESTING IF IT'S POSSIBLE, IT TOOK ME HALF A STACK TO ACTUALLY HIT IT!" Temma shouted.

"FUZAKENNA, I THOUGHT LONG AND HARD ON THAT!" Astel shouted as we all laughed at it.

"Well, no matter the case, that opens up the door to the 2nd trial! Let's go!" Astel said.

"Let's go!" All of us said back, following Astel to the next trial.

"This is the 2nd trial! You gotta make it over this pool of lava and parkour across this whole room!"

There were multiple platforms. Some were just one block, some were vertical with ladders, some were a bit long, and others were just plain glass panes that were only a rod, making it very thin. It looks easy, but like any parkour map in Minecraft, it only LOOKS easy. The actual thing will be way harder.

"HEY, WHAT THE HELL IS UP WITH THAT GLASS PANE THERE?!" I shouted.

"Don't care. You better do it, OR YOU'LL DIE!" Astel said, punching me and almost knocking me into my inevitable death.

"OUCH! HEY, I ALMOST WENT INTO THE LAVA! YOU IDIOT!" I said, punching Astel back.

"OW!" Astel shouted back.

"Oh yeah, before you go, right click one of the beds here, 'cause you might die a few times." Temma said.

"Yeah, yeah."

I did the parkour course, as told, but the others also joined in, doing the parkour with me, following my back. Though, we did fall off a couple times. I even struggled and fell into the lava when I got to the glass pane part. I did die about a total of 3 times, but I finally arrived at the end spot.

Would I say it was hard? Not really. Of course it had some difficulty, but it was just mostly time-consuming. Was it frustrating though? Definitely. The thing that made it hard was me trying to figure out how fast I was supposed to go as well as when to press the "S" key in mid-air to make sure I didn't overshoot myself. In the end, all's well that ends well. Fuck the glass panes.

"Alright...! Here comes the third and final trial, Shiro!" Astel said.

Just after he said that, I looked back to see Astel, Temma, and Roberu go back to the platform where we just landed after completing the 2nd trial. I heard some sort of block being placed when Astel looked to his right. It was justified from the subtitles given by the game.

"So, just stay there and try to complete this trial. Trust me, nothing bad will happen."

And I thought the opposite. The dispensers laid around the walls of the room felt like chaos was about to pour out of it. It was a huge obsidian room with a decent amount of head room that stretched for about 7 blocks high, and there were 4 dispensers. One placed on each wall. I doubt arrows would come out of it, since that's easy to dodge...but what if it was lava? Even so, it's a "trial". Surely they wouldn't just kill me anyway in the end, right...? My spawn point was literally at the start of the 2nd trial.

"So! Before we start the trial. Here's a few diamond swords...a shield...and a stack of dirt. You improvise with that." Astel said, going into creative mode.

"W-W-Why? Wait, are there spawn eggs inside the dispensers?-"

"GOOD LUCK, SHIRO! I BELIEVE IN YOU!" Astel said, placing an iron door to block the mobs, including me, from escaping.

I then heard a lever being pulled. That seemed to be what he placed earlier. He placed a lever on a block that had redstone running to the 4 dispensers.

"W-Wait, what the hell-I KNEW IT! ZOMBIE SPAWN EGGS INSIDE THE DISPENSERS! "I said, immediately going to the corner and then stacking two blocks of dirt.

It was clear what strategy I was going for. Just stay in the "safe corner", swing my sword, and just let it die down slowly.

"Oh yeah! THERE'S A STACK IN EACH DISPENSER! MAKE SURE TO KILL THEM ALL, OKAY?" Astel shouted.

"A STACK IN EACH?! BRUH, THAT'S GONNA LAG THE SERVER AS WELL AS MAKE SOME OF THEM DIE BECAUSE OF ENTITY CRAMMING!"

"WELL, THAT AIN'T OUR PROBLEM ANYMORE!" Astel said, making us laugh.

"YOU'RE THE ANIME PROTAGONIST, RIGHT? TRY TO REMEMBER THE TRIALS YOU DID EARLIER AS MOTIVATION AND POWER AGAINST THE ZOMBIES!" Temma said.

"YEAH, MOST OF WHAT YOU DID RECENTLY IS SOMETHING PROTAGONISTS PULL OFF!" Aruran followed.

"GANBARE GANBARE, SHIRO! GANBARE GANBARE, SHIRO!" Roberu chanted. Obviously, the boys also started following his chant. Though, it was short-lived when I intervened as the usual tsukkomi here.

"I'M DYING OUT HERE AND YOU'RE CHEERING ME ON, ARE YOU SCREWING WITH ME?!" I said, making them laugh hard to the point that one of them was slapping the table. I wasn't able to see who it was since I was just focused on killing the zombies.

Of course, the server lagged a bit once the zombies started filling the whole room up. No entity cramming so far, but it was definitely hell to kill them. Since the knockback would send the zombies I slashed away, new zombies come in and replace them quickly, so it's a vicious cycle that doesn't kill the zombies immediately.

After some time though, the zombies started fading away while the lag stayed somewhat constant until a few more zombies were killed. Of course, that also made the hellish cycle even more hellish as the lag would hinder the speed more. The fact that there were a lot of particles and processes going on in one go, especially everytime I swung my sword, is not helping the lag at all. Like a firewood being put in a fire, it just accumulates.

But like any fire, it soon burns down until you can just stomp on it to kill it. Once there were a few zombies left, I got down and slayed the zombies one by one, using my shield for protection, and there were no zombies left after that trial.

"YAYYYY!! SHIRO DID IT!!" Astel said, clapping together with the other Holostars after my victory in this trial.

"Woohoo! Is that all? No more trials?"

"Yup! Come with us, and we'll give you your reward." Astel said.

"Oh? Yay!" I said, following the others as Astel broke a few obsidian blocks at the dispenser opposite from the entrance of this room before proceeding to go back to survival mode.

"Oh? You just improvised 'cause you didn't make any redstone to lead to the end?" I asked.

"Yeah, no. We were gonna go into creative mode anyway, so might as well not make anything if we could just destroy it with our own hands." Astel said, making us laugh, but I was the one who laughed the most.

"Alright...and...we're out!" Astel said, opening a trapdoor to the surface.

"Alright! Shiro, congratulations on finishing the three trials!" Astel said while clapping.

"WOOHOOOO!!!" I said, jumping around.

"CONGRATULATIONS!" Roberu, Temma, and Aruran said as well.

"You know, it was kinda funny hearing you scream, Shiro-kun." Roberu said.

"Yeah, I never knew it would be so funny hearing you struggle." Temma followed.

"WELL, IT WAS LAGGING, AND THERE WERE A LOT OF ZOMBIES! OF COURSE I'D BE SHOUTING! Mostly because of the lag though." I said, making the 4 laugh.

"Alright, so before we give you your reward, we want you to read something inside this shulker box." Astel said, getting something into his hand and placing the said shulker box.

I opened it, and the only contents inside it was a book named, "Holostars' message to Ishijin Shiro". It seems the title is self-explanatory, but I was getting a bit nervous here, wondering what they might've written for me. Of course, I know they'll all be positive messages, but I was wondering what they really had to say about me.

I took it out, shutting the shulker box, and then opened the book. The first message seemed to be written by Roberu.

"Take your time, Shiro, and please read all of it, okay? I'll be muting myself. Make sure to tell us once you're done. I'll be listening to the background." Astel said.

"Yup…" I said, still reading their messages.

All of their messages had common characteristics: Heartwarming, passionate, and honest messages with expectations. The book itself wasn't too short nor was it too long. Anybody could go through these pages and read it all. I would be lying if I said this wasn't wholesome.

Throughout the days I've been here, I'll be honest...I thought, somewhere within my subconsciousness, that maybe I just didn't fit inside Hololive. Yes, I'm a Hololiver, and I can make music and such, but I was quite different from the others. No offense to Calli, but my rapping skills far surpassed hers, I could make music really quickly, I could speak a lot of languages, and I wasn't really that open to the Hololive girls initially.

When I first came into Hololive, I was a bit nervous. Not in a way where I was scared of the Hololivers or such and what they thought of me, but more like I was scared of what I might do to them and how I'll affect Hololive as a whole. Undeniably, my skills can serve as a huge asset to Hololive — maybe even be the most important asset to them. My music skills don't come in cheap, after all. However, until now, I never streamed that much, and I didn't know how the standard streamer would act and think, nor am I familiar with how idol culture really works behind the scenes. But after reading their messages, I felt at ease. They reassured me that I was a part of Hololive. A part of their family. Somebody they'd always ride with till the end.

These were the following messages from them.

Roberu: When Shiro first came in, I was a bit intimidated, not gonna lie. There was something about him that was mysterious, like we didn't know what to expect. That, and because he seemed a bit scary because of his overall aura. Maybe it's because of how he didn't feel relatively open at first. However, the more we got to know him, the more we saw that he was just a normal person like us. He just couldn't fit in at first because of everything being new. That's why, as a senpai, I would gladly help him. I want to invite him to my bar soon and hopefully get him to open up more.

Miyabi: I admired Shiro when he first came into Hololive. He was strong, confident, and knew his value and worth. Even when he was first bashed by a lot of people, like us when we started streaming, he didn't mind, and even fought back by interacting more with us and using the antis' messages as jokes. He was also really kind. It should already be justified from what he did for us Hololivers this past month. One day, I hope he'll be standing along with us as we see how far we have come on this journey!

Aruran: I have no doubt Shiro is the perfect guy for V-R.A.P.P. I wouldn't have it any other way. A guy with skills that speaks for itself and, despite being a newbie, he's catching on rather quickly in the world of streaming. I hope he'll teach me how to freestyle rap soon! Shiro, if you're reading this, keep on continuing. I know that you'll grow to be a good senpai someday and hopefully, you'll serve as a good model and idol for the Vtubing community. Do your best!

Oga: What can I say? A very talented man, indeed. I wouldn't be surprised if he grew to 1 million subscribers in the next month or so. I'm not good at putting my feelings into words, but I have one thing to say about Shiro. Shiro, you better not disappoint your senpais, okay? We have high hopes for you! Isn't that what "Virtual-Rapping At Peak Performance" is supposed to be? Make legendary music that will touch the hearts of millions!

Rikka: I honestly envy Shiro. He can compose in so many languages and speaks English so fluently, going as far as speaking even without a Japanese accent! He's also really talented in music! As a senpai, I feel a bit embarrassed being only this good, but that also means I have more room for improvement! Shiro as well should improve on his singing! One day, I hope to collaborate with him and make an original song! It'll be my proudest work when the time comes! I'll live up to my name of being a senpai!

Shien: If there was another man worthy of being a boss, it'd be Shiro. He is charismatic, confident, and strong! Personally, I'm thankful that he was actually quite kind. I'd be lying if I said I never found him intimidating to the point my legs were shaking! Though, we have seen what he's like, and he's gonna continue being the General of the army! Shiro, this is my only order for you! Do your best!

Izuru: As good as a musician Shiro is, he still has a lot to improve in his singing. However, seeing his progress and especially hearing him sing personally, he's very gifted! His voice is crystal clear, he uses the right techniques, and he could become a world-class singer in a short period of time! He just needs to practice more. Shiro, you better do good or I'mma whoop your ass! Do good for Holostars in the name of V-R.A.P.P., okay? I'm looking forward to the rest of your songs!

Temma: I can see Shiro's career going far! He'll grow well to be a fine Vtuber. I also hope he's gonna achieve his dream and collab with a lot of Vtubers, and especially the OGs! So far, he's been doing good in his streams, as well as making things fun. I also admire him doing his best for his audience and striving to make his content good. He has already hit the 100k and 200k sub milestone. Let's all cheer high and loud when he hits a million, alright?!

Astel: No doubt, he'll be the next person standing next to Sui-chan, Sora-senpai, and the other great figures of the Vtubing community. When I heard his album and especially his streams and what he is in person, I knew this guy was gonna make it far. The path to being a great Vtuber isn't easy, but I know Shiro can do it! His skills and personality have already shown that he's worthy of being one of the models of the Vtubing community! I hope he won't push himself too far though. He's also really kind, and would gladly sacrifice himself for others. I do hope he won't sacrifice himself too much and learn to have better self-care, 'cause although we don't show it, we truly care for him. I know the other Hololivers are thinking the same thing. Shiro, I know you're reading all our messages, so before this ends, I want you to know you're a part of Holostars. If you're feeling down, know that we can provide a shoulder for you to lean on. Your pain is our pain. Your happiness is our happiness. Your memories are our memories. So to end all of this…

'...End all of what...? The book? Trials? What might Astel be referencing...?' I thought as I clicked the last arrow.

"WELCOME TO HOLOSTARS!!!!!!" Was the last entry of the book.

"E-Eh? What?"

Astel unmuted himself, along with the other 3 when I blurted that out.

"Hey, Astel? Astel, I'm done reading-"

I turned around to what seemed like dispensers pointing upwards with redstone connected to them. Behind it was Astel, Roberu, Temma, and Aruran. I got cut off from their sudden intervention that was full of energy.

"WELCOME TO HOLOSTARS, SHIRO!" They shouted in unison.

They pulled the lever, and out came fireworks that exploded in the air, showing all sorts of colors. Yellow, magenta, blue, red, green, and any color that was available in Minecraft's dye selection. The sizes also varied, ranging from small and bite-sized fireworks, to big fireworks that could shroud the entire server with its explosions.

It was such a simple surprise, but it felt like I was really there and seeing the fireworks go out in real-time as I looked up and saw it all explode in the air. It felt like a fiesta was happening throughout the whole surprise. My heart felt like it could explode like those fireworks anytime soon.

"Woah...I-I'm honestly speechless…" I said and chuckled.

"Shiro-kun! From now on, you're one of us! Feel free to take that shulker box with you, and by the way, feel free to do whatever you want in the server!" Astel said.

"From this day onward, you can collab with all of us, you know?" Roberu said.

"Let's have a lot of fun, Shiro-kun!" Temma said.

"Yeah!" Aruran followed up.

"...Hehe...thanks, guys." I said, still acting the same on the outside.

Behind the screen though, I clenched my fists and teeth, trying to hold back my tears trying to escape from my eyes. I wasn't able to notice sooner, but I didn't realize the huge grin that was on my face as it was all happening. How embarrassing of me. A soldier with quick reflexes and good environmental awareness wasn't able to notice he was smiling the whole time? ...Then again, who wouldn't be happy from all this?

This is still the beginning. I have a long journey ahead of me as multiple crossroads show themselves. The possibilities are endless from this day forward. 1 month has passed since I came here. What more lies ahead of me? All I knew at the moment was that my heart was pumping a bit hard from all the excitement and scenarios building up in my head.

"So, what are you gonna do, first of all, Shiro?" Roberu asked.

"I think it's obvious. Make a house. Can y'all help me?"

"Yup!" They all replied.

"Sweet! Let's find an open area and start building my house!" I said while smiling.