Towa: (So this is Veludo Station~. It’s smaller than I thought it’d be. The exit should be this way…)

Towa: (Umm, the map app says…)

Towa: Yeah, over there.

· • —– ٠ ✤ ٠ —– • ·

Towa: So this is Veludo Way…

Towa: (This is the heartland of theater, the place with the highest concentration of theaters in all of Japan… all kinds of theater companies, both large and small, are based here.)

Towa: (I’ve only ever seen it in videos, but there really is theater no matter where you look.)

Towa: (It’s amazing that theater continues all the way down the street.)

Towa: And just beyond that is where… the Holy Land…!

Towa: Calm down, calm down. Okay.

*Camera clicks*

Towa: (I’ll let the guys know…)

· • —– ٠ ✤ ٠ —– • ·

momo has entered the chat.

momo: At Veludo Way rn

Iv: congratsss. haven’t seen where you are rn in a hot minute lol shiki: That’s Veludo Way? Kar: AI detected momo: But it’s legit! Kar: Kinda blurry tho shiki: Congrats on your long-awaited pilgrimage to the Holy Land! Happy for you! momo: Haven’t gotten to the Holy Land yet. Gotta calm down first Iv: lol you’ve gone all that way and still haven’t done that? momo: It’s called the Holy Land because it’s a sacred place that you can’t just wander into, so it’d be impolite to be too careless about it Kar: What’s with the sudden essay lmao Iv: bestie’s trying to hit the nerd count shiki: You’ve been working hard all this time to get to the Holy Land, so you should enjoy it to the fullest. momo: I’ll do that!

· • —– ٠ ✤ ٠ —– • ·

*Bump*

Towa: !?

???: “--Gh.”

Towa: Huh…

Towa: (He’s crouching down? I wonder if he’s okay… is it my fault for bumping into him…?)

???: “The hell are you doing?”

Towa: (Huh? That voice, I think I’ve heard it before…)

???: “C’mon, let me give you a hand.”

Towa: …G-GOD-za’s Haruto Asuka and Shift Arakawa!?

Shift: “It’s no use~... I can’t walk~...”

Haruto: “You drank too much.”

Shift: “My life’s a mess… I can’t even take another step forward…”

Haruto: “Quit overreacting just because you two broke up!”

Towa: (Ah, could it be… this is Veludo Way’s specialty…)

Shift: “I’m not overreacting! I’m always stuck playing a supporting role. At best, I’m just here to be used. I’ll never have a starring role!”

Shift: “If I keep living like this, I’ll just be stuck as a supporting role in someone else’s life.”

Shift: “What’s even the point of living like this…?”

Haruto: “Then live your own life, not someone else’s. The reason you can’t do that is because you put others at the center as the starring role.”

Haruto: “You’re the leading role in your own life. You’re the one who gets to decide what kind of life you live.”

Shift: “I’m the starring role in my own life…”

Towa: (I can’t believe they can do theater like this without a script…)

Towa: (I’ve only ever seen videos of street acts, but they were doing it so naturally. Amazing…)

Haruto: Thank you very much~!

Towa: --.

Shift: Past GOD-za performances are streaming until tomorrow! It’s only for a limited time, so don’t miss out!

*Applause*

· • —– ٠ ✤ ٠ —– • ·

Towa: (It was way too lucky of me to be able to see a street act done by GOD-za’s top two here…!)

Shift: Ah, sorry for bumpin’ into ya before.

Towa: !! No! Don’t worry about it!

Shift: See ya.

Haruto: Thanks for watching us~.

*Footsteps*

Towa: Haaah~... I should’ve taken a video…

Towa: (Veludo Way really is the place to see street acts done by a whole bunch of different theater companies.)

Towa: (Maybe I’ll see them too…)

Towa: (No way, it’d be impossible to have that kind of crazy luck two times in a row, but, but, what if I really did meet my oshi…)

Towa: --.

*Paper rustling*

Towa: (It’s something that’s way too good to ever actually happen, but I’ve decided that in the unlikely event that I do meet him, I’m going to make sure I get him to autograph this.)

Towa: (My most treasured possession…)

Towa: Ah, wait, did I bring a pen to get his autograph…

Towa: (Huh, I don’t have it. Did I seriously forget it~?)

*Wind blows*

Towa: Ah--!

*Paper falls to the ground*

???: …?

Towa: (So this is Veludo Station~ It’s much smaller than I imagined. The exit should be around here somewhere…)

Towa: (Uhhh, gotta open the map…)

Towa: Yup, this way.

-

Towa: This is Veludo Way…

Towa: (The theater center with the most operating theater companies all over Japan… There are companies of all sorts and sizes here.)

Towa: (I’d only seen it on video before, but there’s for real only theaters all around.)

Towa: (There are theaters as far as the eye can see, it’s amazing.)

Towa: And right ahead… That Holy Land…!

Towa: *gasp* Gotta calm down, gotta calm down. That’s right.

Towa: (I gotta report back to everyone…)

momo has entered the chat momo: on veludo way rn

Iv: graaats. been a while since you updated us w shiki: so that’s veludo way? Kar: Judging for AI momo: it’s real! Kar: ain’t it kinda blurry shiki: congratulations on your long-awaited pilgrimage! good for you! momo: i haven’t started my pilgrimage yet. i gotta calm down first Iv: just get in there w momo: this holy land is a sacred place you don’t just casually dip your feet into. if you step there lightly, it’d be rude. Kar: sudden essay lol Iv: hardcore otaku so cutieful shiki: you’ve worked hard to get there, so enjoy it to the fullest momo: i will! i'm going!

[Towa bumps into Shift]

Towa: !?

???: “--Ouch.”

Towa: Eh…

Towa: (Are they crouching? Because I bumped into them…? Are they okay?)

???: “What are you doing. For God’s sake.”

Towa: (Huh? I think I’ve heard this voice before…)

???: “Come on, lean on my shoulder.”

Towa: …G-GOD-za’s Haruto Asuka and Shift Arakawa!?

Shift: “I’m done for~... I can’t walk any more~...”

Haruto: “You drank too much.”

Shift: “My whole life’s done for… I can’t take a single step forward…”

Haruto: “You just got dumped, don’t exaggerate so much!”

Towa: (Ah, could this be… Veludo Way’s infamous…)

Shift: “I’m not exaggerating! I’m always just someone else’s foil! At best, I’m the second choice, I’m never gonna be the center!”

Shift: “If I keep living like this, my only role will be to support someone else’s life.”

Shift: “Is there even a point living like this…”

Haruto: “Then live your life for yourself. Stop thinking of other people as the protagonists.”

Haruto: “Your life’s protagonist is you, yourself. Only you can decide what kinda life you’ll lead.”

Shift: “My life’s protagonist is me, myself…”

Towa: (I can’t believe this is a play with no script…)

Towa: (I’d only seen Street ACTS in videos before, to think they do it so naturally… Amazing…)

Haruto: Thank you very much~!

Towa: — —

Shift: GOD-za’s past performances will be streamin’ till tomorrow! It’s a limited-time campaign! 

[Applause]

-

Towa: (I’m so lucky to get to watch a Street ACT by GOD-za’s top duo in a place like this…!)

Shift: Ah, sorry for bumping into you before.

Towa: !! No! It’s alright!

Shift: See ya.

Haruto: Thanks for watching~

Towa: *siiigh*~... I should’ve taken a video…

Towa: (So it’s true that all kinds of actors do Street ACTs on Veludo Way.)

Towa: (Then, they will, too…)

Towa: (I mean, I don’t think I’ll be this lucky two times in a row, but, but, if I could meet my oshi…)

Towa: —

[Paper rustling]

Towa: (I don’t think something that good will happen, but I’ve already decided that if I get to meet him, I’ll absolutely get him to sign this.)

Towa: (My most important treasure…)

Towa: Ah, did I even bring a pen…

Towa: (Huh, I don’t have one. Seriously? I forgot to bring one~?)

[Wind blows]

Towa: Wah—!

[Paper falls]

???: …?

masterpost | next episode

NOTES:

(1) w is a kind of laugh often used in japanese texts, resembling lol. i kept it as w because kar uses で草 (also resembles lol), which is actually said out loud and i assume people actually say lol out loud