This story is a work of fiction. All persons, organizations, places, laws, or brands appearing in it have no connection to reality. This work depicts extreme situations. Please enjoy this work with consideration for your mental and physical health.
Hello?
Can you hear me?
Hello? Have you come to? Are you okay?
Yes. Nothing's particularly different from usual.
I still can't sleep, same as always.
I'd appreciate it if you could prescribe me sleeping pills and psych meds.
I've gotten so used to relying on meds to forcibly shut my brain down.
At this point, I've forgotten what it feels like to fall asleep naturally.
I can't stop thinking about painful things whenever I'm lying in bed.
Yeah. Before I know it, I start fantasizing about killing off, one by one,
all the people I hate in my head.
Well, not specific people exactly. More like an abstract idea.
Old classmates I couldn't stand, followers, stuff like that.
A platonic ideal of a person I hate and stab them to death.
Stab.
It's not fun.
I'm killing them because I have to, that's all.
My hands get dirty too, and it feels awful.
Thank you. I'll make another appointment.
This should keep me going for a while.
I think I can finally sleep.
Finally. That took way too long.
Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy!
I'm totally stoked!
I'm full of adrenaline!
Is it finally starting?!
I'm way too hyped for this, holy shit dude!
Our guest today is KAngel, the major streamer with ten million followers!
We're delighted to have her with us.
In the second half of the program, we'll also be bringing highlights
from her recent smash success 10 Million Followers Celebration Live Show
in a special digest, so don't miss it!
Thank you so much for joining us today.
Sure thing!
Let's jump right in. Your new song, INTERNET OVERDOSE.
What feelings did you pour into it when you wrote the lyrics?
I don't care about your new boyfriend, but I told you not to meet him out in public!
Why can't we at least pretend to be a proper married couple?
Stop it! Not in front of the child!
I'm not the only one at fault here!
Don't hide behind our daughter!
You barely even love her!
Throw that filthy thing away!
You'll be able to enjoy some peace and quiet at Grandma's house.
You can stay as long as you like.
Is that Grandpa?
That's right. He passed away quite a while ago, just like that.
Aren't you lonely?
Well, everyone dies eventually, you know.
It wouldn't be strange if I suddenly died either.
What happens when you die?
You're reborn again and again in a more beautiful form,
as many times as the good things you did while you were alive.
Your grandpa had a bad drinking problem.
Maybe that's what he was reborn as.
Do you really believe in reincarnation?
Maybe it's just a comfort.
But even if it's a lie, you need to believe someone will save you.
Otherwise life's too hard.
Here, say "ahh."
Was my room always this small?
They're just my old things.
There are anime and games in the closet, so you can play with whatever you like.
There might be some of your aunt's stuff in there, too.
Grandma never really got around to throwing out my toys.
VEPER Rider
How dare you! That's cowardly!
Come on!
Everyone's waiting! To the stage, Makuhari!
That's right! Let's dance together!
Night on the Galactic Railroad Kenji Miyazawa
O-Oh no! A girl is falling from the sky!
Stop it! Not in front of the child!
I'm not the only one at fault here!
Don't hide behind our daughter!
-You barely even love her! -You barely even love her!
I'm Ame. I'll save the world.
I'm Ame! I'll save this world.
I'm an angel who came here to save this painful world.
Ame!
I get depressed a lot too,
The future is still unwritten
but I'll definitely save everyone, okay?
It's going to be okay!
It'll get easier, I promise.
A future as sweet as candy is waiting for you!
You let her out of your sight?!
What were you thinking?!
I suppose that's what I should expect from his parent.
This child will be living with me.
Tokyo would be better for you, anyway.
It's going to be okay.
It'll get easier, I promise.
A future as sweet as candy is waiting for me.
See you later.
You're coming in at this hour?
School's practically over already.
Didn't your mother get mad at you?
Do you understand the responsibility here?
If one student does this, everyone else might copy you and start misbehaving.
Mom was sleeping, too.
Why didn't she wake her up?
Who knows? Maybe her mom's a yakuza or something.
Do you even understand what I'm saying?!
Look at me when I'm talking to you!
She's not one of us.
Why not? You said it was good.
You can afford a little spending money.
I need to buy my daughter some new clothes.
Come on.
I'm not moving back.
You're the only one I've got now.
Please.
I wanna die.
Hey, what do you even live for?
I don't know.
I want to go to school.
All right! Ready, go!
Come on, dance! I'll make you go viral!
Do the Para Para! C'mon, dance like an idiot!
Hey! Move already!
Man, you're killing the vibe. Right?
Whatever. He's gross. Let's go.
Oh, the boss? Yeah, he's actually insane. In the second phase where the floor glows, you die instantly. I played until late last night after work and finally beat him. I didn't go full DPS, but made it easier on myself with high evasion gear. The feeling of success was incredible! School is full of idiots.
This is lame.
Next time we'll shake him down.
Damn, that's hardcore! Straight-up crime!
Guidance Counselor
How many times do I have to tell you to come to school on time?!
Being on time is a basic rule of life.
Every time you repeat this, you lose trust.
Are you even listening?!
Guidance Counselor
You think it's just your parents and teachers nagging you, don't you?
God is watching, too!
At this rate, you won't survive in society, and you'll end up miserable!
Hey! Say something!
There is no God.
"Mama just killed a man."
"Put a gun against his head,"
"pulled my trigger..."
Man, I'm bored.
Ain't there anything fun to do?
Hey!
You in some kind of trouble or somethin'?
Huh?! This is none of your business!
Shut up, idiot.
Huh?! You're such a fuckin' creep!
Thanks.
The phenomenon known as myself
is but one blue light in a hypothetical organic alternating-current lamp.
Together with the scenery and everyone else,
flickering, flickering restlessly...
Yet continuing to shine, undeniably.
One blue light in a karmic alternating-current lamp.
You're ugly, inside and out.
Hey, not the face!
It'll be fine. The guys were going to town on that otaku's face, too.
You girls are actually bullying her?
Like you guys don't do the same thing!
Shut up. We're just messing around with that otaku.
Are you being serious?
Daughter of a whore!
You should fight back, too.
Parents and teachers are just playing their roles.
And the bullies in class aren't that impressive either.
If you push back even a little, they'll run.
Everyone's just pretending. It's all make-believe.
I'm scared.
Is that so? Then stay scared for the rest of your life.
No one's going to save you.
It's not an anime
This isn't an anime.
Maybe my life's just never going to get better.
See?
Something good happened, right?
So make it count.
Must be stuck in maintenance again lol Hope I get 1000 apologems for this
Yeah. And I wanted to burn my stamina before bed. Now I can only sleep.
Guess I'll give up for today and save my energy. See ya.
Now I can only sleep.
Guess I'll give up for today and save my energy. See ya.
Ame
I'm done going where there's only idiots
Ame
I'm done going where there's only idiots
Don't be such a troll just because you're online.
Try to stay positive.
But I always feel like I want to die.
We're all stuck in this shit pile, so we're all the same.
I just got fired from my temp job, but I'm still alive.
Let's take it easy and keep our heads up.
Thanks. I hope things will work out for you, too.
Like it. Dislike it.
I hope... that man dies!
What about me?!
What about me? What about me?!
I hope... that man dies!
Hey! You know what time it is? Keep it down!
- What about me? What about me? - I've had it! I'll kill that crazy bitch!
- What about me?! What about me?! - Shut up! You want me to call the cops?!
Hey! Are you listening?!
Ame!
Ame! I did it!
Congratulations. You really did it.
How many did you whack?
Just the one guy who punched me the most.
But they were totally terrified!
Thank you. Ame, you saved me. That's why...
Ame...
You stopped going to school, but I think of you as my angel.
So then...
take them all out.
So you got yourself a boyfriend or something?
Well, at least you were born with a pretty face.
Guys will come flocking to you.
You'll never have to worry about money.
Hey, I raised you this far, didn't I?
Don't you think you could repay your mom just a little?
My current boyfriend's got plenty of money.
If you entertain him a bit, I'm sure he'd give you some spending money.
What do you think?
It'd only be fair if I took enough for the ren—
Die!
Ow!
In your next life, you'll be a cockroach.
Die! Die! Die!
This time, I really want to die for sure.
Come on, don't say that now.
Is death the only solution?
I wish you had waited for me.
We'll see each other again soon.
Where are you? You'll pay for this.
You'll pay!
Earlier this afternoon, a violent incident believed to have stemmed from
a dispute between students occurred at a junior high school in the city.
The victim was a male student on the second floor of the school.
According to people involved,
the boy retaliated against bullying that he had been subjected to.
He attacked a classmate with a baseball bat.
However, the classmate fought back, and the boy suffered serious injuries.
It's okay. It's going to be okay.
It'll get easier, I promise.
Those moments right before I fall asleep are the only times I'm happy.
Good night.
Hi, cuties!
Hi, cutie!
I'm the Internet Angel, KAngel!
There's something I want to tell everyone!
Will you hear me out?!
Yeah!
Hey, you little otaku.
You guys are way too soft on streamers!
I mean, I get how good it feels.
Devoting yourself, your everything, to the one you worship and love.
It's simple.
But streamers will lie through their teeth whenever they need
all just to sell you a mesmerizing dream.
For example, saying they were bullied and had no friends growing up,
or that their parents were abusive,
or that they ran away from home back in middle school.
They'll try to squeeze out as much sympathy as they can,
turning the tiniest bit of bad luck into a huge sob story.
Maybe part of the appeal is not knowing how much is real and how much is a lie.
If it's a spell that can't be broken,
then the truth and lies don't really matter.
When you're watching KAngel,
just let yourself be wrapped in a sweet hallucination.
This angel will always save you guys on the other side of the screen.
The ones who send the most on superchats get priority, though.
Just kidding.
Sweet dreams.
It's not like sleeping a lot would make you happy,
but at least the unhappy things will start to fade.
So let's hang out again, okay?
Good night, otaku.
Bless!
Tonight we brought you an episode that could be called the origin story
of KAngel's INTERNET OVERDOSE,
along with footage from her wonderful live performance.
Wow, so those were the kinds of feelings that went into it.
Thank you very much for joining us today.
Thanks!
Next time
The brightest star shining in the sky could never know the suffering
that comes with simply living a normal life in modern times.
In a sea of mediocrity, Kache reaches out for that light.
Next time, "London Calling."
EPISODE 4