A Basement-Dwelling Loser, the Inquisitor – Chapter 54

“Zia unni, didn’t you say this would be free?”

“Yeah. I think I might have said something rude back then, so I said it would be free.”

“I mean, honestly, I’m not even sure if what I said was rude… But it means it’s free, right?”

“That’s right!”

“…But when I asked before, didn’t I have to pay around 300,000 yen?”

“Yep.”

“And you were the client, so it was without your name’s value and all? I didn’t even use any extra costs for the background… That was 300,000 yen, right?”

“Yep. Adding everything up, individuals can’t handle that~.”

“…But giving that level of work for free seems a bit much, don’t you think?”

A woman with black hair tied in a ponytail scratched her head in silence at Zia’s words.

It was Sia, the girl with light brown hair sitting next to Zia, who answered that question.

“…Unni.”

“Huh? Did you call me, Mina?”

Zia tilted her head as she turned to face Mina, whose blue eyes were filled with a seriousness anyone could see.

“An illustrator… has a pride that can’t be compromised…!”

“That’s it! Mina really gets it!”

“Even if it’s a job where I’m getting paid less than usual, if it’s a commission, it has to be the best quality…!”

“That’s exactly it! And Zia, you saw it, right?!”

Sia said this and operated the screen to showcase multiple pictures.

What was displayed on the screen were the photos of the outfit and Warhammer sent by the client, ‘Rene’.

“With this quality of materials received, there’s no need to worry about the price!”

“Um, um!”

Sia’s impassioned speech resonated with Mina, who nodded in agreement.

Watching the two, who were so serious about their art, Zia had no choice but to raise her hands in surrender.

“…Sorry. I think I might have spoken out of turn without understanding.”

“No, no. Mina and I can be pretty peculiar as well.”

“In the first place, all illustrators are strange people…”

At their words, Zia chuckled and lay down to stare at the ceiling.

“…Anyway, you’re finishing this by the end of this week, right? You came all the way to Japan after a long time, so you can’t just go back after working, unni.”

“Well, I did come for this… but we should hang out together at the end, right?”

“What kind of insane person comes all the way to Japan for a free job?”

“Here I am~.”

★

I received a message from Shumi-sensei, who was in charge of my VTuber illustration.

[Tada Shumi: It’s almost done!]

[Tada Shumi: I think it’ll be finished in about two days!]

[Tada Shumi: (photo)]

[Tada Shumi: I changed all the designs based on what you mentioned last time!]

And the illustration she sent was… honestly, so perfect it made me think, ‘Isn’t this already complete?’

It was based on the photo I had sent, but it wasn’t an exact copy.

That difference only highlighted the charm of the priest robe even more, leaving me in awe.

The design of the necklace, which I had said must not be changed for anything, was just as I requested, and the Warhammer next to it displayed its stature, which looked like it was made to interrogate heretics.

[Inquisition Officer: It seems too perfect.]

[Inquisition Officer: Thank you so much…]

Among it all, what I liked the most was the avatar’s appearance.

Not silver-white hair but pitch-black locks.

Not red eyes but deep brown irises.

What stood there was an ordinary woman, with no elements that seemed strange to anyone who might see.

“Phew…”

[Tada Shumi: Ah, Rene-san.]

[Tada Shumi: Do you have any plans for your broadcast?]

[Tada Shumi: I want to watch your debut stream with my siblings…]

Just as I was getting lost in that moment of appreciation, Shumi-sensei contacted me again.

A question about whether she could watch my broadcast.

Of course, there was no reason to refuse.

[Inquisition Officer: RiMing.tv/ND_Lene]

[Inquisition Officer: I’m streaming here.]

[Tada Shumi: Oh, were you already streaming?]

[Inquisition Officer: Yes.]

[Inquisition Officer: But I’m on a break right now.]

[Tada Shumi: Then I’ll watch it on the replay!]

[Inquisition Officer: Sure.]

That said, today was December 22…

If it’s finished in two days, that means I’ll receive it on December 24th. So, it’s on Christmas Eve.

It feels like I’m getting both a birthday gift and a Christmas gift.

Thinking back, I didn’t really do anything for Christmas in that other world…

Since the faith was different, Christmas itself didn’t exist.

The very concept of the date was a bit different.

And on my birthday… I had no one to celebrate with, so I just holed up in my room cursing the world.

At least I had a conversation with Iya, but she isn’t a person.

As for my past life… well, there’s no need to mention that.

Celebrating? What’s that?

While I was thinking about all this, another Miscode notification went off.

[Tada Shumi: Hey, Rene-san.]

[Tada Shumi: Are you a guy?]

[Tada Shumi: Then, were the materials you sent before also dressed as a girl…?]

“…Ah.”

What do I do with this…

Is it okay to tell the truth?

If Shumi-sensei finds out I’m a girl and spreads that fact, it could cause major trouble for my perfect plan.

But… she’s such a nice person who was going to do all this for free.

I didn’t want to create unnecessary secrets.

[Inquisition Officer: I’m a girl.]

[Inquisition Officer: I ended up settling on that concept by chance…]

[Tada Shumi: Ahh, I see.]

[Inquisition Officer: Could you keep this fact a secret?]

[Inquisition Officer: I have a plan…]

[Tada Shumi: Of course! I wouldn’t carelessly reveal someone’s secrets!]

[Inquisition Officer: Thank you.]

“What a relief…”

She really is a good person.

I had a brief worry about whether she would try to charge me more for this, though.

“Hmm…”

Anyway, if getting this illustration means it’s Christmas Eve… Should I turn on the broadcast on Christmas?

As a gift for my Rebongi.

Even though I said I’d take a month-long break, the reason behind that was to prepare for my VTuber illustration.

Now that it’s ready, there shouldn’t be any issue turning on the broadcast.

I can also calm down the Rebongi terrorists demanding that I stream every day.

After all, I said I’d take about a month off, but I didn’t say it had to be precisely a month-long break.

Well, initially, I planned to take about a week to do various tests after getting the illustration, but I wanted to show it off as soon as possible.

The reason I could get this illustration was that they supported me.

If I hadn’t received such considerable donations, I wouldn’t have been preparing to be a VTuber.

“Ugh…”

Given all that I’m doing for my Rebongi, they shouldn’t even think of becoming heretics.

I really hope they reflect on that.

★

【Rene Galleryⓜ】

【Title: The Gallery Master Will Definitely Not Come on Christmas o(￣▽￣)o】

【Author: Daguros🔹】

If you listen to this guy’s voice, you’ll know he’s totally a huge dork.

Would that kind of person stream on Christmas?

He’ll probably be out on a date with his girlfriend, lol.

If he streams on Christmas, I’ll drop 10 burgers in the gallery o(￣▽￣)o

【Upvotes: 33 / Downvotes: 1】

o(￣▽￣)o: Didn’t the gallery master say he’s just holed up at home during his broadcasts?

└Daguros🔹: You think that’s really true? lol.

└Daguros🔹: If you want to dispute it, turn on the stream, o(￣▽￣)o!

Art Rock: Can I line up in advance?

└Daguros🔹: No.

Nasenduril: If it’s the gallery master I know, he’d definitely stream on Christmas just to mess with us, lol.

└Daguros🔹: That’s not a nice thing to say!

Scone: Just say you want to watch the stream…

└Daguros🔹: I just, want to watch the broadcast…

【Title: I’ll be streaming today】

【Author: Rene🔸】

Fortunately, the thing I mentioned last time finished quickly, and I’m done today.

Actually, I thought about filling up the entire month… but I’ve been getting a lot of requests to stream, so I’ll just do it today.

You could think of it as a Christmas gift!

【Upvotes: 201 / Downvotes: 12】

o(￣▽￣)o🔹: Finally! Finally! Finally! Finally! Finally! Finally!

o(￣▽￣)o: Wow, this is the first time I’ve ever seen a post on this gallery with over 200 upvotes.

Integral: Streaming on Christmas?

└Integral: This is something else…

└o(￣▽￣)o: Is the gallery master not a virgin?

└Another: (Has a unicorn horn… lol)

└o(￣▽￣)o: Why the heck is there a horn here?

Nore Rene No Life🔹: Is this about New Dimension, you piece of trash???

└Krasia🔹: It’s a bit insane to say, “I got a lot of requests to stream,” <<< She’s totally nuts?



└Rene🔸: I said I was taking a break beforehand.



└Krasia🔹: Damn it.



o(￣▽￣)o: If the gallery master streams on Christmas, the Paddak who said he’d drop burgers, please show up!



└Daguros🔹: Damn it.



└o(￣▽￣)o: But you still love her, right?



└Daguros🔹: I’m happy…



└Gaggle Gaggle: At this point, wasn’t this just beads of voodoo? lol.



★



Thinking back, Christmas has no meaning for me at all, so why did I decide to give my Rebongi a present?



The reason is simple.



Because it was my dream all along to spend a day bustling around on such occasions.



Even on a day that has nothing to do with me.



Gathering together on everyone’s day off, laughing, chatting, and just having a good time.



That’s the kind of day I wanted.



[Rene]

[Hello]

[Talk | 421 viewers watching | 00:01:51]

─Open the door already, damn it! Open the door, damn it! Open the door, damn it!

─Unni, I’m so cold! Unni, I’m so cold! Unni, I’m so cold! Unni, I’m so cold!

─If a Rebongi could last without getting caught, thumbs up, lol.

─Huh? Today’s Christmas? I have a horn… Huh? Today’s Christmas? I have a horn…

─🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥

─Just burn it all down!

─Crazy girl, crazy girl, crazy girl, crazy girl, crazy girl, crazy girl, crazy girl.

But for some reason, the atmosphere in the chat window during the broadcast feels apocalyptic.

Today is Christmas, after all; it should be a happy day for everyone.

Did something happen to the Rebongi collectively?

If so, that would be really unfortunate, so I should convey some words of comfort during today’s stream.