The 300-Horsepower Secret Weapon Falls for the Company Heiress - The passenger seat remains empty.

2:00 AM. A black sports sedan glided quietly along the Wangan road. The engine note was low, and the feel of the tires biting into the asphalt transmitted through the seat. Playing inside the car was a DJ set she had mixed herself. Heavy bass and a beat full of forward momentum made the night air tremble. Behind the wheel was Wadou Chihaya. She was the DJ for "Flow Glow," the second unit of hololive DEV_IS. Her black short bob with purple inner color caught the light now and then, flashing faintly. Her deep brown eyes gazed straight ahead down the night road. A white shirt, black slacks, a thin silver necklace at her collar. In her left ear, a piercing shaped like an old racing car. Her slender, toned frame carried a faint layer of muscle on her arms. Years of devotion to cars and motorcycles had built her body. Chihaya slipped one hand into her right pocket. Her car key. She confirmed the feel of the metal with her fingertips. An unconscious habit. She held the accelerator steady and cruised along the Wangan. The three-lane road thinned out at this hour, and it felt as though only the sound of her own car was left in the world. (...Today, too, I'm alone.) Chihaya glanced at the passenger seat. No one was there. Of course not. She had never once invited anyone along on a late-night drive. Below the dashboard, on the passenger side. Chihaya reached out with her left hand and traced the spot with the pad of her finger. A small scratch. A shallow line, as if made by a fingernail. Her beloved car, now past 120,000 kilometers, had several other scars. But this one alone was special to Chihaya. Every time she touched it, something deep in her chest went cold and tight. (I still can't let anyone sit there.) That's what she thought. No — the thought had forced its way in. There had once been someone who was supposed to ride in that passenger seat. Someone she had made a promise with. But that promise remained unfulfilled. Chihaya slowly let out a breath. Her grip on the steering wheel tightened slightly. "...Still can't do it." The voice was swallowed by the beat in the car, reaching no one's ears. The lights along the Wangan road streamed across the windshield in a steady rhythm, as if time alone were moving forward. Chihaya pressed the accelerator just a little. The car accelerated, melting into the darkness of the night. She had no destination. As always, she was just driving. While she was driving, she didn't have to think about anything. No — the truth was, she was only trying not to think. Before long, a familiar neon sign came into view. "MIDNIGHT GEAR." A 24-hour American diner along the Wangan road. The walls were decorated with photos of classic cars and racing helmets. It was one of the few sanctuaries for motorsports enthusiasts. Chihaya signaled and eased the car into the parking lot in front of the shop. When she cut the engine, the silence was sudden. Inside, the aroma of coffee and old rock music filled the air. "Welcome." A low, composed voice came from behind the counter. It was the manager, Munakata Yuki. Her black hair was tied back in a single tail, with her bangs swept up. Her eyes had a slightly drooping shape, but behind them gleamed sharp, dark brown irises. She stood 173 centimeters tall. Having once been a racer, there was no wasted motion in her movements. "Alone again, huh." Yuki leaned on the counter and looked straight at Chihaya's face. "That's right. I'm alone." Chihaya sat down at the edge of the counter. "Just coffee." "Got it." Yuki deftly took out a cup. Chihaya gazed absently at the menu on the counter. Double cheeseburger set, 1,380 yen. The price didn't seem to have changed in years. The only other customer in the diner was someone asleep in a booth at the back. "No live show today?" Yuki asked as she poured coffee into the cup. "Tomorrow. At Lumiere Studio." "Oh? That studio again." "Yes, a regular live." Chihaya answered curtly. "I see." Yuki didn't press further. That was how it always was. The coffee was placed on the counter. "...Thank you." Chihaya brought the cup to her lips. Bitter. But right now, that bitterness was exactly what she needed. Yuki started washing dishes on the other side of the counter. She was silent. But that silence was comfortable for Chihaya. No unnecessary prying. The atmosphere of this place was one of the few refuges Chihaya had. Chihaya drank the coffee, one sip, then another. "...I'll leave after I finish this." "Yeah, leave whenever." Yuki answered shortly, her back still turned. Chihaya stared into the black liquid in her cup. (I have to protect my time alone.) That's what she thought. If someone stepped into that space, she would probably break. She had a feeling that was true. When she finished the coffee, Chihaya stood up. "Thanks for the coffee." "Mm." Yuki didn't turn around. But as Chihaya paid at the register, she called out briefly to her back. "Don't push yourself too hard." Chihaya stopped for just a moment. "...I'm not pushing myself." With that, she left the diner. The outside air was cold and pleasant. Back in the parking lot, her car was waiting quietly. Chihaya got into the driver's seat and started the engine. Time to go home. Tomorrow was a live show. Gripping the wheel, her heart settled just a little. She drove off slowly. The next day. Lumiere Studio. Room 401, the Flow Glow dressing room, on the fourth floor of an eight-story studio building in the Minato City district. About 45 square meters. Two sofas, five vanity mirrors, a small refrigerator, and two monitors. All the members besides Chihaya had gathered in the dressing room. Today was the day of their regular live show. The venue was "Pulse Beat," a live house ten minutes by bus from the Minato City district. Capacity 1,200. Stage width 12 meters. It was the place Flow Glow always played. Chihaya stood in front of the monitor, doing a final check of the setlist. As the DJ, she was responsible for all the song mixing, track selection, and sound direction during the live. In other words, she was the one steering the sound. "Chihaya-senpai, looking forward to working with you again today." One of the members called out to her. "Yeah. Leave it to me." Chihaya answered without turning around. The unique tension before a performance. But Chihaya didn't dislike this time. Because she could focus entirely on assembling the sound. They moved to Pulse Beat, and the opening time arrived. The stage went dark. Cheers. Chihaya stood in the DJ booth. Positioned above the audience, looking down at them — for Chihaya, it was her "cockpit." (Let's begin.) Chihaya pressed her headphones to her ear and reached for the turntable. Her deep brown eyes had been replaced today with purple colored contacts. She always wore them during lives. She let the first noise play. The heat of the floor surged all at once. Chihaya calmly connected the next track. She worked the digital controller, layering in the bassline. The members' voices rode on top of it. A perfect flow. Chihaya signaled the members with a glance. "Next, key change before the chorus." She conveyed it with her voice, not through the mic. The members nodded almost imperceptibly. The moment the sound became one. The venue's voltage peaked. (Yes. This.) Chihaya felt the corners of her mouth loosen slightly. The live was a success. "Good work, everyone—" Back in the dressing room, the members exchanged smiling high-fives. "Chihaya-chan, you were amazing again today—" "Yeah, you all were great too." Chihaya took a sip from a plastic water bottle. The members, who had been changing and organizing their things, filed out of the dressing room one after another. "Excuse me, I'll be heading out—" "Chihaya-senpai, I'm leaving first." "Yeah, good work." Chihaya waved her hand lightly. The dressing room door closed. From the hallway, laughter faded into the distance. —It went quiet. Chihaya remained in the dressing room alone. She had equipment to check and light cleanup to do. She gathered the paper cups scattered on the vanity and tossed them in the trash. She powered down the monitors and coiled the cables. (...Everyone looked like they were having fun.) The laughter was no longer audible. It wasn't that she felt distant from her friends. No — maybe she did, just a little. Everyone went back to where they belonged. But Chihaya would get in her car alone after this, too. That was normal for her. Chihaya stood in front of the vanity mirror. In the mirror, her stage makeup was slightly smudged. (What am I even thinking about?) Chihaya shook her head and focused on tidying up. She checked inside the refrigerator for anything nearing its expiration date. Nothing out of the ordinary. That was when it happened. Something white flickered at the edge of her vision. Under the dressing room door. Through the gap, something white was peeking out just slightly. Chihaya slowly approached. An envelope. Someone had apparently slipped it under the door. Chihaya crouched down and picked it up. A pure white, simple envelope. No address, no sender. (What is this?) Chihaya turned it over and held it up to the light. There was something inside. Paper, and something like a photograph. After hesitating a moment, Chihaya opened the envelope. What came out was a single photograph and a single card. The photo showed a scene she recognized. —A black sports sedan driving along the Wangan road. Her own car. The Wangan at night. The passenger seat was empty. (When was this taken?) Chihaya's hand tightened around the photo without her realizing it. She opened the card. Written there, in blue ink, by hand, were these words: "I want to run beside you." That was all. (...What is this?) Chihaya felt her heart thump hard. The air in the dressing room suddenly felt thin. The photo of her car. The words on the card. "I want to run beside you." Who? Chihaya raised her head. Beyond the door. Breathing roughly, she opened the dressing room door. The hallway was quiet. No one was there. Outside the dressing room, only the white light of a fluorescent lamp hung in the emptiness. "...What the hell." Chihaya leaned against the wall. She looked at the card again. Her heart still wouldn't settle. Was she happy, or scared? Or was it nostalgia? Her emotions were a tangled mess she couldn't sort out. (Is it that? Or just a fan?) She didn't know. But this had unmistakably targeted the softest part of Chihaya's heart. "The passenger seat, huh..." Chihaya murmured quietly. She put the photo and the card back into the envelope. "I'm going home." Chihaya gathered her things and left the dressing room. She walked to her car, parked in the lot. The night breeze felt good against her flushed cheeks. She got into the driver's seat and gripped the wheel. When she started the engine, a low sound filled the cabin. Chihaya glanced softly at the passenger seat. No one was there. But because of that message, she had become acutely aware of the empty passenger seat for the first time. "...I want to run beside you." She traced the words on the card aloud. She pulled out. She drove the road home more slowly than usual. Cruising along the Wangan, Chihaya thought. Who was the sender? And could she ever let someone else into that passenger seat? That night, Chihaya's mind was filled with those two questions, the whole way home.

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Episode 1

Name: The 300-Horsepower Secret Weapon Falls for the Company Heiress
Author: Novelia

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