Kanae and Kuzuha are a popular duo unit called 'ChroNoiR,' known for their gaming skills and witty banter. Fans ship them, but they're just partners. Kanae pretends to be cool but is secretly lonely; Kuzuha acts tough but is a clumsy vampire. One day, a new member 'Lumina' appears and boldly confesses to Kuzuha on her debut stream: 'Senpai, I'm drawn to your darkness. Dye me in your color.' The stream explodes. Kuzuha blushes and yells, 'I'm not gonna suck your blood!' Kanae feels oddly unsettle
ChroNoir: The Two Who Won't Be Dyed Black - Black Time and Controllers: Is ChroNoir More Than Partners?
"Whooooa! Did you see that, Kanae! My superhuman play!"
The booming voice bounced off the walls of the soundproofed studio. Third floor of a mixed-use building in Shibuya—the ChroNoir Studio. The black-themed room held two streaming desks and a large monitor, with fan art shikishi plastered across the walls until there was barely any space left.
"I saw it. Nice call. But that was just the enemy tripping, right?"
Kanae let a faint smile play at the corner of his mouth, his pale blue eyes fixed on the monitor as he regripped his controller. His platinum-blond short hair—nearly silver—was tucked behind his left ear only. His slender frame, draped in a black hoodie, rested against the gaming chair.
"Hahhh!? Just tripping, you say? Do you have any idea how hard it is to dodge at that exact timing and land a counter!?"
"Sure, sure. The comments are praising you too. 'Kuzuha-kun is so cool,' they're saying."
"Seriously!? Where, where!? Read it out loud!"
Kuzuha leaned forward, peering at Kanae's monitor. His jet-black short hair with red streaks swayed, and his sunset-red eyes narrowed in delight. His 178-centimeter frame, wrapped in a black knit cap and black hoodie, was exactly like his streaming icon.
"Look at it yourself. Here, a monster's coming."
"Whoa! Crap!"
As Kuzuha hurriedly turned back to his own monitor, Kanae glanced at the comment feed. Twelve thousand viewers. Four years since they'd registered on MiraBox, the streaming platform. ChroNoir's subscriber count had surpassed 1.2 million. Donations—"Mira"—streamed across the screen one after another. One Mira to one yen. In just these few hours, tens of thousands of yen in support had come in.
The streaming industry was a massive market now. MiraBox was the largest domestic platform, with roughly eighty thousand registered streamers. Make it to the top, and you'd gain income and influence on par with celebrities. ChroNoir sat in the upper mid-tier. One of the flagship units of their agency, Verdure Agency.
"Hell yeah! Down! How's that, Kanae? My skills!"
Kuzuha pumped his fist and shot a smug look at the camera. The comments flooded with "cute," "handsome," "best married-couple comedy."
"Yeah, yeah, impressive. …Oh, the comments are getting rowdy again."
Kanae smiled wryly and read the scrolling comments aloud.
"'Kanae-kun and Kuzuha-kun are totally dating, right?' 'They're definitely dating.' 'This distance between them screams lovers.' …Hey, everyone, isn't that all you ever talk about?"
Kanae replied in his cool tone. On stream, Kanae was the composed moderator. Viewers adored him as "the healing voice" and "the cool big brother."
"We're just partners. How many times do I have to say it?"
"Shut up! We're not dating! Focus on the game!"
Kuzuha shouted, his face bright red. That reaction only fired up the comments more. "He's embarrassed." "Your face is red, Kuzuha-kun." "Kanae-kun's so calm though." "This temperature gap is precious."
"See, Kuzuha's mad now. Everyone, if you tease him too much he'll get cranky, so go easy."
"You're the one teasing me the most!"
Kanae chuckled quietly and turned his gaze back to the game. Co-op play in Monster Hunter World 2. Kanae staggered the monster with his great sword, and Kuzuha piled on with dual blades. It was a coordination honed over years of playing together. No words needed—they could read each other's next move from movement alone.
They'd started streaming four years ago. ChroNoir began with five hundred subscribers and gradually grew their fanbase through gaming skill and witty banter. Kuzuha's boisterous reactions and Kanae's calm retorts. The rhythm of it caught on, and before they knew it, they'd passed a million.
"Almost time for the last one. Kuzuha, ready?"
"Obviously! Let's wrap this up and go eat!"
Kanae's hands paused on the controller for just a moment. The word "eat" stirred something small in the depths of his chest. Once the stream ended, it was another dinner for one.
"…Yeah. Let's go."
The moment the final monster fell, the comments filled with congratulations. Donations poured in like a waterfall. Kanae smiled at the camera and gave his usual closing greeting.
"Thank you all for watching today. Our next stream is the day after tomorrow at eight PM. See you then."
"Thanks, everyone! See ya!"
The screen switched to the end-of-stream display. Kanae removed his headset and exhaled deeply. The tension drained from his shoulders. Beside him, Kuzuha stretched both arms and cracked his neck with a series of pops.
"Man, I'm beat. The comments were insane today. That 'they're dating' storm—hasn't it gotten brutal lately?"
"Well, it's every time, though."
Kanae said quietly as he powered down the monitor. Kuzuha stood and walked to the window. Pretending to adjust the gap in the blackout curtains, he seemed to be gazing outside.
Silence fell over the studio. As if the liveliness from moments ago had been a lie, the room went quiet. The heat of the stream cooled.
"Hey, Kuzuha."
Kanae spoke while watching the monitor's power light fade.
"Are we… okay like this?"
The words came out smaller than even he expected. Kuzuha, still tracing the hem of the blackout curtain with his finger, stopped moving.
"…Who knows."
That was all. Kuzuha didn't turn around. Kanae didn't say anything more either.
Was this okay? The truth was, he wanted to change. Wanted to change things. But if he did, he might lose what they had. Kanae unconsciously touched the silver bracelet on his right wrist. The cold feel of metal lingered on his fingertips.
Kuzuha took a step back, as if avoiding the twilight light leaking through the gap in the curtains. Kanae watched the gesture in silence.
"…Well, I'm heading out first. We've got that meeting tomorrow too, right?"
"Yeah, good work."
Kuzuha left the studio. The sound of the door closing echoed strangely loud. For a while, Kanae stood motionless in the center of the now-empty room.
On the way home, swaying on the train toward his apartment in Sasazuka, Kanae gazed absently out the window. Shibuya was overflowing with people even in the evening. The Digital Hills district where streamers gathered was bustling with office workers heading home.
Seven minutes on foot from the station. A room in a fifteen-year-old apartment building. Kanae unlocked the door and stepped into the empty room. When he turned on the light, cluttered gaming equipment greeted him. A hoodie he'd taken off yesterday still lay on the sofa. Two empty plastic bottles sat on the table.
"…I'm home."
No reply. He knew there wouldn't be, but he said it anyway. Kanae opened the fridge. Eggs and beer. Plus one bottle of sauce nearing its expiration date.
"…Convenience store again."
He sighed and closed the fridge. Pulling out his phone, he put the bento he'd bought at the nearby convenience store into the microwave. While it heated, Kanae checked his notifications.
One notification from MiraBox.
"A new streamer, Lumina, has followed you."
Lumina. A name he'd never heard. Kanae casually opened the profile.
The moment he saw the photo displayed there, his finger stopped.
Red eyes. Silver hair that reached her waist. Only the tips were red like blood. Her large eyes, even through the photo, held a sharpness that seemed to pierce right through him.
"…What is this."
An inexplicable stir ran through the depths of his chest. It wasn't unusual for a new streamer to follow a famous one. But something about this girl was different.
Kanae set down his phone and carried the heated bento to the table. A table set for one. Convenience store fried chicken bento and a canned beer. He turned on the TV, and some variety show he didn't recognize was playing.
He was self-aware enough to know he was lonely. When time alone stretched on, he'd become unbearably anxious. He wanted to be connected to someone. But he was afraid of letting anyone in. His relationship with Kuzuha was the same.
While eating his bento, Kanae opened Lumina's profile again on his phone.
Only a few posts so far. The first one read:
"Nice to meet you. I'm Lumina. I think I can finally meet the person I've been searching for."
The person she's been searching for. Those words stuck with him strangely.
Kanae laid his phone face-down and took a sip of beer.
The next morning. Kanae woke to a call from Verdure Agency. Seeing "Maho Tachibana" on the screen, he scrambled upright. Calls from his manager usually meant bad news.
"…Hello."
"Good morning, Kanae-kun. Sorry for the short notice, but can you come to the office this afternoon?"
The voice on the other end was calm as always. Maho Tachibana was a manager in her thirties who oversaw all of ChroNoir's activities.
"This afternoon? Did something happen?"
"The president wants to talk to you directly. It's about a collab stream with a newcomer."
A collab with a newcomer. Lumina's face from yesterday surfaced in Kanae's mind. Surely not.
"Understood. What time?"
"Come at two. I'll contact Kuzuha-kun myself."
After hanging up, Kanae sent Kuzuha a message.
"Today, 2 PM at the office. They say it's about a collab with a newcomer."
Read receipt came. But no reply. Kanae tossed his phone onto the bed and stared at the ceiling.
Two PM. Verdure Agency's office in Shibuya's Digital Hills district. Opening the door on the fifth floor of the mixed-use building revealed a white-themed office. Meeting rooms, a filming studio, individual manager desks lined up. About forty streamer units under contract. Posters of affiliated talent hung on the walls.
"Over here, Kanae-kun."
Led by Maho Tachibana into the meeting room, Kanae found Rei Kagurazaka seated at the far end. A former top streamer, now the president of this agency. Even in her forties, her presence was overwhelming.
"It's been a while, Kanae. Sit."
"Thank you for having me."
As Kanae took his seat, Kagurazaka began speaking while operating the tablet in her hands.
"I'll get straight to it. We're setting up a collab stream with a newcomer. The partner is Lumina. She just registered on MiraBox yesterday."
I knew it. Kanae muttered inwardly.
"With a brand-new newcomer? On our channel?"
"Yes. It was her request. Not only that—she specifically named ChroNoir and asked for you two directly."
Kagurazaka held out the tablet toward Kanae. The screen displayed Lumina's profile. The same red-eyed girl he'd seen yesterday.
"Is there something special about her?"
"I don't know. But her debut stream exceeded thirty thousand viewers. That's abnormal for a newcomer."
Thirty thousand on day one. Kanae furrowed his brow. Even ChroNoir had started with a few hundred.
"And here's the thing. The collab theme is already decided."
Kagurazaka's lips curved slightly.
"Show the viewers what kind of relationship you two have."
"…Our relationship, you mean."
Kanae repeated the words. Relationship. Partners, and nothing more, nothing less. The word caught in his throat.
"ChroNoir's biggest selling point is the atmosphere between you and Kuzuha. That's what viewers pay for. Bring in the newcomer and draw out that appeal to its fullest."
"…Understood."
Kanae answered briefly. Kagurazaka nodded, satisfied, and pulled the tablet back.
"The meet-and-greet is tomorrow. I've called the newcomer to the studio. Let Kuzuha know too."
Leaving the office, Kanae sent Kuzuha a message on his phone.
"Tomorrow, meet-and-greet with the newcomer. At the studio."
Read receipt came. But again, no reply. Kanae shoved his phone into his pocket and disappeared into the Shibuya crowd.
Evening. Eighteenth floor of a luxury tower apartment in Shinjuku. Without turning on the lights, Kuzuha gazed up at the moon through the gap in the blackout curtains.
Vampire. The traits of that race: weakness to sunlight, and an impulse to seek the life force of others. Twenty-five years since the Interspecies Coexistence Act was enacted. The rights of demi-hum
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