The Day Subaru Oozora Searches for the Brightest Star
Everyone in Hololive, let's become astronauts! When Subaru Oozora suddenly announces this, a strangely hilarious 'Best Item Arrangement' tournament begins. Its a contest where you can supposedly receive a star from the universe. But Subaru is actually hiding a deeply sad secret. Without knowing it, everyone's small acts of kindness end up hurting Subaru... Yet she keeps acting cheerful. But when the biggest crisis arrives, Subaru realizes she isn't alone! It's a comfy daily life story that will
The Day Subaru Oozora Searches for the Brightest Star - A Shooting Star and a Strange Certificate
The sky was just beginning to lighten.
The streets of Hinatazaka were still asleep. The distant buildings stood as silhouettes, faintly tracing the boundary between sky and earth.
The door to Sorano Terrace creaked open.
"Alright, we're here, wan! The stage for the final showdown!"
Korone burst out with boundless energy. Her brown bobbed hair bounced. The dog-like tuft of hair on top of her head stood straight up with excitement. In her hands, she clutched the familiar yellow duck-shaped piggy bank.
"Hold on, final showdown... what happened to the rules?"
Fubuki followed after her with a sigh. Her silvery short bob swayed in the cold morning wind. Her blue eyes were only half open. She was completely sleep-deprived.
"Fufu, rules have long since flown off to the far reaches of the universe."
Noel stepped slowly onto the terrace. Her long silver hair shimmered faintly in the still-dim light. She was carrying a large astronomical model in both hands. Saturn and Mars, made of styrofoam, wobbled precariously with every step she took.
"Furea is sleepy. But I came because I wanted to see the stars."
Furea swayed her pink hair as she let out a big yawn. Her large ribbon was tilted at an angle. Her eyes were drowsy, looking like she might fall asleep at any moment.
And then, finally.
Oozora Subaru stepped out onto the terrace.
Her bright brown short bob was gently caressed by the wind. The star earring on her left ear caught a faint light and sparkled.
Traces of tears still remained on her face.
But her large brown eyes held a different light than before.
"...I really do like the sky from here the best."
Subaru approached the railing and looked down over the town of Hinatazaka.
The lights along Kagerou Street were flickering out one by one. Morning was almost here.
"Alright, let's get started, wan!"
Korone plopped the duck piggy bank she was holding onto the terrace floor.
"Wait, Korone-senpai!? That's my..."
"U-hihi. I secretly modified it last night, wan!"
With her golden eyes sparkling, Korone rummaged around the bottom of the piggy bank and pulled out a small switch. Several cords peeked out from the duck's mouth.
"...You modified someone else's property without permission?"
The temperature of Fubuki's voice dropped instantly.
"It's fine, wan! Because something amazing is going to happen!"
"What do you mean 'something amazing'? Explain it concretely."
"That's something to look forward to, wan! Now then, fire!"
Korone pressed the switch.
An electronic beep.
The duck piggy bank began to tremble violently.
"Huh, what what what!?"
"Ooh...! My, my...!"
"I have a really bad feeling about this."
The next moment.
POP!!
Something shot out forcefully from the duck's mouth.
Paper shaped like yellow stars.
Paper shaped like gold stars.
Pink, light blue, silver—colorful star-shaped stickers scattered all over the terrace like fireworks.
"Uwaaaaaah!?"
One stuck to Subaru's head.
More stuck to her clothes, one after another.
"One got on Furea's face too!"
A gold star was stuck to Furea's cheek.
"...Wait just a minute, Korone. How does this work?"
Three pink stars were stuck in Fubuki's white hair. Her blue eyes pierced coldly through Korone.
"I installed a spring and compressed air device inside the duck piggy bank, wan! I made all the stars by hand, wan!"
Korone puffed out her chest with pride. Her own brown hair was also covered in silver stars.
"Fufu... this is quite a spectacle."
Noel laughed elegantly, her long silver hair plastered with star stickers. She looked just like a Christmas tree.
"What do you mean 'quite a spectacle'! Who do you think is going to clean this up!?"
"Yasunaga-san will do it, wan!"
"You apologize to Yasunaga-san on your knees later, you hear me!?"
Subaru stared blankly down at the star stickers stuck to her head and clothes.
But then.
"Subaru-chan, it's like a crown of stars."
Furea narrowed her drowsy eyes even further and smiled brightly.
She gently reached out and touched a star on Subaru's head with a little tap.
"It's so pretty. Subaru-chan is a princess of the universe."
Subaru's mouth fell open.
And then.
"...Ahaha!"
Laughter spilled out.
"What is this! Everyone's covered in stickers! Fubuki-senpai, you've even got a star on the tip of your nose!"
"What!?"
Fubuki frantically touched the tip of her nose. The gold star peeled off. Her face turned slightly red.
"Noel-senpai has a ton stuck in her bangs too! You look like an alien!"
"My, my... so I was an alien, was I?"
Noel's shoulders shook with amusement.
"Korone-senpai, one even got inside your ear!"
"Huh, where where!? I can't get it off, wan!"
Korone stuck her finger in her ear and hopped around.
"Ahahahaha!!"
Subaru's laughter echoed across the terrace.
This time, it was a laugh from the heart.
Not a smile forced while holding back tears. Not a mask to hide sadness.
Just a laugh that came because it was funny, because she was happy, because she was having fun.
Fubuki narrowed her eyes gently.
(...Thank goodness)
She murmured in her heart.
Noel nodded with satisfaction.
(She finally showed us her real smile)
Furea clapped her hands and laughed.
"Then it's my turn next, wan! Noel, bring out the astronomical model!"
"Mine!?"
"Of course, wan! You were the one who said we'd make an impromptu planetarium, wan!"
"Fufu... very well. Then, everyone. Behold my masterpiece!"
Noel placed the astronomical model she had been holding in the center of the terrace.
A styrofoam sun. Around it, Saturn and Jupiter, suspended by rubber bands, rotated in a circle. It seemed to be a mechanism where you insert a flashlight inside to project light onto the ceiling.
"Now, I shall unveil the greatest invention of the century! Switch, on!"
Noel pressed the switch on the back of the model.
The flashlight glowed dimly.
Through small holes poked in the styrofoam, numerous streaks of light leaked out, beginning to create tiny star patterns on the terrace floor.
"Oooh!"
"Wow... so pretty..."
"...It's surprisingly well-made."
"Amazing, right! With this, I win, wan... I mean, Noel wins, wan!"
That's when it happened.
Snap.
One of the rubber bands forming Saturn's rings broke.
"...Oh my?"
Snap, snap.
Two, then three, the rubber bands snapped one after another.
"Wait a minute, I'm hearing some really bad sounds."
TWANG!!
The last band snapped with a loud noise.
At the same time, Saturn's rings crumbled apart. Jupiter tilted. Mars rolled off its styrofoam base and went tumbling across the terrace floor.
"Aah!! My work of art!!"
Noel cried out.
"That's not art, that's oversized trash, wan!!"
Korone clutched her stomach and rolled with laughter.
"That's why I said it. Reproducing planetary orbits with rubber bands is impossible."
"Saturn fell out of the sky..."
Furea picked up the Mars that had rolled away and poked at it squishily.
Subaru giggled as she picked up the pieces of the broken model.
"...Noel-senpai."
"I-I'm sorry... even though it's the final match, this is..."
Noel scratched at her silver hair and hung her head dejectedly. Her usual composed demeanor had completely vanished.
"No, that's not it. I was really happy."
Subaru gently clasped the styrofoam piece she had picked up in front of her chest.
"I realized you worked so hard to make this for me. And the rubber bands breaking... somehow, that feels very like you, Noel-senpai."
Noel looked up. Her grey eyes gazed at Subaru.
"Subaru-san..."
"You thought of everything for me, didn't you? The tournament, the star contest... it was all a kind lie, wasn't it?"
Subaru's eyes grew slightly moist.
But they weren't tears of sadness.
"...Yes. That's right. It was all a lie to bring you here."
Noel quietly admitted it.
"Thank you, Noel-senpai."
Subaru smiled brightly.
This time, it was a real smile.
Just then.
"Ah!!"
Furea suddenly pointed at the sky.
Everyone looked up with a start.
A single streak of light ran across the dark sky above the terrace.
A silver line, from east to west.
It slowly drew a tail, leaving a trail of light as if someone had scattered stardust.
"...A shooting star."
Fubuki's voice trembled slightly.
"We did it!! A star, a shooting star!!"
Korone jumped for joy.
"...Beautiful."
Noel, still holding the broken model, gazed up at the sky in a daze.
Subaru.
She was staring at the star.
The shooting star faded. Its trail of light gradually thinned and dissolved into the darkness.
In that moment.
Something snapped deep within Subaru's eyes.
A little girl.
The evening sky.
"—That one is the brightest star. Subaru."
A gentle voice.
A warm hand.
Her beloved person, with her white hair tied up.
"Grandma!"
"They say if you find the brightest star three times, your wish will come true."
"Really!?"
"Yes. So, Grandma..."
A wrinkled hand stroked a small head.
"...always wishes that Subaru will stay healthy forever."
"Okay! Then, me too!"
"You too, Subaru?"
"Yeah! I wish that Grandma will stay healthy forever!"
That time.
That promise from that time.
—I'll stay healthy forever.
—So, Grandma, you too.
—Stay healthy, forever.
Tears streamed down Subaru's cheeks.
But.
They were no longer.
Tears of only sadness.
The promise she had desperately tried to protect back then.
The wish that couldn't come true.
She had carried it alone, in pain and fear, unable to tell anyone.
But.
Now, right here.
Noel was here.
Fubuki was here.
Furea was here.
Korone was here.
Everyone was by her side.
"Grandma..."
Subaru murmured softly toward the sky.
"I'm... not alone anymore."
Tears overflowed endlessly.
But her lips were smiling.
"You know, I can smile properly now. Not forcing a smile when I'm sad, but smiling when I'm truly happy."
"Because everyone is here for me."
"So, so... rest easy, Grandma."
Her voice trembled, and the end was almost a whisper, fading away.
Furea gently took Subaru's hand.
"Subaru-chan, I'm so glad for you."
Furea's cherry blossom-colored eyes were also wet.
"Your grandma was watching over you properly. The shooting star reached you, Subaru-chan."
Fubuki, arms still folded, continued to look up at the sky.
Something glistened at the corner of her blue eyes.
"...It's alright. Your grandmother was watching."
Her voice was slightly hoarse.
"She watched over you until the very end. So, from now on, we'll protect you in her place."
Korone slapped Subaru on the back with a thump.
"That's how it is, wan! So don't cry alone anymore! When you cry, cry in front of us!"
"...Korone-senpai, please go easy on me, that hurts."
Subaru laughed as she wiped her tears.
Noel gently placed the broken astronomical model on the floor and straightened her back.
"Now then, everyone!"
Everyone looked at Noel.
"With this! The Strange Things Exhibition Match is officially over!"
Noel pulled something out of her skirt pocket.
Cardboard.
Several sheets of cardboard.
"The winner is—"
Noel handed them out, one by one, to everyone.
"Not just Subaru-san! It's everyone here!"
Subaru looked at the paper she was given.
It was a certificate.
A clumsily drawn alien was depicted in crayon. Its head was triangular, it had three eyes, and six hands. The colors were purple and yellow-green. No matter how you looked at it, it was an elementary schooler's doodle.
And this was written on it:
'Congrachulashons on winning!'
'Prize: The right to name a star in the universe'
'However, the star's name must be decided by everyone together'
All in simple hiragana.
"...Noel-senpai, did you write this?"
"Fufu. Yes, I did. I hurriedly made them with cardboard I bought at Penguin-do."
"So the star naming rights were a lie after all."
Fubuki muttered as she stared intently at the certificate.
"I'm sorry, that was a complete bluff."
"I knew it!!"
Korone slapped Noel on the back repeatedly.
"Ahahaha!! What is this, the alien's face is seriously creepy!"
Subaru laughed out loud.
On cheeks where the tear trails had dried.
"I'll treasure t
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