Akubi Demonspade: The Queen and Her Overworked Producer
One karaoke stream changed everything.
Kenta, a rookie manager at the downtown streaming studio Million Production, is told by the CEO to become the exclusive handler for a streamer named Akubi. Standing at 140 centimeters with a self-proclaimed age of 2000 years, dressed as the Queen of Spades, she speaks in a husky, hyper voice—and when she sings, the world goes silent.
"[excited] So you're my new manager? You're tiny and cute!"
Her very first words leave Kenta speechless. But her streams a
Akubi Demonspade: The Queen and Her Overworked Producer - A Reunion by the Frozen Riverside, and a Counterattack from Rock Bottom with the Most Formidable Former Best Friend
That's wrong, he thought.
He understood it in his head. And yet — why did his chest ache like this?
Satou Kenta stood on the riverside promenade along the Orpheus River. Early morning, before the sun had fully risen. The cold mist rising off the water blurred the outlines of the old buildings in the Hummingbird district.
Kenta had replayed last night over and over in his mind.
Akubi Demonspade. 140 centimeters tall, self-proclaimed 2000 years old, a songstress dressed in the costume of the Queen of Spades. A mere three-second clip of her had gone viral in a firestorm on social media. "Humans are all liars" — stripped of its context, it had been framed as a hateful remark. Sponsors cut their contracts, and anti-fans swarmed the entrance of Million Production.
And Kenta had arranged to meet his former best friend, Ryou Kurosaki, by the river.
(Ryou has the full archive.)
If he could just get his hands on it, he could prove that Akubi's words had been maliciously edited. Believing that, Kenta had spent a sleepless night.
A figure appeared ahead on the promenade.
Tall. Black coat. Black hair slicked back. Cold gray eyes. A small silver piercing on his left ear glinted in the mist.
Ryou Kurosaki. Twenty-seven years old. A sharp manager at Nocturne Entertainment. Once his best friend.
"You're early, Kenta."
Ryou's voice was quiet and cold, like the flow of the river.
"Ryou... you really do have the original archive."
Kenta's voice was trembling more than he'd expected.
Ryou pulled a tablet from the inner pocket of his coat. He turned the screen toward Kenta.
"Look. This is the full version of that stream from three years ago."
On the tablet screen, an archive of Akubi's stream was displayed. Her singing stream from three years ago. Ryou tapped the screen, and the video began to play.
"—Thank you for watching my stream today. But there's something I want to talk about, just for a moment."
Akubi's voice. Her usual husky voice. But somehow, it sounded sunken.
"You know, I always believed. That the people who watch my streams all love me. But... I guess I was wrong."
The Akubi in the video was looking down.
"A staff member I trusted was selling my personal information behind my back. You know what? Humans are all liars."
Ryou stopped the video.
"This is the part they used in the clip."
Kenta stared at the screen.
(That's right. This is the truth.)
Akubi hadn't been denying all of humanity. It was a remark born from a wounded heart, right after being betrayed by a staff member she trusted. The clipped video had completely erased the context before and after, extracting only that final line.
"You get it now. That clip was a deliberate edit. A malicious one."
Ryou held out the tablet to Kenta.
"Take it. It's the evidence you wanted."
Kenta took the tablet. His hands were shaking.
(With this, I can clear Akubi-san's name.)
That was the moment he thought it.
"But you know, Kenta."
Ryou's voice dropped a notch lower.
"Do you really think this will convince the public?"
Kenta raised his head.
"You know the clip was a malicious edit. I know it too. But the public is already moving on that three-second impression. Even if you release the full version, who's going to watch it? The accounts that spread it won't issue corrections. The media won't run a big story now saying 'it was misinformation.' No matter how right you are, the public isn't listening anymore."
Kenta's fingertips grew cold.
"You couldn't protect her. Just like three years ago."
Those words pierced through Kenta's chest.
Three years ago. Kenta had been in charge of sound for a streamer in his university's audio club. A streamer who couldn't pull numbers. The agency tried to cut her loose. Kenta objected. But he couldn't change anything. She quit streaming. Kenta was demoted.
"Back then too, you couldn't do anything. You just waved around what was right, and you couldn't change the outcome. It's the same this time. Your righteousness doesn't amount to any real power."
Ryou's gray eyes weren't smiling.
Kenta clenched his fist.
(No. This time, I'll protect her.)
He thought that. But no words came out. Looking into Ryou's cold, ruthless eyes, the words stuck in the back of his throat and wouldn't come.
"You can't do it. Give up."
Ryou started to turn away.
That was when it happened.
"Kenta-kun!"
From the far end of the promenade, a girl with long, purple-tinged straight hair came running. Her side braid swayed as she ran, her narrow blue-violet eyes brimming with tears.
Sera Nox. Nineteen years old. A popular streamer affiliated with Million Production. Akubi's contemporary.
"Sera-san...!?"
Sera ran up to Kenta and collapsed to her knees on the spot. She was out of breath. Her white blouse was disheveled, and her braid was coming undone.
"I... I was the one who spread it."
Kenta froze.
"I found the clip in the trending tab and shared it without thinking. I have 800,000 followers, so... it spread in an instant. I'm sorry... I'm so sorry, Kenta-kun..."
Sera's tears fell onto the asphalt of the promenade, leaving dark stains.
"But that's not it. Once I realized that clip was a malicious edit, I've been regretting it ever since. I've been thinking the whole time about how to make it right."
Sera raised her face. With her tear-streaked face, she looked straight at Kenta.
"I want to surpass Akubi-chan. As a fellow streamer, as a rival, I want to surpass her someday, absolutely. But... just as much as that, I want to protect Akubi-chan's real voice. Her singing is genuine. Because of my sharing, her song might disappear — and that's what I hate most of all."
Something stirred deep in Kenta's chest.
(Sera-san didn't do it on purpose.)
Sera's confession wasn't calculated or an act. She was just desperate. Her true feelings were spilling out along with her tears.
"So please, let me help. Analyzing the full archive, spreading it — if there's anything I can do, I'll do anything. Please, Kenta-kun. Let me make amends too."
Kenta placed his hand on Sera's shoulder.
"...Thank you, Sera-san. I couldn't do anything alone either. Let's protect Akubi-san together."
Tears spilled from Sera's eyes again. But this time, she was smiling, just a little.
Ryou watched the scene with cold eyes.
"What a touching reunion. But nothing has changed."
Ryou tried to take the tablet back from Kenta. Kenta refused.
"You two really think you can overturn public opinion?"
"We won't know unless we try."
Kenta's voice was stronger than before.
Ryou narrowed his eyes just slightly.
"...Don't talk like you used to."
He muttered that quietly.
Ryou turned his back and disappeared into the mist.
***
Million Production headquarters. A three-story building in the Hummingbird district.
Kenta and Sera were in the president's office on the third floor.
The president, Goudo Mitsuru, was fifty-two. A man of stout build, in his sweats again today. A former streamer who now ran this small agency. He listened to Kenta's report in silence, arms crossed.
"I see. So Ryou handed over the full version."
"Yes. But Ryou said the public won't listen anymore. That even if we release the full version, it won't spread."
"Figures."
Goudo let out a deep sigh.
"Satou, what do you want to do?"
"I want to deliver Akubi-san's song to everyone once more."
Kenta's voice held no hesitation.
"To do that, please enter Akubi-san into the qualifying slot for the Million Voice Fest."
Goudo's eyes widened slightly.
"The fest? You're serious?"
"I'm serious."
The Million Voice Fest. A once-a-year festival for streamers, held in May. The only opportunity for beings who were normally virtual to stand on an actual stage. This year's qualifiers were already close to the deadline.
"Akubi's voice — if you hear it live, anyone would understand. If we let them hear that husky voice effect on a real stage, the lie of the clip will be blown away."
Kenta was recalling the knowledge he'd built up in his university audio club. Akubi's voice had a special waveform, with overtones layering onto the low range. Through a microphone, it gave listeners a physical shudder. When she sang for real, the concurrent viewer count tripled. If he could draw out that voice to its fullest with live stage acoustics—
"But to enter the qualifiers, you need the agency's recommendation and recent streaming results. Akubi is in the middle of a firestorm right now, and she's stopped streaming. Whether the paperwork will go through..."
"Leave that to me."
Sera stepped forward.
"I'll use my social media accounts and my connections with fest officials to lay the groundwork. I may not look it, but I'm good at that sort of thing."
Sera's voice was still a little shaky. But her eyes were filled with determination.
"Because of me, Akubi-chan got hurt. So I'm going to put her back on that stage."
Goudo looked back and forth between the two of them.
"...All right. Tanabe, prepare the entry paperwork."
Tanabe Yuki, who handled reception and accounting, nodded without expression.
"Understood. I'll have it ready immediately."
Tanabe was a taciturn woman in her forties. But her work was precise, and she was the unsung pillar of this agency.
"However, Satou. Appearing at the fest means you need Akubi's consent. Can you convince her?"
Kenta was at a loss for words for a moment.
Since the firestorm, Akubi had shut herself in Studio 2. She wasn't streaming. Would she be willing to stand in front of people again—
"I'll convince her. Without fail."
Kenta said that.
That was when it happened.
Kenta's smartphone buzzed.
He looked at the screen.
A message from an unknown number.
"If you put her in the fest, I'll release an even crueler clip. This time, your past goes with it."
Kenta's finger stopped.
(Your past goes with it.)
The demotion incident three years ago. The day he tried to protect a streamer who couldn't pull numbers, and ultimately couldn't protect her. Ryou intended to expose that too.
"Kenta-kun...?"
Sera peered anxiously into Kenta's face.
"I'm fine. It's just a message from Ryou."
Kenta put his smartphone in his pocket.
(My past goes public?)
Even so, he couldn't back down.
***
Studio 2. The second floor of MilPro headquarters.
Kenta stood in front of the room, surrounded by soundproof walls.
Akubi's exclusive streaming room. A low custom desk built to match her height. Spare microphones lined up against the wall. And on the wall, graffiti that read "The 2000th Year's Soliloquy."
Kenta took a deep breath and knocked on the door.
"Akubi-san. It's me. There's something I want to talk about."
No answer.
"Akubi-san, please. Open up."
After a while, the door slowly opened.
Akubi Demonspade. A red and black dress, a spade emblem at her chest. Silver hair disheveled and falling over her face. Her crimson eyes wavered slightly when they landed on Kenta.
"...You still haven't been taken off my case."
Akubi's voice was hoarse.
"I won't be taken off. I'm your manager."
Kenta stepped into the room.
On the floor, the wreckage of broken microphones was scattered about. Akubi had destroyed them after the firestorm, unable to contain her emotions.
"Akubi-san, please listen."
Kenta told her everything.
That he'd met Ryou. That he'd obtained the full archive. That Ryou had told him the public wouldn't listen anymore. That Sera had apologized for spreading it and offered to help. And the plan to enter the qualifiers for the Million Voice Fest.
"Ryou said that if we put you in the fest, he'll release an even crueler clip. This time, he says he'll expose my past along with it."
Akubi listened in silence.
"Even so, I want to deliver your song to everyone. Your voice is real. If they hear it live, anyone will understand. That the clip is a lie."
Kenta's voice was trembling.
Akubi slowly walked toward the wall.
On the wall was the graffiti she had written.
"The 2000th Year's Soliloquy."
Beneath it, something small had been adde
Novelia is an AI-powered platform to read original light novels and fan fiction, create your own in just a few taps, and chat with the characters. New, illustrated episodes arrive daily — free to start.