No response.
This is taking too long!
Are you sure we can do this?!
Yes, we can!
Even though we've chosen this life for ourselves,
living connected to and watched by every single person on Earth...
I'm borrowing this!
A hallucination?
Nope. Real.
Oh. You're warm.
Mom.
No! Until I say it's okay,
your phone stays confiscated and you stay right here.
That is an order from the streamer who's currently number one in Japan!
KARAMAZOF TOTAL FOLLOWER COUNT
Then I have one request.
New pigtails and the cutest outfit you can find.
Oh, and brew me some delicious tea.
Not bad.
Thank you. It seems we are similar in many ways.
When I did this, I'd taken a ton of psych meds and I was totally out of it.
And whenever I wanted to feel alive, I'd check for a pulse in my wrist.
What medications were you prescribed?
I was getting beep and boop prescribed,
and I was importing bee and baa on my own.
Oh, my.
I was on boop too, but then swooo happened, so I ended up switching to bee.
But paa will absolutely mess up your liver,
Good grief.
so alpha goes omega and then epsilon does its thing.
God, I know, right?
We're basically soulmates.
Don't bond instantly over your weird-ass meds talk!
Then why don't you try bonding with her, too?
Here.
You like these, right?
You knew? That's a childhood memory of mine.
I've watched every one of your streams.
Heaven.
Not that you're interested in me.
Thank you for being my fan.
I'm number one in Japan now, though!
We are.
Aren't you going to take off the wig?
Not here.
It's proof that I'm me and not me.
I see.
So what are you going to do about those scars and the pills?
Right now,
when the three of us are together, I feel a little better, even without overdosing.
Even in this hideous world.
And I do have one friend.
You do?
In the end, self-harm is just a way to drown out emptiness and anxiety.
It's easy to get angry and ban everything, but first, someone has to listen.
Then let's listen to them.
That still doesn't solve the root problem.
For you, was the substitute the comfort of numbers?
Once the internet erased my place to belong, I lost all my worth.
And now I'll want another way to run away from real life again.
Well, you can find out the truth for yourself eventually.
When were you the most fucked up?
A little while after I quit school.
I was surrendering to this feeling
that the line between reality and dreams was disappearing.
I kept taking more and more pills, and one night I wandered off in a daze.
Then some man asked me, "How much?"
I ignored him, but he kept pulling more bills out of his wallet.
It wasn't that I wanted the money.
But...
when I thought, "My body is worth this much?" I blacked out.
When I came to, I was in a hotel.
But before anything happened, Nechika came to save me.
She was pounding on the door.
And even after she got me out, I spent the whole night crying on her shoulder.
Why would you tell me all that?
If I exposed this, you'd get flamed instantly and your reputation would tank.
Because this is reality.
I'm telling you so we can face each other and build trust.
We're not dolls on the other side of a screen. We have bodies.
That's why we can talk to each other.
We're among the few people who've sacrificed our youth
for public approval, aren't we?
I trust you.
Then since you trust me, can I have some of your sleeping pills?
No.
Sheesh.
Well, with how much he was drinking, he could've dropped dead at any time.
Got a second?
So that's the form you take with me?
I figured this version would be better for you.
Since you're in mourning and all.
When you make your comeback, you should collab with us.
We could do a cross-dressing event together or something.
Everyone would love it.
You're the only one who's sure I'm coming back.
Well, yeah. You are, aren't you?
I feel like I lost less to Karamazov, and more to you personally.
You were the only one
who was serious about becoming number one in Japan from the very beginning.
It's only by the tiniest margin, but you're the one I like the most.
It was a gamble.
Guess I got my old man's gambling addiction after all.
I won, so whatever.
But I dragged everyone else into my stupid dream.
And yet it looked to me like everyone was enjoying
how comfortable that dream was.
I'm paying your way until all of you get jobs, got that?!
Your big sister is Japan's number one streamer now!
Stop worrying about us!
I got a sports recommendation, so my tuition's covered!
Hell, I'll pay you back double for living expenses.
We got your face, Sis. We'll figure something out!
You guys...
Just don't become hosts, okay?
H-Hey! We're going for ramen!
Perfect timing!
I-It's not like I read the room or anything!
Not bad. For Purple, at least.
Wha...
Let's go, Princess.
With this group, we're going to cause a scene.
Don't worry. I've got a regular place.
Time to roll out!
You have a driver's license?
I got it back when I was starting out, for stream content.
I think that's enough for tonight.
Besides, it comes in handy.
Can your feet reach the pedals?
Of course they can, dumbass!
Just like the forecast said, the road surface is cold.
Grip's weak. The tires haven't come up to temp yet.
But this is better.
With the grip this loose, I can feel every twitch of the car through my hands.
Don't let the tach drop.
If I punch out from seven thousand all at once, I'm dead.
Fifty-five hundred! There!
Don't lose this torque!
Don't let it get away!
Put all of this power into the road!
That smell of burning tires...
Damn. What a night.
Here you go!
Looking gorgeous as ever tonight! And you two new ladies too!
You got that right. Here you go!
My dad used to bring me here sometimes, on days he won at the horse races.
A real ramen shop.
Don't act like a connoisseur.
Here you go.
Thank you.
Wow, miss, your nails are beautiful!
Huh? Oh, thank you.
I'm training to become a nail artist.
Then I guess we're both apprentices!
Yes!
Nice to meet you! And you too, miss!
Wait, you don't know KAngel?
KAngel? Sorry, I guess I need to study up!
Yeah, I guess that's how it is, huh?
THANK YOU
Um, could I get another serving of noodles, please?
Sure thing!
Here you go!
Than...
I'll dig in.
Where am I?!
D-Don't tell me...
I-I turned into a princess?!
Princess! Princess!
Th-Those voices...
My little peasants!
Princess! We can't grow any rice! Help us!
If you can't grow rice, then just eat cake, duh!
We can't grow wheat either!
There's a drought!
Why the hell are you telling me that like I can do anything about it?!
Okay, fine! Leave the rain to me!
I shall now perform a sacred rainmaking ritual!
First, prepare a whole bunch of mandrakes!
Then, with this iron maiden...
we turn them into a green smoothie!
Healthy and beautiful!
Then I drink this and get totally blasted!
Ame... ame...
Haa!
My little peasants! Get blasted!
Huh? What are you doing?
If I stay here, I'll get weak.
I have to go back.
But you were finally starting to feel better!
If you go back online, it'll mess you up all over again!
I'll be fine now.
After finally getting some real sleep here, I figured it out.
It's because I ego-search and spiral into fantasies of persecution,
and go out of my way to look at every single opinion,
that I end up letting more malice cut me than I ever had to.
The cruel truth of what's happening on the internet right now...
The truth is,
everyone has already forgotten about all the gossip and the Internet Angel's defeat,
and they've just jumped on to the next topic, haven't they?
Even the fact that one human being was pushed to the brink of death
doesn't last three days for the starving little ghouls desperate for some stimulation.
Sure, some of the haters are probably still desperately trying to tear me down.
And those fans who were crazy about me are waiting for my comeback
while chasing some other girl on the side.
In this modern world flooded with idols, that's all one person's value amounts to.
That makes this the perfect time.
They're just starting to forget,
but fans and haters alike are still fired up on rumors and speculation.
As long as I prepare the ultimate comeback story,
an angel will descend once more into the sea of electrons.
Like hell I'm dying in a place like this.
KAngel, you're actually kind, aren't you?
Huh?
Oh. Well, because, in the end, you do want to see all your fans again,
and you want to make them happy.
Reassuring people is a good thing, so...
Yeah. I get it now.
No wonder the ramen shop guy fell for you.
F-Fell?
You really are completely, totally normal.
You will never understand...
the grief and thirst of a pitiful clown who is seen by no one, needed by no one,
and has to turn even her desperate suffering into a show just to draw an audience.
An empty, arrogant vessel, with no reason to exist unless an audience is there to fill it.
I can't be satisfied with ordinary people comforting each other
with nothing but sparkly, pretty little platitudes.
Friendship, family, love.
None of it can get me as fucked up as an overdose of approval.
I can't do "normal." I can't even understand it.
So I'm not going to be swayed by your normal way of thinking.
Actually, what you said just made me certain.
You can be normal, so you should go on living a normal life.
I'm a selfish angel.
I can't stand the thought of dying while soaking in lukewarm comfort.
But you know,
Kache, that's exactly why your arms felt the warmest.
So I have to go.
Because you're normal, you can be kind to other people.
You can truly care about them.
So stay kind forever.
Because that's something no one here but you can do.
Thank you for saving me back there.
Bless!
So she left after all.
She'd been acting strange ever since the ramen shop.
She told me to stay kind forever.
Like the last episode of Ultraman, huh?
All that person can do is try to save everything.
Then for the festival celebrating her resurrection,
the least I can do is send her the most spectacular dress imaginable.
A blessing.
The more I come to love humanity as a whole,
the thinner my love grows for individual people, each and every actual person.
Everyone believes their words could never be the fatal blow,
so they fling verbal knives without a second thought.
Even when there's just an ordinary boy or girl behind the idol,
those tiny knives multiply into countless blades and cut them to pieces.
And sometimes, unable to bear the pain,
they may find themselves crawling miserably across the ground.
But some people shine with a real brilliance that can't be crushed by any of that.
They may crawl like caterpillars, struggle, and be mocked,
but beautiful butterflies still spread their jewel-bright wings and soar.
No matter what malice this world rains down on me, diamond cannot be scratched.
I will become a massive phenomenon that sweeps up the entire age.
"You must make good out of evil, because there is nothing but evil in this world."
Hi, cuties!
Internet Angel KAngel here!
Kept you waiting, huh?
Fans, haters, and all you rubbernecking randos,
every last one of you, gather for KAngel's comeback stream
right the hell now!
Bless!
Beautiful.
This may be your greatest masterpiece yet.
For now, anyway!
The internet's the fuckin' best!
I can feel the swell of ecstasy,
Deliver me to sweet dreams, dear Myslee
I feel you at my fingertips,
Swimming through the cyberspace, my internet boy
The sorrow twirls and descends as the internet game plays in the dark
I smile as I rest my head on you,
Don't ever forget your internet girl, promise?
Through the blue light of the world's monitors
It is my mission to heal the loneliness of all nerds
For I am the Internet Angel
Bless!
With the returning angel's new song, her follower count is skyrocketing!
She hasn't just conquered Japan,
she's become the number-one streamer in the world!
Thank you, everyone!
Now let's all say it together.
BLESS
Ready?
Bless!
Some time after the day KAngel became the number-one streamer in the world,
she simply vanished from the internet.
She really did quit the internet.
In its place, she built this church.
It's open twenty-four hours a day, so no one has to be lonely at night.
Here, hymns that belong to no religion play without end,
easing the burdens of those who visit, if just a little.
Next time, I'll tell you about what came after the legendary fairy tale created by an angel.
A story about ordinary people and geniuses after they quit the internet.
In other words, it's an unnecessary epilogue.
But listen anyway.
To the end of a common little story, told by an ordinary person,
about ordinary people living ordinary lives the best they could.
NEXT EPISODE PREVIEW
Through the pale blue glow of their monitors,
she traveled from lonely otaku to lonely otaku, healing them one by one.
Yes. She was, without a doubt, the angel of the internet.
The final episode, "EZ DO DANCE."
EPISODE 13