Bottom-tier voice actress wants to become a big star on VTuber.

"Argonavis—Set Sail!!"

The heavy soundproof door opened, and the faint, suppressed clamor from the audience outside, like a tidal wave, could be heard coming from the passageway leading to the stage.

The five people filed out and walked along the slightly darkened passage toward the stage that they were about to light up.

At the same time, a short skit, pre-recorded by the five people, began playing on the big screen, using their chibi-style animated characters.

While everyone's attention was focused on the small theater, the group sneaked to the center of the stage in the dark. The moment the spotlight came on after the small theater ended, screams erupted like a tidal wave.

After striking a pose for a few seconds, the five bumped fists, and none of them spoke. Instead, they each went to their designated spots.

Shimizu Toru squinted for a moment, and after his eyes adjusted to the bright light, he could see the audience below.

Compared to the distant starry sky of the Budokan, the audience here is closer, and you can see the excited and expectant expressions on their faces.

Meanwhile, Tachibana Hinano and the others sat in the front row, holding glow sticks provided by the organizers, their eyes fixed intently on the stage.

He took a deep breath of air that seemed to carry the scent of electronic music and began singing Goldline: "Have you finally reached the hope you once saw?"

"That's right—!! This isn't the end yet! We've come this far, haven't we?"

The entire venue instantly erupted in cheers, with countless glow sticks waving in rhythm. Because of their proximity, Shimizu Toru could even clearly hear the enthusiastic screams of Tachibana Hinano and Ei Lisa.

"That's right! This isn't the end yet; the wind is still blowing strongly!"

"We will definitely continue searching for the answer; we've already come this far!"

"I haven't seen any finish line yet! Now, let's set off again!"

Throughout the three-minute-plus Goulline, Toru Shimizu made a concerted effort to interact with the audience, walking from left to right, stepping on the speakers, making heart gestures, running in circles, and so on.

He even deliberately took the opportunity of running and high-fiving the audience in the first row to linger for a few seconds with Tachibana Hinano and the others, and gave them a wink.

Good evening, Hakodate!!!

After the first song ended, Shimizu Toru's voice, clear and penetrating, resonated throughout the venue through the high-quality sound system, instantly igniting even greater cheers.

Welcome to nGDream Argonavis First Live!

When it came to the segment featuring BanG Dream!'s traditional stand-up comedy, the MC was Daisuke Hinata, who played the guitarist Yuito Goryo, who was not only the band's leader but also an extroverted social terrorist.

The character played by Shimizu Toru, Nanase Ren, is energetic when singing, but otherwise, like a certain Haneoka penguin, she is not very talkative.

"Let me give you a brief self-introduction~ I'm Goryo Yuito, the guitarist for Argonavis. I'll make this live the best and most fun ever! So please take good care of me until the very end!"

Then it was Maeda Joji's turn: "Good evening, everyone! I'm Naoki Madoka, bassist for Argonavis. Thank you all for coming to the live show tonight!"

The two characters are portrayed as one warm and the other cold, but in the scene, he is not so cold as to be expressionless; his voice is more like clear water.

Meanwhile, Shuta Morishima, in a pretentious and affected prince-like voice, said, "I am Rinki Kikyo, the keyboardist for Argonavis. Ah~ what a beautiful view~"

"Today, it seems I can bring you the best performance. I hope you all enjoy it to the end~ Next up is Shiraishi."

As the youngest member of the group, Shohei Hashimoto immediately stood up from his stool and said in a very energetic boyish voice, "Hi~ Good evening, I am Shiraishi Manri, the drummer of Argonavis."

"I'm so happy that so many people came to the live show! This live show will definitely satisfy you all, so please take good care of me today~ And lastly, it's—Ren!"

Shimizu Toru used a voice that was much lower than his natural voice, but still had a clear, deep tone, to say, "I am Nanahoshi Ren, the lead singer of Argonavis."

"It feels like a dream to be able to sing on such a wonderful stage. I'm right here with you all today, so please give me your guidance!"

After he finished speaking, he bowed, and a cheer immediately erupted from the audience, with more boys than boys in the audience.

Because Argonavis is not a female-oriented project like Ensemble Stars, but a general band, they don't deliberately create pairings or sell BL content, nor do they sell sex appeal like Korean boy bands.

—Although all five members of the band are indeed very good-looking, some fans complained after the animation aired that the 3D animated characters were not as handsome as the real people.

"Now, please listen to the next song!"

Shimizu Toru gripped the microphone, his gaze sweeping across the entire venue, meeting countless expectant eyes: "The starting song for our journey—Steady Goes!"

Volume 1: Chapter 151 The Live Performance Was a Complete Success

Steady Goes, with lyrics by Wataru Nakamura and music by Yuya Hirosawa and Hironori Aoki, is included in the upcoming first album, "Hoshi ga ha jimaru".

As Shohei Hashimoto's drumsticks struck, the guitar, bass, and keyboard immediately joined in, and the exciting intro burst forth instantly!

Then the style suddenly changed from extremely dynamic to extremely static, and Shimizu Toru held the microphone and sang the first line: "In the distant sky, dreams are beckoning."

"(Today) we also found (an unnamed star). Columbus or Marco Polo probably (also) had the same starting point."

Unlike Goulline, this song features harmonies from other singers, but in the chorus, it's still Toru Shimizu's main vocals.

"Set sail! Connect with the lights in the night sky, search for the lost song, even if trapped in the fog!"

"There must be an ancient constellation depicting the destiny of Navis (Southern Boat), which is our compass, guiding us southward!"

"Let's go! Staedy as she goes!"

"Stayy as she gose" is a nautical term meaning to continue along the current course, or to proceed as planned or to maintain the status quo.

When the song ended, the cheers almost reached the sky, but the spotlight suddenly went out.

Then, on the big screen, footage of everyone preparing backstage before the live performance began was played, showcasing their friendly interactions.

Shimizu Toru and the others took the opportunity to change their clothes, from the original black fitted style to white pants, white inner shirt and blue jacket.

When the video ended and the spotlight came back on, the group performed their third song, "Meteor Shower," for their fans.

"The winter sky, tinged with twilight, awaits the arrival of night at the edge of the constellations."

"With cold fingertips, I trace the night sky; alone, I count the countless stars—"

After "Meteor Shower" ended, Toru Shimizu sang two Fullmetal Alchemist opening themes, "Melissa" and "READY STEADY GO," before moving on to the second MC segment, where he promoted the upcoming merchandise.

—Melissa, which is actually the name of the Melissa genus. If it is transliterated as Melissa, then it is the Gym Leader of the Fenrir City in the Sinnoh region of Pokémon.

After a lively and engaging MC performance, the five stood in the center of the stage, slightly out of breath, their faces beaming with joy.

"Ha~ Everyone in Hakodate is so enthusiastic!" Shimizu Toru wiped his sweat with a towel and smiled as he spoke into the microphone, "How was it? Argonavis' music!"

"The best!!!" The audience responded with a unified shout.

"I heard you!" Hyuga Daisuke chimed in, his smile even brighter than usual on stage: "To be honest, standing here, watching everyone cheer for our music, is a hundred times more moving than I ever imagined!"

Seiji Maeda leaned closer to the microphone: "This is all thanks to you all! Thank you for coming to listen to our song!"

Shuta Morishima gently added, "We also hope that our music can reach everyone's hearts."

Shohei Hashimoto simply tapped his cymbal with his drumstick: "Ooz! Keep it up!"

Laughter and even louder cheers erupted from the audience. Shimizu looked down at the audience, her gaze sweeping across the seats before pausing briefly on Tachibana Hinano and the others.

He then chuckled unconsciously and continued, "Can everyone keep having a good time? It's unlikely, but let's go five times the volume! Can you all handle it!?"

“Ohhhh——”

After receiving an enthusiastic response from the audience, Shimizu Toru smiled broadly and said, "Thank you everyone. Now, I want to pierce through you all, please listen to this song—GO!!!"

That's right, the song is called "GO!!!", and it's a song that everyone knows, because it's one of the most popular opening themes of Naruto!

There was no other way; since their original songs weren't enough to last a whole live performance when they first debuted, they could only cover more songs, and all they had to do was pay the royalties.

"We are Fighting Dreams, striving for higher goals, regardless of our humble beginnings!"

"Fighting Dreams, believe in yourself, Oli Oli Oli oh~ Just go my way!"

After three consecutive cover songs and a video clip, the audience finally got to hear a new original song, which is also the song that Shimizu Toru personally thinks is the highest quality song in the mini debut album.

"Next, please listen to the thoughts of the five members of Argonavis, the voices of the five members—VOICE!"

"Welcome! Let's share your vision and passionately make a difference, heading towards our dream world!"

"Are you dreaming? We are the ONE. Let this unwavering voice overlap, gather, and resound!"

After the song ended, the group went backstage to change their clothes, taking off their jackets and putting on black T-shirts with "1st live" printed on the chest.

The audience, being quite knowledgeable, kept calling for an encore, and the live performance was about to come to an end.

After returning to the stage, Hyuga Daisuke and the others began to talk about the early stages of the band's formation.

There had been several live performances before today, but back then the project had just started, and there wasn't even a lead singer or a drummer; it was just the three of them.

After everyone shared their feelings about joining the band and their hopes for the future, the intro to Goulline started playing again.

"This is really the last song for today. Thank you everyone for your support today. Please continue to support us in the future!"

Have you finally reached the hope you once saw?

"That's right—!! This isn't the end yet! We've come this far, haven't we?"

A few minutes later, the performance officially ended.

The five people stood side by side on the stage and bowed deeply, their sweat dripping onto the smooth floor, while the audience erupted in prolonged applause and cheers.

"Thank you everyone! Argonavis' journey has only just begun! See you at the next live show—"

Backstage, the moment the door closed, it shut out the noise from the outside world, but it couldn't stop the excited glow on the faces of the five people.

"We did it!!" Maeda Seiji was the first to shout, excitedly hugging Hyuga Daisuke beside him.

"That was amazing! Everyone did a perfect job!" Hyuga Daisuke couldn't hide his excitement and hugged him back tightly.

Shuta Morishima let out a long sigh of relief, a satisfied smile on his face: "That's wonderful, it wasn't all for nothing!"

Although Shohei Hashimoto didn't say anything, his clenched fists and moist eyes said it all.

Shimizu leaned against the wall, calming his racing heart and breathing. Looking at his excited teammates, he couldn't help but smile.

Just then, his phone vibrated. It was a message from Kurumi Noa, followed by a string of exclamation marks and compliments from Tachibana Hinano, Usagi Mimi, and Eri Lisa.

[Wow! Absolutely amazing! We were all moved to tears! QAQ]

【Toru-kun! god! 】

[Encore! Bravo!]

From today onwards, I'm a die-hard Argonavis fan!

Upon seeing these messages, Shimizu Toru's smile deepened.

As soon as he looked up, he saw his teammates also looking at their phones with silly grins on their faces, clearly having received congratulations from their relatives and friends.

"Let's go!" Hyuga Daisuke put his arms around Shimizu Toru and Maeda Seiji's shoulders. "A celebration party! We're going to drink until we drop!"

"Oh!!" Everyone responded in unison, and laughter filled the entire backstage area.

"Wait!? I can't drink alcohol yet!!"

"I almost forgot about you, you little brat. Well then, you'd better drink your juice obediently!"

Volume 1: Chapter 152 You're Dreaming of Peach

Argonavis' first live event has successfully concluded, but it hasn't generated much buzz yet because such live performances are not allowed to be privately filmed and uploaded.

Only when the official account posts the entire live performance online, and then enthusiastic netizens review it and share it with the University of Tokyo, will it truly gain widespread recognition.

Right now, only the general fans of the Bondori project, Toru Shimizu's personal fans, and the thousand people who saw the live performance are interested in Argonavis.

After resting at the hotel that night, he went sightseeing in Hakodate with Tachibana Hinano and the others, as agreed.

When people talk about Hokkaido, the first thing that comes to mind is coldness, after all, it is the northernmost part of Japan, at a latitude similar to that of the Tohoku region.

Besides ski resorts, another major feature of Hokkaido is its ranches. As one of the few sparsely populated areas in Japan, it has large ranches and large farm owners.

This place is not only for breeding thoroughbred racehorses, but also for raising a lot of cattle and sheep. In addition, Shimizu Toru himself has no curiosity about cherry meat, which is horse meat.

So after shopping all morning and buying a lot of things, the group found a hot pot restaurant in Hakodate to have lunch.

The owner was clearly a Chinese person who had lived in Hokkaido for many years. He spoke fluent Japanese, and the menu was in both Chinese and Japanese.

Unlike in Ikebukuro, where locals go in to order food and the waiters only say, "Sorry, I don't speak Japanese,"...

"First, bring four plates of mutton, one plate of mutton tail fat, and two plates of beef."

Upon hearing Shimizu Toru's standard Mandarin, the boss, who looked to be over fifty, paused for a moment before replying in his thick Northeastern accent, "Hey, young man, are you from the same hometown? What brings you to Hokkaido for tourism during this time of year?"

"We're here to watch the horse races, and after we eat, we still have to go to the Hakodate Racecourse."

Seeing that the other party had misunderstood, Shimizu Toru didn't offer any further explanation, as it would be more troublesome to do so.

"What's so interesting about horse racing? Every day a bunch of people go to watch a dozen or so horses run laps. If you ask me, horses are either used to carry people or to haul goods. What's the use of them if they can only run a kilometer or two?"

That's true. Due to their genetic specialization, Thoroughbreds are simply not fit for the battlefield. Of course, there's no use for cavalry these days either.