I, Who Was Criticized as the World's Weakest S-Rank Explorer, Am Actually the World's Strongest Explorer - Episode 24

Episode 24 

(Note: Special for this chapter, dialogues from the internet and TV are in 『….』.)

――This was a little before Yuna moved into Haruto’s house. 

As the VTuber *Luna Yozakura*, Yuna smiled at her viewers while giving her final remarks for the stream. 

“Thanks for tuning in today! See you next time!” 

With that cheerful sign-off, she ended her broadcast. 

As soon as the stream ended, Yuna slipped back into her real self. Her tone was lower and less composed than the voice she used as Luna. 

“Ugh, so tiring. Time to ego-surf.” 

Grabbing her phone, she opened a forum app. 

Scrolling through the thread list, she tapped on her dedicated VTuber thread. It was where people discussed Luna Yozakura. She checked it daily. 

As she read through the responses about today’s stream, she posted replies to comments praising her. She was pretending to be just another fan rather than herself. 

Of course, even dedicated threads attract their share of haters: 

『Luna Yozakura’s voice is seriously unbearable, lol. So gross!』 

『Today’s stream was trash. Her laugh is just… ugh, can’t stand it.』 

『Why does she act so high and mighty, lol? Nobody cares!』 

(…Huh?) 

Yuna’s brow twitched. 

Why do these ignorant nobodies act like they know everything? 

As Luna, she needed to stay calm and composed. But as her real self, she couldn’t just let it slide. 

(Annoying! Time to crush them!) 

She swiftly typed on her phone. 

『Gross voice? Lol, maybe your ears are broken. Not that people like you could ever understand Luna’s appeal, lol.』 

『Acting high and mighty? The only time you losers feel powerful is when you’re trash-talking online, right? Lol.』 

Yuna owned three phones: one for work, one for personal use, and one specifically for internet fights. Each used a different network, allowing her to support her own arguments as if multiple people were defending her. 

『Oh look, a fanboy showed up, lol. How desperate.』 

『Fanboy, lol. We’re saying her voice is unbearable, genius.』 

『It’s people like you propping up the VTuber industry that are killing it, lol.』 

Gripping her phone tightly, Yuna dove back into battle. 

『Huh? Maybe it’s just that you don’t get the content, lol. And calling someone gross is so subjective, it’s not even worth discussing, lol.』 

『Every industry suffers because of people like you—whiners who only complain online.』 

『Let me guess, you’re all bark here but wouldn’t dare say a word in real life, lol.』 

The argument escalated further, Yuna’s fingers flying over the screen. 

Normally cool and composed, she was a different person in moments like this. 

『At the end of the day, you’re clueless. Stop criticizing things you don’t understand, you idiots.』 

『You contribute nothing to Luna’s streams, so why don’t you just disappear already, lol?』 

After a while, the negative comments began to dwindle. She even managed to rally some fans to her side. It further silenced the haters. 

Letting out a deep sigh, Yuna set her phone on the bed and basked in the satisfaction of victory. 

“Ah, conflict is so soothing. Feels great.” 

For her, streaming and battling on forums had become a daily routine. 

—

“I’m thinking of remarrying.“

Her father, Takashi, said one November day. 

It was that time of year when the leaves had fallen and the air turned colder. 

Yuna blinked in surprise at his words, though only for a moment. She quickly smiled. 

“Oh? You, Dad? When did you even find someone like that?” 

“…Around the time you started high school, actually. So, here’s the thing—I was wondering if we could move into their house.” 

“I don’t mind.” 

In fact, it was a stroke of luck for Yuna. 

Though she leaned more toward being an otaku, her flashy appearance had landed her in her class’ top social group. 

But there were no fellow otakus in that group. At best, they occasionally discussed popular mainstream works. Yuna’s niche interests, like her deep fandom and fujoshi tendencies, were entirely out of place and hidden from her classmates. 

She had people she could call friends. But with her VTuber work, she rarely spent time with anyone after school. Naturally, some distance had grown between her and others. 

That’s why the idea of moving didn’t bother her. Her father’s job had already made transferring schools a common occurrence. So she had no real reason to object. 

“R-Really? …So, the person I’ve been talking about is Misaki-san. Misaki-san’s son happens to be an S-Rank Explorer. Apparently, he’s really busy handling the dungeons in town and doesn’t want to leave the area. That’s why I was thinking, maybe we could move instead.”  

“An S-Rank Explorer!? W-Who is it!?”  

Yuna was utterly shocked at the mention. Although she wasn’t particularly knowledgeable about explorers, stories about them were common at school.  

Especially as the year-end approached. The annual performance announcements of S-Rank Explorers garnered considerable attention. Yuna herself had heard plenty about Kiryu, one of the renowned S-Rank Explorers.  

“Um, I think his name is Haruto Amakusa?”  

“Eh…?”  

Hearing the name, Yuna furrowed her brows. Haruto Amakusa was notoriously regarded as one of the most incompetent S-Rank Explorers.  

A quick look through forums would reveal countless criticisms about him. Yuna, too, had come across lists mocking his nicknames on summary sites and found herself laughing at them before.  

Of all people, it had to be the absolute worst. Yet, Takashi wore a cheerful smile.  

“He’s sixteen now, the same age as you, Yuna. …Isn’t it amazing? Fighting for others at such a young age.”  

Takashi’s words left Yuna feeling conflicted.  

“Dad…… that person is, um, a bit problematic, or how should I put it…”  

“Eh? Really?”  

“Y-Yeah… You know, on the internet and TV. They talk about him as being, well, a real troublemaker.”  

“Is that so…? But he’s Misaki-san’s son. So I don’t think that’s true.”  

“N-No, but… the internet and TV are filled with stories about him. Like, he might actually be, uh… dangerous or something.”  

Yuna had read plenty of articles claiming that Haruto Amakusa, along with his family, was a dangerous influence. She’d even seen pieces suggesting his indolence was a result of being spoiled too much by his parents. And she couldn’t help but agree at the time.  

“Is that right? Hmm, but I’d like to meet him myself and form my own opinion… If possible, I’d like you to come along too, Yuna. Would you mind?”  

“…No, I’ll come along.”  

“Really? Then let’s decide on a time and talk again later.”  

Takashi smiled warmly, and Yuna returned the gesture with a smile of her own.  

Still, Yuna couldn’t shake the thought that her father might be getting deceived. Determined, she decided to join the meeting and assess the person in question herself.