The Villainess Wants to Indulge in 'Moe' to Her Heart's Content! - Episode 2.1
“This world… is far too cruel…”
Letizia intertwined her fingers, covering her mouth while resting her elbows on the desk—in what could only be described as the Gendo Pose—and let out a deep, heavy sigh.
The sky stretched out in an endless expanse of clear blue, the breeze was warm and pleasant, and the fresh green leaves shimmered brilliantly under the sunlight. Even the faint fragrance of flowers drifting in from somewhere embodied the beauty of spring. And yet, Letizia’s heart remained weighed down.
(Are the otaku in this world even able to breathe properly…? I’m seriously worried…)
No, surely it couldn’t be—could it? The mere thought made her shake her head in denial. No, that was impossible.
The chosen ones of this academy were constantly under the scrutinizing gaze of their fellow students.
Simply seeing Rashid walking with Asim, laughing together, was enough to elicit shrieks of excitement. Clemens reading a poetry collection in the comfort of a shaded grove could move onlookers to tears. And just locking eyes with Licht was enough to send some collapsing from sheer joy.
In other words, their sheer holiness was striking the hearts of many.
So there was no way that otaku didn’t exist.
They understood fan mentality—it was unthinkable that they wouldn’t comprehend otaku mentality as well!
(If that’s the case… why is everyone acting so normal?)
No Twitter, no Instagram—no way to casually browse divine fan art from master illustrators. How were they coping?
No Pixiv—no easy access to fanfiction or doujin works from dedicated creators. How could they endure?
No events, no specialty shops for doujinshi—no way to acquire those gloriously indulgent, tastefully sinful thin books. How could they possibly be okay with that?
(They don’t even have a place to openly geek out about their favorite characters—how are they surviving!?)
At the very least, Letizia couldn’t take it. In just one week, she was already on the verge of collapse.
It made her painfully aware of how kind the Japan she had once lived in had been to otaku.
(I’ve heard that even in Japan, there was a time when finding fellow enthusiasts was difficult…)
Before the internet became widespread, people couldn’t easily chat with like-minded individuals or immerse themselves in doujin art, comics, and fanfiction the way they could now.
Back then, they had to attend doujin conventions, hunt for thin books, and connect with fellow fans through submission columns in niche magazines—building friendships through pen-pal exchanges and art trades.
Even doujin creators had fewer outlets for their creative passions, limited to producing thin books or submitting to specialized magazines. In an era when professional doujin printing wasn’t yet the norm, they had truly struggled to bring their works to life.