Chapter 182: [Development Cooperation]

Chapter 182: [Development Cooperation]

<<Iroha, it's so nice to see you!>>

<<I feel the same way!>>

I was hugging a certain woman in a convenience store parking lot.

Of course, it was just a friendly hug and not in a romantic sense.

<<Is Iroha cheating on someone?>>

A cry of anguish came from behind.

Oh, I told her to "wait in the car".

<<Hey, don't say such mean things. Besides, who would I be cheating with?>>

<<Iroha is mine!>>

<<To clarify, we're not actually dating, right?>>

<<Cheaters always say that!>>

Angu Ogu was making a dramatic appeal, crying out loudly.

Ignoring the fuss, I continued talking to the woman.

<<Nice to meet you.>>

<<Likewise. It's an honor to finally meet Iroha in person.>>

<<Oh, please. And thanks for coming all the way to pick me up.>>

<<It's no trouble at all. After all, I'm the one who asked you to.>>

Although this was our first time meeting in person.

We had been friends online for a long time.

Angu Ogu, watching our friendly interaction, had wide eyes.

<<Hey, Iroha, who is this really? How do you know each other? A VTuber...? There's no way Iroha would want to meet one.>>

<<Nice to meet you. I'm Iroha's best friend. We're... well if you want to put it in a certain way, we've made a promise for the future.>>

<<!?!?!?!?!>>

<<Iroha, explain what's going on!>>

<<Well...>>

The woman had a mischievous smile on her face.

She was clearly teasing Angu Ogu.

<<Ogu, this is an incredibly talented engineer.>>

But she seemed genuinely concerned.

I thought for a moment and gave a serious response.

<<Their job is to protect Ogu, right? Is it okay to ask them to do something like that?>>

<<Well...>>

The head of the Secret Service is not Angu Ogu but her mom.

It would be more appropriate to get permission from her.

Neglecting their actual duties and failing to protect Angu Ogu wouldn't be a joke.

Besides, it would be disrespectful to give them non-work-related tasks.

<<So, it's fine by myself. Ogu, you should be getting to her lesson now.>>

<<Ugh. But...>>

<<Come on, go already.>>

I pushed Angu Ogu into the car and urged her on.

Otherwise, she might keep whining.

The secret service personnel started the car and drove away.

As we moved further away, Angu Ogu was still shouting.

<<Iroha, if anything happens, make sure to contact me immediately, okay?! I mean it!>>

She continued waving her hand from the back seat window until she was no longer visible.

Oh, she can be quite a handful.

<<Well then, Iroha, shall we go too?>>

<<Yes, let's.>>

I also got into the woman's truly American-style car.

While starting the engine, she started a conversation.

<<To be honest, I didn't think you'd actually come.>>

<<I came. Because it was the closest thing to what I wanted to do.>>

<<Oh, it wasn't just a side trip for the VTuber stuff?>>

<<Of course, it's for VTuber. It's all connected.>>

<<Haha, I see. You're that type of person.>>

I looked out the window and recalled the day when I first met Angu Ogu, which now felt like a long time ago.

The night we stayed over, we talked, and I found what I really wanted to do. That led me to the nonprofit organization that deals with "natural language processing".