Even a rain-bringer is a sunshine-bringer if they are rolling on the ground laughing
To all the ROF-MAO fans out there, are you still alive?
Have you made it safely into June?
I am currently crawling and clinging onto the rainy season.
So, this time, I'm just here to express my feelings. Yo-yo-yo...
Kenmochi's sudden graduation.
Honestly, I wasn't surprised at all. I was surprised at how unsurprised I was.
I'm sure everyone who loves Kenmochi felt the same way.
The reason I found out about ROF-MAO was because
Kurono released a video watching a ROF-MAO drinking party.
I think it was right around the time I started watching various Nijisanji content.
At that time, I felt like checking out the original source. Just on a whim.
It was more like, 'I'll just watch this thing called Rofumao Juku as background music while I work,' or something like that.
My impression after actually watching it was,
“The song used for a split second in the opening is amazing!!!”
That's not a comment on the actual content, is it?
Yes, ROF-MAO's music is genuinely good.
This 'song used in the opening' is called Hands Up, and if I were asked to list my top 5 favorite ROF-MAO songs, it would definitely be one of them.
That's why I found it strangely convincing that Kenmochi was particularly concerned about music as a reason for his graduation.
I get it, Kenmochi. Rofumao has the power to fly even further and higher, even through music.
I also really understand his thought that his desire to live as a virtual entity as a hobby might be putting a brake on the group.
(Of course, I don't think that, and I'm sure no one else does either)
Immediately after Kenmochi's shocking announcement, there was a final stream with the four of them.
I didn't watch it live.
I'd like to say it was because I needed mental preparation, but I actually didn't know it started at 9 PM and thought it was at 10 PM, so I missed the first hour. What an idiot.
Then I watched the archive when I had time to watch it slowly.
I thought I wouldn't cry.
I own the Blu-rays for both the Osaka-Jo Hall and K-Arena solo concerts, I bought a lot of merchandise, and I even went to the pop-up store.
I think the main reason I got so deeply into VTubers was because of Rofumao.
But I thought I wouldn't cry.
Perhaps it was because I had heard Kenmochi's reasons for graduating on his stream and it made sense to me.
Besides, I knew Kenmochi wasn't actually leaving Nijisanji.
And then, when I actually watched it, I cried like crazy.
I watched the archive while crying and laughing.
Of course, it's lonely that Kenmochi is graduating.
I also had the thought that I wouldn't be able to see the four-member Rofumao anymore.
But more than that, my heart tightened at the thoughts each of them expressed when they spoke one-on-one with Kenmochi.
I have basically supported all of ROF-MAO as a group.
But, I really do love Kaida's kindness.
He often plays a role in the group and acts silly, but
I can feel from every little thing that he is someone who watches over those around him and thinks deeply about others.
Hearing Kaida tell Kenmochi that if he ever wants to come back, he'll let him back in if he kneels down,
the kindness of Kaida, who speaks that way precisely because Kenmochi doesn't flatter others and doesn't mince his words,
the kindness of Kenmochi, who can make the kind Kaida say things like that,
and the trust between the four of them and the staff that allows for that kind of dynamic.
Suddenly, I felt overwhelmed by all of it and started crying.
The true nature and relationships of them that we cannot see from the other side of the internet,
we can only imagine through the thick colored glasses of being an otaku.
Maybe it's not that beautiful at all.
But as long as we are enjoying it from the outside as entertainment,
no matter what kind of beauty filter we use to peek into the virtual world (with the premise that it doesn't bother the people involved), we are free to do so.
The President's straightforward and passionate feelings,
Fuwa-cchi's words that are business as usual but embrace everything,
and Kaida's feelings overflowing with kindness,
all of it, I felt, was directed honestly at Kenmochi,
and also directed at all of us who love Rofumao.
The three of them spoke for the feelings we have toward Kenmochi.
As was said in the stream, four and a half years is an incredible amount of time.
It's the passage of time where even university students graduate and become working adults, unless they are in medical school or have been held back.
Seeing comments flowing like a torrent, like 'a high schooler has become a university student,' and things like that, made me unable to stop crying again.
The virtual world is free.
Staying a high schooler without aging is a piece of cake.
Even so, thank you for running alongside our time for these four and a half years, Rofumao.
Thank you, President, for not hiding your feelings—both the desire to do anything you can for Kenmochi and the group, and the desire for him not to leave.
Thank you, Fuwa-cchi, for saying 'It's okay! It'll be okay!' without breaking your usual rhythm, for making us laugh so much, and for giving us words that faced the reality of graduation.
Thank you, Kaida, for always being the unsung hero, for drawing the short straw, for being full of consideration for everyone even in the final stream, for saying straight out that you're lonely, for saying you want Kenmochi to do fun things, and for giving us so much kindness.
And thank you, Kenmochi, for making us laugh so much,
for getting us hooked on Nijisanji,
for sticking to what you want to do without lying to yourself,
for looking forward to the future of Rofumao from the same side as us,
and for being in Rofumao for four and a half years!
I'm a newcomer, but I laughed and had fun every time I watched the Thursday 10 PM videos.
I watched all the archives in no time,
I was depressed when I didn't get concert tickets, but I enjoyed them in the dark with the Blu-rays,
I bought a lot of merchandise,
I listen to the songs every day, I really, really love you all!
May the future of Kenmochi and the future of ROF-MAO be even brighter!