After finishing a full day of classes, eight-year-old Ruby Kitagawa cheerfully made her way to the activity room. Elementary schools in Japan let out early—by 3 p.m.
For children whose homes were far away and whose parents hadn't gotten off work yet, teachers would take them to the activity room, where they could pass the time with hobbies like crafts or board games.
But most kids were sent to cram schools instead. As one of East Asia's "big three" in academic pressure, Japan might have short school hours, but if parents—or the students themselves—had college aspirations, after-school tutoring was practically mandatory.
Naturally, Ryo Kitagawa didn't enroll his little sister in any cram schools. To put it bluntly, given his current financial situation, Ruby could spend her whole life doing absolutely nothing at home, and it wouldn't be a problem.
Still, Ruby didn't head straight home after school. Most days, she stayed behind for extracurricular activities—sometimes practicing dance moves with her instructor, other times joining her friend Abiko Samejima for art lessons. Though compared to Abiko's skill level, Ruby's drawings were basically scribbles.
But Ruby didn't care at all. She'd already learned the perks of being a kid. No matter how disastrous her artwork was, Ryo would pat her head and praise it: "This is great! So full of childlike charm!"
The thought made her giggle mid-motion as she set down her backpack, earning a curious glance from Abiko beside her.
"You suddenly look so happy. Did you finally figure out what to give your brother for his birthday?"
Ryo Kitagawa's sixteenth birthday was coming up. Ruby hadn't even needed to mention it—at this point, anyone with an internet-connected phone would've seen the flood of fan-organized tributes.
From adopting stars and endangered wildlife to skywriting over Hollywood, the celebrations were so over-the-top that even bystanders were stunned.
What these fans didn't realize, though, was that their grand gestures had inadvertently piled pressure onto little Ruby.
At first, even Ruby was baffled. She hadn't expected Ryo's birthday to trend globally this year. In the past, fan events were never this excessive—sure, there were celebrations, but nothing on this scale.
After a night of lurking online with a burner account, though, she finally understood.
As Mr. Izaki would put it: "The fanbase has diversified and expanded into an ecosystem."
But Ruby's blunt summary was: "They don't care about his acting. They're just thirsting over him."
Having spent over a decade—two lifetimes, in her case—navigating online fandoms, Ruby knew exactly how stans operated.
Fan wars on the internet were, at their core, about "borrowed glory." People loved attaching themselves to the best in any field, then using their idol's achievements to dominate online arguments.
Technically, Ryo wasn't an idol—but for an expanding fandom, he was the perfect obsession.
First, his looks. Though he was an actor, Ryo's features had only sharpened as he grew from a child into a teen, outshining even debuted idols. For visual fans, this was non-negotiable.
Then, his popularity. Online engagement was everything. Big fandoms meant more fun—daily fanart, endless discussions, and higher visibility for anyone tagging his name.
And Ryo? He was already among the most popular actors, with hype that never died down.
Finally, the "borrowed glory."
Some fans didn't even care about Ryo or his acting. They just loved the superiority of wielding his name to crush others online. The more acclaim he earned, the more ammunition they had.
Combine all three, and it was no surprise Ryo's popularity had skyrocketed this past year.
But Ruby had to admit—these fans' dedication and spending power put her past-life "aunties" to shame.
Which was exactly why she was stuck.
The sheer scale of the fan campaigns had left her stumped on what to give him.
"...Nope," Ruby pouted in response to her friend's question.
"How about folding a thousand paper cranes?" Abiko suggested.
"Since you can't afford a star."
"...What's the point of buying stars? It's not like Brother can even tell which ones are his in the sky."
"He only sees me every night anyway."
"If you think like that, why stress over the gift? Just say 'Happy Birthday' like always and give him some handmade thing."
Abiko shrugged, not getting Ruby's dilemma.
"Because Big Sis Ai never gave big gifts before either," Ruby whispered, leaning in.
"But I can tell—she's planning something huge this year."
"Brother's birthday hype started ages ago, but Ai specifically booked Tokyo Dome for that day. From a business standpoint, it makes zero sense."
Like when a celebrity's big announcement gets drowned out by random news—public attention is finite.
"So?" Abiko wasn't following.
"It's definitely a scheme," Ruby declared.
"So?" Abiko repeated flatly.
"She might be giving herself as the gift. Like in those manga."
"That's more of a doujin plot."
"Probably."
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