章 195: Nanami's Persistence

"I'm back!" Elf exclaimed, almost throwing the luggage.

Homura chuckled and looked at the others, saying, "Our circle activities have come to an end. Do you guys want to go home for a few days and spend time with your families?"

"After all, once this vacation is over, we'll start another round of intense missions. These are the only few days when everyone can have some free time."

The first one to shake her head was Mashiro, her eyes scanning everyone present. "I have nowhere to go..."

Homura patted her head and said, "Alright, Mashiro, you stay."

Nanami quickly added, "Since Mashiro is staying, I'll stay too and take care of her..."

Homura stretched out his hand, stopping Nanami from continuing, and said, "Nanami... don't use Mashiro as an excuse... it's not fair to her."

After a moment of unbearable silence, Nanami spoke bitterly, "Homura-kun, how did you know?"

"When someone is willing to go hungry just to pursue their dream of becoming a voice actor, is there no reason other than facing opposition from their family?" Homura asked.

"... As expected, nothing can escape your eyes..." Nanami shook her head. "My parents have always been against me becoming a voice actor, especially my father. He strongly opposes it..."

"So, I decided that even if no one understands me, I will do everything I can to fulfill my dream!"

"I left my home in Kansai and came here. Although my family supported me financially for my education, I also had to work to pay for voice acting school. Even when I fell ill, I never thought of giving up. I kept working hard until recently when I was incredibly fortunate to meet Homura-kun and everyone from Another Dimension. I successfully achieved a voice acting work that I'm proud of..."

"I also wondered if my dream would be understood by my family with this voice acting work. But I couldn't be sure, and I was afraid they would continue to oppose it. So... I didn't know if I should take this opportunity to go back home. I just instinctively wanted to avoid it after hearing your question... sorry..."

Except for Homura, who knew about Nanami's life, the other girls listened to Nanami's emotional journey for the first time, feeling deeply moved.

Although it may seem like Nanami and running away from home are similar, the level of perseverance involved is not something everyone can achieve.

Leaving home due to a momentary impulse is simply being willful. But to persist to this extent without any regrets, treating it as one's own goal and steadily moving forward step by step... can it still be called being willful?

The reason she didn't dare to go home was because she feared her family wouldn't understand, so...

"Personally, I really hope you can communicate with your family and make things clear. You truly need to have a talk with them. Avoidance is the last thing you should choose." Homura said earnestly.

"But! I won't force you to do anything. It's essential for you to figure it out for yourself. What I, and all of us, can do is support you. Because... you are our Nanami, our precious friend and indispensable member of Another Dimension."

Nanami's eyes were getting bloodshot, and she was so moved that tears almost welled up. She looked at everyone, and all the girls, including Homura, returned a brilliant smile. Mashiro approached her and held her hand.

Rubbing her eyes with her free hand, Nanami finally spoke up, "T-Thank you, Homura-kun... Thank you, everyone... And, I'm sorry, Mashiro... I shouldn't have said those things earlier..."

Mashiro shook her head, "U~um, It's okay, Nanami. We're friends."

Nanami's nose tingled again, and she wanted to smile, but her body's physiological response didn't allow her to.

"I... I will talk to my family... but maybe it's better to wait until summer vacation... I'll have plenty of time to convince them then."

Hearing Nanami's words, Homura could only nod, "Alright, I understand. Your home is a bit far, so you'll have to come back one day earlier."

"But you should still call your family. Have a chat and let them get to know your work as a voice actor. Maybe they'll be moved and stop opposing it?" Homura's suggestion was somewhat idealistic, but it wasn't impossible.

Nanami agreed with his idea. It was worth a try. What if it succeeded?

"What about you all?" Homura continued the previous topic, "Eriri, Utaha-senpai, Megumi, shouldn't you go home and spend time with your families?"

Utaha and Eriri exchanged a glance, then nodded simultaneously, "We should go home for a few days."

Utaha crossed her arms and smiled, "I'm the good girl of the family after all. Even though I've explained it clearly before, it's still necessary to occasionally show up and stay at home for a few days."

Eriri also crossed her arms and said helplessly, "I'm almost the same. If I don't go home soon, I bet my mom will come over..."

"Even though, she was the one who was initially the most at ease when I was staying here..." Eriri muttered under her breath, but Utaha and Homura still twitched their mouths.

"As for me... I've been calling home all the time... Come to think of it, why does my mom trust me so much? She has never mentioned asking me to come home..." Megumi shook her head, looking puzzled.

Homura thought to himself, 'Isn't it because of your astonishingly low presence before?'

"...However, if Eriri and Utaha-senpai are going home, then I'll go home too..." After all, being stared at so intensely by Eriri and Utaha duo was quite uncomfortable...

As soon as these words were spoken, it was as if the pressure had been dispelled, and Megumi suddenly felt relieved!

As for Mashiro and Nanami, why no one was staring at them... One reason was that they both had their own difficulties, and it couldn't be helped, but the other reason...

Nanami was still very innocent, although she had learned some miscellaneous terms from everyone after spending a long time with them, her personality hadn't changed, and everyone trusted her.

As for Mashiro, although they weren't at ease, with Nanami by her side, there wouldn't be any problems. Besides, they also had Elf who came to play every day.

Sagiri was the same, guarding tightly and snatching away every effort and moment they made to Homura.

"You're just talking about us, what about you?" Eriri glanced at Homura.

"Me?" Homura looked confused, "Wasn't I always at home?"

Eriri: "..."

It seemed like she asked a stupid question...

"But, seriously... Compared to Uncle Minamiya, my dad seems like he's never busy at all." Eriri said, with a face full of disbelief.

Homura smirked, "Yeah, he always helps you sell doujinshi at every Comiket though."

"Can't be helped..." Eriri shrugged nonchalantly, "I'm still underage, so I can't sell doujinshi by myself."

Homura was a little surprised. Was Eriri now completely unconcerned when it came to matters related to her doujinshi's activity? Normally, she would get angry and always wanted to avoid discussing that topic.

Thinking about it, Homura looked at Sagiri.

When will Sagiri fully accept being called 'Eromanga-sensei'?