Seiyuu Radio no Ura Omote Vol 14-15 - Ending? Or maybe not an ending?!

I just finished reading volumes 14 and 15, and I went into them expecting the conclusion of this light novel series. The author delivered by revisiting the moments that made this series great. The premise is that there's a writer preparing an article about seiyuu and want to use their story as focus because of how many events happened in it. 

It starts from the very beginning with the first encounter between Chika and Yumiko and continues with the "allegations" against Chika, Yumiko coming to her defense, the walk from school to home to prove to their mothers that it was safe, and so on. Every character from the series reappeared and had a scene or two to shine, even though the focus remained on the main couple.

A group picture showing pretty much every character that Chika and Yumiko interacted with in these many volumes.

Two years have passed in the story since the beginning, and the girls have grown so much; Chika now lives alone, and they have both become much more mature and mellow compared to the impulsive high schoolers from the start of the series. Of course, they have never forgotten their rivalry, which is the focus of the final volume.

Yumiko wants to challenge the "protagonist" role to break away from the "antagonist" niche she found herself in, but she is unsure if that risks her losing everything. On the other hand, Chika feels that Yumiko is too good at playing the antagonist and wants to improve in that area as well to reach the same heights.

They sure look a lot different now compared to the first episode, but the uniform still fits them.

Look at Chika, you would've never seen her staying around that smiling energy without being annoyed before.

This competition fuels their ambitions and hones their skills, causing them to improve further and have a final "match" together where they try to act in both roles. Both realize how much the other has improved and strive to surpass them while still pursuing their own individual strengths.

I started reading this series in 2021 and honestly didn't expect much from it; I was mainly lured by the illustrations, but the characters immediately grabbed my attention. Chika is still my favorite, but I grew to like Yumiko more as the story went on, especially during her internal conflicts regarding her relationship with Chika.

She's my spirit animal, I don't really like any type of alcohol, just doesn't work for me.

The 'acting' match between them at the end was nice, it brought it back to their origins.

To be honest, while I have a preference for certain voices in anime and visual novels, I am not really that into seiyuu culture. I don't follow any "Seiyuu Radio" shows, nor do I know anything about the actors' lives aside from the roles they have performed. This might put me at a disadvantage in appreciating the series, yet the light yuri between the girls and the emotions are just too real to ignore, which kept me hooked through every volume.

The author stated that volume 15 was the planned final volume, but due to popular demand, the series will continue, and a 16th volume is planned for the near future. I'm curious where it goes from here; the story itself feels complete, but their lives as seiyuu continue, so it's easy to see the light novel series continuing for a while.

Watching them this relaxed being near each other is probably the best way to finish the series. They're adults now and I'm curious where this will lead them.

The author has also released a new novel that I plan to try soon, called "Exploring Abandoned Places" (廃墟めぐり), which he states will feature the same light yuri dynamic as "Seiyuu Radio," but in a horror setting involving girls exploring abandoned places. I'm definitely going to give it a try soon.