I think everyone is wrong about Apollo having to be either Rikka or Nene, so let’s go back to the beginning.

In chapter 1, Apollo thinks, *“I thought I would never hear your voice again, Arisu-kun.”* Apollo also thinks, *“I was happy enough just being able to hear you.”*

In chapter 5, in the future scene, Apollo says, *“I love you, Yamabuki-kun.”*

In chapter 14, during the confession, Apollo says, *“I ran away from you because it was impossible for me to keep my promise.”* And also, *“I was afraid you would be angry with me for breaking that promise.”*

In that same chapter, we are shown the faces of all the girls, and they all look embarrassed, but Shinobu’s face is the only one not shown.

In chapter 15, during the phone string scene, Apollo says, *“I don’t think I’ll be able to achieve my dream.”*

What does all of this prove?

First, Apollo speaks using honorific suffixes. And which girl in the broadcasting club is the only one who consistently speaks with suffixes? Shinobu.

On top of that, Shinobu’s mother abandoned her, which is reflected in her self-esteem issues. Nene, on the other hand, has never shown any signs of self-esteem problems. In fact, whenever she thinks about going to voice school, she wonders what she is going to learn there.

That completely rules out Nene. Someone with her level of confidence would never believe she couldn’t keep her promise of becoming a professional. There also wouldn’t be any strong reason for her to stop talking to Arisu when she was Apollo.

As for Iko, it’s important to remember that she actually could have been justified as Apollo, if not for the fact that she entered the VTuber world so quickly. Iko would have had no problem keeping Arisu around as a viewer or subscriber. In fact, she probably would have told him, considering that during Apollo’s streams, it was mostly just the two of them. They would have stayed in contact. Also, Arisu would never have been able to identify her even if she became a VTuber.

As for Rikka, her dream is to become a singer, a musician. Yet Apollo never did any streams playing instruments or composing music, which makes no sense. This is also what rules out someone like Nene. Nene would have done anime impressions or something similar during Apollo’s streams. Likewise, Rikka would have composed a song or played something. The fact that none of that happened, and Arisu never points it out when he sees them performing as musicians or voice actresses, completely rules them out.

That’s why, in my opinion, Shinobu is the only one left. The fact that her mother abandoned her suggests she has probably struggled with low self-esteem for a long time, which may have led her to start streaming as Apollo. On top of that, in the latest chapter, we see that she has a controlling father. He probably forced her to stop her late-night streams out of fear of who Arisu might be—the person his daughter talked to every night.

And beyond all of that, Shinobu shows a warmer, more personal side compared to the others. For all these reasons, I believe Apollo has to be Shinobu.

Apollo is not Rikka or Nene