I Want to Be a VTuber

"The test results are normal. There are no major issues. You don’t need to come back anymore."

Arthur let out a quiet sigh of relief as he stepped out of the hospital.

Unlike Oliver, who was built like a tank, this ordeal had made him realize just how fragile he actually was.

Still, as usual, Arthur didn’t have time to rest—he had to head straight to the set.

His schedule was already packed for the entire year, and just because he was back in the U.S. didn’t mean he got a break.

"But god, I’m exhausted."

Arthur sighed as he looked over the bustling Hollywood film set.

"Arthur, I heard you went to Korea. You look absolutely wrecked."

"Roman, I’m really not in the mood for conversation today."

"Oh, when have you ever been in the mood to talk?"

A familiar, teasing voice.

Roman—the lead actor in the new film they were shooting.

A man who had personally decided Arthur was his rival.

"He really reminds me of Stella."

In other words, he wasn’t someone Arthur particularly liked dealing with.

Honestly, he didn’t even want to talk to him.

"If he didn’t actually have talent, I would’ve dropped this conversation immediately."

But the world was full of people who, despite having terrible personalities, were undeniably skilled.

Roman was exactly that type.

Of course, if Stella were here, she’d probably say, "And you think you’re any different?"

Unfortunately, she wasn’t here to say that.

"I get it, though. You’ve been stuck in that tiny country for a while, right?"

"Hmm..."

"There’s nothing worse than starring in a movie that won’t even break even."

"...What?"

Roman smirked and jabbed his thumb toward himself.

"But look at me. I only take on a few projects a year, but I work efficiently. You should learn to be more selective with your roles."

"...You seriously started this conversation just to say that?"

"Just that? No, no—I’m concerned for you. I heard this whole mess was because Stella provoked you. You need to stop obsessing over that woman. You can’t compete with a monster like her."

At Roman’s words, several other actors nearby nodded in agreement.

Arthur let out a small chuckle.

Hollywood’s perception of Stella was... well, grandiose, to say the least.

And honestly, he had agreed with that sentiment for a long time.

Actors like her—monsters like her—weren’t going to appear again in this world.

But after his trip to Korea, that belief had changed.

"Sure, Stella’s an incredible actress. But she’s not some untouchable force."

"Arthur, again with this..."

"Besides, I’m not exhausted because my project bombed."

"Oh, I know—because it hasn’t technically bombed yet. It releases at dawn, right? Four in the morning?"

...It was already time?

Arthur thought back to the PV for Mine that had been making the rounds recently.

It was good.

They had hidden the best parts of the film while using just the right footage to build intrigue.

"You really want this project to fail that badly, huh?"

"It’s not you I want to fail. Just look at the numbers for every Korean drama and movie on Nettrix lately."

Every single Korean drama released in the past month had been a disaster.

So it wasn’t exactly surprising that Roman was acting like this.

"Child’s Game blew up, and now that tiny country has completely lost its mind."

"We’ll see..."

"Well, at least the action looked decent. Especially that lead girl—she’s absolutely gorgeous."

Her looks, huh?

Arthur thought of Seoyeon’s face.

She was beautiful.

Objectively speaking, flawless.

But for some reason, he had never really focused on that.

For a lot of reasons.

"The action was surprisingly smooth too, considering they used stunt doubles."

"That wasn’t a stunt double."

"...What?"

"She did it all herself."

"Wait, you’re telling me she actually did all those stunts?"

"Yeah. If anything, I was the one using a stunt double. If you wanted to match her, you’d have to be someone like Oliver."

"Arthur, come on. Oliver’s the best stunt actor I know. If you’re gonna joke, at least make it believable."

Roman scowled, clearly irritated.

Arthur just shrugged.

Roman pulled out his phone, bringing up the PV for Mine.

"Look at this. You’re telling me this entire fight scene was done by that girl?"

"Yeah."

"...Ha. If you’re gonna treat me like an idiot, at least be more subtle about it. Still, I do like this fight scene. That part where she kicks the car was fantastic."

On-screen, Jin Yeonseo (Seoyeon’s character) was mid-fight with Adam.

A fast-paced, precise combat sequence—

And then, to finish it off, she launched a car at him with a powerful kick.

Adam barely dodged in time, his desperate scramble making the scene all the more intense.

"Korean CGI has really improved. That’s an incredibly seamless effect. And they filmed it in a long take, too. That must’ve been tough to pull off."

"...That wasn’t CGI."

"?!"

"She actually kicked it."

Of course, it was all choreographed.

They had rehearsed multiple times.

Oliver had gotten hit by the car more than once to get the right shot.

That was why his reaction—the sheer panic as he dodged—was so damn convincing.

"Though, he did have to spend some time in bed recovering afterward."

Which meant Arthur had to take over a lot of the remaining action scenes.

"...You’re joking."

"Who knows?"

Roman’s face darkened, clearly not amused.

Arthur, on the other hand, was enjoying this.

"If we get the chance, I’d love to set you up for a scene with her. An action scene, of course."

"You’re a real comedian now, huh?"

Arthur wasn’t joking.

He genuinely wanted Roman to experience fighting alongside Seoyeon.

It was only fair.

After all, Arthur had been thrown around, slammed into the ground, and even struggled to breathe under protective gear.

There were several moments where he had barely walked away intact.

"Why should I be the only one to suffer?"

"Anyway, I’m not worried about this drama."

"Because you think it’s doomed to fail?"

"No."

Arthur wasn’t like Roman.

He didn’t believe in writing off a project before it had even launched.

If it did fail, sure—he’d be miserable.

But that wasn’t something he was considering.

"I just don’t waste my energy worrying about successful projects."

Besides, if he wasn’t the main character, the show wasn’t really his concern.

"Stella was right."

Arthur had never once been the center of a project.

She had said it before—"You’re not even in the same league."

And... in the end, she was right.

"Not just Seoyeon, either."

Jo Sehee.

She wasn’t an ordinary actress.

During the reshoots, even he had felt completely overshadowed.

"If a performance like that still leads to failure... well, I’ll just have to accept it."

That would be an unavoidable fate.

But Arthur didn’t think it would come to that.

MINE was going to be the next Child’s Game—

He was sure of it.

***

"Wait. Hold on a second, Seoyeon. Say that again. Who’s coming?"

Song Dayeon, the theater advisor at Yeonhwa High, blinked in disbelief.

She had to have misheard.

Seoyeon, as calm as ever, simply repeated herself.

"One of the actors I filmed with, Jo Sehee, messaged me. She asked if she could come watch the screening with us."

Even Seoyeon was a little surprised.

Sehee had an iron mentality—

She didn’t seem like the type to get shaken over something like this.

Even during Kyungsung Lady, while Lee Jiyeon had been a nervous wreck, Sehee had been completely relaxed.

But apparently, Mine was different.

"If it’s a problem, I can tell her no—"

"NO. Absolutely not. Do NOT reject her!"

"...Huh?"

Seoyeon stared as her teacher freaked out.

Was Sehee’s visit really that big of a deal?

Sensing her confusion, Song Dayeon quickly explained.

"Jo Sehee is one of—no, the top young actress right now! Even just walking down the street, you see her everywhere! Of course our students need time to mentally prepare!"

"Is that so?"

Seoyeon nodded at Song Dayeon’s explanation, though she couldn’t help but feel a little... conflicted.

"I mean, I’m not trying to compare myself to Jo Sehee, but..."

Last year, Seoyeon’s achievements had been huge.

Yet, judging by Song Dayeon’s reaction, Sehee seemed to be getting way more excitement than she ever had.

"A-Ahem. Well, that’s because you go to our school, Seoyeon!"

"...Is that so?"

"Yes, of course!"

Song Dayeon swallowed hard under Seoyeon’s stare.

"Why is she so scary when she just stares like that?"

With her naturally reserved personality, Song Dayeon couldn’t help but feel like Seoyeon’s gaze was piercing straight through her.

And sure, maybe it did look like she was more excited about Sehee than Seoyeon...

But that was a misunderstanding!

Seoyeon was already incredibly well-known.

In fact, she was one of the main reasons so many new students had chosen Yeonhwa High this year.

The only reason Song Dayeon wasn’t making a huge fuss over her was simple—

She was intimidated.

She had tried to hype her up a few times, but every single time, Seoyeon’s sharp stare had been... well, a lot to handle.

"A-Anyway! I’ll check with the students first. If everyone’s okay with it, I’ll let you know right away!"

"Alright."

To be fair, Sehee was from another school.

As a teacher, it made sense that Song Dayeon couldn’t just immediately say yes.

"Maybe I was a little too pushy with my request."

But the truth was, Seoyeon had her own reasons for being concerned about Sehee.

There was the incident at the beach...

And more recently, she had learned something new.

Another connection from the past.

A part of her life that had changed, yet still remained.

And so, at exactly 5 PM—

The moment Mine was officially released on Nettrix—

"Wait, that’s really Jo Sehee!?"

"Are you telling me she’s actually close with Ju Seoyeon?"

"Wow, I totally thought that was just for show."

Sehee had arrived at Yeonhwa High, gracefully riding in on her bicycle.

"...Huh?"

She was not expecting this.

She had only come to watch {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} the drama like a normal student.

The only reason she had even reached out to Seoyeon was because—

"My mind’s been a mess lately."

For some reason, she hadn’t been able to sleep properly.

She kept having dreams—though she could never quite remember them.

Still, she felt like she was starting to realize something.

"It’s just stress from Mine. Ugh, I’m really getting soft."

That was what she told herself.

And before she knew it, she had suddenly thought of Seoyeon—

And on impulse, she had texted her.

"Would it be okay if we watched it together?"

Honestly, she had half-expected Seoyeon to say no.

Seoyeon could be unexpectedly stubborn about certain things.

If she thought something wasn’t right, she never budged.

Even the way she still insisted on speaking formally to Sehee—

That was probably because of her weirdly rigid principles.

"N-Na-Na-Na! Should I ask for an autograph?! J-Jo Sehee is my role model!"

Seoyeon glanced over at the voice.

Kim Hyeri, face bright red, was frantically rummaging through her bag, pulling out a sheet of paper for an autograph.

"Huh. That’s... different."

The same Chihuahua that had been bowing its head to her...

Was now practically wagging its tail at Jo Sehee.

For some reason, that really didn’t sit right with Seoyeon.

She narrowed her eyes at Sehee.

"What? What did I do?"

Sehee was baffled.

She hadn’t done anything!

Of course, it made sense for people to react to her this way—she was an outsider.

A celebrity from another school.

A senior that was always around wouldn’t get the same kind of reaction.

"Ahem! Alright, listen up!"

Song Dayeon clapped her hands to get everyone’s attention.

"Before we start, absolutely no checking online reactions while watching! Understood?"

"Yes!"

"And after watching, I want everyone to write a review about the acting. Got it? That’s this week’s assignment!"

"WHAT?! Noooo!!"

"Too bad. You have to do it. It’s from the vice principal."

"Aaaagh!!"

Groans of protest filled the room.

"...A review?"

Seoyeon tensed.

Wait.

Did she have to write one too?

Grading her own performance sounded like a nightmare.

"Wow, you’re so lucky, Ju Seoyeon. Such a senior-like assignment."

Lee Jiyeon smirked at her.

Honestly, when Kyungsung Lady came out, she was so relieved this kind of thing hadn’t happened.

Unlike Seoyeon, she knew her acting had a lot of flaws back then.

Seoyeon stared at her for a moment before Song Dayeon spoke again.

"Alright, I’m starting the video. No talking during the screening!"

The projector whirred to life, displaying the familiar Nettrix loading screen.

And then—

The poster for Mine appeared.

"I’m nervous."

Sehee muttered under her breath, glancing at Seoyeon.

She had been in so many projects before.

And yet, today—

Watching Mine felt more nerve-wracking than any of them.

Maybe it was because, for the first time—

She wasn’t trying to imitate her mother’s acting.

She wasn’t trying to be the perfect textbook actress.

This time, she was showing Jo Sehee’s acting.

She was stepping outside the textbook.

She was stepping into the real world.

"You’ll be fine."

Seoyeon’s voice was steady.

She looked at the screen as Mine began.

The production logos faded in—

And then, the name "GH Group" appeared in bold letters.

"Definitely."

She wasn’t just saying it for Sehee.

She was saying it for herself too.

No actor could predict the future.

No actor could ever be sure of what lay ahead.

This was just another trial that all actors faced.

And now, it was her turn.

"I should’ve invited Min Doha and Sora too."

Since she had invited Sehee, she might as well have brought the others.

Especially Sora.

And Min Doha—

She had worked well with him during filming, so she wouldn’t have minded seeing him again.

As those thoughts flickered through her mind, the last of the production logos faded away.

And then—

The sound of rain.

A dimly lit, enclosed space.

From a small, narrow window—

The sound of rain trickled in.

A quiet voice broke through the silence.

"Yeonseo, so this is where you were?"

Adam’s voice, soft yet unsettling.

The screen brightened, revealing the inside of a cold, sterile laboratory.

Jin Yeonseo sat crouched on the floor.

Adam, standing beside her, spoke to her gently.

The real screening of Mine had begun.

The students watched in silence—

Their breath held—

Waiting.

Because if the PV was anything to go by—

Something horrible was about to happen.