I Want to Be a VTuber

A whole 5 days and 4 nights for the school trip.

Considering the travel time, a day at each end is practically a wash, so it’s basically just 3 days and 2 nights.

Still, 5 days and 4 nights felt like «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» a long time to Seoyeon.

They hadn’t decided whether it would be Europe or the U.S. yet, but even if it ended up being Japan, that wouldn’t really change much.

She’d already shot all her commercials, and she didn’t have many upcoming broadcast appearances.

Of course, that didn’t mean she was completely free.

Maybe next month, she’d appear on a few variety shows related to Mine.

“Hey, isn’t that fine?”

Park Jungwoo, her manager, said with a small smile.

“Honestly, last year was way too busy. I think this pace right now is just right.”

“You think so?”

“Yeah. But more importantly... you’ve been in contact with Nahi lately, right? Nothing going on there, is there?”

Seoyeon hesitated at his question.

Truthfully, it wasn’t that there was nothing going on.

At least for Seoyeon, something significant had happened.

Nahi unni... I want to bring her on as my manager.

It was something she’d been thinking about for a while.

Seoyeon, in her own way, wanted to bring in people who could contribute to the growth of Nova Entertainment.

Sure, thanks to herself and Lee Jiyeon, Nova was already doing incredibly well, but nothing beats idols.

And Yeonwoo... oppa’s still there, too.

The word oppa never came out easily, no matter how much time passed.

It would be so much easier if she could just refer to him as “senior” like she did with Park Jungwoo.

Anyway, with Ma Yeonwoo still around, Nova’s idol lineup was already pretty solid.

If they could add Summer Girls into the mix, it’d be perfect.

That’s why I reached out casually to meet her.

She hadn’t planned on saying it outright. Just wanted to test the waters a bit first.

Nahi unni’s contract with Hoyeon Entertainment was about to end soon, after all.

Seoyeon gave a vague excuse to Jungwoo and headed home, where she stared down the survey form.

For the record, she hadn’t told Park Jungwoo about the school trip yet.

If it became an issue, she’d bring it up then.

If the dates clashed, she could just skip the school trip. No big deal.

Though... if they did pick France, that might be a different story...

I should write ‘France’ on the school trip form, right?

Honestly, she really wanted to check off ‘Japan’ on that survey.

It wasn’t about preferring one country over another — she just didn’t find anything in Europe particularly exciting.

Seoyeon liked beautiful natural landscapes.

But she didn’t care much for old architecture or the lingering scent of the past, or European culture in general.

Japan, on the other hand, had a bunch of things she liked, so even just walking around would be fun.

“That’s because you...”

Youngbin tried to say something to Seoyeon, but went quiet as soon as she pulled out a small business card from her pocket.

It was the card from the deputy director at Raywill Games.

They’d given it to her and told her to call anytime if she wanted to do more commercials.

“Should I give them a call?”

“My apologies, my dear daughter.”

It was more effective than threatening him with a graphics card.

Seoyeon tucked the card back into her pocket with a smug grin.

Watching Youngbin’s pupils shake as she pulled the card out made her feel strangely triumphant.

It felt like she finally had a weapon that let her win — after always losing.

As she smiled in satisfaction, Youngbin quietly breathed a sigh of relief.

She absolutely can’t come to the office.

There were a lot of reasons behind that.

First was that if Seoyeon showed up at his workplace, things would get very complicated, and she might cause a scene.

But recently, there were a few more reasons to worry.

She mustn’t find out I bought GH Group and Nettrix stocks.

The business card was already a risk — if she found out about the stocks too, he’d be completely at her mercy.

How pathetic, to have his entire fate resting in the hands of his daughter.

Also, with Mine blowing up in popularity, Youngbin had gone around bragging about her at work like crazy.

Maybe that’s why...

"Hey, did you know Team Leader Ju Youngbin’s daughter is that Ju Seoyeon?"

"Seriously? I loved Mine, it was amazing."

"Same! And did you hear? It’s ranked #1 in 54 countries now. It’s been three weeks. I wonder how long the hype will last."

"It’s the biggest hit since Child’s Game, right? Man, our dramas are really killing it lately."

He kept hearing stuff like that more and more these days.

And sure, it felt good.

But having Seoyeon hear all that praise — that was a bit too much.

Since Seoyeon’s rise to fame, he’d been calling up his old friend Kang Taejin more often.

He had benefited a lot from it too, but no one had profited more than Kang Taejin.

Which is why Youngbin had no hesitation in demanding:

“So, buy me lunch.”

“...”

The sour look on his friend’s face as he paid for the meal was still vivid in his mind.

Of course, Kang Taejin wasn’t the type to take that lying down.

“Your daughter’s tight with NewLike Group, right?”

“I have no idea who Seoyeon’s hanging out with or where.”

“You could tell me a little, though.”

“What if she folds me in half for talking behind her back?”

“...”

That genuine-sounding answer made Taejin shut up.

At least he wasn’t the type to press further once you refused.

He probably just wanted Seoyeon to prioritize their company, since NewLike Group was a competitor.

But that was up to his daughter.

He wasn’t about to interfere in her choices.

“I want good things for you too, Taejin.”

“Let me guess. You’ve dumped a bunch of stock into this.”

“...”

Sharp as ever. Youngbin closed his mouth.

That had been just a few days ago.

Should I buy some Biol too?

Youngbin was seriously considering it.

As far as he knew, Seoyeon would be heading to France next month.

She was Biol’s ambassador, so she’d be attending Ready-to-Wear.

Yeah, let’s buy it.

Following his daughter’s trail had never once failed him.

That was his philosophy, and so far, he’d never been wrong.

****

“Seoyeon~! Wow, it’s been so long!”

Cha Nahi greeted her with a bright smile.

Lately, Seoyeon’s schedule had been brutal, so it was hard to find time to meet.

“The last time was at the awards show, right? I teared up a bit watching you win.”

Nahi’s cheerful tone made Seoyeon laugh awkwardly.

With Seoyeon’s naturally awkward communication style, dealing with such a bubbly personality wasn’t easy.

She’s gotten way more cheerful than before.

Maybe something good had happened recently?

Hoyeon Studio hadn’t changed much since the last time she visited.

Most of the newly debuted idol groups had flopped quietly.

The company was surviving off its existing acts.

In that sense, Summer Girls was a vital lifeline for Hoyeon.

“Your contract’s ending soon, right?”

“Huh? Did I ever mention that? Yeah, it is.”

“I was just a little curious what your plans were after.”

While Seoyeon and Nahi talked, the other members of Summer Girls were exchanging nervous glances.

What’s that monster girl doing here again?

I thought the drama OST project was the end of it — is she here to ask for another favor?

Ravin, the leader and true powerhouse of Summer Girls, watched Seoyeon from a slight distance.

Just when she’d almost forgotten the trauma of that 500-won nightmare, it was back from the dead.

“Unni, you watched Mine, right?”

“...Yeah, I did.”

Sobin, another member of Summer Girls and Ravin’s right-hand, had been deeply moved by Mine.

She loved action films, and Mine had been pure cinematic bliss for her.

A Korean drama like this? Incredible!

“Can you get me an autograph?”

“Are you out of your mind?”

“Preferably from Narumi Sora too.”

“Have you completely lost it? If you want one, go ask yourself!”

“That’s kinda scary though.”

“Well, I’m scared too, you brat.”

Just as Ravin was about to say that, she felt Seoyeon’s gaze.

Wait... did she hear them?

They were pretty far apart — no way she could’ve caught that conversation from here...

“What if Ju Seoyeon really is a psychic? What if Mine wasn’t a drama but a documentary?”

“Sobin, I really do like you. But please, stop saying nonsense.”

“It’s actually a pretty plausible theory. I’ve been watching a lot of Mine reaction videos lately. That kind of comment pops up more often than you’d think.”

Sobin recalled one she watched recently.

It was one of those streams where the live chat appears on-screen — she was on her fourth rewatch, and she watched it through one of those.

She couldn’t help but wonder — did the viewers watch it with the same feelings as she did?

For example:

[The scene where Min Doha gets kicked and flies away.]

[The fight scene with Adam (Oliver).]

[The motorcycle chase scene.]

[The final showdown with Shin Arin.]

That was the general vibe.

Even just from memory, that’s the kind of stuff that came up.

Soeun, who was a member of Ju Seoyeon’s official fan café, saw posts like that constantly.

And after watching a bunch of Seoyeon’s variety show highlight compilations, she’d started to genuinely believe it.

Maybe she really is an esper?

Of course, to Ravin, Soeun’s sincere claim was just ridiculous.

But what made it even more surprising was that her fangirling was very real.

“And you still want her autograph?”

“Yes.”

“You’re completely out of your damn mi—”

Ravin cut herself off as soon as she felt Seoyeon’s gaze.

“I-I was thinking of getting one too. I, uh, really enjoyed Mine. I’ll... ask later or something.”

“You’re seriously the best, unni.”

Soeun gave her a big thumbs up, and Ravin cursed internally.

Why me? Why not just ask Nahi?

Of course, Cha Nahi was currently glued to Seoyeon, so asking her for a favor like that wasn’t exactly convenient.

Not to mention, their relationship with Cha Nahi was always kind of... ambiguous.

Hmph. No one would blame her for leaving after her contract ends anyway.

Ravin could already see how Nahi would respond to Seoyeon’s question.

What are your plans after your contract ends?

To Ravin, Nahi had always seemed inadequate, but...

She was pretty, could sing decently, danced well,

And her acting had come a long way — some agencies would probably want her.

But then—

“Yeah, I’m thinking of re-signing.”

“...Sorry, what?”

Seoyeon’s eyes widened at Nahi’s awkward smile.

What? Re-signing?

Didn’t she break her contract and leave in my last life?

What the hell was going on?

As she stared at Nahi in disbelief—

“Ugh, it’s kind of embarrassing to explain. Um... back when you worked on the Masked Singer song, remember? The other members helped me out a lot.”

“They... did?”

“Yeah. Things were a little awkward between us, but I really appreciated it.”

Nahi smiled brightly as she spoke, and Seoyeon felt a stab of guilt.

She suddenly felt like some shady corporate shark trying to lure a sweet, innocent person into a trap.

Wait, is this because of me?

She hadn’t expected Nahi to re-sign with Hoyeon because of her.

But still...

Well, if she said she liked Mine...

Seoyeon, having overheard Soeun and Ravin’s conversation earlier, nodded to herself.

Her favorability rating toward ‘Summer Girls’ had gone up quite a bit.

“Got it. Then I’ll be cheering you on.”

Seoyeon offered her support for Nahi’s re-signing without hesitation.

It was a bit disappointing that she couldn’t bring her over to Nova,

But it did seem like her relationship with the other group members had improved a lot.

And so, Seoyeon left Hoyeon Studio.

“...Didn’t expect her to actually say she’s re-signing,”

Ravin muttered, still surprised, as she turned to Nahi.

Ravin had always been the one who disliked Nahi the most in Summer Girls,

But lately, they’d started talking a bit more.

“You helped me a lot back then.”

“Don’t call me unni. It’s so cringey.”

Ravin laughed dryly as she spoke.

Honestly, if Cha Nahi had left Summer Girls,

That would’ve been the end of the group.

But now that she was staying,

It looked like Summer Girls would stay together...

At least for the next three days.

That’s how long that optimism lasted.

“...Hey girls, sorry. Our company’s gone bankrupt.”

“......”

The entirety of Summer Girls, including Cha Nahi, were rendered speechless by the studio director’s announcement.

It was like a bolt from the blue.

Wait, what? Just like that?

“Cha Nahi.”

“Y-yes?”

“So, uh... that 500 won— I mean, get in touch with Ju Seoyeon.”

“W-why?”

“Why do you think?! We need to survive somehow! God, I can’t take this. Uncle, what happened to all your money?!”

“There’s still a bit left, but if I lose all that too, I’ll starve to death. I’m quitting before I lose more. But Ravin, you trust your cousin, right? I’ll find you new work soon. Oh! Right, there’s this thing called VTubing lately. I’ve been really interested in it, and maybe we can—”

“Ugh! Can you shut up already?!”

Ravin’s outburst made Nahi’s eyes well up.

She never imagined Hoyeon Studio would go under this fast.