The Protagonist's Party is Too Diligent

"Wow, you sing really well. Where did you learn that song?"

After Claire finished a song, the person who had originally been singing asked her. 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

Well, even if she answered, he wouldn't understand. It was probably a song that didn’t exist in this world—

"From the internet!"

—yep, that’s what it was.

Now that I thought about it, it had already been over a month since the two of them had come to this world.

There had been plenty of time for them to learn songs from the internet.

Come to think of it, jazz was a genre that could be said to have been born because of the history of a country called America. Azerna had a somewhat similar genre, but musically speaking, it was probably different from the jazz of this world.

Not that I really cared enough to know the details.

"Did your sisters who came with you also...?"

The man glanced at our side with a hint of anticipation in his voice, and I quickly waved my hands back and forth.

Sneaking a glance, I saw Alice also shaking her head vigorously.

"Ah, that's a bit disappointing. Thank you for the lovely song. Could I at least ask your name?"

"I'm Claire!"

There was a small murmur from the crowd.

Well, of course. It would be strange if someone who claimed to be Korean suddenly introduced herself with a foreign-sounding name.

But still, it wasn’t like the atmosphere turned suspicious or anything.

If some otaku like me had been passing by, they might have thought of "Claire Fangryphon" or "Claire Grace," but normally people would just assume she was a Korean who had naturalized abroad.

"Alright then, please give a round of applause to Claire for the wonderful performance!"

As the sound of clapping filled the area, Claire, her face slightly flushed, came running toward us.

"Did you have fun?"

"Yeah!"

Even though I had been enjoying life here in my own way after returning to this world, and Alice seemed relaxed too, it was clear that the one who was truly having the time of her life was Claire.

And for that, I was genuinely thankful.

"Did you enjoy singing?"

There were character songs, sure, but in the game, Claire had never been shown singing directly. Actually, no specific character had been depicted singing at all.

Now that I thought about it, they really could have added something like that.

"I never saw you sing back in Azerna."

Alice voiced the question I had in my mind.

"Ah, well, I had a reputation to uphold as a noble."

...I see.

In Korea, there was a time when certain artistic professions were looked down upon, but I wasn't exactly sure how it was in Azerna.

Famous Western violinists and conductors had their stories passed down for generations, and even King Louis XIV of France had danced ballet when he was young, so it wasn’t as if it had always been looked down upon... but still, even if the world setting was Western, Azerna was not the same as the world we had lived in.

Thinking about it, it would have been awkward for a noble to sing in public.

At the very least, shouting out songs in the streets would have been unthinkably disgraceful.

In that case...

"Would you like to sing to your heart's content?"

"Huh?"

"There's a karaoke place nearby. And since we still have a lot of time before dinner, why don't we spend some time there?"

"Oh, really?"

Claire’s face brightened. It seemed it could get even brighter.

Just to ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ be sure, I glanced at Alice, who only shrugged.

She didn't seem like someone who particularly enjoyed singing either.

As for me, I was the type who would refuse even when friends dragged me to karaoke.

It wasn't like I was particularly good at singing, I didn’t like loud places, and above all, that "insider-like" atmosphere really didn’t suit me. I preferred lounging at a café or chatting over drinks at a bar instead.

But, well.

If she wanted to sing this badly.

Maybe just this once, I could grant her wish.

*

"Unni, hurry, hurry."

They say "ppalli ppalli" (hurry, hurry) is one of the first things foreigners learn in Korea, and it seemed true enough.

Despite not liking singing, I found myself holding a microphone because Claire, after singing a few songs herself, shoved it into my hand.

Hmm...

If this were a company dinner, I would've seriously grimaced, but the two people here weren’t my bosses—they were my sisters.

Whenever I was dragged along by friends, I'd end up singing a song or two just to keep up the mood, so whatever.

However—

"Just saying in advance, I'm not very good at singing."

"That's fine. Not everyone needs to be good at it."

"We’re just here to have fun, so sing whatever you want."

Claire, sure, but for Alice, who hadn't sung even once and was just clapping along, to say that—it was really annoying.

When I narrowed my eyes at her, Alice quickly looked away.

Good.

After I sing, I’ll make sure to shove the mic into her hands too.

Thinking about what to sing, I decided to pick the song I was most familiar with.

...It was the opening song of Azerna Chronicles, the previous game.

I had listened to it a lot via streaming services.

I didn't have the lyrics memorized, but since the karaoke machine would show the lyrics, it wouldn't be too hard. I was already familiar with the melody, so I could probably manage.

I picked the song, planning to just sing this one quickly, and as the intro started, a look of realization crossed Claire and Alice’s faces.

Hmm.

I hadn’t expected to feel the same vibe as when I went to karaoke with my otaku friends, but somehow I did.

It was a strange feeling, like I had found more of my own kind.

...Would it be alright? Turning a baron’s daughter and a nation's princess—the future emperor, no less—into otakus? Making them figure collectors?

......

Well, it’s too late now.

I pushed those thoughts aside and lifted the mic.

Taking a deep breath, I sang the first verse—

—Huh?

"Wow, unni, you're good!"

"You're not bad enough to be embarrassed about."

That was Claire and Alice’s reaction.

It was true.

Even while singing, I realized I was hitting the high notes cleanly and confidently. It was as if I could sing like this all along.

Ah.

Right.

In games like these, sometimes they picked voice actors who could sing well, so they could sell character songs and such.

Of course, sometimes being terrible at singing was part of a character’s identity, and if not, they could edit it digitally or design songs more like narrations or rhythm-focused tracks rather than ones based on pitch.

But it seemed that the person who voiced Sylvia was one of the ones who could sing well.

While the song continued, Claire and Alice cheered me on enthusiastically, and in the end, I managed to finish the song perfectly.

"......"

"Unni?"

"What's wrong?"

Even after finishing, I stood there deep in thought, and Claire and Alice looked at me with concern.

"Alice."

"Yeah?"

"Please try singing one song."

"Uh?"

When I abruptly handed her the mic, Alice looked startled.

"Have you heard any songs since coming here?"

"Uh, yeah, a few... but why all of a sudden?"

"I just thought of something."

That’s right. I had just thought of something.

"......?"

Alice tilted her head in confusion, but when I kept my most serious expression, she reluctantly accepted the mic with a very reluctant look.

The song Alice chose was probably one of the latest hits.

And she sang well.

As expected of someone who had a character song in the game.

I see.

That meant the three of us could, theoretically, sing well enough that releasing an album wouldn't be embarrassing.

This could come in handy.

Of course, I wasn’t planning to act on it immediately.

Recording wasn’t something to be taken lightly. Singing casually during a stream and recording properly were two completely different things.

The microphone we had now wasn’t exactly high quality either—issues like audio quality and recording environment came into play.

Plus, the video accompanying the song would have to be well made too.

And most importantly, because of copyright, we couldn’t profit from cover songs. They could promote and get us attention, but they wouldn't make money directly.

"What are you thinking about with that shady grin on your face?"

Alice, having finished her song, asked me that.

I was totally expressionless, though?

Well, Alice could still read me somehow.

"It's nothing."

"......It doesn’t look like nothing."

Alice sighed and shook her head.

"Well, you’ve never kept things from us forever anyway."

I would tell them someday. I just didn’t want to mention it now and raise expectations only to maybe not act on it later.

Streaming had turned out to be pretty fun. And ideas kept popping up.

"Alright then, should we head out for dinner? How about Hamburg steak?"

At my suggestion, Claire beamed, and Alice smiled wryly as we headed off to eat.

The food was delicious. Even on the train ride back, we were in high spirits. It had been a fulfilling day.

And—

"...Are we seriously doing this?"

"It’d be such a waste not to use it for the stream, right? You only get one chance to unbox a product for the first time!"

"......"

Seeing Claire grin while holding the figure box in her arms made her look very much like an otaku, but I figured even if I pointed it out, she wouldn't understand.

So I just let it go.