Chapter 4: Debut Broadcast
“…You’re not interested in being an idol or a singer instead of a VTuber?”
“Yes.”
“Huh?”
Oh, did I answer too quickly?
I figured they might need more explanation, so I hurriedly added,
“I want to live a comfortable life without exposing my face.”
The incident with Kyungmin made it clear. I’m not ready yet.
“Oh… so that’s why you chose VTuber…”
Other than that, they briefly explained future plans, and I asked questions when needed.
“So, how many members are there in total?”
“We selected six people this time.”
It seems the five from my previous life plus me makes six.
“Will the members ever meet in real life?”
“No, we think there’s demand for ‘first meeting’ stories, so we’re saving it for broadcast content.”
“Oh…”
That gives me an advantage. No matter how pretty someone else is, I’m confident I’d steal the show at a first meeting.
I’m already excited to see how the members, whose names I still don’t know, will react.
That’s how the day ended.
Today is the first day we’re all having a group call.
It’s not just to bond but for group training.
As the time approached, I checked the Discord server and saw two people already there.
“Hello.”
I greeted first, and two women replied, startled.
[Oh! Hi! Hello!]
[Hellooo!]
Oh, a voice crack.
To ease the awkwardness and spare them embarrassment, I introduced myself.
“I’m Lee Yeonwoo, 20 years old.”
[What?! 20?!]
“Yes.”
Geez, that scared me. Why’s she shouting?
I lowered the volume of the person who spoke.
[Wow! So young! I’m Kim Yubin, 24 years old!]
[I’m… Im Yuna, 22 years old!]
The outgoing type and the shy type, huh?
As we talked, more people joined.
[Hello~ I’m Yoon Sua, 17 years old, sixth strongest?]
[I’m Shin Yerin, 25 years old.]
[Oh my, you’re all younger than me… I’m Jeon Minseo, 27 years old.]
The interviewers clearly picked people with distinct, non-overlapping personalities.
And their voices… I’ve heard them all before when I was a guy.
Outgoing, shy, sly, cool, gentle… they all have strong characters.
So what am I?
Am I overlapping with the sly or cool types?
[I was an idol trainee.]
Oh, right. When I was a guy, I heard this group had three former idol trainees.
We haven’t discussed RP yet, but during the last meeting, they said we could share some red pill or past-life details to spark interest. They must’ve used that for broadcast hype.
The former idol trainees are Kim Yubin, Yoon Sua, and Jeon Minseo.
Kim Yubin even appeared on an idol survival show.
Oh… that’s why they mentioned it during the meeting.
If you’ve been on a survival show, it’s only a matter of time before your identity gets dug up, so they probably went public for buzz.
Ding!
[Hello, I’m Min Jiyu, the manager you met during the individual meeting.]
The training was led by our manager.
But man, the training was so boring.
They started from the basics of being a VTuber, explaining what RP is and all that.
Did they pick three idol trainees because VTuber knowledge can be taught, but raw talent can’t?
Still, VTubers are supposed to stir up some controversy to be fun and generate buzz.
With all these restrictions, no wonder their potential wasn’t fully realized until their songs came out.
In that sense, the company should thank me since it’s got a better shot at getting big now.
Oh! Was I picked as the clown type because of my interview stunt?!
Then I’d better act the part. Heh.
[That’s all for today’s session.]
Oh, it’s over?
I was so caught up thinking about what to do for my debut stream that it ended already.
[Our goal is to debut in three weeks.]
Three weeks? That’s fast.
[Based on your schedules, we’ll have group training three times a week, and an individual meeting the week before the debut.]
Wow… that’s intense…
[Question!]
[Yes, Yubin?]
[What’s our group name?!]
[That’s planned to be used as content.]
After that, we asked our questions, and the training ended.
Having a lot to do really makes time fly.
Only a week left until the debut.
Lately, I’ve been swamped with online training sessions from home.
Today’s the day for my individual meeting.
“Yeonwoo, welcome.”
“Yes, Manager.”
I sat down, opened a fruit drink on the table, and took a sip.
“Yeonwoo, I’m relieved you seem so different from the interview.”
“Huh? Uh… yeah…”
What’s this about all of a sudden?
“Honestly, during your interview, we thought you were crazy and had a lot of discussions about whether to pick you.”
Oh… I see.
“But after choosing you, you’ve followed the training so well and listened carefully, so I almost feel bad for worrying.”
Oh… I see…
“Since I’m not worried about you, we can just chat and wrap up.”
“Okay, got it.”
Her words sting my conscience, but it’s fine.
I’ll prove myself with results, right?
It’s debut stream day.
As per VTuber tradition, we’re going live one by one, and at my request, I’m last.
I watched the other members’ streams with the community.
They averaged over 3,000 viewers.
I didn’t know much about the scene back then, but it seems they were popular from the start.
Guess the company’s reputation pulled in a lot of attention.
The members are doing great, too.
Even the community, aside from some trolls, isn’t reacting badly.
For example, posts like this:
[Why the fck is this actually good?]
Am I a weeb?
- Accept it
- If you’re in denial, you’re already screwed
[Terri’s mine]
Plz
- No way
- ? She’s mine
- You take Terri, I’ll take Hanbyeol
For reference, my nickname is Rosé.
My avatar has sharp features, black hair, black eyes, a ponytail, a black hoodie, and dolphin shorts.
Hmm… I’ve thought this before, but doesn’t my avatar look like me?
Oh, it’s my turn.
I got ready and hit the start button.
After a moment, the quiet chat started filling up with messages.
Once the intro music ended, I turned on my mic.
“Hello.”
- ??
- What the fck is that voice?
Message deleted. - Wow
- Goddess…
- I’m in love…
Message deleted.
Nice, everyone’s welcoming me enthusiastically.
I brought up my virtual avatar on screen.
“Hello, I’m Rosé.”
- Wow!
- That voice is insane.
- Marry me
Message deleted. - Cute avatar
- No donations yet?
Donations aren’t open yet. They said they’ll activate them once I get used to streaming.
Well, it’s probably for the best today.
“Alright, now that introductions are done, let’s get to what I prepared.”
- Already?
- ?
- That fast?
- Talk to us!
I put a photo on the screen.
“Tada.”
- ?
- What’s that?
- What’s she doing?
It’s nothing special.
“I can’t tolerate another with the same name under the sky, so I decided to eliminate it.”
Probably…?
“Yes, my first content is—”
I considered something more attention-grabbing, but I have a conscience, so I settled on this.
“Dongmyeongsangjan.”
It’s a Rosé series mukbang.
At Gaon Entertainment’s newly created virtual artist department,
Min Jiyu, the manager for the new group, is monitoring the streams.
With everyone surpassing expected viewership numbers, the department’s buzzing with excitement.
“Are we getting bonuses?!”
“Very possible! We’re 1.5 times above projections!”
Amid the excitement, Jiyu stayed calm. Because…
“Now it’s just Yeonwoo left!”
She gave a warning disguised as trust during the meeting, and Yeonwoo’s wild interview energy seems gone, but you can’t be too sure.
[Hello.]
“Wow… Yeonwoo’s voice is really something.”
“With that face and this voice… doesn’t she have it all?”
Her face flashed in Jiyu’s mind at her colleagues’ comments.
Yeah… she’s really pretty.
[Hello, I’m Rosé.]
“Huh? Isn’t her voice tone higher than usual?”
“Yeah? Haha, maybe Yeonwoo’s nervous since she’s only 20.”
Please, let that be it.
[Alright, now that introductions are done, let’s get to what I prepared.]
“What did Yeonwoo say she was doing?”
“I didn’t hear anything, did you, Jiyu?”
“Nope.”
Figures.
[Tada.]
“Huh? Isn’t that Rosé tteokbokki?”
“Yeah? What’s she planning? Nice photo choice, though. Looks tasty.”
[I can’t tolerate another with the same name under the sky, so I decided to eliminate it.]
Wait, what did she say?
Jiyu felt a chill and kept watching the stream.
“What did she just say?”
“Same name? Rosé?”
[Yes, my first content is Dongmyeongsangjan.]
Oh, that crazy girl. I need to smack her next time—
Yeonwoo’s face flashed in Jiyu’s mind.
Jiyu instinctively pushed the thought away.