Blade Dance

"Ever since I became such a big fan, I've always wanted to do a collab stream with you someday. What do you think?" I didn't say the real reasons: that you looked so vulnerable, that I wanted to show the viewers who kept comparing us what true skill looked like. That would sound like pity. Maybe later, after everything was resolved, I could reveal the behind-the-scenes story—how it hurt me to see you getting hate, so I deliberately reached out. But not now. This wasn't the time for such words. One careless remark could wipe out all the goodwill I'd carefully built up since our first meeting. "Oh, that collab... collab, collab sounds great... yes..." Thankfully, Haryeong didn't refuse the proposal. All my efforts so far hadn't been in vain. Though her face was oddly flushed as she continued responding. Her outfit didn't look particularly thick, either. "You seem a bit feverish." "W-what? What are you..." I gently pressed my palm to her forehead and pulled it away. It was slightly warm, but nothing severe—maybe just a mild fever. A fever wasn't unusual given her condition. She clearly needed someone to take care of her. In that mental state, she'd struggle to even look after herself properly. "Anyway, you're agreeing to the collab? No backing out?" "Y-yes..." "Then let's get up. You haven't eaten, have you?" Haryeong slowly nodded. I'd expected as much. No wonder her cheeks looked sunken compared to the videos on Vtube. I'd better feed her properly before sending her off. Technically, I'd already finished what I came for, and the rest could be handled over a call, but something felt off about just leaving her like this. I should give her a hearty meal and buy some medicine. The symptoms didn't seem too severe, so that should be enough. "Let's have a meal together. I hate eating alone. We can also talk more about how to run the stream while we eat. Oh, and is there anything specific you'd like to eat?" "...Anything's fine." Haryeong said this as she slowly followed behind me, lightly gripping the end of my sleeve. * Meanwhile, a new topic was circulating in the community.

The news of Kayak and Haryeong's collab. The community that usually spent all its time tearing Haryeong apart wouldn't miss this topic. Especially for those who deliberately compared Haryeong to Kayak to put her down. The fact that Haryeong had started streaming earlier, or that Kayak had proposed the collab first—none of that mattered to them. They were too busy discussing how to ruin the stream, how to make Haryeong feel bad, and how to expose her inferiority in front of many people. They were broken people from the start. They acted without hesitation to intentionally harm others, and enjoyed it. From that point alone, they weren't normal. It was the mindset of true madmen—drawing attention with bait, making others angry, sad, or devastated, and then deluding themselves into thinking they controlled others' emotions. But they didn't know. Today's stream wouldn't go their way. * "Today's the day." Finally, the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠day of the decisive battle had arrived. The day of the joint stream to rescue Haryeong from being oppressed. I was currently heading to Haryeong's studio, since we'd decided to stream together there. Unlike me, Haryeong had her own personal studio set up for streaming. Truly the look of a professional streamer who'd been doing this for years. I can't let someone like this quit streaming. No way. It was another moment where I felt proud of my actions. I was glad I'd been the one to reach out first. As you might've guessed from me heading to Haryeong's studio, today's stream would be conducted entirely on Haryeong's ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠channel. And not just via internet connection—I'd go there in person to stream together. This wasn't Haryeong's idea. It was purely my decision. I need to go there myself and cut off the roots. I planned to eliminate all the people who interfered with Haryeong's stream, those who subtly scratched at her or turned her around. It wasn't something we'd discussed beforehand, but Haryeong didn't seem to mind. When I brought it up casually during our meal, she'd complained that she'd been having a lot of problems lately. She seemed unexpectedly fragile, so it wouldn't be bad for me to take the lead. As I thought this, I soon arrived at Haryeong's studio. "Are you here?" "Yes, are you already streaming?" Haryeong had mentioned she'd start the stream early. She was in the middle of chatting with viewers when she heard I'd arrived and came to get me. Entering the studio, an ongoing stream greeted me. At first glance, the chat seemed harmless—just typical banter with no obvious issues. But knowing the ins and outs, I saw it differently. They were already comparing me and Haryeong, subtly tearing her down. No wonder her mental state would fray seeing this every day. Haryeong, whose expression had already soured from reading the chat, I took her hand firmly to reassure her and sat down. "Hello, everyone. This is Kayak. To Haryeong's viewers, and to everyone who's been watching me from the start—nice to meet you all." A donation flew in alongside the message. I smiled and responded. "No, I'm the one who asked for the collab. I'm grateful Haryeong agreed. I've been a huge fan for ages." "Originally, I was holding back because I thought collabbing might be a bother? But I like Haryeong so, so much that I couldn't hold back anymore." Haryeong beside me turned her head slightly, looking embarrassed. Regardless, I exaggerated to emphasize my fandom for her. "If you check Vtube, there's a charm short video she posted four months ago? That one's truly the best—" "N-no, stop saying things like that. Let's start the stream soon, okay? Stream. Yes?" After that, I slowly moved on to the content. Today's content itself wasn't special. Haryeong would play Abyss while learning Camilla from me, and afterward, I'd learn female cam dances and reactions from Haryeong. Looking at it this way, our characters really do overlap a lot. Both are great at Abyss, both ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠are women, and both can dance. But comparison is a bad thing. We're clearly different people—how sad would it be to compare and tear each other down? "That wasn't bad just now. Doing it safely like that isn't bad either." "Y-yes..." From what Haryeong told me, her stream had never had a manager to handle chat. She'd managed the chat window entirely on her own. But this time was different. While Haryeong played Abyss, I timed out the chats that subtly scratched at her. This should be enough of a warning. Those people would've realized I was the one messing with the chat. Now the real beginning started. From now on, if anyone sent even one more similar chat during the stream, I'd blacklist them—permanent ban. I was already ready to dance the blade. If you're confident, come on in. No matter how fast you type or how many of you swarm in, I'll cut you all down.