Chapter 124
Chapter 124
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 124
Chapter Title: Horror Map Competition (1)
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"First up, Yui from Korea. Hello. Nice to meet you."
Maki greeted her in his clumsy Korean, and Yui burst through the darkness.
It was strangely heartwarming how foreigners speaking Korean—even haltingly—could lift your spirits. Of course, Maki's Korean wasn't that bad.
"Waaah! Hello! I'm Yui from Label!"
After a brief chat between Maki and Yui, he called out the next name.
"Next up! The English-speaking world's Number One Queen who recently set the VTuber scene ablaze with that absurd transfer fee! She swears like a sailor, but hold it in today! Sara!"
"Yay~. I'm the good Sara Iris who won't swear today. Welcome, hello, long time no see! Though I streamed just yesterday."
Sara bounced around with her signature hefty avatar. Something jiggled violently with every move. Very violently.
Sara was a slim beauty in real life, but her avatar was over 170cm tall with the biggest size among Myth, Mika, and herself.
The chat's intensity spiked from her bouncy destructive charm.
Tsk. It was the kind of chat that had me foolishly thinking maybe I should bump up Myth's avatar bust size next time.
"And finally! No need to introduce anymore, the myth of the VTuber world! The world's top romanticist! Nursed one guy for seven years? No way I could! Myth~~!!"
"Oh, Myth's turn."
For some reason, whenever Myth appeared on stream, my back went stiff.
With flashy effects, Myth calmly stepped onto the stage. It hit me anew how far tech had come.
Just a few months ago—back when I was still in high school—no one could've imagined VTubers collabing like this.
"Is this the metaverse or what."
I muttered something Myth would've smacked me for calling boomer-ish and quietly sipped my drink.
Hearts and stars exploded in DreamLive's signature effects as Myth took the stage.
"Heyyy~ Viewers across the nation, the world, the universe! And Seol who's probably watching right now! Hello. I'm the Idol from Space, Myth!"
"Pffft?!"
I never expected her to straight-up name-drop me in a huge collab like this.
I spat out my drink. Good thing I was sipping lightly, or it'd have been a disaster.
I wasn't the only one flustered—Maki, the MC, was showing it big time as he asked Myth,
"Whoa?! Dropping your boyfriend's name so boldly on stream? You cool with that? Myth, isn't this straight jealousy bait?"
"Official couple, so it's fine. Hehe, eat your hearts out, fellow VTubers. This is the perk of a VTuber with an overwhelming backstory."
"Whoa. Gotta say, I am jealous. Are VTubers about to marry really invincible?"
Maki grinned enviously, flashing his teeth.
Not that envious, probably, but it was clear he was hyping Myth up—a bit of streamer camaraderie. He'd been the first to reach out since he was tight with Mika, got turned down at first, but now I got why he'd taken the MC gig.
"Alright, our six VTubers are all here. You all know what today's collab is about, right?"
"Duh. It's the horror map made by QWER himself."
"Didn't ask you, dummy~. Anyway, Mika's right. Isn't this studio a bit too bright for a horror map?"
With a sinister chuckle and a clap, the map transformed without warning.
DreamLive's bright social map turned in an instant: spiderwebs everywhere, worn textures. The glassy floor that subtly reflected characters became splintery old wood, and the overall lighting dimmed sharply.
"Ooh. Nicely done."
I hadn't made the map—DreamLive's team did. Swapping all of DreamLive's map textures was a hassle, so I'd left it to them, but this quality? Solid.
Felt good knowing DreamLive was taking this seriously.
"Whoa?!"
"Waaaaaah! Awesome! Link start!"
"Not link start, idiot."
"...Warn a girl. Maki."
"H-Huh...! I hate jumpscares...!"
"Ahaha! It's a scare collab, what're you saying, dummy!"
Everyone panicked, but MC Maki laughed it off coolly.
Made sense—I flinched watching, but for them, the world literally shifted in real time. The fear factor had to be next level.
The chat reactions were great. Seeing viewers thrilled made me happy too. This time, it was a festival for them, not just Myth.
"Wonder if Myth's okay, though."
She still seemed pretty scared of horror games. Good thing DreamLive skipped the blood and gore.
"Ahaha! You guys freaking out too much? Look at Myth here. Can't win today's war if you can't stay cool like that?"
"...Huh? Yeah, what?"
"Eh? You didn't faint, right?"
"Uh, huh? No way. I'm Myth. Myth of horror games."
"Ahaha! Knew it. No way you'd faint from a little surprise like this, Myth."
Maki chuckled and patted Myth's back.
Avatars didn't actually touch, of course, but the motion sold it perfectly.
Nah, that didn't look calm—that looked like she passed out. Nah, probably my imagination.
"Anyway. First to clear wins, obviously. Say if it's too much. Go team! I'll be cheering!"
"Huh? Wait, cheering for wha—"
"Go! Sudden start!"
Ding—
A plucked string instrument rang out, and the six VTubers got sucked into holes beneath their feet.
"Wait—waaaaaah?!!!!!!!!"
The real horror map exploration had begun.
"...Whose brilliant idea was it to rig actual wind fans below for that falling sensation."
DreamLive 1st gen. Sounds like the pioneers, but technically not—thanks to the 0th gen.
Unique even among DreamLive for sticking to solo streams, only joining collabs if seniors like Mika or close juniors dragged her.
Shiro scowled and looked around.
"If it weren't for QWER's avatar, no way I'd join this nonsense."
Edgy line that could've sparked drama, but her viewers didn't care. Small-timer in DreamLive, but that's why her fans loved her my-pace vibe.
"Anyway, this is—an abandoned hospital."
Old-school. Too old-school.
Shiro smirked, mocking QWER's map. The planning screamed retro, and now a cliché horror map? Perfect for her deadpan style.
She wasn't great at horror games—not from fear, but boredom.
"No rules, no briefing, just tossed in. Intentional?"
Shiro decided to move. Weird collab or not, sitting still wasn't an option in a race.
Old guy makes old map for old collab. Credit to QWER's avatar skills, but Shiro wasn't girly enough to scare easy.
"...Only one way out."
After speed-scanning the abandoned hospital corridor, Shiro stopped at a door. All others inert; this one interactable.
Easy early-game? Or design limit?
Either way, she had to open it and proceed.
"Let's see—"
As Shiro opened the door, something blocked her view fast. Falling trap? She smirked.
Just a 3D map, VR world.
No reason to fear the unreal, scream over nothing.
Bring it.
She'd toss in a stream reaction for show, mocking QWER's amateur hour—
"Hnyaaaaaaaah?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Something slimy and ice-cold slap-hit her face.
Shiro's scream filled the studio, loud and piercing.