Chapter 118
Chapter 118
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 118
Chapter Title: Off to the Verdi-chan Collab Cafe!
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After finishing our meal, Rine-chan and I headed to a cafe.
It wasn't just any ordinary cafe, though.
Prism Company—the virtual group Rine-chan belongs to—had just opened a collab cafe in Korea.
Of course, I'd been thinking about checking it out at least once.
And somehow, here I was, visiting it with Rine-chan herself.
It felt strangely surreal.
【It's quieter than I expected. Are we not that popular in Korea?】
Seeing how few customers were in the cafe, Rine-chan showed a hint of disappointment.
Just a handful of tables tucked away in the corners.
Other than that, the place was completely empty.
But I didn't see it that way.
I knew better than anyone just how massive Prism Company's popularity was in Korea.
After all, I practically lived on Mityube.
【Nah, it's probably because it was insanely packed at the start. I saw online that for the first three or four days, they couldn't even get tickets—it was total chaos.】
【Oh, really?】
【Yeah, I watched a video review from the collab cafe just recently, and look...】
I pulled up a Mityube video review of the collab cafe on my phone and showed it to Rine-chan.
Her eyes widened in amazement as she leaned in close.
The video clearly showed the same cafe, but it was swarming with people, the line stretching out the door and beyond.
【Whoa, so we have this many fans in Korea too.】
【Well, yeah—you're the top virtual group in the world right now.】
Of course, in the world five years from now that I remembered...
Blue LUV would rise to a similar level of fame.
But at this point in time, no other virtual group came close to Prism Company.
Take their first-gen members, for example.
Including Rine-chan, the one with the fewest Mityube subscribers among the four had over 800,000.
It was popularity on another level entirely.
【Besides, having fewer people around might actually be better today. Someone might recognize your voice.】
【No way. You think anyone would figure it out just from my voice?】
【I-I mean, probably a lot of people would...】
Did Rine-chan not fully grasp her own fame?
Or was she just underestimating how distinctive her unique voice was?
Even her fans probably wouldn't pick her out from voice alone, she seemed to think.
But from my perspective, that wasn't true at all.
Especially if they knew Prism Company members were in Korea.
Hearing someone speak English in the shop might make them suspicious.
So it was best to stay cautious.
【What do you want to get, Rine-chan?】
【Hmm... I promised Anise, so maybe the 'Anise's Special Mix Parfait'?】
【Hehe, then since it's a rare chance, I'll go for the 'Verdia's Dark Magic Cake'.】
【The naming sense is way off. I wouldn't touch that cake with a ten-foot pole.】
Even though it was her own collab menu item...
Rine-chan shuddered and shook her head like it was a hard pass.
Well, it was based on her—Verdi-chan's—concept, so what could you do?
Who decided on crows and dark magic as her theme, anyway?
If the company had forced it on her, I'd send condolences.
Luckily, there was a kiosk for ordering, so we each picked a dessert, placed our orders, and were done.
Our stomachs were so full from lunch that we didn't feel like eating much more.
Though maybe I should've grabbed a drink...
Bzzz—
"...Huh?"
We'd just picked up our order tickets and were heading to a quiet corner table when...
The shop's automatic door slid open, and four people filed in one after another.
Something about them looked familiar.
Wait, huh?
Aren't those the people we saw at the restaurant earlier?
My memory was fuzzy, so I couldn't recall perfectly.
But I definitely remembered the one in sunglasses wearing something like Ra-hee unnie's outfit.
Whoa, no way—did they eat at that restaurant before coming here too?
Makes sense; it was less than ten minutes' walk.
Our paths must've overlapped. Weird coincidence.
Vrrr—
【Ah, I'll grab it.】
【Thanks.】
The pager buzzed, and Rine-chan stood up to fetch our order.
Soon, she returned with a tray piled high with a towering parfait...
And next to it, a dainty-looking slice of cake.
【Whoa, this parfait is way bigger than I thought. Bet Anise couldn't even finish half.】
【Hehe, yeah. Anise was a total lightweight eater.】
I wasn't an expert on Prism Company members by any means.
But I knew a bit about their famous memes, personalities, and tastes.
I nodded in agreement, and Rine-chan's eyes widened as she sat down.
【Da-jeong, you know about Anise too?】
【Not super well, but... I know a little about the Company members. I looked stuff up after our collab stream with you.】
It wasn't like I was cheating on anyone.
I was a Blue LUV stan for life!
Just that watching top overseas VTubers taught me a thing or two.
Sometimes, like when Rine-chan had shouted out me and Yuna last time...
Unexpected content gold could pop up, so I made time to check them out when I could.
【Whoa, really? They'd be thrilled if I told the others. Actually, our members have been watching a ton of Blue LUV videos lately.】
【Whoa! Pr-Prism Company members...?!】
Shocked by the bombshell news I'd never expected...
I froze mid-scoop of cake, eyes bulging.
It wasn't just Rine-chan watching our streams?
【Yeah, I recommended your clip channel to them. The subs and editing are top-tier quality.】
【Ehehe... it's not that great...】
Of course, praise as VTuber Lulu was nice.
But getting it to my face as clipper 'BlueOshi'? That was rare.
So it felt extra special.
Not just that my videos were high-quality...
But that they weren't embarrassing for the members to see.
【Anise loves them especially. She's always wanted a little sister, so every time she sees you, she nags me to buy you for her.】
【I-I'm not a pet...!】
Buy me? What kind of wording was that?
Like a kid begging mom for a toy.
Ugh, still, glad she likes me...
...Wait, hold up. Something's off.
I barely have any clips on the channel.
How'd Anise even get into me?
【Rine-chan, does Anise hunt down my streams separately? There's hardly any of my stuff on the clip channel...】
【Yeah, she watches your lives on a burner account. Like this...】
Rine-chan opened the Discord app on her phone...
And showed me her chat with Anise.
【Actually, Anise was the one who told me to watch your Christmas stream—not our fans.】
【Uh, yeah... please thank her for me.】
It felt like seeing Rine-chan Version 2, but...
Hey, if she likes me, that's great.
Only once Rine-chan put her phone away could we finally dig into the desserts.
The 'Verdia's Dark Magic Cake' was... exactly as expected.
You know, that classic sweet-and-bitter combo people rave about.
Pretty satisfying for a sweets lover like me.
【Da-jeong, how's the cake?】
【Mm... wanna try some? It's pretty good.】
【Really? Hold on, lemme grab another fork.】
Rine-chan started to stand and head to the counter, but...
I scooped a bite with my own fork and held it out.
【Rine-chan, say ahh~】
【Huh? You sure?】
【Eh?】
What was there to be sure about?
Oh, did she mean sharing utensils?
I didn't mind that at all.
【Ah, yeah. It's fine. I don't care if someone else's used it.】
【Not what I meant... but thanks, I'll have it.】
She made a weird face, then glanced toward the window seats.
A faint smile crossed her lips as she opened wide.
I slid the cake in smoothly.
She chewed thoughtfully, savoring it, then made a subtle expression.
【Hmm, my own cakes are better. Too sweet.】
【Rine-chan, you bake cakes too?】
【Yeah, Mom taught me baking a while back. I can make most stuff.】
Whoa, impressive.
I could cook basic meals on my own...
But baking? Never tried it.
【Da-jeong, try some parfait? I think this is tastier.】
【Hehe, thanks. Ahh~.】
【...Feels kinda naughty.】
I opened up eagerly since I'd been curious.
She scooped a bite onto her spoon and fed it to me with a look like she had a lot to say.
Mm, yeah—this might be better.
The fruity bits added perfect texture.
Should've ordered the parfait myself.
【Rine-chan, wanna grab some merch before we go?】
【Sure. But you okay with that? It's basically cheating.】
Uh, cheating?
Oh, right—since I always rep Pista...
Buying another group's merch must feel like straying.
Well, if it was for stanning, maybe.
But nah, this was just a souvenir from hanging with Rine-chan.
Explaining all that felt awkward, though.
And I was feeling playful, so...
I deliberately picked out a Verdia acrylic stand and quipped,
【Hehe, then just this once—secretly cheating with you, Rine-chan.】
【...Oh, Lord.】
Rine-chan touched her forehead and stared at the ceiling...
Like she was holding something back.
Huh? Did I say something wrong?
Da-jeong said it was secretly cheating...
But sadly, there's no such thing as an eternal secret in this world.
And in Da-jeong's case, her secret was being live-streamed in real time.
"Unnie...! Da-jeong's ditching us for C-Company merch...!"
"Da-jeong's cheating on us...!"
"We need to bust her on the spot. What's your take, big sis?"
As they watched Da-jeong happily holding Verdia merch...
The dongsaengs threw a fit, and Ji-ah gave a wry smile.
Why the drama over one measly merch item?
"Calm down, girls. Da-jeong wouldn't ditch us. She's just keeping a memento from meeting Lady Verdia."
"Unnie..."
Hand to her lips, exuding calm...
Her sharp insight awed the dongsaengs...
"Unnie, can you at least stop trembling when you talk?"
"Whoa, look at the table shaking."
"Your mouth's smiling, but your eyes aren't..."
...Not even a little. Instead, they pitied her feigned composure.
Was the fear of losing her oshi spot doing this to her?
The ever-cool big sis Han Ji-ah was gone.
The dongsaengs, hurting themselves, still showered their leader with encouragement.
"B-But hang in there, unnie! Their side has silver-haired cuties, but you're blonde! You can win!"
"Yeah! Your chest is bigger anyway!"
"That's not comforting...!"
But their 'encouragement' rang hollow.
Ji-ah slumped over the table in despair again.
Would the maknae's top oshi spot really be stolen like this?
She felt like a wife catching her husband cheating...
Her will to live fading by the second.