Chapter 132

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Translator: penny

Chapter: 132

Chapter Title: Everything for the Blues!

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Ten days had passed since Lunar New Year's Day, and today we gathered in a Discord room for a meeting instead of at the company.

We'd held meetings in Discord rooms before, sure.

But until shortly after our debut, meeting up at the company had been the norm.

Now the President was letting us handle content more autonomously, so unless it was something major, Discord meetings had become more frequent.

『Hi everyone.』

『Hi hi!』

『What's this? Chae-yoon unnie isn't late today?』

『Unnie! Anyone hearing that would think I'm always late!』

『W-well, isn't that true? It feels rarer when you're not late...』

The moment we all hopped into the Discord room, a flurry of playful bickering erupted like a marketplace showdown.

Right after debut, meetings had this super calm vibe.

But now everyone was more comfortable around the President and closer with each other.

So until the real discussion kicked off, meetings always felt like this.

『Has everyone eaten?』

『Yep, we all have.』

『We chatted in the group text to sync up for the meeting and ended up eating together.』

『Chae-yoon unnie was grilling pork belly first thing in the morning, though.』

『Wh-what's wrong with pork belly for breakfast? Right, Da-jeong?』

Chae-yoon unnie, the biggest carnivore in our group, appealed to me like she was filing a grievance.

To be honest, pork belly for breakfast was a tough sell even for me.

But it felt so perfectly her, so I nodded with a bright smile.

"Hehe, of course. You've gotta eat a hearty breakfast to have energy all day."

『Sniff, our maknae is the best.』

『Unnie! I'm a cute maknae too!』

『Uh, y-yeah... sure you are?』

『Gyaah!』

Yuna and Chae-yoon unnie were at it again today.

Our group was generally all about kind words and gentle vibes.

Those two were a bit of an exception.

Watching them play games together was pure gold.

They'd spend the whole day nitpicking who did better or worse, nipping at each other nonstop.

Pista fans even had to step in with pleas like "Please stop fighting...."

But I loved their chemistry.

It was one of my absolute favorite pairings.

I'd even titled a recent Blue Oshi channel video "Don't get the wrong idea~ We really are fighting~." and filled a full 20 minutes with just their dynamic.

Yeah, yeah.

Just because they bickered didn't mean they didn't care deeply for each other.

If anything, it showed how close they were, and I thought it was great.

『Anyway, I'll keep this short—just some updates and we're done. First off, Ji-ah's solo track we talked about before? It's finished. Just needs final approval, then it'll go up.』

The meeting proper started with some incredibly good news.

Everyone—Ji-ah unnie included—couldn't help erupting in cheers.

『R-really...?!』

『Whoa! So Ji-ah unnie's dropping our group's first solo track?!』

『I'm so excited. I loved the demo when I heard it.』

『Right? The vibe was perfect for unnie.』

"Unnie, congrats!"

We all showered Ji-ah unnie with congratulations.

From across the mic, I could hear her voice trembling faintly with emotion.

『Th-thank you all... I feel a little bad that I'm the first to get this chance...』

『Nah, no need for that between us.』

『Exactly, unnie. Don't overthink it.』

『Honestly, if anyone's dropping a solo first, it has to be you.』

"I think so too. No one loves singing like you do, Ji-ah unnie."

Even before I regressed.

Back when I was just an ordinary Pista fan, I'd felt the same.

She was someone who genuinely loved to sing.

Ellin had way more covers than the other members, after all.

The President had even mentioned it once.

If there's one member whose passion for music shines brightest, it's Ellin.

So when this solo track got greenlit, I was thrilled like it was my own win.

Covers were great, but I ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠really wanted to see an original track that captured Ellin's essence as a Virtual YouTuber.

Even though I'd already heard it in my past life.

『It'll probably drop after Valentine's Day, so keep that in mind. Next up: Ra-hee's new outfit?』

『Yes, that's right.』

Next was Ra-hee unnie's turn, whose new godly outfit we'd requested as a 100-day anniversary gift.

『The design's finally done, so once Ra-hee gives the okay, production starts right away. The avatar creator's swamped, though, so even at best, it'll be late Q1.』

『That's fast. I was thinking summer at earliest.』

『Da-jeong sped that up for us. This avatar design actually came from her.』

『Huh? Da-jeong?』

My name came out of nowhere, laced with surprise in Ra-hee unnie's voice.

A bit embarrassed, I just giggled "Ehehe..." without saying much.

『Yeah, Da-jeong gave us an amazing idea. Normally we'd design it ourselves, get Ra-hee's final okay, then send it over... but her draft was so spot-on, it saved tons of time.』

『Whoa, Da-jeong pulled another 'Da-jeong' moment?』

"N-no, it's not like that..."

Yuna gasped in admiration at the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠President's words.

I shook my head, scratching my hair in bashful denial.

Lately, among the members and company folks,

Whenever I suggested something good, they'd call it "pure Da-jeong" like it was my trademark.

It felt like too much hype for me, honestly embarrassing.

『Anyway, the design's locked in, so here's a peek...』

The President uploaded the finalized outfit for confirmation in Discord.

Admiration rippled through the members as they saw it.

『Whoa, the quality is insane!』

『Wow, unnie. Now you're a real vampire!』

『Totally suits Ra-hee.』

Exactly.

Lucrezia's concept was a vampire, sure.

But she was a queen who'd lost her powers and was trying to adapt to modern society, so her default outfit was pretty contemporary.

This new godly outfit drew from her days as a true vampire queen.

『Da-jeong came up with this design?』

『Da-jeong's got real talent for this stuff.』

『How does something like that just pop into her head?』

"Ehehe... it's nothing."

The praise kept coming from the members.

Truth be ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠told, I'd been pretty worried about this new outfit.

For the initial avatar concepts, I could just pull from the original world's designs.

But for this, I didn't want to do that.

So I racked my brain to sketch the Lucrezia I'd always wanted to see.

It got approved and well-received, thankfully.

But at first, my anxiety outweighed everything.

『For design feedback, best to ask Da-jeong directly. It'll be quickest. Da-jeong, as the creator, mind sharing your thoughts behind this design?』

"Huh? M-me...?"

『Who else? You made it.』

Eek...?!

Sure, it was my design, but...!

This wasn't in the plan!

I barely covered what I said in the design meeting!

"W-well... Modern clothes are nice and all, but Ra-hee unnie's a vampire at heart. I wanted to see an outfit that matched that concept. But super high exposure felt too much, so I covered up while letting her sultry vibe—y'know, that allure—shine through..."

I fidgeted with my hands, explaining my thought process from sketching it.

The members nodded in agreement.

Though it veered in a weird direction.

『Right, Ra-hee unnie's body is pretty lewd.』

『It really is impressive.』

『Wh-what are you guys saying in front of the President?!』

Ji-ah unnie, ever the proper Confucian girl, raised her voice at the blunt word choice.

But the President and Ra-hee unnie just nodded along.

Ra-hee unnie's figure was impressive, no doubt.

Though "lewd" never crossed my mind.

That's a word only Yuna could get away with.

"Also, unnie usually has one side of her hair braided, right? Leaving it loose gives a more lively feel... like breaking a seal. So I went with that this time."

『She says so herself. What do you think, Ra-hee?』

What would the main person say?

Heart pounding, I waited for Ra-hee unnie's response.

No matter how much we loved it,

If she—the owner—didn't, we'd have to change it now.

『Hmm. I love it so much, I don't even know how to put it into words. Anything I say feels like empty flattery because it's just that good.』

"R-really, unnie?"

Her words left me blinking in disbelief.

I'd worried she might hold back criticism because it was my design.

But her voice carried a genuine quiver of emotion, no faking it.

『Absolutely. It's exactly what I wanted. I'm thrilled, honestly? To think our maknae put this much thought into her unnie.』

"Ehehe..."

Her praise warmed my cheeks,

But it made me just as happy.

Not just because my idea got through,

But because all those days pondering and sketching for her had been affirmed.

『Ugh, jealous... Should I ask Da-jeong for my next outfit design too...?』

『Me too! I wanna ask Da-jeong!』

『Don't you guys think about how much work that is for Da-jeong...?』

Chae-yoon unnie and Yuna jumped in, wanting to hand their outfits to me too.

The President muttered in disbelief.

I'd love to if time and chance allowed.

『Anyway, I think that's it for the meeting... Oh, right—anyone prepped content? Valentine's Day's coming up.』

『I'm gonna try making chocolates live!』

『Same as Yuna. Should be fun.』

Yuna and Ji-ah unnie were planning chocolate-making streams.

Sounds good.

Though Yuna's would probably turn into total chaos entertainment,

While Ji-ah unnie's would be a high-quality crafting show.

『I'm doing a simple dating sim vibe video.』

『Ooh, sounds fun. Cool, what about you, Chae-yoon?』

『Valentine's is Valentine's, but I'm stumped on content till then. Nothing's clicking lately...』

『Yeah, true. Not many good games out right now.』

The members all nodded in agreement with Chae-yoon unnie.

Yeah, no big AAA titles dropping these days.

She'd have to dig into ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠older games, but those were hit-or-miss.

"Um, unnie? Mind if I recommend one game?"

『Huh? A game? From Da-jeong?』

"Yeah, it's coming out soon, and I think it'd be perfect for you."

『Ooh, nice. What's it called?』

That's why I'd brought up a game tailor-made for her.

Chae-yoon unnie perked up right away.

Sh-she's so excited, it kinda tugs at my conscience a bit.

But it was carefully picked for her sake!

Yeah, she'll smash it with this game for sure!

"It's called Take Over It..."

No one dives into games with more immersion or higher energy than her.

Her playing this? Total streaming gold.

Though her blood pressure... no guarantees there.

What they call the jar game.