Chapter 33
Chapter 33
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 33
Chapter Title: Our Lulu is This Adorable!
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Kang Haneul was actually taking this incident in a positive light.
She never could have imagined that one of the members would be running a clip channel out of her own fan obsession—a completely absurd turn of events.
Yet somehow, now that it had happened, a smile tugged at her lips.
It was probably a smile born from the satisfaction of knowing her judgment hadn't been wrong.
Even back when she first passed Jeong Da-jeong.
There had been quite a few dissenting voices within the company.
Things were different now, but at the time, Da-jeong didn't have much in the way of specs suited for a Virtual YouTuber.
Her voice was nice, and her emotional delivery when singing wasn't bad.
That was about the only positive she had going for her.
Everything else? Her personality just seemed incredibly kind-hearted.
But Kang Haneul had pushed through everyone's opposition and passed her anyway.
If asked why, she'd have to call it a woman's intuition.
During the interview, Da-jeong's gaze had lingered in her mind all day.
"I have absolute confidence that my love for the members won't lose to anyone's!"
This was back when the members hadn't even been decided yet.
In that situation, the girl had declared it so boldly—it was intriguing.
Her sparkling eyes held not a shred of falsehood, shining so brilliantly.
She thought maybe this girl could truly love the members more than anyone.
'And it turns out that was true.'
Kang Haneul knew it was a foolish hope.
But Da-jeong had boldly proven her inner thoughts wrong.
Declaring that the members were the most precious beings to her.
They'd only known each other for a few months at most.
It was far too short and fleeting to call it a true bond between people.
Yet where did that almost blind devotion come from?
Kang Haneul couldn't understand it.
But one thing was certain.
The light in Da-jeong's eyes and the resonance of her words.
They were no mere lies.
'The most brilliant light I've ever seen in my life.'
Recalling how Da-jeong had described the members, she smiled faintly.
Did that girl know?
If the members were the most brilliant light to shine on her.
Then to Kang Haneul and the members, she was the most brilliant light they'd ever known.
'I hope she realizes it someday.'
That day when she finally recognized her own worth.
Not just chasing light, but becoming a light herself.
For now, she cherished the wish in her heart and surveyed the empty conference room.
She couldn't forget the faces of the girls still earnestly listening to Da-jeong's heartfelt story.
Imagining she'd worn a similar expression, she gently closed her eyes.
'Too bad about the monetization, but there are plenty of other ways.'
For her, who wanted to help ease Da-jeong's hardships even a little, it was disappointing that the key condition had been brushed aside.
Still, convinced that only smooth paths lay ahead, she decided not to rush.
Slurp—
The coffee she sipped tasted especially sweet today.
Even without any sugar.
Thud—
The moment she got home, she collapsed face-first onto the old bed.
"Haa..."
As the tension melted away, a languid sigh escaped her, bringing drowsiness in its wake.
To sum up today's results simply.
As long as she kept the first two conditions the President had laid out, the clip channel could stay intact.
And regarding monetization, the President said it was fine to leave it off if that's what she wanted.
"What a relief..."
In her relief, she hugged her pillow and rolled around on the bed.
She had no idea just how lucky she was.
Honestly, she hadn't thought she could convince the President with mere words.
It felt like nothing short of a miracle.
She still didn't fully understand why the President had allowed it.
It was obvious that it could potentially harm their broadcasting activities.
No matter how much she promised to ensure it wouldn't affect things, there was no reason to go that far.
"Good things are good, right?"
She racked her brain trying to figure out the President's mindset, but no clear answer emerged.
So she decided to stop overthinking it and just be positive.
Reading someone's mind completely was impossible anyway.
"Eek!"
Maybe catch a quick nap before her stream started?
As she pondered that, she checked the time on her phone—and her eyes flew wide open.
Right!
Ra-hee unnie... no, Lucre-chan was in the middle of her stream right now.
It was just past 4 p.m., so it probably hadn't been going long.
This wasn't the time to relax!
Bzzz—
She bolted to her desk and quickly powered on her computer.
The boot time on the high-end PC the President gave her had never felt this long before.
Click—
Thankfully, it fired up fast. She moved the cursor, opened her browser.
Among the four bookmarked links.
She clicked Lucre-chan's and swiftly entered the live stream.
『So what happened with the clip channel Lulu made? Looks like it's staying as is.』
"Hehe..."
Entering the stream, Lucre-chan's voice immediately brought a smile to her face.
Perfect timing—she was talking about her.
『Oh, but is this me spoiling what Lulu was gonna say on her stream?』
No, Lucre-chan.
You can spoil as much as you want.
No need to feel sorry.
Worried Lucre-chan might fret over it, she typed in chat.
Lucre-chan's eyes shifted left.
Spotting her message, her eyes widened slightly, and her avatar body shook.
『Huh? Lulu! You watching the stream?』
Lucre-chan acknowledging her sparked greetings aimed her way in chat.
See? They all pretended otherwise, but they loved using "HaiLu."
Even she thought it was a brilliant greeting.
『Still, I can't steal all of Lulu's stream thunder. So if you're curious about the rest, head to her stream later. Got it?』
Nothing that big, really.
But now Lucre-chan had hyped it up, and she could see people getting excited in chat.
What to do for her stream today? Already worrying.
『Well, there's something I can share without ruining her stream. It's super precious—anyone wanna hear it?』
Eh? Was there something like that?
They'd all shared stories today, but there wasn't much to tell.
The meeting had wrapped up super quick.
And afterward, everyone had their own streams, so they parted ways fast.
But "precious"? What could it be?
Now she was curious too.
『Truth is, our Lulu said something today that made me so grateful and lovable. Too good to keep to myself, so sharing with you all. Don't faint from how cute it is.』
"...Huh?"
Wait a sec.
Something was coming to mind.
Come to think of it, what had she said today?
She'd talked to the President about the clip channel.
Then persuaded everyone about monetization in front of the members...
"...No way?!"
Memory hitting her, every hair on her body stood on end.
Lucre-chan wasn't about to share that, was she?
She'd been mortified after saying it!
It was true, but she'd blurted it out in a total trance—embarrassing!
Not even Lucre-chan could do this!
Tick-tick—
Frantically about to type and stop her.
Then it hit her: freaking out now might backfire.
Think about it.
Lucre-chan's words had zero credibility anyway.
If she teased later on her stream, she could just play it cool: "Never happened?" Done.
Yeah.
Sure, it'd sting now.
But for the big picture, staying silent might be best.
'Lucre-chan, I'm not that easy.'
Heh heh.
Bet Lucre-chan never saw this coming.
Probably smug thinking she'd tease her, but no way!
Jeong Da-jeong had no weaknesses!
『Alright, here goes? But it's super short, so keep that in mind.』
Imitating her voice or something?
With that, Lucre-chan's voice paused.
Whatever she did, it'd be useless against her!
"...Huh?"
Mid-boast.
A weird static noise came from the screen.
You know, that faint hiss you get when recording ambient sounds.
Perking her ears—what was that?
The noise stopped, replaced by a faint voice.
"...Eh?"
Hearing that voice.
She felt the blood drain from her face.
And for good reason—the voice from the speakers was none other than her own.
Not some impression.
Her exact words from the conference room.
Only then did she realize what was happening.
Lucre-chan had recorded her.
And it was being broadcast live to four thousand viewers.
"Ah, no!"
Too late, she yelled aloud to stop her.
But of course, her voice wouldn't reach.
"Ugh...!"
Her dark history echoing into everyone's ears.
And no way to stop it.
Was there a more powerless moment in the world?
『See? Isn't she just too adorable? First time anyone's ever said something like that to me in my life.』
No!
No need for praise!
Just forget it, please!
That was her one wish!
『Oh, I always forget meeting details, so I keep a recorder on during them. Even got the President's permission to play it for viewers on stream.』
Unlike the admiring viewers, she could only slump in despair, barely holding herself together.
Sniff.
President, why'd you allow this?
The embarrassment's all mine.
"...Should I skip stream today?"
Imagining her chat in two hours, the words slipped out unconsciously.
Maybe fake a sudden stomachache and bail.
Sure, she'd get scolded by the President later.
But that might be better.