212 - Maestro: Yamaha's VR Music Revolution

Yamaha, the world's largest audio specialist company. They develop everything related to sound—from all kinds of musical instruments to speakers, audio mixers, Vocaloids, and audio codecs.

With the advent of virtual reality technology, Yamaha swiftly devised a market expansion strategy. They launched Maestro, a VR instrument performance simulator. Even ordinary people without instruments could experience a variety of them for a cheap subscription fee, creating a virtuous cycle that led to real-world instrument purchases. After its initial release, an ad featuring a man born without limbs who logged into Maestro and won a VR piano concours went viral. That heartwarming story won a Golden Lion at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, cementing Yamaha's dominant position in the VR music industry.

Pi Su-jeong, a violinist and professor in the orchestral music department at Korea University. She approached NoName and suggested trying Maestro. The Baek students were puzzled. Pi Su-jeong was the one person who never recommended Maestro to her university juniors. Adapting too much to VR avatar body types could hinder real-world performance.

Pi Su-jeong explained why she was changing her stance this time.

"I was thinking NoName might not be fully adapted to her own body yet."

"Not adapted to her own body? What do you mean?"

"Maybe because she's such an old hand at VR life?"

"Ah..."

NoName's interpretation of the music was flawless. She seemed to know exactly how to play every section. If the occasional rough spots were because her body wasn't keeping up, then Maestro could be the perfect supplement.

"But Professor, do you even have a game account?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah! It supports up to four people sharing, so I can just add NoName to my party."

"Four players... isn't that the premium account?"

And so, Professor Pi Su-jeong and NoName each entered capsules and logged into Maestro.

The waiting room was like any other open-world lobby. NoName, who hadn't created a game avatar yet, spawned in her real-world appearance. Then Professor Pi Su-jeong appeared behind her.

"...?"

NoName—and the students watching via screen in reality—all gaped at her avatar, speechless.

This person's avatar was something else.

A graceful Victorian-style dress fluttered with Professor Pi Su-jeong's entrance. The voluminous velvet skirt, intricate embroidery, frills, and lace elevated its elegance. The curving design hugged her figure softly, with what looked like a corset cinched at the waist. The bodice was adorned with beautiful pearls and embroidery, but the most shocking part was her hair. An impossibly vivid red, split into twin drills—an awkward yet striking style. It gave off a cute yet bold vibe, like a young noble lady debuting in high society.

"Ah... no! This isn't my usual avatar—my daughter made it! Seriously, kids, I swear!"

Professor Pi Su-jeong flushed and hurriedly changed her avatar. Unfortunately, the inside here didn't show the real world, so she couldn't check the students' reactions. They were probably chuckling, she guessed.

Back to a plain black-haired look in a simple black dress, the professor stood before the camera, frantically explaining to her students. Her game nickname floated above her head.

With a chuunibyou nickname like that, her earnest explanations probably fell on deaf ears...

"But what's World Rank?"

"Oh, this? In Maestro, you compete against others through performances."

"Isn't that just... a rhythm game?"

"Exactly! A rhythm game!"

"It is?!"

It was the kind of thing that made you blurt out, This can't be real. A music conservatory professor playing a real-instrument rhythm game? Child abuse?

"NoName, watch me closely, okay?"

Professor Pi Su-jeong—no, Bloody Crystal—pulled a violin from her inventory and entered a gate labeled "Quick Match."

Eight players ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠sat in orchestra-like curved seats, and the piece began.

Maestro lagged far behind other online games in popularity in Korea. Still, it had a dedicated fanbase, and with Korea's status as a musical powerhouse, plenty threw their lives into it for national pride. The Maestro gallery had a middling post rate—not too flooded, posts didn't bury easily—and a big scoop dropped after a while.

Danielle's name came from her devout Christian parents, drawn from the Old Testament figure Daniel—"God is my judge"—taking just "judge" and Latinizing it to Judex.

Now, just seeing Maestro made her dizzy and nauseous. The person she hated second only to her parents was undoubtedly Bloody Crystal.

Whenever she uploaded videos seeking praise, malicious comparison posts with Bloody Crystal appeared. Danielle knew the skill gap was huge. She'd thought her sky-high mother was surpassed, so she fully acknowledged it. But fans and antis created endless rivalries, and before long, Danielle was swept up, harboring unconscious hatred for Blk.

It felt odd even to her. She'd dismissed it as a childish nightmare and moved on—until an unexpected reunion.

Bloody Crystal. Pi Su-jeong as ever, with that red drill hair unchanged.

"Niel, why are you here? You okay?"

A few friends who knew her trauma rushed to support her.

How hadn't she noticed? The storm, thunder, hail—it was unmistakably the same person.

"I'm fine..."

Niel quietly sat in the corner, watching the professor and ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠NoName chat. They looked happy. Unlike her, who saw music only as conquest and judgment, Professor Pi Su-jeong genuinely enjoyed it. Enviable.

"What piece will you do, NoName?"

"Anything's fine for me."

"Better something you know, right? Link your VTube account and it plays algorithm-recommended randoms. Wanna try that?"

"There's a feature like that? God game for real."

"Hehe, god game! Made for choice-paralyzed folks like me! You're kinda like that too, NoName!"

The blonde woman's avatar. Niel had glimpsed it on TV once or twice, but this was her first close look.

She's even prettier up close...

The algorithm's guess at NoName's taste played:

Kariri's cover song Ren'ai Circulation.