Sign a Contract with Me and Become a VTuber! Latte.
Latte. Real name Yeon Hana. A million-sub VTuber and seven-year streamer. The usually mild-mannered woman was extremely pissed off right now.
Riiiing──
"Agh, fuck... who the hell is this??"
A sudden call at 11 p.m. Latte, who had just finished brushing her teeth and was about to hit the bed, snatched her phone with all her might, furrowing her brow as hard as she could.
"Who calls in the middle of the damn night──"
[Seong Eunha]
"...Oh, right. Could be."
The problem was that the caller was Seong Eunha.
It didn't take long for Latte to regain her usual warmth. With trembling hands, she pressed the accept button.
"H-Hello...?"
/Ah, unnie./
The familiar voice came through the receiver. It had been a year since she'd last heard it, but there was no greeting—just a flat response. But what followed was anything but flat.
/I'm gonna become a VTuber./
"......?"
Out of nowhere, she declares she's becoming a VTuber. Latte's brain flatlined at Seong Eunha's VTuber bombshell.
"????"
Soon, hundreds of question marks floated above her head. After a long daze of blue-screening, she snapped back and asked Seong Eunha,
"No, wait, why?? And out of nowhere like this???"
/That's how it happened. Yeah./
"You... you mean you got screwed over as an idol and...?"
/Quit. /
"...What?"
A casual tone, like she'd just quit a part-time gig. But the weight of those words was anything but light.
/Terminated the contract in exchange for handing over song copyrights and trademarks./
Not even an "end of activities"—a full contract termination. And giving up all the lucrative rights to boot. Latte swallowed a scream and said to Seong Eunha,
"Eunha."
/Yeah./
"You crazy bitch."
/Pardon?/
Her tone had gotten a bit more aggressive now.
"No... Zenith? Not some other group—Zenith? One of the top idols in Korea, top three fingers easy...?"
/Yeah./
"And you just. Quit?"
/Yeah./
"Zenith?? What, just... like that?? Quit on a whim or what??"
/Yeah./
Latte screamed.
"Aaaargh!!! You little shit!!!!"
Screaming, she unleashed a torrent of nagging at Seong Eunha. After a brief mad movie of 26-year-old spinster Yeon Hana's scolding montage, 30 minutes later, she could finally resume a normal conversation.
"Hoo... so."
With a calmer voice than before, Latte asked,
"Why VTuber of all things? There's gotta be a reason, right?"
/A reason? /
"Yeah. Out of all the jobs out there, why pick VTuber?"
/Obviously... /
At her question, Seong Eunha seemed to ponder for a moment before speaking up.
/Jamsil. /
"......"
VTuber and Jamsil. Those two words meant one simple thing. There was only one monster in Korea who could pull that off right now.
Angel. Korea's one-and-only 2-million-sub VTuber. Starting solo, she hit 2 million subs in three years and even held a solo concert at Jamsil Olympic Stadium, the monster of monsters.
Thinking of that name, Latte continued in a serious tone.
"Mm... Eunha."
/Yeah./
"You think VTubing is a joke?"
At the sharp follow-up, Seong Eunha replied in a playful tone.
/Isn't it an easy way to make bank, though? Just hole up in your room and stream... /
"Hey."
/Kidding, kidding. I know VTubing's a total red ocean./
As Seong Eunha said, the VTuber market was a brutal red ocean right now. Massive corps dominating the scene, veteran streamers with over a decade under their belts. And now insane solo VTubers popping up left and right. These days, even monks, pastors, MIT PhDs, and officials from the old Korean Empire were going VTuber. In a market crawling with such freakish monsters, a newbie surviving was damn near impossible.
But.
/Who do you think I am? /
"......"
Seong Eunha wasn't your average person. She was the one who'd dragged that ragtag Zenith group right to the doorstep of Jamsil. And after rolling in that cesspool for three years, she came out spotless—not a speck of dirt. Meaning, that insane feat was pure, unadulterated skill.
/I'm standing on the Jamsil stage. I have to. So... /
"......"
/Help me out, unnie. /
It was surreal. The person calling her now was Seong Eunha—Zenith's Seong Eunha, Korea's top idol. And here she was, suddenly declaring she'd go VTuber. Asking her for help. Something no normal person would even dream of. Everything she'd built up to now had just crumbled. Yet instead of giving up, she was gearing up to take the stage again.
"...Got it. I'll help."
There was no way she could refuse. She hadn't even considered it. Her close dongsaeng wants to debut as a VTuber? If she couldn't help with that much, she'd be a failure of an unnie.
"But."
That said, she wasn't helping for free. Give and take. If she was giving, she expected something back.
"Do me one favor later."
So.
This was a contract.
"That cool?"
Sign a contract with me and become a magical girl... no, a VTuber!
A few months later. Debut prep was going smoothly. First up, the computer and streaming gear. Latte unnie's help was huge there. I thought I knew my way around PCs since I used to be a guy... but streaming required way more than I expected. Thanks to her, I got a slick new setup: PC, monitor, mic, audio interface, the works.
"Next up... Live 2D."
Live 2D. Aka the "rigged model." Basically, the virtual idol's "body"—the essence of a VTuber. With this, whether you're a potbellied uncle or a gender-bent idol like me, you can exist as a "bishoujo" in the internet world.
Sway, sway.
The design turned out great. Pink hair in twin-up tails. Clothes that subtly emphasize the chest, killer for virgins. And a pretty face that could rival my real-life one. A perfect pink-haired, twintailed, big-tiddied bishoujo that otakus like me would lose their minds over.
"Heh heh... just grab the handles and..."
Vulgar, but it was seriously thicc bait. Not that my vanished lower half was coming back or anything.
Sway, sway.
I shook my head side to side again. The girl on screen followed suit.
Jiggle!
Of course, it wasn't just her head shaking. The massive twin orbs hidden in her clothes jiggled along. Satisfied with the sight, I let out an admiring sigh without thinking.
"Whoa, boing..."
G-cup, three sizes up from my original D. Seeing it move like this made upsizing worth it. Just watching felt like my IQ was dropping. Made me wanna mutter "oooh..." or "boobie..." on reflex.
"Definitely worth every penny."
500 mil per titty, 1 bil total. But it wasn't just physics dumped into the boobs. Top-tier illustrators and riggers in the industry handled the full package: art to Live 2D rigging.
I mean... might as well make it pretty if I'm making it, right? With my savings, it wasn't a huge hit... and above all, this was an investment for the future, not extravagance.
"...Yeah, an investment."
Of course. This VTuber was gonna be my lifeline from now on. Thinking long-term, 1 bil was worth it—hell, even more.
Of course, Latte unnie didn't see it that way at first, but showing her my bank balance shut her up quick.
...Anyway.
[Yume]
[17-year-old high school girl dreaming of being a virtual idol, Yume here 🌠]
I kept the RP simple. Yume. 17-year-old high schooler. Aspiring idol VTuber. Skipped the wild backstory like ^born in Dragon Palace, ditched Atlantis princess gig for land, wandered broke in Korea, suddenly chugged doujin and decided to debut as virtual idol singing dreams and hopes^.
RP used to be one of the VTuber big three, but it's fading these days. For me, as long as it hid the "Seong Eunha" inside, it was good enough.
Anyway.
"A person just died here."
That fragile yesterday-me. Zenith's Seong Eunha died here today. From now on, I'm reborn as Yume, the 17-year-old high school girl VTuber chasing idol dreams.
"Aa. Mic test."
My body moves on instinct. Condenser mic pop filter. Main cam position and angle. Live 2D model, stream overlay, chat window.
"...Okay."
Everything was perfect. All that was left was to actually start the debut stream.
"Hoo..."
After one deep breath, I finally clicked the stream button.
Click.
One hour later.
Ding!
No need to deliberate—it was already fucked beyond repair.
"......"
My mental just completely broke.