You're a Slave Now

"Ughhhhh…."

Study time was over.

We'd only gone for about an hour and a half, and honestly, I ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠wasn't sure how productive it really was.

Still, the important thing was that I had studied. My method was brutally straightforward—just rote memorization. I'd crammed the entire study notes packet that Im Lua sent me.

Not perfectly, but enough that if any one thing from it came up, I could rattle off the rest.

"…This is tough."

Insanely tough. And boring. Not fun at all.

Yet when it was all done, I felt this strange sense of pride swelling up.

It was different from the satisfaction of finishing a Lulu clip. When I complete one of Lulu's clips—or anyone else's, really—there's this rush, this thrill. Knowing I've created something hilarious that entertains everyone who watches it. That's the high.

Studying didn't have that. But I was satisfied anyway.

What was this feeling? It had been so long since I'd last felt anything like it.

Like I'd made the most of my day? It sounded ridiculous after just an hour and a half, but that's exactly how it hit me.

I stretched my arms way up, got out of my chair, and shuffled slowly to the kitchen. I grilled some ham, fried up an egg, grabbed some rice, and headed back to my room.

I set my dinner on the desk, then turned on the monitor for the computer I'd left running.

The screen lit up, and there was Lulu, smiling and chatting away about this and that.

I cranked the volume, and her clear, lively voice filled the room.

"So~ I was teasing May unnie so much, and she finally got mad! She was like, 'Just you wait till you get old!' "

Looks like she was doing some pre-stream talk before diving into the main show. No big deal—I was already recording the broadcast. If it was funny later, I could always clip that part too.

I started eating my dinner while watching Lulu's stream like it was any other night.

Somehow, watching her after buckling down on studying felt like a reward for my hard work.

Basking in that good vibe, I listened to her voice while managing my Newtube channel.

Work was work, after all.

*

"And with that in mind, today I'm streaming with May unnie! May unnie~"

"Yeees~ my little Lulu~ Having fun teasing your unnie?"

"Eek~ When did I tease you?!"

"Unnie, were you watching my whole stream?"

"Ah? It was all a joke! A joke!"

They were already cooking up legendary clip material right from the start.

For the record, Lulu had pretended to gossip about May, but every single story was secretly praise. Stuff like "May unnie is so cute~" or "May unnie is super kind!"

A lot of it ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠was embarrassing stuff for May, sure, but the vibes were wholesome overall.

May must've known that, since she just lightly scolded Lulu and let it go.

"So, Lulu, wanna introduce what we're doing today? Our genius Lulu should do it, right?"

"Unnie, I'm sorryyy…."

"Pfft… Fine, apology accepted."

They wrapped up their classic back-and-forth, and finally May introduced the stream.

"The game we're playing today is… We Are Still Here!"

We Are Still Here is basically an escape room game where two players start separated in different parts of an old castle and have to team up to break out.

Perfect pick for May and Lulu. It's heavy on brain-teaser puzzles, and May's gentle voice keeps things smooth while Lulu's smarts shine. Great synergy.

Plus, from what I knew, May was fluent in English—which this game was in—and Lulu was pretty good too.

Ideal partners.

"Unnie, let's start right away~"

"Sure~"

They ended the call and jumped into the game.

As soon as it began, their comms linked back up—but not normally.

Lulu's character grabbed a radio on screen, and May's voice ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠crackled through it.

"Unnie, can you hear me?"

"Loud and clear~ Can you hear me, Lulu?"

"Crystal!"

The static gave it that authentic radio feel.

"Lulu, ready to go?"

"Yep! You're on briefing duty?"

"Seems like it~"

One player starts in a room with puzzle solutions; the other describes the puzzle they're facing. The first gives orders, and they escape together.

"Lulu~ What's in your room~?"

"Some kinda hieroglyphs. A circle and triangle connected top to bottom…"

At first, they progressed smoothly.

…For about the first ten minutes.

"Unnie!? That's not the right button…!"

"Huh? It's not? …Oh, sorry, Lulu. I read it backwards!"

"Eeeee!?"

"Try the reverse order from before?"

"Okay…."

"Wait, Lulu, that doesn't seem ri—"

"Um, Lulu…! Find the button quick! Water's rising hereee…!"

"Red, red, red… Pushed it!"

"…Water's not draining!?"

"Huh? That's the only red button here…"

"Must be in the other room…!"

"Other room, other roooom… Ah, found i—"

After that, their coordination kept slipping just enough to spark chat lines like "I'd clear this faster solo than these two."

And word reached the ears of game queen Aris, who was riding a solo win streak.

Aris raided their stream and dropped a 1,000-candy punch—the cheapest superchat with a voice taunt.

Calling them noobs.

"Don't call us noobs! Don't!"

"Oh my, Aris. Been a while since it's just been us sisters, huh…?"

Despite Lulu's cute freakout and May's menacing vibe, Aris trolled relentlessly in chat.

Aris's wide-area taunt snapped their patience.

"…Lulu, time to show her who's boss?"

"Yes, unnie."

Aris threw down the gauntlet, and the duo flashed different smiles.

May just grinned and said "get ready," but…

"…Everyone, screenshot that Aris chat. Looks like I'll be bringing back a noob witch slave soon."

Lulu went full shadowy model for her creepy grin.

Super menacing.

And then…

"Lulu, those hieroglyphs from before—remember all the shapes? Square with full circle, square with small ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠circle, trident I."

"All pressed."

"Lulu, move the white knight six squares forward one."

"Got it."

"Black pawn five, two forward."

"…Checkmate, idiot. I got it from here."

……They breezed through the toughest chess puzzle like it was nothing.

By the time I blinked, Lulu and May had reunited.

The ending had one escaping while the other stayed—usually a tearjerker for streamers, with lines like "I can't leave you!" or "You go!" But not these two.

"Aris, you around? We're done."

They had a score to settle with that taunting super-witch (soon-to-be slave).

"…May unnie, I'll stay."

"You sure, Lulu?"

"Yeah. But promise me—bring our slave Aris here."

"I promise…! I'll drag her straight to a burial!"

And amid that chat frenzy, Aris's response was the best.

Truly, the three of them were crafting a legendary clip together today.

Aris Gets Buried Alive. Perfect material.

This one's long-form edit worthy. For real.