Let's Create Our Own Private Space
“Ah……”
It was only then that Honey Eos realized something was off. She stared blankly at the donation log.
“Uh……”
Eos had one particular habit whenever she streamed.
Because so many humans kept firing “electricity” (in crude internet slang, meaning donations) at her, she had a routine of turning off the on-screen donation display while keeping the actual donations enabled. It was only possible because she had built up enough experience and her fans were fiercely loyal.
But yesterday, she had been so preoccupied with that human called Ha Yeon-woo that she had left the donation feed completely closed throughout the entire broadcast.
The result?
.
.
.
“Am I screwed?”
The donations had piled up like crazy. And the vast majority of them were sent with the explicit purpose of giving the money to “Woo Yeon-ha” and demanding a reaction in return.
Even a quick glance showed the total easily surpassed several hundred thousand won. It was an amount she couldn’t possibly ignore, even if she had wanted to close donations entirely.
“Hmm……”
If she reported this to the CEO, she’d definitely get scolded.
Especially in the current situation, there was nothing good that could come from bringing this up. She decided to simply hide the whole incident.
……But that was one thing.
This was another.
“I still have to go to the CEO’s house!”
Even if it meant getting scolded, she had to visit the CEO’s house.
Why?
“Yeon-woo is definitely there!”
Yeon-woo hadn’t returned home. The only place that kid could possibly go was the CEO’s house. The CEO’s mansion was ridiculously huge; it could easily accommodate one more person without issue.
And the reason was probably……
“……caught up in some weird trouble again.”
Maybe she had co-signed for a friend’s loan. Or her parents had dumped their debts on her and disappeared. Or she had touched something that looked like a gift and ended up in debt. Whatever the case, she was probably running from loan sharks and hiding at the CEO’s house.
That would explain the CEO’s reaction. Our kids don’t make verbal slip-ups just once or twice……
“The problem is that even if I know, finding her is going to be a pain……”
Even knowing Yeon-woo was at the CEO’s house, the place was so enormous that ten people could search for an entire day and still not find her. It was a massive villa with two basement levels and three above-ground floors.
And the third floor, in particular, was the CEO’s strictly private space. Members and staff were forbidden from entering. The enormous steel door blocking the entrance to the third floor was a monstrous thing that could probably withstand a nuclear blast.
Exclusive keycard.
The CEO’s iris scan.
Password.
Two out of those three were required to open the door. Even if they all stormed the place together, there was no way to get in.
That alone was already a massive headache, but……
“……What does this kid want now?”
It was a message from her first-generation junior, Aomiya Rina, suggesting they meet before the group gathering.
So thirty minutes before the appointed time, she was already heading to the meeting spot Rina had suggested.
“Hiii? Senior.”
“Mmmnya.”
A girl sucking on a bright red watermelon juice that clashed horribly with her pale sky-blue theme. As expected of a member handpicked by that picky CEO. The girl, who possessed an impressively cute face, waved at her.
“So what’s this about?”
“First, order yourself a drink. One menu item per person here.”
“Hmm…… Are you treating?”
“Ugh, what are you saying? You earn plenty. Let’s go with each paying for their own, okay?”
“Tsk!”
In terms of rank and generation, Eos was above her, but in age, Rina was older. When she had first joined Star Live, she had acted like a cute junior despite being older. But at some point she had started trying to devour Eos regardless of generation, and whenever Yeon-woo was involved, she didn’t just try to eat—she genuinely charged in with full intent.
“So, why did you want to meet separately first?”
After ordering a mint chocolate latte, she sat down. Rina quietly pulled out her smartphone and showed her the screen. It was a photo capturing a broadcast moment between Eos and Woo Yeon-ha.
“You two were alone together yesterday, right?”
“And?”
What was she getting at?
“Don’t you know, senior? Why Yeon-woo isn’t coming to the company?”
“Wait, you didn’t know?”
She had suggested storming the CEO’s house without even knowing that? As expected, her instincts were sharp. It really suited her RP of being a ninth-time reincarnated high schooler.
“I don’t. Other than the fact that she’s involved with the CEO.”
“Hmm……”
Should she share this……
Or not……
“Your mint chocolate latte is ready.”
Slurp──!
After taking a quick sip of her mint chocolate latte, she calmly calculated the situation. The size of the CEO’s house. The number of members. After considering everything, the answer was simple.
“Keep this between us. It looks like Yeon-woo is at the CEO’s house.”
“……! For real?!”
They had to cooperate. To fight against that wicked CEO who was trying to monopolize Yeon-woo. They needed to form a powerful alliance among the members!
And the best partner for that was Aomiya Rina.
Why?
‘Because this kid is the easiest to handle!’
If they excluded Hera, who was already well into her thirties, then among the remaining members, Aomiya Rina was the most manageable. She was a bottom-tier VTuber who had only barely passed into Star Live after nine reincarnations. While she was still far from her thirties, the age she had accumulated across those nine lives couldn’t be ignored. She would age faster than Eos, who was only in her early-to-mid twenties!
“Shh! Keep your voice down for now.”
“……”
Nod!
Rina immediately shut her mouth and gave her a look that said, “Explain.”
“……It seems Yeon-woo is in a pretty troublesome situation.”
“What kind?”
“Either the CEO kidnapped her, or she’s running from loan sharks.”
“……”
Rina’s eyes spun rapidly. She seemed to be doing her own calculations.
“Anyway, never mind the other members. Let’s work together, you and me.”
“……How?”
“First, we find Yeon-woo. After we find her……”
Her golden eyes sparkled brightly.
“……we talk to the CEO and create a space just for the three of us.”
Rina looked at her with an expression that said, “Are you a genius?”
“The kids are all coming to storm the place today.”
“Nom nom…… So what?”
“……”
Her face seemed to say this was just another normal occurrence and what was the big deal. It was truly detestable, but the face was so unbearably cute that Eos’s hand moved quickly instead of slapping her.
Pinch──!
“Aaaang……! Don’t pinch me while I’m eating……”
“……”
If she hadn’t been so genuinely cute, this punk would have gotten slapped across the face. This was the same punk who had completely cleaned out the jewel box she had painstakingly collected with that sly audacity. And now this same punk had become even more hopelessly smitten than the others.
Gulp……!
Even while her cheek was being pinched, the kid somehow managed to chew and swallow her pizza. With an expression that said she knew everything, she reached for the next slice.
……If she gained even an ounce of weight, Eos would confiscate her card immediately and put her on a diet. Just try getting fat. She dared her.
“Munch munch…… So what should we do?”
This time Yeon-woo, who had a shrimp-topped slice in her mouth, asked with sparkling eyes.
Resisting the urge to snatch the pizza from her mouth and scold her, she instead asked the kid a question in return.
“Are you really okay meeting the others in that body? Make sure you’re mentally prepared──”
“Nope?”
The immediate answer cut her off mid-sentence. It seemed her employee still hadn’t steeled herself properly. Feeling an inexplicable sense of relief, she picked up the last slice of pizza.
“Then lock the door and stay hidden in here. Even though the room is soundproofed, don’t make any loud noises.”
“Hai!”
“And don’t get caught by your phone alarm like last time. Put it on silent mode.”
“Wakarimasen!”
Yeon-woo immediately pulled out her smartphone, pressed the silent mode button, and held it out to her.
“……Good.”
After confirming it was definitely on silent, she nodded and stood up.
“I’ll lock the door too. No matter who knocks, don’t respond or open it.”
“I’ll quietly lie in bed and just look at my phone!”
Seeing her answer so confidently, she should have felt reassured……
……but why did she feel so uneasy?
Was it because of that “ttyuttya” comment she had made about herself? She couldn’t trust this at all. It felt like a major accident was about to happen.
Beep!
Guests have arrived at the house.
‘Honey Eos’ and 9 others.
All facial recognition verified.
It looked like the kids had arrived. She hurriedly organized today’s script in her head, closed the door, and waved at Yeon-woo.
“……I’ll be back.”
“Have a safe trip!”
……Did she really not realize she was being kept and raised in captivity?
With pizza still in her mouth, Yeon-woo smiled brightly and saw her off.
Clap clap!
“Huu……”
How was she supposed to win a 10-on-1 bloodbath?
She lightly patted her cheeks to steel herself and stood in front of the massive steel door. Even if she accidentally let Yeon-woo’s presence slip, as long as this kid was here, there was no way the others would meet her. If that happened, she could just lock this door and escape outside somehow.
This door was specially made. Exclusive keycard. Iris scan. Password. Without two of the three, it would never open.
Click……!
After hiding the exclusive keycard in the room, she scanned her iris at the security entrance and entered the password.
Beep!
With the familiar sound, the lock released.
Sliiide──!
The moment she smoothly opened the door and stepped forward──
“Now, Rina!”
“Uwaaaaaah!!”
“You crazy bit──”
Somehow they had already gotten upstairs. The two who had been crouching in front of the door to avoid the cameras lunged at her at once.
Thud……!
While she was knocked down by Rina and Eos’s coordinated attack,
“Where is she! Yeon-woo!”
Eos quickly got up and dashed into the living room.
“Hey!! What are you doing!”
She tried to get up and chase after her, but—
“I won’t let you go! CEO!”
“Why are you helping her?!”
Rina wrapped her arms around her waist and desperately held on, blocking her movement.
“Yeon-woo! Yeon-woo! Where are you?!”
Eos’s footsteps headed straight for her room. Unlike Yeon-woo’s room, hers had nothing to hide, so she hadn’t locked it when she left.
“Yeon-woo!!”
“Let go, you brat!”
“I won’t…… let go……!”
It was a relief that Rina, who was clinging to her waist, was relatively light. She dragged Rina along toward the living room.
“She’s not here! Then……”
Eos, who had burst out of her room, glared at the room where Yeon-woo was hiding.
Knock knock knock!
“Yeon-woo! Are you in there?”
But the door to Yeon-woo’s room wouldn’t open because of the electronic lock.
“Hey! That’s an empty room!”
“If it’s empty then come open it yourself! CEO!”
“Ugh……!”
She only ever gets sharp at times like this……!
“I don’t know why you’re looking for Yeon-woo in my house──”
“……”
Beep beep beep beep!
Eos, having finished some thought, entered a password. It was only four digits. No way! You idiot!
Beep! Beep! Beep!
“Tch……!”
The door lock immediately rejected the intruder’s touch.
“In that case……!”
Beepbeepbeepbeepbeepbeep!
Eos hammered the password again.
“You think that’s going to open it?! You little punk!”
The moment she shouted in disbelief at the sight,
Beep-beep……!
“Wait, why did it open?!”
“Nice!”
A scene that somehow felt familiar greeted her as the door to Yeon-woo’s room swung open. What was truly unbelievable was that while she would have used the master key as a cheat, Eos had genuinely guessed the password correctly!
What kind of hacking god was this? Did this even make sense?! Damn it!
“You crazy—! Rina! Let go of me right now!”
“I-I won’t! No matter how much of a CEO you are…… monopolizing Yeon-woo by yourself is……!”
“Ah! Let go already!”
Thwack!
“Kek!”
Finally losing patience, she slammed her fist down on Rina’s head to pry her off. At that moment—
“Yeon-woo……?”
Eos’s voice, which had gone into the room, turned into a question. Then, a moment later—
“W-wait! Kyaaah?!”
……Yeon-woo’s scream came from inside. It sounded like someone had touched a very precious part of her.
Step. Step. Step.
Eos came out with a hardened expression and stared at her with a serious face.
“……CEO.”
“……What.”
Then she asked.
“……Did you take it off? Yeon-woo’s that thing?”
“……No.”
It really wasn’t. She wanted her to believe her on this one thing at least.
"……"
……First, ease up on that glare already.