Crocodile Tears
"No, I mean, I didn't do it with any malicious intent. Ugh…… I'm sorry. I'll think things through more carefully from now on."
"Yes. I'll keep that in mind."
The swaggering figure who'd started the stream by proudly flipping the middle finger was nowhere to be found.
Who could have predicted that CleanPanPol — the police force of Pangea TV — would make a sudden appearance?
Of course, the middle-finger gesture wasn't a major violation, so it ended with a simple verbal warning. The real problem was getting humiliated in front of the entire audience.
"……."
"Ah, no, Unnie, I'm really sorry. I didn't do it on purpose — sometimes a second personality just bursts out of nowhere and I……"
"Seo-a, could you be quiet for a second? I think that second personality of mine is about to come out too!"
"Hup!"
When a normally quiet person gets angry, it's always scarier. I shut my mouth and carefully read the room.
Then Lucy, unable to hold it in any longer, burst out laughing.
"Ahaha, I'm kidding. CleanPanPol29 didn't say anything special to me. Still, Seo-a, let's be careful from now on, okay? That wasn't a good thing to do."
"Yeah. Got it."
My middle fingers had been sealed away. What a tragic turn of events!
Watching the chat cackle away made rage boil up inside me. I cocked my head at an angle, signaling that today's Seo-a would not be going down easy.
"Whatever — my life's already got a red mark on it. Just one of you try me! I'll send you straight to the blacklist."
If I just curled up and sulked after a little public embarrassment, the stream atmosphere would only get more awkward. Moments like these called for cranking the energy even higher.
Back before the regression, how many times had I dealt with stuff like this while grinding it out in sales? I'd slapped an iron plate over my face more times than I could count just to make a living.
"Mayo likes even criminal-record Seo-a Unnie, is what it is. Mayo wants to make her mayonnaise bibimbap as a prison meal, is what it is."
"Thanks to our Mayo, Unnie might be looking at a second offense pretty soon."
From the opening, the V-Live crew's talk was already warm and lively! Yes — this kind of fiery energy was exactly right for Christmas.
To keep the heat going, I jumped straight into a status update.
"My recent status is pretty predictable. What else is there? Do interior design work, then the second it's done I sprint to the drug fields to brew potions, hit my quota, then head right back to interior design……"
Yikes!
Lucy's avatar was facing straight ahead, but somehow my profile felt like it was burning. I hastily changed the subject and turned to Mayo.
"Mayo can't play LoL so she's got withdrawal symptoms these days, is what it is. Even while swinging a pickaxe, Mayo finds herself pressing QWER over and over without realizing it, is what it is. And while farming Enders off-stream, Mayo got so sleepy she almost turned into stardust, is what it is."
Mining-slave and Ender-farming-slave Mayo's sharp jab stabbed me right in the lungs again.
Wait — was today's Christmas collab actually a Seo-a assassination collab?
Surely not Miho Unnie too? Given her age, she should understand that all the heavy work I assigned was for the sake of the crew.
"Lately I've even been studying architectural blueprints on YouTube. At this rate I might actually become a real-life architect. This, too, is all thanks to the grace of Great Seo-a."
"…… I'm done!"
This wasn't roleplay. I was genuinely sulking. I was genuinely hurt.
How could they all do this to me?
Granted, I admitted I'd set the bar high. After every regular stream, I'd push them to hop on off-stream or hand them extra work. I'd definitely been driving them hard.
But I'd done it all with the single-minded goal of making us succeed. Sure, I'd played the evil boss in Minecraft, but outside of streaming I'd taken on most of the work myself and led by example.
And yet they'd been holding this much resentment?
Without realizing it, I bit down hard on my lip. Malice from a faceless crowd of strangers was manageable — but when the people I'd thought of as closest to me acted like this, I couldn't help but feel shaken.
Sensing the shift in mood, the chat started to stir as well.
Hoo. Just hold it in.
As the crew's leader, I had to make this Christmas special collab a success no matter what. I could sort things out with the members privately after the stream.
Steeling myself, I was about to throw out a line to get the stream back on track when Lucy suddenly said something completely out of left field.
"Let's watch a video for a moment."
Huh? A video? There wasn't any video scheduled for release at this timing.
A bright screen lit up, showing three figures huddled together on a VRC map.
Wait — when did they film this?
It was a cozy home overflowing with Christmas spirit. A warm fireplace glowed, and next to it stood a towering Christmas tree. Every kind of decoration adorned the windows and walls. In the center sat a table draped in pure white cloth, piled high with all sorts of food.
"Yeeeaaah!"
"Happy Christmas, everyone."
The three of them waved cheerfully at the camera. I stared at the scene in a daze.
What on earth was this video?
That question was soon answered by Mayo's playful voice.
"This video is a hidden camera prank, is what it is. We prepared it to cheer up Seo-a Unnie, who was definitely going to be all sulky, is what it is. And after mayonnaise, Mayo likes Seo-a Unnie the most, is what it is. Uh…… wait, Mayo forgot about LoL. So third place, is what it is!"
"Seo-a, you've really worked so hard this whole year, fighting alone with a bunch of streaming rookies. I still remember. Back on Rabbit TV, when I was streaming all alone with no idea what I was doing, you came up to me first. And when I was nervous and struggling, you told me — that you were my fan. You'll never know how much courage that one sentence gave me. I'm so happy I got to know you."
"Ahem. Remember the immigration inspection content where we first met? From that moment, I thought of you as someone I could truly trust and rely on, age aside. But sometimes I worry too. Whether we've been leaning on you too much. That's something I sincerely reflect on. Next year, I'll work harder so we can share your burdens together."
"V-Live fighting!" ×3
The three of them struck poses that each captured their own unique charm, wrapping up the video. At the same time, a song began to play.
You were born to be loved
And even now, you are receiving that love
No, no, no! What was with this sudden forced emotional assault?!
Honestly, the lines acknowledging all my hard work did make my chest tighten a little. And realizing that everything they'd said earlier to blame me had been for the sake of the hidden camera brought a wave of relief as well.
But the biggest emotion of all was pure embarrassment. This felt like getting caught playing house at the age of thirty.
Just look at that — the toxic viewers were already revving their engines.
Okay, fine, I was a T-type. But if I went from sulking one second to bawling my eyes out over a video like this, I'd look like a complete idiot.
As the leader of the V-Live crew, I had a duty to maintain a cool, collected image at all times!
"Seo-a, are you really not going to cry? We worked so hard on this."
"Seo-a Unnie is a cold-blooded woman with neither blood nor tears, is what it is. That's why her top-lane sensibility is so lacking she just farms jungle mobs all day like an RPG, is what it is."
"Ahem. Seo-a. If you don't cry right now, this is going to become a controversy."
"…… Waaah! Thank you all so much. I'm so moved."
When Lucy herself kindly set up the triple-split screen and laid out the whole stage for me, there was no way I could refuse to cry. If the tears wouldn't come, I'd just have to fake it.
Fortunately, virtual streamers had technology on their side. One little click! of a button and pearl-like teardrops would start rolling down.
Viewers who were more committed to roasting me than anything else in the world.
Just you wait.
Christmas wasn't over yet.