Something Feels Off About the Collab (2)
The Monday morning from hell and the Friday evening that feels like heaven. That was definitely a sentiment every student in the world could relate to. Once you finished classes on Friday and got home, you were usually granted two blissful days of freedom. That’s why the term “Friday night fever” even exists. So right now, on this Friday evening, my tension should have been rising… but the moment I stepped through the front door, I collapsed in a heap.
“I-I’m exhausted…”
The reason was obvious. The new second-year school life I’d started… was far more tiring than I’d expected.
Was it the classes? No. Modest as it sounds, I’m always in the top five in my class. We haven’t even covered much material yet, and even at a prestigious high school, the lessons weren’t that difficult. Social relationships? Yeah, those were still stuck in the same place with zero progress. So what exactly was wearing me down?
It was those two wickedly beautiful girls—Se-rin and Yu-na.
“Why do those two keep acting like they know me at school…!”
They were part of Trinity, the three greatest beauties of Baekryeon High. Both Se-rin and Yu-na were practically treated like top idols on campus. From what I’d overheard, they both had fan clubs too. Not that anyone told me directly—I’d just caught the rumors in passing, so it might not even be true…
In contrast, I was the ultimate loner who didn’t fit in with anyone. I didn’t have a single friend, and barely anyone even spoke to me. I’d thought things would be different once I became a second-year, but people still avoided me. The fact that even the underclassmen kept their distance had actually stung a little.
The social gap between me and them was practically the difference between royalty and a commoner. Yet because of our connection as VTubers, the two of them openly approached me at school.
For example, during P.E., Se-rin would stride right up to me while I was hiding in the corner and say something like:
Or during lunch, Yu-na would suddenly appear at my desk, grab my hand, and casually suggest:
The atmosphere around us would instantly freeze. Meaningless stares would pierce me from every direction. I could maybe understand Yu-na talking to me since we’d spoken before, but Se-rin had never even acknowledged me until now…! And they always made these proposals right in front of everyone. There was no way I could boldly turn them down. What if someone thought, Who does she think she is, rejecting an invitation from Trinity? and ambushed me later in a dark corner? I had below-average fighting ability for a high school girl. I’d get wrecked without even putting up a fight. Please at least don’t damage my throat—I still have to stream…!
In my imagination, a deformed chibi version of myself was curled up getting thoroughly beaten. Thankfully that hasn’t actually happened yet, but the stress is no joke…
I didn’t even have anyone I could vent to about this. Only three people at school knew my real identity: Se-rin, Yu-na, and Ha-yeon. The two causing the stress were obviously off-limits for consultation. When I tried complaining to Ha-yeon on the way to school, she just said:
“B-but… we’re not on the same level… What if they think I’m acting out of line…?”
That was the kind of look I got—like she couldn’t understand what I was even worried about. Damn it… I was being seriously serious here. This is too much.
After being tormented like this every weekday, my mental strength was in tatters. I desperately needed healing. And when it came to that, there was really only one option…
I forced myself up from the entryway and dragged my body to my room. After quickly changing clothes, taking a shower, and becoming perfectly soft and fluffy, I flopped onto my bed and declared with full confidence:
“Time to heal by watching Mari’s streams! There’s nothing else for it now!”
Even though we were no longer in a VTuber-and-fan relationship and had become agency coworkers, Mari was still my ultimate oshi. Maybe it was because I’d experienced the hardships of being a VTuber myself, but my desire to cheer her on had only grown stronger. Still, we hadn’t actually met in real life yet. Honestly, I hoped we never would. Wait—no, I did want to meet her! Ahhh, what was this contradictory back-and-forth in my heart?
I hoped she would remain Mari to me forever. Even though we’d probably have to meet someday whether I liked it or not…
“It’s not live right now, so I can only watch edited clips… but that’s fine too…”
Just seeing her talk through the screen was enough to make me happy. Was someone like me even allowed to feel this kind of bliss?
I must have been smiling without realizing it while watching Mari, because the muscles in my cheeks actually started to ache.
“Mmm… I’ve watched everything I had saved. Ugh, most of it was from the live streams anyway.”
After finishing five ten-minute videos, I felt completely recharged. I stretched and sprang up from the bed.
Alright. The collab is tomorrow. Let’s do our best.
The passion that had gone cold flared back to life, burning hot. Let’s go, let’s go, fighting!
And so the night passed, and Saturday finally arrived—the day of the third-generation group collab.
Nightmare Probe. Or Nightmare Probe for short. It was a brand-new game that had only been out for a week—piping hot off the press. The genre was cooperative survival. The goal was to gather items in dark, creepy locations and sell them to reach a profit target. I’d never played anything in this genre before, so I wasn’t too familiar with it, but basically it seemed like the kind of game that wasn’t fun alone and only shined when played together. Plus, the less you knew going in, the more fun it was supposed to be. Airi had begged us not to look anything up beforehand.
So I’d only installed it and had never actually launched it until now…
“…Is this right? The menu screen is already pretty dark.”
Three hours before we went live, during rehearsal. I booted up the game to check for problems, and an incredibly eerie menu screen greeted me. I never imagined it would have horror elements… Sure, the title literally had “Nightmare” in it, but hoping it wouldn’t be scary wasn’t exactly a crime, right?
I must have shown my reluctance too openly, because Airi spoke as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
> “Well, it is a horror game. Oh, is Snow bad with scary stuff?”
“Not really? I’m not that weak to it. I just don’t have much experience, that’s all.”
> “Heee~ Hooo~ So you have no experience~”
“That’s annoying! Can you stop making those weird noises?!”
My temper flared and I raised my voice. But Airi just burst out laughing like it wasn’t scary at all. So irritating.
The rehearsal ended quickly. We just needed to confirm the game launched properly, that the in-game mics worked, and that there were no lag or bugs. After wandering around the starting area and making sure everything was fine, we all closed the game. We only wanted to check things out—we didn’t want any spoilers.
> “See you during the stream later! Bye-bye~”
Unlike the previous singing collab where we all gathered in one channel, this time we would each stream separately while playing the game. With a game like this, splitting up the perspectives was important. If any funny moments happened, they could edit together a version that switched between viewpoints later.
“Hello~ This is Snow from Unimori’s Baekgwi Yahang. Nice to see you again today~”
I turned on my stream, chatted briefly with the fans, then entered the voice chat room we’d agreed to meet in thirty minutes before the collab started. Surprisingly, even though I was early, I was the last one to arrive. The others were already deep in conversation.
“Oh, I’m the last one. Hi everyone. What were you talking about?”
> “Oh, we were just talking about Snow. Perfect timing!”
“You were talking about me? What about?”
> “We were debating who’s the weakest when it comes to horror in Baekgwi Yahang.”
“…Huh? Why is that about me?”
If anything, shouldn’t it be about the whole third generation? I tilted my head in confusion at Shura’s words and glanced at the chat. The viewers immediately spammed messages as if that alone was proof enough.
Do they seriously think I’m weak to scary things? A little annoyed, I frowned. But a stream is a stream. I calmed my emotions and responded casually.
“So, who do you all think is the weakest?”
> “Snow!”
> “Snow.”
> “It has to be Snow.”
> “…Sorry. I’m voting Snow too.”
“Hey!”
Thud! I slammed my desk at the unfair treatment. But all I heard from the other side of the call was giggling. What the hell was this unanimous decision that excluded only me? Did I really give off that much of a scaredy-cat image?
Completely unable to understand, I sat up straighter and asked in frustration.
“Why do you all think I’m weak to horror? There has to be a reason, right?”
> “It’s been two months since debut, and you’re the only one among us who’s never played a horror game on stream. Doesn’t that mean you hate scary stuff?”
“Ugh…”
Karen’s point was pretty reasonable. The others had at least played horror once, but I never had on stream. It made sense they’d think I was weak to it. But the truth was I’d tried recording one alone last time and realized it was too embarrassing to show viewers, so I’d deliberately avoided it…
When I couldn’t come up with a good response and just kept my mouth shut, Airi cheerfully gave her own reason.
> “It’s because you give off the vibe that you couldn’t go to the bathroom alone if the lights went out!”
“That’s not true! I’m not a six-year-old! I can go by myself just fine!”
> “There there. Little Snow? Want big sis to go to the bathroom with you?”
“Are you trying to start a fight? Airi, just wait until I see you at the office later.”
> “Eek! I’m scared! Ahahaha! Sorry, sorry!”
Grrrr. I threatened her with the most ferocious voice I could manage. But Airi only laughed like she was having the time of her life. She’s smaller than me! She looks like a middle schooler! Her words wounded my pride and I was losing it.
…Forget Airi. What about the other two? I turned to Priya and Shura as if to say, Let’s hear your reasons.
After thinking for a moment, Priya answered.
> “Last time at the office you got startled by a plastic bag rolling across the floor, right? So I figured you must hate scary things…”
> “Whoa, that happened? That’s adorable!”
“Ugh… T-that was just because I’m a scaredy-cat… I’m only a little weak to things that jump out suddenly!”
> “If a plastic bag is enough to scare you, you’d probably faint if a ghost appeared. Just in case, write your home address in the chat. I’ll call emergency services if you collapse.”
“Uuuugh…”
Damn it, now even the viewers were joining in… Was there no one on my side?!
In the end, for the entire thirty minutes before the collab, I was bullied by my genmates and the audience. Even so, I refused to back down. Admit that I was the weakest at horror? That would hurt my pride too much. Why did everyone think I was such a coward?
Finally, with moist eyes and a burning head, I shouted as if to say just wait and see.
“Then I’ll just prove it during this collab!”
> “Prove what?”
“That I’m not the weakest in Baekgwi Yahang!”
I gripped my mouse tightly, steeling my resolve. I was going to prove I wasn’t the weakest no matter what.