Twelve Days to the Music Show

On television.

Oh, a music show?

"Surprising, right? We still have to lock down the stage layout, and with exactly twelve days until the live broadcast, it's tight."

"Yeah, I can imagine."

For a virtual performance you had to produce the stage map, the costumes, every kind of effect—so twelve days? Under normal circumstances, that would be impossible.

"But I've still got the maps and costumes from when I did that concert before, right? They said if we polish those up, we can make the deadline. It won't be a hundred-percent perfect stage, but it sounds doable. What do you think, Do-yoon?"

"It's hard to picture… Lunari on TV…"

That was a place built to film actual human beings, so a VTuber showing up would feel pretty novel.

Still, if she did appear, it would be a first for any VTuber—pretty glorious, honestly.

"So? Do we do it or not? Does it look okay?"

"If you want to do it, Nuna, then you should."

Why are you asking me?

"Because you're my producer. I've never gone wrong listening to you, Do-yoon~"

"Ah, right—that title does exist."

I was a coward who preferred running away.

But Yu Nari wasn't.

Standing on a stage suited her better.

"How about we do it? It's not a song where the choreography is critical."

The choreography could work just fine standing at a mic stand like a band vocalist—something simple. Blackout Cat had also made a name for itself as a challenge dance, so slipping in a scene that called that to mind would be fun.

"Got it. Then I'll pass along that we're appearing. Phew—shall we get started on Blackout Cat nooow?"

"Ah, wait wait."

"Huuuh?"

I caught Yu Nari just as she was naturally trying to pivot the topic over to Blackout Cat.

Our call today had gotten interrupted midway when Han So-yeong contacted us. We hadn't been on the phone about the music show.

It was for recording the meows.

"Where do you think you're going? I'll put together the Blackout Cat concept myself—I've got plenty of ideas popping up. That okay? You finish what you were doing right now, Nuna."

"If Do-yoon takes BlCat off my hands, that works great for meee. But… do we really, really have to do this right now? I'll practice on my own and bring it…"

"I know you practice hard, Nuna. But you need to lock in the nuance I want first before you go practicing alone."

"B-but what you're asking for is so…"

When the topic shift failed, Yu Nari went back to mumbling.

"Come on, try again. The meow-meow-meow in the chorus needs a cuter tone. It has to feel sly and playful. Since she's talking in her sleep because she's sleepy, stretch it out languidly—an affectionate cat with aegyo? That kind of vibe."

"……Meow meow meow."

"Too quiet. This isn't acting embarrassed or shy—it's innate cuteness. Congenital cuteness. That kind of feeling."

"I'm not pretending to be embarrassed—I really am e-embarrassedddd!"

Heh. If she was like this even in front of me, someone she was close with, how was she going to stand in front of people?

This song lost its meaning if anyone but Lunari sang it, so I couldn't just hand it off to someone else.

She needed to get her pro spirit together.

"Maybe you need a drink. Loosen the tongue and it might get better."

"…Should we? No! Hey! You try it!! Shii…"

"Come on, if I do it, it won't fit. I don't have any cute flavor to me."

"Huh?! Then does that mean I am cute…"

Women had that bright atmosphere and big reactions unique to them. There was a cute image that came from that.

Didn't everyone basically have that installed by default?

The girls I ran into in elementary and middle school would burst into giggles if so much as a leaf fell.

Maybe it was different once you grew up. I hadn't met any women since getting older, so I couldn't say for sure.

"Cu-cute— I am, huh."

"Hello? I can't hear you."

"I didn't say anything! Ahem! If that's what Do-yoon says, then… should I go buy some booze? A-and you're cute too."

What kind of nonsense was that all of a sudden.

"No. The drink thing was just a joke."

"Huh?"

"Not later—try it now. Once I hear the tone I want, I'll tell you, and after that you can just practice it that way."

"R-right now is too much…"

"It's not hard. Breathe and do it like usual. Relax. I imagined your voice exactly as-is when I put that hook in, so it'll suit you."

"My v-voice… s-so that's how it was."

She seemed to think it over for a moment, then came back with an okay.

"Euh, meow meow meow— meow meow meooow……"

"Holding the 'nya' at the end for that cat feeling was good. But overall it's still stiff. Let's go softer and more rhythmic. Hmm, how do I put it—lovely?"

"……"

"Hello?"

"I'll check it alone and come back, pleeeaaase."

Click—

Huh.

She bailed on me.

"Meow meow meow."

Was this really that hard?

Yu Nari had this nasal tone that came out when she was in a good mood—it was a shame I wasn't hearing it.

Well, nobody was good at their first recording, so I should wait for her.

I stretched my arms way up and fixed my posture in the chair.

Music shows, though, huh.

Even when we planned a concert for Blackout Cat in VR World before, there hadn't been any special choreography.

Just some point moves?

Maybe I'd put the challenge moves in this time.

Three—two—one— countdown with the fingers, then that bursting gesture on blackout.

It was a move the public had at least encountered, so the moment it came out, they'd feel that familiarity.

Walking the stage during the interlude to set the mood, and during the bridge grabbing the mic stand and spinning around would be nice too. When the highlight hit, yanking the mic stand in close for that effect would be good.

Scratch scratch.

I was organizing ideas in my notes when a call came from Han So-yeong.

Probably the same business.

"Yes. Is this about the music ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠show?"

Her voice was dragging—she sounded extremely tired.

An awards ceremony—like the ones on TV where celebrities lined up and received trophies?

Honestly, hearing about that from my room corner, it didn't feel real at all.

"…Oh."

"Whoa, I never even dreamed of that. It'd be amazing if Nari-nuna got one at least."

"Ahh, I just came off a call with her, so I slipped into casual mode."

"Well… yes."

How was I supposed to go somewhere that sparkled like that. And I wouldn't even win an award, so why bother?

Han So-yeong spoke with a rushed edge, ready to wrap the call quickly.

She must be busy. Better get my business across fast.

"Manager-nim!"

"Yes."

"By when should I send over the concept and direction ideas for Lunari's stage?"

"Huh? Ah, I told Nari-nuna I'd take it and brought it over myself. Was that not okay?"

Ultimately, the person who knew best what kind of song BlCat was, and what kind of artist Lunari was, was me. I figured it was right for me to set the stage direction and propose the production.

Oops.

Since it was a company, maybe there were procedures?

Han So-yeong's reaction was extremely dry, but full of genuine feeling.

"Pardon?"

"Uh…"

Come to think of it, for the old concert, had Han So-yeong planned and run everything herself?

I felt a little guilty for no reason. Since I made the song, me taking it on would have been most efficient. Once again, I could vaguely sense that I'd been receiving consideration.

"I-I'll work hard on it."

As if her exhaustion had never existed, Han So-yeong started rattling things off in a stream.

Listening to that machine-gun fire, a little regret washed over me—but looking closer, the content wasn't that complicated.

"Yes, I'll send it over today."

I rolled up my sleeves with motivation and started writing down the stage composition, the points I wanted in the choreography, and so on.

Here, the lights should be dark and then—flash—brighten to spotlight Lunari, right? This part needed the choreography to get wild like someone had lost their mind with excitement.

I filled the notebook page by page.

Decorating a stage had a different charm from working on music.

"Too many things we can't do—shame."

Time constraints meant a lot of limits this time. When we recorded the next song, let's try considering the production side too.

Bzzzt—

Right on cue, Yu Nari's message arrived.

Production, huh.

If I were to produce this song, what would it look like?

"L-like this?"

"No no! Stretch those arms out! Freedom—! That emotion has to show."

"Like thiiis?"

"Hoo, Nari, you're way too stiff. That isn't ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠freedom—you look like a prisoner bound to a cross."

"Ugh, a-again."

In the waiting room of the motion capture studio, the choreographer hired by Muse Family and Yu Nari were in the middle of intense practice, with Han So-yeong watching from behind.

The proposal Do-yoon had put together was delivered to Han So-yeong within half a day and approved in one go. She hadn't intended to pick nits anyway, but Do-yoon's plan was nearly perfect.

Because it was his first time writing something like a proposal, the report format lacked structure—but as long as the reader could understand it easily, that was enough, wasn't it?

Artists really are a different breed, I guess.

He'd even paid attention to the mid-level details, so they should be able to raise the quality in a short time. She nodded to herself: going forward, it would be good for Do-yoon to take the lead on artists' stages and performance activities.

The bigger problem was—

"Choreographer, will this be okay?"

"Ohoho, don't you worry. Even the stiffest human becomes a skilled dancer in a month once they're in my hands. Hohoho."

"We only have a week left, though."

"Ah! That's right. …Ohohoho!"

Han So-yeong glanced once more at Yu Nari, who was still creaking along behind them, then looked at the choreographer's face.

A bead of sweat rolled down the choreographer's forehead.

Must be the heat, right?

Please let it be that.

M Town would soon announce the appearance. A VTuber on a music show? There would definitely be a stir. If they drew a ton of aggro and then put on a subpar performance…

…I don't even want to imagine it.

Thanks to consistent exercise, her stamina was good, so Yu Nari kept practicing without pause.

Bang—!

"Hi! Hellooo!"

"Huh? Yui-nim?"

Kurogami Yui had come to the waiting room.

"What brings you here?"

"I was just too curious! The first virtual on a music broadcast! It's going to be on TV, you know. I heard they shooting the teaser preview today, so I came to watch."

"Ah, so you're here to watch the shoot. Wait, but how did you get in?"

"I got a pass from Park Gi-dong!"

Ah, that guy—if he hands out a pass, he should at least report that he did. Ugh.

Park Gi-dong was so scared of Yu Nari he tiptoed around her, and with Yui he had something to feel guilty about so he crawled. You could tell at a glance—she said "Hand it over," and he went "Yes ma'am" and gave it.

Today, related staff were also at the studio to shoot a short teaser for SNS and the preview video.

"Don't wander around outside and risk a Red Pill. Stay here. The shoot is only motion capture footage, but you never know."

"Yes, anyway if I just keep my mouth shut, nobody knows who I am, heh."

So she was aware it didn't match her image.

While Han So-yeong discreetly scanned Yui from head to toe, Yu Nari spotted her.

"Huh? Unnie?"

"Nari~ I came to cheer you on."

Kurogami Yui greeted Yu Nari with a bright smile.

The first VTuber appearance on a music show—wasn't that an honor? If this went well, there might be virtual number two and three on music shows going forward. And that could be herself.

Spotlight was climbing the charts again and had hit 18th.

Maybe me too?

"Hehehe—"

While Kurogami Yui was grinning, dreaming of a rosy future, Yu Nari was suddenly right in front of her.

"Unnie."

"Uh-uh-uh, Nari, hi~ You're working hard."

"I've been putting this off because I didn't have time."

"Huh?"

Grab—

Yu Nari's warm palm wrapped around Yui's wrist.

"So the she-cat came walking over on her own two feet."

"Huh? I'm a female wolf, not a she-cat—that's Nari—! Uwaaaaaah—"

"You'll practice the choreography with me, right? Let's stretch~"

"Kyaaaaaa my leg—! My leg's gonna tear!"

As Yu Nari grabbed Yui's leg and stretched it like slime, the choreographer shouted.

"Ooooooh! Nari, that's it! Stretch your arms out just like that!"

"Ah, like this?"

"You've finally got it!! That's the one."

"Kyaaaaaaang Nari, whyyyyy—"

What kind of situation was this.

Watching the chaotic collab, Han So-yeong scratched her head.

"Hmm."

They're getting along here too.

Not wanting to dig any deeper, she decided to leave it at that.