Diversion Tactics Mean Going Full YouTuber
Spirit idol group Nature.
A brand-new rookie idol group that had only just debuted.
What set them apart was that the second daughter of Korea’s massive conglomerate, the Yuseong Group, was managing them from behind the scenes—and that every single member was an Awakener. Spirit Contractors, to be precise.
And looking at all of that, people said the same thing.
“Looks like this month’s schedule is completely finished.”
A white elephant.
Or maybe just a pie in the sky?
Comparative advantage meets maple-leaf Jeon Bung meets the Bae Min-gi incident?
“Just one a week! Perfect!”
“Hnnngh…!”
In short, nobody had the slightest intention of hiring them.
It was only natural when you thought about it.
Treating them like an ordinary new idol group and paying ordinary rates was impossible with the Yuseong Group standing behind them. On the other hand, hiring three Awakeners at proper rates wasn’t exactly pocket change either.
So the moment they tried to move while receiving fair pay, their bodies somehow became mysteriously heavy.
The only real options left were dipping into their own pockets to hold concerts… or else…
“Ah, right. Didn’t you say you’d contacted some volunteer organizations before?”
Volunteer work.
Performing for free.
It seemed like a perfectly reasonable way to get their name out there.
“…They said the slots were already filled.”
“What?”
Apparently that had failed too.
“When I first called, everyone was enthusiastic. When I called back, they suddenly claimed the spots were taken and cut me off.”
“They cut the almighty Yuseong Group?”
“I know, right? Why would they do that?”
“….?”
A question.
But not one that expected an answer.
The shadows under her eyes looked a little darker than usual. Hye-won rested both elbows on the desk, chin in her hands, and murmured,
“Just how much do they really hate me…?”
“Let’s see… the youngest’s side is short-handed, so that’s out…”
The eldest, then?
At my question she simply nodded.
“They said the Yuseong Group side had already contacted people and filled the spots, so it was fine.”
“What about going the day after?”
“I tried. Didn’t work.”
“Hmmm…”
I leaned back in the chair.
The situation was getting entertaining.
“Why, though…? That bastard… does he have any reason to block me?”
They were a group that had only just debuted. They hadn’t done anything extra. They’d simply debuted as one ordinary idol group…
“There is a reason.”
Hye-won was right.
Compared to the power the Yuseong Group already held, Nature’s strength was so small that even making the comparison was an insult.
And yet they still couldn’t flaunt it.
Because—
“It’s pure force that belongs to you.”
“…Just one idol group?”
“Look at the Hero Party.”
Just one party.
Yet that single party had enough potential to go toe-to-toe with the long-established eldest son of the Yuseong Group.
He’d been burned before. If he could step on them, he’d step as hard as possible.
“…Disgusting.”
“It’s rational.”
“Sunwoo oppa.”
I’m in a really bad mood right now.
“If your mood starts dictating your attitude, you should shut the business down.”
“…You’re right, but still!”
I just don’t like it!
Hye-won rarely threw a tantrum, kicking her legs under the desk.
Why does she always regress into a child the moment she’s alone with me?
Am I that comfortable?
An oppa more comfortable than family… the wording feels a little suspicious.
“Aah, seriously. Isn’t there any way?”
“That’s for you to figure out.”
“Don’t keep saying that. Think with me!”
“I am thinking.”
But do we even need to deal with this?
“Huh…?”
“I mean… how should I put this.”
The current situation was closer to a matter of time than anything else.
“No matter what happens, Nature still has the Yuseong Group at its back, right?”
“Yeah?”
“And if we try to do anything, they’ll just keep pouring money into blocking us?”
“Right.”
“Then since it’s already like this, why not just go national?”
“What?”
She looked startled.
To me it was obvious logic.
“Interfering with every single thing means they’ll have to put their hands on every single thing, doesn’t it?”
Whether we did volunteer work somewhere or booked a stage somewhere, the eldest son of the Yuseong Group would personally dig into his own pockets to drain his strength for us.
“They’re not the kind of opponent who’ll get worn out by something that small.”
“True. But you can still make them look the other way, can’t you?”
“…Keep going.”
The point was this.
“Seongdonggyeokseo.”
They meddle in the debut stage, the volunteer work, everything?
Then just say one thing out loud and quietly do something else behind the scenes.
“So… you’re telling me to book two schedules a day?”
“More like guerrilla concerts.”
For some reason, the moment a plan was made it got wrecked.
So we simply plan not to plan.
As the saying goes, even ‘no answer’ is an answer.
You’re that good at fighting?
Go up to the rooftop by yourself. I’m not coming.
If they can do anything under the Yuseong Group, then we just move outside the Yuseong Group’s reach and it’s over.
“If a plan falls apart, we move with the wreckage. If a plan succeeds, we move with the success. Either way we don’t lose anything.”
“But that would take forever…”
“A stage isn’t only a stage you stand on, is it?”
In this world there exist things called ‘personal broadcasts’—YouTube, Twitch, and the like.
“Just filming the kids training would already be content.”
It wasn’t limited to idol vlogs.
“An A-Class Awakener personally training the kids. Even if we don’t want it to blow up, it will.”
You couldn’t dismiss an A-Class Awakener.
Among Awakeners, A-Class sat in the top 1 %. And when that top 1 % of an already scarce population put out content, the view counts would be more than respectable.
“Of course next to the ‘Hero’ side it would look like nothing… but our content is completely different from theirs to begin with, right?”
If theirs were raid videos for spreading the Hero’s gospel, ours would be idol videos for spreading the idol gospel.
Different genres.
Therefore the demand would be more than enough.
And above all—transforming spirit idols? Who could possibly resist that?
“…But starting from absolute zero—”
“—The training center. There’s a TV there, isn’t there? Put the kids’ stage broadcasts on that and accessibility will already be better than now.”
…………
Silence.
A contemplative look.
Tap. Tap. She drummed her index finger against the shelf for a good ten minutes.
“In the end… it’s just a matter of time.”
“Exactly.”
Conclusion.
It was a matter of time.
Whatever the process, Nature was bound to rise.
“As long as the kids don’t suddenly start doing drugs, dating, or school violence, there won’t be any pro—”
Wait.
School violence?
The others I can accept, but…
Hong Yeonhwa.
Extremely suspicious.
I glanced at Hye-won just in case; she shook her head in denial.
“They’re going to be idols. I checked carefully before bringing them in.”
Although the selection process got a little twisted later on…
Hye-won gave a small, bitter smile.
Well, there weren’t many Spirit Contractors who were mentally sound to begin with.
And a female Spirit Contractor who also wanted to become an idol?
After filtering and filtering again, ending up with these kids actually made perfect sense.
“So that’s it for now?”
“Yes. Thanks to you, I can see a path.”
Until a moment ago her eyes had been dark. Now she sprang to her feet as if her motivation had returned in full force and declared,
“That’s right. The trend these days is virtual YouTubers!”
“Huh?”
What are you talking about, Hye-won?
“How should we do it? First, Sujin-ssi should be a nun. Big-chested women being nuns is the golden rule!”
“Uh…”
Hye-won? Are you listening?
“If Sujin-ssi is the nun… then yes! Harin-ssi as an angel! Yeonhwa-ssi as a demon!”
For example:
Sujin-ssi is a hopeless nun completely corrupted by modern society!
“Air conditioner! TV! Computer! Games! A hikikomori nun completely cut off from society, locked in her room!”
“You’ve already stopped listening, haven’t you?”
“And then Harin-ssi trying to reform that Sujin-ssi in a good direction, and Yeonhwa-ssi who just starts with insults but ends up taking care of her!”
“Isn’t that just roasting her?”
At least it didn’t sound like something Sujin would enjoy hearing.
“The trend is——cosplay virtual YouTubers!”
And they can transform too! WA! PreCure!
Hye-won threw both arms high and let out a frenzied cry.
I quietly stood up and walked out of the office.
“Ah, Instructor, you’re out?”
“…Harin.”
“Um… I’ve been having a little trouble communicating with Nitro lately, so I was hoping you could—ueh?”
“Jeon Harin.”
I placed a hand on her shoulder.
Lightly. Pat. Pat.
“Run while you can, angel.”
“Huh?”
“I know nothing.”
“Eh, w-wait, Instructor?!”
That day I fled straight home.
I saw nothing…
The next day.
For reasons unknown, a soundproof booth had been installed in the training center.
“This is going to be one of the spaces where you’ll all work from now on.”
“…I’m computer illiterate, though?”
“I can handle Word and Excel a little, but…”
“RTX 4090…? W-with this I can watch Ren-sama’s live in VR right in front of my eyeeeees?!”
A soundproof booth set up with top-of-the-line specs thanks to the Yuseong Group’s power.
In front of it hung yellow, blue, and red nameplates, making it obvious at a glance who was supposed to enter which one.
“Alright then. First up, Harin-ssi?”
First batter: Jeon Harin.
“From this moment on, Harin-ssi is an angel who protects nature!”
“…What?”
“An angel who, upon seeing lazy, slothful humans unfit for nature, feels an irresistible urge to correct them!”
“……???”
Words too difficult to accept.
She turned toward me for help, but I refused to meet her gaze.
I don’t know either.
I don’t want to know.
“Next, Yeonhwa-ssi!”
“Oh.”
“Yeonhwa-ssi is a demon who, upon seeing lazy, slothful humans unfit for nature, feels an irresistible urge to burn them!”
“Oh……?”
In the end, whether angel or demon, both of you are just equally beating people up, aren’t you?
What difference is there between the two?
“Finally, Sujin-ssi!”
“N-nyeh!”
“From now on, Sujin-ssi is an outcast hikikomori game-addict otaku nun!”
“…What?”
She didn’t stutter.
Her eyes were genuinely filled with bewilderment.
I understand completely.
Sorry I couldn’t protect you.
But how was I supposed to know she would go this far?
Well, the signs had been there ever since she got obsessed with PreCure and tried to create real-life Pretty Cures…
Only the kids ended up suffering—
“Finally, the producer!”
“…Boss?”
“Mister P! The shadowy supporter!”
Please take care of the three of them!
“Aha!”
Faced with Hye-won’s bright smile, I quietly nodded.
“I’m leaving.”
Why do I have to get dragged into this too?
As a side note—
“A-young-ssi, I’ll leave the filming to you!”
“Ah, yes…”
The camera naturally ended up in A-young’s hands.