Chapter 17: Gold

Knead, knead.

It seems like ever since that incident, Sumire has decided to treat me like a child.

Following Sumire’s thin, delicate touch, my cheeks stretched out like sticky rice cakes.

Streeeetch. Thwack-!

“Ouch!”

“Sorry, sorry. Are you okay?”

“No…”

It didn’t matter that my cheek hurt and turned a bit red, but her nonchalant voice, sounding completely unapologetic, wounded my heart.

‘Seriously?’

‘Where did my benevolent Mamang go, replaced by this mischievous older sister?’

“You two look so precious together. I’m jealous.”

“Even if you’re jealous, I won’t let you have her.”

Mao, saying she was jealous watching this, was weird, but Sumire was even weirder.

‘This is Wooseo Woo’s body, who gave her the right to decide who gets what?’

Thwack!

“Oh my, she’s running away.”

“Like a little kitten.”

I instantly threw my hands up, pushing away the arms holding me, and ran to the end of the hallway.

It definitely wasn’t because the faint scent emanating from Sumire’s embrace or the cozy feeling unsettled my heart.

I was just planning to leave after digesting my food since I had vocal training today.

But maybe it’s the effect of my period, my lower abdomen is starting to ache gently… and the constant leaking feeling from down there is incredibly uncomfortable.

‘Is being a woman this inconvenient?’

“Hoshino, are you going today?”

I asked Hoshino, who was coming down the stairs wiping her sweat-soaked forehead with a towel.

“No. I’m going to eat now.”

She replied nonchalantly, shaking her head.

My gaze momentarily lingered on Hoshino’s smooth armpit before I quickly turned my head away.

‘So, it looks like only Azusa and I are going to the vocal lesson today.’

Azusa had consistently attended every lesson throughout the training camp.

We had inevitably gotten a bit closer during the camp, but things were still a little awkward between us.

She has a loud voice and talks a lot, but she mostly hangs out with Miyuki, who seems to be around the same age, and two others, so I haven’t had many chances to talk to her.

Anyway, clutching my aching stomach, I wandered around the headquarters looking for Azusa.

Since exchanging contact information was forbidden, getting used to running around on foot had become the norm.

‘Seriously, the lesson is about to start, where on earth is this person?’

‘I wonder if she’s hiding somewhere snacking again.’

“Ah.”

“Huh?”

Hearing a noise from behind the front desk on the first floor, I approached and saw Azusa munching on Choco Boy snacks.

Her tightly curled, reddish-black hair swayed with her pupils.

The piercings on her lips and ears could look quite intimidating, but her pitiful expression neutralized the effect.

“Don’t look at me with those eyes like I’m some poor kid…”

“No, why are you hiding here to eat snacks?”

“Miyuki keeps taking them…”

The corners of her heavily made-up eyes drooped.

Her excessively red lips trembled pathetically.

Judging by her appearance, she looked like someone cherishing the last remaining food supply in some post-apocalyptic world.

‘She really doesn’t act her style.’

I sighed deeply and held out my hand.

She tilted her head, looking at me with eyes asking what I meant.

Avoiding her pale, vampire-like hand reaching towards me, I said.

“Give me a few too.”

“No way! This is the last bag I brought!”

“Geez, you scared me!”

My head, already throbbing slightly due to my period, rang.

‘Her voice is so loud.’

‘I still don’t understand why someone with such projection sounds so delicate when they sing.’

“Can’t you just buy another one after the lesson?”

“There’s a lesson today…?”

“……”

‘Forget it.’

Trainer Lee Jia, who’s already busy teaching girl groups on top of us, glares daggers if you’re late. I need to save myself.

Feeling strangely lighter, as if the discomfort from my period had eased, I started moving my short legs briskly. Then, a sorrowful voice called out from behind me.

“W-Wait up!”

The Jirai-kei girl, wearing a black short dress with frilly lace dangling all over and some ribboned boots, yelled loudly, drawing the attention of passersby.

Feeling somewhat embarrassed, I quickly tried to escape, but no joke, she caught me in 10 seconds.

‘How is she so fast?’

‘Or are Wooseo Woo’s legs just too short?’

‘Or maybe it’s because of my period… Yeah. That must be it.’

“Ugh… Don’t leave me behind…”

“It’s hot, get off me…”

“Nooooo.”

She looks like a dangerous, tough older sister type, but she acts like a real handful.

‘How on earth has this person lived until now?’

‘Does she have someone specifically looking after her?’

“Ow, I said get off.”

“I don’t know the way…”

“Haaah…”

The intense smell of perfume from her body clinging tightly to me stung my nose.

My arm had disappeared somewhere between her breasts.

The texture of her chest pressed against me right through the rough lace.

“……?!”

‘Is this person not even wearing a bra?’

Overwhelmed by the immense shock, I stopped walking.

This really feels soft like tofu, and it’s clinging stickily to my skin because of the sweat…

“What iiiis it, do you not know the way either?”

“Ah, I know the way.”

It wasn’t a difficult path to memorize in the first place.

Just exit the headquarters, go right for five blocks, then turn right again, and it’s right there.

‘How does this person not remember the way when she goes there almost every day?’

‘Surely, a young person in their 20s with a normally functioning brain should have at least minimal memory.’

‘Even if they had adult ADHD causing short-term memory issues, going back and forth a few times should make the body remember.’

‘But if she still can’t remember, maybe she just can’t be bothered to…?’

‘This person, she’s really useless.’

“Ah, seriously, get off me…!”

“Whyyyyyyy!”

Seeing her act like a child, I sighed inwardly.

But strangely, I found myself unable to completely dislike this side of her.

‘Maybe it’s because I sense an innocence in her speech and actions?’

‘Even though her looks scream ‘definitely not the pure type’.’ Humph.

After wrestling like that for a while, we finally arrived at the studio.

First, I tried to dry my clothes, which were soaked in sweat from trying to shake her off.

‘Seriously, at this rate, I might catch a summer cold that even the foolish Azusa avoids.’

‘My stomach already hurts like hell, when will this heat ever end?’

“Let’s go now. We’re going to get scolded again.”

“You smell like sweat…”

“You smell worse, Azusa?!”

Horrified, I pushed Azusa’s head away as she buried her nose in my armpit and inhaled deeply.

‘Where the hell does she think she’s putting her nose?’

‘This crazy person.’

‘It feels like just a short while ago, I couldn’t keep my composure just from physical contact with a woman, but today, being forced into contact with Sumire and now this person, my heart can’t take it.’

“You’re a little late.”

“I’m sorryyy…”

“Maybe I’m sorry…”

“What do you mean, ‘maybe I’m sorry’?”

Lee Jia, who had been chatting and drinking coffee with Kim Hyunmin, whose dark circles were threatening to reach his chin, looked at Azusa incredulously.

‘I thought she’d glare daggers, but it seems even she’s powerless against true madness.’

“Since you’re late, we’re going to be really strict today. Azusa, you go in first.”

“Nyeh…?”

Azusa looked like her world was ending as she was dragged into the recording booth.

Actually, vocal training could be done at the headquarters, but since we’d eventually have to churn out cover songs within months of debuting, the reasoning was to listen to the recordings immediately on the spot.

Anyway, as expected, Azusa started getting torn apart the moment she went in.

“Why are you so insistent on using falsetto! No, I’m not saying falsetto is inherently bad, but listen to this! How does this sound? Like a deflated balloon. Your breathing is a complete mess.”

“Look. At this rate, you’ll strain your throat and get nodules soon.”

“Wuuung…”

“Are you listening? It’s completely different from the edited version, right? That’s why you become more reliant on mixing, and the tone balance gets messed up, you said so yourself.”

“Yes. Yees…”

“During our consultation, you said you wanted to sing better and didn’t want to lose your current singing style, right? And that you’d try to achieve both. But what is this? Your skills aren’t improving, and you lack determination. If both are difficult, you have to give one up!”

“That’s why I told you, if you want to sing better, ditch that singing style and stop relying solely on mixing. If the source material is bad, the final product will ultimately be bad too!”

“Be honest. The mixing process takes weeks longer than the recording itself, right?”

“Hwaaang…”

“No, crying again? You promised if you cried one more time, you’d change your singing style and song selection according to my instructions. Should we just tear everything down and start from scratch then?”

“I told you I’d take responsibility and care for you until you learn a new singing style, even if you get eliminated. Did you forget?”

“Sniffle… Nenyong.” (TL Note: Likely a cute/crying way of saying ‘Ne’ – Yes)

“…This is driving me crazy, really.”

A storm raged inside the recording booth.

The funny thing was, Kim Hyunmin and I were listening to everything through the speakers.

Apparently, this was the only recent pleasure for Kim Hyunmin, who had become a zombie due to overwork?

Even now, he was covering his mouth, pretending to drink coffee, while chuckling.

‘He doesn’t look the type, but he has some really nasty hobbies.’

“Why won’t Azusa change her singing style?”

I was actually quite curious.

Honestly, even to me, a VTuber enthusiast, her current style didn’t suit her.

She sings almost entirely in falsetto, perhaps trying to hide her naturally husky voice. But because she strains beyond her vocal range, her breathing is a bit messy.

It’s not about singing well or poorly; it just doesn’t fit.

If anything, skill-wise alone, she might be quite good.

Azusa’s only drawback is being compared to Sumire, who’s basically a cheat character in this field, but compared to the average person, her vocals are outstanding.

Well, it’s not really my place to judge, considering I still can’t even hit the right notes properly.

“A singing style isn’t something that changes overnight. Conversely, that vocalization wasn’t learned overnight either, so she probably has an attachment and pride tied to it.”

“And changing the singing style isn’t always the answer. Meeting the wrong trainer can really mess things up, leaving you with neither this nor that. Well, with Ms. Jia, there’s no need to worry, though.”

“I heard she might get vocal nodules, isn’t that dangerous?”

“It is dangerous. But artists who easily give up their stubbornness aren’t real artists. Fundamentally, those with weak convictions mostly break down midway.”

“Heok.”

It was a sharp statement, unlike his usual tired impression.

‘So this person is also an artist, is that it?’

“Still, it seems better for her to change it. For her own sake, I mean. This is a place to be evaluated, not a place to be stubborn.”

“And in this field, there’s already Sumire… it’s a bit harsh to say, but she’s the superior version, right? She’ll constantly be compared during the evaluation period…”

“Well, if she decides to kick away the opportunity to debut as a VTuber with Belus and do something else, I won’t stop her.”

“……”

‘Yeah. That’s true.’

Having adapted, with a more relaxed schedule and fewer people than at the start, I sometimes let my guard down, but thinking about it, it’s foolish to assume I won’t be one of the two who get eliminated.

Azusa’s strength seems to be her singing, but if she gets dropped for being stubborn there, she’ll miss a huge opportunity to debut with Belus, a top group in this industry.

‘But what are my strengths?’

“…Huh?”

Suddenly, a cold sweat started to form.

I dance much worse than Hoshino, and my singing doesn’t even reach the soles of Sumire’s feet.

I’m not sociable like Miyuki, nor do I have the innate talent like Mao Mao.

‘Wait, am I in a pretty dangerous position right now…?’

My only few redeeming qualities are Wooseo Woo’s works and life, which is a clean past as an introverted loner shut-in.

But given CEO Kim Kanghyun’s tendencies, everyone gathered here likely survived because they didn’t have major disqualifying factors. So, that’s not much of a strength anymore.

The only thing I can boast about is being good at drawing. But I haven’t really drawn anything during the training camp.

The reason is simple. Drawing is just a bonus.

A VTuber can get by if they have talent, singing ability, good fan management, and dancing skills.

No, actually, VTubers who can dance are practically non-existent in Korea. So, just talent, singing, and cultivating dedicated fans are enough.

And currently, by my own judgment, I’m not even meeting that baseline.

‘I’m f*cked!’

Talent? Do I, someone who was slaved away like a dog in a corner of my room without a single friend, have any talent? The best I can do is act cute for the forum users, maybe handing out virtual burgers.

Singing? It seems I inherited Wooseo Woo’s super-ultra-level talent. But the person wielding this super-ultra, perhaps master-level talent, is a sub-moderator on a talentless VTuber fan forum, so seeing the light is still a distant prospect.

Cultivating dedicated fans? This doesn’t even require thought.

No matter how much a VTuber enthusiast understands the heart of another enthusiast, how can I possibly suck up to my own kind?

Of course, for Haruka’s sake, I could do it, but…

“…C-Can I do it?”

Anyway, no matter how I look at it, I have a ridiculously small hexagon of stats.

If things continue like this, I have the highest chance of being eliminated when the training camp ends.

‘What do I do? A week has already flown by.’

Just as my worries were digging deep into the earth, heading for the core, the recording booth door burst open, signaling the end of the lesson.

Azusa emerged with her makeup completely smudged, alongside a fuming Lee Jia.

“Stay behind after we finish today. No, wait, I have plans. You’re coming for the lesson again tomorrow, right? Let’s have one more consultation right before we start, and if you show no willingness to change or no potential for improvement, I’m just going to give up.”

“If you pass through other means, that’s one thing, but if things stay like this, you won’t receive a good evaluation on this front.”

“Sniffle, yees… I’m sorryyy.”

“Apologize to your overworked vocal cords. Next!”

“Heek!”

Her lioness-like gaze turned towards me.

I could only shrink back like a small animal facing a predator.

“Why is your face so pale? Oh my, look at your legs trembling.”

I forced my trembling legs to move towards the recording booth.

‘I really have to do well.’

‘If I don’t show even the slightest improvement, I won’t be able to have sweet, pure, lovey-dovey cuddles with Haruka…!’

‘Haruka… I’ll do my best…!’