The Villainess VTuber Tears People Apart

[General] A-Grade Virgin: “It’s a bit late.”

“Are we going to turn into grandmas at this rate?”

[Comments]

– “Keeping your virginity until you’re a grandma, that’s so hot… Damn!”

ㄴ ?

ㄴ [Are you crazy, bro?]

ㄴ [You want a headcount in prison☆, bro?]

ㄴ Who’s the Author?

ㄴ “Typical banter, lol”

– “Will she become a grandma though?”

ㄴ (Author): [Instead, I’ll offer you this fine BS.]

– “Why isn’t she streaming…?”

ㄴ “She’ll probably start streaming after her official debut on Saturday.”

===

“How should I address you?”

Anna asked.

“Address?”

“You’re debuting soon as a 6th generation, right?”

“That’s right.”

“Then technically, you’d be my junior, but I’m wondering if it’s okay to keep calling you ‘Teacher.’”

“Hmm.”

I unconsciously rubbed my chin.

This situation was getting complicated.

Rion, a 4th generation VTuber, was my cousin. Anna, a 5th generation VTuber, called me ‘Teacher.’

If I likened it to military terms, Rion would be like a corporal, and Anna would be a private first class?

‘From Anna’s perspective, it must feel like the person who used to tutor her just enlisted as a private.’

It was a bit dizzying.

“But VTubers don’t seem to care much about seniority, do they?”

That part was quite unusual. Even with celebrities, the seniority system is significant.

With VTubers, even if there was a three-year difference, they often behaved like close friends, using casual speech and calling each other by their first names.

“Yeah, VTubers don’t really draw strict lines when it comes to seniority.”

“Then just call me whatever feels comfortable.”

“Even so, we do respect those who debuted earlier. It’s like everyone is a seasoned veteran, but we still acknowledge seniority.”

…I understood what she meant, but how does she even know about military culture?

Is Anna also secretly someone who was reincarnated? Her rather geeky hobbies were already a bit suspicious….

“So, what you’re saying is that treating me like an elder might be awkward?”

“I don’t mind, but it might not look great from the viewers’ perspective.”

Anna explained that a new VTuber who didn’t show enough respect for seniors could turn off the fanbase.

So does that mean I have to show respect toward Rion and Anna?

That’s tricky.

I’ve always been in a position of being respected, not the other way around.

“Well, feel free to call me whatever you want. You can call me Lady Laura or just Laura.”

“What about Laura-chan?”

“……”

Anna had a kind heart, but sometimes… she could be a little annoying.

Sometimes.

…Maybe often.

***

So, for the time being, Anna and I decided to part ways.

It wasn’t because I was upset with her.

…Well, maybe I was a little upset, but that’s not why I was cutting ties.

No matter how villainous I was, or maybe because I was a villainess, I rarely pushed away people who liked me.

You often see this in romance fantasy novels, don’t you? When the villainess criticizes the heroine, she’s always surrounded by loyal followers who raise their voices with her.

In that sense, you could say Anna was one of my followers.

She’d probably liked me from the start, but after the recent ‘viewer participation’ stream, I felt like we’d gotten even closer.

‘Maybe she realized I’m more charming than her favorite?’

That would be unfortunate for Hanabane Rui. Being too perfect has its downsides.

Anyway, as sorry as I felt for Anna, due to ‘company regulations,’ we wouldn’t be able to meet for a while.

– “It varies from company to company. After debuting, there’s a restriction period where you’re only allowed to collaborate with fellow generation members.”

– “It’s not like you’re completely banned from collaborating with others, but most companies have similar guidelines.”

– “The restriction period can be as short as two weeks or as long as a month. Some companies even ban collaborations with seniors for up to six months….”

Apparently, new VTubers had a collaboration restriction period.

There were several reasons, but the main one was for them to find their own footing by doing solo streams.

How to role-play (RP).

How to interact with viewers.

How to manage the flow of their streams.

It seemed like the RP issue was the biggest one.

VTubers weren’t expected to be amazing actors. The RP they did was usually superficial at best.

But still, since it wasn’t their genuine selves, there were moments when they made mistakes during the stream.

– [When I was 8, pheromone perfumes were all the rage… Huh? But if I’m an 8000-year-old demon, that would’ve been 7,000 years ago? Oh, well, in the virtual demon realm, we had those perfumes back then~. Yeah…!]

– [Oh, I did that back when I was in high school… What? You’re asking if I’m not a high schooler now? Oh, right! I’m a second-year student council president, so I meant that’s what happened when I was in first year.]

…Moments like this, when their VTuber RP and real-life stories conflicted, especially when sharing anecdotes, were common.

Of course, those inconsistencies were part of what made VTubers entertaining, but RP was also a key element for keeping viewers immersed.

That’s why the ‘collaboration restriction period’ served as a sort of ‘newbie waiting period,’ like in the military, for VTubers to get accustomed to RP.

Collaborating with seniors before they got used to it could throw them off.

Also, if they got too close to seniors early on, it could rub viewers the wrong way.

There were even viewers who disliked seeing seniors dragging juniors around.

So, for the time being, Anna and I would only communicate through Discord calls, and it seemed like we wouldn’t meet in VR or on streams for a while.

Instead,

– Ding

[Lo-Laura! H-hi there…!]

A voice came through.

“You’re here?”

[Y-Yeah! I’m here…. Wh-what about Sora and Chel…?]

“I’m not sure. They might not come again today.”

[Th-that so…! So, Laura, are you gaming today…?]

“No, I was thinking of having dinner.”

I checked my phone, which displayed a food delivery app. Judging by the rider’s location, the food was about to arrive.

[Th-that so! I was thinking of having dinner too…! Do you mind if we chat while we eat…?]

“Suit yourself.”

[Th-then give me a moment! I’ll go grab something to eat…!]

There was a loud clatter as Inagika hurried off. So hectic.

– “Try to connect with your fellow generation members as much as you can before debut, unnie.”

– “Especially since there’s one fewer member this time compared to other generations. You all need to show how close you are.”

That’s what Rion had told me.

So lately, I’ve been staying connected to the voice chat as much as possible.

There was a group chat that Sora had created, but it felt like no one really talked in it.

Even when messages did come in, they were mostly superficial.

That’s why I stayed connected to the voice channel, and sure enough, someone always showed up.

Sora sometimes popped in.

Chel entered frequently, but never said a word.

Inagika visited every day.

[Wh-what are you eating for dinner…?]

“Pasta.”

[You like pasta…. I-I’ll remember that!]

And then came the sound of slurping. It seemed like Inagika was subsisting on konjac jelly for at least one meal a day.

Recently, I’ve been talking the most with Inagika.

We often found ourselves alone in the voice chat, and every time, she would always start a conversation.

The reason was obvious.

Inagika wanted to get closer to me.

[H-how’s the stream prep going…?]

Inagika stuttered slightly.

Since we were talking online, I couldn’t see her face, but it wasn’t hard to guess what expression she was wearing. She was definitely nervous.

Looking back, Inagika had always been like this.

From what she had told me, it didn’t seem like she had many friends. In fact, she might not have had any.

But her desire to make friends was strong, and lacking confidence or conversational skills, it must’ve been hard for her to even start talking.

In that sense, maybe I was her first friend.

“Honestly, I’m not sure if there’s much to prepare for.”

I said.

Was there really a need to do more introductions?

I’d already appeared several times on Anna’s stream, and I’d even hosted a clarification stream not too long ago.

The viewers probably had a good idea of who I was by now.

[W-well, that might be true for you…. But it’s still important to have some prep. Things like your profile, schedule, and setting expectations for your viewers…]

“Then I guess it’s not that hard after all.”

I already had my profile and schedule prepared. All that was left was to upload them to my stream.

And as for setting expectations, that was also no problem.

I was someone to be admired; my mere existence was content.

[I’m so envious…. I wish I had as much confidence as you do….]

“It’s sad that I can’t share it with you, even if I wanted to. Oh well, just make sure you’re born as Aurora, a noble lady, in your next life.”

[I-I’ll try…. But Laura, you’re going last, right?]

“Yeah.”

Sora, Chel, Inagika, and me. That was the order.

– [Laura, you should go last. If you go first, we’ll be overshadowed.]

Even if you try to hide the sun, you can’t cover its presence. Without much conversation, Sora recognized my overwhelming presence and assigned me to go last. It couldn’t be helped that I was brilliant.

Sora, it seemed, wanted either the first or last spot.

Inagika, on the other hand, was strongly opposed to going first.

– [I-I’d like to go before Laura… That way, if I mess up, people will forget quickly….]

So Sora was first, Inagika third, and I was last.

Chel, who hadn’t voiced any preference, was automatically assigned the second spot.

[On th-the debut day… Should we all…get together…?]

Inagika suggested.

“Get together in real life?”

[No, not like that…! I’m not ready to meet in person yet…. And besides, we’d have to be home for the stream….]

“That’s true.”

[I just thought it would be nice if we all got on Discord… and watched the stream together while chatting…]

Inagika mumbled her words.

Come to think of it, I’d only gotten close to Inagika. I hadn’t really bonded with the other two yet. I still didn’t have a good read on Chel.

“Sure, let’s do that.”

[Th-then can you do me a favor…? I’m not good at bringing this up….]

Looks like she was asking me to order for her because she couldn’t do it herself….

It wasn’t a big deal, so I agreed to speak up in the group chat for her.

***

[Rion, introduce me instead.]

[…Huh? Me?]

Aurora, summoning her manager right from her debut stream.

Looking at her, Sora muttered.

“…Is she out of her mind?”