Became the Mother of Virtual YouTubers - Chapter 88
It has been a few days since Jin Ha had the first meeting with the NiseLive Korean branch.
To discuss how to arrange the concert stage, Jin Ha scheduled a meeting with Kamishiro Rei on VRChat.
While it was an issue that could have been sufficiently discussed with the art department or planning office, this meeting was created at Rei’s request, wanting to actively voice opinions during the planning stage.
Ahead of the meeting, Jin Ha checked Rei’s live broadcast.
To be honest, Jin Ha usually didn’t watch live broadcasts of VTubers belonging to big companies.
Jin Ha was the famous deep-sea exploration buoy of Pasta, part of the Hakko Exploration team.
Jin Ha wasn’t particularly hipster.
The biggest reason was that they thought there was no need to add themselves to broadcasts that already had sufficient viewers.
In the first place, you can find Kirinuki all over YouTube.
Since there are many talented individuals with lots of fans, they brilliantly extract only the dopamine-inducing parts, so there was no need to watch the live.
On the other hand, missing Hakko broadcasts had many problems.
In the short term, it means missing out on that day’s dopamine, and in the long term, it could lead to the channel itself shutting down.
“Looking back, I started watching broadcasts of the CosmoLive VTubers and gradually moved on from watching the first-generation students who were Hakko until graduation.”
Suddenly, a vivid image of a lively corporate-style VTuber popped into Jin Ha’s mind.
She had only around 100 to 200 average viewers.
[Your very own fairy descending from the heavens, Kamishiro Rei.]
She was reborn into a completely different form, now a mega VTuber with over two million followers.
Dressed in the wings of NiseLive, she truly took flight.
“Indeed, big companies are different.”
As the broadcast began, Jin Ha let out a light gasp and watched the screen.
“A fairy curious about the human world, huh…”
Jin Ha unconsciously scrutinized the avatar on the screen.
Truly, it was a dazzling yet graceful appearance fitting the fairy concept.
The flowing silk dress with subtly sparkling golden embroidery was exquisite.
Her long hair, a mix of soft sky blue and silver, added to the mystery.
The heavenly background unfolded behind the stage, with clouds swirling in response to the avatar’s movements, creating a vibrant atmosphere that felt as if she was truly in the sky.
Despite being created two years ago, it held its own against the avatar quality of recently debuted VTubers.
Compared to the VTubers born from Jin Ha’s hands, it barely showed any flaws.
The quality of the avatar was impressive, but the broadcasting sense was extraordinary as well.
This fairy was superbly captivating the lumberjacks.
With her uniquely proud and noble demeanor, she maintained a certain distance from viewers.
Now and then, she smiled gently, endlessly stimulating anticipation.
Every word, gesture, expression—everything seemed meticulously calculated and designed.
Rei’s greatest charm was undoubtedly her voice.
A beautiful voice flowing from divinity.
That is why she was Kamishiro Rei.
As she began singing with a clear timbre, Jin Ha couldn’t help but exclaim in admiration.
“…Does the quality really come out this well in a live performance? At this level, it’s nearly on par with Merry!”
Jin Ha’s labor playlist included quite a few songs covered by Rei.
Was Rei a good singer? Acknowledged.
But Jin Ha never expected the live version to be almost indistinguishable from the recorded version.
Before Jin Ha knew it, she had put on her headphones and was completely immersed in the broadcast.
Every time Rei’s clear yet deep timbre soared to high notes, Jin Ha felt a thrilling tingle running down her spine.
“If she had debuted as a singer, she would have done really well…”
Even after finishing her song, Rei showed no signs of breathlessness, wearing an elegant smile.
“In the end, you proved yourself as a VTuber.”
A momentary pang of regret crossed Jin Ha’s face as she watched.
*
After the live broadcast ended, Jin Ha logged into the VRChat private room at the scheduled time.
As the darkness before her slowly lifted, the virtual space revealed itself in all its splendor and grandeur.
Soft clouds enveloped her feet, and the surrounding sky sparkled as if stars were about to rain down.
In the distance, a splendidly shining palace came into view.
With a soft sound.
Walking on clouds piled up like snow, the heavenly fairy approached.
“Your very own fairy descending from the heavens, Kamishiro Rei.”
Kamishiro Rei.
The same person who had just been communicating with lumberjacks was now right in front of Jin Ha.
“It’s an honor to meet you, Jin Ha.”
“Nice to meet you. I was just watching your broadcast, and I can’t believe you’re right in front of me.”
“Is that so? How was the broadcast? Was it okay?”
“It was amazing. Starting today, I’m officially a lumberjack.”
After melting their awkwardness with smiles and broadcasting talk, Rei started to bring up the main topic.
“I’ve heard a lot about you, Jin Ha. They say you’re the most talented 3D artist in Korea.”
“Haha. People around me have been praising me too much.”
“I think it’s really impressive. Han A-ri, who changed the paradigm of VTuber modeling content… and the third-generation members of CosmoLive, too.”
The emphasis on the word “CosmoLive” was palpable.
Even though she was reborn with a new look and dressed in wings, letting go of old memories was not easy.
“I was particularly impressed by Winter’s debut live stage. Can you arrange my stage to be like that or even better?”
“I’ll try my best. It’s a solo concert, after all. I have to pay extra attention.”
“I don’t care about effort; just show me the results. And… I have a few ideas regarding stage direction; may I share them?”
A mischievous smile rose on Rei’s lips.
“First of all, I want to fly through the audience and communicate with fans directly during this concert.”
For some reason, in the example idea that Se-yeon showed, there was an avatar flying over the audience. Was that Rei’s idea?
Jin Ha slowly nodded with arms crossed.
“Moving the avatar itself in the air isn’t difficult…”
“I want the experience to go beyond just flying the avatar; I would like to feel like I’m flying as well while controlling the avatar.”
To create immersion for the audience, isn’t it essential to first immerse oneself in the avatar?
Rei flashed a smile.
While it seemed she intended to put Jin Ha in a difficult position,
“It’s certainly important to immerse oneself to enhance the quality of the performance. I’ll give it a try.”
“…Huh?”
“It’s not particularly difficult. I’ve done it once before.”
“??!?!?”
So, did she mean she has done a performance with a real person flying on stage?
…How? With wires? Or did she hire a stunt performer?
Wait, didn’t that person say she was a 3D designer? Isn’t she specialized in decorating VTuber stages?
“Then, how about this? The background of the venue changes instantly to match the mood of the song.”
Changing the entire venue’s background rather than just the studio is much more challenging.
“From the bright sky to the dark night sky, or from a vibrant flower field to a glowing oriental city… almost like teleporting to another world.”
“A system for rapidly changing the stage environment… This could be possible by slightly applying the algorithms used in the VR TRPG. That’s a good idea!”
Rei’s eyebrows raised slightly at Jin Ha’s nonchalant response.
She had intentionally asked for technically challenging directions to put Jin Ha in a tough spot.
And yet, Jin Ha had touched on the idea as if it were nothing.
…Then what could possibly be something she hadn’t done before?
“Then, finally… I want every audience member to see different scenes depending on their perspective. Make each one feel as if they’re witnessing a unique stage, giving everyone a different experience.”
“I think customized perspective direction for each audience member is definitely feasible. By using eye trackers to capture perspectives and altering the scenes based on their viewing direction… It would be complicated to implement, but it sounds interesting.”
Rei was momentarily at a loss for words.
Isn’t it normal to express discomfort and fluster when making such unreasonable requests?
Yet Jin Ha faced her ideas head-on, showing no hesitation, almost as if finding it intriguing.
‘Why would someone like this… end up at CosmoLive…’
Unable to contain herself any longer, Rei’s voice took on a slightly sharp tone.
“…Jin Ha, is this really possible? I may not know much about 3D design, but I acknowledge that every one of my requests is quite challenging.”
“It’s difficult, but it’s definitely something we can do, and it would enrich the stage.”
Thanks to that, this project seems like it’s going to be more interesting, and Jin Ha smiled calmly.
Seeing her relaxed demeanor, Rei furrowed her brows slightly and grumbled.
“You’re not just talking big, are you?”
“I’ll prepare a simple draft of the stage direction before the next meeting. Let’s discuss more after looking over that.”
Rei nodded with a sour expression at Jin Ha’s words.
She had set up this meeting today, intentionally trying to put Jin Ha in a difficult situation by taking time away from her schedule.
Yet she felt as if she had been the one outsmarted.