I Can See a VTuber’s Red Pills - Chapter 16

I skimmed through the list Jeong-yeon had brought.

It wasn’t just names—each artist’s style and illustration samples were attached as references.

As I casually read through the list, I listened to her explanation.

"I did my best to organize it, but..."

"...?"

"Honestly, I’m worried whether we can actually entrust this to them."

"Why?"

"Well... these are all highly sought-after artists. There’s a 99% chance their schedules are already fully booked."

"Fair point."

Her concern made sense.

But I’ve recently realized one thing:

Money solves everything.

"Contact them and offer triple their usual rate."

"...Huh?"

And then:

"If they still refuse, go up to five times."

"........."

If something seems impossible, it’s probably just a matter of insufficient funds.

"As long as the quality is guaranteed, money isn’t an issue. So start reaching out first. Who knows? They might all jump at the opportunity."

"...Yes, understood!"

Jeong-yeon, who had looked half-dead just moments ago, abruptly stood up from her seat.

As she hurried to leave, I stopped her.

"Ah, I didn’t mean right this second. You look exhausted—take it easy. Just work during work hours. People need sleep, you know. This is all just to make a living."

"...I love you!"

"Uh, that’s a bit much—...and she’s gone."

For the past three days, I’ve been getting one confession a day.

Is this love at first sight or something? But I still find our relationship awkward.

"This is... troublesome."

A residence in Japan.

A woman named Fujii Haruna was sketching on her tablet with a stylus when a notification chimed.

—Ding.

"Hm?"

Amidst her current commission, the alert for her business email went off.

Glancing at the time, Haruna set down her pen, leaned back in her chair, and opened her inbox to take a breather.

The first paragraph was standard—a request for a VTuber avatar design.

She was about to politely decline due to her backlog, but as she read further, she found herself drawn deeper into the email.

"...? ...! ...?! Huh?!"

The contents were as follows:

---

From: linne0911
To: haruナ

Hello, Haruna.

I heard you’re currently not taking commissions due to a heavy workload, but I’m reaching out despite the imposition.

This is quite urgent.

I’m willing to pay triple your usual rate.

If the work meets expectations, I’d like to establish a long-term partnership.

Please let me know if you’re interested.

---

Two key points stood out:

First, the offer of triple her standard fee. Second, the promise of ongoing commissions at this rate if satisfied.

After a brief but intense moment of deliberation, Haruna reached a swift conclusion.

"This... would be stupid to pass up."

Similar scenes were unfolding across Japan and Korea.

Today was A-jeong’s day off.

Which meant I had free time for once.

Normally, I’d be busy researching things even on days like this, but not anymore.

Jeong-yeon—someone who could be busy on my behalf—now existed.

In that spirit...

"Hmm. This one’s a B...?"

For the first time in a while, I was browsing streams, scouting for more raw talent.

Ever since Jeong-yeon’s suggestion, one thought had been nagging at me.

Her question about whether I wanted to establish a corporate entity. It kept resurfacing in my mind.

With her help, I now fully understood what that entailed.

But did I actually want to do it?

I wasn’t sure. While I did want to build a career around VTubers, it wasn’t urgent.

Frankly, I’d be content with just a flashy business card, but forming a corporation felt like escalating things unnecessarily.

The idea of being responsible for multiple people made me hesitant.

“Oh? Wait, she has a boyfriend.”

Lost in thought, I absentmindedly browsed new VTubers and stumbled upon an A-tier candidate—only to deflate at the sight of a man subtly appearing beside her.

This kept happening. While searching for another A-jeong-level gem, I’d occasionally find someone close.

But without fail, there’d always be a dealbreaker. Either a boyfriend would pop up, or I’d rush to check out a VTuber praised for their voice in the forums, only to recognize them as that noona who used to play FPS at the PC bang.

“Another bust today... Hm?”

Scroll, scroll. As I dragged the mouse wheel, a familiar stream caught my eye.

[Just kill me already...]
[Linne]

She’d greeted me earlier when she “clocked in,” but she must’ve started streaming since then.

At least she seemed to be getting enough sleep lately, but the stream title was puzzling.

[Ughhh... I’m so tired...]

―Hey, Rin, wake up.
―Isn’t this a good problem to have?
―LMAOOOO
―More like a luxury problem.
―Bros, we’re feasting.

Jeong-yeon—or rather, Linne’s avatar—was visible on screen, but so was her real-life self.

Slumped over her desk, sighing heavily.

[It’s not bad... but how am I supposed to categorize this...? I mean—I’m literally suffering from choice paralysis right now? I need to decide quickly so I can get the boss’s approval, but...]

Seems there’s something she hasn’t told me yet.

[Zel Naga has donated 1,000,000 Butter!]
[What’s going on? What’s got you so stressed?]

―Gasp
―Gasp
―Gasp
―Busted.
―Our Linne did nothing wrong ㅠㅠ
―Protect Linne at all costsㅠㅠㅠㅠ
―RIP ㅋㅋㅋㅋ
―She’s not going far ㅋㅋ

My casual donation sent the chat into chaos.

It felt like getting caught badmouthing someone—only for that person to show up.

Not that Jeong-yeon would actually talk behind my back on stream.

Or so I thought.

[Hey! Don’t make it sound like I did something shady! It’s not like that! It’s just... I contacted the artists on that list you gave me, and... they all said yes, so now I’m the one who has to choose...]

Turns out, my reckless overpaying had every artist clamoring to take the job.

Jeong-yeon, who’d initially been in the position of begging, “Please make us one avatar!”, was now being begged, “Please let us make it for you!”

Each one was a renowned professional. She wanted to commission them all, but that wasn’t necessary.

“I get it.”

Her exhausted grumbling made sense. She must be agonizing over who to pick.

But from my perspective, that’s just a waste of time.

The solution was simple.

[Zel Naga has donated 1,000,000 Butter!]
[Just commission all of them and pick the ones you like. Half for A-jeong, half for Linne.]

If they all said yes, take them all.

In fact, this was better—it gave A-jeong options. Send multiple designs and let her choose her favorite.

Jeong-yeon, who’d been sighing with her head down, slowly looked up at the screen with a baffled expression.

[...........Huh?]

―LMAOOOOOO
―LMAOOOOOOOOOOOO
―This guy’s actually insane.
―If you’ve got that kind of money, sponsor the gallery instead.
―Zel Naga, why’ve you stopped funding the gallery?
―You sucked the forum dry and now you’re abandoning us?

[No no no no, wait! Hold on!]

―??
―What’re you doing?
―Getting ditched again ㅋㅋ
―Boss is here, time to sprint, motherf—
―“Boss”? More like “CEO,” dumbass.
―Money talks, boss walks.
―Deadass ㅋㅋㅋ

Jeong-yeon shot up from her seat, her avatar freezing mid-motion.

Moments later—

"CEO-nim!"

She burst into my room, slamming the door open.

"What kind of logic is that?! Just commission all of them?!"

"...? That’s literally what I said. You said you were struggling to decide."

"That’s not the point! Do you know how much that’ll cost?!"

"I told you, don’t worry about money. Even the time spent worrying is a waste. Use that time to get the avatars made instead."

"...........Wow."

―Clap clap clap.

Panting from her frantic sprint, Jeong-yeon froze for a moment before slowly applauding.

If she’d just commissioned the artists earlier instead of agonizing, the avatars would already be in progress.

And to me, even that time felt like a waste.

"...CEO-nim."

"Yes?"

"This might be incredibly rude to ask, but..."

"...What is it?"

Her expression turned deadly serious. I had no idea what was coming, and it was kind of terrifying.

But contrary to my expectations, her question was... underwhelming.

"...How much money do you actually have?"

Money...? Honestly, I don’t know the exact number.

But roughly...

"Hmm. Enough to buy a few European football clubs and host an inter-league tournament?"

I’m pretty sure I could swing that comfortably.

But my analogy clearly didn’t resonate with her.

"...........So how much is that?"

The woman knew nothing about football.