The Villainess VTuber Tears People Apart

VR has a system called “My Room.”

To put it simply, it’s a system where you can decorate your own personal space in the virtual reality world.

When I was teaching Anna, it was common for me to be invited to the “My Room” she had created.

The collaboration we just had also took place in Sora’s “My Room.”

So, this was the first time I had ever invited someone else to the “My Room” I had made.

“Why does your My Room look so empty?”

Sora said that as soon as she arrived.

Sora’s avatar was more like a flat design compared to her real-life appearance.

That was understandable. Rather than risking her real appearance being seen by the viewers, it was better to make her VR avatar look like a flat illustration.

These days, AI technology has advanced so much that if you input a flat image (or an illustration) and run it through an AI, it can create a VR avatar for you.

It might make you wonder why all VTubers don’t just use that method to create 3D models, but apparently, the technology wasn’t perfect. It only made the appearance seem plausible, but there were all sorts of issues with the substance.

Maybe that’s why Sora, despite being a bard, had such a simple appearance.

“Aren’t you going to decorate your My Room?”

“Haha, have you ever seen a noblewoman personally decorate her own home? At least, I’ve never seen one.”

“…No, seriously, you should decorate it a little. Give me some permissions.”

When I gave Sora some permissions, she started decorating my My Room bit by bit.

The room, which had nothing but a large monitor, began to be adorned with a carpet, and gradually more furniture took their places.

“VR is your main content anyway. You should at least decorate your My Room.”

“To be precise, Labyrinthos is my main content.”

“Still, you’ll sometimes show your My Room to viewers, right? Like during collaborations, it’s common to do them in your My Room.”

“I see.”

I nodded.

Even in Minecraft, decorating, such as housing, didn’t seem to be my thing.

That’s why I had left it unattended, but Sora’s point was valid. Even things that aren’t visible should be taken care of if I am to be considered a proper noblewoman.

And who knows, I might invite someone to my My Room more frequently in the future.

“You want to practice more?”

“Yeah.”

“That’s unexpected.”

I sat in the recliner and crossed my arms unconsciously.

“I thought you didn’t like Labyrinthos.”

“Dislike it? Me? Why would I?”

“You don’t usually play physical games.”

So, I thought she’s participating in the tournament reluctantly. It was just that we 6th-generation VTubers didn’t have the seniority to refuse.

When I asked, Sora shook her head.

“I’m not familiar with it, but I don’t dislike it.”

“Then, did you find the game fun?”

It didn’t seem like she was as immersed in it as she was in Minecraft. After all, Sora rarely won in the game, so it wouldn’t have been easy for her to enjoy it.

And Sora didn’t particularly deny that.

“Since there’s a tournament, I want to get better.”

“Rion said the tournament isn’t all about winning or losing.”

“Rion-senior said that?”

I nodded and told her what Rion had mentioned.

After hearing the story about the mafia game, Sora responded with an “Ah~” as if she understood.

“It’s kind of like that. There’s something similar in real life too, right? Even if someone messes up, if the one who made them cry ends up looking like the bad guy.”

“Yeah, that kind of atmosphere definitely exists.”

“I think it’s the same here. But isn’t it funny? That VTuber A was just being serious about winning the game, wasn’t she? After all, Mafia is supposed to be a game like that, right?”

Sora continued.

“Of course, I understand too. Viewers care about their favorite VTubers. They’re happy when their favorite is happy.

But viewers aren’t stupid either. They can tell whether the VTuber is serious about the game or not.

Like you said, it’s not about winning or losing, but that means what’s important is to create ‘entertaining moments,’ right?

In the end, I think ‘entertaining moments’ come from us being serious about the broadcast. If you try to create calculated ‘entertaining moments,’ the viewers will eventually notice.”

Even if they don’t notice, a “calculated moment” can’t beat an “unintentional, genuine moment.”

That must be Sora’s theory, her belief.

“If that’s what you think, then I understand. I’ll go along with you.”

I nodded.

“But it’s going to be tough. Can you keep up?”

“…Hearing you say that is making me nervous.”

Sora’s expression stiffened.

***

It was already September.

The date for the tournament was set. September 22nd, right after Chuseok, on a Sunday.

As September began, things started to change in various ways.

Our 6th-generation channels were officially monetized.

And Rion officially quit being a VTuber.

-“It’s not retirement, nya.”

-“I’ll still stream from time to time!”

On August 31st, there was even a “Retirement (Not) Stream.”

All of the VTubers at EYEAI adjusted their schedules to avoid overlapping with Rion’s “Retirement (Not) Stream.”

Maybe because of that, Rion hit 20,000 subscribers, but it seemed like she still planned to continue working behind the scenes.

Another change was that the disaster recovery efforts for EYEAI’s Minecraft, which had been destroyed once, were nearly complete.

The VTubers who hadn’t been on Minecraft in a while joined in for fun to help with the recovery.

Even now, in early September, a few senior VTubers were still playing Minecraft, but with the tournament approaching, I had a feeling the Minecraft boom at EYEAI was fading.

Since the tournament date was set, everyone would likely start focusing on Labyrinthos this month.

And leading that charge was none other than my fellow 6th-generation VTuber, Ayanokouji Sora, who was… pestering me.

Ayanokouji Sora.

[@Aurora]

[Are you awake?]

[I’m logged into the labyrinth.]

Every time I went online on Discord, Sora would contact me like this.

So I would log into VR and teach her.

Even after lunch, I’d keep teaching her.

And because she was streaming Labyrinthos, I ended up teaching her during her stream too.

“…We’re practically spending all day together.”

I muttered unconsciously.

– Rly lol

– Are you guys dating or what?

– It’s like you collaborate every day lol

– Send us a wedding invitation

– My Lady… did you ditch Rion for Sora?

– Traitor nya

“What are you talking about… It’s not like that.”

Sora said, sounding exasperated after reading the viewers’ chat.

“The tournament is about captains leading their team, isn’t it? I’m just rightfully being taught.”

【User ‘StopTalkingBullshit’ donated 1,000 KRW.】

【Then why aren’t Inagika and Chel here?】

“T-That’s… because…”

– You just wanted to hog her to yourself

– Let’s be honest

– Inagika’s crying at home

– When’s the due date?

– What wedding? They’re not even married yet lol

“Seriously! Stop teasing me!”

Sora snapped.

For the past few days, I have been appearing on Sora’s stream continuously.

We hadn’t specifically planned anything, but as I kept teaching her, her stream time would roll around, and she’d say, “I’m about to stream now, can I continue on the stream?” and just start streaming.

Five days of collaborations in a row.

‘…I can barely play my own game.’

I was helping Sora outside of streams, helping her during her streams, and Sora was constantly attaching herself to me, even during my broadcast time.

Though I had some free time in the early mornings when Sora was asleep, I was trying to use that time to practice Arcade Mode lately.

In order to teach Sora and the other 6th-gen VTubers, I had to first understand Arcade Mode myself.

But in Arcade Mode, the map and victory conditions change with each match, so every game feels fresh.

Because of that, it took a lot of time to analyze Arcade Mode, and I had barely touched Gate Assault Mode or Duel Mode recently.

Would things stay like this until the tournament ended?

“…Am I too much of a burden for you?”

Sora suddenly asked, looking insecure, perhaps because the viewers had been teasing her.

“To be honest, a little bit.”

“Ugh! Deny it, will you!”

But what could I do when it was true?

Anna had been serious about Labyrinthos too, but we didn’t communicate every single day.

Now that I thought about it, it was probably because Anna’s priorities were different. Her first priority seemed to be Hanabane Rui, and Labyrinthos was just a means to get closer to Rui.

In Sora’s case, these days, her top priority was Labyrinthos, one way or another.

It was partly due to her personal conviction, but I think it was also because of Ayanokouji Sora’s personality.

‘She’s the type to get anxious if she stays still.’

That’s what I’d realized after spending so much time with her recently.

There are people like that—people who see rest as a sin.

That must mean Sora was passionate and serious about what she was doing, which was good, I thought.

But refreshing yourself is important too.

Everything operates on momentum, and if you just keep following that momentum, your perspective inevitably narrows.

When your perspective narrows, your imagination runs dry, and your thoughts become rigid.

“Sora, you should always consider yourself lucky to be my colleague. I am the noblest lady in the world. My one minute holds astronomical value, and many have had to show their utmost sincerity to buy even a single minute from me.”

【User ‘Aurora’s Footstool’ donated 500,000 KRW.】

【How many minutes can I buy?】

– This is Sora’s channel, old man lol

– Aurora’s fans are so scary…

– If it’s not rude, how about some ice cream?

– Throw burgers

– Gimme

– Gimme

“Hmm.”

I hadn’t intended to solicit donations, but…

“What are you talking about all of a sudden… Sincerity? Are you saying I have to start paying you now?”

“Of course not. You should always be grateful. And make sure to play the horror game I gave you with reverence.”

– For real

– Why hasn’t the streamer done the horror game yet???

– Don’t run away! Fight, Ayanokouji Sora!!! Fight back!!!

– Are you going to ignore our Lady’s sincerity?

– Do it soon, okay~

“I will! I will! I’ll do it soon, seriously…”

Sora sighed as she spoke.

“For now, just focus on the horror game. It’s a good idea for us to take some personal time too. I need to look after Inagika and Chel as well.”

“Yeah, we probably should. But speaking of which, have you been feeling uncomfortable lately?”

“Uncomfortable?”

“Yeah.”

Why was she asking something like that all of a sudden?

I found it strange, but I answered.

“Rion has been working late recently, so the housework’s been piling up. That’s about the only inconvenience.”

***

“So, where do I throw the trash away?”

The next day.

Sora was holding a bag full of garbage.

“…Why?”

“Huh? What do you mean, why? You said you were inconvenienced because the housework’s piling up.”

It was true that I had said that.

“Ah, I contacted Rion-senior to ask about your house location. Luckily, I came right when Rion-senior was leaving for work, so she opened the door for me. So, where’s the recycling area?”