The Villainess VTuber Tears People Apart

The VTuber, Elenoa, affiliated with SerenadeKR.

Noa gasped for breath roughly.

“Hah… Hah…”

Sweat continued to flow down her forehead, leaving her feeling unpleasant.

Along with it came a sensation similar to dizziness. …Why is this game so extremely realistic?

Of course, I knew. The game, “Survive No Matter What in an Apocalyptic World,” is known for its realistic nature.

It feels as if I’d actually fallen into a world filled with zombies.

Sometimes, I imagine what would happen if I woke up one day, and a zombie virus had suddenly spread.

I still live with my parents. What would I do if they turned into zombies in the middle of the night? Could I survive?

If my family turned into zombies and barged through the door while I was sleeping…

If the outside world were completely overrun by zombies… Could I survive?

Noa often had such negative fantasies.

Was it due to an overactive imagination or heightened sensitivity?

She wasn’t quite sure but thought it was probably similar to feeling scared after watching a horror movie.

In that sense, this game Aseosal was quite meaningful to Noa.

She saw it as a kind of simulation—“Maybe if a zombie virus actually spread in real life, I’d have a chance to survive…”

Even though it was still in early access, the game seemed to have gained popularity with some Western players. They said it was like preparing in advance for the day a zombie virus might break out.

That’s probably why it had to be so realistic.

Though right now, she wished it were a bit more fantastical.

“Ugh…!”

Noa let out a breath as she moved the sofa.

It was almost too heavy to move on her own.

But she had to do it.

Somehow, she managed to shift the sofa, blocking off the entrance.

Would this be enough?

Or should I be more thorough?

Although she couldn’t completely shake her anxiety, Noa exhaled deeply.

“Noa… are you there…?”

A faint voice called out from far away.

Holding her breath, Noa headed toward the direction of the voice.

“Yes, I’m here.”

“Ah, geez… Isn’t this game going too far? I can’t even see after getting bitten by a zombie…”

Shina muttered, sounding irritated.

Currently, Shina was tied up.

Noa had tied her herself.

They were in a department store.

More specifically, in an employee break room inside the department store.

Shina and Noa were isolated.

“…I’m sorry, I was the one who suggested coming here.”

Noa sighed.

Since the last ad-stream, SerenadeKR continued playing Aseosal.

It was because Shina and Changyoung had applied for the Fantasy League.

Aseosal was a game made by Deadraus.

And the fact that Deadraus sponsored them was meaningful. It showed that Deadraus trusted them and was also a sign of support.

Just having a good relationship with Deadraus was a positive point.

When you submit an application to a company, isn’t it good to have even a single extra line of experience on your career? Just like that, adding another line to Shina and Changyoung’s experience was the goal of the SerenadeKR four-member team.

“We should have waited for Jungseok and Changyoung. It’s my fault for suggesting we go find food…”

“How is that your fault?”

Shina let out a deep sigh.

“I mean, who puts a Stage 3 infected in a department store, for real?”

– The world level increases over time.

– As time passes, the infection stage of zombies increases.

– The zombies’ level should start going up soon lol.

“Who asked for an explanation?! I just wanted some comfort! Just agree with me and curse along!”

【User Zero Persuasion Fairy has donated 1,000 won.】

【No way.】

“Argh!”

Shina freaked out again, but everyone was used to it by now. Shina’s viewers enjoyed watching her suffer.

Noa felt a bit uncomfortable, though. It seemed like Shina was deliberately taking the abuse on purpose.

“It’s all because of Aurora! Aurora took over my place!”

“Um, that’s not exactly right…”

“Why do you only act so rational at times like this?”

Shina shouted.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

UkpOVUVLOVprRXhWR3FXU1M5SmJyRHZKNFQ3OWsxOVZ2RkNvWXB3QkJOV05yMWtXN1IrdXozcGZUa0ZvbUIxNg

At that moment, there came a sound of knocking on the break room door.

“Hii…”

Noa swallowed a breath.

The sound of banging on the wall and door. And the zombies’ groaning.

With each knock on the door, even the sofa piled as a barricade trembled. Unconsciously, Noa approached the sofa and leaned against it with her back.

Vibrations were transmitted through her back.

What should I do? Maybe I should’ve piled up more sofas.

“Ah, crap… I shouldn’t have yelled…”

Though she couldn’t see, Shina regretted it. She should have just waited calmly for Jungseok and Changyoung to rescue them.

In Shina’s ears, amidst her deep sighs… silence crept in.

“…Noa?”

Feeling uneasy, Shina called out for Noa.

Was it because she called softly? Or was Noa unable to respond? No answer came from Noa.

Shina instinctively tried to approach, but Noa had bound her so securely that she couldn’t budge.

“What… What’s going on… Noa? Elenoa?”

Boom!

A loud crash erupted in the distance, cutting off Shina’s words.

Roar! Grroar!

Kaaargh!

The monstrous cries of zombies.

At the same time, the sound of flesh being sliced echoed repeatedly.

What is that?

What in the world is happening?

Could it be that Stage 3 zombie I saw earlier coming down here?

Clack.

Clack.

As if answering Shina’s doubts, loud footsteps could be heard.

Click.

Click.

The sound of the doorknob turning.

But it was locked, so the doorknob couldn’t fully rotate.

Clack.

Clack.

Then, the footsteps receded.

And then—

KABOOM!!!

A blast sounded.

The door shattered, and the sofa flew.

Noa was thrown off along with it.

“Kyaaah!”

Noa tumbled across the floor.

Fortunately, thanks to the considerable barricade, the explosion’s impact wasn’t too severe. She only got a few scrapes, thankfully nothing serious.

Noa quickly steadied herself and grabbed the gun she’d left on the floor.

“Oh… Aurora…?”

“Oh my, here you are!”

Laura smiled as her eyes met Noa’s.

A knife in her right hand.

A makeshift bomb in her left.

“Laura…! Did you come here to save us?”

“No.”

“What…?”

Noa was taken aback by Laura’s unexpected reply.

Laura gracefully picked up a fallen chair and casually crossed her legs as she sat down.

“It’s been a while, Shina.”

“…Aurora?”

“Yes, it’s Aurora. It seems you can’t see, am I right?”

“How did you get here…”

“I could track survivors from the fire department. I thought I’d drop by since it seemed like you were trapped in the department store.”

‘Just dropping by’…

The way she said it so casually left Shina feeling speechless.

“So, you came to rescue us, right? We’ve been stuck here all this time! It was so frustrating…”

“Oh, it seems you misunderstood. I didn’t come here to rescue you.”

“What…? Then, what on earth…”

“How long has it been since you were infected, Shina?”

“In-game time, it’s been about two hours… maybe.”

“I see.”

Laura nodded at Noa’s answer.

And then she gazed at Shina.

For a long, silent moment.

……

………

“Um… Laura?”

“Yes, what is it?”

“No… it’s just, why are you just sitting there…”

“Wouldn’t it be around three hours since the infection soon? That’s why you tied Shina up, isn’t it?”

After one hour, a rash develops from the start of infection.

After three hours, sanity is lost.

After five hours, aggression appears.

After twenty-four hours, there’s no hope.

Laura knew this information solely as ‘knowledge’.

This was her first time witnessing the actual process of zombification.

“Wait… Aurora, don’t tell me you’re here just to watch me turn into a zombie?”

“I wouldn’t know how to turn you back into a human, would I? So, since it’s come to this, I thought I’d learn how the infection progresses.”

“You absolute scoundrel…!”

Shina tried to lunge at Laura, but the ropes binding her prevented her from moving.

Even without the ropes, there was nothing Shina could do against Laura, who was capable of climbing walls bare-handed.

“I’m genuinely curious. After three hours, will the player lose control of themselves? Or will they act according to a preset AI?”

“Are you here to provoke me? Save me! Save me right now!”

“Since you’ve already been bitten, do us a favor and make a noble sacrifice, won’t you? Some people live, and some people… move on, don’t they?”

“Just you wait! When I turn into a zombie, I’ll bite you first! I swear I’ll bite you!”

“Oh, what if we pulled out all of your teeth? If you don’t have teeth, would you still spread the infection even if you bite someone?”

“You… you’re really…!!”

“Excuse me, Laura…”

In the midst of their back-and-forth, Noa raised her hand cautiously.

“There is a way to save Senior Shina.”

***

“Laura’s really late.”

Sora muttered thoughtlessly.

Everything on this end was all set, but Laura still hadn’t shown up.

It was to the point she felt like she’d grow old waiting.

“Rion-senior, is Laura not coming?”

“Sora-un… Ahem. That’s what I’m saying, nya. She still isn’t here.”

Rion cleared her throat as she spoke.

She had nearly called Sora “Sora-unnie.”

“Is it because we’re streaming that you’re so careful with honorifics?”

For Rion, it was a very complicated position.

Nekozuka Rion was from the fourth generation, two years ahead of Sora as a VTuber.

However, she had transitioned to a staff role instead of continuing as a VTuber.

So, when she was acting as a manager, Rion always used polite language with Sora.

But VTuber Nekozuka Rion was actually a character who spoke informally.

Her persona had her end every sentence with ‘-nya,’ so it would actually feel strange if she used formal language.

It was acceptable to call her Laura unnie on stream because they were related, but it seemed like Rion didn’t want viewers to catch her calling Sora “unnie” too.

She probably thought it clashed with her character concept.

“This seems kind of tricky.”

I should probably just ask Rion to use names only from now on. Without the older-younger sister or senior-junior labels, she’d probably feel less conflicted.

Honestly, as someone who had recently become a junior, I wasn’t too comfortable being called “unnie” by a senior, either.

“Why don’t we check her stream once, nya?”

Rion suggested.

Oddly, this game didn’t allow Discord calls. It seemed deliberately designed that way.

In-game, there were various communication items like walkie-talkies.

If Discord calls were always available, those in-game communication items would lose their value. Perhaps this restriction was implemented to maintain a sense of realism.

However, walkie-talkies had range limits, so we couldn’t use them to check Laura’s situation.

“Peeking at her stream is the only way, huh.”

Honestly, it wasn’t the best approach. In this game, not knowing what others were doing was actually ideal. Some viewers would probably say that watching each other’s streams would break immersion.

But she hadn’t shown up as planned.

Waiting endlessly felt a bit pointless.

Plus, I was getting a bit worried.

Although I know there’s no need to worry.

Worrying about Laura would only be a waste of my time.

Experience had taught me that much, yet that didn’t completely erase the concern in my heart. She really required a lot of care.

With a slight sigh, Sora pulled up Laura’s stream on the screen.

The third-person perspective.

Laura was walking inside a department store.

With a woman named Mashina slung over her shoulder.

“…?”

Who is she?

Sora blinked.

What’s going on?

To grasp the situation, Sora watched Laura’s stream in silence.

The woman called Mashina was tied up on Laura’s back.

Or perhaps it was more accurate to say she was bound.

Her arms and legs were tightly secured, preventing her from moving, and she even had a gag in her mouth.

【User Official Lover Fight Is Insanely Fun has donated 1,000 won.】

【It’s like she’s carrying out a “bossam” LOL】

Someone left a donation message like that.