Usahime Karin Becomes a VTuber!

Sakuragaoka Academy (桜ヶ丘学園).

Commonly abbreviated as ‘SakuEn’ (Sakuragaoka Gakuen) (Gakuen = Academy), this VTuber company was a well-known giant in the industry, characterized by its focus on virtual idols.

Of course, like most VTuber companies, there were more VTubers who resembled comedians rather than pure idols, but at its core, it was undeniably an idol business.

As long as one successfully joined the company, a minimum of 200,000 subscribers was guaranteed—truly a dream company for VTubers.

For the record, I wasn’t an aspiring VTuber.

I was already a VTuber.

At first, the VTuber industry was considered a blue ocean, but that didn’t last long.

It didn’t take much time before it became a deep red ocean.

Just like that famous pirate manga, the Great VTuber Era had arrived.

Because of that, rather than hiring complete newcomers with no experience, it was far more beneficial to sift through the resumes submitted by independent VTubers (those who operated without corporate backing) and recruit from there.

As a result, it had become rare to find completely new corporate VTubers these days.

That was why it was highly unusual for the company to go out of its way to directly scout Shibuya Karin in this era.

Especially since the one who scouted her was none other than the company president himself, no one could object.

“It's bigger than I expected….”

I thought it would just be a few stories tall.

But this is practically on the level of a major corporate skyscraper.

Maybe in this world, VTubers are even more successful than they were in my past life.

As I stared blankly at the dazzling concrete, the suited man who had scouted me came out to greet me.

“Well then, shall we head inside?”

Now that April had passed and I could legally be employed, I came to SakuEn’s headquarters to sign my contract.

They said I could do it online instead of coming all the way here, but….

When I replied, “Oh, I see. But I don’t have a computer at home,” they immediately sent me a map.

So I ended up coming in person, but even if I sign the contract, I can’t stream without a computer, right?

…They’ll at least provide me with streaming equipment, right?

Step, step…

As I stepped inside the building, an OL (office lady) dressed neatly in a black suit—ah, should I say “older sister” now?

Anyway, a proper working woman welcomed me.

…She’s incredibly pretty.

But, well, I’m way cuter.

After receiving a visitor’s pass and hanging it around my neck, I took the elevator up several floors.

When the doors opened, the typical sight of an office interior unfolded before me.

Ugh, I hate it.

I’m not even going to work here, but I already feel suffocated.

“Please have a seat.”

At the end of the polite escort was the contract.

I read through the first page carefully, but then I thought, “Would they really scam a middle school girl like me?”

So, pretending to skim through the rest, I quickly signed it and handed it over.

The man looked slightly taken aback.

How should I put it…?

More precisely, he was looking at me with concern.

…What’s with that?

Isn’t finishing things quickly a good thing?

“Is that all?”

“Yes. The contract is now complete.”

“Then, mister, I want to eat yakiniku.”

“Yakiniku…? Well, I don’t mind, but….”

“Great! Let’s go then!”

Feeling satisfied after finishing my task, I was ready to treat my stomach to some delicious grilled meat.

But then, the man pulled out a few more documents in addition to the contract.

What’s with those papers?

Didn’t you just say the contract was done?

“It’s a bit of a hassle, but since you’re already here, I’d appreciate it if you could fill these out as well. You’ll need to do them anyway.”

“…What is this?”

No…

My free meat is slipping away!

What are these pointless sheets of paper…?!

I’m a busy person, you know!

I need to go and experience the half-hearted taste of my colonized homeland…!

Feeling slightly irritated, I took the documents.

I planned to finish them quickly without much thought, but as I read through the questions, I realized something.

“T-This is…!?”

The papers in my hands were actually a crucial survey that would determine the most important aspects of my VTuber career.

—If you were to reincarnate into another world or a fantasy realm, what occupation would you want?

That was the question.

This… is basically a VTuber character generator!

They're asking what I want to be in another world?

If you’re wondering, “Why would the company ask something like this?”

Think about it. This is a VTuber company.

The biggest feature of a VTuber is streaming while wearing a character as a facade.

The key to this is RP (role-playing), meaning acting like a voice actor.

Of course, as time passed, this RP element practically disappeared, but maintaining at least a minimum level of it is still the norm!

In other words, this survey is collecting my preferences to use as data for designing my character!

To put it simply, if I answer “warrior” here, I’ll be given a character with a physical combat concept.

If I write “mage,” then I’ll get a magic-based character.

In short, every single question here is incredibly important.

“Ugh….”

“…You're struggling right from the start.”

As I clutched my head and clicked my pen at the very first question, the suited man told me to take it easy.

No, how can I take this lightly?

For VTubers, their fate depends more on their model than on the person behind it!

If we break it down, the ratio is clear.

The character model is 90%, and the person inside is 10%!

To those who say, “But the person inside has to be charming for them to succeed.”

Remember this.

All those VTubers who made it…

Had the fundamental prerequisite of an attractive model.

The best comparison would be looks and personality.

No matter how great someone’s personality is, if their face looks like it got run over back and forth on asphalt, they won’t even make it to the first date.

Character design… is a serious matter!

“Another world, huh….”

After thinking it over carefully, I realized that this first question would have the biggest influence on my character’s backstory.

That’s probably why they put it at the top.

I need to think logically… and choose the best possible answer.

Here, I decided to change my strategy.

Instead of answering the first question immediately, I would skim through all the questions first.

By doing this, I could consider how they connect and come up with a well-rounded response.

…

I see. Now I get it.

After slowly reading through all the questions, I pulled out the pen I had tucked behind my ear.

For the first question, I wrote: “Pirate, admiral, or something related to the sea.”

VTubing is an unpredictable field where no one knows who, where, or how someone will become famous.

But… there are certain patterns when it comes to VTuber character designs.

They might not be 100% guaranteed, but no one can deny that they generally hold true.

And one of those patterns is…

VTubers with ocean-related characters… become popular!

If they have blue hair on top of that, even better.

It's basically a guaranteed success!

People familiar with Japanese anime might find this odd.

“What? Blue hair? That’s the symbol of a losing heroine, though (lol).”

But in the VTuber world, it’s different.

It’s the complete opposite.

Open your ears and listen closely.

In this industry, blue isn’t the color of a losing heroine….

It’s the color of a king (王の色)!!!

Doo—woong!!

With that, I dramatically added my own mental sound effect as I triumphantly completed the last question.

After completing the survey, I wore a triumphant expression, confident in my victory.

The suited man took the documents with a satisfied look.

And now, all the boring stuff was truly over.

“Well then, shall we go?”

Finally, the long-awaited…

“Yes!”

Yakiniku time had arrived!

---

[Overseas VTuber Minor Gallery]

[Info] [SakuEn 3rd Gen Character Designs Released] [89]

(3rd_gen.jpg)

(3rd_gen_2.jpg)

…

(3rd_gen_7.jpg)

Below is the translated introduction:

A fierce kemono pirate crew that once commanded a mighty space fleet, conquering the entire solar system—except Earth—as well as neighboring galaxies.

However, during an exploration of a remote planet, their admiral, Karin, was sealed away by a mysterious relic, stripping her of all her power.

With their leader weakened, the kemono pirate crew fell into chaos, and a rebellion broke out.

Left powerless and reverted to a childlike form, Karin fled to Earth alongside her navigator, doctor, sniper, and a rookie crew member they picked up along the way.

There, they discovered the existence of virtual idols…?

Realizing that virtual idol activities could be a way to recruit new crew members, the kemono pirate crew decided to become VTubers.

Thus began their journey to reclaim their former power and glory!

Unlike the 1st and 2nd generations, the 3rd generation is being marketed as a bundled set.

SakuEn seems to be going all-in on their group branding strategy this time.

---

[Comments]

[Why are they all beast people?]

[Animal ears are hot as hell.]

[A pirate crew with no human rights, lol.]

[For real, they really went all out this time.]

[Not that it matters, they'll all break character within a month anyway.]

└[Nope, my lady sticks to her RP perfectly~]

└[Your "lady" barely even streams in the first place.]

└[You sound mad, are you her butler or something? LOL]

[From my perspective, all their models pass the test.]

[Designs are solid. The fox and cat girls look especially hot.]

[Forget everything else, the rabbit girl with the ribbon, sailor uniform, and pirate coat < she looks like prime waifu material.]

└[Agreed.]

└[(What's with this guy? He’s creeping me out.)]

└[This design is a pedo magnet, lol.]

└[For real, Karin looks kinda cute.]

└[Who’s that?]

└[The girl you’re talking about is Karin.]

└[? How do you know?]

└[It’s literally in the introduction, dumbass.]

[Don’t care about the lore. Do we have their names yet? When’s their debut?]

└[Oh, forgot to include the names.]

└[Debut is on April 23rd.]

└[Hurry up and post them, ffs.]

[Whatever, at least they seem better than the snoozefest that was 2nd Gen.]

[So, who’s the "king" of this 3rd Gen?]

└[Isn’t it obvious?]

└[‘The King’s Color.’]

└[The rabbit.]

└[Nah, the fox girl’s design is straight-up insane.]

└[Lmao, we won’t know until they actually stream. No point in arguing until we see them in action.]

[What’s the lion girl’s name?]

└[Shishido Rena (獅子堂 レナ).]

└[Thanks.]

└[Putting the name in kanji like that makes you look like a total weeb, lol.]

└[If you’re not a weeb, why are you even watching VTubers?]

[OP, what’s Karin’s full name?]

└[Usahime Karin (兎姫 かりん).]