I Became a Malicious Streamer

Rita, the leader of the Flare Crew, had been having a busy few days lately.

Ideas for content that the crew members would work on together, meetings related to it, advertisements coming to Flare from outside sources, and managing new Virtual YouTubers who wanted to join the crew.

With all this work piling up, it was no surprise, especially since the crew had rapidly grown in recent times.

Flare had proudly established itself as one of the top Virtual YouTuber crews on the Switch, much like a mountain. The scale of broadcasts from Rita, Jay, Hanyang, and other crew members had also grown significantly.

Their distinctive position was partly due to Mollru’s recruitment and several other successful initiatives, but a significant factor was that other Virtual YouTubers who had been competing for a share of the audience pie on Switch had stepped back due to a series of events.

To put it simply, they were quite lucky.

However, luck alone wasn’t enough; turning that luck into opportunity required skill.

That was why Rita had been fully immersed in her broadcasting work for several days without a break.

She planned to make the most of this hard-earned opportunity, knowing it was time to row when the water was swelling, aiming to grow both her own broadcast and the crew. As the leader, Rita harbored considerable ambitions both for herself and the crew.

In such a situation, the proposal that flew in to Rita was one that seemed quite reasonable.

“Judging panel, you say?”

“Yes, I really hope you’ll do it, Rita.”

It was Myunghun, one of her acquaintances.

Thinking it would be nice to make connections with MCN representatives, they exchanged contacts at the last Switch party, and she hadn’t expected him to suddenly bring up such a topic.

“I’m planning to create a virtual idol. It’s all the rage these days, right?”

“That’s true.”

Myunghun’s brief explanation continued, stating that he needed someone suitable who had an eye for the Virtual YouTuber industry, and Rita nodded.

It wasn’t a bad proposal.

Myunghun’s MCN housed many famous streamers, including Virtual YouTubers, and he himself was a popular streamer with a significant fan base. She knew well that every one of these external activities could draw in new viewers.

Furthermore, she felt a spark of interest when he mentioned a public audition. As a judge deciding the fate of participants, it promised to be quite entertaining.

On the one hand, the thought of discovering new gems in the Virtual YouTuber realm also thrilled her. Although Myunghun would likely take the lead in selecting talented individuals for the idols, what Rita was aiming for were those broadcasters whose character could be guaranteed but were somewhat ambiguous as virtual idols.

She intended to target that gap between idols and ordinary broadcasters. Watching the participants who fell short, she thought it might be a good idea to extend an invitation to join the crew if they caught her eye.

In many ways, it was a proposal that leaned more towards benefits than risks. Rita gladly accepted Myunghun’s request.

*

“Hello, viewers. I’m Myunghun. The day has finally arrived. I mentioned it in advance, didn’t I? Today is the long-awaited public audition for virtual idols. It’s Day One.”

Wowwwwwwwww

Let’s go, let’s go, let’s go!

Is there a second day too?

There were tons of applications.

Why are there so many Virtual YouTubers?

When’s the chicken coming!!!

The public audition for virtual idols hosted by Myunghun attracted quite a bit of attention on the Switch.

It was, quite literally, a hot potato. Proving itself to be the unprecedented focus of interest on Switch, the real-time viewership surged past 40,000 viewers.

“First, let me introduce our judges. Starting from my left, we have the composer and vocal trainer, Ririkei! She’s a professional who can analyze our participants’ singing intensively.”

“Nice to meet you! I’m Ririkei~.”

Since the content was about selecting Virtual YouTubers, the audition was conducted in the VR World.

Along with Myunghun’s words, an avatar appeared next to him with a feminine voice. It looked like a basic female avatar that hadn’t been altered much, waving at the viewers.

“And on my right, we have the leader of the famous Virtual YouTuber crew Flare! Please welcome the streamer Rita!”

“Hello everyone.”

“Rita will be focusing on the character and charm of the Virtual YouTubers.”

In contrast, a VR character that looked obviously high-quality showed up.

Her avatar was created with significant detail, befitting her title as a Virtual YouTuber expert, contrasting sharply with Myunghun and Ririkei’s more basic appearances.

Ririkei making an appearance, lol

What connections does Myunghun have?

The harmony of yin and yang, whoa!

He really brings in a professional!

Is that person really remarkable?

That’s Rita! Rita! Hahaha!

We’ve been seeing Rita a lot lately!

Rita, the VR expert, lol

“Ririkei has participated in songs that you might have heard of from famous idol groups as a current composer.”

The explanations that elevated the authority of the two judges continued. Even viewers who weren’t familiar with Ririkei and Rita now thought, “Oh, this person is that one?” allowing them to immerse themselves more in their judging.

“The judging process is simple.”

And then Myunghun continued explaining how the judging would work.

The audition participants would come out, introduce themselves, and sing, showcasing their charms.

After that, the three judges would provide feedback and decide if they pass or fail.

Those who received more than two votes would advance to the second round, while those who received two or more “no’s” would be out.

Additionally, each judge had one wild card that they could use.

If a judge felt inclined to save someone who received a “no,” they could use this special pass that allowed them to promote that participant despite the rejection—a privilege common in audition programs.

“It’s not hard, right?”

Yeah, nice and easy!

Does anyone not understand?

It’s just the standard audition rules!

They deliberately avoided complicated rules. With many people gathering, simple and intuitive instructions aided understanding in various ways.

“So, without further ado, let’s meet the participants. First contestant, please come out!”

With many contestants, rapid progress was essential.

Each participant didn’t have much time allotted to them. They had to prove they were suitable for the audition in a short time.

With Myunghun’s cue, someone walked onto the once empty stage.

“Hello, everyone! Nice to meet you!”

It was the first participant with an avatar resembling a furry animal with triangular ears, all perky and standing tall, its striped tail swaying behind.

Myunghun, a bit taken aback by the appearance, continued speaking.

“Uh, yes. Nice to meet you, first contestant. Could you introduce yourself briefly?”

“Hello, everyone! I’m Gurigulgul from Neoguri Village beyond the horizon! Nice to meet you!”

“What’s your name again?”

“It’s Gurigulgul!”

“Okay… Gurigulgul. Your race is raccoon, right?”

Furry fandom in the chat, lol

Feeling dizzy already…

Myunghun experiencing the abyss…

First contestant and already a local…

What should I even say here? Hahaha!

After a rather challenging self-introduction, it was time to test song skills.

“I wonder what song you’ll sing.”

Myunghun felt a premonition that the song wouldn’t be a normal one, and his prediction turned out to be spot-on.

“Red bean porridge, red bean porridge, red bean porridge, red bean porridge, mushroom, mushroom…”

Was this even considered a song? Accompanied by a repetitive beat, Gurigulgul merely waved their arms up and down while repeating “red bean porridge.”

“That’s enough for now. I’ve listened well.”

After about 40 seconds of observing that peculiar performance, Myunghun’s words interrupted the music, and Gurigulgul bowed towards the front.

“Wow, I…I really need to hear the judges’ opinions. To start off, Ririkei-san?”

“Um… Honestly, the self-introduction was good at first. The concept? It’s unique, but your basic voice is good, so I thought you’d do well if you sang with this tone.”

“However, it’s hard for me to evaluate since you didn’t actually sing…”

With that, Ririkei pressed the rejection button to indicate her decision.

“Don’t make it nooo!”

Gurigulgul’s mournful voice was followed by Rita’s evaluation.

“Well… I really like the character. I mean, as a comedian, there aren’t many characters like this.”

“Oh, is that so?”

“But, is this really okay? Myunghun? Can an idol be like this?”

In summary, the verdict was a failure. The reasoning was that the concept was too excessive.

Sensing Gurigulgul’s disappointment, Rita suggested they apply to the Flare Crew later.

“Unfortunately, the first contestant, Gurigulgul, has been rejected. Since the first two judges gave a no, there’s no need for my evaluation.”

Following that, the auditions continued in a similar manner.

Some participants sang exceptionally well, while others, though lacking in singing talent, had outstanding charm.

After several evaluations had passed, another contestant took the stage.

“Nice to meet you. Please introduce yourself.”

Myunghun said the same line again to the next contestant.

“Hello, I am Lee Jian, a rock ballader from another world.”

With a reasonably good-looking avatar and a calm voice, his low, steady tone captured everyone’s attention.

“Oh… A rock star from another world.”

“I’m a rock ballader.”

“Ah, I see. A rock ballader, huh? So you come from another world?”

During the exchanges guided by Myunghun, Rita tilted her head.

‘That voice sounds familiar…’

Rita felt a sense of déjà vu from Lee Jian’s voice. The voice was so recognizable that it felt like someone she’d encountered before.

Is he someone I know?

Rita kept tilting her head until the participant started singing, feeling uneasy about that eerie sense of familiarity.

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