I Want to Be a VTuber

“Wow, today’s King of Masked Singer competition is really tough.”

The MC, Song Byeong-soo, joked, and the panelists immediately reacted.

It’s been a few years since we started filming Masked Singer.

They were already seasoned in giving reactions.

“I am the Ashen Crow. It’s been almost half a year since a king worthy of the Hall of Fame has emerged, right? It’s about time I show up.”

“Ah, but I’m not too sure about the Man-Lap Rabbit’s skills either.”

While the words were delivered like it was a close match, in reality, most were betting on the Ashen Crow’s victory.

After all, the color of the Man-Lap Rabbit’s performances had been quite consistent.

Avoiding songs that needed technique, he mostly chose emotionally layered songs.

Of course, that alone was remarkable, but the timing for a change was coming.

If he didn’t make some change in the finals, the Ashen Crow would likely win.

Most people thought so.

‘If this were a live broadcast, I’d be curious about the reactions.’

Song Byeong-soo thought this as he watched the two on stage.

In online communities, the Ashen Crow was favored.

But there were also those who raised their hands for the Man-Lap Rabbit.

“Well then, let’s welcome the Man-Lap Rabbit challenging the king! His singing skills are maxed out! Let’s see what song he’s prepared today!!”

Saying this, Song Byeong-soo first handed the microphone to the Man-Lap Rabbit.

‘Please, don’t hype it up too much.’

Seo-yeon thought sincerely.

Honestly, she didn’t expect to make it to the finals.

Though she had worked hard on arranging her song…

‘No.’

She shouldn’t say anything negative.

After all, she made it to the finals.

Looking at the audience, she could see her mother and Su-yeon clapping.

Her father, sitting next to them, was yawning, but she knew he was cheering her on.

Recently, even with some worries, he must have been putting on a brave face.

‘Of course, I’m the same, though.’

But it was a problem she found difficult to solve.

Because of that, she had a relatively hard time concentrating on Masked Singer, but…

As the instrumental began to play, people’s gazes shifted.

Maybe it was an unfamiliar tune?

No, since there were many arrangements, there were a lot of songs you couldn’t identify just by the instrumental.

The reason for the change in expression was something else.

‘A song from an anime?’

‘Wow, here?’

The song Seo-yeon chose was a nostalgic one.

The theme song of some animation that was originally produced in Korea.

In the past, it was common for imported animations to have original theme songs like this.

The song Seo-yeon chose was among the fairly famous ones from that time.

So it was a song familiar to the public to some extent.

However, they probably never expected her to bring it to the King of Masked Singer.

Song Byeong-soo, who was quietly listening, was also taken by surprise.

Of course, it wasn’t unheard of for theme songs from animations to be arranged and sung.

But he never thought someone would bring it out in the King’s competition.

Especially when the Man-Lap Rabbit had mostly chosen emotional songs until now.

This song, arranged by the Summer Girl, is called “Calmness”.

Originally, it was sung by a famous rocker in Korea.

‘It was definitely an anime with guns, wasn’t it?’
It seems like something’s going on.

But it wasn’t rock; it was a rare emotional theme song.

If you just listen to the song, you’d never guess it was used for an anime.

Of course, Seo-yeon didn’t know it well since she had never seen the anime.

The only thing she had heard about it was from Suah.

Seo-yeon held the mic to her lips and looked at Suah in the audience.

Suah and Young-bin in the audience had their eyes wide open.

It was as if they never expected Seo-yeon to choose this song.

Seeing that reaction made the tension in her heart vanish.

“Back then, my mom was in the game club.”

Then, Suah explained the song.

Apparently, there were three members in the game club.

“My mom’s friend and another kid who just happened to join.”

There were originally about three more members, but Suah’s friend was really serious about game development, and couldn’t take it anymore, so they all left.

“I guess they thought it was a gaming club.”

Not a club for making games, but one for playing them.

However, Suah’s friend was genuinely passionate about creating games.

But it was dragging on, not knowing where to start or what game to make.

“My friend could write well… or at least, I think she could, but the story was really well crafted.”

But when trying to turn it into a game, it wasn’t coming together well.

There wasn’t anyone who could handle programming, so Suah, who could draw, ended up doing that too.

It was mainly because of Suah’s personality; she could hardly refuse.

“But then the teacher said they needed one more member…”

They warned that they couldn’t maintain the club like this.

So, while they were all looking for new members, Suah accidentally got tangled up with a boy.

“And that was your dad.”

If someone liked games, they’d definitely like anime too!

Suah thought it would be easier to chat about the same theme, so she mustered up some courage to talk to him.

“But Mom was talking about the original song from the anime, while Young-bin was referring to a rearranged version in Korea. I was so embarrassed at that moment.”

No wonder they seemed to be on different pages in their conversation.

Anyway, through this coincidental encounter, Young-bin ended up joining the game club.

He didn’t have anything else to do at the time, and it looked fun.

“And your dad got into a big argument when he joined.”

He said things like, “Is this all there is? No goals, just making games for the sake of it? If you’re gonna do it, do it seriously!”

Something along those lines.

Through all that, they somehow ended up actually creating a game.

They even won an award.

Honestly, it’s hard to say how it all happened.

“This song is the one that first intertwined my mom and dad.”

It’s a precious song.

And, it’s the song where Dad’s dream began.

“When Dad heard this song, he probably had no idea he’d become who he is now.”

Just a small trigger.

You never know what might kick things into gear.

Seo-yeon realized why Suah made those comments.

It was probably about her character, Lee Yoo-joo.

And about how Seo-yeon ended up in this drama.

Thinking back, Young-bin’s job also started by chance through someone else’s suggestion.

“But I think it’s different from Lee Yoo-joo.”

Lee Yoo-joo was a character who could only see that one option.

That’s all she learned, and she had no other choices available.
So, Suah thought Joo Seo-yeon, who was playing Lee Yoo-joo, was really pitiful.

“But Seo-yeon has wanted to do something else since she was little, right?”

At first, she thought it was acting, but as Seo-yeon grew up, she realized it was a bit different.

“There’s definitely a reason why she’s acting now, right? It’s just that Seo-yeon knows that reason… but isn’t sure if it’s the right one.”

The trigger.

Seo-yeon’s path to becoming an actress started because of Suah’s encouragement.

Just like her father, Young-bin.

However, Young-bin decided his future and his dream based on that encouragement.

Is she the same?

“Did I really decide to be an actress because of Mom’s words?”

Not really sure.

Deciding to become a great actor was earnest.

But there was a shaky part regarding the reason that led to that decision and whether it was right or not.

And what she really wanted to do.

In the end, is that ‘Joo Seo-yeon’s’ dream? It’s hard to say.

Could it be the legacy left by her past self?

Suah said that Lee Yoo-joo and Seo-yeon were different, but she believed that was wrong.

Joo Seo-yeon and Lee Yoo-joo are the same.

In the sense that they’re both bound by the past. Especially.

Of course, the triggers are different.

Lee Yoo-joo could only see that.

Joo Seo-yeon couldn’t forget what she had seen in the past.

Just like Lee Yoo-joo, she can’t help but think of only that, maybe that’s why?

So, she’s having a hard time.

Because it was something she wished for so much in her previous life, choosing it makes her feel like she’ll become her past self, not Joo Seo-yeon.

“So, that’s why I chose this song.”

Seo-yeon chose this song not simply because of Suah and Young-bin.

Calmness.

The title of this song felt like it was telling the story of her past life.

A life that ended without gaining anything properly.

The shining things she saw back then, that lingering attachment is what holds her even now.

That calmness. That loneliness.

Deep emotions flowed from Seo-yeon’s lips.

Her refreshing vocal range captivated the audience, resonating across the stage.

“Did I… do well?”

The MC of [Masked Singer], Song Byeong-soo, swallowed hard.

After all, Man-Lap Rabbit could sing well.

That’s why she made it to the finals, right?

But he thought the current opponent was relatively weak too.

Either their skills had diminished.

Or they chose a song that didn’t showcase their true abilities.

So, he figured she got to the finals somewhat by chance… but now, he wasn’t so sure.

The audience was listening as if enchanted by Man-Lap Rabbit’s song.

There wasn’t incredible skill, but it immersed people in the song’s emotions like never before.

Making it so that one could easily get lost in the emotions seamlessly blended into the song.

“….”

As the mic slipped from Seo-yeon’s lips and the song ended.

For a brief moment,

There was silence on the stage.

But it was just for a moment.

“That was the stage of Man-Lap Rabbit!”

With Song Byeong-soo’s late shout, applause erupted from the audience.

Cheers and clap sounds.

“You’re the best!!”

Even though it was mixed with cheers, Seo-yeon clearly heard it in her ears.

Suah wiping her tears slightly, and Young-bin shouting that it was the best while clapping.

Seo-yeon smiled under the mask seeing that.

Still, she thought expressing it through song wasn’t so bad.

And then,

“No, that’s cowardly!!”
There was one more person lost in memories.

*

“This song is originally the one that triggered my parents’ first meeting,” said Man-Lap Rabbit in a modulated voice after the song ended.

Hearing that, Ashen Crow couldn’t help but tilt her head defiantly.

Of course, she knew! How could she not?

Anyway, aside from that, she could feel her manager Aram, who was sitting in the audience, sending her a pitying gaze.

It was like looking at a woman unable to forget her lingering feelings.

She roughly understood the situation, so it was clear that was how Aram was looking at her.

‘It’s a song of my parents’ memories, huh.’

‘Right.’

‘Then doesn’t it mean you’re part of that memory too?’

‘Guess so.’

‘It’s become a memory now…’

‘……’

It was a kind of exchange of looks that carried that feeling, though it might just be her delusion.

But it was true that the manager was looking at her with pity.

‘Does she really know my identity or not?’

Yeo-hee watched as Seo-yeon briefly interviewed the audience after the song ended, her voice modulated and filled with unease.

Aside from that, Yeo-hee could sense the overwhelming feelings bubbling up over here too.

Maybe she was still young and had worries weighing on her mind?

‘But why is she thinking so hard about it?’

At that age, it’s understandable to be filled with all kinds of worries. After all, she had been there herself.

She still was.

But that was just part of being human.

Yeo-hee looked at the audience. She could hear Young-bin’s voice yelling something encouraging toward Seo-yeon.

It sounded like he was cheering her on, perhaps saying something like “You’re the best!”

Depending on how you looked at it, it seemed like a really cheerful sight; however, Yeo-hee had an inkling.

Having overheard their previous conversation, she knew the worries hiding beneath that cheerfulness.

‘How silly.’

Honestly, to Yeo-hee, it felt like a strange sight.

The person she knew was far removed from deep dilemmas.

When did this guy, who would bash his head against everything, start having such hesitations?

‘Time has passed, I guess.’

She was still a kid, but maybe Young-bin and Min Suah weren’t anymore.

Did she feel sadness at that sight? Not at all.

“Wow, the story behind this is amazing! A song filled with memories of your parents. This doesn’t seem easy for Ashen Crow either!”

At that moment, Song Byeong-soo turned to Yeo-hee, who was up next.

It felt as if his face was saying that no matter how good she was, this time it wouldn’t be easy.

Of course, Song Byeong-soo wasn’t a foolish MC to express such rude feelings outright.

“Facing the throne of the King of Kings, this last showdown!! Do you think you can achieve victory against the formidable Man-Lap Rabbit?”

As he said this, handing her the microphone, Yeo-hee smirked beneath her mask.

Well, Seo-yeon had done well today. She sang a song that showcased her strengths one hundred percent.

To be honest, Yeo-hee found herself clapping without even realizing it.

“What a bummer.”

But regrettably, she didn’t want to lose at all.

“My memories will win.”

At least, for today.

As those words slipped from her, Yeo-hee gestured behind her, and the sound of electric guitar rang out, “Zing-!”

As the band started the accompaniment, Seo-yeon, who was coming down from the stage, turned around.

The prelude to the song starting now was one Seo-yeon had recently heard.

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