The Villainess VTuber Tears People Apart

Collaboration broadcast.

A term known as “collab” in Japan, referring to joint broadcasts between streamers. Actually, Korean VTubers don’t use the word “collab” that often.

However, here at EYEAI, our VTubers used the term “collab.” After all, this was a company aiming for global reach, which was why all our VTubers had Japanese-style names.

In any case, we could roughly categorize collabs into “internal collabs between colleagues within the same company” and “external collabs with individuals outside the company.”

Fundamentally, most companies encouraged internal collabs.

It was a way for colleagues to build camaraderie, and it sent the message to viewers that “our company has a friendly atmosphere.”

From an image management perspective, internal collabs were seen as a positive thing.

-There’s no harm in doing an external collab too.

-But I think it’s best to keep it in moderation.

Rion had once said that.

The main advantage of external collabs was that it could bring in new subscribers.

This was an advantage difficult to achieve through internal collabs, as our EYEAI VTubers already shared a similar subscriber base.

For instance, if I collabed with Ainatsu every day for the next 365 days, it wouldn’t result in any notable subscriber growth. All potential subscribers were likely already subscribed.

If we wanted to attract new viewers, collabing with VTubers we didn’t usually interact with was the best approach.

However, too many external collabs could damage our image.

People might think, “This person’s just obsessed with gaining subscribers” or “Don’t they have any loyalty or attachment to their colleagues?”

-Still, it’s beneficial to have at least one person for external collabs.

Rion had made a comment like that before.

For instance, if Rinco did an external collab and gained a million subscribers, then collabing with Ainatsu would likely increase Ainatsu’s subscriber count as well. This was known as the “subscriber trickle-down effect.”

So, while the company didn’t force VTubers into external collabs, it was still a “recommendation” they wanted us to try at least once.

【Survivor Status of “Great Ducal Family Diplomacy” Group (2/2)】

【Aurora】

【Mashina】

“Hey, Aurora! Are you going to work or not!?”

As I leisurely sipped tea, my first external collab partner approached.

For the record, this broadcast wasn’t on my channel; it was on Shina’s channel.

“Oh dear, saying it like that makes it sound like I’m just slacking off. I’m working diligently, you know.”

“People are working hard over here! Meanwhile, you’re all relaxed!”

“Would you like to swap roles if you’re not satisfied?”

I casually tapped my fishing rod.

“Why don’t you go fishing instead? Of course, if you catch less fish than me, you’ll have to make up the difference.”

“Ma… make up…?”

“Perhaps by cutting off some of your flesh as food?”

“You… you’re insane…!”

“It was a joke.”

-Doesn’t sound like a joke…

-Emergency rations, lololol

-Looks like Shina’s about to get eaten soon

-Fact: She’s already been devoured

I smiled slightly and set down my teacup. It seemed there’d just been a nibble on the line.

I gently adjusted the fishing rod and, sure enough, it wasn’t just my imagination. I lifted the rod.

I had another fish.

“What kind of junior makes their senior do all the work! Just you wait until you join our company—I’ll kill you!”

“It’s a relief I don’t plan on joining. I’ve saved my life.”

“If only you’d keep your mouth shut! Geez… Are you planning to keep catching fish? Don’t you think we should get moving?”

Since Shina mentioned it, I checked the time. It was indeed time to get going.

“Then, shall we?”

I picked up the bucket full of fish.

Now it was time for deliveries.

***

The reason Laura ended up collabing alone with Shina was due to several events leading up to this, but there was one major incident.

Laura had been called to the CEO’s office and reprimanded.

-…Please, don’t stir up any other fandoms. You nearly gave me a heart attack.

CEO Jung Hoyoung, who had summoned Laura, said this.

-I anticipated you’d say that, so I made sure to have a valid reason.

Of course, Laura wasn’t the type to cower just because the CEO called her in.

She had, after all, shown kindness first to the SerenadeKR VTubers and hadn’t used tears as a means to appeal in the end.

-So, our actions could be considered justified.

-What’s justified about it? In situations like this, the larger fandom always has the upper hand.

In cases where conflicts arose between VTubers, a larger fandom could swarm the other’s channel, bombing them with dislikes and filling the comment section with hate.

No matter how righteous the actions were, if the voice was too quiet, it was easy to be labeled the villain.

On the flip side, even if actions were wrong, a louder voice could force its way through. That’s what it meant to have a large fandom.

-It’s a good thing the SerenadeKR fandom wasn’t that big…

-Oh, is that so? I thought Serenade was a famous company?

-It’s very well-known in Japan.

Compared to Japan, the Korean branch of SerenadeKR wasn’t that big, probably on par with EYEAI.

Especially in Korea, female VTubers were more popular than male VTubers.

As such, the fandom for SerenadeKR’s male VTubers was relatively small. In particular, Jungseok was somewhere in the lower-middle tier.

His fandom even overlapped slightly with Choi Changyoung’s, and those who supported Changyoung didn’t particularly side with Jungseok in this incident.

Due to these factors aligning, Laura was able to avoid becoming a target.

-Regardless, let’s avoid stirring up male VTubers. Don’t you know how much more fervent female fans can be?

-I’ve heard that male fans easily move on, but female fans… well, I heard they listen to their favorite VTuber’s voice and, er, self-pleasure?

-…Was it necessary to put that so bluntly?

Jung Hoyoung had never seen a VTuber talk about masturbation so openly in front of their CEO.

He considered just firing her… but then remembered that Laura was close to hitting 300,000 subscribers.

Laura was increasingly becoming a “superiority” (a dominant force), and CEO Jung Hoyoung couldn’t help but hold back his anger.

-…You’re right. Female fans have high loyalty and are especially active on social media. So please, let’s avoid conflicts with male VTubers.

With that, Laura received a warning.

The matter didn’t end there. Laura also received a similar message from Rinco.

-[Laura, have you thought about doing an external collab?]

-An external collab? That’s rather sudden.

-[Yeah. It seems like the streamers are planning to do a proper “Aseosal.”]

-Hmm?

Laura tilted her head in confusion.

Rinco’s explanation, in summary, was as follows:

Deadraus had given several streamers, including Laura, a sponsorship for “Aseosal.”

Most of them ended up dead—some to zombies, others to fellow survivors.

Some streamers accepted the sponsorship purely for the ad revenue, while others took it because they genuinely liked zombie content, or were sandbox survival experts.

Many of them, overly confident, suffered humiliating defeats in their first-day sponsored streams.

To redeem themselves, these streamers had formed a “revenge server.”

This time, they planned to unveil the secret of “Sz-001” by organizing a large-scale streamer group.

-[It seems SerenadeKR is planning to participate too. So, it’d be nice if you could help out the SerenadeKR folks. It’s good for colleagues in the same industry to get along, right?]

Though Rinco’s tone was gentle, Laura knew what Rinco was hinting at.

In the previous incident, most people had sided with Laura, but a very small number had taken a dislike to her.

It was inevitable. Satisfying everyone in the world through streaming was impossible.

That was beyond the scope of a noblewoman’s capabilities—it was something akin to a god’s domain.

No, even a god probably couldn’t manage it. If it were possible to satisfy everyone, then there would only be one religion in the world, wouldn’t there?

‘She’s telling me to do some diplomacy.’

Laura took it that way.

She could have ignored Rinco’s suggestion, but Laura had ample free time until the draft.

There was no reason to disregard Rinco’s consideration, so she accepted the offer.

Thus, through Rinco’s connections, Laura also joined the revenge server.

With the purpose of mending relations with SerenadeKR, she began working as a “delivery agent in a post-apocalyptic world” with Shina.

-I’m the senior here! Why do I have to carry the load and drive too?!

From the driver’s seat, Shina grumbled.

-Have you ever seen a noblewoman drive herself? At least, I haven’t.

-Well, in that case, I’m a demon god! Have you ever seen a demon god drive a car, huh?!

-A demon god is a race, while a noblewoman is a title. Doesn’t that mean a noblewoman ranks higher?

-What nonsense is that?!

-Seems logical.

-Demon god (commoner)

-Blasphemy!

-Lol, if you’re mad, just win.

-It was a joke. But what can I do? I’ve never driven a car.

-Then why don’t you learn? This game has a driving skill! You could just learn it, but why…!

-I can ride a horse, though.

-…Horse riding? You can ride a horse?

Shina’s eyes widened as if in disbelief.

Of course, it was true. Laura could ride a horse.

After all, equestrianism was a noblewoman’s basic refinement. She had also learned the arts and musical instruments, among other skills. The Iris Ducal Family’s education was surprisingly rigorous.

On the other hand, the ducal family hadn’t taught her how to drive a car, so Laura didn’t know how.

She likely wouldn’t learn it in the future either. She had no reason to get a driver’s license since Rion took care of all the driving.

If Rion couldn’t drive, she could just call Ainatsu, who also knew how to drive.

If Ainatsu wasn’t available, she’d have told Inagika or Chel to get a driver’s license. Sora? Sora would get one without needing a reminder.

Thus, Laura absolutely refused to take the wheel, leaving Shina to drive for a while.

Eventually, a large hotel appeared in the distance.