I May Be a Virtual Youtuber, but I Still Go to Work-Chapter 113

Exactly one week and one day after Serena’s graduation stream.

That Monday, I arrived at work thirty minutes early.

The CEO had asked me to come in ahead of time—there was something urgent.

I only realized why as I got closer to the company entrance.

The spot where I always ran into Seung-yeon whenever I brought fish-shaped pastries.

Serena was standing there, disguised in a mask and baseball cap, waiting for me.

As expected from someone who once trained as an idol.

Even the way she hid herself was idol-like.

Before, she never bothered with disguises.

But now, she had just graduated—

If she was suddenly spotted near Parallel HQ,

it would set the internet on fire.

In a way, she was making things easier for herself—

and for us—by staying hidden.

That said...

Her attempt at hiding was pretty bad.

Her signature hairstyle, a half-up braid on one side,

was way too recognizable.

I walked up to her and spoke.

"It’s been a while."

Serena, deliberately looking in another direction, flinched in surprise.

"Gasp. How did you know?"

"How couldn’t I? You’re ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) so obviously Serena."

I tilted my head toward the building entrance, motioning her inside.

"Did you have lunch?"

She matched her pace to mine.

"Yeah. What about you, Jia?"

"This is my lunch."

I held up the crinkling bag of warm fish-shaped pastries.

Serena looked horrified.

"Are you serious?! No way."

"I’m small. This is enough for me."

"I mean... yeah, but. You’re making sure to keep a balanced diet, right?"

"Yes."

"Ugh... Now I’m worried."

She let out a small sigh.

Then, out of nowhere, she asked:

"I heard from Maru that the members all live separately. Have you guys ever considered setting up a shared dorm?"

"That’s sudden."

"If you did, the members could live together. They wouldn’t feel as lonely.

It’d also be easier for you to help them if something goes wrong with their streams.

And you could stay there too—eating buffet-style meals from your company’s auntie cook!

Like a pro gaming team."

She wasn’t wrong.

After first-gen recruitment, we had considered setting up a dorm.

Living together would have made them closer.

Managing them would have been easier.

At one point, we even planned to set aside part of the 9th floor—

which now housed a motion studio—for the four members.

But when we ran the numbers,

Safety risks, staff workload, operational costs, and potential stream disruptions due to moving...

The conclusion?

Keeping them separate was the best choice.

Since that decision, the topic hadn’t come up again.

"I’d love to, honestly.

But right now, it’s just not feasible."

That wasn’t to say it would never happen.

Right now, we were pouring every resource into:

— Debuts

— Content

— New outfits

— Original songs

If Parallel grew bigger in the future,

and we secured full-time bodyguards for our members,

then we might reconsider.

Serena nodded in understanding.

"Sorry. That was thoughtless of me."

"No, not at all.

It just shows how much you care about your friends."

Serena’s kindness was one of her best traits.

At Lapits, she wasn’t supporting the team just because she came from a wealthy family.

She was doing it because she genuinely cared.

She was right—streamers were always busy streaming,

so their eating habits, sleep schedules, and social lives were a mess.

And on top of all that,

she had thought about me too—

my meals, my work efficiency.

It was adorable, really.

The entire time I had been discussing candidates with the CEO,

I kept thinking, There’s no one better than Serena.

And now, actually talking to her again...

She was so completely Serena.

Lapits had started shaking the moment she left.

That wasn’t just a rumor.

"So, what brings you here?"

Serena narrowed her bright eyes and grinned.

"Do you really need to ask~?"

"Aren’t you just visiting a friend?"

"Huh? Nope. I have something important to say."

"Hmm. If it was that important,

wouldn’t you have scheduled a meeting?

How did you even know I’d be at the office?"

We stepped into the elevator together.

Still smiling, Serena giggled.

"I wanted to make it seem like a dramatic encounter.

Was it too predictable?"

"Yes. I could see right through you."

"Ahaha. Busted."

"So? Shouldn’t you tell me now?

If it’s really important, I’ll need to report it to the CEO."

"Oh, no worries.

The reason you came in early today?"

Serena smirked.

"I already called Momo first."

The elevator dinged as we arrived on the 8th floor.

Serena turned to face me, eyes steady.

"I want to debut at Parallel."

***

I attended Serena’s informal interview that morning alongside the CEO and the HR manager.

Why informal?

Because the moment Serena reached out first,

it was obvious the CEO had already decided to hire her.

Aside from discussing the potential issues that could arise from her transfer,

the meeting was less of an interview and more of a casual catch-up.

So much so that, before Serena even left, I got a DingTalk message.

[CEO-nim: Hired.]

[CEO-nim: I finally understand why companies love hiring experienced recruits...]

[Me: Wow. Worst capitalist behavior.]

[CEO-nim: I was joking, don’t take it seriously.]

Once the interview wrapped up, Serena took a quick trip to the restroom.

When she returned, I walked her out of the building.

Normally, I would have taken her to a fish cake stall—

but maybe because of her image,

I found myself suggesting a café instead.

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

There was a cute, princess-themed café near the office.

It had reasonable prices and was a favorite of our team leader.

Once we ordered our drinks and sat down, Serena asked,

"So when do I debut?"

"Probably in six months?

Everything about debut plans is confidential,

so you can’t tell anyone until your debut stream."

"Oh. So I’m second-gen, huh?"

Thankfully, Serena didn’t pry too much into our internal affairs.

She trusted me and Parallel,

though she did sigh a little about not getting a longer break.

Still, something must have been on her mind,

because she suddenly added,

"Would it be okay if I told my dad?

I think he might support me with a few things."

"He’s family, so that’s fine.

And it’s not like Producer Na is the type to run around blabbing about it.

But... I thought you didn’t want his involvement in VTuber stuff?"

"Whoa. How did you know that?"

"If you wanted his full support,

you would have used it at Lapits already.

You would’ve fired that useless operations manager ages ago."

"Wow, you really get it.

Yeah, I wanted to prove I could do this on my own.

Also, my dad kept complaining about how exhausting the idol industry was.

So, you know... maybe I was acting out a little. Hehe."

Serena hummed a little tune, then continued.

"But now, I don’t mind if my dad supports Parallel.

Because—

this opportunity isn’t something that exists because of me."

"...Oh?"

"Yeah.

I wanted to join Parallel because of you.

And my dad didn’t choose Parallel because I’m his daughter.

He analyzed Parallel’s growth potential and made his own decision."

She smiled.

"No matter how much you favor your own,

a chief producer who runs a business on whims would tank a company."

"Hmm."

"So even if CAT ends up backing Parallel,

you need to understand—

It’s because of you and the company’s potential.

Not because of me."

That actually answered a question I’d been wondering about.

Why had Producer Na Hyun-gon chosen me

as the center for his new album?

"From your dad’s perspective,

what exactly did he value in me?

My music ability or my management skills?"

Serena grinned,

like she already knew the answer.

"I’d say management skills.

But my dad?

He’s different.

If I had to pick, I’d say it’s your influence.

My dad always says:

‘Success in business comes down to how many people you can attract.’"

So... both.

That realization made me scratch my cheek in embarrassment.

Direct praise like this was always awkward.

But I knew how to escape situations like this.

By flipping the compliment back.

"That’s why we want you, too.

You’re a proven content creator.

If someone like you wants to join us,

why would we say no?"

"Urgh. Suddenly turning it on me?

And you made that happen in the first place!"

"I’m not arguing."

"Wow. Shameless."

We kept talking for a while.

Eventually, when I started to stand up,

Serena hesitated, then made a request.

"Hey... stop calling me Serena.

I’ve graduated.

From now on, call me by my new stage name.

I need to get used to it before debut."

"But... we haven’t finalized the second-gen names yet."

"Ah.

Maru told me you named all the members.

So I thought you’d already picked one."

Honestly?

I was glad Serena was Maru’s friend.

Even after hearing so much,

she had never leaked a single thing.

Maybe it was because she hid her identity as Producer Na’s daughter so well.

Either way, I appreciated her discretion.

Even though nothing was confirmed yet,

there was one name I had been considering.

Serena had a soothing presence.

Her harmless, comforting image suited her best.

Since first-gen members had identities based on species and colors,

second-gen would likely follow a similar theme.

For someone associated with healing and gentleness,

a cute bird came to mind.

The Japanese name for a long-tailed tit is Enaga.

If I took Ena from that,

and paired it with a surname that evoked forests,

Morisaki would fit.

In Japanese, Saki can refer to a divine beast’s guardian.

So together, Morisaki Ena

would roughly mean "The long-tailed tit guided by the forest’s spirit."

"The name I’ve been thinking about is... Morisaki Ena.

But don’t get too attached yet—

it’s not final—"

BANG!

Serena slammed her hands on the café table.

A huge smile spread across her face.

"I love it! I want that one!

Can I convince the CEO to approve it?"

...Yeah.

VTubers really were all incredible actors.

You’d never know their true personalities just from watching their streams.

I never expected her to show this much emotion.

"...Fine. I’ll bring it up with her."

***

Despite multiple additional reviews, the CEO and I ultimately failed to round out the group to four members.

With Serena joining, the three-person lineup had already achieved perfect synergy.

Forcing in one more from the holdover pool would just disrupt the balance—

no one fit well enough to secure their own niche.

And so, the second-gen unit was officially finalized as a three-member group.

Not as full as four members,

but at least it didn’t feel as empty as a duo.

Ahn Si-ho. Unofficial stage name: Tokoyo Miho.

A fox spirit with bewitching orange ears and a tail.

Han Bada. Unofficial stage name: Hanami Orca.

A cold-hearted sea deity and ruler of the ocean, embodying the killer whale.

Na Sena. Official(?) stage name: Morisaki Ena.

A long-tailed tit, guided by the forest’s divine spirit.

Starting tomorrow,

these three would be reporting daily to the 9th-floor motion studio,

except for weekends.

Until their debut preparations were complete,

this place would serve as both their workspace and training ground.

The room felt a little too spacious for three,

but once we set up the desks, streaming equipment, and a whiteboard

for training sessions led by the CEO or HR manager,

it actually started to feel just right.

Once Seung-yeon finished helping us set everything up and left,

the CEO turned to me.

"You know... this really reminds me of the day first-gen first arrived."

I hesitated.

That was an event that didn’t exist in my original timeline,

so it took me a second to react.

But after digging through my memory,

an old anecdote surfaced.

"The day they mistook me for one of them?"

I had been the one handling setup,

escorting them to lessons,

making sure they had food and snacks.

No matter how you looked at it, I was obviously a staff member.

And yet, they tricked themselves into thinking I was their peer—

only to freak out later when they realized the truth.

"I never thought that mix-up would last a whole week."

"Well, just goes to show they’re sweet and innocent."

"At least this time, we have Serena,

so that shouldn’t happen again."

"True.

Besides, I apparently look like a plank of wood.

I doubt anyone would mistake me for one of them."

The CEO nodded,

but still pursed her lips,

like something still bothered her.

"Still... you never know.

They might assume you’re debuting too.

I mean, three people...

it just kinda feels like one spot is missing, you know?"

I chuckled and muttered,

"Come on. No way.

They’ll understand once we explain it."

New n𝙤vel chapters are published on novelbuddy.cσ๓.