I Want to Be a VTuber

“Na-hee, we need to hustle as much as we can if Dream Future comes through this time. We should go on variety shows and I’ve lined up a CF too. You can do this, right?”

“Well, what about group activities…?”

The entertainment planning team leader patted Na-hee’s shoulder, as if to say not to worry.

“I know, I know. As a matter of fact, I’m really thinking of getting you produced by someone amazing this time. So Na-hee, you need to work hard. The Summer Girl has potential. Just with the right song, you’re bound to blow up.”

“Ah, okay.”

“Of course, we need to re-sign the contract first. Isn’t your contract until next month?”

“It’s this month.”

“Right, don’t procrastinate. You know that, right? We’re counting on you, Na-hee.”

At the team leader’s words, Na-hee let out a sigh.

Idols.

And for her, the Summer Girl was quite special.

Firstly, there was a solid core fanbase that loved Na-hee, and she had her own bit of popularity.

Of course, she was nowhere near a top-tier girl group, but just getting to this level felt like a blessing.

Just being able to film dramas or commercials was enough to establish recognition.

But…

There were several things weighing on her mind.

First was the feeling that she couldn’t fully immerse herself in the Summer Girl image.

She knew the reason.

The leader, Rabin, didn’t like Na-hee.

If it were normal, Na-hee, being the most popular in the group, would have a stronger voice, but Rabin was the niece of the CEO of Ho-yeon Studio.

Naturally, the other members had to follow Rabin’s lead.

Although, Rabin hadn’t really sabotaged Na-hee, the only one bringing income to the Summer Girl.

Concerns…

She was truly unsure if it was right to stay as is.

Amid those thoughts, Na-hee headed to the place where Seo-yeon would be waiting for her.

She was worried if the innocent Seo-yeon could hold up against the feral Rabin and the members.

“You’re here quickly.”

“…?”

She was taken aback the moment she opened the practice room door.

Rabin was sitting quietly with Seo-yeon’s hand resting on her shoulder.

Not just Rabin, but the other group members were also kneeling by her side.

As if saying, Shall we do well?

Na-hee couldn’t help but tilt her head at such a peculiar sight.

And after Seo-yeon left, Rabin started glancing at Na-hee, but Na-hee never found out why.

*

Anyway, thanks to that, Seo-yeon could properly learn how to sing from Na-hee.

Her skills as a solid idol were not just a name; they were outstanding compared to regular trainers.

“You really learned properly!”

When she passed that message along, even the Nova Entertainment vocal trainer was impressed.

Seo-yeon puffed up with pride.

“I never thought you could socialize, Seo-yeon.”

“?”

“Oh, no. I thought you were quite shy.”

She must have honestly thought that way.

In reality, it wasn’t entirely wrong, but…

I’m not really shy.

Rather, she definitely had that side with peers around her age.

On the other hand, older people were easier to engage with.

Na-hee was three years older, so it was easier for Seo-yeon to talk to her.

Anyway, after Nova Entertainment said, “You can use our practice room too,” she had another session with the vocal trainer.

“…It’s good, isn’t it?”

Producer Lee Min-hwa looked at Seo-yeon with surprised eyes.

She was the producer of the new drama Sky Garden.

“With this level, it looks like it would be fine to start working on the OST.”

From Min-hwa’s words, Seo-yeon realized that they hadn’t planned to jump straight into OST work.

They probably wanted to verify Seo-yeon’s singing first before proceeding.

Looking back, Seo-yeon hadn’t even confirmed her appearance in Sky Garden.

I should have taken my time to learn more.

She had hurriedly learned a lot.

Seo-yeon let out a small sigh.

“But Seo-yeon, I heard you’ve been quite busy lately. Do you think you can participate in Sky Garden?”

“I think I can manage.”

“I heard a meeting is already scheduled for next week…”

Ah, that’s why today’s meeting was moved up a bit.

Seo-yeon’s manager, Eun-ha, probably adjusted the schedule in advance.

“…Your stamina is impressive. How many projects have you done without resting?”

Min-hwa muttered as she quietly gazed at Seo-yeon.

A high school student.

She heard Seo-yeon would soon turn eighteen.

In the past year, Seo-yeon had appeared in one play, one drama, and one movie, totaling three projects.

In between, she had participated in variety shows and filmed commercials.

While there were celebrities who worked a lot, she had never seen someone this busy in their debut year.

“It’s really okay. This level isn’t hard for me at all.”

“Is that so?”

It didn’t seem like she was trying to show off.

In reality, Seo-yeon was quite calm.

She didn’t feel any sharpness typical of a busy celebrity.

“…Then, Seo-yeon. Can we consider your participation in Sky Garden confirmed? The exact contract will be sent to your agency later.”

At Producer Lee Min-hwa’s words, Seo-yeon fell into thought for a moment.

Sky Garden had originally been a drama that performed well.

Besides, Seo-yeon could play a role appropriate for her age.

In terms of acting as a high school student, the opportunities were few.

But the problem is that Sky Garden was originally meant to be aired on a cable network.

That was a different part from her past life’s memories.

Originally, writer Min Se-hee had joined Dream Future as a co-writer.

This was the drama she would debut with on cable.

The first cable drama to achieve over 15% national ratings.

In the metropolitan area, it had exceeded 20%, shattering all records.

But I’m not sure about terrestrial broadcasting.

Logically, the terrestrial channels should perform much better.

The problem was that there were narrative developments allowed on cable that might not work on terrestrial networks.

From Min Se-hee’s perspective, terrestrial broadcasting would be preferable over cable.

But that meant more people interfering with the production.

The chances of the story flowing as intended by the writer would likely decrease, so it couldn’t guarantee success.

At least it shouldn’t fail. No matter how poorly the script goes.

I needed to figure out a way regarding this.

The Producer Lee Min-hwa in charge of Sky Garden must have some real skills.

…However, that might be a predicament.

She would likely stick to the formula for success in network television.

“Yes, I really want to participate in Sky Garden.”

“I see. That’s a relief. I’m sure the drama director… um, everyone will be pleased.”

“…?”

For a moment, there seemed to be a mention of a drama director.

Seo-yeon felt a bit puzzled but nodded.

Anyway, it seemed that the OST issue was mostly resolved.

“Oh, if there’s anything else needed aside from the OST, please let me know anytime. I’ll do my best to reflect Seo-yeon’s wishes.”

Producer Lee Min-hwa seemed to have a great fondness for Seo-yeon.

Given that she said such things, it meant that Seo-yeon would be treated very specially in this Sky Garden.

Thus, there was no need to decline.

“Oh, well then…”

Seo-yeon made a few requests to Producer Lee Min-hwa.

The essential elements of Sky Garden that remained in her memory.

They needed to be together without fail.

*

Recently, an interesting rumor was stirring in the entertainment industry.

There were whispers that GH Group was investing in a new movie and was planning to create a web variety show featuring action actors.

Moreover, it was said that those selected from the web variety would be given leading roles in the upcoming movie.

“They’re aiming to solidify their success after The Chaser, it seems.”

“Since The Chaser had great action, they’re likely going full on for action films this time.”

“Lately, entertainment films have become the trend.”

It was definitely something that couldn’t air on terrestrial channels.

Thus, cable networks.

Or as a web variety show planned amongst entertainment.

A survival program where they’d compete for leading roles in the movie financed by GH Group.

And the spreading of rumors indicated that discussions had already begun.

To find that information, journalists were bound to be busy running around.

“Sun-ah, do you know any inside information?”

“I do.”

“Of course you don’t… wait, what?”

At the senior reporter’s words, Han Sun-ah, a journalist from Seon-yang Media, made a “V” sign with her fingers.

While she had been active lately, she had heard some information.

“They are looking for lead actresses in their late teens to mid-twenties.”

“Lead actresses? I guess they set the ages for those roles to be younger?”

“I think so. It seems like there are a few who have already directly requested to appear. Thankfully, some chatty actresses have spilled the beans.”

There were several actresses who had received direct appearance requests from GH Group.

Those actresses were young stars who had recently become a big deal in movies or dramas.

In other words, they were the future stars that would take over the entertainment industry.

“ I heard it was an action film… Did they contact just anyone?”

“For now, yes. After all, if they lack skill, they’ll drop out of the survival show.”

“Ah well, stuntmen would handle the dangerous action scenes…”

“They probably don’t think that way.”

While dangerous actions would be left to stuntmen, the majority of actions required the lead actor to perform them.

It allowed for more realistic and diverse shooting.

You could say they were sharpening their skills for action.

“They’re gathering all the young trendsetting actors… just hearing that sounds like fun, but will the budget hold? Plus, if it’s young actresses, they might avoid action.”

“Exactly. That’s why they are going for younger actors. Young actresses wouldn’t be picky about roles.”

“Aha.”

In the first place, young or inexperienced actors typically had lower fees.

Plus, since it was a survival variety show, they were likely to have fixed payments from the start.

From the outset, the “lead actor” position itself was something for the actors to aim for.

If one lacked confidence, they could always turn it down.

But would young actors really back out of this exciting opportunity that also comes with networking?

Given the chance to participate would present a golden opportunity to establish connections.

And among their peers, there could be a prevailing thought that they were the best.

Even if young actresses avoided action, it was an excellent opportunity to instill the image of being an actress who works hard in action.

This could be entertaining.

Han Sun-ah beamed as she began writing her article.

A young rising star.

If any ambitious actors exist, they would inevitably want to take part too.

So, her young star, Joo Seo-yeon, would surely participate.

Han Sun-ah was already in high spirits at the thought of her new article.

*

“Action acting?”

Jo Seo-hee raised an eyebrow at the invitation to some variety show she had received.

Not that it felt strange to say, but Jo Seo-hee had never done action acting.

She had never even worked in an action film.

“Why me?”

“It seems they’ve reached out to all the actresses around your age who have popularity.”

“Aha.”

The variety show being organized by the GH Group.

It might be cable or web, but she had heard about the film that GH Group was heavily investing in.

The leading role position would be coveted by any actor.

Plus, if it’s a large scale survival audition, newcomers would be risking it all to get in.

As it was a survival show, not just actors who directly got contacted but also many unknown actors would want to participate. They’d likely gather through online recruitment.

They would contact noteworthy actors to directly offer them the chance to appear.

“Are you going to turn it down?”

Seo-hee’s manager, Shin Yoo-kyung, understood her preferences well.

Seo-hee didn’t even like action acting nor did she need to participate in such a variety show.

It seemed that contact had been sent to all young trendsetting actors…

Honestly, compared to Seo-hee, they didn’t even come close.

She had confidence in that.

Seo-hee’s recognition was not something that could be compared with her “peers.”

Simply contrasting her with flashy young stars was unfair.

“I’ll do it.”

“Okay, you’re going to reject… huh?”

Yoo-kyung gaped at Seo-hee.

Of course, without noticing Yoo-kyung’s distraction, Seo-hee had her thoughts wandering elsewhere.

So this is it.

Recently, Seo-hee had been chatting with Lee Ji-yeon and Seo-yeon occasionally while working on Gyeongseong Young Lady.

She’d caught wind of some “variety show” that Seo-yeon had mentioned in passing during those conversations.

That’s the show she’d likely be participating in.

Seo-hee felt a bit delighted.

She wasn’t convinced she would pass the audition for that movie nor even had thoughts about it.

However, it was a chance to practice her acting rhythm with Seo-yeon before filming for Gyeongseong Young Lady.

Thinking of it that way made her feel oddly cheerful.

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