Chapter 154: Da-jeong’s Solo Song is Coming Out!

Re​&a;​&d; ​on​ K̂àtR​éａd&i;n&g;C̀α​ϝë​

…Ugh…

To think I’d get sick just from pushing myself a little during the collab stream.

It really makes me realize the importance of exercise.

Still, I’m glad I recovered quickly using the fever reducers I had at home.

At least the fever hit after the collab ended properly.

I apologized to the Cherries and then rested for the whole day.

“Tofu! Mommy’s all better now!”

“Nyaa?”

“That means I can play with you as much as you want starting today!”

“Nyaa!”

I spread my arms wide toward Tofu, showing off how light and energetic I felt.

At first, Tofu tilted her head in confusion, but she quickly seemed to understand.

She lifted her front paws in response.

Yep, no matter how I think about it, Tofu definitely understands me.

There’s no other explanation.

[Yuna] — Da-jeong!!!!!!

[Yuna] — You alive? You’re not dead, right?

[Ra-hee unnie] — Da-jeong, how are you feeling?

[Chae-yoon unnie] — Da-jeong, if you’re struggling, say something!

[Chae-yoon unnie] — Unnie will rush over right away!!!

[Jia unnie] — Da-jeong, do you have food at home? Should unnie bring you something?

“Hehe…”

I gave Tofu a treat and plopped down on the floor for a bit.

As I checked the group chat, a laugh slipped out without me realizing.

The members were really worried, huh.

Well, I did just post a notice and sleep all day without contacting anyone yesterday.

Looking now, I’ve got a ton of missed calls too.

[So-eun unnie] — Da-jeong, are you awake?

[So-eun unnie] — It’s nothing urgent, but the CEO said she’ll share some announcements in Discord this afternoon.

[So-eun unnie] — If you’re still not feeling well, let me know.

[So-eun unnie] — I’ll just summarize the meeting notes for you later.

[So-eun unnie] — If you don’t reply, I’ll assume you’re not attending, so if you’re sick, don’t worry about it and rest well.

Ah, So-eun unnie messaged me too.

Announcements, huh…

Now that I think about it, after the collab ended, the CEO mentioned we’d need to gather briefly in a couple of days.

Yeah, I should let her know I’ll attend.

Plus, I’ve got a lot I want to talk about with the members today.

We had such a fun collab, but we never got to properly share our thoughts afterward.

[Me] — I’m fine, unnie!

[Me] — Please let them know I’ll be there!

Even if it’s just Discord, the thought of seeing the members already has me excited.

I quickly sent So-eun unnie the message.

You could practically feel my energy rising just from the text.

Alright, first things first—gotta shower quickly.

I was too sick to wash properly yesterday.

I can’t meet the members like this!

“Tofu, wanna shower with Mommy?”

“Nyaaaa!”

“Ugh, okay. Sorry. I’ll go alone.”

Since I’ve never bathed Tofu at home before, I thought it might be nice to try.

But, well… cats will be cats.

Her reaction was way too intense.

Defeated, I trudged into the shower alone.

***************

After showering and having lunch, the meeting time was already approaching.

I joined the Discord room, thinking I’d be the first one as usual—but today, I was the last.

“Hehe… Sorry I’m late.”

I did arrive right at the scheduled time (1 PM), but since I was still the latest, I apologized.

A chorus of voices immediately greeted me.

『Oh? Da-jeong’s here!』

『Lu-ha.』

『Hi-Lu.』

『Da-jeong, how are you feeling? You okay?』

Seems the CEO stepped away for a moment.

No greetings or responses from her, so she must not be here.

“Yeah, I’m fine. I had a slight fever yesterday, but after taking meds and resting, I’m all better now.”

『That’s a relief. We were really worried.』

『Yeah, the Cherries in our room kept asking about you too.』

『Huh? Yours too? Ours was the same.』

『The Cherries were wild yesterday. Some even donated in our room, asking us to pass messages to you!』

Th-the Cherries did that?

I had no idea it was to that extent.

Maybe it’s because I’ve collapsed once before, so they were extra worried.

Sorry, Cherries.

I’ll take better care of myself from now on, so don’t worry too much, okay?

『Oh, everyone’s here? Da-jeong, how are you feeling?』

“Hehe, I’m fine. Sorry for making you worry.”

『Nah, don’t apologize. I even considered pausing the collab midway because I was concerned, but you guys were having so much fun, so I left it. That was shortsighted of me.』

After exchanging greetings with the CEO, who returned shortly after, we finally got down to business.

『Anyway, today’s announcements are pretty big. First, Chae-yoon… Your birthday’s coming up, right?』

『Yep! That’s right~!』

Oh, right.

Lilith-chan—no, Chae-yoon unnie’s birthday is coming up.

March 13th.

Some VTubers set their birthdays differently from their real ones, but all of us in the group kept ours the same.

They said it’s because, more than concerns about identity exposure— they wanted to genuinely celebrate their real birthdays with their fans.

I think that’s a romantic reason, yeah.

『Chae-yoon’s birthday is already here?』

『So Chae-yoon unnie’s the first to celebrate this year?』

『No, Ra-hee already had hers last year.』

『Ah, right.』

That’s correct.

Ra-hee unnie is the only one who’s already had a birthday since debut.

The rest of us are celebrating for the first time this year.

For reference:

• Chae-yoon unnie: March 13th
• Yuna: May 8th
• Jia unnie: June 5th
• Me (Da-jeong): July 7th
• Ra-hee unnie: November 1st

Interestingly, Yuna’s birthday falls on Parents’ Day, so her family has this tradition where she and her parents each buy a flower and exchange them.

I think that’s such a charming and fun custom

『So, the fans arranged something—Chae-yoon, you’re getting a birthday billboard!』

『A billboard? I didn’t get one…』

『Well, when Ra-hee had hers, we’d just debuted.』

『Chae-yoon unnie, you’ve made it big!』

“Congrats, unnie!”

I clapped, genuinely happy for her.

Even though she must be stunned hearing this for the first time, Chae-yoon unnie replied in her usual bright, cheerful voice.

『Hee, thank you, thank you. Never thought I’d get to enjoy something like this in my life~』

I mean, having your birthday on a billboard?

That’s not something you’d normally even imagine.

『The billboard goes up this Wednesday, so Chae-yoon, if you’re curious, go check it out.』

『Heck yeah! Gonna go take pics ASAP! Gotta brag to my parents too!』

『Pfft…! Unnie, you sounded like such a kid just now.』

『Excuse me?! Your usual way of talking isn’t exactly mature either!』

『Hah, what?!』

『Please, not during the meeting…!』

As always, the meeting devolved into chaos.

At this point, we should just call it “chat time” instead of “meeting time.”

But well, we are technically holding a meeting… Yeah.

Anyway, a billboard, huh?

I’ve gotten used to things like that in my old world, but in this world, it’s a first.

I kinda want to go see it in person.

Nice—unnie said she’s going this week, so maybe I can tag along?

“Chae-yoon unnie, can I come with you?”

『Hm? Come with… to see the billboard?』

“Yeah! Hehe…”

I asked carefully, just in case she wanted to go alone and take her time.

But then, unnie’s voice noticeably brightened.

『W-wait, is our Da-jeong just asking unnie out on a date…? Is this flirting?』

“F-flirting…?”

H-how is this flirting?!

I just wanted to go see the billboard together, that’s all!

But if she’s calling it a date request… well, I guess she’s not wrong…

“W-well, I don’t know about flirting, but it is a date request! Let’s go on a date, just the two of us!”

『Gasp!』

『Damn, I’m so jealous of unnie…!』

『Wish my birthday had come a little sooner…』

I just blurted it out, thinking, whatever!

For some reason, Chae-yoon unnie choked on air, while Yuna and Jia unnie muttered enviously.

I’m not entirely sure what’s happening, but…

At least it’s settled—we’re going together.

『Alright, let’s wrap up the birthday talk for now. Next up is something about Da-jeong…』

“Huh? Me?”

Apparently, there was an announcement concerning me.

The CEO hesitated briefly before continuing.

『Yeah, actually, Da-jeong’s original song’s composition is finished. Once recording’s done, we’ll film the MV and release it around early summer.』

『Whoa!』

『Da-jeong’s getting an original too?!』

『So jealous…!』

『Da-jeong, congrats!』

The news was so unexpected that, unlike the others who immediately showered me with congratulations, I froze, unable to speak for a while.

W-wait. An original song?

Why me…?

From what I recall, after Jia unnie, the next member supposed to get one was Yuna.

That’s what we discussed in the last meeting.

Not just Yuna—other members’ originals were already in production too.

But there’d been no mention of mine.

So I figured mine would come much later and didn’t think much of it.

But now, suddenly, my song’s coming out first?

Why?

『Ah, just to clarify—we’re still working on the others’ songs as planned. Da-jeong’s is coming out first because… well, it wasn’t commissioned by us.』

“Huh? Not commissioned by us…?”

As if answering my confusion, the CEO’s explanation only deepened it.

If the company didn’t order it, how did my song even exist?

『Turns out, the composer is VN—a really famous producer who’s worked with major artists. They reached out to us out of the blue, saying they’d written a song perfect for Da-jeong and asked if we’d consider using it.』

『No way, the VN? The one who worked on Yang Ye-in’s latest album?!』

『Wait, that VN?!』

『Wow, I listen to their stuff all the time!』

I didn’t recognize the name, but judging by Yuna’s shocked reaction and how the others gasped upon hearing the artists they’d worked with, this person was huge.

『Yeah, that VN. They’re known for being a big fan of VTubers, and apparently, after hearing about Da-jeong, they wrote this song inspired by her.』

『No freaking way…! So Da-jeong’s getting a song from VN?!』

『We listened to it—it’s really good. So we’re moving forward with it.』

The explanation was coming too fast for me to process, but the gist was:

A legendary composer wrote a song for me, so my original’s jumping the queue.

But even understanding that, the dizziness didn’t fade.

This was all too sudden.

『So we’re thinking—what if we release it on Da-jeong’s birthday?』

“My… birthday?”

『Yep.』

Ah, that’s why they said early summer.

My birthday’s July 7th.

It might be tight, but since the song’s already done, it’s not impossible.

『Also—and this is only if Da-jeong’s comfortable with it—we were wondering if you’d like to write the lyrics yourself.』

“L-lyrics? You want me to write them?”

That was the next bombshell.

Lyrics?

I’ve dabbled in art and video editing, but writing?

That’s a hurdle I’ve never even attempted.

『Yeah, actually, it’s something VN suggested too. They said they’d love to see you complete the song with your own words.』

“B-but what if I ruin it? Me writing lyrics…?”

『No need to stress. VN will guide you, and if it doesn’t work out, we’ll get help. The point is, they want to hear your story.』

I hesitated, afraid I’d waste this golden opportunity, but the CEO’s expression made it clear—she believed in me.

『Give it a shot, Da-jeong.』

『Seriously, this is huge.』

『I’d love to see what you come up with.』

『Yeah, unnie knows you can do it.』

Not just the CEO—every member chimed in, their trust unwavering.

I bit my lip, thinking hard, then finally nodded.

…Alright, overthinking won’t help.

And turning this down would be rude to VN, who reached out for me.

“O-okay! I’ll try!”

For everyone who believes in me—

For my birthday, for my story—

For the Cherries who deserve this gift—

Even if I’m out of my depth, even if I stumble…

This time, I’ll be brave.

There’s still plenty of time.

I’ll think hard, work hard.

Even if I regret it later, it’s better than regretting not trying at all.