Chapter 210: In Search of a New Gem

Ｒｅａ​ｄ ｏ​ｎ Ｋａ​ｔＲｅａｄ​ｉｎｇＣａｆｅ​

While the news about the second-generation trainees was important, there was something even more pressing for us—Blue LUV’s first-anniversary collaboration stream.

And with the preparations for the anniversary merchandise in full swing, the entire company had gotten busier.

『Wow, it’s already been a year. Time really flies.』

『Right? It feels like just yesterday that we started working with Lulu.』

『Early congratulations, CEO.』

“Hehe, thank you~ Sorry for putting you all through so much for the anniversary.”

And of course, my employees were no exception.

Truthfully, they didn’t have much to prepare for the anniversary, so their workload wasn’t significantly heavier than usual.

But since I was so busy, confirmations and other tasks were getting delayed, and I felt bad about that.

I should reward them with an incentive bonus for Chuseok next month.

I’ll keep it a surprise—no hints—so they’ll be genuinely happy.

『By the way, didn’t we agree to do a collab stream after the anniversary?』

“Ah, right! Since we’ve already let the Cherries hear some of their voices, I thought it’d be fun to properly introduce them while just hanging out.”

『Ohhh, we made it! We get to collab with Lulu too!』

『I’ll clip this and play it at my funeral later.』

“Ack, you guys are so dramatic!”

Who even plays collab streams at their funeral?

Their kids would die of embarrassment watching that.

『The second-gen auditions are coming up soon—how do you feel?』

“Hmm… I don’t really feel anything special. Just a little curious about who’ll show up, I guess?”

『Definitely curious. Maybe there’ll be someone as adorably squishy as Lulu among them?』

“W-Who’s adorably squishy?!”

『Excuse me, how dare you speak so rudely to our boss? I’ll handle this—just leave it to me.』

Go ahead, handle it, Secretary Ha.

『But, boss.』

“Yes, Syung?”

『What kind of content were you thinking of for the collab? Just curious.』

“Hmm… I’m not sure yet. We’ll probably play games for a bit, but I think we should also have a separate introduction segment…”

『Something casual, like a Just Chatting vibe?』

“Yeah, exactly!”

Since most of them aren’t broadcasters, a long Just Chatting segment might be tough. A simple self-introduction and some talk about their work should work fine.

『If that’s the case, don’t worry, Lulu! I’ll perform an impromptu worship session!』

『We gotta hype up our boss properly!』

“T-That’s not necessary! Just keep it normal!”

…Well, those two are a little concerning.

But Syung is there to keep things in check, so it’ll probably work out.

Probably.

“Anyway, let’s wrap up today’s meeting here. As always, don’t push yourselves too hard!”

『As always, Lulu saying that carries zero weight.』

『True.』

『Right. You should take it easy too, boss. Don’t overwork yourself for the anniversary.』

Ugh…

I meant that as encouragement, but I ended up getting scolded instead.

But it’s true that I’ve given them plenty of reasons to worry, so I can’t argue.

“I-I won’t overdo it…! Promise!”

『Promise!』

『Pinky swear?』

『Neoul, keep that up and I’ll hit you.』

『Sorry.』

Though her voice was meek under the employees’ teasing, she still made her resolve clear.

Neoul, as usual, made a dumb remark—only to be immediately shut down by Syung’s cold retort.

Honestly, the vibe between Neoul and Syung is kinda weird.

They bicker all the time, but they also look out for each other the most.

Their chemistry’s great too.

Come to think of it, according to Hayang’s rumors…

There were whispers that they met in person during their last break…?

Hmm… suspicious.

『Ugh, seriously! How can you be so immature at your age?!』

『I may not have maturity, but I do have copper—』

『Do you want to die, Neoul?』

『W-Was it not funny? I thought it was a solid joke…』

『Just go die.』

See? Even now.

It’s less like they’re bickering and more like Syung is being tsundere.

It kinda looks like a lovers’ spat.

Are we really about to have an office romance?

Hmm… I’ll keep watching.

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

Kang Ha-neul had been overwhelmingly busy lately.

Between catching up on post-vacation work, preparing for Blue LUV’s anniversary merchandise, and handling second-gen auditions—

Added on with her own streaming schedule, even 48-hour days wouldn’t be enough.

Drip—

“At least have some coffee while you work, CEO.”

“Ah, yeah. Thanks. Sigh Maybe a short break.”

“That’d be good for you.”

So-eun, Blue LUV’s general manager and her secretary, poured her a cup of drip coffee.

Leaning back in her chair, Ha-neul sighed and pushed aside the mountain of paperwork for a moment.

“You must be sick of just looking at them by now.”

“No, it’s not that… I’m just scared after last time’s accident.”

“Ah, right.”

So-eun had assumed Ha-neul was just tired of staring at documents, but that wasn’t the case.

A while back, in a similar situation, she had spilled coffee all over some critical paperwork—

Resulting in a disaster.

Since then, she either moved documents away or stepped aside before drinking anything near them.

“Have you found any promising gems among the applicants, CEO?”

“Luckily, yes. Our girls’ success must’ve had a big impact—applications have skyrocketed compared to the beginning.”

“Well, it is six times as many now.”

So-eun gave a wry smile, as if understanding the struggle.

Of course, Blue LUV hadn’t lacked applicants even at debut.

Given that Ha-neul was already a famous Korean streamer, a virtual group under her drew immediate attention.

But Korea’s virtual market was still small, and—

The concept of VTubers itself was still unfamiliar back then, and with no successful cases in Korea, the number of applicants hadn’t matched the hype surrounding the group’s name.

But this time? Six times more.

Nearly 400 applicants—a staggering number. While it meant there were more potential gems to choose from…

“It also means six times the work for me.”

The burden on Kang Ha-neul, the owner, had undeniably grown heavier.

“But you’re not unhappy about it, are you?”

“Of course not.”

Despite everything, Ha-neul didn’t dislike this situation at all. It was proof of Blue LUV’s success and, more importantly, evidence that VTubers were gaining ground in the Korean market.

The world was telling her she hadn’t made the wrong choice.

What entrepreneur wouldn’t want that?

So even if her body was exhausted, her heart had never been happier.

Tap. Tap.

“This should cover the first-round selections.”

After reviving her tired mind with coffee, she resumed work and finally sorted out the pile of applications. Tapping the stack against the desk to straighten it, she let out a satisfied sigh.

“You finished quicker than I expected.”

“Yeah, I thought it’d take longer.”

Ha-neul replied casually as So-eun blinked in surprise. With so many applicants, she’d anticipated a lengthier process, but narrowing down the first round hadn’t been as hard as she’d thought.

“Any standouts so far?”

“We haven’t even held interviews yet.”

“Still, you never know. There might be someone who shakes your heart like Da-jeong did.”

“I’d love that.”

Though privately, she doubted anyone could surpass that impact.

Da-jeong had been an exception. Sure, her audition line was striking, but it was the fire in her eyes that had seared into Ha-neul’s memory—so much so that she’d expanded the roster just to recruit her.

“Ugh… Anyway, let’s call it a day. What do you want for dinner?”

“Anything you’re treating me to is fine.”

“Really? Let’s have gamjatang, then. It’s been a while.”

“Sounds good.”

With that, Ha-neul left her office with So-eun, silently hoping the stack of papers contained the next gem to walk alongside Blue LUV.

Whoosh—flap.

As the door closed, a small gust of wind sent the top sheet fluttering onto the table.

The name written on it:

[Jang Ji-won]