Chapter 61: New Face Interview, Part 4

“Ugh, status window…”

This darned thing.

It had been quiet for a while, but it showed up again right when she was about to forget about it, ruining the mood.

“The idea to debut Hong Seo-hyun as a Vtuber!”

“A natural Cosplay Holic marketing using the correlation between Mama and the original song!”

“What about a cosplay photo book?”

‘A Vtuber cosplay photo book? What’s that now…’

It was perplexing, but it felt like a familiar development by now.

After a moment of silence, Hayoon started to formulate a plan in her head.

‘Small quantity is the way to go.’

Hong Seo-hyun’s Vtuber cosplay photo book would definitely be a limited print run.

This was different from Cosplay Holic, where she had to sell as much as possible to exceed the target set by the status window.

This mission only required taking photos for the photo book.

In the streaming world, there wasn’t much difference between 100 viewers donating 1,000 won a month and one viewer donating 100,000 won a month.

In that case, it was better to go with a “limited edition, released immediately after debut” concept to increase the loyalty of big spenders who would buy the photo book of a newly debuted Vtuber.

For Hong Seo-hyun’s stable income as well.

‘I’m not sure how much the Vtuber fandom will like the photo book, but…’

Even if it was a cosplay photo book created through someone else, merchandise is still merchandise.

Vtuber fans generally don’t like their favorite Vtubers being consumed outside the fandom without permission, but at the same time, they feel a sense of superiority when they see other fans who don’t have the merchandise they have.

So, she thought it would be better to sell only a very small quantity of about 50 copies of this photo book.

——————————————————————————————————————————————

[STATUS WINDOW]

‘But there’s no penalty this time?’

-Should I give you one if you want?

‘No, I don’t want it.’

——————————————————————————————————————————————

 

Hayoon, who had devised a suitable sales strategy, briefly wrestled with the status window in her mind.

“It seems like Hong Seo-hyun also wants to collaborate with me, so I’ll make sure to bring her in this time. If we secure such a continuous promotional channel….”

“We can fill the gap in the promotional strategy, which is a weakness of indie games. Just a few mentions by a high-profile Vtuber will bring in a considerable number of people.”

“That’s right.”

“I-I agree too. It’s my first time rigging a virtual avatar, but I’ll do my best.”

She asked Do Jin-ho and Choi Arin for their opinions one last time.

Of course, she thought it was up to Hong Seo-hyun herself whether she could grow into a high-profile Vtuber, even with all the support they provided.

If she occupies the niche position of a Korean adaptation specialist Utaite, she could definitely have a strong advantage as an Utaite YouTuber, but.

Streaming is a bit different.

Even Hayoon herself is currently on a long hiatus after trying to catch two rabbits at once.

This is not a market where things go your way just because you want them to.

So, this time, she had to be selective and focused.

It wouldn’t be easy to ride the growth trend solely on the uniqueness of being a Vtuber who emerged in the nascent stages of the Korean Vtuber scene.

“First, I’ll meet Hong Seo-hyun again during lunch break. I’ll discuss the concept with her, get the song concept for her Utaite channel, and start preparing in earnest.”

She would fully support her and make her a hit.

Since it’s the beginning of the Vtuber era, there would be a steady demand for Hong Seo-hyun.

It was worth a try.

 

***

 

“What’s going on?”

Lunch break.

Hayoon called Hong Seo-hyun aside.

The reason, of course.

“Senior, do you know about Vtubers?”

“Huh…? Vtubers…?”

“Yes, Vtubers.”

“What are those…?”

It was about Vtubers.

However.

Since Hong Seo-hyun didn’t know anything about this either, she had to go through a series of explanations, just like Choi Arin.

“To sum it up, it’s a streamer who focuses on singing?”

“That’s right. They operate within their character without revealing their real appearance.”

“I think I kind of get it……? It’s like a faceless singer, or something?”

“Hmm, that’s exactly it. There are virtual idols overseas.”

Hong Seo-hyun understood quite quickly.

When explained in relation to singing, she made a plausible analogy of a faceless singer.

“But why are you asking me to do this?”

“Honestly, my price is a bit high for me to regularly draw illustrations for you.”

“Uh, huh…?”

Who is Hayoon?

A woman who consistently earns 2 million won a month through Patreon.

Cosplay Holic, a visual novel she planned seriously, achieved sales of 36 million won just from funding.

If Hayoon were to sell her illustrations on a per-piece basis, she would have to charge at least 300,000 won, even for broadcasting illustrations.

“300,000 won per piece. Can you pay that?”

“Th-that’s, if I sing and make the PV video…….”

“Frankly, even if you outsource a PV video to a professional outsourcing team, you can often get a quote for under 500,000 won. If you outsource to an amateur, you can get it done for around 100,000 won.”

“Th-the vocals….”

In short, the exchange rate didn’t work out.

Hong Seo-hyun, who was confident in her singing, appealed that her vocals had value, but…

“Vocal outsourcing for one song costs less than 1 million won, even at the highest estimate. You’re an amateur.”

“H-huh….”

Hong Seo-hyun let out a frustrated sigh and trembled, but there was nothing she could do about the unfavorable exchange rate.

Hayoon was at a level comparable to professionals, while Hong Seo-hyun’s vocals, although unique in tone, were generally at the boundary between professional and amateur.

It wasn’t that she couldn’t sing, but she wasn’t at a level where she could receive dozens of illustrations for a few months in exchange for one vocal outsourcing.

So.

“Do you want to sign a contract with me?”

“C-contract…?”

“I heard that Utaite channels generate some income, even if it’s a small amount. You would give me a portion of that income, along with the income generated from the original songs we commission from you in the future, and the income generated from your Vtuber broadcasts.”

“Are you asking me to sign an agency contract?”

“Well, something like that?”

“Th-the ratio…?”

Gulp.

Hong Seo-hyun swallowed and asked about the ratio.

“We’ll start with 5:5 and gradually adjust the ratio in your favor.”

“Is that it..?”

“The cost of a virtual avatar starts at several million won. Instead of charging you for that, we need to take that much.”

“Ugh….”

50/50.

From Hong Seo-hyun’s perspective, who didn’t know this industry, it might feel like a small ratio.

However, there are cases where some companies take more than the Vtuber themselves.

50/50 was Hayoon’s way of being considerate of Hong Seo-hyun.

Moreover, Hayoon wasn’t planning to charge for the illustrations she would draw for Hong Seo-hyun’s debut.

This was a generous contract that Hong Seo-hyun should be grateful for.

“So, this is… huh…….”

While Hayoon was lost in thought, Hong Seo-hyun, who had checked the cost of producing a virtual avatar, closed her mouth.

‘If I receive five illustrations per month for music videos, that’s 1.5 million won. If I consider the PV and vocal fees I paid for the first month, everything after that is debt…….’

Starting from the second month of her Utaite YouTuber debut, she would accumulate a debt of 1.5 million won every month.

She could show off for the first few months by using the money she saved to become a YouTuber, but.

Adding the cost of the virtual avatar, it’s a huge sum that a high school student’s allowance couldn’t handle.

“Why are you doing so much for me…?”

At this point, the natural question was why Hayoon was being so generous.

Initially, she had brought up the illustrations to try and get a better deal for opening her YouTube channel.

Now, she was in a situation where she was discussing debuting as a Vtuber.

What was going on?

“I think the Vtuber market will continue to grow. Singing in Korean adaptations can also be seen as a unique selling point, and above all.”

“Above all…?”

“Senior, you don’t like going to school, do you?”

“That’s, true….”

“If you’re not enthusiastic about school life anyway, I didn’t think you would give up this opportunity to earn money while singing.”

“An opportunity to earn money while singing….”

However, the flow of conversation, which she couldn’t understand at all, became unimportant.

Anyway, Hayoon was willing to support Hong Seo-hyun.

The price was half of the future income she would earn.

By giving up half of the money she will make in the future, Hong Seo-hyun gets the chance to run an Utaite channel and debut as a Vtuber.

Honestly, she still wasn’t sure what a Vtuber is, but.

“I like it. Do we need to sign a contract?”

“Yes, I’ll prepare a contract for about 3 years.”

“Wow, that’s… serious..?”

“Huh?”

“You can’t back out once you sign a contract…….”

“Well, that’s true.”

“Whew….”

She would do it.

She definitely would.

If she missed this opportunity, with the allowance she saved, Hong Seo-hyun wouldn’t be able to run an Utaite channel in an environment better than what Hayoon offered.

Calculating the amount, she knew for sure.

This opportunity cannot be missed.

Even if it meant being bound by a contract.

“Okay, I’ll do it. I will.”

So, Hong Seo-hyun verbally expressed her intention to debut as a Vtuber, even though there was no contract yet.

“Alright. Then, please come up with a character design.”

“Okay.”

“Huh? Character?”

“We need to make a virtual avatar. I’m saying, bring a concept. A concept.”

Hayoon gave Hong Seo-hyun homework.

It’s time to decide on the RP(Role Play), the alpha and omega of a Vtuber(a VTuber who is considered the most influential figure within their agency, often seen as the beginning and end of something).