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

“Mom, who are they? Are they strangers you know?”
At that, the guys who had been hitting on her took a startled step back.
It was probably because of the clothes I was wearing today—anyone could see I looked like an elementary schooler.
When the boss first bought me this outfit, I thought she had really weird taste. But now? I couldn’t be more thankful. It’s like she somehow predicted this would happen.
Of course she did. The future-seeing boss.
Great Do-hee.
Holding onto Darami’s hand, who hadn’t so much as twitched at the scene unfolding, I leaned close to her side and whispered:
“Play along.”
Darami’s acting genes, inherited straight from her parents, always came through in moments of urgency.
She’d been showing those skills throughout Blitzlight City, and that’s what made Red Hood work.
More than that, while she struggled with friendly people, Darami was actually pretty composed when dealing with strangers.
“Nope, I don’t know them.”
“Oh, I thought maybe they were Dad’s friends!”
“Ahaha, no, sweetie. They’re just strangers. I guess they wanted to make me their girlfriend because your mom’s too pretty.”
I fully wrapped my arms around Darami’s waist and pressed my face into her shoulder.
Then, shaking my head like a real kid, I let out the whiniest baby-voice I could muster.
“Waaah! Nooo! My mommy belongs to my daddy!”
“Oh, you little—”
For a moment I worried it might not work.
But luckily, the guys broke out in a nervous sweat and backed off immediately.
“S-Sorry!”
“Come on, let’s just go. Hurry up!”
I could hear them muttering as they walked away.
“Dude, how is that even a mom?”
“No way she has a kid that age…”
Can’t blame them for being disappointed.
Honestly, I understood.
Darami today looked so stunning, anyone would fall for her.
But that was that—situation handled.
Darami let out a short breath and leaned forward.
“I seriously can’t believe that just happened to me…”
Maybe I should’ve warned her beforehand instead of leaving her alone?
I didn’t say anything so she wouldn’t get more anxious, but maybe that was a mistake.
I stepped slightly away and offered her a few words of comfort.
“You dolled up a lot today. It happens.”
“I used to walk around dressed like this when I was younger too, but nothing like this ever happened…”
“Were you alone back then?”
“My mom was with me.”
Yeah, who’s going to bother her when Cha Seong-gyeong’s walking right next to her?
I bet just like when she visited our office, her mom was rocking sunglasses and exuding a no-approach aura. Unless you were nuts, you wouldn’t say a word.
“Let’s go back. The others are waiting.”
“Ah… okay.”
“By the way, did you catch our conversation? How long were you with those two?”
Darami let out a quiet laugh.
“I heard pretty much everything.”
Thank God.
With everything happening so fast, I was worried the girls’ sincerity wouldn’t come through.
“And I mean, I kind of already knew they were good people. But having to go this far just to confirm it… that’s what hurt the most. More than facing the trauma itself.”
No doubt about it.
It got through. And Darami understood.
“Yeah… Because of my trauma, I couldn’t trust people properly. Even when they were being so kind, I couldn’t accept it. For an entire week… They probably tried so hard to meet me halfway. I feel really bad about that…”
She was starting to blame herself too much.

But I knew she wouldn’t want to say any of this in front of the others. So it was up to me to handle it.
“If you feel bad, then just try harder from now on. If you ever feel ready to open up, you can tell them what you’re going through and get some comfort. From here on out, it’s your call.”
The good thing was—she wanted to change.
“…Then they’ll understand and empathize with me, right? But… everyone’s got something going on, and I’m the only one getting special treatment. It feels unfair.”
Ever since she was hurt by her old teachers, she’d been afraid of facing smiling people.
But she never ran away.
She pushed through her own pain, quietly enduring it, just to receive the others’ kindness without causing trouble.
She never let it show.
Even now, she was still holding back.
“They’re probably all expecting the version of me they saw in Blitzlight City. But I hate that too. I don’t want to be seen as the traumatized Baek Daram—I want to be seen as Darai, full of swagger.”
I clapped my hands together and gave her a word of encouragement.
“You can totally do that. I spent three whole weeks with you there, remember? I vouch for you.”
Darami smiled brightly.
“Yeah. I’ll work harder. I’m going to become the most stylish person in the universe!”
Seeing her so cheerful again…
I couldn’t help myself—I cracked a joke.
“‘Most stylish in the universe’ is kind of hilarious though.”
“Ah, w-was it…?”
***
It was true that the second-gen trio had been a little overly clingy.
But that was only because they were doing their best to make sure Darami didn’t feel left out.
In a way, they had misunderstood the character that is Darami.
Back in Blitzlight City, she was flamboyant, full of bravado, oozing confidence, and larger than life.
So naturally, the girls must’ve thought, Ah, this one’s a hardcore Extrovert, pure E-type for sure.
Which probably led them to be even more forward with her.
But human relationships don’t follow a fixed formula.
It’s like taking a puzzle piece that doesn’t quite fit and carving it just enough to make it click.
Adjusting yourself bit by bit—that’s the essence of coexisting and connecting with others.
That’s why, when we pick members, we place such a strong emphasis on teamwork and camaraderie.
“So Rami, what kind of ice cream do you like?”
“My favorite’s mint chocolate, I guess… That toothpaste-y flavor is kinda addictive.”
“Wow. That flavor reminds me so much of someone…”
“Orca unni, are you staring at Gia unni way too obviously?”
“W-When did I?!”
Living as a group of four.
It’s basically impossible to avoid all problems, but just like Maru and Komari’s constant bickering—
Only people who can bounce back from real fights and laugh afterward are fit to join Parallel.
And honestly, what I said earlier to the members—those harsh lines—weren’t entirely lies.
If Darami couldn’t integrate into second-gen, Plan B would’ve been to delay her debut.
The idea was to stall until the third-gen debut, quietly continue her growth as a streamer, and naturally blend her in through collabs with our current members—without ever officially announcing her as part of the agency.
The fact that Ena had already debuted in second-gen with her own following had shown how effective that approach could be.
Even if Darami had ended up as third-gen, there were plenty of advantages to it.
“I wish they’d announce it already... I’m dying to do game dubbing with Rami unni.”
“The first few weeks will probably be solo content focused, so it won’t be easy.”
“Still! I really want to try the Detective Light series with her. Rami unni would totally kill it at dubbing, right? I’m counting on her... okay?”
“Dubbing? Leave that to me. It’s my specialty!”
“Kyah~ Da. Ra. Mi!”
But in the end, there’s no need for Plan B.
Darami is naturally, little by little, starting to blend in with the others.
Which means, it’s about time I quietly step back.
I’m not really a second-gen member anyway. If I back out under the excuse of work, it’ll probably help the four of them solidify their bond.
“I’ve got a call from the office. Gotta head out.”
“Eh?”
“You’re leaving already?”
“You’re going?”
But the moment I pushed my chair back—eight hands flew at me.
I thought I could dodge, having been through something similar with first-gen…
But my body’s still just as sluggish.
Ena asked,
“Just stay a little longer. Thirty minutes. We need to head back soon anyway to get ready for stream.”
Of course the other two tried to stop me too. What caught me off guard—
Was that Darami didn’t.
I looked at her, silently asking with my eyes.
Is it okay if I go? I’ll stay if you don’t want me to.
But her warm smile said it all.
It’s fine. I’ve got this.
Then I should go.
There’s no need to hover around a fledgling who’s ready to fly.
If she needs help, she’ll call. And I’ll come.
“Come on. Don’t prep for streams already. Just enjoy the time off today, then rest up and start preparing tomorrow. You won’t get much free time once things start ramping up.”
Ena pouted and let go of my arm.
Judging by their expressions, Miho and Orca agreed that what I said made sense.
It’s always a bit sad to leave—but I really did have things to take care of at the office.
Sure, it might’ve looked like I was making an excuse, but if there was anything urgent today, it was reporting Darami’s progress to the boss.
***
When I arrived at the office and gave my report, the boss patted me on the head and said,
“Good job. Have you eaten?”
“Not yet, but we had so many desserts while walking around, I’m not even hungry.”
“You must’ve had a ton of sweets, huh?”
“Yeah. I honestly don’t get why they like them so much.”
“Girls are just like that. Orca might seem like a hardened soldier, but when you stick her with the others, she lights up like a kid. You’re the weird one.”
“Really?”
The boss chuckled and plopped down in her usual seat on the sofa.
“Well, sounds like we can move forward with the Manae Festival as planned.”
The announcement of Darami’s debut is scheduled for about two weeks from now.
It’ll be revealed at the end of the main stage show during Manae Festival—one of the biggest subculture events in the country, held on a Saturday night.
Parallel, which has been circling the launch pad for a while, will finally go all in by opening a popup store and joining the festival.
We’re curious to see how much the fans will spend and how big the performance will blow up.
At least we lucked out and got the last performance slot on Saturday.
If Bachubachu had ended Saturday night instead, they could’ve dropped some massive teaser that would’ve completely overshadowed us on Sunday.
But for once, they gave up the Saturday spot for us.
Most likely Taro pulled some strings behind the scenes.
He keeps trying to help us out lately—it’s getting suspicious.
“By the way, didn’t you say the Mimax booth is right next to ours?”
“Yup. Mimax is ZZ-2. We’re ZZ-3.”
“Would it be okay if I swing by during the /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ event? I’m curious how people react to the voice acting and the story we recorded. I heard they’re looping the finale highlights at their booth.”
“Are you still in touch with the Mimax team?”
“Since we’re both prepping for the event, we’ve been coordinating schedules here and there.”
“That’s good. Keep that relationship going. You never know when you’ll need each other—ads, collaborations, whatever.”
“That’s the plan. That’s actually part of why I want to stop by their booth.”
“You’re cosplaying again, right?”
I nodded.
“Mimax asked me to come as Loro. They even sent over the costume, so I figured I’d wear it.”
“When did you get that…?”
“It didn’t feel like a contract thing, so I just took it home the day I recorded. Figured I’d let you know now.”
“They gave it to you on recording day? Guess they’re really invested in your dubbing... Anyway, I won’t be able to walk around with you on the day. I’ll be stuck at our booth. Just take a look around when you have time, okay?”
She seemed a bit worried she couldn’t watch over me herself.
But really, what could go wrong?
“I’ll be fine. Worst case, I’ll just use Miss Pino.”
“Stop treating Pino like some kind of ninja bodyguard…”
“She’d love it, though.”
“You’re seriously ridiculous.”