Chapter 70: Condition

[Wow... Isn’t the quality of this seriously insane?][i know, right? my mouth was like, wide open while watching.]

[It might be a bit much, but this is so fricking sick.]

That was the CLOSER voicecord server, and there was a reason why everyone was so hyped.

It was the day when they revealed the MV for the very first time to the members.

[We put our heart and soul into the production and tried to make the models’ movements as smooth as possible.]

It was exactly as Manager unnie said.

This… wasn’t the kind of result you could just pull out of nowhere.

It required manpower.

Or to be more accurate, this video was made by cycling through overworked employees.

[btw, are we able to use all of these outfits for our personal models?]

Good question, Fumurin!

I’ve been wondering about that.

Hearing our maknae’s on-point question, I inwardly cheered.

[Yes, yes! We will officially distribute these to you at the first collab stream after the album is released.]

[I’m sure they’ll distribute all three outfits used in the filming to everyone!]

[awesome! thank you!]

[Thank you!]

Damn, I’m really moving up in the world.

I couldn’t even imagine how much it would cost me to buy such detailed models.

Compared to the early days of me streaming with just a 2D model, it really felt like I was being treated like a princess these days.

[Ah. I really want that off-the-shoulder outfit Luka wore.]

I didn’t do anything myself, but hearing Clover unnie’s words made me feel pleased.

[Oh. That one really did come out well.]

[fr. i think that’s the best of the casual series.]

Yep, yep. Praise me more.

[It does suit Luka well.]

Leah, who had been silent, made her presence known.

[I don’t think it’d look good on me.]

…Huh? Was that a compliment? Since she said that it suited me well, it should be a compliment, right?

I still couldn’t understand Leah.

If the two of us were told to do a collab later, I’d probably die from the awkwardness.

[thanksss.]

[If there’s anything else you find inconvenient or you need help for content production, please let us know anytime.]

In reality, what the members, including myself, did on streams was somewhat pre-planned.Communication through conversation.

Various games here and there.

And, since we’re singers and idols, sing.

When I said I wanted to try a new game, they’d pay for everything, so I didn’t really need anything. S~ᴇaʀᴄh the N0vᴇlFirᴇ.ɴet website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.

[Well, we were wondering...]

Huh? Why was she hesitating so much?

Usually, Clover unnie was really well-spoken when she needed something, but this time she trailed off, heightened the anticipation.

[If you could support full-body trackers...]

Oh? That was a bold question.

Full-body trackers.

While VR headsets and controllers only reflected basic movements, full-body trackers were devices that could reflect the movements of the entire body.

Of course, a unit easily cost over 100,000s of won.

It was expensive, we couldn’t just ask casually like asking for a tteokbokki.

[Hmm, Actually, we were going to tell you about this after the first album release.]

But, it seemed like the company had their plans already.

[It’s likely that you will each be assigned a studio. I can’t guarantee it’ll happen, but the idea’s been passed forward.]

[A studio?]

[Among the things we’re planning for CLOSER members, using VR in entertainment is one of them, so we thought full-body trackers would definitely be necessary.]

[Wow. Really?]

At the mention of a studio, I blinked like an idiot.

This meant I would be getting a private office.

The apartment I was currently streaming from wasn’t that smile.

It was a bit bigger than my boyfriend’s place.

But, it would probably be difficult for me to move around with that amount of space.

With the sudden studio spoiler, the members couldn’t hide their second wave of excitement.

[Whoa! You’re really preparing one for each of us?]

[Our metaverse team is currently looking into it.]

This situation called for a PArmyBonk.

It was hard to believe because of how suddenly it came.

[It’s not confirmed yet, so please don’t be too excited. For now, please focus on your individual streams.]

[Ah! I love you! Unnie!]

As Jennie unnie kicked it off, the other members expressed their overflowing loyalty towards the company.

[I love you!]

[this is amazing. tysmmm im crying :<]

[I’LL SERVE LOYALLY!!!]

I thought that I seriously needed to fill up my stream schedule today.

* * *

“Isn’t this totally amazing?!”

“Yeah. It is amazing.”

We were at the ice cream chain next to our usual bus stop.

Doah was sucking on her spoon, that was how delicious the ice cream was.

“Want another one?”

“No thanks. I don’t want to eat too much.”

My cup still had some left, so when I slightly pushed it forward, my girlfriend glanced at me for a moment before picking up her spoon again.

“But it’s still just a possibility, so it might not happen, right?”

“Who knows? But, since they told us that, I reckon that it’s pretty much confirmed already.”

Building a studio near my apartment.

As expected, big companies were on a different level.

They were basically paying for her monthly rent and deposit.

And the equipment they said they’d provide wouldn’t be cheap either.

For me, who couldn’t even afford a VR headset due to a tight budget, it was an unimaginable luxury.

“What about the computer? Will they provide you with one too?”

“I haven’t asked that yet.”

“Well, if you need help moving just call me.”

Just the fact that it was for my girlfriend’s work was enough of a reason for me to lend a hand. But, if I factored in the thought that I’d be helping so that Luka would be able to use full-body tracking in her streams, I became confident that I could carry her computer back and forth countless times.

“Thank you.”

Doah smiled happily before holding the spoon out to my mouth.

The sweet chocolate taste spread throughout my mouth.

After finishing the ice cream we ordered, we cleared the trash and headed out to the street.

Mid November.

As the CLOSER’s debut album’s release date approached, Doah became even busier.

Although her streams became a little bit more flexible, she said that works related to the CLOSER album had increased quite a bit.

“Whewww.”

Doah, holding her chin slightly above her scarf, exhaled a warm breath.

That sigh immediately turned into a misty cloud and disappeared.

The bare trees without any leaves told us that winter was approaching.

I naturally held her hand and led her into the inner pocket of my coat.

No matter how much we shared our body heat, it never felt enough.

“Oppa.”

“Yeah?”

Doah, who was walking up the slope, stopped walking.

“I’m thinking of setting a promise or something for the Pink Army later after the song is released, but what do you think will be good?”

“Hm.”

I couldn’t just answer her carelessly, so I put a bit of thought into it.

Something for reaching a milestone for the album, huh?

For that kind of occasion, I needed to pick out something that she didn’t usually do on stream.

And I was her boyfriend.

She would surely value my opinion higher than other people’s.

“Do you have anything in mind?”

But, it would be better to ask what she had in mind first.

“Well… I’m thinking of that exercise game…”

“Ah, that fitness one?”

The Pink Army had been pestering her to try that one out, but she had been stubbornly refusing to do it.

“I don’t think that’s a bad one, but what do you think?”

Agreed.

But, while it wasn’t bad, it also wasn’t good enough.

It was far from enough to satisfy the Pink Army’s dark desires.

“...What about playing a horror game?”

After I mentioned another content that Pink Army was sincerely begging for, Doah sent me a displeased glare.

“You are suggesting that after seeing me almost fainted in the VR Center the other day, Oppa? Really?”

“...Sorry.”

Retreat, retreat! Abort mission now!

Anyway, I had reached a level where I could tell her mood just by seeing her eyebrows raise.

Still, playing a horror game was an excellent choice.

Because the Pink Army would definitely enjoy seeing the mischievously cute Luka getting all scared,

“Haa... So many people want a horror game, but I’m too much of a scaredy-cat. To be honest, it’s scary when playing the game, but it’s even scarier being alone after ending the stream.”

At that moment I started to think about other options.

Wait a minute.

What if she wasn’t alone then?

If being alone after playing a horror game was what’s distressing, then there was another way.

“Then, Doah...”

“Yes?”

“What if, after playing a horror game…”

Look, it was just a what if.

But, hey, I was free to ask her, no?

Well, if she said no, I wouldn’t force her, but, you know.

“Won’t it be fine if you’re not alone?”

Hearing those words, Doah’s eyes shook.

***

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