"Is this even possible???"
Rion exclaimed in a shocked voice.
"Whatâs the gacha rate for this? Three percent? Only three percent, and you pull four of them?"
"That's why I told you, thereâs not much fun in me pulling gacha."
I sipped my tea.
Rion lightly tapped my arm.
"Hey, sis. Letâs just go all in, like, a truckload."
"Itâs as if you think âa truckloadâ is the name of someone's dog."
ãPork Rain has donated â©99,000.ã
ãFound it while digging.ã
ãMutsukkimesugaki has donated â©100,000.ã
ãThatâs actually my dogâs name.ã
ãNowPushIt has donated â©200,000.ã
ãIâve covered the fees too.ã
ãNongLOLNo has donated â©300,000.ã
ãThis month's taxes.ã
"Hmm."
I wasnât intending to provoke donations.
"Guess I could try pulling the pickup character then."
After all, Iâm a VTuber. Since Iâve received something, I might as well put that much into the gacha.
Laura Iris.
My body is, in many ways, different from that of an ordinary person. After all, it's a body pulled straight from the game.
For one, I have immense physical strength.
Iâve spent the last ten years literally cutting down monsters. Clearing various gates, my body has been exposed to the magic of beasts and the gates themselves, which made me incredibly powerful.
Itâs like a wizard in an RPG who, even after dumping all their stats into intelligence, still ends up stronger than most ordinary people.
Luck works the same way.
Maybe itâs because I inherited the blood of the Dukes, or perhaps itâs just the curse of being a villainess. Maybe both.
In any case, Iâve always had a peculiar kind of bad luck.
Itâs the kind where the worse things seem to get, the more fortune finds its way back to me.
'I donât exactly like it, though.'
Perhaps I was destined to be one of those villains who reappear no matter how many times the protagonist defeats them.
The kind that, despite getting beaten to a pulp by the hero, has a dark force reach out to them. Or they escape from prison just before theyâre executed. Or even resurrect after being killed by the heroâs sword, thanks to some mysterious power.
Villains like that are notoriously persistent. Maybe Laura Iris was born with that kind of fate.
But honestly⦠wouldnât it be smarter to just avoid being backed into a corner in the first place?
If I had to compare it, it's like surviving the destruction of my family while losing everything else.
Even if youâre given a chance for a comeback, itâs always better to protect what you already have.
Thatâs why Iâve never considered myself lucky.
In fact, I think itâs more of a curse.
For example, imagine my nemesis appears in front of me as Iâm facing certain death.
If I somehow manage to throw a dagger and it lands in my enemy's chest, is that luck or physical skill?
Just thinking about that is unpleasant.
People say luck is part of skill, but victories earned through luck always feel a bit hollow.
If youâre human, youâd want to experience a victory that feels truly earned, wouldnât you?
â¡â â¡â â¡
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ãCeiling Points: 200ã
"Whoaâ¦, this is insane. Five 5-star characters at the ceiling!?"
Rion was making a big fuss beside me.
Even Chelâs eyes had widened, and the chat was blowing up with reactions. It seemed like everyone was getting a rush from my sudden streak of good fortune, after being stuck for so long.
But honestly, I wasnât that excited. I canât really enjoy the act of "testing my luck."
Itâs as if when I charge 200 rolls, the first 190 are garbage, and then the last roll is guaranteed to hit the jackpot. Itâs practically predetermined.
Whatâs the difference between that and just buying the character outright? Knowing the outcome removes all the excitement that comes from gacha games. Thatâs why I donât really like them.
But hey, as long as everyone else enjoys it, maybe this is what a perfect world where no one gets hurt looks like.@@novelbin@@
I sighed and called Inagika.
[Laura�]
"Do the âLucky Inagikajaâ for me, please."
[Ugh⦠Thatâs embarrassingâ¦]
"Arenât we friends?"
[Uh, yeah⦠weâre friendsâ¦!]
"Then do it for me, just this once."
[Fine⦠This is totally⦠Lucky Inagikajaâ¦!]
-Click.
I hung up after that call with Inagika.
But stillâ¦
'Wasnât this supposed to be a story stream?'
How did it end up as a gacha stream?
After doing enough gacha pulls, we decided to get back to the story.
"Wait, this doesnât have voice acting?"
We started Chapter 1, and Rion tilted her head in confusion.
"Bluereco doesnât have voice acting for the main story," Chel replied.
"But the prologue is fully voiced."
"Yeah, just the prologue."
It was true; Bluereco didnât have voice acting for the main story. The reason wasnât entirely clear, though.
I could guess why. Before Bluereco, mobile gacha games like Girlsâ Frontline or Idol Producer: Cinderella Kingdoms didnât typically have full voice acting either.
Back then, it wasnât that common for mobile games to have fully voiced stories. I can only think of Princess Connect as a game that did that.
Some games skip voice acting to speed up story production, though Iâm not sure if Bluereco falls into that category.
Either way, the lack of voice acting was a bit disappointing, but it wasnât entirely a bad thing.
For some VTubers, it actually worked in their favor, and Chel was definitely one of the ones benefiting from it.
"We will protect our daily lives! Our freedom! Awoouuuuu!!!!"
A famous scene from Bluereco. The moment when the protagonists summon monsters to defend their way of life.
Chel passionately delivered the lines, her voice booming with emotion.
Her performance was impressive. Even though her expression stayed indifferent, her voice was full of life.
Of course, it wasnât exactly like the original characterâs voice.
But by adjusting her tone and pitch slightly, she managed to capture the essence of the original performance.
It made me think, 'Maybe thatâs why Bluereco streams are so popular.'
After all, many VTubers have voices that sound almost like they belong in an anime.
Without voice acting, the story text can feel a little dry. But when VTubers voice it, itâs like the scene suddenly comes to life with color.
VTuber voice acting may not be as polished as a professional voice actorâs, but some of them make voice work their main content.
For those VTubers, Bluereco is probably like a hidden treasure.
"Itâs not that hidden anymore. Big VTubers on the Japanese servers have been promoting it," Chel mentioned later. It made me realize how important VTubers have become as a marketing tool.
Anyway, I wonât spoil the story, but I could understand why Bluerecoâs story gets high praise.
The proof? Rion was in tears.
"Sniff⦠These characters are just so tragicâ¦."
Tears were rolling down Rionâs cheeks.
Her eyes were red, her face puffy from crying so much, and tear tracks were etched into her skin.
As I watched her sobbing, I took another sip of my sweet tea.
"Looks like you enjoyed it."
"Yeah⦠I thought it was going to be all bright and cheery, but then it got so deep all of a sudden."
"It definitely had a good theme. There are plenty of games with good stories, but itâs been a while since a mobile gameâs story was this good."
"Yeahâ¦"
"Weâll have to stop here for today due to time, but we can finish the rest of the story later."
"How about tomorrow? Iâm working from home again."
"That doesnât sound too bad. Soâ¦"
"Why didnât you cry?"
As Rion and I shared our thoughts on the Bluereco story, Chel suddenly interjected.
"What are you talking about? Rion cried so much she might get dehydrated."
"Yeah⦠I donât think Iâll have to worry about dry eyes for a whileâ¦"
"Do you have dry eyes?"
"Donât all modern people have dry eyes?"
"But Laura didnât cry."
Chel looked at me pointedly.
"Didnât you find it moving?"
"I did."
"Then why didnât you cry?"
Well, it wasnât that moving.
Itâs not like Iâm emotionally dead inside or anything. But in noble society, tears can sometimes be seen as a sign of weakness.
I was the daughter of the Iris Ducal family and the heir who would one day lead the house.
A ruler isnât supposed to be swayed by trivial emotions. A leader should be able to see the world with a broader perspective.
Thatâs why I was trained to feel joy, sorrow, and fear in my heart, but never show it on my face.
"Lauraâs always been heartless, you know."
Rion seemed to think that was the case.
I guess thatâs a bit of a misunderstanding. Rion seems to believe Iâm incapable of fear, but I know how to feel fear and tension.
Especially in battle, fear is necessary. Too little tension leads to mistakes, and too much tension also leads to mistakes.
So while I may not show it, thereâs no need to correct her.
Being misunderstood as heartless might actually give me an advantage. And in battle, those small advantages can be the key to victory.
"Every human has emotions," said the last person youâd expect to say such a thing.
"Iâll see you tomorrow. Take care."
Chel bowed slightly and left my room, leaving behind her tracking phone.
And the next day, Chel came back.
With Clannad.
Meanwhile, EYEAIâs CEO, Jung Ho-young, let out a deep sigh.
"â¦Is there really no other way?"
He could hear Rion sniffling, the quiet clink of Lauraâs teacup, and Chelâs occasional words coming from his phone.
"Youâll probably have to choose from the sixth generation," suggested Manager Lee Jung-woo.
He knew that already.
"If we go with the sixth generation, we canât leave Aurora out, right?"
"It should be fine. She seems to be the closest to Chel."
It seemed like a good choice, though Jung Ho-young still felt uneasy.
Aurora was difficult to deal with. Outwardly gentle, but there was no VTuber more challenging to handle.
At least she hadnât caused any major incidents since her debut. But sometimes it felt like the people around Aurora were getting stranger, rather than Aurora herself.
'Maybe sheâs influencing those around her.'
Was that a good thing?
No matter how many times he ran the numbers, the conclusion was always the same. If they were going to select someone from the sixth generation, they couldnât exclude Aurora.
"Letâs go with Aurora and Chel, then."
Jung Ho-young finally made the decision.
On his desk was the 'Winter Voice Sale Plan.'