Ch 12: Discontent among colleagues
I, Hinata Akari, work as a VTuber for a certain company. My VTuber name is Raika Hanabi and I belong to the agency Denjilas.
I originally loved VTubers and aspired to work in the industry, so I decided to audition and was accepted. My parents were both skilled in performance and computers, which helped me to pass the audition despite being a beginner in streaming.
However, my popularity as a VTuber is still relatively low. I just debuted and my agency is a small to medium-sized newcomer in the industry, which is also a contributing factor.
Especially regarding the agency, there are some very difficult circumstances… We had some momentum and were called “up-and-coming” at one point, but after an incident, we suddenly lost our momentum. As a result, we were unable to expand the agency.
Still, I personally think that I am doing my best. It’s been just over a month since my debut and my channel has almost reached 33,000 subscribers.
I am benefiting from the reputation that my seniors have worked hard to build up. However, I also feel that I have made efforts in my own way and have gained fans for “Raika Hanabi” by incorporating those who have come to me through my seniors.
I am proud to have acquired a solid fan base for “Raika Hanabi”.
“I had confidence in myself, but…”
And it’s been shaking these past few days. The cause of it is my colleague, the only male live streamer in Denjilas, Yamagami Botan.
“It’s great that my colleague is growing, but this is just too much…”
When I checked his channel, the numbers on it were incomparable to mine. Moreover, they had clearly increased since the last time I checked.
It wasn’t like our numbers were always so far apart. In fact, just a few days ago, I had more subscribers than he did. To be blunt, Botan was an unpopular streamer within Denjilas. The reason was simple: he was a male streamer. Denjilas is known for being an all-female company, which leads to difficult listeners who reject male streamers outright.
The company’s decline in popularity was also related to this issue, and the influence was considerable. Against this backdrop, Botan-san’s presence was subtly avoided not only by anti-fans but also by other listeners.
The gap between me and Botan-san widened like a light and shadow. Rather, I think there was a side where my numbers increased because Botan-san was there. Listeners who expected new talent. Normally, they would be scattered, but they concentrated on me because of him.
Of course, I don’t think it was just luck. Botan is an important fellow streamer, and I had been interacting with him actively behind the scenes, just like my seniors. In fact, my seniors had been even more eager to interact with him, probably to avoid a repeat of the past incident.
Anyway, that’s why I, and my seniors, cared about Botan. It just doesn’t make sense. A person who hasn’t caused any problems and doesn’t have a bad personality is being hated for no reason.
Certainly, VTubers are in the popularity business, and it’s their responsibility whether they succeed or not. But in Botan’s case, he was in a situation where the starting line had been moved. It’s wrong to put a debuff on him and dismiss him with the self-responsibility argument.
At the very least, as colleagues in the same company and as the only fellow streamer, he couldn’t be ignored. I couldn’t bring myself to acknowledge him. To be honest, I was emotionally invested in him to the point where I would also be criticized if I showed support for him publicly.
“And yet, and yet!”
──However, in just a few days, there was a drastic reversal, so my emotions are all over the place!
Of course, as a basic premise, I’m happy that my colleague’s channel is growing! And there isn’t a ranking system where having a higher number is necessarily better, right?
But this is different! I was worried about my colleague who was in an unfortunate position, but in reality, they were a powerhouse who could even deflect debuffs! It’s like I’ve been kicked off the ladder!
“Sure, there were some quirks, but this is way too unexpected…!”
I don’t really care about the slander and insults from antis, and I consistently stream at a professional level, and despite that, I never showed any financial worries, whether openly or hidden.
But when you lift the lid, it makes sense, right? In real life, I’m part of the super rich group! Of course I won’t feel any anxiety! …I still don’t fully understand how the theory that the insults from the antis didn’t hurt me “because there was no physical harm” holds up.
“Sigh… I wonder why they didn’t tell me.”
Well, I made various comments, but in the end, it all boils down to this feeling. If people were worried, then if there were elements that could provide reassurance, they should have been mentioned first.
No, I understand. Even if we’re in the same gen, we’re not in the kind of relationship where we talk about private things, right? It’s like that even in regular companies, so it’s natural that VTubers who work virtually wouldn’t have those kinds of conversations unless they were really close, right?
But still, it wouldn’t hurt to give a hint or two… If we look back on it now, there might have been some places where we thought “huh?” but I wish they had done it a bit more clearly.
I was willing to help with all my might, but if it’s resolved by just one person, then there’s nothing I can do. …Because of the terrible precedent and because I had a vague understanding of the agency’s situation, I was really worried about it.
“It’s hard to put into words, but there’s just something unsatisfying about it.”
The situation has improved. Botan’s channel has reached the 200,000 subscriber milestone, and as a result, the negative image that the agency had been holding onto began to dissipate.
What Botan-san did was simple. It was a super play stream in that genre by a true genius. In a sense, it was easy to understand, but a blue ocean that only a limited number of people could reach.
It was a genre that could be used in the world of dungeons. In addition to that, by showing off food temptations and the absurdly skilled techniques that are the exclusive patents of explorers, they even managed to garner the interest of those who had nothing to do with dungeons.
Probably, this momentum will not stop. The topicality is too outstanding. Botan-san will continue to grow like this. Unless they cause a scandal or something and go up in flames, they should be able to climb the stairs of popular streamers.
These numbers, which I worked hard to earn and took full advantage of the agency’s benefits to achieve, were easily surpassed by Botan-san on their own. … Yeah. To be honest, I have some thoughts about it. To be frank, it’s frustrating.
But at the same time, Botan-san has been in a disadvantaged position so far, so I’m honestly happy that my fellow VTuber is finally getting some attention. I’ll say it again, but having a large number of subscribers does not necessarily mean you are great. I hate that kind of thinking because it leads to complacency.
Besides, even compared to my seniors, I’ve been able to acquire subscribers at a pretty fast pace. But that’s because of the agency’s power and the power of my seniors. I can’t be proud of that, so it’s shameless to start talking about numbers and so on.
So, that’s what this ambiguous feeling of mine is all about.
“Isn’t it okay to rely on me…? That idiot Botan.”
It’s lonely not being involved. Even though we were supposed to be the only ones starting at the same time, I’m dissatisfied that I’m still in a position not much different from the audience, and everything has been resolved.
Maybe it wasn’t something that required relying on someone else, considering their potential, but who cares about that. If that’s the case, it’s just a matter of asking for help, and since they neglected to do so, I’m full of dissatisfaction.
“─ Yeah! I definitely need to teach them a little lesson after all!”
“The sin of neglecting my fellow peers is heavy. That’s why I decided to send an email to both Botan-san and Manager-san as a revenge.”
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