J-Pop Ideal World Cup.
This is a content where songs that match personal tastes are selected and refined from numerous J-Pop tracks, ultimately leaving just one song.
When a broadcaster conducts an Ideal World Cup content alone, discussions primarily occur between the broadcaster and the viewers.
However, if two people like Diah and Cream are conducting the content together, the discussion mainly occurs between the two of them.
Is that why?
“J-Pop, number one in views! Is there anything more to say?”
“Views aren’t everything! A song should be pleasant to listen to!”
– Huh
– Are you saying Lemon doesn’t sound good, Diah?
– This could cause some controversy.
– But honestly, if we’re judging by views, there’s no need for an Ideal World Cup, right?
– But Lemon rose to fame without any animation buff, so…
– So what’s the name of the singer of Samurai Heart?
With Diah and Cream’s opinions clashing head-on without an inch of compromise, the broadcast chat also started to sway back and forth.
Each time Diah and Cream took turns speaking, viewers supporting them would gather and create a noisy atmosphere.
For some time now, chats or donations concerning Diah’s real voice could hardly be found at all.
As Haeun had thought, conducting a content like the Ideal World Cup, which features divided opinions, led to a gradual decline in interest regarding Diah’s real voice.
However, regardless of whether Haeun’s strategy was working or not, all that occupied Haeun’s mind was the thought that she needed to protect her favorite J-Pop from Cream.
“J-Pop originally started with rock! How is Lemon considered rock at all!”
She presented every piece of evidence she could muster to try to logically defeat Cream.
Still, Cream’s perspective didn’t change at all.
And so, in the end, they had to decide which song to keep through a spinning wheel program.
After the spinning wheel stopped, the survival song determined was unfortunate for Diah: Lemon.
“Alright~. Lemon has come out~. Samurai Heart is eliminated here!”
“Oh, you clueless one! Cream unnie is a J-Pop clueless person!”
Finally, Diah’s voice, filled with despair, was captured by the broadcast mic as Samurai Heart was deleted from the options.
What followed was yet another increase in the intensity of Diah’s voice as soon as their opinions clashed again.
“I will NEVER give up on <Jeon Jeon Jeon Se>!!”
“It HAS to be <What I Was Thinking of Dying>!”
– So Diah was an otaku.
– We have to acknowledge Jeon Jeon Jeon Se, you guys.
– Why are you so desperate? Hahaha.
– Does Jeon Jeon Jeon Se really beat <My Death Life>?
– Is every match some kind of normal war?
– This matching is already too intense. Hahaha.
In the end, not a single unanimous decision was made throughout the content, resulting in a prolonged and heated debate between Diah and Cream that was captured on the broadcast.
Even after the final surviving song was decided, the heat between Diah and Cream did not subside.
However, as the broadcast end time approached,
“After we finish, I’ll keep having serious conversations to surely enlighten J-Pop clueless people! Bye-bye~!”
Diah’s characteristic farewell greeting, maintaining her high tension until the very end, was captured on the broadcast mic.
As soon as the stream completely ended, Haeun let out a sigh.
“Hah…”
As always, Haeun was exhausted as soon as the broadcast ended, letting out a slight groan while collapsing weakly on the broadcasting desk.
The problem was that this was the first time Maria had seen such a side of Haeun.
Taken aback by Haeun’s suddenly changed demeanor, Maria hurriedly asked if she was unwell, carefully observing Haeun’s complexion.
“You should have said something if you were feeling unwell!”
“I’m just a bit tired… I’ll be fine after a short break, so don’t worry too much.”
It was right after that when Haeun asked Maria to fetch the chocolates from her bag.
Immediately, Maria rushed back with chocolates and gently set Haeun down on the streaming room floor.
She did this because she was worried that lying flat on the desk would cause strain.
However, even after placing Haeun down in a more comfortable position, Maria’s worried expression did not fade.
She honestly felt concerned while looking down at Haeun with a sympathetic gaze.
After a little while, Haeun finally opened her mouth again.
“Don’t just stand there, unnie, come sit next to me.”
Haeun requested that Maria sit down next to her, just like her.
At Haeun’s request, Maria had no choice but to sit on the streaming room floor, leaning her back against the wall.
As soon as Maria sat right next to Haeun, Haeun gradually leaned towards her and eventually nestled completely into Maria’s embrace.
“H-Ha Eun?”
“Just let me lean on you for a moment. It’s just for a little while…”
In the end, Maria had no choice but to hold Haeun in her arms.
It was true that Haeun’s expression relaxed a bit after being embraced, so Maria decided to leave it as is for the time being.
Shortly after that came the sound of a chocolate wrapper crinkling.
A small letter-shaped chocolate was placed in Haeun’s mouth by Maria, who picked up the chocolates Haeun had requested a moment ago.
“…This feels just like feeding a chick.”
“Doesn’t a bird die if it eats chocolate?”
“Oh, really?”
Thus began a stream of not-so-serious chatter and continued on.
Eventually, the subject of Cream’s broadcast was also brought up.
However, for some reason, Haeun seemed very knowledgeable about the general atmosphere of Cream’s typical broadcast.
“How do you know so well? Do you watch everyone’s broadcasts?”
Maria, curious about when the busiest member of the Fantasy World troupe, Haeun, had the time to watch broadcasts, voiced her surprise.
After a brief silence, Haeun opened her mouth again.
“A person I know enjoys watching your broadcast. Thanks to them, I naturally learned about it.”
Haeun spoke only the truth, but she could not reveal that the person she knew was her past self.
She thought they wouldn’t believe her if she revealed a more detailed truth.
‘Well, it would be weirder if they did believe me.’
So, while continuing to quietly stay nestled in Maria’s embrace and munching on sweet chocolates like a baby bird, Haeun felt that she was somewhat okay.
It was only after that thought that she finally lifted her body.
What followed was a short farewell.
And.
“Don’t be too concerned about the past.”
Just like in her previous life, Haeun’s own way of supporting Maria in her current life towards her favorite Virtual YouTuber.
She felt she had to say this because she sensed that Maria was subtly glancing at her even during their collaborative broadcast.
“…Did it show?”
“A little.”
“But Ha Eun, it’s true that it’s my fault that you’ve been put in a difficult position…”
“Well, I feel like people’s interest has somewhat subsided. I don’t think anything major will happen.”
And so, after firmly reassuring Maria that she would definitely be fine moving forward, the very next day.
“Lee Ha-eun.”
“?”
“Spend just one day with me.”
Da-yeon, who had just gotten out of school, caught Haeun and asked for just one day of her time.
This was because once the filming for <Infinite Challenge Music Show> and <The Sunshine> began, she would be even busier than now.
There was no particular reason to refuse, so Haeun thought briefly about her schedule for the day and then nodded.
Finally, the place they headed to together was a nearby movie theater.
Both Haeun and Da-yeon wore hats and masks, making them look a little odd.
Though it was unavoidable due to the risk of exposing the identities of two outright celebrities.
Anyway, if they stood around in such suspicious attire, it would only draw more attention.
For some reason, there were many people in the theater lobby today.
So,
“I’ll buy the tickets, you get the popcorn and cola. Caramel flavor.”
“Okay.”
To enter the screening room as quickly as possible, they decided to split the roles and move.
Even until the moment they briefly separated from Da-yeon, Haeun didn’t mention which movie they would be watching today.
But since it didn’t matter much to her, she didn’t worry too much about it.
They soon reached the movie theater concession stand.
Following Da-yeon’s request from earlier, Haeun ordered caramel popcorn and two colas.
However.
“Excuse me, ma’am. If you order the couple combo, you can upgrade to a larger size for the same price. What would you like to do?”
“Couple combo?”
“I noticed it looked like you were with your boyfriend. For two people, it would be better to order the couple combo.”
Caught off guard by the unexpected suggestion from the concession stand worker, Haeun had to think for a moment.
Her gaze shifted briefly to Da-yeon, who was over there issuing the movie tickets.
‘Well… from a distance, it might be confusing.’
With Haeun having long hair that cascaded down to her shoulder blades, and Da-yeon sporting a slightly shorter bobbed haircut.
Since Da-yeon was pulling her hat down deeply, from afar, it was hard to tell whether she was a girl or a boy.
Thus, in the end.
“Well then, I’ll take the couple combo.”
“Understood~.”
Opting for the reasonable practicality instead of correcting the worker’s misunderstanding, there was a faint idea in Haeun’s mind that it might be entertaining to joke with Da-yeon about how she had become Haeun’s boyfriend.
Soon, the employee brought over a large-sized container of caramel popcorn and two colas, saying to enjoy.
And then.
“Have a lovely romance~.”
A small whisper conveying good wishes for Haeun and Da-yeon’s future.
Haeun could no longer hold back her smile at the employee’s beaming expression and hurried over to Da-yeon with the popcorn and cola.
“What’s up? Why are you suddenly so excited?”
“I’ll tell you after the movie. Did you get the tickets?”
“I did. It’s G-row center in theater 5.”
It was right after that when Haeun heard the name of the movie that she and Da-yeon were going to watch.
However, for some reason, the movie Da-yeon had reserved belonged to a genre she usually didn’t enjoy.
‘…No way.’
Haeun had a feeling she understood Da-yeon’s intentions behind asking her to spend the day with her.
Naturally, it made sense since both Da-yeon’s movie choice and <Butterfly by the Sea> were known for violently stimulating people’s tear ducts.
However, no matter what, Haeun had known Da-yeon for over ten years.
She could easily notice that there was some hidden intention behind Da-yeon’s movie selection.
“Lee Ha-eun, have you seen <Like a God>?”
“Ah, I haven’t seen it yet…”
“Then that’s fine. Let’s go; it’s time for the movie.”
Even so, Haeun had no choice but to move her feet.
After that, it seemed that Da-yeon, walking in step with Haeun, didn’t look frightening at all.
