Maze 24 Hours
Feedback filled with gratitude and affection for the fan who drew the fanart continued for a full thirty minutes.
Well, there were a lot of things to fix, so since I was at it, I put in the extra effort.
[Thank you for the 10,000 won donation, I Was Wrong!]
I'm sorry… I'll never break the rules again, could you please forgive me?
LOLLLLL
Just call it a draw and log off, lol
Damn, you really roasted them hard…
…Should I stop here? By now they must've learned their lesson.
"Alright. But remember, everything I said was to help, so be sure to take good notes."
It really was sincere feedback.
I gave tailored advice—from linework to anatomy, shading, composition—so if they properly absorbed and kept it in mind, they'd probably level up at least once.
Honestly, that was some solid advice, yeah…
If it weren't for the lewdness, that's the kind of feedback you'd pay money for
I really want to see you do a serious drawing stream
Not jealous! …Totally not!
See? Even the viewers admitted it.
Still, I'd like to coast a bit and do art streams again.
But that's difficult now.
Miro, Soo-hyun, and my art account ksh have become too entangled.
"Well then, shall we keep looking at more fanart?"
Still, someday the chance will come.
Someday.
The fanart browsing ended, we played some games, and time flew quickly.
Now, only about four hours of Miro 24 Hours remained.
So what now??
There's nothing on the schedule
Meal time?
"I've got something prepared."
Even before oversleeping messed things up, I had deliberately kept two hours empty for a surprise segment.
Sure, I extended by two hours as compensation…
But surely the upcoming guests would help carry that burden with me.
"Just a moment."
With that, I left the soundproof booth.
I'd gotten a text earlier saying they'd be arriving soon, so I had to get ready.
First, I carried the chairs from the dining table into my room.
The cramped booth couldn't fit everyone, so I decided to run the mic cable out and stream from inside the room.
So I spread out the chairs, pulled the mic outside, tidied up the messy room—moving quickly.
Ding-dong—
The doorbell rang just as I was straightening the blankets.
Woof! Woof woof!
From outside came Boksil's tiny, excited barks.
They must've arrived.
I grabbed my mask, left the room, and headed to the door.
I was curious what everyone would look like.
I knew some from their profile pics or from meeting them in person, like Maho. But the others—I wondered.
Of course, there's no way anyone could be prettier than me.
Still, as VTubers, I figured at least one or two might have some eccentric style.
Like the stereotypical "menhera landmine girl" kind of fashion.
As I stepped out, mask on, I scooped up the clingy Boksil and carried him with me to the gate.
"I'm coming!"
Boksil stared at my bug mask in shock, dazed, so I petted him lightly and opened the gate.
Standing there were five women, each holding a plastic bag.
"Welcome, everyone."
"Eh? What's with the mask?"
"Whoa, your proportions are insane."
"What? Is this really Miro?"
"Ahh! You have a dog?"
Chaos erupted instantly as I glanced over the Celestial Project members.
The biggest one was, of course, Maho. She had to be over 180 cm tall.
The stylish brunette—Anna.
The short-haired one with a college-girl vibe, like someone who takes photobooth pics every week—Haru.
Then, the shortest member, and finally—
"…Hmm."
I knew I shouldn't stare, but when I saw the girl on the far left, I lost my words.
Short hair to the neck, ear piercings, and if you looked closely, even a small tattoo on her neck.
In summer clothes now, but she looked like the type who'd throw on a leather jacket with chains once it got colder.
She had a tough, edgy aura—but a beauty nonetheless.
"Are you staring too much?"
"Wait, you can tell where I'm looking, even with the mask?"
I knew from her voice—it was Roa.
On stream, she was the gentle, soft-spoken one who played push-and-pull with the audience… but in real life, she was this badass older-sister type.
Her real image and her streamer persona were so mismatched it gave me cognitive dissonance.
"The eye holes on that mask are see-through, you know."
"Do you, uh, play guitar?"
"…Guitar?"
"You just look like you'd be in a band."
Tch!
When I turned, Anna was doubled over, quietly snickering.
"So… was that an insult or a compliment?"
"Heheh… just kidding. Come on in, everyone!"
And so, I finally got to meet the Celestial Project members face-to-face and invited them into my home.
"Wow… but the dog is so cute."
Meanwhile, Haru couldn't take her eyes off Boksil.
"You like dogs?"
"Of course!"
"Mm… in that case."
Since she said so, I handed Boksil over. She panicked at first but hugged him carefully.
"You're just giving him to me like this—oh my gosh, he's so calm!"
"He's neutered. No will to live."
"Ah…"
"I'm kidding. Should we let Boksil join the stream too?"
"His name is Boksil? Wait, can he really?"
"Here."
As I guided the other members inside, I slipped a wet towel around Haru's arm.
"Just wipe his paws for me."
"Wha—can I really touch his paws?"
"Gently, though."
It was a joke, but since she seemed so happy, I decided to let her take care of Boksil.
According to Lady Jang, even if a thief broke in, he'd just wag his tail. So I wasn't worried about him being scared of strangers.
"Anyway, this house is nice. A detached place in Seoul? You must be loaded."
"It's on the outskirts. And if you look closely, it's old."
We were better off than middle class, sure—but nowhere near rich.
"Still, I'm jealous… wow."
Anna kept marveling at the house.
Maybe it was because she was at the age where buying a home felt urgent, so she respected my parents for owning one on the edge of Seoul.
"What about your parents?"
"I exiled them to the sea."
"What?!"
"They're enjoying a hotel vacation in Haeundae."
"Oh."
"Alright then, let's head to the room. The viewers are waiting."
With that, I led the members inside—except for Mile, shocked by my joke, and Haru, still busy wiping Boksil's paws.
"Whoa."
"No way."
"This is a bit much…"
Through the members' reactions, I suddenly saw my room with fresh eyes—something I had grown too used to notice.
The posters plastered here and there, the neatly arranged figures—all of it screamed exactly what kind of person lived here.
…Come to think of it, even the soundproof booth installer had been shocked.
And this was after I cleared space for the booth. That said it all.
"Could you guys not react like that? You're VTubers yourselves."
But then again, these members weren't all that different from the installer, were they?
Each one had their own character and yet—they were making such a fuss.
"…Fair enough."
"Anyway, I set up chairs here."
Through the slightly open booth door, I could see the monitor—and the chat was moving at a worrying pace.
We had delayed longer than expected, and it looked like the impatient viewers were spamming.
"Uh… what is this?"
Anna, peeking over my shoulder, recoiled.
"Did… did something go wrong?"
"No, it's just that when I'm late, they stage a little riot."
"R-riot? That's safe… right?"
"It'll calm down once you all appear."
If this happened on someone else's stream, it would be considered a serious problem. But for me, it was just another day.
Though, admittedly, the crowd today made it a bit more extreme.
"…You've got your hardships too, huh."
"I'm used to it by now."
From the beginning until now, the size of the audience had grown, but their nature was basically the same.
"Alright, shall we get started?"
While we'd been chatting, Mile had come back to her senses, and Haru entered too, holding a freshly cleaned Boksil in her arms.
"Man, it's cramped in here."
"Right? Maybe there's some floor space left."
With that, Mile set down the shopping bag she'd brought on the floor.
"I've been wondering—what did you all bring?"
"You'll find out later."
What could it be? A surprise gift?
"Not that we're big on brand names."
"Wow, don't get ahead of yourself, will you? It's not a gift, so don't get your hopes up, you brat."
Not a gift…?
"Uh… why not?"
"We'll explain later. Let's just start the stream."
And with that, Mile flicked on the mic.
"Wait, if you just turn it on—"
???
They're here
What's this?
If the guests are who I think, big thumbs up lol
Caught off guard by the mic going live, I glanced at the chat—then suddenly, a brilliant idea hit me.
I immediately raised a finger to my lips and signaled the members to stay quiet.
Then I scooped Boksil out of Haru's arms.
"Alright, here's the guest. Say something, honey."
??
What
???
?????
I lifted Boksil high and gave his cheek a playful nibble.
"Yip-yip…"
??? LOL
The dog is the boyfriend??
Oh damn
"As I've said a few times before—Boksil is today's guest. He doesn't bark much, so he might stay quiet."
??? no way
Stop trolling us
Is this for real?
What the hell, it took this long to bring out a dog?
At least turn on the cam so we can see what he looks like
"A cam? Just a second, let me use the bathroom first."
I stood up and patted Anna's shoulder, gesturing toward the mic.
It was improvised, but come on—they were pro streamers. They'd get what I meant.
"…?"
…Well, except Haru, who was too absorbed in Boksil.
Anna nodded, so I headed off for some water. From the room, I could hear Anna's voice carrying:
"…No, really, I am Miro. You think I'm not?"
Good. She was doing fine.
Watching the chat speed by, I sat on the edge of my bed.
And then I realized—I was still wearing the mask.
Too bad the model didn't have a mouth opening, so I took it off to drink.
But then I locked eyes with Haru, who had been petting Boksil all this time.
"…Ah?"
Crap. Haru made a sound.
Now the plan for each member to reveal themselves one by one was ruined.
I waved frantically, signaling her to keep quiet—but because of that little noise, all eyes turned toward her.
First to Haru, who'd spoken.
Then to me, as Haru continued staring blankly in my direction.
In that silence, their focused gazes clung to me until I awkwardly lowered my hand.
…This wasn't how it was supposed to go.