NOVPUBI couldn’t believe my ears.
Kyung-min... got obsessed with a Virtual YouTuber?
After all the panic and worry, that’s what this was about?
It was so unexpected and absurd that I was honestly stunned for a moment.
Still, I asked Ha-rim to explain everything in detail—just in case.
Four Hours Ago
Kyung-min had posted a screenshot in the club’s group chat, saying he’d discovered a new YouTuber he really liked.
No one in the group had much experience with that kind of subculture, but they didn’t think much of it.
After all, who hasn’t watched an anime at some point?
But then, things started to get weird.
He wouldn’t stop talking about that Virtual YouTuber.
For the next four hours, he spammed the group chat with nothing but messages about her.
He even spent his entire allowance—sold his favorite books—to buy her merch.
All in just four hours.
And now, he was still rambling nonstop in the chat, saying strange things that no one could understand.
Kyung-min was never the type to act impulsively, let alone talk that much for hours on end.
Everyone in the group felt something was off, so they’d been pretending to go along with it while discussing it over a separate phone call.
"Yeah... That’s definitely weird. It’s like he’s a completely different person."
"Exactly! And Kyung-min would never waste money like that. He even sold his books! It’s like he’s been possessed."
...Possessed by a Virtual YouTuber?
What kind of cyber ghost story was this?
"For now, it’s best if you guys avoid watching any of her videos. If Kyung-min really is 'possessed,' then it might happen to you too."
"Got it. I’ll warn the others. Ugh... I feel like this is all because of that séance we did."
"I doubt it. Hey, can you send me that screenshot he posted in the chat?"
Ha-rim sent it over.
A gothic lolita-style Virtual YouTuber with long black hair and a rather large chest.
Her design was extremely memorable—the kind you wouldn’t forget after seeing once.
And I had seen her before.
"This is the one Tak-gu was watching."
Back when I had talked to Tak-gu, I saw him watching a Virtual YouTuber play a game.
She moved fluidly, reacting just like a real person.
"Wait... Now that I think about it, I saw Kyung-min and Tak-gu talking in the hallway earlier!"
"That’s suspicious."
I tried doing a reverse image search, but nothing came up.
I had to manually search her name in YouTube’s search bar.
The channel appeared.
Vtuber Lost.ch 9502 try
So, her name was Lost.
I clicked on the channel and tried playing a video—
But it wouldn’t load.
It seemed like only subscribers could watch.
...Yeah, no thanks.
Looking at the thumbnails and video titles, she was clearly a gaming streamer.
But there was something strange.
Every game she played was one I had never seen before.
Some were unfinished prototypes.
Some were games that had been canceled before release.
Some were games that had never even been announced.
...That’s unsettling.
That night, I asked Carol about Lost.
She immediately had an answer.
"She’s an Unchained—P-101."
"She’s an Unchained, too?"
"Yep. I mean, how would you even contain something that exists entirely in a virtual space? Unless we shut down the entire internet, she’s basically impossible to catch. We usually just delete her channel whenever she makes a new one, but that’s never been particularly effective."
"Is she dangerous?"
"No reported casualties so far. But who knows what kind of powers she’s hiding? If she suddenly snaps, she could do something crazy."
So, she wasn’t a high-priority threat, but she was still a nuisance.
It made sense why the Agency wasn’t going out of its way to catch her.
They were keeping an eye on her, though—hence the constant channel deletions.
And just now, her channel had disappeared again.
The Next Day
I arrived at school and took my seat.
"Morning, Alice!"
"Morning."
I nodded to Ha-rim, who had sat next to me.
Since all the other students seemed fine, nothing major must have happened overnight.
Once morning classes ended, I approached Kyung-min.
At first glance, he looked normal.
...But no.
Instead of textbooks, his desk drawer was stuffed with anime figurines.
...Where the hell did he get all that?
"Uh, Kyung-min?"
He was glued to his phone—watching Lost’s stream.
His eyes were glazed over.
...This was not normal.
"Kyung-min!"
I called his name.
He didn’t react.
I had to physically step into his line of sight to snap him out of it.
The moment he saw me, he flinched hard.
"W-What?! Alice? What’s up?"
"That’s what I should be asking you. Why are you acting like this? Your friends are worried."
He looked around and noticed that Ha-rim, Eun-jung, and Soo-ho were also there.
Scratching his head, he laughed awkwardly.
"Haha... Sorry, guys. I just... I just can’t stop watching. She’s like an anime character, but she moves and reacts like a real person. It’s so cool!"
Well, yeah.
Because she was a real person.
"Has she done anything... strange?"
"Huh? What do you mean? She’s just a YouTuber. What could she possibly do?"
...Fair point.
Would a streamer really notice a single viewer?
Maybe Kyung-min just got obsessed and Lost hadn’t actually done anything to him.
Even so, I didn’t want the kids getting too close to an anomalous entity.
"Can you stop watching her?"
"Huh? Why?"
"‘Just because’ isn’t a good enough reason, huh?"
"Uh... Well..."
Forcing him wasn’t going to work.
...But I had an idea.
It wasn’t ideal, but—
"Please?"
I took his hand, looking desperately into his eyes.
Humans were far more susceptible to sympathy than threats.
His pupils trembled.
For the first time, some life returned to his dazed expression.
Kyung-min was a kind person.
When someone begged sincerely, he couldn’t just ignore them.
"U-Uh... Maybe?"
"If you do, I’ll owe you a favor."
He was hesitant, but it seemed like he was considering it.
His face was turning red, but I ignored that.
Just as I reached for his phone—
[I don’t like this!]
"...!"
Lost’s avatar suddenly glared angrily from the screen.
[You sly little vixen! Are you seducing my fan again?! I won’t forgive this—!]
"Wait, who’s seducing who—?!"
[Just because you’re pretty, you think you can steal my fans?! Not even God can take them from me! Well, if that’s how it is—!]
Lost reached toward her chat window.
Suddenly, every black username turned gray.
Then—
Kyung-min vanished.
This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.
"What?!"
"Kyung-min just... disappeared?!"
I snapped my head toward the screen and glared at Lost.
"What the hell did you just do?!"
She didn’t even acknowledge me.
[Hmph!]
The other students were stunned, frozen in place.
I rushed out into the hallway and called Carol.
"Carol, the anomaly we talked about yesterday? She just pulled something."
"Hmm... I see. Let me check."
She sounded... unsurprised.
Like she had expected this.
I heard typing, followed by her giving orders to her subordinates.
After a brief pause, she returned to me.
"Roughly 100 people just disappeared.
And here’s the thing—her chat is still active. Messages are still popping up."
I felt a chill.
"Wait. You’re saying... those missing people are inside the chat?"
"Looks like it. And judging by the numbers, it matches the missing viewers exactly."
"...She can do that?"
"Apparently. She must’ve been seriously pissed."
My grip tightened around my phone.
"We have to do something."
"We don’t have a perfect solution, but we can’t ignore this either. Do you have any ideas?"
I didn’t know every anomaly inside the mirrors.
But sometimes, when the situation called for it, certain beings would whisper to me.
Right now—
I could hear one.
And it was something that could break into the virtual world.
"...I have a way to attack her."
"But?"
"But I don’t know what’ll happen to the people inside."
The entity I was thinking of was... destructive.
It wouldn’t care about the innocent bystanders.
"Alright. I’ll make sure the school shuts down for the day so you won’t have any interruptions. Let me know if you need anything else."
"Man... Having a massive organization backing you up is pretty convenient."
I hung up and turned back to the others.
They were still shaken.
"Alice... Kyung-min really disappeared just now, right?"
"Yeah. That stream is run by some kind of ghost, I think."
"What the hell?!"
"So... he and all those other people are trapped inside the broadcast?"
Ha-rim muttered that this reminded her of some dumb horror movie that was so bad it wasn’t even scary.
Soo-ho was quietly thinking.
Eun-jung still looked completely lost.
I turned to them.
"We can’t exactly call the police for this. Do any of you have ideas on how to get Kyung-min back?"
They could’ve panicked.
But instead—
They started thinking.
It was proof that their past experiences had left a mark.
Soo-ho was the first to speak.
"First, we need to figure out why she took him in the first place."
That was a good point.
Eun-jung raised her hand.
"Uh... Well, she looked really mad."
"She also said she hated it when people stole her fans."
And suddenly—
Three pairs of eyes turned to me.
"W-Wait! Are you saying this is my fault?! How is that seduction?!"
But...
Thinking about it now—
To her, stealing fans might have felt like seduction.
I scratched my cheek, reluctantly accepting the logic.
Even so, knowing why she took him didn’t mean I knew how to get him back.
That’s when Eun-jung’s face lit up.
"I’ve got an idea! If she’s a ghost that loves streaming and is obsessed with her audience... then she probably likes entertaining situations, right?"
"Entertaining...?"
"Yeah! And for ages, one of the best ways to make something interesting has been... a bet."
That... made sense.
If she was a streamer, she’d be less likely to refuse a challenge.
Even in myths and legends, people often won things through bets.
"So what if we—"
Before I could finish, Ha-rim was already sprinting to the phone.
"Hey, Virtual YouTuber Ghost! How about a bet?!"
[Haaah? A bet?]
She still sounded pissed.
But at the same time—
She was intrigued.
"Yeah! We’ll do a live stream, too. And we’ll have a popularity contest between you and us! Whoever gets the most votes wins! If we win, you have to let everyone go!"
Lost’s eyes sparkled.
It was clear she liked the idea.
She grinned, looking arrogant.
[Sounds fun! My audience would love it! And there’s no way they’d betray me... Alright! Let’s do it!]
She then set a condition on herself—
A binding mission.
Something she couldn’t break, even if she wanted to.
It was decided.
But this was all too sudden.
"I know you’re impulsive, but don’t you think this is a bit much?! Have you ever streamed before?!"
"Uh... Hehe. No."
She averted her gaze.
She had jumped in without thinking.
But she had no idea how to actually stream.
That’s when Eun-jung pulled on my sleeve.
"I watch YouTube all the time! I know all the trends!"
She looked so confident.
Not that I fully trusted her judgment...
But she was the only one who had any knowledge on this.
"Uh... The teacher’s gonna start class soon. Can we even do this here?"
Soo-ho suggested skipping class and using the clubroom.
But it turned out—
That wasn’t necessary.
Our homeroom teacher walked in and immediately canceled all classes for the day.
The students cheered and rushed outside, leaving the room empty.
"...Weird things just keep piling up."
"So, who’s going to do the stream?"
The moment I asked that—
Three sets of eyes turned to me.
"Why is it me again?!"
"Because you’re the prettiest."
"Yeah. Looks matter! Trust me, I know."
...
I started seriously questioning my past actions.
Did I erase their memories too many times? Was this punishment?
I sighed and let them drag me to a desk.
Switching off my perception-obscuring device, I resigned myself to my fate.
Soo-ho would be the cameraman.
Eun-jung was the director.
Ha-rim had... no role. She just sat next to me.
[Alright! Let’s start! My audience is getting bored! Oh, and by the way—this stream is private. Don’t even think about getting outside help.]
The broadcast began.
It wasn’t like a major streamer’s, but still—
Having around 100 viewers was intimidating.
Eun-jung whispered to me.
"Introduce yourself!"
"Uh... H-Hello. I’m Alice."
—Blonde_Lover: Damn, she’s hot.
...This is dangerous.
I was stiff and awkward.
Meanwhile—
Lost was completely at ease.
[Konross! Konross! You all waited, right? Today’s stream is another Lost Game Playthrough!]
—KonKonHaru: Been waiting all day!
—Kyung-min: You’re adorable as always.
—ShrimpTempura: What game today?
[Guess what? This is a game that got canceled before release! But I got my hands on it! It’s unfinished, but still!]
That was a good hook.
Even I was a little curious.
Lost had anomalous abilities that gave her an edge.
Meanwhile, I had nothing.
"Don’t worry, Alice. I’ve got a plan!"
Eun-jung gave me a thumbs-up and grinned.
"Don't worry, Alice. I've got an idea."
"What is it?"
"Zero Two."
I immediately flicked her forehead.
Hard.
Kids these days knew way too much.
I already knew that, but still—
Why the hell does she know about that dance?
And for the record—
That trend is dead.
"Ow! But it's super effective!"
"I am NEVER doing that. Pick something else."
"Mukbang, then!"
...Mukbang.
That was at least a normal idea.
Eating a lot of food, preferably something relatable, to create a sense of shared experience with the audience.
A safe and easy content choice.
I nodded.
"Fine. That works."
Ha-rim dashed off and returned with—
A giant stack of ultra-spicy ramen.
...Wait. Wasn't this trend dead, too?
"Um. Isn't the spicy food challenge kinda outdated?"
"Nyaaam."
Eun-jung didn't care.
She had a plan.
I sighed and took a bite.
"Sssss... fuuu... Sss..."
"Huh? Alice, is it spicy?"
—FoodLover99: [N O V E L I G H T] Wait, did she take ONE bite and she's already dying?
—LewdSensei: So when's the Zero Two dance happening?
...Dammit.
I forgot again.
I was weak to spicy food as Ella.
And now, as Alice—
I was still weak to it.
Was it because I had a Western body now?
No, that was a stupid stereotype.
"T-This is nothing."
I had pride.
I could eat one cup of spicy noodles, no problem.
I picked up my chopsticks and forced myself to look strong.
"Then you can eat more, right?"
"...!"
The bowls kept stacking up in front of me.
I felt a sense of impending doom.
Wasn't mukbang supposed to be about vicarious satisfaction?
Was force-feeding someone spicy food really the right way to go?
"Eat more! If you can't finish, you have to do Zero Two! But don’t worry, Alice said she can eat it all, so there's no way she’ll have to dance, right?"
"..."
—Caron: Blonde girl panting? Oh hell yes.
—FoodLover99: Dude, she's a kid. WTF.
"Eun-jung looks like a demon."
Ha-rim whispered in fear.
Soo-ho shook his head.
I tried to stay strong.
For a moment, my eyes sharpened with determination.
I raised my chopsticks—
"I’ll add some capsaicin sauce."
"..."
That broke me.
"Alice is actually tearing up."
Soo-ho shook his head again.
—MintChocoFan: Her eyes are shaking. That’s so cute lol.
—Karpas: This is actually kinda fun. Lost can’t eat, so it’s a nice change of pace.
—Kyung-min: I like it.
—FoodLover99: That looks delicious. (Not a sex joke.)
"Sss... Hh... Huff..."
The viewer count started climbing.
I forced myself to maintain a cool expression and turned to Lost.
She looked shocked.
"No way! That kind of cheap content is working?!"
I saw the panic in her eyes.
"My games are special! They’re lost games you can’t find anywhere else! Sure, some were never developed properly and got abandoned, but still—! I won't accept this!"
It was probably because her content was too repetitive.
Her entire profile was just gameplay videos.
Her audience must have wanted variety.
I smirked.
"Alright, viewers. What do you want me to do next?"
—SpicyWeakling: Just eat more spicy food.
—NotAnOtaku: Just smile once.
—Caron: I want to see the pretty girl suffer.
"A smile, huh? Sure."
I flashed a sweet smile at the camera.
The chat exploded.
Lost looked outraged.
"Guys! I thought you all liked 2D better?! You always said 2D is superior! Are you really gonna betray me for some real girl?!"
—NotAnOtaku: Be honest. What guy doesn’t like girls? We just stick to anime and Vtubers because we’re too scared to talk to real ones.
—Kyung-min: Honestly... yeah.
—Caron: Also, she’s not exactly “normal” looking, either.
"Wha—"
Lost looked devastated.
I couldn't help but laugh.
Streaming seemed...
Hard.
"Haha... This is going better than expected."
"Alice, if you leave anything, you have to do Zero Two."
"Why are you like this?!"
The stream lasted an hour.
I barely survived.
Even Ha-rim, who was usually serious, ended up eating snacks and watching me make a fool of myself.
"Alice is dead."
"She actually did Zero Two in the end."
I collapsed next to Eun-jung, completely drained.
It was torture.
In hindsight—
This was her plan all along.
She used my suffering as entertainment.
Tragedy is comedy up close.
And why was Eun-jung also collapsed?
Because I punched her.
Did she really think she’d get away with that?
"T-The results?"
The poll ended.
The votes were counted.
And—
Alice: 66 votes.
Lost: 48 votes.
"We won!"
"Yay!"
[No way...]
A "MISSION FAILED" message appeared over Lost’s face.
A flash of light burst from the screen.
And then—
Kyung-min and Tak-gu tumbled out of the phone.
Wait. Tak-gu was in there too?
The others rushed to wake them up.
I took the chance to grab the phone and—
Sealed Lost.
[Wha—?! What’s happening?!]
"It’s the power of an Error Entity. It’s corrupting your data and freezing you in place."
[Y-You had something like this?! But it’s over! Can’t you just let me go?]
She started whining, but when she saw my expression—
She switched to formal speech immediately.
Right now, my face was probably—
Scarier than any demon.
"No way. You put me through hell."
[Ugh...]
"You like games, right? Good. Then enjoy this one."
I summoned a mirror.
A pixelated figure leapt out and dived into the phone.
A cute, white, tooth-shaped mascot.
Chika.
A children’s educational game character that once caused a huge urban legend scandal.
A “Cursed Game” anomaly.
Even in the virtual world, there were ghosts.
[EEK! NO! STAY AWAY!]
Lost screamed as Chika chased her.
She desperately threw objects from her interface—
Her accessories, game icons, everything.
And then—
One of those icons activated.
A text document appeared.
And I saw—
A title that shouldn’t exist.
"Wait."
Chika stopped.
Lost peeked through her fingers.
"What is this?"
[W-What?]
"This game. What the hell is this?!"
Lost trembled.
She showed me the document, looking terrified.
[I-It’s just a collection of lost games! My power lets me find deleted or abandoned games! That one was there, but even I couldn’t play it...!]
"That’s impossible."
I had searched before.
There were no records.
And yet—
I was staring at a title I knew all too well.
Mystery Exploration Club: The Nightmare of Summer Break.
"...What the hell is this?"
{
Missing Games
Mystery Exploration Club Nightmare of Summer Vacation (Horror Game)
Eternal War War and More War (War Game)
Green Pillar Reach the Sky (Growth Game)
One Day, I Can See the Status Window (RPG Game)
Bubble Romance (Rhythm Game)
Country Bumpkin Blacksmith (Crafting Game)
Forest Ranch (Management Game)
}
Something unusual is waiting for me.
That was the feeling I had.
