Chapter 54 : Hey? It’s Christmas today? I got horns…

“Sis Sis, didn’t you say this would be free?”

“Yeah, I think I said something rude back then, so I told you it would be free.”

“Well, to be honest, I’m not even sure if what I said was rude… but anyway, it’s free, right?”

“That’s right.”

“…When I asked you before, didn’t you charge about 300,000 yen?”

“Yeah.”

“You discounted the price because the client is from the country, and you didn’t charge for the background either… so it was 300,000 yen, right?”

“Yeah. When you add everything up, it’s not something an individual can afford.”

“…But you’re doing this kind of work for free, and you’re putting so much effort into it, aren’t you?”

A woman with black hair tied in a ponytail scratched her head while Jia spoke. The person who responded to that question was the girl sitting next to Jia, with light brown hair.

“…Sis.”

“Yeah? Did you call me, Mina?”

Jia tilted her head as she looked at Mina, who was staring at her with a serious expression that was clearly noticeable.

“For illustrators, there’s… a sense of pride that can’t be compromised…!”

“Exactly! Mina really gets it!”

“Even if the pay is less than usual, if it’s an outsourced job, it must be done at the highest quality…!”

“That’s right! And Jia, you saw it, didn’t you?!”

Sia said this while manipulating the screen to show several photos. The images displayed were photos sent by the client, ‘Lene’, of clothing and Warhammer models.

“We got materials of this quality, so there’s no need to worry about the price!”

“Mm, mm!” Sia passionately continued, nodding along as Mina agreed.

Seeing their sincere passion for the artwork, Jia had no choice but to raise her hands in surrender.

“…Sorry. I guess I overstepped without understanding.”

“No, no. There are probably some unusual things about both me and Mina too.”

“After all, illustrators are all weird people…”

At their words, Jia smiled lightly and lay on the floor, looking up at the ceiling.

“…Anyway, this will be finished by the end of the week, right? I came all the way to Japan, but I shouldn’t just leave after working, Sis.”

“Well, I came here for this, but… we should at least hang out together at the end.”

“Who would come all the way to Japan for a free job like this…?”

“Well, here I am~.”

I received a message from Shumi-sensei, the illustrator in charge of my VTuber design.

[Tada Shumi: It’s almost done!]

[Tada Shumi: It’ll probably be finished in two days!]

[Tada Shumi: (Photo)]

[Tada Shumi: I’ve made all the changes based on the additional details you gave me!]

The illustration she sent was… honestly, so perfect that it almost seemed like it was already finished.

Though it wasn’t exactly the same as the reference photos I sent, the differences highlighted the charm of the nun’s outfit, making me admire it.

The design of the necklace, which I had insisted could not be changed, was exactly as it was, and the Warhammer placed beside it perfectly displayed its design as an instrument of inquisition.

[Inquisitor: It looks so perfect.] [Inquisitor: I’m really thankful…]

The thing I liked the most, though, was the avatar’s appearance.

Hair as dark as pitch, not silvery white. Eyes as deep brown, not red. She looked like an ordinary woman with no oddities at all, someone no one would find strange standing there.

“Hoo…”

[Tada Shumi: Ah, Lene-nim.] [Tada Shumi: Are you planning to stream anywhere?]

[Tada Shumi: I’d like to watch your debut stream with my younger siblings…]

As I was immersed in this touching moment, I received another message from Shumi-sensei.

She was asking if she could watch my stream. Of course, there was no reason to refuse.

[Inquisitor: RiMing.tv/ND_Lene]

[Inquisitor: I’m streaming here.]

[Tada Shumi: Oh, you’re already streaming?]

[Inquisitor: Yes.] [Inquisitor: But I’ve been taking a break recently.]

[Tada Shumi: Then I’ll watch the VOD!] [Inquisitor: Yep.]

By the way, today is December 22nd, so… if it’s finished in two days, that means December 24th. I’m getting it on Christmas Eve.

It feels like receiving both a birthday and a Christmas present at the same time.

Thinking about it, in that other world, we never did anything for Christmas… Since our faith was different, Christmas didn’t exist at all. The concept of dates was a bit different to begin with.

And for my birthday… there was no one to celebrate with, so I’d lock myself in my room and curse the world. At least I talked to Ia, but she’s not human.

As for my past life… well, there’s no need to mention it. No one was there to celebrate.

While I was thinking about all this, another notification from Miscord went off.

[Tada Shumi: Hey, Lene-nim.] [Tada Shumi: Are you a man?] [Tada Shumi: Did you send those materials while cross-dressing?]

“…Ah.”

What do I do?
Is it okay to tell the truth?

If Shumi-sensei finds out I’m a woman and spreads that information, it could mess up my perfect plan. But… she’s been such a good person, offering to do all this for free. I don’t want to create unnecessary secrets.

[Inquisitor: I’m a woman.]

[Inquisitor: It’s just that I ended up with that concept…]

[Tada Shumi: Ahh.]

[Inquisitor: Could you keep this a secret?]

[Inquisitor: I have a plan…]

[Tada Shumi: Of course! I’d never spill someone’s secret.]

[Inquisitor: Thank you.]

“That’s a relief…”

She really is a good person. For a moment, I even wondered if she might try to ask for more money from me using this as leverage.

“Ugh…”

Anyway, if I get this illustration on Christmas Eve… should I stream on Christmas?

It would feel like giving a Christmas present to my Lebungs.

I said I’d take a month off, but the reason for that was to prepare my VTuber illustration.

Now that it’s ready, there’s no problem with streaming, right?

It might even calm down the terrorist Lebungs who keep demanding daily streams.

I said I’d take a month off, but I didn’t say it would be exactly one month.

At first, I planned to test things for about a week after receiving the illustration, but I really wanted to show it off as soon as possible.

The only reason I was able to get this illustration was because they supported me.

If I hadn’t received that much support, I probably wouldn’t have prepared for a VTuber at all.

“Heh…”

I’m doing all this for them, and yet the Lebungs are still thinking about becoming heretics.

I really hope they reflect on that.

[Lene Gallery]

[Title: The Gallery Master Will Never Stream on Christmas oo]

[Author: Daguros]

This guy is definitely a major socialite, just listen to his voice.

Would someone like that really stream on Christmas?

He’ll probably be out on a date with his girlfriend.

If he streams on Christmas, I’ll flood the gallery with 10 burgers.

[Recommended: 33 / Not Recommended: 1]

ᄋᄋ: Didn’t the gallery master always say he’s just stuck in his room during streams?

└Daguros: Do you think that’s true?

└Daguros♦: If you want to argue, stream then.

Artrock: Can I line up in advance?

ᄂDaguros: No.

Naseundril: The gallery master I know would definitely stream on Christmas to feed this guy.

└Daguros♦: That’s a bad word.

Scone: Just say you want to watch the stream…

└Daguros◆: I just want to watch the stream…

[Title: I’ll Stream Today]

[Author: Lene◇]

The thing I mentioned before was luckily finished quickly, so I’ll stream today.

Actually, I was thinking of just taking the full month off, but there have been so many requests for me to stream that I’ll just do it today.

I hope you all think of it as a Christmas present.

[Recommended: 201 / Not Recommended: 12]

: Finally! Finally! Finally! Finally! Finally! Finally!

ᄋᄋ: Wow, this is the first time I’ve seen over 200 recommendations in this gallery.

Calculus is a thing, right?

└Calculus is a thing: Streaming on Christmas?

└Calculus is a thing: This is strange…

Loo: Isn’t the gallery master a young man?

└Not to mention: (It has a unicorn horn… horn)

Loo: Why the hell does this horn exist?

NoLeneNoLife♦: You’re doing NewD, right, you bastard???

Krasia: “There have been so many requests for me to stream…” <<< Is this crazy?

└Lene◇: I said I would take a break, didn’t I?

└Krasia: Ugh, ᄉᄇ

oo: Gallery master, if you stream on Christmas, I’ll give away burgers—come out here.

└Daguros◆: ᄉᄇ

Loo: But you still love me, right?

└Daguros♦: I’m happy…

└Gaglegaggle: At this point, wasn’t it just some kind of voodoo magic? ᄏᄏ

Thinking about it, Christmas never really meant anything to me, so why did I think about giving presents to the Lebungs?

It was a simple reason.

Spending a noisy holiday like this was kind of a dream for me.

Even if it’s a day that has nothing to do with me.

A day where everyone gathers on a break, laughs, talks, and just spends a good time together.

That’s the kind of day I wanted.

[Lene]

[Hello]

[Talk | 421 viewers | 00:01:51]
─ Open the door, you bastard, open the door, you bastard, open the door, you bastard.

─ Noona, I’m so cold, noona, I’m so cold, noona, I’m so cold, noona, I’m so cold.

If you endured without being pranked and holding your breath, then you get a big upvote ᄏᄏ

• Huh? Is today Christmas? I’ve got horns… Huh? Is today Christmas? I’ve got horns…
• Just burn all the ᄉᄇ
  ─ Crazy girl, crazy girl, crazy girl, crazy girl, crazy girl, crazy girl, crazy girl.

But for some reason, the atmosphere in the broadcast chat feels like the end of the world.

Today’s Christmas, so everyone should be having a good time.

Did something happen to the Lebungs as a group?

If that’s the case, it’s really sad, so I should say some comforting words in the broadcast today.

Note – (Lebungs are Lene Gallery members)