I May Be a Virtual Youtuber, but I Still Go to Work

Gong Seung-yeon was the last interviewee. Once she left, the interview naturally came to an end.

And then—thunk.

"Ow."

The CEO's flick landed squarely on the top of my head.

"What the hell were you thinking, announcing a pass right in front of the candidate?!"

"But… she was perfect. And the ones before her weren’t great anyway, so I just went ahead and said it."

"The results are supposed to be notified after they go home. What if she hadn’t been the last candidate? The others waiting outside would’ve heard and what do you think they’d feel?"

Thinking about it now, yeah.
I messed up.

This was my first time sitting as an interviewer, and I screwed up.

"Ah. Yeah. That makes sense. I’m sorry."

"…As long as you understand. It’s my fault too—I should’ve given you proper training instead of assuming you’d naturally do well. Just make sure you don’t make the same mistake next time."

"Yes, ma’am."

After saying that, I tilted my head.
Next time?

"Am I going to be part of another interview panel?"

"Not immediately, but as the company grows, who knows? Actually, since we’re on the topic—go get some interview training from Manager Yeom now."

"Huh? Right now? But I was gonna take a nap…"

"Now."

"…Yes, ma’am."

Manager Yeom Hee-seong, who had been watching our conversation, motioned for me to sit down.
He meant, Sit tight. I’ll give you a rundown once the CEO leaves.

After the CEO left for her next meeting, Manager Yeom slid over one seat, taking the spot where Momo had been sitting.

"Honestly, Gia, I don’t have much to say to you. Just be careful about what you say at the end. If you make it sound like someone is guaranteed to pass, then you have no choice but to hire them."

"Ah. Got it."

"This time, the CEO already said it was up to you, so I was mostly checking for anyone with a shitty personality. And yeah, Gong Seung-yeon? She seemed fine to me too. So don’t stress. You did well."

To be honest, aside from her, I didn't like any of the other candidates.
That’s why I spent most of the interview keeping my mouth shut.
I only spoke when Momo prompted me, just enough to gauge the candidates' actual thoughts.

So now I felt kinda awkward.

"It was my first time, so I was probably a bit rough. Thanks for saying that."

"Honestly? Just sitting there quietly and watching the applicants gets you halfway there. In the end, it’s really the CEO’s opinion that matters most."

"…I think it’s just because your eyes are terrifyingly sharp."

"Hey, I’m an angel compared to others."

He said that with a smile—but his smiling face still looked angry.

Despite being in his mid-30s, the guy had clearly been through it.
Whenever he changed expressions, his deep-set wrinkles became more noticeable, and his prominent brow ridge made his face look even more intense.
It was no wonder the applicants flinched the second they entered the room.

Anyway, today I learned another valuable lesson: Silence is survival.
If you don’t know what you’re doing, just keeping quiet is already half the battle won.

While I was nodding to myself, Manager Yeom spoke up.

"I’ll whip up a simple interviewer manual for you later. Read through it when you have time, yeah?"

"…Wait, are you making that just for me?"

He let out a chuckle as he stood up.

"Yeah, for now, it's for you. But eventually, more people will get promoted, and more employees will be hired. It’s better to set things up early so it’s easier later."

"Ahh."

"You’re pretty self-conscious, huh?"

"…No, that’s not it. I just didn’t want to make extra work for you because of me."

"Haha! That thoughtfulness is exactly why the operations manager won’t stop praising you. Anyway, I’m heading off. Enjoy your lunch."

"You too, sir. Have a good lunch."

I bowed slightly, and then—
I was left alone in the conference room.

Alright. Time to clean up.

…Or not.

Everyone had pushed their chairs back in neatly, so there wasn’t much to do.
I just needed to move the extra chairs—positioned to the side—to their original spots.

… ─ — Parallel Gallery — ─ …

[Sharing my interview experience]

So, there were three interviewers.
Momo was sitting in the center, and there was one person on either side.

Momo (y’know, the CEO) asked most of the questions,
but the person on the left asked way more than I expected.

Somewhere in the middle, I just clicked with that interviewer,
and we started geeking out over Komari’s streams.

Like, they were super into it.
And honestly, I never thought I’d end up talking about my favorite VTuber during a job interview.
But somehow, it totally calmed my nerves.

So… maybe… good news coming?

[Comments]
— Parallel874: Congrats in advance.
ㄴ Parallel067 (OP): Haha, thanks!
ㄴ Parallel743: I read somewhere that if the interview feels too fun, you’re actually less likely to pass.
ㄴ Parallel067 (OP): …Wait, what.
ㄴ Parallel874: Oh crap, really?
ㄴ Parallel067 (OP): No, don’t do this to me…

— Parallel385: What do you guys think about Momo’s red pill?

— Parallel224: Good luck.
ㄴ Parallel067 (OP): Thanks, thanks.

Even after the interviews were over, the HR manager kept checking the community boards.

If any of the applicants blabbed about what happened,
their offer would be put on hold—or even rescinded.

Because this wasn’t just any company.
This was Parallel.
And in the VTuber industry, secrecy is sacred.

If anyone mentioned the CEO’s red pill,
they’d be executed on the spot.

The three candidates that Gia wasn’t impressed with?
They wrote about the interview exactly as they experienced it.

[Think I saw StaffD at my interview]
[I think StaffD might be higher-ranked than we thought?]
[Momo is totally a blue pill believer]

But Gong Seung-yeon—
She tried her best to hide any identifying details about the people involved.

Even in small things like this, you could tell who understood the company’s culture.
Most clueless applicants wouldn’t even realize this mattered.

For a manufacturing company, you’d want to study the production pipeline and R&D efforts.
For a service company, you’d analyze customer complaints and propose solutions.

But for Parallel?
If you can’t follow VTuber industry etiquette, you don’t deserve to be here.

"Gia’s got a sharp eye for people."

Actually, this wasn’t the first time HR noticed her talent.

During the first-gen auditions, she was assigned to help out outside the interview room.
She answered questions, escorted applicants to the bathroom, handled miscellaneous tasks.

Yet, just from that, she managed to warn the CEO about a candidate:
"That person is going to cause problems later."

That person didn’t pass.
And a few months later, they joined a smaller agency,

HR had already marked that applicant as suspicious,
but Gia called it first.

Later, when HR asked how she knew, she said:

"I once saw a VTuber accidentally reveal a ring mark on her finger during a stream.
She got exposed by fans and was forced to retire.
That candidate? Had the same ring mark.
And when I brought it up casually, they visibly panicked."

…HR was stunned.

But Gia’s radar wasn’t perfect.
She didn’t catch the former operations manager,
who quit after three months and left a mess behind.

Still—
for anything VTuber-related?

Even with some minor shortcomings, the HR manager highly valued Gia’s instincts.@@novelbin@@

In fact, when it came to VTuber-related interviews, Gia might be a better choice than any future replacement.

So when the HR manager went to report the interview results to the CEO, he spoke without hesitation.

"Boss, I was thinking—why not include Gia in the second-gen auditions?"

"…Gia?"

"Yes. She has an exceptional eye for people. Especially streamers—no, not just streamers. Anyone in the broadcasting field."

"Aha… Well, I guess that makes sense. She does watch a ridiculous amount of streams."

Momo flipped through the interview results, scanning the document carefully.

"So, are you saying we should add Gia to the panel with me, the planning team lead, and the HR manager?"

"In my opinion, that’s the best option. But if you think four interviewers is too many, there’s another way to include her."

"Like what?"

"You remember how Gia helped out in the waiting room during the first-gen auditions?

How about formally assigning her as the waiting room manager?

A lot of conversations happen in the waiting room. If Gia is in charge, she could pick up on things candidates try to hide in the actual interview."

"Hmm."

There’s a reason big companies tend to assign young employees as waiting room managers.

Unlike the rigid, formal atmosphere inside the interview room, the waiting room has a lighter, more casual feel.

Nervous candidates relax a little—and sometimes say things they wouldn’t in front of the interviewers.

Most of the chatter is just personal anecdotes, nothing crucial.

But hidden among those conversations, HR employees sometimes slip in key questions—a subtle extension of the interview.

It won’t directly decide whether someone is hired or not,
but when it’s a tough choice between two candidates,
those extra insights can tip the scales.

Since Gia had already proven her sharp instincts, Do-hee found the HR manager’s suggestion very reasonable.

And—
there was also the undeniable fact that Gia’s appearance alone could lower people’s defenses.

"Candidates probably won’t feel threatened by Gia."

"Exactly. Last time, she caught it because she was observant—but usually, people don’t get caught that easily."

"Yeah. If someone’s trying to hide something, they only get more careful."

"But if we put Gia in charge of the waiting room, we might get more valuable intel."

It wasn’t a bad idea.

The only issue was—Gia would have another task added to her plate.

But by then, Gong Seung-yeon would have settled in and started taking over some of Gia’s responsibilities.
So it wasn’t a terrible workload increase.

"Sounds like we’ll need to give Gia a raise when we promote her. HR manager, you’re gonna have to help me convince the finance director."

"Oh, that? That’s easy. A night out drinking will do the trick."

"…Your liver is already failing, and you still—"

"What can you do? Just gotta take meds and visit the hospital. That’s corporate life.

You think salaries are for enjoying life? One-third of it goes to hospital bills, I’m telling you."

Do-hee let out a dry chuckle before signing the printed interview results.

[2024 Q4 New Hires (First Round) Results]
— Operations Team (1): Gong Seung-yeon
…

***

The acceptance notice came faster for Gong Seung-yeon than for anyone else.

After all, Cheon Do-hee wanted to get someone in as soon as possible to share Gia’s workload, and Seung-yeon, as a fresh graduate, was ready to start immediately.

Thus, on October 31st, the day of the first-gen’s Halloween collab,

just two and a half months after graduating, and only two days after her interview,

Gong Seung-yeon officially took her first step into society!

“Kuhh…”

The sheer emotion of it.

Arriving an hour early, before her senior was supposed to meet her at 2 PM,

Seung-yeon was busy taking selfies with the building in the background.

“Kuhhhhhh!!”

She still couldn’t believe she got accepted.

But she was sure that her spirited conversation with Staff-D that day must have helped.

The moment they met again, she was determined to thank her properly.

And so, while she was still playing around, taking more pictures—

"Gong Heung-yeong-hee?"

"Oof."

Startled, Seung-yeon turned around—

Only to see a small girl, about a palm’s width shorter than her, chewing on something as she looked up at her.

The legendary monster.

Staff D, Gia.

‘Aren’t we running into each other a little too often?’

The thought brought an involuntary smile to Seung-yeon’s face.

"Hello! You're eating fish-shaped buns? Well, it is the perfect season for them."

"Want one?"

"Oh—yes, thank you very much!"

Suppressing the overwhelming urge to poke at Gia’s puffed-up cheeks,

Seung-yeon accepted the warm, no—scorching hot bun.

"Ah, hot—hot, hot!"

"Just bought them, so they’re still fresh."

"Th-Thank you."

"Follow me. Let’s head up."

Without another word, Gia trotted off ahead, stepping through the building’s entrance.

As she struggled to push open the heavy glass doors, Seung-yeon caught up and asked—

"Oh, wait. I was actually told to wait here. My senior is supposed to meet me."

Gia pressed the elevator button before turning to look up at her.

"That’s me."

Seung-yeon blinked.

Oing.

So, was she going to be working directly under a bigshot?

Or… was Staff D not as high-ranking as she had thought?

"Umm… So, you are my senior?"

"Yep. We’ll be working together from now on."

Gia extended a small, delicate hand.

"I’m Gia. Looking forward to working with you."

Still mentally reeling, Seung-yeon hurriedly bit into her fish bun, then clasped Gia’s hand with both of hers.

‘I’m really going to be working with Staff D?!’

She subconsciously clenched her lips, and—

From the poorly baked, half-split belly of the fish bun—

A stream of molten red bean filling burst forth.

The fish bun was still hot as hell.

"Zzib-dduhaaa—Thuaat!!"

Overcome by the burning pain, Seung-yeon spat it out—

And, without wings, the fish bun soared through the air before hitting the floor with a soft thud.

It was a dead fish, so it didn’t even flop.

Staring down at the gradually cooling bun, Gia muttered—

"If you hate fish buns, you could’ve just said so."

"No, no! That’s not it!!"