“You want to sponsor us?” Alan shook his head and glanced at Amelia, who shared his bewilderment. “Why?”

Miss Cosmica made a hand sign, and one of her partners activated a drone camera. It was slick, pink, and of better quality than Clara’s. It projected a video hologram in the middle of the room and played high-fidelity sound.

“If what you really want is to watch another boring max-level battle, then switch channels, you bastard! There are thousands of streams for that already! But how many channels depict the struggles of the underdog? Have you, my dear audience, forgotten what being powerless used to be, back when--”

The video was paused, showing Clara’s frozen face before the hologram disappeared.

“This is why,” Miss Cosmica said, smirking. “Don’t underestimate the power of nostalgia, Alan. My first hit was a cover of an already existing song.”

“Digital Tender Love!” Amelia cried, and Miss Cosmica winked at her.

“Ten cosmic points to you!”

Amelia clapped, excited, making Alan stare at her. Who is this girl beside me?

He remembered Amelia’s excitement when he told her about the meeting. She spent like three hours in her room, trying out different outfits.

They were in the living room, Amelia and Alan sitting on the couch and the two maid NPCs standing behind them. The star comfortably rested on the armchair with her companions by both sides. Ashley could be heard munching from the dinner table, tasting the cookies Miss Cosmica had gifted them.

“But,” Alan muttered. “Would people really want to watch our--?”

“Show him,” Miss Cosmica said aloud, and her assistant opened the Novus’ intranet, using the drone’s hologram to show the top trending streams.

Clara’s stream of Phantom Seekers was in ninth place. “Oh! That... that’s neat? I think.”

“Alan,” Amelia called, tapping his knee. “We could have a stable source of income if we stream and keep hitting the trending list like that.”

“By just streaming?” Alan said, frowning before the hologram disappeared, inadvertently crossing his eyes with the idol. “What would be the terms?”

“I thought you’d never ask.” She giggled, and a system window appeared in front of him. “That’s the contract. Read it thoroughly, but I can give you a summary. You’ll give me exclusive rights to your streams, and in exchange, I’ll promote you on my channel. Ask your friend about it.”

“Miss Cosmica has this brand, called Cosmic Nation, where she features some of the best guilds and warriors that take part in official, competitive PVP battles,” Amelia explained, making the idol nod satisfied.

“Beautifully explained. Another 10 cosmic points to you! That’s right, Alan. I could feature your guild there, so you could potentially reach thousands of viewers. But, making entertaining content would fall entirely into your hands. My advice? Just be yourself.”

“I don’t even know why people enjoyed watching us struggle,” he said in a tiny voice. “And what would you gain from this?”

“As the contract says, we would split the revenue earned from paid exclusive content, tournament rewards, and merchandise. 20 - 80.”

“You want 80%?”

“No, Alan. You’d keep the 80%.” She shrugged. “It’s not as if you were to suddenly raise a fortune, anyway. The Streaming competition is fierce, after all.”

“T-That’s a very generous offer, regardless!” Amelia cried, grabbing Alan’s hand. “That could help our guild grow immensely! You’re always talking about buying gear and weapons to craft your own.”

“You can also keep the merchandise revenue. I don’t mind.” Miss Cosmica added as she manipulated her User Interface. “They’re of good quality than I even bought a pair.”

Don’t tell me she’s talking about those stupid t-shirts, Alan thought blushing, as Miss Cosmica made something appear out of her inventory. Huh? It’s not that. It took a while for him to distinguish what those items were.

“Aren’t they cute?” The idol beamed, holding two nine-inch plushies in each hand. With big, round heads and eyes, doing a cartoony impression of their real counterparts.

Is that grumpy little fella with red chestnut hair supposed to be me? Alan then darted his eyes to the second smiling one, with blue long hair and a red dress. Clara… Seriously… Stop it.

“They’re adorable!” Amelia said excitedly, reaching out her hand. “Can I see them for a minute, please?”

“Sorry! But these are mine!” The idol cried, hugging them protectively. “And shouldn’t you have yours already? The woman that gifted me these two said she was part of your guild.” 

Alan glanced absently at the contract, swallowed, and made use of a new active skill. ‘Accelerated Thought, which he had gotten after getting his Unique Talent, which was available whenever he spoke to Aaron.

“Yes, Alan? How can I help you?

“I just need time to think this through. But what do you think about her? Can you, by any chance, detect if she’s lying?”

“There is an active skill that lets you detect lies, but only warlocks can learn it.”

“Lie Detector machines are a thing, and we are all about machines, right?”

“Are you suggesting we should develop an Engineer-Class version of it? Creating new skills from scratch is possible, but you would have to constantly train your mind at detecting lies naturally before the System recognizes it as a Passive Skill.”

“Well, I’m already used to analyzing everything in sight, so using it on humans would not be a problem. For instance, I know this woman in front of me is hiding something. She’s acting too neutral toward us. She’s not acting pompous or too friendly. She’s being too safe.”

“Careful, then, Alan.”

“Would signing this gives you the right to make us do something we may not want?”

Miss Cosmica chuckled while storing the plushies.

It’s as if she knew I used ‘Accelerated Thought’ and patiently waited for me to speak.

“No, Alan. The content of your streams is up to you. Although I’d urge you to enter certain competitions from time to time. Oh, and one other thing. I strongly suggest that your Max-Level partner here appears on-screen as little as possible.”

Alan turned to Amelia, who slightly nodded.

“We… have already talked about this. My presence would only steal experience away from you. So I don’t mind.”

“Fine.” Alan rose and stretched out his hand. “I’m in.”

Miss Cosmica stared at him. “Don’t you want to read the rest of the contract first?”

“In a moment. For the time being, your summary of it sounds good enough.”

The idol chuckled, standing up. “We’re partners from now on, then.”

As both shook hands, Amelia stared at them with a sulky expression on her face. Miss Cosmica smiled brightly once she noticed. "Do you want a handshake too? We could take a picture together if you want."

Amelia beamed immediately. "I'd love that, yes!"

10 seconds had passed, and their hands were still glued together. Miss Cosmica frowned at the realization and noticed something else. Alan's hand was not sweaty.

Every hand Miss Cosmica had shaken since she debuted was soaked in sweat. 

She looked up, meeting his serious gaze.

“This is also my way of saying thanks for helping us rebuild Unus Town," he said in a deep voice. "Not only do you bring happiness to the entire Novus with your music, but you also seem to care for all of its Users. Thanks a lot. I’m indebted to you.” 

Miss Cosmica’s lips parted before she pulled her hand away. “A second longer and I'd have to charge you. And you owe me nothing, Alan Warden. I did it because it was the right thing to do.” The idol turned around. “I need a little rest before parting.”

“You can use my room upstairs,” Amelia quickly suggested. “It’ll be the one at your left.”

“Thanks. You can discuss the contract with Celestine in the meantime.”

Once the idol exited the room at a hurried pace, one of her guardians stood at the feet of the stairs, blocking the way up.

“Very well, Alan Warden. Let’s revise the contract, shall we?" Celestine said, sitting on the armchair. "I’ll answer any question you may have.”

"Sure," Alan said, still looking in the direction of the stairs. "Did I say something that made her mad?"

"Of course not. You know how all divas act." Celestine paused to look him in the eyes. "And she could never get upset at you, she's a big fan of yours."

"Celestine…" Her partner called in a severe tone.

"Why is that?" Alan asked, half-smiling.

Celestine smiled warmly at him. "What you said about her it's true. Miss Cosmica is not satisfied with only bringing joy to the Novus with her performance, She's also constantly helping people around the world. Her mere presence influences Actives, Guild Masters, and Administrators alike. All for the sake of this virtual world. And you seemed to do the same in your own way."

"I don't think I can be compared to her."

Celestine shrugged and rested her chin on her palms. "Well, she sees something in you worth nurturing. So don't disappoint her, alright?" She giggled, leaving him silent. "Anyway! About the contract!"

Amelia, who had been absently staring at the nothingness since the idol had left the room, suddenly grinned awkwardly. As only pervert old geezers do.

 

***

**

*

 

Come on, Miss Celebrity, Amelia thought, holding her breath. Do something embarrassing, so it can get burned into my mind forever, fufufu.

Amelia could see the idol taking up the stairs and entering her room. Inside, Miss Cosmica looked around before channeling mana. What are you going to do?

"Spell Scroll, No Signal Zone," Miss Cosmica cast with the help of an item, emanating an electronic pulse in a 300 feet radius.

Amelia blinked, bringing her attention back to the living room, noticing that their pink drone camera was sparkling before turning off. She gave a quick glance at Alan and Celestine, who were discussing the contract without realizing what had happened, while Bella and Anastasia behind her looked unaffected.

A spell that only targets recording devices, huh? 

Amelia focused again on what was happening upstairs, finding Miss Cosmica using another scroll. "...Silent as a grave."

I recognize that one. It’s Marissa’s favorite. It helps her silence an entire room so she can perform an assassination.

The idol cast a third spell. “No Mana Allowed.”

And finally, something that cancels any familiar, magic construction, or anything made of mana that might spy on you. You're too cautious, Miss Celebrity. Too bad that it won't work this time.

Giggling, Amelia continued spying on the idol, who had started to roam the room. What caught her attention, was a closet brimmed with shoes.

“Someone needs a new hobby,” Miss Cosmica intoned as her eyes darted around. “Your shoe collection is even bigger than idols, Amelia Laflamme.”

Seconds after, Miss Cosmica locked eyes with a pair of pink, open-toe high heels.

Please tell me that she’s going to try them out! 

“Equip,” Miss Cosmica said aloud, wearing them automatically. She then looked at her feet in the nearby mirror. “10 more points, Amelia.”

From her place on the couch, Amelia shrieked excitedly and her nose started bleeding. I’m going to wear those next!

“A-Amelia, are you okay?!” Alan cried.

“I’m okay! Don’t mind me. Keep reviewing the contract, please!”

Bella quickly approached and offered her a handkerchief. “Here, Master Amelia.”

“Thanks, Bella.”

By the time Amelia concentrated her vision back to her room, Miss Cosmica had already left the pink shoes in their place and was lying on the bed, pulling the Phantom Seekers’ plushies out of her inventory again.

She held the Alan plush aloft, sighing. “Everything went smoothly. Thank the goddess! I don’t know what I’d have done if you had rejected my offer. But how could you? This partnership was made in heaven! Don’t you think, little one?” She said to ‘herself’ while making the plush nod.

Amelia’s heart began racing. Something tells me I’m hearing something that I shouldn’t… Which is just what I wanted!

Miss Cosmica then sat at the edge of the bed while holding the Amelia plush in her left hand. She seemed to glare at it. “I suppose I have to thank you for helping him make the choice, huh?”

Before the real Amelia could process what she just had heard, that plushie combusted in an instant. Miss Cosmica then blew the ashes off her palm and wiped the rest off on the sheet.

Amelia’s heart sank instantly. All the way to the core of this fake planet… No, but seriously, what the hell was that?

Meanwhile, Miss Cosmica stared at her right hand with a conscious look on her face. “I can’t believe you shook my hand like that… It was so…” She suddenly grinned widely. “AWESOME!”

Amelia could not believe her ears and eyes, for Miss Cosmica was hugging Alan’s plushie tightly, and had begun rolling on the bed, over and over again.

“Kyaaah! And the way you looked at me! Your gaze was SO INTENSE that I felt I could DIE right there in front of everyone! And your: ‘Thanks for saving Unus Town. You bring joy to the entire Novus’. SO COOL! Stop acting so GALLANT! Can’t you see that you made me BLUSH, you idiot!”

Amelia blinked perplexedly and glanced at everyone in the living room. They were continuing reviewing the contract, unaware of what was happening upstairs.

Is that why she cast ‘Silent as a Grave’?

…But…

What the hell… 

…is happening?

Amelia took a deep breath before spying again. But something told her that she would regret it.

I can’t back down now! I must keep watching! 

Miss Cosmica was now strolling to the room's restroom. Her steps looked irregular as if she was dizzy. "Here we go..." she was saying while leaning over the sink. The sound of bones and flesh rearranging echoed through the bathroom. Her pink hair lost its vibrant color and her skin stopped being light pale. Something white and oval fell on the sink.

A mask, just like those Marissa use! That artifact's effect must have worn out. Everyone knows she’s using a disguise to protect her identity, but I can finally be a witness to it! 

Amelia ordered her little spy to get closer so she could look at the mirror's reflection. But…

No… 

As soon as she glimpsed that person’s golden hair, she felt sick. 

No… No, no, no, NO!

YOU HAVE TO BE FUCKING KIDDING ME!

Amelia groaned disgusted, before releasing the contents of her stomach.

“A-Amelia! Are you--?! Are you… puking a rainbow?”

“That’s one of the many ways Users can customize their avatar,” Consteline said, giggling. “Doesn’t it look cute?”

“The sickly sounds say the opposite…” Alan muttered while rubbing Amelia’s back.

“Something like that happened to me the last time I overate. It was not pleasant,” Ashley said from her place at the dinner table, while continuing to stuff her mouth with cookies.

“Don’t overeat then.”