Cover song released
The other members' cover song releases, which had been in preparation for a while, were just around the corner.
Since everyone had been preparing around the same time, the level of completion ended up being similar. So, they decided to release them in a relay format—one member per day in sequence.
Of course, releasing them one by one like this would inevitably invite comparisons somewhere, but with the announcement that recruits for the Celestial Project's second generation would be opening soon, the members were motivated enough to take that risk.
Besides, it wasn't like they'd only be releasing one or two covers in total. If they had to wait several days for each person every single time, the schedule would become a mess.
Releasing them all on the same day might not be ideal, but a one-day gap between each felt reasonable.
As for me… I still had no plans to release a cover, so I just watched from the sidelines.
Lately, I'd been busier with album art.
It wasn't something you could finish with one or two drafts, so I was drawing and sending multiple versions as they came to mind.
The deadline wasn't particularly tight, but once full-scale work began on the Celestial Project's songs, I'd be swamped—so it was better to get things done in advance.
I'd wake up in the morning and work on album art, then head to vocal lessons in the afternoon.
And in the evening…
[That thing again today]
Naturally, I'd start my stream.
Please stop playing guitar… Please stop playing guitar… Please stop playing guitar… Please stop playing guitar…
Is it that again today? Why…? Is it that again today? Why…?
I'm sorry, Miro..! I'm sorry, Miro..! I'm sorry, Miro..!
I'll be a good Miro-fan… I'll be a good Miro-fan… I'll be a good Miro-fan…
The moment I started streaming, the chat was flooded.
Sure, chat acted like I played guitar all day long, but that wasn't true.
Honestly, practicing guitar nonstop for hours was impossible. I usually played for thirty minutes to an hour, then switched to something else. The viewers knew this, so they just spammed the chat for fun.
If I really did nothing but play guitar, there would've been a riot by now.
"Actually, I'm not playing guitar today. The title's just like that."
??
Then what are you doing?
I even brought my guitar;;
"Isn't today Mile-unnie's cover release day? We've got to have a listening party."
You're not releasing one?
Translation: gonna leech off another member's content.
Sounds like a relay.
"It is a relay. Today's the first day. Isn't it exciting that new songs will be coming out for five days straight?"
Why five days?
Info) There are six members in Celestial Project.
Relay, but someone's missing??
Why are there only five Celestial Project members?
"Me? I actually uploaded the very first cover video as part of Celestial Project, you know?"
I said that as I pulled up my cover video on TheSix's official YouTube channel.
"What the—why does it have so many views?"
I hadn't checked in a while, but the video had racked up hundreds of thousands of views.
When I first uploaded it, it had only barely reached tens of thousands over several weeks. Seeing this now, the growth really hit me.
Haha, the Great Miro.
It's literally the only other song besides the project tracks.
Only Celestial Project and that one exist.
Can't deny it, lol.
[Thank you for the ₩10,000 donation, Artisan Miro-nim!]
And that was enough to count?
"Thanks for the ten thousand won! Count it as settling the score? Come on, why would you say that between us?"
"Between us"? What are we?
Only "us" when it's convenient.
"What are we? Hmm…"
I thought about what my relationship with the Miro-fans was, and the answer came right away.
"Business partners, maybe?"
Disappointed for real.
I'm unsubscribing.
That's harsh…
"Well, we're not exactly friends or lovers, are we? We're partners who respect boundaries and grow this channel together."
Didn't you say this last time too?
If we're partners, what do we get out of it?
"What do you mean, what do you get? You watch because you enjoy it. Just think of this as a zoo, and me as the animal. You watch, interact, and feel satisfied. That's healing, right?"
Haha wow.
This is a healing stream?
Miro the animal, yikes.
"It is a healing stream. At least, you never walk away from my stream feeling worse, right?"
If anyone got stressed out from watching me, that was entirely their own problem.
Hmm… guess so.
If it makes me upset, can I sue?
"You're not denying it though, are you? Anyway, since the cover release is almost here, let's get ready."
I said that and casually opened YouTube's main page to head to Mile's channel.
LOLLLLL
What's with your recommendations?
Degenerate weeb, lol.
Even worse than me.
And just like that, YouTube's algorithm recommendations were broadcast straight to the stream.
Short clips from native Japanese Vtubers, summaries of famous anime, guitar tutorials, Japanese songs—all sitting proudly at the top.
It wasn't intentional, but I had nothing to hide, so I owned it.
"Everything here helps with streaming, okay?"
If even one of them wasn't useful to my content, then sure, throw stones at me.
What's the point of listening to songs if you don't sing them?
She watches anime summaries too? Does she brag about watching full series afterward?
"Ah, the summaries are just rewatching stuff I've already seen. Don't get it twisted."
Most of the summaries I watched were things the female Kim Soo-hyun had already seen.
I wanted to watch the originals, but since my memories were already full of spoilers, it felt dull. So, I just watched the fast-paced recaps.
Yeah, this is bad, lol.
Serious weeb confirmed.
Do you only listen to Japanese music too?
"I listen to Korean songs too. Anyway, the cover's coming out soon. Let's go."
It was set for 9 p.m., and with all the banter, it was already 8:50.
I typed "Mile" into the YouTube search bar, and her channel popped right up.
Eighty thousand subscribers.
For a channel less than six months old, Mile's growth had been fast. As I entered the channel, chat started buzzing.
???
LOLLLLL
Why isn't she subscribed?
Premium is active, so it's definitely her account.
Seriously, lol.
This is scandalous.
"Ah."
Come to think of it, had I never subscribed to the members' channels?
Honestly, I never really used YouTube to check their videos, so I hadn't thought about it.
But not subscribing to your own group members could definitely spark rumors of discord. This needed to be dealt with quickly.
And this was the kind of issue I could smooth over easily.
"Hold on, everyone. Let me clear this up right away."
I immediately went back to the search bar and typed in "Miro."
Just under 100,000 subscribers, close to hitting 100K.
Naturally, this channel was managed by the company, so it was tied to a different account from my personal one.
???
What's this?
Lol wow.
Okay, I'll admit, this one's legit.
She's really something…
And just like that, the moment I pulled up Miro's channel, the controversy that had almost flared up instantly died down.
Well…
"You see? I just didn't pay attention. I'll subscribe to everything right now."
Because not only had I failed to subscribe to the other members' channels—I hadn't even subscribed to my own.
If I hadn't subscribed to my own channel, then of course it was possible I hadn't subscribed to the others either, right?
So I quickly smoothed over the issue by going through the channels one by one and hitting subscribe, then returned to Mile's channel.
As I watched the countdown to the premiere, a chime sounded—another donation.
[ㅇㅇ-nim, thank you for the ₩1,000 donation!]
Miro-nim, but why did you search 'Demon-Slayer-Katana Best Scenes'? Didn't you say it wasn't a masterpiece…?
"…Thanks for the thousand won."
LOL did they really catch that from your search history?
I typed so fast I didn't even see it.
Gonna rewind the VOD right now.
I'd had to hop back and forth between search bars to look up the other members' channels, and even though I typed as fast as I could, somehow they caught it.
Not that I'd ever searched anything incriminating on YouTube, but still…
[Stationery-Eraser-Thief-Miro-nim, thank you for the ₩5,000 donation!]
Miro-nim, but why did you search 'Martial Arts Spin Best Scenes'? Didn't you say that wasn't a masterpiece either…?
[ㅇㅇ-nim, thank you for the ₩1,000 donation!]
Miro-nim, but why did you search 'Feels Like Only I Can Play Guitar'? With your skills, isn't that impossible…?
"Anyway, there's really not much time left now. What song do you think she covered? I have no clue."
Why are you changing the subject, Miro-nim? Embarrassed about your search history?
Is this really the search history of a woman in her early twenties? I just don't get it…
So young and MZ-core.
Ignoring donations??
[ㅇㅇ-nim, thank you for the ₩1,000 donation!]
Miro-nim, why aren't you reading the donation messages? Embarrassed…?
"Ahem… I'll just go get some water."
What water lol.
You just got some.
Translation: She's too grossed out by us and running away.
"I'll have you know, my YouTube search history is spotless. Keep that in mind."
I said that, got up pretending to fetch water, and while I was up, grabbed some snacks from the fridge.
"Alright, Miro is back."
But why hide your embarrassment then, Miro-nim? Ashamed…?
Can the zoo monkey just leave her post like this?
"Who are you calling a monkey? Me?"
Who else?
You called yourself the zoo animal.
"Come on, I'm more like a lion. I roam as I please, and people gather just because I exist."
BS, lol.
You're a monkey.
So you're saying you won't do tricks for us?
"Have you ever seen a lion doing tricks at the zoo? If that's what you want, go watch a circus."
Can't you just run a circus stream instead?
Fine, unsubbing, I'm off to the circus.
"Alright, enough. It's starting now, so focus."
As I bantered with chat, time flew by, and Mile's cover song premiere began.
Doom-doom-doom-doom!
It opened with a heavy drumbeat echoing against a black background.
Tak!
With a crack of the drums, a single beam of light pierced down the center.
That faint light revealed the setting: the inside of a dark circus tent.
Just from the intro, the quality already surprised me.
I thought it would just be a single illustration with her singing over it.
No wonder she'd been preparing so hard…
While I was marveling at the unexpected quality, the drums kept pounding, and then—a girl suddenly dropped from above.
With blonde hair, heavy makeup, and a jester's hat, the character tugged at the corners of her mouth into a wide grin and signaled the start of the song.
[Now! S–Mile!]
Then bang!
The lights came fully on, revealing the circus tent interior.
Decorated instruments and animals everywhere, ropes and props dangling from above—it was unmistakably a circus stage.
…A circus?
The words I'd tossed out right before the premiere flashed through my mind, sending a chill down my spine.
But inside the MV, Mile ran around joyfully, singing her heart out.
I had no idea how they pulled it off, but the quality of Mile's cover video was so high it almost made me worry about the people working behind the scenes.
The constant stream of fresh illustrations, the perfect song choice that felt like it could be an original, and the polished vocal performance—all of it.
For about four minutes, Mile's cover song filled eyes and ears alike with joy, ending with an exaggerated bow and a final farewell.
Immediately, I raised both hands in surrender.
"I really didn't know!"
It had turned into an unintentional spoiler, just like I'd predicted the circus beforehand.
…But seriously, I hadn't known at all.