Exclusive Rights to An Online Voice Actor

Chapter 149

unedited

31st of December, overcast turned cloudy, cloudy turned sunny.

Very auspicious day—

【14 hours before the New Year】

“…Return Date, you really are daring~” Ninth Lady’s teasing tone sounded as if it came from inside of a cave, and she even intoned the end like a self-made echo effect.

The corner’s of Qi Jing’s lips were curling up as he smiled without answering her.

Half an hour earlier, he had just snatched the exclusive rights for the new version of ⟪Trap⟫ audio drama from Blackbox. As for why he had to ‘snatch’ it, it was because not even three minutes after he sent the post with the request for the adaptation rights, it was instantly met with strong opposition from A Lifetime’s Lock. Even the author herself didn’t escape the fire, “You have no right to revoke those rights, and even more so to transfer them!! On what basis would you rob our team from the hard-earned fruits of our labour!?”

It sounded as if Qi Jing didn’t contribute as the main voice actor for the first episode.

It sounded as if it wasn’t him that got blatantly robbed by them of his recordings to make that teaser.

This pot was so keen on calling the kettle black, truly, so impressive—

Of course, Blackbox ignored her completely, and Qi Jing did the same, ignoring even the noisy cries from Great God’s fans in the comments.

“No matter if we have the rights or not, we will support our Sparrow in finishing this audio drama! Locky, you also continue making it! Either way, everyone still loves listening to our Sparrow’s version more!”

Those fans were pretty optimistic, immediately finding another shortcut to get what they wanted.

It didn’t matter for them if they had the rights or if there was any infringement, or even what the author thought. After all, none of those things mattered more to them than getting a chance to hear their male god’s voice. And their optimism wasn’t completely baseless, since A Lifetime’s Lock was indeed a powerhouse among the audio drama staff. Her sound design skills were superb, so even outsiders who were repulsed by Bronze Sparrow Terrace would still have a tough choice to make between the faithfulness of voice acting or the quality of the sound design.

“If Don’t ask for my return date performs the same way he did in that run-through with Kitty’s Papa, then it would be a very good and faithful adaptation, however…”

“However, the overall quality of an audio drama doesn’t only depend on the main VAs; what about the side characters that still need to get cast? The post-production? And what about the director, the script-writer, the artist for the poster, and the promotion? As an audio-drama only fan, I really don’t know if I should be happy or worried…”

“I heard that it’s still not officially confirmed if Kitty’s Papa is the other main voice actor, right? What if…”

Even among the onlookers, there were opinions that wavered.

But Qi Jing had already anticipated those voices the moment he openly requested the adaptation rights, and he knew whom he should seek helpt from.

Requesting the rights didn’t necessarily mean he was capable of being the producer. For that role, a seasoned veteran would be more reliable—

It was about the time when the Ninth Lady from the American time-difference gang often appeared. As expected, he really caught her in the “Gradually inching towards quitting the community” group as seen as he joined—though it was hard to tell if it was him who caught her, or her that caught him.

Ninth Lady: Sigh, I didn’t expect you to beat me in doing what I wanted to do, Return Date… (facepalms) Who is the one with the producer background here after all…

Don’t ask for my return date: Eh? Little Ninth, did you want to request the rights to ⟪Trap⟫ as well?

Ninth Lady: (facepalms) Of course.

Ninth Lady: Do you know that ever since that teaser and run-through got released, I’ve been going apeship from rage at one moment, then getting all hyped up with the other one!? I almost ended up going crazy!! I kept poking you to no avail, so I had to keep refreshing Weibo and the forum… And you won’t believe it, when two hours ago I saw the author revoking the rights, I almost leaped up from my seat!!

Ninth Lady: My first impulse was to rush in and snatch them for myself, so you could have a way to retaliate. But then I realised it wouldn’t be enough… If I wanted to seek the author’s support, I needed to show sincerity. At the very least, I had to assemble a complete production team. Only this would make us look more reliable… But the moment I looked away, you had already… （╯－＿－）╯╧╧

Don’t ask for my return date: ^＿^

Ninth Lady: (facepalms) Other staff are manageable, but as I’ve analysed before, if we want to surpass the first version, then the post-production needs to be top-notch!! Just thinking about having to find someone like that gives me a headache…

Bumpy, not Indented: ￢＿￢

Don’t ask for my return date: Ah!

Ninth Lady: ……

Ninth Lady: ……

Ninth Lady: ……Wait, wait, wait… Am I hallucinating or…

Bumpy, not Indented: ￢＿￢

Ninth Lady: Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!! CP!! Are you really my CP?? You actually came back?

Bumpy, not Indented: ￢＿￢ Do you need me to do the secret signal?

Ninth Lady: …….Do it!!

Bumpy, not Indented: ￢＿￢ Whose voice is the best?

Ninth Lady: Of! Course! My! Life! Core’s! Lord! Sleek! Horse!

Bumpy, not Indented: ￢＿￢ Longbow’s voice is far better than his. (Important things need to be said three times, but those most important are only ever said once)

Ninth Lady: ……

Ninth Lady: ……

Ninth Lady: ……sobs… My CP aaaaahhhh!! It really is you aaaahhh!! I was so lonely these days, aaaaagggghhh!! 〒▽〒 〒▽ 〒〒▽〒

Bumpy, not Indented: ￢＿￢ Pft.

Bumpy, not Indented: ￢＿￢ Just look at you, no prospects at all.

Don’t ask for my return date: Hahahaha~ It’s so good you’re back~

“I finally chased out Little Hassle with Big Hassle for a walk, only this way I had time to go online.”

What Tu Xiaotu&#k2014;or Mrs Zhang, as she was also known&#k2014;had said made Qi Jing imagine that scene, and he couldn’t help but burst into laughter.

Since they had to discuss important matters, the three of them rushed to the “chitter-chatter” channel to open a room for more convenient talking.

“I’ll be upfront with you,” After catching up with NinthLady for a while, Tu Xiaotu calmly cleared her throat and spoke in a formal tone, “I have a big and a small one to take care of, and I also have a regular job. Post-production is a rather laborious and time-consuming process, so I’ll have to squeeze it into my spare time, and there may be times when I won’t be able to find any. So, better don’t expect it to be fast…”

“It doesn’t matter. To be honest, I was already so surprised and grateful when you agreed to help us with sound design.” Qi Jing smiled lightly.

Setting aside the time it would take in the real world, within the online world, the sheer fact of them snatching those rights from a big-name VA and staff’s hands made it quite a bit of a hot potato. Not many people would be willing to wade into those muddy waters.

“Heh,” Tu Xiaotu sneered, “If you want to be grateful, then be grateful to those antis of yours instead. It’s been a while since I saw a post that made me so angry I threw my mouse.”

“Me too~ Me too~” Ninth Lady muttered in the background like a broken record, trying to make her presence felt.

“Thank you girls, really.” He said.

No matter how many thanks he said, he would probably never be able to express the expanse of his gratitude. But despite that, he still felt compelled to repeat it as many times as it took.

He really was blessed to have met such a loyal bunch of friends that would take a knife for him during his three-year journey as an online voice actor—

In their tacit understanding, after joking for a while, they moved on to discuss the important matters.

They had both the producer and the sound-designer, so two of the four core staff were already decided, but the other two were also indispensable.

“What do you think about the director and scriptwriter?”

“Ah… about this, can you guys let me take care of it?” Qi Jing went ahead and inquired carefully.

【12 hours before the New Year】

Knives cutting in from four sides swallowed nervously, trembling as she clicked on the QQ group she had just joined.

The group name was familiar—”⟪Trap⟫ Production Crew”. The name was still the same, but there was a whole new set of people inside. She couldn’t find the words to describe her feelings at the moment.

Knives cutting in from four sides: Gaaaah, I didn’t think I’d be able to go back to directing this audio drama again in this lifetime… QAQ

Puppet Show: Knives Cutting!! You’re also here?! QAQ

Knives cutting in from four sides: Gaaaaah, Puppet!! QAQ

Don’t ask for my return date: Hello ladies. ^＿^

Knives cutting in from four sides: Gaaaah, Return Date!! QAQ

Puppet Show: I didn’t think that I would be able to work on a project with Lord Return Date again in this lifetime… (I’m really about to cry T＿T)

Don’t ask for my return date: ^＿^

Ninth Lady: Hehe, hello ladies~ I’m the producer for the new ⟪Trap⟫ audio drama, Ninth Lady. Though my recent output hasn’t been particularly high, but I’ve been in this line of work for five years already~ ╮(￣▽￣”)╭

Knives cutting in from four sides: Ah!! I heard of your ID before!! A seasoned producer!! (stares starry-eyed in worship)

Puppet Show: That’s right!! I also heard of you, you’re the one who got Return Date into the community!! (stares starry-eyed in worship+1)

Ninth Lady: Heehee, I’m getting a bit shy… ╮(￣▽￣”)╭

Bumpy, Not Indented: ￢＿￢ Hello to the director and scriptwriter ladies. Please, don’t get fooled by this woman’s appearance, she’s just a silly voice-con that’s ready to simp for nice voices anytime, anywhere. En… I will introduce myself to as I’m at it, I’m the sound designer for the new version of ⟪Trap⟫, you can call me Bumpy.

Ninth Lady: Heh, the one above giving me a side-eye is my CP, Bumpy. We’re both together in the Senior Staff Retirement group~

Knives cutting in from four sides: Pfft… Senior Staff Retirement group…

Puppet Show: Pfffhahahahaha, Senior Staff Retirement group! (It sounds so cuteeee~)

Ninth Lady: That’s because we’ve been in this half-retired state for a long time already, we even named our private chat group “Gradually inching towards quitting the community”. However, before completely leaving, wouldn’t it be nice to make a big splash with an amazing piece of work?

Bumpy, Not Indented: ╮(￣▽￣”)╭

Knives cutting in from four sides: ╮(￣▽￣”)╭

Puppet Show: ╮(￣▽￣”)╭ Ab, so, lu, tely! After the author announced the withdrawal of the adaptation rights, I also announced that I’m withdrawing my scripts for the second and third episode. I was already a fan of Lord Blackbox even before I started working on this audio drama, so now that they dared to kick the author, I’m also completely done with them!

Puppet Show: Ah, right, speaking of the script…

Puppet Show: Since it’s the rights for the new adaptation, then Ninth Lady, do you plan to start from the second episode, or…

Ninth Lady: We have a completely new voice cast and a partially new staff team, so I plan to remake the first episode. However, I still haven’t decided whether I want to completely rewrite the script for the first episode or keep the original one.

Bumpy, Not Indented: Keep the original one.

Don’t ask for my return date: Hmm, let’s keep the original one. This way the difference will be even more apparent. I’ll do my very best to fully express everything I truly want to convey, so that everyone can hear how different it can be, even with the same lines and scenes.

Knives cutting in from four sides: Return Date-sama is so awesome!! o(*≧▽≦)ツ

Ninth Lady: Good!! But if we keep the same script, then Bumpy, do you feel that it’s possible that you’ll have some overlaps with that Lock or something?

Bumpy, Not Indented: Heh, just as Return Date said, the true skill is in creating a completely different atmosphere even with the same script and scene. That’s where the real contrast and challenge come in. Rest assured, I will work hard on it and show that Lock or something her place.

Knives cutting in from four sides: ～(≧▽≦)/～ Sister Bumpy is so handsome!! (stares starry-eyed in worship)

Puppet Show: ～(≧▽≦)/～ Sister Bumpy is so handsome!! (stares starry-eyed in worship +1)

Ninth Lady: …Why do I feel like I’ve seen the conversation above before… _(:з」∠)_

【10 hours before the New Year】

After determining the overall direction, the next challenge was to find voice actors, which proved to be even more difficult than recruiting. staff members. This became evident when A Lifetime’s Lock persisted in declaring her intent to continue the production even without the rights, effectively pressuring all the voice actors involved in the audio drama to choose a side.

The majority of the voice actors in the original ⟪Trap⟫ were brought on board by the original producer, Rouge Flower. She used the attraction of Bronze Sparrow Terrace starring as the main character to entice many of his die-hard fans and prominent VAs for the supporting roles. Their cast was impressive, but a significant number of them had a close connection with Bronze Sparrow Terrace, and as the currently renowned sound designer in the industry, A Lifetime’s Lock also shared a good relationship with those people.

Perhaps rather than choosing to risk offending all of them, including Bronze Sparrow Terrace’s humongous fan base… it could be a better choice to risk offending Don’t ask for my return date or a less well-known author.

“Even if they believe that we are in the right, they probably won’t publicly take a stance on our behalf… Not to mention openly joining our new production team. We also can’t approach them either, after all, it would put them in a difficult position regardless of their response.”

Ninth Lady was right.

In other words, they had to find all the VAs for the side characters themselves as well—

At that moment, the atmosphere turned heavy among them, neither of them uttering a word. Each of them was deep in thought, pondering a way out of it.

Puppet Show: And there’s quite a lot of side characters in the first episode… It won’t be easy to find so many readily available VAs on short notice (and yes, “available” is the crucial factor here”. This is the busiest time of the year for those of us that are working, and students are also about to start preparing for their final exams. We’re probably have to wait until after the New Year to slowly start approaching people.

Ninth Lady: Mhmm.

Knives cutting in from four sides: Let’s take our time finding them. Slow and steady yields fine results, right? We can start from PIAing the two main actors.

Knives cutting in from four sides: …By the way, what about Uncle Yan?? Why didn’t Uncle Yan join the group yet?? QAQ

Knives cutting in from four sides: …Please, don’t tell me that the other main voice actor isn’t him!! QAQ

Don’t ask for my return date: Don’t worry, it’s him. He had to go to work today, so he’s not here yet. We can discuss the important matters first, it won’t be too late for him to join us later.

Knives cutting in from four sides: Yup, yup.

Knives cutting in from four sides: Waaaah… I had already went emotional about it before, but I can’t help but feel incredibly fulfilled as the director for the first audio drama with Uncle Yan as the main character… (falls down, contented)

Don’t ask for my return date: ^＿^

Ninth Lady: Haha, actually, when it comes to selecting voice actors, Rouge Flower and I had different thoughts… When she mentioned an audio drama for ⟪Trap⟫ to me, I had already read the original novel, and back then, I thought that her choice of Bronze Sparrow Terrace as the lead was a bit peculiar. But, of course, he’s the great god~ Who doesn’t like the god VAs~ And I’m also not the producer, so I didn’t say anything. Her choices for side characters might not align with mine, so there are advantages to finding them ourselves.

Ninth Lady: For instance, the VA for the first male supporting character, and I mean the big brother of your character, Return Date. His voice performance was decent, but you guys lacked that genuine brotherly chemistry.

Don’t ask for my return date: …Ninth, can you please provide more details? 0＿0

Ninth Lady: The main issue is the temperament reflected in your voices. Return Date, your voice has a certain elegance to it. Even though you sound a bit like a flirty scum (pfft), at least it gives off the impression of a well-bred, educated and refined individual. However, for the elder brother that was described as resembling the main character, Rouge Flower actually chose an average-sounding voice with a honest-to-god salaryman top vibe, he completely didn’t have that feel… It just doesn’t fit the role.

Puppet Show: Agh! Now that Ninth Lady said so, it really does feel a bit strange!

Ninth Lady: But, Return Date, voices like yours are already quite rare. To find someone with a similar voice that sounds even more ‘top’ than you, with a more older and steady ‘big brother’ vibe … it’ll be hard. (collapses to the ground)

As Qi Jing read this, his eyes trembled slightly, and in that moment, a burst of bright sparks ignited in his mind, illuminating his gaze.

Don’t ask for my return date: …

Don’t ask for my return date: …I know now.

Ninth Lady: What do you know?

Don’t ask for my return date: There is a person like this—that’s right, there is no more suitable guy for it.

Ninth Lady: Who?

Don’t ask for my return date: Just think of it: what was my previous nickname?

When he said this, Ninth Lady was also taken aback,and remained silent for a while.

However, when she finally reacted, she laughed heartily and outright rejected the idea, even repeating her disapproval thrice for the emphasis.

Ninth Lady: No, no, that person won’t do.

Don’t ask for my return date: Why won’t he do?

Ninth Lady: First, you won’t be able to contact him; second, even if you manage to do that, he won’t take on any new project. Forget about it, forget about it, let’s think about someone else~ ╮(￣▽￣”)╭

Ninth Lady’s tone made it easy for one to imagine her wagging her index finger in front of her screen, completely dismissing the possibility.

Qi Jing smiled faintly and simply said, “You guys get in YY and go wait for me in ‘chitter-chatter’, I will come in a moment”, before disappearing.

Everyone could just look at each other in confusion, then follow his instructions and go to the ‘chitter-chatter’ channel room.

After ten minutes, Qi Jing was finally back.

Apart from him, there was also another person who entered the room, with a single unserious-looking “★Five★” as an ID.

“This ID is so…” tacky—thought Ninth Lady.

“This ID is so…” suspicious—thought Puppet Show.

“This ID is so…” goofy—thought Knives cutting in from four sides.

Only Tu Xiaotu merely chuckled upon seeing that ID, idly taking the role of the bystander as she watched the development with a smile.

Despite everyone remaining silent, the owner of the ID seemed to be able to sense the comments barraging through their minds. His grey icon flickered for a moment, transmitting a small chuckle—a male voice. Aside of that, it was impossible to hear any other details.

“So this ‘Five’ is…”

“My big brother.”

The joke Qi Jing made with a grin left the four of them astonished.

“Eh? Lord Return Date, do you have a big brother?”

“Could it be that Lord Return Date brought his real brother here?”

“Return Date, you actually had a big brother? I thought you just had a big sister and a little brother? Eh?” Ninth Lady was also in dismay. However, when she heard a voice laden with a smile, her thoughts momentarily snapped like a welded wire—

“That’s right, big brother. Didn’t you guys call him ‘Little Sleek Horse’ before?” The man chuckled softly.

Little Sleek Horse.

Big Sleek Horse.

So of course, this would make him Qi Jing’s “big brother”.

Ninth Lady felt as if something exploded in hear mind with a ‘bang’, escaping her head.

“L-l-li-li, lif…” After stuttering on that ‘li’ for a couple of times, she finally let out a piercing scream that shook everyone to the bone, “Li… LIFE CORE, AAAAAHHHH!!!”

A/N:

The chat style of text is also pretty fun to write… En.

Five, you finally got your share of attention… En.

PS: It seems like a lot of people misunderstood a bit I wrote at the end of chapter 144… I didn’t mean that they’ll meet again in Beijing?? _(:3」∠)_ Meeting up in Beijing would be the “ideal way”, but they would get in contact in other ways… That’s right, I actually secretly read through all the comments.