Chapter 100: Everyday life in winter, Part 1

Hayoon came home from school without much thought and started examining Lucy’s character design, piece by piece, at the Igloo. This was part of Hayoon’s routine—a process to gain a comprehensive understanding of the character and create a more detailed illustration.

It might be a classic method, but it was undeniably effective. Hayoon planned to spend some time like this, call Seo Ji-woo around dinner time, and ask about her thoughts on the design changes.

–Ring. Ring.

Unexpectedly, a call came in.

It wasn’t through a calling app, but a direct call to her phone.

This phone number was definitely Seo Ji-woo’s. She must have seen it on the contract.

–I’m sorry…

The conversation began with an apology.

“Uh, Lucy, right? What’s wrong?”

–Well, I’ve been thinking… I think I was too rude when we met at the cafe…

“Huh?”

–No, it’s just… Um, like ordering a weird drink without asking…

“Aha…?”

After a few exchanges, Hayoon intuitively understood the situation.

Seo Ji-woo’s strangely insecure attitude.

The reaction of Seo Ji-woo’s father at the cafe.

Putting all these pieces together, it was clear that after returning to Ulleungdo Island, Seo Ji-woo had been scolded and, after enduring the weekend, called to apologize as soon as the weekday arrived.

‘Well, it wasn’t so bad that I expected an apology…’

On the contrary, if Seo Ji-woo suddenly gained a sense of propriety at this point, it was highly likely that she would become boring. It might seem frustrating to others, but…

“You don’t have to apologize. Lucy… No, Ji-woo, you’re fine just the way you are.”

“R-Really?”

“Of course.”

Anyway, for the next year, Hayoon would be communicating with Seo Ji-woo only through email or DMs. And since she didn’t seem like the type to ignore messages altogether, going beyond just short replies…

Hayoon encouraged Seo Ji-woo, saying she was fine as she was.

‘Her father might have a bit of a hard time though…?’

If his daughter could achieve success in broadcasting in exchange for being a bit clueless, he would receive allowance money from her earnings in the future, so wouldn’t it all work out in the end?

Hayoon rationalized it that way.

‘You just have to live like an animal for one more year. I’ll take control directly when you come to Seoul. Don’t become boring by suddenly getting etiquette lessons.’

Hayoon hoped Seo Ji-woo would maintain this state for the next year.

It would be better for her success in broadcasting.

Others struggle to act clueless, but Seo Ji-woo didn’t have to act at all. If that wasn’t talent, what was?

‘The Vtuber contract itself is for three years after debut, so let’s just think of it as shaping her up over those three years.’

Before she knew it, Hayoon was planning Seo Ji-woo’s life. After a moment of silence, the first to speak was…

“…”

“Yes?”

“How old are you…?”

It was Seo Ji-woo.

Having found someone who empathized with her, she seemed to have developed a sense of closeness with Hayoon and started building up to dropping the honorifics.

“Ah, I’m eighteen. I’ll be a senior in high school soon.”

“Oh, m-me too. Then, maybe…”

Sure enough.

Seo Ji-woo was just as Hayoon expected.

Well, Hayoon herself was already half-way to dropping honorifics with Hong Seo-hyun and Choi Arin, so she couldn’t really say anything.

“Can we… drop the honorifics…?”

What expression would Seo Ji-woo be making right now?

She said she grew up on Ulleungdo Island, so she probably didn’t have many friends her age. She probably didn’t have anyone to confide in when her parents scolded her.

Looking at Hayoon, a same-age peer she might be able to befriend, wouldn’t she be staring at her phone with wide, pleading eyes like Puss in Boots, trying not to miss this opportunity, even though it wasn’t a video call?

‘Nah, no way.’

The same thought briefly crossed Hayoon’s mind.

As mentioned before, Hayoon didn’t mind dropping honorifics either.

In this industry, it wasn’t mandatory for MCNs or company CEOs to use formal language with their streamers and Vtubers. In fact, it was more common for them to be close like siblings, so there was no reason Hayoon and Seo Ji-woo couldn’t do the same.

“Sure, let’s drop them, Ji-woo.”

Of course, Hayoon had to hold the reins.

Hayoon acted as if she was granting a favor.

She said it in a gentle tone.

“T-Thanks, Hayoon. I, I, I went to that kind of franchise cafe for the first time, and I was so excited that I, I, wanted to try the so-called golden recipe, and that’s why I acted that way…”

“…?”

Hayoon had to endure another barrage of apologies.

Was the previous one an apology as the company president and employee, and this one as person to person?

Hayoon simply nodded and reassured her again that it was okay…

“Oh, right. Right. Hayoon, I bought some makeup at Olive Young, but my skin is a bit tanned, so the makeup doesn’t look good. So, I don’t really know what products to use in these situations, so could you maybe take a look at the makeup I bought and see if there’s anything that might help…”

It seemed the conversation would go on for a while longer.

Having finally found a friend of the same age and with similar interests, Seo Ji-woo started talking rapidly, as if a switch had been flipped.

‘At this rate, it’ll take forever to bring up her character…’

Hayoon listened to Seo Ji-woo’s story quietly.

This kind of girl talk was a first for her, and its novelty made it not so bad.

There were some difficulties along the way, but after communicating with Seo Ji-woo, Hayoon received confirmation that the character design would remain largely unchanged.

Dark blue bobbed hair, contrasting with Scarlet’s bright red hair.

Lucy with slight curves, unlike Scarlet with her ample bust.

Since the plan was to create a virtual avatar completely opposite to Scarlet, it seemed like it would be surprisingly easy to make.

However…

‘If I’m not careful, people might say things like it’s the Korean flag, or Pepsi, or something.’

The colors were red and blue.

Even if they were positioned as opposites, if the colors were similar, they would undeniably resemble the Korean flag.

If Scarlet’s base color was a bright red tone, Lucy’s needed to be a dark blue tone.

Keeping this in mind, Hayoon was on the back seat of the bus, searching for the right shade and tweaking the RGB values.

‘Even though there’s an original character design, I need to make slight changes to the personal color. I have to take care of these details so that Vtuber fans can enjoy themselves.’

Nod.

Hayoon was determined, absolutely determined, to prevent anyone from calling Scarlet and Lucy the Taegeuk Duo or the Pepsi Duo.

“As expected, you’re here.”

Somehow, Hong Seo-hyun managed to get on the same bus as Hayoon. Taking advantage of a slight gap in the crowd, she made her way to the back and called out to Hayoon.

“Aren’t we getting off at the next stop after the next?”

“Geez, why are you talking like that?”

Apparently, she had left a little later than usual and almost missed the bus. She managed to catch it after running, and since Hayoon was also on board, she had been looking for a chance to move to the back. However, due to the crowded bus, she couldn’t find an opening until now.

“You’ve had a long day.”

“Hey.”

“You never miss a chance, do you?”

“Heh.”

Hayoon lightly patted Hong Seo-hyun’s head, praising her. Not wanting to be outdone, Hong Seo-hyun patted Hayoon’s head in return.

She really was competitive. Unable to take it any longer, Hayoon put her tablet in her bag and started a light conversation.

“How’s streaming going? I haven’t been able to monitor much because I’ve been busy preparing for meetings and auditions.”

“It’s the same as always. You know my streams are pretty popular, right? I’m trying not to overdo it and end before midnight these days.”

“You’re taking a taxi home, right?”

“Of course. How can I go home alone at that hour?”

As for Hong Seo-hyun’s recent situation…

As Hayoon roughly knew, things were going smoothly.

As Scarlet, the valuable cash cow of BGG Company, she was diligently earning money.

“Did you change your shampoo recently? It smells like coffee and it’s really nice.”

“Huh…?”

“What?”

“You called me ‘Unnie’?”

“Yes, you’re Seo-hyun Unnie.”

Hayoon acted a little cute, feeling like she hadn’t paid enough attention to her lately.

Seeing Hong Seo-hyun’s face turn bright red, Hayoon tilted her head, wondering if she was surprisingly weak to such surprise attacks.

‘Well, I guess so.’

Since Hong Seo-hyun could never call Hayoon “Unnie,” this was a one-sided win.

Hayoon thought so.