Chapter 105: The Reveal Beneath the Disguise

Cosplay is a compound word of ‘Costume’ and ‘Play’—an activity where one dresses up as a character from a comic, animation, or game and brings that character to life.

The cosplay industry had its own unspoken rules and unique culture.

What does that mean?

If you jump in carelessly without understanding the culture, you might end up getting side-eyed.

“You’re not the cosplay team we were expecting?”

“No.”

“Then… that Thierry cosplay is…”

“It’s a hobby.”

I explained the situation to the man.

Cosplay, by nature, is about becoming one with the character.

Even if I skip makeup because I don’t need it, just lazily putting on a costume and standing on stage like this was disrespectful.

“Team leader. The invited cosplay team just called. They said they’ll be really late because of a car accident.”

“The event’s about to start and they’re late? So they’re a no-show? Geez.”

The man clicked his tongue and ran his hand through his hair.

I could feel the struggle of an office worker dealing with all sorts of unpredictable issues.

“Now that the misunderstanding is cleared up, I’ll be going.”

But their struggle was their struggle, and my schedule was mine.

There were still plenty of booths I hadn’t seen, so I had to move quickly.

“Ah, sorry for the misunderstanding. But if you don’t mind… would you like to participate in the contest? Our application rules aren’t that strict, so you can sign up on-site.”

There were two parts to the cosplay event currently being held.

First, the invited category. This one featured professional cosplay teams who were brought in to energize the crowd from the stage.

Second, the general category. This was actually the main event, where participants competed in cosplay and a winner was chosen.

I shook my head.

“I didn’t prepare anything.”

“Huh? But… aren’t you already fully prepared?”

“This is just regular clothing.”

“Oh. Yeah, you’re right… Why did I think that was perfect cosplay?”

The man murmured in confusion. I continued speaking.

“Going on stage without any preparation, just because you look like the character, isn’t cosplay. Cosplay requires thorough preparation in advance!”

“Noona. If you want to enter, should I bring your costume?”

“Yuseong. Please make some noise when you enter. What costume are you talking about?”

“Obviously the Thierry costume. I’ve got a bunch in the car—I’ll bring whichever one you want. They’re all tailored to your size.”

“Why in the world do you carry those around?”

Yuseong, seriously. What are you?

Are you Doraemon or something?

“I heard there’d be a cosplay event here, so I came prepared. There’s no way you’d just pass this kind of thing up.”

“It’s very clear now that you don’t know me at all.”

“So it wasn’t? Then what was that thing back in second year of middle school? That was cosplay too.”

“That was a different type.”

“Anyway. So are you entering or not?”

Hmm…

“I’ll give it a shot.”

“Knew it.”

Cosplay requires acting.

Just wearing clothes that resemble the character and standing still isn’t cosplay.

You have to strike poses, act the part, and make expressions the character would make—that’s true cosplay.

[Next participant, please come up!]

Following the host’s call, I stepped onto the stage.

Standing in the center, I struck a pose as if I were casting elemental magic.

I could feel the crowd’s cheers brushing against my skin.

They were clearly impressed by the quality of my outfit.

“…!”

In the distance, I spotted someone pointing at me in shock.

It was the rabbit and the turtle.

They seem to get along. Have they given up on racing now?

But rabbit, you better be careful. That turtle looks sneaky—he might be planning to steal your liver or something.

“Is that really Thierry?”

“Did a dimensional gate just open or something?”

“Huh? Wait, huh?”

The people right in front of the stage murmured quietly.

Normally, their voices would have been drowned out by the cheering, but a super-developer’s ears pick up even the tiniest sounds.

I’m basically a human wiretap—FBI would cry in envy.

Honestly, my acting skills were pretty amazing.

I’d done Thierry so many times by now. Of course every pose would be filled with soul.

It wasn’t strange for people to mistake me for the real Thierry jumping out of the game.

“Whoa, that costume is crazy good.”

“Is that her real hair?”

“How could that color be natural? Must be dyed.”

“Even dye wouldn’t do that, I bet.”

Huh. Why is no one complimenting my acting?

Reluctantly, I acted out Thierry’s ultimate skill this time.

Surely now they’d feel my sincerity toward cosplay.

“Her skin is insane.”

“That’s not her skin, that’s makeup. Do you think someone could naturally have skin like that?”

“Wow. Makeup really is cheating.”

“…Still, even with makeup, can someone look like that? Not even Photoshop could pull it off.”

I stopped posing and held up a peace sign near my face.

The cheering grew even louder.

If you guys are happy, I’m happy too.

A super-developer always has a duty to provide what the users want.

I’m a pop culture creator. If something’s good, I adopt it right away. I don’t go on some crusade saying it’s ruining artistic integrity—

“Unnie, you really are impossible to predict.”

“I’m not a bouncy ball. Please don’t poke my skin.”

After finishing my performance and coming down from the stage, Bunnyrun ran up and checked my skin.

Calling a person a bouncy ball… Bunnyrun, you’re getting weirder by the day.

[Judging is complete! Now announcing the winners!]

At those words, everyone in the event hall turned to the host.

[Starting with third place. Congratulations! Playing the half-ogre Ormal, we have… ‘DeepFriedSweetAndSourPork’!]

“Huh?”

Waaaahhh!

The crowd erupted in cheers.

The host continued.

[Second place goes to… congratulations to ‘Shin Changhyun’ for his portrayal of the Death Knight, Marvin Frile!]

“Unnie. Wait a sec.”

Bunnyrun looked panicked. I turned to her, wondering why, just as the host spoke again.

[And the grand prize winner… congratulations! Portraying the Master of Elements, Thierry—]

“Unnie! Wait, wait!”

[It’s ‘Kim Inho’!] “Huh?”

WAAAAAAAAAAAH!

I stepped up onto the stage.

When I lifted the Eternal World logo made of pure gold high above my head, the crowd went wild.

Satisfied with the stage, I returned to Bunnyrun.

“So, what were you trying to say?”

“I thought you entered the cosplay competition using your real name.”

“I told you, I wouldn’t use my ultimate move until I became a super-developer.”

“And yet you always end up doing something weird.” She added.

“That’s a misunderstanding.”

It really was.

I’ve only ever done normal things.

“…Yurim unni. Hello.”

As my conversation with Bunnyrun ended, Chae greeted me casually.

I stared blankly at Chae.

“…Yurim unni? Is something wrong?”

“I was checking… if there was eye gunk.”

“…Is there?”

“There isn’t.”

Even after I told her there wasn’t, Chaenarin switched to selfie mode and checked her own face.

A society where people can’t trust one another. Is this really okay?

“It’s not that I don’t trust you.”

“Even if I can’t trust the world, I should at least trust you.”

If one can’t trust the Apostle of Truth, then who can they trust?

Bunnyrun?

The Apostles of Purity are the kind of wicked bunch who can lie without hesitation to protect their so-called purity.

If you meet them in the Tower of Tutorials, they’re the number one faction to watch out for.

Just trust me and follow along.

“But why did you say Kim Inho?”

“You have to mention him now and then, or he’ll get upset.”

Inho’s such a sweet guy.

Truly sweet.

Thank you very much.

“But it was fun, right?”

“I was nervous the whole time.”

“Bunnyrun. As I’ve said many times before, you’re overreacting.”

Recognizing me just from my face is extremely difficult.

At best, people would think, ‘I’ve seen her somewhere before… Wait, Thierry? But that one’s clearly the superior version.’ They wouldn’t go, ‘Who is that? Hold on. Is that Han Yurim? Did she model her avatar after her real self?’

That kind of thinking would actually be weirder.

And since the world moves according to common sense, Bunnyrun’s worries were clearly overblown.

“I’m going to go get changed real quick, then.”

“Then I’ll wait in front of the arena.”

“…Please be quick.”

Leaving Chaenarin and Bunnyrun behind, I headed to where the limousine van Yuseong had driven was parked.

Even with a hat and sunglasses on, my Thierry outfit stood out, so I attracted quite a few glances.

“Hello. Would it be okay if we did a quick interview?”

So it wasn’t too strange that someone approached me like this.

I glanced at the camera. Was this for a livestream?

It didn’t really matter, so I responded readily.

Changing my voice a little was just a bonus.

“Of course.”

“Thank you. Are you here to watch the ECK finals today?”

“Definitely.”

“Could you tell us which team you’re supporting?”

“Zenith Dragon.”

Zenith Dragon was Bbangbbang’s team.

With a rookie like Bbangbbang on the roster, they had yet to win a championship—often called the strongest among the titleless.

“Do you have a favorite player on the team?”

“I like Prince. He’s really good at playing Noah Weber.”

Prince, who shamelessly borrowed my Noah Weber playstyle and then even gave me a shout-out in an interview, was a very promising sprout.

He must be nurtured.

At my words, the interviewer nodded and asked the final question.

“Last question. What do you think is the key point of today’s match?”

The streamer ‘Deboned Mackerel’ specialized in pro league commentary content for Eternal World.

This was quite rare for a non-professional. Usually, pro league commentary content was monopolized by former pros or members of famous teams.

To survive, Deboned Mackerel did things others wouldn’t.

He focused his content on live, on-the-ground coverage—something most avoided out of sheer laziness.

On Deboned Mackerel’s stream, a woman was being interviewed.

A man watching the stream tilted his head.

A gold wig and a costume identical to Thierry’s.

‘Did she enter the cosplay contest?’

Seemed likely.

It was just a shame that her face was hidden under sunglasses and a hat.

With an unusually high-pitched voice—like an anime character—the woman continued the interview.

She supported Zenith Dragon and especially liked Prince. Deboned Mackerel asked her one final question.

“Last question. What do you think is the key point of today’s match?”

“The key point?”

“What aspect do you think will determine the outcome of the match?”

“The outcome…”

The woman paused, then slowly opened her lips.

“Of course, it all depends on whether the city core, the key to the game, can overcome his nerves. As far as I know, Zenith’s city core player used to be a support main. Since he’s not a pure DPS, he’ll have to overcome that to open the path to victory. In the end, when pushed to the limit, people tend to fall back on what they know best. Crushed under the weight of never having won—”

……?

Uh… hmm.

Hmm?

A massive sense of discomfort. Just as something sparked in the man’s head—

[ᄋᄋ has donated 1,000 won]

Shit, it’s Han Yurim.

Someone dropped a donation like they were waiting for the perfect moment.

The TTS voice boomed through the stream and echoed at the venue.

Startled, Deboned Mackerel flinched. The woman remained perfectly still, staring at the camera.

And then—

“Guess I’ve been caught?”

She spoke softly, no longer using that anime character voice but her real one—a clear, graceful tone.

She removed her sunglasses and hat.

The man was speechless.

Sun-kissed hair fluttered around her. Her clear eyes, like the autumn sky, pierced the camera lens, and her snow-white skin created an ethereal, otherworldly vibe.

The woman—

Han Yurim—opened her mouth.

“Hello?”