Chapter 39

"A vlog?"

I was initially planning to wrap up the drawing stream after finishing a few sketches.

But the viewers clearly had other ideas. When they start throwing donations at you, it’s hard to say no.

[Ending it this soon is so unfair...]

[Please keep streaming a bit longerㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ.]

[Pls stay live!]

[How do foreign viewers even understand the streamer?]

[You’re not really stopping after just three more drawings, are you???]

"Alright, alright. I’ll start a phone vlog stream later."

I’ve never done a daily vlog before. Do I just film my routine?

First, I had to finish my current drawing. The second-most-voted topic was...

"Gardevoir from Pokémon...? What’s with these bizarre choices?"

"Gardevoir, huh? I’m not very familiar with Pokémon, so I’ll have to look it up."

Typing "Gardevoir" into the search bar yielded... quite the variety of images.

Some were fine. Others... were not.

{Please enable an age restriction warning for this stream!}

Quickly, I closed the more inappropriate tabs before things got out of hand.

"Let’s just draw it my way."

Now that I had a general idea of the character, I didn’t need to reference any more images.@@novelbin@@

I picked up my pen and started sketching on the paper.

"As I mentioned earlier, breaking the human body into shapes can make drawing easier."

Heads are circles, torsos are rectangles, waists and pelvises are triangles, and limbs are elongated rectangles.

"Facial features usually start with a cross guideline to set proportions, but that can shift depending on the angle and lighting."

Lighting, shadows, and highlights—all these elements play a role in creating depth.

"For the ears, place them between the eyes and mouth, though Gardevoir doesn’t have ears, so that’s irrelevant here."

Similarly, the neck can be positioned by dividing the face into vertical thirds for symmetry.

"Honestly, learning anatomy in detail isn’t necessary for most artists. It’s something only professionals usually dive into."

For beginners, I wouldn’t recommend it. But if someone plans to make art their career, it can be helpful.

"Focusing on every muscle and tendon while drawing is more stressful than it’s worth."

Artists should enjoy creating, not see it as a chore. If it starts feeling like work, the passion fades, and burnout sets in.

Gardevoir’s "dress" wasn’t a typical skirt. It was flowy, elongated, and split into sections.

Not knowing the exact design made it tricky to replicate.

"I should’ve studied fashion design..."

Maybe I could consult a friend from the fashion department later.

"Gardevoir’s eyes are interesting, almost blending into the hair. The boundary lines are unique."

Fascinated by the design, I continued working.

"Alright, Gardevoir is done. Let’s hope the next topic is a bit more... normal."

Even though the poll had determined the topics, one could always hope.

The third-most-voted suggestion was Taoist Garden Girl.

Not the entire Taoist Garden theme, just the girl.

"Taoist Garden sparked a lot of controversy back then, didn’t it? Some people said it wasn’t appropriate for a teenager to draw."

[Honestly, I wanted to smack all the critics back then.]

[They even doubted the initials on the frame! How dense can you be?ㅋㅋㅋ.]

[Even the journalists hesitated before publishing corrections. Idiots.]

[The Discord explanations cleared it up later, though.]

[Some people are still whining about it. Annoying as hell.]

The viewers clearly remembered the ordeal. Meanwhile, I had all but forgotten about it.

It had been over six months—almost a year now.

Who remembers things that long?

"There were a few extra details about the Taoist Garden piece that I never mentioned..."

The chat immediately filled with question marks.

"Well, you all know about the half-eaten apple, right? I mentioned that before."

There were also a few Easter eggs I hadn’t revealed yet.

"For instance, the girl in the painting? She’s my little sister. The background? That was my middle school."

[Wait, the streamer has a sister???]

[You said it in the Taoist Garden critique video. The apple was hers.]

[Whaaaaatㅋㅋㅋㅋ.]

[Someone ban the guy above me.]

[How’s your relationship with your sister?!]

"Did I say that? I can’t remember. Anyway, here’s another detail."

As I sketched the Taoist Garden girl, I dropped a few more tidbits about the painting.

Anonymous Donor donated 10,000 KRW!

[Is your sister pretty?]

"My sister? Of course, she is. She might even become the most beautiful girl in town someday."

[LMAO.]

[Please stop, I can’t breathe.]

[What’s the age difference?]

[Why didn’t we realize you had a sister?]

[I’ve only ever seen you and your mom on streams.]

"My sister is four years younger than me. She’s technically an early admission student, so she just started middle school."

This world’s rules about early admissions were strange. I’d given up trying to understand them.

"Hmm. The lines aren’t quite right... But let’s stop here since there’s one more drawing left."

I hadn’t colored any of the sketches so far. Adding color would’ve taken too long.

Anonymous Donor donated 10,000 KRW!

[Do you have any other siblings?]

"...No. My sister is my only sibling. Thank you for the donation."

I used to have another sibling, but now...

“She’s still with us, just not visibly so.”

My older sister had always been with our family, even now. Her death anniversary was coming up.

I wondered what gift I could take this year. I hoped she’d like it.

"Can I choose the last drawing myself?"

[Sure, go ahead!]

[Of course, we don’t mind!]

[Please... cat girl.]

[Why does the foreign viewer keep asking for cat girls?ㅋㅋㅋ.]

"Hmm."

What should I draw? Something colorful and impactful to keep the viewers engaged?

"How about something inspired by a recent cyberpunk game?"

I decided to end the stream with an illustration. And yes, this one included coloring.

The last piece of a performance should always leave a strong impression.

"Do you think people will start modifying their bodies in the future? I’m not sure."

[Probably. Chips in the brain and everything.]

[It’ll happen, but not anytime soon.]

[They’ll justify it as a way to preserve humanity.]

[Living in a cyberpunk world sounds terrifying, though.]

[It’d be like living in a real-life crime cityㅋㅋㅋ.]

"Ahaha. Well, that’s a problem for future generations, not us."

My words sounded irresponsible, but hey, they were true.

It’s not like a space war was about to break out tomorrow.

Maybe flying cars would exist by the time I died. That alone would be progress.

"Alright, the final piece is done. I’ll take a short break and then start the vlog stream."

Most likely, I’d switch to my phone for the vlog.

[Bye, Hae-Eun!]

[See you later!]

[We want the vlog now!]

Ending the stream, I stretched and left the room.

As soon as I stepped out, Choi Ye-Seo dashed over with a sparkle in her eyes.

"Ha-Eun! Are you really doing a vlog?"

Her enthusiasm was overwhelming. Please don’t shove your face into the camera.

"Yeah, I will. I promised, didn’t I?"

A man’s word is his bond, after all.

"Can I be in it?" Ha Soo-Yul asked, shaking her head to emphasize her question.

Tilting my head to the side, I replied, "You can, but are you okay with that?"

"Sure, it’s fine."

She looked genuinely excited.

Even Choi Ye-Seo wanted to join in.

"And you? Aren’t you worried about rumors?"

"What, are you worried about me?"

Her smug smile annoyed me to no end, but I admitted, "Yeah, I am."

Ye-Seo froze for a moment before her face turned red. She fanned herself with her hands.

"...It’s fine. My agency already announced it."

"They announced it?"

"Yeah. Check the official site if you don’t believe me."

What happened to her usual boisterous self? Why was she suddenly so calm?

Curious, I pulled out my phone and checked the SN Entertainment site.

Sure enough, it was officially announced.

Wait, is this okay? She’s an idol, after all.

"Why are you surprised?"

Apparently, celebrities dating or hanging out casually wasn’t a big deal in this world.

“Now that I think about it, Lee Do-Yoon ended up fine in the original story.”

Maybe this world is free of unicorn-level purity expectations.

"If you’re okay with it, fine. Your face is already public anyway."

"But you never said we’d be streaming outside."

Why are we leaving? Can’t we just do this at home?

When I gave her that look, Yun’s eyes were firm.

"...The weather’s nice today."

Even if I tell her to do whatever she wants, I guess I still need to keep an eye on her.