Chapter 40

Before stepping outside, there are a few things to prepare.

First is an umbrella. Without it, I’d probably die. When you use one, people tend to stare at you, but that’s just because they’re envious.

Second, sunglasses and sunscreen. My skin’s already sore from the sunlight, and my eyes hurt. These are my defense items against that.

Lastly, a notebook and a pen. I always carry them around, just in case.

“Hong Yea-Hwa, you’re going to get hot in that black outfit.”@@novelbin@@

“…It’s fine. I wore this outfit when I came here too.”

That was in the morning, though. Now, it’s almost lunchtime.

Just to be sure, I asked Yun to bring something else.

“Do you have anything white or light-colored?”

“Should I bring something? I’m worried, too. I’m afraid the older girls might collapse.”

“Just bring two, just in case.”

“Okay~.”

Yun went back to her room to change and brought extra clothes.

“Here. I’ll carry the bag.”

Ha Soo-Yul proudly lifted the clothes bag as though showing off her body.

She then looked at me with sparkling eyes.

“Good job…”

She obviously wanted praise, so I couldn’t ignore her.

Her slightly flustered movement as she shook her head looked a bit like a cat’s tail.

I also changed into my outing clothes.

A white T-shirt, light blue shorts, and finally, white arm sleeves.

This is the extent of my measures to block the sunlight.

I grabbed my sunglasses and stepped out.

“Wow…”

“Eun, you look like a celebrity heading out.”

“Hm.”

“Of course, the key is to keep it simple.”

The girls all nodded in agreement, commenting on how they liked my look.

“Isn’t it more about style than taste?”

“Definitely taste!”

“???”

Yun was the first to head out, opening the front door, followed by the others who greeted my mom.

“Son~. Don’t overdo it and wander around too much. If you collapse, that’s a big problem, you know?”

“Yes, yes. I’ll be careful.”

My mom said she’d stay home and wished us a good time.

I followed the four girls, walking behind them.

‘The selfie stick is surprisingly light. Maybe because it’s small.’

I’d bought the selfie stick thinking it might come in handy one day, though I never imagined it would be used now.

It’s designed for men, with hot pink and light blue stripes, so it looks like something for a child.

When I attached my phone to the stick, it felt a bit heavy.

‘I should ask Ha Soo-Yul for help. But, well, it’s more responsible for me to carry it myself.’

Since she was already holding the clothes bag, it seemed a bit much to ask her for help.

“Hey~! Hurry up, old man.”

Ha Soo-Yul, who was walking ahead, turned around and shouted.

The “old man” comment made me laugh, so I quickened my pace.

As I caught up, the four girls slowed down to match my pace, which made me feel that they were being considerate, even if just for a moment.

But then…

Thwack!

“Ow! Why did you hit me?!”

Ha Soo-Yul rubbed her head and yelled.

“Who are you calling old man? I’m only 17.”

Honestly, when you factor in my past life, I could be called “old man,” so I felt a bit guilty.

“17 means I’ve lived about one-fifth of my life. That makes me an old man!”

“Does that mean you’re an aunt?”

“No? I’m an idol, so I won’t age.”

That’s some real hypocrisy there.

Ha Soo-Yul smiled, seeming to enjoy the teasing.

I sighed and then Yun, who was walking beside me, placed her hand on my head.

“Little brother, you shouldn’t act like that.”

“Yeah, brother. You’ll stay forever as a flower boy.”

I muttered to myself but didn’t say anything aloud. Her words weren’t sincere anyway.

I pulled my hand away, grumbling.

“I’m never giving you Haagen-Dazs again.”

“I’ll buy it with my own money.”

Her playful laugh stopped me from saying anything else. It just made me smile.

While we were goofing around like that, we ended up in the busy district.

‘Should I start the stream here? The timing seems right.’

I fiddled with my phone, which was attached to the selfie stick, and started the live stream.

Before starting, I reminded the girls to be okay with appearing on the stream and not saying anything unnecessary.

I gave a quick warning, muted the mic, and switched the screen on.

“Can you hear me?”

[Hello hello hello]

[Hello there]

[Galaxy (Ha-Eun, means Galaxy)]

[Where are you? It looks so sunny]

[It looks good on screen, but it’s probably hot outside, right?]

Sunglasses were a bit uncomfortable, but it wasn’t enough to ruin the broadcast.

“This is Myeongmok-dong. It’s near where I live.”

“Hey, hey! Can you even say that?!”

Suddenly, Ha Soo-Yul whispered in panic, but I didn’t react much.

“Anyone who’s already aware will know. Yun mentioned it on a previous broadcast too.”

“Eh, really?”

[Who is this???!!!]

[The streamer has a girl?!]

[WTF Ha-Eun; you have a girlfriend?]

[But I’ve heard that voice somewhere before]

[Is that really Choi Ye-Seo? From SN Entertainment?]

The viewers couldn’t hold back and started figuring out who Ye-Seo was.

“Yes, that’s the Choi Ye-Seo. Hehe. This is the first time seeing her on a stream like this.”

Ye-Seo scratched her head as she saw the chat messages popping up.

[OMG! It's really her]

[Why is Ye-Seo here???]

[How do you two know each other?]

[fucking shit!! What a weird world!]

“That’s right, she’s my school friend.”

“And also my childhood friend!”

Even though I was trying to cover for them, this guy was making it hard.

[It was already announced, so that must be it.]

[Ah right, I remember now.]

[They really do look good together, they’re like the perfect match.]

[Please draw a cat girl...]

[This guy really never stops.]

‘I guess in this world, scandals like these don’t seem to happen.’ It felt weird, but I couldn’t deny that it was lucky.

“Eun, look ahead.”

“Oh, sorry. One second.”

I got distracted by the broadcast and hadn’t been paying attention to where I was going.

Luckily, Ha Soo-Yul’s warning made me snap out of it and focus forward.

[??? What’s this?]

[Why is there another girl?]

[Isn’t that Ye-Seo?]

[No, it’s more of a calm, lazy voice…]

[Seriously, this is such an unfair world.]

The chat exploded again.

Ha Soo-Yul took the chance to appear on the broadcast screen.

“Hey, hey, it’s hard to walk like this.”

“Yun, stay quiet. Hello, it’s Soo-Yul.”

I had the selfie stick in my right hand, so my posture was a bit awkward.

It was hard to walk as Ha Soo-Yul got in front of me, and I felt like we were forming a circle.

[The streamer should really pay double taxes, really.]

[Why just me? Why just me? Why me?]

[There’s a real main character in the world.]

[Are you the average Korean?]

[Isn’t it more normal for a regular person to be like this?]

Even though many of the comments criticized me, there were some welcoming the appearance of Ha Soo-Yul.

Of course, that was expected. Who could dislike a cute girl?

With Ye-Seo and Ha Soo-Yul now in the picture, the viewership count skyrocketed to nearly three times the normal amount.

“Okay, okay, everyone calm down.”

“……”

As Ha Soo-Yul stepped away, a mysterious hand appeared and slipped into the frame.

It moved swiftly.

The viewers quickly noticed the calluses on the hand, recognizing it as a woman’s hand.

[What the hell?]

[Why is there another person now?]

[Isn’t this Ye-Seo?]

[Why do I feel like I’ve seen that hand before?]

“Alright, we’re going to take a break here for a second.”

We had arrived at a small park.

The grassy area was flat, and there were people playing with their pets.

“Haeun, we’re going to the convenience store for a bit. Yea-Hwa’s about to pass out.”

“Change your clothes. It would’ve been better if you had changed before coming out.”

“…Pervert trash.”

She must have done that on purpose, right? Are we still on the stream?

Yea-Hwa grabbed the clothes Yun had brought and headed for the convenience store.

Ha Soo-Yul and Ye-Seo followed, but something about their intentions seemed off.

So, the only ones left were the viewers, Yun, and me.

“Strangely enough, if I don’t designate the person, others get pixelated.”

It was a pretty surprising feature. How did they make this?

I continued to keep the V-log screen up and didn’t mind it much.

I set the selfie stick on the grass, using it as a tripod, and sat on a chair under a tree's shade.

I took off my sunglasses and lowered my arm sleeves.

“Summer hasn’t even started, but the weather is already insane.”

[Seriously, it’s crazy hot these days.]

[It’s so hot, I feel like I’ll turn into stew.]

[Please, I want the cat girl.]

[This person really doesn’t stop with the cat girl.]

[Isn’t that some kind of discrimination?]

The viewers probably thought all the girls had gone to the convenience store.

However, there was one more girl here.

“Hehe. Here I am!”

Yun, who had been waiting for her chance, jumped into the frame.

Then she warmed me up with her presence, sitting on my lap.

Yun wiped the beads of sweat off her forehead with her hand.

“See? You should’ve been resting by my side earlier. Why were you standing in the sun?”

When I scolded her, Yun grinned.

“Brother, it’s my first time on a broadcast. The protagonist always makes their entrance last.”

I should really stop letting her watch so much OTT. She’s learning useless things.

[What? Haeun's sister?]

[What’s going on here?]

[This is crazy. Yun’s here!]

[Is this fate? This is insane.]

I honestly didn’t know what to think anymore. I just wanted to hold Yun and enjoy the moment.

Her head fit perfectly on my chest. It was comfortable. She seemed to enjoy it even more.

This moment made the chat go wild again.

When the other girls came back, the excitement died down slightly.