NOVEL WEB Chapter 31
GASP!
A gentle knock on the door accompanied by her sister’s voice.
Si-yoon startled and checked the time.
It was already past 9 o’clock.
Having streamed late for the first time in ages, she had gotten so immersed in chatting with her viewers.
Si-yoon made up a vague excuse and muted her microphone.
She hurriedly approached the door.
CREEK—
Slowly, she cracked the door open and poked her head out.
“Uh, I’ll be right out!”
Si-yoon stumbled over her words but tried to sound as calm as possible.
“Yeah, I bought a ton of delicious snacks, so hurry out!”
“Okay!”
As the door closed, Si-yoon leaned against it.
She placed her palm on her chest and let out a whoosh of relief.
Her heart was thumping loudly.
She still didn’t have the courage to reveal that she was her sister’s favorite VTuber, Momobin.
‘This isn’t the time for that!’
Si-yoon rushed back to her monitor.
What if her sister turns on the TV right now?
What if she naturally opens up TubeTube?
The bright red “live” indicator for Momobin would undoubtedly entice her sister.
And there’s no way she could resist that temptation.
She would definitely pop in for even just a moment.
She needed to wrap things up before that could happen.
She had already said she would be out soon.
If she ended the stream before her sister could see it, there wouldn’t be much that would hint she abruptly cut it short at the end of the replay.
“Alright, everyone! We’ll wrap up the late stream here for today!”
– Wait, what?
– What’s happening, what’s happening, what’s happening?
– Since this is a late stream, okay!
– No, don’t go!
– Nnnnnnoooooo!
Chat messages flooded in, trying to hold her back.
“Hey, it’s a late stream today! See you next time!”
– Okay, okay, gotcha!
– Don’t go!
– Nnnoooooo!
Si-yoon calculated the timing just right and ended the broadcast.
She cautiously approached the door.
In that brief moment, a whirlwind of thoughts rushed through Si-yoon’s mind.
What if she already turned on the TV?
Her sister hadn’t been suspicious about the freelance work she’d been doing until now.
But what if she started to doubt? Would she have to confess then?
Just imagining it made her dizzy.
Her sister was so passionate about Momobin that she would look up even her cringeworthy past videos.
If there were a mouse hole, Si-yoon would want to hide in it.
Slowly, very slowly, she opened the door.
Poking her head out into the living room at a tortoise-like pace, she tried to assess the situation.
…..
‘I’m alive…!’
What a relief!
Her sister was leisurely setting out the food on the table.
Seeing the quiet, it seemed the TV was still off.
Si-yoon pretended to act nonchalantly as she stepped outside to prepare drinks.
With that, the ambitious late-night snack Si-hyun prepared was all set.
Si-hyun naturally grabbed the remote and turned on the TV.
Just as Si-yoon predicted, Si-hyun opened TubeTube.
It went without saying, but the broadcast of Momobin that had ended wasn’t at the top.
Si-hyun always kept her promises with Si-yoon.
When they watch TV together after work, they wouldn’t watch VTubers or anything like that.
They had never broken that rule even once.
Browsing through the video list nonchalantly, she handed the remote to Si-yoon.
“I don’t have anything that interests me right now. Turn on whatever you want to watch.”
“Uh, right!”
Si-yoon had been pretending to be calm, but her facial muscles were twitching ever so slightly.
She navigated the remote and picked a mundane video.
Only then did she release a sigh of relief internally.
Now her heart felt a little more settled.
Unaware of her sister’s anxiousness, Si-hyun beamed a bright smile.
“Today, the boss in the dungeon gave us a magic stone that Ji-a needed really badly, right?”
“Oh, really?”
“Yep! So I gave that to Ji-a. They said they’d deposit a ton of money later after processing the spoils.”
“Wow… that’s great!”
As Si-yoon expressed her surprise, Si-hyun excitedly continued talking.
“Though we’re still lacking in some areas, let’s finish studying and then move to a new house!”
“A new house…”
It wasn’t bad news.
Considering Ji-a’s earnings and the house, if they moved in together with her sister, it would undoubtedly be to a pleasant and nice place.
But Si-yoon sensed it instinctively.
If they weren’t going to live independently and they moved to a new place…
The moment they moved, she would have to reveal that she was a broadcaster at the very least.
That way, they could properly set up soundproofing.
Even now, she was doing her utmost to soundproof within her means.
But it was still lacking.
Better soundproofing, a pleasant and good workspace.
That was one of Si-yoon’s dreams and goals.
In that moment, Si-yoon’s mind spun rapidly.
‘…Could I just reveal I’m a broadcaster without mentioning Momobin?’
It might be possible, but the moment those two got connected, discovering it would be instantaneous.
That didn’t seem like a good plan.
‘Should I just confess outright?’ That thought flickered through her mind again.
But shaking her head, she dismissed that option.
She wasn’t ready for it yet.
Even though she was fretting every day, she didn’t want to shatter her sister’s happy delusions for that reason.
No, more than that, she was embarrassed about herself.
‘What, what excuse should I come up with…?’
It wasn’t like they were going to move out immediately, but Si-yoon’s heart was tangled in a complicated web.
It was spring.
*
The next day, lunchtime.
Si-hyun relaxed on the sofa as usual, lounging comfortably.
It was still a few days until the Academy’s lecture day.
As a part-time instructor, Si-hyun had fewer obligations and thus fewer responsibilities.
Unless she had something specific to prepare and study on her own, she had no reason to go to the Academy.
After working all day yesterday, she wanted to rest today.
That was Si-hyun’s train of thought.
“This protagonist is quite similar to me, huh…?”
As she continued reading the manga she had been engrossed in for a while, Si-hyun found herself mumbling unconsciously.
Curious about the meaning of a term that appeared in the work, she searched it online.
A term: “Gungnir Woman.”
A person who has a job and fulfills their duties as a member of society, but mostly just lazes around at home while their love life dries up like a dried fish.
In other words, it meant “the female version of the herbivore man.”
The more she read the manga, the more Si-hyun realized she was getting absorbed in it.
She didn’t lack interest in romance, but…
She was different in many ways compared to others.
Complicated circumstances and specific traits made her give up on thinking about it deeply.
Whenever she thought of the term “romance,” it was only the heroic party that came to mind.
She realized they weren’t normal, but…
No matter what, it was inescapable to naturally associate them with it.
She was still young, so there was no need to rush into such matters!
Time would solve it eventually.
Si-hyun focused back on the manga.
Thanks to this new obsession, she had just ordered new clothes.
A full wish list of women’s clothing recommended by her younger sister, Si-yoon.
She ordered a few, and a message had even come in this morning, saying they would arrive today.
Si-hyun’s lips curved into a natural smile.
Purchasing something new was always an exciting and thrilling experience.
Just then.
Her phone screen changed, and a call came in.
The caller was Moon Da-young. Si-hyun answered the phone.
“Hello?”
– “Hey there. Si-hyun, this is about the request I made before. Can we talk now?”
“Of course.”
Once Si-hyun agreed, Da-young lightly continued explaining.
She had secured the tools that would be used for Si-hyun’s lecture based on the previous request.
They had also prepared all the materials.
Now, all that was left was to start the work and for Si-hyun to pay the fee.
– “About that fee, I’ll only charge for the raw materials, so I was hoping to ask for some other help in place of the labor costs.”
“Help? What do you need?”
– “Well, our kids got banged up a bit in a C-rank dungeon yesterday.”
“…Were they hurt badly?”
– “No, no! They’re not seriously injured, so you don’t have to worry. They’ll heal up quickly.”
“…That’s a relief.”
Si-hyun let out a sigh of relief.
In the Wings Guild, if it was a C-rank, it would either be Ji-han or Han-gyeol.
Since she referred to them as “kids,” it must include Han-gyeol as well.
It was good news that it wasn’t a big issue.
– “So, I was wondering if you could come along to the dungeon with us?”
“Together to the dungeon?”
– “Yep! I wanted to help our D-rank trainees get accustomed to C-rank dungeons. I thought about who to ask and figured you’d be the most reliable!”
“…Heh.”
Most reliable, huh…
Si-hyun rubbed her cheek with the hand that wasn’t holding her phone.
Her cheeks felt slightly warm, and the corners of her mouth lifted slightly.
– “Even if you just watch from the back, that’s fine! The kids will handle the fighting; you just need to make sure they don’t get hurt. How does that sound?”
“So you want me to guarantee their safety?”
– “Exactly! That’s exactly it! If you’re not satisfied, you can scold them. What do you think?”
“Hmm…”
Once Da-young finished her explanation, Si-hyun fell into thought for a moment.
Ultimately, the core was not Ji-han or Han-gyeol, but the D-rank trainees included with them.
Taking responsibility for their safety while tackling a C-rank dungeon.
‘That’s easy, right?’
From Si-hyun’s perspective, it was an utterly uncomplicated task.
Above all, it was a good opportunity to observe the skills of several established D-rank hunters.
She could also gather a good comparison against her students.
Since the items she had requested weren’t cheap, saving on labor costs wasn’t a bad idea either.
Si-hyun made her decision.
“Sure, when would you like me to help?”
– “Good call! If you have a busy schedule, could you message me? We need to book the dungeon, so if you can decide on a time, I’ll reach out again.”
The two coordinated their schedules simply.
Afterward, the call ended.
As Si-hyun was checking her plans, feeling pleased with their discussion, a new message arrived on her phone.
Unconsciously glancing at her phone screen, Si-hyun dashed to the entrance.
She opened the door and looked outside.
A silver poly-bag, a delivery package, lay on the ground.
Si-hyun quickly picked up the bag and returned to the living room.
Sitting on the floor, she tore into the package.
“Oh….”
Pushing aside a thank-you note written in hand and some candy, Si-hyun pulled out the clothes.
The unique new-clothing smell lightly tickled her nose.
Black dolphin pants.
Since she bought several colors, she had options for mix-and-match!
Beaming, Si-hyun changed into the clothes.
Except when she was sleeping, she had been wearing the most comfortable pants she could find for outings until now.
Considering her shirt was already a T-shirt, she could now relax even more at home.
After switching pants, Si-hyun immediately stood in front of the mirror.
Twisting her waist, she checked out her reflection.
“Looks, uh, good…? Hehe….”
Lost in her own appreciation, with a grin, she struck a pose she’d seen in an internet photo.
But she soon shyly blushed and stepped back from the mirror.
AHEM…!
Next was the time to check the comfort!
With that, Si-hyun leaped onto the sofa.
Her bare legs, including her thighs, felt perfectly snug to the sofa.
The pants she had been wearing until now, no matter how comfortable the fabric, were still long pants.
Moving around had certainly been cumbersome.
However, now she felt none of that. It was simply so comfortable.
Si-hyun smiled contently as she picked up her phone.
She was about to resume watching the Gungnir Woman manga.
As Si-hyun lay on the sofa, diving deep into the manga,
Si-yoon, who had been lazily rolling around on her bed during the broadcast break day, stepped into the living room.
Feeling a bit bored, she thought about watching TV with her sister.
She glanced at the clothes scattered all over the living room floor.
Looking up again, she saw her sister.
Dressed in her new pants and seemingly in a good mood, Si-hyun was fluttering her legs as she immersed herself in her phone.
A wide grin formed on Si-yoon’s face.