I Want to Be a VTuber

The video of Seoyeon participating in the street event spread like wildfire.

It first surfaced as a YouTube short, and soon snippets of it started circulating across various online communities.

└ "???"

It seemed like Seoyeon participated in the event because her little sister wanted the toy.

Initially, there were even claims that the whole thing was staged by the company for publicity, or that it was some kind of setup.

Seoyeon had acted in numerous scenes broadcast on TV before.

When she was working on Dream Future, many clips of her doing challenging or awkward acting had circulated.

However, Seoyeon had always maintained a straight face, even during the most embarrassing scenes.

Yet, in this event, her embarrassment was plainly visible for all to see.

In a way, the emotional depth that was her forte as an actress now worked to convey her embarrassment clearly to the audience.

The event organizers were summoned by their headquarters to explain what happened.

Meanwhile, Loop Entertainment, the production company behind Magical Girl Harara, quickly uploaded the footage to their official YouTube channel.

This all happened within just three days.

It was a whirlwind.

"How about casting Joo Seoyeon and her little sister for our new toy commercial?"

"I already reached out."

The company’s swift action made it clear how influential Seoyeon had become recently.

And as for Seoyeon herself...

"What do you think, Seoyeon? You’ve already done it once—might as well do it again!"

"..."

Seoyeon stared at the YouTube short, which was quickly approaching 5 million views.

She had wanted to improve her image, but she never expected it to happen so dramatically and so easily.

‘Improving your image isn’t something you can force.’

Though her previous efforts had helped somewhat, this event brought a much more drastic and positive change.

As an actress, Seoyeon had always been seen as a bit distant from the public.

She was mainly known for playing antagonistic roles.

Even though she had portrayed Cho Harin in Dream Future, people often remembered actors for their most memorable roles.

For those who watched Dream Future first, they might have thought of her as Cho Harin’s actress, but Cho Harin’s role wasn’t as prominent.

‘Come to think of it, I’ve played quite a few intense roles.’

Lee Yoojoo, too, wasn’t exactly the most virtuous character—she wasn’t a murderer, but she didn’t give off a particularly wholesome vibe either.

Still, Yoojoo was a popular character, largely because she was a victim of her parents’ forced education and had a flawed, unstable personality that made her compelling to watch, like a ticking time bomb.

‘Plus, Yoojoo is incredibly talented.’

In the story, no one was portrayed as more capable than Yoojoo.

Yet despite her abilities, she was an incomplete protagonist, mainly due to her mental fragility, which was often highlighted in the show.

‘Anyway.’

The real issue Seoyeon faced now was the proposal for the Magical Girl Harara toy commercial.

"What do you think? If you do the toy commercial, it’ll really boost your image with mothers!"

"But it’s a toy promotion..."

When Seoyeon looked into Magical Girl Harara later, she discovered that the sheer number of transformation options had led to the series being dubbed “Bankrupt Girl Harara” because it drained parents’ wallets.

The show was popular not only among young children but also among middle schoolers, with even some adults appreciating the character designs.

"Come on, it’s just for fun."

Maybe, but the decision wasn’t hers alone to make.

After all, the offer wasn’t just for her—it was also for her little sister, Joo Suyeon.

When she brought it up at home...

"I want to do it!!!!"

Suyeon’s near-screaming response made Seoyeon cover her ears.

With Seoyeon’s sensitive hearing and strong body, it felt like her eardrums might burst.

"I want to be on TV with you, unnie!!"

Not that her eardrums were weak enough to actually rupture.

"Oh, did Suyeon get a commercial offer?"

"Yes, apparently so."

Their mother, Sua, seemed amused by the whole situation, smiling as she watched Suyeon jump around in excitement.

‘You turned down every other offer that came in.’

Sua had rejected numerous proposals for Seoyeon to appear on TV, saying it might be dangerous if too much attention was drawn to her.

But since Suyeon had been repeatedly asking to see her mom on TV, it seemed there was still a possibility left open.

Sua, too, seemed a bit conflicted, but with the way things were going, it felt like she might give in to at least one appearance.

"You’ve been getting good responses lately. Why not try it again? You used to love things like this when you were little."

"Well, that’s true, but..."

Back then, Seoyeon had liked playing with toys typically expected of young girls.

At first, it was because she thought she should, so she wouldn’t seem strange in her parents’ eyes.

‘But now that I think about it, maybe I actually liked them.’

When she was younger, she hadn’t been in touch with her emotions, so she didn’t fully understand how she felt.

But thinking back on how much she enjoyed playing by herself, maybe it had appealed to her more than she realized.

She had only suppressed it out of a compulsion to avoid seeming strange.

"By the way, what are you doing, Mom?"

"Hm?"

Sua was currently sorting through some old items with Suyeon in the living room.

Some of the things were related to Seoyeon’s childhood—clothes she wore, old toys, and even some really old items like CDs and photo albums.

"Oh, I was just reminded of something while watching a variety show recently."

By “variety show,” she clearly meant Masked Singer.

Sua wasn’t much of a variety show fan otherwise.

Lately, Sua had been acting a little strange.

She would sit around, lost in thought, or start looking up Masked Singer clips.

"What’s this CD?"

Seoyeon pointed to one CD that particularly caught her eye.

CDs had become quite rare these days, and this one didn’t even look like something you could buy in stores.

"Oh, that’s a game CD."

"A game CD?"

There wasn’t even a title on it.

"It’s the first game your dad and I made together. Well, some friends from our club helped out too."

Ah, so this was the game.

Her dad, Yeongbin, often boasted about it.

He’d won an award at a major competition with a game he made in high school.

It was that achievement that got him scouted by a game company, something he’d repeated countless times when he came home after drinking.

Seoyeon had heard the story so often she could practically recite it herself by now.

"Do you want to try it? Not that we can actually play it anymore since we don’t have a CD drive."

"Yeah, that’s true."

Modern computers no longer had CD drives, and it wasn’t like she had any game consoles around that could read it either.

"And this?"

"Ah, that’s an album from high school... the one that led to me meeting your dad."

"An album? It looks more like a comic book title."

"Back then, they used to release albums with Korean songs attached to imported manga."

"Not on national TV, right?"

"No, it was on cable."

Sua laughed sheepishly as she recalled the memory.

"At the time, I only knew the Japanese version of the soundtrack. Your dad said he loved the song from that show, and I assumed he meant the original version, so I played the Japanese one for him... Yeah, let’s stop there."

It turned out later that Yeongbin had been referring to the Korean remake of the soundtrack, not the original.

‘Mom used to be quite the otaku, huh?’

Seoyeon could tell just by looking at her mom’s drawing style, though Sua didn’t let it show much around her.

After becoming an adult, Sua hadn’t really followed anime or manga anymore.

‘An anime OST, huh.’

Seoyeon recognized the song title Sua pointed out.

It must have been a famous song that had been remade multiple times and was still in circulation.

"Mom’s dream was to make games, you know. In that sense, I guess I fulfilled that dream back then."

"Why didn’t you join a game company like Dad?"

"Because I couldn’t make what I wanted if I worked for someone else."

Sua smiled like a child as she spoke.

"I did some freelance work as a programmer and helped your dad with some projects, but it wasn’t really what I wanted to do."

With two daughters to raise, Sua didn’t have the luxury of working full-time.

She believed parents should be present for their children, talking to them and spending time together as much as possible.

"Your dad, on the other hand, was a bit different."

He had wanted to build his career, gain recognition, and eventually have the freedom to pursue his own dreams.

"Do you remember when I asked you before?"

Sua smiled at Seoyeon’s questioning gaze.

"When you were younger, it seemed like you wanted to do something else."

"...Did I really seem that way?"

"Well, you didn’t seem all that interested in acting at first."

Having watched Seoyeon closely, Sua could tell where her daughter’s efforts were directed and what she was interested in.

Though she didn’t know exactly what it was, she knew it wasn’t acting—not at first.

"Now, though, I think you’re genuinely passionate about acting. It seems like that happened after The Moon that Hid the Sun finished."

That was true.

It was around that time that Seoyeon had decided to seriously pursue acting, aiming to become a renowned actress.

"But you haven’t given up on the other thing, right?"

"That..."

Seoyeon wanted to say no, but the words didn’t come easily.

She hadn’t really given up, but something was holding her back.

"Why did you decide to take acting seriously?"

"..."

Sua smiled as Seoyeon remained silent.

"I think that’s the question you’re struggling with."

Seoyeon had her reasons for becoming serious about acting and for wanting to become a famous actress.

"You’ve never been the type to leave things unfinished, Seoyeon."

She was someone who had to complete one thing before moving on to the next.

That’s just how she was.

"And there’s still that dream from your childhood."

Of course, the thing Seoyeon needed to finish wasn’t acting itself.

It was likely something else.

Sua believed that there was something in Seoyeon that she still hadn’t finished, though she didn’t know exactly what it was.

Even after episode 6 of Sky Garden aired, the viewership didn’t change much.

Grand Game remained more popular, and discussions in online communities were still mostly about that show.

However, starting with episode 4 of Sky Garden, Adiz began heavily promoting their chairs.

Episode 4 prominently featured the main characters Yoojoo and Minseo studying hard for their exams while using Adiz chairs.

It was a small buzz, nothing major yet, as Sky Garden hadn’t become a huge hit.

"Are you tired today, Seoyeon?"

"Huh?"

"Your performance seems a bit lacking today."

Really?

Seoyeon tilted her head at director Kim Ilsu’s comment, though it didn’t seem impossible.

"Go home and rest after today’s shoot. The upcoming scenes will be tougher."

"Okay."

Once episode 10 started filming, there would be more outdoor shoots, and that’s when Yoojoo’s character would really start to unravel.

It was the turning point in the story.

‘Childhood dreams...’

Back at home, Seoyeon watched the episodes of Sky Garden that had aired so far from the beginning.

Yoojoo was a very flat character.

It wasn’t that Seoyeon was playing her that way; the character had been designed like that from the start.

Yoojoo merely mimicked her father’s words and actions.

Even if she denied it, the viewers knew.

Yoojoo was just repeating her father’s behavior.

She was a child who hadn’t found what she wanted to do, an immature kid.

That’s who Lee Yoojoo was.

‘Acting.’

In some ways, Seoyeon and Yoojoo were alike, having both started on their paths because of parental influence.

They had chosen that path, and in that sense, they were similar.

But they were also different.

Yoojoo had nothing else, but Seoyeon did.

So why did Seoyeon feel like she had to pursue acting first?

‘I think I know the answer.’

It had to do with Han Yuna, the girl she had recently met whose name was so similar to her own in her previous life.

Yuna’s life was different—her circumstances were different, and she hadn’t been subjected to harsh education from a young age like Seoyeon had been.

Yuna was happy, well-adjusted, and simply a pretty, sweet girl.

Seoyeon didn’t feel envious or upset about that.

She was relieved for Yuna’s sake.

But through Yuna, Seoyeon realized something.

It was one of the reasons she had spoken to writer Min Sehee recently, and it tied into what Seoyeon truly wanted to do moving forward.

There was something Seoyeon needed to do before she could fulfill her childhood dream.

‘Acting is my only way of communicating.’

Maybe, deep down, that’s what she had wanted to show.

No, it was clear.

If she became a famous actress, a star that everyone knew, her parents from her previous life would see her.

So,

"I made a mistake with Yoojoo’s character."

After watching the drama repeatedly, Seoyeon realized that she had missed something in her portrayal of Yoojoo.

She had only just realized it today.

Yoojoo, in many ways, was a character very much like herself.