An Odd and Beautiful Midsummer Night's Dream (4)
The room labeled 505, which I entered after typing in the password, gave off an extraordinary feeling even after the door opened.
For starters, opening the front door didn't immediately reveal the living room. Instead, a long corridor with a marble floor greeted me.
No matter how serious she was about streaming, Yujacha was explaining why she had so readily lent me this place.
In the world of internet broadcasting, there were streamers who suffered stalking because their addresses got exposed, so this might have been her way of preparing for that.
Or maybe she hadn't moved any furniture or bought extra supplies just because I was coming?
"...Nah, no way. There's no reason for her to go that far for me. It's not like she'd suddenly get interested just from seeing one photo."
I forcibly shook off the creepy sensation crawling up my arm and stepped further inside.
Given that she was the owner of this massive skyscraper and someone the security guard addressed as "young lady," someone like me probably didn't even register on her radar.
"...This place is seriously huge. One room is bigger than my entire studio apartment."
After passing the entrance, the living room that appeared was so large I could believe it was a venue for grand banquets.
The ceiling, which looked to be at least three meters high, contrasted sharply with the basement room where I'd had to duck my head to enter. Beyond the floor-to-ceiling windows that covered one entire wall, the outside view stretched out in full.
While I was looking around in admiration at the large OLED TV, luxurious leather sofa, and rug in the center of the living room—
Another message came from Yujacha. Following her request, I immediately took photos of the kitchen and living room and sent them.
[(Photo of the living room and kitchen)]
[The house is really nice. Thank you for letting me stay in a place like this, Yujacha-nim.]
It was only a few lines of text, but it was praise that came from the heart.
Not only was there an oven for baking and confectionery, but the touch-type refrigerator with a separate ice dispenser left me genuinely shocked when I saw it in person.
I remembered seeing TV commercials as a kid that said "Our fridge dispenses ice too!" but in a studio apartment where I had to watch every penny, owning such an expensive appliance felt like pure luxury.
Of course, it was also fascinating that all the appliances were built into the walls with no protruding parts for better space efficiency.
So this is how rich people live these days. It didn't feel real, like I was temporarily living the life of an upper-class family I'd only seen in dramas.
Yujacha evaluated the photo I'd sent with a slightly disappointed tone, replying in a way that could easily be misunderstood if anyone overheard.
Was her personality just naturally the type that made people misunderstand her? Then again, judging by how Yujacha usually spoke and acted, there was definitely a part of her that didn't maintain proper distance well.
She might just be a genuinely kind person, or someone who gave a lot of affection to others.
Even when I was a middle schooler, I'd received salvation from Yujacha, so that was probably why I'd personally liked her.
"......"
Come to think of it, back when I was a clueless middle schooler, I had followed the flow of the chat and left suggestive comments whenever sexy jokes or scenes appeared in Yujacha's streams.
At the time, I was just a hot-blooded boy, and her stream was my only place to rest after part-time jobs or school.
No, honestly, how could anyone resist making lewd comments when a virtual model with an exaggerated bust was doing a saintess RP but using a suggestive voice?
I felt a bit wronged, but I still thought I should apologize.
I'd fallen for an interrogation I never saw coming.
Of course, there were plenty of similar nicknames among viewers, and there was no guarantee it was me, yet I'd gone and confessed my own crime.
I couldn't give a proper answer to this question either. Last time, when she mentioned making a mouse pad, I'd gotten upset and told her not to, but—
The one who had been desperately trying to suppress overflowing personal feelings and affection toward the virtual YouTuber Yujacha while struggling to maintain a proper distance was none other than me.
Even after wandering around for about thirty minutes, I still hadn't seen every part of this place, yet she was telling me there was a separate streaming space in the rightmost room of the living room.
"...At this point, it really feels like I'm a streamer myself. Well, I did collab with Yujacha in the first place, so maybe it fits?"
Following Yujacha's advice, I opened the door to the room that supposedly had the streaming setup ready, and upon seeing the interior, I couldn't help but let out a dry laugh in disbelief.
Was a streaming booth originally supposed to be this big?
There was a separate air conditioner installed in the partitioned space, and instead of one computer and monitor, there were two sets paired together.
With a filtered microphone, multiple cameras, and a green chroma key all present, it was on par with the streaming setups of actual major corporation streamers.
This person was really serious about streaming.
Shhhhh—.
Before the time she'd promised to collab with Kim Baekhyun arrived, Im Yujeong was taking a shower in the bathroom, trying to calm her anxious heart.
After all, she had never let a stranger into her apartment like this before.
Ever since her school days, thanks to her outstanding looks and voluptuous figure, Im Yujeong had always been an object of envy and jealousy—not just from men, but from women as well.
"Calm down. Editor-nim doesn't even know I live in this apartment. Even if he finds out, I only go out very occasionally to throw out the trash."
Living that kind of life, she had developed severe distrust of people and social anxiety, and it had already been a month since she'd last stepped outside.
This was exactly why, even after purchasing Tower Terrace Phase 5 under her own name, she had tried to minimize other residents moving in.
Back in middle school, not only the boys whose confessions she'd rejected, but also girls who disliked her popularity had gathered in groups and waited in front of her house.
Even when she clearly expressed that she didn't want to meet them, there were times they stalked her or spread nasty rumors calling her a slut.
If her old friend and current CEO of EASY Network, Lee Jihye, hadn't tipped her off in advance to avoid them, she might have suffered something terrible long ago.
"And Editor-nim likes the character Yujacha that I'm playing, not the chaebol third-generation Im Yujeong.... He'll be different from other men."
While rinsing off the citrus-scented body wash, Im Yujeong recalled a story her friend had told her before.
Yujeong, Yujeong~ I think a real fan of yours joined our company! He's really handsome and has a good personality.... He was even the one running your fan channel "YujaSweet"!
When she first heard about Kim Baekhyun, what had she replied?
Even though she knew better than anyone that men were all beasts with sinister intentions, the warm, joyful feeling she'd gotten from seeing the fan channel and edited videos had made her—
Really? That's interesting.
From the very beginning, Im Yujeong couldn't help but feel a bit of goodwill toward Kim Baekhyun.
Yujeong, honestly, if I didn't have a boyfriend, I would've tried to seduce him. He seems like that good of a person. He also rejects women without hesitation.
I've never seen anyone send emails this stiff before. I thought it was some kind of official document and got surprised.
Im Yujeong's one-sided goodwill and trust toward Kim Baekhyun had been building up without her even realizing it.
After all, people's feelings weren't always equal, and sometimes one side grew larger than the other.
I've been watching him for years and there haven't been any problems. But there is one peculiar thing.
Peculiar?
On days when your stream starts early, he always leaves work on the dot. On the other hand, when you say you're taking a break, he suddenly shows up at company dinners and does overtime without complaint?
What's that? That's cute.
Even though Im Yujeong had sworn never to trust anyone again, she kept making exceptions for Kim Baekhyun, who cherished the VTuber Yujacha—her other self and persona.
Yujeong, you said you were only going to stream until the end of this year, right? If Kim Baekhyun finds out, won't he be really disappointed?
"......"
Kim Baekhyun didn't like Im Yujeong for her chaebol background, outstanding looks, or her figure that was hard to believe belonged to an East Asian woman.
He cherished the VTuber Yujacha, who did RP based on the protagonist from the otome 19+ game <The Succubus Saintess Does Not Fall!> that he liked.
How about doing a virtual marriage content with Baekhyun? You've got nothing to lose. You know viewership on the rival platform Portrin exceeded 50,000 this time, right?
She had simply wanted to respond to the fan sentiment he had shown. She thought it would be too cruel to disappear without a word.
Trust me and try it once. Lately, word's gotten around that Baekhyun is handsome, so even business partners are confessing to him. Recently, female employees have been lining up to send him dinner invitations through the company email.
Why are you telling me all this?
Well, I know how sincerely Kim Baekhyun treats Yujacha? The new hire who joined this time also rejected a confession because he said he had to watch your stream.
What?
Of course, she had also agonized a lot before making this decision.
If they really did the virtual marriage content, Kim Baekhyun might discover her true identity and then use it to torment or blackmail her.
"...No. If it's a factor I can't control anyway, it might be better to keep him close and watch whether problems arise."
But Kim Baekhyun had always helped with her streams, and playing games with him made them fun in a way they never were alone—like a close, comfortable friend.
The thought of wanting to keep him a little closer had leaked out from deep within Im Yujeong's heart.
"Someday, when that person finds out my true identity, his attitude will definitely change."
Wanting to deny that, she deliberately muttered gloomy words as she finished her shower.
If it meant ending this ambiguous, mutual-deception relationship as quickly as possible, it would be better to openly show that she was wealthy.
Every time she looked at the selfie Kim Baekhyun—the editor—had sent, Im Yujeong felt uncomfortable knowing she'd have to shower again and change clothes once more.
She had never had a favorite male celebrity or idol to begin with, so she'd thought the only things she could find handsome or cute were 2D game characters.
Maybe she was just getting desperate for a man as she got older.
Shaking off her slightly complicated feelings, Im Yujeong sat in front of the computer to act once again as the succubus saintess Yujacha.
"Hello~ Everyone, yujahi!"
With a completely different bright tone and expression, for this moment alone, Im Yujeong could set aside her trauma.
"Alright, the game we'll be playing today! The horror game where the funeral director Yujacha teams up with the scaredy-cat Baekseolgi—<Cheoyong - Manwoegyeong>!"
From the eerie starting screen of the horror game <Cheoyong - Manwoegyeong> recommended by editor Kim Baekhyun, Im Yujeong found herself tensing up slightly.
"B-Baekseolgi...! Please come quickly!"
After all, she was someone who got scared very easily.