Chapter 164
Our playful squabbles with Yoo Seol-ah spreading across the world? It was still just a plan for now, but I felt like I needed to act a bit more mature. I desperately wanted the game to be a hit, but the more successful it got, the more embarrassing it would be.
"...Yoo Seol-ah, from now on, let's stop picking fights with each other."
"...Why 'each other'? It's always someone who starts it first."
"......"
Thinking it over, maybe growing up wasn't all good. Childhood innocence was so precious. I was only twenty. Way too young to be acting all mature.
"Yeah, if only someone would just stop starting fights, it'd be fine."
"......"
As our glares crackled like static, a voice full of laughter from the side forced us both to break eye contact at the same time.
"Let's include that exact moment as-is."
"Sounds good. We'll need to scout some great voice actors too."
They weren't speaking too loudly, like they were just chatting between themselves, but it was close enough for Yoo Seol-ah and me to hear. The two of them smirked as we fell silent in unison.
...Yeah, it was good that those two were getting closer. It wasn't entirely unrelated to sacrificing our image to advance their relationship. Absolutely not because our mental age was on an elementary school level or anything.
"Alright, shall we see how it looks on camera first?"
"Yeah, we'll know once we test it out."
At Doyun hyung's words, we all headed toward the massive chroma key screen. It wasn't some cheap off-the-shelf item—its size was impressive, and there wasn't a single wrinkle to mess up the shots. The fabric reached all the way to the floor, so overhead filming wouldn't be an issue either.
"Just place the doll on it?"
"Yeah. It's not too big, so right in the center should work."
She'd initially tried picking it up herself, but since it mimicked her exact movements, it was tricky to handle. Lee Seo-yeon switched tactics.
"Seol-ah, can you move this for me? It feels off somehow."
"I'll do it."
True to her status as a magic master, Yoo Seol-ah grabbed the doll under the armpits without hesitation and placed it dead center on the screen. Doyun hyung immediately set up the camera tripod and started fine-tuning the angle.
"Whoa, it looks kinda magical on screen."
"...It's your creation."
I couldn't help but poke at Yoo Seol-ah's excited comment as she scampered behind the camera. Well, she probably never saw it from that perspective herself. Doyun hyung had called it a good value pick, but by normal standards, it was pricey—and the live view on the camera screen had a realism that made a real difference. Even with how good phone cameras were these days, it wasn't the same as a proper setup.
"Quarter view is usually around this angle. Wanna take a look?"
I trusted Doyun hyung's judgment completely, but since he'd offered, I checked the screen. The camera was aimed diagonally above Ruinele. Quarter view was all about simulating 3D in 2D, so angles were similar across characters with just slight variations. Games that used map elements often went with it. Doyun hyung emphasized map-based strategy too, and since it was a grid-movement game, this angle made navigation feel smooth.
"Can't we go just a tiny bit higher? At this height, the square right above the character might get blocked."
"Yeah, on mobile, that'd lead to misclicks. Let me bump it up a smidge."
Among us, Yoo Seol-ah—who had the least gaming experience—blinked in mild surprise. Lee Seo-yeon sidled up and explained, and realization dawned on her face. Then she started gazing at me with those wide, wondrous eyes.
Like I'd said something profound. She could be so innocently pure at times like this.
"The characters are all SD-style, so super head-heavy. That's why they'd block it more easily."
"...Yeah, makes sense. Got it."
Speaking purely of spatial awareness, Yoo Seol-ah was leagues above me. No one here could top her. Once she'd fully grasped it, she eyed the precisely adjusted camera angle and dropped a simple solution.
"I'll just draw the grid lines. Problem solved, right?"
Her tone implied why guess when we don't have to? We three—including me—were left momentarily stunned. Lee Seo-yeon recovered first.
"...I keep forgetting Seol-ah can use magic sometimes."
The doll currently perched beside her, mimicking her hair-toss, was made with Yoo Seol-ah's magic too. But even seeing that hadn't sparked the idea of asking for a grid. Drawing straight lines was child's play for her.
"...What do you mean by that?"
It was hard to picture Yoo Seol-ah as a grand mage. I was thinking the same thing, but thankfully, Lee Seo-yeon took the hit first. With her wrist still caught, she flashed an awkward smile, clearly plotting an escape.
"No, I mean, how can there be such a cute, pretty mage? Right?"
"...Ugh, why are you like this..."
She sounded repulsed, but since she let go of the wrist right away, the key with Yoo Seol-ah seemed to be maximum shamelessness. I always learned something from Lee Seo-yeon. Time to practice my thick skin.
A bit embarrassed, Yoo Seol-ah fanned her face with her hand before slowly extending it toward the doll.
"How big should the squares be?"
"Hmm, about two doll heads' worth?"
In the blink of an eye—before Doyun hyung even finished—a hundred perfect squares appeared. Each one identical, like drawn with a ruler. Exactly two doll heads fit in every one.
Did she calculate all that in her head?
"...You make it look so easy."
"Just make all the lines evenly spaced? Eyeballing's fine for that."
"......"
No arguing that point. I shut my mouth. Best chalk it up to her superhuman spatial sense. With the grid in place, the camera feed confirmed it: the character did obscure parts of the adjacent squares.
"Sion was right. We can go higher."
Adjusting for mobile screens to avoid misclicks, the shoot was finally ready.
...Minus Ruinele's voice actress.
"Send me the file you gave oppa too."
Maybe because motion acting counted as performance, Lee Seo-yeon switched to uncharacteristically serious mode, poring over the file Yoo Seol-ah sent. It was packed with Ruinele details.
"She said walking around is a hassle, right?"
"Yeah. She flies a lot too."
"Don't look at me—watch the doll and tell me everything that comes to mind."
With that, she dove straight into acting. As the only one among us with real performance experience, she showed no embarrassment. Definitely different from me or Yoo Seol-ah.
"How's she look just standing there?"
"Kinda slouched and limp? Yeah, like that."
Fully immersed, Lee Seo-yeon refined her movements through back-and-forth with Yoo Seol-ah. Alternating glances between doll and actress, Ruinele's image grew sharper by the second. Gone was the ever-upright Lee Seo-yeon—replaced by a single, world-weary mage. Ironically, since voice actors usually stuck closer to their own vibe, ditching her natural poise made it feel even more authentic. Like breathing life into the character.
"Let's go with this for now. Oppa, what next?"
"Start with basic movement motions, one by one."
From stepping to the next square, to flying farther with Yoo Seol-ah's assist for authenticity. Yoo Seol-ah focused on nailing true-to-Ruinele vibes, Doyun hyung on boosting game appeal. Their earnest collaboration wrapped up basic attacks to skill casts after a solid chunk of time.
"This is just temp footage, so let's call today's shoot here."
Even knowing Doyun hyung might scrap it all later, we all nodded without fuss, like it was obvious. Their passion for the game was no joke.
"Good work. I need to set up the chroma key and check it out, so feel free to head out."
With the club president leading by example, how could we slack? It was time to feed Shabu anyway, so after quick goodbyes, we headed home.
"Shabu, we're back."
- Nyaaong.
She must've been zoned out hard earlier—Yoo Seol-ah flopped right next to Shabu, who was loafing on the sofa like rising bread dough. Sprawled over the armrest, her soft, tempting butt was on full display. Could I just smack it once?
My brain said no, but my hand moved first.
Smack!
"Hyang!?"
...Damn, that jiggled perfectly. Kinda addictive.
Of course, zero sexual intent.
...But Yoo Seol-ah saw it differently.
She slowly sat up, cheeks flushed, staring at me. No clue what was running through her head, but warning bells blared in mine.
"...You're doing this on purpose, right?"
"...No, it was just too smackable a position..."
"'Just'? This is the third time."
The first two were on purpose, but this one really wasn't... Suddenly, the boy who cried wolf came to mind.