296. First Meeting with the Editors
296. First Meeting with the Editors
***
Swish.
As she pulled out a few pieces of clothing with the soft rustle of fabric, Serin felt a strange sensation.
It had already been about a month since she started working with the RinTube editors.
Yet this was the first time she had actually made plans to meet them in person.
They lived relatively close by, so she found it oddly amusing that it had taken this long for them to meet.
'I really have been busy.'
Between her streaming schedule, scrims, and plans with Eunha and Sua, her days had been packed. Somehow, she'd never found the time.
The editors had mentioned getting drinks together a few times, but each time she'd either had prior plans or had been so exhausted from a long stream that she'd just passed out.
Now, getting ready to go out and trying on different outfits felt both unfamiliar and exciting.
"Pfft."
Little laughs kept escaping her for no reason.
Standing in front of the full-length mirror, holding up different pieces of clothing against her body, she realized it had been a long time since she'd actually gone out.
People had come to my place fairly often—Sua, Seoyun, and others—but I myself had gone out maybe once a week at most.
As she held clothes up against herself, conscious of the weather gradually warming, she suddenly felt a strange sense of dissonance.
"...I guess I'm really adapting."
She realized, without even thinking about it, that she was adapting to this reality.
Back when she lived as 'Rin' in Black Ark, she'd never really cared much about her clothes.
Thinking back, she'd only paid attention on truly special occasions—banquets, coronations, royal knight investiture ceremonies.
Other than that, she'd just casually changed clothes by equipping gear items from her inventory.
But now, I was the complete opposite.
Swish.
Here she was, holding up brightly colored clothes against her own body.
She wasn't wearing the indifferent expression she used to have. She was feeling a whole range of emotions, and more than anything, this was so different from Black Ark.
In this world, there was no inventory. Equipment, my original power—all of it was nothing more than a fleeting illusion.
Right. Reality.
The place I was in now was undeniably reality.
Serin, who had paused mid-thought with clothes in hand, smiled faintly and shook her head.
"Well... whatever."
This is just another way of living as me.
In the end, adapting to the reality you face is what makes you human, isn't it?
Even if so many things were different, the mental part hadn't changed that much compared to Black Ark.
I exist and live as myself right now. I didn't want to deny this reality.
It wasn't about consciously thinking of myself as a woman named Han Serin. I just live as 'me' like this.
As long as I have that sense of self, wouldn't it be fine no matter how I live?
After her brief musing, Serin let out a small laugh and picked out what to wear.
Then her eyes landed on the hot pants and skirts in the drawer, and she shook her head without thinking.
"Still, those are... too much for me."
She put on a white t-shirt from a decent brand, layered a black cardigan over it, and even pulled out the black beret she loved and wore often.
Looking in the mirror, she started changing her hairstyle a little too.
Swish.
My usual style was loose, wavy hair, but I switched it to a ponytail and tidied my bangs. The change was so dramatic that even I barely recognized myself.
At first, I'd thought I looked exactly like 'Rin,' but as I grew stronger in Another World and changes like my Hidden Class emerged, I could now see subtle differences from my real-world appearance.
And to dramatically amplify those subtle differences, she'd changed her hairstyle along with her outfit. By covering herself with the beret and other accessories, her overall look had definitely changed.
Not enough that someone who knew me wouldn't recognize me, but enough that a stranger couldn't be certain I was 'Rin.'
...
Finally, with her hair in a ponytail, a black cardigan over a white t-shirt, jeans, a fashion mask, and a beret, she was fully dressed.
It was simple, maybe even plain. But even so, the snow-white silver hair drew attention like magic—that was hard to deny.
"It's just drinks anyway. No need to dress up more."
It wasn't that she wasn't looking forward to meeting the editors for the first time. But she figured they'd like it if she showed up with this kind of natural vibe.
"I wonder how they'll react?"
I found myself newly curious about how the two of them would respond when they saw me.
Hayoon and Soyul—the editors she'd been exchanging friendly BaTalk messages with all along.
The two of them probably knew nothing about what I actually looked like, but I knew a little about them.
She'd seen their profiles during the editor-selection content, but actually meeting them in person made her excited.
How would I, looking so much like Rin, appear to them—my editors?
"...Pfft."
With that laugh, Serin stepped out her front door at 10:40 p.m.
Thirty minutes before the 11:10 meeting time with the editors.
***
BaTalk!
Rin.
[Oh, I'll make the reservation for the bar. You two can just come there.]
Hayoon blinked blankly as she checked the message.
"...Rin is really coming to drinks."
Even seeing the message, she couldn't quite believe Rin was coming to a drinking get-together.
Swish.
She combed her messy hair and steadied her breathing.
"...Hoo."
Getting ready to go out for the first time in a while, the face in the mirror was a complete wreck.
The dark circles under her eyes looked ready to reach her lips, and her eyes were bloodshot from not sleeping properly for days.
With her sleep schedule thrown off, her skin wasn't in great shape either.
She was putting effort into her makeup to cover it up, afraid she'd make a bad impression if she went out like this, but Hayoon was still anxious.
"What if Rin is disappointed when she sees me?"
She muttered, feeling afraid for no reason.
First impressions were incredibly important. What if Rin was disappointed when they actually met and said something about it?
Even as she told herself Rin would never say something like that, the worry lingered.
She and Soyul had gotten close enough to call each other sisters now, but Rin might see her differently.
"Seriously... the more I look, the worse it gets."
Even as she applied foundation, she kept finding things she didn't like.
Maybe because she'd seen Rin's character countless times while editing videos, she couldn't help feeling dissatisfied with herself.
And while she couldn't really imagine what Rin looked like in person, if she tried to infer from that voice...
"She must be really pretty, right?"
She couldn't imagine Rin's voice not being matched by her appearance.
"And she's a total social butterfly, way beyond me."
The ease with which she carried conversations with viewers, the composure she showed even when receiving huge donations.
Beyond that, her gentle voice revealed her character. Even watching her collab stream with a celebrity named Seo Eunwoo today in real time, it was hard to believe.
Seo Eunwoo.
That Seo Eunwoo.
The celebrity everyone had liked back in school, handsome enough to be considered a first love. And yet Rin had exchanged words with him without a hint of hesitation or deference.
Hayoon, who had watched the entire stream live, couldn't stop marveling the whole time.
She'd even thought—maybe Rin was a celebrity too, just like Seo Eunwoo.
She'd felt Soyul was definitely a social butterfly too, but the way Rin naturally talked with Seo Eunwoo was on another level.
Even Seo Eunwoo had looked at Rin with a slightly intrigued expression during the stream—I’d noticed that too.
And now she was about to have drinks with that social butterfly.
"I'm nervous."
Hayoon's hands trembled slightly as she shook her head without thinking.
Still, since this was their first meeting, she had to make a good impression.
Being this tense and scared beforehand would make it hard to show her best side.
"...Stay calm."
I need to keep working as a RinTube editor for a long, long time.
This is an opportunity I managed to grab.
"Right. Rin is a good person."
Thinking about Rin's usual messages, she had a good personality. Maybe she could relax a little.
Rin always paid attention to the little things.
...
After finishing her makeup, Hayoon changed into the outfit she'd prepared and got ready to leave.
The clothes she wore were completely different from usual.
A blue boxy t-shirt, short hot pants that came above the knee, and even a small accent accessory.
It was an outfit she'd prepared while studying how to be a social butterfly, worn for the first time in a long while.
Click.
Hayoon left her house at 10:45, twenty-five minutes before the meeting time.
***
Soyul, the first to arrive at the meeting spot, found herself looking up at the building again.
—Cheongdam Chic.
"...Isn't this place expensive?"
She muttered under her breath and looked around. The surrounding buildings all looked fancy too, and the price range seemed anything but ordinary.
She'd been uncertain on the way over, but now that she'd arrived, she genuinely wondered—was this really just a casual drinking get-together?
"..."
Soyul fiddled with her wavy hair, then opened BaTalk.
Rin.
[I think I'll arrive in about 10 minutes]
Kim Hayoon.
[Ah, I think I'm almost there]
"Well, did I just get here way too early?"
Soyul laughed softly and checked the time. She really had arrived early.
10:55.
Considering the meeting time was 11:10, she'd arrived fifteen minutes early. It wasn't that the other two were late.
She'd just come way too early.
Leaning against the wall of a nearby building, Soyul watched people passing by as she waited for Hayoon, who had said she'd arrive soon.
Before long, a familiar face appeared in her view.
"Hayoon~~~"
She raised her hand and called out loudly. Hayoon smiled and waved back as she approached.
"Soyul, you look even prettier today?"
Unlike their first meeting, Hayoon spoke to her quite naturally now. Soyul burst out laughing and found herself scanning her as if seeing her anew.
Hayoon looked completely different from usual—a total 180.
"I just put in a little extra effort. But what about you, Hayoon? Why are you so dressed up today?"
The hot pants showing off her pale legs were one thing, but under the blue boxy t-shirt, Hayoon's figure was subtly visible. She looked completely different.
'She changes this much when she dresses up?'
Honestly, even being generous, she'd thought her first impression was mediocre. But now, she looked like someone who could draw attention anywhere.
"...I can't show up looking shabby for my first meeting with Rin."
Hayoon laughed awkwardly as she answered. Soyul narrowed her eyes.
"Hmm~ What's this? So you want to impress Rin after all?"
"You're the same, Soyul."
"...Pfft. Yeah, I guess so."
Honestly, both Hayoon and I couldn't help but care since Rin was coming to drinks.
After all, Rin was the owner of RinTube and the one paying them. How could they not care?
"So, Soyul, what do you think? I don't look weird or anything, right?"
When Hayoon asked, I shook my head.
"No, not at all? It really suits you. You should dress like this more often, Hayoon."
A few minutes passed as the two of them chatted about small things.
Then, without realizing it, both of their gazes drifted to the same spot.