Andel's Muse

I had one teacher at the party. Not the kind from elementary, middle, or high school that I barely attended. This was my mentor, Han Seong-hwa, who had taught me for a full seven years after I first stood out as a model at the age of ten.

Looking back now, I honestly think of him as a quack. Miss Ahyeon, that posture...Where did you learn that, Ahyeon? Why...It looks like we'll have to relearn your walk from the beginning. All because the poses and posture he taught me drew heavy criticism once I reached the international stage. They were fine for the domestic scene, but apparently they fell short by world standards.

Still, I didn't hold any real grudge against Teacher Han Seong-hwa. His words were harsh, but he had a sharp tongue that kept lessons from ever feeling dull. Don't get too close to the boys.Excuse me? Why?If you do, people will talk behind your back. Above all, he was the mentor who taught me all sorts of things while I worked as a model and hardly attended school. Even after reincarnating, I learned a great deal from him.

Why do girls go to the bathroom together? Well... because it's the bathroom.Don't try to lead the way. If you act out among the girls, you'll be the first one to get hit. Since this was my first life as a woman, I filled in a lot of the gaps I was missing. And there were many other lessons besides those.

"You're Ahyeon, correct? I'm a fan."

"...Yes."

"It was such a shame you didn't walk the runway last season."

"I see."

One of those lessons was this attitude that could seem rude at first glance. Ahyeon, listen.Yes.If you just keep your mouth shut, you'll become the greatest model....Pardon?Just shut it! Don't even think about being polite. Stay as silent as possible, got it?But why... I didn't understand it back then, and honestly I still don't fully understand it now. But when my mother nodded firmly after hearing the advice, I followed it without complaint.

Honestly, it's a little disappointing. Telling a super rookie VTuber who hit two hundred regular viewers in a single year not to use her quick tongue. In a way, isn't that a historical loss?

"Have you tried our product this time?"

"Yes."

"How is it? Nice, right? We're extremely confident in the moisturizing power! I'll send you the new release when it drops."

"Thank you."

But well, it's a principle I've stuck to from the start, so I continue to maintain it. After all, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠what would a model accomplish by talking too much? On the contrary, staying this quiet is convenient because everyone else fills in the blanks for me.

Still, there is one problem.

"Blah blah blah! (Aren't you being way too arrogant?)"

Keeping my lips sealed all the time sometimes creates misunderstandings like this. Some people see me as graceful and refined, but from another perspective I might come across as rude and conceited. That's simply how human viewpoints work. Evaluation is entirely relative, not something I decide myself. Personally, I consider it unavoidable.

"...."

"Blah blah! (Say something, will you?)"

It's not that I don't understand French at all. After all, our meddlesome Roselia teaches me whenever she's bored. Even so, when someone picks a fight, it's easier to pretend I don't know the language. In League terms, it's like picking Teemo as support and acting like you're Chinese.

Besides, this was a party venue. It might be called a Christmas charity party, but it was a business event packed with industry insiders. Raising my voice to fight with someone here? There was no way that wouldn't destroy my image. There was one more reason I shouldn't fight.

"Blah blah! (You! You came to Paris and you don't even know French?!)"

In my eyes, this girl was crazy. Judging by her decent looks, she seemed like a model, yet she was picking a fight and risking whispers from the people around her? Types like her pop up often. Hot-blooded, arrogant kids who succeeded young, kept their noses in the air, and lived drunk on their own talent. The best response is to ignore them completely. Not just best—the absolute best. Since we were in a similar age range, it could even be an opportunity to show that I was calmer and more dignified.

Anyway, as I stared at her without the slightest change in expression, she naturally began to falter.

"Blah...! (T-this...!)"

She must have realized it herself by then. That she was the one throwing a tantrum without any justification. That's why these energetic early-twenty celebrities never understand that they live and die by their reputation.

"Ça va mieux? (Feeling calmer now?)"

"...!"

When I spoke in a calm tone, the model in front of me flinched hard. Yeah, yeah, your blood really is boiling. I used to be like that once too. Aish, they said it'd finish by morning! Let's just half-ass it!You bastard! What the hell do you know! Back in my construction site days, yelling at the top of my lungs during fights. It's a hazy memory now, but recalling those times helps me understand this girl.

Pat, pat. I gave her shoulder a couple of comforting taps as I walked past. For some reason the shoulder I touched seemed ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to tremble, but anyway.

Click, click. I crossed the party like that. Since I was already out here, I figured I might as well get some fresh air, and I was heading outside when I stopped dead in my tracks.

"Perfect! Very impressive."

A middle-aged man with dyed white hair slicked back and flashy earrings. He was quite tall, with sharp, piercing eyes as his main feature.

"Andel, your Korean is excellent."

It was none other than the host of this party, Andel himself.

"I only started learning it recently. How about it? Do I sound like a K-pop trainee?"

"Your pronunciation is so good I would believe you were Korean."

"Thanks for the compliment."

Andel, who I'd only met in passing a few times before, spoke astonishingly perfect Korean. From the way he stood there watching and the words he chose, it was clear he had seen the earlier commotion.

"More than that, I didn't know Ahyeon had that kind of side."

"I was the one who was more surprised. That you speak Korean this well."

I didn't want to dwell on the previous incident, so I changed the subject. If I had to name two reasons, one was an adult's consideration for that young hothead, and the other was that I wanted to escape the situation quickly. Having a one-on-one conversation with a designer who represented a brand was uncomfortably burdensome. I'd rather spend the whole day chatting with that arrogant girl from earlier.

"You've been complimenting my Korean since earlier, haven't you?"

"...."

This is exactly when my mentor Han Seong-hwa's wisdom shines. It neatly packages conversation refusal as a lack of social skills.

"I have some urgent business...."

"As expected of Ahyeon, noticing my hard work. I really studied diligently, you know."

As I slowly prepared an exit while pretending to have nothing more to say, Andel smiled to himself and dropped something ridiculous.

"Because I need to be able to communicate with my muse."

...Muse? When have we ever met before?

It wasn't just talk. We stood there and talked for at least another thirty minutes. The conversation was so magnificent that it could have been recorded in a modeling textbook if one existed, but I decided to reflect on it again later.

Anyway, after that, many more things happened at the party. That girl came back to apologize, Andel came looking for me again, and various industry people who must have overheard the muse comment approached me, chatting about this and that. After spending that time where my energy was completely drained.

On the late evening of the long-awaited twenty-sixth.

"Yes, I think I'll be able to stream normally starting tomorrow."

After the closing party that ran late into the night, I entered the hotel, flopped down, and turned on the broadcast right away.

"Take off your makeup, change your clothes, and rest."

"What does it matter~"

"Now do you all understand my innocence?"

By this point the viewers had more or less accepted it. For three straight days I had gone live every evening without fail, and Roselia's voice kept appearing, so all the boyfriend rumors died down. It was proof completed. If there had been a chalkboard in front of me, I would have proudly written Q.E.D. and snapped the chalk in half.

However, as the saying goes, once you sit down you want to lie down, and once you lie down you want to sleep. The viewers who had shed their suspicions now wanted something bigger since the camera was already on. In other words, they wanted to see more of this super rookie Wayo's body.

"Not a chance."

But the great Wahwang is not that sloppy. I had even bought a phone mount and fixed it in place, so the camera only ever showed the brown pattern on the hotel table.

Because I was so thorough, they eventually started provoking me outright. Sterak this, eighty-four kilograms that. They kept demanding proof of whether I was Wayo the princess or Bowser. It was truly ridiculous.

Swish, swish.

"Is this enough?"

Still, the Sterak misunderstanding was troublesome, so I waved my hand a few times in front of the camera. The shadow of my hand passed under the hotel lights.

My hand is very slender with beautiful lines. Of course it looks better than an average person's; I take care of it.

"I'll put the people who called me Sterak into the bread for now."

Putting into bread was our broadcast term for a temporary ban. If a joke like Sterak spread wrongly, it could pile up into weird misunderstandings in the community, so I nipped it in the bud.

While I was sending a few people off with quick taps on the fixed phone, a rather long donation came in.

"This? It's nothing special."

The table was luxurious but the kind of famous-brand piece you'd find in any expensive hotel. It was impossible to identify the hotel from it.

The viewers seemed to know that much, so their reactions were dry. Still, showing the table was fine. Before lifting the camera higher, I quickly checked the items on it. There was only a basic AirPods case, the watch I hadn't worn to the party, and some half-eaten frozen jelly. After confirming there was nothing important, I carefully raised the phone upward.

The chat sped up noticeably. The shadow of my arm and a bit of my hair had shown for a moment, and they must have seen it. Was this what they were aiming for? I let out a small laugh at the rather timid scheme.

"Anyway, this is enough, right? I'll end the stream soon?"

"Well, I'll stream as soon as I get back."

"Not a chance. Isn't Wayo's panel pretty? I don't know why you all want the cam so badly."

"Do I really have to open Pandora's box? I want to stay with you all for a long time..."

Anyway, the Christmas business trip that had been full of talk and trouble ended like that. The next day I returned to Korea without any lingering attachment. Andel and the other people involved suggested I stay a few more days, but I coldly ignored them. I had attended the party; the rest could be handled by next year's me.

"Hello!"

After turning down all the offers and returning to Korea, that was the first thing I said when I started the stream. Honestly, I had turned it on with secret excitement at the thought of comfortably playing games and clicking around again, but...

For some reason the chat had completely lost its mind. Seriously, why?