Chapter 12

The next day, I was out on the streets just like before.

Casually wearing jeans and a T-shirt, I scratched my cheek while staring at my mobile phone.

“The editing team is all set, and now all that’s left is to shoot the video.”

Just as I was thinking about discussing with Ji-eun what kind of video she wanted to shoot first, I turned my head towards a white hand that suddenly appeared through my phone.

There stood Ayu, wearing a cap, who smiled brightly at me.

“Were you waiting for my call, just staring at your phone?”

“No.”

“Straight to the rejection, huh?”

Ayu, pulling down her mask, looked around.

“By the way, this place is a bit secluded this time.”

“I matched it with Ggotbi.”

“Not that I mind.”

As she said, the place we were at felt more like a shopping street near a house rather than a bustling area like Hongdae.

Not exactly a place to have fun, but not exactly lacking either.

Ayu, who doesn’t like attracting too much attention, would probably prefer such a place, but I was also curious why Ggotbi chose this location.

At that moment, a car approached us.

A black-tinted vehicle that even I, who knows nothing about cars, could tell was quite expensive.

“That car seems to be coming this way?”

As Ayu tilted her head, the car stopped near us.

Both of us stared blankly at the car, and soon the door creaked open.

Out stepped a woman wearing a floral off-shoulder dress with a jacket over it.

With a height and slim figure reminiscent of an idol, her face was hidden behind sunglasses, a mask, and a wide-brimmed hat, but I knew exactly who this fashion belonged to.

‘Ggotbi?’

As I was slightly taken aback by her even more covered appearance than Ayu’s, she stretched her sandaled feet towards us.

Then, looking at us from behind her sunglasses, she tilted her head slightly.

And as expected, she took out her phone and sent a message.

[Ggotbi: Are you Oppa?]

Indeed, it was her.

As I nodded in response before replying, she showed a pleased expression.

“Domi Oppa! You look much better in person.”

A very pleasant voice reached me.

It was flattering, even if it was just politeness.

“Really.”

Actually, I couldn’t see Ggotbi’s real face due to the sunglasses and mask, so I had nothing to say.

After exchanging greetings with me, Ggotbi glanced to the side.

She seemed curious about who the girl standing next to me was.

Well, of course.

As far as she knew, Ayu, a guy like me, should be standing here.

But instead, there’s an unfamiliar girl standing here, so her reaction was natural.

Just as I was about to explain to her, Ayu suddenly started tugging at my clothes.

“Ah, ah, ugh.”

“Huh?”

Why is she acting like this?

I could understand Ggotbi reacting this way upon seeing Ayu, but I didn’t expect Ayu to react like this, so I tilted my head.

“Why are you acting like this?”

“Why am I acting like this? This person…”

“W-wait a minute.”

Just as Ayu was about to shout, a flustered Ggotbi stopped her.

Then, Ayu looked back at Ggotbi with trembling eyes, and Ggotbi pointed to a shop next to us.

“Can we go inside and talk first?”

“Ah, yes, yes.”

This is the first time I’ve seen Ayu so flustered.

Not knowing what was going on, I quietly followed them, and we entered a meat restaurant with private rooms.

Even after entering the room, Ayu kept her mouth tightly shut, and Ggotbi, glancing between me and Ayu, asked softly.

“Um, Domi Oppa, didn’t you say Ayu was coming today?”

At that moment, Ayu’s shoulders twitched.

It seems she realized that hiding her gender had caused this mess.

And the fact that Ggotbi hadn’t noticed her gender yet.

Seeing Ayu hesitating and unable to answer, I thought I had no choice but to explain myself.

“Right now, next to…”

“Ayu Oppa couldn’t come because of some circumstances!”

Just as I was about to explain, Ayu suddenly interrupted and shouted.

Stunned by her absurd behavior, I widened my eyes, and Ayu, sweating bullets, poked my side with her elbow.

It hurts.

“Uh, so, this person here…”

“She’s Ayu Oppa’s younger sister who came in his place!”

Why is this girl acting like this all of a sudden?

As I looked at Ayu with a completely baffled expression, she glared at me sharply and then turned her head away.

I felt some kind of unspoken pressure.

“I see…”

Ggotbi visibly disappointed, lowered her head.

Well, of course.

She came here to meet Ayu, whom she has a crush on.

Although I don’t know why Ayu is acting like this, I felt sorry for her, so I patted Ayu’s head to hide it and said,

“Well, anyway, let’s eat first.”

“Ah, right. Um, Oppa, it seems your younger sister has noticed, but you shouldn’t be too surprised, okay?”

I blinked.

What am I supposed to be surprised about?

As I looked at her, not understanding, Ggotbi took a deep breath and removed her mask and sunglasses.

And at that moment, I understood everything.

Her peach-colored hair tied in two, reaching down to her waist under the hat.

Eyes the same color as her hair, as if she was wearing lenses, and an adorable face that would catch anyone’s attention at first glance.

That face belonged to none other than Yoo Ah from Blackstar, whom I had seen in photos sent by Ayu, a hardcore idol fan.

Ayu’s character in Road of Academy, customized to resemble her.

Blackstar Yoo Ah

The idol Blackstar Yoo Ah was there.

And as I understood everything, my head suddenly felt dizzy.

‘Wait, is this okay? Is this allowed?’

I could understand Ayu being a Returner.

Returners are people too, so they might want to play games.

After all, she’s someone I knew, and Ayu being a Returner doesn’t change anything now.

But Ggotbi, no, Blackstar Yoo Ah?

Blackstar has five songs on the Billboard charts.

In Korea, they topped the charts every time they released a song, gaining national popularity.

And that Blackstar Yoo Ah is Ggotbi?

Also a guild member?

And also a Returner like Ayu?

‘Even I would deny reality in this situation.’

But now, Yoo Ah is here as Ggotbi.

And as the actions Ggotbi has shown so far come to mind one by one, it starts to make sense that she is Blackstar Yoo Ah.

“Ggotbi, how do you know all this? Even I, a hardcore fan, always check for news about Blackstar!”

“Yeah, I have a connection who works in that field, so I always hear about it, but don’t tell anyone else, okay?”

“Of course I won’t! I really love you, Ggotbi!”

“Ayu, you say things like that so easily.”

Memories of Ayu and Ggotbi’s conversations came to mind, and everything started to make sense.

“Oppa, what should I do? Something came up, and I have to go overseas urgently. I’m sorry. I’ll make up for the raid next time. Really!”

Yes, that was the day Blackstar’s new song exploded on the Billboard charts.

That’s why she had to go that day.

‘Crazy, Ggotbi is really Blackstar Yoo Ah.’

As all the memories aligned, I felt chills.

Well, you know.

The person I played games with is actually a celebrity and an idol.

Can you even imagine?

‘But the real problem is.’

I glanced at Ayu.

Ayu just realized that the origin of her nickname and her favorite idol, Blackstar Yoo Ah, is Ggotbi.

The problem is that she has been a fan of Yoo Ah in front of Ggotbi and has been very close to her.

Because Ggotbi had informed her about things related to Blackstar Yoo Ah several times.

At that time, she must have thought of her as a fellow hardcore fan.

In this situation, Ggotbi likes Ayu, whom she thought was a guy, and came to meet her today.

‘And this idiot next to me, worried about her fan behavior and various actions in front of Yoo Ah, pretended to be her younger sister.’

It’s one thing to be a fan behind the scenes, but having your fan behavior exposed in front of the idol you like.

‘Ugh, even I would find this hard to handle.’

Even for someone as strong-willed as Ayu, this must be tough.

‘Besides, even with sunglasses and a mask.’

Did she recognize her just by her body shape?

This girl must be a hardcore Blackstar fan too.

“Um, um, unnie, I’m really a fan!”

Since when did you start calling her unnie?

Besides, you’re the same age.

‘Well, including Cheonma Cheon Hong-ryun’s life.’

How many years older is she?

“Ah, thank you. So, you know me because you’re Ayu’s younger sister?”

“No. I know you because I like you!”

Feeling my head getting complicated, I thought, ‘Well, I don’t know,’ and just grilled the meat.

As the naturally sociable Ayu and Ggotbi were deep in conversation, I suddenly realized there’s a celebrity in front of me and put a piece of meat in my mouth.

Just a moment ago, I was too flustered to care that Ggotbi is Yoo Ah, but now there’s a globally popular celebrity in front of me.

And she’s a gaming friend I’ve known for years.

‘Blackstar Yoo Ah.’

Realizing that Ggotbi is Yoo Ah, I chewed the meat quietly.

What I know about Yoo Ah comes from being close with Ayu, a hardcore fan, but more than anything, it’s that she’s a Returner.

That’s right.

Yoo Ah is the first Returner in our country to start a career as a celebrity.

Not all Returners hide, but Yoo Ah is the first in our country to actively pursue a career as a celebrity.

These days, with the times changing, there are Returners who become Instagram celebrities or YouTubers, but the perception of Returners is still not favorable among people.

And the one who broke that perception was Blackstar Yoo Ah.

Category Fantasy·29

Having worked as a minstrel in a world called Elysium, she returned to Earth and pursued music.

And as a result, she opened a new era of K-POP and rose to global stardom.

‘She’s quite well-regarded among Returners too.’

Perhaps that’s part of the reason Ayu likes her.

Then, looking at Ggotbi, who was brightly chatting in front of me, I tilted my head slightly.

Somehow, I felt a somewhat artificial expression on Ggotbi’s face, something I hadn’t noticed in the game.

A forced smile?

No, more like a smile that even she herself isn’t aware is forced.

I don’t know what it is, but I could tell she wasn’t doing it maliciously, so I stayed quiet.

As I said earlier, it felt like she herself wasn’t aware of it.

‘I’m probably just being sensitive.’

Being an idol and also a Hunter as a Returner, she must be tired every day.

So, it might just be fatigue showing in subtle ways.

In that case, it’s only right to let her relax today.

‘More than that.’

I put another piece of meat in my mouth.

Cheonma Cheon Hong-ryun, Ayu, and Blackstar Yoo Ah, Ggotbi.

‘Why are there so many Returners in our guild?’

Unless you’re in this industry, you might never meet one or two Returners in your lifetime, but coincidentally, there are two around me.

What a bizarre coincidence.

‘Does our guild have some power to attract Returners?’

A guild that attracts Returners. Interesting.

“Oppa, Oppa, why are you just eating meat? Talk!”

At that moment, Ayu, who had relaxed, excitedly started hitting my back.

Her hands were quite strong, so I quickly swallowed the meat in my mouth and grabbed her wrist.

“It hurts. I was just hungry, so I ate.”

“Right. I wanted to talk to Domi Oppa too.”

Although Ayu and Ggotbi are very close, my relationship with Ggotbi is also good.

When she first started the game, I helped her out of a sense of responsibility to guide newbies, and that’s how we became friends.

Since then, the three of us have stayed up all night playing games quite a few times.

‘The reason she got busy in the middle was probably because her popularity exploded around that time.’

Now that I’ve met her in real life and know her profession, I’m starting to realize things one by one, which is a bit amusing.

Is this why people do meetups?

‘Usually, meetups don’t end up like this, though.’

In front of me is Blackstar Yoo Ah, and to my right is a girl as pretty as Yoo Ah, whom people would turn to look at.

Should I consider myself lucky?

Lately, I’ve been getting involved with a lot of girls, so I made a vague expression.

Well, good things are good.