“So, the thing is, I mean, there’s really no reason I can’t do it, right…?”
Looking into Claire’s sparkling eyes, I hesitated a lot on how to respond.
After all, it’s tough to explain to a kid who’s shouting, “I’m going to be a celebrity when I grow up!” just how dirty and difficult it is to actually become one.
If she was a real child, I could just say, “Oh, really?” and move on since kids lose interest quickly, and she’d figure out how hard it is to be famous as she grows up. But if she really wants to do it, then it means she’s prepared for the challenge.
But Claire… well, she’s not technically a kid.
She has the initiative to do what she wants and actually goes ahead and acts confidently, just lacking a bit in common sense for this world.
And Alice over there—
…
Well, either way, being a singer or an actor is often an object of envy in both this world and the other. Sure, the behind-the-scenes of the 20th century was pretty disgusting, but it still looked glamorous on the surface back then and now.
I guess internet broadcasting is a different beast altogether.
“There’s nothing I can’t do, right?”
Claire parroted my words. Alice was oddly focused next to her.
The chances of the two of them becoming actors or singers in the other world don’t seem likely. It’s not about their personal abilities or appearances, but more about the positions they hold.
In the West, it’s common for people from good families to become actors or singers, but if you’re royalty or someone close to it, that’s a different story.
Alice is soon to be the Empress, so of course, she has various issues to deal with, and Claire… well, who knows what might happen in the future? For now, she’s a baroness, but since she recently found out about her bloodline, her future’s uncertain.
That’s a whole different story from another world, though.
…Hmmm. Is there a reason we shouldn’t?
When I think about it, it seems there’s no reason at all, huh?
The reason I haven’t done internet broadcasting is that I don’t want my face to be out there, and I wasn’t exactly pretty enough to succeed in the first place. If you’re not pretty, you’d better have some charm, or at least be good at gaming, drawing, or creating skits… basically, there needs to be something that others would find ‘worth watching.’
Well, I’m not great at gaming, drawing, or having charming conversation now either—
But I’m cute, right?
It’s not just that I look pretty because I’m a foreigner, but I’m genuinely attractive, right? Me, Claire, and Alice.
A trio of pretty girls standing together is bound to draw some attention, don’t you think?
Plus, we have quite the unique vibe. We’re ‘gorgeous foreign girls who speak Korean like natives’—
Ah.
But that ‘Korean’ thing? I’m the only one who really speaks it. I honestly don’t know if they’ll even sound Korean to the viewers when our voices are broadcasted.
…Not that I care much.
“Shall we give it a go?”
That means we can experiment with it, right?
After all, no one around here knows our faces, right? If we embarrass ourselves on broadcast, it’s not like it’ll lead to anything serious, and nobody’s digging up our past either. There’s frankly nothing to find.
We can tackle the language issue while broadcasting and if it’s really bad, I can just accompany them as the interpreter.
Claire’s eyes sparkled with excitement at my words.
“To be honest, I’m kinda curious. This is something that’s hard to replicate in our world.”
Alice also had a bit of a thrilled look on her face.
Exactly. Over there, they film videos and just rotate them on film.
“Since it’s late today, let’s get ready tomorrow morning and try for the evening.”
“Does it need a lot of preparation? Are we bothering you, big sis?”
“Not at all.”
Claire asked a little worriedly, and I smiled as I answered.
I knew we could always swap webcams with smartphones, and as for the mic… it’s just a test for now, so using the one built into the laptop will suffice. Gaming and all that can wait.
We have time until we find jobs, so we can figure things out as we go along.
*
I mentioned that no one knows our faces in this world, but technically, that’s not quite accurate.
Chronicles of Aetherna isn’t a game that every gamer knows about, but it definitely has a fandom. It’s quite niche in many ways, but it has figures, goods, and even an animated adaptation to its name, and it’s been around for quite a while.
After spending time in a world that was too realistic, namely South Korea, it slipped my mind for a moment, but the three of us literally just crossed into a world that mirrors the game’s own.
It’s no surprise we look just like the designs in the game.
To be picky, while the difference between 2D and reality means it’s not exactly identical, we’re basically ‘perfect cosplays.’
Even if our clothes aren’t technically from the game.
“W-What’s coming up… big sis?”
“Is all of that what people are typing?”
“….”
[Oh, you speak Korean well!]
[Are you the Fanggriffon sisters?]
[Wow, that’s amazing!]
[Wait, one of them is an imposter!]
Get out of here.
I banned the one who made the imposter remark right on the spot.
That was clearly directed at Claire.
The Claire sitting next to me had never been through something like that. I mean, it’s my fault that her future has completely changed.
“Everyone, please refrain from using harsh words. The people here are real.”
[LOLLOLLOL]
[Sounds just like a dubbed voice, didn’t it?]
…Hold on. My voice?
[Are you completely the Sylvia Fanggriffon with that voice?]
[Do you change your voice too?]
Glancing back at the chat, someone mentioned ‘Fanggriffon sisters.’
Wait a minute. I’m pretty sure I’m a character who doesn’t appear in the original work?
“Big sis, big sis.”
Claire nudged me, poking for my attention.
“What’s cosplay?”
[LOL, she doesn’t even know what cosplay is!]
[Is she pretending not to know?]
Hearing Claire’s question, I noticed those kinds of messages popping up.
[Did she dye her hair not even knowing she was cosplaying? Sylvia is kinda scary, haha!]
And then a 1000 won donation came in.
[Did she trick the other two just to match the concept? LOL]
[LOLLOLLOL]
[But honestly, that makes sense, LOL. They look just like the characters!]
“Sylvia? What are those people saying?”
Alice, who can’t read Korean, quietly asked.
Wait, hold on a second.
[But since they keep calling her Sylvia, doesn’t that mean they know it’s a concept?]
[This feels scripted.]
[Clarify!]
What clarification are you talking about?
I mean, looking at the chat, it feels like just some playful banter.
Caught in the chaos of the chat and glancing between Claire and Alice, who are oblivious to the situation, I made my decision.
“Well… yes, that’s right. I’m the one who got these two to cosplay. They might not know what characters they’re representing from some game, but I asked them to join me for this broadcast.”
“Big sis?”
I lightly grabbed Claire’s arm from off-screen. Claire quickly understood my intent and zipped her lips.
Alice seemed to catch on too.
“Actually, we just turned on the broadcast without any preparation, so we’ll be ending it here for today. We’ll properly prepare and be back to communicate with you all tomorrow.”
[Hey, why are you disappearing?]
[You just went through the trouble of cosplaying! Can’t we stay a bit longer?]
“That’s not it; we really didn’t prepare at all. As you can see, we’re still adapting in various ways… Yes. We’ll come back tomorrow. So long.”
Saying that, I clicked the broadcast end button.
“…….”
And then there was a moment of silence.
“Big sis, what just happened? What is this cosplay thing?”
“Cosplay refers to dressing up like a character from a work you enjoy or find fun, following their hairstyle and outfit. It’s not something you wear in everyday life, but it’s all in good fun.”
“I see, so it’s similar to how people dress up like ghosts during festivals. Some of those could be from ancient stories as well.”
Alice immediately grasped my explanation.
“So who are we cosplaying as?”
I picked up the game package that had been sitting abandoned on the table since yesterday.
“We are ‘characters’ from that story. I’m not sure why Jake’s story keeps coming up, but…”
…I need to head out early tomorrow to buy the latest Chronicles of Aetherna release.
And a capture board too.
Looks like I’ve got a rough plan on how to proceed with the broadcast.
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