Ch. 17

***

The table that Seo-yoon had prepared was more impressive than I had expected.

From the appetizing sundubu jjigae (soft tofu stew) to various side dishes of beef and greens, the spread was a traditional Korean feast worthy of a fancy restaurant.

I, who used to eat delivery food for the past few days, admired the dishes on the table.

“… Seo-yoon, you’re amazing at cooking. You could open a restaurant.”

“I put in some extra effort today. How does it look to you, unnie? Does it look delicious?”

“Yeah, it looks really delicious.”

“Ahem. Hmm! But the taste is even more remarkable, right?”

Seo-yoon’s confident expression as she bragged about her cooking skills was, how should I say it… genuinely adorable. With her small stature and cute face, she proudly displayed her culinary skills, making me smile involuntarily.

As I slowly raised my spoon, Seo-yoon, without touching her chopsticks, stared at me intently.

Her gaze seemed to ask for my opinion of the food. Seo-yoon’s persistent stare made me feel awkward. I hastily reached for the sundubu jjigae first.

“…”

“Hmm.”

The moment I put the spoon in my mouth, I almost coughed, quickly closing my mouth to stop it.

Seo-yoon’s gaze made me feel like my face would explode. I tried to please her by tasting the stew, but the flavor was beyond my expectations.

“What… How can it be so incredibly spicy?”

If I hadn’t closed my mouth quickly, I might have coughed loudly, ruining the food that my sister had made with such care.

I almost grabbed the cup of water unconsciously. But with great willpower, I restrained myself.

Drinking water right away seemed rude.

My face turned red and I could feel it. The sundubu jjigae was indescribably spicy.

I forced myself to swallow it and opened my mouth.

“The flavor… it’s there…”

I opened my mouth wide, but the heat made it hard to speak.

I wondered if Seo-yoon was teasing me on purpose. It felt like that.

“I made it spicier this time, to suit your taste, unnie. Phew, I’m glad you like it.”

But to my surprise, Seo-yoon smiled happily and picked up her own utensil.

She didn’t seem to mock me or mean any harm.

Seo-yoon started eating slowly.

“Ah… This sundubu jjigae is too spicy for me.”

She blurted out after eating the sundubu jjigae.

I watched Seo-yoon and realized that she had made the food for me.

Seo-yoon reached for other side dishes to cool her mouth. I still felt the burn from the sundubu jjigae.

“Did I really like spicy food?”

We ate for a while.

“Unnie, do you want me to serve you some sundubu jjigae in a separate bowl? It’s too far from where you’re sitting.”

Did Seo-yoon notice that I hadn’t touched the sundubu jjigae since the first bite? She asked suddenly.

“Oh, no, it’s fine. I’m enjoying the other dishes too much.”

I waved my hand, refusing firmly.

My mouth was still hot and I didn’t want to eat it again. I knew Seo-yoon would be disappointed, but I couldn’t.

“That thing is like it’s made to kill me.”

I was one of the worst when it came to spicy food.

Even the famous S ramen, known for its spiciness in my original world, was too much for me.

But did the ‘me’ in this world like spicy food? I wondered that throughout the meal.

My body’s reaction suggested otherwise.

“Serin unnie, why is your face so red?”

“Oh, just a bit… because it’s hot.”

“Really? Should I turn on the air conditioner, then?”

I couldn’t answer because my mouth was full, so I just nodded slightly.

Apart from the painfully spicy sundubu jjigae, the other dishes suited my taste.

I had been eating delivery food for days, so the homemade Korean food that my sister made was a welcome change. It wasn’t bland, but it was mild and comforting.

Seeing my satisfied expression, Seo-yoon got up from her seat and operated the remote control on the cabinet.

Click.

Click.

Soon, the sound of the air conditioner in the living room came on.

“Come to think of it, Serin unnie, you’re eating really well today.”

“…Huh? Is that so?”

I tilted my head.

The dishes that Seo-yoon had made were so delicious that I wanted to eat everything.

“Yeah, you used to barely finish half a bowl when I cooked before.”

…Those words made me stop eating.

Even in the short time that I had talked to my sister, I felt that ‘myself’ was too strange.

Was I always questioning because of the life I had lived?

“Serin unnie, here, have some of this too.”

Seo-yoon picked up some meat with her chopsticks and put it in my rice bowl. It was a cute gesture, but it also made me feel guilty.

Was it right for me to exist like this?

Was the ‘self’ that Seo-yoon remembered really me?

As I lifted the spoon, I realized that those thoughts were useless.

“…Still, it’s worth it to see you eating so well, unnie. I feel full just watching you.”

Seo-yoon smiled at me constantly, and I sorted out my thoughts.

What was the point of worrying now?

I already existed as ‘Han Serin.’

I had been sent to this world by someone I didn’t know, and I had to accept it.

I didn’t have any other choice.

‘…’

I was Han Serin, who looked like the character Rin that I had created in the game “Dark Ark.”

I used a unique weapon called the Crescent Moon Flail.

Those were the traits of myself who enjoyed playing games.

And then there was Seo-yoon, my sister in this world, who resembled my past sister in appearance and personality.

The more I thought about it, the more similarities I found.

This world was ten years ahead of the world I had lived in.

“…Another version of myself from a parallel world is me now.”

The current Han Serin was also “me.”

That’s how I accepted it.

Rationalization.

Understanding.

Or any other word.

I picked up a piece of meat with my chopsticks and gently placed it on my sister’s rice, copying her.

“Serin unnie…? What are you doing all of a sudden?”

Han Seo-yoon, looked at me with a puzzled expression.

She was small and cute, with an exotic appearance.

I didn’t know what my parents looked like, but I wondered if I had some mixed heritage.

Even in my current state, I didn’t hesitate to be kind to my sister.

“It’s just a whim.”

Yes, it was just a whim.

“Pfft. No, seriously, what do you mean by that all of a sudden?”

She smiled with a hint of disbelief, but Seo-yoon didn’t seem to mind.

Do I need to work out or something?

That was the question that popped into my head as I got up to get another serving of rice.

Seo-yoon had no idea how much I had let down my little sister in the past. She wouldn’t be so concerned about me if she did.

“…?”

Seo-yoon paused her eating and stared at me with a blank expression.

I was usually the type to finish every grain of rice on my plate, no matter what the dish was. But now I am going for a second round.

“Serin unni, you really enjoy spicy food, don’t you?”

Seo-yoon was not good with spicy food, so she had never made any spicy dishes before.

She decided to change that as she looked at the soft tofu stew, still steaming and aromatic.

—

[Cheer up!]

[Enjoyed the video.]

[Subscribed.]

Kim Ha-yoon., a new NewTuber, was having a healing(?) time looking at the comments on her channel.

Each comment was precious to her as there were only a few of them for each video.

Subscriber count: 649.

Her new NewTuber channel had gained only 6 subscribers since yesterday.

“Come to think of it, was today the day?”

She checked the date, and it was indeed today.

The day the Another World Access Device arrived.

She was excited to experience virtual reality, a product of the future. But more than that, Ha-yoon was looking forward to the growth of her new NewTube channel.

Another World was a huge hit. Despite the high cost of the game access device, the number of users was incredibly high, and the game’s market share was breaking records.

That’s what the articles Ha-yoon had skimmed over said.

By riding on the popularity of such a game, could she expect her own channel to soar?

Ha-yoon was full of dreams right now.

After healing herself by looking at the NewTube comments, she went to the main page of her NewTube channel, where an unfamiliar video was showing as a recommended video.

Views: 4.26 million.

More than anything else, Ha-yoon’s eyes were drawn to the views on that video.

“…What the heck?”

Ha-yoon’s eyes, which had been relaxed as if healing, widened so much that anyone could tell.

She couldn’t even imagine, let alone achieve, a view count of even 1/100th of that for all the videos she had uploaded to her channel.

She clicked on the video as if possessed.

“No…”

She looked at the upload time of the video, which was less than 24 hours ago, and sighed as if the ground would swallow her.

“Still, let’s study.”

She watched the video, and it was Another World again.

And inside, she saw a famous streamer.

She had some experience with preparing for NewTube, and she recognized her right away.

A female streamer whose popularity was rising these days.

That female streamer was also a user of Another World.

“Was her name Han-ah…?”

“No, how did she manage to collaborate?”

In the video, the character with the famous silver hair was shown.

Was it because of the influence of a big company?

How did she manage to collaborate? Ha-yoon felt envious of Han-ah, to the point where her stomach hurt for no reason.