Chapter 34: Why are all my assistants like this?

Akira’s collaboration proposal.

It wasn’t a bad offer.

But I couldn’t accept it right now.

I had too much work to do.

That morning, I arrived at Märchen’s headquarters, suppressing a sigh as I stepped inside the building.

In the lobby, there was a lounge area for visitors to rest. Sitting there was Jiwoo.

“Jiwoo-ssi.”

Me, wearing a hoodie with my hands shoved in my pockets. Jiwoo, dressed in a stylish autumn outfit.

Anyone could tell which one of us was the social one.

Feeling a little self-conscious, I called out to Jiwoo with a reluctant expression.

She turned toward me, her small face lighting up as she waved.

“Muil-nim!”

“It’s been a while. How have you been?”

“Of course! I’ve been doing great watching your streams all the time!”

Was that really considered “doing great”?

Her words gave me a strange feeling, but I let it pass.

“By the way, I should’ve mentioned this earlier, but you don’t have to be so formal with me. There’s quite an age gap, and from now on, I think it’d be better if you called me Yuwol instead of Muil.”

“Gasp! Okay! Then I’ll do that! And you should talk casually with me too!”

“I’m already comfortable with this.”

A height difference of about one head.

Jiwoo was tall, but with her youthful appearance, I wondered how many people would actually believe she was an adult.

I mean, who would look at her and think early 30s?

A married woman with two kids, no less.

This was only our second time meeting in person, but I could say that we were close.

After working together almost every day, even a sense of camaraderie had formed.

“By the way, I was wondering about something… can I ask?”

“Huh? Sure, if it’s something I can answer.”

While we were casually chatting before Tsupi arrived, Jiwoo hesitated before carefully bringing up a question.

I figured she was going to ask about my avatar and my real appearance.

I mean, even I thought we looked too identical, except for the hair length.

But I was completely wrong.

“Uh, would it be okay if… I brought my kids into the meeting room later?”

“…Your kids?”

“Y-yeah.”

I stared at Jiwoo, who was awkwardly gauging my reaction.

Kids. Her kids.

I had heard her affectionately calling the KR VTubers “kids” before, but…

She definitely wasn’t talking about them this time.

Judging by the context, she meant her actual children.

“Sorry! I had no one to watch them, so I had to bring them with me!”

As I remained silent, Jiwoo suddenly bowed her head, apologizing.

I quickly waved my hands.

“No, no, there’s no need to apologize for that. I don’t think it’ll be a problem. The meeting shouldn’t take too long, and if necessary, we can leave them in the playroom for a bit.”

“Oh… there’s a playroom? Here?”

“Yeah. Apparently?”

Judging by her reaction, she seemed surprised that the Märchen HQ had a playroom.

Or rather, she was wondering why it even existed.

Honestly, I had no idea either.

From what I heard, it was built for content purposes for the VTubers, but…

I’d never been there myself.

I had only heard about it.

“That’s a relief…”

Jiwoo sighed in relief, resting her head on the table.

I hesitated.

Would it be rude to ask?

Was her husband working weekends?

Or was there another reason?

But before I could decide, Jiwoo noticed my expression and gave me a sheepish smile.

“My husband works overseas. He’s really busy.”

“Oh.”

Honestly…

This might sound bad, but…

I had assumed Jiwoo was raising her kids alone.

Like, due to some circumstance, she had ended up as a single mother.

But I guess that wasn’t the case.

Feeling a bit awkward, I turned my gaze away.

I felt guilty for making the wrong assumption.

“Then where are the kids now?”

I suddenly realized that it was just the two of us in the lobby.

Where were her kids?

“In the bathroom.”

“Ah….”

Jiwoo gestured toward the restroom nearby.

No wonder she had picked a seat so close to the bathroom.

Just as my question was answered, two tiny figures peeked out from the restroom…

Or rather…

They crawled out.

Literally crawled.

What happened to their clothes?

“Kids!”

Jiwoo yelled in horror, clutching her forehead in frustration.

She immediately stood up and lifted both of them onto their feet.

“Mmm.”

“Ugh… now I have to wash their clothes again.”

“Mom! Mommy!”

“Abuuu!”

A 4-year-old and a 3-year-old.

That age when nothing could stop them.

With a sigh, Jiwoo glanced at me with an awkward smile.

“I’m really sorry, but… can I quickly run home? I swear I’ll be back super fast.”

“Sure. Take your time. Tsupi said it’d take a while anyway.”

“Okay! I’ll be back soon!”

Wait, I said take your time…

Watching Jiwoo dash out, carrying both kids, I shook my head.

Raising children really isn’t easy.

“…Huh? Why are you alone? Where’s Jiwoo-ssi?”

“She’s on her way back.”

“…Weren’t you just with her?”

“We were together just a moment ago.”

After buying a grape ade from the café, I stepped outside—only to see Tsupi already sitting at a table.

When did she get here?

I hurried over and sat across from her.

She blinked, eyes wide.

While I Was Explaining Why I Was Alone…

“Huff! I’m so sorry I’m late!”

Jiwoo burst into the office, completely out of breath.

I told her to take her time…

I gave her a sympathetic look, and she responded with an awkward smile.

“It’s fine. And I already heard about it. You can leave the kids at the playroom.”

“Sniff… Thank you so much.”

Tsupi, like me, suggested sending the kids to the playroom.

Since Märchen is a big company, there were even staff members assigned to look after children in the playroom.

But seriously, I had to ask.

“…Why was the playroom even made?”

“Huh? Ohhh. It was originally meant to be used for content… but now… well. You’ll understand if you see it yourself.”

Tsupi sighed, resting her chin on her hand, looking utterly defeated.

“…Never mind. I’m not curious anymore.”

There was so much in that sigh.

I suddenly had zero interest in checking it out.

I just hoped adults weren’t using it to mess around…

And if they were, those adults were probably the VTubers.

“Phew! Let’s drop the kids off first, then get started. The meeting should only take about an hour, so no need to worry.”

“Oh, okay! Thank you!”

Tsupi stood up, patting Jiwoo’s shoulder before smiling at the little kids.

The kids, in turn, giggled and smiled back.

I guess cool and pretty people are popular, no matter the age group.

‘They never smiled at me like that.’

A part of me felt disappointed, but sadly, I lacked the talent for handling kids.

I had no idea what made them laugh or get excited.

Feeling a bit left out, I slumped my shoulders and got up.

I kinda just wanna go home…

“So, The Contract Is Finalized. Any Other Questions?”

“Nope! None at all! But um… could I get your autograph?”

The reason I came to the office today was for two things.

First, to finalize my second assistant—someone specialized in fashion and knowledgeable about subcultures.

Second, to meet with the EN MärchenLive representatives.

But since the EN rep hadn’t arrived yet, I focused on the assistant contract first.

And for some reason, every assistant I hire asks for my autograph.

The woman in front of me, Lee Yuri, my new assistant, was no exception.

“Sure… where do you want it?”

“Here, please!”

From her bag, she pulled out a white wallet.

It was clean, elegant, and expensive-looking.

First Jiwoo, and now this.

Why do people keep asking me to sign their expensive things?

Baffled, I signed her wallet and handed it back.

Tap, tap.

I felt something poke my side and turned to see Tsupi staring at me.

I knew exactly what that look meant.

She wanted me to wrap things up properly.

Apparently, Yuri applied to Märchen because of me.

So I guess that’s why they’re making me handle this part too.

“I’ll add you to the chat and Discord server later today. I’ll also send you the assistant tasks.”

“Ah! Yes! Thank you so much!”

“No problem.”

At Tsupi’s signal, Yuri gave a stiff bow before exiting the private room.

As soon as she left, Tsupi narrowed her eyes at me.

“Aren’t you being a little too cold?”

“…Was I?”

“You sounded like you were drawing a line between you two.”

“I was just talking normally.”

Unfair.

How is it my fault that my default face looks unapproachable?

I guess I do seem cold, but still.

I gave her a pouty expression, and Tsupi just laughed.

Even Jiwoo, who had been listening, started giggling.

“Yuwol does kinda look like a classy, aloof young lady, huh?”

“Right? If only they could soften that expression a bit…”

“Is this a compliment or an insult?”

I frowned, about to protest, but then I turned toward Tsupi.

“By The Way, When Is The EN Representative Arriving?”

“Huh? Oh, well… doesn’t really matter anymore.”

“?”

“They went back. To EN.”

The way Tsupi responded with a grimace, I could tell things didn’t go well.

So that’s why she was late earlier.

Now that I looked at her, she did seem a bit tired.

“Was it a request?”

“No, more like an order. So I just ignored them.”

“…You can do that?”

I didn’t know the details, but if Tsupi was pissed, then it probably wasn’t a pleasant discussion.

It was best not to ask too much.

I only needed to focus on KR Märchen anyway.

“You Don’t Have Anything Else To Do, Right?”

Smirk.

Before I could react, Tsupi stretched out my cheek and gave it a light flick.

“Ow!”

“Jiwoo-ssi, wanna try? It’s amazing.”

“Gasp! Then I won’t hold back!”

What the hell are you doing with my face?!

Still, it was clear.

The team leader position was pretty high up.

If she could turn down something like that, then…

I suddenly thought, Tsupi really is an impressive person.

Or maybe… not.

I wasn’t sure anymore.

For five whole minutes, the two of them kept messing with my cheeks as I glared at them with lifeless eyes.