Chapter 5: The Rabbit in the Moonlight
1.
“…Why the hell did this happen?”
Seeing the collapsed house yesterday was shocking, but this was far worse.
I don’t even know how I got through work. I barely remember it.
The job didn’t matter much. I was planning to quit soon anyway.
What mattered was that my sister was a YouTuber.
‘Could I have been mistaken?’
I was exhausted, so maybe I misjudged.
“Noir, was it?”
I paused my fingers before typing ‘Noir’ into the search bar.
Conflicting emotions swirled inside me.
I desperately hoped this ‘Noir’ was my sister, yet part of me wished she wasn’t.
Why? I don’t know.
“I don’t even know how to process this…”
Biting my lip, I moved my fingers.
Searching the name brought up a page on GreenWiki.
To be listed on the wiki, you need to meet certain criteria. She must be pretty popular.
‘That explains why someone was watching her at the capsule room.’
If not for that, I wouldn’t have found her.
Feeling a strange gratitude for the coincidence, I entered the wiki.
“Noir. A name meaning ‘darkness under the moonlight,’ chosen to reflect her desire to shine like the moon in the dark? God, I wanna punch something…”
If this wasn’t my sister, that’d be a rude thing to say, but my gut screamed it was her.
“She’s a rabbit from the dark side of the moon, though she’s not an RP-focused YouTuber, and her chat rules are quite relaxed.”
Average viewership: around 1,100. Like a solid mid-sized company in business terms.
I skimmed the wiki info but still wasn’t sure. I’d need to watch her streams to confirm.
Clicking the link on the wiki, I entered Noir’s channel. Sorting by popularity, the first video caught my eye.
『YouTuber Cooking Stream: Despair Edition』
I clicked and started watching.
It was an edited video of someone cooking on a desk, and the process was a spectacle.
She was trying to make kimchi fried rice, opening a pack of store-bought kimchi and placing it on a cutting board.
But she slammed it down so hard it splattered everywhere.
[Kyaaa!]
She let out a shrill scream and hurriedly wiped the mess with tissues.
Only after cleaning did she start chopping.
“Wow…”
Her knife skills were so shaky, it looked like she’d cut her fingers any second. I watched, on edge the whole time.
[Ingredients prepped!]
After chopping just the kimchi, she stood up, and the chat flooded with question marks.
– Kimchi fried rice, you said?
– Just kimchi in it?
– What’s this???
[Kimchi fried rice only needs kimchi, duh. What else would you put in it? Spam? You rich or something!? Tuna? Don’t have any at home.]
– Prep skills: F-tier lol
– Moon Rabbit fans who wanna smack Noir, like this lmao, me first haha
– Big like lmao
I watched the video with a stiff face. Kimchi-only fried rice.
That was the dish I used to make for my sister all the time.
[It’s fine with just kimchi! I ate it like this a lot as a kid, and it was delicious.]
– You made this yourself?
– That’s delicious? How good a cook are you?
– Noir, you’re wife material
– Back off, she’s mine lol
[What? I barely cooked myself. My little brother made it all.]
“It’s her. It’s really her…”
I paused the video.
I’d tried to deny it, but now I had no choice but to accept it.
Noir, the rabbit from the dark side of the moon, was my sister.
Should I laugh? Cry? I stared blankly at the monitor.
I was glad she was alive.
But this person, acting cute in front of thousands with a virtual avatar, wasn’t the reliable sister I knew.
Where had that strong person gone?
“…Why a YouTuber, of all things?”
Still, I was relieved she was alive. Even if it felt strange…
I sighed heavily, leaning back in my chair. My head throbbed, and I squeezed my eyes shut.
‘So what do I do now?’
I confirmed Noir was my sister.
The problem was how to meet her and tell her I’m her brother.
That was the issue.
Average stream viewership: 1,100.
YouTube subscribers: 50,000.
There was a public email, but given the channel’s size, the chances of her noticing my message were slim.
‘Still, I should send one.’
I clicked to compose an email, entering the address for sponsorship inquiries. To catch her attention, I needed to be bold.
‘What should I write?’
After thinking, I typed the subject.
[Subject: Is the ‘Noir Red Pill’ post on the community for real???]
‘This should do it.’
I wrote a provocative subject, then in the body, I said I was her brother, Kang Siwoo, and to contact me at my number.
[Email sent successfully.]
‘That’s everything I can do for now.’
I left a comment too, then threw myself onto the bed. Lying there, anxious thoughts crept back.
‘Will this even work?’
I knew the odds were low. But I also had nothing else to try right now.
‘If only I could call her directly…’
“Ah!”
I shot up from the bed.
A sudden realization. Her phone number. I could just call her directly.
I jumped up, grabbed my phone, and dialed her number.
Ring—
“Please, pick up. Please…”
I bit my nails, my legs shaking. My heart raced with each ring.
[Hello?]
Someone answered, but it was a man’s voice. My blood ran cold.
“Uh, is this Kang Seryun’s number?”
[Kang Seryun? No, it’s not.]
“Oh, okay…”
I hung up, sighing deeply. She must’ve changed her number.
‘This is bad.’
I hadn’t even considered she’d change her number. Most people don’t.
‘How do I approach her?’
I frowned, racking my brain, but no brilliant ideas came.
At best, I could try contacting her through donations, but that’d take time and money.
I couldn’t just donate a ton and demand a meeting.
“My head’s gonna explode…”
As I stewed, my stomach growled.
I hadn’t eaten all day while working, so it was no surprise I was hungry.
‘Spicy food’s the best for times like this.’
I got up and headed to the kitchen.
I filled a pot with water and grabbed a pack of Nuclear Demon King Ramen from the cupboard.
When the noodles were almost done, I drained most of the water.
Simmer—
On low heat, I added the sauce and stirred several times.
As the broth reduced and soaked into the noodles, I turned off the heat and transferred it to a bowl.
I sprinkled mozzarella cheese and mayonnaise on top, then microwaved it for a minute and a half.
Ding—
When it was done, I took it out.
The melted cheese and mayo mixed as I stirred with chopsticks.
“Wow…”
The vibrant red turned to a creamy orange, like rosé sauce.
The thick texture made me swallow hard.
“Let’s eat.”
I grabbed a big chopstickful and shoved it in my mouth.
The intense spice hit my tongue first, but the creamy cheese and mayo balanced it out.
Slurp—Haa…
Even so, it was a bit too spicy for me.
I’d never handled spice well, and this body seemed the same.
Sweating buckets, I kept devouring the noodles.
It definitely helped relieve some stress.
Gulp, gulp—
I finished it off and grabbed milk from the fridge.
The cold milk soothed my burning tongue, finally bringing some calm.
“Ah, that was good…”
Leaning back, I zoned out. With my stomach full, exhaustion started creeping in.
‘I’ll do the dishes later…’
I filled the pot and bowl with water and stumbled to bed.
Lying face-down, my consciousness slowly faded.
Ding—
A notification snapped me awake just before I drifted off.
I flailed my arm, grabbed my phone, and glanced at the screen.
[‘Noir’ has started a stream!]
A notification from the account I’d made on Twitch. I clicked the stream. The title appeared.
『Let’s Die Once Today: Battlefield of Legends, Diamond Climb Stream』
‘She’s gaming.’
I checked for email or comment replies, but there was nothing.
Just some replies calling me a lunatic.
‘Well, believing me would be weirder.’
I rolled over, staring at the ceiling.
Pulling the blanket to my chin, I closed my eyes.
“Wait.”
Just as sleep crept in, a plan hit me.
What’s the biggest obstacle to contacting my sister? I don’t have a direct way to reach her.
Looking at her channel, she had several videos interacting with snipers or engaging in 1v1s.
In other words, she actively engages with snipers and uses them for content.
If I keep sniping ‘Noir,’ maybe she’ll reach out to me, like in those videos.
Sure, there’s no guarantee it’ll work.
But is there a better plan right now? Any reason not to try? None.
“This is it. F*ck it.”
I’m sniping her, aren’t I?