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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 5
Chapter Title: The Power of a Video
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The effect of Seojun's video didn't stop there.
A week later, Seo Eunhye's BananaTalk was flooded with messages. They were from the other mothers, all praising Seojun's video.
-He ate again today!
-Wow! Jiyoon ate everything without skipping a single meal!
-I think the twins' weight has doubled!
The twins' mother was joking, but her comment prompted all the other mothers to weigh their children. Jiyoon, in particular, had gained so much weight that she brought tears to her parents' eyes.
"Don't you think Seojun is growing up way too fast?"
Lee Minjun looked at the picture Seo Eunhye had sent him.
It was a photo of Seojun, taken just moments before, sent via BananaTalk. In it, Seojun was sitting on a scale, holding a green-skinned orc with both hands, smiling brightly.
Along with the picture, she had sent his weight from last week and this week.
Lee Minjun was amazed by how much his weight had increased. Then again, his son was a baby who ate well, slept well, and pooped well. If anything, it would be more concerning if he *wasn't* gaining weight.
"Oh, is that Seojun?"
Kim Heesung came over. He glanced at Lee Minjun's phone.
"An orc? That's the one I sent, isn't it? Looks like he still likes it?"
Lee Minjun sighed. Kim Heesung let out an awkward "Uahaha," rubbing the back of his neck. A cold sweat trickled down his back.
"Well, I really didn't think he'd actually like it."
He had just wanted to tease the ever-smiling Seojun. Hoping to see Seojun cry from fear, Kim Heesung had playfully packed a large box full of the monster dolls he had lying around his house and brought them over to Lee Minjun's place.
He had planned to take them right back if Seojun cried, but…
"Who knew he'd love them so much…"
Lee Minjun wiped his face.
The moment he opened the box, his son had let out a high-pitched squeal.
Thinking he was scared, Minjun had quickly tried to close the box, but his son had thrashed in excitement, hitting both the box and his father's arm.
It hurt. His son's actions seemed to scream, 'Open it! Open it!' so Lee Minjun had no choice but to open the box again.
"It's become his absolute favorite doll…"
"Ahahaha. Sorry."
Lee Seojun had crawled right into the box, buried himself among the dolls, and giggled, "Ehehehe." Kim Heesung, too, was stunned by Seojun's reaction, not knowing what to do.
At that moment, Seo Eunhye had stood there forlornly, holding Todori—the rabbit doll, Seojun's formerly cherished toy—which had been utterly abandoned.
"But seriously, Seojun has some unique tastes."
"You're one to talk…"
Kim Heesung, who had endured a week of nagging from Lee Minjun and Seo Eunhye about who in their right mind would give such dolls to a baby, threw his hands up in surrender at Minjun's quiet remark.
"I'm really sorry!"
"Haa, it's fine. I've given up now."
Despite saying he had given up, Lee Minjun opened his smartphone's gallery to show off pictures of Seojun.
Seojun holding the orc, Seojun smiling with a slime in both hands, Seojun squishing a dragon, Seojun sleeping next to a werewolf. Seojun with a twin-headed ogre…
Kim Heesung quietly bowed his head.
"I am truly sorry."
The ever-smiling Seojun was adorable, but the dolls he was holding were terrifying. The contrast was so stark it would make anyone question his parents' tastes. The sheer incongruity of it all forced Kim Heesung to apologize.
Lee Minjun nodded. He felt he could listen to Kim Heesung's apologies until Seojun's tastes changed, and it still wouldn't be enough.
Little did Lee Minjun know. That he would be hearing Kim Heesung's apologies for the rest of his life…
Kim Heesung sat down. Thanks to finishing his work on Saturday, he could take it easy today. On second thought, maybe it would have been better to just work today…
Lee Minjun showed a video to the listless Kim Heesung. Heesung already knew what it would be. A video of Seojun, a video of Seo Eunhye, or a video of both Seojun and Seo Eunhye.
His guess was spot on.
"Our Seojun eats so well, doesn't he!"
"You doting fool."
But Kim Heesung also thought Seojun was incredibly cute. It was as if he had been born with all the best traits of his mother and father, and even their hidden good points.
Staring at the video of Seojun eating baby food, Kim Heesung spoke up. He had noticed Seojun waving his arms as he ate.
"But why is he waving his hands?"
"Hmm…"
At Kim Heesung's question, Lee Minjun shook his head, admitting he didn't know either. Seojun hadn't waved his hands while eating his baby food that morning. Why was he doing that now?
"Because he's especially excited?"
"About eating? Is he like that every time he eats?"
Lee Minjun shook his head, saying that wasn't it. Kim Heesung sank into deep thought. What was different from usual…
"The camera?"
"...The camera?"
At Kim Heesung's words, Lee Minjun looked at the video again. There was Seojun, waving both arms and smiling brightly.
"Maybe he likes the camera? That's why he's excited and waving his arms."
"You think so?"
"Oh, Seojun was totally born to be an actor."
At Kim Heesung's comment, Lee Minjun watched the video again. He could hear Seojun's laughter, "Kyaaaak!"
* * *
"Wow, really... Jiyoon and I. We got praised at the hospital."
At Jiyoon's mother's words, Seo Eunhye smiled too.
It had been two weeks since she sent the video of Seojun eating. All five babies were eating well without a single complaint.
"Lately, she eats well even without watching Seojun's video."
At Mina's mother's words, the twins' mother also nodded.
"After watching Seojun's video while eating for a few days, at first I was worried they wouldn't be able to eat without it, but now they eat just fine at mealtimes even without the video."
"Well... there was a bit of a struggle in between…"
"That's nothing. A walk in the park!"
Seo Eunhye was happy to hear the three mothers' words. Smiling brightly, she went to cut the cake that Mina's mother had brought.
It was a whipped cream cake topped with plenty of strawberries, as if celebrating the resolution of the mothers' worries.
For a moment, it seemed everyone was thinking the same thing, and a comfortable silence fell.
Seo Eunhye looked at the three mothers. They wore no makeup, but their faces, free from worry, were positively glowing.
Seo Eunhye felt a lump form in her throat for some reason. The other mothers felt the same.
The soft-hearted mother of Jiyoon had tears welling up in her eyes.
"Really, thank you, Eunhye…"
"It's nothing…"
"No, really... thank you so much…"
Some might say it was just about a baby eating, but to a parent, it was more agonizing than skipping meals themselves.
"Because he's eating well, he plays well, sleeps well... and doesn't get sick…"
"It's only been two weeks."
"Those two weeks have been pure bliss."
Mina's mother chimed in. She was so grateful that Mina was eating without fuss, and so grateful to Seojun.
"My sons have gotten even more energetic!"
The twins' mother's joke made everyone wipe their tears and burst into laughter. The babies laughed along with them.
Seojun was surprised as he listened to the mothers' conversation.
'So [Fairy's Glitter] works even through a video?'
It was the first time he had used his ability through a medium like a video, so he had assumed it wouldn't work. But judging by what the mothers were saying, it seemed he was wrong.
It was an unexpected but welcome development.
'If an ability like [Fairy's Glitter] works through videos... becoming a superstar will be even easier.'
Seojun giggled happily and hugged the doll Kim Heesung had given him a few days ago. It was a handmade doll of a dark mage, the Lich King.
Seo Eunhye had been horrified by the crowned skeleton doll—its eyes, embedded with green cubic zirconia, made it look even scarier—but Seojun loved it so much that he had been clutching it tightly all week.
The other babies shifted a little farther away from the giggling Seojun. The Lich King's green eyes seemed to be glaring right at them.
While they were eating cake and chatting, Mina's mother cautiously brought something up.
"If it's okay with you, how about uploading Seojun's video to N-tube?"
"N-tube?"
At Seo Eunhye's question, Mina's mother nodded.
"You know how I post vlogs on N-tube."
The other mothers leaned in, their interest piqued.
"I was already posting clips of Mina in my vlogs, saying things like whether she ate well that day or not. A lot of my viewers who are also mothers would comment that their sons or daughters were picky eaters too."
Seo Eunhye and the other mothers nodded. Seojun, who was drawing a magic circle on the cloud-patterned mat with the Lich King's hand, also nodded. Of course, these four weren't the only picky eaters in the world.
"But for the past two weeks, I kept saying things like, 'Mina ate well again today,' or 'I gave her new baby food, and she loved it,' without even realizing it."
Mina's mother looked at Seo Eunhye a little apologetically. Jiyoon's mother and the twins' mother also flinched, as they, too, had been bragging to their own families and in-laws about how well their children were eating lately.
"It's fine. It's not like you mentioned Seojun."
Seo Eunhye shook her head.
"So, people started commenting, asking for the secret to getting babies to eat well. Besides those, there were others saying their baby won't eat... that they even went to the hospital…"
At the mention of the hospital, everyone looked at Jiyoon's mother. She shrugged. Jiyoon was a good eater now. She had no worries.
"I didn't mention Seojun's video. For now, I just posted the brand of formula Mina drinks and some baby food recipes. Eunhye, if you're okay with it, I was hoping you could upload Seojun's video to N-tube to help other moms."
"Hmm. I see."
Seo Eunhye was lost in thought. The other mothers waited quietly for her to finish thinking.
Should she upload Seojun's video or not? Seo Eunhye pondered the question carefully.
It would mean putting Seojun's face online. More than anyone, she needed Seojun's opinion, but her son was a 7-month-old baby who was just now learning to crawl and babble. The decision rested on his mother and father.
'Okay, the good thing is... it will help babies who don't eat. Their parents will be able to solve their worries. And the bad thing is that Seojun's face will be out there…'
There were likely other pros and cons, but since it concerned Seojun, she couldn't make the decision alone.
Having made up her mind, Seo Eunhye spoke.
"First, I'll discuss it with my husband."
"Okay. It's fine if you don't! Think it over carefully and then decide."
Seo Eunhye nodded at Mina's mother's words.
'If only Seojun could talk, I'd ask him…'
Seo Eunhye looked at her son, who was busy wiping the mat with the gruesome-looking skeleton doll's hand.
The jet-black and stark-white bones. For a moment, her thoughts about N-tube were replaced by a weary sigh over the skeleton doll from Kim Heesung.
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