I Absolutely Have to Go
"Hieeeek… hiek…."
After a brief stretch of frantically drumming on her desk in pure over-the-top glee, Kayak seemed to have burned herself out past the point of excitement. All that remained of her stream was the faint sound of her breathing.
This was Kayak's broadcast of the developer showcase, still very much underway.
Explanations of the rank system overhaul, bug fixes, and various quality-of-life patches had already come and gone, and the presentation had reached its midpoint when Eonics suddenly unveiled a brand-new mythic-grade skin: Snow Queen Camilla. It was a complete departure from every previous showcase, and nobody had seen it coming.
And for good reason — this was the first time they had ever used a showcase to announce a newly created skin. No matter how expensive a skin might be, they had never put one on display like this before.
But the reason became clear in the total director's next words.
The moment the director finished speaking, the chat started scrolling like a waterfall.
"Don't say weird stuff about my Camilla."
Having finally come back to her senses, Kayak clicked her mouse and banned the viewer who'd been sexually harassing Camilla.
Only then did the audience notice their streamer had returned to the land of the living, and the questions came pouring in.
"Yeah, I'm buying it for sure. It's expensive, but… when you think about it, doesn't it have a kind of symbolic value? Like it comes with a premium sticker attached. Luxury goods — yeah, that's the word. It feels like buying a luxury brand. Not that I've ever actually bought luxury goods, but…."
"It's the most expensive skin in Abyss and the prettiest one too. If the design had come out ugly I'd have second thoughts, but just looking at the skill showcase I'm already sold. My Camilla should've gotten a skin like this ages ago… Honestly, if they hadn't given her one by the end of this year I was seriously considering going down to Eonics HQ for a one-woman protest. But now that it's out like this, I'm in a great mood. Of course I'm buying it. Yep~ brainless spending activated. Upvote. Starting with me."
Kayak rattled off words at a pace completely unlike her usual self. Viewers could practically feel her beaming, giddy mood radiating through the screen.
When even Kayak reacted favorably to the skin's price tag, some of the people who'd been leaning negative started looking a little tempted.
Meanwhile, the showcase was playing Snow Queen Camilla's in-game footage in full.
From the base appearance to the skill effects and special animations, everything confirmed top-tier quality, and then the video ended.
Just as the showcase seemed ready to wrap up, the director took the mic once more.
Shock. And then more shock.
This, too, was an event on par with Camilla's new skin reveal — no, even bigger.
And the most stunning part was that it still wasn't over.
Director Oh Hong-gyun pushed up his glasses with a sly little smile.
Light glinted off the smooth lenses, momentarily hiding his eyes from view.
A bombshell. A genuine, unfiltered bombshell.
The official showcase stream's chat froze solid under the sheer volume. Kayak's channel — which had already drawn a solid crowd thanks to Camilla's new skin — was no different. Roughly fifteen thousand people, swept up in every emotion imaginable, hammered out messages in a collective frenzy, and even a perfectly healthy stream couldn't help but start lagging.
And at the center of it all, one woman let out a scream of pure rapture.
"Kyaaaaaaah!"
"Ah, yeah… I got a little too worked up earlier."
This was Camilla's body — built for durability. And yet her throat felt a little raw, which said something about just how hard she'd been screaming.
But what else was I supposed to do? An event this incredible had just dropped. From the perspective of someone who genuinely loved Abyss, this was no different from the greatest festival of my life.
It really did feel like a dream.
Dear God, thank you. Becoming Camilla was the right call.
Abyss, the greatest game in the world. This was exhilarating. Surprises like this stacked on top of each other — there was never a dull moment….
"I'm going. I absolutely have to go."
I muttered it with the most resolute expression I'd ever worn.