Chapter 51
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 51
Chapter Title: Diehard Fans
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The next day, Yeji's broadcast finally resumed.
Jin-seong sat down at his computer, fired up AmericaTV,
and waited for the stream he'd been missing for so long.
Seeing her broadcast again after just a few days
filled him with a little thrill of anticipation.
As soon as Yeji went live, fans and viewers flooded the room.
The chat exploded with grievances the moment the long-awaited stream started.
— If you're sick, at least post a notice beforehand and rest up!
— We'll let this one slide, but announce it next time.
The fans teased her playfully, and Yeji flashed an apologetic smile on screen.
"Oppa fans, I'm sorry. I was so out of it from being sick... I couldn't post a notice. But I'm really fine now! Don't worry."
Jin-seong stayed quiet amid the chat.
He'd already known she was sick.
Seeing her push through the stream despite that, he quietly cheered her on
by firing off 10,000 star balloons.
Yeji spotted them right away and burst into a bright grin.
"As expected, only our Coin King Oppa delivers! Only you, Oppa! Thank you!"
At that moment, a gleaming gold "Chairman" title flashed next to Jin-seong's nickname.
Jin-seong was now Yeji's undisputed number-one diehard fan.
The other viewers cheered his donation in the chat.
— ㅇㅇㄱ as expected of Chairman
— Respect, Chairman!!
— That balloon power is insane ㄷㄷ Chairman's so cool!
Other diehard viewers watching the stream
sent Jin-seong cautious whispers, trying to build rapport.
"Chairman, we diehards have a group chat—want to join?"
But Jin-seong felt no need for that.
He had zero interest in socializing, let alone wasting time in a diehards-only group chat.
He politely declined, saying he'd join next time if the chance came up.
In truth, the man serving as vice-chairman among Yeji's diehards—unlike Jin-seong—was rallying them into a group chat for "bonding."
On the surface, it was just a casual fan meetup,
but his real intentions ran deeper.
He was doing this for one clear reason:
By banding the diehards together, he could sway the streamer Yeji with their collective influence,
and ultimately seize control of the stream.
The vice-chairman thought to himself.
No matter how loaded Coin King was,
if the other nine diehards united, their balloon power would overwhelm him.
But that was pure delusion on his part.
What he didn't know was that Jin-seong's wealth
made the combined balloons from all the other diehards look laughable by comparison.
And Jin-seong had no interest whatsoever in group chats or that kind of socializing.
All he wanted was to enjoy Yeji's stream in peace.
He had no reason to watch anyone's back or let anyone pull his strings.
And so, with a calm expression,
Jin-seong watched Yeji on screen and smiled contentedly once more.
Once Jin-seong refused to join the Yeji stream's group chat,
dissatisfaction began bubbling up among the other diehards, led by the vice-chairman.
In the chat he'd assembled, the vice-chairman started venting criticism and complaints about Jin-seong.
"Even if he's chairman, isn't he being a bit arrogant? He won't even join the group chat—feels like he's ignoring us."
The other diehards chimed in one by one, backing him up.
"Yeah, shouldn't he at least say hi before joining? That's basic manners."
"Money and balloon power don't give him the right to look down on people."
In that atmosphere, the vice-chairman finally revealed his true feelings.
"Honestly, Yeji's part of the problem too. She's such a newbie, she sucks at managing her diehards. I've donated this much, even Chairman has, but she won't give out so much as a phone number?"
The group's mood heated up instantly.
The other diehards unleashed their own pent-up gripes.
"Right, Yeji's too green. Other girl streamers manage their diehards like pros, but why's she so bad at it?"
"What's so hard about sharing a contact? Zero effort. Does she think we're a joke?"
They had no clue.
Yeji had privately given her number to Jin-seong—the very guy they were trashing—and
was actually being ignored by him, just waiting for a reply.
The group chat diehards all firmly believed Coin King hadn't gotten her number either.
Once the vice-chairman sensed their frustration had ripened enough, he showed his true colors.
"I think we need to band together and apply some pressure. If we keep letting her slack off, she'll never shape up."
In truth, the reason the vice-chairman and other diehards were showering a newbie girl streamer like Yeji with balloons was simple.
To them, donating star balloons wasn't pure goodwill—it was calculated thirst.
Established major girl streamers were tough to rank as a diehard or wield influence over,
but a newbie like Yeji had a low diehard threshold and could be easily manipulated.
That was the investment rationale.
While the diehards secretly schemed in their group chat,
Yeji—blissfully unaware—continued her stream with her usual bright expression.
On screen, she chatted happily with viewers in her cute, bubbly voice, just like always.
Jin-seong lounged on the sofa, munching snacks,
watching her stream without a care.
He had no idea about the diehards' brewing discontent and plots around him.
Jin-seong was simply enjoying the stream stress-free,
tossing another casual batch of star balloons.
As a newbie girl streamer, Yeji's room wasn't huge yet, so the diehard cutoff was noticeably low.
Breaking into the diehard ranks for major established girl streamers required dumping at least hundreds of thousands of balloons,
but for Yeji, a mere 30,000 got you in easily.
Compared to AmericaTV's true whales, the diehards plotting in the group chat were small fry.
But that uniquely Korean trait—put a cheap hat on someone and they start acting high and mighty—doesn't just vanish.
They figured slapping the "diehard" label on themselves let them toy with Yeji like a puppet in their palm.
If Jin-seong learned about this, he'd find it utterly ridiculous and hilarious.
In reality, ever since Yeji recovered from the flu and resumed streaming,
her actual earnings and the stream's core support came entirely from Coin King—that is, Jin-seong.
The vice-chairman and other diehards, drunk on their imaginary clout,
overestimated their sway and kept piling demands on Yeji.
The vice-chairman had already messaged her directly demanding her number.
「Yeji, this isn't how you manage diehards. Shouldn't you at least give me your number?」
The other diehards started bombarding her with similar messages.
As if scripted, they all said the same thing.
But Yeji had no intention of entertaining them.
Their intentions were too transparently obvious,
and more than that, she felt zero reason to hand over her personal contact.
When their messages went ignored,
the group chat diehards' frustration peaked.
"We've spent this much money, and we can't even get a number? Makes no sense. What's the point of donating more?"
Another diehard whined in agreement.
"Yeah. Once you're a diehard, it should feel at least a little like a pseudo-relationship. This treatment sucks."
The vice-chairman seized the moment.
"How about we all go on a donation strike as a group? We need to show some action to make her wake up."
But another diehard pushed back skeptically.
"Honestly, with Chairman Coin King dumping like that, our strike won't hit hard...."
Silence fell over the group chat.
Coin King's presence was a real threat to the diehards.
He had the chairman spot locked down tight, with balloon power strong enough to shrug off a collective boycott.
One diehard suggested bitterly, with a sarcastic edge.
"Why not just trash the stream altogether? No pseudo-romance, no number—donating more is pointless anyway. Let's find some other girl streamer to mess with."
The others nodded, warming to the idea.
Yeji wasn't dancing to their tune, which pissed them off, and with AmericaTV overflowing with other girl streamers, no need to obsess over her.
The vice-chairman declared with conviction.
"Alright then, everyone. Let's scout a solid newbie girl streamer to make our new home base."
And so, behind Yeji's back, the diehards' rebellion and betrayal took shape.
Oblivious to the conspiracy unfolding in the group chat, Yeji streamed on with her bright smile today.
Only Jin-seong remained, relaxed as ever, snacking quietly while watching her stream.
After wrapping up the stream and shutting down her computer,
she leaned back in her chair and let out a long sigh.
"Ah... Even so, streaming after a few days off is exhausting...."
Her health had recovered, but the long break had drained her stamina faster than expected.
She did some light stretching, then absentmindedly checked her AmericaTV messages.
Her eyes widened at the screen.
The inbox was packed with messages from the diehards.
Her head spun for a moment.
Messages rarely piled up like this,
but today nearly every diehard had sent one.
She cautiously opened one.
『Yeji, honestly, not giving out your number and barely managing diehards is too much. It makes donating balloons pointless—shouldn't you put in some real effort?』
Her face hardened instantly.
A surge of disgust hit her.
"What...? Calling me out for bad management?"
She opened more from the other diehards.
All the same gist.
Complaints about no contact info, demands for proper diehard management.
She was floored.
The idea that diehard status entitled them to her number was absurd.
Of course she wasn't giving it out. It was Streaming 101.
"What the hell are these people thinking...?"
Shocked at first, she decided to stay calm.
For her small newbie room, how much pull could these diehards really have?
The real whale was just one: Coin King Oppa.
And he made no demands.
As a girl streamer, landing a whale like that was rare—practically lucky.
The rest of the diehards barely registered.
She scoffed to herself.
"Ignoring these clowns won't cause issues. They can't actually hurt me, right?"
Anxiety flickered at first, but rationally, ignoring their nonsense was best.
She had no desire for private chats while streaming anyway.
"Yeah, ignore them. Gotta stay strong through this."
Pretending she hadn't read any, she set her phone down.
Uncomfortable and ridiculous, but she'd be fine, she told herself.
Still, a nagging unease lingered in one corner of her mind.
Alone in the quiet room, she burrowed back under the covers to shake it off.