Chapter 53
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 53
Chapter Title: Spotlight on the Coin King
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Yeji turned on her stream as usual.
Today's concept was cosplay.
She'd prepared a nurse costume to draw in viewers and set the title to
"— Cosplay DAY."
It was a bit provocative, but she needed something like this every now and then.
The moment she went live, the title and thumbnail started working their magic, just as expected.
Her viewer count, which usually struggled to hit 100, had already surpassed 400.
As Yeji pushed through the broadcast with an awkward smile, the unusually high numbers started making her nervous.
'Whoa, why are there so many people today? It's making me jittery…'
But 400 didn't last long.
Just 30 minutes in, viewers surged, and her stream began climbing the AmeriTV rankings.
Now it was right there, visible with just a slight scroll.
Still, what bugged her was that Coin King oppa, the chairman who always showed up around this time, hadn't appeared yet.
'Why hasn't Coin King oppa come today…? Is he busy?'
Then, new viewers started joining as fans and sending star balloons.
Yeji hid her awkwardness, flashing a bright smile and reacting enthusiastically.
It was right then.
The zealous fans piled in as a group, and the chat exploded.
— Refund all the balloons we've sent so far.
— Can't watch anymore, so just give us refunds.
— No more words needed. Just return all the balloons.
Yeji's mind went blank in panic.
'What the hell…? What's this all about? Just because I didn't give out my number…?'
Even on AmeriTV, it was rare for zealots to swarm like this.
Regular viewers were thrown off by the sudden chaos too.
— Huh? What's up with the zealot bros?
— Whoa, feels like some drama just dropped ㄷㄷ
— What did this camgirl do to get them all riled up?
The vice chairman kept firing sharp chats.
— You know what you did wrong, right? No more talking. We'll just vanish quietly, so return all the balloons.
Viewers, judging by appearances, quickly turned suspicious and accusatory toward Yeji.
It looked like she'd committed some grave sin.
At that moment, one of the floaters clipped the scene and posted it to the AmeriTV gallery.
「Hakko camgirl getting swarmed by zealots ㄷㄷㄷ…」
Looks like the camgirl screwed up for real lol
The provocative title shot it straight to popular post.
Comments flooded in with malice.
— Camgirl being a total camgirl. If the baby whales crash that hard, she's gotta be guilty.
— Camgirls lie even when they breathe lololol
— Still sending balloons after seeing that crap? Any sucker whales left?
Dopamine addicts swarmed the post, inflating her viewers from 400 to 3,000.
Yeji's heart pounded wildly as 3,000 viewers flooded in.
Her hands shook, her legs wobbled.
'What the hell is going on…? What do I do? Never had this many viewers before…'
The malicious floaters took over chat, mocking her relentlessly.
— Refund lolololol Let's send her to the gutter
— Cheering on the whale bros lololol
— Today's pure gold lololol Hakko camgirl downfall live
Her stream turned into a malicious floater feast, with her as the main course.
Even curious onlookers drawn by the numbers spammed "What's going on?" and in 50 minutes, it hit the top spot.
Yeji's mind was a total blank.
But she had to do something. Staying silent might make her even bigger bait.
'Get it together, Yeji. Can't just sit here. Gotta fix this somehow!'
She gripped her trembling hands and stared straight at the screen.
In the biggest crisis since starting, she desperately racked her brain to overcome it.
Yeji steadied her shaky gaze and forced her mouth open.
"No, oppas! What did I even do wrong that you're demanding refunds and ruining my stream? If you're upset, just talk to me privately! What kind of behavior is this?"
Her voice trembled, but she held her ground.
Honestly, Yeji hadn't done anything wrong.
Just refused a private number. It wasn't unreasonable by any stretch.
But the floaters couldn't care less.
They craved dopamine-fueled drama and someone's downfall.
Chat was already thick with that vibe.
— Whoa, talking back so boldly to the guys who donated?
— She's vicious, total viper.
— Damn, camgirls are scary af.
— No sucker whales left sending after that, right?
Malice flooded her chat fast.
But Yeji didn't back down.
She stared straight at the camera again.
"Vice Chairman oppa, say it to my face. What did I do wrong? Are you seriously protesting as a group just because I didn't give my number? Do camgirls have to give out privates?"
Chat filled with '?' for a moment.
Viewers finally got it.
They'd expected juicy drama, but it was just petty zealot whining.
Floaters lost interest instantly.
Disappointed it wasn't scandalous, but they weren't done—they pivoted to mocking her instead.
Chat could be steered anywhere with a little dilution anyway.
— Whoa, spends that much and can't even get a number? lololol
— Bros, isn't this just an ATM at this point?
— Service job with no service lolol
— Took the money, give some care lol No conscience.
Nothing but sneers and jeers.
No law said she had to share her number, so mocking was all they had.
The zealots reveled in it, feeling victorious as viewers seemed on their side.
Despite being right, Yeji's mental state cracked under the nonstop abuse.
No manager for a Hakko stream—she faced the torrent alone, crumbling helplessly.
Tears welled up from the injustice.
'This isn't why I started streaming…'
As tears pooled in Yeji's eyes, chat ignited again.
— Whoa, she's so shameless.
— She messes up then cries lololol
— Tes hyung said it: women's tears come when things don't go their way lololol
— Look at her crying lolololol Total gall
Malicious floaters turned her tears into more ammo, attacking harder.
Yeji drowned in isolation and despair, no allies in sight.
As a newbie, she couldn't handle the near-10k viewer explosion.
That's when it happened.
A familiar alert popped at the top of the screen.
『Chairman Coin King has entered.』
Chat erupted anew.
Floaters welcomed the "king whale" with mockery.
— lololol Chairman's here lolol
— Chairman bro, you know about this?
— Chairman, she didn't treat big spenders right, for real?
— Run while you can lololol
— Chairman arrived.
— Wonder what the chairman thinks lolol
They dragged Coin King into the joke too.
Yeji was thrilled he showed, but chat crushed her hope again.
'Ugh… what now… If even Coin King oppa turns on me, I'm done…'
Her face froze in despair and fear, hands clenched, staring blankly at chat and camera.
She despaired, no clue how to escape this worst crisis.
Heading home after a brief meetup with Minji, my mind felt much lighter.
The lingering guilt over Young-jin had eased a bit.
Running into Minji by chance and reconnecting felt like a chance to finally repay what I owed Young-jin.
A small smile tugged at my lips.
'Young-jin, I'll take good care of your little sister now. You can finally rest easy.'
With lighter steps, I reached home.
The elevator up, door open—the familiar, cozy vibe welcomed me.
Set the piled-up coffee on the desk, sank into the chair, and booted the PC.
Around this time, I'd habitually end the day watching Yeji's stream.
Logged into AmeriTV, scanning for her room—but something was off.
Her stream topped the list, with over 10k viewers.
"Huh? What's this? Why so many people on Yeji's stream today…?"
Curious, I clicked cautiously.
The screen lit up—Yeji's eyes brimmed with tears, her face a mix of panic and sadness.
So unlike her usual bright energy, it threw me.
"No way… why's she crying all of a sudden? What the hell's going on?"
I checked chat—total chaos, nothing like usual.
— Chairman appeared lololol Bro, escape now!
— Coin King bro, just dumping cash on a camgirl lolol Total ATM bro lolol
— Chairman, did you get her number? Word is she stiffed the zealots… lolol
Viewers turned their mockery on me.
My mind blanked.
No clue what was happening.
Yeji looked frozen on screen, on the verge of breaking—my heart sank.
'What happened…? Did Yeji mess up? Why's everyone going nuts?'
The sudden mess scrambled my brain more; hand on keyboard, I stared blankly.
Facing this bizarre scene for the first time, I had no idea how to navigate the mad chat and her tearful face.