Chapter 63

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Translator: MadScientist

Chapter: 63

Chapter Title: America's Cinderella Ji-ming

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Ji-ming finished her song and slowly caught her breath before opening her mouth to speak.

She usually chattered away brightly, but today the mood was different.

The 11 regular viewers watching the stream kept the chat quiet as they waited for her words.

"Actually... everyone, the reason I've been on such a long hiatus is... because my mother passed away."

A short silence fell over the chat at the sudden confession.

And then,

The fans' words of comfort filled the chat, but Ji-ming couldn't hold back her emotions, and her voice trembled.

"My mom supported my dream of becoming an entertainer from when I was little.

She worked so hard to back me up even during my trainee days.

Right up until she passed, she always said...

'Honey, you're the best singer in the world to me. I hope you get lots of fans.'

Even though I couldn't make it as an entertainer,

I started streaming because she wanted more people to hear my singing."

Ji-ming's voice cracked a little with tears, but she pressed on.

"But reality wasn't that easy.

The streaming income was barely enough to live on by myself,

and I couldn't even help my mom.

I kept worrying if continuing to stream was just burdening her too.

But after she passed... I just didn't have the strength to keep going anymore."

She paused, taking a deep breath.

"I kept thinking I just can't do this anymore... it's too hard. But at the very least, I felt like I had to say goodbye to all of you who've believed in me and cheered me on... so I turned on this final stream. Thank you all so much."

The chat exploded with messages at Ji-ming's farewell.

Seeing the warm messages from her fans, Ji-ming finally couldn't hold back her tears.

"No... thanks to all of you, the last year has been so happy for me.

I may not have been a successful streamer,

but meeting fans like you has been the greatest luck of my life.

I could show my mom I had fans like you, so I'm satisfied with that."

Ji-ming had been using a 3D virtual character instead of showing her real face the whole stream.

The real reason she never revealed her face wasn't a lack of confidence in her looks.

She'd prepared as a trainee since childhood, so she knew she was attractive enough.

But watching her fellow trainees debut one by one and show their faces on TV made it hard to accept that she couldn't live that shining life.

So even when she started streaming, she couldn't bear to show her face in case they recognized her.

Hiding behind the virtual character to chat casually with fans was the best compromise she could make between her dreams and reality.

Jin-seong, who had been listening quietly to her story, felt a deep emotion he couldn't quite name.

He'd spent his whole life scrambling to make money illegally, living richly but aimlessly, with no real dreams or goals.

A constant emptiness lingered in a corner of his heart.

'What have I even been living for?'

Ji-ming's honest confession made Jin-seong reflect on his own life.

He truly admired how she kept challenging herself despite failing her dreams and gave her all for her fans to the end.

He sensed a genuine passion for life and dreams in her—something money couldn't buy.

Helping someone like Ji-ming would feel meaningful to him too.

Unlike his past days of mindlessly showering girl cam streamers with balloons for ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠cheap thrills, Jin-seong finally felt like he'd found a way to use his wealth that truly mattered.

Ji-ming was just about to end the stream.

The sudden alert chimed, and 'Coin King''s nickname popped up boldly on screen.

At the same time, the electronic girl's voice echoed through the quiet room.

The quiet chat exploded in an instant.

Ji-ming was stunned for a moment.

She'd been caught up in her mom's death and plans to quit streaming, so she hadn't heard about Coin King making waves in the internet broadcast scene.

She was just shocked by the massive Star Balloons.

"Whoa... Coin King, thank you so much.

To give such a huge gift at my farewell...

I'm sorry I didn't know about you sooner.

But I've already got a job interview lined up..."

Those words hit Ji-ming right in the chest.

The tip of her nose tingled.

Memories flashed by: the excitement of her first time at the mic, starting her first stream with her mom's cheers.

But the past year had taught her how high the walls of reality were.

"Thank you so much for those kind words, Coin King.

But reality's tougher than it seems.

I don't even have living expenses right now... I need to find work fast, so really, thank you but..."

In that short time, a total of 70,000 Star Balloons had burst—far more than her potential job's salary, even after taxes.

But Ji-ming still wasn't sure.

She knew too well how unstable streaming income could be.

"Coin King... I'm truly grateful, but if you leave, my life would be too unstable. I'm sorry..."

Coin King went quiet for a bit, then posted one more message.

Ji-ming's mind went blank.

It sounded like a joke, but Coin King wasn't the joking type.

"If it's that much... I could chase my dream again. But why give someone like me so much money...?"

Before Ji-ming could finish, the screen was flooded with gift alerts.

A total of 1.07 million Star Balloons—worth 107 million won—exploded all at once.

Ji-ming couldn't close her mouth, doubting her own eyes.

Her body froze, her voice shook, and tears began streaming from her eyes.

"Truly... thank you, Coin King Chairman.

I don't know if this is okay, but... I'll run toward my dream again with all I've got.

Thank you so much..."

The fans teared up at Ji-ming's heartfelt words too.

The chat was plastered with 'Coooiiiin Kiiiiing!'

Jin-seong just smiled quietly at the chat.

He was starting to feel the true value of money.

Just like with Yeji's incident, he felt a strange joy and pride knowing his wealth could change someone's dream and life.

And so, Coin King's second streamer pick was the VTuber Ji-ming.

As the one who gave her a new chance, he shocked AmericaTV and the internet broadcast world once again.

AmericaTV Gallery.

A post appeared in the always chaotic community full of drama and trolls.

Unlike usual, it instantly grabbed everyone's attention.

The title piqued curiosity right away.

Clicking it brought up a video clip.

The clip showed a virtual character moving as a teary voice poured out her story, with insane Star Balloon alerts blasting nonstop beside it.

The gallery users were floored by Coin King's class dumping a million at once.

A brief summary was below the video.

In minutes, the post shot to the top with massive views and upvotes.

Comments were on fire.

Hundreds of comments poured in instantly as people kept marveling at Ji-ming's story and Coin King's class.

Coin King's picked streamer list in the big spender chart got Ji-ming's name added proudly.

Now Ji-ming had earned ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the glorious title of "Coin King's Choice"—the most influential big shot on AmericaTV.

And just like that, VTuber Ji-ming became AmericaTV's Cinderella overnight.