Chapter 70

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Translator: MadScientist

Chapter: 70

Chapter Title: Nope, It Doesn't Work

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America's Hakko Gallery.

This was a spin-off gallery from the main America Gallery,

and it truly was a ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠lawless zone armed with pure anonymity.

Countless malicious trolls unleashed torrents of insults and criticism without restraint—it was a notorious space that streamers called the "shithole."

Today, the gallery lord of that shithole was Yeji.

With huge anticipation for her comeback stream,

many fans had been waiting, but when Yeji actually started broadcasting,

her expression was dark, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and her energy was rock bottom.

It was because the Coin King, whom everyone had been waiting for, was absent.

The users of Hakko Gallery couldn't care less about such circumstances.

The gallery was instantly flooded with posts slandering Yeji.

The posts exploded in number in an instant,

and she became the target of mockery and ridicule all day long.

Meanwhile, within the gallery, there were users deliberately stirring things up to relentlessly attack Yeji.

Mostly made up of Mini-mi's fandom, they had been tossing out "Yeji comeback stream" bait since the day before to set the mood,

and now they were monitoring her broadcast in real-time, nitpicking every action and expression.

Yeji's chat window had turned into total chaos, too.

The infamous A Squad from AmericaTV had shown up.

They showed off their unity by prefixing 'A' to their nicknames and moved in organized fashion.

The manager moved quickly to kick them with ban messages, but

they had dozens of accounts, so it was pointless.

Kick one, and two more would pop up, tormenting Yeji.

Yeji grew exhausted from the endless mockery and spam,

and her long-awaited comeback stream after a hiatus only piled on the stress.

Even knowing the malicious trolls' comments and slanders would keep pouring in, she had no choice but to force a bitter smile and continue the broadcast.

Unable to endure the nonstop abuse from the trolls and the chat flooding, Yeji finally stepped away for a moment.

Excusing herself to use the bathroom, she left the screen and checked her phone anxiously in the hallway to the restroom.

To see if the Chairman, Coin King, had messaged her.

Fortunately, there was a KakaoTalk from Coin King.

Yeji relaxed upon reading the short message.

He hadn't ditched her; he was just busy.

The deep anxiety in her heart melted away like snow.

At the same time, she realized how much she'd let down her other fans.

"My energy was pretty low, huh..."

She caught her breath for a moment and headed back to the broadcast room.

Her empty seat, already visible on screen,

was being filled with trolls' abuse in the chat.

Yeji returned to her seat, showed her face on screen with a surprised expression, and said,

"No way, I just went to the bathroom for a sec,

what's up with you guys!?"

At that moment, the manager messaged in the manager chat about the flooding situation.

Yeji scanned the chat slowly with a serious face.

It was plastered with insults aimed at her,

and even fans were getting swept up, expressing their hurt feelings.

Yeji continued calmly.

"Ah... You guys were upset because my face looked bad and my energy was low..."

In that instant, the trolls lit up and hammered the chat.

Yeji waved her hand with an absurd look and said,

"No, guys, it's really not because of the Chairman,

it's just been so long since I streamed, I was nervous~"

But the trolls had no intention of listening

and flooded the chat even harder.

Finally, Yeji stood up in resignation,

bowing deeply from the waist.

"Okay... If you guys felt that way,

then it must be my fault... Sor... sor..."

Then suddenly, Yeji lifted her head

and raised her voice in a sudden outburst.

"You crazy bastards! Sorry my ass! Who the hell are you non-fans to nitpick me!?"

The chat exploded in that instant.

Yeji burst into bright laughter, quickly shifting the mood.

"Now let's really have some fun, guys!

I even prepared a special outfit just to show you all, so wait a sec!"

With that, she vanished from the screen again, reappearing about five minutes later in cosplay.

The outfit was from the anime Demon Slayer: the popular character Nezuko's attire.

A pink kimono topped with a black haori, and a pink ribbon on her long black hair perfectly recreated the character.

Especially the glimpse of her white, smooth legs peeking from under the slightly lifted skirt

completely captivated the viewers.

Yeji struck Nezuko's signature cute pose and said playfully,

"What do you think, guys? Isn't Nezuko-chan adorable?"

The chat's vibe flipped completely at the sight.

The hellish mood from moments ago was gone,

and thanks to Yeji's cute look and sudden snap, the chat regained its energy.

The clip of Yeji's outburst was uploaded to America Gallery in real-time.

In the attached video, Yeji starts bowing as if to apologize,

then abruptly switches gears, yelling,

"You crazy bastards! Who the hell are you non-fans to nitpick me!?"

delivering a savage clapback to the trolls.

Comments poured in instantly.

The explosive positive reactions left the malicious trolls, who had led the slander, in total panic.

Their orchestrated flood had backfired spectacularly, flipping the mood in an instant.

Even in the shithole known as America's Hakko Gallery,

the news spread.

The A Squad tried to flood again, but public sentiment had fully shifted.

But other gallery users coldly clapped back.

The trolls scrambled for new bait but the momentum had fully shifted.

Caught in the sudden backlash, they panicked completely,

unable to respond further, and slunk away dejectedly.

Meanwhile, America Gallery filled up with vibes celebrating Yeji's comeback.

Thanks to her energetically ramped-up vibe, Yeji successfully wrapped up her comeback stream.

Perfectly nailing Nezuko's cute cosplay, her adorable lines and reactions,

and a lively dance display melted the viewers' hearts completely.

"Guys~ Now I'll really go wild~

You'll come back tomorrow, right? Bye~!"

As Yeji waved brightly, fans flooded the chat with 「See you tomorrow」 in unison, full of reluctance.

Once the screen went dark, Yeji's tension released all at once, and she slumped limply into her chair.

She let out a deep sigh and slowly puffed on her e-cig.

'Whew... Almost had a disaster today.

Was I too obvious without Coin King oppa?'

After zoning out into space for a while, Yeji snapped back to reality.

She picked up her phone and messaged Coin King.

Not long after sending it, her phone screen lit up with a call from 「Coin King Oppa♥」.

Yeji quickly cleared her throat and answered cutely.

"Yes~ Oppa~?"

Coin King's voice was calm and relaxed, as always.

— Ah, Yeji, I'm really sorry.

— Had to rush out for my little bro's thing,

— so I couldn't make it. Wanted to be there so bad, such a shame.

A twinge of disappointment rose in Yeji, but she played it cute without showing it.

"If you're busy, what can you do... But you'll come tomorrow, right?"

Coin King hummed thoughtfully before continuing.

— Hmm... I'll try my best to make it tomorrow.

— Bro's issue isn't resolved yet,

— so hard to say when it'll end.

Yeji wheedled playfully in a cute voice.

"I can't get my energy up without you, oppa... Hng...!"

Coin King chuckled.

— Haha, if you say it like that, guess I gotta wrap it up quick and come.

— Nothing went wrong with the stream today, right?

His interest in her made Yeji's mood soar, and she chattered animatedly.

"Well, at first I didn't see your message, so my energy totally tanked?

The trolls flooded me hard, but then I snapped out of nowhere...!"

Coin King listened with laughs, chiming in supportively.

It felt just like talking to a boyfriend,

and Yeji was humming happily.

After about ten minutes on the call,

Yeji's face beamed with a radiant smile.

Body and mind lightened, she hopped up

and headed to the bathroom for a refreshing shower.

Under the warm water, washing away ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the stream stress,

Yeji smiled contentedly once more.

And so another day came to a close.