Picking a Fan Name
"Everyone, come back!"
I yelled at the viewer who had stopped typing the chat without realizing it.
[What the heck!]
[Whoa!]
[I thought I was going to die]
[Chair, you've been doing this nonstop since yesterday. Is killing people your hobby?]
[For real, if this keeps up someone will actually die and snap out of it]
"Honestly, you're making too much fuss. What did I even do?"
If I did this, the population of South Korea would drop by half. How many surprising things are there in the world? Right now, just the fact that the world itself has changed for me is enough.
'To be honest, I doubt anyone has been as shocked as I am.'
As if to confirm it, I nodded to myself. Alpha-nim's voice then rang out.
—Thank you. Receiving encouragement from a man really gives me strength. If only I could say 'I love you', but I can't... because of the restrictions.
"With words like that coming from you, I feel honored."
Sincerity came through in that voice. Seeing someone like that get excited even once from just a bit of support made me grateful and a little sad.
'Well, I have to step up more from now on.'
At the very least, I swore to myself not to become a ingrate. Even if I couldn't match the support perfectly, I would give my best effort.
[Too nice. The pitcher is in full storm mode right now]
[What the heck happened to the men we saw...]
[This is a dangerous comment. No matter how much of a man streamer, please stop mentioning other male streamers]
[But honestly, it checks out. It checks?]
[That's... it checks]
"Ahaha. Please stop mentioning other streamers. And stop saying 'pitcher' too!"
"Pitcher" is a portmanteau of "pitcher" and "baeksu". It's used to refer to a pitcher viewer, but its origin is a word for someone who watches pitcher streams from home without any professional job.
I don't want my viewers to start belittling themselves as baeksu. Even if I had no such intention, there are plenty of other alternatives, so why force that word?
[Why? You're a pitcher, aren't you]
[For real lol]
[But lately, they don't say "pitcher" to pitcher viewers anymore?]
"It's not in a good way. Just call them viewers or something else in my stream, please."
—Then how about this?
Alpha-nim suggested after hearing me.
—From now on, let's name I-an-nim's viewer title! And while we're at it, let's pick a fandom name and stuff too.
"That sounds great!"
A fandom name. A viewer title. These are the easiest ways to express which streamer you're rooting for in communities or collabs. Like an idol fan club name.
But while idol fans usually stick to one fandom name, streamers often branch out—fandom, viewer title, nicknames, etc.
The fandom covers the entire fanbase of the streamer, while the viewer title is the nickname used for communication on air.
It was inevitable that I would have to decide eventually. Since a chance had naturally come along now, it seemed best to just do it.
Since this was the second broadcast, the pride of those who had watched from the start would probably feel nice too.
"Then let's do the reaction first and decide right now. I've been thinking about what kind of reaction to do after turning off the stream yesterday."
I had brought a Bluetooth mic. I wasn't great at singing, but I had an advantage. To be precise, I had just gained an advantage.
'There are no songs from my original Earth in this world.'
Right. In this world, there are no hits from the old Earth, no popular challenges. If I sang one, it would mean the lyrics and melody were entirely mine.
It tugged at my conscience a bit, but what was I supposed to do? I couldn't just let such a good song stay unused.
—Ah, over here.
"Yes?"
I was about to pair the mic with my phone when Alpha-nim called out.
—Could I decide on the reaction? Please.
If she wanted something for me, I was actually happy to provide it. It was for her, after all.
And singing could come anytime.
"Of course! Do you have any ideas for the reaction?"
—It's not really a reaction...
Alpha-nim hesitated and couldn't quite get the words out. Spending a million won so casually but hesitating over this?
"Talk to me casually!"
—Then... should I call you 'noona'? Keep it casual.
"Noona...? Alpha noona?"
—Heu... yeah. That's it.
A happy sigh hit my ear the moment I said noona. Something felt off. It was weirdly creepy to have an in-ear monitor plugged straight into a snail-like tube.
—When you cheered for me earlier, calling me noona felt good. Keep it casual too. With this, I'll count it as a 500,000 won reaction.
Alpha-nim quickly recovered her usual cool condition.
"If it's fine with you, okay, noona."
Then the remaining 100,000 won reaction was still waiting.
"Is there nothing else? There's still one 100,000 won reaction left."
—You don't have to do a reaction for that. Instead, when you turn on the cam room later, use good equipment for me.
[Wow, she's pretty knowledgeable]
[Cheer! Alpha God!!]
[A 100,000 won quality cam room by the chair? I can't hold back lol]
I never expected this. I had just planned a normal cam, but I might have to spend 50,000 won after all.
"Got it. If that's what you want, we'll do it."
All the dones from yesterday were over.
'I ended up not singing the song after all.'
It was a bit disappointing, but it didn't matter. Maybe this was even better. I could prepare a proper singing broadcast later.
"Now all the dones are finished... huh?"
Come to think of it, when the stream started today, I didn't shoot another 50,000 won?
Just as I thought I had a chance to sing, the mic in my hand again, Alpha-nim spoke up.
—Don't do the 50,000 won you shot today as a reaction. The broadcast wouldn't work. Okay?
"... But..."
—If you don't want to receive another 500,000 won, then don't. Answer?
What was this? What kind of weird habit was this!
—Answer.
"Yes, yes!"
A chill ran through me. I answered with full spirit.
[What kind of woman is the Alpha doing? The goosebumps are insane lol]
[She can't be normal]
It seemed I wasn't the only one feeling it. How could someone with such elegant voice do something like this?
It wasn't scary, just a strangely eerie sensation.
—Then since the reaction is over, are you going to open the restricted dones?
What was with this ominous feeling? It was coming strongly, like I shouldn't open it.
[Chair, we need to settle accounts]
[Reaction done. Bring out the chat]
[Even when leaving, one or two dones are fine, right?]
"Ah, okay. Stop rushing me."
I had no choice but to open the dones. One came in at that moment.
[(IAN) Alpha-femail-nim has sponsored 1,000,000 won!]
Thank you once again. It feels like I'm doing everything in one go—a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Ah, this one doesn't count as a reaction, right?
I had never been wrong about ominous feelings.
"Ah, no. This is... uh?"
I had just finished and was trying to relax when suddenly a hundred was added. Money was returning... yet why did it feel so good?
—Hehe. Just think of it as my sincerity. If I could, I would have sent ten million, but I didn't want you to feel too burdened, so I lowered it.
'It is quite burdensome.'
I had already spent 4.5 million won in one day yesterday and today. What was I supposed to do?
"Then let's do this! You said not to do reactions, but I don't think I can stop. Until the stream ends today, keep talking to me, noona. How about it?"
Originally, I had planned to chat for about thirty minutes and hang up. After accounting for the one 100,000 won reaction, there were still two 50,000 won and one 100,000 won left.
But since I had already shot 50,000 at the start and now another 100,000, it might be better to keep chatting.
'Plus, her voice is so nice that I want to keep listening.'
An elegant voice had a completely different charm from Se-ah's. Listening to her felt comforting.
She didn't seem like an ordinary person either. If someone not my acquaintance spent hundreds of thousands of won on me, that alone would be funny.
—Is it really okay? To keep chatting.
"Of course. Actually, noona should be the one who's fine? It's the weekend, if you want to rest comfortably...
—No! It's okay. I actually like chatting the whole time."
Fortunately, the suggestion seemed to appeal to her.
[Chair, you're too clueless about women, aren't you?]
[For real, there's no better break than chatting until the stream ends lol]
[I really want to chat even for one minute]
"Nice. I even get a slight girlfriend-call vibe."
Maybe because it was just the two of us? It felt strangely like that.
"Then what if noona drops the honorific too?"
—Huh? That... that would be...
[What the heck am I watching?]
[Alpha-tanren, switch seats. I've been holding it in so much]
[400 dones and you get a boyfriend?]
[Ah, I missed the donation timing because of Alpha's foul mouth]
[Alpha is such a foul-mouthed woman, and I like this tense atmosphere]
The chat reacted strongly to the word "girlfriend".
"Everyone is too much. What wrong did Alpha noona do to make you so angry?"
—I'm fine, I-an.
[Why the girlfriend act already? This is uncomfortable^^]
[This person has some controversy, doesn't she?]
[Chair, you'll end up with a bad woman?]
"Me? A bad woman? Ahaha. Yeah, I have to be careful."
The mention of "bad woman" made me think of the three women I had met walking home from the convenience store.
The first two days I had nightmares every time I slept, but after that I had been fine. Maybe I had unknowingly picked up some trauma.
I should visit the hospital.
[Chair suddenly stopped talking]
[I-an-nim, is something wrong?]
[You cut off right after saying bad woman]
—I-an, did something really happen?
"No. Don't worry too much."
A smile spread across my face at Alpha-nim's and the viewers' concern. At the same time, I lowered my gaze and looked at my hand. More precisely, my wrist.
That day, when my hands were tied behind my back, the rough movement had left red lines.
The thick cable tie had made the wound quite large, so it was visible up close.
'When will I be able to overcome this?'
I gently stroked my wrist for no reason.
'Time will fix it.'
To forget the unease, I poured out more casual talk.
***
By the time an hour had passed since the stream started, that donation arrived.
[I love you, Park I-an! You have sponsored 100,000 won!]
So when are we deciding on the fandom name? I already had an idea
Ah, right. That was what I had planned to do. I had completely forgotten because the chat was so fun.
—Love you, noona! Thank you for the 100,000 won! But I'm not Park-ssi.
I'm Yoon. The viewers probably knew that too, so they might have done it with a feeling of kki-bak.
[Ah, it's I-an instead of Park lol]
[It's not I-an's surname lol]
[So the fandom name is still all over the place?
Ah, I almost forgot.
"Then from now on, let's decide on the fandom name! We'll pick candidates from the ones you wrote in the chat and vote on them!"
—Without dones?
"That's too childish. I'm deciding my fandom name, so if I take money, what would that mean?"
It wasn't for anyone else—it was for me. I couldn't do that.
[Want to feed them claws even from other male streamers?]
[?? Isn't that a reward?]
[Wow, can we do this in real life?]
[Reward checks out lol. But for I-an-nim, it might feel like a reward...]
"What are you saying!?"
By now, I was starting to think this wasn't a joke. Honestly, my... claws...
I stopped thinking about it.
[Warning-nim has sponsored 100,000 won!]
Everyone, please behave yourselves. Huh? Are they just watching the vibe and sending it?
[For real lol. No one actually chats like this in real life?]
[Perfect]
[Voluntary blackweem lol mmmer]
"No, what are you deciding among yourselves! Don't send them as dones? I said that?"
I emphasized it and repeated it.
[Unstoppable Effigy-nim has sponsored 100,000 won!]
Sisters? It meant treating I-an as a younger or older sibling
"Ah... I ended up shooting it anyway."
—Cheer up, I-an. More importantly, sisters? The meaning is nice, but isn't it too plain?
—You shot the dones and you're just ignoring them?
Why so calm? Was I the strange one? I had told them not to, and they shot them—that should be the strange part, right?
Yet the viewers simply ignored my doubts.
[Good meaning, but too plain]
[I-an's noona just vanished from thought lol]
[Ah, the bed is soaked]
—Chat is dangerous. Really, it's okay? Even now, we could lower the level.
"Huh? Ah, it's fine. It's not that intense. As long as I don't cross the line I set. There's no point in saying anything when you're this happy."
[I-an, he's a god! I-an, he's a god! I-an, he's a god!]
[Don't be so gentle! You already went away!!]
[Ha, it's soaked to the floor shib]
[I believed in 5252, chair!]
"Then stop worrying and just chat?"
After that, the chat became even livelier, and the fandom name still kept coming in as dones.
The ten-minute limit was a real godsend. It was amazing how the heat in each message was palpable.
And after narrowing down candidates and voting, the fandom name was decided.
---
[Fandom Name: Unstoppable Effigy]