TTS Terror on the Romantic Road Trip

I knew I'd get some resistance. We set off with a grand "Let's go!" but reality meant safe driving. Keeping the lane with this massive beast was no joke. But I was so satisfied it made all that worth it.

"Damn... this drives so differently."

The more I pressed the pedal, the more it surged forward smoothly. The engine had some serious power. Heavy yet buttery smooth ride. Totally different flavor from my usual car. The high seat gave a clear view, so driving wasn't as awkward as I'd feared.

I glanced at the side mirror, catching the RV's majestic form. Whoa... even how it moves looks so imposing. My eyes kept drifting back.

I wound through the neighborhood to get a feel for it, then pulled over somewhere quiet.

Time to fire up the stream, I guess?

I fixed the tablet—sent over for broadcasting—onto the dashboard mount that President Kim Manho had pre-installed. Flip this on, and the passenger-side camera should catch me, right? No need to fiddle with angles; this setup looked good to go.

Stream title... [LIVE] RV Road Trip South! 24-Hour Romantic Journey Begins!

"Nice... super romantic vibe."

Oh, right. Before starting, I had to turn on the TTS app too. MCN's strong rec—an add-on feature. It randomly reads viewer chats aloud. 'Driving solo gets boring; it'll be like a chat buddy.' I could almost hear President Kim Manho's warm chuckle.

Staring at the chat while driving is dangerous and tricky anyway.

Just hit start broadcast now. Deep breath, finger on the [Start Broadcast] button at the bottom.

Screen switched, red LIVE popped up top-right. Viewer count started ticking at the bottom.

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

Pretty quick rise for no pre-stream announcement? It kept climbing steadily, stabilizing just over 100. Perfect—low-pressure numbers for streaming.

Last time, thousands flooded in at once and I panicked... This was just casual chit-chat territory. I let out a relieved sigh and waved awkwardly at the camera.

"Uh... hi everyone, it's Han Areum from Camping is Always the Same. Starting today, I'll be live-streaming a 1-night, 2-day—exactly 24-hour—trip with this RV."

Chats popping already. Not as boring as I thought. Wrapped up the intro and eased the RV forward. Viewer count held steady on a quick glance—good.

"Um... destination's the south coast like the title says. We'll sightseeing if time allows, grab some tasty eats too. Just kick back and watch—thanks!

Rough outline done, shifting focus back to driving when the TTS app spoke its first line.

...Is this TTS working right? First read and it's that?

Yeah, I've watched streams before. This is tame. Gotta get used to it as a streamer, right?

"Hehe, I am pretty cute, huh? Even I get startled looking in the mirror sometimes."

Chatting like this isn't half bad. No need for my usual tunes—feels lively. Leading the convo makes me feel like a pro streamer. Kinda proud of my growth.

...Scratch that. Shoulda just played music. Weirdos gonna weird, I guess?

Fuck, what the hell? Is this really random? Can't even stop it... Already on the highway, no tweaking settings now.

Hah, you think I'll freak? "Please hold off on the troll chats. I'm here to chat with you all."

That should get through. Read something normal, please...

"FUUUUCK!!! It's supposed to be random, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠you piece of shit!!!!!"

Is it glitched?!

"...Congrats."

Ugh, can't do shit while driving... President said he'd manage chat...!

"You succeeded, so hit some normal chats now... I'm exhausted already..."

"..... AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!!"

After that meltdown, the cab fell quiet again. Quick peek at the tablet—chats trickling in sparingly. But why no reads? TTS, you sneaky ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠bastard, did you only pick the toxic ones on purpose?

"...Why'd you clam up now that chat's wholesome?"

"...?"

"...Gotta hit the rest stop soon and fix that bastard somehow."

Signaled and merged toward the rest area. Just an hour in, but that toxic TTS had me wiped.

Parked in the big-rig lot, grabbed the tablet.

Oh, a separate filter setting. Challenge over? You, yeah—remembered your ID, watchlist bound.

"Thanks. Applied it. But seriously, why's TTS like that?"

Dug into TTS app settings. One option jumped out.

'Character Limit [6]'

Ah... fuck. That's why it skipped the rest.

"Haa... there's a character limit option. Set to six chars max..."

Ugh, shoulda checked sooner instead of rushing. Then my phone buzzed. Caller: ShinyBald GodBoss

"Oh, muting for a sec—phone call..."

Guy? Yeah, a cozy 50-something uncle type. Angled my phone so the passenger cam caught the caller ID, then picked up.

"Yes, President?"

"Ah... that explains the wild chat."

Good response? I basically rage-screamed. ...Wait, President? Not you, Park PD? This is 24 hours—surely shifts, right?

"Doesn't feel good... I yelled."

"Huh..."

"Huh? Barely 100 watching?"

Oing? Checked tablet—when did it hit that?!

Call ended on his encouragement. Viewers over 500 without me noticing. Knowing that many eyes made me tense again.

Oh crap, still streaming. Unmuted quick and picked up the mic.

"Ah, can you hear? President called quick..."

"Huh? What're you..."

What the—? President's a bit shiny up top but not fully bald! And when did I ever mock balding folks?

Then phone buzzed again. Text from ShinyBald GodBoss:

...Wait, because of ShinyBald? That's not what I meant! President! Misunderstanding! Misunderstanding!

"Ah no! President! You watching?! Th-this isn't about your head, it's 'cause you shine like a halo...!"

"NOOOOO!!! Guys! 'Shiny' doesn't mean your head shines!!!!!"

Ten-plus minutes of explaining, another call to President, finally cleared the air. He seemed amused though. Nah, imagination.