Ways to Increase Followers
“Ha, this isn’t turning out as well as I thought.”
Kim Tae-hoon rubbed his bloodshot eyes and stared at the screen. Normally, he’d settle for something passable, but after encountering the most captivating subject he’d seen lately, passable just wouldn’t cut it. To craft the perfect image of Choi Sujin sobbing against an impeccable backdrop, he kept tweaking prompts, refining the background over and over. So absorbed was he that he only registered his drunken sister throwing open the door a beat too late.
“Kuhahaha, little bro! Big sis is here!”
“Damn it, if you’re drunk, go upstairs and crash. Why crawl in here?”
“Oh? ‘Damn it’ to the sis who changed your shitty diapers and raised you?”
His older sister Kim Hyun-ji had practically raised him in place of their mother, who’d passed away young. She usually treated him warmly like a mom, but tonight, frustrated with his uncooperative edit, he was on edge. Naturally, Kim Tae-hoon ended up getting punished with a headlock from his sister.
“You little punk… I’ve been too easy on you lately, huh?”
“Gaaah! My hair, my hair! I’m sorry… I’m sorryyy!”
Suddenly, Kim Hyun-ji’s headlock loosened. Her eyes had drifted to the video editing screen on the monitor.
“What’s this? You messing with AI videos now too?”
She released his head and leaned closer to the monitor, intrigued by the figure on screen.
“Whoa, fuck… it’s gotten so refined. AI expressing emotion like this? A bit more progress and folks like me will starve.”
“It’s not AI.”
“Right, not AI… what?”
Kim Hyun-ji turned to her brother with wide eyes, her face screaming disbelief.
“The background’s AI-generated, sure, but the person’s real. Shot it at Eun-seo’s place today.”
“……”
“She’s a first-year acting major. Eun-seo’s new friend.”
“Thiiiis… this is a living person?”
“That’s the raw footage—click it. I just layered the background. Sound effects later.”
Sobriety hit Kim Hyun-ji like a slap. She replayed the original clip over and over.
“Got more footage?”
Kim Tae-hoon showed her a few more clips at her request. Mostly scenes of the girls chatting in the living room.
“Holy shit… Eun-seo looks like a squid next to her. This is a real face?”
“Even better in person. Lend me a Barry cam next time. I’ll shoot properly and show you.”
“Shoot what? Just go see her. Where’s she at now?”
“Sis, it’s 2 a.m.”
Checking the time, Kim Hyun-ji smacked her lips and watched the video again.
“This is just chit-chat footage, but this one… that’s acting, right?”
“Yeah. Improv on a script Eun-seo gave her.”
He explained it was a girl isolated in a mountain lodge by a landslide. He added how she’d raved about her method acting back then, full of awe.
“This face and acting chops… she’s priceless.”
Her breath still reeked of booze, but Kim Hyun-ji’s mind was sharper than ever. Her PD instincts screamed uncut gem.
“School tomorrow… no, that meeting’s not set yet. Arghhh! Why’d I skip the meeting?”
Clutching her head, she turned to her brother.
“Lemme use this footage.”
“No.”
“What?”
Kim Tae-hoon shot her down flat.
“Told Sujin I’d just edit it. No leaks.”
“How’s your sis using it a leak? Think I’d misuse it?”
“Don’t care what you use it for. Once it leaves my hands, it’s leaked. You’re not planning to turn me into a promise-breaker with my juniors, right?”
“Only faithful about this crap. Keep promises in general too!”
“Anyway, no. This footage doesn’t leave this room.”
“Ugh, fine, fine. Just introduce me at school right away. I’ll text before I go.”
“Text Eun-seo, not me. They’re besties.”
“Oh? Got it.”
She beamed at Choi Sujin on the monitor.
“Where’d this gem pop from? My bosses’ll love her.”
Around the same time, Choi Sujin, goofing off in a gorge, coughed repeatedly.
“Someone talking about me?”
*****
After twists and turns, Choi Sujin’s followers had seized control of Yeo Eun-seo’s fanclub.
“How’d you even find this place?”
About twenty students sat in an empty classroom. It was a leaders’ meeting with reps from each department.
“Plenty of unused spots if you look. They built the new wing and now classrooms sit empty— that’s our tuition money. Gotta use it hard.”
“Classic prez. Thinking ROI first—you’re a different breed from us.”
“Anyway, Supo Dan’s second regular meeting starts now.”
“Suneung dropout squad?”
“You psycho. How many times I gotta say Sujin Forever?”
Ignoring the prez’s outburst, the treasurer-looking guy pressed on.
“First order: title for our supreme dignity, Sujin. Since she hangs with Eun-seo, debates rage over goddess vs. elf. Even fairies picking fights with goddess and elf factions. So, Supo Dan’s unifying on goddess.”
“What about Eun-seo? Can’t we keep her title at least?”
Not a few members balked at stripping titles, despite losing the vote.
“She yielded. Says calling her goddess makes no sense with Sujin around. Gonna be her priestess serving the true goddess from now on.”
Male students wiped tears, moved by Yeo Eun-seo’s humility in stepping down for a new goddess. To them, even after a month, she was the original.
“Eun-seo’s the one who whispered she hates ‘elf,’ so push goddess. Promises fat activity funds once it spreads school-wide.”
“Oooh!”
“But why’s Eun-seo sponsoring us? Sujin fanclubs are everywhere.”
A Smurf-lookalike smart kid eyed suspiciously. Sujin-loving groups had sprouted like weeds since school started.
“She sees our group’s value. Half the student council execs are Supo Dan, even if some skipped today.”
“Plenty of celebs too… wait, VP’s an actress, right? Broadcast stations got tons of hotties.”
“Hotties? Sure. But Sujin cursed ‘em all to look like toads. Our eyes can’t settle for anyone else now!”
Everyone pitied the VP’s wild-eyed rant, but as fellow cursed souls, they weren’t in a position to judge.
“So that’s Eun-seo’s angle? Pump money into us here, skyrocket her influence.”
“Power plus cash? Yeah. Feels like she’s gearing up for something big… personal guard maybe?”
“Guard or whatever, don’t care. We get closer to our goddess—that’s what matters, right?”
All nodded. Why refuse when fangirling came with chaebol backing?
“That all for today? Just the title vote?”
A petite guy in the middle spoke up—adorably cute, the type to melt lolicon hearts.
“Nah, one big thing left.”
“What?”
“You know that practical music punk caught sneaky-snapping Sujin?”
A practical music guy got busted filming her secretly. Confessed he wanted Instagram views, but at the bathroom entrance? Dodged a scandal bullet.
“Could happen again. Outsiders get screened at school gates, but insiders? No stopping that. Can’t let our goddess’s pics float around freely. If AI fodder… ugh, nightmare fuel.”
“So, what do we do?”
“What else? Build our own surveillance net. Recruit max from each dept. Blacklist commu-addicts and Insta-view chasers. Gather trend-watchers to monitor sus patterns…”
All marveled at the prez, VP, and treasurer’s detailed action plan, hearts swelling with devotion.
“Especially scour the arts high gallery. Midnight posters exploding per-minute—check thorough.”
“Our goddess wraps up tight outside to dodge eyes. Let’s not waste that—step up, everyone.”
She just veiled her face from confessions and business cards, but followers spun it like Urbanus II’s “God wills it,” amplifying her divine intent. Outsider pics unavoidable, but school’s unguarded goddess? Theirs to hoard.
“Think we covered it… Secretary, summarize and post to group chat.”
“Got it.”
“Now, chant and adjourn.”
“Gotta do that?”
“No one objected when we made it. Why bother if not using?”
The hesitant guy joined the line.
“All for our goddess! Sujin Forever!”
“All for our goddess! Sujin Forever!”
The thunderous roar unofficially crowned Choi Sujin Seorim Arts High School’s goddess. Starting awkward, by repetition it filled the room with zealots.
“Good work. Grab a souvenir on exit. Plenty—distribute by dept membership.”
“Souvenir?”
“Eun-seo sponsored to thank us crowning Sujin goddess. Miracle Watch 7.”
Yeo Eun-seo donated Gold Young Electronics’ latest smartwatch—Sujin Edition, engraved with her stylized name and signature. A limited run, bullied out of her “little uncle,” the chairman—unbuyable even for cash.
Attendees wept in gratitude, praising goddess and priestess.
Acting Department Classroom—
“What’s up?”
“Itchy ears. Someone talking about me?”
“Me too. Hehe, besties even sync on this?”
And so, Yeo Eun-seo methodically turned her bestie’s followers into fanatics the capitalist way.