Life Skills (1)
Psssh— The capsule lid popped open, and after a whopping 16 hours, I finally dragged myself out.
"Ugh."
My balance wobbled for a second, confirming I'd been in there way too long. Story quests in this game save at each checkpoint, so you can dip in and out whenever. Not many players binge straight through to the end like I did.
"Ugh... my head hurts a bit."
Still, I wanted to show viewers the story as quickly and seamlessly as possible, without any breaks in the flow, so I streamed right up until the clear. Plus, on a personal note, I was dying to see what happened next.
I stood up, cast Clean on myself, and flopped straight onto the bed. Bambi, who'd been sleeping up top, jolted awake but soon climbed onto my stomach and drifted off again.
It was 3 a.m. My phone was blowing up with notifications, but I was too wiped to deal with them. I just closed my eyes.
[6:26 PM]
......
How much time had passed? When I opened my eyes, the room was still pitch black.
"...Huh? It's dark?"
I bolted up and checked my phone.
"...How long did I sleep?"
Bambi usually wakes me if I oversleep, but I'd apparently conked out for 15 hours straight. Sure enough, she was grooming herself on the desk by the bed.
"Bambi, did you try to wake me?"
"Meow~"
She conveyed that I looked too exhausted, so she let me sleep. What a thoughtful girl—checking on her owner's condition and everything. I scooped her up and petted her wildly while checking my phone alerts.
Messenger had over 300 unread messages, so I sighed and started scrolling.
The Dolmugong group chat was just the usual chatter—nothing important.
But the Nel East group chat had a ton piled up.
I quickly reviewed the video. It covered Day 2 to early Day 3—making the connection with Arie and planning ahead, clocking in at 23 minutes. The quality was top-notch, no question.
I apologized to them and gave the go-ahead to upload as-is.
Seeing my editors worry about me when it was my fault brought a smile to my face. If I ever get rich, I'll spoil these two rotten.
Hmm, around that level? I'd aimed for immersion and acted accordingly, but the response was even better than expected.
Come to think of it, Episode 1 had been up for over a day. Wonder what the views are now.
I checked my channel.
Travel Kingdom EP 1. Foreshadow - 410K views
Noel - 98.8K subscribers
"...Whoa."
I was speechless at how steeply my channel was climbing. Yeah, time to bump up salaries next month.
......
Sorting through a day's worth of emails and messages, three big things stood out.
First: I'd been selected as a Twitty partner streamer. Better revenue split, plus sub income—huge win.
Second: Starcore Network was thrilled with my growth and looking forward to more.
Third—and most exciting—an official email from Lost World HQ. They're composing OSTs per job class and want input from me, the top-ranked witch. Still early stages, no rush; just share my availability.
"Oho... this could be fun."
I wasn't in music myself, but as a big listener, it was tempting. I'd check it out later.
Finished emails around midnight when a messenger ping hit.
......
Min Se-rin, in-game Serinsel. Same age as Juwon, she was deep in thought.
Her birthday was in two days, and she was agonizing over who to spend it with.
Her two closest friends and the recently close Ye-rim had confirmed, but there was one person she really wanted to invite: Noel—Juwon.
But Juwon had this aura that made her hard to approach. Se-rin had spent 30 minutes debating whether to message.
"Juwon, my birthday's in two days... No, that sounds too agenda-y..."
Like texting an ex or crush, she typed and deleted repeatedly.
"Ugh... screw it! Send!"
Reply came quick.
Se-rin finally grinned and thanked her.
"...Hehe."
......
Next day. With my meetup with Se-rin tomorrow, I tackled my to-dos.
Travel Kingdom Episode 2 was up on NewTube, reactions solid. Subscribers hit 100K, Episode 1 over 500K views.
Once the final Episode 3, epilogue, and Bicheon Kingdom story drop, growth will skyrocket more.
Smiling, I checked for anything else.
"Oh, grab the next main quest early."
I hopped into the capsule and logged into Lost World.
Sure enough, an orange window blocked my view right away.
[Frozen Continent, Arkteera]
Arkteera, at the northern edge, was once famous for its mystical ice and stunning auroras—a top tourist spot.
But demons targeted it one day, sparking bizarre phenomena.
Uncover and eliminate the source to save Arkteera.
Requirements: Reach Lv 95
Reward: ??? (Revealed on completion)
I'm Lv 80 now—a 15-level gap to the next continent. Mid-story, gaps will widen.
"...Huh? Lv 80?"
Closing the main quest, a green one popped up.
[Life Skills: A Richer Life!]
You've grown strong! Time for some leisure?
Alchemy, jewelry crafting, cooking, gathering&hunting, archaeology.
Pick one and learn from an expert in a city!
Requirements: Lv 80, all Bicheon Continent quests complete
Reward: 2 Life Skills, basic materials
"Finally..!"
I already knew what to pick and headed straight for the expert.
......
In Bicheon Continent's potion shop, a purple-haired pharmacist named Yuri was brewing various potions.
"Gotta focus... just one drop..."
BAM—!
"Eek?!"
POOF—!
The potion, one drop from completion, went up in smoke from the noise pollution.
Fixing her frizzy hair, she glared at the door with annoyance.
The witch-outfitted woman had silver hair, purple eyes, and stunning looks.
"Uh... s-sorry.."
"...What do you want?"
Yuri was boiling inside but held back since she was a customer. Her gaze, though, was ice-cold.
"I... came to learn from you..."
"This fucking—"
Realizing it wasn't a sale, Yuri let loose with the cursing.