123,456 Star Balloons

“Gasp!”

Kim Minseo, caught off guard herself, clapped a hand over her mouth in shock. But it was too late. Every eye was already on her. The camera zoomed in close, capturing her pupils darting left and right.

“No way, calling him crazy out of nowhere... right in the middle of the stream? Minseo, have you lost your mind?”

Kuni lobbed the question her way, throwing her exact words right back at her.

“No, Director... I mean...”

“It's President here, Minseo.”

“Right, President... so, um...”

“I got a KakaoTalk...”

“What, O-Bbang who sent the KakaoTalk is here?”

Kuni perked up at her words. Anyone trading KakaoTalks with girl streamers was a big spender at minimum—a solid mid-tier whale. Someone who knew how to drop Star Balloons.

'He could at least drop a sig or two.' Kim Minseo chimed in.

“Oppa’s right, but... not the kind of oppa you or the President are thinking...”

She was shrinking back now.

“Then what? Your real brother?”

Of course, Kuni hadn’t caught on. It was just a straightforward toss-out from his simple mind. But that question sent the viewer chat into chaos.

Insider chat among those in the know. For the newbies, someone summed it up.

Chats piled up nonstop. The viewer pool was tight-knit; one mention spread like wildfire. Even Kuni was tuning in.

“Wait, for real? Your actual cousin?”

A hint of fluster in his tone. He couldn’t help it—couldn’t look like he was roasting his own crewmate. Plus, taking Star Balloons from a crew family member? Sketchy.

And finally, Kim Minseo explained why she’d called him crazy earlier.

“Oppa said he could only drop up to 30,000... asked how the heck anyone drops more.”

“What? Your bro actually asked how to drop over ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠30,000?”

“Yeees...”

Now everyone got it. Why she’d flipped out.

30,000 was 3 million won. Steep for your average Joe.

And the reason for the question? Obvious.

'Someone who drops over 30,000?'

In a single Excel round, folks dropping 30,000+ were rare—even among whales. Sure, the ultra-whales were on another level, but that was still impressive. And he’d said more.

Most knew from experience not to sweat 31,000.

“That hyung...”

Embarrassed to take cash from a crewmate’s family. Kuni waved it off.

“Just head to my broadcast page and drop 'em there. If you're watching, come to my page. There's a Gift button—hit that, drop 30,000, then add whatever extra you want.”

His tone turned super polite as he kept explaining.

“Say you wanna drop 100,000: 30k, 30k, 30k, 10k. Come back to my stream, and it'll tally as 100k total.”

Clear breakdown, but the guy wasn’t tech-savvy. Still, he got the gist and navigated to Kuni’s page.

Easy so far.

'Where's this Gift button?'

Cursor hovering everywhere. Finally...

'Ah, there it is.'

Target acquired. Next step: simple.

“So...”

Recalling Kuni’s instructions, he proceeded.

30,000.

Another 30,000.

30,000 more.

Last 30,000.

“Huh?”

Mistake. Math error.

“Damn. Was aiming for exactly 100k...”

Shin Jaewoo frowned. That made it 120,000 now.

'Kinda awkward...'

The number felt off—too middling. Then a figure flashed in his mind. He punched it in.

Wondering if it'd work, he re-entered Kuni’s stream.

“Folks who ask about over 30k usually drop 100k+ anyway...”

He’d been gone just seconds—no big updates.

“If it hits exactly 100k right now... Whoa! Holy shit!”

Maraong-i jumped as he cut in. The stage filled with flashier music than before.

The chat lit up instantly from that message.

“Oppa, no way!”

Kim Minseo shrieked more from shock than joy. An absurd amount.

Her cousin oppa, who she figured would be grateful for even 10,000. Her mouth hung open so wide she had to cover it.

She froze in stunned silence.

'What the hell is this oppa doing?'

Beyond imagination. The afterglow lingered even after the songs ended. Kim Minseo rocketed to the top of the Excel leaderboard, #1.

120,000 exactly. Make that 123,456. It wallpapered the top of the screen like in those girl cam streams.

“Minseo, time to thank him.”

Kuni snapped her out of it. She finally pulled the mic close.

But no words came. What do you even say to that?

She was still gaping, speechless, so he casually tossed another 30,000. Crew leader's lil sis deserved it. And one more.

Shin Jaewoo smirked at the chat calling it 10 million won spent. Spot on.

Before Kim Minseo could respond, Kuni beat her to it.

“No need, hyung! I'll take real good care of our Minseo. Thanks for dropping by today—Kuni Play too. And since you hit 10k on Kuni Play, that's a 10k buy-one-get-one.”

Buy-one-get-one? Shin Jaewoo tilted his head. Sounded like drop 10k, get 20k total...

'That right?'

While he puzzled, a quick-fingered viewer—some vice prez?—snagged the 10k. Her score jumped by 20k.

'Neat trick.'

Didn't cross his mind. No big loss anyway.

Watching the reactions felt pretty good. Tempted to drop more. But he held back.

'...This'll do.'

Money wasn't the issue. More balloons? Easy. But overkill. Sure, with hundreds of billions in pending payments, maybe not that overkill.

“...She's got a knack for streaming, huh.”

Kim Minseo had been babbling in shock at first. Now her wits were back.

“Oppa, thanks for real... but your bank account okay?”

She eyed the camera with worry.

No ordinary sum.

“...Oppa, can we refund this?”

She threw a cute warning. Supposed to be just 10,000. She'd even asked for a measly 100 at first, thinking that was plenty.

'Who turns 100 into 150k?'

Naturally, even after Shin Jaewoo dipped, all eyes stayed on her. More precisely, on her cousin.

“Minseo, what's the deal with Jaewoos hyung?”

“My oppa...? No clue. I'm wondering too.”

She had a rough idea. Bro was probably lounging at home, hence tuning in. Her tongue itched to spill.

But after that? She zipped it.

She'd heard the gist of his money origins...

'Better not say anything...'

Now her lips were sealed tight.