Chapter 137: The Influx
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 137: The Influx
"Kim Eojin."
Doah, sitting on my lap, kicked her feet playfully.
"What is it, Kim Luka?"
"Aren't you getting a little too popular these days?"
Doah had shown up at my place out of the blue, saying she missed me. Dressed in a tracksuit, she had settled onto my lap and, for some reason, showed no intention of getting up.
"Could I ever be as popular as the great Luka?"
After all, the number of views on an interview didn't mean I was that popular. I still thought it was too much praise.
"I hear you're causing quite a stir among the ladies on the internet."
"If we're going by that logic, aren't you a cult leader to the Pink Army?"
Doah, who had been staring intently into my eyes, pressed her lips against mine.
"Mmm. I guess getting popular makes your lips taste more expensive."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
Expensive-tasting lips.
What in the world did that even taste like?
I chuckled at her nonsensical words, and she gave me another peck.
"Ah~ I'm doomed~"
She slipped out of my arms and dived onto the bed.
"Why?"
"What am I going to do about my stream today? Take responsibility, Lucario."
Her voice was muffled by the blankets, but her resentment came through loud and clear.
"Hmm... How should I do that?"
I whispered into her ear like a genie from a lamp. Her ears were always her weak spot, and she shivered, clearly not expecting my attack.
"Should I drop by your stream and send a dono?"
"Are you trying to ruin my business?"
Doah shot up, puffing out her cheeks.
"Hey, you told me to take responsibility."
"Just don't do anything. It'll all die down eventually."
Then why tell me to take responsibility in the first place?
Feeling mischievous, I started to attack Doah's belly. I sneakily slipped my hand under her hoodie.
"...Doah. Have you gained some weight recently?"
Something soft and squishy seemed to have gotten a little bigger.
"Ah! Seriously! What are you doing?!"
Doah snapped in annoyance and banished my hand from her body.
"What do you mean, 'what am I doing'? I'm doing it because I like it."
My tone was aggrieved, but I was smiling.
"...It's because I just ate a big meal."
"What did you eat?"
"...Tteokbokki."
So she ate something delicious all by herself.
She was so cute, answering me honestly despite her pouty expression, that I pulled her into a tight hug.
"I'm such a successful fan."
"A horny fan?"
Oh? So we're making those kinds of jokes now, are we?
As we spent more time together, the level of our jokes escalated along with it.
"Yep. And since I'm such a horny fan, I'm going to have to touch you today."
"I'm going to expose the real Han Taemin all over the internet!"
Doah struck a pose as if she were shouting out the window.
Knowing full well she didn't mean it, I hugged Doah and buried my face in the nape of her neck. Her soft skin was nice, but I especially loved the unique scent that was all Doah.
Doah paid me no mind, continuing to mutter to herself like a hikikomori.
"Ah... today's stream is ruined..."
"It's not ruined. What are you talking about?"
If anything, wouldn't some people come to watch because of me?
"It's ruuuiined... Because of you, Oppa, my stream is ruuuiined~"
My girlfriend had now resorted to singing her complaints.
"If you get ruined, then there's no point in me doing all this."
I smiled and stroked her hair, and Doah's eyes went wide as she asked me,
"Huh? What's that supposed to mean?"
Only then did I realize my slip of the tongue.
"Ah. Well... I just mean... I'm working hard to buy you snacks, that's all."
Thankfully, she didn't seem to suspect anything and just made a cheeky face.
"Ehh~ Don't get ahead of yourself when you haven't even been paid yet~ Huh? You think I can't even buy my own snacks?"
"There might be days you want expensive snacks."
"Whatever, you."
Doah's hand slapped my thigh.
"Don't worry about me, Oppa. Just do everything you want to do!"
She offered me a message of support, just like a hopeful character from a manga.
"I really hope everything works out for you! Heh."
Me too.
I hope everything works out for you.
I truly do.
*
It's been a long time since I've had to brace myself this hard to start a stream.
After arriving at the studio, I took a sip of the cocoa I'd bought and took a short, deep breath.
You can do this, Kim Doah.
To be blunt, just because I didn't want to stream today didn't mean I could just never stream again.
It was a band-aid I had to rip off eventually.
Knowing there was no point in procrastinating, I started the stream with a trembling heart.
[Hello, everyone~]
I started off with a cheerful, high-pitched voice, trying to set a good mood.
[Luhai~]
[Luhai luhai]
[Explain yourself! Explain yourself! Explain yourself! Explain yourself! Explain yourself! Explain yourself! Explain yourself! Explain yourself! Explain yourself! Explain yourself! Explain yourself! Explain yourself! Explain yourself! Explain yourself! Explain yourself! Explain yourself! Explain yourself! Explain yourself!]
Just as I expected.
The moment I said hello, a flood of trolls demanded an explanation.
[Guys, what is there to explain?]
It was all within my expectations, so I just laughed it off good-naturedly.
[The rumor about Han Taemin and Luka-tan dating in secret...? Is that what you're talking about?]
In reality, Oppa is the one who goes to acting academy, but being a VTuber... no, a streamer, is a job that requires a certain amount of acting by default.
Even when things are tough, you have to react when a dono comes in.
Even on days when you're so drained you just want to sleep, you have to act cute.
I did my absolute best to handle the situation skillfully, like a true professional.
[Guys. Does that even make sense? Huh?]
[Of course, I was very grateful to see Han Taemin-nim cheering for me~]
[But it seems like he watches a lot of videos of the other Closer members too. I watched the whole interview.]
In fact, Oppa had often answered questions about the group as a whole, so there were plenty of ways out.
[It's all because you guys cheered for us so hard that an actor like him even found out about us, right? Hahahaha.]
In the chat, people who had seen Taemin oppa's interview and those who hadn't were mixed together, talking amongst themselves.
As expected, those who weren't super active in the community didn't seem to know what the big issue was yet.
[Hmm... should we all watch it together then? Am I allowed to watch this, though?]
I quickly sent a message to the staff member managing the stream, and soon got the okay.
[Ah. They said it's okay. Now, where's that link...]
When I clicked the video, a large thumbnail of Oppa's face appeared, wearing glasses and a tracksuit.
The chat filled with comments like 'Gasp'.
These guys, I swear. They gasp at everything.
[Alright then, shall we take a moment to watch the video of the actor who supports me, Luka-tan? The one with Han Taemin-nim?]
Those who had already seen it spammed frustrated Pink Army emotes, while the first-timers, as expected...
[This is just viral marketing. lol]
[But damn, the guy is seriously handsome... ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ]
[Do you have to be that good-looking to be mentioned on Luka-tan's stream?]
Hey. I'm only playing this because you guys asked me to.
As the stray arrows started flying my way, I let out a dumbfounded laugh.
[CLOSER's... Boundary... I listen to it often.]
Every time my name or CLOSER was mentioned by Oppa, the chat went wild.
[Kya!]
[A man of culture.]
[Upvote if Han Taemin is the average face of the Pink Army~]
[Upvoted~]
Right, right. It's better if you guys just joke around like this.
It didn't seem like a bad idea to set aside some time specifically for them to chew on this topic. Because it would be really annoying if they kept talking about Oppa while I was trying to play a game or do something else.
[Han Taemin-nim! I wonder if you're watching?]
To wrap things up, I sent a video message to Oppa, who was probably watching.
[Thank you so much for your support~ Please continue to give CLOSER lots of love~]
Even though I spoke in the most business-like tone possible, I was met with a flood of boos and angry Pink Army emotes.
...This part was unavoidable.
[Alright. Enough of that. Let's get to practicing the game we were supposed to play today!]
The CLOSER Neverwatch collab scheduled for this weekend.
The game used to be six players per team, but after a patch, it became five-per-team, which was perfect for us.
[Luka-tan is definitely going to play DPS.]
Of course, if Murin started talking about tiers and demanded the role, I'd have no choice, but I was determined to try and play DPS.
After a long queue, the game finally started.
[Ah! Why can't I hit anything!]
My bullets missed as if they were bugged, avoiding only the enemy team.
When I died again, bringing my death count to seven, I could barely contain my frustration.
[Agh... Is it because I haven't played in so long?]
Why can't I land a single shot?
I wasn't this bad last time I played.
Since I was dead anyway, I decided to check the chat, and my expression hardened.
[Ugh... Our Taemin Oppa really likes this kind of stuff...?]
Who the hell are you to call Taemin Oppa your oppa?
He doesn't have any sisters, you know?
And this kind of stuff...?
You call it this kind of stuff...?
I thought I'd gotten used to all sorts of annoying chat messages by now.
But this new strain of Han Taemin-flavored viewers, like some new mutant virus, succeeded in pissing me the hell off.