I'm Not That Amazing (2)
Cheon Do-hee had already come fairly close to the truth. “…I’m worried someone might suddenly try to lure you into debuting.” She had said this to Mazia because she had heard the full story.
Mazia had denied it, but it was clear some kind of offer had been made. After all, Mazia was the kind of person who, when even slightly cornered, would counterattack and slip away with practiced ease. The fact that she had deliberately poked at Iona’s weakness to invalidate the entire conversation made it obvious.
Before arriving at the lobby to meet Mazia, Cheon Do-hee had contacted Kang Ji-ho and received this explanation.
“Do you know him?”
Could that incident have been something like this? Not tampering exactly, but a morally questionable recruitment. If kept secret, it could be hailed as a successful aggressive scouting case, but the moment it was exposed, the group’s image would plummet alongside it.
The strategy itself was incredibly cunning. How many people, upon suddenly receiving a debut offer, would think, ‘I should record this as evidence’? Even if they went straight to the other side’s representative to argue, without clear proof that the two had discussed debuting, the fight would likely turn into a messy brawl. Kang Ji-ho had guessed demotion, but if the representative was in on it too, it would obviously become an all-out dogfight.
Publicizing it just because things weren’t going well was absolutely off the table. Even if it could be handled quietly, dragging public opinion into it would make it hard to avoid the backlash of being accused of attacking Rapits.
At that point, Do-hee had a thought. Maybe Jia had cut it off at her own level to prevent the situation from blowing up. Even though she felt a little hurt that Jia hadn’t told her despite promising to discuss everything. Given her personality, she probably preferred Rapits burning alone rather than both Parallel and Rapits getting dragged into the flames at the same time.
…For now, I’ll have to wait until Yeon Seong-muk makes contact again.
Even if the two representatives wanted to resolve it quietly between companies, they still needed solid evidence that Yeon Seong-muk had offered Mazia a debut. It seemed they still had to wait.
If Mazia’s thinking aligned with Do-hee’s, she probably wouldn’t block any further contact from Yeon Seong-muk. They could secure clear evidence then. Maybe Jia would even obtain the evidence herself.
Cheon Do-hee believed that Mazia would never leave Parallel.
…However, the fact that she had previously mentioned quitting still lingered in Do-hee’s mind.
She had quietly taken out insurance. After all, the communication channel with Rapits had been opened thanks to Mazia in the first place. Stealing key personnel was absolutely not allowed.
“So. Earlier I got excited and started speaking casually right away. Is it okay if I keep talking to you like that?”
This was what Roofkr said, stopping abruptly on the way to the table where the Makgeolli Crew was sitting after parting with the boss.
The reason casual speech had burst out of Roofkr’s mouth wasn’t because of a bad habit. It was simply because, to anyone looking, she looked like a child. Even she muttered to herself every time she looked in the mirror while getting ready for work, ‘How is this a twenty-four-year-old?’ How much more so for other people? Especially since right now she was fully dressed up by the boss. If she looked twenty-four, that would be the abnormal part.
That aside, since Roofkr was one year older than her, whether he spoke casually or not didn’t really matter to her.
“Yes. Go ahead.”
“Hey, you talk casually too. Otherwise it’s only uncomfortable for me.”
“Formal speech is basically a passive skill for me…. Besides, we’re not even friends, so suddenly speaking casually to you feels a bit off, doesn’t it?”
“Have you already forgotten the deep friendship between debtor and creditor?”
“That was friendship?”
“Ugh. I even took on the credit-defaulter title just to show off our friendship.”
“…In the end it was just to borrow money you weren’t going to pay back anyway.”
“Such a tiny thing, but your senses are sharp.”
For reference, unlike with MoovGun, she didn’t need to keep him in check. Since he himself was a character who attracted a ton of snipers, having an evil turret like her stick around would only give him a headache, so he naturally kept his distance. In reality, no matter how much the boss cursed at him, he had treated her with utmost respect for two whole years. However, just as he was polite to his elders, he was also strict about hierarchy.
“So, how old are you?”
It seemed he was immediately asking about age.
“Twenty-four.”
“Hey. Even if you’re lying…”
“I’m twenty-four. Want to see my ID?”
Roofkr shook his head briefly.
“Whoa, calm down. Why are you getting so serious?”
“Because you look like you don’t believe me.”
“I was just joking. I was surprised because your face looks exactly like the plate. At first I thought some lost elementary school kid was wandering around.”
After that, they walked past several tables in silence until Roofkr stopped again in the middle of the passage between tables and spoke.
“Hmm. Anyway, since I’ve already dropped the formal speech, let me ask you one favor.”
“What is it?”
“I need to get on Keugaemang-hyungnim’s good side right now. Could you provide some supporting fire for me?”
For a moment, she tilted her head. First Yeon Seong-muk’s team leader, and now this. Why was everyone acting like this? What exactly was she supposed to be?
“What could I possibly do to provide supporting fire…?”
When she asked in genuine bewilderment, Roofkr looked back at her with equal confusion, as if he couldn’t understand the intent behind her question.
“All the Makgeolli-hyungnims are super curious about you, you know? Isn’t that because they’re interested?”
Originally, she had asked the boss to arrange a meeting with Keugaemang and the Makgeolli Crew. The moment she arrived, Keugaemang had suddenly said he was looking for her, which had already made her tilt her head once. But hearing this conversation on the way to Keugaemang while following Roofkr left her completely dumbfounded.
“Why would Keugaemang-nim be interested in a mere employee?”
“It’s possible. You were a real fucking evil Demon King, after all. Wait, did you forget? That Keugaemang-hyungnim’s dark history was displayed on the fourth floor of the Demon King Castle?”
At those words, her heart sank. Could it be that the interest he was showing her wasn’t positive? Well, what could someone of Keugaemang’s caliber possibly have to offer to a mere employee like her?
“…Was that the case?”
“Wow, look at this. As expected, perpetrators never remember. Just wait.”
Roofkr fiddled with his phone for a moment before showing her one of Keugaemang’s clips. Only then did the memory resurface. There had indeed been a video of Keugaemang in the general streamer preset.
It was the day she had worn the Wooparooopa plate while pretending to experience being a VTuber, starting with the line, “They say VTubers are popular these days.”
“Ah. This one.”
“How can you display it and then not remember?”
“Well, at the time I was so out of it…”
While doing the Demon King roleplay, she had essentially been in a half-trance, focusing solely on doing the role justice. Perhaps that had caused Keugaemang-nim to become truly furious. If he was genuinely angry, that would be troublesome. Maybe he had thought that when the boss contacted him. What? Mazia is coming too? You’ve really done it now. When she gets here, I’ll bombard her with a lecture.
Suddenly a chill ran down her spine. The thought of a three-million-subscriber YouTuber scolding her…
“It looks like I’m going to get severely scolded when I go.”
“…Scolded? Why would you get scolded?”
“He must be angry, right?”
Roofkr chuckled.
“What are you talking about? If he were angry at you, why would I ask you for supporting fire? I’d just drop you in the seat and run away.”
…That was true. But if that was the case, it meant Keugaemang was looking at her favorably. Even though she had played his dark history video without permission, his impression of her was still positive? How was that possible?
However, her worries didn’t last long.
Is this an extension of that line of thinking from back then?
Ever since becoming Mazia, she had been enjoying special treatment. Even when she acted outrageously toward the boss, it ended with just a light smack on the head. Even when she acted out toward randomly met Battle Colosseum teammates, they almost never got genuinely angry. Based on those experiences, she had slightly loosened the reins of reason. That was why she could now make even bolder choices. Displaying the streamers’ dark histories without fear on the fourth floor of the Demon King Castle had been part of that.
Did he actually find it amusing?
Had that properly worked on Keugaemang? Instead of thinking the kid had a rotten nature, had he simply laughed and let it slide with a ‘That’s funny’? This was an incredibly good sign. In that case, she could afford to throw away most of the opening parts of the plan she had prepared in advance. They had all been topics prepared for icebreaking anyway. Since her burden had lightened considerably, helping Roofkr wasn’t that difficult.
“So. What exactly do you need me to help with?”
“Ah. Baseball Manager 25 is coming out soon. I want to do a collab with hyungnim when it launches.”
Baseball Manager. A game famous for its insanely spicy microtransactions, yet so addictive that Roofkr had spent five years saying he would quit and never actually quitting. Roofkr’s spending was already well-known, and Keugaemang was also one of the people who had poured a huge amount of money into the game. Just this year alone, the two of them had advertised Baseball Manager 24 only a few days apart.
However, even though they played the same game, the groups they belonged to were completely different. Keugaemang gave off the feeling of a gently flowing river with a single boat floating on it and a cup of makgeolli in hand, while Roofkr felt like someone swimming bare-handed in waves close to a tsunami. Naturally, it wasn’t easy for the two sides to join hands.
If a suggestion was to be made, it absolutely had to come from Roofkr’s side, but given the image he had built up as a streamer over the years, he must have realized that simply suggesting it wouldn’t make it happen.
“I won’t ask for anything unreasonable. When I talk later, just say one line from the side like ‘I’m curious what it would look like if the two of you were together.’ That’s all I need.”
That was why he was trying to use her as a buffer. Because Keugaemang looked at her favorably. But there had to be give and take. During the Wicker Town incident, it had been money she wouldn’t have minded not receiving anyway, but she couldn’t stand the idea of being the one getting her money stolen in real life.
“Then please help me too, Roofkr-nim.”
“What? Just say it.”
“You won’t become a credit defaulter this time, right?”
“Hey, that was for the broadcast. I don’t do that in real life. Why, should I write a video affidavit? ‘I, Roofkr, Oh Seung-jong, promise to definitely help if I receive Mazia’s assistance’?”
“That’s not necessary.”
“So what is it? Tell me.”
What else could it be? The Parallel World Cup. Ever since MoovGun did the Parallel World Cup, the number of smaller streamers boarding the Parallel coin had increased significantly. In an atmosphere that had mostly been dominated by VChuVChu KR or the Rapits World Cup, they had thrown their hat into the ring quite properly.
However, having Roofkr do it alone would be a bit difficult. It would be better if it could be done when Roofkr and the Mad Dogs were all gathered together. Having a combined audience of forty thousand watching at once would be far more effective than each person doing it separately multiple times.
Of course, she knew. Compared to what Roofkr had asked of her, the request she was about to make was absurdly burdensome. But you never knew until you tried. After all, just looking at Roofkr urging her on made it clear. That she might be enjoying quite a bit of special treatment. Even though Roofkr was one of the people whose dark history video she had displayed on the fourth floor, he was currently extremely friendly toward her.
“…What is it, kid? Hurry up and say it. I might not agree if you take too long?”
The fact that the corners of his mouth had been slightly raised the entire time from the beginning was proof. Despite his toxic way of speaking, Roofkr was currently looking at her very favorably. Ever since Yeon Seong-muk had approached her with the debut talk earlier, she had predicted that today would be a strangely off day. If Roofkr agreed to her request, she might truly have to acknowledge it. That no matter where she appeared as a guest, the more she messed around, the more it helped Parallel.
She took a small, deep breath and conveyed her request.
“Please gather with the Mad Dogs and do the Parallel World Cup just once.”
Roofkr immediately tilted one eyebrow crookedly. Beneath the asymmetrical brow, his face looked quite mischievous.
“Hmm. That might be difficult.”
“…As expected.”
A firm answer came back, which was disappointing. So even this was too much. It couldn’t be helped. She had thought it was an unreasonable request anyway.
…However, Roofkr didn’t end it with just a refusal.
“Of course it’s difficult, you idiot. The price doesn’t match. The price.”
He had added an extra condition, revealing that he was still willing to negotiate.
“Wait a second. Let me do some calculations.”
After that, Roofkr turned on his phone, tapped away, accessed some site, searched for the Mat-at Daehoe, exchanged messages with someone, and then said this.
“You know about the Mat-at Daehoe, right?”
“Ah. Yes. It’s the one happening in mid-January, right? Was the event Battle Colosseum?”
“That’s a rumor. The January tournament isn’t Battle Colosseum, it’s Combative.”
Combative. A very weighty military FPS game where a single headshot could take down an enemy, but at the same time it had introduced a skill system like Battle Colosseum to lower the entry barrier. Among FPS games with leagues, it stood shoulder to shoulder with Battle Colosseum as one of the two major pillars. Until last year, Battle Colosseum had been the main event for the Pazizik streamer tournament Mat-at Daehoe, but it seemed they had decided to hold the rapidly rising Combative tournament twice a year as well for viewership.
“You should participate then. The organizers have been asking if there are any decent players because the mid-tier player pool is ambiguous. That friend of yours from Rapits? Serena is participating too.”
At any rate, it seemed Roofkr wanted her to participate in this Mat-at Daehoe. Since her main game was Battle Colosseum, she wasn’t entirely confident, but since it was still an FPS and shotguns obviously existed, she didn’t see any reason to refuse. However, she had to confirm one thing she was curious about. After all, it was a tournament with only twenty spots. She didn’t want her participation to deprive someone else of their opportunity.
“But aren’t there plenty of other people who could do it besides me? Why me specifically?”
“It’s because right after the Mat-at Daehoe is the Naore Dog Mother Tournament, and everyone’s flocking there. That one takes a long time to practice for, so you can’t participate in both at the same time. Plus, we have to consider the balance of tournament participants, and right now there’s no middle bridge at exactly your level.”
“For a middle bridge, I’ve barely played any Combative though.”
“You play quite a bit of FPS, don’t you? You proved it with Battle Colosseum. They’re looking for new faces with talent but not much game experience, people who can build a narrative in a short period. Both the organizers and the viewers.”
Roofkr said this and then pointed at the name tag on her chest.
“You weren’t a pure streamer. That’s why I wasn’t even considering it. But you put on that name tag? It means Pazizik has recognized you as a streamer. That’s why I’m suggesting it. So? Will you do it or not?”
He was saying something similar to what the boss had said. …The moment she received the invitation, she was already a streamer. However, it wasn’t as if there were no people in the world who streamed like her. A prime example would be Wicker’s crew, who mainly managed the large 64 Cubics servers. They worked in the shadows for streamers, even had their own personal channels, but they never called themselves ‘streamers.’ They called themselves ‘staff.’ Therefore, she had no intention of bending her principles. Although she had received the invitation, as she had told the boss earlier, staff only moved on the boss’s orders.
“I’ll ask the boss and let you know.”