The Private Stream and the Streamer Tournament
The chat room erupted in noise.
Park Jihun stared intently at the monitor. The question itself wasn't particularly novel. It was a common saying that a shaman couldn't peer into their own destiny. But Jihun knew the truth: it wasn't that he *couldn't* see it, but rather that he chose not to. Every time he tried to perform a reading on himself, he instinctively realized that seeing it was useless.
“It’s not that I can’t see it.”
The chat room accelerated again in an instant.
Leaning back in his chair, Jihun continued, “There’s just no reason to look.”
Jihun scanned the chat and replied, “Because once you know, you start to worry about it.” He tapped the edge of his desk with his fingertips. “If you worry, you start adjusting your actions. If it’s good, you act differently; if it’s bad, you act differently. And before you know it, the path you were originally meant to walk disappears.”
“The moment you see it, you’re eventually drawn to it. That’s why I don’t look at my own.”
Usik laughed. “Oh, you’re sounding pretty profound today, aren’t you?”
Jihun cut him off immediately. “Quiet. Pay your Bokchae.”
Usik grumbled but sent a donation.
Ted_Woo has gifted 500 Water Droplets!
Jihun replied, “Nothing in this world is free.”
“Anyway, thanks for the reading. Keep up the good work on your stream. I’ll call you later.”
The connection ended. Jihun checked the time at the bottom right of his monitor. The night was already deep. “That’s it for today. See you tomorrow.”
Jihun ended the stream immediately. A brief silence followed. Before long, his phone rang. The caller ID appeared: [Kim Usik]. Jihun picked up immediately.
“What is it?” Park Jihun asked as he answered the phone. Usik’s voice came through immediately.
“You turned off the stream, right?”
“Yeah, just now. Why?”
Usik said cautiously, “I have a few more things I’m curious about.”
“I told you a lot already. There’s more?”
“There are things I couldn’t ask because we were streaming. How could I say them with everyone watching?” Usik paused for a beat before continuing. “Can I ask you a few more things?”
Park Jihun leaned back in his chair. “Go ahead.”
“So, about me…” Usik opened his mouth as if he’d been waiting. The questions weren't long. They were mostly personal worries—the kind he couldn't ask while on air. Park Jihun listened, his brow furrowing. He saw nothing. Just moments ago, visions had been flickering across his monitor screen, but now, it was different. It was quiet. Excessively so.
“Wait.”
“Why?”
Jihun pulled the phone away from his ear and looked down at the screen. Only his own face was faintly reflected in the black glass.
“Is there a problem?”
Park Jihun tapped his fingers on the desk and said, “It definitely doesn't work over the phone.”
“What doesn't?”
“The Shamanic Reading.”
Usik asked, sounding flustered, “Uh, why? Does it not work at all if it’s not a stream?”
“I don’t know. It just doesn't show up.” Park Jihun sank into thought. It didn't work over the phone. Because the stream wasn't on. Just then, Usik threw out a suggestion. “What about a private stream?”
Park Jihun’s eyes widened. “What?”
“A private stream. Like, setting a password so only I can enter. It’s still a stream, after all.”
“That might work. Should we try it?”
“Let’s give it a shot.”
Thinking about it, it wasn't an absurd idea. A private stream was still, technically, a stream. “Then set one up. Any password will do.”
“I’ll use 8282.”
“Got it.” Since it had come to this, he needed to test it. “I’ll let you know when I start the stream.”
Jihun hung up and turned on the computer he had just shut down.
Jihun started the private stream and notified Usik. Shortly after, Usik joined. The viewer count was one: Kim Usik. There was no chat, no donations. It was so quiet it felt awkward.
“Let’s try it. What are you most curious about?”
“That thing you said earlier.”
“What?”
“...Is it true that I’m really going to marry Heeyeon?”
“Is something going on?”
“Actually, we had a huge fight a few days ago.”
“What did you fight about?”
“Money. She really went off on me again for spending too much.”
At that moment, a vision flashed by. It was short, but clear. Jihun lifted the corners of his mouth ever so slightly. “Don’t worry.”
“Huh?”
“You’re already hooked. It won’t be shaken easily by something like that.”
A brief silence passed.
“Hey, what does that mean?”
“Exactly what it sounds like. It’s not an attachment that’s going to break over something like that.”
Usik let out a sigh. Meanwhile, Jihun was busy ruminating on the sensation that had just passed. It worked. He could perform a Shamanic Reading even in a private stream. Suddenly, his mother’s face came to mind. *If this works, I can read for Mom, too.* There was no longer a need to do it on a public stream. He just had to set a date. *When should I do a reading for Mom?* Jihun was deep in thought, tapping his fingertips on the desk.
“Hey. But is it true that the kid is going to be one of three boys?” It was Usik’s voice, sounding half-exhausted, half-curious.
Jihun replied shortly, “Yeah.”
“Wow, that’s really too much. Shouldn't there be at least one daughter? How can that not happen?”
At that moment, a short vision flashed by. A fancy restaurant, Usik dressed to the nines, but the moment he rose from his chair, an embarrassing sound echoed. Jihun chuckled and said, “It won’t happen. Besides, you’re going to be humiliated soon, aren't you? You have a Mangshinsal aura clinging to you.”
“What? What kind of thing?”
“If you want to avoid it, go to a public bathhouse and walk around in the nude once. That’ll solve it.”
“Hey, you crazy bastard! What kind of solution is that!”
“I don’t know either. I saw it while web surfing. I’ve seen all I need to see, so I’m hanging up. I need to sleep.”
Just then, Usik added as if he’d suddenly remembered, “Oh, wait. You know there’s a streamer tournament this weekend, right?”
“No.”
“Ah, damn it, I told you when you first started streaming. Let’s participate together. I already filled out the application and submitted it.”
“What?”
“You haven't forgotten that I was the one who sent you viewers, have you?”
Park Jihun stayed silent for a moment. It was true that Usik had set the stage for him. Besides, he had made a promise, so he couldn't refuse his request.
“…Alright. So, exactly when is it?”
“This Saturday at 5:00 PM. I’ll send you the Discord link. While you’re at it, try to get friendly with other streamers. They’re all curious about you.”
“Got it.”
“Okay. Don’t be late that day.”
“Yeah.”
The call ended. Jihun immediately ended the private stream as well. It was when he lay down in bed to sleep that a message arrived from Usik.
[Ocean Streamer Tournament]
Game: Battle Around
Starts: Saturday at 5:00 PM
Discord participation mandatory
Jihun closed his eyes while looking at the message. It seemed like Saturday afternoon was going to be a busy one.
Saturday, 5:00 PM. Park Jihun started his stream at the promised time and connected to the Discord link. Immediately, the voices of several people poured through his earphones all at once. It was noisy. Laughter, playful tones, and the sound of keyboards clacking were mixed in among voices he was hearing for the first time. Jihun checked the name of the Discord room again: [Ocean Streamer Waiting Room].
That was when it happened.
“Oh, wait a second,” a strange man’s voice said. “By any chance, are you FullTimeJobSeeker?”
A short silence followed. Another voice chimed in immediately.
“Oh, it really is him.”
“He even turned on his stream just a moment ago.”
“Wow, I watched that guy’s stream the day before yesterday.”
“He was on the participant list, but he actually came.”
In an instant, the atmosphere shifted toward Jihun. Some were happy to see him, some were fascinated, and others were openly laughing and testing him.
“Did you come here to do Shamanic Readings today?”
“You’re here to participate in the tournament, right?”
“I heard you’re Usik’s friend!”
Jihun greeted them with an awkward expression. “Hello. I’m FullTimeJobSeeker. I look forward to working with you all.”
At those words, the Discord room—and even the chat room—became boisterous.
“Oh? He’s much more polite than I thought.”
“He feels different than he does on stream.”
“Hey, so the informal speech was just a concept for the readings.”
“Why is his tone so normal? I’m surprised.”
Then Usik cut in. “He’s my friend, FullTimeJobSeeker! Please take care of him!”
Then everyone started greeting Jihun, pretending to know him.
“You’re the hottest person on Ocean these days. I’m Croco. Nice to meet you.”
“That’s right. Yesterday, your viewer count went over ten thousand.”
“It’s nice to meet you, but is the Shamanic Reading for real? I don’t believe in readings or fortune-telling. Isn't it all just wordplay?”
The reactions were mixed. While some welcomed him openly, others didn't hide their displeasure. In particular, some seemed uncomfortable that the atmosphere in the Discord room had shifted toward Jihun after he arrived. Jihun roughly read the room and let it slide. He had no intention of responding to every single one of them.
Just then, a woman chimed in with a soft tone.
“Oh my, hello.”
The atmosphere, which had been laughing and chatting until just a moment ago, changed slightly. Jihun listened to the voice through his earphones without a word. It was a quite familiar tone. It was a voice filled with aegyo that anyone who watched streams would have heard at least once. The number one ranked female streamer on Ocean. A massive streamer whose viewer count easily exceeded ten thousand the moment she turned on her camera: Akasha.
She was an influencer of celebrity status who often did joint broadcasts with celebrities and had even appeared on variety shows and public network talk shows.
Then, Akasha said with a smile, “I’m enjoying your streams! I’m curious about your Shamanic Reading too—could I get one?”
Park Jihun replied in a deadpan tone, “You can come to my stream, gift 500 Water Droplets, and wait your turn.”
After a brief silence, the atmosphere in the chat room flipped in an instant.