A Narrow Escape
The viewer known as 29-Year-Old Unemployed—his real name was Kang Jinsu.
That morning, he opened his eyes much later than usual. He had tossed and turned all night, unable to get a decent night's sleep. Even in his dreams, the warning from the Perpetual Job Seeker had echoed relentlessly in his ears.
"Don't go to your interview tomorrow at two in the afternoon."
"If you go, tomorrow will be the day of your funeral."
"...Is he out of his mind?"
Kang Jinsu let out a hollow laugh as he tightened his tie. Today was the day of his first-round interview at Ohsung Electronics. Starting as a high school graduate, graduating from a junior college, and even attending night school—this was an opportunity he had barely managed to grasp. His life was too desperate to give up on a dream over a single word thrown out by some random streamer.
Even as he slipped his heels into his dress shoes with a shoehorn and stepped out of his cramped studio apartment, he was only half-believing the words he had heard on the broadcast.
Arriving at the bus stop, he checked the electronic display. The bus heading toward Ohsung Electronics was scheduled to arrive in five minutes.
'Nothing will happen. It's pure superstition.'
Yet, strangely, his feet felt heavy. He couldn't shake the nagging anxiety. Right then—
Bzzzz—
The phone in his pocket vibrated. The caller ID showed his mother.
"Mom? What's up at this hour?"
"Where are you right now?"
"Me? The bus stop. I have my interview today, remember? What about you, Mom?"
"I'm at the hospital right now."
At the word "hospital," Kang Jinsu's face instantly froze.
"The hospital? Why all of a sudden?"
"I woke up this morning and my knees were throbbing so badly I couldn't even walk. So I got checked out, and they say it's degenerative arthritis. Oh, time is a scary thing."
At that exact moment, Kang Jinsu froze in his tracks.
"Your mother's knees hurt, but you barely even contact her, do you? You need to reflect on yourself."
It was exactly what the Perpetual Job Seeker had said on his stream last night.
A cold sweat broke out down his spine.
The bus he was supposed to take pulled up to the stop. The doors folded open, and people swarmed inside.
"Aren't you getting on?" the driver urged.
"Uh, just a moment."
"Jinsu? Are you listening?"
Kang Jinsu's lips parted, but no words came out. His palms were drenched in cold sweat.
'No way.'
Just because he got one thing right by chance didn't mean it was all real. Even as he thought this, his feet wouldn't budge.
"You're not getting on, right? We're leaving."
In the end, the bus doors hissed shut.
Vroom—
Watching the bus recede into the distance, Kang Jinsu slumped onto the bus stop bench.
'...It was real?'
His mind was in a whirl. When the streamer guessed his childhood car accident, he had been half-doubtful. But his mother's knees were different. This was too specific to dismiss as a mere coincidence.
Kang Jinsu gritted his teeth.
"...I have to go see why he said today would be the day of my funeral."
He waited for the next bus. Because he had missed his original ride, he was already going to be late.
By the time he took the next bus and arrived at the stop in front of Ohsung Electronics, he was nearly twenty minutes later than planned.
As he prepared to step off the bus, Kang Jinsu froze solid at the sight outside the window.
"......What in the world?"
The road in front of the company's main gate was in absolute chaos. Crowds of people had gathered, and police cars and ambulances were tangled together with flashing lights. In the middle of the road, where a haze of dust and smoke had not yet settled, right next to the crosswalk, a 905 bus stood stopped, its side brutally torn open.
And a large truck that had slammed into the bus was pushed sideways, crashed into a streetlamp. Shattered glass and torn pieces of the vehicle's body were scattered everywhere.
"Did an accident just happen?"
When Kang Jinsu asked in a trembling voice, a pedestrian standing next to him clicked his tongue.
"Yes. Apparently, the truck lost control and slammed right into the side of the bus. They say that bus had just passed the stop and was entering the crosswalk."
At those words, Kang Jinsu's face turned deathly pale.
The 905 bus. It was the exact bus he was originally supposed to take.
He slowly turned his head. The location of the accident was right in front of the crosswalk he would have had to cross to enter the company.
If he had arrived on schedule.
If he had just taken that bus earlier.
Kang Jinsu swallowed hard. His throat felt bone-dry.
'......I would have died.'
It wasn't a matter of simply getting hurt. Today really could have been the day of his funeral.
He stared blankly at the wreckage of the 905 bus and thought: Even if the Perpetual Job Seeker said the sun rises in the west, I think I'd believe him now.
"......And that's what happened."
Listening to 29-Year-Old Unemployed's story over Discord, Park Jihun realized the vision he had seen was real.
'What I saw was real.'
He didn't know why it only worked when he was live-streaming, but at least one thing was certain. His Shinan was functioning perfectly.
"Perpetual Job Seeker, thank you so much. Once I land a job, I'll donate even more generously!"
"Forget it, just take care of yourself first. And prepare well for your next interview."
"Thank you!"
As soon as 29-Year-Old Unemployed left the Discord channel, the chat window exploded.
Park Jihun scanned the chat. The messages were scrolling much faster than before. The viewer count had also surged.
'It's grown a lot.'
But the moment a chilling sensation brushed his mind again, his lips opened of their own accord.
"You're next. BonelessRamen."
The chat paused for a moment.
"Get on Discord."
Then, Park Jihun suddenly spoke up.
"Before you join, just one thing."
Jihun asked, completely unbothered.
"You're a girl, right?"
The chat stirred again.
"H-hello. I'm BonelessRamen."
BonelessRamen's voice sounded a bit young.
"How did you know I was a girl?"
"Never mind that," Park Jihun said, his voice dropping low. "Stay still. I'll tell you what I see first."
"Ah, yes!"
As the female viewer began her shamanic reading, the chat's reaction grew strangely heated.
Park Jihun ignored the chat and stared at the monitor. At first, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Her health and family were decent.
"Your health is fine. No major issues."
"Really? Thank goodness."
"Your parents are doing well too."
BonelessRamen's voice instantly brightened.
"Wow, that's a relief."
"You did well in school too. Your grades weren't bad."
"Heok, you can see that too?"
"I'm saying it because I see it," Jihun replied nonchalantly.
But then, his eyes sank just a fraction.
At first, it was just a faint blur. But the more he looked, one side grew murky and dark. Like dark clouds rolling into a clear sky.
"......You have a guy problem."
The chat paused briefly.
BonelessRamen answered in a weak voice.
"......Uh, yes. That's right."
"You had a huge fight with your boyfriend recently, didn't you?"
"Yes......"
"He wanted to break up, but you held onto him."
The sound of BonelessRamen catching her breath could be heard faintly over Discord.
"......Yes."
Park Jihun furrowed his brows. It was no longer just a faint blur. Behind the dark clouds, unrealistic scenes began to flash.
Flashy neon signs. A table littered with alcohol bottles. A disheveled bed. And a man tangled up with an unfamiliar woman.
"Hah."
Park Jihun let out a short sigh. It was an unpleasant scene to witness.
The chat didn't miss that brief sigh.
Then, BonelessRamen asked cautiously.
"But...... I still believe he's a good person. Can I keep trusting him?"
Park Jihun answered immediately.
"Don't."
The Discord channel fell dead silent.
"......Pardon?"
"That bastard has another woman."
The chat exploded instantly.
BonelessRamen couldn't speak for a while. Only her suppressed breathing could be heard over Discord.
"T-that can't be true......"
Park Jihun cut her off with a cold voice.
"What do you mean, 'can't be'?"
A brief silence.
"He's meeting her right now."
Kim Usik struggled to open his eyes. Having slept in on his day off, it was already night.
"Ugh...... Is there anything to eat?"
He rummaged through the fridge, but there were only leftover delivery containers. Having no choice, he put water on to boil for cup ramen.
While waiting for the water to boil, Usik logged onto Ocean out of habit.
Then, he suddenly thought of Park Jihun.
"Come to think of it, Jihun said he was streaming today."
He wondered how many people were watching his friend's stream. Usik scrolled through the screen, sorting by viewer count.
Normally, it should have been a username sitting among streams with around ten viewers.
But Perpetual Job Seeker was nowhere to be seen.
"What?"
Usik furrowed his brows and scrolled up a bit more. Only then did the familiar username catch his eye.
Perpetual Job Seeker.
But its position was bizarre.
"......Huh?"
Usik's eyes widened.
[Viewer Count: 572]
"No way, is he crazy?"
Five hundred viewers on his second day of streaming.
"......What on earth is this guy doing?"
As if possessed, he clicked the stream.