Kkaenam-i
Today was another whirlwind of a day.
Still reeling from the aftereffects of my twenty-four-hour outdoor stream, I clocked in, took reports from the staff the moment I arrived, and issued a fresh round of directives.
Construction on Skypia, the sky island, was currently sitting at nearly fifty percent completion.
After rallying the building crew to push for a finish by the second week, I pulled Mayo aside.
"Starting today, farm me a solid stock of Ghast Tears, Blaze Rods, and Ender Pearls."
"Hmm? Those are the core materials for Mythic-grade gear, so it is. Asking Mayo to farm them means we're finally ready to challenge it, so it is."
"Don't get ahead of yourself—just farm. They're essential materials anyway, so we can always sell the extras to other companies."
"Mayo is the god of farming, so it is. Mayo's got this, so it is."
"And if you wander off 'farming' and start goofing around somewhere far away, you're in for it. I'll sneak into your stream and keep watch."
"Tch!"
"Huh? What's with that reaction!"
"Mean old witch! Evil boss! Mayo's reporting you to the labor board, so it is!"
She spat out the words in a flash and bolted like her tail was on fire, the sight of her fleeing so hard it made me want to snatch her up, flip her over my knee, and spank her.
I wasn't normally like this, but the body she'd revealed in her last half-cam stream was so perfectly optimized for that kind of play that I couldn't help myself…
"Ahem. Work time."
I shook my head to scatter the distracting thoughts and used a Rena Coin to teleport to Taecho Village.
I'd just logged in, so I still hadn't claimed today's daily mission.
The rewards were surprisingly decent—I couldn't afford to skip even a single day.
If I slipped up and forgot, the value-obsessed mission-chasers would flood the chat the next day, so there was no room for carelessness.
"No matter how you look at it, I'm better looking. Huh? Who'd even like a horse-face like yours?"
"Hey, this skull-faced bastard doesn't know his place. That's it. Today's the day you get schooled. Follow me!"
Amid the racket, a familiar voice cut through.
Curious, I tracked the noise to its source and found Oh Yeong-jun—someone I hadn't seen in a while—bickering with another guy.
Hmm? This character who looks like Nobita from Doraemon…?
Knowing the Akatsuki lore, I figured out who he was right away.
It was Kkaenam-i, the vice president who followed right behind Wang-ko, the dictator of the Pangea TV PUBG scene.
He'd originally started streaming on Rabbit TV, then crossed over to Pangea TV and thrived on his trademark witty banter.
He and Oh Yeong-jun went way back—deep friendship territory.
"You ugly bastard. Looking like that and still coming onto this server to hit on female streamers. Huh?"
"Ha? The real ugly one's acting like this—I'm gonna lose it. Hey! Anyone can see I'm better looking than you."
"…"
I'd thought they were close. Was I wrong?
Either way, something entertaining was clearly going down, so I sidled up to the two of them.
As a streamer, I couldn't let a good broadcast angle slip away.
"Uncle Yeong-jun, hi hi. Long time no see."
"This ugly bastard, where do you think you're—huh? Seo-a? It's been a while. And it's not 'Uncle'—it's 'Oppa,' I keep telling you."
"Ugh! This old 'Oppa' addict is ruining the image of every male streamer out there. Hello, beautiful lady. I'm Kkaenam-i."
"Kkae-kkae-ro~ Kkae-kkae-ro~"
"Oh! You know my reaction!"
That was how you farm goodwill.
Kkaenam-i's fandom was famous for loyalty that rivaled even female streamers' fans—despite him being a male streamer.
Building rapport with a streamer and fanbase like that paid dividends for a long time.
See? The fan-entry baptism poured in like they'd been waiting for it.
People usually said a streamer's fans reflected the streamer themselves, and in my view, Kkaenam-i's fandom had an especially strong need for recognition.
If I had to pin down why, it was probably his somewhat ambiguous position.
Kkaenam-i's average viewership hovered between three and four thousand.
Compared to the big-corp streamers, that fell short.
But he had a fiercely loyal fanbase.
Among mid-tier streamers, Ssa-yo held the biggest pure viewer count, yet when it came to Candy power alone, Kkaenam-i crushed even Ssa-yo by double.
Factor in both viewers and Candy power, and Kkaenam-i sat near the very top of the mid-tier ranks.
That's why. High name recognition, called the vice president of the PUBG scene, Candy power stacked high—but still not quite a big-corp streamer.
That gap was exactly what lit a fire under his loyal fans.
Ah, if only more people would recognize our streamer…
Which was also why Kkaenam-i's fandom was famous for raining down cascade donations.
Before my regression, back in February, a tiny virtual streamer who'd been paired with Kkaenam-i in a "fake couple" bit on Rena World had snagged first place in virtual streamer Candy rankings that month—proving the point all over again.
"So what are you two fighting about? I heard the yelling while I was passing by."
"Ah, right. I was fighting this ugly bastard."
"Ha? Even if I call you hyung, there's a limit. Who are you to critique faces! You've got a horse face yourself."
"What? Horse face? Look who's talking—you look like a praying mantis."
"P-praying mantis? You done talking?"
"Not even close. What're you gonna do about it!"
"…"
Oh Yeong-jun was a '91 liner, Kkaenam-i a '93…?
Grown men old enough to know better, brawling like elementary school kids.
So I asked why the sudden fight over looks had even started.
"Well, our Akatsuki majority shareholder hyung put up a mission."
"He said he'd give three thousand Candy to whichever of us is better looking."
"Ah…"
Yeah, that was definitely enough to set them on fire.
A three-thousand-Candy mission was already huge, and admitting who was better looking was a direct hit to pride.
So even while they were putting on this WWE show, there was real heat mixed in.
"Right. There was this method all along. Seo-a, perfect timing."
"What is?"
"You pick which of us is better looking. How about it? Clean and simple, right?"
"Huh? Me?"
The proposal came out of nowhere.
But I was a professional broadcaster.
I didn't panic—I spun the gears in my head at top speed.
Not bad.
Just imagining it, I could already see several entertaining broadcast angles.
But this alone isn't enough. Let's blow the whole thing up bigger.
Oh Yeong-jun and Kkaenam-i weren't big-corp streamers, but in the Minecraft scene they were ranked right under that tier—streamers still on the rise, destined to keep climbing.
People worth keeping close, in other words.
So I decided to loop in not just myself, but the rest of our company members too.
That way everyone would benefit.
As the leader, I've got to look out for my people where I can.
In that brief moment I sorted my thoughts, then slowly talked the two of them around.
Wouldn't a judgment from just one person lack objectivity?
"So let's head to our company and get evaluated there. Having multiple people judge is more objective and better overall, right? And Kkaenam-i, you've never been, so you can look around while you're at it."
"That works. If it ends 1-0, this ugly guy might make excuses. 3-0, though—he'd have no choice but to accept it."
"This old man is out of his mind. 3-0? Don't go begging for more judges after you lose, looking pathetic."
"…"
Hmm. There was something I'd wanted to say for a while now.
Did both of them really have that much confidence in their looks?
From where I stood, neither was quite at that level—but better left unsaid. Sometimes hiding the truth was the kinder option.
With that, we spread our wings and flew toward V-City.
On the way, Kkaenam-i peppered me with questions, curiosity clearly piqued.
A few months ago the whole virtual genre had been unknown to most people, and now here I was, boldly running an entire company—of course he'd be interested.
Yeah, at first I thought the questions were just that kind of thing.
"I heard you're a 2000-liner, so that makes us seven years apart. Honestly, this old guy's nine years older so it's a bit much, but seven years? You could call me Oppa, right?"
"What a joke. What's the big difference between seven years and nine?"
"Hey, don't butt in. Gasp! I just saw it in chat. When Seo-a turned on half-cam, she had a total model body. Is that true?"
"…"
Kkaenam-i's voice shot up, thick with excitement.
Watching that reaction, I suddenly remembered the nickname he'd carried before my regression—one I'd momentarily forgotten.
The Red-Pill Hunter of virtual streamers.
A blaring siren went off inside my head, screaming emergency.
WEEEEEEEEOO!