Chapter 120
Chapter 120
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 120
Chapter Title: Master and Disciple
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Soo-hyuk kept walking as if nothing was amiss, replaying Pak Soo-hyuk's words in his mind.
Like you've already experienced popularity before.
It wasn't wrong.
Though the outcome might differ, Soo-hyuk had once gained tremendous popularity in the past.
Far beyond comparison to now.
In fact, if you really thought about it, the popularity Pak Soo-hyuk enjoyed stemmed from his former self.
"Guess that's just my personality."
It wasn't just empty words.
'Back then, I didn't think much of it either.'
Focusing on what lay ahead rather than dwelling on invisible popularity.
Perhaps because of that personality, he'd never felt burdened by popularity since the old days.
Sensing the sincerity in Soo-hyuk's response, Pak Soo-hyuk nodded.
"If that's the case, that's a talent."
"A talent?"
"Yeah. Plenty of people can gain popularity, but few can handle it."
He continued with a thoughtful expression.
"That popularity weighs so heavy it ruins streams, or they get drunk on ego like cheap booze and veer off course... There are all sorts of ways it breaks people."
"A lot of people like that?"
"Yeah. It's common in this industry."
For a brief moment, a hint of bitterness crossed Pak Soo-hyuk's face. It vanished quickly, but it reminded Soo-hyuk of one fact.
"You've got a jinx."
The reason countless streamers avoided collabs with Pak Soo-hyuk.
It was that absurd, frightening jinx: anyone who collabed with him was doomed to fail.
"The streamers who collabed and crashed... was that because of it too?"
Pak Soo-hyuk flinched, shoulders jumping in surprise, and stopped walking.
Soo-hyuk thought he was about to say something profound, but they were just in front of an upscale-looking bar.
Gazing at the bar's sign for a moment, Pak Soo-hyuk asked,
"Fancy a drink?"
The bar's interior was dimly lit with subtle hues, exuding a luxurious vibe.
Settling into plush, expensive-looking sofas, Pak Soo-hyuk ordered first: drinks and snacks.
"Cheese and crackers. For the booze, any Elbaph brew aged 30 years or more."
Soo-hyuk's eyes widened at the order from across the table.
Elbaph liquor was notoriously pricey. One aged 30+ years cost thousands of points per bottle.
To order something like that on a whim...
"Why so surprised? You make good money too, Soo-hyuk."
"I do earn well."
Sipping the water that arrived first, Soo-hyuk grumbled with clear dissatisfaction.
"But the expenses are the problem."
"Fair point. Players like you burn through points on gear and all that."
More points went elsewhere than gear, but no need to explain.
As Soo-hyuk nodded, Pak Soo-hyuk grinned.
"Don't worry. This one's on me. It's been ages since I collabed with another streamer. Least I can do."
"Shouldn't I be the one thanking you?"
Soo-hyuk still didn't get it.
"You have way more viewers and subs."
In the short time they'd chatted, the premium-labeled bottle arrived.
Either ignoring the price or unbothered, Pak Soo-hyuk uncorked it right away.
"True, but my rep's so bad."
"Must get to you."
"Of course. Everyone knows. Didn't you see the comments on the announcement?"
"Comments..."
Soo-hyuk hurriedly pulled out his kit.
"You really don't care. It's been chaos since yesterday. 'Don't ruin our bro,' 'Pak Soo-hyuk kills another streamer.'"
While listening, Soo-hyuk rushed to check the comments.
Savage comments.
This was his own channel's announcement, yet most of the vitriol targeted Pak Soo-hyuk.
Quicker than expected.
"I figured it'd be like this."
"Then why agree to it?"
"Here, first round."
Pak Soo-hyuk poured Soo-hyuk a full glass. No hesitation despite the cost.
After wetting their throats briefly.
"My manager tried to talk me out of it. Said there's no upside."
"So the decision was..."
"Mine."
"Why?"
"You get a feeling sometimes? That this time it'll be different."
Pak Soo-hyuk chuckled wryly.
"Problem is, my instincts suck."
Funny thing: it was spot on.
Just look at his trial stream. He'd shown disastrously bad plays that shocked Soo-hyuk, with zero pretense.
No instincts. Literally zero.
And apparently, that lack extended beyond trials as a player.
"I thought that every time, but the results were always the same. Streams go stale, celebrity syndrome hits, scandals brew..."
"Scandals aren't your fault, are they?"
"Nope. Just bad luck."
He nodded while downing his drink alone.
"That's why it's a 'jinx.' Like I'm cursed or something."
Curse.
No need for such grand terms. But analyzing the jinx's cause, only one explanation fit.
"Collab effects must be strong."
"Huh?"
"Sudden viewer spikes lead to pressure or celebrity syndrome."
Soo-hyuk had felt collab effects once before.
After collabing with Hawk's Eye, his viewers surged. Hawk's Eye had promoted him and pulled over his audience.
Viewer sharing.
Gaining and promoting via audience overlap.
That was collab's core appeal.
'With Pak Soo-hyuk, it'd be way bigger than with Hawk's Eye.'
He had over ten times Hawk's Eye's viewers. A mega-streamer.
Naturally, collab effects would dwarf the last one.
No wonder the sudden fame crushed them.
"Optimistic take."
Pak Soo-hyuk's face brightened a touch.
"Honestly, I hoped for that too. Figured you wouldn't buckle to anyone."
Gazing at his reflection in the bottle, Pak Soo-hyuk muttered softly.
"If it happens again this time..."
His trailing voice cut off as he shook his head. Then he refilled his glass and held it out.
"Enough dark thoughts. Cheers. Change the subject."
His expression flipped instantly. Clinking glasses with the now-bright Pak Soo-hyuk, Soo-hyuk smiled.
"Sure."
"Anything you're curious about? I'm a vet in this biz."
"How loaded are you, exactly?"
"Straight for the jugular."
"You're buying this pricey booze. How could I not wonder?"
They downed a few bottles, but neither got truly drunk.
For players, intoxication was optional. They could expel it at will.
Though few wasted premium liquor like that.
"Wasteful."
Back at the dorm, they purged the buzz immediately.
"Had to. Work calls."
"Next time, proper drinks."
"You're on."
Unhyang and Nets eyed Soo-hyuk and Pak Soo-hyuk entering side by side.
"When did they get so chummy?"
"Drinks, probably."
"Good. Streamer bonds boost collab synergy."
Soo-hyuk and Pak Soo-hyuk rejoined the meeting.
Buzz gone, Pak Soo-hyuk turned to his manager, Nets.
"Content decided?"
"Yeah. Kinda cliché, but nothing better."
"Oh, I get it."
Pak Soo-hyuk guessed from the brief rundown.
"Master and disciple."
"Bingo."
Master and disciple.
The name alone hinted at the format.
"Me teaching you, Pak Soo-hyuk?"
Unhyang nodded at Soo-hyuk's question.
"Yes. Classic for skill-based and comedy streamers collabing."
"Never taught before."
"No need to be good."
Pak Soo-hyuk shrugged off Soo-hyuk's concern.
"Goal's watching the disciple beat the master anyway."
"Beat the master?"
"Yeah. No matter what you teach, I suck hard."
"Ah..."
Visualizing the setup, Soo-hyuk nodded.
He got the gist.
'Highlighting Pak Soo-hyuk's cursed talent.'
Seen it a few times; he knew how disastrously bad Pak Soo-hyuk was.
Bad at everything. Reaching floor 4 was a miracle.
"Not our first rodeo."
Unhyang continued.
"We've tried it with our streamers before. Still chose it 'cause it slaps."
"All failures?"
Pak Soo-hyuk's manager, Nets, answered Soo-hyuk.
"Not failures. Viewers topped 200k each time."
200k.
Huge number.
Ten times Soo-hyuk's 20k-ish audience.
Explained why Pak Soo-hyuk was mega-tier.
But.
"No, I mean..."
Not what Soo-hyuk asked.
"Did everyone fail to teach him?"
With clarification, Nets blinked, glancing between Soo-hyuk and Pak Soo-hyuk.
"You're serious?"
"Yes."
Nets looked troubled. Pak Soo-hyuk's reaction matched.
"Soo-hyuk, you watch our streams?"
"Yeah. You're a mess."
"And you wanna fix him for real?"
Might offend some, but their rapport allowed it. Pure fact, too.
"Not impossible. 'Fix' sounds grandiose, but..."
Master and disciple.
Comedic content: tormented master vs. hopelessly untalented disciple.
But.
"If he improves? Jackpot."
Why settle for cliché?
Turning to Pak Soo-hyuk, Soo-hyuk lit up with resolve.
"Let's do this right, us two."