Pretty Magic, Transformation Complete

It was an absurd amount of money.

The people in my chat had always been suspiciously sensitive about the word "sniping."

I first realized it the day I got deliberately trolled.

"Ugh, is this a snipe?"

The moment I said that one word, chat erupted in a low, guttural growl.

They were definitely human, but I swear they typed like actual dogs.

And it wasn't just that. If I said "snipe" instead of "sniper," the same thing happened.

A cascade of bizarre messages just like that. Of course, not everyone did it — only a handful of the usually well-behaved viewers would suddenly flip and start acting like that.

Were they leftover chaos agents who'd migrated over from Durihyeok's stream?

I had no idea why they were still camping out in my room.

Once Durihyeok comes back, those guys will all disappear, right?

My plan was just to keep them on a leash until then so they wouldn't go wreck anyone else's stream, then hand them back. That was the whole reason I'd started streaming in the first place.

Not that I hated them or anything.

They were like neighborhood mutts. Yeah.

Kind of like the stray that lived by the back gate of my school. The second you said the word "treat," those dull, vacant eyes of his would light up all soft and wet.

Anyway — the fact that those guys had just stormed into Masok's stream was entirely my fault.

I realized it too late and went to check the other streamer's broadcast, and sure enough, they'd poured in like a flood.

"Ahem."

My train of thought had been simple enough.

Masok wasn't a viewer, so it wasn't a stream sniping. He was a streamer participating… so was that a streamer snipe?

Wait. Unlike when Kim Eunha and I ran into Durihyeok, this time I'd sought him out on purpose. Wasn't that basically a snipe?

And his ID was MasokSNiper, too.

Sniper?

Heh heh. Sniper guy. Snipe-r.

What a dumb ID.

Drunk on the sweet taste of victory, my appetite for terrible puns had ballooned out of control.

Yeah. In my own head, I'd been trying to make a joke.

So his nickname is Sniper, which in Korean is "jeogyeoksu," and if you say it a little cheaper, "jeogyeok-reo"… that was the whole bit…

Nobody got it, so I almost tried to explain, then gave up. Having to explain a failed joke a second time? What kind of torture was that?

Not only had my opponent completely missed that I'd attempted a joke — my own viewers hadn't noticed either.

My face burned hot.

Thank god I didn't have a cam. If it'd been on screen, they might've caught how flustered I was.

Ah, here comes the PTSD…

Back in elementary school, I'd tried talking to some boys to make friends and ended up acting so awkwardly that I got hurt. Then in middle school, I worked up the courage to try one more time.

They happened to be talking about games, so I casually slid into the conversation — super, super naturally.

"Whoa, whoa, you guys know Dead Zone? I play that all the time! Yesterday I got like fifty kills just in the sewer hole!"

They just stared at me blankly.

Our eyes met, and they stammered for a bit while I waited, forcing myself to be patient. The answer that finally came out was:

"Uh, yeah… that's… cool…"

"Except we weren't talking about Dead Zone. We were talking about Undead King. Dead King."

I wanted to die.

From that day on, my body became physically incapable of speaking to people first.

I don't need any of it. Life is a solo queue.

Ah, I felt like I was going to cry again.

Sob sob.

I couldn't even make friends properly at school — what made me think online would be any different? I'd gotten all worked up for nothing and nearly made a complete fool of myself.

Still, this time I felt a little wronged.

I'd had every right to be excited.

That guy was a Challenger, for crying out loud.

I'd been smugly stomping on powerless viewers when a guy wearing a Challenger badge suddenly popped out of nowhere. My feelings in that moment boiled down to exactly two things:

"Whoa, a Challenger." And "I'm screwed!"

It was the first time I'd ever actually seen a Challenger, so I was fascinated. At the same time, I worried, If I lose this, won't people think my win rate is trash?

Hiding the pounding in my chest, the game began.

And the thrill of taking that first round…

"Heh."

It didn't even compare to beating regular viewers.

My plays are working!

I might've overdone it a little, wanting to see just how far I could push it.

But a Challenger was still a Challenger. The second I made a mistake, he killed me without mercy.

Fun.

So fun.

I wanted to do another 1v1.

No — what would a 5v5 feel like? Would I still be this locked in? Or would my focus scatter?

Could I climb to Challenger myself?

I clenched my jaw, fighting back the grin that kept slipping out.

Literally. I'd beaten a Challenger and gotten completely high on myself.

And that exact same energy had led straight into the total disaster that followed.

Ugh.

What a way to end things.

I smacked my lips, staring at the empty space where Masok had already vanished.

Ding-!

"What are you talking about. I don't do punishments even if I lose. That was a bet with the first viewer who came in."

"I'm not a streamer though?"

I hadn't said I was quitting streaming, but the reaction was fiery.

Huh. This might actually feel kind of nice.

They were clinging so hard I couldn't help getting a little full of myself. Ahem.

"I'm gonna keep streaming, but I can't do it full-time. Like, um… I have a main job."

I still had school to go to. And more importantly — I couldn't even cash out donations. What kind of streamer was that?

Whatever they misunderstood, I just let it slide. I wasn't great at lying. If I answered carelessly, I'd get caught.

Alright, time to wrap up.

I'd spent so long on 1v1s that I never hit Diamond 2. A shame, but I'd just hop on after school tomorrow. In the evenings, I had to watch out for my parents — I couldn't even talk loudly, and it was uncomfortable.

Ding-

This guy really loved Lucy, huh.

"Lucy? What video is that. Tell me."

Before logging off, I searched for the Lucy transformation on YouTube the way my viewers had told me. Apparently I just needed to click the one with the most views.

The second I searched, something caught my eye.

"Ugh."

W-why is this here…!

Someone had edited and uploaded the commercial I'd filmed as a kid.

I frantically scrolled the wheel down and checked the chat for reactions.

With that many views, of course some people recognized it. I ignored them completely and hurriedly found the video with the absolute highest view count.

"This one?"

I hit play, and just like people said, it was the same scene as my commercial lines.

Why would anyone want to hear this.

I stared blankly at the video.

Even as a kid, I never would've done it if I hadn't gone completely feral over those cards. That was kindergarten, so almost seven years ago?

Nostalgia. Pure nostalgia.

I nodded to myself and closed the video. Some people in chat looked disappointed, but so what? I wasn't doing it!

I'd only looked because I was curious.

Ding-!

"Huh?"

A hundred thousand won?

I was tempted for a second, then immediately cooled off. Money I couldn't ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠even touch…

"I'm good."

Three hundred is… pretty big…

Three hundred thousand won was three hundred Dual King card packs. Six hundred cups of tteokbokki.

Of course, it was cyber money that only actually arrived if my parents signed off on it, but still.

"Mmmmm…"

Still not doing it.

After some agonizing, I refused again.

Ding-!

"S-seventy??"

Th-this person must be rich.

I ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠swallowed without meaning to — gulp.

"Y-you. Th-that's a lie, right?"

They were gonna make me do it and then run!

What kind of lunatic throws seven hundred thousand won at someone reciting lines!

"Huh?? No wait a seconnd. Hold on. S-seventy? Even with tteokbokki and a sundae set on top… that's insane…"

Shouldn't I make money when I can?

I couldn't cash it out right now, but seven hundred thousand was a lot. That was basically commercial-ad rates.

If I carefully read the room and begged Dad, maybe the paperwork issue would get sorted easier than I thought. I'd ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠already filmed a commercial once. Could I really not manage a few lines?

Compared to that, this was a piece of cake.

And honestly, the odds that this is just a prank are higher anyway!

"…If you give it, I'll do it."

I mumbled it timidly. Things went quiet for a while, long enough that I started thinking, Wait, was it actually a lie? — and then:

"Hyeek."

I nearly hiccuped from the shock.

I immediately opened YouTube and played the video. I transcribed the lines into Notepad. I dug as deep as I could into old memories.

Me, gripping Lucy's Magic Wand. Across from me, the box of Bone Dragon cards the director had promised, stacked high. A massive camera pointed right at my face.

I opened my closet, pulled out the toy magic wand I'd stashed in the corner, and fully possessed my past self.

Hoo—

I snapped my eyes open and shouted.

"Lucy, Magic Wand! Sparkle-sparkle transformation—!"

I was so immersed I even nailed the invisible choreography, move by move. I made a V in front of my face and beamed —

"With the power of starlight…!"

"…Pretty Magic, transformation complete~!"

I thrust the Magic Wand forward.

"Begone, darkness! Lucy Magic, fiiire~ Chuu!"

Perfect.

Seven hundred thousand won. Mine.

I finished it in one take and dropped back into my seat.

"Heehee, thank you for the seven hundred thousand wons!"

Should I ask them to approve this as a birthday present? Or should I bribe Dad by offering him half?

Heeheehee.

It was evening, so I'd been speaking softly the whole time — but just now, my volume had gotten a little loud. Oops. Got excited and slipped up again.

The door hadn't burst open, so it seemed like I'd gotten away with it.

"I'm gonna stop here for today. Good night, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠everyone."

Still nervous, I whispered the last part and ended the stream.

Angler had been grinning from ear to ear the entire time.

Heh heh heh, nice~

He'd just kept his mouth shut, and a whole pumpkin had rolled right into his lap, vine and all.

He'd already gone and changed the YouTube title.

Views currently sat at 420,000 — climbing at a steep rate.

"Is this just my year no matter what I do. Ha—"

"Ahem, controversy? She's a streamer now. Please don't make any comments that could cause misunderstandings."

Dual King Chaechae needed to maintain her current public goodwill — it benefited Angler too. Thank god the mood had flipped a full 180 once people found out she was a girl. Just remembering Durihyeok's chaos agents flooding his YouTube and live stream was enough to make him shudder.

But why does her ID still have Dual King stuck on it? Is she not gonna change it?

She was a weird one, in all sorts of ways.

"Oh, we got one."

Angler's current account sat at Diamond 2 with 10 LP. He'd parked his main at Master and was casually enjoying games on his smurf.

Or so he thought.

"Ah, damn."

So she'd been climbing too.

The image of her toying with four Master-tier players from that unmannered guild — the same tier as Angler — was still vivid in his mind.

Guess I have to throw this one. But still.

Dual King Chaechae's popularity was only going to keep rising. Even if he lost the game, if he put on a good enough show, he could at least upload it to YouTube, right?

"Alright team, looking forward to working with you all~"

The mission was a 5v5 team deathmatch with a 70-kill limit.

Angler ambitiously equipped a rifle and finished prepping to rush out — when:

Ding-!

"Excuse me?"

A cuckoo had just flown in.