Chapter 151. The Burning Community
Chapter 151. The Burning Community
After finishing the call, I walked into the lecture hall.
My gaze landed on Laila, who was chatting with her classmates, her smile bright and easy.
'How was it that just looking at her makes me feel this good?'
When I got closer, she turned her head at the sound of my footsteps and immediately greeted me with a radiant smile.
"Hoon, what were you doing?"
"Here, I got this for you."
I grinned and handed her the canned drink I'd been holding.
"About that call earlier... the foundation contacted me about a platform transfer."
"Transfer...?"
I laid it all out in order, from what happened this morning to where things stood now.
"When are you meeting them?"
"Not sure yet. The CEO said he'd coordinate the timing and let me know."
"If it ends up running late, please tell me too."
I tilted my head slightly at that.
"What do you mean? Obviously you're coming with me."
Laila's eyes widened, and she pointed at herself with her index finger.
"Yeah. It's an important decision, so I can't just make it on my own."
At those words, Laila's eyes trembled faintly.
Then the corners of her lips curled up, and she smiled bashfully.
Next to us, Park Hyo-jung, who had been quietly watching, let out an incredulous laugh.
"Big sis, you're practically dripping honey from your eyes..."
Laila just smiled as if it didn't matter and murmured to herself.
"Dating makes you this happy... why doesn't everyone date?"
"...?"
"..."
"?"
Laila's tone made it clear she genuinely didn't understand.
Her unintentional flex stabbed deep into everyone's hearts.
---
Lectures ran from morning to afternoon.
Once they ended, we headed to the cafeteria for a rather late lunch.
"Got a call."
The foundation CEO's name appeared on the screen, so I set down my chopsticks for a moment and answered.
"Yes, CEO."
- Ah, Director. Nothing urgent—the platform side said they'd like to contact you directly. Is now a good time?
"Hm... that's fine. Tell them to call right away."
A moment later, an unsaved number rang my phone.
"Yes, hello?"
- Hunter, hello! This is Amazon TV contacting you! When would be a convenient time for you? If you tell us a time that works, we'll adjust accordingly!
I glanced at the clock.
2:30 PM.
All the lectures were done, and I had no other plans.
"Let's make it right now."
- Really? Then we'll head over to your location immediately...
"No, there's no need. Since your office is on the way home anyway... I'll just stop by on the way."
- Oh my... you'd go out of your way like that... I'll send the detailed office address by text right away!
"Okay."
The moment I hung up, Laila, who had been waiting quietly next to me, asked with sparkling eyes.
"Hoon, are you going to switch platforms?"
"No."
I had absolutely zero intention of doing that.
I was just meeting them because I had blurted something out.
I liked my current viewers more than any income.
"Are you done eating?"
"Yes!"
"Saintess, shall we go then?"
"Alright~ Hero."
I took Laila's hand and started the car.
Then I entered the address the CEO had sent and headed there.
"This building's huge too..."
I turned the wheel and glanced upward.
"It is... It looks like an old building, but it's still quite impressive, isn't it?"
Amazon TV had weaker capital than Pajijik, a Nova Group subsidiary, but it was a living legend in the streaming platform world.
In terms of history alone, it was the veteran among veterans.
In fact, quite a few streamers on Pajijik had originally come from Amazon TV.
"Hero, then why do people transfer in the first place?"
"Well, maybe because it doesn't fit the direction they're pursuing?"
Pajijik and Amazon did feel a bit different in character.
The age demographics were definitely different too.
"Of course, that's just my personal thought."
"Oh, is that so?"
As we walked toward the first-floor lobby, a middle-aged man just beyond the door and sharp-suited employees came rushing over.
"Song Hoon Hunter! Laila Hunter! We've been waiting!"
The man at the front, the CEO of Amazon TV, half-bowed and extended his hand.
"Please, this way. The conference room has been fully prepared for you!"
The CEO of a large-scale streaming platform personally lowered his head.
The regular employees watching this exchanged bewildered glances.
Seeing the company's CEO and executives bow, they began to murmur.
"Who are those people?"
"Huh? Aren't they...?"
"Yikes... what are they doing here?"
A streaming platform company.
They thoroughly researched competitors and kept track of streamers across platforms to some extent.
There was no way such people wouldn't recognize these faces.
"Song Hoon and Laila..."
"What? Are they transferring to our side?"
"Our revenue already tanked and the mood's been bad anyway..."
Some pulled out their smartphones, and others held their breath and watched quietly.
As people realized who they were, the rumor spread fast.
- The Unknown Hunters just met with the CEO at Amazon TV headquarters!
---
The fastest place the rumor spread was the online community where office workers gathered.
Whether they actually transferred or not, the fact that they had met with the Amazon TV CEO was indisputable.
[ Author: Anonymous (Amazon TV) ]
[ Title: Why are these people in front of our company? ]
[ Content: (Hero and Saintess entering Amazon headquarters) What is this? Are they transferring? ]
- Huh? Aren't those the Unknown Hunters?
- OP: Yeah, I saw them on the first floor, the CEO was totally bowing and scraping?
- Bowing and scraping? He was seriously groveling to bring them over?
Countless speculations flew around the community.
They even guessed at all the possible scenarios if the two transferred to Amazon TV.
[ Author: Anonymous (Amazon TV) ]
[ Title: What if they actually come to our company? ]
[ Content: We used to be the undisputed number one, but when another platform pulled out of the Korean market, Pajijik absorbed almost all of it.
So now we're even talking about staff reductions here, but if they come, everything changes.
First of all, sponsors would flock like crazy, obviously, and the overseas fans' donation amounts alone were on another level.
And what if Max and Emir Hunter occasionally come as guests?
The fees from just that one day would cover a company-wide dinner party, easy. No question. ]
- Then wouldn't that be even more reason for them not to come?
- Right, they've got nothing to envy lol
- OP: Who knows, even if we only take the payment processing fee and give them all the currency exchange fee, we'd still make insane profit.
- As if... don't ever run a business or anything, lol
- OP: No, you moron, think about it. If it's not a transfer, why else would the Unknown Hunters meet with a small-time platform CEO?
Amazon TV, where a bloodbath was expected, was showing a positive reaction.
Of course, that positivity was probably only for the employees...
[ Author: Anonymous ]
[ Title: Song Hoon, are you betraying us? ]
[ Content: (community screenshot) You bastard, what is this? Are you abandoning us and going to Amazon? ]
- I'm going to lose my mind over Saintess...
- Hero can go, but you can't take our nun...
- OP: Why the hell would Hero go, you shithead lmao
- Is he seriously going? There's no official statement yet.
- Then why would he meet with a competing company's CEO?
- Is this for real?
- It is kind of weird though...
- Yeah, and the CEO didn't even come to them; these two actually went straight to the Amazon headquarters? Isn't that strange?
The Amazon TV headquarters just happened to be between the academy and home.
The thought that I could just drop by on the way started to breed misunderstanding.
And that misunderstanding slowly began to turn into conflict.
[ Author: Anonymous ]
[ Title: No, but why the fuck does it have to be Amazon? ]
[ Content: What's so good about a cyber room salon that you'd go there? What, is Saintess gonna shake her ass and dance? ]
- Whoa whoa;; watch your language.
- OP: I got a bit heated, sorry;; but come on, this is ridiculous.
- That's a bit harsh, but I get it. There are a lot of sugar-water bastards over there trying to land a camgirl through donations, so it's understandable to be worried.
- OP: Of course, if anyone treated them like that, Hero would smash all their heads in, but it just pisses me off.
As the Unknown Hunters' transfer rumor spread, contrary to what Amazon TV employees had hoped, Amazon TV's own viewers were not looking kindly on the situation.
[ Author: Anonymous ]
[ Title: What the hell do gate-openers know about streaming, ffs ]
[ Content: Just keep closing gate doors like you always have, you bastards lmao. Don't come here trying to steal our pie. ]
- Right, if they're running a deficit because they can't manage, they should just fire people or something lol. What did they do right to bring in outsiders?
- Gigabeam lol
- Meanwhile, the Pajijik gallery is telling them not to go, and we're like, we don't want you either, you idiots lol
A scene of mutual malice.
Each side rushed to the other's community and fought.
- Bastards who got completely wrecked and hide behind the board lol
- Better than the bastards who take out loans to donate lmao
- Sugar-water bastards lmao. Are you scared Saintess will put your camgirls, who survive on camera + lighting tricks, in their place?
- Moron, doesn't the girl you suck up to also use lighting?
It was a truly chaotic scene.
---
At that moment, on the top floor of Amazon TV headquarters.
Across from where Song Hoon and Laila sat, the Amazon TV CEO and executives were seated with respectful postures.
"...Full exemption on currency exchange fees for streamer earnings. Exclusive content programming rights, a fixed front-page banner, and top priority support from the marketing team. We guarantee all of it."
The CEO spoke with determination, but Song Hoon quietly shook his head, his expression unchanged.
"CEO, I'm sorry, but... I have no intention of transferring."
The air in the conference room stiffened slightly at those words.
"To be honest, the reason I'm here is... I said something earlier that put me in a spot where I had to agree to a meeting."
The CEO, who had steeled himself for this not being easy, spoke again.
"We can offer far better terms than Pajijik. No, terms that aren't even comparable. I can unequivocally say these are terms we've never offered to any streamer. Probably the largest share of revenue among all our Amazon TV streamers..."
"Money doesn't hold much meaning for me."
I carefully cut him off and smiled.
"Do you know how much profit you make when you clear a gate that was deemed unclearable?"
The corner of the CEO's mouth trembled for a moment.
An S-rank Hunter who earns tens, even hundreds of billions.
In that world, clearing a gate no one else could clear—and with just the two of them, no less?
Platform ad revenue? Donation processing fees?
Those amounts were mere pocket change.
"I like my current viewers. If I had wanted to make money in the first place, I would've started a guild."
"..."
The CEO let out a sigh and nodded.
"I thought it wouldn't be easy..."
Soon, he smiled as if relieved and extended his hand.
"Still, I'll take comfort in having met the Unknown Hunter in person."
---
On the road heading home.
"How was that? Did I sound firm enough?"
Laila smiled brightly, as if she were praising a large dog(?).
"Of course~ After all, whose boyfriend is he~"
At Laila's praise, Song Hoon's shoulders shrugged up.
"I'm sticking with my viewers to the very end. If I tell this story, they'll be touched, right?"
Song Hoon, eager to see his viewers' touched reactions when they heard this tale, pressed the accelerator harder and sped toward home.
"They're probably all looking forward to it, right?"