Chapter 8. It's Not Debt Collection, It's an Offering
Chapter 8. It's Not Debt Collection, It's an Offering
The chat started scrolling at a frantic pace.
It was completely filled with the letters 'it’s fine'.
"What does that mean? And what exactly did you all say you saw?"
[Gasp!]
[(awkward emoticon)]
[Ahem!]
[Saintess rolled her eyes back from the pleasure...]
↳ This comment had been temporarily blocked.
[Farewell lol]
[ Overflowing Holy-Power Pouch has donated 10,000 Watts! ]
- Don't corrupt Saintess, you bastards ;;
"What are you talking about? Anyway, doesn't Hero look reliable?"
[You look happy though...]
[lol No matter how it happened, you're happy, so cheers]
[Is this pure love? (I genuinely don't know)]
[But look at that body ;; do you think he'd lose to a tiger? lol]
[A C-rank can beat a tiger anyway ;;]
Laila, still unfamiliar with the internet world, was simply describing the photos with genuine innocence.
And as she flipped through the album, a picture of me with the kids on my shoulders appeared.
[Is Saintess a married woman?]
[Married woman... that has a nice ring to it.]
[What's with this bastard?]
[So the guy named Hero next to her is her husband?]
[Of course Hero and Saintess ending up together is the happy ending, yeah]
Everyone launched into a heated debate about whether Laila was a married woman, a mother, or what.
Fortunately, not many people walked away deeply disappointed in Laila.
[If that's really Hero... then it's a happy ending.]
[Actually Hero is Saintess's lover, but with that face, that guy is definitely a porter using hypnosis, fr]
"Ah! This is from when I went with Hero to do volunteer work at the orphanage! Aren't the kids cute?"
The chat grew solemn at Laila's words.
Laila went on sharing stories about playing with the kids and cooking.
[Ah... Hero, we slandered you.]
[Look at the kids' happy faces, it makes me feel warm inside too.]
[A beauty like this is a C-rank Hunter and does volunteer work? And a full holy power pouch on top of that.]
[Leave out the unnecessary remark at the end ;;]
[Unnecessary? lol it looks pretty useful lol]
Fortunately, after telling the story of doing good deeds and showing the pictures, the viewers' reactions were favorable. I had been glaring at the chat window, ready for any malicious comments, but thankfully none came.
Laila kept showing her photos and chatting with the viewers about this and that.
---
And, as the manager (not really), doing an ego search was a must.
I was absolutely not addicted to the community.
[ Author: Throwing My Resignation Letterer ]
[ Title: Shit, they say this is Hero, I was seriously shocked ]
[ Content: (image of a large man doing a V sign) This is Hero? ]
↳ Stop bullshitting, for real lol
↳ Saintess herself said it's Hero
↳ There were that kind of Heroes on Hitomi too
↳ You get lost lol
↳ But I saw that these people also do volunteer work?
↳ Yeah, that's right (link)
↳ Wearing gold earrings and a gold ring while doing volunteer work—the contrast was so off lol
↳ But why did this bastard always go viral?
When I clicked the link, I found a video of Laila showing photos and telling stories about volunteer work. I was relieved that the comments were all positive too.
'This person really keeps promoting Laila steadily.'
If I ever get the chance, I'll have to send them a chicken gifticon or something.
─ Knock knock!
The door opened and Laila peeked her head in.
"Hero, Mother says to come eat!"
When I went right away, everyone was already seated at the table except for me.
"Son, is the stream going well?"
"Haha! You're only two days in and you've already earned 300,000 won? Though the platform will take its cut, I suppose."
From the perspective of parents who run a major guild, 300,000 won might feel like pocket change. But for a beginner streamer, earning 300,000 won in two days was serious money.
"But isn't Laila the one doing the streaming?"
"Cough! Cough!"
I choked at the sudden ambush from my parents. Next to me, Laila hurriedly handed me water. As expected, there's no one like our Laila...
"Mom... did you happen to watch our stream?"
"Of course. I was curious what kind of broadcast my son was doing. But when I actually saw it, our daughter was the one broadcasting alone, not my son."
She gave me a sharp look and then gazed at Laila with affectionate eyes. Laila then smiled brightly.
"It's not like that. Hero helps a lot, and above all, talking with people is fun!"
Mother's eyes turned cold.
"Sigh... Laila, don't just do everything Hoon asks of you. He'll just get spoiled."
"Don't worry! Hero said he'd be on the stream from tomorrow too!"
Viewers, that never happened, but now it's going to happen.
---
[ Author: Anonymous ]
[ Title: Saintess, please open the door... ]
[ Content: It's cold here... ]
↳ I need a healing touch
↳ Any other touches?
↳ ?
↳ Please hold your breath ;;
Hmm, they were eagerly waiting for Laila again today. But sorry, I'll be on the stream today too.
"Phew..."
"Hero, are you nervous?"
"Just... something feels a bit..."
"Fufu, it's been a while since I've seen you so nervous."
"I-I'll just be over there, so call me when it's appropriate."
"Okay, rest well!"
[ World's Strongest Hero : Saintess's Surprise Guest! ]
As soon as the stream turned on and Laila's face appeared on the screen, people flooded in. Just yesterday, we had barely passed 100 viewers, and now we were already approaching 200.
[ Overflowing Holy-Power Pouch has donated 10,000 Watts! ]
- Saintess, I thought I was going to freeze to death...
"Oh my, is it that cold? Everyone please dress warmly."
Our Laila really needed to study up on internet memes. Saying it's cold doesn't mean literally cold...
[Ah... saying that with that face, I'm going to melt...]
[Getting warmer...]
[Did you cum?]
[Fuck, you're that bastard from the first day, right?]
Anyway, was it a relief that the viewers like it?
"Today I've brought some exciting news that everyone will look forward to!"
[Oh? Are you going into a gate?]
[Nah, you look like you're at home?]
[If you were going to a gate, you'd already be outside]
[Looking at the stream title, seems like a guest?]
Viewers, I was really sorry... I was apologizing in advance. Please, I just hope you won't curse at me when you see my face.
"The Hero you've all been so curious about is coming!"
[Ah...]
[?]
[A guy is a bit...]
I understood the lukewarm reaction to a guy appearing. When I watch other streamers, I also hate it when some random guy shows up as a guest. But being on the receiving end, it stung a little.
"Hing... But I really wanted to show you Hero..."
[ Overflowing Holy-Power Pouch has donated 50,000 Watts! ]
- Wow! I'm looking forward to it!
When she made that sulky expression with that face, the viewers' attitude completely flipped. Plus, the frequent donor even sent a very generous donation.
"Hero, come on!"
At Laila's call, I shuffled over to the chair beside her. Then I sneakily glanced at the chat window, and surprisingly, the chat was quite mild.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Hero."
[How the hell is your first comment shit lol]
['I'm Hero' lmao]
[Wow, seeing you on video, your body is fucking huge]
[Seeing that face and that huge build acting all shy is so unfitting lol]
"I'm sorry... I'm new to streaming, so please understand."
[Sure, sure lol]
[With that build, acting like a loser is so funny lol]
[When I first saw this bastard in a photo, it triggered my school PTSD]
[Agreed]
Thanks to Laila's tearful care and the viewers' mild chat, I quickly found my rhythm.
[ Saintess's Foot Wiper has donated 10,000 Watts! ]
- But if your stream nickname is Hero and your job is Hero, why are you only crawling in now?
"Obviously, because the beautiful Saintess is here, she gathered viewers with her holy power."
[It was false advertising ;;]
[You son of a bitch]
"Don't worry too much. I'm just the channel owner, but I'll always be streaming with Saintess."
Then the viewers began interrogating me and Laila about when and where we met.
[Did you get trained by some entertainment company?]
[It's not easy to peel off the mask...]
But, unfortunately, we weren't playing a concept—we were the real deal. We just had to tell our story as it happened. From the start, there wasn't even a mask to peel off.
[ Resignation Letter Always in My Pocket has donated 10,000 Watts! ]
- But if you're a Hero, shouldn't you have a holy sword or something?
[Right]
[Normally a Hero has some kind of OP item, right?]
I thought about it for a moment. I did not have a holy sword, but I had a similar weapon—a weapon I had always used.
"Hmm..."
As I kept pondering, the chat began speeding up. The bastards who sensed an opening...
[Exposed?]
[lol]
[Still, you held out long lol]
Beside me, Laila was watching to see what I'd do. Suddenly, a good idea came to me.
"I don't have a holy sword, but I have a similar weapon."
[Of course, you're a hunter, so naturally lol]
"I guarantee, if I take it out, you'll all be surprised."
[What is it that you're hyping it up so much?]
[Looking at you, it seems like you'd just unzip your pants lol]
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[Saying it so confidently, now I'm curious]
[Not to be outdone by Saintess, this bastard is good at training too...]
In response to the viewers' chat, I quietly brought my index finger to my lips. Then I extended my other hand.
[?]
[What's this?]
"It's not just anything—you want to see Hero's holy sword, and you're asking for free?"
[This guy is seriously crazy lol]
[A lunatic bastard doing fundraising from day 3 lol]
[A small streamer doing it so blatantly isn't even offensive, it just makes me laugh]
"It's not fundraising."
[For free? (not fundraising)]
[Boldly extending a hand (not fundraising)]
"Please call it an offering."