The Master's Sudden Proposal
It was a truly insane pervert, a weirdo that I'd drawn myself, but even looking at it again, I was satisfied. Maybe because I'd spent hours grinding away at my wrist for it. No matter how many times I looked, it never got old.
I'm a bit nervous.
Of course, I'd been uploading art to X-Net nonstop and getting feedback from tons of people, but this was the first time my work had gone up somewhere completely unconnected to me, so yeah, I was a little tense. I was curious how they'd rate it, too.
Click.
I steeled myself and checked the comments on the uploaded video.
All the comments were pure praise.
"Hm hm."
Praise for my art always put me in a good mood. It never got old, no matter how much I heard it.
That said...
I figured there'd be at least one hater.
Not a single one. And the video had just gone up—barely enough time to even moderate comments.
I'd hesitated a bit when Seori first proposed it, but now I was glad I'd said yes. Getting props from people totally unrelated to me felt kinda fresh.
How long had it been since I got back from Japan? Time to wrap up the game streams and prep some new content.
I'd love to just coast on games forever...
But no. I needed stuff to upload to Twis. My subscribers were chill enough that they'd probably be fine without it, but I couldn't forgive myself. It'd make me feel lazy.
Never again.
My deadbeat phase had dragged on so long that churning out content like this was second nature. Normal folks watched big corporate streamers with guaranteed laughs—they didn't bother with the little guys. Especially not girl streamers. No matter how pretty you are, if there's no fun, you're forgotten fast. Looks fade in a flash. Fun is king.
That's why I kept the content rolling.
"So what now..."
These days, my subs and viewers were way up from before. My "weight class" had leveled up. This was my shot at stuff I'd only dreamed of.
I racked my brain, but...
Ah, nothing.
Brain freeze. No ideas.
So I flipped on the stream. Couldn't miss the schedule.
> [Stream has started.]
The stream lit up with viewers greeting me right away.
"Ah."
That's when a good idea hit. No point brainstorming solo when nothing came to mind—time to crowdsource.
"If anyone's got content they wanna see, drop it. I'm taking feedback."
The chat exploded with ideas: song world cups, solo queue, even comprehensive games I rarely touched.
"Games are tricky though..."
I'm not that great at them personally, so it was a tough call. Sure, if it made for good TV, I'd jump in... but I wasn't confident I'd deliver the laughs. Not like tons of viewers wanted to watch me suck.
"Got anything better? Quick, brainstorm or something."
Then...
"Oh, that's good."
A killer suggestion caught my eye.
The dopamine hit from uploading to X-Net wasn't hitting like it used to. Komai Rito's shoutout, Kashio Yuu's mention, followers exploding overnight—it all raised the bar. Regular likes didn't cut it anymore.
And now...
"Ah... nothing I wanna draw."
The urge was gone. I'd never loved drawing for drawing's sake—I started because I loved seeing people's reactions to my stuff.
So what now? Sure, I had leftover anime chars, but none grabbed me. No spark, no passion.
Tap tap.
I fiddled with the stress ball on my desk, pondering. Was there anything that could hook me—
Ding-!
An X-Net notification pinged.
Who's this?
I used to keep notifs on all the time, but with followers through the roof, I turned most off. Except one: DMs from accounts with a certain follower threshold. I'd almost killed that too, but working with Seori changed my mind. Turns out collaborating with total strangers was fun.
Anyway.
Click.
I checked the DM amid my scattered thoughts.
"...Suck."
This one was a curveball. Sender: Komai Rito. Yeah, that guy. The legend of Japanese manga. The Korea-hater who'd acknowledged my art.
I thought that one comment was the end of it, but a random DM? Out of nowhere.
This is awkward as hell.
I carefully reread it.
"Me? Why...?"
Sure, he'd praised my art, but the guy's a straight-up Korea-hater. Hates Koreans as a rule. Acknowledging my work didn't change that.
Head spinning, I replied.
Reply came instantly. Someone must've been typing for him—guy his age couldn't hammer keys that fast.
"Huh?"
What the actual fuck. My brain short-circuited at this absurdity. Kashio Yuu's collab was already mind-blowing—now Komai Rito? World must be glitching.
I fired off a message to Yuu ASAP.
Partners might get the hidden vibes.
Minutes later...
And poof, Yuu vanished.
[yooo112] [Currently away]
"What the—this woman's insane."
Grateful she hooked me up with Rito, but bailing after the intro? Bridge the gap, damn it.
"Haa..."
Sigh. I replied to Rito anyway.
Bit wordy, but for him, you tread careful. Fandom's no joke. Say the wrong thing, and boom—hated, preserved at Seoul National Uni Station forever or whatever.
Legend status.
"Phew..."
Wonder how he'd reply. Tension building—
Ding-!
Another X-Net notif.