Chapter 54
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 54
Chapter Title: Quitting the Factory
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Choi A-young ended her broadcast.
"I'm tired."
Her stomach growled too.
"I'm exhausted."
She picked up and ate the strawberries given to her by the landlady.
Munch munch.
Her hunger subsided.
She brushed her teeth. Took off her underwear. Slipped into a slim black dress.
She flopped onto the bed.
"Oppa... I miss you......"
She called Jin-seong.
"Oppa, whatcha doin'?"
- Yeah. Just writing a post for a sec.
"What kinda post?"
- Planning to summarize your performance and post it on some LoL communities.
"Thank you. You must be beat, but you're helping with the stream, promoting it, even posting updates."
- Nah, don't thank me. It's beneficial for me too. If you succeed, I succeed, right?
"Thank you. You're so handsome it kills me. Come over to my place soon. I'll stick a praise sticker on you for being such a good boy."
Thank you.
'Oppa, thank you so, so much.'
She was simply grateful to Jin-seong.
Her mother's health recovered.
The salvation from the murderer.
Realizing her gaming talent.
Moving to a better place.
Streaming under great conditions.
Being able to live with a smile these days.
The worries vanishing from her heart.
It was all thanks to Jin-seong.
She was endlessly grateful.
Thankful beyond words.
She'd received so much from oppa.
She had no idea how to repay it.
She wanted to give back even a little.
But she couldn't return even a fraction.
"Made over a million won today."
- Whoa? That's a ton!
"Hehe, all thanks to you, oppa."
Oppa, thank you.
"Since I made big bucks thanks to you, oppa, here's another praise sticker."
- Aw, c'mon, it's not because of me. You earned it yourself.
"It is thanks to you. Specially, I'll give you three praise stickers."
- I'll accept them gratefully. Any rewards besides praise stickers?
The word "reward" brought back memories from the housewarming.
Straddling Jin-seong and boldly kissing him.
She recalled his rock-hard lower body.
"...Want a reward?"
- Yeah, I do.
"...Got it. I'll give you a reward."
- Gonna make it steamier than last time?
"...Yeah. Steamy. Super, super steamy."
I'll reward him with a kiss. Climb onto his lap again. Sticky. Super sticky. Sloppy and wet.
- You can look forward to it.
Choi A-young's voice turned sultry and moist.
Her left hand slipped slyly inside the thin black dress.
"Oppa~."
- Yeah?
"Wanna come get your reward right now?"
- Sorry. Gotta sleep. Tomorrow.
"Tch, fine. Come tomorrow then."
Rustle rustle.
Her dainty fingers grazed her right breast.
"Ah......"
- ? What's up? Tired? Mad 'cause I'm not coming?
"No. 'Cause I like you, oppa."
- You like me? How much?
"A lot. Tons and tons."
- I like you a ton too.
Her index finger pressed firmly on her nipple.
Zing-
Her waist arched slightly.
"Oppa, wanna see a pic of A-young?"
- Yeah, show me.
"Okay. One sec."
She snapped a photo with her phone camera.
Click-!
She checked the photo.
Upper body. From head to pelvis.
The black dress was disheveled. Cleavage exposed. Hardened nipples teasingly visible.
'Too lewd......'
Choi A-young sent the photo.
"Ack?! Oppa?! Sent the wrong one! Don't look, oppa!!"
Even though she could've deleted it instantly.
Choi A-young didn't delete it right away.
She deleted it after about 30 seconds.
He saw it, right? Her smiling face? The disheveled black dress? The blatant cleavage? The teasing nipples?
Thinking he'd seen it,
'I'm wet......'
Her panties grew damp.
"Oppa~, lemme send a proper one!"
- Aw, bummer. Wanted to see more.
"You're awful! I said don't look?!"
- Sorry, it was too pretty.
As expected, he'd seen it. Just like she thought. Probably zoomed in on her breasts.
What was oppa thinking? Was he turned on? Did he get hard?
Choi A-young straightened her clothes.
She took a normal photo.
Click-!
Checked it and sent.
- Wow, seriously gorgeous.
"How gorgeous?"
- Angel material.
Her heart thumped wildly. The word "pretty" strained her heart.
Woke up at 4:20 a.m.
"Ugh, so sleepy......"
Only got two hours of sleep.
Watching Choi A-young's stream and posting summaries across communities had kept him up way too late.
'Ugh, I'm dying......'
He felt like he was going insane. His eyes refused to stay open.
No helping it.
You have purchased a Fatigue Recovery Agent.
He consumed the Fatigue Recovery Agent.
The fatigue vanished like a miracle. His hazy mind cleared. His aching body settled.
He gulped down some water and stood.
'Time for the gym.'
He left the dorm.
Shivering in the cold, he gripped his phone.
[2012/02/01 Wednesday]
[4:25 AM]
Freezing, he shoved his hands in his pockets.
He thought about the side gig.
'Trying the side gig... it's way harder than I thought...'
It wasn't the physical strain. That was manageable.
The problem was the hours.
The long hours meant only two hours of sleep. Sleep time was critically short.
Without the Fatigue Recovery Agent, he'd have collapsed from overwork long ago.
'Thought it'd be 2-3 hours of side work at most...'
No. He'd miscalculated.
'Did over six hours... 8 p.m. to 2 a.m....'
There was a problem.
It wasn't just one long day. It would only get worse going forward.
Dangerous.
Ominous.
Jin-seong could only envision two futures.
'Keep this up... and it'll be collapsing from overwork... or living off recovery agents... one or the other...'
He furrowed his brow. Fell into deep contemplation. He pondered all the way to the gym entrance.
'Alright.'
He steeled his resolve.
'Realistically, side gigs are out.'
Looked like he'd have to stick to one.
'Don't wanna quit streaming.'
Even one was overwhelming.
'Gotta quit the factory.'
He made the call.
Reasons for quitting the factory.
Three main ones.
1. Achievements.
Achievements were top priority. Clearing them for points was most important.
Soon he'd clear Achievement 100.
Then he'd need to tackle two at once.
As the number grew and difficulty ramped up.
Inevitably, time spent on achievements would increase.
'To clear achievements smoothly, I need free time.'
Adjusting streaming hours was a hundred times better than being chained to the factory for 13+ hours a day.
2. Wanted to invest in growth.
Increase free time.
More free time -> more rest -> invest in growth time -> greater success.
3. Choice and focus.
Factory?
Or with Choi A-young?
If forced to choose?
No need to hesitate.
He'd pick the latter.
Being with Choi A-young benefited everyone.
He requested a meeting with President Oh Dae-hoon.
"...You're quitting?"
President Oh Dae-hoon asked.
He looked visibly flustered.
"Why? Pay too low? I can raise it if you want."
Inner Thoughts: Our slave army is a helpful employee. Gotta retain him, even with a raise.
Inner Thoughts: Bewildering. Such a diligent slave army quitting out of nowhere.
Jin-seong shook his head.
"Sorry. I'll stay till you find a replacement."
"What's the reason? What're you planning after quitting?"
"Gonna study."
"Sigh, can't be helped. Study hard. Consider today your last day. No need to come tomorrow."
"Thank you for everything."
"Thanks from me too. Come back anytime if you change your mind. Always welcome for someone as diligent as you."
Inner Thoughts: Regrettable. A diligent guy is leaving.
Inner Thoughts: Mi-yeon's face has been brighter lately... was nice...
He wrapped up the meeting with President Oh Dae-hoon.
He went to find Mi-yeon.
She was handling accounting work.
Inner Thoughts: Depressed. Depressed. Suddenly feeling insanely depressed.
Inner Thoughts: Heart was peaceful... but depression hit suddenly... feels a hundred times worse than usual......
Inner Thoughts: I want to die.
A bitter smile crossed his face.
He pitied the suffering Mi-yeon.
"Mi-yeon-ssi, hello?"
He approached closely.
"Have some coffee."
"Thanks, as always."
Mi-yeon flashed a benevolent fairy-like smile.
Tremble-.
Her slender hand trembled faintly as it took the paper cup.
Inner Thoughts: Kanu.
Inner Thoughts: My favorite black coffee... If I drink Kanu... will the depression lift today...? Will peace return...?
Inner Thoughts: Why? Why does only coffee make me normal? Did Babmat cast a spell on it?
Mi-yeon drank the coffee.
"Haaa......"
She let out a deep sigh.
Inner Thoughts: Depression's gone.
Inner Thoughts: Peace has returned.
Inner Thoughts: Babmat must've spelled the coffee.
Inner Thoughts: Thanks to Babmat, the depression's definitely gone.
Favorability rose from 15 to 30.
"Jin-seong-ssi."
"Yeah?"
"Thank you."
Jin-seong couldn't help but lose himself in Mi-yeon's smile for a moment.
Her smile was so beautiful it made his heart pound fiercely.
"Dinner time. Wanna grab udon together?"
"...Udon?"
"Yeah. You always make me coffee, so I wanna repay you, even if just a little."
Mi-yeon had no doubt Jin-seong would accept.
A peerless beauty inviting him to dinner—few men in the world would refuse.
She planned to subtly probe the coffee's secret over the meal.
"Sorry. Got prior plans. Can't today."
"Okay. Remember that pojangmacha from last time? Meet there."
"Huh?"
"What? Eating udon with me... that unbelievably surprising...? Isn't it...?"
Mi-yeon's pupils shook.
She was suddenly at a loss for words.
First rejection of her life.
"Oppa!"
Time for that reward.