Chapter 13
Chapter 13
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 13
Chapter Title: Ah, That Concept?
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"Whoa. Viewers keep increasing."
40 people.
The room, which had started with just one intruder—my little sister—had now filled up with enough people to pack an entire elementary school class and then some.
'OnlyLookAtMe' 1,000 Won!
[Show us your neckline.]
"OnlyLookAtMe's 'Show us your neckline'... Uh, sorry, but I'm not doing that stuff anymore."
That was something from my clueless early days.
Once I started explaining just how macho and manly I was, doubts began sprouting up among the viewers.
"The ones who just now saw the title, what have you even been watching?"
"What are you talking about."
I tilted my head at the incomprehensible reactions for a moment.
From various viewers' comments, I could roughly grasp the reason.
The word that kept repeating: thumbnail.
A good chunk of the current viewers seemed to be thumbnail click-ins.
Just what the hell did that thumbnail look like?
Curious, I searched right away.
When I typed 'Hyo-jeong' into Lemon TV's search bar, four broadcasters popped up in a list, but only one was live—and it stood out immediately.
The thumbnail showed a woman lifting her hair up from behind.
Her slightly downcast, innocent eyes even gave off a subtly seductive vibe.
The whole composition was perfectly crafted to make any guy click without hesitation.
What the hell is that.
It must've been from when I did what the donations asked.
I could totally see why someone called it tempting.
No way I made that face?
My guess was that glancing sideways at the chat came off like that.
"No..."
"No..."
But how did that scene end up as the thumbnail?
I didn't remember setting it manually.
The mystery didn't last long.
One viewer's explanation: if you don't set a thumbnail, it randomly picks a frame like that.
And it just happened to grab that exact moment.
Guess the god of manliness got pissed at my embarrassment and immortalized it.
I fiddled around trying to change the thumbnail, but it was such a pain in the ass I gave up.
And in that short time, viewers were nearing 50.
'NoSeriouslyThisMakesMeRecharge' 1,000 Won!
[So what's TS in the title supposed to mean??]
"It means gender swap. I only learned it recently myself."
'Aha' 1,000 Won!
[So you were originally a guy?]
"Yeah, that's right. I know it's hard to believe, but it's real facts. Up until a week ago, I was a dude."
Even as I said it, I had my doubts.
Would people actually buy this?
But at the same time, some baseless confidence welled up.
Hey, if I convinced my sister, what's not to convince?
Of course, it'd be a grueling battle.
But when has life ever been easy for me?
I'm the oak tree that stands firm through any hardship or adversity.
That was me.
Still, just in case, I braced myself mentally.
The reactions were more tame than expected.
As if they understood something.
And, as if begging me not to.
'DamnItsYouAgain' 1,000 Won!
[Amuse told you to say that huh]
"What's Amuse?"
"What the."
I wondered what nonsense this was, but apparently Amuse was a management agency pushing internet broadcasting hard lately.
They pushed rookies but forced all sorts of bizarre concepts on them.
The concepts varied wildly.
Like a demon lord from hell curious about the human world, or a sea jelly that shapeshifted into a human out of admiration for them. One was a thousands-year-old dragon, another the captain of a galactic fleet roaming space...
Total bullshit galore.
This made gender swap from man to woman seem downright ordinary.
Viewers seemed to think I was part of that concept gimmick.
No wonder Ye-eun bought it so easily. She'd anticipated this.
I switched to ultra-serious mode to correct this misunderstanding.
"Sorry, kids. Amuse or whatever has nothing to do with me. First time hearing the name today."
What the fuck?
"No, what are you saying. I was really a guy? Want me to show you my army uniform? Would you believe then?"
"Insane."
Of course, I didn't expect them to take it at face value.
A woman insisting she was a man wouldn't seem sane.
Lucky they weren't treating me like a schizophrenic.
But this pitying, like watching a five-year-old's talent show? That was a different vibe.
It clashed hard with my street-tough, profanity-and-fists-on-demand mentality.
'YY' 1,000 Won!
[Just flash your ID?]
A few sharp ones like 'YY' popped up.
"Nah, that'd be trouble. Don't wanna dox myself and have it reach my buddies' ears. I'd wanna die for real."
'BangMan-soo' 1,000 Won!
[How'd Amuse brainwash her into this nonsense]
As I stubbornly insisted I was a man, viewers finally snapped and started an impromptu Q&A.
'OurBro' 1,000 Won!
[Favorite soccer player?]
"Don't really like soccer."
'NationalHolidayGame' 1,000 Won!
[Zeratul vs Stukov who wins?]
"What's Zeratul Scourge?"
"Oh, games? I don't game much."
'Leo-ri' 1,000 Won!
[Any games you've played?]
"I straight up don't game. Oh, did Manager Fan a bit back in the day."
These fuckers?
"Was too busy for games, what am I supposed to do? And guys who haven't gamed aren't guys?"
"Goddamn what logic is that. So kids in Africa with no TV or internet are all eunuchs? You racists hating blacks? Fucking racists?"
"Korea same as Africa you retard? So all Korean guys love games and soccer? What if even one doesn't? Million won bet? Your nick... Wait, 'OnlySayNiceThings'? Now I see, the inconsistency was your nick all along."
More mockery and attacks poured in after, but I pushed back confidently every time.
My attitude left them puzzled, so they kept firing new questions.
'CombatPrivate' 1,000 Won!
[Which unit?]
"○○ Division □□ Battalion. △△ Company. Rifle serial XXXXXX I think. More details would dox me, pass."
'ThisJerkAintJunior' 1,000 Won!
[Service creed]
"Our resolve. We are the Republic of Korea Army, fully loyal to the nation and people."
'ToiletPaper3m' 1,000 Won!
[Favorite porn star?]
"Seriri. Used to main Hinako but lately Seriri's better."
Oh, drew and drew.
Nothing to fear.
I showed a 1:100 myth, overwhelming them with valor, and viewers started backing off one by one.
Like Guan Yu's swordplay sweeping away viewer foot soldiers helplessly.
'YeotdonMalaHotpotTteokbokkiYoAjeong' 1,000 Won!
[Favorite food?]
"Gukbap. Lots of solids."
'IWorshipYou' 1,000 Won!
[Know Fate the player?]
"Goddammit. I'm not that level. You think I meditated in some mountain temple?"
Fate.
League of Legends' hottest pro gamer, idol of all Lee Changs.
I didn't game, but I'd heard Fate's name enough to get calluses.
'Cause all my friends were Lee Changs.
Day in day out Date, GOAT worship nonstop—not knowing would've been weird.
Questions kept coming: dated? Virgin? Which bathroom, women's or men's? Etc.
All sorts poured in, and I spent a full hour on Q&A till stream end.
.
.
.
Cam off.
I massaged my stiff neck and let out a deep breath.
I was confident dealing with people.
Heard I was good with work stuff a lot. My mental, forged by all kinds of crazies, could face any gross scene stone-faced.
Catering to faceless viewers? Pfft, piece of cake.
Snorted like that, but actually doing it? Not as easy as thought.
By midway, I was babbling nonsense without knowing what I said.
Talking to an empty wall? Even for thick-skinned me, pretty draining.
New realm of mental labor.
Felt like a storm had swept through.
"Oppa, first stream was a total hit! Donations poured in."
Ye-eun sidled up, excited, fiddling with the computer.
Cumulative earnings.
154,050 won stacked up.
My daily wage was 80k, and this was nearly double.
In just two hours.
"Whoa..."
Peak viewers today: 80.
Big corp streamers had at least 100x that.
So? Revenue 100x.
Simple math: 1 mil a day. 30 mil a month. 360 mil a year. Insane.
"Why part-time?"
Why study?
Why college?
Why certs?
Why job hunt?
Just click stream once?
"Crazy crazy..."
No more weak Han Jeong-ho.
Only a capitalism monster hooked on streaming left.
Streaming is god, donations invincible.