Chapter 14

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Translator: True Detective

Chapter: 14

Chapter Title: Hahaha! Ditching the Broadcast!

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1.

After a year apart, we caught up on everything that had happened, sharing our feelings and unburdening ourselves.

"The ceiling collapsed on a rainy day?"

"Yeah. It was a record-breaking downpour. Water started dripping from the ceiling bit by bit, and then suddenly it all came crashing down..."

Just thinking about it made her shake her head in a daze, as if it still made her dizzy.

"You didn't get hurt, did you?"

I hoped her streaming career hadn't started because of some injury. As long as that wasn't the case, I'd be relieved.

Could I heal her with my holy power?

If I'd known this would happen, I would've been more devout in my faith to the goddess. Then at least I'd have more holy power at my disposal.

"Nothing like that. Don't worry too much."

Sis smiled and gently stroked the back of my hand—the same comforting touch she always gave when I was anxious.

"I started streaming because I needed some human warmth."

"...Human warmth?"

"Yeah. After you were gone, I couldn't believe I'd been left all alone in the world. And trying to meet people in real life just exhausted me..."

"Yeah, you'd been hurt so much at the factory."

I'd heard guys in their forties and older had hit on her or sexually harassed her. And the older women had bullied her just for being young and pretty.

She'd bottled it all up, gotten drunk on soju, and finally told me.

"I still get mad thinking about it. Those trash bastards..."

"But you got revenge for me. That's enough. Thinking about bad people just ruins our mood. Right?"

"Yeah, you're right."

I smiled up at her. She was different from the version I'd seen on stream—gentle and mature.

"So where are you living now, Sis?"

"In an officetel. It's a two-room place—one's my bedroom, and the other's for the VR capsule."

"Streaming must be paying off pretty well."

"Yeah. After the old house collapsed, I lived in a semi-basement for about half a year, but it got too cramped once I set up the capsule."

"What about money?"

"...Siwoo. I used the life insurance payout from the policy you'd told me about to move."

She said it with a gloomy expression.

"Oh."

Of course. With our financial situation, where else would the money have come from?

"At first, I couldn't even touch it—it felt like the last trace you'd left behind. Using it made me feel like I was eating away at your life. But once my savings ran out, I had no choice..."

The guilt she'd felt back then was beyond words, she recalled.

"You did the right thing..."

I thought she was being foolishly sentimental, but I probably would've done the same. How could anyone touch that money?

"Your stream looked like you had real talent, though. A year in, and you've already got this many viewers."

"I got lucky. I collabed with a big corporate streamer on a major platform and got some spillover effect."

"Maintaining it is the impressive part. Most people get a temporary boost and then drop back to square one."

That's why collabs with big streamers were called a poisoned chalice.

You get to taste sweetness, but it's fleeting. When you return to your usual gutter, your motivation vanishes.

"Enough about me. Tell me your story. What on earth happened to change you like this?"

Sis's eyes sparkled as she looked at me. Guess she wasn't too upset that I'd become a girl.

A bit disappointing, but also a relief.

"Well, what happened was..."

I told her everything up to now. She laughed at times, rejoiced at others, and even grew sad.

We got lost in the conversation. So we didn't notice. The stream was still on. The sound was muted, but our faces were broadcasting live.

2.

While the two were reuniting and sharing their stories, Noir's viewers were gripped by strong doubts.

They'd expected Noir to return any second, but she just wouldn't show.

One viewer even sent a donation, but with notifications off, there was no response. Once it was clear she was ghosting, viewers started leaving.

Viewers had peaked near 2,000 but plummeted below 1,000 in an instant.

The remaining trolls stirred up the chat briefly, but with no reaction, even they left.

Once the dopamine-chasers lost interest, viewers returned to normal levels.

At this point, the remaining chatters were either fans of Noir or stubborn holdouts.

The only info on stream: Noir's face on the waiting screen.

Viewers started speculating.

They were just having fun throwing out theories when...

Suddenly, Noir's expression turned gloomy, like she'd burst into tears at the slightest touch. Viewers panicked.

A few bashed Carrier prematurely, but most stayed neutral. But opinion shifted again.

Her blank stare turned to eyes blazing with fury.

To them, it looked like Carrier said something outrageous, enraging Noir.

Viewers surged back as some shared the stream's drama on communities.

Viewers climbed again amid chaotic chat of trolls and legit comments.

The chaos seemed endless—until something plunged them all into confusion.

Suddenly, Noir started crying.

The on-screen avatar wasn't a real person. But VR tech made every emotion feel real.

Sobs. Joy. Happiness.

All mixed in her tears—even trolls froze. Some empathized and cried too.

Over 5,000 viewers flooded in on the news of her sobs.

Some even donated to comfort her.

The messy mix of support and trolls shifted again after some time.

Noir's face gradually calmed.

Viewers thought she'd return to streaming. The emotional talk seemed over.

But it was just their delusion—or hope.

From then on, Noir kept mouthing words, cycling through emotions: laughing, crying, wide-eyed shock.

Looked like a fun chat, but viewers grew frustrated.

Over an hour passed without her returning. Normally, viewers would've bailed. But not this time.

This situation was insanely intriguing! Why the anger? Why the tears? They had to know!

Curiosity glued them to the stream. Unaware that curiosity killed the cat.

Even more poured in from community buzz.

As everyone spammed in anticipation...

The stream ended without warning.

Chat went dead silent, like time froze. But only for a moment.

The chat exploded.