Chapter 41 : Memento mori (1)

WooSeok’s perspective:

How long has it been since I last saw this capsule machine?

It’s only been three days, but it feels like three months.

Even though it hasn’t been that long since I finished the zombie game, the time felt like an eternity.

Even though there’s not a speck of dust on the capsule machine!

Yulia said it would take roughly three days for her to finish up her work and focus on this.

And because of yesterday’s incident, I’ve decided to become a full-fledged hikikomori.

Let’s spend some time in the safest place in the world, my house, my room.

I have internet friends.

As announced, three days have passed, and I entered the capsule a little earlier than the broadcast time today.

After a few seconds of consciousness sinking, I saw the familiar waiting room and Gaia kneeling with her hands up.

I don’t know where she got them from, but she even had fake tears, showing her meticulousness.

“[Sound equipment OK! Broadcast camera OK! Perfect!]”

“What are you doing?”

“[As your secretary, I’m here to support you in achieving the best possible results…]”

“You’re fired.”

“[No! You said you’d forgive me! This is the 120th time I’ve been fired this season!]”

“Maybe that’s how much you messed up?”

Gaia then desperately began to pull out broadcasting support equipment from around her, subtly appealing to me.

Equipment that was clearly expensive, which I hadn’t seen just two days ago, kept appearing every time she waved her hand.

“[With me, you get all this high-end equipment! It’s like buying a top-of-the-line computer and getting a cheap mouse thrown in!]”

“Isn’t that analogy a bit weird?”

“[Well, there’s nothing about this equipment that compares to me, right?]”

Gaia said this as if she seriously thought so.

Of course, that’s true, but…

No, the things you’re comparing are different.

One’s equipment, and the other isn’t.

“[Oh! By the way, your sister gave me the funds.]”

Gaia, getting funding from my sister, even though there’s no reason for her to be involved.

“Yuna? Why would Yuna suddenly be involved? Did you sue that toxic user I told you about and get a settlement?”

Increased assets. Upgraded equipment.

No matter how I think about it, there’s no other explanation.

Even if they’re toxic, they’re still my sibling…

“[What do you take me for? I really think we need to have a deep conversation about how you perceive me.]”

Since I didn’t believe her and kept looking at her suspiciously, she couldn’t stand it and started to tell the truth.

“[I got some of the goods money in exchange for helping out with the viewer participation event later.]”

“Those things actually sell?”

I still can’t forget that tacky top. People actually buy that?

It even sold enough to buy such high-performance electronic equipment.

“[Even the best craftsmen care about their tools! In fact, the better they are, the more they seek out their ideal equipment. With this equipment, all I have to do is cut out the parts I need… Hehehe.]”

“Your laugh doesn’t match what you’re saying.”

“[Of course, I’m going to upload it to MeTube! You get a huge amount of money from ad revenue even without sponsorships! I never intended to sell it to Unicorn!]”

“You guys are still doing that…?”

There won’t be any embarrassing scenes during the broadcast anyway, so it’s fine if she does what she wants.

It must be stifling for her, so it’s alright to have a friend. Even if that friend is Unicorn.

“[It’s almost broadcast time! Everyone’s been waiting through the holidays, right? Let’s get started so we can test the equipment too!]”

“Oh? Alright.”

I feel like I forgot what I was going to say because I got swept up in her pace, but the important thing is the broadcast in front of me.

Until Yulia joins, I’m just going to play a few small games or chat.

I’ll do larger-scale games after she arrives and things settle down. I can’t interrupt them midway; it would kill the mood.

Once we get to that point, I’ll call Yena and we can play games together too.

“So, shall we start the stream?”

“[Ready!]”

I pressed the broadcast button as soon as Gaia was ready.

I purposely didn’t check the comments on sites like Gallery or Reddit.

It’s partly because I’m wary of criticism since I’m a new streamer who’s been away, but the biggest reason is that I wanted to see the endless stream of comments pouring in during this waiting period, unannounced.

“[Wow…. Word must have gotten around again. The speed at which people are coming in…]”

Gaia seemed surprised by the speed as well, and just stood there blankly with me.

Honestly, I missed this a lot.

[– SexSexJa!! Owner, come out!!!]
[– Dad, can I breathe now? Dad, why did you abandon me??]
[– Come up to land!! Ping confirmed!! Sending coordinates!!]
[– Manchester United is taking over here!]
[– Heung! Choi Yena is sulking!]

“[…. Should I just block them all?]”

Gaia asked me, pointing at the chat window.

Her face stiffened and she muttered, ‘The coordinates have been leaked…,’ so she must have expected this.

[– Squid Game? Squid Game?]
[– Dad, why aren’t you talking?]
[– I rewatched your videos for 25 hours every day waiting for you. Praise me.]
[– WooHa! (Means WooSeok Hi <- Hey! Gordon!)]
[– Make it WooHaWooHa! Fake, fake, insincere fake~]
[– Get rid of those guys.]
[– NJ]

Yes, talk all you want!

It’s better than the reality where games relentlessly steal my underwear or people suddenly try to dedicate their entire lives to me.

“Ah. Ah. Can you hear me?”

[– My whole family is watching.]
[– I sold my house to buy speakers to hear WooSeok’s voice. Absolutely perfect.]
[– You blocked donations again. Open it up quickly!]

“It’s been a while. I missed you.”

Truly.

[– Top 3 things I want to hear most in my life just showed up.]
[– What’s number 1?]
[– D*ck.]
[– Crazy b*tch lol]

“Originally, I was going to start playing games right away, but I didn’t expect this much of a response.”

As viewers continued to pour in, the server started to lag, making me wonder, ‘Is this okay?’

At this rate, I won’t even be able to play games, I’ll just be chatting for a bit.

[– Honestly, I like it best when we talk face to face like this.]
[– Brrrr]
[– Looks like WooSeok has given up. Seeing as those guys aren’t getting banned immediately.]

There are people who like to have these pointless conversations…

[– Can I ask a question first?]
[– My door is open right now.]
[– Is that guy really crazy?]

“Gaia, block anyone who goes that far. It’s a problem that so many comments are coming up. I can’t choose. Wait a second.”

“[Okay~]”

I changed the settings so only small donations could be made, allowing them to ask questions with their nicknames.

It seems like it’s turned into a Q&A session, even though I was just going to chat for a bit, but as long as they’re enjoying it, that’s fine.

“I’ll start on the count of three? I’ll pick some interesting nicknames. Three, two, one!”

I shouldn’t have said that.

I should have expected it. I was so foolish.

IWillPityYouForever donated 1,000 won:
[– What did you do with Choi Yena on your day off, you son of a b*tch!]