Chapter 103: Real Deal (3)

That evening.

As soon as I turned on the broadcast, the number of viewers increased more rapidly than ever before, and the chat window started to flood.

All I did was turn on the broadcast without even starting the game.

However, the viewers seemed to have been waiting in advance, and as soon as I opened the chat room, they began typing at a fast pace.

-Our light! Our light! Our light! Our light!

-I suggest we change the name of Evil Gang starting today! How about Evil Angels?

-ㅋㅋㅋ Fallen angels?

-Hyung. After hearing that you donated, our classmates collected additional donations!

-You brat… Do you think the whole world belongs to you?ㅠㅠㅠ I cried last time during your confession broadcast, and now I’m crying againㅠㅠ

“Oh.”

I was slightly taken aback by the unusual appearance of the chat window.

Usually, those guys would start with curses, but now, with a barrage of compliments, I couldn’t get used to it.

I looked at the chat window and poured out my annoyance.

“Did you guys eat something wrong? Why are you making me cringe with compliments as soon as the broadcast starts? Just curse like usual, you trash.”

It was awkward.

So, I intentionally threw in some harsh words, but it was like pouring oil on a burning house.

-This bastard is intentionally trying to maintain his persona by cursingㅋㅋ

-Heyㅋㅋ Everyone knows, right? This guy is actually super nice

-For realㅋㅋ

-New viewer here who found out from the news article! Show me lots of spiciness!

-A man with skills, looks, and character, Kim Chan-sik… I really want you

-So, what’s the color of your underwear today?

Why did Sung-jae create this situation by doing something he wasn’t asked to do?

… Not that I minded.

It was just that their reactions felt awkward.

Thinking about it, my personality hadn’t changed, but I never expected public opinion to shift so drastically with just one donation article.

Is this why media play exists?

As I awkwardly smiled while looking at the chat window, donations started pouring in.

‘Shia’s Precious Place’ donated 10,000 won!

[Shia fan club made a donation, and we plan to add this in Shia’s name.]

Shia fan club?

I had checked it out once before, and wasn’t it a hideout for the Evil Gang?

Every time I entered, weird guys were chatting with each other.

Seeing the donation, I scratched my head a few times.

And naturally, I nodded as I answered.

“I mean… it’s okay, but why are you doing something that doesn’t suit you?”

Then a response came immediately through another donation.

‘Shia’s Precious Place’ donated 10,000 won!

[ㅎㅎ Our leader did something out of character, so of course we have to follow! Loyalty, loyalty ^^7]

Their nickname was ridiculous, and they gathered donations to donate.

It was so strange that I checked it out, and there were indeed active fundraising activities on fan cafes and Twipod.

Even the Evil Gang, whom I thought had cut ties with the world, were voluntarily donating.

As soon as I confirmed this, I couldn’t help but feel quite touched.

The guys who always seemed to devour me were doing something so admirable.

However, the emotion was shattered just five seconds later.

‘Shia’s Precious XX’ donated 10,000 won!

[Even if you graduate from Twipod and become a public broadcaster, keep streaming ^^. If you betray us, we’ll chase you to the ends of hell and spam hate comments.] Ṛ

“Ugh.”

Now that’s the true Evil Gang.

Such donations were indeed their identity.

-Real-

-You said there would be an important announcement today, right? What is it? Hurry up and tell us

-I feel dizzy, just confess alreadyㅋㅋ If you don’t, I’ll punch you in the philtrum

-For realㅋㅋ

Right.

I had forgotten in the confusion at the start.

I composed myself and slowly began to speak.

“Starting next week, I’ll only be streaming five times a week. I wanted to let you know in advance.”

It was due to the unavoidable schedule adjustment for the cable broadcast filming with Hyung Hae-chul.

I heard that the full-fledged filming would start from then.

Some viewers who had been following me closely had already predicted this situation and showed a calm reaction.

However, some passionate Evil Gang members showed signs of excitement at my words.

-???

-Do you want to die?

-Who said you could take a break?

-OhㅋㅋSeason 132, losing your original spiritㅋㅋ

“Hey, you bastards. I’m starting the broadcast filming next week. I can’t help it because of that. Please understand.”

But the responses I got were suggestions like ‘Get rid of the rest days and maintain six days a week!’ or ‘Make a clone and let it do the substitute broadcast!’

Still, it was fortunate that the reactions were better than I thought.

It wasn’t a big announcement, but… since I had always been diligent in broadcasting, I felt the need to inform them in advance.

Filming with celebrities including Hyung Hae-chul.

Even as I spoke, I felt a bit nervous, but it seemed like it would be a lot of fun.

Just as I was about to start a game with a good mood after sharing various stories, another donation came in.

‘President of the Fake Marriage Association’ donated 10,000 won!

[None of that matters, when is the collaboration with Sae-yeon? I don’t care about your broadcasts because I don’t watch themㅋㅋ Just bring King Sae-yeon quickly]

… Bad guys.

So that was their true intention?

6.

As the news of my donation spread on the internet, there were both good and bad points.

While many people were favorable towards me, it was inevitable that some held negative feelings.

Some brought up my past stories, claiming that I was just acting.

They said I was doing media play to clean up my image, that I was originally a piece of trash.

They spoke like that.

Well, it wasn’t entirely wrong, so there was no need to react.

Because I was genuinely sincere.

Moreover, the loyalty of the Evil Gang, now also known as ‘Shia’s Fanatics,’ was higher than ever, and they took care of such people themselves.

I continued to broadcast steadily.

No matter what the internet or media said about me, I just did my usual work.

Even if my image had improved, it was ultimately the viewers who watched my broadcasts that put me in this position.

Time passed, and the day of the promised collaboration with Sae-yeon arrived.

The location for the collaboration was Chicken Box’s studio.

Since Sae-yeon was such a famous star, I couldn’t bring her to the house where two men lived.

There could have been unnecessary gossip, and the space was also too small for the collaboration.

I hadn’t even done a home collaboration with Na-young yet.

The most I did was go to Na-young’s capsule room, where she mainly stayed, to collaborate.

“Sung-jae.”

Sae-yeon was scheduled to arrive at 6 PM, but all the staff at Chicken Box’s studio were still waiting, not having left yet.

These were the same staff who usually left work on the dot.

But today, they stayed late, burning with enthusiasm.

“Yes, Chan-sik. What is it?”

“Isn’t it customary for Chicken Box to have strict on-time departures?”

“That’s right.”

“So why hasn’t anyone left today? And Sung-jae… did you put on cologne?”

By this time of the day, one’s attire usually starts to look a bit disheveled.

However, Sung-jae’s suit was impeccably neat, with a subtle scent of cologne.

Anyone would think he was going on a blind date.

Sung-jae responded, clearing his throat a few times under my suspicious gaze.

“I am personally a huge fan of Kim Sae-yeon. Haha! With Korea’s top star coming to our studio, how could the staff leave?”

“Sung-jae.”

“You keep calling my name.”

“Would you like to greet Sae-yeon when she arrives? You’re practically my manager.”

At that, Sung-jae’s face lit up noticeably.

I had never seen him look so delighted like a child since I met him.

“That would be wonderful, haha! Didn’t I tell you before? Bringing you on as our streamer was the best decision of my life!”

He had said something like that once…

Honestly, I was nervous too.

This was practically a first for Twipod.

I might be the only one to invite a famous and popular celebrity like Kim Sae-yeon as a guest.

Although many internet broadcasters have transitioned to mainstream media, online broadcasting was still not considered mainstream culture.

As I was deep in thought and joking around with Sung-jae, an employee shouted excitedly.

“Kim Sae-yeon’s van just entered the parking lot!”

“Everyone, get ready!”

“I see some dust near the door! Sweep it again!”

“If there’s any moisture, it could be slippery, so wipe it down with a dry cloth! Hurry!”

The employees were more passionate than ever, and it seemed like sparks were about to shoot out of Sung-jae’s eyes as he oversaw everything.

Moments later.

Sae-yeon, whom they had been waiting for, appeared wearing sunglasses.

As soon as she saw me, she took off her sunglasses, waved, and smiled brightly.

“Did you wait long, Chan-sik?”

“Ah, yes, noona.”

Since our last meeting, we had kept in touch occasionally and had become comfortable enough to speak informally.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

Sae-yeon, or rather Sae-yeon noona, walked up to me and gave me a light hug as she spoke.

“My dear Chan-sik, did you wait for me or not?”

“I-I waited.”

“Really? Yay!”

She was a top star with a bolder personality than I expected.

I blushed in embarrassment from the sudden hug, while Sung-jae, who was quietly watching, looked at me with a mix of jealousy and frustration.

…What was he so frustrated about?

“Hey, hey, Sae-yeon. There are a lot of people around, so you shouldn’t just hug anyone!”

An older man, who seemed to be her manager, sighed as he spoke. Sae-yeon noona immediately frowned and shouted.

“Who’s anyone? Is Chan-sik just anyone?”

“No, that’s not what I meant…”

“Oppa, you’ll be in trouble if you treat Chan-sik like that nowadays. Someone cursed Chan-sik on my SNS account last time, and it became a huge mess. Be careful.”

Ahem.

It was the work of the Evil Gang, but I decided to pretend I didn’t know.

Sung-jae cleared his throat a few times before bowing slightly to Sae-yeon noona and speaking.

“Hello. I’m the manager for Chan-sik…”

“You’re Lee Sung-jae, right? I’ve heard a lot about you. I’m Kim Sae-yeon. You seem just as great as I’ve heard!”

“Ha, haha! Y-Yes, that’s right!”

Sae-yeon noona was definitely impressive.

She had just arrived and already started leading the conversation.

Her somewhat eccentric way of speaking.

But combined with her beauty, it was easy to see why people liked her so much.

There was still an hour left until the scheduled broadcast time, so there was no rush yet.

Sung-jae guided Sae-yeon noona to the reception room and soon brought out tea.

I took a sip of the warm honey water an employee had brought me and nodded.

“Noona, don’t you usually have a tight schedule? Is it okay for you to relax with a cup of tea like this…?”

“Today’s my last schedule anyway, and honestly, I don’t even consider this a schedule. I’m just here to hang out! I’m already excited to play with the Evil Gang!”

One thing was certain: noona’s mindset wasn’t entirely normal either.

It was slightly different from the image of her songs.

If you only heard her songs, she seemed emotional and soft… yeah, pure.

But the Sae-yeon noona in front of me had a rather easygoing image.

More like a tomboy than a pure, delicate woman?

Probably the only celebrity in the world waiting to hang out with the Evil Gang was Sae-yeon noona.

I just hoped the Evil Gang wouldn’t cross any lines during today’s broadcast.

“By the way, about today’s broadcast.”

“Yes, noona.”

At that moment.

Sae-yeon noona, who was enjoying her tea, opened her eyes wide and looked at me. I put down my teacup and listened attentively.

And a moment later.

I was speechless at the shocking idea that came out of her mouth.

“…What?”