Chapter 132: Lazy Soldier (3)
[Raina vs. Valkyrie's clash. I wanted to show you this...gif]
Ju-Hyeok smiled as he clicked on the post.
"I knew it…!"
Even though Almond was a beginner and despite it being a normal match, his play was jaw-dropping. First in Kingdom Age and now in LIL as well.
— Why's he standing there and fighting? LOL
└ Because it's cool!
└ Hahahaha?
— Is this staged?
└ Even if it was, how is this possible?
└ For real, how's this possible?
└ That'll take maybe a hundred tries?
└ If anyone played LIL that much, they'd die.
└ They'd die before being able to do this, LOL
— Damn, this is fucking cool.
— Kya! This is something else!
People wondered why Almond made that play, but it was gaining attention. This LIL post was in the big category.
But that wasn't everything.
"Huh…?"
[10. LazySoldier]
LazySoldier was in the trending searches in LIL Pro. Ju-Hyeok fixed his glasses and took a closer look.
"Is this possible?"
He checked how many people viewed the post.
[1789 views]
It wasn't even 2000 views, yet it was trending? Not all of them would search it up either...
"... Ah!"
He finally understood how Almond’s name was trending on the search list.
"This guy is enjoying it..."
***
LIL Pro was originally a website strictly for the game. However, it grew into a general gaming community after gaining popularity.
Afterward, it turned into a community forum for the top 3 games. The fact that a new video game title was in the search rankings made it worth millions of won in terms of money.
Supervisor Koh couldn't believe it.
'Almond did this?'
He couldn't believe Almond achieved it.
[9. LazySoldier]
The keyword was now ninth.
"Is that... Almond?"
Supervisor Koh had to double-check.
"Yes! This guy changed his nickname to LazySoldier because he's promoting it! Hahaha!?And all for free! We need to give our promos to guys like this! Isn't this the perfect guy? Doing something like this?"
Indeed, it was Almond. Supervisor Koh scratched his head.
The manager's compliments continued, "Apparently, he mentioned the game again during his interview on Fantasia's channel. My employee told me. Isn't that incredible? So different from you, who frowns all the time while expecting things to work out."
"Wait..."
‘Why insult me?’
Supervisor Koh continued to frown and asked about something he found odd, "But did Almond have this much influence? The manager said..."
He recalled the manager mentioning Almond had under 10,000 viewers. How could a streamer with less than 10,000 viewers come up on the trending searches just because he made one superplay? It was a little strange.
"No way. Almond doesn't even have 10,000 viewers. There's no way he can have this much influence."
"That's weird. He has under 10,000 viewers, yet he still came up on the trending searches with one super play?"
The manager smiled and waved his hand, "Lol! That's actually the best part."
The supervisor wanted to tell him he sounded even older by trying to sound young with the slang, but he let it slide. What was the best part?
"Think about it. Why would Lazy Soldier be in the search rankings instead of Almond?"
It was strange. His name should've been more common if the original scene was from Almond's channel. Instead, Lazy Soldier was in the trending search list.
"This youngster has a way of doing things..."
The manager showed him a clip. It was Almond finishing his stream. What a strange way to end the stream...
"This is just him being crazy."
"Ah, yeah. It's a donation celebration. Apparently, he normally does this. Anyways, that's not what's important. Look at the chat."
— Ahhh! The damage!
— Aren't you going to show us your total damage dealt?
— You're crazy...
— Cool guys don't show the damage chart, even though he carried his first-ever game.
Damage chart. Everything made sense after seeing that phrase.
"Ah!"
After every LIL match, there was a variety of data displayed. It showed who did the best, the total damage dealt to the enemy, received damage, etc.
Naturally, the viewers were curious to see his damage chart and searched for his name. Since Almond's username was LazySoldier, that name inevitably came up on the trending searches.
"Apparently, there was a case like this before too. He reached Diamond and turned off his stream right away, which forced the users to search for his name on Javer. It looks like he used that strategy again."
"So that's why it's up!"
"That's right! The fight scene you just watched added to the fire!"
Was it a coincidence? It didn't seem like it because this wasn't his first time. Everything seemed planned, from the creation of his username to the timing of his stream ending.
Tap.
The manager placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Be nice to him when he comes, okay?"
"Hmm... Is that necessary? Just for something like this?"
"Director Park."
"?"
"You know that guy is sensitive to things like this, right? He goes crazy for trending searches. It doesn't even look like it was staged. And this game is a collab with Weplug. The stocks he has in this company..."
"..."
Director Park. As soon as he heard this name, Supervisor Koh became dumbfounded. The manager laughed.
"Anyways, I'm going to tell him that the game came up on the trending search without any foul play. Be nice to peanut or chestnut or whatever his name is. Make sure he does well."
"It's Almond."
"Yeah, that. Anyways, good luck. I hear that you have a lot of trouble with Director Park, right?"
"..."
Supervisor Koh nodded without a word.
***
Meanwhile, Ju-Hyeok and Sang-Hyeon started getting dressed early for their schedule. It had been a while since they got ready so early.
The two were full of excitement. Since it was their first shoot as a model for an ad, they excitedly got ready.
"Alright, let's go!" Ju-Hyeok shouted excitedly as he opened the door.
Slam!
The stairs of hell greeted them, and their excitement instantly disappeared. Everything became meaningless in front of these stairs in the slums.
After ten minutes…
"Huff... Puff..."
Sang-Hyeon was fine, but Ju-Hyeok was dying and collecting his breath.
"Are you still tired even after going up and down here every day?"
"S-Shut up... Phew..."
Ju-Hyeok didn't have the strength to argue and waved him away.
Honk! Honk!
Just then, a large van arrived. It was the car Punk sent them.
A friendly face greeted them as the door opened.
"Hey! Have you waited for a long while?"
It was Manager Oh with a big smile. He was the one who decided to bring a car for them since they didn't have a vehicle.
"No, we just came. Instead, it looks like I won't even have time to catch my breath. Haha..."
Ju-Hyeok pointed at the stairs with his red face. Manager Oh's expression shook after seeing the stairs.
'They live... there? Isn't this the slums?'
Manager Oh was unaware of how Sang-Hyeon and Ju-Hyeok lived. Since they were handsome and previously worked at a large company, he assumed they were from a wealthy household.
Sang-Hyeon started archery at a young age as well. Archery was an expensive sport...
'And he's been an accident too?'
As Manager Oh recalled Sang-Hyeon's accident, he became speechless. His mind went blank thinking about Almond’s difficult past.
"Hm, hm."
Manager Oh cleared his throat and spoke up. It wasn't his first day out in society. He could hide his surprise easily.
"Haha, is that so? Must be good exercise. Is that why you guys are so healthy? Get on, quickly."
He fixed his expression and moved aside. The atmosphere would change once they entered because there was a surprise guest.
"Hello!"
Ju-Hyeok and Sang-Hyeon stared at the backseat in shock after hearing the bright idol-like voice. Ju-Hyeok banged his head on his way into the van.
"Kugh!"
Miho looked at Sang-Hyeon and ignored Ju-Hyeok's scream.
"Almond, this is the first time we're meeting in person, right?"
Her smile was even more unrealistic in real life than in This World.
"Ah... Hello," Sang-Hyeon awkwardly greeted her.
He had an awkward look because he was surprised. Miho understood and started giving excuses for why she was in the van.
"My manager is on vacation, and I can't drive..."
"Don't you have a car?" Manager Oh cut her off.
"It's in service..."
"But you said you can't drive?"
"Y... yeah. I can't drive well and got into an accident, so my car is in the shop, is what I was going to say."
Miho had to send her expensive car without any problems to the shop. She smiled brightly as if nothing happened.
"So that's why I'm in the van... haha..."
Manager Oh turned around and shook his head with a smile.
"Ah, yes..."
Sang-Hyeon and Ju-Hyeok simply replied because they didn't know what to say.
"Alright, let's go. The van is lively thanks to Miho!"
Manager Oh cheered her up after making fun of her as the van started up.
Vrooom…!
Miho, Ju-Hyeok, and Sang-Hyeon started naturally talking to each other after around fifteen minutes. It was possible because they had the same objectives. Miho and Ju-Hyeok were also both extroverted.
Manager Oh suddenly said something to Sang-Hyeon in private, "Uh... Sang-Hyeon, there's something I couldn't tell you."
Miho and Ju-Hyeok naturally turned their heads as well
"..."
Manager Oh hesitated after noticing them, but started talking anyway.
"We did our contract a little late, right?"
"Yes."
"You should know because you've worked in an office before. If workers get extra work last minute, they get angry..."
Manager Oh explained to them that there was a large increase in work because Sang-Hyeon was added at the last minute. Therefore, the staff could be unfriendly toward him. Of course, Manager Oh would be there to prevent it from happening.
However, he couldn't watch and complain about every little detail. And even if he did witness something, it'd be difficult for him to chime in.
"... So please understand." He apologized with a sorry look, "I'll apologize in advance."
"No, thank you. I should be thanking you for signing me on even though it's last minute."
Sang-Hyeon waved his hand, signaling that it was alright. However, Ju-Hyeok looked angry. Miho stared at Sang-Hyeon with a concerned look.
"Don't worry. I'll help you out. These types of shoots are my specialty, so I know it well."
"Yeah, Miho will help. She's a true pro."
"Thank you."
"Oh, we're here. Get off, get off!"
They got off at Fantasia's headquarters and felt the pressure from the tall building. They passed by the lobby and headed towards the elevator in the center.
They needed to get to floor 20. The entire floor was a studio set up for photoshoots and such.
[20F Fantasia Video Studio]
The four were greeted with bright white lights, countless cameras, large glass, and matte floors as soon they got off the elevator.
"Here. Fantasia's studio."
It felt different from the last time Almond streamed with them. There were much more staff and equipment this time around.
Gulp.
Sang-Hyeon gulped. If what Manager Oh said was true, all those staff members would act unfriendly towards him. As expected, he made eye contact with several staff members.
'W-Why is everyone coming to me?'
Most of them were approaching Sang-Hyeon. He glanced towards Manager Oh, confused as to what was happening. He was already shaking hands and greeting other people.
Just then, the first one to approach him was a man.
"You're Almond, right?"
One after another, people guided Almond as if he were on a red carpet.
"Nice to meet you, Almond! Please, come over here! Our team is the 3D team!"
“So you're Almond. You look better in person! We're the makeup team. Even if we act out, please understand.”
Suddenly, Sang-Hyeon was split off from Miho, Ju-Hyeok, and Manager Oh.
"It's... not that bad?"
Despite hearing this, the staff was unfazed.