Season 2: Chapter 93. Fan Meeting (1)
Jensen was a villain who left a tremendous impression with just one appearance during the Battle Large era. Viewers remembered him as a stream sniper, but that technically wasn’t accurate.
The system in Battle Large didn’t allow for stream sniping while watching streams. Jensen merely had good luck and only encountered Almond once in the game, so it was a stretch to call him a stream sniper.
Despite appearing only once, the viewers remembered Jensen. Perhaps because he was one of the very few, if not the only player, who pushed Almond into a corner.
At the time, Jensen had acquired an armor called the power suit, which significantly enhanced his physical abilities. Although it was hard to obtain, this equipment made winning much easier. Thanks to this, he could compete equally with Almond.
However, Jensen stood out among the many stream snipers for another reason. It wasn’t because of the power suit or because he cornered Almond.
"Jen—sen!!!"
It was because of this strange shout. Now, the same shout echoed out at the fan meeting venue.
"Oh, what now? Why is that crazy guy shouting again?"
"Wow, the Nutty Squad really goes all out."
"What... is this a Nutty Squad world?!"
The first fan to arrive made such noises, confusing the other fans.
The staff had to intervene, "Mr. Jensen, I understand you're excited, but please restrain yourself."
"Oh, right..."
Jensen quickly calmed down, but shortly afterward, he began shouting again as if he couldn’t help it.
"Ja, Jensen! Jensen!!!"
He seemed to want to say something, pointing and gesticulating.
The other folks frowned at him.
"Just speak, why don’t you?"
"Is he a Pokémon or what?"
Meanwhile, a few fans gazed at where Jensen was pointing and murmured.
"Uh... It's Almond."
Indeed, someone was peeking through the door.
"Oh? Almond?"
"It's Almond."
"Really?"
The fans, who were unsure at first, finally became convinced it was Almond after hearing Jensen shouting his lungs out.
"Wowwwww!"
"Kyaaaa! It's Almond!"
Explosive cheers erupted from everyone nearby. Passing cars even paused to check what was happening, which was understandable given the considerable number of fans lined up behind Jensen.
Today, one hundred fans had reserved seats for the fan meeting. Even those who couldn’t get a seat surrounded the chicken and beer restaurant to catch a glimpse of Almond. They numbered in the dozens, perhaps even hundreds.
"Almond! Almond!"
"Nut! Nut! Nut!"
"Oppa, look here just once!"
They gathered there hoping to catch even just a passing glimpse of Almond. The area where Sang-Hyeon's former company resided was not only a mecca of the office district, but it was also a popular dating spot that was perfect for casual strolls.
"Wow! Yu Sang-Hyeon! Yu Sang-Hyeon!"
"Almond!"
His fans with nearby appointments or fans who worked in the city naturally gathered there.
"Who's Almond? Huh?"
"Wow, there are so many people..."
"Yu Sang-Hyeon?"
Even people who didn't know him or only knew Yu Sang-Hyeon from the company were drawn in by curiosity. In short, hundreds of people gathered. Their shouts were almost as loud as fireworks.
Startled by the cheers, Sang-Hyeon flinched and...
"!"
He quickly pulled his head back in and shut the door.
Thud.
***
Sang-Hyeon leaned against the door and gasped.
'What's happening?'
Thump. Thump.
His heart felt like it would burst. Why did so many people show up? The number of fans for the event had already been set.
The pub's maximum capacity was only one hundred twenty occupants and they had planned for slightly fewer than one hundred people.
Almond thought the many fans in line would only number around eighty to ninety at most. After all, some would inevitably arrive late. That didn’t turn out to be the case.
'It's more than I thought.'
All one hundred anticipated fans had already lined up. These were the confirmed fans with reserved seats.
The issue was that some hadn’t won the fan meeting tickets, but still came to see him. They would obviously suffer the cold weather outside, but were willing to endure it just to see his face.
'What should I do...?'
Sang-Hyeon felt sorry as the cause of this even though he was usually shameless.
"We can’t accommodate them."
He clearly knew what the other person was thinking as they said it out loud.
"If we start letting one or two in, it’ll start a domino effect and everything will collapse."
The voice belonged to Ji-Ah. She had followed Sang-Hyeon out after he suddenly left his post.
"Ah... Um. Right."
Sang-Hyeon nodded without any objections. She made an absolutely valid point. If they tried to do more out of pity for those fans, they would end up discriminating against those who had officially won and came to the fan meeting.
'It can't be helped.'
Being famous meant carrying this heavy burden. Sang-Hyeon realized again that life as a streamer wasn't all easy.
"Those people are happy just to see Almond's face. They chose to come here knowing they wouldn't get in. They're already happy."
Ji-Ah pushed Sang-Hyeon's back with her characteristic decisiveness.
"So, go back to your spot, Sir Nut."
Sang-Hyeon eventually returned to his post. Ju-Hyeok, Ji-Ah, and others who came to help with the fan meeting finally opened the door to guide in the fans with reserved seating.
Voices tried to soothe the crowd outside, "Everyone, please wait a moment! Please don’t make too much noise!"
Shortly afterward, the first fan came through the entrance.
***
"Please come in!"
The scene bustled like a marketplace. The current mood of Almond's fan meeting could be perfectly described as that.
"Wow!"
"Wow! Almond balloons!"
"I saw it live!"
"How do I do this? I'm so nervous..."
Fans took pictures with each other. Some even recognized each other from online.
"Jensen!"
"Jensen, take a picture with me!"
While some criticized Jensen, he also had his fans. They all took pictures together and mimicked Jensen's pose.
It wasn’t just Jensen.
"Ki-Kingdom!"
"Wow..."
"So cool."
The star of the viral “King~ you can't beat me~” video from the subway encounter with Almond also became a celebrity. Fans recognized the man known as King Parrot, or Kingdom, and took pictures with him too.
Meanwhile, Almond was still sitting behind the second floor partition as he listened to the sounds they made. He planned to greet the fans and chat with them as they came for autographs one by one. Then, he would freely mingle with them during the chicken and beer party after they finished everything.
"Whew," Almond caught his breath and wasn’t even rehearsing his lines.
He felt nervous. Then, he suddenly heard something.
The announcer called for the fans to enter according to their fan meeting numbers.
"Jensen! Can't I go in by order of arrival!?"
"No, Jensen! It's according to the fan meeting numbers!"
"Je-Jensen..."
The announcer called and guided the first ten numbers. A rush of fans headed for the stairs.
Suddenly, the first fan appeared.
"Hello, Almond..."
Everyone expected Jensen, Kingdom, or a similar muscular man. Instead, it was a female fan. She had a graceful appearance with long, wavy princess hair and wore a neat cardigan.
'She's normal.'
As the first fan, her arrival was quite uneventful. Sang-Hyeon felt relieved and noticed his own reaction.
The first fan relieved Almond and disappointed the viewers. She carefully sat in the seat in front of Sang-Hyeon.
Besides the close distance, meeting the fans one by one like this felt like a corporate interview.
"Oh... I can see the chat here?"
She pointed to the right of Sang-Hyeon with a smile. For entertainment purposes, those attending the fan meeting could also view Almond's chat. It seemed like good content.
Viewers playfully threw interview questions at her.
— Why did you do an internship abroad?
— What's your reason for wanting to join?
— If you get in, what role would you want?
The first fan laughed again at the chaotic chat messages filled with jealousy. Then, she made eye contact with Sang-Hyeon.
"Hello, Number 1," Sang-Hyeon greeted her and extended his hand.
She blushed while shaking his hand.
"How can I...?"
However, she smiled brightly and was clearly a big fan of Almond. As expected of the number one fan.
The viewers and the first fan exchanged a silent moment. Then, she took the initiative.
"Do you recognize me?"
Sang-Hyeon tried to guess and made eye contact, but she kept looking away. Of course, just looking at her eyes wouldn't help with his guess.
Sang-Hyeon was about to admit that he didn't know.
"Do I know...?"
"If you can't guess, then please wear this."
She mustered all her courage and pushed something toward Sang-Hyeon.
Sang-Hyeon looked at it as if he was facing the greatest ordeal of his life.
"Who are you?" Despite his panic, Sang-Hyeon spoke quicker than expected. "RubySword?"
He made an instinctive guess without knowing anything about RubySword's gender, occupation, or age.
Somehow always securing the number one spot, providing unobtrusive support, and always doing things that helped the stream reminded him of the harmless atmosphere this woman had.
The first fan shyly blushed with her head bowed. Was she being shy or disappointed?
'Am I right or not?'
He couldn't tell yet without a clear response from her.
After a moment, the first fan raised her head.