Season 2: Chapter 116. Political Warrior (1)
Ju-Hyeok stumbled upon the Politics & Society category while browsing through videos that sparked patriotism, extreme political discussions, or reported accidents and incidents also known as wreckers. These were notorious for their provocative thumbnails and heated arguments in the comment sections, often leading to deleted or demonetized posts due to multiple reports.
[Politics & Society]
Indeed, this was the Politics & Society category. Ju-Hyeok gazed blankly at the category text.
“Huh...?”
This place could be considered the jungle of YouTube and also one of the hottest spots on the platform. In that very jungle, their video had claimed the top spot.
1. Why the World Bows Down Before Korea’s Archery
It wasn’t a real political video with a social message or even satirical comedy.
“It’s purely a gaming video with a dash of national pride,” Ju-Hyeok commented.
However, this gaming video ranked first in the Politics & Society category!
— 1st in the Politics category, what’s this? LOL
— LOL
— Hey, is this the NutPunk World? Why is this number one in Politics & Society???
└ LOL
└ In their world, this is politics and society LOL
└ As a gamer, I’m a politician in another world?!
— A patriotic win is so sweet LOL
Ju-Hyeok came to a realization.
“Wow. I don’t get this.”
He started looking at these videos to establish a direction for new content and understand why some succeeded where others failed. He found out that he was still clueless about everything.
‘What’s this?’
He couldn’t grasp why the video attracted so many views. It simply depicted soldiers from foreign lands bowing before a Korean archer standing on top of a wall against a backdrop of the blue sky and a superimposed Korean flag while the national anthem played.
— The national anthem LOL it’s so absurd
— It’s got a New Village Movement vibe;
— Is this a restored video from the 6.25 War?
└ What are you talking about? It’s footage from the Battle of Haengju.
└ High-tech Joseon era, wow
└ A festival of barks LOL
└ Beep! In NutPunk, this is possible.
‘Is this why?’
Was it because of the absurd vibe like the comments suggested? Some videos caused a tremendous echo on the internet without doing anything special. They turned into memes that roamed the internet for a long time.
‘Or is it the influx from the Politics & Society category chart?’
Ju-Hyeok kept wondering without finding an answer.
“Huh?”
At that moment, he noticed something. It wasn’t a solution to his earlier dilemma, but something better.
“This is...”
His mouse pointer hovered around second place on the chart.
2. CutiePie From This World and Muffin, formerly from PartyShare, in a love triangle!?
More important than the title was this:
[TimeTrouble]
The name of the channel stood out to Ju-Hyeok.
“It was this guy?”
The same person who previously tried to unscrupulously reveal Almond’s past. Once again, he climbed the ranks with similar content. However...
“They lost to us?”
Almond had won.
In the realm of cyber wreckers, where TimeTrouble was considered an authority, his video had been defeated in its home category of Politics & Society by Almond’s video. Almond climbing the walls with a human pyramid had overshadowed a sensational love triangle involving idols.
“Serves him right, that guy.”
Ju-Hyeok felt quite satisfied. Even though it was an old matter, it had upset him back then.
Then─
1. CutiePie From This World and Muffin, formerly from PartyShare, in a love triangle!?
The rankings changed.
“...?”
On closer inspection, the difference in views wasn’t that significant.
[Views: 713,000]
[Views: 712,000]
Both of them contended closely for first and second place. Then, they had switched just now.
“... Damn.”
Ju-Hyeok's expression soured. There wasn’t much difference between first and second place, but considering the competitor... He felt quite irked.
As he clenched his fist in frustration, Sang-Hyeon appeared with disheveled hair and half-closed eyes.
“What are you doing?”
“... Just checking the charts. We’re first... No, we were.”
“?”
“Now we’re second.”
“That’s too bad.”
Sang-Hyeon simply brushed it off. He was always competitive, but this was Ji-Ah's domain.
Ju-Hyeok also turned away from the monitor and asked Sang-Hyeon, “Hey. You have a hospital appointment today, right?”
“Yeah~. I’m about to take a shower. You?”
“I already showered.”
“Okay.”
Sang-Hyeon went back to the bathroom and Ju-Hyeok’s gaze returned to the monitor.
‘What should I do about that guy?’
Ju-Hyeok couldn’t do much about the fluctuating view counts, but retreating wasn’t his style. He was itching to employ some less-than-noble methods to win.
As he stared at the monitor...
Ring. Ring.
His phone rang.
‘What now? An awards ceremony manager?’
Lately, he’d been getting calls frequently from people in charge of the award ceremony. With the event approaching, they could call anytime to confirm details.
[Kim Chi-Seung - Kimchi Warrior]
The caller turned out to be none other than Kimchi Warrior.
“Hmm?”
It was an unexpected call. If he wanted to talk to Sang-Hyeon, he would’ve called him directly.
‘Is it because Sang-Hyeon isn’t picking up?’
Ju-Hyeok curiously picked up.
“Hello?”
“Hi. This is Kim Chi-Seung, Kimchi Warrior.”
“Yes, I have your number.”
“Ah... right. You’re the manager, right?”
“Yes.”
“It’s not anything big... I just called to say thank you.”
“Should I pass the phone to Sang-Hyeon?”
“No, it’s okay. I’ll talk to Sang-Hyeon separately.”
‘Then why did you call me?’ Ju-Hyeok felt puzzled.
“I wanted to express my gratitude to the manager and editor.”
“Us?”
“Yes. The videos you posted helped increase my subscribers significantly... More than that... it made me feel good. Thank you. This is a first for me.”
An unknown warmth flooded in from Kim Chi-Seung’s trembling voice and the choked words he struggled to articulate.
“... Ah, yes. I'm really glad it went well for you. It’s been a great opportunity for us too since we landed a first place video.”
“Yes, thank you... Eh? First place?”
“Yes, it’s in the Politics and Society category. Still, it’s first place.”
“Oh, Politics and Society... Ah, so that's why there are so many of those people visiting...”
“What kind of people?”
“Oh, nothing. I'll tell you when we meet.”
“Ah, yes. Next time, let’s have a meal together.”
“Oh, no. Actually, I should be the one treating you... Haha. Really, thank you.”
With those simple words of gratitude, Kimchi Warrior ended the call.
Such things happened. Ju-Hyeok stared at the disconnected phone screen and freshly felt the impact of their videos and Almond’s stream.
Their videos could enrich someone else’s life. Whether it made them laugh, shed tears, or ease their loneliness.
Ju-Hyeok looked at the YouTube charts again with a slightly different perspective.
1. CutiePie From This World and Muffin, formerly from PartyShare, in a love triangle!?
That video was still in first place.
[Views: 920,000]
The gap had widened and jumped from the early 700,000s to 900,000. It had completely surpassed Almond's video, which was still at 800,000.
Was the gap really that big? TimeTrouble had ultimately taken first place.
Ju-Hyeok felt his stomach turn, but a thought suddenly struck him. Would TimeTrouble ever receive such a phone call in his life? Probably not, at least not regarding his videos. If he did get calls, it would most likely be from the police station.
‘Yeah. No matter how much you rake in views and money, a wrecker is just a wrecker.’
With that, Ju-Hyeok stopped scheming ideas and closed the window.
“Eh. Forget it.”
At that moment, Sang-Hyeon came out of the bathroom after taking a shower.
“What are you giving up on?”
“Nothing. It's nothing.”
Sang-Hyeon tilted his head in confusion and stood in front of the mirror. He picked up the hair dryer and began to vigorously dry his hair.
He thought to himself as he looked in the mirror, ‘Have I lost some muscle?’
His upper body seemed a bit softer. Since he started streaming, his muscle mass had noticeably reduced. He didn’t need to maintain his physique, but he felt a tinge of bitterness as his muscles slowly diminished.
‘Is it because I’m entering my thirties?’
They said things changed drastically when entering a new decade. Sang-Hyeon didn’t seem to be an exception.
‘The award ceremony is in two days...’
The ceremony was soon approaching and Sang-Hyeon was concerned about looking haggard.
‘Time really flies.’
His gaze drifted to the wall clock reflected in the mirror. It was time to go to the hospital.
“I’m going to get dressed now. You should get ready too.”
“Ah, okay.”
Ju-Hyeok and Sang-Hyeon went to their rooms to finish preparing before they left.
A corner of Ju-Hyeok's computer screen still showed the LIL Pro community. A particular post there continued to gain views and shares until it finally made it to Big Pro.
***
Ju-Hyeok, Ji-Ah, and Sang-Hyeon all sat in the car in their usual seating arrangement. Sang-Hyeon sat in the back seat and Ji-Ah sat in the passenger seat. The trio headed to the hospital to drop off Sang-Hyeon first.
Ji-Ah didn’t need to come along, but she and Ju-Hyeok had developed a taste for park dates near the hospital. At least, that was what Sang-Hyeon thought.
“By the way, what about the outfit for the award ceremony?” Ji-Ah asked and turned to Sang-Hyeon.
“Just wear a suit.”
“It's an award ceremony though.”
“... Hmm.”
Ju-Hyeok interjected from the side, “I know a place. Let's get something today for you and Ji-Ah. It won't take long.”
Ji-Ah looked at him quizzically, “... Why me?”
“You need to buy something to wear too Ji-Ah,” Ju-Hyeok said with a slight smile.
“These days, streamers don't operate individually. There are team awards too and editors are included.”
“... I'm hearing this for the first time. The award ceremony is the day after tomorrow.”
“Yeah. I heard about it yesterday.”
“?!”
“A sudden call came and informed me. They didn't even announce the nominees. They basically said to just tag along with the streamers and wait.”
Ji-Ah's face turned red with embarrassment. She was notoriously camera-shy.
“I, I probably won't win an award... Honestly, I'm just riding on Almond's coattails. There are too many good people out there. Even today's video didn’t make it to first place...”
Ji-Ah was typically quite confident, but now nervously rambled on.
“Second place is also impressive. You’re performing well as the ceremony approaches. Maybe you could win the Newcomer Editor Award or an Encouragement Award,” Ju-Hyeok blurted out without knowing if there was such an award.
“Ah... an Encouragement Award...”
Then, Almond spoke up in a slightly serious tone from the back seat.
“Hey.”
Their eyes turned to the rearview mirror as Almond brought his phone closer to the mirror.
“Apparently, I entered politics?”
Astoundingly, a post on the screen featured such a title.
[Breaking News: Almond Enters Politics]
With many likes and views, it was displayed prominently at the top of the LIL Pro community. A meme seemed to have taken hold and generated numerous related posts.
[Almond Runs for Office!]
[Almond as Prime Minister, Enters the Blue House Doggedly!]
[Breaking News: The King Appoints Almond as Heir Instead of Napoleon]
[Breaking News: Almond Establishes Provisional Government in Shanghai. Hope of Korea]
[Kimchi Warrior & Politics Warrior – The Fantastic Duo]
“What does this even mean?” Sang-Hyeon asked in bewilderment.
He didn't know what category his top video belonged in since he woke up late that day.
“Pfft!”
Ju-Hyeok and Ji-Ah were aware of the cause and burst into laughter, especially at Sang-Hyeon's perplexed expression.
“Hahahaha!”
After laughing for a while, they explained the situation to Sang-Hyeon. He also laughed at the absurdity.
“So that was it...”
A funny meme had taken over. They decided to think of it that way. They had no idea that it would have a real impact.
1. Why the World Bows Down Before Korea’s Archery
[Views: 1.283 million]
2. CutiePie From This World and Muffin, formerly from PartyShare, in a love triangle!?
[Views: 1.14 million]