Chapter 23
Badump, badump—
Her heart was pounding hard. It felt as if someone were hitting her in the chest with a baseball bat. Un-hyang sat opposite Su-hyeok and looked into his eyes.
‘He looks just like him.’ She used to be a huge fan of Lee Su-hyeok, the legend of Blue Eyes, the all-time top player. Lee Su-hyeok, whom everyone had praised, had always been her idol.
Because of that, she remembered even the smallest details of Su-hyeok’s mask and the man beneath. The eyes faintly visible through the eye slits in the mask were different, but his black pupils and gaze closely resembled the Su-hyeok she knew.
‘It’s as if the original Lee Su-hyeok entered someone else’s body.’ Un-hyang’s eyes sparkled.
A voice came from behind the mask. “Is there more you’d like to say in greeting?”
Startled by Su-hyeok’s words, Un-hyang reflexively answered. “N-no! It’s over.”
“It’s over?”
“N-no. It isn’t over. It’s just that…” Un-hyang was flustered, seemingly at a loss for words.
It was almost as if a question mark floated above Su-hyeok’s head. Although the mask covered his face, it felt like he was asking, ‘You were the one who asked to meet. What is it? Are you messing with me?’
‘Oh, no, this is bad…’ She remembered what John Tail had said.
“The most important thing when first meeting with a client is to make sure they feel that you’re trustworthy. Got it? You should never appear clumsy. Understood?”
Most of the time, the company was in charge of two things: making sure things were convenient and maximizing profits. There were other tasks as well, but those were the main two.
For that, the company needed their streamers to trust them.
‘I screwed things up…’ She’d messed things up at the first meeting. She was so nervous that it wouldn’t be strange if he thought she was weird.
“Were you a fan of Lee Su-hyeok?” he asked.
Un-hyang’s conflicted mind instantly cleared. Lee Su-hyeok… His name always brought her peace of mind. She smiled and nodded vigorously before answering with certainty. “Yes!”
“I’m not the real Lee Su-hyeok, so you can relax. I’m also probably younger than you.”
“I’m also a fan of you! I watched yesterday’s stream from the start!”
“From the first viewer?”
“Yes!” Un-hyang, who’d been babbling until just a few moments prior, talked about the stream, from the first one-eyed bat hunt, which everyone thought was a coincidence, to passing through the Beginning’s Dungeon and killing Wolf Warrior Greg…
She didn’t even stutter once as she talked about how he’d finished the Lightning Trial.
‘Was she really the first viewer?’ The first one-eyed bat kill wasn’t a story that the community circulated much. How he’d stabbed the one-eyed bat flying toward him with a single strike had only been seen by four people.
“That’s amazing.” The person standing before him was probably his first viewer. It seemed that she truly was a fan of Lee Su-hyeok.
‘Thankfully, it seems that she likes me.’ From his first stream, he’d realized that more people liked him than he thought. That morning, he’d truly learned a coin had two sides. Isaac had been the complete opposite of Un-hyang.
‘For every person who likes me, there could be someone who hates me. It’s just that they don’t watch my streams.’ Though Isaac had been annoying, Su-hyeok was thankful for what he’d learned from him.
Although he felt unpleasant when he recalled it, it was something he had to remember. Isaac had taught the lesson to him in a way he wouldn’t forget.
“Right? It’s amazing, isn’t it? I thought it was fate,” Un-hyang said.
“So, is that why you came?”
“Yes. I asked the team leader. I really wanted to come,” Un-hyang said, her eyes shining. Her passion seemed genuine. If she were acting, it would be better for her to be an actress instead of a manager.
“Tell me what the conditions are.”
“First of all, as per Balhae’s basic conditions for new talents…” Un-hyang continued to talk as she opened her bag.
Su-hyeok cut her off. “There’s no need for explanations. Just show me the contract.”
Un-hyang handed him a stiff piece of paper. Instead of checking the detailed terms, he focused on the revenue sharing section.
“As for the streaming donation revenue, you can choose to split it 80-20 or keep it all for yourself,” Un-hyang explained.
“What’s the benefit of splitting it?” Su-hyeok asked.
“If you choose to keep all of it, the distribution of additional revenue from things like advertisements decreases. Such revenue is usually 70-30, but it will decrease to 60-40 if you take all of the donations.”
He had to decide whether to give up 20% of the donation revenue in exchange for increasing his advertising revenue or keep all the donation revenue and reduce the other.
Su-hyeok wasn’t sure how much the advertising revenue would be, but if he kept all the donation revenue, he wouldn’t lose anything. “How will the advertising aspect be handled?”
“We will take care of everything.” Un-hyang confidently patted her chest. “Advertising, events, and video production of streamed content. Our company’s role is to promote your brand and make as much revenue from you as possible.
“Then, my job is…?” Su-hyeok trailed off.
“You just need to stream diligently. In the case of skill-based streams like yours, you just have to keep taking trials.”
As Su-hyeok’s value increased and viewers poured in, his recognition would bring in advertisements. Handling such tasks and maximizing revenue was the company’s job.
Un-hyang had more to add. “Of course, we will also promote your stream. After all, the more viewers, the higher the advertising rates will be.”
“Do you usually offer such good deals?” Su-hyeok asked.
“You got the Lightning skill. Also, the team leader seems to think highly of you.”
In other words, the conditions were exceptional. She wasn’t sure what the team leader had talked about with Hawk Eye, but John Tail’s conditions for Su-hyeok had improved after he returned.
“What do you think?” she asked, giving him a nervous look. “Do you like them…?”
After reading the contract for a while, Su-hyeok looked at her. “Are all of Balhae’s managers like you?”
“Huh? What do you mean?” Un-hyang asked back, as if she didn’t understand.
Su-hyeok wasn’t sure if she really didn’t understand what he meant or not. “No, it’s nothing.” He shook his head and observed her suddenly tense expression.
‘Why is she working as a manager?’ Su-hyeok tilted his head in confusion. He wasn’t sure how far she’d progressed through the tower, but even though she looked clumsy, Un-hyang gave off the impression of a well-honed sword.
She had an unhideable aura. Since she didn’t seem to have any intention of hiding it, it stood out even more.
‘Has the standard of players these days risen this much?’ A manager from an entertainment company was at such a level? ‘Since people haven’t gone beyond the 9th floor, I thought they were still at a similar level…’
Not knowing why Un-hyang was in the company, he could only conclude that the average had risen.
‘I’ll have to do my best.’ Thus, a small misunderstanding was born inside Su-hyeok, and a contract with Balhae was established. “Please, take care of me.”
* * *
Reaper Scans
Translator – SCM
Proofreader – ilafy
Join our discord for updates on releases!!
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* * *
After that, Su-hyeok talked with Un-hyang for a while.
Most of the conversation was about streaming. As someone who still didn’t know much about the inner workings or revenue structure of the streaming industry, Su-hyeok couldn’t help but be curious.
“Revenue shares depend on the streamer’s character.”
“Mr. Bbak Su-hyeok? In his case, he gets most of his revenue from edited videos.”
“Advertisement rates differ for each streamer. They are mainly evaluated based on the number of subscribers, average viewers, recognition, and likability.”
“Before ending a stream, you must announce it in advance. If you suddenly go to sleep and only end the stream after waking, the viewers will be disappointed.”
“If you check the settings here…”
At first, Un-hyang seemed clumsy, but she answered Su-hyeok’s questions without hesitation regarding the inner workings of the streaming world and things he needed to pay attention to during streams.
Su-hyeok was able to learn many things from the meeting. “Thank you, that was very helpful.”
“You signed the contract, so it’s only natural for me to help as your manager.”
“My manager?” Su-hyeok asked, clearly puzzled.
Un-hyang reacted as if she’d forgotten to mention something. “Ah, didn’t I tell you? I’m your manager.”
“Is there such a thing?”
“Yes. If you have any questions or requests related to streaming, feel free to contact me anytime. I’ll also reach out if the company needs something.”
“That sounds good.” Only having one person he needed to keep in touch with was even better for Su-hyeok, and he nodded in agreement. He glanced over at the coffee that’d cooled during their conversation.
Since he was wearing a mask, he couldn’t eat or drink. The conversations was over, though, so he didn’t need to sit there any longer.
“Well then, Manager, please take good care of me from now on.”
“Are you going to start streaming right away?” Un-hyang asked.
“Yes, I’ve rested enough.” He felt restless. ‘I can’t fall behind my manager.’ As a streamer, Su-hyeok was aiming for a skill-oriented stream, but in terms of skill, his manager was better.
Leaving aside the symbolism of the Lightning skill, it would’ve been better for Un-hyang to be the one streaming. Not only did she have skills, but she also had the looks.
“Well, excuse me first,” he said, dismissing himself.
“Yes! I’m going to watch today’s stream too!” Un-hyang abruptly stood and said goodbye.
Su-hyeok nodded toward Un-hyang and left the cafe.
Thud—
“Cheong-ryang…” Un-hyang watched Su-hyeok leave the cafe and then slumped back into her seat. “I feel like I could die of happiness…”
* * *
An announcement appeared on Su-hyeok’s channel.
※ Announcement
: The stream will start in two hours.
Un-hyang had taught him how to post announcements, among other things. She’d told him to post announcements in advance so he could gather more viewers.
– Oh?? An announcement??
– There’s something big coming.
– There’s something big coming!!!!!
– He learned how to post announcements?
– └ Yeah, lol. Yesterday, he didn’t know anything.
– ‘I’m baby Su-hyeok~ I don’t know anything’!
– He beheaded the boss in the survival trial, so what’s next???
– Right? I’m also curious.
– I’m getting dizzy. Hurry up and start the stream~
The response was hotter than expected. Him having obtained the Lightning skill had gathered many people’s attention. On top of that, since he’d killed the giants’ leader, nobody knew how the trial would proceed.
Surely, they’d see something completely new. Would Su-hyeok continue, or would he stop there? Naturally, many people were curious.
“Maybe my value will increase even more after this stream.” Before he started streaming, Su-hyeok closed his eyes for a moment and calmed himself.
Badump—
For some reason, he felt more nervous than he’d felt in the trial.
‘I can do better than yesterday.’ Everyone was clumsy at first when trying something new; he was no different. Since it was his second attempt, though, he was confident he could do better.
Swoosh—
“Let’s go…” Su-hyeok opened his eyes and started his second stream along with the trial.
[‘Lee Su-hyeok’ has started streaming.]
____