Chapter 34

The Streaming Season 1, Chapter 34

13. The Knight (2)

"Hello, this is Almond."

The video begins with Yoo Sang-hyun, dressed neatly, sitting against a sophisticated black brick wall. On one side of the wall, the logo of the game distributor 'Punk' is prominently displayed.

"I've just opened an OlTube channel and become a partner streamer for Punk."

Although there had been a news article about it, this was the first time Sang-hyun officially announced it himself.

After the video was uploaded, posts with titles like these started spreading across the community in real-time:

- What? Almond's streaming?

- He's not streaming?

└ He made an OlTube channel!

└ Ah, got it.

Thanks to this, Almond's OlTube channel, which had no prior promotion, began to gain attention.

Word of mouth is the strongest marketing tool, they say.

Existing Almond fans flocked to the OlTube channel, and within 5 minutes of the video being uploaded, it had already surpassed 5,000 views.

For a new streamer, getting this many views on a video that only contains a greeting is quite unusual.

"By the way, today, edited versions of the game videos I've done so far will be uploaded to this channel. The Mad Movie video, which was a hot topic before, will also be remastered and uploaded, so please look forward to it."

The video ended with Almond's closing remarks.

- No live stream today?

- Seems not.

- Videos are just being uploaded!

At the same time, the videos began to be uploaded.

These were the condensed versions of Almond's broadcasts that Seo Ji-a had been editing.

Three videos were uploaded as a preview.

Considering that they were edited in just two days, the amount of work was enormous. According to Seo Ji-a, she had been preparing them in advance, imagining herself as Almond's editor.

Joo Hyuk tilted his head in confusion.

"Wait, so when we were negotiating, you were just acting like you didn't want to do it?"

Sang-hyun, as always, showed no particular interest.

"Um... I guess."

"It would have been nice if Ji-a had come to the after-work drinks today."

"After-work drinks? It's just an awkward situation for us two to join you and your friend drinking."

"True, that's right."

Joo Hyuk called it a cohabitation and partner streamer celebration, but in reality, it was just a drinking session with a friend during his vacation.

"Damn, let's drink!"

Clank.

The two clinked their beer glasses together and gulped down the beer.

Crunch.

Sang-hyun, biting into a golden fried chicken leg, asked:

"So... why did you leave home? Tell me."

"Ah, I was analyzing the viewer demographics yesterday when my father suddenly came in and said... what?"

He stopped mid-sentence and looked at the entrance of the bar.

Sang-hyun's head turned in the same direction.

'That's... '

Familiar silhouettes appeared. He didn't think they would come in here.

Joo Hyuk and Sang-hyun had chosen this chicken place because it was the best in the area near their company.

So it wasn't strange to run into them.

"Damn, what the hell. Hey, don't look."

"Damn, why are they here?"

"This place has the best food."

The two whispered curses to each other and turned their heads.

They really didn't want to run into their former colleagues here.

However...

"Hey?! Kim Daeri, Yoo Daeri?"

A high, pure voice rang out. It was So Yoo-jeong, a girl whose head was full of flowers.

In other words, she was clueless.

"Wow! Really nice to see you! What's up with you guys!?"

Her commotion made the others notice Joo Hyuk and Sang-hyun.

"What? Kim Joo-hyuk?"

Even the person who shouldn't have noticed did.

It was the section chief, Park, who had a big fight with Joo Hyuk and advised Sang-hyun to quit.

"What are you guys doing here? Did you transfer nearby?"

Park's expression was peculiar.

A strange mix of hatred and joy.

The joy was of a different kind.

'Joo-hyuk, that guy. I spread the word everywhere, so did he transfer?'

He was happy to find out how well his gossip had spread.

"Ha... Ha. How have you been?"

Joo Hyuk scratched his head and greeted them.

Sang-hyun, however, kept his head turned.

"Hey, where did you go after you left?"

"..."

Joo Hyuk couldn't answer Park's question.

'I became Yoo Sang-hyun's manager!'

He couldn't say that here, knowing how it would be perceived.

"Is he an ostrich? And you think I'll disappear if you turn your head? Hahaha!"

Park burst into a victorious laugh. From the looks of Joo Hyuk and Sang-hyun's reactions, it was clear they were in a bad spot.

"Even if we were on good terms, what's this?"

Sang-hyun turned his head and faced Park.

"What?"

Park asked, as if issuing a threat, but Sang-hyun looked him straight in the eye and repeated:

"We're not on good terms, are we?"

"!"

The faces of the employees near Park turned pale.

'What, what?'

'Why is he like that?'

'He's always a bit strange.'

'For a parachutist.'

The employees whispered, as if they were meant to be overheard.

Park smiled, showing all his teeth.

'He's a low-level guy for showing such aggression.'

No matter how much he had quit, such behavior is not easily tolerated in society. The key to social life is to turn the social evaluation in your favor.

Even if Park disliked them and had no connection with them anymore, such behavior was not acceptable.

"Look at this."

He started pointing at Sang-hyun.

"You're out of society because of this. You don't understand at all, do you? How things work. You, of all people. Even if we didn't get along, you should just coolly accept a greeting in such a situation."

His lines flowed smoothly, as if he had memorized them.

This was not a situation he had encountered once or twice.

The section chief was, as always, skilled.

"Only you will be in a bad spot if you act like this."

However, Sang-hyun had also had some drinks. In a normal situation, he would have calmly let it go, but not now.

Moreover, he had no ties with Park anymore, so he had nothing to lose.

"Coolly accept a greeting?"

Sang-hyun took another sip of beer.

Joo Hyuk, surprised, whispered:

'Hey, what are you doing?'

Sang-hyun, without answering, just glared at the section chief. The tension was palpable.

Joo Hyuk's eyes darted around, trying to figure out how to defuse the situation, but Sang-hyun spoke first.

"Should I coolly accept it when you come to my table and ask where I transferred to, you damn prick? Try accepting it coolly yourself. Then."

Joo Hyuk felt cold sweat trickling down his back.

'Is he crazy?'

It was a sudden situation.

Sang-hyun suddenly stood up from his seat.

Thud.

From the way he stood, it was clear he wasn't just getting up to greet.

The section chief, eyes wide, took a step back.

"What, what are you...?"

At that moment, someone with a plump silhouette intervened.

"Ah, no way! Mr. Sang-hyun! I see you here?!"

It was Oh, the manager from Punk.

Despite the tense atmosphere, Oh approached Sang-hyun cheerfully, as if he didn't notice anything.

"Mr. Sang-hyun, the views on your video just uploaded are amazing? Our 'Punk headquarters executives' were very excited. They said my judgment was excellent."

"..."

Sang-hyun was speechless at the sudden encounter. He wasn't the only one.

Park was also stunned.

'Punk headquarters...? Executives?'

In an era where the entertainment business related to virtual reality games had become the top GDP share.

Even at Park's age, he knew what Punk was. Just as parents who didn't know idols knew SM, JYP, and YG.

Moreover, Punk was an internationally renowned game distributor.

No matter how big Aseong was, it was only a big company in Korea.

Compared to Punk's market capitalization, it was like a small shop.

'Why would such a giant company... with Yoo Sang-hyun?'

Now, an executive from such a place was treating Yoo Sang-hyun like a close friend, or even fawning over him.

"One of the executives wants to have dinner with Mr. Sang-hyun. There's an omakase restaurant nearby. I was just about to contact you to ask."

Meanwhile, Punk's employees joined them.

"Wow, it's Almond."

"Is that him?"

"Wow... he's really handsome in person."

"I should have seen him when he came to the company..."

Their attitude, as if they were meeting a celebrity, left Park bewildered.

What was going on here?

"Mr. Manager, my nephew wants a signature..."

One of them even asked Oh for Almond's signature.

"Ah, is that okay?"

"..., Yes, of course."

"Thanks. I want one too. After all, I have one in the partnership contract! Hahaha!"

His joke made the employees laugh boisterously. He skillfully managed the atmosphere, naturally making Park's group disappear from the scene.

'What, what is this? What is Yoo Sang-hyun? And a partnership contract?'

Park swallowed hard.

'What is this guy...?'

He felt a sense of injustice. The Yoo Sang-hyun he knew was just a nobody.

Some people said he had connections and was a parachutist, but Park didn't believe it.

'Could it be...? No, that's impossible.'

He knew something about Sang-hyun's situation.

'What's going on?'

It was confusing.

"..., Let's go."

So, he decided to leave the scene.

"?, What?"

"Let's go."

"But, we already ordered..."

"Ah, you brat! Can't you understand? Let's go!"

"..., I understand."

In the end, Park and the employees left the bar. As they left, So Yoo-jeong, still clueless, waved at Sang-hyun and Joo Hyuk, saying, "I'm glad for you!"

"Ha..."

Joo Hyuk and Sang-hyun exhaled in disbelief.

At that moment, Oh patted Sang-hyun's shoulder.

"I had a rough idea from your resume, but it seems things didn't go well. Well... sometimes you encounter such people."

Indeed, Oh knew the situation.

Sang-hyun bowed deeply.

"Thank you. You even lied for me..."

"Huh? What lie?"

"..., About the executives liking it, the views... and the executive wanting to have dinner..."

"Ahahaha. Caught? I exaggerated a bit. Those people are... "

Tap tap.

He showed his shiny business card.

"They're weak for name value. They lack substance."

"Thank you."

"Sure. Enjoy your meal. And... let me know when you're available for dinner with the executive."

"?, What?"

Sang-hyun looked puzzled.

"Are you joking?"

"?, Hahaha! No, that's serious."

"!?"

"It's only the part about the executives that was a lie. The rest is true. Didn't you check the views?"

Only then did Sang-hyun open the OlTube app and check his channel.

"!"

His eyes widened as he saw the view count.