Chapter 46 of Season 1 of The Genius Archer's Streaming

16. Turning Adversity into Advantage (4)

This was something he had kept secret even from his former teammates with whom he used to practice archery.

It wasn't something he would casually talk about.

However, someone like Han Tae-ho wouldn't be one to blab.

He had staked his reputation on Sanghyun's word.

To share his story.

‘He’ll probably like it.’

It was the kind of content that adults would appreciate.

No, it was a story that most people would sympathize with.

That's why he had kept it hidden.

But Sanghyun opened his mouth.

* * *

‘He used to do archery…?’

Oh Sil-jang couldn't hide his surprise as he repeated Sanghyun's words to himself.

His large eyes soon turned to Han Tae-ho.

‘This is…’

What kind of games do middle-aged men who lead successful lives play?

They generally prefer static sports.

And they like hobbies that are a bit grand, something not everyone can easily follow.

They don't want to get involved with just anyone.

‘This is impressive.’

Games like billiards or Go are not considered, as anyone can easily play them.

So, most of them play golf, a sport that requires a significant amount of money and time to play.

However, even golf has become quite popular lately, and it seems like everyone is playing it.

Therefore, some upper-class individuals with unique tastes look elsewhere.

One of those is ‘archery.’

Han Tae-ho had recently shifted his interest from golf to archery.

‘He hit the mark.’

From Oh Sil-jang's perspective, Han Tae-ho seemed to like Sanghyun. No, he might have already surpassed the level of liking. It looked like he might even set up another meeting.

"Archery… I didn't expect that."

Han Tae-ho answered without much visible emotion, but Oh Sil-jang could see through it.

He was already showing a great deal of interest.

"Why did you quit?"

"I had to quit due to an injury."

Sanghyun's words reminded Han Tae-ho of the oddity he had noticed in Sanghyun's right hand when they shook.

"Ah… Was that your right hand? It trembled a bit when we shook hands."

"Yes."

"That's too bad. What happened?"

"It was an accident on my way back from winning a gold medal at the national championships."

"…Really?"

‘That’s like a world champion, isn’t it?’ Han Tae-ho looked at Oh Sil-jang, who nodded enthusiastically.

"That's right. Sanghyun, that's really unfortunate. How old were you then?"

"19 years old."

"19? In years?"

"No, 17 in years."

Han Tae-ho and Oh Sil-jang looked at each other in surprise.

‘Is this a record?’

Even a layman would recognize this as an incredible record.

"I didn't give up right away. I held on secretly until I was 22."

"Ah…"

He dragged it out for three years without giving up. At this point, both Oh Sil-jang and Han Tae-ho's expressions turned somber.

"I couldn't overcome it. So, with the help of my coach, I got a job, and that's how I ended up at Aseong Industries. It wasn't because of my skills."

"…"

"Of course, there were issues because I was in a position that didn't suit me. Around that time, I became interested in virtual reality games. There, I could—"

"Your right hand works properly there, right?"

Han Tae-ho couldn't help but interrupt Sanghyun, too engrossed in the story.

Sanghyun nodded.

"Yes… I could shoot properly there. I was captivated by it. Since I needed to earn money, I thought about becoming a streamer."

"But why did you start playing games only then?"

"Before that, I didn't really think about it. I was focused on my job. My grandmother was still alive, so I didn't have the luxury to dwell on my past in archery. Even if I had known my right hand would work properly in virtual reality, I probably wouldn't have cared much about it back then."

"…I see…"

If this had been a job interview, it would have been a pass.

Sanghyun felt that way.

Han Tae-ho's expression made it seem like he had become Sanghyun himself.

"Life doesn't go as planned."

Clunk.

Han Tae-ho poured a drink into Sanghyun's glass and said,

"It's a bit of a cliché, but that's what makes it interesting. If everything went as planned, it might have been even worse. I was a pathetic guy who just wanted to be a freeloader. If I had achieved that, I would have been a fool."

Han Tae-ho looked up, recalling his youth.

"Fortunately, the world didn't let me stay that way. A man has responsibilities if he wants to have a family. Thanks to that, I like my life now. Freeloaders can't even eat sushi at Touji."

Ha ha ha. He laughed more, took a bite of sushi, and savored it.

"You'll do well, too."

"Yes, thank you."

Sanghyun politely raised his glass and drank.

"Originally, the more you carry, the stronger you become. It's not that you get stronger by carrying; you become strong at the moment you carry it. It's amazing how it works."

"Right, right. Sanghyun, you'll definitely do well. You said you started a new game, right? Ah! That's right. But—"

Oh Sil-jang suddenly stopped, as if he had just thought of something.

‘This was the time to bring it up…’

The topic Sanghyun wanted to discuss paused. He had planned to talk about Battle Ledge when asked if the new game was going well.

But what Oh Sil-jang brought up was even more precious.

"Do you know what this is?"

"…?"

He showed a graph on the pad he pulled out. It was a steep upward curve, the kind you'd wish your stock would follow.

"Kingdom sales."

"!"

"Look at these reviews."

Oh Sil-jang scrolled down to show the purchase reviews.

- Bought it after watching Almond's stream~

- Watched Almond's stream. This game is really well-made.

- The knight ending with Emilia was touching. But I came to buy it to choose Rosalita.

- Can a first-time player do as well as Almond? If not, I'll ask for a refund~~

- Wow, cheaper than I thought. High quality. But please add more bow types.

- A game that lets you feel the romance of a medieval mercenary. Of course, only if you can do as well as Almond.

- Bought it after watching Almond's medieval war scene. It's really well-made. Of course, the fact that it's made so difficult that most people can't even feel the war is really frustrating.

…Most of them were about Almond.

It seemed like they had been edited to show only those comments.

"Thanks to this, we now have a strong say in the developer."

Han Tae-ho, who had seen the graph, was also surprised.

"No, did you have this, Oh Sil-jang? That's amazing. For a distributor, whether the promotion works or not is very important…"

"Of course, the graph might be a bit exaggerated. The previous sales were so low. But looking at the timing of the increase and the reviews, the cause is clear."

Han Tae-ho's gaze turned to Sanghyun.

The cause was undoubtedly Almond.

Almond, the partner streamer of Punk.

"You're impressive, aren't you?"

"Thank you."

"No, really. With this, what I said earlier wasn't just talk. You will succeed."

Ha ha…

Sanghyun gave an awkward smile.

‘Is it really that effective?’

He didn't even know about such data.

It was surprising. The sales had increased so much.

Oh Sil-jang continued.

"Clearly, you have star potential."

"That's right. There's a distinct charm in the person."

They now talked about the graph without mentioning Sanghyun.

"I was going to report this tomorrow, but I decided to tell Sanghyun today as well."

"Good job."

"Ah… But Sanghyun, you won't be playing this game anymore."

"Eh? Is that so? Well… you can't keep playing a package game."

Han Tae-ho's gaze returned to Sanghyun.

"What's your next game?"

It was the moment he had been waiting for.

Sanghyun calmly and clearly answered.

"Battle Ledge."

"Oh. My son plays that a lot. It's mainly for people in their 20s and 30s, right?"

"Yes."

"Is it going well?"

"That's…"

The door was open, and now he just needed to shoot.

"There were some issues."

* * *

The next day.

As soon as he arrived at work, Kim Gi-yeol was called.

‘Damn. What is it?’

Given the recent events that had been bothering him, he had a bad feeling from the moment he was called.

"Manager, did you call me?"

Moreover, he was called to the manager's office.

The section chief was also there.

"Sit down."

The manager's voice already gave it away.

‘Ah. I’m done for.’

It was clear that something he had done before had come to light.

‘I deleted all the community posts. Did it leak out?’

Still, it was fortunate that it was the manager who found out. The manager would try to cover it up.

Users would soon forget about it.

It would just be a scolding and nothing more.

It was a bad situation, but it was different from direct disciplinary action.

"Did you know where I went this morning?"

"?"

Kim Gi-yeol was momentarily stunned by the question.

‘Where did he go…?’

Only those above the manager could call him.

‘He didn’t receive a report… he received an order.’

Kim Gi-yeol thought the manager had found out through a report from one of his subordinates, as that was the usual route.

But the manager pointed up with his finger.

It meant the order came from above, not a report from below.

"From the executive office."

"!"

"The executive heard something strange."

The section chief just bowed his head with a grim expression, and Kim Gi-yeol's body trembled.

He had no time to think about where to look.

Cold sweat dripped down his face.

"Do you know who Almond is?"

Straight to the point.

No one answered.

"Do you know who Almond is? If I have to ask again, you're all done for."

Thud.

His heart sank as if it had dropped to the floor. It was rare for the manager to use such harsh words.

Crunch.

The section chief, sitting next to him, stepped on Kim Gi-yeol's foot with his hard shoe. The scream of pain was his answer.

"…Yes. I know who he is."

"Hmm. You know?"

The manager glared at Kim Gi-yeol, his eyes cold enough to bury a person.

"I won't make a fuss. I'm going to leave anyway."

"!?"

Kim Gi-yeol's eyes widened.

"Why are you surprised? Why should I get angry at someone who's going to leave? I only get angry at those who can be fixed."

"But… this, this isn't—"

Bang!

The manager slammed his desk, cutting off the words.

"Do you know where the executive received the call from?"

"…"

"You don't know? That's why you think this isn't a big deal?"

The manager showed his flexible pad.

At the top, it read, and below, a list of partner streamers' profiles was displayed.

"You couldn't even find this basic information with a few taps, and you tried to cover up your mistake?"

"…!"

Among the list of partner streamers, a familiar name caught his eye.

How could this be…

Kim Gi-yeol clamped his mouth shut.

‘He only had a few thousand viewers…’

He couldn't believe