Chapter 17: Turning Point (1)

“Five… million?”

Sang-Hyeon subconsciously shouted the total amount they earned from donations in one day. Do Jae-Muk’s tablet clearly showed 5,360,000 won.

Sang-Hyeon would’ve had to earn every incentive and bonus from his previous job to barely match what they made today. The streaming platform fees had already been deducted too.

“Do… do you usually make this much?

Acorn Jelly bitterly laughed and shook his head.

“No, this is also my first time earning this much.”

Acorn Jelly considered it an unusual occurrence. Typically, earning five hundred thousand won would be an excellent day for him.

Today, they earned five million won. He simply invited Sang-Hyeon and interviewed him. Plus, he made a small teaser video.

‘This is so much for the work I did.’

Of course, they had to split the earnings in half. The 2.5 million won was still a massive amount.

“If we split this evenly… it’s actually around 2.7 million per person.”

Sang-Hyeon and Ju-Hyeok blankly stared at each other.

‘This isn’t a dream, right?’

‘I don’t think so…’

The two needed a moment to accept what just happened.

“Thank you.”

They bowed and thanked Acorn Jelly.

“I should be thanking you guys. I usually celebrate if I get 500,000 won. I only average around 200,000 won when I stream.”

Ju-Hyeok's eyes shone and he perked up. He thought streams could only profit from donations.

“Then…is there a different way you earn money to sustain yourself?”

“Of course, it’s advertisements. Treevy gives me a base incentive based on my number of viewers. That’s kind of like my salary. There’s also…”

Na-Yeon chimed in and explained, “I also bring in third-party advertisers. The ads promote the games, but you should choose carefully because they can affect your image.”

“Ah…”

Ju-Hyeok didn’t take any notes, but committed the information to memory.

Acorn Jelly and Na-Yeon seemed to be in a good mood. Ju-Hyeok took advantage of this rare opportunity to ask more questions.

“What about ads that aren’t related to video games? Do you take them as well?”

“Yes, sometimes that’s a safer bet. Things like clothes, cameras, streaming equipment, computer, and capsules. Those are probably the main ones.”

“Ah…”

Ju-Hyeok took a mental note of everything again. He already possessed some background knowledge, so he quickly grasped these new ideas.

‘It’s similar to celebrities.’

Actors and singers earned money in a similar fashion. Their main income didn’t come from movies or album sales, but they became popular through those mediums.

The clothes and accessories they wore, the car they drove, and even the beverage they drank. Everything brought in money.

Those at the top of the streaming industry worked the same way.

“It’s kind of like celebrities.”

“Yeah, it’s basically being a celebrity. Isn’t that funny? Girl streamers who look like celebrities earn 90% of their money from donations. They don't even have to do celebrity-like things. On the other hand, people like him have to act like celebrities!"

Na-Yeon pointed at Do Jae-Muk’s face.

“

Sigh

, what’s wrong with this face? It looks funny! That’s the best resource in this industry!”

“It is funny. It’s baffling.”

They briefly engaged in amusing banter about each other's appearance before returning to Sang-Hyeon and Ju-Hyeok. They felt curious about what these rookies’ business model would be. Na-Yeon gave her input.

“

Hmm…

I think Sang-Hyeon can be a half-celebrity…” Na-Yeon shyly said and couldn’t even properly face Sang-Hyeon.

"Yeah, it would be a shame to not go with that style if even someone like Na-Yeon blushes and can't look at him." Acorn Jelly added with a laugh.

“But I want to be a video game streamer…”

Sang-Hyeon seemed surprisingly adamant about that. He just began enjoying games and streaming. He didn’t want to dip his toes into being a celebrity, which didn’t suit him.

“Oh, being a game streamer is a given. I’m just saying each individual has a different strategy.”

Acorn Jelly rephrased Na-Yeon’s words as if to convince Sang-Hyeon. “Someone like me usually earns revenue from the viewers and promoting other games. However, you can earn from more than just video games. Like the streamer Horn Ramen, who used to be a comic book author.”

Na-Yeon also added on. “Those streamers usually earn revenue from YouTube. Live streaming is like extra fanservice. Mostly for communicating with the fans.”

“Ah…”

Sang-Hyeon finally understood since he also knew Horn Ramen. Horn Ramen was a comic book author and streamer, but he often appeared on mainstream media like a celebrity. He could certainly be called a video game streamer since he mostly gamed on his live streams.

‘I guess it doesn’t sound that bad.’

There didn’t seem to be anything wrong with it. Listening to advice from experienced folks had been helpful.

“To put it simply, most streamers on the major scene focus on making content for YouTube whereas live streamers are more of a niche. Sang-Hyeon, you have the potential for the major scene.”

“I see. Thank you.”

“You need a skilled editor if you’re going to focus on YouTube. Like me.”

Na-Yeon posed and pointed at herself with her thumb. Then she blushed and turned away.

“...?”

“Yeah, sorry. She’s a bit weird. She’s good at editing though and is a manager too, which makes her a great partner. By the way, do you know how to edit, Ju-Hyeok?”

For the first time, Ju-Hyeok didn’t look so confident.

“Oh… no… I’ve never done it.”

Sang-Hyeon knew that Ju-Hyeok couldn’t sit in front of a computer and edit videos frame by frame.

“

Hmm…

Then you should find an editor. Your revenue isn’t too much yet, so take your time finding one.”

“Thank you so much for the advice.”

“It’s nothing.”

***

Sang-Hyeon and Ju-Hyeok left the studio after receiving advice for around an hour. The weather had turned chilly, but Na-Yeon and Jae-Muk still came out and shook their hands.

“Thank you so much for today.”

“Yeah, let’s do another fun stream next time!”

Acorn Jelly instinctively knew as they exchanged farewells in a good mood.

‘Next time, he’ll probably surpass me already.’

What Na-Yeon jokingly said earlier didn't sound like a joke to Jae-Muk. It contained some truth. Maybe that's why he reacted so sensitively.

‘What can you do? His talent is beyond reach.’

He didn’t even feel jealous because of the huge difference. He simply felt grateful to form a connection with Sang-Hyeon.

Vroom…

Jae-Muk pulled out his phone and looked at the community forums as Sang-Hyeon and Ju-Hyeok drove off into the distance.

“What the? What’s this?” he shouted out in astonishment.

— God is on his side.

The post praised Sang-Hyeon, but it didn’t even mention his talents.

No, maybe this could be considered talent too. His charm definitely counted.

‘Well… I guess looks are a talent as well.’

It might be the hardest area to have talent in. Jae-Muk bitterly smiled.

***

The

KAF?

community erupted into chaos.

[Whoever didn’t watch Acorn Jelly’s stream today wasted half their lives.]

[Almond is a GOD.]

[Perfect shot really exists!]

[The boss seriously died in one hit. Even the champion goblin!]

[The headshot was crazy.]

[That headshot from the high angle was actually insane.]

[I clipped the headshot.]

Previously, the forum mostly posted about the game with bits of Almond or other streamers. However, the entire forum only talked about Almond now.

— Who tf is Almond?

— Can you guys go talk about this somewhere else?

Some users still didn’t know Almond. However, the reaction to those individuals had completely changed.

— It’s your fault if you don’t know Almond dumbass.

— Do you live under a rock?

— It’s not our fault you don’t have any friends LOL

— He’s like that because he’s insecure.

Those who didn’t know Almond suffered for it.

A post with the clip of Almond’s headshot also spread to other popular communities. It made the top 10 list in the gaming community.

— Is Almond the savior of Kingdom Age?!

— It’s been a while since I’ve seen Kingdom Age in the top 10.

— Been a while my ass. Bet you didn’t even know about the game.

— I’ve never heard of it LOL

— Reviving a game in 5 days after starting… what a crazy talent…

Most comments overreacted, but spoke from a place of truth.

Kingdom Age?

posts had never reached the top 10 because everyone considered it a niche game.

— Woah, that was possible in the game?

— That’s crazy…

— Watch the montage that Acorn Jelly uploaded of him. It’s crazy.

The game didn’t have many players, but its difficulty was infamous. People acknowledged Sang-Hyeon’s talent because of the game's reputation.

— I refunded that game after two hours…

— Talent difference…

The game had defeated a large number of users, which made Almond’s presence even more impactful. Almond left a big impression on the biggest gaming community in the country.

Jae-Muk predicted all of this, but something else shocked him.

“Oppa, look at this.”

Na-Yeon showed him a video from a community with many active editors. The video game subsection had a new popular post.

[There’s a streamer named Almond and he’s so good-looking hehe. I edited this for fun. Have a look! His live streams are fun to watch too!]

It seemed like one of Almond’s fangirls. She made a montage of Almond’s super plays.

— Wow… the quality…

— You made this for fun? What do you do for a living???

— That’s actually crazy! Who’s Almond? He’s cute.

— Wow.

— Upload this on YouTube! It’s so good.

— What are you doing! Upload it now!

The montage she casually made looked like an action movie sequence. The cinematography resembled a high-budget film with how she edited the angles, motion, and speed of the arrows along with the sound effects and background music.

— Should I really upload it?

└

Yes yes yes! Definitely.

└

Now Now!

└

They’ll notice for sure if you upload it!

The video was uploaded to YouTube that night and trended in the video game category. It reached 100,000 views and the channel was called:

AlmondFanSeoJiAh.