Season 2: Chapter 91. A New and Familiar Encounter (4)

Almond received an apology and a reward from the game company.

— A gift set??

— I wonder what they’ll give him LOL

— Good to see them quickly taking responsibility

"... That's great. They’ll even send a gift," Almond nodded and acknowledged everything while feeling that something was off. "It feels like they're treating me very differently."

The perceptive Almond realized that the company’s attitude had significantly changed.

"Is it because I'm a streamer?"

He initially thought it was because of his streamer status. Perhaps they were giving him special treatment, which could lead to issues later on.

However, that was an unnecessary worry. In reality, it was because of the national competition. The national team had marked Almond, so the company couldn't treat him casually anymore.

One would spot such comments if they looked closely at the chat.

— These guys are just pandering because he's a world-class streamer. It's because he might participate in the national competition.

— The national competition is huge in this game.

— If they had been this servile just for his fame, this game wouldn't have been in such a state LOL.

Almond finally understood after reading such comments.

"They’re doing this because of my potential participation in the national competition?"

He found it hard to accept even after figuring out the reason because he wasn’t a part of the national team yet. Just the fact that the national team wanted him was enough for such a change in attitude. He had never seen such treatment in a game before.

"What's so special about the national competition?"

What did the national competition mean in this game to warrant such treatment?

"Well, at least it's this and not just because of fame."

Almond felt relieved. It wasn't because of his fame, but because they acknowledged his skills in the game. It was still fair treatment.

He felt more at ease and announced to the viewers, "Great. I'll do an unboxing when the gift arrives. And that's it for today's game."

— ???

— Are you kidding?

— You’ve gathered enough content for now, huh? Let's see...

— Goodbye then.

— Don't go!!

Almond had only played three games after starting the stream, but he decided to end it there. He had already gathered enough content for his YouTube channel. In fact, he had gathered too much.

[Ji-Ah: We have enough footage for dozens of videos... That's enough...]

Ji-Ah even messaged him to stop.

— Oh no...

— He's leaving after making a legendary move?

— Got enough content for YouTube and now he's off LOL

— YouTube chart domination incoming~

— Goodbye...

Almond’s stream on Treevy ended like that.

"Goodbye!"

The number of viewers gradually decreased to zero, but the real game was only just beginning. Immediately after the stream ended, public perception of Almond continued to rise.

— Almond is truly remarkable.

— From today on, I'm a fan of Almond.

— Proud to be a fan of Almond. He did great!

Was it because this controversy proved once again that his skills were genuine? No, everyone already knew his skills were genuine. It was his demeanor during the controversy that led to the surge in his reputation.

Throughout the controversy, Almond never showed displeasure to his viewers or appeared emotionally shaken.

— This is what a true man looks like.

— He proved himself with his bow without a single complaint. Legend.

— How does Almond never falter?

Did Almond never worry? Didn't his heart race with anxiety?

No, he definitely worried. His heart probably felt like shrinking, but he never let it show like those times when he had to shoot a single arrow that carried four years of effort in front of a vast audience. He always overcame it.

This attitude impressed his viewers. It was truly a winner's approach. Thanks to this, Almond had truly won in this game. He didn’t just win a round in

Civil Empire

, but he won against the entire controversy that surrounded him.

Almond was not only cleared of the accusations, but he also received a sincere apology and managed to showcase his true skills.

Maybe that was why? There were even signs that he would receive advertising offers from the game company.

— The smell of money~

— Wow, Almond is going to do ads too?

— A blessing in disguise

— Excited to see what scenario the naysayers will come up with next LOL

People speculated that the last words left by the general manager, "If there's a chance, I would like to meet and apologize in person...," hinted at a potential advertisement offer.

It wasn't a totally wrong guess. Usually, this was the best way for game companies to resolve such incidents.

If Almond did end up doing ads for them, it would mean he gained a lot from this controversy. He was on a roll. And it wasn't just Almond's reputation that was on a roll.

Videos with peculiar titles began appearing in the gaming category rankings on YouTube.

[The Joseon bow that took down talents from countries around the world!]

[Even a Japanese said he would die instead of the Korean master!?]

[Finally, Japan admits it too! “Damn, I trusted you!”]

***

Ji-Ah watched the monitor in amazement.

"... Wow, this is really catching on."

#Trending video 58th

#Trending video 86th

#Trending video 41st

Three videos simultaneously entered the rankings. It had been a while since she had a triple hit like this except for the time when she was doing the tournament performance.

"This will take the top spot in a while."

The rankings weren’t that high yet, but she uploaded them less than five hours ago. The view counts hadn't fully accumulated yet.

After half a day, the rankings would likely rise sharply due to the view count.

"As expected, this one has the best response."

Among them, the video where Whiskey declared that he would die instead of Almond received the best response.

Ji-Ah had put a lot of effort into this video. She clicked it again in satisfaction and laughed as she watched it.

[Even a Japanese said he would die instead of the Korean master!?]

Whiskey, the video's protagonist, could have been the main character instead.

— Come on, why are all these titles so good? LOL

— I came here to criticize the ridiculous title, but now I apologize.

— Nani-san LOL What madness LOL

— Nani-san LOL Honorable Japanese indeed LOL

Ji-Ah edited the video from the scene when Whiskey suggested his strategy.

Whiskey spoke with a grave look with black bars at the top and bottom of the screen like in a war movie, "I have a good idea."

She even tweaked the audio to make it sound like a movie recording. It almost seemed too serious...

"I will die instead. You’re needed here."

Whiskey's visuals were too adorable for such a grave movie and brought out laughter. That was the selling point.

— Just looking at his face triggers laughter LOL

— Seeing the shadow warrior in real life...

— Really, a Japanese agrees to die instead, LOL.

Then, the climax arrived. This was the highlight.

Paaang!

All the enemy arrows flew toward Whiskey. It was an unrealistic number of arrows like in an old Hong Kong martial arts movie.

The dense arrows completely obscured the blue sky.

Pffft!

Blood spurted out from Whiskey's chest. He slowly fell with the sun backlighting him as if he received a bouquet and was doing a final bow.

— Nani-san... just a light...

— Nani-san... We will remember you!!

— Call out Nani to pay respect.

└ Nani!?

└ Nani!

└ Nani?!

Whiskey died an impressive death. Tributes to Nani-san filled the chat.

Ji-Ah chuckled once more and found the comments amusing.

"They're having fun, but the next popular video also features Nani-san..."

The next trending video also featured Whiskey, also known as Nani-san.

[Finally, even Japan admits it! “Damn, I trusted you!”]

The video captured Whiskey running toward Almond, who was returning from the victorious battle, and shouting.

“Damn! Almond-sama! I trusted you!”

— Whiskey revives like a dog and rushes like one LOL

— How many of these are there??

— Is this the World Cup or what?

— Geez, editor! I trusted you! LOL, so funny LOL

"Cute."

Ji-Ah playfully winked at the viewer who mentioned her, added a comment, and didn’t forget to leave a heart.

"National pride really pays off. It's a good sell," Ji-Ah murmured to herself as she watched the video rankings rise.

She left her desk with a satisfied smile and planned to make up for the meals she skipped. It seemed like it was time for some late-night food.

"... I'm going to gain weight."

Her hand reached for the pantry shelf even as she worried about gaining weight.

***

Videos with titles that seemed like nonsense, but all of which were true, gained even more attention the next day.

[The Joseon bow that defeated talents from various countries!]

[A Korean master so respected that even a Japanese was willing to die for him!?]

[Finally, even Japan admits it! “Damn, I trusted you!”]

The rankings of these videos shot up.

#Trending Video 18th

#Trending Video 36th

#Trending Video 11th

This happened around the transition from morning to lunchtime.

"Wow, they're really growing."

Ji-Ah sipped her milk straight from the carton and checked the rankings with disheveled hair.

"I might need to put some effort into today's fan meeting."

They had scheduled Almond's fan meeting for 5 P.M. today. Of course, Ji-Ah would participate. She planned to take the day off from editing, assist them as a guide, and introduce herself as the editor during the last part of the meeting. The higher the videos ranked, the more confident she felt.

"Sigh."

She checked the location of the fan meeting once more and let out an unnecessary sigh.

'What was it? Was he working at Great Planning?'

An unpleasant face came to mind.

Great Planning's office was located near Ah-Sung’s building. The distance was too ambiguous to be considered close. Still, it bothered her.

[Missed Calls x14]

She hadn't checked her missed calls for weeks.

'Forget it. Let him see it.'

Ji-Ah tried to shake it off and prepared to take a shower. What was the harm in meeting? Instead, she would show her best side today. It would be gratifying and sweet to show off.

Crush.

Ji-Ah crumpled the empty milk carton.

"Let's take a shower."

Shhhh...

The water washed over her as she stood motionless for a moment.

***

On a Friday evening, the lights began to go out in a building that stood out among the modern skyscrapers. It was the Ah-Sung building.

"Yay! We’re leaving on time on Friday~ Good work everyone~"

"See you tomorrow~"

In this place with incessant overtime, people were leaving at the proper time for once. It seemed like work went well.

"Hey, Soo-Jin. Want to grab a beer?"

"

Ah...

Sure?!"

"Boss, how about you?"

"Can I join? I'm up for it."

The employees who rarely left on time decided to enjoy their Friday by having some chicken and beer in the square. They planned on going to the most famous chicken place around.

The workers chatted and laughed about the new boss's complaints.

"Seriously, the substitute is worse, huh?"

"People make the position."

"

Hah~

Boss, you might become like that too."

"You guys will be managers by then, so you'll be quite the grumpy old men."

"Hahaha!"

"But sometimes, I miss Ju-Hyeok. No one did the job better than him."

"Only Ju-Hyeok? What about the one who left earlier?"

"That guy?

Meh

, not so much."

"Harsh, but he was a bit slow."

"What's with the line...?"

A tremendously long queue awaited them. It was a famous place, but not a spectacular Michelin star restaurant. It was just a popular chicken and beer place in the office district.

Moreover, they never had to wait after rushing over from work since this was an office district and the place could accommodate nearly one hundred fifty people at once.

"

Huh...

What's going on today? Are they giving it out for free?"

"I'm not sure. Seems like some event."

An employee read the banner, "

Ah...

Almond’s... fan meeting?"