Chapter 49

Chapter 49

 

—–CROW—– 

 

I enjoyed watching YouTube.

 

I liked mobile games, but tapping on a small screen, repeating the same actions, got boring. Plus, most top-ranked games were filled with microtransactions.

 

Sexy characters and questionably legal lolis in skimpy outfits sold for real money?

 

I understood. Game companies weren’t charities; they needed to make money and pay their employees.

 

How else would they survive?

 

Older mobile games didn’t tempt me to spend money on skins, but since last year, with the introduction of Live2D technology, many “whale” warriors started opening their wallets.

 

Live2D had been commercially available for four years, but the initial games using it had flopped. It was “Destiny’s Child,” a gacha game released last year, that made a big impact.

 

…I was getting a bit too serious about games. I’d talk more about that later.

 

Anyway, I liked mobile games, but I’d already played most of them in my past life, so they didn’t hold my interest.

 

Nostalgia was fun for a while, but it wore off after a few months.

 

We didn’t suck on our mothers’ breasts just because we had fond memories of it.

 

So, I preferred YouTube, with its endless stream of new videos.

 

The variety of styles, concepts, and personalities, even within similar themes, kept things fresh.

 

That’s why…

 

‘What the hell is this?’

 

* 1 Million Won Prize! Epic Hongdae Martial Arts Tournament!

 

Views: 2,500,000

 

A video with a striking thumbnail and an insane view count, featuring a familiar YouTuber, had invaded my algorithm.

 

I knew he was a YouTuber, but I thought he was a small-timer, someone only a few people knew.  How did his video end up terrorizing my algorithm?

 

Seriously, this was ridiculous.

 

I was the star of a 2.5 million view video?  Shit.  It was funny, but also terrifying to see this pop up on my phone in the classroom before morning classes on Monday. Couldn’t he have given me a heads-up?

 

The video, uploaded yesterday, hadn’t even been up for 24 hours.

 

I was prepared for some level of fame. I was ready to embrace it.

 

I enjoyed being the center of attention, after all.

 

If I didn’t like attention, I wouldn’t be unbuttoning my shirt, wearing short skirts, or showing off my strength at the gym every weekend.

 

If you’re thinking, ‘What’s the difference between that and this video? Isn’t it good to be famous?’ then…you’re not a *good* attention seeker.

 

You’re just an attention whore.

 

Remember, there’s a difference.

 

Attention whores crave attention so desperately that they’ll do anything to get it, even if it means invading others’ privacy, lying, or ignoring everyone else.

 

But good attention seekers, like me, enjoy attention earned through effort or by showcasing their talents.

 

We appreciate even the smallest bit of attention and work hard to improve ourselves, unlike those third-rate braggarts and criminals.

 

“U-um, Yuna.”

 

“?? Yes?”

 

I was still reeling from my accidental fame when some girls who usually ignored me approached hesitantly.

 

“Um…is this you?”

 

“…”

 

Yes, it was me. Damn it.

 

The girl showed me her phone.  It was a freeze-frame of me in my coat, punching the machine so hard it lifted off the ground.

 

“I-it is you.”

 

“You’re so strong. Wow…”

 

I chuckled awkwardly and avoided answering. They’d seen through my act. They gasped, looking at me like I was some exotic animal in a zoo.  I’d gone from the “weird girl who runs around like a beast” to an actual beast.

 

Hey, could you not stare at me like that?

 

I was still human.  Being gawked at like an animal hurt, even me.

 

They continued to stare, keeping their distance like I was dangerous.  Even students from other classes came to watch.

 

‘…Should I just give them a warning?’

 

They weren’t seeing me as a person. I felt like Hong Gil-dong, unable to call his mother “mother.”  My dignity was crumbling.

 

Sigh, there was no other way.

 

I hadn’t done this since elementary school.

 

“Everyone, attention~!”

 

I’d tried this once in elementary school to make a strong impression, but I ended up with no friends, so I stopped. But it was the most effective way to teach them some “manners.”

 

I stood up, scanned the gawking students, and clapped my hands.  All eyes were on me.

 

With everyone’s attention, I pulled out a 500-won coin from my cardigan pocket and held it up high.

 

“I’ll show you a magic trick~ Ta-da!”

 

I pressed my thumb against the coin, and it bent in half~!

 

It wasn’t a complicated trick.

 

It was just brute force. Anyone could do it with enough strength!

 

“If you keep looking at me like that…you know what will happen, right? Hehe.”

 

“…”

 

“…”

 

The kids gulped, witnessing the coin bending in real-time. They’d learned their lesson. They looked down or quickly averted their gaze.

 

Hmm, hmm. This was effective.

 

I’d have to give up on making friends in middle school, but what choice did I have?

 

It was a small price to pay.

 

“Hey, show that coin-bending trick to the teachers.”

 

“Mr. Yong-chul!  Yuna will be sad if you tease her like that!”

 

“…”

 

Mr. Yong-chul teased me the moment I entered the teachers’ room to hand in the homework.

 

Ms. Da-young nudged him, seemingly trying to stop him, but…her lips were twitching, a huge grin on her face. They were both enjoying my humiliation and my magic show.

 

Sigh, calm down, calm down.

 

Even if I was embarrassed, they were my teachers, my elders.

 

Even if I was technically in my late 30s, almost 40, considering my past life, I was still a 15-year-old middle school girl in this life.  I couldn’t treat my teachers like I treated the four weirdos.

 

I couldn’t throw them around or give them a lemonade facial like I did to Big Buzz-cut when I was a kid.

 

Yes, laugh it off.  They weren’t making fun of me out of malice.

 

It was a form of affection. A sign of closeness.

 

So, I had to laugh along and play it cool.

 

“Oh, come on~  Why are you both like this~? How could I do that~?  I’ll bend you instead of the coin…ah.”

 

Oops, I let my true feelings slip.

 

“…”

 

“…Hiccup.”

 

I quickly covered my mouth, but the damage was done.  They both went silent, their eyes wide.

 

For anyone else, it would have been just a joke, an empty threat.

 

“I-it’s wrong to say things like that, right? Hehe. Oh, come on~  Why are you both like this~? It was a joke! I would never bend a person~”

 

“R-right?  You wouldn’t really bend me, would you, Yuna?”

 

“The gorilla who broke the punching machine and bent a coin could probably do it.”

 

“Okay, Mr. Yong-chul, stand up. Let’s see if I can do it.”

 

Ugh, if it weren’t for Yerin Unnie, I’d jab him in the ribs.

 

I puffed out my cheeks and glared at him. He just smirked and shrugged.  It was infuriating.

 

We were going to Ulleungdo together in a few days, so I couldn’t put him in the hospital.

 

“I’ll tell Yerin Unnie’s grandpa that you called me a gorilla.”

 

“What?!”

 

“I’ll tell Mom and Dad too.”

 

“…Can I make this go away if I beg?”

 

Hmph, that’s what you get for poking the gorilla…no, wait, the gorani.

 

I might let it slide, depending on how sincerely he begged.  Now kneel! Ahem!

 

—–CROW—– 

 

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