episode_0159

“Seo, Sunbae! What are you talking about?!”

“Oh, no. It’s not that.”

“No, wait. This is unacceptable for mom. You two are both high school students, what’s going on?!”

I don’t know if my emotions got the best of me, but I ended up raising my voice.

“Mom, it’s not like that…”

“It’s not what?!”

“It’s not the situation you’re thinking of…!”

“What else could it be?!”

“Ah, this is all because of Sunbae!”

“Wha-what?! Ah, I-I’m sorry.”

“Sorry?! Did you do something to apologize for? Speak up. How far did you two go?!”

“Go where! Ugh, seriously!”

And so, a round of shouting and arguing ensued. Eventually, after they both calmed down, they were able to clear up the misunderstanding with an explanation from the boy from the upstairs apartment who revealed himself as Kim Dae-yoon.

“…That’s how it happened.”

“Ah, I see. I thought you two were in some big trouble.”

After hearing the whole story, a sense of relief washed over me, releasing the tension that had built up in my body.

“Phew, anyway. Your friend who knows a lot about internet broadcasts said that the situation is not that simple, right?”

“Yes… It may not lead to stalking or threats to safety right away, but ultimately, if you’re not going to show your face on the broadcast, it’s best to hide personal information as much as possible.”

“I see…”

“But, this… yesterday, your face was exposed, and my mother…”

“Call her ‘Ajumma.’”

“Ah, yes. Because Ajumma called out Dayoung’s name, now her real name is out there.”

“Ah, right. I see.”

“Well, usually, these things are quickly forgotten. Streamers make mistakes more than once or twice during broadcasts, and Dayoung has been good at hiding her identity.”

“Hmm… Anyway, there’s no way to fix it now, right?”

“For now, Dayoung’s response is important. Instead of making an announcement or a plea, it’s better to casually mention it on today’s broadcast. Making a big fuss is absolutely not allowed. It could lead to legal consequences. There are many people who will take it the wrong way.”

What a foolish thing to happen…?

“Ah, no matter what, there are so many weird people out there, right?”

This time, it was Dayoung, not Daeyoon, who responded with a serious expression.

“Mom. Sunbae is right. If you tell someone not to do something, they are more likely to do it, especially on the internet where such tendencies are amplified.”

That’s scary.

“Anyway, I’m a bit scared. So, could you help us out a bit? Speaking in a tone that conveys a sense of asking for help is the most convincing way to persuade trolls.”

“I see.”

“Well, now that I think about it, that makes sense.”

I didn’t know what they were talking about, so I just nodded in agreement, but Dayoung seemed to sense something and nodded with an impressed expression.

“And this is a request for you, Ajumma.”

“Sure, go ahead.”

“I think the ahjumma needs to stir up some controversy.”

Controversy…

“How should I do that?”

“You mentioned that the ahjumma has a YouTube channel.”

“Yeah, I did?”

“But honestly, from what I heard and felt from Doyoung, what you’re thinking might not be popular.”

“Huh? Why?”

“Well…”

As Daeyoon paused, he quickly scanned me from head to toe.

“Why would you choose to fight with a good weapon like a stone axe?”

“Huh?”

“Well… I’m not sure if I should say this to someone twice my age…”

Why is he being so cautious about what he’s trying to say? I urged Daeyoon to speak without hesitation.

And then…

“Honestly, there’s no way the ahjumma doesn’t know she’s incredibly beautiful. Yes, you’re extremely pretty. You must think so yourself, right?”

Of course, I know. But now I’m just unsure how to utilize that beauty. I felt like a caterpillar holding a diamond, no different from a pig wearing a pearl necklace.

If someone is model or celebrity-level pretty, so what? It’s about how to make that beauty more appealing, how to use other people’s gaze and psychology. I haven’t quite grasped that yet.

Using one’s appearance in the realm of consciousness probably amounts to less than 5%. Most of it starts with nature and blends into one’s identity, naturally perceived by others. Even if you try to change, it happens gradually, not by consciously saying, “I need to look like this!” If you can appear that way, it requires rigorous training.

So, people who have completed that appearance training, we call them models or celebrities.

So, in a way, my appearance can be considered incomplete.

Of course, that doesn’t mean it’s not shining on its own.

“Well… um. Hehe, it’s a bit embarrassing to hear such things from a kid all of a sudden.”

“Haha, I feel the same way. Anyway, that’s what I think. Not utilizing what you have is underestimating YouTube… no, the media.”

“Well, I don’t underestimate it…”

“No. The purpose of doing YouTube is too weak. It’s not urgent.”

“Does it have to be urgent?”

“The hottest streamer on the platform Doyoung is on said that. If you want to become popular through broadcasting, the first thing you need to do is to abandon yourself.”

“Oh, I’ve heard that before!”

Doyoung nodded in agreement with his statement.

“Abandon yourself. In other words, if you don’t have the urgency to abandon even your pride to become popular, it’s honestly difficult to become popular.”

“Well, I just share cooking recipes and stuff…”

“No! That won’t work. Do you know how many viewers Doyoung had at the end of his broadcast yesterday?”

“1, 10,000?”

“Ha… ahjumma. You can count on one hand the streamers in Korea who can attract 10,000 viewers on Twitch in any way.”

“What, what?!”

“Yesterday, Doyoung achieved that feat.”

“Huh?!”

Why are you so surprised, Doyoung?

“Of course, part of that is because you appeared on the broadcast, and both of your beauties are exceptional, but anyway, even if it’s a bubble, even if it collapses, the interest in Doyoung has already increased. So, you need to take it more seriously. Of course, as I mentioned earlier, it won’t happen immediately, but it’s a time for risk management.”

“Risk management?”

As far as I know, Doyoung hasn’t joined an MCN yet, right?”

“Oh, yes. Offers have come from various places, but…”

“If you check your email, there might be more, right?”

In response to his words, Dayoung turned on the computer and checked her email inbox.

“Oh, wow… There are a lot of advertising offers coming in. And… there are quite a few emails from MCN as well.”

“Even without hitting ten times the average viewership of 1,000, you’re already in the top 1% of streamers. How tempting must the prey be to hit ten times that.”

“Is that so?”

“That’s right.”

“But, as I glanced through, it seems like there are also many emails inquiring about your mother?”

I, too, was watching Dayoung check her emails, and to my surprise, all sorts of advertisements were flooding in, with over half of them containing the phrase ‘with your mother.’

“Is this… serious?”

Dayoung’s face turned pale as she asked.

“Well, getting advertisements and becoming famous is a good thing in itself for a broadcaster like you. If you start doing live broadcasts, your income will increase significantly. In a way, this could be considered a legitimate business…”

“I don’t like that.”

Dayoung seemed very active, but in unexpected situations, she tended to be passive. It seemed that exposing herself too much in front of the public was frightening for her. Of course, I also thought so, and I never wanted to encourage my daughter to live such a life.

“Well, in the end, it seems like we have no choice but to attract attention by using the ‘mom card.’”

“T-then…”

Dayoung looked at me with an anxious expression.

And then, I made a decision.

With the determination of a patriot sacrificing himself for his country, I nodded my head and firmly held Dayoung’s hand, saying,

“I will dedicate myself to this cause. So please, at least… protect our daughter.”

It didn’t matter what happened to me. As long as I could save Dayoung. After all, there was already a magazine photoshoot scheduled for one advertisement.

You can’t throw away a body once, can you?

I looked at Dayoung with that fiery determination, and it seemed like my feelings were conveyed to her as she hesitated to speak, as if choosing her words carefully.

“Well, then, I’ll try to lead as much as possible. You’ll have to follow my lead from now on. Understand?”

And with that, we embarked on a new journey together.