episode_0005

“Internet broadcast?”

Everyone’s eyes widened at the unexpected term. Due to the age range present, there was even a teacher who asked what an internet broadcast was.

“If I were to explain it simply, think of it as something like NewTube…”

“Oh, right. It’s popular these days. Principal, do you remember what I said back then? About Mukbang?”

Surprisingly, a few people seemed familiar with it. Nowadays, people of all ages watch channels on their smartphones, so it’s not surprising.

“My younger sister’s daughter does that… They say it’s tough to break into the scene, but once you do, it’s really great.”

“Yes, yes.”

And here comes another coincidence…

Anyway, thanks to the explanation from the daughter of someone known to Principal Jung, things became much smoother.

“It seems there’s no one here opposed to it, surprisingly.”

“Have you heard anyone opposing it?”

At the Principal’s words, I was momentarily speechless, and a forced laugh escaped me.

“Give it your best shot. As long as Seoa doesn’t do anything wrong, I’ll always support her.”

“Yes. Thank you very much.”

“Thankful, huh? It’s in your eyes. It seems like you’ve returned now. Now you seem more like yourself.”

I’m different. There have been many changes, but it seems that some things haven’t changed.

***

A few days later, on the weekend. A big party was held at our orphanage. Anna pointed at the piled-up pizzas, chicken, and more, looking at me and Principal Jung.

“Wow! What’s all this?”

“Yeah, Seoa unni bought all this delicious food, saying she’ll rely on us again in the future.”

“Awesome!”

She raised both hands in a double thumbs-up gesture, learned from somewhere.

“Seoa unni, enjoy your meal.”

“Yes. Enjoy your meal.”

From kindergarteners to elementary, middle, and high school students. The orphanage isn’t large, so there aren’t many people, but that makes the bond among them stronger.

“Phew…”

It’s quite a task to distribute everything. But seeing the excited faces of the kids looking at the food, laughter naturally escapes me.

“There’s more, so those who want to eat more can go ahead and eat.”

“Seoa, you should eat too. You love this pizza, don’t you?”

As I sat down, Choi Yewon, who will be a third-year middle school student this year, approached me. She was so excited, showing me videos from the night channel on her smartphone.

[Night Night Season 123 Singing Contest) Master of the Night Emerges?! New Start (Original song: Tier)]

“Unni, have you seen this?! It already surpassed 3 million views in just three days. It’s increasing by a million each day.”

“Incredible…”

Comparing the overwhelming numbers to the views of the title track of the first album, which barely crossed a thousand views, seems pointless. Comments below catch my eye.

-“Wow, is this person really a singer?”

-“Yeah, they are. I heard they’re the vocalist of Scarlet Band.”

-“What’s that?”

-“I looked it up, and apparently they’ve already disbanded.”

-“Former rock band vocalist, wow.”

-“Hey, I think I saw this person at the university.”

Having spent nearly seven years in a band, only to receive recognition after disbanding. It’s a complex and subtle feeling.

“Unni! Isn’t this about to hit ten million views? Looking at a chart that keeps rising must feel like this.”

“That’s true.”

I’ve never tried stocks or coins, but it might feel similar to watching a chart that keeps going up.

“But did your grades drop again this time? What’s the implication…”

“Don’t be surprised. I ranked 160th out of 170 in the end-of-term evaluation.”

“That’s not bad. I remember being last out of 400 students when I was in middle school.”

“Oh, dead last! Not everyone can do that.”

“You were lucky.”

Another teacher who was eating pizza with us chimed in, “They’re boasting.”

My video uploaded on the BamBam channel has drawn everyone’s attention, with people approaching me to express how amazing it was. Anna is providing reactions without giving me a chance to react myself.

“Wow, that was truly amazing!”

“It was Seoa unnie singing, why are you acting so proud?”

“Well, because I heard it up close.”

Anna leans in towards Yeon’s ear and shouts loudly. No matter how much the world changes, pranks with kids remain the same as when I was young.

“Beep boop!”

“Ahh, you scared me!”

Then she hides next to me for safety and security. Quite a handful.

“Aren’t you coming here?!”

“Haha, calm down. You shouldn’t do that to Anna either, right?”

“Sorry~.”

After the lively party, it’s time for cleanup. Seeing the empty boxes once filled with pizza and chicken, a satisfied smile creeps onto my face. Maybe next time, I’ll cook instead of ordering delivery.

“I’ll help too.”

“Me too.”

Thanks to both teachers and students pitching in, the cleanup finishes quickly.

“Thank you all for helping out. Oh, I also brought this…”

The kids love gummy bears, a hit even among adults. Anna seems particularly fond of them, unable to take her eyes off.

“Wow, gummy bears! I haven’t had these in a while.”

“Since you worked hard, I’ll give each of you a bag.”

As everyone receives their gummy bear bags, those wanting to use their phones stay indoors, while kids eager to play rush out to the playground.

“Seoa unnie, come play with us.”

“Sure. I’ll join after sorting the recycling.”

As we tidy up the pizza boxes, the head teacher pats my back, impressed by my childcare skills.

“Your care for the kids is remarkable, Seoa.”

“They say three years at a village school makes you a poet. I’ve learned from you, Head Teacher. I’ll work even harder at the daycare in the future. If there’s singing or playing an instrument like the piano needed, I’ll do it.”

“Really?”

The puzzled expression questioning my sincerity isn’t unwarranted, considering my recent artistic pursuits.

“Yes. There are many children’s songs. It’s not a big deal to sing them.”

“Okay. Thank you.”

But why does this feel awkward and embarrassing? I need to get away from this situation quickly.

“I’ll go play with the kids.”

“I’ll come too.”

“No, have a coffee and come back.”

I dash off to the daycare playground where the kids are gathered.

***

That night, various packages arrive in front of my room, resembling a storage shed beside the daycare center.

“They’ve finally arrived…”

From broadcasting equipment to computer parts, it’s time to upgrade everything. Besides streaming, I can now run music production software at its highest capacity. I eagerly unpack and start assembling the computer.

Wiping the sweat off my forehead, I power on the completed computer. Although I think I did everything correctly, I anxiously watch for any issues.

Ding!

Thankfully, it starts up without any problems. I’ve also studied a bit about computers while setting up music production software, microphone settings, and instrument playing.

Now, should I start internet broadcasting?

As Teacher Jung mentioned in the morning, climbing the ladder of internet broadcasting is truly challenging. Nowadays, there are more broadcasters than viewers, as exaggerated as it may sound.

Checking various streaming sites reveals numerous people broadcasting with 2D and 3D characters.

YouTubers…

Virtual streamers commonly known as YouTubers. Lately, news about them has been circulating. They become virtual characters and broadcast music and more.

Although it seems unrelated to me, there was a connection. Was it when I coincidentally went to work a session job to earn money?

A character appeared on the screen, singing and dancing, while I quietly played music backstage. The staff were kind, and it remains a pleasant memory in my mind. The song was good back then, so I looked it up a few times afterward on internet broadcasts and channels.

These days, the YouTuber market has grown significantly, sometimes surpassing regular streamers. It seems that even companies are getting into YouTubing, from a corporate perspective.

If I were to join a company that supports music production, wouldn’t it make creating songs easier in the future? Corporate YouTubers should also consider this. It’s best to think broadly and without bias.

But diving headfirst isn’t like me.

Let’s just start.

Is the camera working well?

Is the sound coming through?

Just turning on the broadcast is enough? What would be a good broadcast title?

[Broadcast Title: Hello. Nice to meet you.]

[Streamer Kwon Seo-ah]

Is the title too bland, even the streamer name? No matter, let’s give it a try.

[The broadcast has started.]

“Ah, hello?”

An empty greeting filled the room and disappeared. So, 1 minute, 2 minutes… Despite some time passing, the viewer count showed no signs of moving from zero.

[Viewer Count: 0 viewers.]

I expected it, but seeing it is different. One fortunate aspect is that, having run an unpopular band, I’ve experienced similar situations before. Therefore, I could proceed smoothly despite having no viewers.

During this, my first chat message in my broadcasting life popped up. What kind of message could it be? How should I react? These thoughts crossed my mind as I checked the chat box.

[Macro Bot: If you enjoyed, please follow and subscribe.]

“Oh.”

I chuckled unknowingly. There was a macro bot. Let’s turn it off for now. Shortly after, a real viewer finally joined. Their nickname indicated their favorite food.

-[DeepCheeseCutlet: What kind of room is this? You’re really pretty.]

“Hello. I’m Kwon Seo-ah. I plan to chat and sing various songs.”

-Wow, your voice is really nice.

“Thank you.”

What should I say next? Let’s smoothly transition to a song. Starting with a full song might be overwhelming, so let’s sing a few lines acapella.

“If I sing just a few light lines…”

To avoid surprising them with a sudden high note, I sang a simple song. But there was no chat! Did they leave already?

-Wow… That was good. But it feels familiar…

“Where do you think you’ve heard it before?”

As I teased a bit, another chat message appeared.

-New start for Tier Band? Your name matches too.

“Yes, that’s right. It’s me.”

-OMG, that’s amazing.

Soon after, more viewers began to join. Could it be that DeepCheeseCutlet posted something in a community somewhere?