Chapter 27
When game companies select streamers to advertise their products, they typically use YouTube as the benchmark.
This is because there is a significant difference in the scale of viewership between Twitch and YouTube.
A streamer with 5,000 live viewers and 1 million YouTube views versus a streamer with 10,000 live viewers and 100,000 YouTube views.
It’s clear which one would be better for promotion.
Of course, there are a few exceptions.
If a streamer’s audience is highly loyal or has a large number of followers, leading to a lot of replays and strong purchasing power, even with a lower YouTube subscriber count, they can command a higher rate.
But.
“This doesn’t apply to me at all.”
YouTube subscribers?
I don’t even have a channel.
Actually, I don’t have an account at all.
My audience has only been around for 3 days.
“I’ve heard they usually make a big push with ads when launching a new game.”
But that doesn’t apply either.
“How about it, Seo-jun? Will you accept our offer?”
“Thank you for the generous offer. Honestly, I’d like to sign the contract right away, but…”
“…but?”
“I’m a bit puzzled and curious as to why you’re offering such favorable terms to me.”
10 million won.
It’s not a small amount.
Of course, by major standards.
For Seo-jun right now, even 1 million won would be a good deal.
I should be grateful just for the advertising.
“Haha. Seo-jun is quite the cautious person.”
“I’m just curious.”
Is there such a thing as goodwill without a price?
Seo-jun was smiling calmly, but he was also considering that he might end up rejecting the contract if necessary.
Though he was willing to cooperate.
It seemed Eve Faymo had picked up on Seo-jun’s unease, even if Kim Yoon-chan didn’t.
“Hm, I suppose I need to clarify things.”
Eve Faymo chuckled.
Her slightly wrinkled blue eyes crinkled pleasantly.
“To put it simply, it’s an investment. Both myself and Team Leader Kim Yoon-chan here are avid followers of your gameplay.”
Kim Yoon-chan nodded from beside her.
“We believe you’re on the verge of tremendous growth. So, we wanted to build a relationship with you in advance. Actually, it’s not a big issue if the teaser video is slightly delayed. Moreover, we expect you’ll have grown significantly by the time the beta test starts. In short, it’s a win-win.”
That’s honest.
It makes sense now.
So, this is just a preemptive move.
It’s also a gift.
“Yes. It’s really just us. Other companies don’t know.”
Kim Yoon-chan spoke up from the side.
“I’m the CEO, so what?”
Eve Faymo grinned cheerfully.
And Seo-jun was shocked.
The CEO?
Kim Yoon-chan extended the contract and began explaining various clauses to Seo-jun.
Everything was as they had described.
As the explanation neared its end, Eve Faymo spoke to Seo-jun.
“Seo-jun. You can use ‘Dawn of the Assassins’ for the ad, but may I recommend a game?”
“What is it?”
“For the sake of ‘Hyeop’.”
‘Hyeop’.
It was a martial arts-themed action game set in a fictional continent created by Movie Soft.
“With your skills, I’m sure you’ll show off impressive gameplay there. I’d love to see that.”
Eve Faymo seemed more interested in Seo-jun’s gameplay than promoting her company’s game.
“I’ll think about it seriously. By the way, what country are you from, CEO?”
“Oh, I’m French.”
“Really? Your Korean is excellent.”
“I had a brief study experience in Korea.”
“I see. Is honesty a virtue among the French?”
“No. I just thought it would be better to be honest with you.”
How honest.
As expected of a CEO, they can read people well.
Seo-jun smiled, took the contract, and stood up.
“Thank you.”
“We should be the ones thanking you.”
“But what if someone else collects all the Order Fragments within a week, not me?”
Seo-jun suddenly thought of Lee Dong-soo.
“Hm. I don’t think it will be easy, but there is a potential user who might do it. Fortunately, they don’t do streaming, so I’ll ask them not to make it public.”
Both were unaware they were referring to the same person.
And Seo-jun no longer needed to ask Lee Dong-soo for help.
Lee Dong-soo was playing ‘Dawn of the Assassins’ solely because of Seo-jun.
“I see. Then, I look forward to working with you.”
Eve Faymo shook Seo-jun’s hand and smiled.
“We also look forward to the synergy between Movie Soft and Seo-jun.”
* * *
Seo-jun started enjoying the game by engaging in various activities within ‘Dawn of the Assassins’ instead of focusing on defeating the Overlord.
He still ignored missions and quests, playing as he pleased.
Seeing no signs of Seo-jun aiming to defeat the Overlord, some streamers began to think:
Isn’t it a jackpot if I find information about the Order Fragments first?
This thought spread, creating a minor trend of attempts to challenge the Overlord.
Even Han Ji-min’s employer, the editor at YouTube, had the same thought.
The problem was:
“Damn it.”
Han Ji-min sighed deeply, burying herself in her chair.
[Can you make it feel more like this streamer?]
[I’ve made the changes, so please check.]
[Hey]
[Take a look]
Two days had passed without any response.
It had been like this for a month.
She pressed her eyes with her right hand.
“Haa. They say there’s no blood or tears in front of money, no family or friends.”
Han Ji-min felt like devouring the friend and employer with whom she had shared dreams and concerns about the future.
“I should have realized when they kept nitpicking over trivial things.”
A year and a half ago, Han Ji-min was just learning video editing.
She had discovered a small streamer by chance and, enjoying their broadcast, heard that the channel was struggling with editing.
She sent her work to the small streamer with the idea of growing together, and thus began their partnership.
The small streamer couldn’t offer Han Ji-min a stable salary but proposed sharing YouTube revenue 50:50, earning together when doing well and losing together when not.
“Back then, it wasn’t supposed to be an oral promise.”
It’s too late to regret now.
For the first six months, Han Ji-min had been intensely focused on editing despite incredibly tough circumstances. At that time, the channel had 217 subscribers, with no revenue in sight.
Despite this, Han Ji-min and the streamer worked together enthusiastically, enduring difficult times together. Han Ji-min, unable to sleep, created one video a day, growing the YouTube channel.
As Han Ji-min’s editing skills improved, the channel began to hit the algorithm, and about six months in, the subscriber count reached 30,000, leading to revenue.
“It was good until then.”
Han Ji-min’s life became more comfortable, and eight months passed smoothly. The channel was now on the verge of reaching 100,000 subscribers. Live streaming also saw an increase in viewership thanks to YouTube. As income grew, Han Ji-min had to hire another editor, but problems arose.
“People can be so petty.”
Han Ji-min stared at the monitor on her desk. There was a video she had watched almost non-stop for nearly a year and a half.
A month ago, she had a falling out with her employer, whom she had trusted as a friend. The issue was that Han Ji-min was perceived as taking too much as an editor. Despite her substantial role in growing the channel…
“Ha. Do they think managing the channel is easy?”
She turned off the editing program. It seemed time to end the relationship. This month’s earnings had not been sent. The bitterness lingered.
“What? They want me to make it look like the streamer’s style? Knowing full well I can’t do it, damn it.”
She had trusted the person, believing they had become very close while overcoming tough times together. So she was shocked by the betrayal.
The feeling of betrayal made her teeth clench, and she felt like crying.
“What’s left now?”
Essentially, her hard-earned savings accumulated from not spending much due to busy editing, and her editing skills?
She felt as if a year and a half had been invalidated.
But work had to continue.
She logged into the editor recruitment site for the first time in a long while and found a post.
“…”
To her surprise, it was from the streamer whose videos her former employer had sent her.
An individual whose skills were unmatched.
This person was looking for a freelancer to edit a few videos immediately and mentioned considering a full-time editor if things went well.
“You also split the profits? Fine, let’s see the contract. If you think you can just exploit me without one, you’d better think again.”
Han Ji-min sent an email to Seojun.
—
The next day, Seojun wrapped up his stream and checked his emails:
– “You’re going to catch the Overlord tomorrow? Finally, hahahahaha!”
– “The real deal is coming.”
– “Seeing other streamers fail made me realize how untouchable the Overlord is.”
– “Finally lololol”
– “Honestly, with that skill, doing petty theft or mini-games was overstepping.”
– “For real, if you’re going to do that, give me your skills.”
“Alright, everyone, see you tomorrow.”
– “Fuck!”
– “Trba!”
– “Tba”
Seojun turned off the stream and stepped out of the capsule. After washing up, he sat at his computer and checked his emails.
[The teaser video is completed.]
[(Ad) ★929th place 1st/996th place 2nd winners★, ‘Predicted 1st Numbers’ Free Event!! It might be your turn this time.]
[As a fan, just a piece of advice, if you keep focusing only on “Assassins’ Dawn” on your stream, it might hurt your broadcast…]
[Report. mijhvn0216 used offensive language.]
The first email was from Movie Soft, saying that the teaser video was done, so he could proceed as he wished.
Other emails were from viewers offering advice or complaints about the stream.
There were no applications from editors.
“Hmm.”
After opening the editor recruitment, a few videos were submitted on the first and second days. However, none of them met Seojun’s standards.
Even if they were fans, he couldn’t hire an editor with insufficient skills.
“At least I’ve secured two videos to upload on YouTube.”
One was a collaboration video edited by Alpaca’s editor, Lee Soo-han, and the other was the first broadcast edit requested from the editor recruitment site.
Seojun opened the video edited by Han Ji-min.
Review:
“It’s clean and concise. Is this someone with experience?”
A voice was heard behind Seojun.
“Yeah.”
Seojun, who had already sensed Tae-woo’s presence, answered.
“Are you considering a full-time contract with this person?”
“Hmm…”
Seojun wanted to hand over the entire channel to an editor, believing it would be more efficient. He had heard from Lee Soo-han that having an editor who is also a fan of the channel is much better.
“I’m discussing it. For now, I’ve entrusted a few tasks, and the skills are indeed good.”
“Really? If you can, make sure to secure them.”
If an editor wasn’t found, he was considering joining an MCN.
“Yeah, but let’s wait a bit more. The person might still accept offers.”
They both stared at the monitor for a while.
“That’s true. Otherwise, look for someone yourself. Scout among the fans who posted videos.”
Tae-woo said this and patted Seojun’s chair before heading back to his room. Tae-woo always checked on Seojun after each broadcast.
Following Tae-woo’s advice, Seojun searched YouTube.
“And what should I search for?”
Unknown.
No-name.
Overlord.
Streamer fan videos.
Etc.
Despite searching extensively, nothing relevant came up.
Seojun gave up and decided to see how others handled it, searching for editor application videos.
Then he spotted a familiar YouTube account nickname.
[Public Restroom Wall Brick Thief King]
He had watched their streams continuously but had not received any responses to his requests.
Seojun examined the video. The title read “.” with 157 views. The description mentioned, “Editor application video for streamer Seojun.”
“Why is it public? And… I don’t think I saw this in my emails.”
Seojun checked his inbox and trash folder again, wondering if he had accidentally deleted it.
After confirming it wasn’t a mistake, he decided to watch the video.
After some time, Seojun, resting his chin on his hand, fell into deep thought.
“This is really good. Why didn’t they send an email?”
