Chapter 12
Let’s go back to yesterday.
“Do we need to talk about something?”
“About what, man?”
Alpaca was having a conversation with his editor and manager, Lee Soo-han.
“You’re saying the person we’re collaborating with has only been streaming for two days. Does he have full footage from his streams?”
He was referring to the collaboration with a new streamer.
Soo-han raised an eyebrow in confusion.
Typically, Alpaca’s new talent discovery content featured rising streamers.
Whether it was through competitions, collaborations, or any kind of opportunity, these streamers began to gain attention.
Alpaca invited these streamers to his channel, both to enhance his own content and to help them.
The invited streamer’s audience usually consisted of new viewers, and Alpaca would dig up their past embarrassing moments to create content that entertained and bonded the viewers.
This was the essence of the new talent discovery content.
The time it took for each streamer to gain recognition varied greatly.
But.
A streamer who had only been broadcasting for two days was a first.
“But Soo-han, there’s one thing you’re mistaken about.”
“What’s that?”
“That person is coming as a master guest.”
“A master guest? You’ve never done that before. Wait, a streamer who’s only been broadcasting for two days… Ah!”
Soo-han clapped his hands in realization.
“A famous expert has started streaming! What game is he a master of?”
Alpaca sighed.
If he had watched today’s stream, he would know the whole story.
However, since Soo-han managed Alpaca’s YouTube, edited videos, and handled other tasks, it was unreasonable to expect him to watch every stream.
But.
“Assassin’s Dawn.”
“What? What kind of expert would there be for that game? No way.”
It wasn’t that Soo-han was too busy to watch Alpaca’s stream. He simply chose not to, as he was absorbed in the game “The League.”
It had been years.
“I figured you’d say that. But if you watch the video, you’ll change your mind.”
Alpaca started fiddling with his phone, preparing to show something. Soo-han scoffed.
“Seriously? Even if you’re good at an assassination game, so what? I won’t watch it. I won’t buy it.”
You’ll have to watch it while editing anyway.
Alpaca kept his thoughts to himself.
“PVE games aren’t hard or fun. These games are designed so that anyone can beat them with a little effort.”
PvE (Player Vs Environment) refers to players fighting against AI, as opposed to PvP (Player Vs Player).
Alpaca had always encouraged Soo-han to try “Assassin’s Dawn,” but Soo-han refused, finding no enjoyment in fighting machines.
“So, it’s a master guest segment?”
“Yeah.”
“Alright, do your thing. I need to get back to my game.”
As Soo-han was heading to his room, Alpaca remembered something he had forgotten. The initial reason he brought up the collaboration.
“Can you lend a capsule to the streamer coming tomorrow?”
“What? We have spare capsules.”
Soo-han replied with a serious expression.
Back to yesterday.
“Is it necessary to talk?”
“About what, man?”
Alpaca was conversing with his editor and manager, Lee Soo-han.
“The person we’re collaborating with this time, you said they’ve only been streaming for two days. Do they have full footage from their streams?”
He was referring to the collaboration with a new streamer.
Soo-han questioned with a hint of doubt.
Typically, Alpaca’s new talent discovery content featured rising streamers who had just started gaining attention.
Whether it was through competitions, collaborations, or any kind of opportunity, these streamers began to attract interest.
Alpaca invited these streamers to his channel, both to enhance his own content and to help them.
The invited streamer’s audience usually consisted of new viewers, and Alpaca would dig up their past embarrassing moments to create content that entertained and bonded the viewers.
This was the essence of the new talent discovery content.
The time it took for each streamer to gain recognition varied greatly.
But.
A streamer who had only been broadcasting for two days was a first.
“But Soo-han, there’s one thing you’re mistaken about.”
“What’s that?”
“That person is coming as a master guest.”
“A master guest? You’ve never done that before. Wait, a streamer who’s only been broadcasting for two days… Ah!”
Soo-han clapped his hands in realization.
“A famous expert has started streaming! What game is he a master of?”
Alpaca sighed.
If he had watched today’s stream, he would know the whole story.
However, since Soo-han managed Alpaca’s YouTube, edited videos, and handled other tasks, it was unreasonable to expect him to watch every stream.
But.
“Assassin’s Dawn.”
“What? What kind of expert would there be for that game? No way.”
It wasn’t that Soo-han was too busy to watch Alpaca’s stream. He simply chose not to, as he was absorbed in the game “The League.”
It had been years.
“I figured you’d say that. But if you watch the video, you’ll change your mind.”
Alpaca started fiddling with his phone, preparing to show something. Soo-han scoffed.
“Seriously? Even if you’re good at an assassination game, so what? I won’t watch it. I won’t buy it.”
You’ll have to watch it while editing anyway.
Alpaca kept his thoughts to himself.
“PVE games aren’t hard or fun. These games are designed so that anyone can beat them with a little effort.”
PvE (Player Vs Environment) refers to players fighting against AI, as opposed to PvP (Player Vs Player).
Alpaca had always encouraged Soo-han to try “Assassin’s Dawn,” but Soo-han refused, finding no enjoyment in fighting machines.
“So, it’s a master guest segment?”
“Yeah.”
“Alright, do your thing. I need to get back to my game.”
As Soo-han was heading to his room, Alpaca remembered something he had forgotten. The initial reason he brought up the collaboration.
“Can you lend a capsule to the streamer coming tomorrow?”
“What? We have spare capsules.”
Soo-han replied with a serious expression.
“They need your capsule specifically. You upgraded to the most expensive one recently, right? Apparently, their immersion rate is a bit low.”
“How can a master have a low immersion rate?”
(TL/C: Immersion Rate: A measure of how much a person perceives the virtual reality world as real.)
A high immersion rate is usually associated with better performance in capsule games.
Incidentally, some people exceed an immersion rate of 100.
These individuals become so deeply immersed in the virtual world that, when they return to reality, they feel a sense of disorientation.
This is known as fantasy decompression sickness, and those who suffer from it typically exhibit exceptional performance in the virtual world.
Soo-han contemplated briefly before replying curtly.
“No, I don’t want to.”
“Why not?”
“You want someone who plays worse than me to use my brand-new, top-of-the-line gear?”
Soo-han, despite playing games in his spare time, maintained a high rank in “The League.”
“They probably play better than you.”
Alpaca knew objectively that the streamer Jin Seo-jun was more skilled.
Even in a PvE game, few could match those movements.
The problem was that Soo-han wouldn’t watch the video and wouldn’t acknowledge the skill even if he did.
‘Sigh, I guess I’ll have to offer mine.’
His capsule wasn’t bad either.
Even if Seo-jun was obviously superior, it wouldn’t be right to force a fight with the editor just to borrow the capsule.
Then, as Alpaca recalled Soo-han’s query, a different thought dawned on him, sending chills down his spine.
‘Come to think of it, his immersion rate is low… So he performed that well in an unsuitable state.’
Wow.
So, how much better is he in reality?
Could he be a thug?
No, he wields a sword… A yakuza?
Alpaca’s imagination conjured an image of a man with a large scar on his face, wearing a floral shirt and holding a butcher knife.
“Hello, I’m streamer Alpaca.”
With slightly trembling hands, Alpaca opened the door, and his eyes widened.
Jin Seo-jun’s face resembled his avatar in the virtual world exactly.
‘He said his avatar was scanned from his real face, but I thought he would have made some adjustments like others do. It’s exactly the same!’
Thankfully, Seo-jun’s face was that of a handsome young man, not the rough figure Alpaca had imagined.
“Hi, I’m streamer Jin Seo-jun.”
Seo-jun was also looking around.
He was curious about the studio of a long-time, successful streamer in his early 30s.
“Hey, long time no see. I came too.”
“Tae-woo, long time no see. Come on in.”
After shaking hands with Alpaca, Seo-jun followed him into a spacious living room.
It looked like an ordinary home from the outside, but the clear division between work and relaxation spaces was evident.
After Seo-jun and Tae-woo sat on the couch, Alpaca went to the kitchen to make coffee, and a man with a stern expression emerged from a closed room.
“Hello, I’m the editor, Lee Soo-han.”
Soo-han extended his hand with a smirk.
“I’m streamer Jin Seo-jun. Nice to meet you.”
Seo-jun felt the strength in the handshake. Was this an attempt to assert dominance?
“I heard your immersion rate is low.”
“Yes.”
“But you’re good at the game.”
“I suppose I’m quite good.”
While creating the brief collaboration teaser video yesterday, Soo-han had watched Seo-jun’s gameplay.
He was intrigued by the surprisingly high skill level and felt a sense of competitiveness.
Thud.
The tension was broken.
Alpaca had loudly placed the cup on the table.
Alpaca shot a side glance at Soo-han and then seated Seo-jun.
“Alright, now that introductions are done, let’s talk about the stream. Did you watch the teaser?”
Seo-jun nodded.
The video, which was posted with the collaboration announcement on Alpaca’s fan café and YouTube, was short but perfectly designed for promotion.
It showcased Seo-jun’s gameplay spectacularly, intercut with Alpaca’s bold claims, making for an entertaining watch.
“Thanks to you, the response has been great. Your skills make the video exciting to watch, and it’s just perfect.”
Whether the reaction was genuine or not would be revealed soon.
“The editor did all the work. What’s the big deal?”
Soo-han scratched his neck with an awkward smile at the compliment.
“Haha, not at all. But while editing, I saw that you’re really good at the game. Have you really only been playing for two days?”
“Um, no. Actually, I should keep it a secret, but the truth is, I played a bit a long time ago.”
Seo-jun didn’t see any need to hide the fact that he had played in the past.
“When was that?”
“Seven years ago, I played The League for a bit.”
Alpaca was intrigued by the mention of seven years ago, while Soo-han was fixated on the mention of The League.
“Were you good back then too? What was your tier?”
Soo-han’s eyes sparkled with interest.
**Tier** is an English word meaning rank or level, often used in games to denote the stages of items or player ranks.
“Silver.”
Silver is a tier where the majority of average players are placed.
“I don’t think that’s possible. There’s no way you could just start playing again after so long and be that good.”
Seo-jun shrugged.
Eventually, Soo-han accepted it. If he said so himself, who was he to argue?
But it was true that the current skill level Seo-jun showed in the videos was on par with his.
So.
“Mr. Seo-jun. Would you like to have a match with me in the training ground?”
Soo-han wanted to test his skills against Seo-jun.
After he spoke, he glanced around to see the reactions.
Seo-jun looked troubled.
However, Tae-woo, who was sitting next to him, asked with an interested smile.
“You want to spar with Seo-jun? Why?”
“I want to test my skills against his.”
“With him?”
“Yes.”
Hahaha!
Suddenly, Tae-woo burst into laughter.
Soo-han looked at him, annoyed by his laughter, and Alpaca, who had been deep in thought, looked up at Tae-woo.
Seo-jun, however, seemed to understand why Tae-woo was laughing.
“Hyung. Don’t do it.”
“Huh?”
“Just don’t do it. Hmph.”
“……?”
Seo-jun understood the meaning behind the look.
It was asking if it was okay to tell them.
Seo-jun nodded in approval, knowing that Tae-woo was friends with them and even if the story got out, there would be no evidence.
“This is a secret too, but if you want to spar with him in the training ground, just challenge him to level 10.”
This statement essentially revealed that Seo-jun was “unknown.”
Understanding the implication, Alpaca and Soo-han’s eyes widened in shock.
“Really?”
“Of course.”
Tae-woo, as if he’d been waiting for this moment, pulled out his phone and handed it to Alpaca, and Soo-han quickly got up to watch the video with him.
Then came the exclamations of amazement.
“Wow.”
“Oh.”
“Did he really do that?”
“That’s Shin Ha-yeon, isn’t it?”
“We’ve invited someone even more incredible than I thought.”
“Suddenly, I’m feeling the pressure for today’s collab.”
“Wait, he didn’t get hit even once?”
“That’s completely one-sided.”
“Wow.”
“The final move was insane.”
Alpaca, now more convinced, alternated between watching the video and looking at Seo-jun, mumbling about seven years ago and getting lost in thought. Soo-han, having finished the video, turned to Seo-jun and said:
“I will treat you as my elder.”
The competitive look in Soo-han’s eyes had completely changed.
“Excuse me?”
“If you’re good at the game, you’re an elder.”
Seo-jun was taken aback and his mouth gaped.
Come to think of it, it wouldn’t be strange to be treated as an elder, not just a senior.
Seo-jun, wanting to wipe the grin off Kim Tae-woo’s face, smacked him. He just wanted to hit him.
Then Soo-han checked the time and tapped Alpaca’s shoulder.
“Hey, what are you doing? It’s almost time for the elder’s stream.”
“Oh? Nothing. Alright! Let’s get ready for the stream. Here, my capsule is over here…”
“Please follow me, elder. I’ll make sure you’re comfortable.”
Alpaca looked incredulously at Soo-han, who was leading Seo-jun to his own capsule.
Now he had to reset everything. Damn it.
Seo-jun followed Soo-han into the workroom, and Alpaca sighed as he walked to his streaming room.
He adjusted the capsule settings.
He also prepared for the after-party meal that would take place after the stream.
Although his streams had a lot of spontaneous elements, he was meticulous when it came to this kind of preparation.
In any case…
“Even if it was AI, he beat Shin Ha-yeon.”
For some reason, Alpaca wanted to keep in touch with Seo-jun even after this stream ended.
And if Seo-jun was the player he suspected…
“No, that’s going too far.”
Alpaca shook his head and got into his capsule.
