Chapter 36: Rookie Producer

It was an unexpected situation, but Pepe wasn’t some random stranger.

If anything, they were a solid choice for a moderator.

They had always been polite in chat, after all.

“Well, since you’re already a mod now, might as well help manage the café too. I was planning to find someone for that anyway, so this works out perfectly.”

[Pepe: ??]

[Pepe: I don’t know the first thing about managing a community.]

[That’s not important. Just do it.]

[You’ve won at life, dude. Take the W, lol.]

[+HurryAndLeave: I checked your chat history—you’ve always been pretty decent. Good pick.]

[Bro, they did a full background check on you in the meantime, lmao.]

With Pepe officially assigned as a manager, I finally checked the post they had uploaded.

After all, this café was made specifically so I could check things like this.

[Heart X Memorial – New Male Character ‘Yeon’ Gameplay & Illustration Compilation… JPG]

I clicked on the first post.

A gameplay clip loaded on my screen.

Gasp!

“Oh… This actually looks good? I haven’t played much of this game, but the skill set seems solid.”

[Yeah, he’s really good.]

[+HurryAndLeave: I tried him out for a bit—definitely solid.]

[He’s a total comfort pick character.]

[Seriously, this guy is great.]

[Pepe: Yup, they gave him really strong stats.]

I was satisfied.

Of course, I wouldn’t gain anything from the character being strong, but it still felt nice knowing that a character I illustrated was being well-received.

“Well, now that we’ve caught up on everything… How about playing some games today?”

[+HurryAndLeave: Hell yeah.]

[This is what I’m talking about, lololol.]

[FPS! FPS!]

[Are we playing Reore? Are we playing Reore? Are we playing Reore?]

[Please… just play Reore already…]

[Pepe: Why are there so many Reore dogs? lol]

I had been drawing nonstop lately.

It was about time I played some games.

“I’m going to play an FPS. Reore is still a bit… yeah.”

Of course, playing Reore would also result in some entertaining content, but I wasn’t confident yet.

I felt like I would just end up raging.

[Ah]

[+HurryAndLeave: But honestly, that’s true lol]

[Holding out until Reore starts inhales]

[Seriously, I don’t think he’s touching Reore within the next month]

[Pepe: Breathe while you still can…]

[This is hilarious lol]

“I’ll play Reore when I really feel like it, so I guess it’ll happen someday?”

Honestly, I wasn’t sure myself.

I’d play if I wanted to, but I had no idea when that urge would actually come.

[Did he seriously just say that? lolololol]

[Well, obviously, he’ll play it someday…]

[+HurryAndLeave: Reore? Never ever ever ever ever]

[Manager, this guy seriously hates Reore to death]

[Pepe: Didn’t he get burned badly last time? Have a drink, man]

With that, I launched an FPS game.

I had debated between a battle royale and an FPS, but personally, FPS games felt lighter and easier to enjoy.

In battle royales, you have to constantly stay alert while roaming the map, which made my brain throb.

It was just better to play something where I only had to focus on what was right in front of me.

“Before I queue for ranked, does anyone want to do a one-on-one? I need to warm up a bit.”

Normally, I would just jump straight into ranked matches, but today, my hands felt stiff.
I needed a warm-up before diving in.

[Hands]

[ssss]

[Nananananana]

[Please, me!]

[+HurryAndLeave: He’s just gonna pick whoever he wants anyway lol]

The chat was flooded with volunteers, but there was only one person worth choosing.

“Sukjunamul, please give me your ID.”

The viewer with the username Sukjunamul.

The reason was simple.

They said their rank was Grandmaster.

At that level, they could be a huge help in improving my skills.

[Sukjunamul: My in-game nickname is also Sukjunamul.]

[Sukjunamul: Please invite me~]

[+HurryAndLeave: How is someone’s nickname Sukjunamul lol]

[Sukjunamul stir-fried with pork belly is insanely good tho fr]

[I saw earlier—they really are Grandmaster.]

I quickly typed in Sukjunamul and sent an invite to the private lobby.

A moment later.

Ahem. “Hello.”

A deep, husky female voice came through.

It was a tone I had never heard before.

[Whoa, that voice is crazy unique.]

[Bet they’d be an amazing singer lol]

[How does a voice even sound like that?]

[+HurryAndLeave: Twis voice chat average rank is insane…]

Thinking how distinct their voice was, I spoke up.

“You have a really nice voice.”

“Ah, I hear that a lot.”

“Anyway, are you confident in a one-on-one?”

“Confidence? Always.”

[Ohhh lol]

[Watch them get absolutely destroyed after saying that.]

[+HurryAndLeave: No joke, I’m calling a 10-second KO.]

[Conservatively, I’d say at least 20 seconds.]

[But seriously, Sukjunamul is Grandmaster—doesn’t that mean LikeYogurt is more likely to lose? LikeYogurt is only Diamond.]

[Lol you guys are seriously underestimating Grandmasters.]

Checking the chat, I noticed some viewers predicting my loss in the one-on-one match.

It was probably because my opponent was a Grandmaster.

But I didn’t really think I would lose.

If anything, I just thought it would be fun.

“Alright, let’s start right away.”

“Yep.”

And with that, the one-on-one match began.

As usual, I picked a sniper hero.

“Let’s see your skills. I don’t have a clear read on them yet.”

Pabat-

I roamed the map with my sniper rifle, searching for my opponent.

Thud!

A bullet flew toward me from a distance.

“Oh, that almost hit me.”

Luckily, it didn’t land.

[+HurryAndLeave: Whoa, their aim is good.]

[Where were they even hiding?]

[They weren’t even visible.]

[Pepe: I think they were behind that wall.]

[Didn’t LikeYogurt almost die just now? lololol]

[Looks like he instinctively dodged to the one spot where he wouldn’t get hit lol.]

At Grandmaster rank, having incredible aim was basically a given.

Unless it was a strategy game, in an FPS, aim dictated everything.

I couldn’t just carelessly step out.

‘If I move out recklessly, I could get one-shot.’

I hid behind a wall, thinking for a moment, then threw a smoke grenade at the ground.

Right after.

Thud! Thud!

Gunshots rang out in quick succession.

They were probably firing consecutive sniper shots at the spot where I had thrown the smoke grenade.

“I know where they are now.”

Using the sound to pinpoint my opponent’s location, I quickly launched myself to the edge of the map with my grappling hook.

Then, mid-air, I readied my sniper rifle.

Thud!

[Enemy eliminated!]

“Got them.”

[Wow, wtf]

[Wait, that actually worked…?]

[That leap was insane lol]

[+HurryAndLeave: Damn, this is LikeYogurt]

[He just wiped out a Grandmaster in one shot.]

[Pepe: …]

I had taken them down once, but that wasn’t enough.

I needed to keep facing them to fully warm up.

“I’ll hold this position and go again.”

After saying that, I repositioned and scanned for my opponent’s location.

Pabat-

I threw another smoke grenade while continuously shifting my position.

Moving unpredictably.

Bang!

Their gun fired again, this time with a slightly different sound.

They must have switched heroes.

They carefully aimed and shot into the smoke, trying to predict my movements.

“Found you.”

This time, I latched onto a building wall with my grappling hook, moved mid-air, took aim.

Thud!

[Enemy eliminated!]

I had taken them down again.

[+HurryAndLeave: Holy sh*t]

[That was insane]

[He’s just toying with a Grandmaster lmao]

[This guy is Diamond?]

[Pepe: Why is someone this good still in Diamond? lol]

[He’s seriously cracked lmaooo]

“I think my hands are warmed up now. I should be good to start ranked games.”

With that, I exited the one-on-one lobby.

Chirp, chirp.

The sound of birds signaling the morning woke me up.

“Ugh…”

I had stayed up late gaming last night, so I wanted to sleep in, but now that I was awake, I couldn’t fall back asleep.

At this point, I had no choice but to get up.

‘Maybe I should go out and grab something to eat.’

I usually preferred staying home, but going outside while the sun was up didn’t seem like a bad idea.

Actually, it might even be a good thing.

As I was getting dressed with that thought in mind.

Bzzz.

My phone vibrated.

Since it only buzzed once, it wasn’t a call.

Curious about who had messaged me, I checked my phone.

[Web Notification]

₩431,103 has been deposited into your account, Lee Jaehun.

“…?”

A completely unexpected amount of money had just come in.

What the heck?

Was this a mistake?

There was no reason for such a large amount to be deposited all of a sudden.

‘…What the heck?’

Did the bank make an error?

I was running through all sorts of possibilities when.

Bzzz.

[Rage: Jaehun-nim]

[Rage: The single track I uploaded last time]

[Rage: You were credited for it, remember?!]

[Rage: That’s your earnings, so don’t be too shocked!]

A message from Rage came in.