As always, a peaceful Monday.
Office workers and students went about their busy routines.
They were people living in a bright world under the sunlight.
And there were also the guardians of the dark internet world.
Modern-day monks who held VPNs and alternate accounts as their sacred crosses!
They stayed online 24/7, spreading bits of news and humor across various communities.
They continued discussions to make the world a better place.
「Who would win between a zebra and a crocodile?」
「Today’s legendary traffic TV」
「Legendary divorce lawsuit stories」
「Logical reasons why young Korean men in their 20s and Japanese women are a good match.txt」
「A gyaru who’s kind to otakus and a whirlwind pure love.manhwa」
In such a noble playground for internet aristocrats.
A special report was posted.
「VTuber Alert) An insane, legendary donation incident just happened lol」
“!”
“!”
“!”
The guardians lamented.
“What…!”
“This arrogant brat.”
“How dare they talk about ‘VTubers’ on our board where even the most hardcore otaku can’t set foot? They must not have been beaten enough.”
“I’ll kill that brat.”
“The discipline of these armband-wearing kids has really slipped.”
The guardians wanted to deal with the troublemaker who was defiling this sacred place.
But the moment they saw the content of the post, they couldn’t help but be shocked.
【‘BigMan’ has donated 1,000,000,000 KRW!】
“?!”
“?!”
“?!”
– Oh, this is legit.
The guardians rolled on the floor and hit the upvote button.
The post quickly climbed to the top of the real-time best list.
Someone even took a screenshot and reposted it with a different title.
「VTuber) The chaebol who fell in love with Hako」
「VTuber) The most notorious 1 billion KRW soup in history」
「-VTuber Alert) The legendary black cow soup incident that will go down in history」
Every post had hundreds of comments.
Hundreds of comments, all filled with abbreviations.
-Insane lolololol
-Ten billion lolololol
-Legendary lolololol
-This isn’t soup, it’s essence lolololol
-This isn’t soup, it’s oil, right???
The post included a short video clip. It was about a donation message that had suddenly appeared during a Hako VTuber’s stream.
The video was very short but intense.
【‘BigMan’ has donated 1,000,000,000 KRW!】
Ding-ding-dang—!
[Ah, BigMan! Thank you so much for the donation… I… I… I mean… thank you?]
The yellow-haired VTuber with a clumsy way of speaking froze.
[….]
Her eyes shook uncontrollably.
[…Huh? Wha, wha, wha…? Eh? Usso…! Eh? Really? Eh eh?]
Frantically clicking her mouse.
Click
Click
Click….
[Eh, eh eh? Ehehehehe—?!]
The VTuber tearfully said,
[Ten billion… thank… thank you….]
The video ended there.
Though the content was short, it drew attention because it was a magical event that happened to a Hako VTuber who usually had only about 10 viewers.
People were ecstatic.
Because it was a crazy act that didn’t harm them.
– Lolololol this is so funny lolololol
– A million won is stupid, but saying it’s a billion makes it feel like I’m riding a joy mountain lolololol
– This crazy chaebol landowner VTuber soup bastard lolololol
– Wow, damn, isn’t 1 billion like winning the lottery?
└Fact) Not really… considering the platform’s cut and the agency’s share, she probably won’t even get half of half of half. Maybe 100-200 million? To be precise, it’s more like an instant lottery ticket. Don’t overreact.
└Fact) This guy doesn’t know if 100 million is a lot of money lol. Judging by his tone, he probably doesn’t have any friends lololol
└For real lol
└For real lol
Internet stream viewers were also ecstatic.
It was something everyone had thought about at least once,
But couldn’t bring to life due to the wall of reality.
– At that level, isn’t it worth it? I’d agree.
– Is 1 billion a joke? Honestly, she should do a 1:1 fan meeting.
– Heeung, Daejuju-nim….
– At that level, she should just make a custom voice pack for him lol.
– It’s so funny seeing all the otaku crawling out of the woodwork lololol. How have they been living without showing themselves? Lololol.
– Honestly, she should just marry him.
└Are you going to take the red pill and file a lawsuit too?
└You’re such a bad guy lololol
└Hey, no facts allowed.
Of course, the peaceful atmosphere didn’t last.
Someone suddenly started picking fights with internet stream viewers.
「I can’t stand seeing these VTuber soup bastards acting up, so hit the upvote button lololol」
「Why aren’t the armband-wearing mods controlling the VTuber bait?」
「Stop with the lame bait and brain-dead arguments, damn it」
Of course, there were also people who directly opposed them.
– Is 1 billion a joke? Let’s just laugh and talk.
– Fact) If it’s not VTuber 1 billion bait, it’s just lame vs. play.
– Am I the only one uncomfortable? = Then die (logical).
In the end, they were divided into two factions over whether to keep this topic going or not.
They eventually invaded VTuber communities unrelated to the topic and continued their fight.
A ruthless war filled with old men.
The grand battle lasted from lunchtime until evening.
– I just got off work, what’s going on?
– Why did all the mods change?
– What’s happening? What’s going on?
By the time office workers and students returned home and encountered the topic, the storm had already swept through countless communities.
The top of various SNS real-time trends had long been updated.
#BigMan Chaebol Theory
#BigMan 1 Billion Donation
#BigMan VTuber 1 Billion
#1 Billion VTuber Aki
People whose anger had subsided now wondered.
– So who is BigMan?
– What kind of person throws 1 billion like that?
*
A man’s troubled voice came from the other end of the phone.
He called me just one minute after I made the donation.
– Hello. This is the Live Future operations team. Are you Seonwoo Taek, who uses the nickname ‘BigMan’?
I answered nonchalantly.
“Yes, I’m BigMan. What’s the matter?”
He spoke in a trembling voice.
– Well… the thing is, you donated 1 billion KRW through our platform’s payment system. We’re calling to confirm if this was indeed your intention. Would it be okay to verify this with you?
I readily answered.
“Yes, 1 billion. I did donate that amount to her.”
The customer service representative responded in an even shakier voice.
– Ah, I see. Ah… well, if it’s confirmed that you intentionally donated 1 billion KRW, the Financial Supervisory Service or the National Tax Service may contact you for further investigation.
1 billion was no joke.
It was unprecedented for a user with no payment history to suddenly throw 1 billion on the day of registration.
Naturally, from a common-sense perspective, suspicions of tax evasion or illegal money laundering were inevitable.
‘…But people like that wouldn’t draw attention like this.’
However.
I fully understood.
They might suspect involvement in illegal money laundering.
For a new video platform, this was a nerve-wracking situation.
So I politely replied.
“Yes, I’ll keep that in mind. Thank you for contacting me.”
He hung up.
And soon, calls came one after another.
– Hello, Mr. Seonwoo Taek. This is the National Tax Service. We’re calling regarding a sudden cash flow situation…
– Hello, valued customer. Thank you for using our card. We noticed a large withdrawal earlier today at around 12 PM…
The National Tax Service went into emergency mode.
The card company contacted by the Financial Supervisory Service.
Behind their polite words, suspicion was hidden.
– What the hell are you?
They suspected the source of my funds, tax evasion, and illegal money laundering.
But since it was just a legal lottery win, their suspicions were gradually dispelled.
Source of funds?
“It’s lottery winnings.”
Tax evasion?
“I paid taxes when I received the winnings. It’s not a one-sided donation but done through the video platform. I’ve always paid my taxes on time.”
Illegal money laundering?
“An overseas account? No, I don’t have one. You’re welcome to check.”
Result: A harmless lunatic.
-….
-….
They all clicked their tongues and said, “Understood. Thank you for your cooperation in the investigation.”
They remained polite, but their disappointment was evident.
‘Anyway, I can just make up for it with regression, so it doesn’t matter.’
I threw the phone down in relief.
And lay down on my old bed.
My chest felt both relieved and itchy.
“…Phew.”
The National Tax Service and Financial Supervisory Service combo.
The lottery cycle started on Saturday, and I received the winnings on Monday.
It was good up to that point, but blowing it all at the start of the cycle was part of the routine.
‘At the start of each cycle, the same people call, so I’m getting familiar with their voices.’
“…Hmm.”
I lay there, scratching my stomach.
“….”
Scratch scratch.
So, what now?
By the way, I didn’t check internet news or communities.
I didn’t want to be swayed by harsh words and baseless speculation.
All I wanted to see was the reaction of the person who received the money.
I wasn’t interested in the reactions of users who existed only as text on the internet.
‘They’re probably digging into my personal info, calling me a crazy money-thrower, so I’ll just stay put. I don’t remember which cycle it is, but there was a lunatic who tracked me down through IP tracing.’
Instead of looking at my phone,
I closed my eyes, lay down, and started meditating.
‘Was it Aki? I wonder what she’ll do with the money. I’ll sneak a peek at her reaction tomorrow.’
And as the May breeze blew through the window, I drifted off into a nap.
*
The fledgling VTuber agency,
‘Aurora Prism Entertainment,’ was on the verge of collapse and had entered an emergency meeting.
The CEO, general manager, manager, PR team leader, and tech team leader were all present.
It was a small company with only about ten employees.
They were engulfed in heavy silence.
“….”
“….”
“….”
Of course, their meeting had only one topic.
The so-called ‘BigMan 1 Billion Donation Incident.’
They were the ones most acutely aware of the significance of this event, which was still causing a stir across communities.
The general manager, Park Youngsoo, a balding middle-aged man in his mid-40s, spoke gravely.
“Live Future will take a 10% fee and deposit 900 million KRW into our corporate account. Once the deposit is completed, we’ll split it 50-50 with A-young as per the contract.”
“….”
“….”
The talent had earned money.
After deducting fees, the remaining amount would be split according to the contract.
It was a simple logic.
But the amount was anything but simple.
The CEO, Baek Socheol, asked Park Youngsoo,
“…So, if we proceed as usual, how much will we end up with?”
“After the 10% fee, it’s 900 million. We give A-young 450 million as per the contract. After corporate taxes, the company will have around 340 to 360 million left. The exact amount will need to be confirmed with the tax accountant.”
“340 million for the company….”
“It’s practically a lifeline. We can cover a year’s operating expenses with this.”
“Wow….”
At that moment,
there was a knock on the CEO’s office door where they were meeting.
-Um… it’s Aki! I came right after finishing my stream.
“!”
“!”
“!”
The CEO and senior staff welcomed the day’s main character.
“Come in.”
“Yes!”
A lively-looking woman in her 20s with yellow-dyed hair tied back entered.
She had rushed from the company dorm after finishing her stream and was sweating.
VTuber RP ‘Idol Aspirant Aki-chan.’
Her real name was Sakurai Aki.
After naturalizing in Korea, she changed her name to Lee A-young.
Ultimately, she ended up using her real name as her VTuber RP, making her a unique individual.
Aki, usually cheerful, looked pale.
As Aki entered,
Park Youngsoo immediately got to the point.
“A-young, about the 1 billion donation.”
“Ah, uh… yes!”
“According to the contract, we need to give you 450 million, right?”
“Huh?!”
Aki turned pale upon hearing the exact amount.
Having grown up as an orphan and naturalized in Korea, this was the first time she had heard such a large sum.
“4… 450 million….”
The reality of the 1 billion donation hadn’t sunk in yet…
But when the general manager mentioned it, it became real.
Even after splitting with the company, it was an astronomical amount.
Her heart started pounding.
Her hands and feet trembled, and her teeth chattered.
“Ugh.”
But the shock didn’t end there.
“A-young, the taxes you’ll need to pay are no joke.”
“Huh? How… how much is it?”
“For 450 million, considering income tax, you’ll need to pay around 200 million in taxes.”
“….”
200 million in taxes.
Almost half of the settlement amount.
“Eh…?”