Chapter 81: Please Don’t Act Like You Know Me.

I was relieved to hear a positive comment.

Lately, I’d been feeling a bit uneasy about it all.

I kept wondering, what if a lot of people end up not liking it?

Well, I couldn’t help it.

Even if I tried not to care too much about others’ opinions, there’s no way to be completely unaffected.

“Phew… I was worried something might look off or weird.”

—“Come on, think about how many times we revised it.”

“That’s true.”

She wasn’t wrong.

It wasn’t like we’d only made one or two changes.

I’d worked with Seo Yunha through countless discussions, even meeting up to collaborate in person.

This result didn’t just come out of nowhere.

“Alright, then I’ll move forward with this as-is.”

—“Wasn’t it already finalized anyway?”

“Well, yeah. But they said if there were any parts to fix, they’d reorder the prints.”

—“I think it’s fine the way it is.”

After wrapping up the conversation with Seo Yunha, I contacted the project manager.

[Me: I think we’re good to go with this version!]

[Me: It came out just as we envisioned.]

And the reply came almost immediately.

[Heart X Memorial: Ah!]

[Heart X Memorial: Then we’ll go ahead and place the rest of the order as-is!]

[Me: Sounds good!]

Finally, everything related to the Heart Memorial event was wrapped up.

All the illustrations for the event had been drawn and reviewed multiple times,
and the merch had been fully approved.

Now, all that was left… was to wait.

‘…I hope it all goes well.’

Somehow, I ended up doing a lot of work for Heart Memorial.

Even stuff that wasn’t really necessary.

That’s exactly why I hoped everything would go well.

Thinking that, I uploaded the photos the manager had sent to my computer, and then immediately went live.

[The stream has started!]

As soon as that message popped up, viewers began flooding in.

And at a surprisingly fast pace.

It really felt like my viewership had grown lately.

Back in the day, even if I started a stream, it would take a while for people to trickle in.

But now, I was starting to get a solid base of regular viewers.

“Ah, hey everyone. Good to see you.”

[+HurryAndLeave: hehe]

[Hiii]

[What’s on the menu today?]

[That stream title looks kinda sus]

[Pepe: How about some Reore for old times’ sake?]

[Reore might be a good pick, actually]

After waiting a bit for people to settle in, I officially kicked off the stream.

“Since you’re all here, let me explain today’s stream title.”

Today’s title was a little different from usual:

[There’s an Important Announcement.]

It was meant to stir up a little curiosity—your typical clickbait.

[+HurryAndLeave: Okay so what’s the big news?]

[Just how ‘important’ is this really lol]

[Bet it’s not even that serious]

[Pepe: If the big announcement is that you’re switching to Reore full-time, I’m out]

[No way. Full-time Reore? That’s wild.]

Once I saw that all the viewers were laser-focused, I pulled up the photos I’d uploaded earlier.

“Alright, part of the reason I started today’s stream is to talk about this.”

[+HurryAndLeave: Ohhhh]

[Yo what is this? The quality is insane]

[Why does this look so good lolol]

[Why are you putting so much effort into Heart Memorial…]

[Pepe: I mean, they are paying you well—cheers to that]

[Really…]

[They really are paying him well, huh]

“So, what do you think of the merch? I personally think it turned out great.”

Not that there was any way to change it now, even if the viewers didn’t like it.

Everything had already been finalized.

Still, there was a reason I wanted to show them these photos.

‘If people see this stuff and get interested, they’ll actually want to show up to the event.’

The worst outcome would be if nobody came because the event failed to generate any hype.
That would be way more depressing.

I glanced over at the chat.

[I think it looks pretty solid]

[+HurryAndLeave: How much is it? If it’s pricey, I might have to think about it]

[Well, merch like this is usually kinda expensive lol]

[With that level of quality, it’s probably over 50,000 won]

[Pepe: It honestly looks so good it has to be expensive…]

[Feels a bit out of my budget]

“It’s about 30,000 won per item, I think? They told me they’re keeping the price as low as possible this time since it’s mainly for promotion.”

I was confident when it came to the pricing.

I’d talked with the organizers about it several times.

They mentioned that this event was all about boosting the visibility of Heart Memorial as a game.

[+HurryAndLeave: Ohhh]

[That’s actually super cheap then]

[This really might be worth checking out, hmm]

[Should I go or not…]

[Pepe: Do I have to shower before I go tho?]

[You better shower, you filthy gremlin]

“If you come, you won’t regret it. The event was something the manager and I worked really hard on.”

And I meant it.

We really had poured a lot of effort into this.

Even if someone didn’t buy any merch, I didn’t think they’d walk away disappointed.

With that in mind, I kept the conversation going.

[Title: So… y’all going to the Heart Memorial event or what?]

[Post: I’m seriously on the fence right now. Anyone else thinking of going?]

L: It’s kinda hard to say no when our gallery king himself is basically begging us to show up

ㄴ: But… kinda feels like a waste of money lol

ㄴ: Bro, for otaku merch at an offline event, that price is crazy cheap

L: I’m probably gonna go tbh lol, heard Yotte’s gonna be there too

ㄴ: You think Yotte’s really gonna show up, dumbass?

ㄴ: He did say he’d secretly come and check it out tho

ㄴ: fr?

ㄴ: Yeah, he said last time he might drop by low-key lol

[Title: Reference pics for anyone going to the Heart Memorial event]

[Post: (photos)(photos) Here’s what the venue layout looks like. If you’re planning to go, check this out. Facilities inside are pretty clean too, so you don’t have to stress about the bathrooms.]

L: Should I shower before going?

ㄴ: You really don’t have to lol

ㄴㄴ: I’m still debating…

ㄴ: What do you mean “debating,” you nasty freaks? TAKE A SHOWER.

ㄴ: Jesus christ these people… y’all are really debating this?

L: Can we skip the merch and just get better gacha rates instead?

ㄴ: Bro they still gotta make money somehow.

[Posted by: HurryAndLeave]

[Title: I’m planning to go, for now]

[Post: I mean, as the mod, I kinda have to show up lol]

L: Isn’t Yotte giving out tickets?

ㄴ: Never asked, but probably not?

It’d be kinda weird if he did, to be honest.

HurryAndLeave: I say that but…

ㄴ: If Yotte does hand out tickets, pass one to me pls

ㄴHurryAndLeave: ?

L: Are events like this actually fun though?

Never been to one, so I don’t know.

ㄴHurryAndLeave: They’re fun, tbh lol

It’s just the hassle of actually going that sucks

ㄴ: Fr, going is a whole mission

[Title: If you’re going to the Heart Memorial event, you better drop this kind of cash 👇]

[Post: (photo) Dropped like 3 mil won on this merch]

L: You dropped 3 million and your build looks like that? lol

ㄴ: Take that back, you damn degenerate

ㄴ: Take it back! lol

L: Who the hell has 3 mil just lying around??

ㄴ: I mean, I don’t have anything else to spend it on lol

ㄴ: Not like it’s a crime—move along

ㄴ: Personally, I’m all in for Hamboogi points hehe

ㄴ: Y’all are outta your damn minds…

[Title: Heart Memorial Event <<< Why we shouldn’t let weebs attend]

[Post: (photo of people’s backs at another otaku event) Ah… let’s not dig any deeper.]

L: Bro, you made this for otaku and now you’re saying they shouldn’t come??

ㄴ: It actually makes perfect sense

ㄴ: LMAOOOOOOOO

L: This is a bit harsh though…

ㄴ: Fr, I came in ready to flame the OP but this is next-level

ㄴ: Look at those crusty backs, Jesus

L: Bruh I was eating, now I feel like puking

ㄴ: Honestly, it’s the perfect side dish—what’s the problem?

[Title: No, but seriously, please shower before you come]

[Post: I’m begging you. Like actually begging. Isn’t there anything we can do about this…?]

L: Okay okay, I’ll at least wash my face.

ㄴ: …what.

ㄴ: YOU’RE SUPPOSED TO SHOWER, YOU FREAK

ㄴ: Uuugh… I don’t wanna…

ㄴ: Oh my god I’m losing it lol

Time passed, and before I knew it—it was the day of the Heart Memorial event.

“Phew…”

I’d really put in a lot of effort for this event.

I visited the venue several times, shared feedback like “maybe it’d be better if we arranged this area like this”, and made a bunch of last-minute changes to the plan.

‘Honestly, I don’t even know how I ended up this deep into all this.’

It all started with just drawing the illustrations.

And now… here I was, way further in than I ever expected.

Feeling that strange mix of nerves and excitement, I started my stream.

[The stream has started!]

“Hey, is everyone getting ready to head out?”

[On my way (just woke up lol)]

[Wait, what’s happening today?]

[+HurryAndLeave: Just got dressed and hopped on the bus lol]

[Gotta go, mmmhmm definitely]

[Pepe: So… are we actually gonna see Yotte today?]

[We might, right?]

[You’re not there yet?]

Checking the chat, it seemed like a bunch of viewers were already on their way to the venue.

That was a relief.

I’d been a little worried that not many people would show up.

“I’ll be heading over soon too, but if you happen to see me at the event… please pretend you don’t know me. It’s just… easier that way.”

[Ooh]

[+HurryAndLeave: Of course lol]

[Then hurry up and get going]

[When are you getting there?]

[Pepe: Gonna walk straight up and say hi, just watch me]

After asking the viewers for that one small favor, I chatted for a little while longer—then ended the stream and made my way to the venue.

Not knowing what might happen once I got there…