Chapter 61: Gotta Visit the Headquarters at Least Once

I hadn’t expected the album to get this much praise.

We had aimed for a balance between artistry and mainstream appeal, but I didn’t think the response would be this immediate.

‘That’s a relief.’

It would’ve been a little embarrassing if the album flopped.

Feeling reassured, I spoke up.

Since I had been involved in the production, I needed to give an objective opinion on the music.

“The songs are solid. Personally, I really like them.”

And I meant it.

After all, I had worked on this album myself.

If I didn’t like it, that would be even stranger.

[+HurryAndLeave: Yeah, the songs are good.]

[I actually really like it.]

[This is definitely making the charts.]

[No way, charting is too difficult.]

[Do you guys think getting on the charts is easy or something…?]

[Pepe: Even top-tier artists struggle to chart lol.]

[But isn’t Rage a pretty big name at this point?]

[They don’t have a dedicated fanbase, though.]

The songs were good, but most people were doubtful about it making the charts.

And honestly, I understood why.

Last time, the album had charted thanks to a lucky break.

Under normal circumstances, breaking into the rankings was incredibly difficult.

‘Yeah, sneaking past idol groups was already a miracle.’

But in the end, I wasn’t too concerned.

As long as the streaming numbers were good, that was all that mattered.

Who cared that much about the charts?

“Alright, everyone, give the album a full listen. I know the artist, so this is the least I can ask from you.”

[+HurryAndLeave: Lol, got it.]

[Live-streaming my listening session ON.]

[Wait, was Yoddu the one who designed the album cover last time?]

[Yeah, pretty sure it was for Rage.]

[Confirmed.]

[Pepe: But how did you even get involved with them?]

[Pepe: You guys seem like you’d have zero connection lol.]

[Really]

Since the viewers seemed curious about how I got involved, I briefly reworded the story about Seolhwa to make it sound natural.

“I got introduced through someone I know and ended up working on the project. I have some people around me who do art, and some who do music too.”

Well, one person in music, to be exact…

But still, it technically counted.

As I talked, I ended up sharing a bit more about Seolhwa.

At first, I hadn’t planned to go into detail, but the more I spoke, the more I wanted to promote her work.

“Rage is honestly a really kind person. She’s articulate too. I get the feeling she’s going to go far.”

[Really]

[+HurryAndLeave: Yeah, she seemed like she had a good personality when I saw her interviews.]

[Pepe: By the way, the album is seriously amazing lol.]

[Also, she’s ridiculously pretty.]

[Info: Rage is currently 20 years old.]

[???]

[She’s 20??? Lol.]

[Wait, is that real?]

“Yeah, she should be 20. She said she was 19 last year.”

The chat was just as surprised as I had been.

It made sense.

I had assumed she was much older at first, since she spoke so maturely.

But nope, she had just turned 20.

Of course, now that I knew her better, she seemed much younger to me.

Thinking that, I continued browsing the forum.

[Title: My complaints about Yoddu’s streams lately…]

“Hm?”

Complaints about my stream?

What exactly were people unhappy about?

I had been streaming pretty consistently lately.

Feeling curious, I clicked the post.

[Title: My complaints about Yoddu’s streams lately…]

[Content: I have a lot of complaints, but if I had to pick just one. First of all, he doesn’t turn on his camera. That’s the biggest issue. Also, he doesn’t play variety games anymore… I could say more, but I’ll stop here.]

“…”

L: Bro said everything and still acted like he held back lol.

L: But does he really need to turn on his camera?

ㄴ: My eyes deserve a feast.

ㄴ: He sounds good-looking, just let us see his face already…

L: Why are y’all so obsessed with his face? Just watch the stream.

ㄴ: Now that’s the right mindset.

I had been slightly worried, but it turned out to be nothing serious.

If anything, this was more like indirect praise for my stream.

Still, since some people might be curious about my stance, I decided to share my thoughts on the topic.

Not that it would be news to the regulars.

“As for the face cam… I’ll turn it on when I’m ready. I still have to live my real life, you know? I’m not really the type who enjoys attention in person.”

[+HurryAndLeave: Yeah, that makes sense lol.]

[Real life is way more important.]

[Wait, what’s real life?]

[This is my real life.]

[Pepe: He’ll show it when he feels like it, no need to pressure him.]

[Honestly, it’s fine. You can already tell he’s good-looking from the way he talks.]

[Really]

If I ever felt like revealing my face, I probably would.

But right now, I had no interest in it.

Moving on.

“And about variety games, I actually planned to start playing them soon. I was waiting until my average viewer count hit around a thousand, but lately, I noticed the numbers have been climbing fast.”

Back then, I never even considered the possibility of reaching 1,000 viewers on average.

My streams used to sit at two-digit numbers.

And yet, here I was.

It was kind of surreal.

Thinking that, I pulled up a list of saved games.

“Here are some of the games I’ve been thinking about playing. I’ll let you guys vote on what you want to see later.”

[+HurryAndLeave: Hell yeah.]

[This is what I’m talking about.]

[If you’re gonna do it, how about Red Dead Redemption?]

[Yeah, play Red Dead! Red Dead!]

[What the hell is Red Dead lol.]

[Pepe: Multiplayer games would be fun too lol.]

[There are so many great games, why are you guys recommending that?]

[Seriously]

Everyone had different opinions.

Some wanted me to play a game I had enjoyed in the past, while others suggested games I had never even heard of.

“I’ll probably start next week. Gotta do it before classes begin.”

Variety games were something I needed to play when I had plenty of time.

Starting one when I was already busy would just be a hassle.

I was already splitting my time as much as possible.

With that thought, I continued the stream.

The next day.

I arrived in Gangnam.

‘…So I actually came to Gangnam of my own will.’

Normally, I avoided coming here out of sheer laziness.

“Is this the place?”

The reason I made the trip was simple.

I had to discuss business with Heart Memorial.

Up until now, I had only needed to submit illustrations remotely.

But this time, they were holding a large-scale event.

So, I had come all the way to Gangnam in person.

‘I’m kind of nervous.’

I had never traveled this far just for a contract before.

I was worried I might mess something up.

With that thought, I carefully stepped into the building.

From what I had heard, the office was on the third floor.

As I looked around, wondering how to get up there.

I noticed a woman scanning her surroundings.

Her eyes were sunken with exhaustion.

Just in case, I approached her and asked,

“…Are you the representative from Heart Memorial?”

I remembered them saying someone would be waiting on the first floor.

Hearing my question, the woman flinched in surprise before nodding.

“Ah! Yes, that’s me!”

That was a relief.

If she hadn’t been the right person, this would’ve been really awkward.

“I came because you mentioned wanting to discuss something today.”

She tilted her head slightly.

“By the way, who…?”

I could see her trying to place me.

Then, a realization seemed to hit her.

“Oh, wait… Are you—?”

“Yep.”

As soon as I confirmed it, she looked completely shocked and started talking rapidly.

“You look so different from what I imagined! I didn’t recognize you at all!”

“Haha…”

Yeah, I figured.

People probably didn’t expect someone who spent most of his time drawing and gaming to look even remotely decent.

“Well, let’s go. I’ll guide you upstairs.”

“Sure.”

As we made our way up, I noticed she kept glancing at me.

Probably making sure I was actually following her.

I wasn’t that bad with directions…

Feeling slightly unfairly judged, I silently followed her upstairs.

“Oh.”

At the top, I finally saw the office entrance.

“This place looks amazing.”

It was way more stylish than I had expected.

Although… I had mixed feelings about the entrance being decorated with half-naked male characters.

They clearly took pride in their game, but still.

“Ahem. Well, our revenue has been increasing lately, so we figured we could afford something like this.”

“Oh…”

It really did seem like the company was growing.

Even yesterday, Heart Memorial had been mentioned a lot in the community forum.

“Congratulations.”

“Honestly, I’d say about 10% of that growth is thanks to you, Yoddu. And I’m not even joking.”

“I tend to lean progressive, though.”

“…Huh?”

“Kidding.”

We continued chatting as we stepped inside the office.

Tadak tadak.

The sound of keyboards filled the room.

Everyone was so focused on their work that they didn’t even notice me walk in.

I felt a bit bad seeing how hard they were working.

Following the representative, I walked deeper into the office.

And after a moment.

“Welcome.”

A man with a deep, calm presence approached me with a smile.