Chapter 14: Rushed Deadlines and Unexpected Talent

When the call finally came, why was there no word for so long?

I need to sort this out quickly and see Yuseong’s reaction.

Honestly, I can’t stand my aunt’s family. They’re just too laid-back.

Ring-ring! The phone rang.

Speak of the devil, huh? Perfect timing.

“Hey, sis. You heard from Aunt, right?

I need to rent out a 26-pyeong luxury apartment on a monthly lease.”

[You’re giving it to a guy, aren’t you? Looks like your love life is finally seeing some progress!]

That’s none of your business.

I wanted to say that but bit my tongue since I was asking a favor.

Suppressing my irritation, I replied as calmly as I could.

“It’s not like that. Anyway, how soon can you prepare it? I want to finish the residency registration as quickly as possible.”

[Even if it’s just a lease, it’s not like we’re dealing with a local inn. These things take time, you know. There are procedures to follow.]

“That’s why I’m asking you to skip those procedures for me.”

So frustrating.

Why is the daughter of the chairman of Shinhwa Construction talking about procedures?

Is she teasing me? Seems like it.

Like she’s thrilled to have something to pounce on.

[Alright, I’ll sort it out as quickly as I can. Oh, I’m excited. Just imagining meeting the guy Hyejung is head over heels for makes me giddy.]

“Stop it. Just send a representative. There’s no need to meet him. He said he’s leaving soon for a long-term overseas trip.”

[Oh, but that’s not proper etiquette. He could be my future brother-in-law, after all. I should meet him—]

“Enough of that nonsense! Bye!”

Hearing her embarrassing remarks, I quickly hung up.

It’s really not like that, I swear.

I haven’t even started.

What’s wrong with me?

Why can’t I approach him as confidently as usual?

Just seeing his face on stream makes me so happy.

Ugh, I feel so dumb.

“At first I thought I was sick, I really didn’t know anything back then~”

[Whoa! So soothing]

[Hearing it in karaoke hits different ]

[Stop with the wistful expressions! Your face is seriously cheating!]

[I told you, the dude’s a natural singer! He’s not just a streamer.]

[But still, let’s see if he messes up]

[Go on, hit a screechy note! I’m waiting.]

The intro ended smoothly, leading into the first verse.

The audience was a mix of acknowledgment and skepticism.

Could he sing without a single mistake?

That seemed to be the big question.

The song I was singing was “Noona, I’m Hurting.”

It’s about a boy who doesn’t know much about love and keeps talking about how he’s in pain whenever he’s around the older girl he likes.

In reality, his heart is just racing from excitement.

“But then~ I realized~ Why my chest aches~ only when I’m near Noona~”

I think I get the trend for male songs in this world.

They don’t boldly express love; instead, they suffer in silence.

Women seem to find these lyrics appealing—maybe they have a soft spot for devoted, pure love.

Also, it feels like some singers intentionally compensate for their lack of vocal skill by focusing on emotional lyrics.

It makes sense.

Competing with female singers in traditional ways wouldn’t work.

“It must be~ Love-! I can’t help but feel this way!”

[OMG, he nailed it!]

[He’s not just shouting; it actually sounds amazing!]

[Who even is this guy?]

[There’s something rugged but emotional in his voice. How do I describe this?]

[Yuseong’s streams are like a new world every day!]

[I’m obsessed. Seriously.]

Yes! I hit the highest notes without any mistakes.

Three full octaves, perfectly executed.

Now, just the ending left.

As a short instrumental interlude began, I took a deep breath and composed myself.

“No matter how hard I try~ Or pretend not to care~ Only Noona~ can heal me~ Hoo! Yeah-eah!”

[Flawless!]

[The technique is so professional. Like, debut-worthy!]

[This is insane.]

[He’s too good.]

[Clips of this are already trending.]

As the song ended, the chat filled with praise and amazement.

The vibe was perfect, so I chose a lively dance track as the next song.

I’d been stressed out lately, but that night, sharing the experience with my viewers, I felt genuinely happy for the first time in a while.

When I woke up, I had become a star.

That phrase perfectly sums up my current situation.

My name was plastered everywhere—news portals, online forums, social media, YuCube.

I had some idea this might happen. My looks are, well, undeniably striking. But I didn’t expect the reaction to be this intense.

[Yuseong at a Late-Night Karaoke Session – YuCube]

Views: 1,070,000

“Is this guy a rookie? His voice and visuals are a blessing!”

“We’re living in the era of Shin Yuseong.”

“Why hasn’t he debuted as a singer yet?”

“My mom said a guy is handsome for the first time ever.”

“I’ve been listening to this with my earphones for an hour straight.”

“I need more of his content! There’s not enough out there.”

Especially on YuCube, my fan accounts had skyrocketed.

Each video had well over a million views.

This is all money.

If only I had uploaded the video myself, I could’ve made so much more.

Fan accounts can’t monetize, but the dispersed viewership is a real problem.

Eventually, opportunists will pop up trying to cash in on my name.

I need to set up my YuCube channel ASAP and start managing my image tightly.

Thankfully, I already have an account.

Of course, I do.

Let me check my past comments… Hmm, past me was so nice.

No nasty comments, only encouraging ones.

Good. I can work with this account.

As for the channel name, let’s keep it simple: Shin Yuseong TV.

There’s no need for anything fancy when my name is already well-known.

For now, I took some quick selfies and edited them for the profile and channel art.

It’s not perfect, but it’ll do until I can hire a professional editor.

Next, I recorded my first video to verify the channel’s authenticity.

Sitting in front of a fixed camera with good lighting, I looked straight into the lens for five seconds, then bowed slightly and spoke the lines I had prepared.

“Hello, this is Shin Yuseong, a game streamer.

I’ve launched my YuCube channel and plan to share lots of fun content, so please show your support and love!”

That was my greeting.

Now onto the main point of the video—why I was making it.

“I’m currently looking for a YuCube editor.

Please send edited clips of my streams to the email address below.

I’ll review them and announce the results on my Twika TV in two days. See you in the next video!”

[Hi, this is Shin Yuseong.]

Upload… 100%.

The video was barely 20 seconds long, so it uploaded in no time.

With that done, I felt oddly empty.

Oh, right. I forgot to promote it.

I headed to my Twika TV channel and posted a notice.

Streamer Shin Yuseong – Announcement

I’ve created a YuCube channel! (www.yucube.cXX/yfg#hjh) I’m currently recruiting editors, so I hope many of you will participate.

I’ll also be uploading lots of exciting videos, so stay tuned!

“I’ll start the stream at 8 PM today. We’ll play some LoL that we missed yesterday. GG.”

[Oh? You actually made it. LOL.]

[But the quality doesn’t match the hype; it’s kinda meh…]

[They’re hiring an editor. LOL. Let’s see who applies.]

[Good work, LOL. Yuseong’s putting in the effort, as always.]

[No breaks, huh? It’s nice for me, though—easy money.]

[If you’re a rookie on Day 4, you should stream every day. LOL.]

[Newbie? Well, it’s a major company after all.]

[Is that face for real?]

[That’s some unreal-level handsomeness, LOL.]

[But editing time’s way too short. If the presentation’s the day after tomorrow, it means the video has to be done within a day.]

[That’s gonna be brutal.]

A flood of comments poured in.

Among them, the ones pointing out that two days were too tight stood out.

But it couldn’t be helped.

Time was precious to me right now, so I had to find an editor as quickly as possible.

On the bright side, this could be an opportunity to separate the wheat from the chaff.

Producing high-quality results in a short time was a critical skill for an editor.

If the test was too easy, it would be hard to evaluate anyone effectively.

Now, all I could do was wait for talented people to bring their results and apply.

“While waiting, should I go through my messages?”

Ugh.

There are so many weirdos in the world.

Messages full of cringe-worthy content cluttered my inbox.

It was especially bad today—probably because I revealed my face.

[Yuseong-nim, would you like to date me? I’ll pay you 10 million won per meeting, up to three times a month. More is negotiable.]

[I’d like to invite you to a party at □□ Hotel. Our clients insist you attend. Compensation of at least 50 million won is guaranteed.]

Some were even blatantly proposing shady deals.

How exactly do these people see me?

Absolutely not.

Not only is it morally unacceptable, but it’s also an act that devalues oneself.

Just send a donation if you want my attention.

Don’t sneakily offer cash deals behind the scenes.

[We’ve finalized things with my sister. She agreed to rent the place to you. She wants to sign the contract through a representative tomorrow. Are you available?]

There was a message from Moonhwa.

I didn’t expect things to resolve this quickly.

I thought they’d hold me to a stricter standard since I wasn’t a relative or close acquaintance.

I never imagined they’d propose signing the contract tomorrow.

Am I really about to move into such a fantastic apartment?

But one thing bothered me.

A contract through a representative?

That’s tricky.

I preferred signing directly with the property owner.

It simplified the process and reduced potential risks.

Even if I brought along an agent, I wasn’t keen on dealing with someone I didn’t know.

[Moonhwa-nim, thank you. But I’d feel more comfortable if the contract were with the owner directly.]

[There’s really no difference with a representative. It just means adding a few more documents like a power of attorney. But since it’s your future home, I’ll follow your preference. I’ll discuss it with my sister again.]

[Thank you so much!]

Moonhwa graciously accepted my request.

I was so grateful for the effort they were putting in.

If I moved in without any issues, I’d have to contact them and send a small gift as a token of thanks.

Maybe even invite them over to my housewarming party.

It was the least I could do.

I set aside the paperwork and picked up my phone.

Why aren’t they answering right away?

Aren’t they just lounging at home?

I sighed in frustration before finally hearing a voice on the other end.

[Hello?]

“Hey, can you make time to meet and sign directly with the owner’s sister?”

[Your boyfriend’s really meticulous, isn’t he? Haha, that’s adorable.]

“Seriously, don’t say anything weird when you meet.

Got it?

She’s just renting out her place since she’s leaving for a business trip abroad.

Understand?”

[Relax. I’m an excellent actor.

Don’t worry about it.]

Phew.

Why did I even take on this hassle?

Yuseong would never understand how much effort I was putting in.

Still, I couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling.

That chatty sister of hers would never keep her mouth shut.

I needed to come up with some sort of backup plan.

[Applying for the editor position.

Please consider me.]

Oh!

On a whim, I opened my email inbox and saw that a decent number of applicants had already sent in submissions.

It had only been two hours since I posted the announcement, yet some had already created videos?

[Yuseong! I love you!

I freaking love you!]

Sigh.

Of course, it’s just a joke email.

The rest are probably the same.

I had a strong hunch, but I couldn’t just ignore everything without checking.

I decided to open and review every email.

I couldn’t risk missing a submission from someone who genuinely put effort into creating a video.

[I’m learning video editing.

Could you give me more time to submit?]

Sure, keep learning.

Maybe we’ll meet again in the future.

But it seems we’re not meant to work together right now.

[I poured my heart into this.

Please watch it to the end.]

Could this be an actual video submission?

There was an attached file titled Yuseong’s Mad Movie.mp4.

I clicked to play it.

“Meow!

Meow!

Kimochi!”

What the—!?

It’s a damn porn clip!

A man was making ridiculous cat noises while yelling out kimochi.

My poor eyes!

Why would someone even send this?

I immediately pressed Shift + Delete to permanently erase it.

[Applying for the editor position.]

Wow!

Now this person looked promising.

They attached not one, but seven videos: What Happens When a Newbie Male Gamer Excels in LoL, Soul Duo with Moonhwa, Taking Down a Sniper Troll, First Reaction to a Song Feat.

You Know Who, and more.

Each one covered specific events from my streams.

No way.

They must be joking.

How could someone produce this many videos in such a short time?

It’s probably another troll video, maybe with a man shaking his butt or something equally ridiculous.

With zero expectations, I played one of the videos.

“What the…!?”

It was an actual edited video.

Not just that, the quality was incredible.

It was as if the editor knew my tastes and had crafted the videos exactly how I would have directed them.

Who could this be?

There was no phone number.

They didn’t include it.

What kind of idiot leaves out such a crucial detail after putting together such brilliant work?

I was already sure I wanted to hire this person, but how could I reach them?

Maybe I should reply to their email to compliment their work and ask for their contact information.

Wait, why does this email address look so familiar…?