Chapter 39: First, I recruited one person

What are the duties of a main moderator?

I sat at my desk, seriously contemplating this.

The tasks of a moderator generally involve moderating the gallery to prevent it from becoming chaotic, and dealing with trolls.

They sometimes give away burgers too, but I don’t have any money, so I’ll skip that.

I idly clicked the mouse scroll.

The tasks… hmm.

Ah! I remembered.

First, I need to get permission.

I turned on my phone and checked the mod group chat.

I expected the group chat to be in an uproar because of the sudden change in moderators, but it was surprisingly quiet.

Checking it, I realized Unni Juyeon must have already given them a heads-up.

It’s great that I don’t need a long explanation. She’s surprisingly thoughtful.

Thinking that, I sent a message.

Kim Jia: I will be adding assistant moderators.

Cho Hyeseol: I agree.

Baek Hwayeon:? Wait, wait, suddenly?

Hwayeon seems to be objecting, but I didn’t need to listen.

This wasn’t a request for advice; it was a notification.

Over the past few days, while managing the gallery alone, I realized something.

The current number of moderators is insufficient.

The maximum number of moderators for a minor gallery is ten.

However, most minor galleries don’t reach that maximum.

This is because most galleries don’t need that many moderators, and too many moderators can also attract unnecessary conflicts.

If a gallery has ten moderators, they might be targeted as “Why aren’t these numerous moderators taking action?” and attempts at getting rid of moderators might begin, making the maximum number meaningless.

But the Yuri Gallery currently only has three moderators, including me.

A woefully insufficient number.

By the way, Unni Juyeon declared she’s quitting gallery moderation. My personal messages are enough contact, she said.

I was afraid to even touch my phone, buzzing with notifications.

Did I accidentally dial the wrong number?

Anyway, back to the main point, only I am doing the work out of those three moderators.

The other two are essentially unnecessary.

However, I didn’t want to remove Hyeseol and Hwayeon.

I’ve already gotten attached to them. What to do.

Hyeseol sometimes acts in a way that defies common sense, but…

After a moment’s consideration, I decided to keep the current two assistant moderators.

The issue now is how many more to recruit.

Considering that two are inactive, adding four would be appropriate?

“Hmm…”

Wrestling with the decision, I decided to have some hot chocolate before thinking further.

I need some sugar.

The hot chocolate I finally got was the best.

The process was arduous, but even now, Mom’s nagging is hard to bear.

She says I’ll get fat if I keep eating it.

I bowed my head and touched my belly.

Soft.

My belly was still flat, but hearing Mom’s words made me feel like I was starting to gain weight.

What? Doesn’t a typical TS girl have weight gain immunity…?

Why am I getting fat?

The shattering of my common sense ruined my appetite for the hot chocolate.

…Still.

It’s too precious to waste, right?

And it should be okay to finish it today.

Probably.

I rationalized and finished the rest of the hot chocolate.

With my sugar replenished, my mind is clear. I woke up the computer which I had secretly been letting sleep while not using it.

Then I wrote a post.

<(Breaking News) Recruiting Assistant Moderators>

Author: Kim Jia

I’ve decided we need to add more assistant moderators for a more pleasant gallery experience.

Applicants must be regulars or semi-regulars who have been active in the Yuri Gallery for at least two weeks.

The work is really nothing!

Mostly just deleting promotional posts.

There are also benefits!

The tag next to your nickname turns blue! It’s like a rare title in a game.

We appreciate your interest.

After writing it, I pressed Enter. The statement that the work is easy is a lie.

Large minor galleries are constantly busy dealing with trolls.

But if I honestly write that it’s difficult, who would apply? A little white lie is sometimes necessary.

With that audacious thought, I refreshed the post.

The post for new moderators was apparently of great interest, as the response was enthusiastic.

:Moderator team normalization lol

-oo: Normalization by God Jia

Life_is_bright:I’ll cautiously apply!

:Is there anyone crazy enough to apply for this?

-oo: There’s someone above you.

-oo:Why is this for real?

Prostrate_and_receive_praise: Rare title lol. This main moderator is also not in their right mind.

-Not_a_troll:When have they ever been normal?

-Prostrate_and_receive_praise: Why are you suddenly picking a fight;;

oo:Are they pretty?

-oo:Does it matter if they’re pretty?

oo:It matters a lot.

oo:Why can’t casual users apply for moderator? Are you looking down on casual users?

Hmm…

It seems to be mostly meaningless comments.

Then, one comment caught my eye.

Unlike the other comments which were jokes, this seemed to be a serious application.

Let’s see… the regular is… ‘Life_is_bright.’

I checked ‘Life_is_bright’s’ post history in the Yuri Gallery.

It’s also to check if they’ve been active in the Yuri Gallery for over two weeks as stated in the recruitment post.

It’s an unverified rumor, but I remember reading that all regulars who volunteer to become moderators are abnormal.

I was anxious that they might be strange.

Thankfully, this applicant doesn’t seem to be that type.

<I saw a really pretty flower on my way here!>

<The gallery is down…>

Their posts were purely innocent.

To be able to write only such bright posts in an anonymous community.

Honestly, I was a little surprised.

Well, their regular nickname exudes a positive image.

The concern is whether such a person can handle the harsh reality of gallery moderation.

Moderators often see terrible things even after just a week of work.

For example, gore images, h*ntai, and various other disgusting images need to be seen and deleted.

However, this regular seems unlike others, untouched by the community.

If they become a moderator, they’ll probably go crazy or run away; one of the two.

If either happens, I will feel incredibly sorry.

Hmm, I’ll put this person on hold for now.

I needed time to think.

I shook my head and closed the post to check other posts.

Is there anyone else suitable…?

A regular with a high activity level who frequents the gallery.

With that in mind, I searched through the posts one by one.

It’s not this person, nor that person…

Oh, this person seems okay.

I looked at their posts.

<Don’t all the regulars in this gallery have zero dating experience and a huge amount of webs of guilt below them?>

Author: Not_a_troll

What about romance threads then?

Is that okay?

oo:This b*tch

oo:Pretending they’re not lol

-oo:This guy seems to live in the gallery too.

A regular who spends all day posting in the gallery, remaining within the bounds of the gallery’s theme.

I had a feeling.

Their nickname sounds like a troll, but this type of person might actually do well.

I sent a request to accept the assistant moderator position to the regular, ‘Not_a_troll,’

Along with a small gift.

Seoyun, who uses the nickname ‘Not_a_troll’ in the Yuri Gallery, couldn’t help but exclaim in disbelief.

“Huh…”

Usually, after work, she’d write inflammatory posts, but she couldn’t now.

Because.

[Your ID has been banned by a Yuri Gallery manager. [Ban period: 30 days]/[Reason: If you want your ban lifted, get an assistant moderator position and lift it yourself]]

When she tried to write, she received a very unbelievable message.

Could this be the work of the new main moderator?

Seoyun had seen the post recruiting assistant moderators. She thought it was irrelevant to her and laughed it off.

But how did this happen?

It was a bolt from the blue.

Seoyun silently screamed in despair at the grim reality.

Lately, she had been spending more time in the gallery than not.

She had become addicted.

To be banned from the gallery for 30 days.

It was nothing short of torture.

Seoyun reviewed her recent posts.

She stirred up trouble by subtly inciting conflict or making provocative remarks. She had only been making subtle disruptive comments.

She had anticipated being banned sometime, but she never imagined it would be because of becoming an assistant moderator.

“So, you want me to join…?”

It’s unfair, but it’s better than not being able to use the gallery.

With trembling hands, Seoyun accepted the assistant moderator request.

Vowing to ask the main moderator why she was chosen later.

<What?! A notorious troll became an assistant moderator?>

(An image of the well-known troll ‘Not_a_troll’ with a blue tag. Even in the image, you can see posts written to provoke conflict.)

What the…?

-oo:It’s real.

oo:???