Chapter 39: Unexpected Apologies and Hidden Tensions

“Ah! I died again. I’ll be back soon.”

Seolhyun, who had been tanking in the front, failed to hold out for long and returned to the village.

It seems she really spent all her gold to buy a bow.

Her endurance hasn’t improved at all.

Whoosh!

Still, the situation is much better than before.

Thanks to her attack power more than doubling, her hits are landing effectively.

It feels like switching from chopsticks to wielding a club.

We can finish this quickly.

While maintaining distance, I continued shooting arrows.

[You insolent brat!]

Lubred spread its arms wide and roared.

This was the preparatory motion before it used its skill.

But I wasn’t worried.

I had already figured out its patterns.

Even the first time it cast the skill, I dodged with ease.

I moved left, then up, and finally down.

The giant axe thrown by Lubred narrowly grazed my torso.

“What did I say? I told you to trust me. Oh, there’s no need to thank me. I just did what I had to do.”

I was on the phone with the CEO of NX Soft.

I’ve lost count of how many times he said thank you.

Well, I suppose it makes sense.

They’re achieving unprecedented success.

Until now, despite establishing Twika TV, becoming its CEO, and hosting countless promotional broadcasts, none had ever caused such a sensation.

A live broadcast with 260,000 viewers—these numbers are usually only seen during the coverage of popular Olympic events.

The response was explosive.

Major community boards were flooded with posts about it.

“He’s not just a pretty face, is he?”

I looked at the monitor screen.

An elf with a bow was elegantly dodging the final boss’s attacks.

Even someone like me, who has little interest in games, could feel the tension and excitement.

He has an innate talent as a streamer that captures viewers’ attention.

Where did such a monster appear from? No, not a monster—

A treasure. Yes, that’s the right word. A one-of-a-kind treasure that could elevate Twika TV to the next level.

[You scoundrel, don’t think it ends here. One day… I shall return.]

Come back or not, do as you please. I’m not playing this game ever again anyway.

Lubred’s body disintegrated into black powder and vanished.

At last, I had defeated the chapter’s final boss.

How long have I been doing this?

My hands gripping the phone trembled. Is there any other work this exhausting?

Even when I played StarCraft, which requires heavy wrist action, I never experienced such pain.

“Yuseong, congratulations! I knew you could do it!”

“Seolhyun, you did well too! You were a huge help.”

Seolhyun, speaking in an excited tone, congratulated me from beside me. We clasped hands and cheered.

Had we developed camaraderie from fighting together?

It must have been tough for her to return to the dungeon after dying and getting sent back to the village.

The effort she put in made the victory even sweeter.

“Wow, Yuseong. Why were you filming a movie during a live broadcast? I was holding my breath the entire time. Audience members, let’s give a big round of applause to these two for their incredible performance!”

Suyeon’s voice rang out in an excited tone.

The audience clapped enthusiastically, with some even standing up and whistling in celebration.

I really did well, didn’t I? I wasn’t being stubborn, was I?

I was a bit nervous, but it’s a relief things turned out well.

I’m glad I decided to appear on the live broadcast.

It’s been a long time since I’ve felt this fulfilled playing a game.

“The thrill hasn’t worn off yet. Although it’s late, we can’t skip an interview, can we?”

I quit Raniza and stood up.

I felt completely refreshed.

It was fun, but let’s not meet again.

That’s exactly how I felt. It was enjoyable, but I have no intention of doing it again.

I walked over to Suyeon and stood beside her. It was time for the interview and to start wrapping up the broadcast.

I checked the time—10:20 p.m.

The scheduled time had been exceeded by 20 minutes.

Why didn’t they stop the game earlier? It’s odd.

Even if I was focused, if someone had mentioned the time, I would’ve stopped immediately.

I feel a bit uneasy knowing the broadcast ran late because of me.

“First, I’d like to thank Seolhyun. Despite the scheduled broadcast time being over, she stayed with us until the end.”

“I appeared today not as Raniza’s promotional model but as a fan of the game. Even if it took all night, I had to stay.”

“Wow! That’s true love for Raniza. Could you share a few final words with us?”

“Of course. Please continue to love Raniza. And me, too.”

Seolhyun’s interview ended smoothly.

As expected, she’s a pro.

Even when asked an unscripted question due to the broadcast delay, she answered confidently and with finesse.

“Yuseong, you worked so hard. After trying it out, what do you think? Is Raniza a game that can be enjoyed without spending money?”

An unexpected question was thrown my way. What should I say? Yes, absolutely.

Raniza is a game that doesn’t require spending money.

I can’t say that. I’d be asking for trouble.

“Yes, it’s possible—if you have my level of gaming skills.”

“Ha-ha! That’s a very Yuseong-like answer.”

I responded honestly but tried to spin it positively since this was a promotional broadcast.

Hopefully, people understood what I meant—that if you lack skill, you’ll need to spend a fortune.

“Raniza is a game that’s enjoyable whether you’re paying or not. Doesn’t that prove how well-balanced it is?”

Suyeon, as always, tied it all together seamlessly. Her ability to repackage everything is remarkable.

No wonder she’s so well-connected in Twika TV.

She wrapped it up so nicely that it made my life easier.

“To all the viewers, thank you for staying with us until this late hour. Have a good night.”

With Suyeon’s closing remarks, the broadcast came to an end.

“Hey! Let’s wrap this up quickly. We have a company dinner tonight, so let’s hurry.”

The crew members bustled about, packing up the broadcasting equipment.

Audience members rose from their seats, filing out through the aisles.

The bustling studio gradually revealed empty spaces as people left.

“Wasn’t that a bit too much? You really caught me off guard.”

“Ah! I’m so sorry. I insisted on it.”

Suyeon approached, grumbling under her breath.

It was a perfectly valid complaint.

Even though the higher-ups had approved it, I should have given her a heads-up.

A lack of consideration for the host, no doubt.

“Well, the higher-ups are thrilled, so that’s a relief. They said this broadcast caused quite a stir. The advertisers seem absolutely delighted.”

“That’s good to hear.”

“But next time, make sure to give me a heads-up, okay?”

“Of course.”

Suyeon was more laid-back than I had expected.

I had worried she might sulk after being offended, but it seemed I was overthinking it.

Or maybe she was just in a good mood because the broadcast had been so successful.

Either way, it was fortunate.

For something that felt like a solo escapade, the situation had wrapped up quite well.

“Seolhyun, you did great.”

I felt a peculiar tingling at the back of my neck.

Turning around, I saw Seolhyun standing there blankly.

She hadn’t left yet?

I’d thought she’d head out immediately after the shoot ended, but apparently, she had some time to spare today.

“Aren’t you going to apologize to me?”

“Ah, I’m sorry for delaying the shoot because of me.”

“Not that…” She trailed off. No, wait.

“Oh! I’m sorry for touching your hand and blowing on it without permission. I wanted to apologize for that again.”

“Are you kidding me?”

Seolhyun’s cheeks puffed up more and more.

What was this, a pufferfish? Or a toad?

I thought I’d apologized for everything, but maybe I missed something.

It’d be easier if she just told me what I’d done wrong.

This guessing game was frustrating.

“You abused me throughout the entire game! Look at this hand!”

She thrust her hand forward.

It was trembling as if she had a severe case of tremors.

Oh, right.

In my rush to clear the quest, I had relentlessly pushed her to keep going without a break.

“You kept telling me to block here, block there! It felt like I was your personal shield!”

“Haha, a shield? Come on, I didn’t treat you like that.”

Caught red-handed, huh?

She had noticed. Embarrassing.

But what could I do?

She was terrible at the game.

I had to use her as a tool just to get through it.

I made the best decision I could.

“Still… it was fun. I was so happy when we took down that skeleton.”

Wait, was that… an olive branch?

Seolhyun beamed brightly.

Honestly, her smile was stunning every time.

It made my heart melt.

How could someone be so breathtakingly beautiful?

But it felt like a poisoned chalice.

She’d get mad and throw me off balance, then flash that dazzling smile to smooth things over, only to repeat the cycle.

She seemed to know exactly how to make someone feel conflicted.

And this was just our first encounter.

If we grew closer, I imagined it would be exhausting.

“Oh, everyone’s gathered here.”

Juhee, the CEO of Twika TV, entered the studio.

She greeted each person with a handshake and a few words of appreciation.

“I was curious about how you’d work around the game mechanics’ limitations, but wow, you really pulled off something daring.”

“I apologize.”

“No, no, I should apologize. I’ll be more selective when choosing guests for future broadcasts. You must have put a lot of thought into it. It was an excellent choice.”

“Thank you.”

Juhee knew.

She understood how much I’d agonized over maintaining my image while promoting the Raniza game during the broadcast.

As expected of someone called the matriarch of the streaming industry, her insight was unparalleled.

“Now that the broadcast is over, how about we head out for dinner? What do you say? Can you join us?”

“Sorry, ma’am. I have a faction war commentary scheduled tonight.”

“At 11 o’clock, right? You can head out when you need to.” Ah!

Juhee extended the dinner invitation.

Suyeon declined, citing her prior commitment.

The next target?

Her gaze shifted, landing squarely on me.

“Yuseong, can you make it to the dinner?”

Honestly, I wasn’t too keen.

The cold symptoms had mostly subsided, but I still wasn’t back to full health.

I wanted nothing more than to rest.

But life doesn’t always bend to one’s will. And right now, the person I needed to please most was Juhee, the CEO of Twika TV.

Refusing her first invitation wasn’t an option.

“Yes, I can make it.”

“Oh! Thank you. I’m so glad you’re coming. Otherwise, I’d be stuck as the odd one out among the broadcast team.”

“No problem. It’s only natural to join. I also have a few things I’d like to discuss with you.”

Juhee laughed heartily.

Maybe this wasn’t so bad.

I wasn’t sure what kind of dinner this would be, but at least I’d get a chance to ask her all the questions I’d been holding back.

Maybe even suggest some ideas I’d been mulling over.

“Seolhyun, you worked so hard. Thank you so much for joining us.”

As expected, Juhee didn’t extend the dinner invitation to Seolhyun.

She was such a huge star that even making the suggestion might have seemed rude.

“Shall we go, then? You don’t have a car, do you? Ride with me.”

“Seolhyun, it was great meeting you. You did an amazing job.”

I said my goodbyes to Seolhyun and followed Juhee out.

Just then, a sharp voice called out from behind me.

“Wow, I’m offended. Why didn’t you invite me to the dinner?”