Chapter 71: 99% Truth, 1% Lie

“When dealing with people, always be sincere.”

Having lost my father at a young age, my mother, who raised me on her own, would occasionally teach me how to navigate life.

From sayings like, “Smile, and good fortune will come your way,” to “Live generously and give to others,” she imparted the wisdom adults typically share.

At the time, I had a tendency to view the world in a distorted way, so I often responded curtly to my mother’s words.

“Mom, that’s not how it is these days. The world is so dangerous now, filled with scary people.”

Being sincere meant exposing your vulnerabilities.

The advice my mom gave was based on the assumption that people were fundamentally good.

I thought she was too naïve, living in a world of rainbows and flowers.

That’s how I viewed it back then.

Even now, that opinion hasn’t changed much.

Even after plenty of time has passed since her death, her words still don’t quite resonate with me.

Take the current situation as an example.

What has being sincere ever gotten me?

I almost wanted to show this scene to my late mother.

[“Why should I?”]

[Wha-wha-what-what-what-what-what?]

[Aren’t you going to explain? Aren’t you going to explain? Aren’t you going to explain? Aren’t you going to explain?]

[What’s happening? Lmao. Chaos energy.]

[Massive respect to those expecting a formal apology.]

[Explain! Explain! Explain! Explain!]

[So what exactly do you want her to explain??]

[You’d think she’d committed a murder or something. Lmao. Almost said it…]

[A level of anger even Satan might find excessive…]

A scene so absurd even the devil himself would shake his head.

Would my mom finally admit she was wrong if she saw this?

“I am sincere. Why should I explain myself? I didn’t do anything wrong.”

All I did was attend a company dinner, but suddenly the internet communities were ablaze.

I woke up to find gossip about me spreading everywhere.

This might be a common experience for broadcasters, but to me, it was baffling.

“Y’all seem really angry—both here in the chat and over on the forums.

Some of you are just wildly speculating and posting nonsense.

Don’t do that.

Let me tell you as a veteran forum user: if you keep that up, you’ll end up eating prison food.

Hey, do you want to go to the police station? Huh?”

[ccccc]

[“Police Station Time~”]

[“Do you want to go to the police station?!”]

[“So many kids writing incriminating things that could get them arrested.”]

[“The officer will come in like, ‘What brings you here? Oh, you posted something online?'”]

[“At this rate, maybe they just want to give Kayak money?”]

[“Whatever, whatever, whatever, whatever, whatever.”]

[“If you’re gonna post that stuff, at least use a VPN. So many fools.”]

[“Sue me if you’re mad. Lmao. Sue me if you’re mad.”]

“Even when I try to look out for people, they make a fuss.

A lot of my colleagues have reached out to check on me, asking if I’m okay.

Some even said to let them know if I need help, mentioning their own experiences with lawsuits.”

That’s completely true, by the way.

To be honest, since I started streaming, I’ve rarely lied.

Aside from the sudden overnight transformation of Abyss into a masterpiece and the fact that my appearance changed to look exactly like Camilla’s, there hasn’t been any deception in my life.

Some people have speculated that my excessive affection for Camilla is merely a broadcasting gimmick, but who would go to such lengths just for a concept?

Thinking about it now, even though I claimed my mother’s advice was wrong, I’ve been faithfully following her words all along.

Where else would you find a broadcaster as sincere and genuine toward their audience as I am?

Yet, these people don’t recognize that and are instead causing a commotion.

“I’m not saying I won’t explain at all.

But when a whole group rushes in, shoving a mic in my face about something I don’t even fully understand, asking, ‘Is this true?’ Do you think that makes me want to explain?

Of course not.

And luckily, I got a heads-up from my mod before coming here.

What would have happened if I’d shown up without any knowledge?

I haven’t even been keeping up with the forums lately.

It would’ve taken me forever just to figure out the situation, and we’d all have been frustrated trying to understand each other.”

[“Wow, she’s talking so much. Lmao.”]

[“She’s been holding this in for a while…”]

[“Talking back like this? Kayak, you’re out of the running as my future wife.”]

[“Her diction is better than some of the trending rappers these days.”]

[“Her mod immediately understood the forum drama and filled Kayak in, lol.”]

[“Stop rambling and just explain already.”]

Perhaps because I’d mentioned the possibility of legal action, the chat calmed down somewhat.

The pace of messages had slowed a bit, too.

But when I glanced at the viewer count, it was clear the inflated numbers weren’t dropping anytime soon.

They weren’t typing, but they were quietly listening to everything I said.

After taking a sip of water to soothe my dry throat, I started speaking again.

“Anyway, I’ll only say this once, so listen carefully.”

And so, I began reciting a hastily written script that I’d thrown together ten minutes before starting the stream.

“I swear, as streamer Kayak, that before providing my explanation, I will speak only the truth, without hiding or embellishing anything, in accordance with my conscience.”

At a viewer’s request, I made this pledge before diving into my explanation.

I didn’t really need to, but it felt like it would make for better content.

Later, I could even ask Yushia or Kim Jae joon to upload a VTuber video titled, “Kayak Explains Herself.”

“Abyss came out a few years ago, right? I started playing it back then, and I did indeed create the forum shortly after.

I thought it’d be great to share game discussions and exchange opinions.

There wasn’t a proper community for it at the time.

As for the rumors about connections with mods… Yes, I do know the current mods.

They were part of the forum back then, as was my current head mod.

I can’t remember all the usernames, but people who know, know.”

Writing the script wasn’t too difficult since, from my perspective, it was all fairly recent.

It was all stuff I’d experienced firsthand, anyway.

The only part where I blended fiction with truth was the night the shutdown notice was posted—when I’d drunk alcohol and uploaded a photo as proof.

“Now let’s talk about the reason behind this chaos today.

That day was the worst day for me.

As usual, I logged onto the game’s official website after seeing the announcement.”

<AngrySeongHoonie donates 1,000 won!>

• “Summarize it in three lines.”

“Okay, I was pissed off after reading the announcement, grabbed some soju from the fridge, and uploaded a proof post.”

The chat erupted into a wave of responses.

“So she really did drink?”

“I knew it!”

I wasn’t ashamed at all.

“Those of you who weren’t around back then have no right to criticize me!

Yes, drinking as a minor was wrong, but I didn’t buy it myself or get anyone’s business shut down.

I didn’t even want to drink, but I was so devastated that I couldn’t hold back.

The game I’d dedicated years to was shutting down.

How could I stay sober through that?”

[“Hmm… is it really that big a deal?”]

[“If she started during early access, it makes sense.”]

[“Most of us here probably only started after the official release.”]

[“I thought my heart would break, teacher.”]

[“I had a drink that day too.”]

[“True, at least she quietly drank alone at home.”]

[“Who knows if she was really alone or with her boyfriend?”]

[“Ugh, damn, Kayak Simp!”]

[“Compared to what today’s kids are doing, Kayak is practically a saint.”]

[“Lmao, alcohol and cigarettes are nothing; there are kids out there shutting down businesses and doing drugs.”]

[“This isn’t even a scandal compared to what happens in the underworld.”]

The reactions I received now were noticeably more subdued compared to the earlier mob mentality trying to pin me down.

Why? Because in these kinds of public opinion battles, momentum is everything.

No matter how hard they come at you in the beginning, once that momentum dies, the fire fizzles out just as quickly.

And besides, their entire premise was flawed to begin with.

A minor drank alcohol? That’s hardly even a blemish these days.

It’s nowhere near enough to cancel someone over.

Feeling I’d seized control of the situation, I pressed on.

“Then there’s this bullying allegation. Honestly, I found that one absurd too. I was such a model student! I always listened to my teachers, and they even remembered my name. When they saw me in the hallway, they’d pat my head. I was the epitome of a role model student.”

[“Well… there aren’t even any victims, so lol.”]

[“Just the fact that she interacts with nerds like us makes her top 1% material in terms of bullies.”]

[“Model student? But your activity logs say otherwise…”]

[“Haha, what kind of bully spends all day eating and playing games?”]

[“Not a model student, but definitely a gaming geek.”]

[“If teachers remember your name, it’s either because you’re a top student or a troublemaker.”]

[“Bully tip: teachers keep a close eye on you = they know your name.”]

[“I’m not believing it until I see your academic records.”]

“‘Not believing it until you see my academic records?’ Hmm… Well, it doesn’t matter if you don’t believe me, but I can fetch my records if you want. Academic record reading streams are pretty trendy these days, right? I might as well do one too.”

My academic records, aside from the gender and appearance, would likely mirror my past actions.

That’s why I could confidently bring it up.

<KayakSoupFan donates 1,000 won!>

-“Since you were a model student, I’m sure you didn’t date during your school days, right?”

“Ah, well…”

A surprise question that hit a sensitive spot, causing me to hesitate momentarily.

After all, I wasn’t the idealized figure they envisioned—a lifelong single.

[“Why aren’t you answering? Why aren’t you answering? Why aren’t you answering? Why aren’t you answering? Why aren’t you answering?”]

[“My horns hurt… My horns hurt… My horns hurt… My horns hurt… My horns hurt… My horns hurt…”]

[“Once again, I was the only one who was serious.”]

[“I’ll never love anyone again, never!”]

[“Teacher, you really need to explain this one.”]

[“This is the most important thing, lolololol.”]

[“Ugh, all you simps, pack your bags and leave.”]

[“Guess Red Pill wasn’t ugly, huh?”]

[“Boyfriend? Boyfriend? Boyfriend? Boyfriend? Boyfriend? Boyfriend?”]

Well, technically, it wasn’t a boyfriend but a girlfriend.

But there was no need to divulge that.

“Uh, yes… Hmm… Well, I’ll leave that to your imaginations. Yes.

One thing I can say is that I’m currently not in a relationship with anyone—.”

“My girlfriend is Camilla, and I’m married to streaming. Yes, that’s it.”

For some reason, it felt like the chat activity was at its peak since the start of the stream. Was it just my imagination?

Right now, I could imagine posts popping up in forums with titles like, Breaking News: Kayak Confirmed Not Pure.

Strictly speaking, I wasn’t “not pure,” but there was no way to prove that.

Regardless, my goal had been achieved.

It felt like I had resolved yet another issue today.

The kind of feeling you get when you’ve won against a mob trying to bring you down for no good reason.

<Gazuo donates 1,000 won!>

-“Teacher, if you’re 21, does that mean you were born in 2003? I thought you were older this whole time, but you’re my age? I can’t believe it.”

“Oh, 2003. Yes, I’m from 2003. Should I show you my ID to make it official? I’ll just cover my face, hold on.”

As a way to wrap things up, I displayed my ID on the screen, covering my name and photo.

The only part left visible was the first number of my social security number, clearly indicating I was born in 2003.

“See? I’m 21. Yep. You don’t need to use formal speech with me anymore. We’re friends now. Feel free to talk casually, okay?”

[“Jealous, jealous, jealous, jealous, jealous, jealous, jealous.”]

[“Why him? Why him? Why him? Why him? Why him? Why him?”]

[“Didn’t show the birthdate, huh? Tsk…”]

[“Carefully revealing just the age, nothing more.”]

[“The gallery built by a high school girl, lol.”]

[“High school girl vibes, Kayak.”]

It was just as things were calming down after all the explanations.

<National Camilla Union donates 1,000 won!>

-“Teacher, what’s with the bleached hair? It’s kind of scary.”

“Bleached hair?”

Curious about what they were talking about, I checked the screen.

Turns out, the faint white hair of Camilla was slightly visible on the blacked-out portion of my ID photo.

The donor must have had exceptional eyesight to catch that detail.

“Oh, haha… Yes. That’s right. My hair was white when the ID photo was taken.”

This wasn’t part of the script.

I didn’t have a good way to play it off, so I just admitted to the comment.

[“Scary… Scary… Scary… Scary… Scary… Scary…”]

[“A 20-year-old college student… Bleached hair… Model student… Bully… Ugh, my head…!”]

[“Have these nerds never dyed their hair before? Lol, all this over some bleach.”]

[“Nerd traits: never changing their hairstyle since birth, always the same boring look.”]

[“Kayak’s bully rumors resurface, lololol.”]

[“Calling someone a bully just because of hair color? Lmao.”]

[“Honestly, the fact that they take care of their appearance makes them more likable.”]

“What’s with all this talk about me being a bully? I’m not a bad person.”

I said it with a playful smile and left it at that.