Chapter 13
As soon as I loosened my grip, Ggol-Ggap scrambled away, his eyes spinning for a moment.
【Constellation characters... why do they have such useless features...?】
Do Constellation characters even have a sense of touch?
In reality, Constellations don't need to protect their bodies from anything. They aren't visible to anyone except the player they’re paired with, and their voices can't even be heard on broadcasts.
The fact that they went out of their way to create this meant one thing.
'Maybe it's a feature designed so you can smack the Constellations that are being too rude.'
That makes a lot of sense.
Though that wasn't the important part.
"Show me how many Coins were wagered on this match and how much was settled."
【...Damn it.】
Having regained his composure, Ggol-Ggap manipulated the air. A window that hadn't been visible before appeared.
【Like I said, it wasn't a scheduled match, so it’s not structured to handle large sums. The opposing Constellation only bet pocket change.】
"Dark K-Choco's Constellation?"
【Yeah. That arrogant...】
Ggol-Ggap’s expression turned fierce for a moment before going limp.
【Forget it, just look for yourself.】
But if only one person bet money, how does the calculation work? My question was answered immediately. Ggol-Ggap moved the window in front of me.
[<Bwaek-Gwaem-Gwaet> has wagered 50,000C on the victory of <Bwaek-Gwaem-Gwaet>.]
"...50,000 Coins?!"
My spine tingled at the number, which matched my goal exactly, but as I read further down, I realized it wasn't my share.
[A 10% commission will be deducted.]
[The AI managing the tournament beta test has wagered a test stake of 1,000C.]
[With the final victory of <Bwaek-Gwaem-Gwaet> confirmed, the total amount will be split between <Bwaek-Gwaem-Gwaet> and one other.]
[10% of the total commission will be paid to the final victor, <Bwaek-Gwaem-Gwaet>.]
When you do the math, it’s ridiculous.
Dark K-Choco's Constellation, 'Kkyu', bet 50,000 Coins on me and won 46,000 Coins. The commission was 5,000 Coins. The AI running the beta test had bet 1,000 Coins, but that wasn't enough to offset the 5,000-Coin commission.
From that 5,000-Coin commission, I—or rather, Ggol-Ggap—received 500. After taking that small, cute amount and splitting it according to my contract ratio with Ggol-Ggap, taking 90% and leaving 10%...
"...450 Coins."
And even then, if Ggol-Ggap takes back the 100 Coins he gave me, I’m left with 350.
Setting aside the fact that my expectations, which had ballooned after seeing the 50,000 Coins Dark K-Choco's Constellation supposedly bet, had fizzled out, the truly absurd part was this:
"You only give the participant 10%? Are these guys out of their minds?!"
Ggol-Ggap shrugged his starry shoulders.
【How could that be? That wouldn't be any fun. That ridiculous ratio is only for the beta test; the ratio increases as we go on.】
My reason returned.
"...So the percentage given to the winner from the commission increases over time?"
【Exactly. This time, the organizers only invested 1,000 Coins for the trial run, so they took a bigger cut. Still, you didn't lose anything, did you?】
That’s true.
The one who lost was someone else.
"Then why did that guy do something so obviously unprofitable? Are there idiots among the Constellations who don't know how to do math?"
I was talking about Dark K-Choco's Constellation, Kkyu. Even if they hadn't bet 50,000, they wouldn't have lost money if they’d just bet 10,000.
【...】
Ggol-Ggap looked away, clearly not wanting to answer. When I stared at him persistently, he blurted out:
【That guy is just naturally slow-witted.】
That’s strange.
Judging by the tone Kkyu used when possessing Dark K-Choco, they seemed much calmer and more serious than Ggol-Ggap. Before I could even chew on Ggol-Ggap's words, a notification popped up in front of me.
[<Notification>
White Snow is calling for you.]
"?"
I checked the chat window and saw a message from a sponsor.
[White Snow: Chicken-nim]
[White Snow: Chicken-nim]
[White Snow: Chicken-jwa-nim]
[White Snow is calling for Chicken Fire Slap.]
Ah.
I’d forgotten about them as soon as I got the money.
'But why are they calling? If they paid me to choose a map they wanted and win, isn't that the end of it?'
It felt suspicious. I rolled my eyes and typed on the message keyboard.
[Me: Thanks for the sponsorship]
[Me: I'll buy plenty of chicken with this money haha]
[Me: Watch often when I stream]
Seeing them toss 1.5 million won so easily, they seemed quite wealthy; I hoped they would keep sponsoring me. Not that I was honestly expecting it.
[White Snow: Yes]
[White Snow: If it's not too much trouble]
[Me: ?]
I suddenly wondered what kind of trouble this person was about to cause. After a silence that betrayed their hesitation:
[White Snow: I’d like to meet you in person in real life]
[White Snow: Would that be okay?]
* * *
Crunch! Crunch, crunch.
The crispness of the fried chicken was art. After eating seasoned chicken with the money I earned yesterday, I was craving original fried today, so I ordered some before heading home.
Why is this damn chicken so expensive, yet I never get tired of it?
"Jeong-yeon."
"Yes?"
"Don't people tell you your name sounds like a girl's name?"
"I hear it all the time. It's exhausting."
Kim Jeong-yeon.
That’s the name of the blonde male part-timer who works at the same convenience store. He was sitting at the table in front of the store with me right now, sharing the chicken I’d ordered.
"I’ve heard that my name sounds like a guy's name a lot."
"Really? Ju Ju-hyeong is fairly gender-neutral, isn't it? It's much better than mine."
"Still, when you hear it for the first time, you’d think it’s a guy's name, right?"
"That's true."
I’d been agonizing over it all day.
What on earth was that 'White Snow' person thinking, wanting to meet me after dropping a whopping 1.5 million won yesterday? Hardly anyone thinks I’m a woman when they hear my name.
I had refused immediately at first.
[Me: Excuse me?]
[Me: A real-life meeting is a bit...]
I’d used a polite term, but in that moment, all sorts of crimes like kidnapping or organ trafficking had flashed through my mind. Receiving such a large sum in sponsorship money only made me think of worse things.
White Snow immediately denied it.
[White Snow: Ah...]
[White Snow: That’s absolutely not it]
[White Snow: Can't you think of it as... like a fan signing event?]
[White Snow: Anyway, I'm a fan...]
[White Snow: I just wanted to see you once]
[White Snow: I'll keep sponsoring you consistently. I'm someone who only has money, after all.]
I was damn tempted at this point.
[White Snow: If you're okay with it, I'll treat you to a meal at a nice place]
[White Snow: How about a hotel restaurant?]
[White Snow: We can have steak]
[White Snow: I'll get you unlimited refills of any menu you want]
I was tempted again, but it was still strange.
[Me: Are you a man?]
[White Snow: Yes]
They have no way of knowing I’m a woman, so is there any reason to meet a gamer, presumably of the same gender, while buying them a hotel meal?
'Suspicious.'
It’s not like I’m incredibly famous, either.
[White Snow: I'm a huge fan]
[White Snow: You've started a channel, so you'll be famous soon, right?]
[White Snow: I'd like to meet you once for fan management purposes, and I'm definitely not a dangerous or weird person]
Because they were so persistent, I told them I’d think about it. I’d put off the decision because I was tempted by the promise of continued sponsorship and the fact that they had money, but even after logging out of the game, I felt uneasy.
'I was taught to always be suspicious when making money is too easy.'
It was suspicious through and through. But then again, fan signing events or fan meetings are common in the internet broadcasting world these days.
Jeong-yeon, who was quick on the uptake, took a sip of cola and asked.
"Why? Is something wrong?"
"Someone heard my name and got curious about me."
"Who is it? A girl? A guy?"
"They say they're a guy."
Crunch, crunch.
As I ate a chicken leg and thought about it, I realized it wouldn't be a losing business even if that guy thought I was a woman.
No, honestly, it’s actually better.
'Fan, my foot. They probably think I'm a girl and are trying to pull something. I'm doing a gaming stream, not a cam-girl stream. I'll just deceive them for a bit, then do what I want and dump—no, why deceive them? I am a woman, after all.'
I almost got annoyed at my own thought process for naturally treating myself as something other than a woman, but the delicious chicken quickly quelled my anger.
Still, meeting up didn't seem like a very wise choice.
"What's the situation? Did you get a blind date request because someone thinks your name is totally their type?"
I burst into laughter at Jeong-yeon's words.
A blind date, crazy.
I was clearing away the clean-picked chicken bones and about to make up some excuse when I spotted a passerby walking toward us.
"Customer's coming."
At my words, Jeong-yeon grabbed the chicken he was eating, jumped up from his seat, and rushed into the convenience store. I put the last piece in my mouth and tidied up the table.
* * *
I wondered why I was so lucky yesterday.
Seeing this happen while I was just walking home normally, I might have used up several days' worth of luck yesterday.
'Damn it.'
It was a familiar combination. One annoyingly handsome guy and two of the peninsula's typical high school boys. And some burly thugs.
"Is it you? The convenience store part-timer who messed with my brother?"
Unlike that time when they wore plain clothes to pretend to be college students and ask for cigarettes, the three students were wearing school uniforms today.
Covered in wounds that had nothing to do with me, wondering where they’d been and what they’d done.
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