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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 18
Chapter Title: 검술 고인물의 게임방송-18화
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 18
Chapter Title: Barbecue Banter
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Sizzle!
A slab of beef hit the scorching hot grill.
Garlic, mushrooms, green onions, and kimchi settled into the empty spots alongside it.
Sizzle sizzle.
As the juices thickened, it bubbled up with one delicious sound after another.
"Man, I'm starving. That looks amazing."
Tae-woo said as he plopped down next to Seo-jun.
Seo-jun nodded in agreement.
Ever since logging out of VR, he'd been extra ravenous.
'High school seniors usually pack on the pounds.'
That's because mental activities like studying surprisingly burn very few calories.
No matter how hard you tax your brain, it's only about 1.5 kcal per minute, whereas a light walk burns 4 kcal in the same time.
Vigorous exercise can torch up to 10 kcal, but aspiring students cramming nonstop feel like they're burning a ton, so they end up eating way more than they actually expend.
'VR is the total opposite.'
It's a mental activity, but unlike studying, it doesn't feel like it's draining you calorically, so most people don't get that intense hunger like Seo-jun was experiencing.
He figured it was probably due to his low assimilation rate.
People with high rates could spend all day in VR without feeling fatigued.
It meant their brains were perfectly suited to it, using energy super efficiently.
Which left Seo-jun burning through way more by default.
Streaming in the real world like this felt much easier, which said it all.
"Hey everyone."
Tae-woo waved at the streaming camera propped up at the end of the table.
Looks insanely good.
Drooling here...
Gimme some meat too pls
They checked the chat on their phones.
Current viewers hovered in the mid-20,000s.
Alpaca had mentioned it'd briefly peaked over 30k during prime time.
A massive hit.
They'd switched the Travel stream category to mukbang.
All that was left was casual chit-chat, chow down, and call it a night.
So that's why no stream today?
Tae-woo eat all that then stream. Stream over health lol
Why you crashing their party?
Chats from Tae-woo's regular viewers popped up.
As a mid-tier streamer, plenty of the 20k crowd were his fans, no doubt.
Alpaca flipped some meat and chimed in.
"Why's Tae-woo here? I was shocked too, but turns out he's old pals with Seo-jun. The collab invite came through him."
Whoa?
Tae-woo had a goat like this and never featured him? Lmao
Fr lmao
"Yup. I dragged this guy into streaming."
Tae-woo tried to sling an arm around Seo-jun's shoulder, but Seo-jun swatted it away.
Parrying IRL too lmaoooo
Ate a stun lmao
"Kinda wild, right? How'd you two meet?"
Seo-jun answered.
"We met in high school and hit it off. Been roommates since graduation..."
But the reaction was weird.
Pffffft lmao
Wait, that roommate was Seo-jun?! Lmaoooo
"That dude" lmao
Tae-woo's fans were cracking up; newbies wondered what was so funny.
The other three heads turned toward Tae-woo too.
?? What's up
Why y'all laughing?
Tae-woo looked flustered for a split second.
"C'mon guys, it's not that funny. Right? Haha. Hey, my chat, read the room."
'NoWayJose' donated 1,000 won! [Travel Clip]
A video donation triggered—Travel clips or copyright-free YouTube vids, shortened to "vid-donos."
This one was from Tae-woo's stream.
The clip played, Tae-woo's voice filling the air.
"Y'all remember that roommate I mentioned? Dude's usually chill and mature, but sometimes he pulls the weirdest shit—makes you question if it's the same guy."
"Yeah, that's the one who washed his phone with soap last time. Anyway, after my long stream yesterday..."
Alpaca and Lee Soo-han glanced at Seo-jun—like, did that really happen?
"I came out, capsule was scorching, so I figured extra coolers. Asked him to cool it while I showered."
"Comes out... guy's squatting by the capsule, fanning it. Dead serious face. Pfft—no cap, real story. Fan? Sure, I'd buy that."
Real story?? Lmaoooo
What a lunatic lmao
That clears up the donation bait suspicions completely lmao
Just don't touch anything lmao
Breaking: Lee Soo-han checking his capsule rn lmao
Seo-jun calmly speared a perfectly cooked piece of meat while clamping down hard on Tae-woo's foot under the table.
"Tch. Eat up already."
Seo-jun got an earful of streamer struggles from Tae-woo and Alpaca.
He also heard their success stories.
Lee Soo-han had been one of Alpaca's earliest viewers.
Alpaca back then couldn't afford an editor, so he'd set up the YouTube channel and let it sit idle.
Live viewers bounced around in the low hundreds. That was Alpaca's past.
Lee Soo-han saw potential and pitched co-running the YouTube.
He'd been a well-paid editor at a company.
VR streams had free-cam viewer perspectives—chaotic without skilled editing, which was rare.
They split YouTube revenue 50/50, so Lee Soo-han made way more than at his old job.
Big risk back then, though.
Luckily, the editor boosted YouTube growth, which pulled in more live viewers.
"An editor, huh."
Lee Soo-han told Seo-jun that if he couldn't find one, he'd edit Seo-jun's vids too.
Back home, Seo-jun grabbed a beer to clear his cluttered head and stepped out to the balcony.
Beyond it stood the plum tree he'd planted.
He ran his hand over the icy balcony floor, imagining its vivid red blossoms.
Felt just like the day he first met his master.
Not the greatest memory, but it calmed him all the same.
"Hm. What to do."
Seo-jun's dilemma? YouTube.
Everyone today assumed he'd start one—standard for aspiring streamers.
But.
His plan was RIOS tourney entry, win the capsule, quit streaming.
That's what he'd started for.
Problem was.
Streaming was fun.
Gaming with people was fun.
Their reactions to his plays, the teasing, the camaraderie.
Fun.
Hiss.
Pop.
Seo-jun cracked the can and chugged.
Then stared out blankly and muttered.
"Was I... lonely?"
Maybe.
Remembering a past life...
Was like carrying a hometown you longed for but could never return to.
"What now."
Deep thoughts tonight.
Best cure? Simple.
"Time to hit the gym."
Move the body.
Lee Dong-soo was a starter for a top pro gaming team.
He rose early and hit a celeb-favorite gym.
His team had nabbed runner-up at Worlds—solid, even impressive.
But in sports, anything short of gold meant nothing.
Coach ordered brutal personalized training for next year.
Lee Dong-soo's? Learn real-world fighting.
'Bonus stamina work.'
Front office scouted a privacy haven for stars that also trained fighters.
Nothing too special, though.
Regulars quietly did their thing; athletes were loud but tight-knit.
"Dong-soo, you're here. Hit the treadmill."
The gym owner loomed over him.
Huge build, scary mug.
"C'mon, boss. Again?"
"Yup. This ain't VR—gotta build that stamina first."
Lee Dong-soo grumbled.
Only two weeks in, but still.
"Basics and cardio only? That's too much."
Couldn't take it anymore.
He was a pro.
Second-best team in the world.
VR vs. reality differed, but his skills meant body control was second nature.
Pros adapted to ever-shifting in-game stats, right?
"I wanna learn real sparring. Yeah?"
The owner snorted.
Then waved him off like a whiny kid.
"Fine, fine. One quick spar today. Now run."
"Sweet! I pick opponent?"
"Whatever. You won't win anyway."
Shoo shoo.
Lee Dong-soo excitedly ramped up his treadmill pace.
18 years old.
Dropped out for pro life, but at heart, a hot-blooded teen.
'Bring it.'
Opponent probably a fighter, but he was confident.
Felt stronger lately from training.
He scanned the gym while running, picking his first matchup.
'As long as weight classes aren't too off...'
Then.
The door opened.
In walked someone who looked just like that streamer from yesterday.
Annoyingly handsome.
Not just similar—the guy himself.
Team buddy hyped the clips; he'd skimmed some.
'Not that impressive.'
Thanks to his teammate/bro, he knew way too much about this Seo-jun streamer.
'Face matches avatar perfectly. Day 3 flop stream? How'd he find this place?'
Whatever.
Chummy with owner.
Not jacked or anything.
'Perfect.'
For his first sparring victim.
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