Chapter 184

Sung-jae was not someone who would ever harm me.

His plans always brought benefits to me.

Although I received help from my acquaintances, it was Sung-jae’s assistance that allowed me to participate in various programs on the cable broadcaster VRN.

He even organized a dedicated management team for me and always provided me with public opinion trends.

From monitoring reactions on MyTube to keeping an eye on various community responses, he was meticulous in everything.

He cared about my fans’ reactions more than I did.

Since my benefits would ultimately benefit Chicken Box as a whole, his choices always aimed for profit.

So far, Sung-jae’s choices had never failed.

I believed it would be the same for this debate as well.

“Debates should always be conducted rationally. Responding emotionally to the opponent’s logic is practically admitting defeat.”

“But I have no experience in debates.”

“Chan-sik, your role in the debate is very simple. There’s no need to counter with various logical statements. As I see it, the opposing panel won’t be much different from before. In other words, it’s a chance for you to shine properly.”

The president of the parents’ association had expressed that games were inherently bad.

The numerous logical flaws in the old video I watched yesterday.

Even as a novice to debates, it was embarrassing to call it a ‘debate.’

Sung-jae took a sip of the coffee in front of him and continued speaking.

“You just need to express your thoughts, Chan-sik.”

“Hmm.”

“Your life. No one knows it better than you do. What does gaming mean to you?”

Games…

There was one unchanging fact from the past to the present.

“It’s my life. It’s what made my life up until now.”

When I was a young student struggling to earn money.

The only way I found to cover Jin-hyuk’s medical bills was through gaming.

Regardless of the outcome, it was thanks to ‘gaming’ that I was able to pay for Jin-hyuk’s medical bills.

Even after being discharged from the military, I became a streamer focusing on ‘gaming,’ which brought my life to this point.

To me, ‘gaming’ wasn’t just a hobby.

It was my life and my livelihood.

It was something precious that I could never take out of my life.

Sung-jae nodded, seeming satisfied with my answer.

“That’s enough.”

“Excuse me?”

“No one expects you to be a professional debater at the debate. What they want to see is the image of a person who created a life through gaming and is an idol to the younger generation.” ṛἈΝȪ฿Ěs

He was right.

People wouldn’t expect me to deliver a speech with professional terminology.

As Sung-jae said, I was merely participating as a representative of the younger generation.

Although I hadn’t learned much, the stories within me were genuine.

I finally understood why Sung-jae was positively considering this.

This was a chance to honestly share my story in a debate that many people would watch.

A story that could make the debate my own.

For Sung-jae, this debate was merely a means for me to tell my story.

“The producer in charge is a friend of mine.”

“What’s that got to do with…”

“Most of the young audience will be favorable towards Shia. No need to worry.”

“…When is the debate scheduled?”

“Next Friday, in 12 days.”

There was no need to worry much.

There was still plenty of time to prepare, and Sung-jae’s plan was just beginning.

Sung-jae smiled as he looked at me.

“I’m glad Chan-sik recently completed successfully. Being in a good mental state for the debate is excellent.”

“Do I need a script?”

“Ah, don’t worry about that. This guy here will take care of our preparations. Ryu Sung-min?”

As soon as Sung-jae called him, the new employee, Ryu Sung-min, who greeted me earlier, entered the CEO’s office.

“You called, sir?”

“You have a rough idea of what I’m going to ask you to do, right?”

“I will fully assist Shia to ensure the debate is successful.”

“This guy will handle the research and everything related to the debate. He’s quite capable. Oh, and I heard he was from the Evil Gang?”

“Evil… Gang?”

What?

He was a fan of mine?

At Sung-jae’s words, Ryu Sung-min slightly blushed and nodded.

“Yes, that’s correct. The reason I applied to Chicken Box was… I thought I might get to meet Shia…”

“Were you working at another company?”

“Yes, I was working in the media.”

“But you changed jobs because of me…”

“Oh, it’s not just because of Shia. Chicken Box seemed like a very attractive company to me. Plus, the CEO offered me a salary much higher than my previous one, so I came.”

The Evil Gang seemed to be everywhere and nowhere.

“It feels good to have one program confirmed, ha-ha! By the way, the appearance fee isn’t that high.”

“I figured.”

“But this debate could raise Shia’s market value significantly.”

As I always say, streamers live off their image. Some people ask if I’m a celebrity now, but the distinction between streamers and celebrities is meaningless.

What Sung-jae meant by saying that was.

“If you build a good image, opportunities to appear on terrestrial variety shows might come sooner than expected. It doesn’t seem too far off.”

He was looking further ahead.

I nodded in satisfaction as I listened to Sung-jae.

With people around me working so hard, I had to give it my all too.

Thus, my participation in the debate was decided, and Chicken Box began focusing entirely on it.

The next day.

-Streamer selected as a panelist for SBC’s debate!

- expands into terrestrial TV! His growth is astonishing!

-Some netizens question ’s participation as a panelist…

-Shia! Shia! Shia! The internet is abuzz with fever!

With various headlines, Chicken Box’s media play began in earnest.

6.

The days leading up to the debate flew by.

Honestly, nothing dramatically changed in my daily life after the debate participation was decided.

Interest in me increased, but it wasn’t enough to completely overturn my daily routine.

The only noticeable change was the atmosphere among the Evil Gang.

-Are we really world-class now?

-Chicken Box is working really hard.

-LOL, I’ll definitely watch the debate.

-Did you see the list of opposing panelists? That woman is coming again.

-Who is that woman?

-Look her up on MyTube, LOL, she’s an interesting person.

-I’ll finally watch TV again.

-But isn’t Shia just going to freeze up there? It’s his first time on terrestrial TV.

In my related communities, discussions were buzzing, and every time I started a broadcast, many viewers actively asked questions.

Most questions were like, ‘Are you preparing well?’, ‘What’s your concept going to be?’

Anyway.

In the slightly chaotic atmosphere, preparations proceeded steadily, and with the help of the journalist-turned-new-employee, Ryu Sung-min, I grasped the role I needed to play in the debate.

I didn’t have to worry about fields I was unfamiliar with, like law or policy, as those were covered by other panelists.

With a professor and a game journalist participating on our side, role division was essential.

My role was singular.

To sincerely represent our generation’s voice.

That alone was enough.

Under such thorough planning, time passed, and the morning of the debate day finally dawned.

“Do you need a calming pill, hyung?”

“Not really.”

While I was up early preparing for the shoot, Jin-hyuk had also gotten up to take care of me.

Even though he’s my younger brother, he cared about me going on terrestrial TV.

“Are you going with makeup done too?”

“Probably?”

“Hyung, you even have fans who like you for your looks these days. I don’t get it.”

“If you’re jealous, you should get some camera time too.”n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

The power of makeup is truly great.

Jin-hyuk smirked, and after giving him a light smack on the back, I headed to the underground parking lot.

The Chicken Box management team, who had arrived earlier, was waiting for me with a van.

With their help, I finished my makeup and styling before heading to the broadcasting station.

“We’ve arrived.”

“Oh, really?”

I was trying to catch some sleep in the car when we arrived at the station. I got out of the car with a somewhat awkward expression.

As soon as I stepped out, Sung-jae, who had arrived earlier, greeted me warmly.

“Did you have a hearty breakfast?”

“Oh, I didn’t eat breakfast. I was too nervous and didn’t want to risk an upset stomach.”

“Are you feeling hungry?”

“I’m fine.”

“Well then, shall we go?”

Sung-jae seemed quite familiar with the SBC broadcasting station, as he skillfully led me around.

After walking for a while, a man approached us.

“Hey, Sung-jae. What brings you here?”

“Su-rin.”

The man had a name tag around his neck.

-Entertainment Department PD Lee Su-rin.

A PD, huh.

In the past, I would have found it fascinating, but I’ve seen so many PDs recently that it’s no longer a novelty.

It seemed he was quite close to Sung-jae.

The two greeted each other cheerfully, and soon Sung-jae introduced me to the PD.

“This is Shia, a creator we manage at our company.”

“Oh! I often watch your videos on MyTube. Nice to meet you, Shia. I’m Lee Su-rin, PD of ‘Your Little Television.'”

“Ah! Yu-ri-tel? Nice to meet you.”

He said that and handed me his business card, and I handed him the one Chicken Box made for me.

Yu-ri-tel.

A variety program that edits and broadcasts celebrities doing internet shows.

It aired in the 2010s, then disappeared, but recently revived with the internet broadcast boom.

The PD looked at both Sung-jae and me and asked casually.

“You’re here for the debate shoot today, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Sounds interesting. I’ll drop by to watch later.”

“Sure.”

“Oh, and there’s something I’d like to discuss with Shia. How about grabbing a drink sometime? There’s a lot I’d like to talk about.”

“I’m quite fond of drinks.”

“Just as bold as I saw on MyTube! I’ll contact you soon using the number on your card.”

With that, the PD quickly disappeared, and Sung-jae leaned towards me as soon as he was gone.

“Just laying the groundwork in advance.”

“Groundwork?”

“After this debate, Shia’s activities might expand. In this industry or that, it’s all about recognition.”

I see.

After that, a few more broadcasting station employees who were familiar with Sung-jae came by to greet us. Finally, after about 30 minutes, we reached the debate waiting room.

Once there, I greeted our panel members for today’s debate and calmly finished preparing.

How much time had passed?

A staff member entered the room and informed us.

“We’ll start filming soon. Please get ready.”

Hearing that, Sung-jae looked at me with a pleased expression and asked.

“Are you ready to step up another level?”

He really likes those cool phrases, doesn’t he?

I nodded with a relaxed smile in response to his question.

“Let’s have some fun.”