I Became a Malicious Streamer

iWithout an umbrella, I ended up getting completely drenched.i

Indeed, Mr. Kim’s song is always top-notch.

There’s something heart-wrenching about it,

making me crave soju.

Ah, I can’t stand it anymore.

Slurp-

Carefully, so as not to spill the precious alcohol,

I take sips slowly, lest I get too drunk.

Sigh This is life, and this is sex.

Just the taste of this alcohol feels like a reward for all the days I’ve lived.

Intoxicated by the ambiance, I unconsciously hum along.

“When I open my eyes~ there’s a world— just close them~~”

How long did I hum like this?

The screen before my eyes starts to shimmer.

A corner of the screen jolts and spews out black text.

Viewers.

Longing for the warmth of human company, I hit upon a brilliant solution.

If loneliness comes from drinking alone, all I need is someone to share my current state and feelings with.

The viewers would fill that role perfectly.

They’re practically my friends anyway.

I mean, I do have internet friends!!

How great it is to meet friends like this across the screen.

The world has really become wonderful.

[Warriors Gathered at 3 AM]

[Victors waiting for Mollru’s broadcast until dawn ㅠㅠ]

[What’s happening at this hour?]

[Are you finally streaming, you dumb b!]

[What song is this?]

[What’s the concept today to have this kind of song?]

[Mollru knows some good songs too, haha. This banger slaps!]

[Wasn’t Mollru supposed to be in her early 20s? Why is she playing songs fit for 40-50-year-olds?]

[Uh… I’m 23 this year… My peers listen to… forest songs a lot too]

[-Block-]

[Is Galju really here listening to Galju’s song?]

[Wait… are there two Galjus?]

Though it was pretty late, quite a few people joined in.

Friends rushing over at this late hour.

Just the flood of their messages turned the previously quiet room lively in no time.

Before I knew it, loneliness faded away, and only a pleasant buzz remained.

Suddenly, I felt grateful.

What should I say?

“I turned on the broadcast because I was lonely.”

“I need a drinking buddy.”

“I’m bored, entertain me!”

Um…

“Hello. Uh… I started the broadcast because I missed you.”

Wait, that’s not what I meant to say.

Even I was surprised by that line, spoken without passing through the filter of my brain after drinking.

Not surprisingly, the viewers reacted with intense enthusiasm.

[Huh?]

[Mollru, this b can handle everything now, haha]

[If you keep this up, I won’t be able to take it.]

[This time… I’m serious, I promise… this time… I promise… this time… I promise… this time… I promise… this time… I promise… this time… I promise…]

[You… sly vixen…]

[You think we’re good too, right? You think we’re good too, right? You think we’re good too, right? You think we’re good too, right? You think we’re good too, right?]

[Wow, look at them spamming because it’s dawn.]

[Manager! Get up and take care of these fools!]

Messages shooting up like a flood.

Among them were some spam that seemed to be in high spirits this early in the morning.

I’d never streamed at this hour before, so it was unexpected.

As I frowned and reached for the remote mouse that was placed far away,

[Deleted message]

[Manager has appeared ㄷㄷ]

[Deleted message]

The chat was quickly organized as if nothing had happened.

Word was that the manager had arrived.

It’s late, but do they even sleep?

For me, who finds it much more comfortable with a manager around, this was a good thing.

[Mamoru-sama donated 1,000 won!]

– What kind of broadcast is it today, Sensei?

“Thank you for the donation, Mamoru-sama. Today… There’s nothing particularly planned. I just started it out of frustration.”

[He just reads it, haha]

[No backtracking for our beloved Mollru;]

[Aren’t you doing EOW?]

“EOW? Um…”

I hovered the cursor over EOW for a moment and then removed it.

“Not really feeling it right now. I’ll do it next time.”

It wasn’t drinking that was the problem.

I had played games after drinking before.

It just didn’t interest me at all right now.

Perhaps it was because I had been fixated on EOW for so long.

Upon hearing I wouldn’t be playing EOW, the viewers got excited and began recommending all sorts of games.

[How about this new roguelike?]

[Rhythm game?]

[How about a horror game at this hour?]

[Is it even summer to be playing horror games right now? Haha;]

[This is a masterpiece; let’s try it out.]

From games I’d heard of to names I’d never heard,

various suggestions piled up, but I dismissed all of them for suitable reasons.

“Roguelikes… ones with long playtime just don’t sit right with me. Not feeling rhythm games. I’ll play horror games in summer.”

As I kept rejecting their suggestions, I noticed the viewers, who had been excitedly recommending games, were slowing down.

Amidst it all were chat messages commenting on how women’s minds are complicated, or that if I was going to be difficult, I might as well choose myself.

True, I was once not this picky of a person.

When did I become this way?

[ThisCan'tBeMissed-sama donated 10,000 won!]

– Sensei, how about this? It’s a cozy healing game (link)

While I was going through the viewers’ recommendations one by one,

one decided to make their pick through a donation.

I clicked on the link they sent and found a video.

It seemed to be a gameplay video of that game.

Various types of cars were cruising down the road.

From tiny compact cars to massive trailers.

At first glance, it looked like a racing game.

But as the viewer claimed it was a healing game, the video displayed calmly driving down the road.

You just have to drive the car, without needing to worry about anything.

It didn’t seem to matter whether you drove fast or slow, whether you were a good driver or not.

I found myself drawn in by that simplicity.

“Let’s go with this.”

*

The Driving.

The title was as straightforward as the video looked.

The game, light in size, installed quickly. It was easy to proceed.

You choose a vehicle and drive wherever you like.

However, since it was my first time, I couldn’t freely select the vehicle or driving location.

This was an element I’d unlock through gameplay.

“Train~ cutting through the darkness and crossing the Milky Way~”

[Uh, that’s a car, Sensei.]

Be quiet.

Just understand it as if I’m talking gibberish.

Vroom-

The car moves slowly.

Using the headlights shining ahead, I cautiously advance.

I’m currently driving a regular sedan through the night streets.

What’s wrong with a night drive? It’s scenic and pleasant.

Perfect for this time.

But it seems my choice wasn’t entirely great.

Screech-

With a screeching brake sound, the car comes to a halt.

Is this the… umpteenth time? The night streets were prone to accidents.

This game was realistically designed… too much so.

The dimly lit night road was no place for a beginner.

I almost collided with other cars and guardrails several times.

[Hey, Mollru! Move your car!]

[Looks like Mollru can’t drive…]

[You should switch to a compact car; that’d be better.]

[You need to steer a bit more boldly.]

[So slow… I might fall asleep watching this.]

The viewers, frustrated by my not-so-impressive performance compared to when I was playing EOW, were feeling a bit puzzled.

I’d also like to switch lanes quickly, speed up, and overtake other cars!

But what can I do if it doesn’t work?

Driving isn’t helped by reflexes or sharp vision.

What seems more important is a sort of skilled intuition, yet the controls just weren’t clicking for me, no matter how much I tried.

Maybe it’s the alcohol that’s making my vision a bit hazy.

Realizing I needed to do something different, I paused the game for a moment.

And returning to the garage, I decided to restart from the beginning.

I just couldn’t give up on the dark night drive.

After pondering my options, I had a brilliant idea.

If driving is tough, instead of following the viewer’s advice to cruise in a smaller car, I chose a larger one.

I selected the newly unlocked vehicle from that drive: a massive truck.

[?]

[??]

Many in the chat were questioning, but I stayed silent and dove back into the game.

It’s much quicker to show than to tell.

I crossed the center line of the long road unapologetically.

Only I wasn’t changing lanes.

I wanted to straddle both lanes with my truck.

Done.

Now half in lane one and half in lane two, the truck cruised stability down the road.

My solution got cheers from the viewers.

[What is this person doing?]

[Lane invasion, haha!]

[Definitely a thought normal people wouldn’t have.]

“Driving down the center is easier. I don’t have to worry about crashing into other cars.”

I casually glanced at the rearview mirror at the cars behind me.

“See? That car that almost collided with me when trying to overtake couldn’t even get close. This is the answer. You need to break away from the prejudice that you must keep to your lane.”

In other words, defensive driving.

Not worrying about other cars brought much more stability to my driving.

[Sensei, do you have a driver’s license?]

A license, huh?

Now that I think about it, does Ji-eun have her license?

From what I saw last time when I checked her wallet, it didn’t seem like she had one.

Well, then again, she doesn’t have a car, so she wouldn’t have a license either.

But given my original driving skills and a license, I might as well have it.

“Umm… yeah?”

Since I was pondering Ji-eun’s license, my answer came out slow.

The viewers were clearly laughing at my obvious lie.

Let them think whatever.

As I relaxed thanks to my innovative driving method, I finally had some time to take a sip of the leftover alcohol.

One hand on the wheel, the other pouring some drink.

This was the picture I had wanted all along.

Slurp-

“Ah, this feels good now. I should’ve done this sooner.”

[MollruFanSasaeng님이 1000원을 후원!]

– Sensei, what have you been drinking since earlier? Your voice reek of alcohol.

“It’s water, water. I’m just a bit thirsty.”

[Liar, no!]

[This b is driving while drinking.]

[Unlicensed drunk driving ㄷㄷ]

I felt a strange prickle from the sharp messages in the chat, so I quietly drove the truck.

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