Chapter 37

The worst possibility that Hayoon had anticipated was the community.

Whether it was a predominantly female or male community, once you get tangled up in the discourse and become a hot topic, there’s a tendency for people to spend money as a form of resistance against the opposing side.

Well, one could argue that as long as the money gets raised somehow, it’s a good thing. But…

Isn’t there a saying that it’s more important not to make one enemy than to have ten friends?

There’s nothing good about having people who harbor ill will towards you. Hayoon sincerely hoped that the sponsorship funds had not accumulated due to some controversial issue arising in the community.

“Gender conflict won’t do. Shit…”

It was the year 2020.

At this time, one wrong move could lead to a wave of reports and result in the funding site being taken down.

Hayoon wished that the sponsors had gathered purely out of goodwill. Thankfully, her expectations were met.

It wasn’t about gender conflict.

But then again…

“Huh, what is this…?”

It appeared that it had indeed become a topic in the community.

Especially in the Hako streamer community.

“Uh, haha…”

Was this something to be happy about?

Hayoon wore a perplexed expression.

#

By this point, the crowdfunding campaign for “Cosplay Holic” had surpassed the two-week mark.

Though the campaign had quickly amassed 20 million won in sponsorships, the initial increase in funding for “Cosplay Holic” had been rather sluggish.

Thanks to Hayoon’s frequent mentions on her broadcasts during the first launch period, about 3 million won was accumulated within three days, but over the following week, only an additional 2 million won was added.

So, did the remaining 15 million won come in just within 5 days?

Surprisingly, yes.

5 days was the time it took for “Cosplay Holic” to accumulate 15 million won.

– I heard Hako, who I support, is releasing a game.

– Oh, damn, this person’s artwork really appeals to me.

– Wow, they’re releasing a game with this illustration?

The beginning of this glorious journey all started with a constant post Usogeon made on the Hako streamer gallery.

Since Usogeon mentioned it so frequently, whether they liked it or not, the gallery users had no choice but to regularly see Hayoon’s content, resulting in…

– Wow, this person’s illustration skills are amazing.

– I’ve seen their Pixiv, they have plenty of popular images.

└ If you go to Patreon, they give you additional no-moe images and a bunch of extras, which is a real bargain! Haha.

As the majority of the HASGALL users were male, they began to recognize and remember Hayoon as “the one who draws Hako’s illustrations,” regardless of other factors.

– I’m buying this ㅋㅋㅋ, just for fun.

└ Let’s go and make a girlfriend~

└ I tried the demo, and I’m really looking forward to it.

Some of those who often benefited from Hako’s illustrations began to naturally flow to the crowdfunding page for “Cosplay Holic.”

As these purchase confirmations accumulated, HASGALL users also began mentioning this in other communities they frequented. Just when it seemed like Usogeon’s viral marketing was finally bearing fruit…

“What? What’s this? Why is it suddenly spiking?”

Usogeon was shocked after checking the funding window for “Cosplay Holic,” which had been steadily increasing until now.

It had only been a day, and he had merely taken a break from checking the trend of the funding increase for a day. However, on the 11th day of the crowdfunding campaign…

“What…?”

For some reason, the funding had exceeded 13 million won.

Clearly, it had only been at 7 million won the previous day, and that had been increasing steadily at a moderate pace…

Why suddenly?

Usogeon was puzzled, but briefly,

“Could it be…?”

It seemed he had an insight,

He immediately checked the Hako streamer gallery.

Though Cosplay Holic’s growth had been stable,

It was obvious from the start that it lacked explosive growth.

Naturally.

Hayoon was simply a streamer who occasionally revealed her face while streaming about Hako and didn’t even have a personal avatar, so to the HASGALL users, Hayoon was no more than an automatic vending machine for custom illustrations.

No matter how much viral promotion Usogeon did, considering Hayoon’s broadcasting style, explosive reactions were unlikely.

Or rather, it was judged that they would be unlikely.

He couldn’t really believe that many people would develop a fondness for a streamer who just drew pictures.

But it wasn’t like that.

– We found our sister’s photo again ㅋㅋㅋㅋ

– In the “Girl’s War” gallery, the channel, the web, all sorts of places were dug up for photos.

└ Honestly, this is a goldmine.

– Argh! More frequent facial shots please!

The gallery users who had enthusiastically engaged with the illustrations provided by Hayoon started paying attention to the artist herself over time, and eventually stumbled upon her “red pill,” evidenced by Cosplay photos densely lined up in the gallery.

– Oh, I can’t stand that face with the cosplay book.

– I bought one. The merchandise attached is good too, and the value for money is excellent.

– Man, this set costs 400,000 won? It’s incredibly cheap.

The worst-case scenario Usogeon had feared had come to fruition.

The cash flow had begun to get tangled.

“I, I, these crazy bastards…!”

This was a situation even Usogeon hadn’t anticipated.

He thought that even if he managed to viralize it and attract some people, only a few viewers would likely buy the game…

He figured these would just help a little with sales…

– Hey, if the cam is on, they’ll request some dancing, right?

– I’d like to ask for a song too. Seeing the voice would probably show a killer tone.

“Our broadcast isn’t that kind of broadcast!”

Unfortunately, it was too late to turn back.

With the current volume of community users moving around, many would obviously be curious about the reality of streamers, especially after the viral exposure. This ended up creating an undesired dislike pile.

Of course, the accumulated negative feelings towards Hayoon turned dramatically positive when her real appearance as HK-M4 cosplay was revealed, but…

– But, the small chest is a bit disappointing.

└ Maybe she just looks young.

└ The angle needs to be measured carefully.

└ But we could find out the age by watching her stream now, right?

└ Keelingg ㅋㅋㅋ

“I, I, shit…”

For Usogeon, this was a disaster.

He had merely intended to spread the viral marketing a bit to help Hayoon make some money.

He did not care about her becoming famous for her face. His plan was to have her concentrated on game development and illustration streaming.

“Shit…”

If the cash flow surged in this way…

With overwhelming sponsorship, if she turned on the cam one day…

Literally, Hayoon might fall into the world of female streamers and never come back.

#

While Usogeon lamented the snowball he had initiated, Hayoon swiftly grasped the severity of the situation.

“This doesn’t seem to be due to any coordinate marking, but…”

It was quite clear that it was due to her viralized face.

And this was a problem.

“Hah, shit, the prettier it is, the more…”

Hayoon was fully aware of the overwhelming power of her looks.

The perfect female appearance crafted by the Status Window.

Equipped with the unique attribute of being a high school girl.

And her main broadcast content was drawing those custom illustrations.

Once the viral effect takes place, there’s no avoiding an influx of traffic.

Usogeon thought her broadcasting style would limit this traffic, but the raw pulling power of the three words “high school girl” on this platform was incalculable.

“Come to think of it, I’ve been seeing a lot of chats lately asking about my age and face…”

What’s more, Hayoon was not particularly resistant to turning on the cam.

Surely, the biggest concern was the exposure of her private life…

“Given that I’ve been taking cosplay photos and circulating them, my face has already been widely recognized.”

If they paid enough money, perhaps she could turn on the cam?

“But then again, doesn’t it seem cheap if I reveal my face just because I’m a bit viral in the community?”

No, isn’t it?

In the broadcast, the topic of “face exposure” had already been a hot and controversial subject.

Mentioning it here and now because it stirred up the community doesn’t seem wise.

If things go this way, and they start asking her to dance or sing, then she might be seen as someone willing to comply with all such requests, leading to further exploitation.

Therefore…

“Let’s see…”

The straightforward approach was correct.

The taming process.

Whether they are casual users coming for the female streamers or hardcore otaku coming for her illustrations,

She would tame them all and use them as sources of income.

With the Status Window’s uncertainties lurking, the more sources of income, the better.

“Ah, here it is. A selfie taken at AGC.”

Hayoon grinned slyly, moving a photo onto her computer.

“Alright, let’s see the firepower of the generous users who supported me up to 20 million won in just half a month.”

Hayoon had long been captivated by the smell of money flowing through the funding page.

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