Not Human (1)
Achieving 100,000 subscribers in the shortest period of ti.
For so, that would be a life-changing mont—a so-called turning point.
However, Lee Gyeongbok's day remained unchanged.
"Huff, huff...."
He regulated his breathing as he did pull-ups. Sweat trickled down the chiseled muscles of his back, which looked as if they had been sculpted.
"Hoo."
Ever since he quit his job, he always made sure to exercise in the morning. Even after he started as a strear, he kept up this daily routine.
After a quick shower, he checked the ti and left the house.
"Oh, you're here."
Unlike Lee Gyeongbok, Choi Byeonghun, who stayed up late and woke up late, greeted him with tired, sunken eyes that showed he hadn't fully recovered yet.
They had agreed to have lunch together and talk. The nu was pork cutlet—a dish anyone could enjoy.
"I still can't believe it. I knew things would go well, but I never thought it would blow up like this."
Choi Byeonghun grinned, whereas Lee Gyeongbok tilted his head in confusion.
"I an, it's not like you uploaded a lot of videos, right? Do you really get 100,000 gathered so quickly?"
"On Q-tube, quality's more important than quantity. Plus, the circumstances were just right."
"Circumstances?"
"Yeah. You probably didn't notice because you were sleeping, but I stayed up until dawn, you know? There are a lot of people who broadcast from night until early morning."
"Broadcast?"
Lee Gyeongbok still looked puzzled.
"This scene is usually swamped with sparrows. But you, the stork, revealed the hidden route. People are going wild. What happens next? That's when folks try to ride the mainstream wave, thinking this is their chance."
"Oh, really?"
"Hey, don't you know Bark's viewer count jumped to the 30,000s after your broadcast? It more than quadrupled because of your stream!"
Before Lee Gyeongbok's stream, bio Crisis broadcasts had around only 7,000 viewers.
But once the hidden route opened and it beca a hot topic, it skyrocketed to over 30,000.
Yet, he just shook his head.
"No, I wouldn't know. I only told you to focus on the broadcast."
Choi Byeonghun backtracked a little and scoffed.
"But still, no sparrow's beco a stork yet. Everyone just keeps trying to save the cop at the start and crashes their streams. If it were that easy, the hidden route would've opened ages ago."
"I thought it was easy."
When Lee Gyeongbok made that 'I don't get it' expression, Choi Byeonghun was montarily at a loss for words.
"... Anyway, that's part of why Bark is on the rise again, and the overseas response is good too."
"Overseas?"
"Yeah. Bark's honestly way more popular overseas. There's even a movie adaptation abroad."
Bio Crisis was even made into a movie with the English title "Dweller Evil."
That's the kind of following it had.
"You saw the comnts, right? There's stuff from foreigners even though you didn't do anything specific for them, but they co and watch anyway."
"Oh, yeah, I saw."
"That's why you hit 100,000. But still, I feel a bit disappointed."
"Disappointed?"
Lee Gyeongbok's eyes went wide. To him, a friend thinking this way after becoming a 100,000-subscriber Q-tuber overnight just looked insatiably greedy.
"Look at it. It's great to have tons of people on your channel, but it turns out there are actually more foreigners."
Choi Byeonghun sent him the channel analytics through his smart link. It was all graphs and numbers, the kind Lee Gyeongbok couldn't make heads or tails of.
Knowing this, Choi Byeonghun imdiately explained.
"If you look, 62% are overseas accounts. It's fine for a Q-tuber, but for a strear, it's just an illusion."
"Ah..."
Lee Gyeongbok now roughly understood what that sense of "disappointnt" was.
"Those folks aren't long-term viewers, you know? They only show up for Bark, and because of the ti difference and language barrier, they won't even watch the stream."
"Even if they do, isn't it a problem? I'm not good at English."
Lee Gyeongbok wrinkled his nose slightly.
"There's that, and if there are too many overseas viewers, even native fans start leaving. Why? Because chatting among themselves is part of the broadcast content. But if people start chattering in a language they don't understand, they feel left out."
"So should we block them?"
"Hmm... I don't think it's that bad yet. There probably are so foreigners tuning in live, but right now, there are still more native fans. At most, they'll just stick around silently and watch."
"Then it's not a problem. I'll just do things my way."
"You were going to do that anyway, weren't you?"
"That's true."
Lee Gyeongbok replied with a smile.
"It's my broadcast, after all."
* * *
The third broadcast of strear Purple.
The gap between days one and two was noticeable, but the gap between days two and three was even bigger.
"Trha."
The greeting was starting to co more naturally to him.
It was accompanied by a surge in viewer count and a rapid-fire chat, which was the proof.
― Perha!
― Purplelelujah! Purplelelujah! Purplelelujah!
― The savior of Bark has arrived!
― Congrats on hitting 100,000 on Purple channel!
― Wake up and I'm a 100,000-subscriber Q-tuber?
― When's the silver unboxing?
Even though it was early afternoon, the viewers imdiately surpassed 1,500. The chat was so fast that, as Choi Byeonghun taught him, Lee Gyeongbok changed the settings.
"Yes, thank you for the congratulations. The chat's running too fast, so I'll enable slow mode for a bit."
Slow chat.
A function that set an interval between each viewer's ssages. It was a setting commonly used to prevent spam.
― Our baby Purple already?
― Who are you! Where's our Purple!
― Let Purple do whatever he wants!
No one took offense.
Most other strears used this basic setting, after all.
['StopPurpleWithdrawal' has donated '10,000' won.]
[If I don't donate now, when will I, lol]
['PurpleIsTheBest!' has donated '50,000' won.]
[Deposited today's friend-fee^^]
['StopEndOfStream!' has donated '10,000' won.]
[Congrats on 100,000 subs!]
['KoreanBoy' has donated '5,000' won.]
[If you're Korean, you MUST subscribe to Purple channel!]
The donations poured in.
That was because he didn't accept donations while imrsed in gaplay.
"Wow, thank you for the support. To be honest, I'm a bit dazzled by all this. I an, 100,000-subscriber Q-tuber, really?"
Most of the donations were congratulatory ssages for hitting 100,000 subscribers on Q-tube. The chat responded with a flood of 'ㅋㅋㅋ' (LOL).
"It really feels like a miracle. And it's a miracle that all my viewers have made possible."
Lee Gyeongbok was not conceited.
He knew that while these recent blessings ca thanks to his own skills, none of it would have been possible without his viewers.
― What's up with this SweetPurple!
― Is he trying to quell rumors about his character or what?
― You think a smiling face can hide your true self, huh! LOL
― Our little Purple has grown up...
― A baby that beca a conglorate in just 3 days?
― LOL let's fly before you even start walking~
Lee Gyeongbok reaffird it once more.
A strear's joy is contagious to the viewers, too.
"Oh, and I have one announcent to make."
― Announcent?
-ㅁㅇㅁㅇ
― Finally, a proper celeb—are you going to reveal your underwear color?
― Isn't 'underwear' the national rule, lol
― Are you crazy, lol
While the viewers laughed and joked, Lee Gyeongbok finished setting things up again.
― The chat moderation bot is now active.
A notification appeared in the chat. Only then did the viewers catch on to the actual announcent.
"I'd like everyone to enjoy things as freely as possible, but it's only right to prevent potential problems. The rule is three strikes—you get banned after three warnings."
― That's fair.
― He honestly should have done this from the beginning.
― LMAO the paragraph trolls yesterday went too far
― Loyalty to you, god Purple ^^7
― Now the worst trolls are muzzled!
― Our fans have matured^^
The viewers naturally accepted the announcent. Anyone protesting now would only be marking themselves as a troublemaker.
In the lively atmosphere, Lee Gyeongbok clapped lightly to get everyone's attention.
"Alright, let's get started right away."
― Q-ha!
― Oh, yeah, now Q-tube will trend too.
― Mom, I'm on Q-tube!
― Off we go, swoosh swoosh!
― What about the underwear color?
― Get rid of the underwear freaks!
With playful banter in the chat, bio Crisis began.
A cutscene picking up from the end of chapter 2.
John's eyes, closed and quivering, slowly opened.
"... Sandra?"
As soon as John opened his eyes, he called for Sandra. But what he saw was only a flashlight lying beside him.
― In the preview for chapter 3, it looked like there was sothing between those two...
― All of a sudden Sandra completely changed.
― Whatever it is, it's 100% John's fault.
― Is Honey Squad in trouble?
The viewers were brimming with curiosity. So was Lee Gyeongbok, so he concentrated on the cutscene.
"Sandra?"
John picked up the flashlight and swept his surroundings. Soon the beam of the flashlight stopped at a spot.
Unlike the other dried bloodstains around, there was a pool of bright red blood. It was clearly recent.
― What the heck?
― Don't tell Sandra did it?
― No, no, she was alive until they went to the outlet in the preview.
― Prolly just hurt.
Apparently John arrived at the sa conclusion as the viewers.
"Healing item, I need to find a healing item..."
John hurried up onto a platform. He discovered a first aid kit hanging on the wall.
"John?"
A voice called out at that mont.
Turning his head, John saw Sandra. She had wrapped a bandage around her shoulder, apparently giving herself first aid.
"Sandra, are you alright?"
John grabbed the first aid kit and approached her. But Sandra flinched and stepped back.
"Stop right there!"
"Sandra...?"
Her face was plastered with complicated emotions.
― Why's she acting like that all of a sudden?
― Who knows what a woman's thinking anyway...
― There's only one thing a woman thinks about when watching a strear, lol
― Pure fact OUT!
― God strear! Over here!
Suddenly, sandra pointed to the first aid kit John was holding, as if realizing sothing.
"You can't trust anything from Regenfarm."
"Ah... sorry."
Only then did John notice the Regenfarm logo stamped on the kit.
"That's kind of creepy."
For once, Lee Gyeongbok comnted.
― The mood suddenly got weird...
― Did sothing happen while the MC was unconscious?
― This is a first reveal—no spoilers, lol
Both Lee Gyeongbok and the viewers could guess that wasn't the whole story.
Soon the screen went dark, and the background scenery changed.
John and Sandra exited the subway station and ca up to ground level.
Unlike the downtown area, here the sky was wide open and lined with low buildings. It looked as if the aftermath of the zombie crisis hadn't hit here as hard.
― Ooooh.
― This is the unreleased area!
― Wow, this scenery is amazing!
― And only the doggum people knew about it.
― Stuck-up doggum jerks!
Sandra looked much happier as she took in the view.
"This way!"
She checked a signpost and spoke brightly. John smiled as he followed her.
'... What's this?'
At that mont, Lee Gyeongbok again felt an odd sense of foreboding. Almost as if he wasn't imagining it, John's expression also turned serious.
"Sandra! Get down!"
John grabbed Sandra and ducked into a narrow alley.
Heavy but rapid footsteps followed.
It wasn't the sound of a zombie, but sothing much more weighty and quick.
"HQ, we've arrived at the subway station."
"Clear."
"Clear."
What appeared were rcenaries from Regenfarm.
― Ah, we must be near the quarantine zone here.
― Did you co after hearing about the train explosion?
-yeah.
― It's ti to give those rcenary bastards a lesson, lol.
The viewers grasped the situation instantly. Lee Gyeongbok could piece together the context from those chat ssages.
The rcenaries picked up their firearms and began to search the area. Along with that, control was returning to the group.
Now it was Lee Gyeongbok's turn to act. Just as he was about to reach for his pistol—
"No."
Sandra stopped him.
Lee Gyeongbok had been in a similar situation before.
"... Right, if they hear gunshots, backup will co."
"Yes. But it's different from zombies. If even one person makes a sound, we'll be discovered."
Unlike mindless zombies, this ti their opponents were rcenaries. Sandra licked her dry lips and drew a knife.
"I'll handle this."
A baton had no problem taking out zombies, but rcenaries were another matter. To kill silently, a blade was necessary.
"Just cover , just in case."
― Is it Sandra's ti to shine now?
― Is this just to cover up that weird feeling from the cutscene?
― Can't we just ask Sandra for the knife, like in the subway section?
Lee Gyeongbok was thinking the sa thing.
But unlike before, sandra refused that request.
"I'll... keep it with ."
― Definitely being wary.
― Wow... just doing this all of a sudden?
― Why are you like this, sandra-chan, ㅠㅠㅠ
― Just imagining the nerds crying is making mad, lol
-〈ssage deleted by moderation bot (Warning 1)〉
Lee Gyeongbok looked away from the chat window. Was it really right to just sit still like this?
'That wouldn't be any fun.'
His eyes quickly scanned over the rcenaries. A faint smile crept onto his lips.
"I'll go."
"John?"
Lee Gyeongbok didn't wait.
After slipping out from the alley, he swiftly approached the rcenary.
― He's really going for it?
― Is he going to choke him out?!
― Are we getting CQC!
― What's CQC, you nerd!
Naturally, question marks filled the chat. The answer ca imdiately.
"Huh?"
As soon as the rcenary sensed soone and turned around, Lee Gyeongbok sprang from the shadow and tackled him.
In a flash, he reached for the sheath attached to the rcenary's belt, near his thigh.
The rcenaries wore combat knives to be ready if gunshots attracted zombies.
He pulled out the knife in an instant and plunged it into the rcenary's neck.
"Kkeuruk...!"
A gurgling sound was followed by the rcenary collapsing. Still, Lee Gyeongbok grabbed the rcenary's belt to muffle the noise.
― How is his physical ability that insane?!
― Assassino!
― He's clearly not like those pseudo-assassins who just claim it's an "assassination" after killing everyone, lol
― Big ears! Awaken! Awaken!
― Fact) If there are no witnesses, it's an assassination.
Only then did the viewers piece together Lee Gyeongbok's intention. What followed was a breeze.
Now that the combat knife was in his hand, there was no need for tricks like earlier. Lee Gyeongbok, hiding behind cover, slit the rcenaries' throats one by one.
― That's a one-shot, one-kill as well...
― Double-shot, double-kill is always the rule, lol
― On the original route, the rcenaries' firepower made this super tough
― Info) This is only doable if you're Purple.
― More info pls
Everything was expected to go smoothly.
"Why haven't I received a report...?"
The only one left was the rcenaries' squad leader. But he quickly realized that his n had gone silent.
He t eyes with Lee Gyeongbok, who was holding a bloodied combat knife.
Frightened, the squad leader reached for his radio.
― Shit, it's over!
― Damn it, he got caught...
― Not even Purple can clear this at that speed?
― Where's the doggum morality?
Just as everyone in the chat felt failure was imminent, Lee Gyeongbok swung his arm.
With a slicing sound, the combat knife pierced through the radio and the squad leader's hand.
― WA!
― Perfect punch! Perfect punch! Perfect punch!
― You fools, how can you still not believe in Godple?
― Is Purple still just a human to you?
The tone of the chat reversed instantly. But the squad leader was still alive.
However, there was a clear reason Lee Gyeongbok had gone for the radio.
"Ugh... uhk!"
As the squad leader was about to scream, a blade suddenly slid under his jaw. Sandra had approached before anyone realized and finished him off.
"Nice and clean."
Lee Gyeongbok had already sensed Sandra closing in.
― Sandra! Sandra! Sandra!
― I knew I could trust you!
― What's with this Purple-Sandra combo, lol
― Ah, so this is what a "couple" looks like.
― Is this combo a winning hand?
The chat echoed with their nas like a festival.
Once all the rcenaries were down, the screen faded to black and the cutscene began.
"We're almost there."
The outlet that once seed so far away was now right in front of them.
"Looks like we made it safely."
The outlet looked fine on the outside. There weren't many corpses and not much damage.
With walls and barred windows, it seed like a good place for survivors to stay.
Sandra picked up her pace with relief. But just then, the sound of a car engine ca from sowhere.
"No way?"
"Let's hide."
It could have been a backup squad of rcenaries. The two hid themselves quickly.
"... Survivors?"
But the approaching car turned out to be a civilian vehicle. Sandra tried to call out to them, but John urgently grabbed her.
"John?!"
There was no ti to explain.
As soon as John yanked Sandra back, an explosion rang out. A startled Sandra poked her head around a corner.
The civilian car that had been heading down the road was now engulfed in flas and torn apart.
"Drone."
John whispered, pointing upward. Military drones were flying overhead.
Sandra scowled and quickly ran for the rooftop of a nearby building.
"Oh my god..."
The two soon reached the rooftop.
Soldiers filled the horizon, obscured earlier by low buildings.
― Wow...
― Still shocking, even on a rewatch.
Since they'd already seen it in the preview cutscene, the viewers weren't too surprised.
Just then, accompanied by a humming of wings, a drone descended. John and Sandra drew their guns simultaneously.
〈Are you with Fox City Police Departnt?〉
A voice ca from the drone. John and Sandra exchanged glances.
"... What is the aning of this?"
John neither confird nor denied. The soldier behind the drone continued.
〈Currently, fox City is under lockdown. Were you not notified?〉
"Notified?"
〈We received a report of an infection incident in Fox City from Regenfarm. We have not been able to contact any law enforcent agencies within Fox City.〉
"How... How can the military kill their own civilians?!"
Sandra suddenly shouted, raising her voice. The drone cara turned.
〈We have been told that all citizens within the city are carriers. We are doing our utmost to prevent the situation from spreading.〉
"So you're going to just wipe everyone out?"
〈That is not the case. We have been inford that Regenfarm is currently manufacturing a vaccine.〉
"Vaccine?"
"Nonsense! Regenfarm is obviously behind all of this! They're killing every last survivor!"
Sandra's voice rose.
― In zombie stories, the governnt never does anything
― For real, lol, this is always the cancer role
― So they're not going to fight the military plotline, huh
― No matter what, an individual can't take on the military
― But if it's Purple, maybe...?
― No way, lol, you think that's possible? lol
The drone did not answer imdiately.
〈... Do you have any evidence?〉
"Evidence? You an proof?"
〈This is a grave matter to take solely on your word. Authorities cannot enter the city due to the risk of infection.〉
"So we're just supposed to lay down and die, then?"
〈No. If there is a vaccine, the lockdown will be lifted. We will re-investigate matters regarding Regenfarm.〉
The drone, as if the conversation was no longer possible, began to ascend.
〈Please convey this to other survivors.〉
― You handle it yourself" mode activated
-???: Ah, well, I'm not sure about that!
― Oh? This is totally a national defense handoff...
― It ends here!
― There was a bit of confusion just now.
In the end, John and Sandra were left standing alone. An uncomfortable silence fell between them.
While John seed to have regained his composure, sandra looked distraught, her hope for escape gone.
"Sandra, let's just go back—"
"Don't co any closer!"
John tried to lead her away, but Sandra shook off his hand and drew her gun.
-????????
― ltdown-dra, yikes
― Don't tell they're gonna fight? Right?
― Look at these doggum bastards being so cruel
― This all has to be done, then you feel satisfied, huh!
Tension hung in the air.
But Sandra's hand began to tremble.
"Now, now what are we supposed to do... What do you want to do...!"
"Sandra. Calm down."
"I warned you! Stay away!"
"Sandra... I just want to help you."
John cautiously, very slowly tried to approach her. But with a click, the safety ca off her gun.
"Who... Who the hell are you?"
"Sandra?"
"Why... Why is your body so fine? You got hurt protecting before, didn't you?"
Sandra's voice trembled with tears.
Imdiately, question marks filled the chat.
― Huh?
― Wait a second...
― Now that you ntion it, that's true?
Then Sandra drew a knife with her other hand. With clenched teeth, she slashed John's arm.
John scowled, as if about to snap, but his eyes soon widened.
Close-up on the wound.
The blood quickly stopped, and the wound began to close and heal.
― What the heck?
― Wait;;; I thought it was just auto-healing because it's a ga
― Is this a major clue too?
The viewers couldn't hide their surprise.
"John..."
Sandra spoke, tears streaming down her face.
"Are you... really human?"
The screen faded to black.
― Wow, lol, this makes the original route look like nothing more than a demo, haha
― How do the normies even handle a story like this?
― This is lawsuit material, damn
The chat window exploded upward.
― So that's why the doggum bastards are ranting on Tweety.
-???: Now we can show you the story we prepared.
― The original route wasn't even a real story, haha
― Oh man, this is going to bring all the ga leakers out
― What if it wasn't for Purple, huh, lol
What the existing gars experienced was just the tip of the iceberg.
They instinctively understood that the hidden route was the true core of Bio Crisis.
User Comments
0 comments from readers