*Allen's POV*
I didn't want to ruin the mood, so I ended up asking sothing silly.
"No, no, no, I'm Scarlet," she quickly shook her head in denial.
I sighed, and then a small laugh escaped from my mouth. She's a fan; I can tell because she knows the lore of my channel, and she knows that Rick is a disgusting troll.
He's one of the main culprits behind my ordering those Rozen Maiden dolls. I've tried to ban him, but I think he's a hacker because he keeps unbanning himself.
Wait...
What did MJ just say?!
"Scarlet?!"
I looked in astonishnt as I stumbled. Is she Scarlet? Scarlet isn't just one of my first two viewers; she's been comnting on my main channel practically from the beginning, for years.
Mary Jane approached and took off my glasses. "Hehe, it's nice to et you, Gray~"
"..."
My face must have looked funny because she started blushing and laughing.
During my early days when I didn't show my face, I used a fake na like everyone else. That na was Grayman. After a few months, I decided to use my real na because I didn't end up liking that nickna, so I only used it for three months.
It's strange how the internet world works. You start with high expectations, but soon you realize that even getting two views is a struggle.
And that's not counting that, on average, only one out of every hundred people comnts. That's why the existence of my founders was so special.
My initial content was simple. A cara recorded painting figures and handmade models while providing information on the topic at hand.
Of course, in those days, only my hands were visible. The internet kept growing, and everything was new. Over ti, I started talking about various topics in my videos, and I even began addressing topics that were left in the comnts.
Those exchanges gradually grew, and I got to know several of my subscribers well. Among them, Scarlet... I couldn't count how many ssages we exchanged over three years.
I looked at Mary Jane while she smiled, feeling like we'd known each other forever, and judging by her smile, she felt the sa way.
After that, it seed like the distance between us had completely disappeared.
We sat on a bench and, without noticing the passing of ti, talked until it got dark.
MJ didn't stop smiling during this ti. It's a special feeling that I can't describe well, getting to et soone in person who's been there for so long, but whom you could never have close.
In the end, it was ti to say goodbye, but I noticed that she seed sad and sowhat worried.
"Don't worry; we've already exchanged contacts. If you need to see , don't hesitate to call," I said before patting her on the shoulder.
I was surprised at how quickly I began to think of her as a friend at the sa level as Gwen, but at the sa ti, it wasn't that difficult.
MJ held her phone and looked at my contact and then turned around, and I felt an inexplicable panic seeing her dim eyes.
Without knowing why, I reached out my hand to her and took hers.
"What's wrong?" MJ looked at confused. My mind couldn't yet process what I had done or the reason behind it.
As I thought about what to say, an epiphany ca to my mind, and I rembered sothing from over two years ago.
"I rember once reading a comnt from you that you later deleted. You wrote that you had issues with your parents."
Mary's face broke, and she turned pale. "Th-that was a j-joke, Allen," she said with a shaky and scared voice.
Many mories ca back to , and I clenched my teeth a little angrily. "You later comnted another day that you had a fight with your father and couldn't stand living there anymore." That's right, every ti Scarlet... MJ wrote sothing about her personal life, she avoided the topic of her parents, and when sothing slipped, she ended up deleting the ssage.
Now that I have her in front of , I can tell that it's sothing serious and heavy.
Mary Jane began to struggle, trying to free her hand from mine in a panic. "I was exaggerating!... let go, please, I have to be back before nine!"
There's a limit...
There's a limit where even friends need to think twice before entering. That intimate area of a person's life involves delicate subjects. Pressing further with Mary Jane ans I'm willing to see the darkest aspects of her life. You can't go into that with half a heart, or you could hurt soone deeply.
[That's right, Allen Walker, you must decide. Are you willing to bear Mary Jane's darkness? You can refuse and remain just a regular friend, and she a fan.]
I took a deep breath as I looked seriously at MJ. "You guys are unfair... you know everything about , but I know nothing about you, yet you're always there."
I smiled as I stroked the girl's head. "You supported when no one else did... You was there when I had no one... Let be there for you too, MJ."
"Allen!..." She broke into tears with her eyes welling up. Without hesitation, I embraced her.
[Don't worry, Host, with by your side, nothing is impossible.]
Hehe, it's true, I have a legendary system. If I can't protect a girl, it would be a mockery for everyone.
...
I arrived at my apartnt with MJ, and she hesitated before entering.
"Al, are you sure I'm not a bother?" MJ seed calr after crying for almost an hour, but her eyes were red.
"MJ, I'm a lonely guy in a huge apartnt, I have no parents, and my aunt Natasha only cos by occasionally. I could use so company, especially if it's a woman," I said as I took off my sweater.
"Okay," she blushed and entered. I could tell she was peeking at from the corner of her eye, but sorry, MJ, there's no fan service; I have a shirt underneath.
"The bathroom is at the end; you can take a shower. There are towels on the shelf. I've prepared so stew; I'll warm it up so you can eat after your shower. I need to do so editing, I will join you later."
Mary Jane ca closer and hugged from behind. "... thanks, Al."
"If you need anything else, call , and rember, this is your ho."
"I don't want to be a burden for you."
I looked at MJ seriously. "You're not a burden, Jane, I an it. You can stay as long as you like... as long as you don't enter that room," I pointed to a room at the end of the hallway.
"Oh, that's the treasure room!" Jane's eyes lit up, and she was excited.
"You guys ca up with that na," I rolled my eyes as she laughed. I'm glad her mood improved.
"Stop fooling around and go take a shower; you don't want to catch a cold."
"Yes~" She walked away, giving a playful look. "Don't spy on , Al~"
"..."
I didn't know what expression to make. There's a fine line between innocent flirting and real seduction. And if you're a man and misinterpret the signals, you could end up in jail or the bed of a beautiful girl; it's a risky bet.
I shook my head and went into my RGB room. Yeah, I shouldn't have put so many unnecessary lights. Now I regret it; my electricity bill is twice as high as my neighbor's.
I sat on the chair and checked my computer to see how today's live stream went.
The statistics show that over a thousand people were spectating live, that's ten tis more. Several clips promoted my stream on Twitter and FB. I'm not surprised because fights go viral, although people usually settle for the clip and don't look for the entire fight.
I had only a thousand viewers, but the clips exceeded a hundred thousand views within hours.
But this popularity is superficial. You have to know the different types of fa. Viral fa is almost always temporary when the object that attracts the audience isn't you, but the viral content itself.
Learning how to market yourself is a basic step in this world.
A fight is always viral; it will always be. But days later, no one will rember who was fighting, and a few months later, that clip will be buried and only rembered in compilations.
The fa to strive for is perpetual popularity, and this is only achieved by building a community. A community that loves you and all your content, not just because of a viral video.
In this case, the fight isn't just viral because in this case, it's the fact that the attention has been shifted from the fight itself to . First with provocative phrases towards Flash.
Let's suppose the title changes from:
"School Fight with Unexpected Ending" to "Potter Beats Bully." There's a big difference. In the first, the focus is on the fight, and in the second example, the focus is on Potter, the MC, aning , and the villain, Flash Thomson.
Now, thanks to the system, I've recorded everything from start to finish in 4k at 60fps. I could have recorded it at a higher quality, but it wasn't necessary, and it would be strange if a school fight were recorded with Jas Caron's movie quality.
I opened my video editor to turn a good video into an incredible one.
Ti to manipulate virality...
[Cough]
"What's going on?"
[Offensively, the host would consider using a primitive editing program over his perfect system]
Did I detect a hint of jealousy in the emotionless voice of the girl? Hehe.
"It's the best personal use editor on the market... but you win. Show what you can do." I decided to trust the system since it's, well, a system!
The screens on my setup glowed, blinding , and when the light disappeared, a program was open.
"Three-Body Editor?" I see, it indeed seems like sothing that shouldn't exist in this era... no matter, what it was to be expected from the system.
...
After a brief explanation on the screen, I could use the editor. It was simply magnificent, allowing for quick editing and smooth, almost instant rendering.
Its options were comparable to those used in movies, allowing to use Hollywood-quality special effects, and the best part was that it was automatic.
To put it in simpler terms, with this editor and the modifications the system made to my computer, I could make a movie of Jas Caron's Avatar quality all by myself in a week. Of course, filmmaking is not my thing.
Now to edit this.
In the part where I faced off against Flash, I needed a multi-shot approach. First, a shot of getting up from my chair, then a shot of his gorilla-like surprise on his face.
I edited it so that when I delivered my first line to Flash, it was t with a deafening silence, and I gave my voice a slightly deeper tone.
I need so music... this editor can even create Hans Zimr's quality music, for those who don't know him, think of Interstellar. Thanks to its advanced artificial intelligence program, all the music it generates is unique.
The atmosphere before the fight was heavy and dramatic, followed by a heroic touch when I started dodging attacks and used slow motion during our battle, with dynamic shots ranging from slow to fast movents.
In the final exchange, when Flash was about to hit with all his might, I used an underwater effect to silence the voices and leave only my breathing audible.
Then, when I struck Flash's face, I repeated it three tis from different angles. I added a very realistic punch effect followed by the sound of his teeth and nose breaking. Then, a close-up of his distorted face in pain and disbelief. A shot from his point of view on the ground while I stood over him, was a good shot.
Finally, Gwen arrived, and I took a shot of just the two of us silently staring at each other, with a pink aura. People love romances. Sorry, Gwen, but I need you for this shot, and I'll buy you an ice cream to make up for it later.
Now, all that's left is the right viral title and an attention-grabbing thumbnail.
This Three-Body editor also has an image editor, it's incredible. The first thing people see is the thumbnail. Thumbnails should be eye-catching and very simple, with few elents, three is ideal.
In the thumbnail, I placed Flash getting hit in the face with teeth flying, and with a serious and indignant expression. I'll add two texts: first, "bully" pointing to Flash in large letters, and "Victim" pointing to ...
The inconsistency in the image, where the victim is smashing the bully's face, along with the suggestive words, will pique people's curiosity.
Now, the title, which is the second thing people see... "I Stood Up to My Bully... no, too simple, "I Beat Up a Bully"... no, too violent... I got it! "I Defended a Kid from a Bully, No Matter the Consequences."
Sorry, Peter, but I'll use you too. I put a small Peter covered in food but with his face censored, I didn't want to humiliate him.
I returned to the video editor and added shots of Parker on the ground, covered in food but with a mosaic over his face at all tis.
There, now it doesn't look like a fight, but like a hero helping an abused guy.
[I already knew... but now I'm sure, host, you have a lot of talent in this. I'm not surprised that you're compatible with such a unique system as .]
Well, I'm a content creator; attracting, entertaining, informing, and keeping people engaged is my job. I'd be in trouble if I didn't do it well.
I looked at my finished work, I have to say, it looks like a movie, hahaha... this is bad.
I got carried away with the editor; people will think everything is staged. But that's okay.
My goal is to increase my popularity, not for people to believe it's real. After all, the system works based on views. I should ask the system for details on how it works.
I looked at Flash several tis on the ground. One shouldn't be proud of hitting soone, but I never knew... it feels so good to defeat an idiot! Why didn't I do this earlier?!
[Because the host is sowhat cowardly; I recomnd that he invest his earnings in increasing his life insurance.]
Earnings?
[Yes, the host can earn three types of rewards. The first one is credits, earned based on the number of viewers and the ti they spend watching your content. These credits serve as universal currency and can be used to buy things from the system's store or exchange for real money.]
Oh! I need that! Now, I won't have to steal food from restaurant dumpsters.
[The second type is golden tickets, which are used to draw from the system's store gacha. Many prizes can be won, but there's a risk of getting trash. The tickets are obtained by unlocking achievents, reaching set goals, or achieving very good results sowhere, etc.]
Gacha?! Noooo! Why gacha?!
[Host?]
System, gacha is one of the most terrible things invented by humanity, a disgusting thing that drains people's souls to death...
[If you want, I can remove that function...]
No, it's okay... I'll live with it.
[...]
Go on, system.
[Lastly, there are destiny fragnts... these fragnts can be the most important thing you obtain.]
Mmm, what are they for?
My words were interrupted by soone knocking on the room's door.
It could only be MJ; now that I think about it, she probably hasn't eaten yet. I removed my headphones and walked to the door. When I opened it, there was a lovely redhead with wet hair and a slight blush.
I won't lie; her fresh, sweet, and delicate scent is befitting of a young beauty like her. Her natural fragrance entered my nostrils, leaving sowhat intoxicated.
I looked at Mary Jane with a few droplets of water falling on her moist, fair skin and swallowed. She noticed it and lowered her head to hide her embarrassnt.
Unexpectedly, she moved closer to instead of backing away and leaned on my body. I could feel the warmth of her breath on my neck.
Don't tell today is "that" day?!
====
(A/N: I won't focus too much on technical issues, that will happen behind the cara, but this was mainly to show that Allen is a capable creator and not a bluff.)
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