Gender Swap: The Introvert’s Broadcast

Time passed, and finally, it was time to clock out.
Yeram and her friends, who had been sitting at the cafe earlier, had already moved on to other places.
Most likely to their academy classes or study sessions.
They really do work hard, I thought as I changed out of my uniform.

“Well then, take care!”
“Oh, yes. Goodbye...!”

It seemed Yehwa wasn’t planning to leave just yet.
From what I’d heard before, she stayed at the cafe until evening and then clocked out.

How does she eat?

I was curious, but now wasn’t the time to ask.
I could always ask later if needed.

With that thought, I left the cafe and headed home.

Creaaak—

As soon as I arrived home, I opened the door and let the air circulate.
Yeram wasn’t home.
She had probably gone to a nearby study hall.
It made sense—studying at home can sometimes be distracting.

Good thing she’s not here.

Honestly, the last time I streamed at home, having Yeram around made it slightly embarrassing.
It felt like exposing my vulnerabilities in front of her.
I wasn’t exactly proud of what I was doing.

Now, though, the circumstances were perfect.
Thinking that, I checked the comments on the post I’d made earlier.

[Author: Uncovering London’s Secrets]
[Title: Going live soon @@@@@@@@]
[Content: Get ready and stay tuned.]

L: Oh, finally going live.
Hwanhee: Stream now! Stream now! Stream now! Stream now! Stream now! Stream now! Stream now!
Hwanhee: For real, I’ve been waiting so long.
L: How fun can it possibly be that people are so excited? LOL.
L: Honestly, it’s not that great—just decent enough to watch.
L: This guy is spreading false hype just to monopolize the stream, lol.
L: Please, just start the stream already.

The regulars at the Ifrit Gallery didn’t have much entertainment, so they tended to blow up even the smallest events.
That’s why they were acting so overexcited about me streaming.

With that in mind, I fiddled with my computer to set up the stream.

Click-click.

After a while, everything was ready.

“All set.”

Now all I had to do was press the Start Stream button.
Without hesitation, I clicked it.

Click.

The stream went live instantly.
Viewers began flooding in right away—more than last time.
Last time, I had just over ten viewers. This time, it was even more.
Within moments of starting, I already had 11 viewers.

“What the... Why are there so many people?”

It was an overwhelming number.
Sure, it was nothing compared to major streamers, but for me, it was impressive.

[Omniscient Cthulhu: Hi, hi.]
[Omniscient Cthulhu: Stream as soon as you’re off work, please.
[Omniscient Cthulhu: I’m bored.]
[Hwanhee: Same, I’m bored out of my mind.
[You could literally just sit there silently playing games, and I’d still watch.]
[Kang Hoo-min Here: You’re early today.]

Early? I had no idea what they were talking about.

Shrugging it off, I launched a game.
Not Reore just yet—I had another game in mind to warm up with.

Ding-ding!

The familiar sound of the game starting rang out.
Anyone who had played it would instantly recognize it.

“I’ll warm up with this first.”

It was Maple Story.
Hardly anyone played it these days, but I liked the game, so I played it occasionally.
It was good for unwinding.

At least I don’t spend money on microtransactions.

Sure, playing without spending money made things inconvenient, but I didn’t mind.
My goal wasn’t to max out stats—it was just to enjoy the cute design and casual hunting.

[Omniscient Cthulhu: What the...]
[Omniscient Cthulhu: Maple Story?
[Omniscient Cthulhu: You’ve got to be kidding me.]
[This is absurd.]
[Looks like it’s time for some “normalization.”]
[What’s your gear like?]
[Hwanhee: I’ve never heard you mention playing Maple Story.]
[Kang Hoo-min Here: Maple-noob.]

I hadn’t told anyone about playing Maple Story.
The reason was simple: people tend to mock you for playing it.

It’s probably because some players ruined its reputation.

But that wasn’t the point.
What mattered now was warming up.

“Just watch quietly and don’t bother me.”

I didn’t want anyone interfering with my hunting grounds, so I set that boundary upfront.

[Omniscient Cthulhu: Who would even bother?]
[Omniscient Cthulhu: Who are you even telling not to come? LOL.]
[Kang Hoo-min Here: Who still plays this game, anyway?]
[Hwanhee: I once leveled up a Luminous character there. Mind if I hunt with you?]
[Didn’t he just say not to come? You insane simp, lol.]

Someone in the chat asked if they could join me, but I ignored it.
No way anyone would actually show up.

Bang! Bang!

My keyboard clattered as I darted around the map.

“This should be enough of a warm-up.”

I felt ready now.
While Reore didn’t require heavy keyboard usage, jumping straight into it always felt awkward without warming up.

[Omniscient Cthulhu: Ugh, watching this was so boring.]
[Omniscient Cthulhu: I nearly died of boredom.]
[Kang Hoo-min Here: Why do you even play this garbage?]
[Hwanhee: Nice hunting, though. It was oddly satisfying.]

“Well, time to start Reore.”@@novelbin@@

I launched Reore and queued for a match.
Once again, I chose the top lane.

“Last time I played top lane, I didn’t do so great.”

[For real.]
[Omniscient Cthulhu: The lower tiers are full of noobs.]
[Omniscient Cthulhu: It’s not your fault, lol.]
[Kang Hoo-min Here: You only lost because you gave up your lane.]
[Hwanhee: Still, it’s better to win by giving up a lane than to lose.]

Despite the odd situations last time, I had managed to go 8-2 and reach Gold.

“Is Gold high? I’m new to Reore, so I’m not sure.”

The chat quickly came alive in response.

[Omniscient Cthulhu: For a first-timer, Gold is amazing.]
[Omniscient Cthulhu: I started in Bronze 5, lol.]
[Bronze 5? That’s practically a bug tier.]
[How is that even possible for a human?]
[Kang Hoo-min Here: Bronze is rough...]
[Hwanhee: It’s normal to start in Bronze if you’re new.]

Apparently, being in Gold was quite an achievement for a beginner.
Maybe I had a talent for Reore.

Lost in that thought, I queued for another game, which matched quickly.

“Oh, top lane again!”

Thankfully, I was assigned top lane.
I took my time deciding on a champion.

As I scrolled through the options, the chat suddenly erupted.

[Omniscient Cthulhu: Wait, is this real? LOL.]
[What’s going on?]
[Kang Hoo-min Here: THE Mangming?!]
[Mangming is a god! Mangming is a god! Mangming is a god!]
[How are you in the same game as Mangming’s smurf account?]
[Do you two know each other?]

The chat was flooded with messages about Mangming.
I could barely keep up.

[Hi, is this the place?]
[Yo.]
[Mangtuigi ON!]
[How old are you? How old? How old? How old? How old? How old? How old? How old?]

“Wait, what’s happening?”

Apparently, viewers from Mangming’s stream were pouring in.
The viewer count had already climbed to 80—a record high for me.
I hadn’t expected this kind of turnout.

Still, it wasn’t a bad thing.

“Hello, everyone!”