Chapter 71

"Your stamina has already increased by one?"

"Yes, uncle. The buff effect is really amazing!"

Having been contacted by Lee Hayeon, Seong Jihan, who came to the guild, was surprised to hear that Yoon Seah's stamina had already increased by 1.

'How long has it been since she awakened…?'

During the era of the last 10 countries on Earth, back then, when the secondary guild system was well-established, players sought to obtain the rare stat, 'perseverance' but only one out of every ten players could raise their stamina by 10 within 100 days.

'Raising stats naturally was always a tremendously difficult task…'

Yoon Seah increased her stamina by 2 just a week after her awakening.

'Late Bloomer… is the gift that Barren was wary of.'

Barren always kept an eye on Xin Youhwa, the second-ranked player from China.

This was because the speed at which he caught up in ranking points was staggering. Had the era of the last 10 countries lasted a bit longer, Xin Youhwa might have become the world's top player.

"Owner, I have a great idea!" Lee Hayeon said with an enthusiastic expression.

"What is it?"

"Shouldn't we spread the news of Seah's amazing progress far and wide? It would also be a great way to promote the buffs of our guild!"

"I see. What do you have in mind?"

"Most people who watch our guild channel came because of you, the owner. Announcing this there might not draw as much attention."

Seong Jihan tilted his head in response.

"Well, her stats are increasing so fast that people might be quite interested."

"Yes, they might be. But considering the target we want our guild to reach, we need even more attention!"

"A target to reach?"

"Isn't it to be the best in the world?"

The best in the world?

Lee Hayeon's enthusiasm to prosper the guild was overflowing.

"So… owner, can you help?"

"What kind of help do you need? Do you want me to announce it on my channel?"

Seong Jihan's channel, which had surpassed 600,000 subscribers, would provide a much better promotional effect than the guild channel. However, Lee Hayeon shook her head.

"That would be a huge help… but if we rely on your channel every time we need promotion, we'll always end up asking you for favors."

"So, what then?"

"Rather than that, I think promoting the guild channel would be better in the long run."

"I see. How can I assist then?"

"Owner, do you remember the offer to manage your advertisements from Divergent group."

Seong Jihan nodded.

Receiving management from Divergent group for advertisement activities was one of the conditions of Lee Hayeon's recruitment.

"I agreed to shoot one advertisement a month when I was in Silver."

"Yes. I want to use that one opportunity now."

"An ad all of a sudden?"

"Yes. Actually, Divergent group of Electronics approached me with an offer for you to be a model for their new smartphone advertisement…"

"…"

Why was the conversation shifting from growing the guild channel to a model for an advertisement?

Lee Hayeon hesitated and trailed off.

"Wow, uncle! You're going to model for a phone advertisement? That's awesome."

"Yes. I turned down other offers, but I thought I should discuss this since The Divergent group of Electronics directly approached me…"

"Why didn't you take up the other offers?"

When Yoon Seah looked at Lee Hayeon questioningly, Seong Jihan answered for her.

"I agreed to do only one advertisement a month."

"Why? Shouldn't you shoot when you can?"

"There's no need to shoot too much right now."

Given that his value will continue to rise, there was no need to film advertisements in advance.

However, considering the situation of the guild master, it might be best to shoot the advertisement for The Divergent group of Electronics.

"Alright, let's film the one for The Divergent group of Electronics."

"Ah! Are you sure?"

Seong Jihan asked calmly, "But what does this have to do with channel growth?"

"Well, I want to stream the behind-the-scenes footage of the advertisement on the guild channel."

"Behind-the-scenes footage… would people watch that?"

Typically, people skip or change the channel when ads come on. Why would they watch the filming of such an advertisement?

Seong Jihan asked, seemingly not understanding.

"Sir, aren't fan clubs for you springing up like mushrooms?"

"Fan clubs?"

"After the August 15th Korea-Japan match, the Sword kings fan base has nearly disintegrated. The massive national fandom seemed to have disappeared, but then you suddenly appeared."

Since that match, the Korean national team had been on a losing streak in several East Asia league games.

Korea, being overwhelmingly last. The nation's BattleNet ranking was also expected to decline significantly this year. In this situation, the emergence of a top prospect like Seong Jihan was a glimmer of hope for Korea.

He had overwhelmingly defeated Barren, the world's top prospect, and had never lost a single BattleNet match.

Moreover, he was being courted by the world's top guild, America First, to the extent they were offering him a blank check.

And yet, for some reason, he still remained in Korea?

It was a situation where he was destined to become a national star.

"The biggest fan club is named 'The First', right?"

"Yes, 'The First'. It's named that because uncle always ranks first."

"Seah, you seem to know a lot."

"Hehe, I joined too!"

"…"

Why on earth would she join her uncle's fan club?

Although Seong Jihan was puzzled, he understood where Lee Hayeon was getting at.

"So you're saying that because I now have fans, they'll come to see the advertisement?"

"Yes. If we live-stream the behind-the-scenes footage on the guild channel, many will come to watch. And after the advertisement shooting ends…"

Lee Hayeon, with full enthusiasm, explained the next steps.

Hearing the whole process, from the behind-the-scenes footage to guild promotion, Seong Jihan thought, 'I made the right decision giving her a stake.'

The guild he initially saw as just a buff shuttle was now growing beyond control, thanks to the passionate guild master.

'Alright… I need to achieve guild milestones anyway.'

Considering the effort to earn achievement points by growing the guild, Seong Jihan decided to support the guild master, who would handle all the tedious work.

* * *

5 days later, Daegi Guild Channel – Jihan's filming the Divergent group of Electronics ad today, right?

– Yes, that's right~ Hahaha!!!

Even before the live broadcast began, tens of thousands of viewers were already logged into the chat.

– Can't believe a newbie is shooting a phone ad, LOL. It's ridiculous for real.

– It's not just any Silver Rank shooting the ad! It's Jihan!

– Weren't you from the 'Sword King' fandom? I can tell from the way you talk.

– I left that fandom ages ago. -_-

– I'm proud of Jihan…^^ Looking forward to… the amazing… advertisement…^^

– We are from The First, we support you!!!!!!

Lately, the increasing number of female fans and older viewers who experienced national pride after the King of Swords had been participating in the chat, turning the guild channel chat into chaos.

After the August 15th Korea-Japan match, the Korean national team kept losing in regional league matches, but ironically, Jihan's fan base expanded even more. In the Korean BattleNet situation, the only ray of hope was Jihan.

– Oh. It's starting.

3 minutes later, a black screen began streaming.

"Hello everyone~ Guild Master Lee Hayeon here~"

The chat was flooded with messages from men as the dolled-up Hayeon appeared.

– Wow!!!!!

– She's so classy today… Shouldn't the Guild Master be the one filming the ads from now on?

– Just seeing her is enough. Please broadcast more on the channel… Hehe… I've missed her…

– Honestly, I'm here to see Hayeon rather than Jihan.

– Me too lololol!

"Thank you for your kind words! But today's star is someone else! Let's go meet our owner, shall we?"

Hayeon approached Jihan, who was finishing up his makeup in the dressing room, along with the film crew.

"Owner! Wow~ Your already handsome face is shining even more with the makeup~!"

"…Are we starting the filming now?"

"Yes. We should start filming now. This hairstyle suits you, right, everyone?"

– Wow! Jihan is so handsomeㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ

– He looks great even with his regular style but this new, He looks so sexy ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ

– I'm glad I skipped my class to watch the stream ㅠㅠㅠㅠ

– Why so excited?

– Because he's so handsome.

– I totally agree.

Jihan, who was already popular among the players for his handsome looks, received an explosive reaction for revealing his forehead, which was usually covered.

"Since the owner is appearing today, we already have over 30,000 concurrent viewers~ It's not the same as the usually dull guild channel!"

"It's not necessarily because of me. The guild channel has grown significantly too."

"Compared to the owner's channel, it's still small. Now, everyone! Do you know what product we're advertising today?"

Responses quickly flooded in.

– Is it the long-awaited Space 23?

– It's Divergent group's counterattack against LK Electronics' dominance!

– Beating LK? What a joke lololol. Isn't it obvious that the Divergent group is hiring shills?

– Seriously, how can The Divergent group beat LK Electronics in smartphones lololol.

The general perception worldwide, including in Korea in 2020, was that LK Electronics' smartphones were superior to The Divergent group.

'Wow. We used to be much better… If only it weren't for that damn BattleNet…'

Seeing the chat, Hayeon tried to suppress her anger and forced a smile.

"This time, It's something different! It's really a masterpiece!"

– The guild master's phone looks like… Oh? It's the Space model.

– That's her secondary phone. I saw her using an LK Electronics Phone before~^0^

– I'm disappointed she's cleaning her phone for the broadcast.

"No! What are you talking about!!! I only use The Divergent group phones! If I use a LK Electronics, I'll be kicked out of the house!"

– Huh? How'd you get kicked out? Perhaps…

"No!"

– Lololol. The Guild Master's reaction is gold. It's fun teasing her.

– When else can we tease a chaebol lady?

– Is she really a chaebol? Why is a chaebol so pretty?

– She is a real chaebol. That's why life is unfair.

Jihan watched Hayeon engaging with the viewers, mixing in appropriate reactions.

'I think the channel would've blown up even if I didn't show up…'

Having appeared on the guild channel previously, Lee Hayeon already had the nickname "Chaebol Goddess" on the internet.

Simply broadcasting her guild-related briefings seemed to quickly boost the channel's growth.

"Ah… Seriously… Anyway! This time it's different. Our Divergent group has achieved an amazing innovation! Look at this!"

With a confident expression, Lee Hayeon took out The Divergent group Electronics' new smartphone, the 'Space 23'.

At first glance, it didn't look much different from the smartphones popular in 2020.

However, when Lee Hayeon unfolded the smartphone, the screen smoothly stretched out and then folded back.

– Wow, there's a good reason for her confidence.

– It looks better than the LK foldable phone.

Recently, foldable smartphones have become a trend.

The "Space 23" released by Divergent group Electronics had a display performance that was clearly a level above the existing ones.

Seeing the positive reaction from the audience, Lee Hayeon confidently smiled and said, "This is a technological innovation obtained by providing Divergent group Electronics with three Akashic Pages from the Divergent Guild!"

– Three Akashic Pages?

– Divergent group really went all outㅎㅎㅎㅎ.

The viewers seemed even more interested upon hearing about the use of Akashic Pages. But the interest wasn't just from regular viewers.

[Akashic Page?]

Until now, Ariel, who had been still inside Sung Jihan's left arm, spoke out.

[You can't be serious… They used it for such a trivial thing?]

She exclaimed in a voice full of disbelief.