Today's Chicken Mukbang W 6 - Hyacinth in Bloom

“How did you end up living in Japan?”

“Ah… just, um, due to circumstances, I’m living there.”

“I see, circumstances. Yes.”

Instinctively drawing a line, I belatedly frowned. While anxiously wondering if he would ask for more details, he naturally changed the subject. It seemed he realized it was an uncomfortable question.

I really like him. He’s good at gaming, has a nice personality, and on top of his voice, he’s also perceptive. I added another generous evaluation of THATMOON, to the point where I couldn’t elaborate further, and gently cleared my throat.

Despite our days of using the game as a messenger, the awkward atmosphere didn’t seem to improve. Since we became friends through gaming, games would probably be the best way to break through this barrier.

“I’m sorry for making you wait earlier. Should we… play the game now?”

“Haha, sure. I’ll invite you, Gangha.”

As we exchanged orders and focused on playing, the embarrassment gradually faded. After finishing several games, I was casually talking to him as if we had never been awkward.

Conversing through voice chat was several times more fun than text-based chatting. The tone and volume that varied according to content, immediate reactions to every word, occasional laughter, breathing sounds—everything was charming.

Time flew by as I became completely immersed in our call, even putting the game aside. By the time I came to my senses, it was already time for me to broadcast.

The broadcast, which had never felt bothersome before, felt like an obligation today. Unable to hang up until the very last minute, I hesitantly said a reluctant goodbye with 10 minutes left before my stream was due to start.

“Um, I need to go to my part-time job now.”

“Okay. I should be going too, then.”

“By the way, is ‘Imun’ your name? Is that what THATMOON means?”

“…Ah.”

I had been curious since he joined Discodi, but couldn’t bring myself to ask. We already know each other’s voices, so names should be fine. Since we’ll mostly be using Disco from now on, it would be better if we called each other by name.

“It feels a bit strange to keep calling you ‘THATMOON-ssi.’ It’s okay if you don’t want to tell me.”

“It’s not that I don’t want to… but yes, that’s my name.”

“Aha, I thought so. So that’s why your account is ‘THATMOON’?”

“Yes, that’s right…”

Imun means ‘this door,’ so ‘THATMOON’ – that door. It was an unexpectedly cute wordplay for him. Hearing my laughter, THATMOON—Imun—trailed off shyly. It seemed he misunderstood that I was teasing him, when I was just confirming what I had guessed.

“I was just curious. You’ve chosen your nickname… very intuitively.”

“…What’s Gangha’s name?”

“I’m Hajun, Gang Hajun.”

“Hajun, Hajun.”

After reciting my name a few times, Imun responded grumpily, “You chose yours pretty lazily too.” It wasn’t as if what he said was wrong. “Yes, that’s right,” I answered proudly without a hint of embarrassment, and got to the point.

“Now that we’ve introduced ourselves, shall we drop the formalities?”

Though I suggested it naturally, like flowing water, Imun unfortunately closed his mouth again.

He’s cautious in many ways. As I was endlessly tapping my desk, a calm voice flowed through my earphones.

“I’m fine with this, it’s more comfortable for me. Hyung can speak casually if you want. Ah, is it okay if I call you hyung?”

“Sure, if that’s what you prefer. Then I’ll get going now… Imun-ssi.”

The name I uttered felt awkward as could be. In an attempt to get used to it quickly, I was repeating Imun, Imun, several times.

“Hyung, you’re still being formal.”

“Ahaha, it’s embarrassing to be the only one speaking casually… Okay, Imun… ah, then I’m really going now.”

“Yes, Hajun hyung. Looking forward to… working with you.”

I felt relieved, as if I had finally completed homework I had been avoiding. “Alright! See you tomorrow!” Hajun cheerfully said goodbye and shut down his computer.

***

Imun’s already inconsistent login pattern became increasingly erratic. Usually, he would be in the game around the time my broadcast ended, but these days he appeared either late at midnight or early in the afternoon.

We still played games together, but since it wasn’t during prime playing hours, we couldn’t freely run duos. To play with him for as long as possible, I began keeping Legend of Legend open all day except during my broadcast hours.

After frustrating days continued, yesterday I finally couldn’t contain my curiosity and playfully asked him the reason. Even though my words weren’t meant to receive an apology, he kept apologizing profusely.

Behind his vague answer about having something in preparation, I clearly sensed his wish for me not to ask further. Just as I reluctantly nodded in understanding, he said:

‘I’ll be online tomorrow at 10 PM.’

As if in exchange, the time he mentioned was exactly when my broadcast would end. And it was also time that would soon arrive. I resented the unusually slow passage of time today, glancing at the clock for no reason.

Making plans with someone and waiting for them was more exciting than I thought. Despite needing to focus on my broadcast, I kept getting distracted.

This won’t do. Hajun straightened his earphones, trying to collect himself. Since today was when he arbitrarily quit Battle Grounder previously, he especially needed to concentrate.

“Just one more win and the mission will be complete.”

The landing position wasn’t good, and I spotted around 20 enemies during the descent. After eliminating them one by one, I claimed an entire building. Just as I was breathlessly aiming at a head briefly visible through the window:

[10,000 won donation! Were you just humming?ㅋㅋㅋ?]

Startled, I missed the headshot. Apparently, I had been unconsciously humming the BGM. Maintaining an awkward humming as if intentional, I moved to another building.

I threw a grenade at the group hiding in the base and fired a burst. ‘Don’t make headshots while humming!’, ‘Not just verbally destroying them but with humming too ㅋㅋㅋ’ As I felt increasingly misinterpreted, I quietly stopped humming.

– By the way, only 15 days left until the suspension is liftedㅋㅋㅋㅋ

– Wow, time flies ㄷㄷㄷ

– Finally returning to Legend of Legend?ㅋㅋㅋㅋ

Perhaps because I was playing the same game as when my account got suspended, viewers started mentioning Legend of Legend. I too was looking forward to the end of the suspension, having marked it on my calendar early on.

As I roughly wrapped up the game and recalled that absurd day, indignant chat messages appeared. ‘Thinking about it again, it’s so unfair!!!!!’, ‘So did you send a complaint email or not?’ While trying to soothe the increasingly agitated viewers, I inadvertently took a sharp breath.

– Didn’t you say you were going to level up an alt account on the day your account got blocked?

– Yeah, exactly ㅋㅋㅋㅋ Where’s our Ganghaa!ㅋㅋㅋㅋ

– The alt name is so easy to remember, I still haven’t forgotten itㅋㅋㅋ

The sudden attack caught me off guard. I thought I had been keeping it quiet all this time, but their memory seemed better than expected.

‘I’ll bring Legend of Legend back after raising the alt account’s tier a bit more.’

As I had announced to the viewers, the alt account was sufficiently leveled up. However, I had absolutely no intention of showcasing it on the broadcast.

It would be a problem if I played alone and created a tier gap with Imun, and it would be troublesome if the alt name became any more famous. This was because I hadn’t yet revealed the truth to him.

Was it because the floodgates had opened? Questions about the alt account poured into the chat. I tried to change the subject by saying random things, but the viewers didn’t let go easily like they usually did. Just as I was wondering what to do:

[5,000 won donation! Is THATMOON, who you duo with every day, your friend?]

My body stiffened as soon as I heard the donation. Why is Imun being mentioned?! As I frantically scanned the chat, I quickly grasped the situation and sighed.

In Legend of Legend, one could easily check a player’s game record just by knowing their nickname. It seemed that Imun’s existence had been exposed due to my blatantly playing duo with the same person every time.

– Can’t you do a duo with THATMOON on the broadcast?ㅠㅠ

– We lost Gangha to THATMOONㅠㅠㅠ

– You said you’d stream after ranking up your alt accountㅜㅜ You’re contradicting yourselfㅜㅜ

– Who is this person?? Is he your real-life friend???

At this rate, even viewers who were unaware would recognize Imun’s account. The situation was not good in many ways. I needed to prevent things from escalating further.

“…Everyone, please don’t be like that. I have a private life too, you know. As for the alt account, I happened to find someone I get along with… That person doesn’t even know I’m a streamer. You shouldn’t say anything to them.”

I didn’t make a heartfelt plea. While watching the chat grow more disgruntled, I rolled my eyes and suddenly noticed the camera.

– Ooh, what’s this???!?!?!?

– Wow, Gangha, what’s going on ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅋㅋㅋㅋ Is today special??!?!?ㅋㅋㅋㅋ

As soon as I showed my face on the broadcast, the grumbling stopped and cheers erupted. They always begged for a face cam, and it seemed like an appropriate response. Ignoring the endless teasing, I continued talking.