NOVEL NEXT Chapter 323
It’s that time for the regular meeting with the staff. On this hot day, it felt like a hassle to meet in person, so we decided to chat online instead.
As the meeting kicked off, it seemed like it would go as smoothly as usual without anything noteworthy happening.
“There’s a proposal, Boss.”
Editor Yusia has brought up more work again. My external tasks were mostly handled by my two editors.
It seems the number of outside proposals I received was so high that rather than contacting me directly, they filtered through the editors first. At this rate, I feel quite successful, almost like I have a personal assistant!
But there are downsides too. It’s a bit scary to think that my editors could easily cut off any work that comes my way if they wanted to.
The two of them serve as my right and left arms while also acting as my eyes and ears. They could team up and say, “This one looks good for the Boss, but this one? Nah, pass!”—essentially controlling me as they please.
“That’s a frightening thought.”
“Right?”
I’m still in the mindset that it won’t happen. I see my relationship with the editors as a mix of business and personal friendship.
I believe we’ve built a kind of trust where we’ll only engage in beneficial matters for each other. Both Yusia and Kim Jae-jun have been through various experiences with me.
Recently, it felt like Yusia was taking on most of the external work, while Kim Jae-jun focused more on editing. They’ve clearly divided the roles based on their strengths and figured out what’s more efficient while working together.
Anyway, coming back around, the proposal Yusia presented was quite different from the kinds I’ve received before.
“Throwing the first pitch?”
“Yes.”
Throwing the first pitch, a common event where celebrities come out to throw a ball before a baseball game. And now, that proposal has made its way to me!
When I first heard this from Yusia, my initial thought was…
“Is there not a celebrity out there who can do this?”
Throwing the first pitch in professional baseball is a higher hurdle than expected. What that means is you won’t get invited unless you’re somewhat well-known. Just check the lineup! It typically includes idols, actors, comedians, announcers, politicians, and even presidents!
Actors, comedians, announcers, politicians, and even a president have thrown the first pitch before.
But here I am, being invited to this kind of event. No matter how famous I’ve become, in an objective sense, I’m just an internet streamer and VTuber — nothing more, nothing less. Why would they need to call me, leaving behind all those well-known celebrities thriving on mainstream media?
“Aren’t people just going to be like, ‘Who the heck is this nobody showing up to throw the first pitch?’”
When I shared this thought with the others, the charming Kim Jae-jun next to me shook his head vigorously.
“You’ve got a bit of a self-objectification issue, Boss.”
“Huh?”
“I think they call it meta-cognition these days. I’m not sure if that’s the right term, but anyways.”
Kim Jae-jun continued, looking as if he were utterly perplexed by my inability to understand.
“Someone of your level has more recognition than most entertainers.”
“Well, that’s true.”
On the side, Yusia chimed in, and encouraged by her support, Kim Jae-jun raised his voice.
“My cousin works in the entertainment industry, and dozens of idol groups disappear every year. Sometimes the group that came out to throw the first pitch suddenly halts activities that same year.”
“But what about you, Boss? You’re practically a quasi-celebrity. You’ve been on a couple of mainstream variety shows, and both times your ratings were above average, with articles written about you.”
“Seriously, ever since that Midnight Talk, there have been so many people curious about you, digging into your background and asking you to debut as an idol. With visuals that could hold a center position in any idol group and dancing skills rivaling those of current idols, people are still lingering in the chat even now.”
Thinking back, it seems Jae-jun does have a talent for being a chatterbox. Usually quiet, he becomes incredibly talkative the moment his interests come up. When the conversation shifts to video editing or camping — both his hobbies and profession — his eyes light up, and he goes off on wild tangents.
According to his interpretation, it implies that I’m part of his interests. Considering his job revolves around editing and managing videos about me, it’s not surprising, but despite that, it felt strange. Maybe it was just odd to hear such one-sided compliments about being a quasi-celebrity and “ridiculously good-looking” right in front of me.
“Stop, stop. I get what you’re trying to say, so let’s cut out the embarrassing flattery.”
“Stop stop. I get what you want to say, so cut the embarrassing talk.”
“Ah, yes. I’ll just say one last thing and finish up.”
“What is it?”
Honestly, the conclusion was already reached. Both Kim Jae-jun and Yusia responded positively to me throwing the first pitch.
When these two people, who often have differing opinions, all agree like this, the outcome usually leans toward something good. That’s why, for this first pitch situation, my heart was 90% inclined to go for it.
However, just because a conclusion was reached didn’t mean I needed to cut off the passionate employee’s words. He said he would only say one thing, so I listened closely to what Jae-jun had to say.
“There is a good precedent. An internet streamer in a similar position to Kayak did the first pitch and didn’t get much backlash; rather, they received a positive reaction and gained new followers.”
“Oh, who was it?”
If there’s a precedent, the hesitation was even less. If that precedent had good results, even more so. So, I eagerly awaited Jae-jun’s words.
A little while later, his voice came through with a video link.
“It’s a video of Taker throwing the first pitch three years ago. It became quite a topic due to the hilarious posture at the time.”
“Ahh…”
Oh, it’s you again, Taker.
Even while watching the video, I couldn’t stop my admiration for Taker.
*
“Is this a first pitch?”
“I wonder if it’s the same first pitch I know.”
“First pitch goddess Kayak, wow!”
“Wow! It’s a national broadcast opportunity!”
“Going outside in this weather?”
“You know you shouldn’t throw the ball at the audience, right, Teacher?”
“You should throw it gently; the catcher could get hurt…”
“Since you’re throwing the first pitch, why don’t you do a first hit too?”
“But first hits are usually done as a set by idols.”
“There’s no one to throw for the first hit.”
“The pitcher can throw to you.”
“How can an ordinary person hit a ball thrown by a pro pitcher? LOL.”
“Why do you think they can’t hit? LOL.”
“Some people still consider the broadcast host an ordinary person.”
“Seriously, LOL. It looks like new viewers.”
“Anyway, that’s how it went. If you want to come watch, feel free.”
Through a meeting with the editors, we decided on me throwing the first pitch, and afterward, I conveyed the news to the viewers.
A variety of reactions came in. Some were surprised that I would be throwing the first pitch, others warned me to throw gently for the sake of the catcher, and some worried about me in the heat.
Someone who worries about me on a hot day, etc.
But what’s up with someone telling me not to throw the ball to the audience? Do I look like that kind of person? Even if I wanted to throw it, there’s no way I could reach the audience with how far the stands are from the field.
[Is that impossible?]
[I feel like the Broadcast Host could if they really wanted to]
[They just haven’t tried it yet]
[Don’t limit your potential!]
“No, if I’m saying I can’t do it, who’s the one saying I can?”
I was having a lively chat about baseball with the Viewers.
[ChocoMilk donated 10,000 won!]
-Does the Broadcast Host have a team they support?
“Me? Well, I haven’t watched much baseball, so I’m not really sure which teams there are.”
[Is it right to ask someone who doesn’t even know baseball to throw the pitch?]
[Most of them are probably like that lol Idol or actor throwing the pitch probably don’t know much about baseball either]
[Usually, don’t they just ask depending on where their hometown is?]
[Where’s the Broadcast Host’s hometown?]
It seems like the Viewers wanted me to take more interest in pro baseball, even asking about my hometown to introduce the teams.
Hometown, huh.
“I’ve lived around Seoul since I was a kid. I’ve never really gone south of Gyeonggi-do except for travel.”
[Wow]
[So you were a Seoul country bumpkin]
[The Titans are perfect for you]
[What Titans lol If you’re from Seoul, it’s got to be Olivers]
[Olivers’ special trait) Name is totally pointless]
[It’s kind of a weed;;]
[The Titans are an 8th place team that can’t even make it to fall baseball lol]
[Why are these guys fighting?]
[Just call the team’s Fan that asked for the pitch]
[I don’t know what they’re talking about since I don’t know baseball]
It turns out that Titans and Olivers are the teams based in Seoul and the Game, huh.
This gives a clear feeling of the status of Korean pro baseball. Who knew a little bait would spark such a dispute so quickly?
If it weren’t for my Broadcast, I would’ve loved to keep watching this fight, but sadly they were arguing in my chat, so I couldn’t let them dirty the chat any longer.
I clapped my hands and continued speaking.
“Titans and Olivers fans, if you keep fighting, I’ll just start supporting fans of other teams instead!”