NOVEL NEXT Chapter 134
As the fan meeting officially began, fans started to enter one by one.
The seating area had a fairly spacious structure, giving off a slight vibe of a game stadium, which I found quite pleasant. If it were too long, fans in the back would have a hard time connecting with me.
While I was watching the scenery outside from behind the stage, the seats were quickly filling up, and the host appeared on stage first.
“Hello, everyone! I’m Kim Seung-min, and I’ll be your host for Mr. Cosmo’s fan meeting today. Nice to meet you!”
“Waaaaaaah!”
Clap clap clap.
By the way, the host who got on stage was actually a game caster and has been actively participating in various game competitions, so despite being busy, he graciously accepted my sister’s suggestion.
Since most of the fans here have probably seen a live broadcast competition at least once, I guess they chose a familiar face for the host.
“Wow! This is my first time hosting a fan meeting for streamers, and I didn’t expect so many people to come! Truly a popular king of cheese, isn’t it?”
“Hahaha!”
I almost spat out my drink when the caster started with a cheese king joke, whether he knew about our broadcast meme beforehand or just came across it.
These days, when I happen to meet Mr. Park Gun-ho or other streamers a few times, I often shout, “The cheese king has arrived!” as soon as I see their faces.
I mean, the real major shareholder is my wife, so why am I being treated like a king here?
“Alright, let’s bring out today’s star! The man enjoying his newlywed life and envied by all, Mr. Cosmo, please come out!”
“Whoooo!”
It was soon my turn to take the stage, and as I heard the powerful introduction from the caster and the cheers from the fans, I walked onto the stage feeling somewhat awkward.
Honestly, I usually get at least 4,000 viewers during live broadcasts, so I didn’t find the 150 people particularly overwhelming, but seeing them on stage made that number feel massive.
Wow, this many people came to see me?
How touching.
“Mr. Cosmo, please greet the fans who came to the fan meeting today.”
“Ah, hello. I’m Cosmo, the cheese streamer and YouTuber, Kang Woo-joo. Nice to meet you.”
“You’re so handsome!”
“Bring your sister here!”
In my first greeting, I ended up sounding a bit stiff, but surprisingly, the reaction was explosive.
Some of them even looked disappointed that my sister wasn’t here. It seems she was sitting in a corner of the front row, making her hard to spot from others.
“Oh, you want me to bring my wife? I did tell her to come up because I was feeling nervous, but she insisted I should come up alone since I’m the star, so I was a bit sulky about it. I’ll use you all as an excuse to bring her on stage.”
“Woohoo!”
“Bring her out!”
Are they seriously shouting “bring her out” at an offline meeting? I thought this was some donation sound effect from the live broadcast.
“Hey, honey, stop sitting there and come up. The fans want to see you, don’t you want to come?”
“Seriously…”
Holding the microphone, I gestured to my wife, who had been secretly sitting in the left corner, and despite looking flustered, she stood up and made her way to the stage.
“Waaaaah!”
“Ryu Seo-ha! Ryu Seo-ha!”
As soon as my sister appeared on stage, the cheers intensified compared to earlier.
Seeing the crowd chant my wife’s name, I subtly spoke into the mic, repeating Ryu Seo-ha, and she shot me a playful elbow to my side.
“Hello, everyone. I’m Ryu Seo-ha, Uju’s wife.”
“She’s pretty!”
“Sister!”
Wow, is this an idol concert? Just with her simple smile and bow, the crowd went wild, making me realize how absurd this all was.
I mean, this was supposed to be my fan meeting, and she could have come alone!
“In fact, I’m here as a long-term supporter of Cosmo the streamer, and I originally planned to just show my face at the end… I didn’t expect all of you to want to see me this much.”
“That’s because you underestimated your popularity. Right, everyone?”
“Absolutely!”
I playfully threw a short jab at my sister, who looked both flustered yet happy, and the crowd nodded in agreement.
“Thank you. I wish I could introduce Joo-ha to you all, but unfortunately, she’s currently napping in the waiting room. I’ll try to introduce her to you when the fan meeting is done.”
“Aww….”
How much do these people really care about my family?
Hearing that Joo-ha wasn’t here, some fans showed their disappointment but quickly perked up, cheering on the hope they might see her later.
Looks like Joo-ha might end up having her own fan meeting today as well!
“I hope everyone enjoys the fan meeting, and as the chairman of our fan club, I’ll be seated at the front, enjoying it with you all. Thank you once again.”
Clap clap clap!
As my sister stepped off stage after her greeting, thunderous applause filled the air.
Apparently, one of the women sitting next to my sister had only recognized her after she took off her mask, which was a bit amusing to see.
“Alright, let’s move on to the first content prepared by our fan club president. Oh, by the way, I heard the president planned all the content today. Is that true?”
“…Huh? Really?”
Just as I was about to sit in the cozy chair brought by the staff, I blinked in surprise at the caster’s casual question.
Wait, my sister actually planned the fan meeting?
“Oh, Mr. Cosmo, you didn’t know? The president not only funded everything but also conceived it all from beginning to end. Even the questions in the Q&A were personally picked by her.”
“……”
How dedicated can our fan club president be?
Imagining how hard she must have worked taking care of a baby while organizing all this brought a lump to my throat. No wonder she seemed a bit tired recently.
“Let’s express our gratitude once again to the president, and now let’s move on to the first Q&A session. But first!”
“Hmm?”
“Do you have any predictions on the questions? Like, ‘Oh, they must have included this one’?”
“Oh, there are way too many! I think a question like ‘How much do you earn in a month?’ might be one of them.”
“Oh, how did you know? That’s actually on the question list.”
Well, of course! That’s a common question for streamers and celebrities, especially those in ambiguous income professions.
But didn’t my sister personally pick these questions? Why are they like this?
“Back in the day, before I became a streamer, I was also super curious about these things. I think the viewers would feel similarly.”
“Oh, so you’re saying you’ll reveal your income to empathize with them?”
“Oooh!”
As the caster inquired with eager anticipation and the fans’ voices grew louder, I shook my head with a wry smile.
Come on, we aren’t amateurs; we all know this.
“Even so, that would be tough, but I can tell you one thing.”
“What is it?”
“No matter how much I earn, my wife has a tight grip on our finances.”
“Hahaha!”
Everyone knew who my wife was, so I used that to toss a half-joke, and the fans burst into laughter.
It’s the truth, though. No matter how successful I might be as a mere streamer, how could I ever compete against the major shareholders of Aiver and Changseong Corporation?
“Well, that’s a delightful and witty response. But I’m curious about one thing: do you share the household expenses, or do you, as the breadwinner, cover most of it?”
It seems like the caster’s own curiosity sparked this question, likely because he’s a married man himself. The vibe was definitely like that.
“Well… I feel like the moment I say this, husbands across the nation will come after me with knives.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“Um, I’m not sure if I should say this…”
Gauging the atmosphere, I carefully grasped the microphone before speaking.
Suddenly, as I caught eyes with my wife in the audience, she seemed to smile sweetly at me, as if encouraging me with a silent ‘Go ahead.’
“Honestly, all household expenses come from my wife’s pocket. I basically can’t open my wallet.”
“Wait? You can’t open it?”
“Yep, when I buy things I need online, I use my card, but when I go out with my wife, she won’t let me open my wallet. Like when we go to a café and I try to pay, she goes, ‘Stop!’ while subtly blocking me.”
As I vividly described my wife’s usual behavior, the caster gaped at me in disbelief.
“Are you saying such a wife exists?”
“Ooooh!”
“Make Kang Woo-joo pay double the taxes!”
Honestly, even if I had to pay extra taxes, it wouldn’t hit me hard since I wouldn’t be spending any money anyway.
Seeing the fans jeering, I shyly threw in a light jab while managing a sheepish smile.
“Wow, that was a jaw-dropping answer right from the first question! Now, let’s move on to the second question and see what kind of trickery Mr. Cosmo will pull next.”
“Seriously, this is too much…”
And so we transitioned to the second question while enduring the caster’s pithy comments.
Despite the chatter, I realized that the tension I had been feeling earlier had almost completely dissipated.
“Hang in there!”
Taking a sip of coffee, I glanced at the audience. My wife had her hands raised to her chest, fists clenched, and cutely mouthed words of encouragement.
Of course, I’ll keep my spirits up, Chairman!