Meanwhile, inside the booth where Kayak and Riri decided to try things out, a conversation was unfolding among the staff.
“There are too few people…”
A representative sighed in response to someone who had just returned from checking other booths.
These were employees from a small gaming company debuting at G-Star for the first time this year. Their ambitious game release wasn’t drawing the crowd they’d hoped for.
They had squeezed their budget and worked day and night to develop the game. Even among themselves, they had high hopes, believing it would grab attention.
Yet here they were, unable to even pique interest. It had only just opened, but compared to other booths, their space was particularly empty.
It was a common yet heartbreaking situation.
“Was our promotion lacking?”
“Should we go out and grab people by the ankles?”
“It looks a little rough, but it’s actually fun when you play…!”
Just as the employees sighed in disappointment, someone suddenly exclaimed,
“W-Wait! People are coming in all of a sudden!”
“What?”
The representatives looked around the booth.
“Whoa, seriously?!”
Indeed, moments after one group finished their experience, people began flocking in as if they’d been waiting for this moment.
The previously sparsely occupied seats started filling up.
With puzzled expressions, the staff began briefly explaining the game to those who had taken their seats.
“Our game, The Blitz, is a first-person FPS shooter…”
And then, something unusual caught their eye.
Two cosplayers had sat down at the demo station, listening intently with serious expressions. They were a female duo with quality that rivaled the booth girls at other stalls.
One of them had a jaw-dropping appearance: white hair, blue eyes, and flowing attire.
It was a cosplay of Camilla, a character from the Abyss that anyone in the gaming industry would recognize.
The quality was so high that it was hard to distinguish between cosplay and the real deal.
He found himself unable to take his eyes off her for a moment.
The others who had sat down for the demo were in the same boat. Even while listening to the explanation, they kept sneaking glances at her.
‘Is she like an Instagram celeb or something?’
Just her presence was enough to draw people’s attention—she was an influencer, and the booth staff could only infer as much.
I did it.
At the same time, I realized why so many people suddenly flocked to the booth.
‘It’s because of that person…!’
Most of the newcomers were men. The age range I could see varied from late teens to early thirties, but it seemed like they all followed that cosplayer.
A few of them even stopped gaming to head over to the cosplayer and chat away.
I vaguely heard the word ‘fan.’ Some even looked like they were trying to get her autograph.
From the looks of it, she seemed to be quite a recognizable celebrity, as the staff member had guessed.
Curiosity getting the better of them, after finishing their explanation, they approached a guy who had just been talking to her.
“Is that person famous?”
“Oh, Kayak? She’s super famous.”
The guy began to explain everything to the staff member as if he were the one being questioned.
The one cosplaying as Camilla was a streamer named Kayak who primarily broadcasts content about the Abyss, even sharing how many VTube subscribers she has.
However, the part that surprised the staff member the most was different.
“You’re saying there’s hardly any difference between the cosplay and the real deal?”
“Yeah, it’s my first time seeing her in person, but she looks identical. I heard she just put on the outfit to match—.”
Indeed, there was a reason for such high-quality cosplay; she must have fundamentally resembled Camilla quite a bit.
‘She better make our game fun to play.’
Hoping fervently that Kayak would enjoy playing the game and thus stay at the booth just a little longer, the staff member wished for it.
*
It took surprisingly long to experience the booth. Initially, I planned to spend about 20-30 minutes, but before I knew it, an hour had flown by as I sat there playing until I got bored.
I lost track of time while playing. This meant it was quite a well-made game.
The immersion was definitely impressive. Even though I’m not a huge fan of story-driven games, I quickly got absorbed and cleared the tutorial.
I liked that it wasn’t just following a story but also had choices, and most of all, I appreciated the control mechanics that required skill.
If conditions allowed, I would’ve wanted to clear the entire game. Unfortunately, since this was just a demo at G-Star, I only got to Chapter 1. I guess I’ll have to play it during a stream when it officially comes out later.
I wanted to clear the game completely. Unfortunately, it’s just a test at G-Star, so I got stuck at Chapter 1. I guess I’ll have to play it officially when it comes out later.
“Did you enjoy the game?”
“Oh, thank you! I’m glad to hear you had fun…”
I smiled and greeted the staff member next to me, but they responded by bowing so deeply to thank me that it felt a bit overwhelming.
I was surprised, but at the same time, I couldn’t help but wonder just how much they wanted to hear that the game was fun.
Now that I think about it, there weren’t many people trying out the game when I first walked in. I hadn’t heard of the game company before, and their booth was pretty small. Is this a new company that just popped up? Well, the space was nice and roomy for us, so we came in comfortably…
“Teacher, you played super well! It looked tough, but you navigated through it flawlessly.”
“Right? I died a few times in the tutorial, but Kayak cleared it in one go.”
“Was it that hard? I thought it was just right.”
[Seriously good at it lol]
[I couldn’t see properly, but it looked like you were doing well enough]
[Honestly, the broadcast host’s physical skills are off the charts, lol]
[Last time, your speed test score was around 80 or 90, right?]
[Just watching you concentrate was fun]
We continued chatting casually as we walked around. Whenever we saw a booth, we’d go in, let those who wanted to try out the game have their turn, and the rest would broadcast from outside with the camera.
I’ve played a good number of games, but nothing really caught my interest afterwards. Most of the booths, except a few, were for mobile games, and honestly, I just wasn’t feeling them.
Nicang and Riri seemed to feel the same way about the booths. Honestly, we spent more time sightseeing around than actually trying out the booths. Mainly checking out booth girls or events happening inside. Isn’t that part of the fun of a fair?
At the same time, I signed autographs for fans who came to see the broadcast and did a bit of fan service. This was also one of the main content pieces. When viewers asked if we’d do a fan meeting, I said I’d sign for them if they came up, and they kept coming back afterward.
Right now, I was signing for a guy who had dashed over breathlessly. A blonde guy with brightly bleached hair ran up, gasping for air, asking for an autograph while handing me a piece of paper.
Where on earth did he get that paper? I had only briefly mentioned wishing I had a paper for the broadcast signatures, and suddenly everyone started showing up with paper. At first, I had to sign on hands since there was nowhere to sign!
There was no place to do it, so I did it on my hand.
“Aren’t the Kayaks supposed to not go out? Why are there so many visitors?”
“It’s a chance to meet Kayak in real life, so of course, I should go out.”
“But why do all the visitors look perfectly normal? They all seem to have tons of friends.”
“Was I the only one with a hunchback and a turtle chest? T_T”
“Those frauds are the real deal;;”
“At least the first person who came seems to be one of my kind.”
“What should I write? What’s your broadcast nickname?”
“Uh, I….”
Usually, when I sign, I just scribble ‘Kayak’ in English and write beside it, ‘Thank you for watching ~~nim’s broadcast.’
However, the blonde guy who called himself my fan seemed a bit shy and couldn’t get his words out properly.
Finally, he managed to say,
“…Lynn Kayak.”
“Pardon?”
“Kayak who hit Riri’s cheeks….”
“Why does he have such a nickname when he looks perfectly fine? Hahahaha.”
“I believe you… you are a Kayak for sure.”
“Turns out we’re kindred spirits, hehe.”
“Why is he suddenly talking about hitting Riri’s cheeks?”
“Riri just minding her business suddenly got slapped, that’s hilarious. Hahaha.”
“Riri’s cheeks do look like they’d want to get hit, though.”
Then he awkwardly cleared his throat and averted his gaze as if embarrassed.
“Uh, yeah. Kayak who hit Riri’s cheeks. Right.”
It was a nickname that could be called malicious, but at the same time, I wondered if it was really that embarrassing.
I wasn’t too bothered, but it definitely might be something he’d hesitate to say himself.
“What’s wrong with my cheeks!”
Riri was the one getting all upset, insisting not to touch her cheeks, which she said were already a complex for her. She urged him to change his nickname when he got home.
Seriously, what’s the problem with cheeks? She said it was a complex, but they aren’t even that noticeable.
Out of curiosity, I leaned in and gave them a quick poke.
“Ah! What are you doing right now?”
“I was just curious…”
“Surprise attack! Hahaha.”
“Pure entertainment.”
“Curiosity is a paradise! Hahaha.”
“So he just goes up and hits them, huh?”
“So Kayak’s nickname was based on reality, huh? Hahaha.”
But there was nothing special about Riri’s cheeks. I only felt the softness of her skin and the bone beneath.
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