During the Neer Award process, the number of posts in Streamer Garden exploded with negativity.
<em>[Come out, bark, you dogs]</em>
<em>[This year''s best neer Almond: “0”]</em>
<em>[What''s with the overwhelming vote gap hype, and then “0” lol]</em>
<em>[lol Is it really still “0”?]</em>
Almond''s graph remained at zero for around eighty percent of the time this graph battle went on.
They asked why Almond’s fans had acted so haughtily all this time when he was at zero. It seemed to have some persuasive power.
Even many Almond fans didn''t know exactly when he started streaming.
<em>[What''s with the 0…?]</em><em>[Why isn’t it moving??]</em>
<em>[What? Is it a bug?]</em>
Some naive fans believed these disruptors'' words. The more this happened, the more these disruptors ran rampant.
<em>[When the hell is that great Almond going to rise? lol]</em>
<em>[000000000]</em>
<em>[Nuts only knows binary 000]</em>
However, their campaign was full of ws with a bit of thought.
<em>[Just a while ago, they said Almond''sck of experience was why it couldn''t be done. Now they pretend not to know when he started streaming lol]</em>
The posts about Almond remaining at zero were now stered everywhere. Considering the main opinion in Streamer Garden, these reactions made no sense.
The instigators actually knew when Almond started broadcasting. They even imed that because he only started around this winter, winning the Neer Award was unreasonable due to his short career.
Now, they pretended not to know and emphasized the zero to belittle him. It was a kind of muddying the waters.
Continuously selecting a few strong words obscured the essence of the actual event. In amunity frequented by many people, it was an effective tactic.
<em>[Almond hadn’t even started streaming lol]</em>
<em>[Wow what''s with the 0?? Is it a bug?]</em>
<em>[Viewers onlye once you start streaming, idiots]</em>
<em>[Go to hell, you dogs]</em>
<em>[But why is Almond really at 0???]</em>
Posts like these started to show evidence that the agitation was taking effect. The fact that the number remained at zero became a simpler piece of information than the truth that Almond started streaming in September of 2035 and would rise from there.
Speaking the truth seemed like making excuses while lying seemed like stating precise numbers, specifically the zero. This alone reversed the positions of truth and falsehood.
It almost did, but...
Conversely, this meant that if there was clear evidence, it would be much easier to reveal the truth. The graph race prepared by Treevy was exactly that. A race between graphs that even a primary school student could understand. With this, no one could argue otherwise.
<em>[September 2035]</em>
As the graph moved to September of 2035, the narrative changed.
<em>— Herees a big one</em>
<em>— The magic of autumn</em>
<em>— “Winter ising”</em>
<em>— Almond bursts into action like crazy!</em>
***
<em>Dududududu...!</em>
With majestic background music, the graphs raced.
Sang-Hyeon looked on with a nk expression.
<em>''September 2035...''</em>
Treevy probably created it to show a clean and fair award process.
<em>''... I remember everything.''</em>
Unintentionally, it served as antern of memories for Sang-Hyeon.
<em>[September 2035]</em>
That was when Almond first started his activities. It was the day he first tried to stand in front of the public as Almond. He chose <em>Kingdom </em>over other major games. It was a game with a niche audience where bows could be used as weapons.
Was it then that his viewership first climbed to four? He still remembered those four usernames.
"Wow..."
"Hey, hey. Herees a big one."
"Wow."
His fans cheered, “Herees a big one,” but how could they have known it woulde to this back then?
<em>— It''s soaring</em>
<em>— Wow</em>
<em>— Like aet itself</em>
<em>— My entrance!</em>
<em>Swoosh!</em>
A growth unlike any candidate before was shown on the graph from mid tote September. This was probably when he showcased a perfect shot in coboration with Acorn Jelly, which significantly attracted viewers.
At this time, he almost caught up with SweetPotato.
The momentum continued into October.
<em>[October 2035]</em>
In October, he started ying <em>Battle Large</em>. He won his first game in <em>Battle Large</em> as a solo squad. While others yed in teams of four, Almond mistakenly participated solo because he was new to the game.
However, he still won. This led to more fame, a reported incident, his close battle against Takoyaki, and more.
The viewer count rankings changed again.
<em>[Pepperoni]</em>
<em>[ForeverAlone]</em>
<em>[Lemon]</em>
<em>[Almond]</em>
<em>[SweetPotato]</em>
Now, he was above SweetPotato.
Then─
"Wow!"
"Whoa."
"Crazy..."
In November, he switched games to<em> LIL</em>.
<em>[November 2035]</em>
After switching to<em> LIL</em>, there was a drop in viewership. It was the risk of changing games. The decline recovered slowly. At some point, it surged back rapidly. This was when Almond was brought in as a substitute for a missing member of Team Balloon Stars.
The number of viewers rose again. His stream was entering a new golden age, surpassing the peak of <em>Battle Large</em>. Then, chaos followed.
<em>[Almond]</em>
<em>[Forever Alone]</em>
<em>[Pepperoni]</em>
<em>[Lemon]</em>
<em>[Sweet Potato]</em>
"Wow!"
"Whoa..."
"Yeahhh!"
He instantly became the top candidate among them.
<em>— Wow</em>
<em>— Can''t resist the chaos</em>
<em>— Crazy</em>
<em>— First ce runaway</em>
<em>— To Mars!</em>
His viewership surged in the chaos. The momentum eventually declined as the chaos ended.
<em>[December 2035]</em>
The numbers slightly declined as they moved into December with a sideways trend. The sideways movement didn''tst long.
"Wow...!"
"Wow!"
"It’s going up again!?"
Sang-Hyeon appeared on a major channel with his archery boy story. His <em>Zombie School</em> gamey was alsopletely different from the game developers’ intentions. Videos celebrated his various achievements in<em> Civil Empire </em>with patriotic messages. With all this, Almond began to rise again.
<em>[Almond]</em>
<em>[Forever Alone]</em>
<em>[Pepperoni]</em>
<em>[Lemon]</em>
<em>[SweetPotato]</em>
He easily maintained first ce and the gap between him and second ce widened even more. It was an overwhelming lead for first ce.
<em>Thump...!</em>
Finally, the growth of the graph halted. From this moment on…
<em>[And Today]</em>
This text was prominently disyed on the screen.
Why? The reason was unknown, but a tear dropped from Sang-Hyeon''s eyes. It wasn’t sadness. The emotion of seeing the ups and downs of life summarized in a moment was hard to exin. It was tough going up and tough going down. Looking back, all those curves seemed like beautiful waves...
They were all good times.
"You''ve done well."
He was moved.
***
Director Jang, who was watching from the filming area, was also surprised and opened his mouth.
"... Was the difference this big?"
He knew Almond was a famous person among the rookie streamers, but he wasn’t well-versed in the streaming world and never felt the reality gap. It was rare to see the growth gap between streamers visually like this, which was possible only during the Treevy award ceremony.
"It''s no joke. If this was the music market... it''s like debuting and hitting number one on the charts, winning music broadcasts, and doing a national tour simultaneously."
He tried to understand it based on the standards of the field he was involved in. Debuting and hitting number one with nationwide recognition. Starting with such sess, those singers were rare. Most stars went through a long period of obscurity and hidden hardships.
"He must have had his own hardships too."
Even if Almond didn''t have a hard time as a streamer, no one could say his life had been smooth. Who would readily raise their hand to switch lives with him? At least Director Jang didn''t want to endure those times.
The reward was justified with that much.
Then, ckTea and Lemon spoke as the hosts of the award.
"Uh... that..."
Seeing the graph, they seemed to have lost their words momentarily.
Murmuring could be heard as the streamers were also discussing this enormous gap among themselves.
"The difference is crazy."
"Gi-Chan... let''s just be reborn."
"Wow, was Almond this big?"
"I didn''t expect such a difference..."
Seeing the difference with their own eyes was shocking. As mentioned, having such a clear opportunity to see the difference was very rare.
ckTea spoke again after a deep breath, "That... the number of viewers alone doesn''t determine the award! The viewer votes and their participation rate are also important indicators."
"That''s right! Let''s take a quick look!"
There seemed to be another prepared graph race, but it was no different from before. In fact, some graphs showed an even bigger gap.
"Then!"
ckTea flipped the card to announce the winner.
"We will now announce the Neer Award winner."
<em>Dudududu...!</em>
Background music yed to set the mood.
Meanwhile, Ju-Hyeok asked Sang-Hyeon in a casual tone, "Hey, have you prepared your eptance speech?"
"Um."
Sang-Hyeon remained calm without giving a direct answer.
"Ah... You didn''t? What will you do?"
"Just, well, I''ll just speak. It''s not like it''s a grand announcement."
Ju-Hyeok was a nner and Sang-Hyeon was an improviser. It had always been that way.
"<em>Ha.</em> Should I have written it for you?"
"Do I look like a kid to you?"
Sang-Hyeon smiled reassuringly.
"For 2035, at the end-of-the-year Treevy Awards, the Neer Award goes to… Congrattions, Almond!"
Almond''s name was called out and the audience erupted in cheers.
<em>— Congrattions</em>
<em>— Lol, his shy smile is so lovable…</em>
<em>— We love you! We love you!</em>
<em>— Such an incredible turn of events</em>
<em>— He''s getting it!!</em>
<em>— Almond!! I knew it!</em>
Sang-Hyeon slowly rose from his seat and all the cameras zoomed in on him.
"Congrattions, Almond!"
"Way to go!"
"Almond, to Mars!"
He responded to his streaming colleagues who were cheering for him with a smile in his eyes as he walked up to the podium.
Lemon handed him the trophy, "Ehehe! Congrattions!"
ckTea pointed to the microphone.
"Pleasee here and share your thoughts on winning."
"Ah, yes."
Sang-Hyeon stood at the center microphone on the stage with the trophy in hand. He briefly met Ju-Hyeok''s eyes, who sighed ostentatiously.
"<em>Ha.</em> What are you going to do?"
He knew better than others that his friend wasn’t good with words.
Sang-Hyeon began speaking with a smile after seeing Ju-Hyeok''s reaction, "Even though this is an award given to neers…"
In fact, Sang-Hyeon had thought about his eptance speech for a long time.
"I feel a bit clumsy to say I deserve this award, but thank you for your overwhelming love."
He expressed gratitude to those who had been with him, "Today, I want to dedicate this award to those who have supported me until now. Allow me to mention them briefly."
This was the eptance speech Sang-Hyeon wanted. If he couldn''t say it here, he would probably never say it directly to their faces. Time would pass and perhaps a lifetime would go by, so this was his opportunity to directly express his gratitude to the people around him.
"If I don''t say it now, I feel like I''ll never be able to."
The audienceughed.
After theughter passed, Sang-Hyeon pointed toward Ju-Hyeok.
"My manager who came with me today, Ju-Hyeok."
Sang-Hyeon pointed at Ju-Hyeok as he spoke. Ju-Hyeok looked surprised and wasn’t expecting this.
Sang-Hyeon began his story.
"Ju-Hyeok was a highly respected employee at Ah-Sung, unlike me. Everyone was probably upset when he said he was resigning."
Behind his cold rimless sses, Ju-Hyeok''s eyes shimmered with warmth.