Fan Cafe (2)
Basically, the main viewers of those who passed the Heaven's Realm Project are the audience drawn in through The Six's promotions.
In other words, the members' viewer bases overlap a lot and circulate among each other.
However—just one person.
Only I have an audience primarily made up of community-based viewers.
Because of that, the atmosphere here is different from the others. Viewers who come over from other members' streams naturally blend into this chat culture, and it's practically the definition of "if you live near ink, you'll be stained black."
The company noticed this issue even before my acceptance and suggested I "clean house."
I refused that suggestion, yet the company still accepted me, and now small and large side effects are starting to appear.
At this point, I have two options:
Clean up my audience.
Or grow things as they are.
And of course, I'll choose the latter.
Didn't I already reject the company's suggestion?
Besides, there are already several big corporate streamers who maintain the same kind of atmosphere I have.
So it doesn't mean growth is impossible.
In fact, this might make it easier for other viewers to join in.
It's easier to step into a somewhat free-flowing street than a strictly regulated "clean zone."
But the real problem is clashing with other fandoms.
Given the group's nature, there'll be plenty of collab streams and joint projects. If fandoms start fighting then, wouldn't that be a problem? This is an area that needs traffic control.
So while streaming, I decided to briefly mention the issue and caution my viewers.
"So, you understand, right? I'm not saying you have to be friendly with other fandoms, just don't fight with them."
Yeah yeah, lol
But those normie bastards started it first…
Okay (joining the café)
Ugh…
Why does it feel like they won't listen?
Coming down hard with warnings and pressure here would be foolish.
Some streamers get this wrong, but the relationship between a streamer and their viewers is never a master–servant dynamic.
Rather, it's a transactional one: the streamer gains money and popularity, and the viewers gain fun and satisfaction.
Put simply, we're business partners.
So in this kind of situation, the best approach is to gently guide them and keep reinforcing the message step by step.
If I come on too strong from the start, it'll only trigger resistance.
"Come on, let's try to do better together. Miro's stream is something we build and grow together, right?"
Hm… is that so…
If we're business partners, why do you take all the money?
Is it really like that?
Bastards…
When viewers get sulky like this, they won't listen, so I'll just change the topic like usual.
"Anyway, for today's stream, shall we do some ARAM 5-man queue viewer games in LoL?"
Nice, lol
Pog
I'm in immediately
"Okay, drop your nicknames. I'll invite people at random."
It was just for fun anyway, so I was planning to invite randoms and play a few rounds.
But then—ding!—a donation alert popped up.
[Miro the Master, thank you for the ₩10,000 donation!]
Miro-nim, are your eyes okay? I'm just worried, so I thought I'd ask. (LoL nick: MiroTheMaster)
Seeing such a sudden donation asking if my eyes were okay, I quickly responded.
"Ah—thank you for the ₩10,000 donation! Actually, my vision's been blurry so it's hard to read chat, but thanks to your audio message, this poor Sim Cheong doesn't know what to do with herself…"
hahahahahahahaha
lmao
stop
bruh
shit's doomed
damn, he turned eye problems into a money grab
"Haha, I'm just joking. But since you donated, I'll invite you first. Your LoL nick even says you're my real fan."
But isn't that an abbreviation? lol
Something about a retirement home Go board…
Invite me too
"Okay, invited. Next one… wait a sec… am I tired today? My vision's blurry again."
[Miro the Stationery Eraser Thief, thank you for the ₩5,000 donation!]
IronHeartMiro ← invite me, you fucker
"Irasshaimase~!"
If your eyes are blurry, nothing you can do lol
I'm dropping my oshi (unfollowing)
Gonna recharge, damn it…
"Alright, I'll pick the last two straight from chat this time. So, let's see… this one, and…"
After getting enough laughs, I actually picked random people from chat, invited them, and started the game.
After the stream ended, I asked my manager about the café-related issue.
[Ah, we've been aware of that problem as well.]
"Huh? You knew?"
[Of course. Compared to other members, Miro-nim is mentioned often in communities and has plenty of viewers, but your café is the only one that's inactive. We were planning to bring it up with you sometime.]
"…I see. Then, could I ask how the company views this situation?"
[This is an internal matter, but… to be honest, there's not much we can do. The only real option would be to bite the bullet and do a full reset of your audience. But since you've already debuted and your viewer base is becoming solid, the backlash would be enormous. And besides, that's not the approach you prefer, is it?]
"…That's true. Still, if this keeps up, I might end up being a burden on the team. I should be careful."
[Yes, that would be best. Still, the company has a positive view of you, Miro-nim.]
"Oh, really?"
Honestly, I thought the company didn't like me much. But to hear they see me in a good light?
[Yes. To tell you the truth, when we were deciding on your acceptance, there was a lot of debate. But during the music production, the composer praised you, and more importantly, when you collab, don't you do a good job leading the atmosphere?]
"Well… that's true, I suppose?"
[What I mean to say is: you don't have to worry too much about how the company sees you. Fundamentally, you're already contributing a lot to the team's growth. Of course, when it comes to fandom conflicts, you should still be a bit more cautious.]
I was impressed by my manager's words.
Was this really the same person who couldn't even meet my eyes before? Now they were speaking clearly and confidently, and it was genuinely helpful.
I hadn't called to be comforted, but it still felt comforting.
No wonder the company entrusted all six members to this manager.
[Anyway, you're doing well, Miro-nim. Just continue handling your schedule as you've been doing. Have a good night.]
And with that, the call ended. I just stared blankly at the ceiling.
"…So basically, the conclusion is just to keep doing what I'm doing?"
Is it really okay to continue like this?
I felt uneasy, so for the first time in a while, I decided to ego-surf.
I entered an anonymous community site I rarely visit anymore to search my name—and right there at the top of the trending posts was one with my name on it.
[Miro Red Pill Exposed (19)]
"Huh? What the…?"
Red pill.
Inspired by that famous movie, in the Vtuber world it means revealing the truth about someone behind the avatar.
So this meant it was a post about my personal information.
I was startled—did I have something worth leaking? I clicked the post, only to be met by a giant image.
[Miro Red Pill Exposed]
(Extreme close-up of Miro's avatar face.jpg)
Give it a thumbs-up so more people see it lol
"…You've got to be kidding me."
I thought it was serious since it made the trending list, but it was just bait.
And judging from the comments, they'd even used a manipulation program to push it onto the front page.
"…This guy must be one of my viewers too, huh?"
Does this mean people like this gather in my streams?
Maybe I should've just reset my audience after all… The thought weighed on me.
But then, another idea suddenly struck me.
"…Why don't I just use this place like a café?"
It's anonymous, and it already has galleries divided by category.
Each gallery even has sub-sections, so really, what's the difference between this and a café?
Of course, it doesn't solve the core problem, but at least announcements would be easier, and separating fandoms could reduce the chance of fights, right?
With that in mind, I immediately decided to make a Miro gallery.
Since non-members can't create galleries, I signed up, then applied to open a minor gallery.
There was already a "Miro Minor Gallery," so I applied to open "SingerMiro Minor Gallery" instead.
But by this point, I was starting to worry.
Letting people know a streamer reads anonymous communities is never a good idea.
And if I go so far as to directly create a gallery, of course controversy will follow. But…
Would it be different if it's my own gallery?
Celebrities sometimes post in their own fan communities, after all. As long as I don't muddy the waters too much, wouldn't it be okay?
Thinking that, I submitted the gallery application, roughly outlined some plans, and then called my manager.
It was late, but not past their usual bedtime yet.
Fortunately, the call connected after only a few rings.
[Hello? Miro-nim?]
"Manager, I'm really sorry to bother you at this hour, but I had something to ask."
[Oh, it's fine. Please, speak freely.]
Taking their words literally, I told my manager everything I had just been thinking and doing.
[No way! Absolutely not!]
And then I got scolded straight past bedtime.
So yeah—it really is a no-go.