Chapter 127…
– Title: Yo, did you see the clip of Lee Ji-han at the awards? [42/3]
– Content: (GIF of Ji-han constantly grabbing snacks and munching) lol he’s seriously so cute
[LMAO what is this]
[Is someone gonna steal his food or what lol]
[Everyone from Hyangwoohoe is here except the VTubers?]
[But honestly there are more non-Hyangwoohoe people, which is hilarious lol]
[But uh… the stuff on his mouth from the soda pop bottle is a bit…;;]
[Comment above lol do you know how much Ppongtta looks after Ji-han? lol]
[If the fan café reposts this, it’s gonna blow up again lol]
[It’s not Ppongtta, it’s their fandom that’s the problem tbh]
[Ppongttugi fans are all super young…]
[Like;; I’m young too, but that’s not an age issue… that’s like… belonging problem, isn’t it?]
– Title: No but for real, was that a halo behind Ji-han… [45]
– Content: I was staff, and when he talked to me smiling, for a second his face was so bright it hurt my eyes lol. Thought I was imagining it at first, but even when he was sitting far away, it looked like the lights were shining only on him the whole ceremony lol
[Nah stop lying]
[Ji-han IS good-looking but come on lol]
[Go rewatch Zombress replay lol]
[Watch the unedited version. There’s literally a glow behind him!]
[lol you were staff??]
[Man I’m jealous, meeting him in person…]
– Title: But do you guys think Ji-han’s gonna win anything? [66/3]
– Content: (Cool pic of Ji-han) Honestly… I don’t think he’ll win. People are hyping him up for Daesang but that’s just hype.
[Yeah same. At best, rookie award?]
[Couldn’t he win Daesang?]
[Nah nah, maybe if it was based on momentary traffic… but Daesang is about long-term audience pull…]
[Pretzel’s #1 king is still there, Ji-han can’t push him out yet…]
[I’d be happy even if he just gets rookie…]
[Daesang can be won next year too, but rookie is once in a lifetime lol]
[But knowing Pretzel management, they might do some weird mind games]
[Have you ever seen Ji-han show emotions?]
[Nah, Ji-han will just go “thank you?” and move on lol]
[Anyway stop overthinking and post more pics of his pretty face lol]
– Title: But is Ji-han’s leg really messed up? [44]
– Content: I saw the clip earlier and he was wearing a brace…
[He often holds himself back during IRL streams too]
[You must be new. He said it himself. It happened during training…]
[Training? Was he an athlete?]
[Yeah, gymnastics]
[Explains why his body’s so nice…]
[Is he doing rehab?]
[His body lines look sharper lately]
[He said yesterday during stream that rehab is going well]
[Oh… good]
[That VR therapy thing, right? Does it even work?]
[News said neurosurgery + rehab med are collaborating on it?]
[Would be great if Ttenam sponsored him a capsule]
[It is a Ttenam-sponsored capsule lol]
[Damn! TteMan!]
[Isn’t Ttenam kind of overrated? He just got lucky taking over the capsule market]
[This guy has inferiority issues…]
[lol ignore him lol why can’t you ignore trolls;]
The community kept spinning all kinds of stories about Lee Ji-han.
Though most of them were likely rumors.
One thing was certain:
Ji-han is good-looking.
Ji-han is definitely winning some award.
And once again… the capsule discourse surrounding him returned.
Ever since that shocking nosebleed scene during the Braver Maker demon lord battle stream, the capsule conversation always resurfaced.
Even though the capsule he got from Ttenam was already high-end…
“The device probably can’t keep up with Ji-han-nim’s processing speed.”
That one offhand comment from Ttenam had basically become absolute truth among fans.
Anyway.
The center of all this chaos—
What was Lee Ji-han doing?
Crunch. Crunch. Crunch.
“Wow, Ji-han, you eat snacks so well!”
“You want one too?”
“Oh, thanks.”
He was sitting with Kim Ppongtta, sharing the snacks on the table.
“haha, disciple-nim, slow down.”
“Gung-hyung-nim, want some too?”
“Ah, I need to get PT after this.”
“Oh, you work out?”
“But disciple-nim, how do you maintain your body?”
Namgoong-hyung asked, then suddenly realized—
Asking someone with an injured leg about exercise was insensitive.
But Ji-han just smiled gently.
“My metabolism is insanely high now. I don’t gain weight easily.”
He continued calmly.
“And well, I’m doing rehab seriously too.”
“I heard rehab training is really rough…”
Ji-han nodded.
“After a session, I’m drenched—like soaked through. It’s tough, but…”
He scratched his head, grabbed another snack—
Crunch!
“If I keep going, I really feel like I’ll be able to move again. So I don’t lose hope.”
“Haha, you’re stubborn. You’ll definitely walk again someday.”
They spent time chatting with the Hyangwoohoe members…
– And next award! Talk Content Award!
“Kim Maru streamer!”
Waaah!
Kim Maru received the award—radio-style streams were a different realm from game streamers like Ji-han, so they typically didn’t overlap much.
“Please say a few words, Maru-nim!”
She thanked her team, her MCN, her family.
Ji-han watched, smiling softly.
Winning an award…
It was once a dream for him.
A failed athlete—national team candidate, but never made it to competition.
Crushed body from overtraining.
OCD from hyperfocus syndrome.
“I wanted to wear gold around my neck someday…”
But none of that mattered anymore.
He had a new life as a streamer.
Then the host asked:
“By the way, is there any streamer you’ve been watching lately? Haha, or do people in the same field not watch each other?”
Kim Maru smiled and declared:
“I watch Ji-han-nim’s streams often. Lee Ji-han-nim, you’re here today right? Oh, there he is! Camera, zoom in!”
She pointed at him brightly.
“I’ve been enjoying Zombress! If I played the game myself, I would’ve done Pengsoolie too. I’m always catching up on his YouTube during my off-days!”
She grinned.
“If you’re okay with it, please do a collab with me someday!”
A simple, harmless comment.
But said here, at an awards show where half of Pretzel’s eyes were on him…
– Title: Did you see Kim Maru’s announcement just now?
– Title: Wtf;;; she said she’s been watching Ji-han??
– Title: lol they’d look so good together on visible radio
– Title: But is Ji-han even interested in radio streams?
– Title: lol Mari must be crying rn
– Title: Real streamer > virtual streamer, amirite!
– Title: lol is Ji-han really gonna move to radio? No way right?
– Title: He has too many games to play lol
People’s imaginations exploded.
– Now, please pass Ji-han the mic! Ji-han streamer-nim, your response?
The moment he grabbed the mic—
“Uh, yes. Thank you for the offer, but… I don’t really know what visible radio is.”
—everything shattered.
[LOLOLOLOLOL]
[JI-HAN PLEASE]
[Dude just say yes!!!]
[Thank god Maru’s fandom is chill lol]
[We almost had a war lol]
“But maybe… someday, if there’s a chance.”
[LOL]
[He’s toying with her lolol]
[Ji-han you said you’re good at controlling expectations—yep, clearly lol]
[Hilarious]
Pretzel Korea’s chat exploded.
“Haha, of course! Let’s do it sometime!”
Maru’s expressions—swinging between heaven and hell—became viral clips for days.
Kim Ppongtta kept patting Ji-han’s shoulder, calling it a jackpot.
The others stared at him in something like awe.
Then—
“But uh…” Ji-han said awkwardly.
“That person… are they really famous?”
Everyone went silent.
“…What?”
“…Seriously?”
“She’s talk category #1.”
“Ji-han… you’ve made it. You just need to go talk for a bit.”
“Also she literally said she watches your streams…”
“She became your fan…”
“Hey hey hey! Ppongtta-nim! Don’t say that! You’ll get mobbed!”
Ji-han just blinked in confusion.
So that really famous person…
“Asked me for a collab…?”
He nodded blankly.
“What would we even stream together though? Like an interview stream?”
He wasn’t thinking that far—
Especially with what the host said next:
– Next award! A once-in-a-lifetime award! Rookie of the Year!
And then—
“Streamer Lee Ji-han!!”
“…Huh?”
The camera zoomed in.
Ji-han looked around, pointing at himself.
“Me?”
He stood up.
“Me?”
It was so iconic that it became a meme for weeks.
“Rookie Award…?”
His dumbfounded reaction—
Was instantly turned into a subscription emote by Kim Suho,
and fans spammed it everywhere.
