I Suddenly Became a Monster Singer-Songwriter – Episode 4
(YouTuber)
Unlike the other trees, Visual had been C from the start.
Since the upgrade cost increased tenfold with each grade, raising it to B required a whopping 1 million won.
It was money earned through blood and sweat—how could he not lament it?
But this bag was capable of filling the parts Jeong Udam had always lacked and realizing his aspirations.
‘A turning point.’
Deciding to live life to the fullest.
This was no easy thing. There were certainly people who enjoyed hobbies and learned new things in their spare time despite being busy and exhausted.
Jeong Udam had also been spurred on by such examples and steeled his resolve to try something, anything, but it had always been a three-day resolve. More often than not, he failed to even start.
‘And yet it was this simple.’
He had confirmed that stats changed when he spent a mere 10,000 won to raise F-grade Composition to D.
The first time is difficult, but the second is easy by nature.
So he spent boldly.
When he placed a nutrient ampoule on the Visual (C) tree, the tree—which had been around the size of the bears—grew even thicker and lusher.
A change appeared on his face as well.
How had it changed? His dark circles faded, and his skin brightened slightly.
The bone structure of his features had been adjusted by mere millimeters?
But he could feel that his impression had improved dramatically just from that.
He had been anxious that his parents might not recognize him, but fortunately, there was no need to worry.
The next day, his parents said:
“Son, you used to be so scrawny, but have you gained some weight lately? You look nicer?”
That was the extent of their reaction.
So I spent a million won only to be refined by a heartbreakingly small amount—he accepted it as such.
However, at the KTX station he visited to return to work after his two days off.
Though he had lived without paying attention to people’s gazes, Jeong Udam noticed many eyes stealing glances at him.
The clerk before him now, too, was clearly reacting differently from how she had treated him until now.
“Udam, why aren’t you wearing your glasses today?”
“I thought I’d try contacts.”
“Have you considered getting a perm? You should show your forehead, too.”
Udam was bewildered by the proactive advice, but decided to take it to heart.
He would get a perm on his next day off.
Meanwhile, the clerk thought:
‘I’ve occasionally seen celebrities who don’t suit glasses.’
Who would have thought the same would apply to Jeong Udam.
He was by no means celebrity-level.
Perhaps decent looks for an ordinary person?
‘No. You never know once he’s dolled up.’
Stubble had grown in coarse prickles, as if he hadn’t shaved in ages.
His straight bangs, covering even his eyebrows, cast shadows that made his already half-lidded eyes seem darker.
‘He looks warm and gentle even like this, so how much better would he look if he groomed himself…’
She then belatedly realized she had been rude.
“S-sorry! Saying that right to your face.”
“What do you mean?”
“I ended up evaluating your looks without thinking. You must feel bad, right?”
“Ah, was that a face evaluation? I didn’t really think so. More importantly, you mentioned the boss’s daughter is coming.”
That was right.
Though the boss came and went through the factory grounds every day since the headquarters was in this region, he had never brought his daughter before.
It was puzzling that he would bring his daughter along on a day that was not even a family sports day.
“She’s a YouTuber. Maybe he wants us employees to subscribe and spread the word since there are so many of us?”
Well, it would have an effect if employees recommended the channel to family and acquaintances.
He did not know whether other YouTubers promoted themselves that way, but the boss’s daughter had the environment, so she was making use of it.
Having finished small talk with the clerk, Jeong Udam donned his dust mask and dust-proof clothing and started working.
The news of the boss’s daughter’s upcoming visit had already spread among his team members.
“The boss’s daughter, her concept is gold spoon.”
“Even if she’s not from a group chairman’s family, she’s the daughter of a manufacturing division CEO. Isn’t that a genuine gold spoon, not just a concept?”
“I mean, her YouTube theme is gold spoon.”
“Theme?”
“She’s a college student who always uploads videos of hotel staycations, omakase, and luxury shopping.”
Jeong Udam, listening with one ear, was amazed that a college student younger than him could live like that.
“Did you look up her videos? How?”
“I searched our company on YouTube and some Q&A popped up, so I clicked it. When asked how much allowance she gets, she said she uses her dad’s card and that her dad is the boss here?”
“Views?”
“Average ten to twenty thousand. Not bad, right? If she produces some decent content, she could ride the algorithm and blow up.”
“Don’t tell me she’s coming to film commoner-experience content?”
Udam lost interest in the hyungs’ conversation.
He was someone who had thought about trying YouTube by raising his vocal range and composition trees, so he had only been briefly intrigued upon hearing the boss’s daughter was also a YouTuber.
‘There really are a lot of people doing YouTube.’
It was a red ocean.
A bloodbath where you could not survive without a distinct edge.
Of course, rather than becoming a full-time YouTuber, Jeong Udam intended to use it to document his growth.
Besides, he had heard that song covers and remakes could not be monetized anyway.
‘Since I’m trying music again.’
For now, it was the enjoyable stage of envisioning various futures.
‘I should look into a practical music academy with working-adult classes that I can attend on my days off.’
It was as if he had returned to his high school days. Back then, he used to get excited at the thought of finishing class and jamming with his friends.
Unlike in the band, even though he was alone now, the excitement was the same.
‘I should get a guitar, too.’
Jeong Udam had played electric guitar during his band days, but this time he wanted to go with an acoustic. Intermediate-level, neither too cheap nor too expensive.
Thanks to that, his coworkers could not help but ask Jeong Udam:
“Did something good happen? You look really cheerful.”
“It seems it showed on my face without me realizing.”
“What is it, looking forward to your day off?”
“Are you dating? Is that why your face got better?”
“Me? It’s not that. I’m trying to pick up a hobby.”
“You boring guy. Anyway, you look much better without glasses. And your hair, huh? Slick it back. Nice.”
Jeong Udam brushed it off with an awkward laugh.
“Ah, and let’s decide on the talent show parts later. We can get by with simple calisthenics for the dance, but we need to practice the song.”
He was finally feeling how close the actual sports day was. He wanted to skip it, but when he heard another team was even cross-dressing and dancing to girl group songs, he wondered what kind of situation this was.
Just then, a manager infamous for nitpicking over every little thing approached, so the workers had to clamp their mouths shut and focus on their work.
*
The next morning.
Having gotten off work, Jeong Udam returned to the dormitory, checked that the suitcase lock was properly fastened, and entered the password.
He had pulled an all-nighter, so his eyelids were heavy and he had to work again in the evening, but he forced himself to overcome the drowsiness and opened the tree bag.
Chirp, chirp, chirp.
Though no birds were visible, he heard bird sounds, and the white bears emerged in a single-file line from their cabin to greet the morning.
Clack.
The bears took off their straw hats, held them to their chests, and looked up at the sky.
They were not looking at Jeong Udam. It seemed like a gesture of gratitude toward nature.
There were three such bears.
Because he had hired another tree keeper yesterday.
“Did you sleep well? No. 1, No. 2, and dejected No. 3.”
The original two were No. 1 and No. 2. He could tell them apart now after watching them.
No. 1 was—
-Kwoong!
Quick in his movements and solemn in expression.
No. 2 was an easygoing glutton.
-Rrrr.
He would lie down anywhere.
But hiring an additional tree keeper was not free, either. He had been fleeced of 100,000 won. Then No. 3, with a bundle dangling from a branch over his shoulder, walked in from the boundary line.
And since No. 3 did not have a tree to manage yet, he went out scouting. Jeong Udam had been curious how he scouted, and it turned out he left the bag boundary and returned after quite a while.
‘He’s going straight to scouting again today.’
No. 3 returned an hour later, empty-handed again. His shoulders were slumped.
-Uuung….
Seeds seemed quite difficult to find.
Truthfully, Jeong Udam wanted the trees to increase quickly. He was looking forward to what other stats there might be.
Thinking thus, he had even considered hiring one more to send scouting with No. 3, but—
[Tip!]
-Additional hiring is only possible when each tree keeper is managing two trees.
A message like this popped up.
“Cheer up, your mission is of utmost importance. No. 3.”
Did that feeling get through?
No. 3, having wolfed down sandwiches with No. 1 and No. 2, snorted spiritedly and crossed the boundary line again.
‘I wonder where that place connects to.’
A world invisible to Jeong Udam.
Watching the peaceful No. 1 and No. 2, he dozed off, only to be jolted awake by a sudden roar.
-Kweeeng!
No. 3 appeared in the garden with both arms raised like a champion.
Along with him, a message appeared.
-Seed discovered.
-Planting 1 seed held by the tree keeper.
Finally!
There were two stats he currently desired.
First, one related to pitch.
The other was guitar playing.
Jeong Udam had raised his vocal range from D to C.
To check the results, he had gone to a coin karaoke and realized his low notes had dropped by one note (2 keys), while his high notes had risen by two notes (4 keys).
That day when he broke through his previously blocked vocal range.
‘Man, that sensation was no joke.’
But even though his range had widened, he still sometimes hit wrong notes. So while he figured he would have to fix that through training, he began to speculate that perhaps pitch could also be obtained as a stat.
There seemed to be many types of seeds, and since the tree bag had arbitrarily set his recommended job as entertainer, it was perhaps reasonable to guess that any new stats would also belong to this field.
‘The fact that I don’t know what stat it is until the seed is planted is just like—’
—the gacha of a luck-based game, he thought at that very moment.
When No. 3 sprinkled water on the spot where he planted the seed, a slender tree shot up in an instant.
Swoosh!
An instrument. It was an instrument.
However…
-Recorder (F) Tree has grown.
-Would you like to supply nutrients to the Recorder (F) Tree?
-10,000 won / F → D
Recorder?
‘This is, well, a failed pull, isn’t it?’
Udam was disappointed, but No. 3, having gained his first tree to manage, beamed.
Jeong Udam flopped onto his back, but seeing No. 3 so happy, he could not help but give him a reward and pulled out 10,000 won.
The bill that disappeared into the bag was soon exchanged for a single silver coin at the circular stone altar.
“So the recorder is only ten thousand won?”
No. 3, now in high spirits, pocketed the coin and used a dropper on the recorder tree.
-Hu-hi.
Fortunately, that was a good omen.
Thereafter, No. 3, now equipped with confidence, threw himself into scouting with even greater zeal, fully taking on the bearing of a dedicated scouting unit.