[TS] Formula One Streamer - Chapter 20
Speed Racer continued slowly talking.
“My younger sibling is on the national team, but… you know that the team director is Yoo Seon-jin, right?”
“Yes, I know.”
“I heard that after you became famous through my broadcast, the national team went crazy trying to recruit you. They watch your driving videos often at the team level, and Han Joo-hyuk is such a big fan that he even rewatches your videos.”
It was unexpected to hear that Han Joo-hyuk was rewinding my videos.
When you reach the top level in any field, your pride tends to match your skill.
The fact that Han Joo-hyuk, who had reached rank 79 in the world, had watched my videos from F5 was encouraging for various reasons.
Perhaps he had a discerning eye to recognize my skills hidden beneath my rank.
“Anyway, Yoo Seon-jin has tried various ways to contact you, but since you’ve kept everything private except for your nickname, there’s no way to reach you.”
“I see.”
“During that time, she found your name on the KiwiChi Championship participant list and applied on the last day.”
To be honest, I wouldn’t pass up on someone like me either.
Whether it’s my driving technique, the psychological warfare I have perfected over three years, or my star power that creates thrilling overtakes and comebacks.
Since I had even competed, they would have definitely recognized my value.
As I was praising myself with a smirk, Sre tilted his head and spoke.
“But I heard something a bit strange…”
“Strange? What is it?”
“Yeah, my younger sibling told me not to mention this to anyone else, but since you’re KING, I figured you could hear it.”
The person involved?
Had rumors about me spread without me knowing?
“What is it? Don’t beat around the bush—just say it.”
“That… in the event match yesterday, the Jin Hyun-woo who beat Han Joo-hyuk is actually a woman?”
“Oh, well… I know.”
“Then this will be easy to discuss.”
When my real name came up, I shivered with unease.
I denied it, but ominous premonitions always tend to be accurate.
“That Jin Hyun-woo is actually a student at the For One Academy, Yooihyun, and the national team is convinced that Yooihyun is you.”
“Me, Yooihyun?”
Sre laughed as if it were absurd, joking around.
“Oh, come on. With her actions, tone, and driving style, there’s absolutely no way she could be a woman. I told my younger sibling that would be impossible, haha!”
“Of course, that’s not true. The national team has quite the sense of humor. What basis do they have for such confidence? As they say, anyone can be mistaken.”
“Well, according to my sibling, KING’s record coincidentally stopped on the Saturday when Yooihyun debuted, and techniques like trail braking and race strategies being incredibly similar led them to that conclusion.”
The truth is, that is me…
No, I’m Jin Hyun-woo, so I’m not…
No, I am Yooihyun, so it is correct…
d*mn!
“So in the end, Yoo Seon-jin participated in the championship to directly recruit you, KING, not Yooihyun.”
“Thanks for telling me. You made me laugh.”
“Well, it’s not just anyone—it’s KING. I was curious too.”
Yoo Seon-jin… is sharper than I thought.
But the KiwiChi Championship ends next week, and by then there’s a good chance I’ll have entered F2.
I had decided to start my first broadcast once I made it to F2, so I just needed to hold out until then.
Since I wasn’t planning to hide my face completely, I intended to reveal it at the right time.
“I’ll repay you later, Sre.”
“Just adding you as a friend is already enough repayment. By the way, you’ll be heading to F2 soon.”
“How do you know that?”
“I just dropped out of F2 recently. You’d make the rankings if you win a few rounds.”
I had forgotten, but Sre was also a For One streamer who floated between F2 and F3 with 10,000 fixed viewers.
He was known as a F3 fixture, repeatedly getting promoted and demoted in F2.
Reaching a match with him meant that F2 was the threshold.
“I’ll take my leave for now. See you next time, Sre.”
“Yes, I hope we meet again.”
But today’s a no-go.
My head hurts too much from how many rounds I’ve played.
I logged out right then in his pit.
Shuuuuuuu!
As soon as the capsule lid opened, I headed straight for the kitchen.
The orange and yellow hues of the sunset flowing through the window were dyeing the clouds in purple pastel tones.
Below, the lights of the buildings were brightly lit, and streetlights were slowly flickering as the city prepared for night.
The view of the city from a luxurious high-rise office building on the 30th floor was truly magnificent.
As I headed towards the kitchen, I was momentarily mesmerized by the sight and couldn’t take my feet away.
“This house is surely nice…”
The rumbling in my stomach urged me to go to the kitchen.
I thought I’d eat in the living room and swung open the large refrigerator door.
“Why is it so empty?”
There was nothing inside.
All that was there was a 500ml water bottle.
In a country where I even had a Korean cooking certification, I thought I could whip up something simple, but it turned into a hassle.
I could order through my tablet, but I would have to wait for the ingredients to arrive, and it would take time to prepare, so I’d have no choice but to order.
“By the way, how does the payment work for ordering?”
Since I’d be living here long-term, I intended to stock up on ingredients and order chicken to eat right away when suddenly a question struck me.
I put the tablet down and called Kang Ho-yun.
– It’s linked to my bank account, so it’ll automatically deduct. Don’t worry about it; just order. I’ll eat it when I’m home.
“But I still feel guilty about it. I should pay for what I eat.”
– Don’t complicate it. Just think of it as part of your tuition.
I was going to say that the tuition was already compensated for by living in the office building… when Kang Ho-yun abruptly ended the call.
It seems he would fully take responsibility for my stay and meals.
It felt strange.
Like I had become his pet.
What does it matter? Any expense is small change to Kang Ho-yun, and since he was doing it out of consideration for me, I should graciously accept it.
As a result, I ordered chicken and cheese balls and pressed the payment button.
“I can just pay him back later, right?”
Sure.
I can repay him; achieving F2 and then debuting as a streamer will bring in plenty of money.
Just the prize money for winning the KiwiChi Championship starting tomorrow is quite a lot.
The first-place prize is a whopping 1 billion, 1 billion.
“I’m going to be number one anyway. Right, Yooihyun?”
I laughed like a madman while looking down at the city from the living room.
At that time, I thought being number one would be a piece of cake.
*
*
*
The sun shone brightly at the French Paul Ricard Circuit.
Shuuuuuu!!!
A deep blue race car was racing down the track alone.
With unshakeable and stable cornering, it neatly followed an exact racing line.
The race car was perfectly controlled by the man in the cockpit.
Name / Time
① Legend 1:21:001
The driver who set the record of around 1 minute and 21 seconds was none other than Yoo Seon-jin.
Having actually competed as an F1 driver, he was honing his driving senses in preparation for tomorrow’s KiwiChi Championship.
“What is KING’s fastest lap time?”
[KING#16007’s official fastest lap time is 1:21:310.]
“1 minute 21 seconds 310…”
There was an enormous difference of 0.309 seconds from the current fastest lap time he had achieved.
With a smirk, he gripped the steering wheel tightly.
“There’s no way that’s the fastest lap time.”
He was sure that KING could shorten it even further if he wanted to.
In practice runs with Kang Ho-yun, Yooihyun had achieved a lap time of 1:20:824.
Yoo Seon-jin had been a competitor before For One emerged, and now he was a director and scout.
Everyone on the national team he assembled was selected by him.
He had scouted Han Joo-hyuk, who had been playing at rank 900, and transformed him into the current rank 79 player.
When Yoo Seon-jin observed KING and Yooihyun’s driving, his keen instincts were firmly at work.
“This kid is something! I must recruit him!”
Choosing the Paul Ricard track as the practice circuit was also due to KING and Yooihyun.
She had overwhelmingly led Han Joo-hyuk on this track.
Adjusting her skill appropriately and matching her level to that of her opponent, acting as a mentor teaching her disciple.
That was a race that would be impossible without a seasoned skill set and self-belief.
Thus, Yoo Seon-jin was driving at the Paul Ricard Circuit to understand the positions of Han Joo-hyuk and Yooihyun, mentor and disciple, while trailing behind Yooihyun’s avatar in the event match, taking the same lines, or occasionally overtaking.
“There’s something different… there’s definitely something different.”
And through that process, he was undoubtedly feeling something.
An indescribable thrill, a strange excitement, and a fiery passion that warmed his heart just like when he experienced F1 for the first time!
“Yooihyun… what on earth is she?”
At the age of nineteen.
Having only encountered F1 through For One.
A nonsensical girl who had reached a level beyond measure.
Yoo Seon-jin trembled with fear and excitement at the emergence of the monster known as Yooihyun.
*
*
*
“Enjoy your meal.”
The delivery person handed over the chicken with a dazed expression.
It seemed that the house was indeed luxurious.
Especially for a young woman living alone, it wasn’t surprising for someone to be astounded.
“Thank you. Please be careful on your way back.”
The oily, fried aroma wafting up from the plastic bag marked BHQ!
The golden fried chicken was steaming hot, tickling my nostrils.
1.25L cola was essential, and cheese balls were the perfect side!
I poured out the lumpy broth into the sink and filled a glass with ice for my HooGarden before heading to the living room.
I sat down in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the sprawling cityscape and began to set up.
I opened the chicken box, tilted the HooGarden glass, and poured in the cola.
Cola was the essence—Cuca Cola.
Woosh!!
The sound of cola fizzing as it met the ice was artistic, no matter how often you hear it.
Setup complete.
I placed the brim-full glass down and grabbed a chicken leg, shoving it into my mouth.
The satisfying crunch and the combination of oil and juice brought me to ecstasy, rolling my eyes back.
“Ugh, who cares about the championship! Delicious food is the best.”
It was the day before the championship, so I figured I could afford to indulge a bit.
That day, I downed two bottles of 1.25L cola in a celebratory binge.