[TS] Formula One Streamer - Chapter 64

“When are you planning to just keep broadcasting?”

“I can’t believe we forgot about that, right?”

After the eagerly anticipated award ceremony concluded the KiwiChi Championship.

Ferrari’s director Mattia Binotto was anxiously waiting for a call from Yooihyun at Myungjin’s house in Seoul.

He never imagined she would reveal her identity immediately after the finals.

Since it was unexpected, he couldn’t help but feel as anxious as a puppy in need of a bathroom.

As far as Binotto knew, the only team she had contacted before revealing her identity was his team, Ferrari.

Now that her identity was public, several teams that had their eyes on KING were bound to pounce like hyenas.

“Ha… I hope no offers have come from other teams already.”

“That shouldn’t be the case. I checked earlier, and her KING account still has friend requests and voice chat blocked.”

“Right. We have to hope it’s not true…”

The pack of hyenas included the top-ranked Mercedes Benz, second-ranked Renyo, and third-ranked McLaren, as all the top F1 teams were in on it.

Binotto’s anxiety only grew as time passed.

“She said she would contact us, so she should be done soon. Let’s watch and wait.”

He focused on the broadcast of KING, paying attention to her expressions and gestures.

When a viewer asked her which team she wanted to join.

– “I’m not sure yet.”

Binotto’s mood dropped like a stone with her cold response.

“Director, what are you doing? Oh, 500,000 won? That’s my ID.”

In a moment of denial about reality, Binotto even made a donation using Myungjin’s KiwiChi ID without his consent.

《Cipoti has donated 500,000 won!》

– “So, is there any team you’re even slightly interested in? For example, Ferrari or Ferrari…”

– “There are teams that pique my interest, but I think I need to observe them a bit more.”

“Exactly! Yooihyun still wants to come to Ferrari for now.”

While it was hard to determine whether KING’s answer was clearly positive, saying she needed to observe things suggested that Ferrari was granted a grace period.

Binotto comforted himself with that thought.

Thus, Yooihyun unwittingly placed the esteemed Ferrari director, Binotto, in a thoroughly subordinate position.

Myungjin could only nod in response as he watched the now fanatic director.

“But Myungjin.”

“Yes?”

“Wha… what does double peace mean, and what are industry awards?”

“…… I think it’s better if you don’t know.”

Myungjin had a feeling that he shouldn’t let Binotto be drawn into this world.

*

*

*

“Ha…”

This is bad.

Leaving behind three million viewers without any warning is unthinkable.

It’s hard to even imagine how desperately three million lost sheep might be crying out for Kang Hoyoon.

However, what’s done is done.

Besides, there was less than thirty minutes until the next day.

It was late to contact him, but I still had to keep my promise with Myungjin.

I quickly found Myungjin’s business card, which I had kept neatly on my desk, and called.

[Calling 010-4901-XXXX]

Doo-doo-bip

– “Hello, is this Yooihyun?”

He must have been waiting even at this late hour, as his urgent voice came through before the ringing even finished.

“Yes, you’re the scout Myungjin, right?”

– “Yes. This is Myungjin.”

“I’m sorry for contacting you so late. I guess I was a bit forgetful because I was overwhelmed.”

– “No problem. The competition just ended, and with three million viewers, it happens. By the way, the way you ended the broadcast caused quite a stir among the viewers.”

As he said, I could hear Kang Hoyoon’s pitiful voice repeatedly apologizing on the other end.

“Ah… that’s fine, it’s not my concern anymore.”

– “…?”

I’m sorry, but I could only hope that he would take care of it.

“By the way, is it alright to talk? I feel bad contacting you this late. Maybe we should schedule to meet tomorrow…”

– “No, no!”

I considered putting off the discussion until tomorrow, but he insisted that it had to be now.

– “We’re also in Seoul right now, so if you’re okay, we could come over directly. Is it alright if we leave now?”

“Wait, what? While I appreciate you coming over… what do you mean by ‘we’? Is anyone else coming besides you, Scout?”

Not just me, but “we”?

I hadn’t even sat down at the proper negotiation table yet; why would they need anyone else?

I couldn’t make sense of who else it could be, so I asked him.

The voice that returned was neither Myungjin’s nor in Korean.

But it was a very familiar voice.

– “Hello, Yooihyun. I greet you. This is Mattia Binotto, the director of the F1 team Ferrari.”

Mattia Binotto.

I recognized who he was just from the voice.

The voice I had heard countless times as Jin Hyun-woo.

Mattia Binotto, who was the director of the F1 team Ferrari like here.

The first person to come looking for me and attempt to recruit me, the one who trusted me infinitely even when I was not yet proven.

Thanks to him, I was able to have a relationship that transcended player and director, comfortable as friends and family.

Because of his trust, I, as a rookie driver, could start my career at Ferrari.

Thanks to his trust, I was able to give him the title of Driver and Constructor Champion.

In a sense, we were benefactors to each other.

And now, Mattia Binotto came to find me again under the name Mattia Minoto.

– “Yooihyun, can you hear me?”

Daniel Ricciardo, Lando Norris, Charles Leclerc, Max Verstappen, Lewis Hamilton.

Meeting them in this world had brought up a wave of emotions.

But I could be certain.

My heart was swelling like never before.

The person I had longed for was none other than Mattia Binotto.

“Yes, hello. Director Binotto. This is KING, Yooihyun. Shall we meet now?”

There was no way I would pass up meeting him.

Our meeting was quickly arranged.

In the quiet Seoul where even the stars were asleep at this time, the traffic was smooth, and since everything was connected, there was no reason for it to take long.

[See you in five minutes at Starbox / Sender: Myungjin]

The meeting place was a café right in front of my house, so I quickly got ready and headed out after receiving the message.

Seeing that Kang Hoyoon hadn’t come out of the room yet made me think the angry viewers were proving to be more challenging to handle than I had anticipated.

“Everything will work out somehow.”

Still, with a year of broadcasting experience, I was confident I’d solve it.

When you think about it, he wasn’t in the wrong.

It was my fault for leaving without a word.

As I stepped out the front door, those distracting thoughts completely disappeared.

What mattered most now was whether or not I would join Ferrari.

If Binotto was coming all the way to Korea, right in front of my house at this hour, it meant he was in a hurry to recruit me.

Implying, perhaps, that other teams were targeting me.

While I wasn’t sure if a top team like Binotto would reach out, lower-ranked teams like Renyo, McLaren, and Red Bull would surely be desperate to recruit me.

Considering my performance in the competition, it wasn’t just arrogance to say it was ‘obvious’; their attempts to contact me were undoubtedly expected.

In that case, I would have at least nine choices, excluding Binotto.

As a player in a position of power, I would get to choose the team I wanted.

Binotto and Myungjin knew that, which is why they rushed here at such a late hour.

“Director, you certainly have your share of struggles here…”

In either world, whether it was Binotto or Minoto.

It’s tough either way.

I entered Starbox without having made a choice.

They stood up to welcome me as I arrived.

“Yooihyun. Good to see you again.”

“Myungjin, the scout.”

After shaking hands with the somewhat familiar Myungjin, it was Binotto’s turn.

Drooping eyelids, a warm impression like Winnie the Pooh, the lines on his face sharpened by age.

It was Mattia Binotto as I had known him.

His curly hair was still the same.

“Hello. I am Mattia Binotto, director of Ferrari.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Director Binotto.”

“Shall we sit?”

I accepted the Americano that Myungjin handed to me and sat down to begin the serious conversation.

The first thing I wanted to ask was about the Ferrari test.

Myungjin provided a rough explanation while Binotto elaborated.

“What is the Ferrari test? When I spoke with Scout Myungjin, we agreed that I would join as a second driver right away…”

“It’s an internal test to select a second driver for the vacant position. It’s aimed at For One F2 tier users and will be held exactly two weeks later, lasting a total of three days. Just like an F1 competition, points will be awarded based on the number of circuits completed.”

“Originally, I intended to recruit you as Yooihyun under the director’s authority, but due to disagreements with the upper management, the plan fell through. I hope for your understanding.”

The Ferrari test wasn’t much different from what I had anticipated.

They wanted to evaluate overall abilities by taking a round at each circuit.

“In that case, the testing shouldn’t be a problem.”

With such a fair process, the test wouldn’t pose any issues.

Whoever it was, I would win anyway.

Next up was the engine issue.

While the scout Myungjin might excel at managing team personnel, he wasn’t versed in engines.

That was why I hadn’t bothered to bring up the engine discussion with Myungjin in our last meeting.

Now that the team director and automotive engineer, Binotto, was here, it was worth bringing up the engine topic.

“Director, I think you know why I am hesitating to join. I would like to hear your thoughts on that matter.”

“It’s the race car and the engine, I suppose…”

This was the turning point.

My heart had already, countless times, preferred Ferrari.

It was simply that the team had a serious problem with the engine, which had left even the brilliant driver Charles Leclerc stuck in eighth place.

I listened attentively to Binotto’s response, praying it would ease my conflict.

“While the engine is a serious problem, in fact, there are a lot of places that need fixing. The front wing, rear wing, various devices and parts, starting from the air duct to the overall aerodynamics… There are so many issues that Ferrari has fallen to the bottom.”

Binotto’s weary eyes, speaking candidly about his team’s faults, felt both sad and hopeless.

As the emblem of F1, Ferrari must have left him with an inexpressible sense of loss.

Ferrari was also the only team I had been a driver for, so I understood his feelings completely.

“On the flip side, this means that Ferrari has nowhere to go but up. Ferrari has sufficient capital and the ability to manage it.”

Binotto took a big breath and looked directly into my eyes as he continued.

“The F1 Ferrari will undergo a full overhaul soon. New mechanics, new engineers, possibly even a new director… I will likely be let go as well. I won’t have any ties to Ferrari anymore. But I hope there will be the best driver for Ferrari. That driver is you, Yooihyun. I sincerely request that you join Ferrari.”

The atmosphere instantly became heavy.

A full overhaul.

That certainly meant a complete personnel change.

Mechanics, engineers, and the director.

Mechanics, engineers, director…

Repeating those words in my head, a certain name suddenly flashed through my mind.

Enrique Tilko.

An automotive engineer and race strategist with phenomenal talent, who had joined Ferrari in the same year as me, and was my race engineer.

Maybe he exists in this world under a different name.

“Is there any engineer named Enrique Tilko or someone with a similar name?”

“Enrique Tilko… There is no such person.”

Bingo.

If I could only find him, it might just be possible to dream of Ferrari’s comeback.

I calmed my excitement and responded.

“I am…”