Chapter 178 Outdoor Stream! 1
The Hunter AI assistant drone, as of the year 2088, started at a minimum price of 390 million won.
Even without any additional options and only equipped with basic functions, that was the baseline cost. For a Hunter to use an AI drone in actual combat, it would require an investment of about 500 million won to include essentials like a solar battery, self-powered generator, and monster database access.
The AI drone intended for Hunter streamers, with features like high-performance camera effects, noise suppression, stealth mode, hologram chat windows, and connections to internet managers and advanced cognitive filters, cost a minimum of one billion won.
A minimum of one billion.
The high-end ones could cost over two billion.
Both the AI drone that arrived at Shia's home and the one Menelapie impulsively destroyed previously were state-of-the-art, ultra-high-performance AI drones not even available for sale.
If one were to estimate the price, it would likely exceed three billion won, though Shia, who struggled to fully adapt to the era of 2088, couldn’t utilize all of its high-level functions at 100%.
Nonetheless, the drone contained an advanced AI, the kind generally found only in defense departments.
The AI drone delivered to Shia's house this time, [NFPB-001], demonstrated remarkable judgment as it tilted its head, confirming Yane, the user before it, was in a troubling situation.
Due to the cutting-edge technology it comprised, [NFPB-001] boasted an absurdly superior judgment capability.
"Kiieeek…?"
The AI might not typically engage in things like “pondering,” but it sensed that Yane, who had unpacked it, had absolutely no idea how to use the drone, leaving the AI considering whether to initiate 'Beginner Mode,' 'Senior Silver Mode,' or 'Baby Mode.'
[Screeching continues]
[Is that even a person?]
[Aren't they non-human?]
[Nope, I heard that when Mutant Hunters overuse their abilities, they sometimes end up like that.]
[There's a werewolf Hunter near my house, and every time the full moon rises, the howling is insane. I keep filing complaints.]
[LMAO hahahaha]
[Complaint: Could you please cut down on the howling?]
"U, uuuu…kkii..."
Recalling what Shia always did, Yane managed to connect to the streaming switch with Shia's account, but she was unsure if it was functioning correctly.
Yane, who was born as a blade centipede and lived long enough to grow to 15 meters, had indeed lived a long life for one of her kind. Yet, having received Shia’s blessing and ascended, Yane was still like a toddler in human terms.
Everything in human society was new and fascinating to her; even a simple book or a ball of fluff could easily capture Yane’s interest, making the advanced AI drone, crafted for complex Hunter streaming, a virtually unknown world.
From the viewers' perspective, the broadcast was being transmitted smoothly, but Yane couldn’t even see the chat window and could only stare blankly into the camera, which looked like a pair of eyes fixed on her.
“Kieeeng…”
[Oh, she's cute…]
[For real.]
[Cuter than the gallery owner.]
[The gallery owner is sexy, not cute lol.]
[Are you underestimating the Meat Fairy right now?]
[...?]
[We collectively decided to call the Meat Fairy “the spicy one”... it was a social agreement…]
Though Yane hadn’t managed to do much right, her baby-like behavior seemed to satisfy the viewers, who had surprisingly few complaints.
[Is this the same character who did the collaboration with the gallery owner after applying the perception filter?]
[Oh, the one with the centipede tail?]
[Come to think of it, there was a photo of her with the gallery owner outside a blood soup shop posted on the gallery board before…]
[Wasn’t she much smaller back then? Why is she so big now?]
[Looks like the same one. Yep, she's got a centipede tail, and from the photo, yeah. Not sure why her body grew, though.]
[Older sister maybe?]
[But the gallery owner is sexy while this one's really cute.]
[She’s like our daughter who just turned one.]
[Are you a dad?]
[Of course, that’s why I have a daughter, you little punk.]
[LMAO hahahahahaha]
[So funny LOL]
Fortunately, the viewers found Yane’s head-tilting behavior adorably cute, so they seemed not to care about the messy stream.
[By the way, where did the gallery owner go?]
[Is the gallery owner really that important? I like her too lol.]
[Honestly, as long as there's a motherly pouch, I’m good lol.]
[True that.]
[If you don’t want a joint broadcast, just type “LOL.”]
[LOL]
[LOL]
As she continued to grow, Yane gradually started to resemble Shia in appearance.
Right after she’d received her blessing and ascended into a humanoid form, she hadn’t looked that similar to Shia, and her body had been much smaller. However, growing day by day, Yane now possessed a strikingly lovely appearance similar to Shia's.
Her smiling eyes, darker brown skin unlike Shia's pale complexion, and hair that was a mix of purple, black, and the signature yellow tint of blade centipedes now cascaded down to her ankles.
Though she might have appeared adult-like just based on looks, her innocent demeanor and purple eyes made her behavior seem perfectly natural to the viewers.
"...U, uuuu..."
But, after a while, Yane, who had yet to understand the AI drone’s controls, started tearing up in frustration.
“Hing…”
[? Why’s she doing that?]
[What’s going on?]
“Bweeeeeeeng!!!”
[??]
Why won’t this work the way I want?
My owner always does it so easily!
Am I just a dumb blade centipede who can’t measure up to her?
Bweeeng!
Like all young children, Yane, whose mental age was that of a kindergartner or elementary school child at best, began to cry, overwhelmed with frustration when things didn’t go her way.
[?]
[??]
[?]
[???]
[Wait, why is she crying?]
[What the...;;;]
[Why’s she crying so sadly…?]
[Somebody try doing something, quick.]
[What do you mean, something? Are you kidding me?]
With Yane, a creature carrying large venom sacs, now wailing, even the viewers couldn’t hide their shock.
“Bweeeng… bweeeeeeeng…! *Hiccup*...!”
As Yane sobbed, the AI drone [NFPB-001], unable to endure it any longer, decided on its own to initiate an update.
-First, determining that the person who opened the box is the actual owner of [NFPB-001].
-The owner likely does not know how to operate [NFPB-001].
-[NFPB-001] assesses the owner’s current state through its own AI judgment.
-Applying 'Baby Mode' to the owner.
-Setting broadcast mode as per AI judgment.
-Cognitive filter activated, noise suppression activated, Hunter database access complete.
-Broadcast mode ON.
“Bweeeng…kkii?”
As a flood of viewer chats suddenly appeared on the drone’s hologram, Yane stopped crying and stared blankly at the hologram.
[She stopped crying.]
[Oh… good.]
[But honestly, wasn't the crying kinda hot?]
[You’re insane lol.]
[Honestly? I’m in.]
[Hey, there's nothing you won’t say to a kid, huh? lol]
[She’s kinda cute, though, for some reason.]
Seeming intrigued by the floating hologram chat and her own broadcast screen, Yane timidly touched the hologram, her face filled with curiosity like a cat seeing a mirror for the first time.
When Yane’s hand, covered in blade armor, made contact with the hologram, the chat window followed her hand’s movement. Her face, which had been teary, slowly broke into a small smile, curving at the corners of her mouth.
“Heh, hehe…”
[Oh...]
[Ohhh...]
[Wait, she’s insanely cute]
[Where did all the troublemakers go?]
[You can’t be mean in front of a kid…]
[But can we do it in front of the Saintess?]
[The channel owner isn’t the Saintess; she’s the Antics Saintess.]
[LMAO hahahahahahahahaha]
Just as it’s hard to spit on a smiling face, even the troublemaker netizens from the Hunter Gallery couldn’t bring themselves to harass or act out when Yane was tapping the chat window with such innocent curiosity.
Any adult watching would have realized by now that Yane had started the channel owner’s stream on her own.
Yet, the stream that normally held around 40,000 to 50,000 viewers had almost doubled, nearing 80,000 viewers.
When Shia fought powerful monsters, the viewer count easily surpassed 100,000, but this was a stream with V-log elements where nothing was happening. Even so, 80,000 people were simply watching Yane make random noises by herself.
"Heeheehee, kieh…"
Though Yane had realized the broadcast had started, she soon found herself deep in thought.
Now… what should I do?
Yane had started the broadcast the way Shia always did, but in truth, she didn’t understand what a stream was or what she should do with it.
She didn’t know how to manage viewers (not that Shia ever did either) or what content to create.
Recalling how Shia sometimes talked to the chat and cooked while using the drone, Yane had an idea.
"Food..."
Yane was feeling lonely eating by herself.
Since she took after Shia and easily felt lonely, she had resisted eating the Spam Bibimbap left by Yoon-jung and placed it back in the fridge, even though she was hungry.
"Kie, kie…"
Now that these "viewers" were with her, it seemed she wouldn’t have to eat alone.
Yane smiled and waved both hands happily at the viewers as if to greet them.
"Heehee, hi. Kieh..."
['KawaiiHorned' has donated 100,000 won!]
ㄴYou’re really cute. What’s your name?
“Kyaaaak!?!?!!”
The loud donation sound from the streaming drone startled Yane, causing her to dash to the kitchen to hide behind cover.
[???]
[What happened lolololol]
[Did she run away because of the donation sound?]
[lololol]
[Hey, what did you do to scare the poor kid, KawaiiHorned?]
[lol]
[She’s genuinely cute lolol]
[Is this an act?]
[Did you see her tail twitching from the surprise? It’s real.]
[For real.]
Since donation alerts over 100,000 won were loud and flashy, it must’ve felt like a bomb had gone off in Yane’s otherwise quiet house.
Peeking her antennae out from the kitchen to investigate, Yane cautiously assessed the situation, and upon realizing nothing was amiss, slowly poked her eyes out to glance at the drone.
“Kie…?”
[She’s genuinely cute]
[How can that body be that cute?]
[Her body’s sexy, but her face and actions are too childlike to be sexy…]
[That makes it sexy, though…]
[?]
[??]
[Crossing the line…]
Yane gradually remembered that this loud donation sound had occasionally appeared during Shia’s streams.
Thinking back, Shia would respond with a quick “thank you” or a simple reaction whenever it happened.
Though Yane didn’t fully understand the concept of donations or reactions, she thought she ought to respond somehow, just as Shia did. Smiling, she started waving her hands.
“Kiiiii… e?”
Flap, flap.
[?]
[Lolol]
[What’s she doing lolololol]
“Kii… iii…?”
When that didn’t seem quite right, she looked at the drone with a tilted head and something resembling a smile. This time, she waved both her arms and even her tail to perform her own version of a donation reaction.
[lololololol]
[What’s she doing lolol]
[Is that supposed to be a donation reaction???]
[lololol]
[Her reaction is so cute lol]
[Honestly, her response is better than the gallery owner’s.]
[For real lol]
Shia’s donation reactions were mostly restrained or simply ended with a quick “thanks.”
Of course, she was busy hunting monsters and showing her crazy culinary concoctions, so donation reactions weren’t a major aspect. However, viewers accustomed to Shia’s reserved style had an unexpectedly strong reaction to Yane’s “real” reaction.
‘Kii… Is this right?’
Yane, seeing the chat flow quickly, seemed to think she was doing something right.
She’d learned some Korean, though she hadn’t mastered it, and wasn’t yet able to catch up with the fast-flowing chat. But there was a certain vibe.
“Kii… heh, hehe… hehehe…”
Happy with how things were going, Yane grinned genuinely.
Though it looked like a silly, naive smile, it was pure enough to tug at the hearts of the uncles and fathers in the audience.
['Kawatori' has donated 30,000 won!]
ㄴShe’s super cute.
['MintOreo' has donated 5,000 won!]
['MeatEatingKanfu' has donated 45,000 won!]
“Kii, kie!?”
As dozens of donation messages poured in all at once, Yane was flustered, unsure of how to react.
The sounds weren’t as loud as donations over 100,000 won, but she understood that these were different from regular chat messages.
However, Shia typically only responded to the louder donations, so Yane wasn’t sure whether to react to these smaller (?) donations.
[lol her confusion is hilarious lol]
[Look at her wide eyes]
[She looks like my cat]
[More and more]
[That’s kka-hyem.]
[lol even the way her pupils are shaking is cute lol]
['KawaiiHorned' has donated 100,000 won!]
ㄴYou’re adorable. What’s your name?
Thankfully, a loud donation came through to help Yane make up her mind.
"Eh, uh… Yane!"
[Yane?]
[Ya!Ne?]
[Ya?Ne]
[Ya!Ham!]
"Yane, Yane. I’m Yane. Kieek!"
[Yane!]
[Yane!]
[Yane is invincible, and Shia is all chest!]
[?]
[Yane!]
[Ya!Ne!]
That’s how the viewers came to know her name.
['HardChocoChip' has donated 100,000 won!]
ㄴTake off your shirt and show us your chest.
At that moment, as another loud donation sound blared, Yane’s attention turned toward it.
[?]
[Out of line]
[There’s nothing he won’t say to a kid]
[These brainless idiots are always the problem lol]
Naturally, the viewers started scolding that crazy guy.
In real life, he’d probably have been mobbed by countless others.
“Kie?”
[?]
[Hey, wtf]
[Insane]
However, Yane, the innocent blade centipede girl, did not understand the inappropriate request to take off her shirt and immediately attempted to fulfill it.
She didn’t know it was bad or anything.
[Wow]
[omg omg]
[No, stop, stop]
[Hey, the stream’s gonna get shut down]
[Stop, seriously]
[Put your shirt on!!!!]
[Whoa, crazy]
[It’s so big...]
『Switch AI has detected inappropriate content! This broadcast will be forcibly terminated!』
“Kie, kie???”
When the stream was abruptly cut off and the viewers all disappeared simultaneously, Yane’s face fell, her pupils trembling with confusion.
“U, uuuu…”
Once again, Yane began to feel sad.
Why did they all leave?
Is it because they don’t like me?
“Bweeeeeeeng!!!”