Chapter 18
The next day.
「Great work today, I’ll be leaving first.」
「Yep, see ya, good work.」
The high school part-timer replies indifferently as always.
With evening arriving, Isamu’s part-time shift at the store ends for the day.
He gives his usual curt goodbye to the unenthusiastic high school student and leaves.
Casually checking his phone, he notices a new email notification. The subject line reads: 「Dream Fantasy – Announcement of First Event」.
(Oh, it’s finally here!)
Isamu thinks excitedly as he opens the message.
The email states that the first event will be a battle royale.
It’s the standard ruleset where the play area gradually shrinks over time, with the last surviving player declared the winner.
This time it will be an individual competition.
The event is scheduled for 12pm, 10 days from now on Sunday.
Isamu quickly checks his shift schedule saved in his photo folder and luckily has that day off.
「Alright!」
Now he can participate.
Continuing to read through the rest of the email, there are details about the prizes.
The top ranking players will get early access to try out several new items before they are officially implemented.
Additionally, special marks will be displayed next to their names on profile pages and forums.
(…Pretty unimpressive.)
Isamu thinks. People’s opinions may differ, but he doesn’t find the prizes particularly appealing.
But honestly, he doesn’t really care about the rewards.
He just wants to join the event and have fun.
Plus, he knows he has no chance at ranking near the top anyway.
With those thoughts, Isamu heads home.
☆
The moment he arrives home, his phone vibrates as if welcoming him back.
Looks like another email.
Isamu grabs an energy drink from the fridge to quench his thirst and checks his phone.
「Hm?」
The notification preview reads: 「Hello, this is Kimura from Sundapole Inc.」
Sundapole is one of Japan’s leading game developers.
They co-developed Dream Fantasy with another major game company and now handle the operational duties.
(From the game admins? What could this be about…)
Isamu wonders as he opens the email to read the full contents.
「…Huh?」
He blurts out in disbelief after finishing it.
The message inquires whether Isamu would be interested in appearing as a guest commentator for Dream Fantasy’s inaugural event.
The event will be broadcast in-game and on the official channel, so this is an invitation to participate in that.
Further details about compensation and such can be discussed over a video call.
(Wait, why me…?)
Normally celebrities and famous streamers get invited to these kinds of event streams.
Isamu, fitting neither of those descriptions, has no idea why they reached out to him of all people.
But the fact remains that he did indeed receive an offer.
Deciding it would be rude to ignore it, Isamu figures he should at least hear them out before accepting or declining.
「Um, thank you very much for reaching out to me regarding this opportunity. I would greatly appreciate if you could provide me with more details. That should work…」
Isamu sends that reply and waits for a response while eating dinner.
The email comes back promptly, expressing gratitude for his interest and asking when would be a good time to discuss further.
After some back and forth, they agree to have a video call right away.
Isamu powers up his laptop, clicks the provided URL, and the other person’s face appears on screen.
It’s an intelligent-looking man wearing glasses who seems a little younger than Isamu.
「Ah, hello. I’m Taida.」
『Mr Taida! I’m sorry for the sudden request. Nice to meet you, I’m Kimura.』
「N-nice to meet you too!」
『So Mr Taida, we would really love to have you make an appearance if you’re up for it. What do you think?』
「Um, pardon me for asking, but why me exactly?」
Isamu asks the obvious question.
After all, he’s just an unremarkable 35-year-old part-time worker.
Hardly the type of person you’d expect to be invited as an event guest.
『Ah, well that’s because――』
Kimura launches into a passionate explanation of why they approached Isamu.
In summary, it seems to come down to Isamu’s popularity as the 「Tutorial Guy」 that got him selected.
Still, even hearing that, Isamu doesn’t quite understand.
「I mean, sure, I guess some people know me, but I’m still a total nobody, you know?」
「What are you saying! The Tutorial Guy is all anyone can talk about in Dream Fantasy these days! There are even online news articles about you! Didn’t you know?」
(Online articles… oh, he must mean the stuff about Elena.)
「Ah, but those articles were mainly focused on Elena, I was just tacked on as an extra…」
『No no, there are separate articles just about you, Isamu! With tons of comments too! You weren’t aware?』
「…huh? No, I had no idea.」
『I see. Well, that’s another reason – the Tutorial Guy is a huge topic of discussion all over the place these days. We figured having you appear would really liven up the event. That’s the honest reason we decided to reach out to you.』
In other words, Isamu would basically serve as a circus animal to attract viewers.
Apparently he’s become way more famous than he thought.
But he still has doubts.
「…Um, wouldn’t someone like Elena be a better choice then?」
She has name recognition and more importantly, the glamorous factor.
Seems perfect as an event guest.
So why him instead of her?
『Ah, we did invite Elena first but she turned us down! Said she wants to participate as a player, not a guest. The other popular streamers said the same.』
「I- I see…」
That clarifies things for Isamu.
『By the way, I forgot to mention – in terms of compensation, we were hoping to offer around this much.』
Kimura makes a sideways peace sign at the camera.
「20,000 yen?」
Frankly, getting paid that much just to talk about a game for a day sounds quite appealing.
However, Isamu fears this responsibility may be too great for him to handle.
He’s unsure if he can pull it off well, and feels bad potentially letting Kimura down.
Isamu starts to think he should politely decline…
『Hm? No, I meant 200,000.』
Kimura says, dropping a bombshell.
「T-two hundred thousand yen?!」
『Yes. I apologize, it will have to be a bit less than what we would pay Elena or the other top streamers.』
For a convenience store worker like Isamu, 200,000 yen is an astronomical sum.
It’s more than his entire monthly salary.
Getting that much money for just one day of talking about a game…
Isamu had only one answer.
「Um, if you’ll have me… I- I’d be delighted to accept.」
He says, financial motivations overriding his hesitation. Certainly crass, but understandable given his barely scraping by lifestyle.
『Really? That’s fantastic!』
「Y-yes! If you’re okay with a lame middle-aged guy like me.」
『You’re a lifesaver, Mr Taida! I was at a total loss for what to do if you turned me down too.』
「Ahaha… well then, I look forward to working with you.」
『Likewise! I’ll send you more specifics via email later!』
And so, rather than a participant, Isamu found himself becoming a guest commentator for Dream Fantasy’s first ever event.
Check out my Patreon for early access to upcoming updates. Patreon Link