Hobbyist VTuber-Chapter 269

- Is God and the Goblin on now?

- Episode 14’s preview passed 1.5 million views 😱

- Skipping my part-time shift to watch the live broadcast lmao

ㄴ My boss is crying

ㄴ Your boss probably skipped work to watch too, lol

- Thought this was some cringey Korean romance, but why is everyone trying to die??

- This drama is all crisis, confession, crisis, confession

ㄴ That’s why we watch

ㄴ Confession = death flag, classic

God and the Goblin had already been generating buzz well before it officially aired.

Not only was it Kang Seon-woo’s long-awaited comeback after a lengthy hiatus, but it also marked a reunion with Ha-eun, who had cemented herself as a ten-million-ticket actress with Veterans.

These two headlines combined to break 20% in viewer ratings during its premiere.

Some skeptics chalked it up to temporary hype—but that couldn’t explain the consistently climbing ratings each week.

Now, with the 14th episode airing, the show was on the brink of achieving an average viewer rating of 40%.

And with its popularity exploding globally, God and the Goblin had become a truly unstoppable phenomenon.

No one understood this better than OTV’s drama department—and its executives.

“Has Lee Ha-eun arrived safely in Japan?”

“Yes. She’s resting comfortably at the hotel.”

“Please remind her to take care of her condition. We don’t want her getting worn out from her personal schedule.”

God and the Goblin wasn’t just a “promising” drama.

It was a drama the network had to push.

Even when compared to terrestrial dramas beyond its cable competition, it had no serious rival—an extremely rare case.

This was why the network had greenlit international promotions.

With Japan showing the strongest reaction after Korea, they aimed to sustain the fervor all the way to the finale.

“I heard Kang Seon-woo is fairly fluent in Japanese?”

“Yes, and Lee Ha-eun has also been learning. She’s reportedly conversational now.”

“Oh? That’s good news.”

Scheduled just days before the final episode:

An appearance on NBH, Japan’s largest broadcaster.

A fan meeting in a 10,000-seat venue.

The goal was clear: keep the flames of God and the Goblin burning until the very end.

The drama stood shoulder-to-shoulder with legendary titles from the early days of the Korean Wave—

series that once caused an entire country to buzz with excitement.

That alone proved its cultural impact.

Everyone at OTV was behind it, united in one mission.

“What do you think Kang Seon-woo and Lee Ha-eun will work on next?”

“Kang Seon-woo hasn’t decided, but... as for Ha-eun, probably a film. I hear she’s already filming it.”

What made God and the Goblin truly beloved was the performances.

The leads’ raw, emotional acting was the driving force behind its success.

Naturally, all attention turned toward them—especially with the story entering its endgame.

The final arc between Baek Jin and Baeksulhwa was, in and of itself, the climax.

So, when all eyes were glued to God and the Goblin—

“...Baek Jin.”

“White ‘baek’... forward ‘jin’...”

A trembling voice whispered the name, syllable by syllable.

Not with hope. Not with affection. But with the desperate longing to hold on.

“You said you'd come whenever I called. You told me to call you loudly—loud enough for you to hear...”

Then, a pause. A breath caught in her throat.

Her lips dried out, so she pressed them tightly together to avoid breaking down mid-sentence.

“I’m not letting you go. I can’t. You always decide everything on your own and end it all yourself—how can I let you go like that?”

Her legs gave way, and she collapsed.

A fragile figure, consumed by emotion.

And all of it—just through acting—drew viewers so deeply into Baeksulhwa’s pain.

“If you die, then I die. I can’t live without you. How am I supposed to go on without you?!”

A scream—not of anger, but of sheer grief.

But the only reply was the flickering streetlamp down a deserted road.

“I love you... please... don’t go...”

Shoulders trembling under the crushing silence,

tears rising from the very bottom of her heart.

To Baeksulhwa, Baek Jin had become her happiness.

And now that happiness was preparing to die.

- She’s crying like a little kid... that’s what makes it worse

-What’s going to happen to Sulhwa 😭

- Is Baek Jin’s hobby just dying or what

ㄴ Bro will die if they stay together, what else is he supposed to do;;

- Is this the last episode??

- If he leaves her like this she’ll be traumatized for life

- god this hurts so bad ffs

- Hong Soo-eun <<< has never heard of happy endings

- At least Ha-eun didn’t die this time? She died in The Sunshine though

SNS and online forums exploded.

People were hooked by every flicker in her voice—every twitch of the lip—

every expression as she stood at the edge of anxiety, dread, love, and desperation.

“You said you wanted me to live... freёweɓnovel_com

that you wanted me to see spring flowers, and autumn leaves...”

A sob burst out—

not the cry of goodbye,

but a wretched cry clutching onto a happiness that could never be hers.

She denied the reality of losing the man she loved.

But all she could do was plead—over and over again.

“I, Baeksulhwa...

what was I to you...?”

Scattered emotions, shattered trust, fear of abandonment—

every bit of it spilled out in tear-choked words.

No longer reasoned thoughts—just the raw, uncontrolled swell of emotion.

Thick tears, heavier than raindrops, streamed down her flushed cheeks.

But her collapsed body could no longer move.

—Stumble.

—Crack. Crack...

She didn’t even notice the trees beside her were splintering.

The winter wind howled.

- Wait what

- Holy shit holy shit holy shit

- Did the tree actually break??

- No way... was Baeksulhwa the one who dies??

- Oh my god

- That was brutal

And then—

—CRACK!

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

Just as the massive tree snapped and fell toward Baeksulhwa—

“...You were everything to me.”

The voice she longed for the most finally spoke.

And with it, the shattered tree pieces froze in midair.

There—his face.

The one she’d ached to see.

“Ahjeo...ssi...”

She froze—voice, tears, breath—all halted.

Another wave of emotion surged from deep within.

As if sensing it all, Baek Jin slowly knelt to meet her tear-soaked eyes.

But then his gaze shifted—

and landed on the will in her hands.

“...The dead have no place in the world of the living.”

With a calm yet bitter voice, he acknowledged that he was planning to say goodbye to Baeksulhwa.

A trembling voice followed immediately, as if trying to forcibly deny Baek Jin’s words.

"I... I don’t care."

"Your very fate is out of sync."

"I don’t care. Fate or whatever... I don’t care anymore."

Then, Baeksulhwa’s two arms weakly reached out and barely managed to hold on to Baek Jin.

At the same time, she quietly leaned her head on his shoulder and let out a tearful breath.

Like a child who had lost her place of comfort, her trembling lips begged him.

"I... I can’t live without you. How am I supposed to live in a world without a single precious person...?"

With each word she spoke, her voice trembled in fear.

Because when Baek Jin pushed her away, she knew it was truly the end—so she held on even tighter.

Even as her consciousness faded from the continued crying, she tried not to let go until the very, very end.

But unfortunately—

"I’m... really happy right now. So please, don’t ever... leave me again."

Because Baeksulhwa said the word happy with her own mouth—

What was meant to be a final plea to keep Baek Jin by her side instead triggered the beginning of his disappearance.

The words Baek Jin had longed to hear.

The moment he had so desperately wished for.

With those two syllables that ended all of Baek Jin’s regrets, his fingertips began to fade away.

Sensing the strangeness in his body, he silently lowered his eyes, not even letting out a sigh.

"I was happy. Every single moment I spent with you."

He said his final goodbye to Baeksulhwa, now fast asleep in his arms.

Then, he gently placed his scar-covered hand on her forehead.

He realized then that he mustn’t make Baeksulhwa suffer anymore.

Even as his form began to scatter into the air from the hem of his clothes, he poured all his remaining strength into erasing her memories.

And finally—

"The dead must answer the call of the reaper."

The moment the voice of a grim reaper echoed from beyond—

"I love you."

The tearful eyes that had been gazing at Baeksulhwa smiled.

Utterly, joyfully.

"My Baeksulhwa."

He smiled.

Even moments later, when he lost the power to maintain his shape and dissolved into ashes—

He wore a soft, gentle smile.

- Did he really disappear?

- Thank you for loving Gods and Goblins until now.

- What the hell is this 😭😭

- Wasn’t this a 16-episode series???

- Holy shit, did he really die..?

- So now Baeksulhwa has no one left?

- Hah 😂😂 how are we supposed to survive till next week

- Episode 14 = mass funeral for the viewers

- What about the wedding??? The honeymoon??

Then time, which had been slowly accelerating, moved /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ forward.

Scenes of Baeksulhwa living alone after Baek Jin’s disappearance played as the teaser for episode 15.

The gentle instrumental of “Snowflower” played in the background.

And finally, just as the teaser reached its end—

"General?"

Episode 1’s flashback began to air, edited in a distinctly different tone.

Baeksulhwa, dressed in a pure white hanbok as in the past centuries, wore a confused expression.

And standing before her, wearing modern clothes, was Baek Jin with a bitter gaze.

"In the end, I... left your side."

With Baek Jin’s quiet monologue, episode 15’s teaser came to a complete close.

SNS and online communities were already more chaotic than ever.

"I... hic... I knew it... I knew it would end like this... sob... why did I even watch this...."

- Is the streamer crying?

- Yo ...Haha, that's funny! she’s crying 😂

- It’s too sad 😭😭😭

- Nael got played again

- But yeah today kinda broke my heart

Even Nael, who streamed every episode of Gods and Goblins, was no exception.

It was fortunate that episodes 15 and 16 were still left, but...

The hope that there might be a happy ending felt more like cruel torture than anything else.

"His memory is gone... his body is gone... ahh... what’s going to happen now... it’s too painful to keep watching this drama..."

- I'm crying, this is so sad!

- Kang Seon-woo’s final look was so soulful, fr

- Honestly, it’s good because it’s not predictable

- I have no idea what’s going to happen in the next episode

While Nael and her viewers talked about the developments in Gods and Goblins—

Over in Japan, Ha-eun had just finished watching the episode with people she never expected to.

“Wh-what just happened? Is that the end?”

“Ha-eun-san, that wasn’t the ending, right? That’s not how it ends, right?”

“Uh, well... there are still about two episodes left...”

Facing those desperately anxious eyes, Ha-eun looked awkward and uncomfortable.

And for some reason, she had this uneasy feeling that they might ask her to spoil the ending.

So in the end, she just kept repeating, Please look forward to next week, and did her best to calm Aqua and Lucid down.

It was the only thing she could do in that moment.

Thankfully, she managed to settle down their slightly agitated voices.

However, after leaving Lucid’s house and returning to the hotel where Joo Jeong-yoon was waiting—

More specifically—

“You have to go again today?”

“Yes. We have to test whether the connection between this studio and Korea works properly.”

When Ha-eun visited the Prism Live studio again the following afternoon—

“H-Ha-eun. Ha-eun-san─!!”

“?!”

She was met by an Aqua even more excited than the day before.

And within seconds, a phone was shoved in front of her face.

♪ We must remember ♪

“This! This! This is you, right, Ha-eun-san?!”

On the phone, adorned with a cute keychain, played a song she’d heard many times before—

Alongside choreography she recognized all too well.

“Why didn’t you say anything?! I’m a huge Ignite fan! If I’d known you did a song with Song Hyeon-min─!”

❮Senpai, please calm down.❯

Aqua’s face was practically glowing with excitement at seeing Ha-eun in the music video for Song Hyeon-min’s new song, “Num0.”

And behind her, Lucid tried her best to calm Aqua down.

Having to face yet another day full of unexpected reactions, Ha-eun could only wear a sheepish expression.

It wasn’t like she was trying to hide her role in “Num0,” so she felt a bit unfairly attacked.

“You’re gonna say this is just a hobby too, aren’t you? Dancing with Song Hyeon-min was a hobby, right, Ha-eun-san?!”

“Well, uh... technically, yes... it is a hobby...”

“AAAH! Who shoots a music video with Song Hyeon-min as a hobby?! What kind of luxurious hobby is this─”

“S-sorry, Ha-eun-san. Let’s get you out of here for now. I’ll try to handle senpai somehow...!”

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