I Became a Raid Boss-Chapter 178: Variation (2)

Da-eun knew that she was somewhat famous.

Of course, it wasn't the level of fame of a celebrity who frequently appears on TV.

Even though the times have changed, and more people prefer OTT platforms over traditional broadcast TV, public recognition still leans more toward mainstream media.

She wasn't a top-tier celebrity, but there were still people who recognized her while walking down the street.

That’s how Da-eun perceived her level of fame.

Having a certain level of fame was a good thing.

She wasn’t just an ordinary office worker...

Actually, even if she were an ordinary office worker, being famous wouldn’t be a bad thing, as long as it's for the right reasons.

It’s not like it’s bad to be known for things like:

“Wow, that person is really good at their job.”

“Oh, that’s [name]? A reliable person.”

Or,

“If it’s you, I’m sure I can trust you with this.”

Who wouldn't like hearing things like that?

Even office workers enjoy that kind of recognition. For someone like Da-eun, who worked in personal broadcasting, recognition was basically a means of livelihood.

So, having people recognize her and like her was generally a good thing—

But, just like how medicine can be both a cure and a poison depending on how it's used, high recognition often came with its own set of problems.

People would twist and exaggerate her small actions, spread baseless rumors out of jealousy, beg for money from strangers, or even send unsolicited pictures of their body parts...

She had grown used to it now, but when she was new to the internet, she was stressed out by these things and sometimes even cried herself to sleep.

And stalkers and doxxing were among the "downsides of being famous."

There were those who went beyond simply wanting to be close to their favorite idols, influencers, and celebrities.

Da-eun had heard stories about how members of idol groups suffered from obsessive fans, how their personal information was leaked, and how their families were tormented by it.

Because of these, she was wary of the kind of people who could become attached to her.

However, there was something she had underestimated.

“Huh?”

It was a quiet, dark street at night.

To carry out his important mission of defeating monsters threatening humanity—

Or to put it simply, to play an augmented reality game, a man raised his head.

He heard a voice from a distance.

This chapt𝓮r is updat𝒆d by ƒreeωebnovel.ƈom.

At first, he thought, “Who’s making noise in the middle of the night?”

Although it wasn’t quite the middle of the night, and the voice wasn’t particularly loud, it wasn’t enough to catch his attention.

He was already upset after being stood up by a friend he had promised to play with, and what he needed was something to chew on, not trivial details like this.

So, despite ignoring the voice, something about it started to feel strangely familiar.

It was like a memory just on the tip of his tongue.

“...Ah!”

The man, who had been frowning, suddenly exclaimed.

It was like Archimedes discovering the principle of buoyancy.

“Isn’t that...?”

The man had heard the name "Journey" more often than his real name—he was a personal broadcaster and creator.

Though he wasn’t a hardcore fan, he considered himself a fan.

As soon as the thought crossed his mind, the tone and inflection of the voice became more familiar.

It wasn’t a real friendship, but the sense of closeness was there, built over time.

To actually see someone he’d only watched on a screen?

“...Should I ask for a picture? Damn... I should’ve brought some paper.”

It wasn’t like he could predict that this kind of encounter would happen, even though he couldn’t see the future.

He muttered with a mix of excitement and surprise and started walking toward the figure coming from the opposite side.

“Fix this already.”

He muttered under his breath as he walked beneath a broken streetlight.

How long had it been since it was broken, and they still hadn’t fixed it?

He was thinking of submitting a complaint when he got home.

Before that, though, he’d brag to his friends about meeting Journey.

The distance between them shrank, but the voice seemed to have faded. It seemed like the woman was aware of him approaching.

‘...That feels strange now.’

Normally, when walking in the streets at night, he would either walk past people or pretend to look at his phone.

But now, he was approaching a woman directly.

‘She doesn’t think I’m a dangerous person, does she?’

He hesitated for a moment, realizing how odd it felt.

But soon, he steeled himself.

It wasn’t the chance of a lifetime, but it was still a rare one.

Especially for someone like him, who had no interest in fan meetings or signing events.

“Hmm?”

As he approached, his eyes caught something he hadn’t noticed before.

A small doll was clinging to Journey’s side.

Journey, taller than the average South Korean woman, walking down a dark street, the joy of meeting her idol—it all matched perfectly, and only now did the doll become visible as the distance closed.

‘Is that a man?’

That was the first thought that crossed the man’s mind.

‘Could it be her boyfriend?’

Then the next thought followed.

The way they were so close, it looked like a friendly sibling bond, but who knew?

Wait, siblings?

“...!”

The man, muttering to himself, shuddered as if struck by lightning.

Now that he thought about it, wasn’t there an episode with Journey’s cousin appearing on a broadcast recently?

She was quiet, and though her appearance wasn’t long, viewers were charmed by her calm voice and the contrasting cuteness despite her small stature.

And then came the climax in the later part of the broadcast.

The image of her slumped in a chair, dozing off.

Even though her face wasn’t visible due to a mask, that made people’s imaginations run wild.

“Journey’s cousin helping her with the explanation” quickly turned into “Journey’s cute, sickly, and impressive little cousin.”

Had he not known about it in the first place, it might’ve been fine.

Viewers, left craving more after such a short appearance, had been asking for more, from casual questions about her well-being to requests to appear without the mask.

But the requests were always the same.

Those who raised their voices were all silenced by Journey herself, metaphorically decapitated.

Those who realized the severity of the situation avoided mentioning her cousin, and Journey’s cousin slowly faded from people’s minds...

Outwardly, it seemed like people had forgotten, but beneath the surface, far from the eyes of the public, people were still gossiping about Journey’s cousin.

Though the heat had cooled a little since the initial buzz, it hadn’t died down entirely.

“Could it be...?”

It was a stretch.

But the man couldn’t help but compare the little figure next to Journey to the cousin he had seen on the broadcast.

And he came to a conclusion.

‘It really seems like her.’

He had no solid evidence or data to compare.

But he was convinced that the small girl next to Journey was the same one who had appeared on the broadcast.

It wasn’t so much a deduction as it was a wishful thought.

‘This is the moment!’

Anyone who had seen Journey’s cousin up close would never have guessed this.

All he could think of was how much attention he’d get by posting about this encounter.

The fact that they were ordinary people didn’t matter.

The man quickened his pace, excited at the thought of what would come.

Tap.

Thud.

A light step followed by a slightly heavier one.

A face with sunglasses appeared in the dark.

It was after dark, and yet, sunglasses?

It was clear they were trying to hide their face, but when the man saw the jawline, he was sure it was Journey.

“He-”

The man tried to gather his courage and speak.

He wanted to ask if this was the broadcaster Journey and tell her that he was a fan, but his lips wouldn’t move.

It was hard for him to talk to a woman, especially a famous one, given his lack of experience with women.

When he froze up, the two approaching figures subtly shifted their positions.

Though it was hard to see through the sunglasses, he could sense their wariness.

The woman, acting as if she were protecting the child, quickly passed by him.

As they passed by, he realized how quickly they were distancing themselves from him.

The distance closed, but they were pulling away at a far greater speed.

It was no doubt a matter of perception.

He glanced over at their retreating figures, watching them shrink in the distance, until they completely disappeared.

He stared at his phone, which had gone into power-saving mode, and tapped it.

The screen lit up brighter than the faint moonlight.

“Unbelievable...”

There, on the screen, were the pink eyes he had just seen.