The grandmother took the 30,000 won and stared at it for a moment before sighing.
"The Little One wants more."
"I really don't have any."
"......"
"Want me to show you my bank account?"
Plenty of people had probably offered to show her their wallets, but she must have never met someone who offered to show their bank account. The grandmother stared holes through me for a good long while.
Then she pocketed the money and beckoned me closer with a gesture.
"Why?"
"Come closer, child."
"Okay."
I moved closer to her, and she tapped my forehead with her finger. What was that?
"How are your eyes?"
"Sorry? My eyes?"
Now that she mentioned it, they did seem a bit clearer?
Then again, maybe not.
"I've put a bit of my own energy into you, so you should be fine for a while. And rest when your eyes hurt. Don't try to force the visions."
"......You can tell that sort of thing too?"
"Of course. There's nothing the Little One doesn't know. Compared to the Great Mother you'll come to serve, my Little One is merely a newborn — but still."
"What?"
The Great Mother — what's that now?
I wanted to ask more, but the grandmother waved me off.
"That's enough. Off you go."
"......Thank you."
The atmosphere made it clear there'd be no more questions, so I bowed to the grandmother, opened the door, and stepped outside into the sunlight flooding the alley.
I closed my eyes there for a moment, and I felt something warm.
A cozy feeling, like a parent wrapping their arms around a child.
I'd never felt it before, being an orphan.
I opened my eyes and took out my phone.
"How much is left......"
My bank balance read 1,200 won.
For the time being, I had pasta ingredients at home, so no problem.
The unpaid convenience store wages should come in soon too, so the short term would be fine — but the long term was the issue.
I had to find a way to survive somehow.
I slipped out of the alley and onto the main road. The sunlight stung, but strangely, I didn't feel bad.
I hadn't realized.
The feeling that someone was watching over me — it was surprisingly reassuring.
For now, let's just go home and prep for the stream.
This was the only lifeline I had right now.
***
As soon as I got home, I turned on the computer and pressed [Start Stream].
"Hello, everyone."
Viewers began trickling in one by one — and you want to know what the surprising part was?
[Viewers: 51]
The moment I started the stream, viewers broke past fifty-one.
......Did I really make it?
Fifty-one.
Less than a minute since I'd gone live, and it was already the same number as when I'd ended yesterday.
No — not just the same. They'd been waiting.
For me.
― He's here
― Been waiting
― Did you go to the shaman?
― We need the review
― Was the divine descent confirmed?
"I'm here! I'm here! Hold on!"
I adjusted the mic position and scanned through the chat.
Everyone had been waiting for the shaman story?
"I just got back from the shaman's parlor!"
― How was it?
― Was it really a divine descent?
― What'd they say?
― Was it a scammer?
"She wasn't a scammer. She knew things about me I'd never mentioned."
I thought for a moment about how to phrase it.
If I told them everything the grandmother said, it'd be too long, but not saying anything felt wrong.
Keep it moderate.
"The thing you've all been most curious about is...... drumroll! She confirmed it's a divine descent."
― Hahahaha for real?
― Knew it
― Of course
― So it's true
― Shaman streamer confirmed
"Since I've received a divine descent, want me to do a blade dance or something?"
― Are you going to walk the blade too?
― Are you doing a cleansing ritual?
― What cleansing ritual? You should do a full ceremony
― Then do you do shamanistic rites too?
― Anonymous donated 1,000 won! ―
[I'm a BAD person, you know? Hehehehe]
― Anonymous donated 1,000 won! ―
[Jinwoo, if you ban that guy I'll donate 5,000 won]
5,000 won...? Slightly tempting?
― Anonymous donated 10,000 won! ―
[Sorry, my dog stepped on the keyboard]
― Anonymous donated 1,000 won! ―
[If it'd been a cat, it would've slapped its servant clean across the face]
"It's fine, it's fine. No matter how bad the joke, money buys forgiveness."
― Did you just call it a bad joke?
― Honestly I snorted
― Dude
― Oh please
― It's a joke, people, a joke
"But the important thing is, she doesn't know what kind of deity it is."
― How does that make sense?
― The shaman doesn't know?
― Lol, refund time
"I thought the same thing, but she said the deity has no reason to reveal their name."
― When you put it that way, it makes sense
― Hahahaha that's logical
― But is the ability real?
"She says it's real. Seeing the present and future at the same time isn't common, apparently."
― Ohhh
― So it really is special
― How much was the consultation fee?
"30,000 won."
― Hahahaha that's cheap
― No, that was his entire fortune
― Then is Jinwoo going to charge a fee too?
― Oh? Right? Should he?
"I've never thought about it, but I probably should?"
If I didn't charge, my daily life would collapse.
"Starting today, I'll only take paid consultations. Maybe five a day? But I'll always do at least one for free."
― One for free?
― This place knows how to do business
― Obviously he'll pick that one last
― For real, that's how you keep viewers from leaving
"Exactly. I was thinking about 30,000 won for the fee, but for about a month I'll only charge 10,000 won. That shouldn't be too much of a burden even for students, right?"
― Yeah, that's doable
― Can't buy tteokbokki on the way home from school anymore
― Wait, are there a lot of students here?
― Yeah, if you put it on while studying you focus way better
......They were leaving it on while studying?
― Anonymous donated 10,000 won! ―
[I call first!]
"Welcome, valued customer. Want to hop on Daincode right now?"
I logged into Daincode and created a room.
Come to think of it, even fortune-telling shops have reviews. Wouldn't my place get more visitors too if we had some?
"If you leave a review after your consultation, I'll serve you next time at a fifty-percent discount."
― This place really knows business
― Jinwoo, why didn't you stream like this from the start?
― He only got divine descent yesterday?
― If it were me, I would've gotten it early in middle school summer break
"Hahaha...... that wasn't possible. Alright, let's start today's stream. Just hop on Daincode. First come, first served. Today's password is 1004 again."
The moment I posted the notice, notifications popped up on Daincode.
One, two, three.
[Viewers: 58]
Not even ten minutes since I went live, and it'd grown again.
"Alright, the person who reserved first? I'll take them now, and the rest will go in order of entry."
At my words, a viewer raised their hand, and I invited them in.
"Hello."
This time it was a young woman's voice — early twenties, maybe?
Tension was palpable in her voice.
A scene unfolded before my eyes — a small studio apartment.
A laptop sat open on the desk, its screen showing a long document.
A resume?
But aside from the name and contact fields, it was almost entirely blank.
Either she had no credentials to fill in, or it was still a work in progress.
On the floor beside the desk, textbooks were stacked up.
Judging by the covers — nursing school.
"Having trouble finding a job?"
"How did you know...?"
"You're preparing to be a nurse."
"How on earth did you know that?!"
Because I can see it.
"Did you pass the national exam?"
"Yes. I passed last year, but I still haven't found a job."
I looked deeper into the studio apartment.
A calendar hung on the wall with several dates circled — interview dates.
The problem was they were all crossed out.
"You've been to a lot of interviews."
"Twelve."
"And you didn't get any of them."
"No."
Her voice grew smaller and smaller.
I looked into the future, and the scene changed.
It was a hospital — not a large one, but this woman was standing there in a nurse's uniform.
The nametag read Lee Haneul.
She looked busy, but her complexion was bright. A senior nurse beside her was explaining something, and Haneul was taking notes diligently.
'She does get hired.'
Next scene.
The same hospital, but further into the future.
Haneul was explaining something to a new nurse.
"I had a really hard time at first too, but you can push through it, Minwoo. I did it, and so can you."
"Haneul sunbae......"
She becomes a good senior.
"You'll be able to find a job within this month."
"Really?!"
"Yes. But it won't be a university hospital. It's a small hospital, but that's where you'll start."
"A small hospital...?"
A brief silence followed.
It was hard to tell whether that silence was disappointment or relief.
I opened my mouth for her sake.
"Doesn't everyone start that way?"
At my words, Haneul let out a small laugh.
"You're right."
"Don't worry too much. You're going to do just fine, Haneul."
"How do you know my name?!"
"Hold out there. If you stick it out, eventually you'll get a good-looking junior too."
At that, she nodded as if she'd made her decision.
"I'll do my absolute best to stick it out."
"Good."
"Love is something I have to seize for myself."
"......Sure."
Her desires were almost transparently clear, but she'd be fine.
Right now things were tough, but her road ahead was paved with flowers.
"Thank you."
"Fighting."
Click — the sound of her leaving, and I checked the chat.
― Okay, this is for real, right?
― He said within this month — if that gets confirmed later I'm going to lose it
― Ask for a review
― What about the people who got counseled yesterday?
― Right, leave some reviews
That's when it happened.
A new message appeared in chat.
― Hi, I'm the student who talked about art school yesterday
Art school yesterday...... Eunhye?
― Eunhye, welcome
― Real name mentioned, that's a ban
― Who are you to decide?
― Don't be mean! Don't be mean! Don't be mean!
― Did you show him the sketchbooks?
"Welcome. How did the talk go?"
― Yes, I showed them
― At first my dad's expression went stiff and I was so scared
― But then he called Mom over and they looked through them together for a long time
― Then Dad suddenly cried
Huh? I didn't see that part.
― Yes ㅠㅠ I cried too
― He's not fully convinced but he agreed to keep talking about it
― It happened just like Jinwoo said
― Thank you so much
Eunhye's update silenced the chat for a moment.
Then it erupted.
― Whoa, is this for real?
― I'm getting chills
― Eunhye, I'm so glad ㅠㅠ
― Jinwoo, this is actually a real ability
"That's great, Eunhye. Keep talking things out with your parents from now on, just like that."
― Anonymous donated 1,000 won! ―
[Jinwoo, don't you talk to your parents?]
"I don't have parents, though?"
― Boo, you're trash, apologize to Jinwoo
― What a piece of trash
― Sir, please shove your face in a plate and hold your breath for thirty minutes
― Anonymous donated 1,000 won! ―
[A friend! You can talk to a friend!]
"I don't have friends either."
― Boo, you're trash, apologize to Jinwoo
― Are you seriously giving him crap for not having friends?
― Sir, please shove your face in a bathtub and hold your breath for an hour
― Anonymous donated 1,000 won! ―
[An acquaintance! You've got to have at least an acquaintance!?]
An acquaintance.......
"Oh, there is one person, but she's the orphanage director, and she's busy looking after the kids — I wouldn't want to bother her?"
― Boo, you're trash
― You must be new here
― Be careful, every topic you touch with this guy is a landmine
― How is every topic a landmine? lol
― Walking landmine, this guy
"Alright, alright, that's enough chit-chat. Time for the second customer."
I invited the second viewer, and this time a middle-aged woman's voice came through.
"Hello."