TGAT 10

Chapter 10

“Phew~ Part 1 done! Everyone, it’s break time! Let’s rest for about 30 minutes! I also need to see Jay off!”

Kim Yong-joo played the highlight video and then muted the microphone.

“Great work, everyone.”
“Work? Jun, you did all the work. Seriously, I was amazed. You’re a true gaming master.”
“Please speak comfortably. You’re my senior, but I’ll call you ‘hyung’ (older brother) too.”
“Oh, shall we do that?”

Kim Yong-joo hesitated for a moment, then, as if giving up on formality, patted Song Jun’s shoulder. He couldn’t just watch quietly, having gone through countless trials himself while growing his own generalist YouTube channel.

“I know it’s not really my business, but you said you want to become a generalist YouTuber, right?”

Most people would get arrogant or stiff as a board if their YouTube took off right away, but Song Jun didn’t seem like that kind of person.

“When you’re starting your YouTube channel, it’s good to push consistently on a single topic. Most people will have subscribed because they liked your game skills. Especially after today’s broadcast.”
“Ah! Thank you for the advice.”
“Imagine people visit a tonkatsu restaurant just for tonkatsu, but suddenly they serve jjajangmyeon or jokbal instead. What do you think will happen?”

Song Jun fully understood Kim Yong-joo’s point. It was similar to what Joo Young-seok had worried about.

“Until I get a solid footing, it’s best to keep focusing on gaming, I guess.”
“You could start a sub-channel or use other social media for other talents. Otherwise, you can maintain game uploads while adding new things gradually. YouTube categories expand according to subscriber demand anyway.”

Using a sub-channel or other platforms like Café or Instagram was very common.

“I’ll need to think carefully about the channel’s direction.”
“Oh, and one more thing.”

Kim Yong-joo held up his finger as if emphasizing something crucial.

“It’d be good to decorate your channel a bit. No matter how good the food is, people are drawn in by presentation. Channel art, thumbnails, intros, outros… If you truly want to become a YouTuber, these matter.”
“Ah… I see. I definitely need to pay more attention to that. It’s a basic thing I’ve been neglecting.”

He had been so obsessed with improving his game skills that he hadn’t considered this. Everything from the channel banner to the profile was just a basic design or text.

“Right. First, decorate your channel, upload videos frequently, and don’t stress over views. As subscribers grow, views will naturally increase.”

Once Kim Yong-joo started talking, he couldn’t stop, pouring out advice out of genuine concern for Song Jun.

“I’ll invite you when I do collabs with the younger ones I contact later. It’s good to have some familiarity. You can’t just play solo games forever. Collabs are almost mandatory in game streams.”
“I’d be grateful if you do.”
“Hehe. Whatever game it is, the battles for dominance are going to be intense.”
“Ah! That’s well said.”

Song Jun joked around, packed his things, and handed over a mask.

“Hehe… this is a gift. Take it.”
“This looks expensive…”
“No matter how expensive, it would just be a decoration here. Jun, you can actually use it. Think of it as a tip~”
“Then I’ll gratefully accept it.”

Song Jun didn’t refuse and slid the mask into his bag, thinking it would be quite useful.

As Song Jun left, Kim Yong-joo stared at the door for a while, thinking about a highly unlikely possibility.

“Unless that tonkatsu place sells jjajangmyeon, jokbal, and stir-fried pork at insane quality levels…”

But since that was extremely unlikely, he chuckled and shook his head.

[Skills Acquired (2/3): Gaming (69), Voice (16)]

“Wow… this is sweet.”

After only four intense hours of gaming, his skill level had risen considerably.

“Do viewers watching more help skill increase faster?”

Especially, it felt like his gaming skills improved faster than when playing alone.

“Gaming. Voice. And YouTube.”

Listening to Kim Yong-joo helped him determine the direction for his YouTube channel and what to do immediately.

“What should I do…”

There were two ways to decorate a YouTube channel: learn the skill yourself or outsource.

“How much does it cost to outsource artwork? Young-seok knows this well.”

[Joo Young-seok: Outsourcing? It varies wildly.]
[Young-seok: Some charge cheap, some expensive depending on difficulty. Even thumbnails… average around 10,000 won. Of course, more difficult jobs cost more. Channel art: around 100,000 won. Profiles: tens of thousands. Intros/outros, 50–100k depending on complexity.]

It was hard to pin down a price.

“So, initial costs plus continuous cost per video…”

Even if it was 10k–20k per video, it would add up. Ten videos already cost 100k.

[Young-seok: But you need to pick your outsourcing carefully. Many aren’t diligent, edits are limited, extra charges for multiple revisions, some even disappear mid-project. Managing people is stressful, really stressful.]
[Young-seok: Sometimes, even if you stream actively, YouTube uploads can get interrupted. If something goes wrong in the editing or thumbnail process, you can’t upload. Plus copyright issues. It’s a total mess.]

After turning off Young-seok’s continuous venting, Song Jun thought.

“Outsourcing… maybe I should leave one skill slot open. But just thinking about it is exhausting. Copyright is tricky too. If I make it, I have to use it as a main image.”

Many art pieces were sold with a clause for YouTube use only; using it elsewhere incurred extra fees.

“Hmm… maybe it’s better to learn the skill myself rather than spend so much effort outsourcing.”

He still pondered. If he learned a third skill, he wouldn’t be able to pick it up later when urgently needed.

“Luckily my gaming skill is near 70, so acquiring this fast is best.”

Ding dong—

“Ah…”

Looking at his phone, Song Jun sighed. Less than a million won in his account, plus a portion of the donation from yesterday’s collab with Kim Yong-joo.

“Empty… bills, maintenance fees, phone bills…”

YouTube revenue wasn’t much yet.

“Money… I need to save. What should I learn?”

It had to be something useful for YouTube: intros, outros, thumbnails, profiles.

“And something that can make money.”

Very important.

A skill that saves money and earns money. Essential for running YouTube now.

“And maximize gaming skill as fast as possible.”

On the subway home, he chose his third skill.

“Accessing skill-sharing network.”

[Which skill would you like to search for?]

It had to help YouTube immediately, be easy to upload, and increase skill quickly through diverse activities.

“Drawing.”

A palette, brush, and canvas appeared in his mind, bringing color to the previously grayscale space.

“Ah… drawing feels like a completely different domain.”

It felt like stepping into a completely new world. Maybe because drawing was an art form.

“Ah… it’s a different universe entirely.”

Although the skill-sharing network’s universe hadn’t changed, Song Jun’s perception and impression had.

“Beautiful…”

The colors and light were vivid and fresh. After staring for a while, he returned to his studio apartment.

“Expensive… so expensive.”

He searched for a drawing tablet. Even the cheapest models were 200–300k won; better ones cost hundreds of thousands.

“Wow. Over a million won, and it’s not even a high-end model. Argh. Screen tablets look better, but I have no money…”

Considering his account balance, he bought a tablet for about 200k won, holding back tears.

[Skills Acquired (3/3): Gaming (69), Voice (16), Drawing (2)]

“Ugh… just 2.”

He realized drawing would require consistent effort.

The collab with Dr. Kim was a huge success.

“Whoa, almost 7,000 subscribers. Sweet, so sweet.”

Joo Young-seok couldn’t stop smirking at the real-time subscriber count in Creative Studio.

“Yeah, I applied for revenue.”
“Already? Did views hit the threshold?”
“Shorts really boost views fast.”
“In less than a month, revenue approval and 10k subs… insane speed…”
“When Dr. Kim’s video uploads, I’ll post a highlight too. That’ll blow it up again.”
“Absolutely.”

Checking comment reactions, Young-seok showed some concern.

“But what about channel art? You should draw it quickly.”

For the subscriber count, the page looked too empty. Normally, YouTubers start with this.

“Should I help you connect with outsourcing?”
“No, it’s fine. I think I can change it by tomorrow.”
“What? You outsourced it yourself?”

Song Jun shook his head, showing the monitor instead.

“What do you think of this?”

The screen displayed an unfinished, uncolored drawing.

“Wait, a tablet?”
“I bought it recently, using donations from the last stream. Needed it.”

Now the tablet and drawing caught Young-seok’s attention.

A character wearing a mask and hoodie, lying on a beanbag and gaming on a pad, drawn from Dr. Kim’s stream.

“Hmm…”

The background looked like a studio apartment, decorated with gaming trophies, symbolizing completing challenges.

“Channel art looks good.”
“Really? That’s a relief.”

The drawing itself wasn’t bad, and it hit the key points—the atmosphere too. One question: it seemed high-level for Song Jun.

“You drew this?”
“Of course. Well, I’m still drawing it.”

Young-seok couldn’t find words, muttering for a while.

“When did you even learn to draw?”

Thinking back, he had never seen Song Jun draw before.

“Hmm… skill isn’t bad, right?”
“Pretty good… this guy’s mysterious.”

Gaming skills, voice, now drawing. Even as a longtime friend, Song Jun’s new side was astonishing.

“Oh, can you take drawing commissions?”
“Commissions? Portfolio might be needed.”
“I’ll add mine to the portfolio and submit it. Lower the price to attract requests?”
“Then there’ll be demand.”

Both supply and demand were high. Good drawing could be used for channel art, thumbnails, profiles, or VTuber backgrounds—many genres.

“Will you upload your drawings to YouTube?”
“Hmm… not yet, I’ll focus on gaming first. Maybe post them on Instagram.”

And he planned to explore outside as well.

This time, it would be Song Jun, not Jay.