BLBJ 1.5

Eizen glanced back at the sudden commotion.

Just as people said, a man with a distinctly different face was approaching. He was smiling, but it wasn’t like Christian’s.

Should he say it was a soft, gentle smile? He was a man with aristocratic features, his black hair neatly combed back. His red eyes sparkled with amusement.

‘Just how many love interests are there?’

They said encounters with playable characters would happen, but surely there couldn’t be a dozen or more?

Eizen, who had been staring at him absentmindedly, met the man’s gaze. He flashed a smile and gave a slight nod. It was such a stable, elegant smile that Eisen found himself smiling back at without realizing it.

The new handsome man approached calmly and gently placed his hand on Eizen’s shoulder. It felt completely different from Christian’s clammy touch, refreshingly light.

“I get that you’re fighting over this beautiful person, but could you please pay a little attention to the party atmosphere?”

A beautiful person? Who was he talking about?

Eizen stared at the dark-haired man with a bewildered expression.

Their eyes met. Those jewel-like, beautiful crimson eyes were the very essence of nobility.

“I’m talking about you.”

💬Mr. Eizen’s character is pretty, yep.

💬Shouldn’t we say he’s handsome?

💬Handsome and pretty.

💬Right. Handsome and pretty. Not a handsome guy, just a beauty. Beauty! Beauty is the best. Being handsome is the best. Always fresh. Thrilling.

💬Mr. Misogu, calm down your excitement lololol

Eizen’s mind creaked and groaned. He couldn’t grasp what the man before him was saying at first. Only after blinking several times could he fully comprehend the meaning.

“Ugh.”

A strange sound escaped him. His face burned hot. When Christian called him cute, it felt like just another line from a womanizer. But now? It felt… sincere?

As Eizen’s face flushed crimson, the new man chuckled softly.

“I am Viscount Tennes Nemoe.”

With a smooth, fluid motion, he even kissed the back of Eizen’s hand. It felt like the most natural thing in the world, as if it were his duty.

[Encounter with Tennes completed]

[Quest]
★ Plant a flag on Tennes
[Reward]
★ Tennes can now be pursued

A capture target, as expected. And a Marquis, no less.

💬Who are the current capture targets?

💬Knight, Paladin, Mage, Marquis.

💬Shouldn’t the Emperor appear too?

💬The Emperor will definitely appear.

“I am Eizen Sarnah.”
“What a lovely name.”

Is he the type who always has words like beautiful and pretty on his lips? 

Eizen let out an awkward laugh.

‘I’m going crazy. Four people are involved!’

Do dating sims get this complicated with so many people involved? It seemed like they did.

Plus, judging by the viewers’ reactions, it looked like the Emperor was going to get involved, too.

Eizen bit his lip hard. If that was true, then there were five capture targets!

Even this gathering of just three guys was already tense enough, with their bad blood practically palpable. Five!

Eizen screamed inwardly. He’d thought his romantic luck was as thin as a fingernail since reincarnating here, so why was he suddenly entangled like this?

What’s more, just this morning, she hadn’t doubted his identity at all. But suddenly hearing men call him pretty and cute felt utterly unfamiliar and awkward.

“I don’t know how this started, but I wish you’d pay a little more attention to your surroundings.”

At those words, Eizen belatedly glanced around.

The atmosphere, with the three men sneering at each other, was quite tense. Everyone nearby had backed away, glancing over at them.

What’s more, Christian, Bartholomew, and Pike all seemed to be fairly well-known figures. With Eizen, a complete stranger, caught in the middle, all eyes were on him. 

He could easily sense the looks that said, ‘Who is that?’

Eizen brushed his hair back and bowed his head. Of course, bowing his head didn’t actually help him avoid the stares.

“I know Lord Felpertin, Lord Pike, and Bartholomew don’t care about people’s stares, but the lovely gentleman over here seems to be a different story.”

💬Wow, he really speaks naturally.

💬It’s a different vibe from Christian.

💬Somehow, this time he seems like the affectionate type, doesn’t he?

💬Isn’t his smile a bit cheap?

💬I’m not sure, but he really looks like a noble.

💬He really is a noble, lol.

💬Ah, you’re right lol

“You seem to have some free time, Your Grace, Marquis Nemeo. Many others are waiting to see you.”
“Lord Felpertin is the one who looks free. If this were any other day, wouldn’t you have disappeared with someone by now?”
“This is ridiculous. I don’t understand why everyone thinks I’m so frivolous.”

Eizen pursed his lips. Does he genuinely not know, or is he just brazen enough to say such things so boldly? Christian seemed to need a moment to reflect on his own actions.

“Reflect on yourself, Lord Felpertin.”

Pike, who had been quiet, suddenly interjected, “What you need is repentance.”

“No, I don’t see why it warrants repentance. What sin is there in healthy adult men and women, or even two men, meeting?”
“The very act of meeting so casually with everyone is the sin itself.”

“Both of you, stop. You clearly don’t understand each other anyway. Let’s leave it at that.” Tennes lightly separated the two. “Bartholomew, stop watching as if you find this amusing.”

“Well, what can I say? It is entertaining. I’d almost like to watch the two of them fight until they die.”

“My apologies for the intrusion, Baron Sarnah.”

“You know me?”Eizen’s eyes widened. 

He’d been introducing himself as Eizen Sarnah all this time, yet no one had ever recognized him as a baron. 

But now, without any introduction, this man naturally addressed him as Baron Sarnah.

“I do keep track of noble titles, after all.”

-Wow, that’s pure aristocratic class.
-You remember even the fallen nobility? Impressive.

“Oh, I see.”

That basically means he knows all about the fallen nobility too. That thought made me feel strangely embarrassed. Just as Eizen was twirling his hair, a murmur of voices reached his ears.

‘What is it?’

He lifted his head to see the chat window exploding.

💬The real deal has appeared!

💬Is this the end? Really the end?

💬If more show up after this, who would it even be?

💬No dragon or something?

💬That’s going a bit too far lol.

So, it seemed another capture target had appeared.

Eizen slowly turned around. Everyone had their heads down, and he saw a man striding confidently right through the center of them.

‘Emperor… ’

He actually was one of the capture targets.

Their eyes met. 

He was a man with golden hair and eyes that shone like lush green foliage. His face, wearing a languid smile, exuded a ferocity reminiscent of a predator. 

He wore splendid robes and a crown, so magnificent that anyone would think, ‘The Supreme and Great Emperor.’

“Tennes, you said you’d rest for a moment. Were you here all along?”
“Observing the party’s atmosphere is important too, Your Majesty.”

Eizen flinched under the gaze fixed intently on him. It was a gaze that carried a certain pressure. Slightly frightening, perhaps even chilling.

💬The Emperor is a hit.

💬His presence is overwhelming.

💬Um, I’m going all-in on Emperor stock.

Viewers murmured in welcome at the Emperor’s arrival. Eizen belatedly glanced around.

‘Gasp… ’

Even Christian, who seemed likely to act casually before the Emperor, and Bartholomew, who had been watching with a smirk and a puzzled expression while crossing his arms, were all bowing their heads. Even Pike, though not as deeply as the others, was observing proper etiquette. 

With the face of a fanatic who might proclaim all are equal before the divine. 

Eizen awkwardly bowed his head. What did he know about etiquette?

He was born into a fallen noble family. Even if he had realized his past life, he had never learned imperial court etiquette.

Lowering his gaze, a pair of gleaming shoes came into view before him.

A hand slowly reached out and lifted Eizen’s chin.

“Uh…”

Following the light tug of the hand, he lifted his head and met the Emperor’s gaze once more. The Emperor gave Eizen, who had widened his eyes, a faint smile.

“A face I haven’t seen before.”
“Ah, I am Eizen Sarnah.”
“Sarnah?”

“Sarnah… is a Baron.”

Unlike Tennes, the man seemed, in a manner befitting an Emperor, not to bother memorizing every single noble.

“Baron Sarnah.” A brief chuckle followed.

What should one do in such a situation? As Eizen slowly blinked, a calloused thumb brushed his cheek. It felt slightly rough.

“You know who I am, don’t you?”

He was smiling as if amused, but it was different from Bartholomew. A little more chilling, a more leisurely feeling.

Eizen’s lips twitched.

“Your Majesty the Emperor… it is you, isn’t it?”
“Jeremiah Kadumos.”

[Encounter with Jeremiah completed]

[Quest]
★ Plant a flag on Jeremiah
[Reward]
★ Jeremiah can now be pursued

[All capture targets have been met]

[Hidden Quest Complete]
★ Meet all capture targets
[Reward]
★ You can now see the locations of capture targets

Notifications popped up frantically.

💬So there are five capture targets?

💬Knight, Mage, Paladin, Marquis, Emperor – seems like five in total.

💬Wow, who should he pick?

💬Just go for all of them!

Viewers began shouting the names of their chosen capture targets.

Eizen couldn’t even spare a glance for the noisy chat window. 

Was it intimidation? An indescribable pressure seeped into his entire body.

Noticing Eizen’s change, Jeremiah chuckled softly and slowly withdrew his hand from Eizen’s chin.

“I was wondering what all the gathering and whispering was about. So it was because of you.”

It felt a bit unfair, but he couldn’t even argue about it. Eizen bowed his head sharply.

Who would’ve thought the capture targets would include the Emperor?

Just this morning, Eizen was still an ordinary fallen noble, probably liked women, and was a loner who’d never even experienced romance.

But look at him now. Five people were clinging to him, all men, and he’d even met the Emperor – something he’d never even imagined.

Life really is unpredictable.

💬So who are you going to choose?

💬Aren’t you supposed to take one route here?

💬It could still be the common route.

💬Can you pursue all five simultaneously?

💬How could you possibly choose between them! Just take them all!

The viewers were in an uproar. As they fired off donations and frantically sent messages demanding that Eizen choose someone, it seemed like everything before his eyes was flashing brightly.

“You certainly stand out.”

The Emperor, Jeremiah’s voice, echoed above his head.

Eizen quietly lifted his head.

“Especially with that pink hair.”

Jeremiah chuckled softly and reached out. A hand that felt somehow rough touched his hair. 

Eizen’s pink locks brushed lightly against Jeremiah’s fingers before slipping free.

“Seeing everyone gathered here, I can pretty much imagine the atmosphere.”

It was a laugh that could have been either mocking or amused.

‘Jeremiah Kadumos, Emperor…’

He hadn’t had occasion to think about him recently, so it took a moment, but memories of Jeremiah began surfacing one by one in Eizen’s mind.

A tyrant.

A man who could be summed up in that single word.

Countless people had died at Jeremiah’s hands.

‘This is maddening. Now I have to get involved with a tyrant?’

Wouldn’t dropping one of the capture targets have little impact on viewership? Just as he thought that and shrugged his shoulders slightly, a notification popped up.

💎[DyeNet has sponsored 10,000 won] — Kiss Jeremiah now and I’ll sponsor 100,000 won more.

💬What the hell, all of a sudden?

💬Then what about the other routes?

💎[Bangusokrapper donated 10,000 won] — If you kiss Pike right now, I’ll donate another 100,000 won.

💎[Gyeopbasoksok donated 10,000 won] — What the hell is everyone doing? I’m team Bartholomew.

Suddenly, donations poured in. Each staking a kiss with their capture target.

‘What the hell am I supposed to do!’ Eizen screamed inwardly. ‘This is insane. Absolutely insane.’

Eizen stared at the flood of donation messages, swallowing hard.

‘If I kiss all five of them…’

Is that even possible? No, wouldn’t kissing someone lock you into that character’s route?

Eizen’s mind was spinning. Deciding on just one person right now seemed like it would cause more harm than good. 

In visual novels, it’s usually simplest to test the waters and decide on the heroine at the end using save/load.

💬If he kisses her now, doesn’t that lock in the route?

💬Just kiss him first.

💬Who brought up kissing first?

💬In situations like this, XX usually…

💬XX doesn’t look like XX to me. Is something wrong with my eyes?

💬What’s XX?

People started chattering loudly.

Eizen stared at the frantically scrolling chat window, then looked at the five men in front of him. 

Kiss = donations.

‘Gyaaaah!’

Even if donations were pouring in, actually kissing was a huge barrier. He felt pathetic for ever casually thinking he could kiss.

He wasn’t even comfortable with the idea of being involved with a man yet, let alone kissing!

“What are you thinking about?”
“Ah, nothing.”

Aizen quickly shook his head at the question that sent a chill down his spine. He couldn’t very well blurt out, ‘I’m debating who to kiss!’ right here.

Jeremiah’s fingertips touched beneath Eizen’s chin once more.

From behind, a servant bowed cautiously and spoke.

“Your Majesty, the delegation is waiting.”
“Ah…”
“‘Ah’ is not an answer.”
“Tennes ran off, you see.”

“Your Majesty, surely I’m not really needed for this.”
“How could I possibly do something that entertaining all on my own?”

Eizen glanced at Tennes’ face. He could tell at a glance that meeting the delegation was extremely difficult and troublesome.

Both Tennes’ expression and Jeremiah’s looked far from joyful.

“Let’s return, Your Majesty.”

At the servant’s words, Jeremiah’s fingertips, lightly resting beneath Eizen’s chin, withdrew.

Eizen bowed his head along with the others.

💬What? The Emperor’s leaving already?

💬Wow, he acts like he’s the most important person here.

💬But at least the meeting happened.

💬How are we gonna plant the flag later?

Amidst the murmurs of the crowd, Tennes also followed Jeremiah’s footsteps.

The moment Eizen casually lifted his head, his eyes met Tennes’, Eizen reflexively smiled back at the man who was grinning faintly. 

Only after the two figures disappeared from view did he let out a deep sigh of relief.

“I didn’t expect the Emperor to appear.” Bartholomew chuckled softly. 

He tapped the shoulders of Pike and Christian, who were still glaring at each other. “I think we should stop here. Now that we’ve caught His Majesty’s attention, it’s probably best to let it go quietly, don’t you think?”

“I didn’t start this. That stubborn bastard started it with us.”
“It wasn’t a quarrel. It was for the two of you living such flawed lives…”

“Please, let’s drop it.” Bartholomew grinned and gave Pike’s shoulder a hard thump.

Eizen quietly took a step back from the three of them.

Eizen quietly took a step back from the three of them.

“Where are you going?”
“Wouldn’t Brother feel uncomfortable?”
“Eizen hasn’t said a single word yet.”

“Uh, well…”

Christian grabbed Eizen, Pike interjected as if it were natural, and Bartholomew chuckled quietly. Eizen just wanted to get away from this spot.

💬Guess the kiss is off the table.

💬Plant the flag.

💬But how do you plant the flag?

💬Doesn’t it have a strategy guide?

💬Isn’t the game unreleased?

💬Seems like an unreleased game.

In the chat window, people started chatting freely. 

Eizen let out an awkward laugh. “I think I should be going now.”

“Why? The party’s still going strong.”

With no proper excuse to offer, he was fumbling for words when a notification popped up.

[Broadcast ends at 12:00]

[Time remaining: 9 minutes 59 seconds]

The broadcast is ending.

Rather than lingering here and risking a sudden, awkward cut-off, it seemed better to wrap things up quickly now.

“It’s almost 12.”

“Why? Does the magic wear off at 12?” Bartholomew chuckled amusedly and chimed in.

“Um, something like that…”

Well, the broadcast was ending.

Eizen quietly slipped his hand away from Christian’s. This time, he could pull away easily without much resistance.

As Eizen took a step back, Pike’s gaze followed him. Was he leering? Or was he just watching? Eizen couldn’t read the thoughts filling those gray eyes.

‘What the hell? Why are you staring like that?’

💬Already ending the stream?

💬Dude, it’s already midnight.

💬But the party’s just getting started!

💬Well, he did all the meeting events, so goal accomplished, right?

💬Just clearing the main quest and logging off?

💬When’s the stream tomorrow?

💬Will the edited version be uploaded?

With the broadcast ending soon, people were chattering wildly. Most urged him to keep broadcasting longer, saying they were enjoying the party, but unfortunately, the broadcast time wasn’t something Eizen could decide.

“Well then, see you next time.”

Eizen bowed his head to the three of them.

He wasn’t sure if they’d meet again, but wouldn’t it be strange not to get entangled? After all, they’re the capture targets. Though he still wasn’t used to the fact that they were male.

Watching the dwindling time, Eizen quickly dashed out of the party venue.

Only 5 minutes remained until midnight. Naturally, there was no carriage, so he had to walk.

[Time Remaining: 3 minutes 34 seconds]

How should he go about finishing this? 

Eizen blinked. Who knew when the broadcast would turn on again? Or what would happen next?

[Viewers: 27]

Quite a number of people were bustling about.

‘Usually, you ask them to hit ‘Subscribe’ and ‘Like’, right?’

He didn’t know if those features actually existed, but anyway, wouldn’t it be similar to YouTube? He thought that kind of greeting might be a decent way to wrap things up.

“Thank you to everyone who watched.”

💬Seriously ending the stream like this?

💬Wow, that was abrupt.

💬Please tell us when the next stream is!

💬Just seeing your face is fun.

💬Can’t you just stream yourself sleeping? Eizen would probably be entertaining even just sleeping.

Eizen smiled faintly. It wasn’t bad having people like this stick around until the end. The only problem was he couldn’t just turn the stream on and off as he pleased.

“Then please hit ‘Subscribe’ and ‘Like,’ and see you next time.”

He waved goodbye.

💬Seriously, it’s over?

💬No way!

💬You’re doing another stream next time, right?

💬Next time you’ll plant a flag!

💬See you again!

💬Bye bye bye bye

Chat messages flooded in frantically until the remaining time hit zero. Simultaneously, notifications started popping up.

[Broadcast has ended]

[Maximum viewers: 52]

[Number of Subscribers: 21]

[Number of Likes: 37]

[Current Funds: 132,000 KRW]

[Your charm increases proportionally to the number of Likes]

[Your bond with capture targets deepens proportionally to the number of

subscribers.]

[Hidden Quest Complete]
★ Let’s try to surpass 50 viewers!
[Rewards]
★ More items are now available for purchase in the store

‘Subscriber count and likes really do have some kind of impact after all.’

He felt a little proud that asking for ‘subscriptions’ and ‘likes’ at the end was the right call.

On top of that, today’s broadcast brought him more than 100,000 won in cash.

He couldn’t convert this into cash immediately, but he could step away from being a fallen aristocrat. 

With this money, he could buy items or skills – he could do something. 

An investment for the future, perhaps? 

Eizen diligently walked home first.

No matter what happened from now on, the fact that broadcasting was his breakthrough in life wouldn’t change.

Walking through the night streets, he calmly sorted through each event that had unfolded today. Who he met, what happened, and what changed.

“Haa.”

Suddenly thinking ‘I have to get involved with a guy!’ felt like a significant burden.

Still, there was no other way. Where could he go right now to earn 100,000 won? Besides, he’d never even earned 100,000 won in a day in his past life.

Eizen clenched his fists tightly.

He had to protect this broadcast no matter what. That meant he had to significantly increase both his subscriber count and his viewership. Only then would donations pour in, and only then could he escape being a fallen aristocrat.

‘The problem is how to do it.’

One thing was certain. There were people actively promoting their capture targets.

Those people were willing to donate a certain amount for the target they supported. Though it came with the caveat that something had to be done.

‘A kiss…’

Eizen touched his lips. Kissing a guy. Something he’d never even imagined until just this morning suddenly loomed before him.

Eizen let out another short sigh.

Could he really do it? He asked himself, but couldn’t bring himself to answer. Thinking about the sponsorship money made him feel like he could just close his eyes and do it, yet even if he received the money, he doubted he could go through with it.

“Nah, whatever. Just a quick peck! I can handle that much,” Eizen muttered to himself, almost as if making a resolution.

Why, wasn’t this even considered a greeting in some countries? It was no different from a cheek-kiss greeting. A light brush of the lips wasn’t that hard. Right…

Close your eyes, and how would you even know if the other person was a man or a woman?

Eizen desperately tried to convince himself. 

It’s just business. 

If you want to make a living through broadcasting, you have to be prepared for that much.

He squeezed his eyes shut tightly, then opened them.

‘Besides, each capture target has their own supporters, and pitting them against each other makes people spend more money.’

That’s why keeping that line is extremely! Extremely! Important.

He couldn’t single out just one capture target to push. He had to walk a tightrope, carefully balancing like he was playing a dating sim. Honestly, he wasn’t confident he could pull it off.

But he had to. What choice did he have?

Eizen let out a deep sigh and headed home.

Hoping he could open the shop even with the broadcast off, he shouted “Shop!” and tried to summon it, but it didn’t budge an inch. Everything seemed tied to the live broadcast.

Eizen just flopped onto his bed. 

Whatever this was – magic or a dream – a single lifeline had appeared to revive the fallen House of Sarnah. How could he not grab it?

‘Well, that’s a relief, I guess.’

Meeting men for work is a hundred times better than starving to death without accomplishing anything.

That was when it happened. A sound came from Eizen’s stomach.

Growl.

Only then did he remember he hadn’t eaten anything at the party. He had definitely thought he’d eat his fill before going to the party.

“Haah.”

Eizen let out a long sigh and rubbed his stomach, which was so flat it seemed to have sunken in.

He felt unjustly wronged. A capture target? What was that supposed to mean, making him forget to eat? 

Clutching his hungry stomach, Eizen tossed and turned before finally drifting off to sleep.

Eizen resolved once more:

‘I will escape this fallen noble status.