Even in a half-broken world, compulsory education still exists.
Nominally, it’s to heal societal divides and maintain order.
In reality, the goal is to funnel a labor class into the cities.

Monsters occasionally appear on the city outskirts.
Professional soldiers are needed to fight them on the front lines.
Manual laborers are required, as are personnel to maintain public order.

That’s just how the world works.
The moment things start feeling comfortable, someone always shows up shouting, “There’s no such thing as free happiness!”
And so, we grit our teeth, yell “Charge!” and get to work.

Back to compulsory education: the kids at Hope Orphanage all receive schooling.
It’s no different from the education of the pre-apocalypse world.
I’m no exception.

After finishing high school, I spectacularly ditched the college entrance exam and returned to the orphanage.
I couldn’t afford university tuition.

For the record, making it this far puts me in the top 1% of the orphanage.
Most kids either skip school to work part-time, fail classes, or drop out after veering down darker paths.

There’s little reason to study hard when you can’t afford college anyway.
Instead, it’s better to work and earn money.
The orphanage provides welfare-supported, low-effort jobs that pay decently enough to save up.

But you can’t stay at the orphanage forever.
Eventually, you have to stand on your own, and for that, even a part-time job requires a high school diploma.

“Aren’t you guys going to graduate high school?”

My concerned question, asked as someone living their second life, got the same response from all the orphanage kids.

Pass the GED, and that’s enough.

And the results were starting to show.

“Big sis, help me with the GED.”

A call came from the orphanage.

“How much have you prepared?”
“I’m starting now.”
“Sigh.”

Kim Yejin was never one for studying.
I don’t know what’s gotten into her, but it’s a step in the right direction.

As her senior by a year, someone living their second life, and a guardian who helped normalize the orphanage, I decided to offer some advice.

“You know the GED is held twice a year, right? April and August. If you start now, you’re aiming for August, which gives you about five months. You’re a bit slow, Yejin, but if you study hard, you can do it.”
“I’m not slow!”
“If you were smart, you’d have graduated high school properly. Or passed the GED already.”
“That’s…”

Kim Yejin’s voice deflated.

“You’re right. But if I study hard from now, it’ll work out, yeah?”
“Yup. Study hard.”
“Can’t you teach me?”
“Me?”
“You’re the only one around here who graduated high school.”

So it wasn’t just advice—she wanted me to tutor her.

It’s doable, sure.
In my past life, the world was relatively intact, and I went through the grind of school and cram academies for entrance exams.
That experience helped me graduate high school in this life.
I managed my grades well, so if I make good money later, I might even attend a decent university.

Teaching someone else would be easy.
I’m confident in that.

But no matter how I think about it, I have no reason to do this.

I just finished streaming and want to rest.

Swinging a sword for four hours a day, climbing ranks, banning thirsty viewers, reading chat, and occasionally engaging—it’s a daily grind.
Adding more to my schedule would cut into my rest time.

“There’s Teacher Seoyoon.”
“She’s busy.”
“Then what about Kim Jin?”
“That guy’s too negative. He’s always saying studying’s pointless and that it’ll just make you a rich person’s doormat.”
“He’s not wrong.”
“Which part?”
“Both.”

Kim Jin is negative, and it’s true that studying often feels futile in this world.
But you still have to live.
Isn’t it important to strive for a better life, even a little?

I hope Kim Yejin finds a decent teacher to pass the GED.
Someone other than me.

“…”

After a brief silence, Kim Yejin spoke in a cutesy tone.

“Can’t you just do it, big sis?”
“So you just like me better?”
“Yeah. I just like you more than others.”

If this were my past-life self, that might’ve worked.
Yejin’s pretty cute, after all.
But now, it doesn’t have that dramatic effect.

“Call’s over.”

Just as I was about to hang up, a desperate voice stopped my finger.

“Wait! Hold on! I’ve got something to tell you!”
“What?”
“It’s about your streaming.”
“You watch my streams?”
“Obviously. I’m looking into it for a job.”

What’s this about?
I racked my brain but couldn’t come up with anything.

“…You’re streaming too?”

That’s not gonna be easy.

“Not as a streamer—an editor.”
“Whoa.”
“What’s with that boomer talk?”

Guess my second life makes me a boomer.

“But do people call editing a ‘job’ these days? Isn’t it usually freelance contracts?”
“It’s for a big-name streamer.”

I sat up straight.
Not out of discomfort—this was important.

“Keep talking.”
“They run it like a full-on company, with a content team, filming team, and editing team. They put out a hiring post for editors, and I passed the first round.”
“For real?”
“Yup. I’ve been practicing video editing at PC bangs. I’m pretty good.”
“So you need to pass the GED?”
“Exactly.”

I got the picture.
She passed the practical first round, but now she needs credentials for the paperwork.
There’s no strict education requirement, but a middle school diploma might hold her back.

“If you help me pass the GED, I’ll hook you up with some connections.”
“Nah, that’s a bit much.”
“Then how about me as a connection? If I become an editor for a big-name streamer, I can give you tips on content and editing direction.”
“That’s not bad.”

I help her pass the GED, and in return, I get streaming connections.
Planting an ally inside a big-name streamer’s operation…
That’s a pretty solid deal.

“But there’s a problem, big sis.”
“What?”

Why does her laugh over the phone sound so ominous?
Kim Yejin declared confidently,

“I told them in the interview I’d pass the GED soon, and that’s how I got through. So I need to pass the April exam.”
“What? The April exam, starting now?”
“Yup!”

This girl is genuinely clueless.
For real.

I took a deep breath and asked calmly,

“Do you have study materials?”
“I got some hand-me-down books. They’re a bit worn but usable.”
“Alright.”

I threw on some clothes and headed back to Hope Orphanage.
As expected, studying wasn’t easy.

“Wow. All wrong.”
Red rain poured over the paper.
A total wipeout.
As I stared blankly at the test, Kim Yejin, sitting beside me, shriveled up.

“Big sis, can you not look at me like that…? I’m really trying hard… I gave it my all…”
“I was just looking at the paper.”

I think I see the problem.

“Lack of focus. You’re not reading the questions properly. You take forever to process the text. You’re even messing up basic math calculations. Don’t call it a mistake—you need to figure out how to boost your concentration.”
“Focus?”
“Yeah, you dopamine addict.”

Looks like we need to build better study habits.

“I’ll watch you, so even if it’s tough, start with the easier questions and focus.”
“…Okay.”

I sat Kim Yejin down and made sure she was focused on studying.
Then I quietly checked my phone.

Not slacking off—just being considerate so she doesn’t feel watched.

Tapping my phone, a familiar app icon appeared.
Then the community I’ve been visiting a lot lately.

[Small-Time Streamer Gallery].

Searching “Joo Wooyeon” here is like a free dopamine hit.

– Joo Wooyeon is cute, confirmed!!!
– Usually, these kinds of female streamers suck at games, but Joo Wooyeon’s legit.
– Her swordplay is the real deal.

“Heh.”

A streamer getting attention even off-air.
Is this allowed?

Checking another tab, I hit an unexpected jackpot.
My name was in a trending post.
Posts with lots of user upvotes go to the “Hot” section, and there was my name in the title.

[★] Joo Wooyeon Taunt Clips, All Collected [32]
Some I grabbed myself, some from YouTube.

= Comments (32) =
– Holy crap, insane.
– Slicing with a greatsword and looking down? So hot.
– Damn… sigh…
– She does that every time she gets a kill.
– Watching her stream, these moments happen all the time, and it’s driving me nuts.
– Already took care of one.
– No matter how you look at it, it’s not that big a deal. You guys are hyping it up too much.
– Lol, the haters are desperately downplaying it.
– Haters, get out~~~
– But everyone in the game can see that. Isn’t it bad manners?
– Since when did this game care about manners, lol?

Taunting…?
Contempt…?

I didn’t do that.
Seriously.
It was just mild annoyance, wasn’t it?