Rise of the Eromancer

Chapter 94 My Name Is...

"Are… you sure about this, Sir?"

"Yes."

"Rhys, I was the one adamant that you should face this. But this is… such a drastic step. And I don't even know if it's in the right direction."

"If people are going to see me a lot from now on, then I want to be the one that shows them what they need to see."

"But still…

…a Streamer? And… and Dreggerman? Would they even allow that name?"

"Woah, Kat. You're not allowed to say that."

"It's just a name."

It has been a full day since Rhys's manic episode, and he had already fully calmed down… or at least that is what Katarina and Lina hoped. And currently, Rhys was standing right in the center of his apartment; with his newly bought furniture, all pushed to the side. He was wearing a suit; a dark gray coat, dark gray shirt, and dark gray pants.

Suffice it to say, with his height, a lot of people would think he was some sort of model of a luxury brand — well, if it wasn't for his hair still covering half his face, that is.

"Are you really sure about this, Sir?" Lina was fixing his hair, kneeling on a chair so her hands wouldn't get tired from trying to reach Rhys's hair; making sure that she didn't miss a single spot and that it wouldn't just suddenly be blown away and show his face, "Although I am all for this… progress of yours, you can wear a mask if you want to."

"Ah, that's a good idea!" And while Lina was fixing his hair, Katarina was currently setting up a set of cameras at the table near them — all newly bought too like the furniture, "That would at least soften your transition and slowly ease your way through your trauma. You even have a mask from the Faceless Crew. We could use that to—"

"I am wearing a mask," Rhys shook his head and did not let the two finish their discussion before pointing at his hair, "I have been wearing them the entire time, I realized it when I saw—when I watched myself in that video. I have been actively hiding my face from the world and… I didn't even realize it."

"Wait, so this isn't a stylistic choice?" Lina blinked a couple of times as she stopped fixing Rhys's hair, "You… weren't aware you were hiding your face?"

Rhys did not really answer and just shook his head, "I didn't want to be seen."

"...You're like 6'6"," Lina could really only blink a couple of times as she stepped away from Rhys and dragged the chair she was kneeling on with her, "Alright, all set here. How about you, Kat?"

"Hm, I think this is the only thing you need — it's better to only have one camera so the shots will be consistent," Katarina approached Lina and stood beside her as she looked at Rhys from head to toe, "You wearing a suit… I never thought I'd see the day. I'm…

…so proud of you, Rhys."

"At times like these, you really do seem like his mother," Lina let out a cheeky smile before looking at the camera Katarina was holding, "And isn't that the latest camera from UnderPro? UnderPro Max X360 or something?"

"Hm? I guess?" Katarina just shrugged as she started fiddling with the tiny camera with two dome-like lenses on each side.

"That's like $4000… and hasn't been released yet," Lina squinted her eyes as she looked Katarina in the eyes, "Just who are you, woman?"

"Why are you interrogating me? This is about Rhys," Katarina walked away and grabbed a tripod; placing the camera right in front of Rhys and turning it on, "This is live Rhys. But don't worry, no one will see it yet."

"...My guildmates will see it," Lina sighed, "He asked me to share it as soon as he goes live."

"..." Katarina did not really say anything and just looked at Lina for a few seconds, before placing all of her attention back to Rhys, "Whenever…

…you're ready, Rhys."

Rhys's head slightly shook as he saw the red dot blinking on the camera, but he immediately closed his eyes and tried his best to calm himself down. Lina and Katarina did not really say anything, just unconsciously holding each other's hands as they breathed along with Rhys. And then, after a few seconds, the two of them held their breaths as Rhys opened his mouth.

"Hello…" Rhys could be seen opening his eyes from behind his hair, "...and welcome to my first video. Some of you may wonder why I look so familiar, that is because currently; someone uploaded a footage of me on WeTube just this week without my consent. Since the video was uploaded, it has gained more than a million views… Everyone is speculating whether or not it is fake.

Well, I am here to say that it is not — a Lowborn truly is doing all of that. I want to welcome all—"

"...Rhys?" Katarina quickly grabbed the camera as Rhys suddenly froze and halted his words, afraid he might have another episode. But it did not happen, and instead, a small smile started to crawl on Rhys's face as he continued his monologue,

"And perhaps, some of you have already thought I looked familiar when you saw that video…

…that is because I also have another video with millions of views."

"Rhys…!?" Both Lina and Katarina almost instinctively turned off the camera, but Rhys subtly shook his head at them.

"It was a video uploaded almost 7 years ago now," the tone of Rhys's voice slightly changed as a long and deep breath escaped his lips, "A video of a child at his weakest… and lowest point, a video of a child being eaten by a society that wants it dead. But I am tired of being a victim of this tragedy."

Rhys then covered his face… before just very slowly brushing his hair up and pushing it to the side, fully revealing his face to everyone who might see the video. Katarina almost gasped, covering her mouth to prevent any noise from leaking from them.

[My name is Rhys Wilder…

…You will be seeing a lot of me from now on.]