Chapter 151
Penguin.
In his mid-to-late twenties, he had gone pro right after graduation, spent three years in the scene, then left the world of players after sensing the limits of his skill.
To be precise, he judged that he could never become the best. His ability was mediocre there, and from below, others kept pushing upward, so he had no confidence he could hold on.
But at the time he retired, he was at least considered average.
So when he abruptly retired, many people floated various speculations. Of course, no one guessed right.
[I’m being careful here, but... is it a terminal illness?]
[You guys always curse and compare whenever he loses, so isn’t that why our Penguin is leaving?!]
[Yeah, he must’ve earned plenty. Just go, Penguin. We loved you!]
The most ridiculous one was a post that came up because he had gotten a bit chubby from stress at the time.
[Wait, isn't this bastard Penguin!!! pregnant? Congratulations! Live well!]
Even years later, that was still lodged deep in Penguin’s mind.
Calling a 190cm-tall man pregnant. It was almost a person without any prejudice whatsoever—or something.
So the day after retiring, Penguin resurrected as a streamer and quelled the controversy that wasn’t really a controversy.
Because of that post, he impulsively went public right away, contrary to his original plan, and began his streaming career.
‘Anyway, it was a good choice. I left while the applause was still there, and found another path.’
He hadn’t chosen this job because he thought he could become the best in the streaming world.
In the beginning, when he was a pro gamer, he had that competitive drive, but he had no such feelings about streaming.
Who in the world was he supposed to beat, and after beating them, who was going to acknowledge him?
It wasn’t a matter of livelihood either.
He’d already earned enough to live comfortably as long as he avoided extravagance, so barring gambling or drugs, he was fine.
It might not be American major league sports money, but the market had grown huge. Even for just three years, if you were a first-division player, you could earn an enormous sum.
He simply did it because it suited his aptitude. You can’t just live as a jobless bum playing games, after all.
Though, to be honest, the latter had also appealed to him.
Anyway, today, Penguin was in deep thought about whether or not to give up that fun streaming life.
‘Has the final day come for the occupation of streamer as well?’
-supply without demand on lololol
-Da? Da? Da?
-Hurry up and do the nya!
-Da-nyang!
-Da Nang ㄷㄷㄷ This is clearly a Da Nang travel viral
Penguin tried weighing whether he’d receive applause or leave to boos if he quit this industry now, but in the end, he gave up.
Fine.
‘From now on, I’ll do nothing but sing praises of that player Jin Seojun.’
So he did it.
“……Nya.”
Height 190 cm.
Perhaps because the mockery had subconsciously embedded a grudge, after years of working out hard, Penguin—now a muscle-bound giant—finally cried out.
And that cry was extremely gravelly for the three other casters and hundreds of thousands of viewers to hear.
“Pfft…….”
“Ahem…….”
“Kahaha!”
Penguin thought once more.
‘From now on, I’ll only be Seojun’s biggest fanboy.’
* * *
Objectively, Penguin had a very plain face.
He was just large in frame. His face was angular.
The problem was.
That this man had come to greet Seojun for an interview, now adding “nya” at the end of his sentences.
[Player Seojun. Hello……. ……. ……. ……nya.]
Gravelly and dignified.
A deep, rumbling cavern of a voice. An authoritarian cat.
Perhaps because he hesitated so much each time before speaking, those traits stood out far more than Penguin’s usual voice.
“Hello.”
Seojun, visible on the video call in the upper-center window that had appeared in the broadcast, maintained a poker face.
[Seojun-nim! Do you find this very burdensome, perhaps?]
Grinning, Bangju asked.
Burdensome? More like hilarious.
If they’d been close, like the people beside him, he would’ve laughed out loud. At the very least, if they’d met as enemies in a game.
“No. Kh-hm.”
He couldn’t hold back the laughter.
Even Seojun, who had reached the mental state of a clear mirror and still water, ever maintaining his composure, couldn’t endure it.
-lololololol desperate failed attempt to hold in laughter lolol
-Ah lol if only it weren’t for that headband, I’d have held my laugh lololololol
-Fr lol
-The ops team is really amazing. They went and bought it that fast.
[Very good. Penguin caster. I’ll look upon you kindly now.]
[Thank you! Thank you very much!]
[Da?]
[…….]
[keke, anyway! I’m only letting it slide this once because the proceedings might have gotten difficult. I think this much was already thoroughly immortalized. Anyway! Player Seojun! It’s been a while!]
[I want to say hi too! Hello!]
“Yeah, it’s been a while. Hello, announcer.”
[Th-then, me as well? Hello, I’m Taeyang, your caster.]
“Hello.”
-Wait lolololol is this a fan meeting or something lolololol
-What’s with the boss’s popularity lololol
-Everyone’s trying to get in the good graces of the next champion lololol
-A destined major corporation!
-Major corporation or not, making a boatload of money is certain
-He’s already earning, though?
[Now! Things seem to have settled. Let’s have me conduct the interviews as originally planned. Player Seojun! This is your first time in a streamer competition, and you were selected as MVP right in the first game. How do you feel about that, perhaps…….]
Arin organized the situation and attempted the interview with Seojun.
The question was textbook and inoffensive. Nothing to pick at, no reason for trouble.
They just needed to hear Seojun’s answer, but the official broadcast chat room was in an uproar.
-Arin noona? Why are you suddenly doing the interview yourself?
-Wasn’t Penguin supposed to do it lololololol
-That natural interview intercept was insane
-It’s not because that bastard is good-looking, right? She’s normally dedicated to work, right?
-They said Penguin taking over the work was a good thing! So why intercept?!
And Arin, who glanced at the chat’s reaction while speaking, said,
[Honestly, I liked that Seojun-nim appeared often in the highlight reels—yes or no? Heh heh heh. I saw some incredible plays, so it’s a yes. Anyway! Seojun-nim, how do you feel!]
Arin dodged it well. Of course, no one believed her.
Seojun thought briefly, then gave his impressions.
“It was enjoyable.”
[Could you elaborate a little more on why it was enjoyable?]
“The new game was fun. It’s my first time with the battle royale genre.”
Mm!
As expected, games are fun—Seojun nodded.
[Ah! You meant that playing a new game was enjoyable. I see. Hm. I see!]
-lolololol she broke
-Boss, if you conduct an interview like that, how can anyone even react lolololol
-In reality, the boss has always been hugely entertained every time a new game comes out lolol
-Everything he does is probably insanely easy, so games can’t help but be fun for him
-Fr lol back in the day, even Nin10 was fun when he played using a Game Genie chip for cheats
Seojun looked at his own stream’s chat and came to his senses with a start.
“Ah, the question was how it feels to be selected as MVP, right?”
[Haha. Yes, that’s right. It’s your first competition, isn't it? Truly a huge number of viewers have been watching from the start, and Player Seojun, far from being nervous, went beyond showing your skills and demonstrated superplays! How do you feel about that!]
Arin properly explained once more.
The pressure of hundreds of thousands watching, and the fellow streamers who were both allies and enemies.
It’s impossible not to be nervous.
So naturally, questions about how someone could display such skill from the very start followed.
The problem was.
Seojun wasn’t an ordinary person.
“It was easy, though?”
Seojun spoke his impressions. Exactly as he genuinely felt.
-lololololol
-He’s always been like this. Please don’t hate him. He’s always been like this. Please don’t hate him. <-- Everyone go spam this quickly lolololol
-Madman. Madman. Madman. Madman. Madman.
-Please, just talk normally for once lololol
-If you think the boss is severely unsocialized, like this lololololol
Socialization?
‘It’s something the strong don’t need.’
Whether that holds true in modern society didn’t matter.
At least, it seemed to hold true in streamer society.
Seojun raised the corner of his mouth in a grin and went further.
“There were no crisis situations, you see. So, well, I won easily.”
He smiles brightly. His eyes were innocent, as if he had no intention to feed or provoke anyone whatsoever.
Among the team members who had been quietly watching Seojun’s interview from the side, Rumi, quick on the uptake, was the first to sigh.
And naturally, the other team members shot laser beams with their eyes at Seojun.
I think I know what he’s trying to do, but please let it not be that.
If it really is that, please stop here.
[Ah. You’re saying there were no crisis situations just now, correct?]
“That’s right.”
But Seojun nodded and continued the interview.
[Even the part where you couldn’t deploy your parachute at the start?]
“Ah, that was part of the plan.”
It wasn’t. He just fell, letting whatever would happen happen, because he didn’t even know the criteria for whether it would deploy or not.
[Because of that plan, didn’t a precarious situation arise when you were fighting bare-handed?]
“Originally, all attacks are either you get hit or you don’t—one of the two. If you don’t get hit, dodging by a hair’s breadth or dodging from ten steps back is the same thing. But, hmm. Was it precarious? I think I just won easily.”
He gives a shrug.
The image on screen showed exactly that.
-Ugh, so infuriating lololol
-But you didn’t get hit, right? Anyway, you didn’t get hit, right? lololol
-Boss, are you trying to accumulate bad karma? lolol
[Then what about when you confronted Player Hwangso? At that time, if you hadn’t had the frying pan, and if you’d made even a single mistake, wouldn’t it have been a precarious situation where it would’ve ended right there? That was also the first time you deflected a bullet with a frying pan!]
“I don’t think that play is especially difficult, so I consider it ambiguous to call it a crisis.”
-Euk lolololol
-It did look easy
-It’s only not difficult for you, dammit lolololol
-Actually, now that I think about it, the bullet parry was just him improvising on the spot lolololol
Karma.
It is the retribution for wicked deeds committed in past lives.
In other words, a word with no connection to Seojun whatsoever.
He knew very well that he remembered his past life and therefore had accumulated no such retribution.
However, the word karma is not always used in its dictionary definition.
Not past lives, but when incidents blow up, it’s used while bringing up a person’s usual behavior.
And also, in this kind of competition.
-I get what the boss is trying to do now
-Are you trying to become this competition’s villain? Jin Seojun!
-This is the Heavenly Demon lolololol
-Ahem, the Assassination Squad GOAT lololol
Behaving as though you’ve already won before the competition is even over is described as accumulating karma.
Because those who acted like that had a very high probability of not winning the championship, and those statements came back to them exactly like karma.
[Hahaha!]
Arin also seemed to have roughly caught on.
To what kind of concept Seojun was trying to go for.
Well, there would be people who seriously hated this sort of thing, but most enjoyed it.
Not because they became enthusiastic about Seojun, but because the competition itself became more entertaining.
Now that trash talking had become a culture of its own.
[I see! Do you have a goal moving forward?]
“Championship.”
[Then, as of now, is there a team that seems most likely to obstruct that championship?]
“Hmm. As you’ve seen today, I suppose.”
Seojun raised the corner of his mouth and began accumulating karma.
“I don’t think there is one.”