A Swordsman's Stream

Chapter 129

The streamer Spoon was a Challenger-tier ADC.

Challenger.

The highest tier in The League.

As gamers from all over were attracted to The League, the perception that those at the top tier were the best players was widespread and, truthfully, often accurate.

Places with fewer players usually had lower numbers not because they were harder to play, but because fewer skilled players gathered there.

Gamers who saw early pros fail to survive as the player pool expanded and tournament standards rose were well aware of this trait.

And The League boasted the largest player base bar none.

The talent of a Challenger in such a league spoke for itself.

The same held true for Grandmasters.

“But how about A?”

Spoon sat back in his chair, browsing through the community, reflecting.

Perhaps he wondered if things hadn’t gone too far.

Two things were needed to become a Challenger.

Physical skills and game comprehension.

Lacking even one meant you’d never reach it, a common consensus confirmed by the continued absence of users deficient in either among the Challengers.

“Hm. Seems like the physical aspect holds some talent.”

He conceded to some extent.

Even if one hadn’t mastered more than one hero, discovering Kael’s rules was admirable.

“Indeed, pandemonium ensues.”

While researching an opponent, he stumbled into the Kael Board, where chaos reigned supreme.

『Blade chosen. Streamer Sojun led him directly.』
『Watch the replay. The sword is just standing there!LOLOLOL LOLOLOL WTF.』
『Was this manipulated too?』
『Would we also grasp it with enough training sessions? LOLOLOL 』
『A recluse Kael player who hasn’t left their house in three years is starting part-time to afford training fees LOLOLOL true?』
『Please, just go out!』
『It’s amazing to see a pattern, discover it, lead others, and grasp the core ㅅㅂ』

“Impressive indeed.”

His current League nickname was ‘FrustratedOverTopPerformer.’

Top referred to mid and top lanes. Bot was the bottom.

As often was the case in team games, losing either the top or bottom typically spelled loss for the game.

Most top lane players believed they lost because of bot lane collapses.

Conversely, bot lane players thought top lane collapses caused their losses.

Naturally, when people lost, they felt it was due to their team’s failures. Even if it was their own fault.

Recollections shaped by such perceptions lingered longer.

These overlapping facts inevitably fueled a collective persecution complex and misunderstandings between top and bot lane players.

‘FrustratedOverTopPerformer’ exemplified nicknames highlighting these misplaced blames and faulty perceptions.

Of course, Spoon did not acknowledge this.

His previous nickname was even more intimidating.

‘IfNoADGoesKael.’

Truly a fearsome, coercive name.

These nicknames led to people mistakenly thinking his secondary position was mid lane.

In truth, he rarely played mid and had never chosen Kael. He simply included an infamous character.

“If I have to go somewhere other than ADC, I’d go mid.”

It was indeed ambiguous to mention it as a secondary position.

Nonetheless.

『A sudden internal announcement is out! The board owner is participating.』

-What’s this LOLOLOL all of a sudden
-Was she always close with Yoonho?
-Probably holding an internal match because of the upcoming LoS
└Could it be that the streamer is joining LoS?
└Everyone had guessed alreadyLOLOLOL
└Wow!
-Wow, Spoon facing Kael God ㄷㄷ
└Spoon the Challenger ADC? Honestly, if Sojun wins, big like LOLOLOL LOL
└Oh LOL so did that Spoon guy find Kael’s pattern?LOLOLOL
└If they pick Kael, kiting won’t matter, Spoon, have you heard about the 2-second invincibility LOL

“Wow……. Really”

As Spoon researched his opponent, he felt dumbfounded. He repeatedly rubbed around his mouth with his hand, muttering.

“This is absurd. Even for the Kael Board.”

To handle Kael well? He acknowledged that.

The streamer had immense talent beyond any need for further reasoning.

Whether it was genius-level intelligence one would see only in dramas, or some other form of talent, was uncertain.

“Two seconds of invincibility? Sure, it’s impressive, but who would just let someone slash at a vital point? Wow, man.”

The reason for his current exasperation.

There was clearly a lack of evidence to justify seeing Sojun as being on his level.

“Has he mastered more than the sword, what about associative skills? None proven.”

Association.

A crucial concept in virtual reality where everything is controlled by thought.

Moving the body was akin to sensing physical movements. It was almost effortless. One could move naturally, as customary.

But when a third hand, or some force, exceeded reality and existed in-game?

Such sensations were foreign at first encounter.

As alien and challenging as an infant’s first steps.

Therefore, games rarely changed avatars.

If each game required learning to move all over again, it would make more sense not to purchase such games at all.

Thus, the physical movement sensation of avatars remained consistent.

However, in-game skills differed.

Imagining, feeling, and externalizing unreal sensations as if they were real.

Gamers termed this “association,” an important physical-related skill component.

“Hah, should I show why a Challenger is a Challenger? Perhaps crush with Kael too.”

Kael, a hero based on the movement of swords and bodies.

Reworked skills and ultimates activated merely by thinking the words.

So let us demonstrate that it’s unfeasible even with movement.

“As for associating, who knows how skilled he is, but still, we must show the same.”

He burned with determination and antagonism, eager to prove why a Challenger earned that title.

Sojun succeeded in provoking without doing anything!

* * *

The next day.

Seated at his desk, streaming, Sojun glanced at the bottom taskbar, checking the time.

6:29 PM.

“It’s almost time to gather. Everyone knows what to do, right?”

-You said in the title
-In-house scrim!
-But the roster’s not out, so why already?
-Probably applied for the LoS LOLOLOL LOL
– A rookie, unranked, likely won’t be accepted, so setting this up to show off LOLOLOL LOL Cute streamer
-Did you want the winning prize so bad? Should we buy it for you?LOLOLOL

Sojun read the comments and chuckled quietly.

‘That wouldn’t be bad if it were true.’

Viewers were curious about why Ha Yunho abruptly organized scrims.

They conjectured it was to appeal to the management team on behalf of Sojun!

There was, after all, a link to Taewoo.

And Sojun had been with For Justice right before venturing out.

It wasn’t beyond reason that this was another step toward the LoS.

In this scenario, being on the chopping block, he could easily attract attention with something like in-house scrims.

Surely, an event of in-house competition had many eyes watching.

Perhaps that’s why he discovered Kael’s vital point?

This deduction, widely shared among viewers in the chatroom, was viewed with approval by Sojun.

‘At least they got part of it right.’

Impressive!

Sojun bypassed his misguided, eager viewers and entered the chatroom he was invited to.

Ping!

The designated gathering time was precisely 6:30 PM, so he arrived punctually.

When Sojun entered, five people were already inside the chatroom.

But within seconds, four more joined, bringing the room to a full count of ten.

Everyone showed up exactly on time.

『Hello everyone! No one’s late.』

Ha Yunho’s voice came through the speakers, and other streamers began to add brief greetings.

『Hello, everyone.』
『Woowoo!』
『Wow! Scrims are exciting!』
『Ha Yunho’s ugly!』
『Agreed.』
『Hello, nice to meet you.』
『Hello, Sojun!』

With such a range of exchanges.

The audience, familiar with these scenes, could only chuckle.

『Who just called Ha Yunho ugly! I might have to set some order here.』

Suddenly, asserting dominance?

Ha Yunho continued.

Being the organizer, they refrained from interrupting.

『Among you, there must be some who don’t know each other. So briefly introduce yourselves with three sentences…』

Listening out of courtesy was Sojun’s mistake.

『Ahhh! Shut up!』
『Just skip it!』
『Hahaha.』
『Ah, I hate that kind of thing』
『Me too.』
『Can’t we just say hi? Or not at all?』

Sojun listened with amusement to the diverse voices emerging from the speaker amidst what seemed like chaos.

『How about just a single line then….』

Like Sojun, Ha Yunho appeared delighted.

『This jerk…….』
『Let’s just end this scrim, boss?』
『Please. Huzzmahlug!』

-Crane clenched his teeth just nowLOLOLOL
-Did you just spot Rumi’s voice in that chaos? Are you TofuPorkBroth?
-It’s pandemonium
-Starting off as a messLOLOLOL
-This is the charm LOLOLOL LOL

Thus, the first impression of multi-gathering streams for Sojun came down to chaos.

Not as a negative connotation.

『Ah. Due to strong resistance, let’s just get through the greetings. Then first!』

* * *

Once introductions were over, they started The League.

Since Sojun participated from outside, he needed to get into the capsule first.

『Will you join Ha Yunho’s custom game?』

Accepting, the interface materialized.

And Ha Yunho’s voice followed.

『We’re starting immediately!』

It seemed Sojun was the last.

Team setups had been pre-arranged for balance, selecting participants carefully.

Before Sojun’s entry into the custom game, teams seemed to have been assigned, beginning the game as soon as he entered.

Sojun’s body was transported.

“Let’s proceed with ban-pick. I trust you, Softie!”

Sojun’s teammates appeared around him. Among them was Ha Yunho.

While not directly beside Sojun, it didn’t matter as team chat allowed voice transmission.

As now, it was possible to convey messages solely to Sojun.

“But Sojun, wasn’t your intro a bit bland earlier? Just a new streamer?”

“It was just right.”

“Oh, you know, the Slayer, or the Slayer…that.”

-LOLOLOL LOL Immediately setting the tone
-That’s Ha Yunho for youLOLOLOL
-A tough opponent
-Streamer, are you taking this lying down?
-Ha Yunho, how are you at tackling harassment?

Ha Yunho’s vast network among streamers owed much to such meticulous information gathering.

“Of course, talking about the dominator, orthodox, Unorthodox Slayer.”

He seemed to have fully studied iTube.

Sojun felt no urge to retaliate.

‘Cracking down on such precious individuals don’t do.’

Were they not viewers who boosted his views? More importantly, Ha Yunho was the leader willing to select Sojun.

Certainly, it wasn’t because, unlike Ha Yunho, Sojun hadn’t done prior research for lack of information to counter-attack.

“Shall we discuss strategy for a moment?”

“Yes, let’s.”

Sojun muted the sound transmitting to his stream.

“Are you aware that their ADC is a Challenger? They’re likely to pick a ranged character for mid.”

“Understood.”

“You have other heroes prepared besides Kael, right?”

Ha Yunho had already informed Malang not to ban mid-lane heroes during ban-pick.

Thus, with high expectations about what hero might have been prepared, he asked excitedly.

“Nope.”

With Sojun’s assured demeanor, Ha Yunho momentarily lost words.

“… Oh. I see. Oh, thankfully, they didn’t ban Kael? It seems like playing Kael in the first match isn’t bad as there are two matches anyways.”

While Ha Yunho appreciated this relief, Sojun didn’t share the sentiment.

‘Hmm.’

Even after laying it out, letting Kael slip no matter if there was another match was an obvious provocation.

“Oh, that’s fine. I can decide now.”

Given that viewers had gifted heroes, Sojun’s store was ineligible for purchases.

“What’s it?”

“Well, shall we try Erick this match? It seemed interesting.”

A question mark floated over Ha Yunho’s head.

Prison-Breaker Erick?

That’s a hero who shoots chained magical circles with a delay, isn’t it?

Not a character wielding a sword, plus it demands associative proficiency?

As anticipated, Ha Yunho had fully evaluated the videos.

Recognizing this would be Sojun’s debut exhibiting these kinds of physical capabilities.

“Do you know what Your Synchronization value is?”

It must be high, right?

Meaning he would quickly adjust to using an unfamiliar character and showcase something…

“It’s 10.”

“What?”

Genuinely?

“Oh, the pick phase is starting.”

“Just a moment, give it a bit more thought…”

Even delaying the pick for others to buy more time was an option!

Unfortunately, it was too late to restrain Sojun’s unhesitating fingers.

『Sword God – Prison-Breaker Erick』

“Wow!”

Experiencing this reckless gameplay, seen on iTube, firsthand was truly refreshing!

‘The synchronization value of 10 must be a jest, right? No way human synchronization could be 10. Hahaha!’

As an easygoing player, Ha Yunho found it easy to determine how to engage with Sojun.

Just enjoy it!

『The game starts now.』

TL’s Corner:
I forgot that Sojun’s synch rate is 10.