[Kayak Ji1 Sword Anya has sponsored 10,000 won!]
– Anya, don’t be too disappointed about getting eliminated… I mean, Kayak messed up the auction.
“No, I’m fine! Originally, I joined the tournament because I wanted to be on Kayak’s team, and I came out for the experience, so even if I get eliminated, practicing hard with the team members and playing matches is enough for me!”
[Just look at that Kayak Ji1 Sword mindset!]
[It’s nice to be so positive.]
[No way they’ll blame Kayak for this….]
[Taker and Kayak got paired together, let’s drink!]
[Even if you get eliminated in the big leagues, it’s still a win, right? Haha!]
[But after practicing hard for a week and still getting eliminated? That’s the ultimate letdown.]
[It’s not 2 or 3 weeks of practice, you know.]
Despite the viewers’ concerns, Anya was saying this with a bright face.
Her words were an unembellished truth. Since it was an online, personal broadcast, she could have said flattering words, but her honest nature made her express her feelings as they were.
Simply being on a team with Kayak was enough, and that was Anya’s raw and genuine intent. She was truly satisfied with being on a team with Kayak.
The idea of increasing viewership and growing the broadcast alongside Taker and Kayak was irrelevant to her. What mattered most was being on a team and playing games with the long-time fan she’d admired, Kayak.
‘It would be nice if we did well…’
But it didn’t matter if they didn’t perform well. As mentioned before, to Anya, such things were mere secondary factors.
However, when it came time to start team practice with her members while doing some free rank games, Anya began to think differently.
‘Our positions overlap a lot, and our overall tier is lower than that of other teams…’
Uh-oh, isn’t this a really big problem?
For Anya, this wasn’t an issue at all, but the problem lay with Kayak.
The silly Anya finally realized that if they got eliminated or didn’t perform well in the tournament, the Kayak she idolized might receive criticism for it.
That would surely be a heartbreaking situation. The person she loved, Kayak, being criticized for something that wasn’t even her fault.
In the worst-case scenario, Kayak might regret even participating in the tournament. That would mean that Anya, as a team member, would also leave her with not-so-great memories of Kayak.
It’s a concerning situation. This meant that it would also leave a not-so-great memory for her teammate, Anya, regarding Kayak.
Anya’s mind began to accelerate with ominous thoughts. Her unique delusional circuits started running, sketching highly probable dark scenarios.
– “I think I won’t participate in the tournament anymore…”
– “Please don’t blame the team members.”
– “It’s all my fault.”
The imagined Kayak looked incredibly haggard, as if crushed by the weight of expectations. She had taken the team’s loss entirely upon herself, overwhelmed by the malicious public opinions flying in from all directions.
“Ugh… ughh…”
In that dreadful future, Anya desperately shouted that it wasn’t her fault, nor anyone else’s. If they were to assign blame, wouldn’t the player’s guilt be heavier than the director’s?
But as with all imaginations, Anya’s voice didn’t reach Kayak.
“No!”
Suddenly, Anya, drenched in cold sweat, shouted as if waking from a nightmare.
“Whoa, that startled me.”
“Anya? Is something wrong?”
“Oh, uh, no. I’m sorry. I was just chatting with the viewers for a moment….”
Having momentarily forgotten she was broadcasting and diving into her fantasies, Anya snapped back to reality.
[What? lol]
[What’s not okay?]
[I was dozing off with the stream on and jumped back awake]
[Anya waking up all the sleepyheads ㄷㄷㄷ]
[Did you see a future of getting kicked out?]
[Did you have a nightmare? Look at the sweat!]
Nonetheless, there was something a bit unsettling about brushing it off as mere delusion. The chance of things unfolding that way was quite high.
Anya began to ponder deeply, like a time traveler who had seen over a million futures. The viewers’ chat hardly registered in her mind.
But after all her thinking, there was only one answer.
‘To prevent such a future…’
I have to do well.
The conclusion was simple: if she performed well in the tournament, everything would be fine.
Having achieved her goal simply by being on a team with Kayak, Anya found herself a new goal.
Clenching her fists, she made a resolution. Yes, it’s worth a shot!
However, things don’t usually flow smoothly just because of passion and determination. If things were that easy, everyone would be living the lives they desired.
– Loss.
– Loss.
– Loss.
“Uh… ahhh…”
A heavy defeat keeps crashing down on Anya!
Anya’s vision turned dark!
*
“I’m trash… I’m trash… I’m trash….”
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry.”
“If I don’t do well… I have to do well… or a terrible future awaits….”
It had been about 3-4 rounds of team practice.
Everyone had fallen into such a state that practicing became meaningless.
“Uh, everyone…? It’s okay to lose a few times during practice. You don’t need to get so gloomy just because we lost a few-.”
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m a bug, I’m sorry for not contributing, I’m sorry for not getting on the bus.”
Ahem… honestly, I messed up too, but if you all keep beating yourselves up like this….
At least Taker seemed fine, but even they couldn’t fully perform their role mentally.
It seems Taker needed rehabilitation training in various ways.
[Uh, I think the teacher is in trouble?]
[Did they really lose three times in a row?]
[Not only are they bad at it, but their mental state is also poor, hmm….]
[Low tiers usually have bad mental states.]
[Didn’t they say Anya or Angum were good, guys?]
[Anya usually has a good mentality and does well, but this is strange.]
[Anya is shattering the other team members’ mental states too, lol.]
[Mental breakdown team, damn lol.]
[Looks like Taker really needs to carry this team.]
[But Taker is a bit of a coward, so they screw up in big matches.]
[This is a big problem, for real.]
[Maybe it’s better to just drop out quickly and go our separate ways?]
[It’s pitiful to think the auction master messed up.]
“Hmm….”
Tap-tap-tap…
Tapping my fingers on the desk. There’s still not enough data. I wanted to run the game a bit more to gather more data, but overworking the players isn’t a good plan either.
So I let them take a break for a while and began devising strategies based on the data we had gathered during the game.
‘We definitely can’t go for a frontal assault; we need a sneaky approach. Hit and run? Speed run? If I can get Taker’s performance up right, it might be possible….‘
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry….”
“No, is this not just a concept? Have they really lost their mentality? Kazan, can you calm them down a bit?”
“…I’m sorry, but I’m not good at talking to girls.”
“…I’m sorry for not being able to talk well with women.”
“Oh dear, can you not talk at all?”
“Yes.”
“So that’s why your calls were slow. Still, you have to distinguish between work and play. This is work. I also struggle with women, but I see someone who’s worse than me…”
Despite being given a break, the players showed no signs of improvement in their mental state.
Amid the background chatter of the team members, I was still brainstorming strategies.
‘What if I turn all the supporters into a full-on attack? Push through with firepower for at least one game—?’
Zzzz-
A tiny fruit fly began to buzz around, disrupting my vision. Summer was definitely here; the warm weather was bringing out the little pests.
Jerked out of my concentration, I felt a flash of annoyance. Utilizing my superhuman reflexes, I swatted at the fly when it finally landed on my desk.
“We’re done for, it’s all over.”
“Damn it! I’m sorry! If I had just been a bit stronger…!”
“Oh come on, don’t be like that. This isn’t a hardcore gaming competition; it’s a variety show. People are tuning in to watch us goof off, so there’s no need to feel too pressured…”
Bang-!
“Phew…”
With my powerful spike, the fly turned into just that—a fly, now squished firmly in the center of my palm. It didn’t seem like a swarm, so I figured it was just this one.
Meanwhile, Mila, who had been peacefully sleeping on the cushion, jolted awake, and the players screamed in surprise.
“Did something just explode… Or was it just me?”
“Looks like the director just went shotgun.”
“I’m sorry, director…! I won’t make any weak sounds again!”
[Yeah, I really don’t want to hear that whining]
[Looks like Camilla really knows how to keep order, lol]
[‘Gather up’]
[A shotgun blast to heal mental health, haha]
[Ah, if you whine, I’ll break your head]
[The host is seriously a strong woman]
[So scary ㅠㅠ]
“No, I was just catching a bug. It kept flying around…”
[The viewers are bugs now?]
[Even if the players are disgusting, you should only think that in your head…]
[Wow, really catches those bugs fiercely]
[I heard that when Kayak uses a shotgun, she’s truly angry]
I should have turned off the mic to plan the strategy.
Regretting it was too late.
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