Due to excessive lag in the broadcast, the chat window was distributed according to each participant’s camera.
I soared high into the sky, leading an army of 100,000 viewers.
Conversations with the participants should be done early on when things are relatively calm.
Just in time, I spotted White farming on the outskirts of Rapavnk.
“White’s weapon is the XM189 AMPR, an anti-material sniper rifle. And she has tamed a dragon beast to compensate for the weaknesses of defense and mobility.”
As the dragon gathered the demon beasts like a border collie, White lay on the ground hunting small fluff balls.
Her posture was surprisingly neat, and her sniping skills were quite impressive.
She quickly used the gathered magic to whip up a crafting table for bullets.
Had she been watching my broadcasts a lot lately?
Her crafting skills were also flawless.
“To briefly explain for those who are seeing this for the first time, it’s about gathering magic to create ammunition at the crafting table. At the very beginning of the game, the durability of demon beasts is strong, and the power of firearms is weak. Therefore, investing magic into bullets to hunt higher monsters and growing the demon beasts based on the experience points to challenge users in a physical fight is the most ideal victory plan.”
I zoomed in on the camera.
White maintained her position with a sniper scope, guarding the crafting table until the bullets were ready.
The crafting table was extremely fragile and sensitive to even minor shocks.
And the enchanted magic was ‘Casting: Heat Transfer – Conduction’.
“Wait, was that an Easter egg? White has changed her tech tree with a flame sword. This aggressive strategy means she plans to ride the dragon and sweep up kills like a cavalry in the early game? Since swords rot in the late game.”
-White! White! White! White!
-How did you even know about the Easter egg, LOL.
-White looking around is just too cute!
-An actual participant more beautiful than her avatar, whoa.
-She’s playing intelligently, I’m impressed.
There were no enemies in the vicinity.
After finishing farming in the plains, I flew alongside White and disengaged the cloaking mode.
Swish-
“White Unni.”
“Eek!”
The flame sword came rushing towards my throat at the speed of wind.
Thanks to my invincible status, the blade couldn’t penetrate my skin.
“Oh my, it’s you, Name! I’m so sorry, ew…!”
“Your reaction speed is really impressive. Do you play FPS games often?”
“Huh?”
“I’m currently interviewing you. You can just talk while moving.”
“Ah, hello everyone! I’m White from NV! Please check out my new song, ‘Hostage’!”
Finally grasping the situation, White let go of the reins and waved her hands to greet.
-If White had run at me like a dog as soon as she appeared, I’d be thrilled, LOL.
-Woof, woof, arf!
-Unni, I’m dying…! (Almost really died)
-Hi, White~
-Wow, look at that reaction speed, she’s not human.
-Promo advertisement, LOL.
“Wow, Name is so cute. She looks just like her petite self.”
“The speed you enchanted that flame sword was impressive too. Honestly, you watched my broadcast, didn’t you?”
“Of course, I watch it every day! I joined just to do this. Wow, look at this beautiful thing, it’s amazing!”
“Do you often play in Resonance?”
“I’m totally a gaming nerd. Sometimes I play for up to 10 hours a day.”
“Do you really have that much time? You’re an idol, right?”
“You don’t get it; idols actually have a lot of time…! There’s travel time, waiting time, everything.”
“It can’t be a capsule, must be something like a helmet? But does that work for playing Resonance?”
“Oh, you got it! It doesn’t really work well, though… So, do you know what the first thing I did after getting my paycheck last year was? I’ve never revealed this secret on my broadcast, but I’ll tell you because it’s in front of Name.”
I leaned closer, intrigued.
A dragon was hovering low in the air, tightly clinging to its body.
White looked like she was planning something sneaky, whispering with her hand over her lips.
“You know those Peta devices you use in capsules?”
“Yeah, yeah.”
“I bought that separately with my own money and put it in the trunk of our company car.”
“Huh?”
“Then I can lean back in the back seat and put on the helmet to enjoy the game just like in a capsule. Why are you looking at me like that, Name?!”
-??????
-Wait, what did I just hear, LOL!
-Her determination to play is insane.
-She put the Peta device in the trunk?
-JHK, are you watching from above… you created this idol…
-She’s still alive, what a crazy person, LOL!
“… I think I’ll end the interview here. Being an idol, I need to protect my image.”
Rather, it was time to focus on the potential battles that might occur soon.
“Name, I’ll definitely come in first, so keep your promise and give me a kiss, okay?”
“Okay, fighting!”
I gently patted Luri’s neck a couple of times.
I grew in size and spread enormous wings, soaring vertically into the sky.
The battlefield lay below me in clear sight.
From the southwest of White, someone was quickly approaching on a two-headed Sand Wolf.
It was only a matter of time before the two would meet.
“Interestingly, someone has brought a mutant type from the demon beasts. The Two-Headed Wolf gains enhanced abilities when it evolves in the desert. Let’s see, Exciel’s Sand Wolf has 87% experience. If he gets just one more kill, he can activate the evolution stone. A battle is about to break out.”
-We’re in trouble!
-Of all things, he met a male idol, LOL!
-Let’s get ready for a fandom battle~
-The losing side will surely get roasted on SNS.
-Both sides have toxic fandoms, right? LOL!
-Come on White, you can do it!
Bam-!
Sand flew up in front of the Sand Wolf.
With a creak sound, the beast jumped up and did a somersault while raising a sand wall behind it.
Exciel stepped off the mount, armed with a gun, and searched for enemies behind the wall.
But White, being a self-proclaimed FPS veteran, didn’t reveal her position recklessly and calmly loaded her bullets.
In the open terrain, a tense standoff unfolded, with Exciel being the first to pull the trigger.
He likely decided the bullet embedded in the ground wasn’t magical ammo.
“Grrr!”
The Sand Wolf leaped over the sand wall, sporting dual armor firmly attached to its body.
It seemed to be a plan to draw attention and force the enemy to reveal their position.
But no further shots were fired.
Exciel cautiously peeked out, puzzled, but it was already too late.
Da-da-da-da-!
The dragon rushed furiously, scattering sand in its wake.
The remaining distance was 30 meters.
Exciel belatedly loaded a regular bullet to the situation.
Rat-a-tat-tat-!
The dragon’s exterior was just as tough as the Sand Wolf’s.
Without suffering significant damage, the dragon was unyielding like a warrior who knew no death.
“Gahhhh!”
[Casting: Heat Transfer – Conduction]
Finally, the loaded rounds transformed the anti-material sniper rifle into a great sword.
“Dragon, jump!”
White commanded, as the dragon bared its hundreds of teeth.
The flame soared high, reaching toward the sun.
She leaped from her mount, ready to cleave through the air with a powerful swing.
Whooosh-!
The sand wall split in two, flames emerging from the cleaved surface and igniting the ground.
Hiss-!
Flames licked the Sand Wolf, causing burn damage.
Exciel didn’t just stand idly by, either.
He stepped back and activated a crafting scroll.
White’s eyes widened in surprise.
She hadn’t even imagined he would have already entered the city.
“Exciel has chosen to take damage from the start and brought a scroll from Rapavnk. This creates a variable for you, White.”
[Casting: Reverse Raiden Frost]
Bang-!
A heavy sound resonated.
A magic circle activated, creating a massive ice field around the impact area.
[Transformation: Sand Wolf → Ice Wolf]
The wolf’s mane changed color, exhaling cold air from its mouth.
White struggled to cut through the pouring icicles with her flame sword.
Anxiety was evident on White’s face.
The dragon’s feet were frozen.
The Ice Wolf was chewing on its flesh.
If they didn’t settle this quickly, it was clear she too would eventually be pierced by that magic bullet.
“Will there be a way to overcome this desperate situation? Giving up on the dragon and switching to regular ammo to aim for the enemy’s head seems to be the best option… oh?”
White chose to retreat.
Or maybe it was more accurate to say she was going for a counter-offensive?
To turn her back on someone with long-range firepower was quite a bold move.
“I think I understand your intention. You have a flame sword, so you plan to save your frozen dragon, right? Probably…?”
But I wasn’t entirely sure.
As I expected, she infused magic into the flame sword, maximizing its output with urgency.
Exciel wouldn’t let this arrogant situation slide.
Bang bang bang-!
As the bullets flew, they transformed into icicles.
The surface area of the bullets was dozens of times larger than regular ammo.
Yet still no news of White’s demise came through.
“I haven’t even been hit yet! Is this accuracy real?”
-Name-sensei looks bewildered, LOL.
-Why can’t he hit her?
-I just can’t make sense of this situation, LOL.
-Did Exciel let up because she’s a female idol, or is he just that bad at the game?
-From where I stand, it looks like the latter, LOL.
-Anyone can see the seriousness in her expression.
-Why is he so useless, LOL? How did he clear Kaizen World?
Whoosh-!
During her run, White lost her footing, slipped, and to make things worse, an icicle passed right over her.
By a stroke of luck, the dragon’s feet were freed in an instant.
A 2:1 situation was created.
By chance, the dragon had claws that wouldn’t slip on ice, putting the Ice Wolf at a disadvantage.
“Gandaaaah! Dragon, bite!”
The dragon exhaled toxic gas, layering it with her flame sword.
A tremendous inferno erupted in an instant.
The Ice Wolf was reduced to ashes, and Exciel dropped to his knees in shock.
“Phew. That was an excellent match.”
Losing the demon beast meant losing the game.
While he could have tried to make a last-ditch effort to attack White, he opted for fair play.
“It was a good match. You dodged very well.”
“Haha, you too. I wish you good luck in the next game.”
The flame sword slowly began to burn the male figure.
As he perished in the flames, he wore a regretful smile on his face.
-Even though he’s the enemy, I respect him.
-So beautiful and cool, both of them.
-How is this a great match?
-My heart feels heavy…
And yet, our viewers were smitten.
White gathered the magic and experience points he left behind and fed it all to the dragon.
The dragon munched away.
Its size doubled, and its tail split into three.
It bowed its head to its owner, and White hopped on top.
“Alright, let’s head towards Taming Master! Hoo!”
In rapture from her first battle victory, White let out a scream.
Click-
“Uh?”
Bang-bang-bang-!
In that moment, a booby trap went off, and an even larger flame erupted.
Dozens of magic circles unfolded, billowing smoke into the air.
Sizzle-!
Destructive beams rained down incessantly.
[Envy_White has died.]
“What’s a young idol doing with a half-hearted romance? In my day, we couldn’t even dream of that. Back then, our company had a 7-year dating ban.”
A woman rose up from underground, riding a mole demon.
The one who claimed her life was Ji Bo-hee, a fellow idol and actress belonging to the same Blue Sun agency.
Fierce battles were still being fought across multiple regions.
Most of the victors had achieved their first evolution.
Yet some were still wandering around as newcomers, unable to obtain the evolution stone.
In this predator-and-prey relationship, who would emerge as the ultimate victor?
Only ten evolution stones needed for the second evolution were available in Rapavnk.
And the war to claim them had just begun.
“Shall we hold a prediction vote for the first match winner here? Those who guess correctly will receive a multi-server beta test invitation.”
The chat window quickly turned into chaos.
“Yongcheol, I’ve donated a lot to your stream, please help me just this once! T_T”
“Ji Bo-hee is a goddess, invincible. Trust in her!”
“Yudi, please don’t be scared, go kill them! There’s no one stronger than you right now!”
“Wait, there are mines up ahead, what are you doing?!”
“But where’s the evolution stone?”
I couldn’t tell if I was commentating a game or a horse race.
Anyway, I had a job to do.
“Hey everyone, guess what this is?”
I rummaged through my inventory and revealed what looked like a pearl.
That’s right, all the evolution stones were in my hands.
During the final balance patch broadcast, I had received feedback that the team that found the evolution stone first would have an overwhelming advantage.
As such, I had no choice but to manually adjust the balance.
I dropped the evolution stones within the participants’ line of sight.
[NoName: An evolution stone is falling from the sky. Remaining quantity: 9]
“You may not want to fight, but you have to! It’s a crime to be born in Kaizen World and not fight!”
That’s how the world I lived in was.
This was true dystopia.
