Heok-roro (2)
I got home and finished my shower. I'd worked up quite a sweat, so a wave of cool, clean relief washed over me the second I stepped out.
"Ahhh. That's the stuff."
Maybe it was because I'd gotten my body moving first thing in the morning? Calling my current condition peak performance wouldn't have been an overstatement. Right now, those pathetic Irons wouldn't even make a decent snack.
"Irons. Just you wait."
Those bastards were all dead meat.
But first, there was something I had to do: protein. After a workout, you want to slam protein as fast as possible if you care about muscle growth.
I opened the fridge and pulled out the eggs — a precious protein source I'd snagged on sale at the mart yesterday. Honestly, I'd looked into buying protein powder online, but the second I saw the hundred-buck price tag I bailed on the spot.
It's fine. This is enough.
I boiled three eggs. Large-grade, so the size was pretty satisfying. The timer went off soon enough; I dunked them in cold water, then fished them back out.
—Tap.
I cracked a properly cooled egg against the edge of my computer desk. Not hard enough — it didn't split cleanly.
If I smacked it against RockSolid's head, it'd probably crack just fine.
That guy's scalp felt like it was built out of gnarled muscle too. Anyway, if I ever got the chance, I wanted to try it.
—Munch, munch.
I carefully peeled the shell and shoved the egg into my mouth. The dry chalkiness of the yolk coated my tongue. This was exactly why I'd wanted protein powder — but life just wasn't that kind.
"Still. Cost-performance is solid."
Fuck.
This cost-performance life of mine.
Then again, I get to play as much Asgard as I want, so it's fine.
I finished the eggs and tidied my desk. Once things were reasonably in order, I sat back down in front of the computer. It was time to go live. Truly a brutally packed schedule.
Pororo.
The video RockSolid had shown me before stream came back to mind.
Should I watch it again?
Pororo was nothing but a lowly support — not someone I needed to stay wary of. Whether he snipe-queued me or not, he wasn't worth real attention. But didn't they say a lion gives its all even when hunting a rabbit? As a lion myself, I intended to go all out.
—Click.
I went to Pororo's channel and clicked the most recent video.
It was the same one RockSolid had shown me earlier.
"Heheheh… Foolish MuscleADC… How dare you provoke the Dark Prince Pororo."
"What the hell is that outfit."
And it wasn't just the clothes. Pororo's expression — absolutely dripping with unearned self-confidence — was almost impossible to look at with both eyes open. Was he seriously doing this for real?
No. He couldn't be serious. He had to be drowning in self-loathing too. His stream wasn't pulling numbers, so he was swallowing tears and forcing himself through it.
"I shall burn everything with these flames of darkness!"
Pororo framed the shot wide and started wailing on a kids' punching bag with MuscleADC scrawled across it.
"Mwahahaha!"
Thud. Thud.
"Regret comes too late. My heart has already been claimed by the abyss."
Watching Pororo, I felt a sudden pang of guilt.
"I'm sorry."
Sorry for sniping you and vacuuming up all your viewers.
Pororo going full dark-mode had dragged his viewers' quality straight down to the bottom of the abyss with him.
For a second I thought this was my chat.
Spicy. Real spicy.
Stream ON.
Asgard ON.
"This body descends."
Even if Pororo tried to snipe me, it didn't matter one bit.
Who was I right now?
None other than MuscleADC of Iron 4. Not the pitiful Iron 5 of the past.
"Iron 4 owner."
Becoming Iron 4 had definitely changed my attitude. Before, my voice had been a little timid on stream — but as Iron 4, even my voice had gotten bold. Plus, first-picking ADC felt way more comfortable now.
Truly twisted viewers. They couldn't just give pure praise — they always had to get the last word in. But now I could let even that roll off me with ease. Because I was a refined Iron 4 now. Not the Iron 5 of the past.
"Heading into the next game right away."
—Whoosh!
The next queue popped almost immediately. Having climbed out of the absolute deep sea, matchmaking seemed relatively fast.
"Hurry up."
You Iron 3 sacrifices.
I accepted the match and folded my arms with arrogant calm. Then I locked Nike and waited quietly as the game began.
Welcome to the battlefield of heroes.
Just as I bought a practice bow at base and was about to move out to defend against an invade, a single line of all-chat appeared.
"Huh?"
Heok-roro.
That was definitely the nickname. The embarrassing streamer I'd been watching on video just minutes ago. The guy whose mental had completely shattered under my Hyeji assault in the past.
Most people still didn't know about Heok-roro. A few did, but the majority didn't. Then a video donation rolled in.
Of course it was a familiar video. The same one I'd watched while peeling eggs before stream. I covered my face with both hands and couldn't help letting out a small scream.
"Kyaaaaah!"
I'm the one who's embarrassed!!!!!
"Heheheh… Foolish MuscleADC."
The moment that familiar leather coat and the bizarre waxed-up hair hit the screen, the shame was too much and a scream tore out of me. If Pororo ever came to his senses, he might kill his past self. It was the kind of scene where a version of him from another timeline would hop in a time machine just to assassinate himself.
And everyone seemed to feel the same way….
Why am I responsible.
"Everyone. I didn't ruin him — he self-destructed."
He strapped bombs all over his own body and went for a suicide attack. What was I supposed to do about that?
What is with this guy.
"He's lost it."
Ugh. This won't do.
I'm just going to beat the absolute crap out of him.
…Chat was right. Pororo used to be a Hyeji support who just rode the bus. But suddenly top? And he was picking Valgus — the hero known as the manly man's champion?
"Don't tell me he switched positions? But for a Hyeji, top lane is going to be a real struggle."
A support daring to play top?
Honestly, I wasn't even sure he knew how to last-hit minions.
Was he watching my stream right now? Pororo was actually answering me, which meant he really had snipe-queued me. The content of what he said was nearly incomprehensible — but the hostility was crystal clear.
"What a scrub."
"Pffft."
Slam me back into the deep sea?
And what was he going to do if he had a problem with me?
"Chat, you know my state right now. I'm in full tryhard mode."
Honestly, whether Pororo went dark or not didn't matter at all. To me at the peak of my momentum, he was just a meal.
"Sorry, so sorry. Sorry for being too strong."
You know who I am right now?
Iron 4 MuscleADC.
They all suddenly started rooting for Heok-roro. Pretty bold talk for people sitting in my own stream. But to my current easygoing self, the impact was absolute zero.
"Yeah, that's never happening~"