Chapter 38
Chapter 38
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 38
Chapter Title: The Judges Are Obsessed With Me
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Amid the watchful eyes of all the judges, I swung my sword at a moderate pace.
Whoosh-!
I didn't try to swing it too fast on purpose. I just aimed to show the most natural form I could muster at a speed I could handle.
More precisely, I focused on making it smooth.
'Somehow, it feels like Phantom Sword should be done this way.'
No one had taught me this. Newtube didn't teach it either.
But I trusted my instincts. And I let my senses guide the sword's movements.
Soon, the sword that had slashed diagonally began tracing a gentle circle.
To be exact, the tip of the sword drew the curve. And gradually, centrifugal force built up at the tip.
That's why I called it a circle.
'It's roughly like a circle.'
I kept moving the sword in curves. It almost felt like performing a sword dance.
The sword that had slashed diagonally rose again in a circle. Then, suddenly sharpening into a fierce blade, it dropped straight down.
If the sword had been full of softness just moments ago, now it brimmed with sharpness. It was a highly dramatic shift.
I repeated this, infusing the sword with both softness and sharpness.
'These two are the most important aspects of Phantom Sword.'
Phantom Sword didn't require chaotically flailing the blade around.
On the contrary, blending softness and sharpness could amplify the swordsmanship's destructive power.
This was another piece of knowledge I'd internalized without realizing it.
Whoosh-!
Whoosh-!
'And this curve is incredibly important too.'
The curve I traced served as a bridge, allowing me to infuse both sharpness and softness into the sword simultaneously.
Without this curve, Phantom Sword would have been just some mediocre technique.
'It's pretty impressive swordsmanship, in its own right.'
You couldn't tell just by looking.
But now that I'd acquired it, I could definitely feel it. This was solid swordsmanship—nothing on the level of Fist King Fist, but desirable enough that anyone would covet it.
I continued demonstrating the technique.
And soon, the highlight approached. It was also the most replayed part on Newtube.
I slashed diagonally with a grand sweep.
At first glance, it looked just like the initial diagonal cut. The sense of destructive power felt similar too.
But there was a crucial difference between that first sword and this one.
A massive difference, at that.
'Keep the curve going while shaking the sword at maximum speed.'
Soon, something astonishing appeared.
The wooden sword in my hand was clearly just one.
Yet the number of wooden swords began to multiply.
From one to two, then two to three.
It was unbelievable.
Three swords were slashing diagonally.
I retracted them in that state. Then I followed up with a horizontal slash.
The same thing happened again.
The horizontally sweeping sword became three. I slashed at an imaginary foe in that form.
Whoooosh-!!
I repeated it several times.
Horizontal, vertical, diagonal slashes. Even thrusts. The thrusts produced three swords too.
And soon, the finale arrived.
I struck down with the sword to the very end, giving it my all.
"Haat!"
Surprisingly, the three swords naturally merged back into one. With that, the astonishing swordsmanship came to a close.
I lowered the sword for a moment and caught my breath.
"Huff. Huff."
The stamina drain was more than expected. Probably because I'd swung with full seriousness.
'Not bad at all.'
I felt satisfied. It was the most gratifying result among all the swordsmanship I'd practiced so far.
I gave a slight smile and looked ahead.
More precisely, at the four judges.
"......!"
"......!!"
"Th-this is what they call a crane among chickens! I-I'm truly astonished!"
"In-incredible... This is swordsmanship learned in just a week?"
They all looked stunned.
Dokgo Hwayeon seemed especially shocked. Her pretty mouth hung slightly open.
I glanced at Dokgo Hwayeon, then at Shinbi, the streamer who'd been mocking me earlier.
He kept opening and closing his mouth repeatedly. He had something to say, but it wouldn't come out.
Seeing that, I felt relieved.
My talent was the real deal, after all. Their shocked faces proved it.
I turned my head briefly to glance at the monitor beside me. I was checking the chat reactions.
💬 Chat — Viewer -Insane... — Viewer -For real? — Viewer -ㄷㄷ — Viewer -Goosebumps — Viewer -All the guys trash-talking Jae-ho earlier? Mouths shut now, right? — Viewer -Learned swordsmanship in a week? No cap? — Viewer -Kya~ Jae-ho looks insanely hot today! — Viewer -Park Jae-ho! If we meet, I'll suck you off once! Over 200,000 people were flooding the chat right now. And every single one was reacting with awe.
It perfectly showed just how impressive the swordsmanship I'd demonstrated was.
At that moment, Dokgo Hwayeon's previously closed mouth opened. She turned to the middle-aged judge beside her with a question.
"It's really only been a month since he learned martial arts, right?"
"That's right. You can tell just by looking at his physique."
"I thought so too. But his swordsmanship level..."
"Doesn't look like a month's worth at all. No, didn't he say swordsmanship was just a week? I thought he'd spent a year up in the mountains practicing nothing but that."
"I agree. It's believable even if someone said the creator of that technique personally coached him right there."
"Tsk, it really is astonishing."
The judges conversed rapidly among themselves. They seemed extremely excited. Even Dokgo Hwayeon was flushed red as she joined in.
I stood there alone, watching them.
'Hey, what about the interviewee?'
I looked at the four of them with a slightly exasperated expression.
Did they notice?
"Ahem, ah, sorry. I got too surprised."
"No problem."
Fortunately, Dokgo Hwayeon snapped out of it.
She asked me a few questions.
"You've really only been learning martial arts for a month?"
"Yes. That's the truth."
"And swordsmanship for just a week?"
"Yes. That's true too."
"Do you have a master who taught you the swordsmanship, by any chance?"
"Um... Welcome to Murim."
"Pardon?"
She looked puzzled at my words. Probably hearing it for the first time.
"I-I mean, I learned from Newtube. There's this channel called Welcome to Murim, and they teach really well."
"Ah... Ne-Newtube..."
The other judges looked even more shocked at my response.
Like they'd discovered a true prodigy.
Anyway, Dokgo Hwayeon's questions didn't drag on. After a few, she turned to the other judges.
"Shall we decide on acceptance right now?"
"Good idea."
"I agree."
"......I agree too."
They all consented quickly.
All I'd done was chat briefly and show my swordsmanship.
Yet they acted like it was urgent.
Soon, Dokgo Hwayeon's beautiful voice rang out.
"Please raise your hand if you'd like to team up with Jae-ho."
A majority vote was enough for acceptance.
And I was confident.
Sure enough, as soon as Dokgo Hwayeon finished speaking, three hands shot up. She'd already raised hers while talking.
'Accepted.'
I nodded.
It was a shame not to get unanimous, but this was still a huge impression.
And I'd done it in front of 200,000 viewers. The next broadcast might see some growth.
'Viewers might increase a bit.'
Then I saw Shinbi—the one who'd been attacking me relentlessly—slowly raising his hand.
"Khkh."
His face was beet red. He seemed aware of his embarrassment.
But he raised his hand all the way up.
In the end, all four gave me unanimous approval.
"Oh my, even Shinbi raised his hand?"
"Indeed. Thought you'd forfeit."
"I thought so too. Weren't you harshly attacking Jae-ho earlier?"
"Khkh... He... possesses outstanding talent."
He bowed his head in shame. He clearly knew his earlier behavior was shameless.
I couldn't help but smirk. I held no grudge against Shinbi, but it felt good to land one on him.
I watched the other three pile on Shinbi for a moment before speaking up.
"So, am I accepted?"
"Ah! Yes! Accepted! Head to the waiting room over there!"
"Got it. Thank you."
I bowed politely and walked off.
No need to act smug. Just walk normally, as always.
'This is how real geniuses roll.'
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ I waited in the provided lounge. I was near the end of the lineup anyway, so no long wait.
Sure enough, the auditions wrapped up soon after.
Only 16 passed.
One-fifth survived out of 80.
Most were from major corporations. Or possessed exceptional talent.
The rest of the streamers drank the cup of failure.
And I was a pretty rare case here.
My viewer count was on par with mid-tier corps. Yet my talent was top-notch too. No one else fit this mold.
Both viewers and talent? Yeah.
And that became a massive advantage.
I could confirm it right away in the following Streamer Draft(?).
The broadcast didn't end with auditions.
There was one more segment lined up.
Called the Passed Streamer Pick content.
Judges could each select one desired streamer. Four per person, forming four teams total.
Normally, the judges wouldn't fuss over order. It was snake draft style.
First pick wasn't great—the next came way later. Second or third might be better.
So it should've gone peacefully.
But the moment I passed, all that vanished.
Had they all recognized my value?
They broke into a bloody battle(?) over first pick rights.