Chapter 90
Chapter 90
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 90
Chapter Title: A VTuber with Unexpected Talent
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"Yes...!"
Ayase let out a cheer of triumph after sending the voice chat message to Lee Jia.
It was a natural reaction born from the sense of accomplishment of successfully recruiting her top-priority pick.
Ever since they collaborated on the 'Abyss Show' content last time, Ayase had been keeping an eye on the VTuber named Lee Jia.
The overwhelming quality of her virtual avatar compared to other streamers was now just one of Lee Jia's many strengths.
Lee Jia was simply a VTuber who was genuinely great at streaming.
Her unique 'Cult Fanatic' roleplay, and the skill with which she pulled it off.
The derivative content like 'Confessionals,' and her fantastic banter with her followers.
And on top of that, her diligence in streaming every single day.
Ayase thought to herself.
'Has there ever been a VTuber who grew this fast? I don't think there has... not a single one.'
No.
There had definitely been a VTuber who grew faster than Lee Jia.
...And that was no one other than Ayase herself.
She wasn't particularly jealous or anything.
People naturally tend to pay more attention to others than themselves, after all.
Lee Jia was clearly the dark horse of this tournament.
Ayase was already looking forward to seeing how her near-natural-disaster-level gaming skills would play out on stream.
Her teammates might suffer for it, but...
That was part of the entertainment value.
Ayase was already anticipating the dazzling performance Lee Jia would put on during the tournament.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ I took a closer look at the tournament pamphlet Ayase had sent me.
[Ayase Cup Streamer Battle Lounge Random Team Battle]
Total Prize Pool: 30 Million Won
ㄴ 1st Place Team: 4 Million Won
2nd Place Team: 2 Million Won
3rd Place Team: 1 Million Won
4 Matches Total
Special Awards
ㄴ Best Kills Award
ㄴ Best Deaths Award
Number of Participants:
40 Streamers Total (10 Teams)
Tournament Format:
40 streamers will be randomly grouped into teams for each match.
Team compositions are completely random, and after each round, a program reshuffles the teams.
There is a chance of being teamed up with someone from a previous round again.
Preliminary tiers are assigned based on streamers' Battle Lounge skill levels.
1st Tier: 10 people
2nd Tier: 20 people
3rd Tier: 10 people
To balance things out, each team gets exactly one 1st Tier and one 3rd Tier player. So every team consists of one 1st Tier, two 2nd Tiers, and one 3rd Tier.
As a casual tournament, there are no strict rules. Everything is allowed except 'team flashing' and 'intentional team kills.'
EX1) Possible to intentionally spare a 3rd Tier newbie after engaging an enemy team (tier bagging).
EX2) Friendly streamers can team up intentionally.
*
A tournament with no rules? Yeah, that's so Ayase.
Dopamine was already surging through me like crazy.
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say Ayase in her solo streams and Ayase in collab content were completely different streamers.
Her solo streams had a calm, relaxed vibe.
But Ayase in collabs? She was pure dopamine madness incarnate.
Just look at how she ran that pretty dangerous 'Abyss Show' format.
This tournament was the same.
She'd nailed it from the start: no rules whatsoever. It was like an unspoken command to go wild without worrying about the vibe getting killed.
That's probably why she recruited me.
I seem to be the kind of streamer whose mere presence kills the vibe.
I suck at games anyway, and FPS games where physical skill is key? I have zero confidence there.
Last time I played, even being a proper Level 4 bag carrier was a struggle.
The tournament is this Saturday—two days from now.
Even for a casual event, time is insanely tight.
This feels like...
They don't want me practicing. Did they recruit me on purpose this tight?
In other words, Ayase wants me to spectacularly shit the bed during the tournament.
"..."
Not thrilled about that.
Of course, I get that me shitting the bed spectacularly would make for the funniest stream.
But.
I'm a living being with a clear desire to actually get good at games.
I want to survive to the end solo, hard carry, get applause from my teammates, and have donations pouring in.
With that in mind.
I called up someone reliable.
She picked up after five seconds.
[What.]
The kind of sharp, hostile tone that anyone else might misinterpret.
But I knew Yoo Euisul was just like this, so I wasn't fazed.
She hates beating around the bush.
I got straight to the point.
"Help me out, please."
[Where'd you leave your title?]
"...Unnie, help me out, please."
[Spit it out.]
Hmm.
This person might actually be surprisingly straightforward and easy to handle.
I gave Yoo Euisul the rundown.
"...So, I need to practice Battle Lounge. Teach me?"
[Two days left?]
"Yeah."
[Then you're screwed. Just give up.]
"Huh?"
[Two days? Practice won't mean shit. Give up clean. You think Battle Lounge is a joke? It's way harder than you think.]
"B-but you never know! With practice, I could at least be a Level 4 bag..."
[Doubt it. Saw you last time—didn't even seem human.]
"..."
[Oh wait, thinking about it, you're not human.]
"..."
Probably no intent to rile me up from Yoo Euisul.
Just stating facts.
My game skills aren't human-level? True.
I'm not actually human? Also true.
But.
It still grates.
I don't even have gamer pride or whatever, so why does it itch so much?
Is it that the talentless can never rise no matter how hard they struggle?
What a rotten world.
...I disagree.
I'll prove it.
"I'll show the world effort can do it!"
[Your goal's still just properly playing bag carrier side dish, right? Man, you'd think you were prepping for pro league or something.]
"D-don't!!! Belittle my grand ambition!"
Final goal being Level 4 bag? Even I think it's pathetic...
But I gotta hit that or I'll just get called dead weight.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Pick.
Thud.
"Ah, that guy's aimbotting!"
⚙ GAME ALERT ⚙ 'Ex-calibur' has been knocked out by 'E-Zia520''s M24. [Not aimbot, you psycho! When you see the enemy, think about shooting, damn it! Forget Level 4 bag or whatever—survive first!]
That was my fourth knockout just now.
I'd somehow endured up to the third, but the fourth made even Yoo Euisul snap with curses.
Once again, she went on a rampage, wiping out the enemy squad.
She protected me with smoke first.
Then flashed them to blind their vision.
And finally, finished with two grenades.
Reviving me, Yoo Euisul said,
[Battle Lounge isn't a game where you survive just by hiding behind cover. How do you handle grenades? What if they flank and take wide angles?]
"So what should I have done back there?"
[Suppress with gunfire so they can't flank. They were newbies too—no smoke, just strolling up. That's basically begging to die.]
"Then why didn't you kill them?"
[Wanted to see what you'd do, so I held back. Enemy exposes themselves wide open, and you just sit there? You're so fixated on 'Level 4 bag' you don't even think to shoot.]
"..."
Spot on.
My goal isn't some grand 'get 1 kill'—it's just 'properly play Level 4 bag.'
Ever seen a bag shoot?
Dunno if such items or anomalies exist, but common sense says bags don't shoot.
Yoo Euisul sighed.
[You do know how to shoot, right?]
"I'm not that dumb. I know—right-click mouse twice, aim, left-click."
[Oh.]
"Not something to be impressed by!"
[Gotta have seen it done first. What's your sensitivity at?]
"Max."
[...What?]
"Max sensitivity."
[M-mouse DPI?!]
"1600."
[Ah, you... freaking...]
DPI 1600, max sensitivity.
I know it's abnormally fast.
But.
My role is securing vision and supplying loot, not shooting.
"Cursor needs to spin fast for good vision securing, right? Not planning to shoot anyway."
[Your mindset's already rotten. At least pretend to shoot. Standing still makes you a sitting duck, bag or not. Shooting cover at least suppresses.]
"...Okay, got it."
Pretend to shoot.
Shoot cover for minimum suppression.
Crystal clear.
I'm similar enough to humans that practice will improve me.
[Anyway, fix sensitivity first. DPI to 800, sens to 60.]
"Feels too slow and frustrating... I can hit cover fine now."
Whish whish whish.
Whish whish whish.
I spun the mouse around.
"See? Super fast. Theoretically perfect 360 vision for the ultimate Level 4 bag."
[Vision's useless if you don't shoot.]
"I can shoot. Enemy behind? Swing, left-click—bang!"
Spinning the mouse wildly, I left-clicked.
⚙ GAME ALERT ⚙ 'Ex-calibur' has been knocked out by 'E-Zia520''s M24. [You little...]
"Eek."
One shot.
Just one, and it nailed Yoo Euisul's head.
What kind of ridiculous luck is this?
Do I have a natural talent for team kills?
"I-I'll revive you quick!"
[What'd I say earlier? Thing you gotta do before reviving.]
"Throw smoke!"
Click.
Thud.
Zzzzziiiiing.
"Gyaah, my eyes! Enemy attack!"
[Not enemy—your own flashbang, psycho! I said smoke, not flash! Calm down! Hold G to switch to smoke!]
"O-okay! Calm, switch to smoke..."
💥 DEATH 💥 'E-Zia520' has been killed by 'Ililililiiilllll''s Kar98.
"Gack."
A stray bullet took my head.
Match over.
Final Rank: 6th.
Ex-calibur: 13 Kills, 1670 Damage Dealt.
E-Zia520: -1 Kill, -100 Damage Dealt.
[...]
"..."
[...Follow me to the training grounds.]
"Yes, ma'am."