PVP and Provocation
Meanwhile, the Lost World gallery was buzzing with posts about Sarea's stream.
Let's dive in right now~
-Can we see Avengers Assemble today lololol
-Gogogogogogo
-Friend said he has three legs
God is dead
-That's why he has some female fans lololol
-? Dude's leveling crazy fast. I'm just finishing 2nd job??
-That guy's got insane physicals for his age. Like, seasoned pro vibes or something
-She's a girl?
No yeah
Wanna game with me?
Crazy bastard lolololol
-Neon actually has a fanbase, she just doesn't stream often
Someone drop her Twit address
-Better than WonKang you shit, cheers
Can't call someone "ShitKang" or "WonPuppy" to their face though lol
-Honestly, she is cute
-Yeah but Eumsiinjang noona's eyes are cuter~
That's messed up...
This dude just called someone messed up
This fucker
-That's messed up...
-If mid-20s is messed up then what...
-Upvote
This dude just said upvote
-This guy's terminally ill...
-Pls hold your breath for 10 mins...
-Even if Noel sees this and no-shows in panic, no complaints fr
-Fr, this has to be solo exp hack right?
No such thing exists lolol
Could exist tho
-Growth speed is unreal
-Checked wiki, her speed is anomalously fast lolol
What's her level?
Witch lv43??
?????? Possible?
-Serinsel? Eumsiinjang? Fuck off lololol Now it's Noel's era lolololol
-Probably holed up at home cause she's busted lolol Plenty of busted chicks with good voices
Yeah that tracks most
The gallery was ablaze with talk of Noel, but Sarea's stream chat was even more explosive.
-Gorgeous
-Gorgeous
-Gorgeous
-Gorgeous
-He's a guy right he's a guy right he's a guy right he's a guy right he's a guy right he's a guy right he's a guy right he's a guy right he's a guy right he's a guy right he's a guy right he's a guy right he's a guy right he's a guy right he's a guy right he's a guy right he's a guy right he's a guy right he's a guy right he's a guy right he's a guy right he's a guy right...
Of course, even Sarea had blindly trusted Noel's words and called her a guy, so he had no idea either.
I broke the sudden silence in the party call.
"Ahaha... Sorry for lying about being a guy all this time. As you all know... there are a lot of weirdos out there."
-No worries noona
-Sorry for not realizing you're a girl ㅠㅠㅠㅠ
-Noona's voice is insane fr...
-Noel herself? For real?
One by one, the party members snapped out of it and started firing questions at me.
"No way, Noel-nim, you definitely said you were a guy..."
"Noel was a girl... a girl..."
"Wait! So Serinsel-nim knew about this?"
Neon grilled Serinsel with a voice full of betrayal.
"Ehehe... Yeah. I was super shocked when I first heard, so I suggested we surprise everyone with the reveal!"
After that, it was all "betrayal" this, "pretty voice" that. We chatted for 30 minutes, and I felt this inexplicable comfort.
Good thing no one's freaking out or grossed out.
The "betrayal" talk was all in playful tones anyway, so I could keep the convo flowing easily.
After over an hour of chit-chat and stories, Sarea resumed the stream.
"Alright, everyone. I've got some super fun content planned."
-O
-What is it
-Noel hearing pls that'd be the funniest lol
"Alright, could everyone fire up Lost World?"
"Already on and watching."
"Mine's already running."
"It's been open..."
As expected, everyone—including me—was either a RoAkGwi or had Lost World open by default.
"Great. So the content I've prepared is... the Colosseum."
-O
-Colosseum
-lololol this'll be fun
-Doesn't Noel skip PVP?
The Colosseum, also called the Arena of Proof. Lost World's PVP content with 1v1, 3v3, and 5v5 modes. Before the probability manipulation scandal, there was even LWCK—a tournament everyone went nuts for.
...It's defunct now since it stopped making money post-scandal. But I saw an article saying it'd reopen soon.
"Did everyone play a lot in Colosseum Season 1?"
People started responding to Sarea's question.
"I did a ton! Whenever hunting got grindy, I'd cool off with a couple rounds."
"I dabbled here and there. Think I ranked pretty high..."
-PVP was fun
-Fun meeting wild builds lol
Seemed like it really was Lost World's staple content since everyone had experience.
...Not me, though.
"I've... never actually tried it."
-Noel noona's been pure leveling so no PVP time makes sense lolol
-Wonder if she's good at PVP tho. Curious.
"That's why I prepared this! Sarea Bros' 1st Lost World PVP Tournament, Season 2!!!"
-? Tournament?
-Not enough people?
-7 incl Sarea how tf
"Heh, obviously I'm sitting out. Never done PVP either. I'll be commentating with LWCK caster Shin Yong-min instead!"
-Still 6
-YongCaster coming?? Insane connections ;;
"So! Recruiting 10 viewers from the cafe for a 16-bracket tourney. Should be up now... Entry req: Must've hit Diamond in Season 1 Colosseum at least once!"
-O season1 participants??
-Prizes??
-Sounds fun lol
"Prizes? Obviously. 1st place gets this Demonic Gaming Chair, 2nd gets this 200k keyboard + mouse set, and 3rd... you know this? Steak restaurant giftcon."
-Nice, big league
-Why that chair suddenly?
-Ad?
"Heh, someone caught on quick. Yep, chair ad... sponsored."
Sarea ran the chair ad for a bit, then drew brackets from 10 cafe viewers.
My opponent's...
One of the 10 viewers. Nearly Master before quitting post-scandal. Swordmaster class—high control demand, so I expected skill and waited my turn.
"Match 7: Yenaring vs NeonLight. Yenaring wins!"
Among our raid crew, SiKang and Neon—who'd barely PVP'd—dropped out. The other three besides me made quarters.
"Gotta step it up."
My chair was annoyingly uncomfortable lately, so I aimed for 1st and went all-in.
"Match 8: Noel vs Arcreil. Get ready!"
Witch vs Swordmaster. Assuming only 2nd job skills, Swordmaster has overwhelming matchup advantage.
Didn't matter to me. Like always, just crush the enemy in front of you with everything you've got.
"Any words before the match?"
Most folks taunt or stay polite here.
"Noel-nim, you're great at mindless mob grinding, but PVP's different, right?"
Not even worth calling a taunt. I brushed it off.
Or tried to.
"Honestly, aren't you overhyped? Ditched real life for Lost World, no school, no friends?"
Grind.
Just low-tier bait. But knowing that didn't stop it from pissing me off—judging me without knowing shit.
"Arcreil, that's too far. One more line and it's a DQ."
"Sure~"
I swallowed my anger, flashed a smile, and replied in a voice cold as ice, low and steady.
"Just come at me. Who the hell are you to judge, you third-rate hack who couldn't even hit Master?"