149 - Roster Reveal

The Tit-for-Tat Tournament, held midway through the spring and summer seasons while pro gaming takes a break, had already drawn massive attention from crowds. Especially for World of Arceria, which had been mired in match-fixing scandals, some disillusioned viewers were pouring even more interest into this streamer-hosted event.

Even though it wasn't an official match—just a live roster reveal broadcast—over 100,000 people had already flooded into the Letterbox official channel, waiting and venting their feelings in the chat. And they weren't the type to wait quietly.

[Tit-for-Tat Roster Reveal - 10 Minutes to Go lololol]

[42]

Roughly everyone knows who's coming out anyway, but hype is hype, super chat lololol

This event game generates controversy every season. Last season's drama wasn't small, but the general consensus was to let it slide as minor league stuff.

[This Season's Tit-for-Tat Changes Are Pretty Meaningful][89]

(Major Changes.jpg)

Looks like they took feedback well? Especially WoA has tons of tweaks.

As an amateur tournament, pros weren't given pro accounts with free traits—they could pick freely—but to ensure fairness, a tool was provided to standardize combat power across streamers' characters. While past fights were at 100K power, risking a slower game, they announced uniform 50K power upfront despite criticism.

I hopped onto my queen-sized bed, shoving Adella aside.

"Eek!"

"Quit messing around and manage the chat."

"This is animal abuse! Per Animal Protection Law Article 8 Paragraph 2, sis—"

Bonk.

I lightly bopped the disobedient cat's head and handed her manager perms. She couldn't log into the game, but Twitch guest accounts worked fine.

"No threats—manage it!"

Bonk.

I ignored Adella, who clutched her head and flopped over. First time in one of these, so I didn't know the full rundown. Got a text saying "watch this stream together today," and fired it up on a whim.

Bouncy electro music kicked in, everyone counting down in sync. Adella's tail, sprawled on the bed, swished side to side with the beat.

"I wanna join one of these too!"

More into it than expected, her eyes sparkled as she looked my way.

"You wanna play games?"

"Yeah. Watching's kinda meh, playing seems way more fun."

"I'll ask the devs later."

About making her an account. Endless complicated talks ahead, but gotta ask to find out—positive or negative.

An AI streaming in a tourney? First in history?

Roster reveal order: LoL, WoA, Resonance for main tourney, then Fall from Grace LoL, WoA, Resonance. Highlight reels (3 secs each) clocked in at nearly 10 mins total. Word was they'd show all rosters combined first, then split showcases by game channel.

"Your turn soon, sis!"

First highlights were WoA. As the 36th and last, I got 5 secs instead of 3.

My clip for Letterbox: 10th duel with Kim Young-kwang. Amid tense combat, I dove into his heavy attack's path—a reckless move—and slapped his wrist before his greatsword cleaved me, sealing the win.

"How'd you even think to step forward there? Doesn't make sense."

Adella poked the screen, puzzled.

"He was dead sure I'd back off. I could've advanced or stood still. Gotta punish baseless exclusion plays."

"So how? Don't you flinch reflexively?"

"Yeah."

"No way. Watch sis—hyah!"

Whoosh.

Her fingers sliced air, halting at my eyes. Her face scrunched.

"Damn, sis is ruthless. No blink?"

"Wanna get hit?"

"Eek sorry! Tail tail! No tail grabs!"

Three mins later, LoL Fall from Grace streamers dropped. With teams pre-set, team names showed too.

Top: Pyo Min-jun, Jungle: Lee Mir, Bot: me and Yoo Sia. Last piece: Maze cell master Miroking.

Speak of the devil—Miroking called.

"Yeah, I hear you."

"Get to the point."

"Yeah. You said I was rude, needed etiquette training."

"...Just do your part. I'll carry bot."

"Shouldn't you practice other champs over Maze?"

Said his piece and hung up—suspiciously mission-like. Meanwhile, spotting her giggling at chat, I lightly smacked Adella's thigh.

Smack.

"Ow why! I didn't do anything!"

"Just. 'Cause you're cute."

"Hmph, you're cuter."

"...Huh?"

Didn't see that coming.