The Magic Girl's Awakening

Grand Arts Hero is a popular AOS game based on an SF movie where heroes from various worlds gather to fight across the universe.

Because the setting involves heroes from multiple worldviews transcending time and space, characters with tokusatsu concepts like magical girls or sentai protagonists exist.

“Yujacha, you’re Bronze rank, right? I’m Diamond, so we’ll have to queue in unranked. Even for duos, the actual rank difference can’t be too large.”

“What position should we play?”

Grand Arts Hero has three positions.

Tankers who handle base defense and team protection.

Dealers who pierce through those tanks with overwhelming firepower.

And finally, supporters in charge of healing and buffs.

“Play whatever you want. Just because you picked Seven Star doesn’t mean you have to go support.”

Originally, most of Seven Star’s skills involve healing, but through combinations you can convert a portion of the healing into damage dealt to enemies.

This ability to combine the base skills to create all sorts of variables and flip the tide of battle is what makes Grand Arts Hero unique.

On top of that, there are gimmicks that change when you collect stars, and honestly, it had become a game with so much to learn that it was difficult for anyone but long-time players to get into.

“I’ll go support! If I can at least get decent at basic healing, I think I can climb out of Bronze!”

Yet the VTuber Yujacha was saying she would safely play the supporter position, contrary to the script.

If you drag the game into a long war by collecting all seven stars that appear on the map every time, maybe, but for stable wins, beginners were better off avoiding gimmicky plays.

“Let’s just go double dealer. Even if Yujacha makes mistakes or dies, I can ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠carry.”

But I wanted Yujacha to occupy the top clips on Sepia for a few weeks.

Among viewers who collab with streamers, low-skill players draw aggro to become memorable, but…

“Huh? Really? But it’ll be hard for you…”

“I’m Cosmos rank. Don’t believe me?”

High-skill players instead yield the spotlight focused on themselves so their favorite can shine brighter.

Strictly speaking I was five years younger, but since we weren’t even going to see each other’s faces, what did age matter?

“Okay, I’ll trust the editor. Even if I’m clumsy since it’s my first time, you’ll lead me gently, right?”

Even in moments like this, Yujacha slipped in lewd jokes while playfully maintaining her succubus saint RP. The chat sped up again at her remark.

* * *

Among people who do internet broadcasts, there are many streamers who aren’t good at games. Conversely, there are also many people with top-tier skill who fail to gain popularity.

So what’s the difference?

It all comes down to how much you can make viewers laugh and have fun while playing the game.

“Editor-nim! Help me!”

“Try to play it safe for a bit. The space station is a safe zone so you can heal there, right? Hold out and I’ll come save ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠you.”

Of course, Yujacha was an unfortunate VTuber who was bad at games and not entertaining either, which was why she had almost no viewers despite streaming for a long time.

“Editor-nim!”

“Ultimates aren’t meant to be used the moment they’re off cooldown. Try using them in response to the enemy’s ult.”

Yujacha, who had picked a character that should normally be played as a healer but was forcing her into the dealer position, was learning the game by getting beaten up firsthand.

To also meet the condition of collecting the seven stars that drop on the map, I deliberately explained things one by one and taught her the game in this manner.

“Editor-nim, sorry for dying so much…”

“It’s fine. Games are meant to be fun, after all. No need to apologize.”

Things like the timing of skill usage or how to maintain ally respawns from the base were often learned faster through experience than by watching videos.

Truthfully, Yujacha hadn’t slacked off on effort either. She had once streamed for over thirty hours trying to climb from Bronze to Silver.

But learning a game that had been stagnant for over ten years as a complete newbie ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠with no one to teach you, relying only on videos, was nearly impossible.

“Editor-nim, my teammate is already flaming me for twenty deaths? Asking who fed the enemy Astronaut?”

“I just told them to check my match history. I won’t let us lose, so don’t worry about it.”

Especially since there were no teammates left ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠who would understand Seven Star in the dealer position, whose success rate had become extremely low due to multiple patches and nerfs.

“Editor-nim…! Aaaah!”

“You still got the star even though you died, right? Good job.”

“I got praised, guys!”

Still, I kept praising her because I wanted Yujacha to enjoy Grand Arts Hero a little more.

Even though back when I was a pro-gamer trainee I had played for the team, and in the end if you didn’t win, no amount of effort would be recognized by anyone.

“Just one more star to go. You can keep going, right?”

“Yeah! This game is fun! I just dodged an enemy ambush for the first time!”

“You’re even watching the minimap now. Congratulations.”

“Hehe, the enemy team is so bad~!”

Things were different now.

Just like how she had encouraged me during the hardest time of my life, I wanted to indirectly tell her that it was okay to fail no matter what.

And whether the viewers had caught on to my inner thoughts or not, they kept expressing admiration while watching my plays.

The victory announcements kept coming.

Maybe because I was playing with the single-minded desire to help my favorite’s stream, I felt like my skills had improved beyond usual.

Was this what they called the courage to be disliked?

Originally, as a trainee dreaming of going pro, I shouldn’t have used such reckless strategies, but for the sake of my favorite I was trampling the enemy team without mercy.

“Wow, how are you so good? I died so much that the enemy team must have grown a ton…”

“Red Turbo gets overload and stronger damage when you combine skills. If you time it just right, you can carry like this. At max speed you even become temporarily unkillable for a short while instead of dying.”

Truthfully, Red Turbo was a character I had used often even during my trainee days. Depending on the player, its highs and lows swung like a jump rope, which was why it had the infamous reputation of guaranteeing a loss if brought to tournaments.

In the end, to prepare for going pro, I had no choice but to give up the character I loved the most.

“It seems like such a cool character! It’s my first time seeing someone actually good with Red Turbo!”

“Thanks. Now just wait for the last star to appear over there.”

Yujacha was calling Red Turbo cool, and a warm feeling spread through my chest that I had chosen the right favorite.

And as if that had been a signal flare—

The magical girl who had collected all seven stars emitted a dazzling light and soared into the sky.

“Huh? My skills and appearance really changed! Editor-nim, what do I do now?”

“You can just spam enemy skills however you want. Awakened Seven Star won’t die no matter who comes.”

“W-wait! How do I use the skills?! I don’t know what I’m doing! Aaaah! Sorry!!”

Thus, Yujacha, who was using awakened Seven Star for the first time as a complete game noob, let out cute screams while blowing up the enemies’ heads.

* * *

Yujacha and I were on a 13-game win streak, playing continuously for six hours straight.

“Aren’t you thirsty? If you need the bathroom or want to rest, just say so. We can pause queueing for a bit.”

“I’m fine! The game’s so fun I’m not even thinking about that! What about you, Editor-nim?”

“Then that’s a relief. I’m having so much fun after a long time that I lost track of time too.”

Yujacha was gradually gaining confidence in the game while playing Seven Star.

Of course, the performance of characters that awaken under special conditions like this was ridiculously strong, so it could also be said she was drunk on dopamine.

“This is really nice. At this level, you could definitely reach Silver, or even Gold.”

“Hehe, if you praise me that much I’ll misunderstand, you know?”

Objectively speaking, aside from fan bias, Yujacha’s skill really was improving.

She was learning basic map awareness as well as how to avoid unnecessary fights by calculating her allies’ respawn timers.

Plus, the win streak had raised her MMR significantly, and because I was actually Diamond, we occasionally matched against Master-level players.

“Then let’s make this the last game. I should probably go eat dinner and rest soon.”

“Okay! I’m good with that too! Hehe, I’ll carry you this time!”

After confirming the chat atmosphere had improved, I suggested one final game because I felt any more queuing would be too much for her.

“Ah, I died! I definitely bought time…”

The flow of the game suddenly shifted.

Yujacha, who had been in a position invisible from the enemy’s perspective, started dying repeatedly,

“H-huh? This isn’t right?”

Before we could even fulfill the condition of collecting seven stars by stalling for time, our base buildings were being destroyed.

“E-Editor-nim! The enemy team are Grand Masters! One tank, one dealer, one healer! It looks like they’re targeting us!”

Unlike before, Yujacha’s voice began trembling with worry. The feeling of being helplessly sniped in a game she had only just started enjoying must have been awful.

Yujacha’s stream had crossed into three-digit viewers for the first time. As if to prove it, the opponents this game were indeed strong even by my standards.

No matter how much I tried to seize the advantage with Red Turbo, the enemy had completely countered us and was preventing me from joining the team.

Starting with our team’s tank getting solo-killed, we kept losing every fight.

“I’m sorry… Editor-nim, I tried to hold on until the end…”

Along with Yujacha’s slightly tearful, trembling voice, every teammate except me had died, leaving a 6v1 situation.

“……”

And naturally, the moment the enemy poured all their skills onto me, the last one standing, to end the game—

— Baekhyun-ah, no matter how hard you try, if the team doesn’t win it doesn’t mean anything. Instead of solo-carry characters like Red Turbo, wouldn’t it be better to practice other characters to broaden your pool?

Words I had once heard echoed in my mind.

— Honestly, your skill isn’t quite at pro level. You definitely have talent, but… it’s ambiguous.

Yeah, maybe none of it had been useful after all.

Even if I had collabed for the sake of my favorite, maybe this was the price for being too greedy.

Originally, fans and VTubers were never meant to connect.

I shouldn’t have done anything unnecessary from the start.

…Just as I thought that and was about to give up on everything—

“Cheer up! Baekhyun! You can win!”

Once again, a voice of encouragement reached me, someone whose every effort had been denied.

Before I could even think, it felt as if Red Turbo had moved on its own.

Without even considering the usual skill combinations or ultimate timing, I trusted my instincts and executed a completely new strategy.

Strangely, I didn’t feel the tension or complicated pressure I used to feel when playing to become a pro-gamer.

Maybe because my favorite, whom I liked the most, was cheering me on from beside me.

The feeling I had right now was incredibly comfortable.

And the enemy team wipe notification that appeared before my eyes.

A Diamond player had gotten a hexakill against a team with three Grand Master players.

Of course, my actual highest rank was Cosmos, so if you really looked at it, I was higher-ranked anyway.

“Waaah—!! Nice!! How did you do that?! You guys saw it too, right! The ultimate and skill combo went in perfectly and swept them away!! Huh? This is Red Turbo’s awakening?”

The huge teamfight I had caused that day became a clip that set not only the Sepia platform but various communities ablaze.