20. The Suspicious Mask
One minnow can muddy the whole stream.
This ancient proverb encapsulated the wisdom of the sages: even a pristine ecosystem could turn into a cesspool with just a single troll infiltrating the waters.
So, what happens when that one troll becomes dozens, hundreds? What if the spam crashed in like a burst dam, wave after endless wave?
Of course, it wasn't just muddied water anymore—it was straight-up sewage.
...In a normal scenario, anyway.
The tidal wave of trolls overflowing the chat was held back by none other than the Ego Searching Team.
Truth be told, their core duty was surveilling internet communities, shaping unhealthy opinions into something more "docile"—but with no dedicated stream manager for Seongwon right now, they had no choice but to step in and play the part.
Gazing at the chat window getting suppressed in seconds, Seongwon recalled what Deputy Director Cha had said.
"This next stream will probably draw in a ton of malicious viewers. Can't be helped—we gathered them by playing dirty ourselves."
"You mean the opinion manipulation?"
"No. The viral spam you ordered."
Of course, Seongwon hadn't fired back with something like, That's on you, right? You kidding? Write me a report.
Cha had suggested the optimal path, and she'd chosen to trust and follow it. Once you commit to trust, you see it through.
"Anyway, expect a flood of spammers, swears, and disruptors this time. You're not the type to get rattled by that scum, but... there's this thing called chat atmosphere."
"And?"
"We'll act as the filter for now, but that's just holding them back temporarily. Botch this, and growth stalls—or worse, the stream turns into a troll cesspool. This is the make-or-break moment."
Cha had looked her dead in the eye and asked,
"Chairman. Can you shut those malicious bastards up for good with your skills? Turn them into fans who'll praise you forever?"
To that, Seongwon had grinned, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
"Naturally."
Arrogant, as always. Brimming with unshakable confidence.
Watching a chat message brimming with deep-seated rage, I leaped from the towering spire.
Right now, my teammates were down to two. Precisely speaking, one had cursed out Minder the moment the game started and gone AFK, while the other spat bile while soloing and got knocked out cold.
'Wait, isn't this top Diamond territory?'If even high Diamond players AFK'd at the sight of Minder, how trash was this guy's perception?
It was basically a self-destruct nuke button for throwing games. No wonder it got labeled a trash-tier hero.
The issue was that at the top tiers, carrying solo got tricky. Opponents weren't idiots.
Sure, their side often botched Minder's skill combos or setups and blew themselves up by accident...
'But you can't rely on luck forever.'Climbing on flukes like that meant a single loss streak would tank you. No need for luck when you could prove it with pure skill. And I could.
At least this game had one teammate with actual intent to play.
"Whoa, Sno.1, you're insane. That skill shot during Cognitive Acceleration—how do you even do that?"
I turned at the voice beside me.
There was a user gliding alongside in a stylish pose. A man in a sleek black suit, wielding a long silver cane, face hidden behind a suspicious black mask—probably for privacy.
He was a telekinesis hero, just like me.
Professor.
Professor was a mid-range pure mage dealer relying on telekinesis. If Minder was a nuking assassin, Professor focused on sustained DPS—like a classic mage.
With burst control and positioning as its bread and butter, it was a staple in pro scenes. Versatile and efficient.
I gave the shady masked guy a fitting reply.
"Already did, already did. Aigoo, that damn promo. I did it, so spill a secret already."
The masked guy chuckled.
"That's why no one does it and skips Minder, right? Got any tips? You're streaming, so if it's not public-friendly, DM me?"
Hm, tips.
I pondered for a moment.
Tip or not, would he even buy it? Might think I was lying or hiding the real deal.
'Who knows.'Too ambiguous. His skill made it hard to gauge.
Cause this guy's level was way beyond this tier.
The telekinesis control, field of view, map reading, positioning—he was no Diamond or even Ranker.
'Somewhere higher than Ranker, though.'I ran a mental sim.
'One-on-one against him?'Conclusion: Wouldn't lose, but a prolonged fight might get annoying.
'Hmm.'Snagging players like this meant I'd hit the high-tier smurf zone.
That's where top-tier alts roamed most—easy parking spot while casually running mains.
Plus, pro Soul Frame accounts were dumped here too. No time for ranked while prepping for domestic or international tourneys.
'This guy's probably an alt or something.'Guessing High Ranker level? Maybe not, but close.
Anyway, climbing here was a grind of time, effort, and patience.
Stack wins stitch by stitch to climb.
Not that I cared.
'Just shred 'em all.'Decision made, I fired off my usual yellow bear thumbs-up emote.
"... ? You already passed that."
Ah, uh.
Already surpassed it...
"Hey?"
"Uh, hey?"
"Sno.1?"
No, really, I had no idea.
'Deputy Director Cha, you bastard...'You should've reported this pronto...!
-BOOM!
Cognitive Acceleration ended, and I instantly unleashed a telekinetic blast.
With no way to react to the zero-delay cast, the enemy's glass cannon Ion got stunned on the spot.
The rest of their setup survived, though.
'Ion's one-trick, so full tanks and bruisers.'Yeah, higher up, they prioritize comps.
Truth is, Minder could nuke at absurd speeds—that's why I instagibbed Ion. Any other nuker would've eaten blocks before lining up the shot.
Tsking, I Telekinesis Accelerated out.
'C site's good enough.'Enemy was mid-fight with the other team. Yanking their main DPS was a massive win.
Glancing opposite, their comp was weird too. Down to three, one MIA...
'Professor, The Batter, and Explosion...?'Shady comp.
"...What, are they a baseball team?"
The masked guy said what I was thinking.
And they were actually doing it.
Explosion spawned short-range orbs like balls, Professor flung them, and The Batter smashed them like home-run artillery toward the Ion team.
It was working—Ion's squad couldn't close in, scattering in panic. My nuke on Ion helped, but they'd been eating it before that.
Watching from afar, the masked guy muttered gravely.
"Add one more hero and this gets real bad. Gotta ID the smurf, but unnerfed? Tournament-breaking comp."
The masked guy groaned.
"Sorry, gotta test this head-on. No clue till we clash. Can't guarantee a win. You good?"
I grinned.