GalaxyTV Goes Live

GalaxyTV.

A streaming broadcast service. To users from Earth, it was, if anything, a familiar form of content.

Of course, even among ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Earthlings there were differences here and there, but generally speaking, no one had never watched a video in their life — and especially among users well-versed in the community, there was not a soul who didn't know the in-universe equivalent of YoTube.

Their reactions were not without heat.

And yet, their response was nothing compared to that of the native otherworlders.

For the otherworlders who had never once entered the premium shop — and thus had never seen the front-page promo video — the shock was all the greater. To them, it was an outrageously stimulating piece of content.

Every time a new piece of content opened, traffic surged — and users who had long since walked away came trickling back. There were even people, at some point, who simply waited for the Juddak's next update.

This event in particular had drawn far more praise than the gacha shop update before it. It didn't stop at mere consumption; it allowed production, and let the users exchange goods with one another — in effect, it had created an entire economy of flow.

Besides, was the otherworld perhaps a touch boring?

To users domesticated by the stimulation of the modern age, it was nothing short of an ice-cold carbonated drink.

Especially since a platform format like this meant the users produced content on their own — an abundance of things to watch was only natural.

And into all of it, the Juddak had stuck a straw called "service fees," raking in Karma Points with a rake.

Then, a challenger stepped forward to face that very Juddak — the first streamer, LichIsRich.

"Juddak! ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Are you watching?!"

LichIsRich — thoroughly infuriated by a Juddak who had shown no reaction whatsoever, no message, no reply, nothing.

He had thrown down his gauntlet and started the broadcast.

"The Juddak must, without doubt, be fearful of my growth."

Then, from beyond the screen, other voices drifted through as well.

"Raymond, sir, should I aim the lights like this?"

"Hey! Vampire! Get out of the way! One wrong move and you'll melt under those lights!"

"Could a ghost have possessed Raymond? Talking to himself into thin air like that."

"Shut up! He's not that far gone yet."

"Hey, gargoyle! Are these lights right?"

"Brighter! Make it brighter!"

The light at the center of the screen — which had been radiating a gloomy, deathly presence — wavered this way and that, before finally converging on the skull.

Fwoooosh—

A halo had been created.

"…."

"Khhm! Khm!"

Raymond struck the butt of his staff against the floor with a heavy thud.

At once, blue light poured down from the ceiling, illuminating the laboratory around him.

Raymond barely managed to compose himself and carried on with the broadcast. Surely a talent of his caliber had to be under the Juddak's watchful eye! He didn't know why the replies had never come, but he needed to use this opportunity to etch it, fresh and deep, into everyone's mind just how great — and how dangerous — a figure he truly was.

"Juddak! Did you truly believe I would not see through your refusal to communicate — your scheme to check my advance!"

"Hohho. Are you afraid? Afraid that I, Raymond the Lich King, am swiftly closing the distance between us?"

The chat window filled with every manner of mockery and abuse aimed at Raymond, but he didn't so much as flinch. His self-esteem was so solid it went beyond solid — it was diamond.

"This Great One does not play expensive games as you do! I built this stage today for the sole purpose of proving that fact!"

"Every lich is a great mage. No mage alive can match the devotion of one who surrendered his very flesh for the sake of magical research. We stand a cut above those hollow, good-for-nothing husks of men."

At Raymond's words, a chorus of outrage from the white-mage users came scrolling up the chat — and he paid it no mind whatsoever.

"Hohho. This Great One has spent a very long time studying the goods the Juddak sells. I shall prove that they can be fully replicated through magical craft alone."

"First, let us examine by what principle the goods the Juddak sells in his shop are made."

Raymond drew out the [Scout Drone (R)] he had barely managed to pull from the gacha shop. It was Treasure Number One of the Raymond collection, polished to a decent shine.

Khhm. [Scout Drone (R)]! Surely all would envy it.

"Gar! The only one permitted to insult me is the Juddak!"

Ding—

He froze—

What did I just see? Is it… asking the Lich King for a guide on how to defeat liches?

"Gar!!! Every lich is precious! So long as you do not strike first, we are beneficial beings who quietly devote ourselves to research within our dungeons!"

The units of the donation points had changed.

"…Gar! This Great One is no shameless wretch who sells out his own kin—"

"…Khhm! Well, one cannot call the liches of other worlds my kin. This world lies entirely under my control, it is true, but other worlds are another matter entirely…. Ahem, ahem."

Raymond had, not long ago, squandered his entire fortune in the gacha shop to secure research materials. His gaze wavered.

One million points???

Something dangerously like fury kindled in Raymond's eyes.

"First, you must understand the psychological traits of the lich. Stubbornly methodical to the core, and devoted above all else to safety-first principles, the lich is a truly vicious creature —"

It was not long after that Raymond's stream title changed to [The Lich King's Guide to Beating Liches!].

Beyond him, a number of other big-name users switched their broadcasts on as well.

There was even extreme doom field-trip education, taught by a Red Dragon.

Of course, the vast majority of users preferred watching over broadcasting.

And among all of it, one video had recorded an utterly overwhelming view count.

It was none other than the Juddak's own video.