The Second Broadcast’s Lingering Echoes
“Ha… is this the announcement for the final boss of the next installment?”
The general director’s bomb-like declaration sent the man’s voice soaring without him even noticing.
‘Nightfall’ had only been out for about a month, yet it had already racked up record-breaking sales of over ten million copies.
Though completely expected, just as with any game that had pulled off such a monumental launch, ‘Nightfall’ had already been confirmed for a sequel.
At the same time, it was only confirmed; nothing at all had been prepared for the next game.
Not even a decent plan, let alone a title, concept, or basic draft.
In fact, every single employee in the company was knee-deep in creating DLC content for the current ‘Nightfall.’
And now, with literally nothing prepared, the company was suddenly declaring that same user—the one who wielded the sword—as the final boss for the next title?
Was the general director actually sane?
“…Then… what exactly is the reason? Didn’t you already propose adding this user’s combat data into the boss monster scheduled for the DLC? And we haven’t even gotten a reply from him yet—how can you—”
“Exactly.”
“…Eh?”
“We haven’t received any official reply from this Sword User yet. And here we are, watching his every move on an internet live broadcast. What do you think that means?”
What? Just him doing his own thing, naturally.
After all, that Sword User’s job was as a streamer, wasn’t it?
But the general director seemed to be thinking along a completely different line.
“No, when I look at it, the Sword User is deliberately acting this way. Logically, if our proposal didn’t suit him, he should’ve just sent a reply refusing it, right?”
“…Yeah, whatever.”
If someone had sent a New Year’s greeting or even a business email, wouldn’t it be basic etiquette to reply? Common sense, at least.
“But right now, while he’s refusing to reply, he’s deliberately turned on his stream as if he’s challenging us. And the content? A head-to-head battle with ‘Ecclesia,’ the streamer who specializes in our company’s game.”
And the Sword User had eventually triumphed over Ecclesia in a nail-biting duel and claimed the throne of ‘Nightfall.’
“After watching that duel just now, what do you think went through your mind?”
“Huh? Well… first of all, I have to admit it’s amazing. Even though we created the game, I’d never once imagined anyone could pull off movements like that inside it.”
“And?”
“…And honestly, for the first time in a long while, I felt my blood boiling. Watching that Sword User—it just gets you fired up.”
They had personally designed it, yet they had never imagined that someone would take nothing but a broken straight sword and dismantle the broken-balance weapon, the ‘Martial Cannon,’ in PVP.
To witness such an absurd scene and feel zero emotion would mean the man had no right to call himself a game producer.
The man was starting to see the general director as a madman.
Yet on the other hand, he understood exactly why he was going on about the Sword User so much.
After all, the man himself was barely holding back the urge to rush out and implement a few of the wild ideas that had exploded in his head the moment he saw that user.
“Right after receiving our proposal, the Sword User went live and showed off an entirely new kind of physical movement that had never appeared before—different from the ones he used to defeat Ariandel or the Ruler, like he was showing off for us.”
What the general director had witnessed was a single, unmistakable message.
“He’s saying that instead of negotiating like some ordinary human and demanding we raise his pay, he’s expressing his own opinion indirectly. It’s truly cunning and elegant.”
It even reminded him of the refined etiquette of nobles from a storybook—the general director thought, inwardly impressed.
But of course, to someone as unhinged as that conclusion, the man’s jaw simply dropped.
“Why would he bother going around in circles? He could’ve just stated the conditions he wants on our side and—”
“That’s exactly the mindset of an ordinary human. And that guy… he’s not like those petty streamers. He’s someone who possesses a completely different kind of depth.”
The general director let out a bitter smile and continued.
“A normal streamer would never refuse a proposal to use his combat data to create a boss monster. It’s both an honor for the development team and a way to elevate his own fame.”
“But the Sword User rejected our proposal and chose to film a joint broadcast with Ecclesia instead. In other words, he’s saying he possesses an unquenchable ambition that no mere proposal can ever satisfy.”
That was because Yu-jin had looked at Powell Software as if it were a stepping stone.
“Moreover, now that I think about it, the Sword User’s actions have become even more intriguing.”
“What do you mean by that?”
The man found the general director’s reasoning surprisingly persuasive and started listening, mouth slightly agape, as if half-distracted.
“Isn’t something suspicious here? Someone of his caliber has been living in obscurity until just three days ago—doesn’t that in itself seem off?”
“…It does feel strange, yeah.”
Becoming a star overnight is common in this world. Someone with that much talent should’ve already been known by name—even if it wasn’t in virtual reality. Yet the Sword User had remained unknown until recently. What does that mean?
“He deliberately hid his true strength.”
That made sense because it had only been a few months since Yu-jin had returned from the other world.
“And why was he hiding? He was simply waiting for the perfect time to sell his value at its highest price.”
So that’s why he chose ‘Nightfall’—a game packed with hidden routes and secret bosses—as his debut stage. If he could pioneer a world-first hidden route, he’d explode into the spotlight in an instant.
In truth, Yu-jin had only been forced to play because Winter had declared, without consulting him, that he was going to play Nightfall however he wanted.
The premise had been completely wrong from the start, so the conclusion had spiraled into madness.
But the truth was far simpler than anyone realized—except the general director, who was operating on normal human logic.
A normal person couldn’t possibly imagine that Yu-jin had been kidnapped from the other world for five years and only returned to Earth two months ago.
In that way, the general director of ‘Nightfall’ had unknowingly become a factory churning out conspiracy theories about Yu-jin.
“Either way, the Sword User is no one to stay put in his current position. He’s the kind of person who can show insane patience—crouching down for years just to seize a single perfect opportunity.”
According to the general director’s prediction, he would soon display his greed without restraint as he climbed to even greater heights.
And by then, Powell Software would be nothing more than a small stepping stone to him.
After all, he was an extremely arrogant man who viewed the game ‘Nightfall’ merely as a tiny platform for achieving his ambitions.
“I can’t say for certain what ultimate ambition he harbors, but… one thing is clear: the moment we can forge a ‘thread’ with him is right now.”
Someone with that absurd level of physical movement shouldn’t be failing as a streamer. In other words, his current market value is at its absolute lowest ever—the price before his future rise.
If they viewed this as simply the price of building a future friendship and forging an alliance, they weren’t losing anything.
No, quite the opposite: the chance of enormous gains from this deal was far from zero!
“G-General director… how could you calculate all that in such a short moment…”
The man’s exclamation drew a calm response from the general director, as if it were nothing.
“So right now, contact him immediately. Stop treating him as just another streamer and treat him as a partner on equal terms with us.”
***
“…Hey, bro. Come over here and look at this. Quickly.”
“What is it? Just tell me. I’m lying down and don’t feel like getting up.”
“W-well, Powell Software just contacted me again. Meaning… about the last time when they ignored our call and did a joint broadcast with Ecclesia.”
“Oh, did they get mad at you for ignoring them and broadcasting with Ecclesia? Really, if they act like that, who knows—maybe someone will get scared—”
“…No, that’s not it.”
“Not what?”
“They’re saying they’ll fulfill every condition you want—just sign the contract already?”
“…?”