Chapter 11 : The Saint plays games (6)

“Look! Just now, Scorpio’s charge pattern. He’s already in position, right? It’s not like he uses it at a set time. It’s weird how she anticipates and reacts to it.”

His speech, which had been somewhat formal, became casual, but the viewers didn’t mind.

-Seriously lol
-Didn’t a pro say that you can tell when it’s about to charge by looking at its two hind legs?
-Are there even pros in this game lol
-Lara Pro said so.
-Lara fanboys, get out!
-Well, she’s #1, so it makes sense.
-Crazy lol and the delay is less than a second, how do you know in advance? It has so many legs, how can you even see that?

“Hind legs! By the time you see that, you’ll already be flying through the air. And then you’ll see the familiar ‘You Died’ screen. You have a better chance dodging by looking at its front legs.”

Speedwagon donated ₩5,000!
<The official strategy is to destroy all twelve tombs to stun the boss. But even destroying eight makes it easy enough, so an 8-person raid can clear it pretty quickly…>

-Shut up, Speedwagon!
-But 5,000 won is a decent donation, right?

Checking the donation, Night King grinned and continued.

“Right. But in this video, she didn’t destroy a single tomb and killed the boss at full health. Just look at how the screen moves. She’s constantly moving. That clear time is insane.”

-So, it’s a hack?

Starting with one viewer’s comment, people began to conclude that the video was a result of hacking.

Some even insulted the woman in the video.

Normally, a streamer would intervene, but he instead encouraged it.

“Well, it’s ridiculous that a woman is this good.”

All VR games were interconnected.

This was because the capsules themselves were made by Hanjin Group, which managed the central server. Developers released their games and shared Hanjin Group’s server. This was also why the My Room character was the base.

Customization was possible, but the base was based on the user’s real-life appearance.

Naturally, sexual harassment towards characters was grounds for legal action. But he spoke without hesitation, even on topics other streamers avoided.

‘As if she’d be watching.’

That was his mentality.

-Why don’t you challenge her to a duel?
-Time for some justice~
-Deathmatch?

“Nah, why would I do that?”

-Scared?
-Chicken
-Seriously lol

A deathmatch? Analyzing videos and making slightly suggestive comments was something all streamers did. But…

MageIsFundamental donated ₩50,000!
<I’ll match the amount if you do it.>

“Gasp! Thank you! Your Majesty, in such a humble place… but how…”

Just as he was about to react…

HeroKing donated ₩100,000!
<This will be fun.>

[HeroKing registered a mission.]
[Condition: Win a Hardcore Duel]
[Mission Reward: ₩1,000,000]

[MageIsFundamental registered a mission.]
[Condition: Win a Hardcore Duel]
[Mission Reward: ₩500,000]

[TheRealSimpLord registered a mission.]
[Condition: Deal damage to Seolhwa]
[Mission Reward: ₩100,000]

[PrideOfJoseon registered a mission.]
[Condition: Duel Seolhwa]
[Mission Reward: ₩30,000]

Ding.

The notifications kept coming.

Including smaller donations, the total amount exceeded 2 million won. He could count on one hand the number of times he had received over 100,000 won in donations throughout his streaming career.

This was by far the biggest mission he had ever received.

Judging by the nicknames, they were the type of viewers called “whales,” often seen in popular female streamers’ channels.

<Accept/Decline>

His finger moved without hesitation.

[Mission accepted.]
[Mission accepted.]
[Mission…]

“Thank you, Your Majesties! Then let’s go write a post!”

The opponent was a woman, after all. Even the popular female streamers on the platform couldn’t hold a candle to his gaming skills. They just had pretty faces and cute voices.

All he lacked was an opportunity.

Single-player and PVP were different. If she used hacks here, her account would be banned in real-time.

“Phew. The air is nice.”

Logging into the game, Night King planted his weapon in the ground and looked around.

-The air is nice.
-That claymore is cool.
-A real man’s weapon.
-Lol, “nice air” in a sandstorm.
-He’s in Act 2, did he try Scorpio too?
-Empty potion slots, I can tell what happened.
-LOL

[Condition: Deal damage to Seolhwa]

The mission alone told him what they wanted.

As a lewd smile spread across his face, chat messages flooded in.

-Oh no.
-Here we go.
-This guy’s switch flipped.
-Didn’t he make Yoona cry last time?
-The teacher who rips your clothes while teaching you PVP?
-He’s a scumbag. You can’t rip clothes if the sexual harassment filter is on, but he spouts nonsense about how it improves your skills lol.
-Wait, wasn’t that… Yoona, the whale, earlier?
-I think some people are planning to take him down, is this for real?

Despite their words, the viewers’ intentions were clear.

‘Stimulation.’

In a realistic game like this, clothes could be ripped and damaged during combat.

Even in first-person view, the occasional glimpses of legs and figures told him what the viewers wanted.

A few minutes after posting on the forum…

[Viewers: 1,842]

As the viewer count rapidly climbed, a triumphant smile spread across his face.

-Seolhwa (snow): Should we just fight?

Chat froze.

Then, messages exploded.

-Huh?!
-Herself?!
-Is this real?
-She appeared?!

The user he had mentioned was watching his stream and responded immediately.

What were the odds?

None.

He thought this was a golden opportunity to rise to fame.

“Let’s do it in Hardcore mode!”

He had already transferred his valuable items.

Even if he lost, the increase in viewers would be a win.

It was a shame to lose his well-equipped Warrior, but there was no way he would lose to a girl.

Why wasn’t she responding?

Was a deathmatch too much?

-Seolhwa (snow): Create a room.

Night King.

A small-time streamer on Twitch, averaging less than 100 viewers.

Although, with close to 2,000 viewers now, he wasn’t exactly small-time anymore.

According to the wiki, he was prone to outbursts. He usually acted sweet, but he was a hyena who never missed an opportunity. He had collaborated with female streamers before, thanks to his decent skills, but he didn’t maintain any of those connections. They all cut ties with him because of his terrible personality. That was the gist of it.

He had challenged me to a Hardcore duel, when I had only been thinking of a light sparring match.

It was like a contract, based on mutual agreement.

‘A deathmatch, in short.’

What should I do?

I didn’t know his skill level.

Full plate armor and a heavy-looking claymore.

The typical heavily armored warrior. A difficult build to manage without considerable skill.

‘Well…’

I couldn’t imagine myself losing.

The duel took place in a desert field, similar to Act 2.

-Wow, this sly bastard lol
-He saw that his opponent was a speed-type, right?
-F*ck the desert, your feet sink in the sand lol

“This is a real fight.”

-It is a real fight lol
-Deathmatch confirmed
-I saw him stashing his accessories and jewels in his storage earlier lol
-Seriously lol

He waved his hand as he spoke, chat messages scrolling past on a blurry screen behind him.

I had given him most of the choices, but…

I never thought he would choose this map.

The scorching sun, the scattered rock formations…

Every forceful movement sank my feet into the sand.

“I’m watching!”

He shouted, getting worked up even though I hadn’t said anything, and started approaching.

“Aren’t you coming?”

He stopped at a certain distance and beckoned me with his finger.

I silently stepped towards the yellow light in front of me.

I chuckled at the message and drew my knives.

<5>

<4>

<3>

<2>

<1>

With the chime of a bell, the fight began.

“I’ll cut you in half!”

He raised his claymore, the sunlight glinting off its surface. Despite his feet sinking in the sand, his high-strength character moved without hindrance. Not fast, but stable.

Whoosh!

He swung his claymore, the sound of wind ripping through the air.

I would probably die instantly if I got hit.

But I wasn’t stupid.

‘Too straightforward.’

I lightly tilted my head back and dodged.

“Like a rat!”

This time, he swung horizontally.

‘Sloppy.’

His vertical swing was somewhat decent, thanks to the momentum of the downward swing.

But his horizontal swing made the tip of his sword wobble.

He thought he could beat me with that?

‘Pathetic.’

I struck him in the back of the head with that feeling.

“Ugh…”

He groaned, his hand on the ground, both knees sinking into the sand.

I could kill him at any moment.

‘Boring.’

I had been looking forward to a duel with another player.

But this?

Fighting the stage 1 boss would be more rewarding.

And the boss dropped items… wait a minute.

This was a Hardcore duel.

That meant the man in front of me was essentially a golden goblin.

‘…Should I… get a little serious?’