Chapter 17: First Defeat, Streaming

Since the enemy team had taken the Baron, further resistance became meaningless.

The enemy team, leading their Baron-empowered minions.

Although our team had a composition with a high AD ratio, we were still able to clear the waves to some extent.

However, it was merely a temporary stall, more like a final act of defiance.

The snowball that the enemy team, no, Yasuo, had slowly built up, ultimately turned into a disaster for our team.

From the laning phase to this point, Yasuo’s strategy played a significant role, and only the two of us here could recognize that.

The enemy never acted hastily.

First, they destroyed the bottom inhibitor, then the middle inhibitor, and after placing Yasuo at the bottom, they rotated to the top and began executing extreme strategy.

In terms of troop deployment, we had to commit two people to handle the fed Yasuo.

With the manpower gap, the top inhibitor turret was eventually destroyed.

[Inhibitor turret destroyed.]

And with the final inhibitor turret destroyed,

the enemy now began to pressure the twin towers with their Baron-empowered minions.

We could no longer hold out, and there was no time to delay.

To win, we had to fight, but the enemy team’s initiation was far superior and more dominant.

The synergy between Malphite’s and Yasuo’s ultimates, along with Amumu’s flash engage into the fight,

resulted in our four players being wiped out instantly by the ultimate combo.

I, the only one left, watched helplessly as the Nexus was pushed and thought about the reasons for our defeat.

First, the Ronin Swordsman played better than me.

Not just in terms of mechanics but also in his ability to execute the game plan, he had grown significantly compared to before.

Above all, the presence of the Sunfire Aegis on the enemy’s Malphite and Amumu was overwhelming.

Except for our Evelynn, we had only AD champions, and over time, the difference in composition became glaringly apparent.

Honestly, the Sunfire Aegis on Malphite and Amumu was just overpowered.

Amumu’s second-core item, the Demonic Embrace, also demonstrated overwhelming power.

No, these were all just excuses.

I didn’t want to admit it, but I had no choice but to.

The Ronin Swordsman defeated me through pure skill.

After 30 attempts, he finally claimed victory.

[Defeat]

The words that appeared on the screen continued to linger in my mind.

I lost in both the bet and the game, but

[God, is he the Ronin Swordsman?]

[In the end, he won.]

[I believed in him!]

[Wasn’t it basically 29 losses and 1 win?]

[Don’t ruin the mood, pay attention.]

[20==]

Still, I didn’t feel bad.

After all, there’s no rule that says I always have to win.

After exhausting so much mental energy from the bet with the Ronin Swordsman, sleep started to creep in.

Although my body was signaling that it was fine, I could no longer keep going.

[To Ronin Swordsman00: I’ll keep my promise.]

[To Ronin Swordsman00: But I’m a bit too tired today, so it seems a bit difficult…]

[To Ronin Swordsman00: Let’s do it tomorrow morning with this ID.]

After sending the message to Ronin Swordsman, I tried to calm my tired mind and drifted off to sleep.

***

[Ronin Swordsman00: This will be the end of today’s broadcast.]

[Just got here, what’s happening?]

[Already leaving? Already leaving? Already leaving?]

[The score dropped so badly, I guess I’ll do a recovery stream, lol.]

[If today’s broadcast is over… will there be one tomorrow?]

Ronin Swordsman’s declaration of ending the stream caused a backlash from the viewers.

Despite the backlash from the viewers, Ronin Swordsman wanted to continue the stream longer.

However, after giving his all in the bet with the mysterious Yune Master, he no longer had the energy to continue the game.

But if he ended the stream now, the backlash would likely be worse than expected, so Ronin Swordsman added a message in the chat.

[Ronin Swordsman00: I’ll prepare the mic and start the stream tomorrow morning.]

[Ronin Swordsman00: Also, we’ll have a simple Q&A session.]

[Oh]

[The mic is easy.]

[It was boring without the host’s voice.]

[First stream with 5,000 viewers, and then doing a Q&A the next day as a newbie streamer, lol.]

[Calling someone a newbie is hard when they’re so big.]

[Is this a newbie with experience, or what is this?]

[Lol, an experienced newbie with no experience.]

Once he promised to set up the mic and do a Q&A stream tomorrow, the viewers’ backlash subsided.

With the timing for the end of the stream settled, Ronin Swordsman finished the broadcast.

“Phew…”

After confirming that the broadcast had ended, Ronin Swordsman let out a long sigh and moved the mouse.

Physically and mentally exhausted, he wanted to go to sleep right away, but there were still things to do.

Namely, finding a mic to use for tomorrow’s stream.

“What mic should I buy…”

But since Ronin Swordsman usually didn’t care much about broadcasting, he browsed through reviews of various microphones.

Since his financial situation was still stable, he decided to buy a good mic since he was now streaming.

Afterward, despite his sleepy eyes, Ronin Swordsman forced himself to stay awake and researched more about streaming.

While looking through various tidbits of knowledge about streaming, Ronin Swordsman came across something interesting.

Hosting.

The feature where a streamer sends viewers to another streamer’s broadcast.

Seeing this feature, Ronin Swordsman immediately had a good idea and began roughly planning his own broadcast.

Hoping that the person who didn’t have to fulfill his request would be happy with it.

***

Meanwhile, Kare’s stream.

“I finished last season with a Master-tier achievement, evil! Cut!”

[Lol, lol, lol, lol, lol, lol, lol]

[Lol, lol, lol, lol, lol, lol]

[Bragging about finishing with Master, it’s so annoying, haha, lol.]

[It’s not skill, it’s luck, he says.]

[That confident jawline, makes me want to slap it, seriously.]

Despite numerous trolls and gatekeepers trying to stop him, Kare, who finished last season with Master rank, was going wild.

Here’s the translation with each line in a new paragraph:

—

In the first match of the promotion match, which started two hours before the season ended, Kare met ‘Nayeon Queen,’ and it seemed like he was going to finish the season with a low rank.

But from then on, Kare showed overwhelming physical performance as if he had awakened, achieving an incredible three-game winning streak.

The fact that his allies didn’t get targeted or blocked by gatekeepers was significant,

but more than anything, the flawless team luck, which could only be described as heavenly, played a decisive role.

As a result, Kare, who started broadcasting during the preseason, truly reigned as a tyrant.

Those who couldn’t reach Master rank became the laughingstock of Kare every time they were killed by him.

The gatekeepers who were rude during the promotion match were called ‘Master Noobs’ every time they donated kills to Kare.

“Everyone, can you see the level here?”

“Basically, it’s just lucky iron.”

“Parking Master with the bus, fashion Master Noob cut!”

Kare, who finished the season as a Master, boasted an insane level of energy.

He was already famous for his wild energy, but now, his energy was even crazier.

It was as if you were watching an Energizer bunny with infinite energy.

“Wow, ‘Blood Feast’ is really something, huh?”

[Why does my health bar fill up just from one scratch?]

[That should be nerfed.]

[Is Aatrox’s strong period coming back again?]

Once again, a game where Kare carried the team emerged.

The 8-hour-long broadcast ended with Kare’s casual sign-off message.

“Phew… I’m tired.”

Kare, who had pushed himself for the preseason broadcast, sighed.

After the stream ended, Kare, as usual, discussed the video for tomorrow with his editor.

Then he talked with his manager friend about which item to research tomorrow.

Most viewers think that streamers, including Leory, rest during their off-stream hours.

Of course, some streamers do take breaks when not broadcasting,

but at least Kare was the kind of streamer who worked even during the off-hours.

After finishing his day, Kare opened his mailbox before bed.

There were various emails stacked in his inbox, but one stood out.

It was an email from Twitch, where he was streaming.

Opening the email, Kare let out a chuckle.

The contents of the email were simple.

It was an announcement about a platform battle hosted by Goliath Games Korea.

Kare slowly read the email and then raised the corner of his mouth.

“I can’t miss something like this.”

He thought to himself, “There will be some great content coming soon.”

With that thought in mind, Kare went to bed.

***

Waking up early in the morning, I immediately regretted yesterday’s events.

But since nothing would change, I started getting ready to go out.

The bet was that I would broadcast for at least one day,

but I didn’t really want to just turn on the broadcast.

Arriving at a large supermarket, I moved to the section where the broadcasting equipment was displayed.

From basic microphones to headsets, cameras, and lighting equipment, everything was there.

As soon as I saw them, the thought that crossed my mind was, “Should I turn on the camera?”

“I don’t really need to turn it on, do I?”

Should I buy a camera or not?

After pondering, I eventually added a camera to my shopping cart.

Since I would be using a microphone, my gender would naturally be revealed anyway.

And I knew well how Leory users would react to seeing a ‘woman’ on screen.

Could it be that the mysterious Yune Master, who dominates the heavens, is actually a woman?

Naturally, people wouldn’t believe it, and surely annoying things would keep happening.

So, it would be better to just turn on the handcam and prevent any controversies in advance.

||

After thinking again, I wondered, “Do I really need to buy it?”

But since I’m going to stream anyway, I decided to go ahead and do it properly and quit afterward.

After all, I was only going to stream for one day.

I didn’t need to buy a high-quality microphone, right?

Or maybe I’d need a microphone later on?

Confused, I ended up putting the most expensive microphone in the cart.

Yeah.

I wasn’t buying it because I planned to stream seriously.

Since I was already out of the house, it was better to buy a good one rather than a cheap one.

So, I convinced myself and checked out the microphone and camera.

Leaving the mart with a bag containing the microphone and camera, I felt a surge of self-doubt.

“Me, a sniper, buying a microphone and camera to stream.”

If it were the old me, I could never have imagined being in this situation. I trembled as I headed home.

Once I got home, I connected the camera and microphone to my computer.

I searched the internet and set up the basic stream settings.

I adjusted the camera angle so that only my hands and keyboard would be visible.

I made sure nothing unnecessary, like other tabs, would show up on the stream.

Everything was ready.

Now, I just had to press one button, and the stream would begin.

“Ah…”

I swallowed and started the stream.

[Live]

[Current viewers – 0]

But contrary to the nervousness, there was no dramatic change after starting the stream.

It was, in a way, expected.

I hadn’t even chosen a game category yet, and more importantly, the title was still undecided.

I sighed in relief, hoping that this state would last.

But then…

[Ronin Swordsman00 has hosted 6382 viewers.]

Life is always like this.

[Refugees, come in~!! Refugees, come in~!! Refugees, come in~!!

[Is this the barcode guy’s stream? Is this the barcode guy’s stream?]

[Waa, I’m a baby refugee, waaa, I’m a baby refugee, waaa, I’m a baby refugee, waaa, I’m a baby refugee]

[Come out, Sechoel from hell!!! Come out, Sechoel from hell!!! Come out, Sechoel from hell!!!]

[Welcome, human 1st time, welcome human 2nd time, welcome human 3rd time, welcome human 4th time, welcome human 5th time]

[Muya~ho~ Muya~ho~ Muya~ho~ ]

[Wow, haha, Barcode guy actually started the stream]

[Didn’t Naingeomgaek lie about it? Hahaha]

[Sorry for doubting… Sorry for doubting… Sorry for doubting… Sorry for doubting… Sorry for doubting…]

[Please start the game, I’m losing my mind, please start the game]

[Why is this happening? Haha]

[Naingeomgaek, you did a 5-hour stream yesterday, so Barcode guy will do a 10-hour stream, right? Hehe]

…Things don’t always go as planned.