Chapter 21: Who is the right person?

With a startled face frozen in shock, Daesik remained unresponsive, while the chat reacted first.

[Why is Mollru here?]

[Teacher, what are you doing here?]

[No, we told you to stream, and now you’re trolling in someone else’s room?]

[At least put some effort into it by using a secondary account.]

[Daesik’s skills are so terrible that even Mollru couldn’t hold back their anger in chat.]

[Mollru, start streaming@@@@]

The reactions were fiery.

I hadn’t planned to get this much attention and felt like crawling into a hole out of embarrassment.

It was all because Daesik hadn’t read my chat earlier.

Daesik, stammering like a broken machine, muttered, “Uh, uh…” repeatedly.

Feeling a bit annoyed at him, I typed bluntly in the chat.

**Mollru**: 1v1?

“Wait, are you… really Mollru? The same one I matched against three times in a row?”

**Mollru**: Yes.

At my quick response, Daesik hesitated briefly before asking,

“Did… you snipe me by any chance?”

**Mollru**: No, I think it’s just because we’re in the same rank bracket.

“Three times in a row? And always as opponents?”

**Mollru**: Must be a coincidence. I was surprised too.

Despite my explanation, it was clear that neither Daesik nor his viewers believed me.

[Info: Mollru has a history of endlessly sniping Sua.]

[Ahahaha, is Daesik the new target now? What did Daesik do wrong!]

[Ode to Daesik, the people’s champion.]

[As expected, the king of the underdogs: Oh Daesik!]

[Hehehe… Mollru, snipe me too, please! Hehehe…]

**Mollru**: Why would I snipe Daesik? I kept matching with him while streaming, so I got curious and dropped by.

“Sure, that makes sense. You didn’t seem like you were stream-sniping either, so cut it out, guys. Stop spamming.”

**Mollru**: So, when are we doing the 1v1? I’ve already set up the match room.

“Uh, are you serious? You’re Challenger, and I’m only Master.”

**Mollru**: I’m not Challenger. If I were, how would we even queue together?

“You have a main account. How is someone of your skill only Master?”

**Mollru**: This is my main account. And didn’t you say you were confident? I don’t want to get IP-banned, so just hurry up and join.

“That’s not what I meant… Ah, fine.”

Daesik, now deflated, looked unsure of what to do with his own words.

After scratching his head in frustration, his eyes suddenly widened.

“Wait a second, why am I the one feeling cornered? I didn’t do anything wrong!”

Flailing his arms, he protested his frustration.

“You’re the one who typed like that! Who does reckless criticism like that? Even my dog Poppy could give better advice.

And what’s with this chat?”

**Mollru**: If I typed nicely, it felt like you wouldn’t read it…

“So that justifies typing like this? And what’s with this nonsensical advice: ‘You should’ve dodged left, avoided the skill, canceled the auto-attack with a roll, and finished them off’? Who does that in a 1v3 situation?”

**Mollru**: It’s not nonsense. If you’d done that, you could’ve turned it around.

“I *can’t* do that! Not everyone can just execute perfect plays like you!”

Daesik, now riled up, delivered an impassioned rant.

He was breathless from speaking so quickly and loudly.

I waited for him to catch his breath before responding.

**Mollru**: I’m sorry. I only said those things because I want you to succeed.

I really want to see you reach Grandmaster. Maybe I got too carried away.

When I unexpectedly apologized and took a step back, Daesik looked visibly flustered.

“No, don’t apologize like that all of a sudden… I should be the one saying sorry.

How about we change the topic? You said you want to see me reach Grandmaster—what do you mean by that?”

Perhaps because he had vented his frustrations, Daesik seemed to have regained his composure.

Daesik must have realized that the situation looked a bit strange.

A broadcast where a burly man berates and pressures a delicate woman.

Daesik waved his hands, trying to defuse the situation.

But I had no intention of letting it go.

**Mollru**: I can’t catch your live streams often, but I’ve been following your YouTube channel.

Today’s my first time watching you live, and as I watched, I noticed a lot of issues in your gameplay.

**Mollru**: I thought if you just fixed those, you could easily reach Grandmaster.

That’s why I commented, but… you yelled and got angry. That’s too harsh.

To top it off, I added a basic emoticon available on Switch—a cute character on the verge of tears.

The tide of public opinion shifted to my side in an instant.

[Hahaha, turns out Mollru is a rare Daesik supporter. Suddenly feeling positive vibes!]

[Daesik, what are you doing to one of your few fans…]

[Wow, Daesik went too far.]

[No matter what, swearing at a woman is a bit much.]

[She said she was doing it for your sake, Daesik!]

[Come on, man, can’t you hold it together?]

[Oh Daesik/Wiki/Controversy]

[Wow, she’s pulling the same move you used to fall for Sua, huh?]

“No, wait, that’s not what I meant! I’m sorry! Please spare me!”

Daesik held his head in despair as he read the chaotic chatroom.

I calmly delivered the final blow.

**Mollru**: Join the 1v1 match. 😊

“A… tournament, you say?”

“Yes, yes. This time, Switch is hosting a slightly bigger one.

It’s a friendly competition between streamers who play *Aeowar*, and the prize pool is pretty substantial.”

The winner’s team alone will take 60 million won.

60 million.

Hearing the prize amount made Sua’s mind whirl.

With five players and one coach, that’s 10 million won per person.

Winning just one tournament means 10 million won per individual.

Not to mention the trickle-down benefits a tournament like this could bring.

Large-scale tournaments always attract significant viewership.

There was no reason not to participate.

Sua, a streamer, was spending her day off differently from usual.

Instead of relaxing, she sat in front of her computer.

She was currently on a Discord call with Jinsoo, one of the Switch administrators.

He was responsible for hosting official broadcasts on the platform’s official channel.

Jinsoo, someone she was familiar with, had shared some intriguing information.

“For a first-time tournament, the prize is huge, which means the organizers have high expectations.”

“If this event goes well, the prize money will only increase over time.

It’s a win for us and for the streamers.

Sure, we’re the ones reaching out now, but as it grows, people will want to join on their own, right?”

From what Jinsoo said, this wasn’t a one-off event.

And the first installment was starting in just two weeks.

If the tournament became a hit, the participants would be regarded as trailblazers.

“For now, we’re thinking of organizing four teams and running a semifinals format, which means we need 20 streamers in total.

That’s quite a number.”

“But it’d be even better if those 20 streamers weren’t just skilled but also somewhat well-known. Like you, Sua.”

“Oh, you flatter me.”

To summarize Jinsoo’s point, the more the participants could draw an audience on their own, the better.

Simply having well-known figures in the tournament would automatically advertise the event.

They preferred streamers with a certain stature—those with a dedicated audience.

For Jinsoo, Sua was a surefire bet for success.

The recognition made Sua feel pleased, almost without realizing it.

“I heard you recently ranked up to Master? Your form is incredible. Of course, you’re our top pick for recruitment.”

Jinsoo wasn’t one to hand out empty compliments.

If he said this, it meant the organizers genuinely viewed her that way.

Sua, who frequently checked online communities, was well aware of her public perception.

A high-ranking female streamer with a pretty face—that’s what people said about her.

That had been her image, but achieving Master rank seemed to shift perceptions.

“But the rules for this tournament are a bit complex. Instead of just forming teams, the teams will be decided through an auction.”

“An auction?”

“You see, if we just gather all the top players, it won’t be very entertaining.

On the other hand, if we pick players randomly, the team balance could be completely off.”

Sua nodded in agreement.

“Each team’s coach will be given the same amount of points—say 500 or 1,000.

This will serve as the initial capital for the auction.”

“Using those points, the coaches will bid on players to form their teams.

When a player is up for auction, all four coaches will bid as many points as they want.

The coach with the highest bid gets the player, and the auction moves to the next player.”

It was, in essence, an auction house.

Visualizing the process, Sua spoke up.

“High-tier players will probably use up a lot of points.”

“Not necessarily.

If a coach spends all their points on one player, they’ll have to build the rest of the team with unselected players—those who went unsold in the auction.”

“Ah, I see. The key is to distribute the points wisely to create a balanced team.”

It was a strategic setup. Clearly, the organizers had put some thought into it.

“Exactly. The team’s composition will depend on the coach’s choices.

Do they go all in on a star player to create a one-man team, or do they spread their points evenly for a balanced lineup?”

It did sound interesting.

That was what Sua thought.

“So right now, we’re reaching out to streamers individually to see if they’re interested in participating.

Do you have anyone you’d recommend?”

“Hmm…”

Sua recalled the criteria Jinsoo had mentioned earlier.

Skill wasn’t the priority—publicity was.

Someone who could create buzz for the tournament.

Famous enough to draw attention, preferably without any controversial baggage.

As Sua thought it over, one name crossed her mind.

For some reason, no one else seemed as fitting as this person.

With the ideal candidate in mind, Sua spoke up.

“There’s someone who would be perfect for the tournament.”

“Daesik, you can’t use a roll like that in this situation. How many times do I have to tell you?”

“I’m telling you, Daesik, you can reach Grandmaster. Just follow what I say.”

“That was good just now, but your skill shots are off because you’re too focused on movement.

You need to pay attention to both.”

“If you’re planning to play an all-weapons build, this level of proficiency won’t cut it.”

“Since we’re doing a 1v1 anyway, I’ll give you detailed instructions.

Watching you play was pretty frustrating for me.”

“What? You’re tired and want to stop here? You’ve barely practiced. Don’t exaggerate.

I know your stamina, Daesik.”

“Let’s try it one more time, just like you did earlier.”