Chapter 45: Mollu Summoning Spell

“Well… I don’t really know either if you ask me…”

[ᄁᄇ]

[Then please send a message to turn on the stream.]

[Why do these guys come into other people’s rooms and do this?]

[Just like the owner, ᄋᄋ]

[These idiots ᄅᄋ;]

[Everyone get out~]

“He’s such an unpredictable person, I don’t have his Kakao, only Discord. But isn’t it rude to bother him while he’s resting?”

[Yeah, ᄏᄏ why ask for favors from someone you’re not close to?]

[It’s more rude to leave a notice like that.]

[He’ll probably just lounge around doing nothing anyway.]

Streamer Ryua was facing an unexpected difficulty with her broadcast.

She was a new streamer who had just started, with an average viewership of barely a hundred.

The viewers she saw every day, the chats she read every day, the same broadcast routine that repeated every day.

Because of the lack of new viewers and the small fixed audience, Ryua occasionally felt bored, but she had started to find comfort in that routine.

The balance she had maintained was shattered overnight, or rather, since the recent tournament.

Her viewership had suddenly skyrocketed, reaching four digits.

She was busy managing the influx of viewers who had tuned in after seeing her impressive performance with the Jackie team.

Then, what were these troublemakers?

It was like a locust swarm; there was nothing left in the wake of their passage.

Lotteria Ketchup Thief Molru, Slapping Odaesik’s Cheek Molru, Ulsan Elementary School Granny Scrubbing Towel Hoarding Villain Molru…

People with terrifying names instantly took over her broadcast.

Moltuki. She didn’t know who came up with that name, but Ryua thought it was cleverly done.

“I’ve left a message… but I’m not sure if they’ll see it.”

Her father’s words about not negotiating with terrorists came to mind.

As she chewed her food, the daughter nodded to her father’s belief, but she didn’t inherit his conviction.

But the terrorists who took over her stream didn’t leave, even after their demands were met.

Ryua, who had always aimed for a clean broadcast that could be shown to anyone, felt how difficult and high her goal really was.

She could see her original viewers being overtaken live.

It wasn’t for nothing that major companies prohibited mentioning other streamers.

It was becoming unclear whether this was Ryua’s room or Molru’s waiting room.

Ryua, the new streamer, didn’t realize she should have taken a firm stance from the beginning.

She thought to herself that she wasn’t even sure what she was saying, but continued with her original plan for the broadcast.

“Today’s game… is a famous one, right? I thought I’d give it a try. Dragon Road!”

[Suddenly?]

[ᄏᄏ How cute she’s fumbling.]

[Dragon Road;;]

[I can already see her dying a tragic death.]

[How many tries do you think it’ll take?]

“I think we’ll definitely get over 100 tries, haha…”

Ryua gave a nervous laugh as she waited for the game to load.

As the fierce dragon’s eye, split vertically, stared at her, even though it was just a game graphic, she felt strangely like she was shrinking back.

Dragon Road, a game produced by a famous game company, immediately attracted attention with its pre-release videos.

Streamers were eagerly awaiting the game’s launch.

However, Dragon Road was notorious for its brutal difficulty.

It was a typical Souls-like game, a third-person action RPG with complex controls and enemy AI patterns.

Even top-tier gamers, often referred to as “gaming experts,” found themselves struggling with Souls-like games, which acted as a measure of a player’s skill,

distinguishing those with talent from those without.

Ryua didn’t have high expectations.

She knew well that her physical skills weren’t exceptional.

Recently, the tournaments had made this reality painfully clear.

However, the success of a stream wasn’t always proportional to high physical abilities.

In fact, there were plenty of people who preferred and even got excited about frustrating and clumsy gameplay.

Ryua’s regular viewers, around a hundred people, were definitely among them.

The only variable was the influx of new viewers—these so-called “Moltuki” people.

“Ugh…”

Ryua groaned as she watched her character die after rolling on the ground.

She had managed to finish the tutorial and pass the early stages, but now she was facing a wall.

Goeong Balak, the mid-boss known as the “newbie crusher” or “threshing machine” by the community and other streamers.

A boss with attack patterns difficult for beginners to react to.

A health bar that was horrendously high. A unique ability that allowed for evasion only, making blocking impossible.

For Ryua, who had never played a Souls-like game before and was truly a complete beginner, this was an enemy far beyond her capabilities.

[ᄏᄏ You suck.]

[It really smells like noob here;]

[You can’t hide that noob smell…]

[How are you doing that from there?]

[Crackling sound.]

[This is the fun of watching, why force it?]

[Just keep pressing ᄅᄋᄏᄏ]

[20==]

“Ugh… Just wait, I’ll defeat that guy.”

Unlike the slow-paced, encouraging chat she was used to, the chat now was filled with quick, mostly mocking comments.

The growing pains of streaming that she had to face, whether it was fast or slow.

For the first time in a while, Ryua felt frustration and played the game with sincere effort.

But it didn’t make any difference.

Was Balak not called the “newbie crusher” for nothing? His name wasn’t just for show.

The more she consumed her emotions, the angrier and more exhausted she became.

“Does this guy not have a pattern? The first enemies I faced had clear patterns…”

[Look closely, the motions are fast, but he does have a pattern.]

[How many times have you been hit and still can’t figure out the pattern?]

[But even if you know the pattern, can you react in time?]

[Just read the攻略 guide. ᄀᄀ]

“If I look at a guide, it feels like I’m just looking at an answer sheet…”

[Such strange stubbornness. ᄏᄏᄏᄏ]

[You haven’t been hit enough yet.]

[What do you want me to do about it?]

[You’re just full of yourself.]

“I’m sorry. I’ll look at the攻略 guide.”

Ryua, overwhelmed by the sharp reactions of the viewers, scrunched up her face and carefully read through the strategy guide that someone had sent her via a link.

It had some effect.

A slight improvement.

She was doing better than before, but the fundamental issue remained unsolved.

She still wasn’t strong enough to take on Balak.

“Ugh, is there a video or something? It’s a bit hard to understand just from the text and pictures…”

[The game just came out a few hours ago, do you think there’s a video? ᄏᄏᄏᄏ]

[This is the game company’s fault. ᄋᄋ Why is there no beginner’s guide?]

[Wait and check tomorrow ᄀ?]

<Dongtan1stClassMishiMollu has donated 10,000 won!>

-Just skip this guy and move on with the story. You don’t have to beat him.

Someone suggested a compromise to Ryua, who scratched her head cutely.

It was true that Balak wasn’t a necessary boss to defeat.

You could progress the story smoothly and still reach the ending without defeating him.

“But then I won’t be able to see the true ending…”

However, the story diverged.

The journey of the protagonist changed depending on whether or not Balak was defeated.

To avoid spoilers, Ryua didn’t know exactly, but she had read that defeating Balak was required for the true ending.

With her stubborn determination, she began to mindlessly charge into the battle.

Even as she died to Balak repeatedly, Ryua didn’t give up on her challenge.

The viewers, though bored, were now cheering her on.

But despite this, there was a growing doubt whether she would be able to pass this section by the end of the stream.

[That’s not how you do it.]

A message in the chat.

Taking a brief break, Ryua noticed the message, which seemed to be giving her some advice.

[When Balak puts his hand on his sword sheath, he’s going to swing horizontally. Roll immediately to dodge.]

[When he sticks his sword in the ground, go to one side and then quickly counterattack from the other side.]

[If you feel confident, try mixing in a parry.]

The chat began to stir as viewers caught on to the change.

Many of the viewers, with their bad usernames, flooded the chat in excitement, and without any moderation system in place, the chat quickly became a mess.

[Give me that sword. I’ll just slice everything!]

Among the chaos, Ryua saw a message from ‘her’ and quickly handed over the sword.

She was the one who had suppressed the viewers showing abnormal affection towards Ryua.

The one who, as a joke, claimed to have 10 million fans—Mollu had appeared.

As Mollu swung the sword, the chat cleared up as if nothing had happened.

Seeing her in action like a general who had come to clean up, Ryua swallowed and asked,

“Mollu… Could you show me how you defeat Balak?”

Because Mollu had been appointed as her manager, the message appeared prominently in the chat.

[I’ll start the stream.]

[Please check out my stream for a bit.]

“Yes, Teacher…”

Ryua once again realized why Mollu was called “Teacher.”