Chapter 96: Test

“Are you really thinking of going pro?”

On the way to Titan Underrock.

Si-young, sitting in the driver’s seat, reached over to fasten my seatbelt and asked.

Since I didn’t own a car, I had considered taking a taxi, but Si-young reached out to me first.

She watches my streams every day, so the moment something changes in my life, she notices immediately.

“I’m not saying yes for sure. Nothing is ever 100% certain.”

I could do it.

Or I could walk away.

There’s no such thing as absolute certainty.

Maybe Titan Underrock won’t be what I expected.

Maybe the contract conditions will be too strict.

Or maybe, for some unavoidable reason, I simply won’t be able to do it.

And the opposite could also be true.

Maybe going pro would turn out to be far more appealing than I expected.

I see this as a new life.

The life I’m living now is not the same as before.

A new life comes with a new way of living.

And unlike before, I had made a decision—

“If something even slightly interests me, I should at least try it.”

That’s why I left the comfort of my home and stepped outside.

If it turns out to be not for me,

I’ll just go back to my quiet, cozy little sanctuary.

And years from now, I’ll look back and think—

“Oh yeah, I tried that once.”

Just another experience to add to my collection.

“Please don’t make me unemployed.”

“Hmm, I’ll think about it.”

Si-young joked with a laugh.

But honestly, when I first considered this path, she was the first person I thought of.

There’s no way I could balance both pro gaming and streaming at the same time.

Sensing my hesitation, Si-young had reassured me first.

“-I’m far more capable than you think, Molru. Even without MolTube, I’ll be just fine, so don’t worry.”

Looking back now, it’s almost funny—

Everyone around me is a good person.

Unlike before, my luck with people seems to have completely turned around.

Basking in the warm sunlight streaming through the car window,

I found myself thinking about that.

“She said she’d be here by 2 PM, right? 2 PM…”

Min-hyuk paced back and forth in the practice room hallway, constantly glancing at his watch.

This was already the umpteenth time.

Seeing his restless behavior,

Jong-wook furrowed his brow in irritation.

“What’s wrong with you? Why are you so nervous?”

From Jong-wook’s perspective, Min-hyuk’s behavior made no sense.

The new player wasn’t even confirmed—

This was just an entry test.

It was no different from the promotion trials that Titan Underrock’s youth academy players took to earn a starting position.

Min-hyuk wasn’t exactly the most serious or reserved person,

but he wasn’t this frantic either.

At least, not the Min-hyuk that Jong-wook knew.

But now?

The guy was acting like a total mess.

Jong-wook gave him a weird look.

“Sit down already. You’re making me dizzy.”

“Oh, uh… yeah.”

Even after sitting down,

Min-hyuk still fidgeted anxiously.

Jong-wook thought to himself.

“He’s never like this. What’s his deal?”

Min-hyuk wasn’t shy around new people.

He wasn’t exactly an extrovert,

but he wasn’t introverted either.

Even when scrimming against other teams,

he never showed signs of nervousness.

So what was different this time?

The fact that the test player was a woman?

“Wait a second… Are you nervous because you’re meeting a girl?”

Coach was right.

Kang Min-hyuk was a total rookie when it came to women.

“N-No, that’s not it—”

“Yeah, yeah. No need to be embarrassed. It happens.”

Thinking back,

there were plenty of players on the team who teased Min-hyuk for being a lifelong single.

Back then, Jong-wook had paid no attention to it.

But now?

It suddenly seemed accurate.

Meanwhile, Min-hyuk, failing to clear up the misunderstanding,

was completely lost in his own thoughts.

“Is she really that pretty?”

After hearing what Coach said yesterday,

he had done some research on the streamer, Molru.

Back in the day, Min-hyuk used to watch internet streams a lot,

but ever since the team started struggling,

he barely had the time.

So he was late to catching up on Molru’s reputation.

A female streamer with suspiciously high Aeor War skills.

Rumored to be as beautiful as a celebrity,

yet never having shown her face.

During his break yesterday,

Min-hyuk watched her YouTube clips and VODs.

By the end of it—

He had become a fan.

Min-hyuk was the definition of a game nerd.

He had never been interested in other people.

Only games mattered to him.

But now?

In just one day,

he was this curious about someone?

Even he was surprised by himself.

“Then again…”

“She’s the first woman I’ve ever seen who plays this well.”

Sure, her calm voice and dangerous curves might have been factors.

But the biggest reason he became a fan?

Her gameplay.

“I didn’t become a fan because of anything else. It’s purely because of her skill.”

Rumors always get exaggerated.

So even if Molru turned out to be less attractive than he imagined,

Min-hyuk had already made up his mind—

He wouldn’t be disappointed.

While Min-hyuk was getting lost in his own thoughts…

The clock struck 2 PM.

Ding—

At the same time,

the elevator at the end of the practice room began to move.

“Looks like she’s here.”

The coach, along with the players who cleared their schedules for the test,

took their seats.

A brief moment of waiting.

And then—

The elevator doors opened.

“She’s here!”

Min-hyuk, desperately trying to act calm,

casually turned his head toward the elevator.

And then,

he came face-to-face with…

“Oh…”

Someone completely different from what he had imagined.

First of all—

She was way taller than he expected.

A tall woman, roughly 171 cm, stood before them.

Her sharp eyes were partially hidden behind round glasses, as if to soften her gaze.

For Kang Min-hyuk, researching Molru in advance had backfired.

She looked completely different from what he had expected.

Despite his earlier resolve, he froze in place.

“Damn it.”

“Oh! Welcome!”

As the woman, wearing low-heeled office shoes, approached, Coach Kim greeted her warmly.

“I’m here for the test.”

“Ah, yes! We’ve been expecting you, Molru. Please, come in.”

But then, the woman in glasses shook her head.

Something was wrong.

“Molru is over here.”

“Over here?”

At her words, another figure emerged from behind her.

Kang Min-hyuk’s eyes instinctively followed—

And he couldn’t look away.

She was small.

The contrast was even more striking because the first woman was so tall.

But looking at her alone, she didn’t seem small at all.

Her proportions were stunning, and she had a presence that was impossible to ignore.

And now Min-hyuk realized—

He wasn’t the only one frozen in place.

“Wow…”

Even Lee Jong-wook,

a player known for his good looks and large female fanbase,

couldn’t hide his amazement.

Min-hyuk only just noticed—

Everyone had been staring since the elevator doors opened.

A friend of his had once met a famous actress in real life.

“Dude, the moment she stepped onto the set, the entire atmosphere changed.”

“People like that… they have this aura you just can’t ignore.”

Back then, Min-hyuk had laughed it off.

But now—

He completely understood.

And at that moment,

he realized—

“So this is Molru.”

“It’s nice to meet you.”

A voice he had heard on stream.

A woman with a gentle smile spoke.

“I’m Molru, a streamer.”

“Why the hell would someone with a face like that go pro?”

“She could just be a camgirl and make a fortune.”

“I can’t imagine someone like her being good at Aeor War.”

Murmurs of anticipation and doubt.

Some rubbed their eyes, refusing to believe what they were seeing.

Others dismissed Molru as just another attention-seeker trying to use pro teams for content.

Her appearance and her gameplay simply didn’t match.

The discrepancy was too great.

A hiring manager at a development company once said:

“You can’t tell if someone can’t code just by looking at them.”

“You need to work with them to find out.”

“But people who can code well? They tend to look the part.”

Telltale signs—

A forward neck posture,

Rounded shoulders,

Thick-rimmed glasses,

A digital watch,

Either stick-thin or chubby from sitting at a desk all day.

Just by looking at them,

you could tell they were meant to sit in front of a computer.

Kang Min-hyuk watched as Molru adjusted her mouse sensitivity.

The gaming headset on her head looked out of place.

Her delicate hands gripping the mouse seemed like they should be holding something else entirely.

And yet,

it was impossible to ignore her presence.

“We’ll do a 1v1 test first, followed by a 6v6 team match.”

“The team match will be like a scrim—a full game simulation.”

“Ah, so that’s why there are so many people here.”

“Even considering that, there are a lot of people here.”

“I only called the players participating in the match.”

A cough came from within the crowd.

It was obvious.

Even people who normally wouldn’t care about a player test—

had stayed behind to watch.

Molru gave a small, knowing smile.

As if she was used to this reaction.

“Alright, then… Ji-hoon, you’re up first.”

“Huh? Me? First?”

“That’s way too much pressure.”

“Shut up and get in there, you idiot.”

A round-faced substitute player, Lee Ji-hoon,

was pushed forward.

He gave Molru a polite greeting before sitting down.

“We’ll use Round Zero rules—best of three.”

“Same format as previous tests with other players.”

“Got it.”

“Alright then…”

“Match Start!”

With the coach’s call, the game began.

“It’s just a test. Why does he sound so dramatic?”

That’s what Min-hyuk thought—

Until his thoughts were completely erased.

“W-Wait!”

1 minute 24 seconds into the match.

Molru eliminated Lee Ji-hoon.

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