Chapter 472

Due to significant lag in the broadcast, the chat window was allocated according to each participant’s camera.

I soared high into the sky, leading an army of 100,000 viewers.

Conversations with participants should be held relatively early while things are still loose.

Just then, I spotted White, who was farming in the outskirts of Rapabnik.

“The weapon that White is carrying is the XM189 AMPR, a heavy sniper rifle. And it seems she has tamed a dragon-type monster to compensate for the shortcomings in defense and movement speed.”

While the dragon gathered the monsters, White lay flat on the ground and hunted small furry creatures.

Her posture was surprisingly clean, and her sniping skills were quite impressive.

She used the monsters she had gathered to quickly craft ammunition at the crafting table.

Has she been watching my broadcast often?

Her crafting skills were also seamless.

“To briefly explain for those seeing this for the first time, you gather monsters at the crafting table to create ammunition. In the very early stages of the game, monster durability is high, and weapon power is relatively weak. Therefore, investing monster energy into ammunition early on to hunt higher-level mobs and leveling up monsters to confront players is the ideal winning plan.”

I zoomed in on the camera.

White spread out her psychic boundary and guarded the crafting table until the ammunition was ready.

The crafting table was incredibly fragile and sensitive to even small shocks.

Additionally, the enchanted spell was “Casting: Heat Transfer – Conduction.”

“Wait, even an Easter egg? White has changed her tech tree with the flame sword. This aggressive strategy means she’ll be taking kills early on while riding her dragon like a cavalry, right? Because the sword decays in the later stages.”

– White! White! White! White!

– How did you find out about the Easter egg, hahaha?

– White looking around is so cute.

– The actual participant is prettier than the avatar, wow!

– She plays intelligently; I watched again!

There were no enemies around.

After finishing farming in the plains, I flew next to White, who was on the move and turned off cloaking mode.

Shwoo—

“White, older sister.”

“Gasp!”

The flame sword rushed towards my neck at the speed of wind.

Thanks to the invincibility frame, the blade did not pierce my skin.

“Oh my gosh! It was you, Name! I’m so sorry, wuuu…!”

“Your reaction speed is really good. Do you often play FPS games?”

“Huh?”

“I’m in the middle of an interview. Just talk while moving.”

“Ah, hello, I’m EN-V’s White! Hi everyone! Please watch the new song, Hostage!”

Now understanding the situation, White let go of the reins and waved her hands in greeting.

– It would have been great if she had come running like a dog the moment she appeared, haha!

– Woof woof, bark bark!

– Older sister, I’m dying…! (Almost died for real)

– Hi, White~

– Wow, look at that reaction speed, she’s insane.

– Haha, promoting behind the scenes!

“Wow, Name is so cute. She’s just as petite and pretty as in real life.”

“The speed at which she enchanted the flame sword was really fast. Honestly, just admit you watched my broadcast, okay?”

“Of course, I watch it every day! Oh, I came to participate in this specifically. Wow, look at this beautiful thing! How amazing!”

“Do you often play Resonance?”

“I’m a total gamer. Sometimes I play for up to 10 hours a day.”

“How do you find 10 hours of time? You’re an idol.”

“People don’t realize that idols actually have a lot of free time! There is travel time, waiting time…”

“It must not be a capsule, but a helmet type? But does Resonance work with that?”

“Huh, right, it doesn’t really work well! So, you know what I did first after I got my settlement last year? This is a secret I haven’t revealed on the broadcast yet. I’m saying it especially because I’m in front of Name.”

I leaned toward her, more curious than ever.

Just attached to the dragon, flying low.

White whispered, placing her hand over her lips as if scheming something bad.

“You know the Peta connector that goes into the capsule, right?”

“Yes, yes.”

“I bought one separately out of my own pocket and put it in the trunk of our company’s car.”

“What?”

“That way, I can lean back in the back seat and wear the helmet to enjoy the game just like in a capsule. Ah, why are you looking at me with that expression, Name!”

– ??????

– Wait, what did I just hear? Haha!

– The determination to play the game is insane.

– Did she really put the Peta connector in the trunk?

– JHK, are you watching from above…? You made this idol…

– You’re alive, you crazy person, haha!

“… I will end the interview here. I’m an idol, so I need to maintain my image.”

More importantly, it was right to step back at a moment when battles could break out.

“Name, I promise I will come in first place, so keep your promise to give me a kiss! Okay?”

“Yes, fighting.”

I tapped Ruri’s neck a couple of times.

Growing in size, I spread my wings and took to the sky vertically.

From this height, the battlefield was visible at a glance.

There was someone coming from the southwest, riding a two-headed sand wolf at high speed towards White.

It was certain that they would meet soon.

“Someone has brought an unusually mutated breed among the monsters. The Two-headed Wolf retains an advantage as it evolves in the desert area, gaining color-related abilities. Let’s see, the experience of the Sand Wolf raised by Excel is at 87%. One more kill will activate its evolution stone. A battle is about to unfold.”

– We’re done for!

– Of all things, it’s a boy idol facing off against her, hahaha!

– Let’s get into the fandom battle~

– The losing side is sure to face heavy backlash on social media.

– Both fandoms must be crazy powerful, right? Haha!

– White, you can do it, right!

Bang-!

Sand flew up in front of the Sand Wolf.

With a screech, the monster jumped and performed a somersault, then built a wall of sand in its place.

Dismounting, Excel readied his gun and searched for enemies behind the wall.

However, White, a self-proclaimed FPS veteran, did not recklessly reveal her position and calmly loaded her ammunition.

In the open field, a tense standoff was underway, and it was Excel who pulled the trigger first.

He must have determined that the bullet lodged in the ground was no standard ammunition.

“Growl!”

The Sand Wolf jumped over the sand wall, reinforced with double armor over its skin.

It seemed to be a plan to attract attention and force the enemy to reveal their location.

However, there were no further shots fired.

Excel, looking puzzled, peeked out, but the timing was already too late.

Thud thud thud—

The dragon rushed in, scattering sand as it charged.

The remaining distance was 30m.

In just 3 seconds, Excel belatedly loaded regular ammunition.

Tata da dang-!

The dragon’s exterior was as tough as the Sand Wolf.

Having taken minimal damage, the dragon continued to charge like an undaunted warrior.

“Grrrraaaaa!”

[Casting: Heat Transfer – Conduction]

Finally, the loaded ammunition transformed the heavy sniper rifle into a long sword.

“Dragon, jump!”

White gave the command, and the dragon bared its hundreds of teeth.

By now, the flames were soaring high enough to touch the sun.

She jumped from her mount, poised to cleave through space with her strike.

Fwoooosh-!

The sand wall split apart, and flames erupted from the severed edges, scorching the ground.

“Kyyeee-!”

Flames splashed over the Sand Wolf, causing burn damage.

Excel, too, wasn’t just standing idly by.

He stepped back and activated the ammunition crafting scroll.

White’s eyes widened.

She couldn’t have imagined he would have already been alerted to the city.

“Excel has risked taking health damage right from the start to bring a scroll from Rapabnik. This is a variable, White.”

[Casting: Reverse Raiden Frost]

Bang-!

A heavy sound echoed.

As the magic circle activated, a vast area of ice emerged around the impact site.

[Attribute Change: Sand Wolf → Ice Wolf]

Consequently, the wolf monster’s fur color changed, and it exhaled freezing mist.

White struggled to slice through the rain of icicles with her flame sword.

Desperation was evident in White’s expression.

The dragon’s feet were frozen.

It was getting bitten and teared apart by the Ice Wolf.

If she didn’t resolve the battle quickly, she would soon be pierced by that very ammunition.

“Can she find a way to overcome this desperate situation? Abandoning the dragon and switching to regular ammo to go for a headshot while standing might be the most feasible… Oh?”

White chose to retreat.

Or it might be more appropriate to say she made a reverse charge?

Turning her back to someone with long-range firepower.

“I think I understand your intention. You have a flame sword, so you probably mean to go save the frozen dragon, right? Maybe…?”

I wasn’t entirely sure.

And just as I said, she infused monster energy into the flame sword and maximized its output.

Excel would not let this brazen situation go unchecked.

Bang, tata da dang-!

As the bullets flew, they transformed into icicles.

The area of the bullets was dozens of times wider compared to standard ammunition.

Yet, news of White’s death did not come.

“I haven’t been hit even once! Is this accuracy real?”

– Name-sensei is confused, haha!

– How could you not hit her?

– Name doesn’t get this situation, haha!

– Did Excel treat her gently just because she’s a female idol? Or does he really just suck at the game?

– I think it’s the latter, haha!

– That expression is obviously genuine!

No way, she’s so terrible, haha! How did she clear Kaizen World?

Swoosh-!

White stumbled while running, slipping as the icicle passed over her.

A coincidental situation overlapped, and the dragon’s foot was freed.

A 2v1 scenario was created in an instant.

Coincidentally, the dragon had claws that wouldn’t slip on the ice, pushing the Ice Wolf to its limits.

“Get them, Dragon! Bite!”

White enhanced the flame sword with the toxic gas emitted from the dragon.

In an instant, an enormous inferno burst forth.

The Ice Wolf was soon reduced to ashes as Excel knelt with a blank expression.

“Phew. That was a great match.”

You couldn’t win in the game without losing a monster after all.

He could have attempted a last-ditch attack on White, but he chose fair play.

“That was a good match. You dodged really well.”

“Haha, what are you talking about? I wish you good luck in the next game.”

The flame sword slowly burned the man’s body.

In the flames, he expressed a fatal smile full of regret.

– I recognize it even though he’s an enemy.

– Both of them are too pretty and cool.

– How can this be called a great match?

– My heart is tightening…

Our viewers were once again captivated.

White collected the monster energy, experience, and the evolution stone left by him and fed them all to the dragon.

Gulping it down, the dragon’s size doubled, and its tail split into three.

Lowering its head to its master, White jumped on top.

“Alright, let’s head towards becoming a taming master! Whoo!”

Enthralled by her first battle victory, White let out a squeal.

Clank—

“Huh?”

Boomboomboom-!

At that moment, a trap exploded, and even larger flames erupted.

Dozens of magic circles appeared one after another amidst the billowing smoke.

Zing-!

Destructive beams were fired ceaselessly.

[Envy_White has died.]

“Is this the kind of unrequited love an idol experiences? Back in my day, it was unimaginable. Tsk tsk. In the past, our company had a 7-year love ban.”

A woman rose from underground riding a mole monster.

The life she took was from her fellow Blue Sun member and idol-turned-actress, Jibohee.

Fierce battles were still being waged across numerous areas.

Most victors in those battles had succeeded in their first evolution.

Some were still wandering in newbie zones, yet to obtain the evolution stone and stuck at zero iterations.

In this food chain of predation where everyone eats and is eaten, who will be the ultimate victor?

Only 10 evolution stones necessary for second evolution existed in Rapabnik.

And the war to seize them had just begun.

“Shall we hold a prediction poll for the first match winner here? Those who get it right will receive an invite to the multi-server beta test.”

At that, the chat window instantly turned chaotic.

– Yongcheol, I’ve sponsored your broadcasts a lot, so please help me out just once!ㅠㅠㅠㅠ

– Jibohee is a deity and invincible. Trust in Jibohee.

– Yudi, please don’t be scared and go kill them! No one stronger than you is around right now!

– What are you doing in front of a mine?

– But where’s the evolution stone?

I couldn’t tell if I was commentating a game or a horse race.

Anyway, I had to do my job.

“Everyone, what is this?”

I rummaged through my inventory and showed a pearl-like object.

Yes, the evolution stones were all in my hands.

I had received feedback that the side that found the evolution stones first in the final balance patch broadcast held too great an advantage.

I had no choice but to manually adjust the balance.

I dropped the evolution stones within sight of the participants.

[NoName: Evolution stones are falling from the sky. Remaining quantity: 9]

“You may not want to fight, but you have to. In Kaizen World, being born and not fighting is a crime, it’s a crime.”

Anyway, this is how the world I lived in was.

This is true dystopia.