Chapter 91

“It’s been a while since you turned the broadcast back on?”

After finishing his work at the Interactive Artificial Intelligence Research Lab of the Korea Institute of Magic Technology, the male character flopped onto his bed still dressed in his casual clothes.

It was that time of the evening when everyone was throwing off the fatigue of their daily lives and spending their own time.

‘대살’ tapped the home screen of the streamer he subscribed to.

[No Name]

Interestingly, this streamer had set their avatar to the minimum age.

If it was aimed at viewers with pedophilic tendencies, one could say it was half successful.

There were even those who came just to hear her voice and admire the avatar in a dull broadcast devoid of any content.

Watching her help with homework while receiving donations of one or two thousand won from young viewers made him feel a bit sorry for her.

However, a true Twish viewer wouldn’t send donations in an ordinary manner.

Now, he was a graduate student at an enviable educational institution, but the feelings of inferiority about his academic background from his tough retake years pushed 대살 to expose the streamer’s facade.

He wanted to reveal that this streamer, who was receiving adoration from middle and high school students, was actually a talentless jobless person.

So, he deliberately sent difficult abstract theory questions from his senior year of college related to communications engineering.

[It’s an Ermit Matrix. You just need to write ‘레샤아이크바르’ in the top left corner.]

That was the answer she provided as soon as she saw the problem. She wasn’t an ordinary jobless person after all.

After that, while 대살 didn’t watch No Name’s broadcast religiously, he started to keep it on steadily.

In graduate school, there were no learning data, so even if he asked AI about assignments, he couldn’t expect accurate answers.

Yet, this streamer displayed knowledge far beyond his own.

For a while, 대살 used No Name as a useful homework shuttle. It cost a bit more, but did that really matter? As long as they could provide mutual benefit, that was enough.

At some point, No Name started playing League of Legends and WoW.

It turned out she had been a hardcore player of League for eight years, playing tens of thousands of games, and had teamed up with another League streamer after just a week to reach Master rank in no time.

대살 was the only one who didn’t watch that particular broadcast. He was busy with his papers and didn’t know anything about League at all.

However, when No Name announced she would start playing WoW, he couldn’t help but feel excited.

This was his area of expertise.

As he gave her tips with the mindset of helping a newbie, she had tackled Nightmare Part 1 at the highest difficulty right before clearing it in just one day.

No longer was she just his little streamer.

She was a genius who could achieve anything once she set her mind to it.

[To the last three survivors, I will grant you manager privileges to my room.]

Having achieved an incredible feat and returned, she claimed she would pick managers after a Japanese anime insert song.

대살 had an instinct.

No Name’s broadcast was a growing stock that was bound to succeed. If this broadcast were a stock, he would’ve invested his entire fortune, even going into debt to put everything in.

A manager for a ‘big company’ streamer brings considerable power and prestige, doesn’t it?

As an early viewer, he couldn’t help but feel desire.

Swallowing hard, 대살 tossed aside the assignments he had put off and entered the capsule.

It was time to reap the rewards for all the broadcasts he had endured. He would dissect her tastes accumulated through big data.

* * *

[Combat Magic World Cup Round of 32 – 1/16]

[5 Circle Ignis Bellum (Fire’s Veil) vs 4 Circle Glacis Astra (Ice Spear)]

“Oh, aren’t you 대살? A named participant has come to join us.”

“Ah, yes. I’m a bit nervous. I’ve been keeping up with No Name’s broadcasts for quite some time, and I’m worried about dropping out quickly.”

“Alright then, let’s do our best!”

Encouraging each other, 대살 stood with a determined heart on the set.

As it was the first round, No Name generously shared her thoughts with the audience.

The viewers were loosening up their tension.

대살 was also someone who stood on the Ignis Bellum without any hesitation.

[It certainly does look cooler in appearance.]

That was until No Name spat out those words.

Hearing that, even those who had chosen the Ice Spear rushed over to the Fire’s Veil camp.

On the other hand, 대살 pondered.

That wasn’t something No Name would normally say.

Would someone who was obsessed with the efficiency and expansion of magic make aesthetic judgments like that?

‘It must be a trap!’

Sensing something amiss, 대살 dove into the opposing camp before the choice timer expired.

As soon as he changed camps, all those who had chosen Fire’s Veil vanished into the abyss.

[You all have no convictions.]

“Haha…”

It reminded everyone just how malicious this person was.

[Combat Magic World Cup Round of 32 – 13/16]

[1 Circle Light (Light) vs 3 Circle Diagon Kaido (Diagonal Slash)]

[How could Light Magic be adapted for combat… It’s ridiculous that it was selected as combat magic.]

Some viewers, feeling suspicious about her openly advocating Diagonal Slash magic, flipped and chose Light Magic this time.

[Diagon Kaido (Diagonal Slash)]

Unfortunately, such tricks didn’t work.

[Three contestants have been eliminated.]

[Five contestants have survived.]

In the end, the combat magic world cup hosted by No Name seemed to barely make it through to the final three contestants.

It was likely that the next question would be the last one.

With only five viewers left in the vast space, the stage felt desolate.

나메 stepped down from the stage and greeted the viewers.

“Congratulations. I would love to give the manager position to all five of you.”

“Then could you possibly appoint all five of us? Haha.”

A man laughed awkwardly.

It was a tone-deaf comment, yet 대살 understood his feelings completely.

He had barely survived through the struggle against the host with slim odds.

If he missed out on the manager position by just one question at the very end, he would surely regret it for a long time.

“Are there any of you who don’t have the time to be a manager?”

At No Name’s question, all five fell silent. They had come prepared to sacrifice their real lives if they could just be managers.

“Well, I have to keep my promise. However, let’s make the last question a different one.”

Suddenly, she ended the combat magic world cup.

“Why did you turn that off?”

The five candidate managers and the 1500 viewers, who had originally cared nothing about the combat magic rankings, sighed in disappointment as they wanted to see the conclusion.

This meant questioning the meaning of conducting content up to this point.

“The cup was just a pretext, and you were only thinking of choosing managers from the beginning…!”

Despite the sharp critique, No Name merely blinked.

It was frustrating not to know her inner thoughts.

“You are all individuals with conviction. No matter what I say, you believed in your choices without wavering.”

That was true, as even if they had occasionally pondered how to choose while watching her, in the end, they had to rely solely on their own judgments.

“I hope you answer according to your convictions until the very end. Now, here’s the question.”

Taking a deep breath, 나메.

She naturally crossed her arms and walked past the candidates.

Her small stature stood out as she didn’t even reach the chests of the other avatars.

She exhaled again, her lips trembling slightly. Her breath was uneven.

“Let’s assume for a moment.”

She calmly walked and stopped in front of a man. It was the muscular man who had asked if she could give everyone manager roles.

“You’ve been stranded in the mountains. There’s no food or water, and it’s a dark night with clouds everywhere.”

“Climbing the mountain at night is really dangerous.”

The man nodded. 나메 glanced at his nickname and threw him a question.

“Do you have a girlfriend?”

“I do, but why do you ask?”

“Each of you should think of someone you love. ‘hells몬스터’ here can think of his girlfriend. If you don’t have one, you can think of your family.”

나메 turned half a circle and headed towards the opposite participant.

“So, the two of you are stranded. If you wait until the next morning, you will safely descend the mountain. But unable to bear the cold and hunger, you chose to descend.”

The oddly specific storytelling of the child gradually drew people in.

“Because of your poor judgment in your desperate dash down the mountainside, your loved one or family member has been bitten by a viper. If not treated immediately, the poison is spreading through their body in real-time, and they will surely die.”

“Oh dear.”

A gasp came from one side.

“And you have two spells that you can use.”

She summoned a chalkboard item from the private room and began to draw a magic circle.

No one understood the meaning.

나메 filled the white space densely with circles, lines, and swirling characters.

One could even feel a hint of madness in her hand.

When the marker drained its ink, she opened another new board marker and managed to complete the magic circle.

“The first magic circle is a spell that can buy you a day’s time. If you are safely rescued the following day, you will at least be treated, but you will miss the timing and end up suffering for a month before dying.”

“That’s a brutal situation.”

“Just a strong viper.”

Soon, 나메 pointed to the second magic circle.

But compared to the previous one, which was much bigger and more complex, this magic circle had a gaping hole in the center.

“The second magic circle is a spell that can completely neutralize the poison. There will be no aftereffects, and it can wholly eradicate the poison.”

“Well then, isn’t the second one better?”

“But you have no idea about the central runes to enter this magic circle. You might have to guess one from the ten or twenty you might even have a hint about.”

To live for a guaranteed one month or to have a low chance of living entirely.

“If… if the opportunity is only once.”

Of all times to have a shortage of mana.

“What will you choose?”