Chapter 92

In conclusion, I ultimately could not save Ms. Niobe.

I was the only one who could bear witness to the death of the child everyone loved.

I don’t even remember how many days I begged in front of Hiasen.

Hiasen comforted me each time, saying I was not at fault, but he didn’t know the reality.

I had once ‘envied’ Niobe, and the viper that killed her was none other than me.

I was so afraid of her disappearing from this world due to a momentary wrong decision that I made a foolish choice.

Having stolen even the time for Niobe to say goodbye to everyone, when I returned carrying her body, I could not receive a kind glance from anyone in the royal family.

[The Fourth Princess killed the Third Princess.]

I found myself utterly detestable, unable to bear my own existence.

At that time, struggling to decide which magic to use, I had thought that the best I could come up with was just expectation.

Niobe still had so many days left to live, and I judged that even if the chance to save her was slim, it was greater than a month’s worth.

Yes, mathematically, that may have been correct.

But what about reality?

If successful, it’s 1, and if failed, it’s 0.

I hated myself for choosing 0.

I despised myself for judging a person’s life with mere numbers.

I loathed myself for using all the happiness, comfort, and encouragement that Niobe should have received to justify myself.

Perhaps that’s why I became even more obsessed with knowledge.

Ignorance is a sin, and envy was my original sin to brood over.

Clinging to the shattered self, like a broken glass pane, was merely an obsession with magic once again.

I didn’t want to envy again, and I was destined not to.

I confined, isolated, restricted, and mercilessly beat myself into the one thing I could proudly present.

Among beings that shine brightly, feelings of awe come before envy.

Looking back, it’s natural that envy would vanish when one humbles oneself endlessly until they can see the belly of an ant crawling on the ground.

Thus, I gave up on swordsmanship, social circles, and even taking care of my appearance.

Around this time, new rumors began to circulate.

[There is a Demon Lord behind the Fourth Princess.]

Not knowing the proper way to atone, I foolishly chose to cover my ears.

“Have you decided…?”

“Yes, I think I’ve more or less decided.”

I couldn’t open my eyes.

What choices would they make in the same situation?

Would they defend my judgment?

As my eyelids rose slightly, the mist slowly cleared, and the world came into focus.

“Ah… why is everyone…”

The five participants were all huddled together on a large magic circle.

It was the magic I had used to save Niobe, but instead, it had marked the end of her life.

“What’s the reason?”

The old man in the gym spoke first, clearing his throat to answer.

“Shouldn’t I take responsibility for my own mistakes? I have to try as much as I can because that’s what a man does.”

I was astounded by such a simple answer.

“Is it a turn-taking situation to explain reasons? Hmm… If there was indeed a way to fix it but we didn’t do it, wouldn’t we regret it for a long time? Observing the precious month we have alive is too cruel.”

I might have been desperately hoping that my choice at that time was not wrong.

One by one, their reasons were different, but the conclusion was always the same.

“Ah, I’m last. So, I…”

“Save the graduate student” was stalling for time by stroking his chin. I had been a spectator since the early days of the broadcast when I knew his nickname.

“I just chose it because I wanted to see more of you for longer. Honestly, if No Name only showed for a month and then stopped, who would come to watch? Everyone enjoys that you still remember us and come to see us, even if it’s just occasionally. Ah, maybe that analogy was a bit strange.”

The straightforward thought shown by the old man in the gym scratched his head.

“No… that’s a good analogy.”

“If you know, please turn on the broadcast more often. How can you just drop in for a one-shot WoA and leave? That’s frustrating.”

“So what’s the answer, No Name? You’re not planning to eliminate us all, are you?”

-The manager of this place is really tough.

-You need to pass the interview stage too, wow.

-Why is everyone speaking so well? Weren’t they all introverted losers who couldn’t even talk outside?

-This isn’t outside, wake up!

-Hell-chang has a girlfriend too, hahahaha.

-It could be fake.

-You’ve even got an emblem certifying that you’re using a reality-reflecting avatar.

There is no correct answer.

No matter what choice is made, Ms. Niobe would not return.

However, after hearing their responses, I felt a sense of unease in my heart gradually melting like cotton candy in water.

What does it matter if it’s Ignis Bellum or Glacis Asta?

It was all just meaningless ranking anyway. There is never a correct answer in magic itself.

In every moment, we just do our best to make the magic we choose be the correct answer.

Esteria did her utmost to save Niobe, and I finally decided to support her decision.

“Yes, it’s the right answer. I look forward to working well with you, managers.”

* * *

After the winding broadcast, I remained in the virtual space with the five managers to discuss future broadcasting plans.

“I’ll be a bit busy tomorrow, and I’ll start the WoA broadcast early Sunday afternoon.”

“Finally!”

“By the way, are you really not going to clear Part 1 until you save Adella?”

“I want to see you move on to Part 2 as quickly as possible and use 2 Circle Magic.”

“I’ll do my best as much as I can. You all said that.”

A clue may appear.

I had already roughly planned how to proceed.

Whether a world line exists where Adella doesn’t die remains to be seen.

“Please work hard on the ban. Mentioning other streamers is off-limits, no friendships allowed, and of course, flooding with irrelevant content is also not allowed.”

“We all know that much! We’ve been Twish veterans for several years now!”

I scanned the five selected managers one by one.

From the ordinary male avatar of the old man in the gym to the gym bro, the cyberpunk cosplay girl, No-Face, and even the cat furry girl.

As we went further back, everyone’s personalities flowed excessively, with some demonstrating extravagance.

Since we were all gathered, I should ask for recommendations for the animal pajamas the kids visiting tomorrow would wear.

“Does anyone have a favorite animal?”

“I like pigs!”

The old man in the gym shouted first.

“…?”

“You like pigs?”

“That’s a unique preference.”

As the others stirred, the old man shrugged his shoulders in confusion.

“Well, do you all like beef? I’m Korean; I could like pork.”

I corrected his off-point statement with a question.

“Not meat… just your favorite animal. Dogs or cats…”

“Aren’t we talking about buying meat?”

“Why would I buy you meat?”

“I thought you were asking in a kind of post-event manner… since I’ve been selected as a manager…”

Still, having missed the chance to ask the question, the old man in the gym turned to the others for their opinions.

“I like cats!”

“I also like cats the most.”

The cyberpunk girl and the furry girl answered in turn. The latter, I imagined, was a given.

“Honey Badger.”

“I love bears the most.”

That was the response from No-Face and the gym bro.

I’m not sure about honey badgers… but surely bear pajamas must be available for sale.

“No Name, are you thinking of doing VTube? Watching other channels pulling views makes my heart ache.”

Meanwhile, the old man in the gym pointed out the popular edited videos of my performances.

He expressed that if I had opened my channel and uploaded videos myself, I would have already been famous.

The point was that it was difficult to expect inflow from just one broadcast on Twish.

Just as people do not frequently install new apps on their phones, they do not explore broadcasts of other streamers as much as one might think.

If I were to continue streaming consistently, I was advised to definitely do VTube alongside it.

While part of me didn’t wish for the broadcast to grow that much, there was a discomfort in my heart from not being able to repay the money too.

Should I ultimately upload videos?

But I was at a loss about how to find an editor and who to choose if I did find one.

Ideally, it would be great to ask someone I know.

Unlike managers, I presumably wouldn’t need much contact with an editor outside of broadcasting.

“First of all, everyone did a great job. I’ll grant you manager privileges by today, so it might be a good time to go now.”

“Yes, thank you for your hard work!”

“Hey, No Name…!”

The cat furry reluctantly raised her hand to call me.

“Yes?”

“Could we have a handshake… just once…?”

“A handshake?”

“Having the chance to see you up close doesn’t happen often! If it’s fate, then it’s fate… a handshake should be… okay, right?”

Well, that much is fine.

I felt the touch of pink jelly hidden under the fluffy fur.

She sparkled with shining eyes, showcasing her eagerness to hold my hand just a moment longer.

“But if it’s not too rude, how much did this avatar cost?”

Her avatar was quite uniquely designed. From her cat-like pupils to her ears and claws, and even the texture and pattern of her fur seemed unusually detailed, suggesting it’s beyond simple craftsmanship.

“Oh… this…! I bought it on discount from the Metacraft Avatar Shop! About… eight hundred thousand won…?”

“…?”

It seems the notion that furries have a lot of money was indeed a popular belief.