Chapter 5

Ol Master's Game Broadcast Episode 5

‘...What, was Onii-chan that scary?’

It's just a virtual reality.

No matter how realistic it is, this is still a game world.

Even if you get hit, there's no real pain.

It's just a throbbing sensation, and even that can be reduced through pain adjustment.

The pain in Iron Fist is merely a measure of how much damage your body has taken from the opponent's attack.

Elements that hint at conditions like 'fracture,' 'pain,' and 'broken bones.'

Of course, if you lose and die here, it's not real death; it's just a decrease in HP.

‘...When I fought Elbow one-on-one, it wasn't this bad.’

The top player in Iron Fist.

No, the absolute top player, Elbow.

Even when he was a guest, Mint couldn't feel the intense pressure he felt now.

‘I absolutely can't lose. No, I can't afford to lose!’

If she can't beat Hae Sung even when she has set up everything to her advantage, to the point of being ridiculed, when will she ever be able to beat him?

Mint, who has been defeated by Hae Sung for almost ten years since she was young, instinctively felt that this was her last chance to beat him.

If Hae Sung were to discard the old capsule and get used to the virtual reality game, such an opportunity would never come again.

With that thought, the countdown began.

As the numbers quickly decreased and reached zero—

The invisible barrier between Mint and Comet disappeared, and the battle began.

“Hiss!”

Mint made the first move.

With a battle cry, Mint, whose body was strengthened by the divine power of the angel race, shot forward like a bullet.

Thud, thud, thud—

‘First, I’ll close the distance with the Seven Star Steps.’

Seven Star Steps (七星步).

A technique where the speed increases with each step on the stars created by divine power on the ground. When all seven are stepped on, the speed is the highest in Iron Fist.

Of course, it's not easy to step on all seven in a short time, as you have to step on them accurately—

But Mint, who had mastered the Seven Star Steps, completed the 7-combo in the blink of an eye by stepping on all seven stars.

Her eyes sparkled as she immediately ran towards Comet.

‘Identify Weak Point.’

A technique that can be used when divine power is infused into the eyes.

If the white dot floating over the opponent's body is hit accurately, it will cause critical damage.

Like the Seven Star Steps, it requires perfect accuracy, making it difficult, but not for Mint.

Swoosh!

Mint's body, enhanced by divine power, moved quickly and accurately, aiming for Hae Sung's side, which was identified as a weak point.

With a body already stronger than the human race, further enhanced by divine power, Mint's physical strength was almost on par with the demon race.

Her punch was so fast that it couldn't be seen.

But—

Boom!

“Dodged?”

Comet easily avoided Mint's punch aimed at his side by slightly shifting his body.

Even with the maximum efficiency of the Seven Star Steps and the best physical abilities, her near-fatal punch was easily dodged by Comet's superior dynamic vision and reflexes.

As Mint, who had quickly approached and tried to punch Comet's side, saw Comet's fist in her field of vision.

Kaboom!

A punch that seemed to shatter the surrounding space.

Mint, whose face turned pale, leaped back.

Thanks to the lingering effects of the Seven Star Steps, she quickly put some distance between them and let out a sigh of relief.

Smack!

“...Gah!”

Despite the distance between the punch and herself, Mint's face contorted in pain.

The pain was one thing, but the biggest shock was the surprise.

‘How? There was a distance.’

A distance where two fists could fit.

Mint's mind raced at the attack that came from such a distance.

Of course, the shock and the blow were separate, and the game mechanics meant that Mint's HP bar didn't decrease significantly.

Thus, she quickly regained her composure and prepared for the next move.

The game wasn't over yet.

At least, that's what she thought.

And soon, Mint realized her thoughts were very wrong.

* * *

Boom!

It wasn't just once or twice.

Faced with invisible punches from the empty air, Mint knew that the first attack she received was no illusion.

‘...It’s a long-range attack using energy. And it’s delivered through a punch. The damage isn’t much different from a regular punch, but... it’s too one-sided!’

A long-range attack using energy.

While the damage itself isn't very strong, the key is the distance.

When your attacks don't reach, but the opponent can easily attack—this is a significant crisis in a fighting game.

It's not for nothing that long-range attacks have lower damage settings.

But like a steady rain soaking through clothes, Mint's HP bar steadily decreased.

If Mint hadn't used her energy to recover, her HP would have been less than a third, not half.

Thanks to the cockroach-like resilience of the angel race, she still had about half her HP left, but Mint didn't smile.

‘I haven’t landed a single hit. I’ll just wither and die like this.’

The angel race, known as 'angel cockroaches' due to their resilience, but that resilience was meaningless.

Thinking that she would lose anyway if she just kept getting hit, Mint gritted her teeth.

“Hiss!”

- ...He’s done it! White Light Burst!

- Ah, ah, he can’t dodge that!

- ??? : The hits I’ve taken so far were to gain momentum!

The viewers, who had been watching the battle in silence, cheered when they saw the blazing bright light around Mint, who had clenched her teeth.

Unlike what they had expected, Mint had been consistently behind Comet.

Of course—

- Haha, the underdogs are busy typing with trembling hands.

- Underdog special: We were hit along with Mint during the beating.

- Haha.

- ??? : The hits I’ve taken so far were to take more hits!

The underdogs, who had been quiet for a few minutes, didn’t stay silent.

The angel race.

Mint’s character, ‘Uniel,’ has a special move called White Light Burst, which unleashes all her divine power in a full-range attack.

Despite being a long-range attack, it doesn’t have the usual damage reduction penalty, making it a very powerful technique.

Using this move, which drains all her energy, indicates that the current situation is unfavorable for her.

Thus, it’s natural that the underdogs were smirking.

‘...No matter how monstrous Onii-chan is, he can’t dodge this.’

Of course, as a streamer, Mint could see all the chat messages, but there was nothing she could do.

It was a desperate move.

Better to make a desperate move than to do nothing and fail every time.

Initially, she had thought she would win overwhelmingly, but when she faced Comet’s attack in a split second, she gave up on winning.

At the same time—

Kaboom!

The divine power centered around Mint exploded, shattering into pieces like glass.

The moment Uniel’s special move, White Light Burst, was unleashed.

‘Right, this won’t give a perfect win.’

Perfect Win.

A humiliating title given when the opponent doesn’t land a single hit and loses.

Conversely, it’s a valuable title for the winner.

It’s rare to see this title unless there’s a significant skill gap.

As a gamer who craves victory, it was humiliating, but Mint chose to avoid the even more humiliating Perfect Win.

But—

“You’ve put in effort.”

“...What?”

Seeing her brother, who was completely calm despite the White Light Burst fragments flying at him, Mint felt something was off, but it was too late to retract her attack.

It was like trying to put spilled water back in a container.

It couldn’t be changed.

Kaboom!

The massive explosion caused by the shattered divine power fragments.

A hellish ability that, once allowed, continues to hit with 2nd and 3rd strikes due to the shockwave.

But Comet didn’t allow the crucial first hit.

Thud, thud, thud, thud!

Unlike when he attacked Mint, Comet didn’t extend his fist.

He simply flicked his fingers in quick succession, using his energy to accurately hit the divine power fragments.

In the space where movement was impossible due to White Light Burst, Comet was moving.

It was an unreal scene.

Even as the top player in Iron Fist, Elbow, it should have been impossible to perfectly block White Light Burst.

Or if possible, it shouldn’t have been so easy to move while blocking.

It should have been impossible—

“W... What is that?”

Seeing Comet, who was using all ten fingers to slowly walk through the increasing fragments, Mint forgot she was streaming and asked about the technique.

Knowing that the method Comet was using was unique to him, as the way to handle energy can vary widely.

Comet smiled and answered.

“Hundred Steps Divine Fist.”

“What is that...”

The words “nerd” rose to her lips but she didn’t say them.

Because he was her only brother—

But the biggest reason was something else.

“Think of it as a palm strike or a finger strike. That’s the easiest way to understand it.”

“...When?”

The duration of White Light Burst had ended, and Comet, who had been steadily walking during the duration, was now in front of Mint.

The palm strike or finger strike Comet mentioned was, like the Hundred Steps Divine Fist, something Mint couldn’t comprehend.

Seeing her confused face, Comet raised his fist.

“You need to be hit to understand. You don’t know, right? It’s a term I created.”

“...!”

While talking, Mint realized her energy had recovered, and she saw another invisible punch coming.

‘...Ah, Onii-chan has been using that palm strike or something from start to finish... I couldn’t even make him use anything else.’

Comet attacked her with one method from start to finish.

The same attack, just from different directions.

It was a problem that was extremely difficult but had only one answer, and Mint couldn’t solve it.

Realizing this, Mint raised her divine power to preserve her rapidly depleting HP bar.

She was about to show the cockroach-like resilience of the angel race again.

But—

“Ah, you don’t have any left.”

Mint, who had used White Light Burst, had no divine power left.

A semi-transparent window appeared in front of her, a title that wasn’t hers.

Perfect Win.

Seeing the title Comet had earned against her—

Mint disconnected from Iron Fist without looking back.

In other words—

- Wow, she’s pulling the plug.

- Yeah~ She’s already lost~ Running won’t help~

Pulling the plug.

A cowardly escape known as “pulling the plug.”

Of course, the viewers were disappointed.

- Can’t we call it a draw? Can’t we call it a draw? Can’t we call it a draw? Can’t we call it a draw?

- Where are we? Where are we? Where are we?

- Ugh, my head... Our memories...

- ??? : This is a strange... broadcast...

Mint’s defeat.

It meant that 92% of the points the viewers had bet would go to the underdogs.

The chat window burned with messages from viewers who had lost points and suffered from memory loss (?) until Mint appeared in front of the real camera.