Chapter 7

Elbow's Live Broadcast Episode 7

Elbow.

He is a professional gamer in his forties, an age that could be considered old for a pro gamer, yet he has not lost his throne. This was possible because virtual reality games allow one to put aside much of their physical attributes from the real world. Of course, with his physical condition significantly deteriorated, he could no longer engage in activities that put a strain on his body, such as all-night gaming sessions, but this did not diminish his status.

"Well, that's it for today's broadcast."

- Sob, Elbow... As you get older, your broadcast time gets shorter and shorter.

- Edward Elbowgate...

Despite this, Elbow's viewership was enormous. If you consider only the core viewers, it's 10,000, and if you add the fluctuating viewers, it can reach up to 30,000, making him a super-large streamer.

When the viewers, who were always disappointed by his short broadcast time due to his age, waved their hands in regret,

-[Link]

"Huh... I usually don't look at links that come in, but this link is to Afy Gallery? Should I take a quick look?"

- Nice timing!

- Just chat to extend the broadcast!

Elbow, who felt guilty about his short broadcast time, decided to look at the Afy Gallery link that suddenly appeared.

And the viewers, who had been despairing over the short broadcast time, raised their glasses in celebration.

"Oh, Afy Gallery is quite chaotic."

- Haha, it's not just chaotic.

- Uncle... The number of posts generated in Afy Gallery is insane...

- It's burning!

- Wow!

Soon, Elbow's screen, which followed the link, showed Afy Gallery, which was a complete mess. Dozens of posts were generated per second, but they were filled with insults and defamation, making it a place of chaos.

Realizing that the place he managed as an administrator was in a terrible state, Elbow stroked his rough chin and muttered,

"What happened to make the gallery look like this..."

- (Shocked) Elbow, Afy Gallery is not normal.

- But it's true.

- What's the fuss about? I'm curious.

Noticing that the viewers were also curious about the chaotic gallery, Elbow immediately went to the 'Concept Posts' tab.

"There must be something in the concept posts."

The 'concept posts' are where posts that receive many recommendations and comments are placed to prevent them from being buried among ordinary posts.

There, he would find something that could explain the current chaotic situation of Afy Gallery.

Before long, he passed through concept posts like "If the guys writing posts annoy you, give them a thumbs down" and "Mincho, get lost," and saw the first post that had been uploaded a few hours earlier, which was like a spark.

"Oh, this must be it. If you don't know, you should be hit... This is a story that not many people know, but it seems to have appeared on Mint's broadcast?"

- ??? Elbow knew?

- What? There was an original creator?

- I didn't know either?

Elbow, who had called Mint 'Mint' because he had appeared on her broadcast and she was about the same age as his daughter, produced countless hooks from the viewers.

Realizing that he had been talking about something only he knew, Elbow slapped his forehead and replied,

"I talked about something only I knew. As I get older, I tend to talk to myself more..."

- T_T T_T Elbow...

- Even though he's getting older, he's still the man who can only be beaten by Elbow in the Golden Era...

- Haha, no, it's really amazing to watch.

Of course, not many people agreed with this.

He had aged.

He had grown old.

But Elbow was still an overwhelming streamer.

However, after a moment, Elbow, with a serious face, continued to stroke his rough chin.

"But I don't think it could be someone who made it or something similar. Let me take a look."

- What, was it a lie?

- Mint isn't a small streamer; did she lie?

- Let's listen to what Elbow has to say. Since Elbow is going to take a look, why are other people making a fuss?

Since it was a quite famous phrase, while the viewers were debating,

Elbow clicked on the concept post that started the incident and read it with a serious face.

After confirming everything, Elbow nodded.

"It's true, isn't it?"

- ...Really?

- Why is it true?

- Why is it true?

The truth.

When Elbow said that all the information in the concept post was true, the viewers were surprised, and he continued to explain.

"According to what I know, the player who first said that phrase was 'Comet.' And the player name of Mint's older brother is also Comet, right?"

- Oh, really?

- But the names could be the same, right?

The first reason was the name.

The fact that the first person to say "If you don't know, you should be hit" was Comet, and that Mint's older brother is also named Comet.

This was the first reason.

Of course, to convince the viewers who were not convinced by this alone, Elbow continued to share what he knew.

"The name could be the same by a one in ten million chance. But that Comet guy had no activity for almost ten years, right? And in the video, Mint's older brother said he went missing ten years ago and just came back."

- Oh... Detective Elbow...

- As I listen, it really feels like it.

The second reason was the missing year, which showed a strong connection between the two Comets.

Even the viewers, who were skeptical, had to nod their heads.

Elbow added the final touch.

"And honestly, I don't mind saying this... The reason I remember is that Comet won two matches against me and said that phrase. So I remember it."

- ...Elbow lost?

- Wow, he's verifying it with his skills.

- Haha, what a signature.

- Haha, there can't be two people who won two matches against Elbow and said "If you don't know, you should be hit."

- But it's funny that it's true, haha.

Skill.

When Elbow mentioned the person who had once dominated him with an overwhelming skill difference, the viewers responded with continuous laughter.

- But can you tell just by looking?

- Well, Mint is good, but not at the top level.

- Mint is a few steps below Elbow.

- That's true.

Of course, even though the opponent was Mint, who was considered the weakest of the Four Kings, Elbow was firm.

"To be honest, even if I had brought in another friend instead of Mint, it would have been similar. Of course, it wouldn't have been as overwhelming or as aggressive, but the basic sense is different."

When even the viewers who couldn't acknowledge this were convinced,

"I should leave a post as a moderator. It's not good for the gallery to be noisy over a clear fact."

With this thought, Elbow quickly wrote the title.

After writing the title and the content, just as he had in the broadcast, Elbow registered the post with a smile.

"I hope we can meet and fight again someday. To be honest, I was quite young back then... I was quite annoyed."

- Oh... Elbow smiled!

- A gentleman's revenge... It's never too late, even after ten years...

- It's almost ten years, so he caught the last train.

- Is this the first time Elbow has challenged someone?

- This is the first time he's written a challenge.

Seeing Elbow, who was saying for the first time that he wanted to fight someone in Iron Fist, the viewers cheered.

The match between Elbow, who was at the top of the industry and would likely maintain his reputation for a few more years, and Comet, who had defeated Elbow in the past and had just reappeared!

For the viewers watching Elbow's broadcast, who was the best player of the fighting game 'Iron Fist,' there was no more thrilling story.

- Ah, I'm drooling!

- Haha, I'm going to write a post on Afy Gallery.

- Breaking news: Elbow challenges Mint's... older brother.

- Mint, who was sleeping, will be startled and knock on her older brother's door.

"Ah... I didn't write this to do this... Well, it will turn into something good, so it's not bad, right?"

Although the fire he started in Afy Gallery had spread, Elbow scratched his cheek awkwardly, thinking that his viewers would start a new fire.

With a slightly awkward smile, Elbow waved his hand.

"See you later."

The final viewer count was 25,000, and most of the viewers moved on to other streamers' broadcasts.

"Mint... I'm curious."

"Will the replay of today's broadcast be available?"

"Let's check it out. We need to know how good she is."

A considerable number of viewers did not lose interest in Mint's broadcast of the day.

Over a thousand viewers started to look into Mint, and the next day, Mint, who confirmed the massive influx of viewers, was shocked.

* * *

It was an ordinary morning.

"Hum~ Hum hum hum~"

Singing a tune, Haeun got up, had a light breakfast, and went to wash her face and brush her teeth, checking her broadcast board on her phone out of habit.

"Nothing special today, right?"

Thinking that the viewers, who had felt a lot from her meeting with Haesung yesterday, would have done something, Haeun's face stiffened.

"Phew! W... What is this!"

The many posts on the broadcast board.

Most of them were on 'Mincho,' similar to the gallery's 'concept posts.'

Of course, Haeun had set it up.

But what was important now was that there were too many posts on Mincho, and the titles were too surprising.

"P... Elbow knows my older brother? How? And why does Elbow want to fight my older brother one-on-one?"

Elbow.

In 'Iron Fist,' he held a unique position, and the fact that he was showing interest in her older brother and wanted to fight him was shocking.

Of course, Haeun didn't have the insight to understand a lot just from the title, so when she clicked on the post on Mincho,

Haeun was even more surprised.

"Ah, Haeun. The bathroom is free. You can use it."

"W... What are you doing!!!"

But the surprise was not due to the post on Mincho but from Haesung, who came out of the firmly closed bathroom door.

Haesung, who had just taken a shower, was shaking the water out of his hair with one hand, and a toothbrush was in his mouth.

Not only that, but his upper body was completely exposed, with a large towel loosely wrapped around his waist.

'...What a body.'

Even Haeun, who was not particularly into fitness, could see that Haesung's chiseled body was far from that of an ordinary human.

For a moment, her mind was distracted by the body that seemed unscratchable even by a sharp knife.

"Why are you naked!"

Haeun, with a red face, covered her face and backed away, making a loud noise.

Haesung, seeing this, asked with a bewildered look.

"I just took a shower, so I'm naked. And what's the problem among family?"

"No, that... "

Although she wanted to say something, there was nothing particularly wrong, so Haeun finally sighed deeply and showed the phone she was holding to Haesung.

"Good timing. I was going to show it to you anyway, so I can show it now."

"…What is this?"

Haesung, who had been grumpy from the sudden noise in the morning, took the phone Haeun handed him and examined it.

Haeun, placing her hand on her hip, replied.

"Elbow wants to fight you one-on-one. Do you know Elbow?"

"…Elbow?"

Elbow.

A familiar but vague name. Haesung, who was chewing on his toothbrush, finally managed to recall the name from his past memories.

"Oh, the guy who lost to me in the Worlds tournament was named Elbow."

"…What?"

"That guy can't play games... No, is he good?"

Seeing Haesung, who calmly evaluated Elbow's skills and then immediately corrected himself, remembering Haeun's skills from yesterday, Haeun looked at him in disbelief.

"…You fought Elbow?"

"2-0. A record from the final of the Worlds, which can be called the World Cup of fighting games, ten years ago."

"No way! Then…"

Haeun, who was shocked to learn that her older brother had an overwhelming 2-0 record against the legendary Elbow, whom she had never known about, opened her mouth wide and stammered.

Haesung, placing his wet hand on Haeun's head, spoke first.

"I'm better at games than that guy. Probably?"

"…"

Haeun, who was speechless at the confident answer, which was confidently stated with a refreshing smile, was speechless.

Elbow.

Her older brother, who was showing unwavering confidence against the world-renowned Elbow, was too confident.

But the more surprising thing was—

'I really think he can do it.'

Her own nodding in agreement with Haesung's words, without even realizing it.