Chapter 68

Streaming Season 1 of the Genius Archer, Chapter 68

Chapter 24: Disassembly Analyzer (3)

"Ah, no... that's..."

Director Oh was so impressed that he clapped his hands.

"What is it? Wow..."

It was undoubtedly archery, a familiar sight during the Olympic season, especially to Koreans.

Thud!

But when each arrow hit the bullseye as if it belonged there, it felt different.

'This is a different level...'

He had heard from Kim Joo-hyuk before that Yoo Sang-hyun was a genius in archery. He didn't doubt it. Winning the youngest championship in the national tournament certainly made him a genius.

The youngest winner of the Math Olympiad was also a genius.

But did the general public attach much significance to it?

Was it widely publicized in the news?

Most of the time, such achievements were briefly mentioned without showing the person's face, and they were seen as just smart kids who grew up quickly.

In many cases, they even became less intelligent as adults.

The same applied to sports geniuses.

At some point, their talent often faded, and they became ordinary athletes.

Unconsciously, Director Oh had placed Sang-hyun in the same category.

It wasn't that Director Oh was pessimistic. Anyone with life experience would think the same way, based on the data of past experiences.

However, Sang-hyun was an exception to that data.

An outlier.

A regular.

A being that transcended the ordinary.

"That's a real genius."

He is a real genius.

The director's voice, filled with complaints, could be heard.

"No, no, this isn't right? It's too realistic, and the game character should be struggling and floundering... That's the kind of scene we need. Oh..."

"Was that the advertising strategy?"

"Yes. To emphasize how much more realistic this system is compared to other game environments! The character who excels in the game should fail!"

"Ah. What can we do? It's a failure."

When Director Oh jokingly teased him, he shook his head.

"Damn. What is this..."

But Director Oh, who knew the director's personality well, could see that he was actually impressed.

'The director seems to like it.'

The director was also captivated by the streamer, Almond.

His eyes, which should have been scanning the entire broadcast screen, were now fixed on Almond.

He seemed genuinely interested.

"But strangely, the broadcast is doing well. Huh..."

Despite ruining the plot he had prepared, this strange entity was making the broadcast popular.

The director, running his fingers through his graying hair, muttered to himself.

"After this, we should consider other broadcasts..."

To which Director Oh replied with a bright smile.

"Who would agree to that?"

* * *

While everyone was fixated on Almond, marveling at his performance, Joo-hyuk wasn't watching him.

He had immediately confirmed it when he saw the first arrow.

'Of course, it will be a perfect 10.'

As his manager, Joo-hyuk decided it would be better to read the community reactions.

"Let's see..."

With a middle-aged man's muttering, he scrolled through the comments.

At this point, the reactions were like this:

Joo-hyuk agreed.

He hadn't been informed about this surprise test. 'Broadcast guys...' He felt this again, confirming his suspicions.

But he was lucky.

'Actually, this is my specialty.'

The surprise test was essentially a surprise birthday party for Almond, a feast prepared for him.

When the archery set appeared, Joo-hyuk had to suppress a wide grin.

Thud!

One by one, Almond's arrows hit the bullseye.

'As expected. Here it comes.'

Soon, the community would start reacting.

Some saw it as a failure of Fantasia's marketing, while others praised Almond's real-life archery skills.

Regardless, the comment generation speed skyrocketed, and it drew a lot of attention.

Even the reputation of the Fantasia channel wasn't tarnished by the large number of viewers.

Thud!

When the last arrow hit the bullseye, the set collapsed.

Yoo Hae-yeon quickly covered up.

"Everyone, you all know that was a fun test we prepared, right?"

She was trying to move on to the next test quickly.

While the staff were flustered, Joo-hyuk couldn't help but smile.

'Good job, Almond.'

Now, if he just does well in the next test, it will be perfect.

The next test wasn't related to archery. It was a test where Almond had no obvious advantage.

But Joo-hyuk knew.

'He'll do well.'

He knew Almond's training tutorial scores and had analyzed his Mad Movie multiple times. He knew Almond's skills better than anyone.

In reality, Yoo Sang-hyun's talent was clearly in archery.

But in the game, Almond was more than that.

He had something extra.

"The next test is 'Survive!'"

- Wow!

- Haha

- Is this another one? Haha, it's so fun

- Oh, this for Almond?

- Isn't this the one Electromagnetic did a long time ago?

- Haha, indeed, he's a game master!

* * *

The test called 'Survive!'

Sang-hyun had been informed about this test beforehand.

'Is this the one Electromagnetic set a record in?'

Sang-hyun looked around the suddenly changed virtual space.

An empty training area, surrounded by various weapons.

'I wish I could shoot more. It's a bit disappointing.'

He was a bit sad that the archery set had disappeared.

But the test was more important, so Sang-hyun checked his surroundings carefully.

Strange cannon-like objects were visible in the distance, both on the ground and in the air.

They would likely shoot knives or axes.

There were many traps waiting, but each one had a slight warning before activation.

Sounds of firing, color changes, and so on.

The types would vary, but there would be some kind of warning.

He had to avoid all of these and survive as long as possible.

"Mr. Almond! How do you feel? Can you sense that the hyper-realistic virtual space mode has ended?"

Yoo Hae-yeon asked.

It seemed like a question for the advertisement, but it wasn't meaningless.

Sang-hyun looked at his right hand and thought.

'Sure, it feels more like a game now.'

The complete realism from before was gone. It was now the quality of the capsule game he knew.

After experiencing something much better, it felt very different.

In a less comfortable way.

"Yes. This feels more like a game. Compared to before."

"Right? When you watch CG movies from your childhood as an adult, they can be embarrassingly bad. The gap between the hyper-realistic virtual space of Fantasia and this is similar!"

The viewers reacted to the overly promotional comment.

- What? You're lying! This is just an ad!

- Haha, the director is suffering...

- Haha, ad out!

- Just show the ad during the ad break, Fantasia!

- But looking at Almond's face, it does seem real. Haha

- Even the roughly implemented graphics are of a different class.

"Alright, the gap is there! Anyway, now we're starting the infamous 'Survive!' test. Any words of determination?"

Holding the microphone, Almond hesitated.

He wasn't sure if he should be honest.

"Should I say it as it is?"

"Of course!"

"It will be easy."

"!?"

Yoo Hae-yeon's surprised expression and the viewers' amused comments appeared.

- Haha

- As expected, Almond

- Wow, provocateur Haha

- Confidence is the best tool Haha

- This is Almond!

Usually, someone would say, "I'll do my best!"

Especially considering Electromagnetic's record, the proper response would be, "I'm not as good as Electromagnetic, but I'll do my best!"

But this response...

The viewers' interest was palpable.

Yoo Hae-yeon, licking her dry lips, asked another question.

"Do you know about the 'Survive!' test?"

"Yes, of course... You told me to watch it."

- Yoo Hae-yeon: No, how can I say that!

- Haha, broadcast destroyer

- Ouch Haha

- Are you deceiving the viewers, Fantasia!?

- Almond is intentionally messing with Hae-yeon Haha

Yoo Hae-yeon looked flustered.

"Ahahaha!"

She was using her characteristic exaggerated laugh to defuse the situation.

"Mr. Almond, have you seen Electromagnetic's video?"

"Yes."

"Seeing that, you thought it would be easy. Is that what you mean?"

- Pushing it Haha

- Yoo Hae-yeon, setting the bait

- Fishing Haha

- Fishing master Yoo Hae-yeon

- Yoo Hae-yeon's desired answer: Electromagnetic is trash

- Haha, broadcast genius

- Honestly, their banter is more entertaining than the test

- Broadcast genius vs. archery genius

While asking the question, Yoo Hae-yeon also swallowed hard.

Challenging Electromagnetic's record was a nerve-wracking task.

Surely he wouldn't say that?

Yoo Hae-yeon expected Sang-hyun to back down.

But?

"Yes. I think I'll score higher than that."

Dun!

It felt like a dramatic sound effect had just played.

- Wow Haha

- Trash talk master

- What! He really said it!

- Wow Haha

- ???: I win the gold for the trash talk

- Haha, Yoo Hae-yeon is flustered

- Saying the obvious answer flusters the asker Haha

- The fish bit the bait and the line broke!

- The fish is confident!

"Wow... Incredible confidence! Let's start then! 'Survive!' Test! On!!!"

Whoosh.

All the lights went out.

Yoo Hae-yeon's avatar flew up into the sky.

Almond's avatar was the only one left.

In the pitch-black darkness, the only thing visible to him was this text.

.

.

.

Flash!

The bright lights came back on.

Whoosh—

Suddenly, fierce axes started flying from a distance.