Chapter 7

Season 1, Episode 7 of The Genius Archer's Streaming

3. Who is Almond? (2)

189 viewers are watching me.

Sanghyun swallowed hard. He usually didn’t get nervous, but this was a first, so it was inevitable to feel a bit shaky.

Phew...

Sanghyun let out a small, unnoticeable breath. This was a tension-relieving technique he used before picking up his bow.

He would exhale, close his eyes, and momentarily distance himself from the world.

He would imagine that this wasn’t his world, but a game he was playing in the third person.

I’m playing an avatar named Sanghyun.

Finally, his dry lips moved.

"Alright, let's continue from where we left off yesterday."

He didn’t mention the number of viewers. He avoided the common mistake made by novice streamers.

Sanghyun didn’t go to sleep immediately after turning off the game last night. He studied the methods major streamers used to manage their viewers and control controversies.

He memorized the common taboos of major streamers and wrote them down on a note he could see on his screen.

One of them was mentioning the number of viewers.

This could interfere with other viewers’ pure immersion in the game and make the broadcast feel like a broadcast. It could also create competition with other broadcasts.

That shouldn’t happen. Viewers should be fully immersed in the content. They shouldn’t think of it as a broadcast or of Sanghyun as a streamer.

They should think of Sanghyun as a friend.

They should feel like they’re watching a friend play a game while chatting.

Streaming is essentially an extension of the yut board game watching in ancient Joseon, the arcade game battles of the 1990s, and the PC room team battles of the 2000s.

Warm, friendly closeness was more important than the tension of a gripping game.

So, the best line he could use here was:

"Thank you to those who came back today, like RubySword, GajiBokum, and Mungcheongeri. I appreciate it."

Warmly calling out the names of the viewers who returned.

- Hello! 😄

- You remember us! 😂

- Hey, 0-guns called out! 😂😂😂

- 0-guns, attention!

- Already forming 0-guns on the second day of streaming.

- Is Almond actually a streaming genius?

The reactions were good.

Although they teased him as 0-guns and streamers, the viewers who weren’t called out seemed envious, and those who were called out were happy.

The viewers who were called out were the ones who chatted a lot yesterday.

They would now feel much closer to Sanghyun.

"I continued the game a bit after turning off the stream yesterday. Right now, I’ve been introduced to a mercenary captain by Roman and received a new mission."

This is the second tip from major streamers.

They don’t necessarily stream all parts of the game. They skip over the boring parts and briefly explain them.

- Oh.

- Mercenary captain 😂😂😂

- Mercenary company ‘Mercenary’ 😂😂

- Captain, right? 😂😂

They also reinterpreted the game using terms that were easier for viewers to understand. Just because it’s a medieval game doesn’t mean you have to use medieval language.

"This mission isn’t that impressive either. I thought being a mercenary meant going to the battlefield and dying, but it seems more like being a bodyguard."

This mission with Roman was similar to the tutorial.

Back then, it was guarding a cart, but this time, it was protecting a person.

- Mercenary, what a joke 😂

- This game is so realistic.

- Most mercenaries just did this kind of job.

- Just a security company 😂

Another difference was that Sanghyun was also on horseback this time.

Clop, clop.

The rough jostling of the horse. There was a saddle, but riding a horse wasn’t as easy as he thought.

Roman, who was riding ahead, turned to look at him.

"Is this your first time on a horse? Almond?"

Almond’s head shook involuntarily.

"No, but I haven’t had many opportunities."

"Got it. You’ll need to get used to it. You’ll be riding a lot from now on."

While Almond was getting used to the horse, the viewers were curious.

- What kind of mission is this?

- The mission is different.

- Yeah, but isn’t this the one with the bandits on horses?

- Already?

Bandits?

Just as Sanghyun was about to ask what they were, a loud noise came from the hill.

"Yohooooo!"

Thud, thud, thud!

The sound of hooves and eerie screams filled the air.

The viewers cheered as if they were part of the bandits.

- Yohoooo!

- Yohoooo!

- Is Bruka here?

- 😂😂 Isn’t the first mission with bandits?

- Let’s go~!!

Some viewers were purely enjoying the game, while others who came to doubt Sanghyun’s skills had different reactions.

- 😮, Finally shooting the bow?

- Oh...!

- We’ll see if it’s a fake or not.

Some were filled with anticipation.

- Now it will be revealed.

- It’s a fake.

- 😂😂 How can you shoot a bow on horseback?

Others had already predicted his failure.

Of course, Sanghyun didn’t pay much attention to these opinions. In sports, competition is the norm, and there have always been jealous people.

For someone like Sanghyun, a genius, this was a familiar situation. He knew how to deal with such people.

'Show them the results.'

Sanghyun quickly scanned the number of enemies.

But this time, the enemies moved too fast.

'How can they be so fast?'

He couldn’t count them properly.

'About 50, I guess.'

After a rough estimate, he checked the number of his arrows. Unlike the tutorial, the number was displayed on the screen.

[Arrows × 40]

The arrows were insufficient, but he didn’t need to kill them all. There were allied mercenaries too.

"Bandits!"

Other mercenary comrades started to move.

Spear soldiers moved forward to face the bandits, raising their spears.

"Hiya!"

"Yohooooo!"

The bandits, like a single arrow, charged forward in a group, attempting a breakthrough.

Thud, thud, thud...!

The ground trembled with the fierce sound of hooves.

Their bloodshot eyes showed no fear.

"Kahahaha!"

The terrifying bandit at the front swung a massive sword.

[Raid Captain Bruka]

He was the notorious villain mentioned in the chat.

As a named character, he had incredible combat power.

Swish!

The head of the spear soldier at the front flew high into the sky, creating a cloud of blood.

"The front line is breached!"

"Damn!"

The mercenaries' front line was already broken. Sanghyun found it a bit absurd.

This wasn’t even a surprise attack.

"Seriously, why do these mercenaries always lose?"

Sanghyun grumbled, nocked an arrow, and casually shot it.

Whoosh!

The arrow hit the center of the head of the bandit at the front.

The result was instant death.

"......Cough!"

Neigh!

The horse, now riderless, reared and fell, causing the other bandits following behind to stumble and fall like dominoes.

Crash!

Almost a third of the bandits fell, and the situation became favorable for the mercenaries.

Most importantly, their morale was crushed.

It was strangely crushed. Some of the bandits were just staring blankly at the spot where the bandit had died.

"Bro, what?!"

"Already?!"

That was what the bandits and the viewers wanted to say.

- ?!!?

- What? Bruka is already down?

- ???

- Is this an optical illusion? Is it really Bruka?

- I can’t even see it clearly from here.

- Is it just luck?

- Clenching my teeth, it’s just luck 😂

It turned out that the bandit Sanghyun casually shot was Bruka.

"Why are they reacting like that?"

Sanghyun was just aiming at the one at the front.

The reactions were strange.

- I would react the same way.

- 😂😂😂😂😂

- You killed the captain, why are they reacting like that?

- 😂😂😂😂

Bruka was the raid captain of the bandits, the most challenging - or supposed to be - enemy in this mission.

But he was suddenly intercepted and fell helplessly.

- That video was real 😂😂

- The game company must be speechless. They put in so much effort with swords and everything... and then this.

- Click... Bang! Click... Bang! Repeatedly 😂

- At maximum range, with full power, you can hit the head and kill... theoretically.

- Theoretically possible...

The number of viewers increased to 230. 230 isn’t a large number, but the chat window was as active as if there were 5,000 people.

Everyone was excited to witness a named mob being killed in one shot again.

'They’re all excited.'

Sanghyun was only pleased. He didn’t get swept up in it and aimed his bow again.

The battle wasn’t over yet.

He would celebrate after the victory.

"Bro’s revenge!!!"

"I’ll kill them all!"

The bandits, fueled by a desire for revenge and anger, attacked even more fiercely.

'The next one is that guy.'

Sanghyun focused only on the tip of his arrow.

His mind was only on the next kill.

His eyes followed the backs of the fleeing enemies.

- Wow, it’s really intense to watch.

- So cool...

- But, the stance is really different.

His fierce hunting stance made even the viewers tense.

Sanghyun’s highly concentrated shooting was a continuous surprise.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Wherever Sanghyun’s sharp gaze went, bandits fell. Each one had an arrow in their head or neck.

It seemed as if the arrows were already in the bandits’ heads from the start, as so many fell in an instant.

"Grind...!"

"Ugh!"

With the captain and many veterans down, the bandits who had confidently charged in were nowhere to be seen.

"Ghost...!"

"Ugh, ugh, ugh!"

They panicked, literally losing their minds, and started to flee.

From this point on, it wasn’t a battle but a hunt.

"The enemies are fleeing!"

Roman, with his bloodied sword, shouted.

"Kill them all!!!"

Snap!

The mercenaries’ flags rose high in various places.

[Pursue and annihilate the bandits.]

A new mission was assigned.

This was a new route that wasn’t originally revealed in the game.

- Annihilation route? What is this... such a route exists.

- He’s playing a different game from us.

- Let’s praise the game company for creating various routes.

* * *

The viewers were thrilled by the new developments created by Almond, and this excitement spread to community sites.

[Almond is the real deal.]

[Almond or peanut, damn, he’s amazing.]

[He’s streaming now. Come and watch.]

[One-shot kill on Bruka 😂😂]

[Even Bruka couldn’t say his lines 😂 They’re so good...]

[Almond live. Found another strange route!]

And at that moment.

A famous streamer was watching the site.

"...Almond? What is this?"