Chapter 75

EP.75 The Emperor Mijang and the Chest Monster

After all the day's schedules of the tournament were over, Juntae left his desk and slumped into a chair at the rest area prepared for the commentators and casters.

An official approached him.

This person was the most influential in organizing the tournament.

"Mr. Juntae, you did a great job with the commentary today."

"…Ah. Thank you."

He tried to say more, but his sore mouth wouldn't move well.

The official, perhaps considering his condition, didn't seem upset by his brief and hesitant response.

Seeing Juntae completely exhausted, the official said sympathetically,

"It was completely different from what we expected. It should have been over an hour ago."

"Things like this happen…."

"A strange person suddenly appeared. Tsk. There's a limit to how much you can disrupt the excitement."

Strange person.

Yes, that was a strange person.

At least, Juntae thought so.

It was one of the matches in Group B.

A match that lasted over an hour.

It wasn't a typical playtime for a 1:1 match where the outcome should be decided within five minutes, or at most 20 minutes.

"We should tell them to consider it if they try to participate in our tournament again."

Saying 'consider it' was essentially the same as blocking their participation in future tournaments.

He was talking about the participant who deliberately avoided fighting and only ran, dragging out the time.

Just thinking about it made Juntae's head throb.

He had tried to explain it as having a reason, but how many times could he do that? One side was chasing, the other was only running. What else could he say?

The audience's interest waned, and the atmosphere, which had reached its peak with the Saint's impressive performance against a strong contender, turned cold like water had been poured over it.

It was natural that the number of live viewers dropped rapidly.

The match hadn't ended even then, and if the chasing side hadn't realized the situation and surrendered, who knows how long the game would have continued.

"I saw it, but I don't understand. What was the purpose? It's like causing a commotion like a spy from another company. We should tell them to watch out for this…."

"I don't think there was any specific purpose."

"Really? Mr. Juntae. Maybe I'm too old to understand. What do you think? Why did they do such a thing? It's a waste of time."

"They're just attention-seekers."

"Attention-seekers?"

"People who act strangely because they crave attention. They don't really care if others frown at them. Some even feel a thrill from making others angry. Yes, probably one of those people."

"Hmm."

"Anyway, what about changing the rules? Like setting a time limit for matches. Or at least, announcing that such play is not allowed, or that mocking the opponent in chat is not allowed…."

"I'm sorry, but that's not possible. If we suddenly add such clauses, it will cause problems. They'll say we didn't prepare well or that we couldn't handle it in advance."

"But if this kind of play happens again, the tournament…."

"Could be affected in a bigger way. I know. It's not reasonable. But that's how companies work. We can't create situations that require responsibility. It's better to ignore things that could be criticized. Just hand over the statistics comparing before and after this tournament to the old guys, and that's it."

"Right…."

"Still, we should remember the name of the person who made things difficult for you. What was their nickname?"

"Yes. It's MagicGirlBabyMijang."

"And since they won, they're in the schedule for tomorrow, right?"

"Yes. The next match is… um… against…."

"Against?"

"Saint."

...

...

...

After finishing the thrilling comeback victory on the first day,

the next day arrived.

In my next match, I was as focused as ever.

With the background of tall palm trees and the hot sun,

the waves lapping against the sand wet the ankles of the characters.

The Saint ran forward at my command.

The moment I thought the red-haired character would swing a large hammer,

[ MagicGirlBabyMijang: Hoooooo ]

[ MagicGirlBabyMijang: Hoooooo ]

It was an appropriate attack, but only the sound of the hammer cutting through the air came through the speakers.

Just like yesterday with the thief, why did I keep encountering such fast characters lately?

If they were just fast, I could keep up somehow,

[ MagicGirlBabyMijang: This is BabyMijang's trademark, Enjjang! ]

[ MagicGirlBabyMijang: Optba, that's just my afterimage☆ ]

[ MagicGirlBabyMijang: Kira★ ]

but the moment I thought I had hit their head, they vanished.

Then, a red-haired character with red eyes, tied in two braids, appeared from the opposite side.

This was possible because the character was a mage with a specialization in illusion magic.

While a 6:6 match could be strategic with this class, forcing the opponent to make a choice, the lack of firepower due to the wasted specialization made it less suitable for 1:1 matches.

But my opponent was using it well.

[ MagicGirlBabyMijang: Try to catch me~! ]

[ MagicGirlBabyMijang: If you catch me, I'll give you a Hawawa, Hawawa★ ]

[ MagicGirlBabyMijang: Hoooooo Hawawawawawa♪ ]

What exactly is a Hawawa?

It was frustrating to see her running along the beach.

I gave the order to chase her, and I thought,

In this industry. Well, it's not quite an industry,

but I was somewhat famous.

For concept play.

I had even had non-matches where we competed to see who could act more like an attention-seeker.

It seemed the other side remembered me, as they sent a chat.

[ MagicGirlBabyMijang: Optba, the Saint suddenly became weird, and it made me very sad8ㅅ8 ]

[ MagicGirlBabyMijang: So I'll give the traitor a hard☆retirement, Hoooooo ]

[ MagicGirlBabyMijang: Ahem, Ahem, I'll return the annoying Optba to you, you chest monster★ ]

I felt embarrassed by the chat, but more than that, I didn't want to bring up old stories.

I had long put my dark history in a box and nailed it shut.

How many viewers were there now?

Certainly, it was in the thousands.

And this match had been going on for over twenty minutes.

People were getting annoyed rather than interested by the endless chase on the beach and the crazy chat.

This person, she didn't even want to fight.

She was just running around, sending chats that would make people angry, wasting time.

It might seem embarrassing to do this in front of everyone,

but I understood.

On the contrary, it was because everyone was watching that she was doing this.

I had done the same thing in the past.

Even if the reasons were different, the basic framework of an attention-seeker's life was similar.

Whether it was due to a lack or just for fun,

I knew the feeling of wanting others to pay attention to me,

to see me, and even if they disliked me, to acknowledge my existence.

There was definitely a time when I felt a sense of competition with someone similar to me.

When I was much younger, the same probably applied to my opponent.

I imagined what would happen if I continued my usual behavior while the other side suddenly became normal.

It was hard to imagine, but it would probably feel complicated and subtle.

Like when a friend who used to play with me suddenly grew up and left, and I was still in the middle of spring, while they had already finished their adolescence and were acting admirably.

Honestly, I didn't know.

[ MagicGirlBabyMijang: Traitor★ ]

The word 'traitor' came to mind.

I wasn't really a traitor, but still.

I suddenly felt a deep sympathy for the person on the other side of the screen, whether it was a he or a she.

Ah, they might just be deeply immersed in their concept play, and it might be an overreaction to feel sorry for them,

but sometimes I wished someone would hug me like this.

This is just a game, and the actions of game characters, but if someone saw it, they might say I was over-invested.

But I just felt that I had to act this way.

[ MagicGirlBabyMijang: Oh, health ]

[ MagicGirlBabyMijang: Health is decreasing ]

[ MagicGirlBabyMijang: Optba? ]

Just thinking about the actions I used to take,

I saw myself in the other person, reflecting on the emotions I had back then.

Of course, people's thoughts can't be the same, and it might be strange to equate my actions with hers,

but just,

[ MagicGirlBabyMijang: Sir? ]

[ MagicGirlBabyMijang: No ]

[ MagicGirlBabyMijang: Mijang, let go, let go ]

[ MagicGirlBabyMijang: I'm being crushed by the chest, Hoooooo ]

just.

『 The Saint has defeated MagicGirlBabyMijang.

Reason: Suffocation (96%) 』

"…Huh?"

I, I didn't mean to suffocate them with my chest….

Author's Note (Author's Postscript)

Thank you, Tarnis, for 10 coins.

Thank you, NoFun, for 100 coins.

Please wait a moment for the sponsorship announcement!

I barely made it; I can't even write a postscript… 11:59 PM… I'll have to postpone today's postscript until tomorrow 8ㅅ8

Thank you for reading, and I'll be back tonight tomorrow!