I Have a Reason to Hate Streamers

The cheers erupted.

“Sigma eSports finally breaks Acid Gaming's stronghold!”
“Now, who can say that the great assassins of IKL are weak?”
“Dune Sentinels’ Hashashin. Veiled Nightmare’s Phantom. And finally, Acid Gaming’s Reaper.”
“Ga-wol has defeated the world’s top assassins. Now, it’s time for the tables to turn.”
“Other teams will have to prepare for Ga-wol’s swordsmanship.”

The quarterfinals of the World Championship, expected to be chaotic, ended with Sigma’s victory.
Despite showing signs of some coordination issues in the final set, the victory was still a victory.

It was true that there was some advantage gained from the matchups.
If Acid Gaming had used a more agile team composition, they could have adapted more flexibly.
But such an extreme style change isn’t an easy thing for any team to pull off.

Moreover, Cerberus, the predator of the same league, had a solid, unyielding shield style.
A team that had always relied on strong defense was now facing a skilled swordsman.
The easy collapse of their reputation was, in part, because of this background.

Of course, in the cold world of competition, there’s no need for sympathy.
Acid Gaming had also intended to prey on their opponents through matchups.
Once the process is over, only the result remains.

“So! Sigma eSports advances to the semifinals.”
“For the first time in years in IKL, it’s the semifinals. This is no longer just a dream.”
“Many said it was an impossible dream. They called it wishful thinking, but now, I’m sure their minds have changed.”

There was still much work to be done.

Ga-wol had shown signs of struggle while playing as a swordsman.
Perhaps due to lack of experience, there were signs of discord within the team.
While Ga-wol’s power was undeniably overwhelming, there were cracks that became apparent.

Though still shaken from the shock Ga-wol had delivered, once they regain their composure, they’d surely exploit Sigma’s weaknesses.
The next likely opponent would be W Titans.
A hero who performed well against melee classes like warriors, berserkers, and assassins.

Surprisingly, the hero was more effective in the league than in 1v1s like Reaper.
However, the nuance was slightly different.
While Reaper gave his team wings, the hero only shone when supported by her teammates.
Receiving concentrated support from a healer, she demonstrated firepower that would be impossible for a solo player to achieve.

“The next opponent will be decided tomorrow, between W Titans and Falcon.”
“That’s it for today’s match. See you next time!”

In Sigma eSports, Luche had quite a few roles.
Outwardly, she was the captain, but internally, she held a position as high as team manager.
It was no surprise, as the very existence of Sigma seemed born from her strong will.

Therefore, Luche had a sense of responsibility.
Simply working hard wasn’t enough.
Especially when it came to caring for her teammates, she set extremely strict standards.

She considered them her comrades who shared her dream.
At least, within her reach, she was determined to do her best.
It was also the reason Sigma’s player welfare was praised for being unusually good.

She truly did her best in every sense.
That’s why, when taking care of her teammates, she became particularly broad-minded and meticulous.

On the way back after the thrilling victory over Acid Gaming in the quarterfinals,
Luche’s gaze shifted to the back of the bus.

“Ugh, mm…”

At the end of her line of sight was a person lying with their seat reclined.
A beautiful woman who, despite spending enough time with her, still looked unfamiliar.
Han Da-eun had her eyes closed, frowning slightly.@@novelbin@@

It didn’t seem like she was having a good dream.
Hekate approached, seemingly concerned, but then withdrew her hand without touching her.

If she were having a nightmare, we would have woken her up.
But it didn’t seem to be that bad. She was probably just uncomfortable from sleeping in the car.
Since she had tossed and turned a lot before falling asleep, Luche hesitated to intervene.

Suddenly, a memory flashed through Luche’s mind.

• “Mom, Mom, I’m sorry… I shouldn’t have done things like swordsmanship…”
• “Back then… it was just so much fun… I’m sorry…”

It was likely from Ga-wol’s pro debut, during her first stream.

Even someone without much sense could understand.
To Han Da-eun, the sword was something with a very special meaning.
Despite handling it so skillfully, it seemed to weigh heavily on her.

Luche had never asked about her story.
She had intentionally tried to forget that day’s memory.
She felt that it would be better for both of them.

“Is it really the right thing to keep pretending I don’t know?”

Luche didn’t intend to pry into painful pasts.
But she couldn’t keep ignoring it; it didn’t seem like that would solve anything.

Would it be better to sit down and have a warm cup of tea?
She seemed to like massages, too.
Maybe she should book one in advance and go.

No. This conclusion was off.
This was happening because Luche kept avoiding the important issues.

As a third party, trying to heal Ga-wol’s wounds by herself was presumptuous.
She needed to find another way.
She didn’t have the answer because she didn’t even know how to approach the situation.

While Luche’s thoughts grew deeper,
she made eye contact with Hekate.

[Title: Brief Greeting Before I Go]
[‘Sigma Ga-wol’ is live.]
[ON AIR | 00:00:05 | MOBILE]

Luche wasn’t sure why she felt the urge to go live.
It was an impulsive action.
And, of course, there was no plan behind it.

After returning to the dorm, they all celebrated advancing to the semifinals.
It was a joyful occasion, or so she thought.
When she returned to her room a little early, her phone caught her eye.

She could have prepared a bit more if she was going to go live.
But she couldn’t resist and immediately went ahead with it.
Since her setup wasn’t ready to be shown, she just hid the camera.

It had some advantages.
She didn’t need to worry about her expression.
The viewers might find it uncomfortable, though.

“Hello. I was going to turn on the camera next time. I’m just a little disoriented right now, but I felt I had to greet you all… So here I am, like this. I hope this isn’t too uncomfortable?”

Well, if it was uncomfortable, there wasn’t much she could do.
This wasn’t a broadcast she would have done under normal circumstances.

Her voice sounded a bit hoarse.
Her throat didn’t feel that dry, though.
Maybe she should have had some water.

Soon, the people who came to see her started chatting away.
The chat, now appearing on the dark screen, was a little different from usual.
There were many overly flattering comments, making her feel a bit embarrassed.

Not showing the camera might have been a good idea.
She was still sensitive to praise.
She couldn’t help but smile, feeling somewhat pleased.

“Actually, I thought about just writing a simple message. But I wanted to convey my voice to you. I’m not really sure what the difference is. I think I just wanted to talk to all of you.”

It was the truth.
If she just wanted to leave a message, she could have written it simply.
Other team members had done the same.

She thought the broadcast was a mess.
There was nothing but black on the screen without even a waiting image.
It was a photo that her sister, San-sae, had made for her.
It would have been much better if she had borrowed a laptop and done it properly.

There was no expensive microphone or broadcasting equipment.
They were all probably asleep in her room by now.

So this broadcast was… very reminiscent of the old days.
When she had been banned and was wandering around,
starting from the bottom in broadcasting.

“I saw all the encouraging messages you left. They really helped me a lot. I’m not just saying this to be polite. I truly mean it. I think I was able to win today because of all of you.”

Oh, the chat flooded with comments.
Something inside her began to well up.
It felt like the blankets around her got a little warmer.

She held her phone with both hands.
She felt the heat of the device pressing against her chest.
She chatted aimlessly until Hekate came back to the room.

She didn’t know what exactly had improved,
but she could definitely feel the strength returning.

The next day.
The final quarterfinal result wasn’t much of a surprise.

W Titans crushed Falcon, winning 3-0.
The "perfect swordsman" Insane couldn’t even properly match the hero’s sword.
Thus, Sigma’s semifinal opponent was decided.