NOVEL NEXT chapter 97
1:4 would have been manageable if I used leg sweeps properly.
But now that it’s 2:2, the game suddenly became much easier.
If it’s 1:1, I rarely lose.
Crkemang even slipped while chasing me and fell straight into the water, so I didn’t even need to throw a punch.
Kamik and Youngun tried to make use of their physical skills and rushed in, but…
At the end of the day, my specialty is FPS, not chaotic brawls like this.
Every time I ran around having fun, they tried to make a move, only to get tangled up in their own attempts.
And so, my team, Mongmong Team, secured three straight wins.
One more round, and we’d win this match.
— Midway Rankings —
Mongmong Team – 3 Wins
Eum-meh Team – 1 Win
Meow Team – 0 Wins
— Damn, are you really going to waste this chance like this?
— Do better, seriously ㅗㅗㅗㅗㅗㅗ
— Make Magia sing already!
— Lose, lose, please, please, lose, lose, I beg you, just lose already, lose, lose, lose, lose, lose, lose, lose, lose, lose, lose
— Are they actually winning?
— “No.”
Of course, this situation couldn’t last forever.
[Serena: Let’s take a quick strategy break. Let’s think about this—
Even if Gia gets the penalty, the guys don’t have to accept it. Right?
It’s fine as long as it only applies to the girls.]
[… Hmm. That’s true.]
[So, does that mean you’re on our side now? Good?]
[Yeah. Sounds good.]
[A dramatic negotiation breakthrough! Let’s go!]
Youngun had quite the head on his shoulders.
Even I couldn’t force someone to comply if they flat-out refused to acknowledge a punishment.
If the male streamers simply refused to listen, I couldn’t argue that they had to.
If I forced it onto a Parallel-affiliated VTuber, it might still fly,
but forcing a competing company’s VTuber into it?
That’s a one-way ticket to drama hell.
That’s why I emphasized the randomness of it all.
With that, the plan to temporarily bring Serena onto our side was complete.
… Now, who should I recruit next?
If I had to pick the biggest pushover among the five left, it had to be Youngun.
As the next round started, I tossed Bazubi into the ocean again and watched as Youngun slowly closed the net around me.
“Hey, Youngun. Hold up a sec.”
[Cunning Magia! I won’t listen to you!]
“I haven’t even said anything yet.”
— They’re not wrong though
— What’s she plotting this time? LOL
— Let’s at least hear her out LOL
[Fine. Say your piece. Consider this your final argument.]
“If I don’t come in last this round, I’ll join a Combative in-house match when I’m free.”
[…What?]
— NO WAY LOL
— She’s insane LOL
— Stop throwing out empty promises LOL
— Like hell she’s actually going to join LOL
:: Anonymous Donor has sent 1,000 Clouds! ::
:: ??? : Combative is a trash game. ::
— That’s just fake news LOL
— Whoa, hey, no one said that
— LOL
The chat was saying I was making empty promises.
But I never said when I’d participate—just that I would, someday.
It was the classic “Let’s grab dinner sometime” level of commitment.
But even the possibility was enough to lure Youngun in.
He’d been pestering me about it nonstop during our team dinner, after all.
[Hah. If you think I’d fall for that… You’d be absolutely right! Big YES from me!]
[Wait, you’re betraying us—?!]
[Kuhaha! Die!]
And just like that, Youngun shattered the alliance and hurled Kamik into the water.
… By the way, how the hell did our team win the championship with this level of teamwork?
I really don’t get it.
* * *
After that, the same thing kept happening.
The next one to fall was Crkemang.
“If I come in last, I’ll /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ start addressing you as ‘Sir Crkemang’ with utmost respect and sincerity.”
[You brats!! How dare you attack my nephew!!]
[Ack! Ack—]
[Wait, bro, no— Ahh!]
Then came Bazubi.
“Bazubi, how about we do a Parallel World Cup together sometime?”
[………!!]
[Wait, hold up. I just got hit in the head.]
[What the hell? Why is she suddenly so good at this?!]
Why didn’t I try to sway Kamik?
Because he was too stable. There was nothing to shake.
People like Kamik were always my hardest opponents.
And so, the cycle continued—one moment they were my allies, the next, my enemies.
After more than ten rounds, I still hadn’t placed last even once.
— Holy shit
— Not even a single loss?
— How much time is left?
— 30 minutes.
— We’re screwed.
Even the chat had started to give up.
They’d stopped nagging other players to try harder a while ago.
Just a little longer, and I could get through this without having to sing.
I had thrown out a few vague promises here and there,
but like I told Youngun, it was the “Let’s do it sometime” kind of promise.
And honestly, once GaeMo Tournament wrapped up and Lunar New Year ended,
I’d be diving straight into second-gen auditions and debut prep.
By then, even I wouldn’t know what my schedule would look like.
There would always be group collabs, tournaments, and big server events.
But that didn’t necessarily mean I’d have time for them.
… But wait.
Hasn’t this round been going for a while now?
Why isn’t anyone moving?
As I spun in circles at my spawn point, I noticed that Bazubi—who had ended up on my team again—was pointing toward the other two teams.
[…Look at that.]
Now that he mentioned it, something did feel off.
There was no separate chat in TalkCord.
No voice chat in-game.
And yet—
The four of them had formed a tight square formation and were advancing toward me, step by step.
I didn’t even have their streams open on a second monitor.
Their characters were plushies, meaning they had no facial expressions.
But somehow, I could feel their emotions.
They were pissed.
This translation is the intellectual property of .
“Whoa, whoa, let’s calm down. Charging at me like this won’t change anything.”
[If we all dogpile you, we can win.]
“Youngun, there’s still a chance for that Combative in-house match.”
[Not falling for that anymore. If I took all your empty promises, I could fill an entire A4 page.]
“Hm. Was it really that bad? What about you, Sir Crkemang?”
[Nephew… I’m deeply disappointed. Just lose, for once!]
“I’m sorry. Your pleas are falling on deaf ears.”
Finally, Kamik spoke up.
[Try to convince me. I might listen.]
… I had no idea how to persuade this guy, so I just skipped him.
Sorry, Kamik.
“Just come at me. 2:4 is still winnable.”
At this point, I had no choice but to fight them head-on.
Luckily, I didn’t need to worry about Bazubi.
Ever since I promised to do the Parallel World Cup with her,
she had been fully on my side.
Even when we weren’t on the same team,
she had been subtly helping me whenever she could.
If I got a penalty, I’d sing.
But I really didn’t want to,
so I was holding out.
With chat now completely against me,
I fixed my gaze on Serena—the first one to charge in.
I dodged to the right, landed a counter hit, threw her forward,
hooked my leg around hers, and sent her plunging into the ocean.
Next———.
“Oh.”
But just as I was about to dodge to the right, my body refused to move.
Bazubi, who had been standing beside me, had grabbed onto me tightly.
When streamers team up for matches like this, unless there's prize money or an official in-house event involved, betrayal happens as often as breathing.
And the biggest trigger for betrayals? Mission donations.
[… Do it. … I got a mission.]
Someone had clearly donated over 100,000 won to Bazubi with a mission.
"Ah. Didn't see that one coming."
Serena’s incoming punch slammed directly into my forehead.
Dazed, I swayed for a moment before the others grabbed hold of me and tossed me into the ocean.
Then, Bazubi got beaten up and thrown in right after me, marking our first loss of the match.
[LET’S GO!]
[I really didn’t want to resort to this, Gia.]
[Sorry, nephew!!]
… Wasn’t the donor someone from my stream?
I still needed three more losses before I’d have to sing as punishment.
But with Bazubi switching sides, the situation was looking grim.
Not that I blamed her—
After all, the way I’d been turning people to my side wasn’t so different from viewers placing mission donations to control the game.
The only difference was whether money was involved or not.
"How much did you get, Bazubi?"
[…… Won.]
500,000 won to make sure I lost.
Terrible cost-performance, but definitely enough to break the resolve of a struggling small streamer like Bazubi.
Using my trust in her against me…
The fact that the chat had read my psychology so well annoyed me a little.
Oh well.
I had lasted long enough.
But I didn’t want Bazubi getting flamed by our fandom for betraying me,
so I had to throw her under the bus first.
I punched her straight in the face, lifted her up, and hurled her into the ocean.
— Immediate discard LMAO
— Wait, haven’t we seen this scene before?
Of course, even without Bazubi,
winning these endless 1:4 fights was impossible.
If this were a shotgun game, maybe I’d stand a chance.
But in a game where all I had were fists while four people took turns beating me from every direction?
Not even I could pull that off.
[It’s over for you!]
[Sorry, Gia!]
In the end, I lost four rounds in a row.
Our team racked up four losses at record speed.
Bottom rank secured.
Both the streamers who had fought me and the viewers who had been dying to hear me sing were ecstatic.
[WE WON…!!]
[SONG! SONG! SONG! SONG!]
[Alright, nephew. Pick up the mic. No running away now.]
:: Anonymous Donor has sent 10,000 Clouds! ::
:: MAGIA VICTORY!!!!!!!!!! ::
— Uh? Victory?
— That's not a victory, LMAO
— Doesn’t matter, it’s a celebration~
— Finally, we get to hear this LOL
— Let’s gooooo!
— Get over here!!
Bazubi, feeling guilty, mumbled something under her breath, her voice barely above a whisper.
[………yo.]
I chuckled and reassured her.
"It's fine. Just don’t forget our Parallel World Cup deal, okay?"
[………………yo?!]
"Come on, it’s just a game. If we’re keeping score, I’ve been throwing you into the ocean this entire match."
[…………de.]
"It’s really fine. I just have to sing once. It’s not like I’m gonna die from it."
Though, judging by how dejected everyone else looked,
it seemed like my nonchalant reaction had completely killed the satisfaction they had worked so hard for.
Crkemang spoke up.
[Wait. Nephew, are you actually good at singing?]
"I dunno. I’ve never really been judged on it before."
[Then why the hell did you keep dodging it? I thought you were tone-deaf or something.]
"Wow. So you were trying to force an off-key disaster just to humiliate me?"
[No! Not humiliation! It’s just… I wanted to see a cute Magia Talent Show~ that’s all! Hrehya-hya-hya!]
To be fair, forming the Anti-Magia Alliance had required some serious sacrifices from them.
Unlike me, who had thrown out empty promises left and right,
they had actually put up real stakes.
A few examples:
Youngun had agreed to jump into the freezing Han River as a penalty for a failed auction.
Crkemang had promised to send premium beef gift sets as Lunar New Year presents to everyone in the alliance.
Compared to that?
A single song was dirt cheap.
"By the way, Serena? I’ve already decided your penalty for the next round."
[Huh?]
"The last-place player has to say ‘Moe moe kyun, Master’s heart!’
Good luck!"
[WHAT?!]
Leaving a horrified Serena behind, I casually tapped the mic and tested the echo.
“Mm-mm. Ah-ah. Do we have echo?”
— EEEeeeeee
— LEEEEEEET’S GOOOOOOOOOO
— SONG! SONG! SONG!
— I CAN’T STOP LAUGHING LOL
So, what should I sing?
Singing a Parallel member’s song felt inappropriate in an official collab.
It was my job to promote my team,
so I didn’t want to devalue their music by treating it like a joke.
That meant I should pick a song that none of my members would ever perform.
Only one song came to mind.
“Bazubi, do you know this one?”
I sent her the title via TalkCord.
Bazubi’s eyes widened, then she started bouncing excitedly.
…Wait. Is Bazubi older than I thought?
This was a hit song from my parents’ generation.
Well, if we’re both on board, let’s do this.
As soon as the MR started playing,
the chat exploded with question marks.
— ??
— What the hell is this?
— Trot?
— This is trot, isn’t it?!
But our resident uncle—my dear old Crkemang—
immediately screamed the moment he recognized the intro.
[OH SHIT! YOU KNOW ‘SLOW TRAIN’? NEPHEW, WHAT THE HELL?!]
:: Anonymous Donor has sent 1,000 Clouds! ::
:: BRUH, NOT SLOW TRAIN LMAO ::
— How do you NOT know Slow Train?
— -Boomer Detected-
— Who even remembers this song anymore, LMAO
— Grandpa, please…
Crkemang was thrilled,
while chat was in utter disbelief.
I just smirked and belted out the opening verse.
🎵 Rain falls on the Yeongdong Line~ On the slow train ride~
🎵 Through the rattling train window…