NOVEL NEXT Chapter 10
Chapter 10 – Stirring the Water, seriously?
The chatroom was going crazy, living up to its name.
『Heung… Nuna with so many secrets… Heung… Nuna with so many secrets…』
『Sorry Ark, I’ve fallen in love! Sorry Ark, I’ve fallen in love!』
『What’s with Nuna’s laugh… I’m dying…! What’s with Nuna’s laugh… I’m dying…!』
『Take care, Ark! Take care, Ark!』
『Please do ASMR, please do ASMR, please do ASMR…』
From the moment Ark started the voice chat, the chat flooded in so much that it was lagging already, but now, the chat had started overflowing to the point where the broadcast might be cut off. Unless it’s spam, the chat was barely visible. Maybe it’s time to start managing it.
《Everyone, the spam is too intense, and the broadcast might crash. I’m sorry, but I’ll have to restrict subscribers for a moment.》
After a long moment of staring blankly, Ark, as if awakening from a daze, finally restricted chat permissions to subscribers with over 6 months of subscription.
『Please stop, it’s uncomfortable, do it one more time, nuna… Please stop, it’s uncomfortable, do it one more time, nuna…』
『Ah』
『Heung… Nuna with so many secrets… Heung… Nuna with so many secrets…』
『I’m sorry』
Although there was a minor incident where some long-term subscribers, who were previously spamming along with everyone else, accidentally spammed a few more times, the chatroom finally quieted down significantly.
《GetDevoured-nim?》
“Yes.”
《First of all, thank you for appearing on the broadcast via call.》
It was a stark contrast to the treatment received yesterday.
“You are treating me very differently from yesterday.”
《Yes, yes? Oh, yes. I’m sorry. The situation is different, isn’t it?》
Although responding casually, the composed expression wavered, and the voice trembled similar to the eyes that shook uncontrollably.
– User ㅇㅇ has donated 5,000 won! –
【The donation amounts have changed too much compared to yesterday, professor…】
– User ㅇㅇ has donated 5,000 won! –
【Is this a five-fold increase in inflation?】
Amidst such thoughts, seeing that the minimum donation amount had suddenly been raised to 5,000 won, it seemed that being a pro-broadcaster was not for just anyone.
Shortly after, with a determined voice, Ark spoke up.
《I’m really sorry, but could I ask for one more thing? Would it be possible to have, even just for a moment, an interview…?》
Frantically tapping on the keyboard and earnestly staring at the camera, it seemed like a moment just before a change in the broadcast.
The current viewer count is 14,321.
Whatever the reason for their gathering, for a broadcaster, the chance to do something in front of such an audience is rare.
Moreover, thanks to me, suspicions about Ark’s boyfriend had been neatly resolved, and my hacking suspicions had already waned.
Even setting “hack” as a forbidden word and temporarily blocking it would not significantly impact the broadcast.
After the crisis comes an opportunity. Perhaps she plans to raise the stakes by setting up measures like 『Vicious Troll Eats Dirt. Turns Out It Was a Woman』 after catching them.
The intention is understood.
Understood, but…
“What are you really sorry for?”
《What?》
“You shouldn’t have, right?”
《What? No, yes. No, I mean, yes… I mean, sorry…》
Why did I…
* * * *
The moment a woman’s voice came from the phone, it felt like fireworks going off in Ark’s head. An overwhelming sense of relief. Aside from the thought of being alive, no other thoughts crossed her mind.
As the tension left her body, a sense of exhaustion took over, feeling like she could collapse right there.
If the broadcast wasn’t on, she might have fainted on the spot. So Ark, still not losing her grip on her sanity, absentmindedly served up some words while listening to GetDevoured’s voice.
‘Oh, what a lovely voice… The tone is so soft, there wouldn’t be any complaints about voice modulation… It’s like a heavenly woman’s voice…’
“Secret… is it?”
‘Wow…what…she could voice a Gumiho role right this moment. No need for an audition, just…’
Ark, half lost in a daze, snapped back to reality belatedly when she saw the viewer count at the bottom right of the screen.
The number of viewers had exceeded 14,000.
When an audience of this size used to bombard her with insults, she wished she could just die, but now everyone was fully focused on the broadcast.
Even the chat was barely active.
When the water comes in, you have to row the boat.
If it’s water that flooded our house, well, water is water after all.
“As a broadcaster, no matter the circumstances, when an opportunity like this comes, you must take action in any form.”
The fact that there were suspicions about GetDevoured cheating with hacks, or that some viewers were still attempting hack references didn’t faze her in the slightest.
From the start, despite not wanting it at all, Ark, who had played countless games together over the past few months, knew better than anyone else. A bizarre play…is that what it should be called?
Playing like an unbelievable high-level expert but also making rookie mistakes was a fact. However, in contrast to the countless experiences of encountering hackers, she had never truly felt someone was using hacks.
As a broadcaster struggling with backlash, she had confidence in her ability to differentiate between wall hacks and map reading better than anyone. Relying on this confidence, she made the difficult decision to propose an interview-
“What’s the most regrettable thing?”
“Excuse me?”
She was severely criticized. Truly a masterpiece of a rebuttal, to the point where she momentarily forgot that her conversation partner had maliciously attacked her over dozens of times in the past five months.
“It’s a joke. But I have plans, so…”
Was this a syndrome of being beaten down by her partner?
Listening to GetDevoured’s voice that seemed genuinely apologetic, paradoxically, both gratitude and guilt surged in Ark’s heart.
“Where was the apology for calling me in the first place? Right, let’s not be greedy. Putting a stop to the downfall is enough.”
“Yeah, of course, yes. I acted too suddenly, didn’t I? I’m sorry. Just for suddenly appearing on the line like this, I’m really grateful.”
As she was about to apologize and express her thanks, trying to end the call—
“Sure. I’ll go watch Ark’s broadcast now. Take care.”
“… Huh? Who’s this?”
“It’s the promotion match broadcast today.”
“No…”
“Why not?”
“No… given the current situation…”
“Ah… not watching? It was announced for today though…”
『Crazy… crazy… crazy… crazy…』
『Who’s disappointed? Kekekekekekekekeke』
『Honestly, at first I thought it might be a hired actor, but it seems like GetDevoured got it right.』
『Seriously, in this situation, only a lunatic would demand a promotion match.』
『Ark, we’re disappointed! Quickly press queue!』
“Hmm…”
As Ark, speechless, blankly stared at the camera, GetDevoured, who seemed to hesitate for a moment, spoke up.
“Then, um… if you do the promotion match broadcast, an interview would be… fine.”
『Wow.』
『This is big.』
『Cr—azy.』
『Wow, viewer count breaks 15,000.』
『Press queue! Press queue! Press queue! Press queue! Press queue!』
It was a condition that was totally unexpected, yet acceptance was acceptance nonetheless. As she checked the chat with her heart pounding, she could feel the excitement rising among the viewers.
Although she, GetDevoured, who only selected posts related to rogues in the forum, was not fully aware of it, she was already quite well-known in the KoK community.
It had only been a year since the game was released. It was a time when the boundaries between amateurs, pros, and high-level gamers were still blurry.
In this period, where she was the only user to reach Master rank with the rogue champion, she relentlessly targeted a middling female broadcaster until she broke down mentally. In the forum, posts like “Our rogue is truly a god-tier character” were being written ten times a day.
Even the Challenger broadcaster who also played the rogue said jokingly, “Isn’t GetDevoured the one who uses rogue?”
So, it would be odd not to be famous. Amidst this, just the suspicion that GetDevoured might be a cheater caused a sensation. Moreover, she had a mysterious and captivating voice.
For anyone among the KoK users who kept up with internet broadcasts, it was impossible not to be interested. Less than an hour into starting the broadcast, from hell to heaven, back to hell, and then tasting heaven again, Ark exclaimed as her eyes sparkled.
“Yes, yes!! I’ll start the queue right away! I’ll quickly reach Master and start the interview, everyone!”
However, “No.”
“What?”
“If you do a promotion match broadcast, the interview is fine.”
“So, should I do the promotion match right now?”
“Interviewing during the match is also fine.”
『???』
『??』
『???』
『??』
“Queue.”
TL’s Corner:
I really like the MC’s straightforwardness.