Streaming of a Reincarnated Genius

Episode 3 first game (1)

“The Final Defense”

At the same time, on the defense team’s side…

“Ah, so close! We almost won if we held on a little longer.”

A player named Hoyangbo, the MVP of the defense team, sighed.

She had performed better than anyone else, but in the end, the enemy overwhelmed them.

Now, she was chatting with her viewers about one thing:

That mysterious enemy.

“But seriously, who is this ‘Mars’ guy? His kill-death ratio is insane.”

[25 kills, 0 deaths?]

[Probably a hacker.]

[Stop calling everyone a hacker, please.]

[Maybe he only killed NPCs?]

[Honestly, some real players are worse than NPCs in this phase. LOL.]

Hoyangbo shook her head.

“Man, I hope it was some kind of trick. If he’s really that skilled… that’s terrifying.”

[LOL, true.]

Just then, a deep drum sound echoed.

The screen faded to black and loaded into a new scene.

〈You are the commander.〉

〈Be careful! If you die, your team loses the game!〉

When the game loaded, Hoyangbo found herself inside a castle.

She wasn’t just any soldier now.

She was the commander of the defense team.

Her character automatically spoke, addressing the soldiers in front of her.

“Do not fear! We will fight until our last breath! For the rightful heir, the Third Prince!”

“For the Third Prince!”

The soldiers cheered, and the short in-game cutscene ended.

Now, she could move again.

Hoyangbo grinned and saluted playfully.

“Well, I’m wearing the crown now! Let’s do this~”

[Yes, sir~]

“An Unexpected Threat”

[Wow, you were so cool just a moment ago, but now… lol.]

[The enemy doesn’t seem that strong. If we don’t mess up, we should win.]

[Stay safe.]

Hoyangbo chuckled at the comments.

“Yeah, but if I just hide the whole time, it’ll be boring… If anyone sneaks into the inner castle, I’ll fight them.”

[Good, good.]

[The king’s rule: If the game is boring, you win. If the game is fun, you lose.]

She smirked. That last comment was too relatable.

If she died, the game would end, so of course, she had to play it safe.

But if she played too safely, the game would be no fun at all.

“Being the commander does boost my stats, so fighting is actually fun.”

That’s why most commanders—especially those who loved combat like her—couldn’t resist finding excuses to jump into battle.

But unfortunately, nothing happened.

For ten whole minutes, she just sat there, waiting.

The defense team was too strong.

They had blocked both entrances so well that the enemy couldn’t even get inside.

Hoyangbo sighed.

“Ugh, I’m getting restless. I wish someone would just show up already~”

[You just jinxed it.]

[Summoning enemy… 100%.]

[Dude, if 10 enemies rush you at once, you’re dead.]

[10 vs. 1?? LOL.]

[Please, someone stop these reckless idiots.]

[This message has been deleted.]

[So… when’s the fight?]

As she joked with her viewers, a sudden voice shouted from behind her.

“Commander! Emergency! The enemy is at the back gate!”

Hoyangbo froze.

That voice came from an NPC soldier standing at the back of the Throne Room.

Her chat exploded.

[?]

[Wait, what do you mean, the enemy is at the back gate?]

[Why would there be enemies at the back??]

Hoyangbo blinked.

“Uh… I have no idea. This has never happened before.”

“Enemy at the Back Gate?!”

Wait… Back gate?

Was there even such a thing inside the inner castle?

Before Hoyangbo could process it—

– CRASH!

A wooden door behind her shattered into pieces.

And then, five enemies stormed into the room.

[?]

[What is this??]

[Uh… guys? This is OUR castle??]

What the heck was happening?

As Hoyangbo stared in shock, trying to make sense of the situation—

“WE’RE UNDER ATTACK! PROTECT THE COMMANDER!”

Her NPC soldiers rushed toward the broken door…

Only to be cut down one by one.

“ARGH!”

“GAAH!”

[Wait, why is our team losing??]

[Aren’t these just NPCs fighting?]

[Nope. There’s a player mixed in.]

One sharp-eyed viewer pointed it out.

In the chaos, Hoyangbo finally noticed it too.

Amidst the clashing weapons and falling soldiers, one name stood out.

It gleamed above the enemy’s head.

〈Mars〉

[BREAKING NEWS: Enemy Ace Drops Into HQ]

[We’re so screwed LOL.]

[Karma is real.]

[Hoyangbo about to lose and get blamed in 10 seconds.]

“I-I must assist! Stay back, Your Highness!”

An NPC officer finally joined the battle, trying to turn the tide.

But it was no use.

He fought bravely—managed to take down a few enemies—but in the end…

“Ugh… I-I’m sorry, my prince…”

He fell.

Even as she collapsed among the bodies of NPC soldiers, the infamous “Mars” remained standing strong.

[Weren’t there like 20 guys attacking?? A single player and four NPCs took them all down.]

[But now it’s just him left.]

[One-on-one duel! One-on-one duel!]

The chat was going wild, but Ho Yangbo quickly assessed the situation.

‘Our allies are too busy fighting elsewhere. That means… I have to handle this alone.’

She gripped her long sword tightly, confidence still burning in her eyes.

As mentioned before, commanders in this game had much stronger stats than regular characters. Unless someone hit a critical weak point, they were incredibly hard to kill. Meanwhile, a commander’s attacks were powerful enough to knock even skilled players down with ease.

But Ho Yangbo wasn’t planning to rely only on her character’s stats.

The game, Knights of Honor, was built on an advanced virtual reality engine. Its physics system was so realistic that if someone knew real martial arts, they could actually use them in the game.

That was the secret behind her impressive skills.

‘Who would’ve thought that the kendo I practiced in college would help me in a game?’

She had never been a professional, but compared to people with no experience, the difference was obvious.

And now, it was time to prove it again.

Taking a deep breath, she pulled her sword handle closer to her body. The blade tilted diagonally, pointing near her opponent’s neck.

It was the Chudan-no-kamae stance—one of the most basic and versatile stances, allowing for both attack and defense.

[Oh, she’s getting serious now.]

[Is this it? Is she gonna show us?]

But strangely, when Mars saw her stance, he looked… a little surprised.

“Wait… are you the real one?”

“Huh?”

“I just saw your username… and that stance you took. Are you really Ho Yangbo?”

“Oh, uh. Yeah, that’s me.”

“I’m a fan.”

[Sudden fan moment lol]

[At a time like this??]

[He was watching the stream lol]

[As if that even matters in this game hahaha]

“Uh… thanks…”

She didn’t know what else to say, so she just left it at that.

Mars, however, didn’t seem interested in chatting any further. He adjusted his stance, preparing for the fight.

At first glance, it looked similar to Chudan-no-kamae, but it clearly wasn’t from kendo. Still, there were no obvious openings. Was it smart to attack first? She hesitated.

Then, Mars spoke.

“You’re not coming?”

“What?”

“Then I’ll go first.”

The moment the atmosphere shifted—

”!”

He lunged forward, closing the distance in an instant.

—CLANG!

She barely managed to block, but for a brief moment, her mind went blank.

‘What power…’

She quickly pushed his sword away, and Mars took a step back.

Now was her chance to counterattack!

—Or so she thought.

At the same time as he stepped back, his sword twisted in a sharp arc.

A spinning strike—aimed straight at her neck.

She instinctively pulled back her sword and blocked again.

But there was no relief.

The blade stopped just inches from her neck.

Sweat dripped down her face.

What the hell…?!

Just two exchanges—that was all it took for Ho Yangbo to understand.

This was impossible.

This wasn’t an opponent she could handle.

No excuses.

The difference in skill was overwhelming.

It was a feeling she had only experienced once before—back when she had faced her kendo master, a former national champion, who had gone all out just once.

And now, after all these years, that same towering wall stood before her again.

—CLANG! SCRAPE!

[Wow.]

[This guy’s no joke.]

“No joke?” she wanted to correct them. This was beyond that.

Wounds started piling up—not deadly ones, but small cuts between the gaps in her armor.

〈Injury: Left Leg〉

—THUD!

Her leg finally gave out, and she fell to one knee.

[Wait, what?!]

[Already?!]

[She was losing??]

“W-Wait. That hit my bone. Time ou—”

She gave up on keeping up her tough act and waved her hand in surrender.

But it was pointless.

Mars swung his sword straight at her neck.

—SLASH!

〈You Have Died〉

〈Defeat for the Defense Team〉

As soon as the message popped up, the team chat exploded.

A flood of question marks filled the screen, along with messages like:

“Why did the commander die?!”

“Didn’t even last a second??”

“What a troll.”

The stream chat wasn’t any better.

[We found the culprit, lol.]

[LOOOOOOL]

[What was our commander even doing??]

Ho Yangbo was losing her mind.

“No, this makes no sense! How the hell was I supposed to win that?!”

[Stay in character, lol.]

[Wait, was he actually that good?]

“Ughhh, I’ve never felt like this before. Even high-ranked players didn’t give me this much trouble!”

But there was nothing she could do.

Even she had to admit—this loss was unreal.

Her skill had already been proven earlier in the match. On top of that, she had been playing a commander, which meant her stats were way higher than normal. And Mars? He had just fought through a massive disadvantage. There was no way he should have been at full strength.

“Losing here just doesn’t make sense…”

But as soon as she recalled their brief clash, all logic flew out the window.

“…Ugh. Sorry, guys. Guess I wasn’t good enough.”

[Streamer apologizing for no reason, lol.]

[But at least she admits it.]

After forcing out an apology, she sighed. Maybe she should rewatch the footage to figure out what happened.

Then—

〈New Friend Request: Mars〉

A message popped up.

“Oh, come on! Why?!”

[Wait, he sent a friend request? LOL.]

[T-bagging ON.]

[???: Uh, that’s not how you’re supposed to play the game.]

[Just accept it and see what happens.]

It could lead to an annoying situation, but in the end, Ho Yangbo accepted the request.

She was curious why Mars had sent it in the first place.

〈Mars: Hello.〉

〈Ho Yangbo: Hello.〉

〈Mars: Wow, you were really amazing. Just as expected.〉

[Oh, here comes the T-bagging.]

[“Wow. You. Were. Really. A. Ma. Zing.”]

[No way, he’s trolling for sure. LOL.]

〈Ho Yangbo: Uh… thanks…?>

〈Mars: Actually, the reason I reached out is…〉

〈Mars: I clipped my gameplay from that match and wanted to upload it. Would that be okay with you?>

Ho Yangbo, who had been feeling worse by the second, suddenly raised an eyebrow.

“Wait… is he a streamer too?”

[Looks like it.]

[Yeah, he’s streaming. Name’s Mars.]

[Super small channel though.]

[Only three viewers, lol.]

That changed things.

It didn’t matter if he was a big or small streamer.

After all, Ho Yangbo wasn’t exactly famous herself—her live viewers barely hit 100.

〈Ho Yangbo: Oh, sure! Go ahead and use it. :)〉

Getting humiliated like this was a bit painful.

But this kind of thing happened all the time between streamers.

‘Besides, if his play was cool enough to be in a montage, then honestly… it’s an honor.’

Now that she knew she wasn’t just some random victim of T-bagging, but the unwilling star of a highlight reel, she didn’t feel so bad anymore.

〈Ho Yangbo: Actually, can I upload the clip too?>

〈Ho Yangbo: Something like ‘Epic Moment of the Fallen Commander’?>

〈Mars: Of course.〉

〈Ho Yangbo: Nice, nice.〉

〈Mars: By the way, you don’t use formal speech in chat?>

〈Ho Yangbo: Oh, I forgot! My bad~〉

〈Mars: Lol.〉

〈Mars: Anyway, it was an honor playing with you. Have a great day!〉

[Oh, he’s actually pretty polite?]

[Knows when to end the convo. Respect.]

[He’s officially part of the Yangbo gang.]

[Skilled, socially aware, and good at streaming? He’s got potential.]

[Ahem, don’t go too far or you’re getting banned.]

As Ho Yangbo scrolled through chat, a thought crossed her mind.

‘Hmm… maybe…’

She didn’t hesitate long.

No harm in asking, right?

〈Ho Yangbo: Oh! Wait a second.〉

〈Ho Yangbo: Do you have time this weekend?>

It wasn’t a pickup line, of course.

She had an idea.

〈Ho Yangbo: You know about the streamer tournament on Saturday, right?>

〈Ho Yangbo: One of our team members had to drop out last minute, so we have an open spot.〉

〈Ho Yangbo: If you’re interested, I’d love to have you on the team. What do you think?>

It was an amazing offer.

The tournament was officially hosted by the game developers.

Mars, too, had heard of it.

The first event had been a huge success, boosting the game’s popularity.

It even led to more tournaments afterward.

He had given up on joining since forming a full team seemed impossible.

But now, out of nowhere, a chance had appeared.

Getting into the tournament at all was already a great opportunity.

When you’re still small, just getting exposure matters.

More importantly—this was a chance to build a connection with Ho Yangbo.

‘It’s not every day you get to befriend a future million-subscriber streamer.’

In short, there was no reason to say no.

〈Mars: If you’re okay with having me…〉

〈Ho Yangbo: That means yes, right?! I’ll tell the team and send you an invite right away!〉

〈Ho Yangbo: I mean—right away, sir!〉

About 20 to 30 minutes later, a message popped up on Mars’s screen.

〈‘Ho Yangbo’ has invited you to a channel.〉

It was an invite to Harmony, the voice chat program.

After accepting it, he joined the call—where three people were already waiting.

“Welcome! Everyone, this is Mars, the person I mentioned.”

“Hello, I’m Mars.”

“He streams on Funbox like me. His rank is Gold Emblem, but trust me—his skills are way beyond that!”

“Ma-ha~ Can I call you that? I’m Choran!”

“I’m Garibi! Nice to meet you!”

“Pleasure to meet you, too.”

Mars, an 8-year veteran streamer, scanned their avatars with sharp eyes.

‘Choran, Garibi… Never heard of them.’

Just to be sure, he quickly looked them up.

Yep.

Super small streamers.

Less than 50 viewers each.

Even Ho Yangbo, the biggest one here, barely pulled in 100 viewers.

But their ranks? All Gold Emblems.

Mars let out a quiet sigh.

It wasn’t a high-stakes pro tournament with big prize money.

And if they were just here for fun and exposure, then building a team like this was…

A bad idea.

At least one team member should have been popular—someone who could make their performance in the tournament actually mean something.

There was a reason why big-name streamers always built their teams with a mix of skill and popularity.

But, well…

It wasn’t like they had much choice.

If they could team up with bigger streamers whenever they wanted, they wouldn’t be small streamers in the first place.

‘Honestly… I get it.’

Mars sighed.

Maybe this was fate.

A team full of nobodies?

Might as well turn it into an underdog story worth watching.