Chapter 43: Combined Guest

[Golden Watch Tournament Update]

=Seriously, why has Baekro’s efficiency improved so much?

She got rehabilitated a few times, and her skills really leveled up.

-Sol-ssi really pushed her hard back then lol

ㄴ Seriously, it’s been ages since I heard Bugi swear like that.

ㄴ ??? : Baekro-ya, are you really a bird brain?

[Anyway, who do you think will win the tournament?]

=Is Magnet’s team even possible this time?

-You think?

-Ah, that’s a bit…

-Honestly, that crosses the line.

-No matter how well Baekro rehabilitated, I think that’s just not it.

ㄴ Honestly, the other teams are just on another level.

ㄴ They got crushed by Luca just last time lol

-They’ll be lucky if they even get runner-up.

-Still, their team balance is surprisingly good.

-Underestimate Baekro and you’ll get taken out for real.

[Baekro getting scolded during the practice match is so hot lol]

=Her tearful voice is so damn cute.

-She was hotter when she had that newbie flavor, too bad.

ㄴ What era is this f*cker talking about lol

ㄴ Ancient Stork Brigade is insane lol

-Ah, Baekro getting scolded and tearing up is the real deal, they just don’t know.

ㄴ Agreed, that’s right.

ㄴ 1. Lift Baekro up

ㄴ 5. Put her back down

ㄴ ??? What’s this?

ㄴ 6. Hey, you crazy bastards lol

-These guys are doing this sh*t in the cafe because they’ll get banned if they do it on stream lol

---

“Goodbye, Unnie!”

“Yeah, it was nice seeing you after so long.”

From across the train tracks far away, Mayuri waved at me.

After finishing our meal, the two of us parted ways safely.

‘Ah, maybe not entirely safely.’

Judging by her offer to draw a congratulatory picture for my wedding, it seemed she wasn’t just counting her chickens before they hatched, but practically creating her own.

Time was already 4 PM.

Wow, we really just ate and chatted a bit before finishing.

‘They must be right in the middle of the tournament over there.’

I wonder who won.

Solnamu’s team wasn’t doing too well last time, but they’ve had time to practice since then, so who knows this time.

Especially that female member on their team.

Somehow, her skill level seems similar to mine, so I feel a sense of kinship.

It would be nice if I could watch right now.

[Boarding now]

After boarding the train, I accessed Switch through my phone.

I couldn’t donate since it wasn’t my computer, but watching or chatting was perfectly possible with this.

「Yes, anticipation is high for this next match as well.」

It was just about time for the next match to begin.

「Alright, Team C versus Team E, the match begins!」

---

This tournament proceeds in a league format, not a single-elimination tournament.

This system was designed to prevent potentially strong players from being eliminated early just because they met a very strong team right away.

Thanks to this, the vast majority of streamers, regardless of whether they were big names or smaller channels, could benefit from the tournament’s trickle-down effect.

Tadang-!

[bakbak 1818 -> solnyown]

An enemy character hit by Baekro’s bullets was knocked down.

“Ooh, nice!”

“Nice~!”

Seeing the enemy dealer eliminated, the teammates cheered, followed by the commentators’ briefing.

「Oh, player Baekro got a kill!」

「She’s completely different from a few days ago!!」

「Yes, she’s in full power mode right now!」

-Baekro-nim has improved so much.

-Ooh

-Is that the same person from a few days ago?

-Who are you?

-She’s got her touch back lately.

-Let’s go, Baekro-ya.

-Seeing her happy getting praised is f*cking cute lol

-Praise makes Baekro dance.

“Hehe….”

The chat window and the commentators.

Hearing praise from all sides, Baekro’s lips curled into a smile.

‘Praise makes Baekro dance! Alright, everyone praise me more!’

“Hey hey, you know this is all thanks to me, right?”

Just as Baekro was indulging in self-admiration, Bubugi, who had been watching from the side, spoke up.

“No, what are you talking about!”

“Honestly, if it weren’t for us, you would have just been a 0-point troll pick until the end of the tournament.”

“Ah, that’s true.”

The teammates instantly agreed with his words.

At their reaction, Baekro’s lips pouted.

“No, this is really too much….”

She didn’t have much to refute, but nevertheless, those words didn’t sit well with Baekro.

And rightfully so, because they had treated her extremely harshly!

To the point where it reminded her of those penguin memes circulating online, Solnamu and the other three teammates had pushed Baekro hard.

‘Ah, it’s time for my academy….’

‘Hey, didn’t you quit all your academies?’

‘Eung….’

‘Um, I have plans with a friend today….’

‘A friend? You?’

‘….Oppa, I hate youuu!’

Ah, if I knew this would happen, I shouldn’t have become a full-time streamer.

Baekro once again regretted her past.

Of course, like always, looking at her bank account would probably make those thoughts disappear.

Still, perhaps because that rehabilitation was effective, Team C’s performance was tremendous.

Thanks to Baekro regaining her aiming skills, the other teammates could properly secure their positions.

As a result, they were able to display their true skills without reservation.

Team C’s advance, with all forces unleashed, was unstoppable.

「With just this much power, how dare you, aaargh!」

「Well then, goodbye.」

“Goodbye, low-tier!”

Solnamu, pulling out a Junk Bomb, blew up an enemy healer amidst the chaotic fight.

「Ah, player Eunhasu is out!」

“Uh uh, dealer here, dealer!”

An opposing streamer quickly entered the second floor to take down the healer.

An ordinary person would likely have been knocked down without resistance.

However, the current healer for Team C was Magnet.

Clang-!

Pyu pyuk-!

「….What just happened?」

「Player Magnet! He’s the healer, but he just took down the enemy dealer himself?!」

“Okay, one dealer down.”

Seeing the enemy’s figure slide back down to the first floor, Magnet commented nonchalantly.

Instantly throwing an anti-heal grenade, followed by a tranquilizer dart.

And before the opponent could wake up from the tranquilizer, putting the gun barrel to their head and firing rapidly.

It was something possible thanks to the aim and reaction speed unique to a pro.

「Ah, is Team E finally falling back?!」

「It’s not over yet, their ultimates are almost charged, so if they hold on just a bit longer, they might turn it around.」

As allies started getting picked off from the continuous attacks, the Team E tank quickly ducked to the side.

There was only one reason he moved to that specific location despite many other paths.

A large health pack existed there.

The large health pack could restore more than half of a tank’s health and fully heal a dealer.

Since their ultimates were also almost ready, if he healed up this time, the power difference would narrow again.

It was the moment he rounded the corner.

‘Huh…?’

To state the result first, the health pack itself existed.

The only problem was the purple skull mark drawn on top of it.

“Yep, hacked the health pack, didn’t I?”

Baekro burst out laughing at the sight of the enemy tank flinching back, unable to hide his momentary confusion.

She had marked it earlier intending to use it herself, but who knew she’d use it like this.

Tudadadadada-!!

Her machine gun spat fire towards the head of the low-health enemy tank.

[Victory!]

“Hacked~”

“Hacked~”

Along with Team C’s performance mimicking Baekro’s last words, the screen shifted to slow motion as the victory message appeared.

「Wow…. really, this is a result unimaginable just a few days ago.」

「Indeed. Player Baekro’s form has improved tremendously.」

“Her skills really improved a lot.”

Ren, who had been watching the tournament live without realizing the time pass, let out an exclamation of admiration.

Considering the lineup beside her, it wasn’t surprising.

A Golden Watch pro gamer and a Battle Field pro gamer.

And an FPS-specialist streamer with comparable skills.

Does listening to lectures from them in real-time automatically lead to this?

‘Alright, I should rest a bit today.’

Perhaps because it was my first outing in almost a month.

My body felt tired all over.

I’ll watch the remaining matches tomorrow via replay, and for today, I should just sleep.

As soon as she opened the door to her house, Ren swiftly threw herself onto the mattress.

“Haaaah…..”

The feeling of her body relaxing instantly lifted her mood.

For a while, until the tournament ends, I should take a break from streaming like this and rest.

Maybe brainstorm some new content too; taking a break until the tournament finishes should be fine.

Just as she lay down and picked up her phone.

Tiring-

A message arrived via Discord.

“Hmm….?”

Ren tilted her head at the unexpected contact.

What is it?

There’s only one person who would send me a Discord message.

Sure enough, checking Discord confirmed the message was from the person she expected.

[Solnamu: Cheongha-nim, would you like to do a collab once the tournament is over? I’ve recruited a guest who seems like a good match for you.]

“A guest?”

A guest, honestly, it was tempting.

Since it’s someone a major streamer is bringing, they probably won’t be ordinary.

Above all, the phrase ‘a guest who would be a good match for me’ piqued my interest.

That person knows I’m a Vtuber, right?

In Korea, it was still treated as a niche subculture, and even in Japan, it wasn’t mainstream.

Despite that, a guest who would be a good match for me?

Isn’t that curious?

[Kim Cheongha: Yes, I don’t mind.]

A few days after accepting the offer.

Cheongha started her stream.

“Um, hello?”

“Ah, hello….”

A cute, hesitant voice came through the headset.

-??? What?

-Thought I heard that voice somewhere before, holy sh*t lol

-No way, is this for real?

-Kim Cheongha’s gotten f*cking big?

-Knew it when she was grinding Golden Watch non-stop.

-Sol-ssi die Sol-ssi die Sol-ssi die…

Confusion erupted in the chat window as they recognized the voice.

Considering the owner of the voice, it was understandable.

“Ah, hellooo! I, I’m uhm. My name is Baekro!”

380,000 YourTube subscribers.

It was Baekro, the full-time Twitch streamer who had just entered her twenties.