Chapter 63: Max Level Newbie (1)

“Is this the one?”

Raidel’s stream main page.

The replays were saved automatically.

After some searching, Argon found the video he suspected to be Silverhair’s first Raid & Master gameplay.

He had already secured permission in advance.

This Pixelwars streamer server was massive, and the relationships between participants mattered.

So there was an unspoken understanding that watching or mentioning each other’s streams—what people called ‘stream sniping’—was allowed.

It boosted exposure and added content. Everyone benefited.

Though it was only within the context of the Pixelwars server… people were generally lenient outside that too.

Argon scrolled through the replay list.

‘Why didn’t anyone talk about her Raid & Master play with that kind of physical skill?’

That was his biggest question.

With the skills she’d shown in Pixelwars, she should’ve easily hit challenger rank—or higher—in R&M.

But no one had heard a thing.

Did she play under a hidden name? Or was there another reason?

“Found it.”

A video from a little over a month ago.

[Master-tier Raidel’s training stream (featuring Silverhair)]

“Ahem.”

Argon chuckled at the video title.

‘Raidel really has a strong attachment to that master tier badge.’

Of course, Diamond 1 was impressive.

Especially for a female streamer, that rank was enough to be called elite.

But everything’s relative.

A streamer trying to brand herself as a high-level player who dropped from master and couldn’t climb back up—

Naturally became the butt of some jokes.

〈You know what they say—seeing is believing? Once Silverhair logs in…〉

〈Ahem! Anyway, it’s better to see once than hear a hundred times. I’ll show you one-on-one as soon as she joins!〉

Raidel, showing off her intelligence and tier.

[LOL]

[First time seeing Raidel, is that a bit or real?]

[She’s dead serious;;]

[Even Argon looked like he was holding in a laugh lol]

[Didn’t he just laugh at the stream title? lolol]

“I-I didn’t laugh. And trash talk is a ban. Let’s watch the game.”

Argon barely kept his mouth in check and skipped ahead.

Raidel’s game screen appeared.

1v1 Showdown mode, one of R&M’s popular formats.

You meet in the center of the map and settle the match with pure reflexes and mind games.

5v5 might be too hectic for beginners, so she probably chose 1v1 to ease them in.

If they knew the game already, 5v5 would’ve been better.

‘Not a bad approach.’

If it’s someone’s first time playing, starting with 1v1 to explain systems isn’t a bad idea.

Raidel picked ‘Roguemaster.’

A melee assassin with powerful burst damage.

The opponent was a ranged DPS: ‘Sniper.’

Raidel saw the matchup and smiled.

An assassin vs a ranged DPS.

Just looking at their roles, it was a counter-pick.

In theory, Roguemaster’s fast gap-closing and burst should overwhelm Sniper.

But the result…

〈Aaaah! She blocked that?!〉

〈No way, again?!〉

〈Ugh…!〉

Raidel’s screams filled the stream as her screen turned black and white over and over.

One loss. Two. Soon, six in a row.

Argon’s chat was full of laughter.

[LOL Raidel crumbling lolol]

[Losing six times with a counter pick, are you serious lolol]

[Sniper’s cracked. Must be a smurf.]

[Even if the opponent’s good, she had the counter pick.]

[Didn’t she say she was climbing to master? lol]

Viewers were laughing and teasing, but Argon didn’t join in.

‘No. Losing is normal here.’

He studied the Sniper fighting Raidel closely.

‘That Sniper… isn’t average.’

Raidel was Diamond 1.

Ladder matchups typically range a tier or two.

At most, she should be facing someone Master level.

But the Sniper’s movements, aim—everything exceeded that.

Mechanically precise, no openings.

A whole different level of detail from a normal Master-tier player.

‘At least high Challenger. No—almost pro level.’

In terms of raw mechanics, they were competitive even with current pros.

Given that opponent, Raidel’s losing streak made sense.

‘Why was that kind of player matched with Raidel? Definitely a smurf?’

A pro or a hopeful trying to fly under the radar.

Argon sighed silently.

If his hunch was right, this was a pro bullying a regular player.

Not cool from a former pro’s perspective.

〈Ah…〉

Six losses in.

Raidel’s spirit broke.

Her voice had a hint of tears.

[Um.]

[Something feels off.]

[The opponent’s definitely good;;]

[Raidel might not be feeling well today.]

Noticing the heavy mood, Argon’s viewers toned down the teasing.

“So, when does Silverhair play?”

Argon decided to skip ahead to her match.

But then realized he didn’t need to.

Just as Raidel hesitated at the final rematch request—

[Mind if I give it a shot?]

Silverhair entered.

A moment later, the player on screen changed.

Same character: Roguemaster.

Raidel, now spectating, looked slightly anxious.

Then…

Tap-tap-tap—!

After buying just boots, Silverhair dashed straight in.

Sniper calmly opened fire—

“W-wait, she dodged that?!”

She avoided every bullet and deflected with daggers.

The opponent’s expression was pure disbelief.

They shot, but nothing landed.

It must’ve felt like trying to shoot a ghost.

Argon was equally stunned.

Bullets that were nearly invisible—how did she dodge like that?

It was theoretically possible.

Theoretically.

If that were all doable, why would tank classes exist?

There’s a reason game balance accounts for human limitations.

At some point, Silverhair was already in melee range.

Sniper, expecting a backstab, laid traps behind them—

But Silverhair predicted that too.

〈Urk?!〉

Instead of an assassination, she used a paralysis arrow to freeze them.

Then shredded them.

“Damn.”

It wasn’t just physical skill.

Her ability to read and counter the opponent was elite.

And then she capped it off—

By catching a bullet with her teeth.

A perfect victory for Silverhair.

[Ragnarok: One more round?]

The Sniper, wounded pride and all, asked for a rematch.

[Silverhair: Sure. I don’t mind.]

Her response was short, composed.

But what followed was anything but.

2 wins. 3 wins… 8, 9…

A ten-match win streak.

Against the semi-pro Sniper who had wrecked Raidel six times—

Silverhair absolutely dominated.

Argon was speechless.

Every match was a slaughter.

The impossible physical feats etched themselves in his brain:

Dodging sniper shots with the slightest head tilt.

Deflecting bullets with daggers.

And the most insane—

Catching a bullet in her mouth.

It felt like watching a circus act.

‘…Even I can’t do that.’

Argon swallowed hard.

Not just in his current post-retirement state—

Even at his peak, in his prime, he couldn’t have pulled that off.

Maybe if they rehearsed it repeatedly for a show.

But this was live.

To succeed at something like that in a real match?

Beyond human.

A few viewers had claimed “Isn’t Roguemaster supposed to beat Sniper anyway?”

But when Silverhair sliced through a Knight—the Roguemaster’s hard counter—in the final game,

Even those viewers shut up.

Knight counters Roguemaster.

Yet this time, Silverhair flipped it.

[Insane… just insane.]

[Total beast mode ㄷㄷㄷㄷ]

[What is that person even??? lololol]

[Who catches bullets with their teeth?!]

[She should be famous with that kind of skill, no?]

Argon had the same question.

‘Why not?’

The video ended with Silverhair’s 10-win streak.

Did her skill drop after this?

“N-next video! Any more R&M clips of Silverhair?”

He couldn’t suppress his curiosity.

Maybe she played other characters?

[Donation: 1000₩ from delbung3!]

• No more videos ;;

“What? No more? But she was so good!”

Argon tilted his head.

[She only played that one day.]

[I wanna see more too T.T]

Delbung3 continued chatting.

“…What?”

Argon couldn’t believe it.

One day?

She only played for a single day?

[Yeah. That was her only R&M session.]

[So only people who watched then know about it.]

Regular Raidel viewers chimed in.

“I… see.”

Argon sighed.

A couple of matches on someone else’s stream wouldn’t be enough to make her famous.

To build buzz, you had to play consistently and show results.

She didn’t exactly go unnoticed—

But it wasn’t a big enough deal to reach his radar.

“So, uh… any record of her in other VR games? Was she ever a pro in something else…?”

He rewound the stream to check the opening.

Just wanted to rewatch the highlight.

Then—

〈The same Silverhair who gave us that legendary Chain Roller moment is debuting in her first-ever VR game today.〉

A line he’d missed during the initial skip.

“What? First-ever VR game?”

This was her first time playing a VR game?

Argon’s jaw dropped.