Ch.23Not on Purpose – 2

“…Waaaaaah!!”

– Haha, that’s Madcat’s crying sound.

– What’s that? Are they fighting again?

– Clover, what’s going on?

“Ah, seriously. I told her to keep it down because I’m streaming.”

Jaehyun Seo rubbed his forehead and quickly checked the chat.

Normally, mentioning other streamers is prohibited.

However, in Madcat’s case, since she’s his sister, he inevitably makes an exception.

And whenever something happens in her stream, reactions always fly over to his chat too.

“What’s wrong? Did your sister lose again?”

– Yeah

– Got destroyed

“No way… She said she was gaming until dawn yesterday to reach her promotion series, and she lost again?”

– Yep

– Lost again?!

– She got absolutely destroyed, soul and all

– The enemy mid single-handedly blew up the game

She should play a different lane instead of mid.

It’s not like this brother doesn’t know games. I was even a professional gamer before.

I don’t understand why she won’t listen and insists on playing mid.

– But the enemy mid was definitely stream sniping or using an alt account.

– Their gameplay was completely different.

– It was just pure smurfing

– I just checked their stream and the enemy mid is definitely not a local player.

Jaehyun Seo’s eyes suddenly sharpened at the viewers’ comments.

As both a streamer and former pro gamer, there were too many things that bothered him.

Stream sniping, alt accounts, and smurfing. None of these are beneficial in the long run.

No matter how much you love a streamer, stream sniping ruins broadcasts.

It only pleases the sniper while angering both the streamer and other viewers.

That’s why some streamers completely hide their matchmaking screens.

His sister Madcat might experience less of it since she just started gaming content.

But as for Jaehyun himself, snipers latched onto him as soon as he started streaming.

Snipers exist at all tiers. They’re just everywhere.

They show up, ruin the streamer’s mood, then snicker while watching the broadcast.

‘And smurfing with alt accounts on top of that?’

Even more unpleasant than sniping. As a former pro gamer, it bothers him even more.

If they keep driving away new players like that, the game will eventually rot no matter how many people play it.

Eventually, only the same people will play and meet each other.

The game slowly but surely withers away and dies.

Thinking about those who laugh while enjoying stomping beginners makes his blood boil.

“Everyone, did it really look like intentional stream sniping? Was it smurfing with an alt account?”

– Yes

– It’s true, Madcat wasn’t overreacting

– Their movement, skill shots, and map awareness were all exceptional

– Absolutely no way they were a local player

What should I do? Usually, the rule is not to interfere with each other’s streams.

But with stream sniping, alt accounts, and smurfing involved, it’s impossible not to care.

After thinking for a moment with his arms crossed, Jaehyun Seo picked up his phone.

“…Hey, it’s me. Send me your replay edited. I want to check it out. That mid who kept you stuck in Bronze. Viewers are saying they’re not a local player.”

– LOL you’re calling her while living in the same house lol

– Real siblings right there

– Wouldn’t it be faster to just go talk to her?

Meanwhile, after getting the ID, Jaehyun quietly searched for their match history.

*Tap tap, click*

‘…What’s this?’

What unfolded was a bit, no, very different from what he had imagined.

A red carpet laid out, then a few blue dots appeared, then back to a red carpet.

The KDA was also too extreme to be considered just an alt account.

This ID, considering the number of games and match history, isn’t just an alt made for temporary use.

But there are too many things that don’t make sense.

This was the judgment of former pro gamer “Clover,” not streamer Jaehyun Seo.

– Looking at the match history, there’s nothing unusual?

The viewers somehow found the ID and searched the history too, agreeing with him.

– Just looks like a normal Bronze player’s record

– Maybe they bought the account? Bought any random one for smurfing?

– Who buys accounts just to do that?

It might sound absurd, but all kinds of idiots exist in gaming.

Jaehyun has met plenty of inexplicable people, though he doesn’t talk about it.

People who won’t rest until everyone loses together. Those who throw games on purpose after playing well. And those who buy low-ranked accounts to play when bored.

There were so many bizarre idiots that it would be exhausting to list them all.

“Hmm.”

Jaehyun checked his viewer count. Around 700-800 viewers.

It probably wouldn’t be appropriate to publicly review the replay on stream.

“Everyone, I’ll watch the replay alone later. Strictly speaking, this is a family matter.”

Ignoring viewers asking why, Jaehyun decided to focus on his own stream first.

While he felt a little sorry that his sister failed her promotion series again…

– Game found!

Today was also Jaehyun’s first promotion match on stream.

– Come to think of it, isn’t today Clover’s Grandmaster promotion match?

– That’s right.

– I foresee both siblings failing their promotions today lol

He has his pride as a former pro. Anything below Grandmaster is unacceptable.

Last time he fell to Diamond, he had to hear “Diamond trash” comments for a month.

Grandmaster is the safe zone. Stay in Master and you never know when you might fall.

As the match was found, Jaehyun closed all windows to indicate his focus.

This included the match history search window.

– Match history search: PleaseSilverPlease

*

“Hey, did you watch Madcat’s stream yesterday?”

“The chaotic Silver promotion series? I watched the replay. It was insane.”

“That stream sniper absolutely destroyed her.”

“Was it really a sniper? Not just an alt account?”

“Definitely a sniper. Their gameplay was on another level.”

The Academy students sitting nearby were excitedly discussing.

It seems to be about streaming, but I don’t watch much so I’m not sure.

I’ve never heard of Madcat, but I can tell they’re talking about some game.

‘Come to think of it, yesterday’s ranked game…’

It was a first. I’ve never had a game where my hands felt so fluid.

Skill shots that would normally be difficult to land were hitting every time.

My reaction speed improved, and I had clear conviction about what decisions to make.

Not just that. The game YouTube videos I occasionally watched out of boredom.

The vision control strategies from those videos suddenly unfolded before my eyes.

Where and how to place vision, and what to do based on that.

Roughly predicting the opponent’s movements and wasting their time.

Or hitting them first to force them back with low health.

‘This is definitely not my skill level?’

Before I knew it, while playing in a trance, the enemy base was destroyed.

And in the results screen was my record of not just carrying but completely exploding the game.

My first thought was, of course, the Gatekeeper ability.

But why would it activate outside the Academy and without an assessment?

[Next stop is Academy Station, Academy Station.]

Another new and difficult day begins.

Despite how routine it’s become, going to work is still hard.

From the moment I open my eyes until one minute before leaving work, it’s pure hell.

I had a nightmare last night. The content was Yuhyun Jung attacking me as soon as I arrived at work.

The problem was, he was a complainant and I was a powerless low-level civil servant.

Even when he shouted and cursed at me, I had to just smile.

“Are your parents in America?”

Then this bastard made a parent insult.

I got so angry that I punched him, but suddenly he transformed into my superior.

Then he lectured me about how a civil servant shouldn’t use violence against citizens.

That people like me give other civil servants a bad reputation.

I was being scolded with such nagging until I finally woke up.

The worst part was that it was 20 minutes before my alarm.

That was a nightmare like no other. It still gives me chills.

‘I hope that guy doesn’t attack me as soon as I get to the Academy?’

The probability isn’t zero. That’s why I’m anxious.

Before entering the Academy, I looked around once.

If someone like him was radiating hostility, I would feel it.

‘Nothing.’

Of course, being a Supremacist, he wouldn’t make a move here.

Attacking here would be like openly advertising that he got demoted to Bronze.

Even if he attacks again, he’ll try to do it somewhere quiet.

“Arbiter Seojin Baek.”

Instead, Soohyun Kim greeted me again today.

“You’re early again today?”

“I just arrived.”

Soohyun Kim stood beside me as if suggesting we go together.

As Minseong Kang said, I can feel her subtly leaning on me.

It seems like a good thing, but it’s also somewhat burdensome.

Her background, appearance, and honestly her skills are originally tremendous.

It’s just that they’re blocked by her inferiority complex and can’t properly burst out.

The villains forcibly unleashed that potential to make her turn evil.

And I’m trying to make it bloom naturally in the opposite way…

– Activating The Third Eye.

◎ Soohyun Kim

: Inferiority-Driven Genius

◎ Details

: All abilities temporarily decreased. If not quickly freed from inferiority complex, permanent ability loss may occur. Improper development may lead to fatal consequences.

◎ Notification

: A seed has been planted.

: Planted seed – Anger

Nothing has changed. It’s the same state as yesterday.

That’s why I’m more concerned. What exactly is that seed? And what does anger mean?

It makes me feel so anxious my chest is pounding.

“Um, Arbiter…”

“Soohyun.”

Soohyun Kim and I spoke almost simultaneously.

When I told her to go first, she shook her head and insisted I speak first, so I shared my opinion.

“So, um, how about taking a Silver rank assessment?”

“Me…?”

“Yes.”

“You mean… take an assessment with you as the Arbiter?”

I nodded at Soohyun Kim’s words.

She then hesitantly trails off, looking very uncomfortable.

“Ah… I don’t think… I’m qualified for that yet…”

“There’s no qualification for assessment. It’s just about trying.”

“Still…”

“You need to face it to know what the problems are and what you’re lacking.”

An assessment requires an application first.

I can’t just arbitrarily say “You! Assessment target!”

Hyunwoo Lee will work crazy hard and challenge again, true to his trait.

But Soohyun Kim is different. If left alone, she’ll probably be the same even months later.

“Could you… please give me a little more time? I feel like I’ll show you my inadequacies.”

Her anxious eyes and voice make me feel sorry just looking at her.

“Alright. Then, next week? Let’s try it next week.”

“Yes, I understand…”

With Soohyun Kim reacting this way, I feel like I’m doing something wrong.