Ch.312307 – Maintaining Dignity

Editor So Ma-ru’s day begins at 2 PM.

Compared to when he used to wake up at 4 AM, his day-night cycle has completely flipped.

Recently, ‘NoName Official’ has cut its upload schedule in half. In other words, the workload has doubled.

This is because there’s been a massive influx of female viewers in their 20s and 30s, creating demand not just for gaming content but also for NoName’s vlogs.

So Ma-ru finished all his backlogged video editing and thumbnail work during the early morning hours and welcomed a refreshing day.

He sluggishly crawled into the living room and imprisoned himself in the hell of laziness created by VTube algorithms.

It was Seo Yu-na who freed him from this prison.

“Oppa, eat dinner!”

“You mean lunch?”

“Why not just call it breakfast while you’re at it?”

Time had already reached 7 PM.

On the TV, which he was barely watching, a UFC broadcast was in full swing.

[There are countless handshake requests happening! NoName! Do you remember me? We met at the Academy competition!]

“Huh? NoName?”

So Ma-ru momentarily thought he’d misheard and dropped his phone.

His hearing was fine.

The girl scribbling autographs for fans in the UFC VIP section was unmistakably NoName.

“Why is she there?!”

Frantically searching for his phone, he found NoName’s name and immediately sent a text.

[So Ma-ru: Hey, did you go watch UFC live? I mean… have you always been into this stuff?]

No reply ever came.

But even without a reply, he could see plenty of NoName’s current situation through the broadcast.

Whether due to ulterior motives or whatever reason, the cameraman kept showing NoName’s reactions after each round ended.

[And that’s the end of round one! Wow, that was dangerous! What an incredible fight!]

[It could have ended in one go! Is fighter Seo Jong-chan hearing the enthusiastic cheers from his young fan? Ah, he’s giving a thumbs up!]

[It seems to be coming from where student NoName is sitting… the cameraman is showing her face now! Hahaha, NoName is giving a standing ovation and cheering! This must be motivating! Fighter Seo Jong-chan, you can do it!]

* * *

Even during the brief one-minute rest period, the camera moved busily to capture as many scenes as possible.

Standing ovations from fans, the condition of the fighters, and so on.

When the first round ended, NoName stood up and applauded with her hands above her head.

Fans watching nearby glanced at her from the corners of their eyes.

After the technical battle between the two fighters in round two ended, she appeared on screen again.

NoName had somehow taken off her shoes and climbed onto her chair.

It could have been a scene that made people frown, but fortunately, she was so short that she didn’t block anyone’s view behind her.

With her twintails gripped tightly in both hands, NoName seemed completely immersed in the match.

Eventually, she shouted toward the fighters.

The caster, who was skilled at reading lips, deciphered her words.

“Is she saying ‘Watch out for the calf kick counter’? Something like that?”

“Hahaha, this kid must not be new to watching fights! Fighter Seo had success with calf kicks in round two, but by now Fighter Zakaev must be looking for counter opportunities. Let’s see how they handle each other.”

“Round three is starting right now!”

In the third round, the atmosphere in the octagon changed so noticeably that all spectators could sense it.

Seo Jong-chan and Zakaev were both looking to land a powerful finishing blow while feeling each other out.

Zakaev had been consistently avoiding Seo Jong-chan’s Brazilian kicks, but he specifically responded to calf kicks with counter combinations.

‘This is it!’

Seo Jong-chan’s sharp eyes flashed.

Without time to think, he knew that using the same technique in quick succession would elicit the same response.

He changed his stance and deliberately closed the distance with an unweighted low kick.

With fierce speed, Zakaev’s right shoulder tensed up.

‘Now!’

Seeing the fist that grazed the tip of his nose, Seo Jong-chan landed a right hook on Zakaev’s chin.

“Woaaaaaaah!”

As the match reached its climax, the audience’s cheers filled the stadium.

Simultaneously, NoName plopped back down in her seat.

As if she had little interest in matches with predetermined outcomes, her expression of joy had already returned to a calm poker face.

* * *

Some might see this as a thrilling KO comeback victory.

But I had already glimpsed the possibility of Fighter Seo’s victory from his toughness in round one when he withstood Zakaev’s spinning back kick.

Nevertheless, in the harsh world of UFC where 100% certainty never exists, the satisfaction of seeing my judgment proven correct was indescribable.

I should probably manage my expression even now.

I carefully watched the warm interviews of fighters showing respect for each other.

There’s nothing that warms the heart quite like this moment.

While the fighters shared intense hugs with their families, I started gathering my things.

Just before leaving, Fighter Zakaev made a half turn, passed in front of me, and gave me a cheesy wink.

“?”

How am I supposed to take that?

My thoughts didn’t linger long.

Fighter Seo Jong-chan was also approaching me with cameras in tow.

The staff gestured for me to come over.

“Me? You mean me?”

With a curious feeling, I leaned over the railing with my stomach against it.

My long hair fell forward.

“NoName! I’m a fan of yours! How did you know to come cheer me on like this?”

“What? Oh, I’m a fan of yours too, Fighter Seo Jong-chan…! I really enjoyed watching today’s match.”

“Really? That makes me happier than my wife’s compliments! Wahahahaha! Ouch!”

Fighter Seo Jong-chan laughed loudly but then winced in pain from where he’d taken a body shot in the first round.

“Is this live?”

“Of course it’s live!”

“Ah…”

Is this really okay?

I had a brief internal conflict about whether this would violate my advertising contract’s dignity clause, but figured attending a UFC event live should be excusable. It’s not illegal or anything.

“The coaches told me. They said NoName kept shouting to watch out for the calf kick counter.”

“Well, that was… obvious.”

“Was my fight management too predictable? Haha, just kidding. Thanks for coming to cheer me on. Actually, I was seriously considering retirement if I lost this match, but seeing such a young fan come support me made me think I should keep going. If you get a chance, please come visit our gym sometime!”

“Is this for VTube content?”

“Whoa, how did you know!”

“Why are you already thinking about retirement plans? You’re still in your prime, so keep working hard a bit longer.”

It was just strange that the fighter I was supporting turned out to be my fan.

This is a fighter who receives so much love from Korean citizens that people say “If you’re Korean, please support Seo Jong-chan.”

“Since you’re not retiring, can I say everything I want to say?”

“Yes, yes! What does this cute young lady want to say?”

“You used up too much energy trying to establish dominance from round one. Being too eager because it’s your home ground could have cost you the match. And while it was good that you caught onto Zakaev’s counter habits… if you had rushed in without properly checking if he was still wobbly and gotten countered, you could have lost by decision. It would have been more certain if you had used your usual one-two straight punches to test his reaction speed, then hit only where his guard was open, and if he still held on, taken him down for some ground and pound.”

“S-stop! You’re making it sound like I lost!”

“Anyway, I’ll keep cheering for you until you become champion. I sincerely hope all your efforts bear fruit.”

“Hey, this is like giving me poison then medicine! Wow, so this is the tournament champion? Scary, so scary…”

My conversation with Fighter Seo ended there.

It was unfortunate that we couldn’t talk more due to the staff hurrying us along.

Someone at the pinnacle of their field truly has a different depth.

He must have put in tremendous effort for this brief 15-minute battle.

Paradoxically, because humans can use aura, training to exclude aura becomes several times more painful.

It’s like having to lift with one hand what you could easily lift with two.

But only those who endure such pain and continue to challenge themselves deserve to experience true happiness in life.

‘Then where am I supposed to find my happiness?’

It was a day when such empty and bitter thoughts kept circling in my mind.

* * *

I never thought I’d ride in a limousine in my lifetime.

I lay comfortably on the sofa-like seat and watched highlights from last week’s match.

[V-Tube Clip]

[NoName Giving Fighting Advice to Seo Jong-chan][Views: 1,605,049]

[Best Comments]

-(Seo Jong-chan TV): You think you’re so good at fighting, NoName? Come to Baekho Gym and let’s have a match! (Likes: 3.5K)

└ Sir… targeting a child is too low…

└ Did you have to get this petty after beating Zakaev so coolly?

└ 32 years old vs 8 years old, this makes my heart feel small lol

-Who am I? Just another UFC viewer like NoName. (Likes: 4.8K)

└ How is an 8-year-old girl’s hobby UFC lol

└ The fact that she’s actually knowledgeable about fighting makes it even funnier

-The reason NoName’s Santa costume is red is to hide the reindeer blood. (Likes: 2.6K)

└ She must have sparred with Rudolph.

└ Sparring lol

└ Why are you making the child sound like a psychopath lol

└ But NoName’s chattering is seriously cute, it’s a lethal dose…

[Zakaev Buys NoName Collab Skincare Set][Views: 639,226]

“I also want to apologize to NoName who came to watch this beautiful match today. Even if it was part of trash talk, I said things I shouldn’t have said to her, and I’m really concerned that the child might have been hurt by it. And I also like NoName. So I bought lots of NoName collaboration cosmetics at Modern Outlet.”

[Best Comments]

-Has he lost his mind? (Likes: 2.3K)

└ He’s still in a dazed state lol (Likes: 1.8K)

└ Russian brother, please come to your senses…

“Hah. Cute.”

“NoName, are you busy? I got calls from the sponsors yesterday, so I thought I’d tell you now.”

Lee Bo-reum, the suspiciously wealthy manager #5, has been handling my schedule since the early days of my broadcasts.

Despite becoming a high school senior next year, she neglects her studies and insists on being my attendant.

Is this what they call a stolen “subordinate” position?

The wealthy seem to enjoy even this.

“What is it?”

It hasn’t even been a week and they’re already contacting me.

I was expecting it, but I’m not mentally prepared yet.

“Modern Outlet says it’s fine for you to attend UFC events live, but they’d like you to refrain from any more attention-grabbing behavior. They’re not criticizing your actions specifically, but they’re concerned about netizens creating strange edited images.”

“Well, that’s not my fault. Since they’re not talking to me directly, I don’t need to worry about it.”

“Um… is that how you interpret it?”

“Yes.”

“Oh, and there’s good news too! Nike is considering giving you incentives because their sportswear sales have increased by an even larger margin!”

Even for the same actions, reactions can be completely different.

If I can’t satisfy everyone, I might as well do what I think is right.

I pull back the curtain to check the Seoul cityscape outside.

Our destination is Seo Jong-chan’s Baekho Gym.

Fighter Seo proposed a collaboration stream as soon as he was discharged from the hospital.

I feel especially responsible for this broadcast since I was also slipped a considerable amount of money under the pretext of gym promotion.

At first, I refused as an ardent fan of his, but…

I couldn’t find a reason to decline when told that paying a proper fee would prevent people from gossiping later.

“But why bring me along? Are you lonely going by yourself?”

“The reason I brought Bo-reum unnie? Should I say it’s because the newly established gym doesn’t have female sparring partners, so I brought you instead of a sandbag?”

“W-what?”

I had a dream.

In my previous life, I had to give up my dream of becoming a mage and focus on swordsmanship and magic.

Partly because the world was in chaos and even having ten bodies wouldn’t have been enough, but mostly because I had no master to teach me martial arts.

When fighting for your life, there are times when you can’t use magic, and times when you drop your sword.

If I had known even a little modern MMA technique, it would certainly have helped in many moments.

Boxing was okay since footwork is similar to swordsmanship and it uses arms, but I was completely ignorant about jiu-jitsu or wrestling.

So let’s learn properly this time.

“I’ll start the stream then.”

“Hey NoName, what are you saying! I’m just a normal person! Normal! Director Park, turn the car around!”

[NoName]

[Travel&Outdoors – I don’t like getting hurt, so I’m going all-in on attack power. (Seo Jong-chan’s Baekho Gym)]

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[Stream Time – 0:00:01]