Ch.364359 – Bait

People were thrilled by the twist that what they thought was a third-rate villain tormenting the protagonist turned out to be the final boss.

And when it came to popularity, NoName was no less famous than Emika.

A cute face with disproportionate power.

A girl who shattered every world record at a single-digit age.

NoName was definitely well-known, appearing in the news for all sorts of topics.

People who had jumped on the bandwagon to insult NoName ended up being ridiculed by the very public they had been part of.

-Sigh, tsk tsk. Obviously just a keyboard warrior. Seeing you give advice to world champions from your room tells me all I need to know about your life.

└ LMAO, congrats on getting immortalized.

└ This is why staying neutral is important.

└ Turns out it was NoName all alongㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

-(Edited) What really shows this person knows nothing about magic is that these impractical techniques would never work at world level. Magic duels are about prediction and psychological warfare based on the situation, not this nonsense about “seeing and responding.” (I apologize, I was the one who knew nothing. How does that even work?)

└ But it worked against Ban So-wol?

└ For something “impractical,” NoName got a clean sweep in the competition…

└ She even dominated Ban So-wol, so of course it would work against 16-year-oldsㅋㅋ

└ Imagine calling NoName a magic noobㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

└ NoName is truly legendary. At this rate, she might be selected as a representative next year.

└ She’s just in another class entirely, can’t be measured by our standards.

[Foreign Magic Gallery]

[Hey, Sis~][293]

(NoName Academy Competition Last Standing color-inverted.jpg)

“No matter what you all say, sis always proves herself by taking everyone down.”

[Likes 1,304] [Dislikes 14]

[Comments]

-Why are you making the kid look like a psychopathic killerㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

└ I couldn’t help but upvote this.

└ After math, she’s now “proving” her swordsmanship too. A true professor of our time.

-NoName sisssssss

└ Welcome, 8-year-old~

└ Even 8-year-olds browse gaming forums these days.

-NoName is the personification of “a needle in a sack.” The problem is she’s not a needle but a 30m industrial mining drill, so no matter how hard you try to hide her in your pocket, it’s impossible.

└ How would you even try to hide a massive mining drill in the first placeㅋㅋㅋㅋ

-Wasn’t that Aura Swordsmanship supposed to be extinct because it’s impractical? Or is it just me who thinks it looks good?

└ Even if it’s not used regularly, it seems perfect for turning situations around.

└ The age of great Aura has returned!

-If NoName knows how to use it, does that mean Katsuhata can use it too?

└ Now we’ll have infinite swords comingㅋㅋㅋ

└ It’ll definitely complicate things when you don’t know if your opponent will use magic with their left hand or stab you with a sword.

└ Japan might actually win this time, for real.

The video NoName uploaded spread like wildfire.

Who’s most panicked right now?

Those who might face Emika in the round of 64 or 32.

Since the National Exchange Competition brackets were announced about a month ago, coaches who had prepared tailored strategies were now suffering headaches.

“Heavens above…! Why do you test us with such trials!”

The reason Aura continues to exist despite being less powerful than magic.

The reason Japanese people insist on analog methods and Aura.

Aura can interfere with mana, but mana cannot interfere with Aura without using barriers.

In short, Katsuhata Emika essentially possessed an indestructible sword.

While the public debated this new development, other participants felt despair at the unfairness of talent.

Gamblers adjusted their odds to favor Katsuhata Emika’s victory, and foreign media covered the interesting development.

While the internet world buzzed with dynamic events, preparations for the competition steadily continued.

Round of 64, Group D – today in Fukuoka, eight matches are scheduled.

People lined up to enter the dome stadium with a capacity of 40,000.

The roof slowly closed to shield spectators from July’s scorching sun, and massive lights illuminated the interior.

In the broadcasting booth equipped with cutting-edge viewing facilities, commentators and casters from various countries conducted microphone tests.

Meanwhile, the official National Exchange Competition broadcast showed the fan festival taking place outside the dome.

Emika’s supporters all wore white headbands symbolizing the Katsuhata school and eagerly participated in interviews.

“We’ve already bought tickets for the finals! Japan will definitely win this year!”

After receiving notice of a 20-minute technical delay, the interviewer wandered around looking for other interview subjects.

Soon, a meeting that couldn’t be coincidental took place.

Suddenly, crowds began shouting and rushing to one side.

Wondering if a national celebrity had arrived, they sent a camera drone up to check.

“Oh my! That child…! Follow me right away!”

After pushing through the dense crowd, they found a blind woman with a cane and a small girl.

* * *

Katsuhata Emika’s match was sixth in line.

With each match taking 20-30 minutes plus waiting time between them, we’d only see her in about three hours.

Since there wasn’t much to do inside the stadium so early, we leisurely explored the outside.

I was thinking how fortunate it was that fewer people recognized me in Japan compared to Korea when some Korean fans started cheering loudly, drawing unwanted attention.

“Wooow! NoName is really here in Japan! And that’s Ban So-wol next to you, right?”

“Yes, nice to meet you.”

“We heard you were coming to watch the match today and thought we might be lucky enough to meet you. We loved the video you uploaded to VTube! It was amazing!”

The man spoke with excitement while giving me a respectful bow.

People quickly gathered around us, and camera shutters clicked non-stop.

I was about to politely excuse myself when a large broadcasting camera blocked our path.

“Hello! We’re from NHK, the official broadcaster for Japan’s National Exchange Competition. Would you be available for a brief interview?”

A Japanese man with a shaggy haircut asked.

I glanced at the hologram screen being broadcast.

“Is this live?”

“Yes! We’re live streaming right now!”

“I can spare a little time.”

“Thank you so much, Miss NoName!”

Among the numerous Japanese comments, I could spot occasional Korean ones.

-Finally caught you!

-So cute today tooㅎㅎ

-It’s rare to see the youngest Aura Master attending in person.

“Um, many viewers are recognizing and cheering for you. But for those who don’t know you, could you please introduce yourself briefly?”

I answered directly in Japanese without using a translator.

“Of course. Hello, I’m NoName. I’m 9 years old and in my third year at the Academy. I think in Japan I might be better known for the magic ‘Adela,’ which I also created. Today I’m just here to support Miss Katsuhata.”

“Wow! Your Japanese is excellent! That’s amazing!”

-No way???

-A 9-year-old created unique magic?

-Are there still people who don’t know this?wwwww

-NoName’s Japanese is so good!

-To think the originator of the Adela Challenge was here all along…

-Has Japan finally imported NoName?

“If you were to predict this year’s winner?”

“Since I haven’t seen the level of other participants, I’m not sure, but I think it would be Katsuhata Emika.”

The staff all applauded.

They seemed quite satisfied with my diplomatic answer.

Several other questions followed, mostly about the fan festival.

“From what I heard yesterday, you caused quite a stir by leaving advice for Miss Katsuhata on VTube…?”

“At that time, I was just thinking ‘what if she tried this instead?’ You know how when you watch matches, you sometimes think ‘attack now!’? It wasn’t meant as criticism, just like that.”

“But your explanation video has already reached 3 million views in just one day. How do you feel about that?”

“It’s a bit embarrassing. I appeared with messy hair.”

I’ll never underestimate a retriever’s stamina again.

“A viewer is asking if you have a personal relationship with Miss Katsuhata.”

“Well, we did a collaboration stream last year, and we’ve become closer this year during training camp. She’s a good older sister figure.”

“You trained together?”

“Yes. I can’t share the details though. That’s all I can say.”

-Katsuhata camp?

-What exactly happened in Korea…?

-I fully support the NoName-Emika alliance.

-Protect NoName! She belongs to Korea!

-Don’t try to take our national treasure.

-Clearly Katsuhata received help from NoName. Was it external manifestation?

-Or maybe Katsuhata taught NoName swordsmanship, mutual benefit!

With so many internet detectives, some guesses were bound to be correct.

I indicated that I wanted to wrap up the interview.

The PD held up one finger, asking for a final question.

“Just one more!”

“Go ahead.”

“Miss NoName, you’re also a highly promising mage in Korea, right? What aspects of your role model, Miss Katsuhata, would you like to emulate? In terms of swordsmanship, Aura, perseverance, and so on?”

I slightly frowned.

Isn’t this too obviously a leading question?

Especially emphasizing Emika as my role model.

While I wanted to say nice things to the Japanese audience, I didn’t like their overconfidence.

It felt like they were trying to use me praising Emika to create some nationalistic article.

For neighboring countries, their methods are quite similar to Korea’s.

I took the microphone and said:

“Miss Katsuhata is not my role model.”

“Oh, is that so? I apologize. Then what aspects do you admire—”

“Why? Must there be something?”

“Not necessarily. But since Miss Katsuhata is much more senior, she’s superior in many ways…”

“There’s one thing you’re misunderstanding. I don’t take people weaker than me as role models.”

“Ah yes… wait, what?”

The interviewer’s eyes bulged like a fish.

Was that statement too strong for Japanese sensibilities?

“This applies to Miss Katsuhata and everyone participating in the National Exchange Competition. To be honest, I think all 64 national representatives are a few levels below me. You should consider yourselves fortunate that I’m in the audience seats this year.”

Given the nature of the National Exchange Competition where you only get one chance, many participants will be eliminated starting today.

Since I’ve come all the way to Japan, it would be a shame to leave empty-handed.

“Does that mean you’ll participate in next year’s National Exchange Competition in France?”

“Why wait until next year? Anyone who wants to face me can come find me anytime.”

I threw out bait, hoping someone would take it seriously.