Ch.368363 – Remote Control

Korean terrestrial TV doesn’t broadcast the National Exchange Competition.

But we’re in the age of diverse media platforms.

People watching the competition through various media platforms were busy discussing recent issues.

[NoName.yoyak – Suspiciously frequent meetings with national representatives]

Today Italy was added to the list after Sweden, Hungary, Singapore, South Africa, Australia, Canada, and Taiwan.

She gave an interview that should’ve earned criticism for arrogance, but everyone’s praising her. It’s extremely suspicious.

To summarize a few social media posts:

-Sweden: This kiddo is the (expletive) all-time world number one.

-Singapore: I hope Korea participates next year.

-Canada: If we had met Name earlier, we might have made it to the quarterfinals. Feeling regretful.

-Taiwan: An indescribable mysterious existence. Is she truly a reincarnated master?

What exactly is NoName doing behind the scenes at this competition?

[Comments]

-People might think meeting Name after getting eliminated is some kind of tradition lol

-With such a confident interview, everyone must be curious about what gives her that swagger.

-Yeah, I’d probably go meet her too.

-That Taiwanese guy is usually such an arrogant troublemaker, right? Can’t believe those words came out of his mouth.

-Something… something is happening…

[Excerpt from Federico Mancini’s livestream during his return home after Round of 16 elimination]

“Am I not embarrassed about losing to a 13-year-old girl in the Round of 16?

Hey friend, that kind of provocation doesn’t bother me at all.

By that logic, I’ve also lost perfectly to a 9-year-old.

What? You don’t know? NoName from Korea is in Japan right now!

She’s a total celebrity among us participants.

Gossip? Alright, I’ll share some appropriate details.

After losing on a timeout decision in the Round of 16, I had a lot of energy left and needed to release it somewhere, you know?

Yes, so I went to find NoName.

I requested three consecutive unlimited-time duels and lost all three. That’s basically it.

Handicap? No way… of course we fought with free rules.

Yes, unlimited aura magic.

Actually, thinking about it again, this is the frustrating part – that crazy kid used 4th circle magic 18 times during our three duels!

And now I have to cover all those costs after losing the duels!

10,000 euros? No, it’ll be more than 20,000 euros!

Ugh, I don’t know. When I reach the airport, I’m dead.”

I took some liberties with the translation but tried to preserve the meaning.

It really seems like NoName is going around crushing participants in duels.

[Comments]

-Is this for real? I can’t even imagine NoName beating Mancini in a duel?

-She won the Academy Competition, so isn’t it possible?

-The Academy Competition is amateur level, but everyone in the National Exchange is professional.

-European training camps alone cost hundreds of millions of won.

-Korea, which only focuses on entrance exam magic, can’t even dream of participating in the National Exchange lol

-This is fascinating. Host, do you have more stories like this?

A new wind was blowing through the National Exchange Competition.

And ironically, the source of this wind was Korea, a country excluded from this global festival.

[Foreign Magic Gallery]

<Featured Post>

[2052 Japan National Exchange Competition Magic Usage Frequency Summary (52/07/20)][294]

※ Multiple uses in one match counted as 1 (if both participants use it, counted as 2)

※ Data based on matches from Round of 64 to Quarterfinals (ongoing)

※ Similar magic types grouped into single categories (e.g., Inertial Moment Adjustment → Rotational Motion)

Friction Coefficient Adjustment(1) – 52 times

Rotational Motion(2) – 39 times

Polar Coordinate Assignment(3) – 31 times

Heat Transfer(1) – 25 times

Rapid Cooling(1) – 24 times

Arc Discharge(2) – 22 times

(…)

30. Simplified Demon King’s Horn(3) – 9 times

<Overall Assessment>

-Friction Coefficient Adjustment, commonly seen in the Round of 64, is now rarely used.

-Mages primarily using Heat Transfer, Rapid Cooling, and Arc Discharge magic have largely survived.

-The Simplified Demon King’s Horn magic, previously used only by Japanese participants, was used in all quarterfinal matches. It’s expected to appear in the fourth match (Katsuhata vs. de Sampaio) with high probability.

[Comments]

-Always upvoting these summaries.

-Why use a decorative 3rd circle simplified casting form?

└ There are rumors that research on the Demon King’s Horn has advanced significantly.

└ It allows visual identification of vortices causing localized magic reduction.

└ ???

└ Simply put, it’s effective when selecting the main mana flow lines for magic circles. This leads to reduced casting time and increased mana efficiency.

└ My head is about to explode.

└ Mages will try anything if it contributes to victory.

-Seeing the popularity of the Demon King’s Horn makes me appreciate how amazing NoName is, even though she doesn’t participate in the National Exchange.

└ This is genuinely impressive, right?

└ You again…

Eventually, huge news broke during the last quarterfinal match.

Japan’s last national representative, Katsuhata Emika.

Brazil’s national representative Cecilia Nieto de Sampaio.

Both were photographed entering the arena wearing the Demon King’s Horn.

When the Demon King’s Horn was first cast in the National Exchange Competition, the public perceived it as a shoutout to NoName.

After all, Japan benefited the most from the Demon King’s Horn and Adela.

Japan was having a successful year, placing one competitor in the Round of 32 and another in the Round of 16, even excluding Emika.

But now things are different.

Five competitors in the quarterfinals know how to handle the Demon King’s Horn.

A magic that must be mastered for victory.

The Demon King’s Horn, highly praised by experts, has entered a new phase.

[Using this magic leads to ‘casting record achievements’ for everyone… “Should doping tests be applied to magic?”]

* * *

[NoName]

[Just Chatting – Live commentary for National Exchange Competition Quarterfinal Match 4 (Location: Ban So-wol’s residence)]

[Broadcast Time – 0:20:49]

[Viewers – 38,927]

I tried to buy broadcasting rights for just one match in the National Exchange Competition, but they were selling at over 300 million won for 50,000 viewers, so I had to give up.

So I was planning to do commentary without showing the actual match footage, but…

‘Why are there so many people here?’

I finished setting up butter-grilled squid jerky, snacks, and chocolates on the table and sat in front of the camera.

“Hello everyone. It feels like it’s been a really long time since I last streamed. About a month, maybe?”

A month was long enough to make my actions feel awkward.

As I waved with an embarrassed smile, chats scolding me began pouring in from everywhere.

-hateNoNamebutloveher hateNoNamebutloveher hateNoNamebutloveher

-It was truly a hellish time without you TT

-No streams since your birthday? Host, this is too much!

-Rain has finally come after a drought. I’d welcome even a downpour.

“Today is the last quarterfinal match. The semifinals are this Saturday, and then the finals on Sunday will determine the world’s strongest. Aren’t you all excited?”

Though there’s the condition of being under 16, the strongest is still the strongest.

Ban So-wol came from the kitchen with cola and poured it into cups.

“Ah, you’ll be on stream if you’re here.”

“I don’t mind.”

-Wow, it’s really Ban So-wol, legend!!

-Still looking good after 3 years.

-Will Ban So-wol join the commentary?

-NoName and Ban So-wol together would be super entertaining.

“To commentate with So-wol, we’d need to connect to virtual reality, and syncing the devices gets complicated, so I decided to do it alone today. Since people are here, she says to wave once.”

Ban So-wol shyly waved and quickly exited.

I guess saying she didn’t mind being on camera was just bravado. Anyway.

[‘ArabianNyangight’ donated 10,000 won!]

-The whole world is using the Demon King’s Horn… How do you feel about it becoming the core pick of the National Exchange Competition?

“Oh, that? Actually, I don’t think the Demon King’s Horn directly affected the outcomes much. Though I haven’t watched every match in detail.”

-Some articles are even making ridiculous claims about “magic doping”?

-If it’s magic, it’s magic. If it’s doping, it’s doping. What the heck is magic doping? lol

-There is an actual “thought acceleration” magic doping in the 6th circle.

-Drug doping would have virtually no effect anyway, so nobody would bother.

[Video share – ‘MultiCoreUltraCuteAI’ shared with 50,000!]

[“What’s the most manly sport? This isn’t even a hot take. American football, combat sports, ice hockey – sure, there’s room for debate there. But the undisputed top has to be dueling, right? Seriously, imagine if all laws disappeared. These mage bros would be the kings! While others are hustling on grass fields, these guys are throwing potentially lethal attacks at each other! If that’s not manly, what is?”]

Viewers even bringing entertaining statements from other streamers.

This could potentially disrespect athletes from other sports, so I remained silent.

-NoName seems to be smiling?

-She likes this guy lol

-Can’t control your expression, can you? lol

-Honestly, dueling is pretty hardcore.

I covered my mouth with my hand, removed all traces of a smile, and said:

“Well, I think dueling is still for softies. Real men would throw away all mana barriers too.”

-Then you’d definitely die!

-Huh? People die from this?

-That day, Name’s world collapsed…

-As expected from the original ultra-chad.

-You don’t seriously think that, right?

-Scary, so scary bruh

I meant it as a joke, but some people are taking it seriously.

With plenty of time before the match started, I spent time chatting with viewers.

The most common question was why I hadn’t been streaming lately.

“Since there’s not much time left until the semifinals, I can tell you now.”

-Huh?

-What is it?

-Making us curious again!

-Bombshell coming?

-You’ve already dropped several bombshells in Japan lol

-Name is Shin-chan… no one can stop her.

I kept quiet because revealing that Katsuhata received help from me could expose her weaknesses.

Instead, I freely gave advice to people like Cecilia who came to me without knowing this fact.

“I mentioned this somewhere before, but I went to a training camp run by Katsuhata’s team. I spent all of June learning swordsmanship there and researching aura with Emika.”

-So the rumors about helping with external manifestation were true.

-They let outsiders into a Japanese camp so easily?

-That’s insane… private training sessions that money can’t buy.

“Yes, I helped, but we mostly researched together. External manifestation isn’t something you can teach someone.”

[‘Mechaneer’ donated 5,000 won!]

-Please share stories about meeting the national representatives!

“There’s not much to tell. We just had short duels and exchanged a few words.”

-We’re curious about those short duels, teacher!

-NoName’s shocking statement: A short time is enough to beat national representatives!

-Did you actually win fights against them?

“As you know, I’m quite young. Because of that, many people hesitate to attack me. That could be considered a handicap, I suppose.”

[‘CheckNamemate’ donated 10,000 won!]

-Translation: I completely destroyed them all.

-Name expert lol

-This is so her lol

-I’m so excited for next year, what should I do TT

-Info: Korea’s last championship was 11 years ago.

-This is my first time watching the National Exchange Competition, didn’t know it would be this fun.

-Once you start, you can never escape.

What’s the point in saying more?

“Let’s stop here and watch the match. Oh, they’re both wearing the Demon King’s Horn.”

Whoever advances, the use of the Demon King’s Horn is confirmed.

All four semifinalists will be using the Demon King’s Horn.

It somehow felt like humans had lost to demons, but humans are the ones using it anyway.

We just needed to enjoy watching.

“De Sampaio, Cecilia is her name, right? I met her, I mean, that older girl the day before yesterday.”

-She was the world’s greatest genius… until now.

-She’s genuinely a once-in-a-generation talent too.

-13 years old, representing Brazil, and in the quarterfinals. Wow.

-Geniuses are different from the start.

“She seems very scattered on the outside, but she’s actually quite meticulous. She catches her opponents’ habits well and excels at deploying appropriate magic in response. Her magic to aura ratio is about 9:1, heavily focused on ranged combat, but the fact that she reached the quarterfinals with just that proves she’s skilled.”

The main caster introduces Cecilia.

Though she only seriously started dueling two years ago, she had made it to the world’s top 8.

Interestingly, she was competing in an aviation jacket reminiscent of Formula One racing suits.

Global corporate logos were plastered all over her stomach, back, and arms.

Katsuhata Emika was the complete opposite.

A pure white uniform without any patterns.

Unlike Cecilia’s free-flowing long hair, Emika had her hair neatly tied in a ponytail.

Conversely, excluding Adela, Emika’s magic usage ratio was extremely low.

“Magic versus aura. West versus East. A super dark horse against a challenger who rose from defeat. This big match has many enjoyable aspects, so it should be fun.”

After sharing these brief thoughts with viewers, I watched the two girls entering the dueling arena.

How much pressure were they feeling from this competition watched by tens of millions?

Perhaps in that moment, they might feel like they’re the only two people left in the world.

‘You need to approach the match with the mindset that you’ll die if you don’t kill. That’s how you win.’

My small wish to see an interesting match was quickly fulfilled.

* * *

“I wonder what decision Emika will make… In an open field, there won’t be a decisive outcome, so I hope she pushes toward a wall.”

As soon as I said that, Emika fiercely pushed Cecilia back.

She attacked alternately from left and right, guiding Cecilia to retreat backward.

“Then Cecilia shouldn’t back up against a wall. She shouldn’t think about counterattacking but should escape from the disadvantageous terrain. With turbulence magic and friction coefficient adjustment to break balance, she could easily-“

Before I could finish speaking, Cecilia double-cast both spells.

Emika, momentarily pushed backward, planted her sword in the ground, and Cecilia quickly slipped away to the side.

[‘Under1000EnforcementTeam’ donated 10,000 won!]

-What is this person! She’s controlling both of them!

-NoName the dark sorceress controlling national representatives, wow

-It’s so weird how everything happens exactly as she says lol

-Is this future prediction?

-This person is using a bug! Or is it a hack?

-Whoa lol her perspective is completely different from ours.

-Maybe they’re both just making the best decisions.