Ch.44[Episode 44] Aftermath of Area 3

“Wow, we lost but that was quite a sight to behold.”

“I know. It was overwhelming yet somehow touching. Looking back, I think I was moved to tears.”

People were coming out of the entrance to Stage 3 with satisfied smiles on their faces.

From the moment the Titan-class flagship Uranos descended onto the battlefield, everyone, including the Star The Tentacle Explorer, sensed their defeat.

When the massive spaceship tore through dimensions and appeared, people’s legs gave out from its magnificence. The gravity and air pressure created by the descending warship forced them to their knees.

As the warship filled the sky and blocked the sun, darkness covered the land.

In that moment, searchlights turned on and scanned the ground, appearing like divine grace descending upon the earth.

[(ALL) Star The Tentacle Explorer abandons the battlefield. Star Giant of Hundread Hands is victorious.]

With the tide of battle already turned and the ultimate weapon deployed, The Tentacle Explorer determined that a comeback was impossible and surrendered.

Though The Tentacle Explorer, an embodiment of competitive spirit, was furious about losing, he quickly regained composure and gave Giant of Hundread Hands a respectful look.

In fact, despite his controversial behavior, The Tentacle Explorer was a longtime fan of these Star wars.

Giant of Hundread Hands was a Star who had experienced war for quite some time.

Since The Tentacle Explorer’s childhood, when he was just beginning to understand the truths of the world, Giant of Hundread Hands had been famous in these wars.

The aging Giant of Hundread Hands was already experiencing physical decline, and while still a top-tier Star, he did appear somewhat vulnerable.

[Knowledge of the Titan] was his signature divine power from his prime.

He used this technique frequently in his early days, but after reaching his physical peak, he only used it in serious rival matches. Now, with his declining physical condition and the current meta where most wars end in the early stages due to changes and patch notes, it was a difficult technique to use.

Yet that technique had once again revealed itself in the war against him.

The Tentacle Explorer seemed pleased, twirling the tips of his tentacles.

Though he lost, in a way, he had created a legendary match.

Giant of Hundread Hands might not think so, but he had beaten him once.

And despite losing, by creating such a legendary match, he had risen to the level of being his rival.

This Star with his twisted fan mentality had proven his worth by standing shoulder to shoulder with the Star he admired.

He wouldn’t have been this happy if he had lost pathetically twice in a row. Instead, he would have mocked the downfall of the Star he admired.

This young Star, only 100,000 years old, remained a fan of Giant of Hundread Hands, albeit in a twisted way.

…

“See? I told you Giant of Hundread Hands would win this round.”

Are you guys paying attention?

Who are you? Why am I here?

5252, I believed in you all along!

Star I’m Not Little was broadcasting and interacting with his viewers.

A bit of viewing point gambling was just a bonus.

Even among Stars, matches between Giant of Hundread Hands and The Tentacle Explorer were popular.

A legend of the old generation versus a rookie of the new.

This match, almost like an exhibition match, topped GachaTube’s live viewer count on the official channel, proving its popularity.

Tens of thousands of viewers filled the chat with frenzied messages.

“By the way, it’s been a long time since we’ve seen [Knowledge of the Titan]. It’s considered outdated in the current meta, but man, the hype is real!”

I’m Not Little kept rewatching the scene of the Titan-class flagship appearing through the replay function.

GachaTube offered replay functionality with hyper-dimensional recording that allowed viewers to see any part of the battlefield from any angle within the timeframe, so I’m Not Little could view the flagship’s appearance from various perspectives.

After admiring the scene from multiple angles, I’m Not Little paused at one particular frame.

“I think this angle looks the coolest, don’t you agree?”

That clip is already circulating in the community.

It definitely gets you hyped.

“Oh, really?”

Sir Dominic plants a flag at the summit of the high ground, and the massive warship appears, tearing through the sky.

Star I’m Not Little replayed the scene several times from an angle looking up from below the high ground as Sir Dominic planted the flag.

“Wouldn’t it be even more hype like this?”

I’m Not Little manipulated the video, changing the composition.

From an angle looking up from below, Sir Dominic appears and the camera zooms in on him.

Then as Sir Dominic smiles and thrusts the flag down, the frame widens again to capture both the fluttering flag and the massive warship appearing from the sky as if breaking through the screen.

Great editing skills, must be from your Astromus editor background.

Really? You were an Astromus editor?

“Mentioning other broadcasters gets you banned. Focus on my stream only. You two get a 30-second ban.”

After banning the two viewers, I’m Not Little manipulated the screen a bit more.

The high ground and the massive warship moved separately. It looked more dynamic.

“Oh, by the way, do you know something? That pirate knight in Enchant that I play a lot? It turns out it’s this guy.”

Really?

No wonder he’s so overpowered.

I wasn’t interested because the game became too easy for a beginner character, but that makes sense if it’s him.

Viewers were surprised by this new information.

I’m Not Little dimmed the screen slightly and spoke.

In truth, this small Star had been a fan of Sir Dominic since Enchant, but since Sir Dominic wasn’t well-known back then, he didn’t reveal it for fear of being mocked for liking someone obscure.

However, viewers had already guessed this from his consistent choice of the pirate knight character in Enchant.

“It’s a bit concerning though.”

What is?

Whatever it is, I agree with the host.

I’m Not Little sighed.

“Low cost but high performance. A tank and buffer. What do you think?”

Overpowered?

Must include in my deck?

Need to recruit him immediately?

Marriage material?

Various opinions came in, but none were what I’m Not Little was looking for.

After watching the chat for a moment, the small Star spoke.

“Who said marriage material? Banned. Anyway, my thoughts are that he’s too cost-effective. I get that he has tank characteristics, but he performed too well even before his second special ability was revealed. And do you know what’s happening tomorrow or the day after?”

Various opinions poured in from the chat, but I’m Not Little immediately provided the answer.

“It’s patch day. He’ll definitely be discussed at the patch hearing because of his performance today. If this had happened a month ago, the hearing committee would analyze thoroughly and balance properly, but with limited time, they might nerf him too severely.”

Finally finishing the video edit, the small Star clicked save and closed the editing program.

“Though I’m not a fan yet, as a Star concerned about Gachaland, I worry they might be too harsh on him.”

The Star looked worriedly at Sir Dominic through the screen.

But no viewer believed the claim about not being a fan.

They just typed “lolololol” in response.

…

“Junior! Over here.”

After the battlefield ended.

Sir Dominic was startled by his phone vibrating and took out his smartphone.

There were several missed calls and unread messages.

Opening the messages first, Sir Dominic sighed.

‘Let’s have a drink after the battlefield ends. Come to Knight’s Campfire.’

It was a message from v.a.l.l.o.c.

As it happened, Sir Dominic was feeling both refreshed and still experiencing the lingering thrill of intense combat.

A drink might be good to sort out these mixed emotions.

When he arrived at Knight’s Campfire, v.a.l.l.o.c. had already returned to his human form from his demon appearance and was drinking beer.

There was a plate full of peanuts and squid legs as snacks, but v.a.l.l.o.c. had barely touched them, instead using donuts from his lunchbox as his drinking snack.

Sir Dominic approached v.a.l.l.o.c., who was waving to indicate his presence, and sat down.

“Have you already had a drink?”

On the table, besides the beer glass v.a.l.l.o.c. was holding, there was another empty glass.

With a reddened face, v.a.l.l.o.c. smiled and said to Sir Dominic:

“I’m just in such a good mood. I’m actually on a diet and shouldn’t be drinking, but on a day like today, I have to.”

“It’s tradition to have a celebration after a war,” v.a.l.l.o.c. said.

Sir Dominic understood that in barren Feralant, “celebration” meant looting enemy equipment and burying corpses, but in Gachaland, it seemed to have a different meaning.

“Anyway, have a drink. I’ll pay today. Or should I get a drink from the celebrity?”

Celebrity?

Sir Dominic couldn’t understand v.a.l.l.o.c.’s words.

It wasn’t that he didn’t understand the term “celebrity,” but rather he couldn’t comprehend who the celebrity was supposed to be.

“Our junior is quite popular in the community. Look at this.”

v.a.l.l.o.c. opened GachaTube on his smartphone.

A short video uploaded by a broadcaster named I’m Not Little showed only him planting the flag and the airship appearing.

There was heart-stirring background music, but Sir Dominic didn’t understand what this had to do with anything.

“Look at the subscriber count. And the views.”

1 billion subscribers. 12 billion views. Sir Dominic momentarily considered how large these numbers were.

He had never seen numbers over a million even in Feralant.

Finally grasping the scale, Sir Dominic’s single eye widened.

Perhaps the video featuring him was more famous than he thought.

“By the way, this is serious.”

v.a.l.l.o.c. finished the remaining beer and spoke with concern.

“The patch notes will be coming out soon, and you’ll definitely be the subject of discussion.”

With a slurred tongue indicating his drunkenness, v.a.l.l.o.c. spoke.

His face was now completely red, just like when he was in demon form.

“Patch notes?”

Sir Dominic questioned this new information, but v.a.l.l.o.c., now in a drunken monologue, didn’t answer his question and continued with his own thoughts.

“You might get nerfed, but don’t worry too much. If it’s too severe, they’ll roll it back or buff you, or offer alternatives when nerfing. By the way, I think I’m too drunk. I feel dizzy. Could I stay at your place tonight? My home is too far.”

“…?”

Sir Dominic gave v.a.l.l.o.c. a questioning look.

Seeing Sir Dominic’s expression, v.a.l.l.o.c. returned an equally puzzled look.

“What’s wrong? You’re acting like someone without a home.”

“I don’t have one.”

“What?”

“Can… individuals own homes?”

Sir Dominic was born a serf, and in Feralant, homes owned by serfs legally belonged to the lord.

When conscripted, he lived in designated barracks.

Even after becoming a knight, he worked and lived in provided barracks while receiving wages. The idea of individuals owning homes had never crossed his mind.

v.a.l.l.o.c. suddenly sobered up.