Ch.9186 – Conviction

“You’re back streaming after a while, huh?”

A man returned home after finishing his day at the Korean Magic Technology Institute’s Interactive AI Research Lab and flopped onto his bed still in his outdoor clothes.

It was evening – that time when everyone throws aside their daily fatigue and enjoys their personal time.

‘DaeSal’ tapped on the homepage of a streamer he subscribed to.

[NoName]

Peculiarly, this streamer had set her avatar to appear very young.

If she was targeting viewers with pedophilic tastes, one could say she was halfway successful.

There were people who came just to hear her voice and watch her avatar on her otherwise bland streams with no real content.

It was almost pitiful watching her solve homework for elementary school viewers who donated 1,000 or 2,000 won.

But true Twissy viewers don’t support streamers in ordinary ways.

Though he was now a graduate student at a prestigious educational institution, DaeSal’s lingering inferiority complex about academics from his difficult years retaking college entrance exams drove him to expose the streamer’s lack of credentials.

He wanted to reveal to all these adoring school kids that this streamer was actually just an unemployed nobody.

So he deliberately sent her difficult abstract magical theory and radio engineering questions at a senior university level.

[It’s a Hermitian matrix. You’d need to use Leshaikhbar in the upper left corner.]

That was her immediate answer upon seeing the problem. She wasn’t just an ordinary unemployed person after all.

Since then, DaeSal didn’t watch all of NoName’s broadcasts, but he kept tuning in regularly.

Graduate-level coursework had no learning data, so even asking AI for help with assignments wouldn’t yield accurate answers.

Yet this streamer displayed knowledge far more encyclopedic than his own.

For a while, DaeSal used NoName as his homework shuttle. It cost a bit more money, but what did that matter? It was a win-win relationship.

Then NoName started playing League of Legends and World of Arsheria.

As it turned out, she was a hardcore gamer who had played thousands of LoL matches over eight years, and within a week of starting, she collaborated with other LoL streamers and quickly climbed to Master rank.

DaeSal didn’t watch during that period – it was a busy week with his thesis, and he knew nothing about LoL.

But when NoName announced she was starting World of Arsheria, he couldn’t help but get excited.

This was practically his area of expertise.

Just as he was about to give her newbie advice, she nearly completed the Nightmare difficulty Part 1 in just one day.

She was no longer just his little streamer.

She was a genius among geniuses who could achieve anything she set her mind to.

[I’ll give moderator privileges to the three people who survive until the end.]

After achieving this incredible feat and returning, she played some anime songs to troll viewers before announcing she would select moderators for her channel.

DaeSal had a feeling.

NoName’s stream was definitely a growth stock. If her stream were a stock, he would have invested not just his entire savings but taken out loans to go all-in.

Weren’t moderators for “big company” streamers given substantial authority and honor?

As an early viewer, he couldn’t help but be tempted.

DaeSal swallowed hard, abandoned his pending assignments, and entered his VR capsule.

It was time to be rewarded for diligently watching her streams. He would thoroughly analyze her preferences accumulated through big data.

* * *

[Combat Magic Circle World Cup Round of 32, Match 1/16]

[5th Circle Ignis Bellum (Curtain of Fire) vs 4th Circle Glacies Hasta (Ice Spear)]

“Oh, isn’t that DaeSal? Even the named viewers are participating.”

“Ah, yes. I’m a bit nervous. I’ve been watching NoName’s streams for a while, and I’m worried about getting eliminated early.”

“Well then, let’s do our best!”

After exchanging words of encouragement with another viewer, DaeSal stood on the stage with determination.

Since this was the first round, NoName freely shared her thoughts with everyone.

The viewers were relaxed.

DaeSal had been standing on the Ignis Bellum side without any hesitation.

[The Curtain of Fire definitely looks cooler.]

Until NoName made that artificial statement.

Upon hearing this, even those who had chosen Ice Spear rushed over to the Curtain of Fire side.

Meanwhile, DaeSal hesitated.

That didn’t sound like something NoName would normally say.

Would someone obsessed solely with magical efficiency and expansion make aesthetic judgments like “looks cooler”?

‘This is definitely a trap!’

Sensing something suspicious, DaeSal threw himself to the other side just before the selection timer ended.

As soon as he changed sides, everyone who had chosen the Curtain of Fire disappeared into the abyss.

[You all lack conviction.]

“Haha…”

Just when you start to forget, she reminds you how devious she can be.

[Combat Magic Circle World Cup Round of 32, Match 13/16]

[1st Circle Light (Light) vs 3rd Circle Diagon Kaido (Diagonal Slash)]

[How would anyone use Light magic in combat… It’s ridiculous that this was even selected as combat magic.]

When she blatantly advocated for the Diagonal Slash magic, some suspicious viewers tried to counter by choosing Light magic.

[Diagon Kaido (Diagonal Slash)]

Unfortunately, such tricks didn’t work.

[3 people have been eliminated.]

[5 people have survived.]

NoName’s Combat Magic World Cup was about to determine the final three without even reaching the end.

The next question would likely be the last.

With only five viewers remaining in the vast space, the stage felt desolate.

Name came down from the stage to greet the viewers.

“Congratulations. I wish I could make all five of you moderators.”

“Then why not appoint all five of us? Haha.”

One man laughed awkwardly.

It was a tactless comment, but DaeSal completely understood his feelings.

They had survived against all odds, playing a mind game with the host.

If they missed becoming a moderator by just one question, they would regret it forever.

“Is there anyone here who doesn’t have enough time to commit?”

All five remained silent at NoName’s question. They were all prepared to sacrifice their real lives for the chance to be moderators.

“I need to keep my promise. But let’s change the final question to something different.”

She suddenly closed the Combat Magic World Cup window.

“Why did you close that?”

Both the five moderator candidates and the 1,500 viewers who weren’t particularly interested in the combat magic rankings but wanted to see the conclusion sighed in disappointment.

What was the point of the content if it ended like this?

“The World Cup was just a pretext, and you were only thinking about selecting moderators from the beginning…!”

Despite the sharp criticism, NoName just blinked her eyes.

Her intentions were frustratingly unclear.

“You are all people with conviction. No matter what I said, you didn’t waver and trusted your own choices.”

NoName was right.

Though they might have occasionally tried to read her intentions when making choices, ultimately they had to rely on their own judgment.

“I hope you’ll answer the final question with the same conviction. Here’s the question.”

NoName took a deep breath.

She naturally crossed her arms and walked past the candidates.

Her small stature, not even reaching the chest of other avatars, was particularly noticeable.

She exhaled again. Her lips trembled slightly due to her uneven breathing.

“Let’s imagine a scenario.”

She walked calmly and stopped in front of one man – the muscular one who had asked if everyone could be made moderators.

“You’re all stranded on a mountain. No water, no food, and it’s a dark night with heavy cloud cover.”

“Climbing mountains at night is really dangerous.”

The man nodded. NoName glanced at his nickname and asked a question.

“Do you have a girlfriend?”

“Yes. But why?”

“Please think of someone you love. ‘hellsMonster’ here can think of his girlfriend. If you don’t have one, family is fine too.”

NoName turned around halfway and headed toward another participant.

“So you’re stranded with this person. If you wait until morning, you could safely descend the mountain. But unable to endure the cold and hunger, you decided to descend.”

People gradually became immersed in the kid’s strangely specific storytelling.

“Because of your wrong decision, while hurriedly descending the mountainside, your lover or family member gets bitten by a venomous snake. The poison is spreading through their body in real-time, and they’ll definitely die without immediate treatment.”

“Oh no.”

Someone gasped.

“And you have two magic spells you can use.”

She summoned a blackboard item from the private room and began drawing magic circles.

No one understood their meaning.

NoName continued filling the white space with dense circles, lines, and squiggly characters.

Her hand movements were almost manic.

When a marker ran out, she opened a new one and persisted until she completed the magic circle.

“The first magic circle can buy you one day of time. If you’re rescued safely the next day, you can get treatment, but it will be too late – they’ll suffer and die within a month.”

“That’s a cruel situation.”

“That’s one powerful snake.”

Then NoName pointed to the second magic circle.

Unlike the first one, which was much larger and more complex, this magic circle had a hole in the center.

“The second magic circle can completely neutralize the poison. No after-effects, it just cleanly eliminates the poison.”

“Isn’t the second one better then?”

“But you don’t know the central rune that goes in this magic circle. You might have to guess from ten or twenty possibilities.”

Save them for just one month for certain, or take a low chance at saving them completely.

“If… if you only have one chance.”

Especially since mana was limited.

“Which one would you choose?”