Chapter 135: A broadcast laced with poison

[Hey, you crazy bch! Open the door!]

[I’m cold, I’m so cold…]

[Waaah, we’re babies! You have to protect us!]

[Your skill at brewing corpses is no joke.]

[SB, do you think just uploading vlogs is enough?! Hurry up and start the stream!]

[Are you rubbing thighs with some guy? Why aren’t you coming, f*!!]

[Teeeng, Mama, I’m so exhausted…]

[??? : Before the season ends, I’ll hit Challenger rank 1.]

[This woman blatantly ignores her promises. Something’s off.]

[Omoshirotti~]

[Row while the tide is in? My ass… she just ghosted us.]

***

On Friede’s streaming schedule, a sudden hiatus was announced, but no updates followed.

A rising star had seemingly vanished, declaring an unexpected break.

Naturally, her channel’s community board became a chaotic mess of mixed emotions.

It had already been several days since the abrupt break announcement, which came right after a major event stream.

Although it was labeled a break, there was no mention of when she’d return—essentially an indefinite hiatus.

Still, people clung to hope.

“She’ll be back soon,” they told themselves.

After all, her channel had risen to success at an incredible speed.

Any streamer would logically capitalize on such momentum.

Friede’s channel had never been the epitome of consistency, but she wasn’t entirely irresponsible either.

That faint trust kept viewers hanging on.

But patience was starting to wear thin…

Doubt first crept in when she began uploading sporadic vlogs.

A luxurious house.

A supercar worth over ten billion won.

A cutting-edge VR device, easily costing tens of millions.

At first, these videos only added to Friede’s glamorous appeal.

Her name dominated online discussions.

A stunningly beautiful female streamer who was also a skilled gamer and, on top of that, incredibly wealthy? The perfect recipe for speculation, gossip, and obsession.

But then, a question began circulating that poured cold water on the hype:

“Why would someone this rich be so obsessed with streaming?”

It was a logical argument.

‘Maybe streaming had just been a hobby for her from the start. ‘

‘Maybe she had all the resources to quit whenever she got bored.’

‘Of course, her die-hard fans rejected this theory outright.’

“She hugged us at the fan meeting, for god’s sake!”

“She’s too kind to abandon us!”

“Friede would never do that!”

Their cries were purely emotional appeals.

But as Saturday passed into Sunday, and then into the early hours of Monday with no updates, unease began to spread.

At that moment, Friede was busy with Pepe’s modifications and Ajin’s moving preparations—things only her inner circle knew about.

And then…

A notification popped up.

The moment Friede’s streaming announcement went live, twice the usual number of people swarmed to her channel.

Almost every single fan who had notifications turned on rushed in at once—a mass migration of the Friede faithful.

On screen was a fresh, just-posted message from a familiar username.

[Hello, this is Friede. I’m starting the stream now.]

For the first time since her hiatus notice, Friede had made an official announcement.

Some fans screamed in excitement.

Others clenched their fists.

To an outsider, their reactions might seem over-the-top.

“Why get so worked up over an internet streamer?” they might scoff.

But logic didn’t matter here.

Right now, the only thing that existed was sheer joy.

With trembling hands, but faster than ever, they tapped the title.

[Hello, this is Friede. I’m starting the stream now.]

Author: Friede777

The stream starts… right now. ^^

Like Snow White biting into a poisoned apple, the fans now faced a dilemma—sacrifice sleep for a midnight livestream or resist temptation.

For many of Friede’s employed fans, it was a holy grail filled with poison.

But there was no hesitation.

They clicked.

The screen lit up with the waiting room for the live broadcast.

Monday morning responsibilities be damned.

“Hello.”

[Ugh, I can’t do this anymore!]

[Hmph! The viewers are sulking!]

[Boss, let’s do that thing! Struggle struggle!]

[Whoa, what’s this? A face-cam stream today?]

[The timing of this stream is absolute f***ing garbage, Sensei ^^]

[What, no Soul Warfare?]

[What were you doing during your break? Don’t tell me you met a guy? Maybe one of the guys from the fan meeting caught your eye? Maybe you started texting him, meeting up for dates, and then… ended up in a motel, getting drenched in sweat, your golden hair sticking to your back as you—]

[This is a mess right from the start.]

“Yeah, this guy’s getting kicked and banned. Sleep well.”

At this point, a chaotic start to the stream wasn’t even surprising.

As soon as I gave the signal, Ajin, who had been promoted to admin, got to work, wielding the ban hammer without hesitation.

This was exactly why I needed someone reliable like Ajin instead of a troublemaker like Pepe.

Efficiency guaranteed.

A few trolls were promptly sent to internet purgatory as I skimmed through the rapidly scrolling chat.

The sudden influx of viewers was dizzying, but their reactions were all pretty much the same.

“Well, there’s no special reason for streaming at this hour. The person I planned to stream with was free now, so I had no choice but to match their schedule.”

[Wait, who are you duo-ing with that you of all people would adjust your time?]

[Sensei being led by someone else’s playstyle? This is rare.]

[It’s a Challenger, right? Who is it? Gunder? Bisu? Haldir?]

[They’re all guys, ffs -,.-]

Well, it was only natural that a duo partner would be someone in the same rank bracket, and most of those players happened to be men.

But I had no idea why they were acting like I was stripping off my armor in front of my duo partner in Soul Warfare.

“What, do I look like some washed-up pro? Haven’t I been climbing pretty fast?”

[Sensei’s growth is about as stable as a mayfly’s lifespan.]

[A mayfly that keeps getting slapped to death by fart cars ᄃᄃ]

[Fart… car? What the hell, you weeb?]

[Dunno.]

[So many old dudes in this chat.]

[Ugh, a viewer base filled with middle-aged men. Feels like I stepped into the setting of a questionable doujinshi.]

[And Friede has received 100 fans. ^^]

• FriedeGoldenX has been kicked from the chat.

[AjinMk1: Please be respectful in chat. Violations will result in a kick or permanent ban.]

[AjinMk2: If you’re enjoying the stream, don’t forget to subscribe and turn on notifications!]

[AjinMk3: When Soul Warfare starts, make sure to send donations and mission challenges for a fun experience!]

[AjinMk4: For sponsorships, advertisements, and business inquiries, check the contact email in the stream info!]

The chat window was quickly filled with admin messages, taking up every available space.

A true army fighting for me—Friede’s personal elite force.

“See that, you punks? This is what tactical clones look like. My already massive chest swelled with pride.”

Unlike past streams, the admin system now allowed multiple messages to be sent from a single account across different channels.

It was a premium feature, but it was perfect for someone like Ajin.

Look at this battlefield—there was no need for me to give the signal anymore.

Ajin was swiftly and ruthlessly sending people from America straight to Siberia.

Compared to the days when Pepe was in charge, the efficiency and precision of the bans were downright heartwarming.

Now that I had maxed out my admin slots with Ajin clones, I practically had an army at my command.

‘If Ajin ever mastered full automation and hacking, wouldn’t this become an elite cyber-warfare unit?’

Drunk on victory, I playfully wiggled my fingers and teased, “Everyone, behave yourselves. My Ajin admins can literally use shadow clone jutsu. If you don’t, you’ll all be peeling tangerines in Siberia.”

[D-Domhuangcha!]

[Holy s***, just noticed—there are so many mods with swords.]

[What’s with their usernames? Did they coordinate?]

[The boss finally maxed out her admin slots.]

[This is the birth of the Demon Sword Order.]

The once chaotic chat quickly calmed down after a swift purge.

I don’t think I’ve ever seen a chat settle this fast before.

“Oh, where was I? Right. I had some time before my planned session, so I figured I’d start early for a warm-up.”

“What was I doing during the break? Meeting up with friends, taking some personal time. Also helped a close friend move.”

“Do I think I can hit Challenger rank this season? Hmm, we’ll see. I made a promise, so I have to at least try.”

“I didn’t want to grind off-stream. Imagine if I solo queued, won a bunch, and suddenly hit rank one. You guys would’ve lost your minds.”

The stream flowed smoothly.

It had been a while since I actually took time to chat with my viewers like this.

Thinking back, most of my streams were just me pushing through pre-planned content like a bulldozer.

Honestly, that was pretty inconsiderate.

‘Maybe I should do more of these laid-back community interactions.’

A quick glance at the clock told me it was almost time for my match.

Right on cue, a notification popped up from Alpha Code.

A silent signal—it was time to get back to work.