Chapter 48: Breaking the Rules (7)
by AfuhfuihgsMeanwhile, deep inside a dark oceanic cave—
In Kreetzone’s palm, an item glowed radiantly, flaunting its presence.
[Glowing Deep-Sea Pearl]
Even in the pitch-black abyss, it shone brilliantly.
Clearly, it was a rare and valuable treasure.
“Kahahaha! That’s what I’m talking about!”
His hearty laughter erupted amidst the bubbling water.
A clanmate standing close chimed in with perfect timing.
“That’s our Boss Kreet! Only you could break through those freaky fish monsters!”
‘Freaky fish monsters, huh…’
Kreetzone’s brow twitched slightly.
Right before they died, the monsters had released some white, sticky fluid that splattered all over them.
‘Yikes.’
‘Soaked to the bone.’
‘Two grown men, dripping in white goo…’
The chat was having a field day.
‘Tch. Whatever.’
It wasn’t exactly pleasant, but he brushed it off.
What mattered was that he had secured the first item rather quickly.
‘Ahem.’
He glanced sideways at his chat.
‘They’re all slower than me.’
Loyal viewers were kindly briefing him on how other streamers were doing.
Of course, Kreetzone wasn’t so petty as to open competitor streams and cheat via stream-sniping.
He was just… using viewer-shared “intel.”
‘C’mon, everyone does that.’
A master of self-justification.
Seeing how sluggish the others were, he couldn’t help but smile.
‘This event is mine.’
No matter what alliances the smaller clans were forming,
his team—polished over three long weeks of grinding—was clearly superior.
Sure, half the members joined less than a week ago,
and Kreetzone mostly barked orders from the back,
but those were trivial details.
‘That first hidden piece? Nothing compared to this event. Absolutely nothing…’
Getting doused in sea monster fluids was a small price to pay.
Kreetzone, a man who had dedicated 33 years of life to gaming.
He hadn’t told anyone,
but ever since losing the first hidden piece to Silverhair,
he’d been having nightmares.
A silver-haired girl would appear in his dreams,
grin at him, and point mockingly.
“Hehe, heeeaaalp~”
“HHRK—!”
He’d wake in a cold sweat, humiliated.
‘Only way to end this nightmare is to win this event.’
With fiery resolve, Kreetzone turned toward his next target—the Volcano Zone.
His paired clanmates would likely collect the rest at a steady pace.
With the Deep-Sea Pearl secured, the rest would follow easily—!
DING—!
An alert rang, and a system-wide announcement appeared.
[‘Silverhair’ and ‘Raidel’ have entered the Altar of the Stars first!]
“…..”
[‘Silverhair’ and ‘Raidel’ have completely defeated ‘Azranox, Demon of the Stars’!]
“……”
[‘Altar of the Stars’ has been permanently sealed! Entry is no longer possible!]
[Collector ‘Elderyn’ leaves the server with a hollow expression, having obtained no collectibles.]
“…………Huh?”
The portal scroll slipped limply from Kreetzone’s hand.
Meanwhile, in the Pixelwars Ops Room—
“Ah.”
After a long silence, Zeronix let out a deflated groan.
His face was a mix of exhaustion, disbelief, and a hint of awe.
Beside him, Frost stared silently at the monitor, eyes moist.
“…We really got owned.”
Zeronix slumped into his chair.
They had cranked the Aegis Golems’ attack to max,
thinking it would never backfire.
They hadn’t expected the control of those golems
to be stolen with a mere flick of the wrist,
and used to delete the final boss.
‘Did we just get played?’
Zeronix was reminded of an old chess demo he’d once watched.
The master made intentional blunders,
baiting the novice into thinking they could win.
The beginner fell for it, gleefully capturing pieces.
But it was a trap.
The master flipped the board with just a few moves,
despite being outnumbered.
‘…’
That look of a beginner who thought they had won,
only to be utterly crushed—that was what Zeronix saw on his own face.
“Haa…”
He sighed.
Using the mask to fool the golems and get through the door?
Okay. He could maybe accept that. As creative use of a hidden piece.
It was hard to anticipate but… understandable with some effort.
But then to go further—
to command the golems and have them one-shot the final boss?
That was unimaginable.
They hadn’t even considered the possibility
that control of the golems could be transferred to a player.
Only Silverhair had shattered the mold.
“Bro… is this okay, though?”
Frost finally spoke.
“Controlling golems to beat the boss… isn’t that kind of a bug exploit? Shouldn’t the win be revoked…?”
Zeronix shook his head.
This wasn’t a cheap exploit or a loophole abuse.
It was creative problem-solving within the rules provided.
And he wasn’t the only one who felt that way.
He silently gestured toward Raidel’s stream and the flaming hot community forums.
“Just look at that response.”
Raidel’s chat was in utter chaos.
《‘HeroOfDawn’ donated 50,000 won!》
- Sleepers in shambles LOL
[“FR LOL”]
[“9-to-5 losers will never understand this kind of thrill”]
[“Legendary, legendary, legendary”]
《‘DopamineAddict’ donated 30,000 won!》
- MY BRAAAAIIINNNNN LOL
《‘Delbung3’ donated 40,000 won!》
- The dev team must be crying LOL they worked so hard on this
[“God-tier item use”]
[“My heart is swelling…”]
[“Now THIS is gaming”]
[“HAHAHA I can hear Kreetzone sobbing from here”]
[“LOLOLOL”]
《‘SilverhairFanboy’ donated 10,000 won!》
- Silverhair PUNCH! Silverhair PUNCH!
[“Silverhair did it again”]
[“Masterful use of a hidden piece”]
It was all praise and cheers.
The community forums were no different.
【Zeronix cranked golem damage that high? Savage】
【Silverhair wiped the devs. LOL】
【This is how a hidden piece SHOULD feel】
【They were basically useless before anyway】
Post after post of admiration flooded in by the minute.
A few users did express disappointment at not seeing the boss mechanics,
but they were a tiny minority.
Most viewers just wanted dopamine hits.
They expected hours of raid wipes—
but Silverhair flipped it all on its head, and they loved it.
Besides, this wasn’t a long-term RPG.
It was a streamer server—only up for 2 months.
It favored spectacle over balance.
“…”
Frost was at a loss.
The crowd overwhelmingly supported Silverhair.
Punishing her now?
Would be like throwing oil on a bonfire.
“Also.”
Zeronix added bitterly.
“That mask.”
“The server’s one and only hidden piece… and everyone said it was useless.”
“Honestly, we kinda abandoned it too.”
Frost winced.
The Mask of Deception had become more symbolic than practical.
It was too hard to balance.
“But now? Silverhair used it. In a way no one imagined.”
“People are raving about it. ‘Wow, so that’s how you use the mask!’ ‘Finally living up to the hidden piece name!’”
“And if we pop in with ‘Sorry~ That was a bug~ You’re banned~’ …”
“What do you think will happen?”
Frost answered softly.
“…It’d kill the vibe, instantly.”
“Exactly. ‘Why give us hidden pieces if we can’t even use them?’ That’s what they’ll say.”
“We’d just be setting ourselves on fire.”
Zeronix sighed.
If the mask had been super OP from the start,
and Silverhair used it to cheese every quest,
then yeah, people might cry foul.
But the reality?
They—the devs—had failed to make the hidden piece meaningful.
And one player had found a way to prove its value.
“Let’s just take the L. It’s our penance for mistreating the mask.”
He slumped.
But then, a faint smile crept in.
“Still, this is what sandbox games are about, right?”
“When a player does something you never thought possible—*
and shows you a new path.”
Zeronix closed his eyes.
For the first time in a while,
he felt like he was back to when it all started—
building Pixelwars maps, playing with friends.
Things were janky, but fun.
Now, as a pro, things were smooth, polished.
But the passion was fading.
Not today.
Today, the fire was back.
Sure, the event was a disaster.
The boss never got to show off.
Hours of planned gameplay?
Gone in an instant.
But he didn’t feel bad.
“So, what about the event rewards?”
Zeronix spoke up.
“Should we reduce them a bit?”
“Nah. Let’s give it all. Might even add something.”
Frost blinked.
“Really? But that’s…”
“We can always ask first. If she refuses, then whatever.”
TL Note: The “Glowing Deep-Sea Pearl” is one of ten rare items needed for the event. The “Mask of Deception” is a hidden piece long considered useless. Silverhair’s creative strategy—exploiting NPC mechanics to take control of invincible golems—led to the boss being one-shot, upending both game balance and viewer expectations in a moment of legendary gameplay.
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