[Irene]
[91,000 followers] [View Profile]
[I’m going to challenge the hardest dungeon in 6 hours. Yes, there will be a stream.]
It hadn’t even been 30 minutes since Irene posted that update.
Yet every hero guild community across the world had already blown up.
It wasn’t because people didn’t know which dungeon she was talking about.
No—at this point, there wasn’t a soul who didn’t know.
After all, Irene had literally declared during her last stream that she would take down the Mirror Queen.
***
[Dungeon] Why’s the Mirror Queen’s Demon Castle blocked right now?
[Posted by: kkirurukkkiruruk]
The Hero Guild suddenly posted an announcement and locked out access to the Mirror Queen’s Demon Castle.
You can’t even attempt the raid right now, and tapping the dungeon on the interface doesn’t do anything;;
This is just like when Elian took on the Witch of Ruin.
Are we about to witness another major event?
(Attached: Screenshot of the Hero Guild’s announcement blocking the Mirror Queen’s castle)
[Comments]
“Let’s be real, we all know who it is lolol”
“Can’t believe it’s not Elian but one of the Demon Castle execs going after the Mirror Queen ;;”
“Why not just knight her and make her an official Imperial soldier already?”
“Irene would never accept that lol. She won’t even join the heroes.”
“So… who’s the guest joining the raid?”
↳ “Idk, probably Elian or Luna. Same old party lineup.”
Exina also didn’t want to be disturbed during the raid, so she outright disabled access to the dungeon.
Which, realistically, amounted to broadcasting to the entire world: “Hey, we’re raiding the Mirror Queen.”
That alone wasn’t exactly surprising.
Cocky challengers had always claimed they’d be the ones to defeat the Mirror Queen, only to end up resurrected beside the Saintess.
It had practically become tradition.
But what made this situation catch fire?
The answer was simple: the identity of the “special guest” appearing alongside Irene.
Just moments later, Irene posted another update.
[Irene]
[91,000 followers] [View Profile]
[Guess who?]
(Attached: A photo showing just a glimpse of someone’s brown hair)
This post ignited a storm.
You see, rumors had been swirling lately in the hero communities.
Whispers of a mysterious person—not even a hero—who had been quietly obliterating high-level dungeons.
Sounds ridiculous, right?
And yet…
Every time someone claimed to have spotted this “Reclusive Hero,” a high-difficulty dungeon in the area would suddenly be marked as cleared—without fanfare, without a raid party.
Just—poof, dungeon cleared.
No party members, no livestreams, nothing.
Even Elian doesn’t roll solo like that.
It sounded like something straight out of a video game or fantasy novel…
And yet it was happening in the real world.
People started compiling every sighting and detail they could to piece together the Reclusive Hero’s identity.
The result? This post:
***
[General] Reclusive Hero Sighting Compilation.txt
[Posted by: BowOnly5Rank]
There are a ton of sightings going around.
I filtered out the trash and compiled only the most credible stuff.
The Reclusive Hero is a woman.
This one’s solid. Every report says she’s female.
Anyone claiming otherwise has zero evidence and is just trolling.
She has brown hair.
Pretty much confirmed. Some think she’s part of the Imperial Knights because of her magic color,
but…
(Attached: Photo of an Imperial Sword)
Imperial magic is usually gold or orange-toned.
This one’s an entirely unique magic color—pure brown.
She’s at least on Elian’s level.
This is all we have for now. Will update as more comes in.
[Comments]
“Bro just wrote up stuff my mom could guess and made it sound important.”
↳ “So true lolol”
“If you didn’t already know this, do you even use the community?”
↳ “Touch grass, please.”
↳ “You touch pixels, bro.”
“Are there even any famous brown-haired girls in the Hero Guild?”
↳ “Not among the known names.”
“There’s probably ten brown-haired girls at any inn in town.”
↳ “Anyone claiming to find her is probably the Reclusive Hero themselves lol. Untraceable.”
So, yeah. No major breakthroughs.
But one thing was now almost certain:
The Reclusive Hero was a brown-haired woman.
Then suddenly, Irene posts a picture of someone’s brown hair.
Coincidence?
Some insisted it was.
But Irene’s reputation for trolling and stirring up the community was well-known.
So whether it was bait or not, most people were convinced—it had something to do with the Reclusive Hero.
***
[Stream will begin soon.]
[Viewers: 9,827]
[3 hours until the Mirror Queen Raid Premiere]
Now, fans of Irene who just wanted to see her…People curious about the Mirror Queen…
And those who desperately wanted to know if the Reclusive Hero would show up—
They all flooded into the stream.
Even before the stream began, the waiting room had already hit a record-breaking 9,800 viewers.
Of course, this was all intentional.
Well, not this many—far beyond expectations.
“I thought we’d max out at six thousand,” Irene mused as she stared at the waiting screen.
Irene, the Mirror Queen, and the Reclusive Hero.
If even one of them were missing, this kind of turnout would’ve been impossible.
It was synergy, plain and simple.
Especially because it was Irene—a streamer known for always following through on her word—who brought up the Reclusive Hero.
The Reclusive Hero.
The name made Exina burst out laughing beside her.
“That’s totally wrong. I’m not reclusive or a hero.”
Irene shot her a glare.
“True. You’re not a hero, and rather than reclusive, you just hid your identity for a hundred years.”
Technically a valid point.
Exina hadn’t really lived in seclusion.
Sure, she had delegated almost everything, but she’d still been the one to sign off on all final decisions and run the Hero Guild’s internal operations.
That didn’t exactly excuse her, though.
“I mean, an emperor can’t step away from the throne for a second without the whole empire collapsing, not to mention all the factions constantly watching for an opening… but why did you go into hiding?”
Irene wasn’t usually interested in game lore that hadn’t been part of the official release.
But this? This had her curious.
If someone had the power to wipe out entire dungeons like this, shouldn’t they have stepped up sooner?
“Man, that stings. Can’t I just say I was… preparing for the future?”
“Preparing for the future?”
“Yup. I’m the Empire’s secret card, after all.”
“The Empire’s…?”
Exina hesitated, taking a moment to carefully choose her words.
This wasn’t something she could share with the whole party.
A soundproof barrier was quietly erected before she finally spoke.
“Tania might seem authoritative and unshakable, but she’s actually one of the most anxious people I know.”
“Tania? Really?”
“Yeah. You know how the Empire basically runs on her mana? If something ever happened to her…”
“You’d be the backup—revealing yourself and unleashing all that stored-up mana.”
Bingo.
That’s exactly what’s written in her will. Only a handful of people in the entire Empire even know.”
For what should have been a background character left in the dummy data, that was some ridiculously detailed lore.
But Irene let it slide.
Honestly, she didn’t want to dig any deeper.
It was obvious Exina was sugarcoating things as much as possible.
Asking more would just lead to political rants or extremist philosophies. No thank you.
“But if you got assassinated before that could happen, the plan would fall apart, right?”
“…Is there even anyone in this world capable of killing both the Emperor and you?”
“That’s why Tania is so anxious. She’s preparing for something that might never happen.”
As Irene listened, she slowly scanned her surroundings.
She spotted Elian, glaring at them sulkily, and Luna, quietly pouting nearby.
Clearly, they were annoyed about being left out of the conversation.
But to be fair, there was no reason Elian should know this stuff.
He was simply the current No.1 Hero by rank, nothing more.
If they told him, he’d probably just wave it off with a “Not my business.”
When Exina snapped her fingers to lift the soundproof barrier, Elian immediately walked over.
Instead of confronting Irene, he went straight for Exina.
“Tania! There’s an order to things, you know! Heart-to-heart convos are supposed to happen with the person you bonded with first!”
It sounded like jealousy, but it wasn’t.
What Elian meant was clear:
“I didn’t hear what you were talking about, and I don’t care to.”
In short, he was giving them space.
And Exina clearly understood that.
She grinned and responded in kind.
“Oh? Then maybe it’s your fault for failing to bond despite meeting me first?”
“Huh?!”
…That was supposed to be playful, but it hit Elian a little too hard.
As he and Exina started sparking their mana at each other, Luna just smiled.
Everyone assumed Luna and Irene weren’t close.
But in truth, Luna had already won.
She’d already had her heart-to-heart.
She’d already held Exina’s hand.
So, as they stood chatting nonsense in front of the Mirror Queen’s portal, they suddenly realized…
Only five minutes remained until the stream began.
…They were supposed to be reviewing yesterday’s strategy, not getting sidetracked like this.
But what could they do now?
None of them wanted to disappoint the viewers.
And with their egos, there was no way Elian and Exina would delay the raid.
[STREAM STARTING SOON]
[Viewers: 15,427]
[3 Hours Until the Mirror Queen Raid Begins]
Looking at the endlessly growing number of viewers,
Irene pressed the broadcast start button.
As the color of the streaming interface changed,
Irene spoke.
“I’m Irene, the party leader for today’s Mirror Queen raid. Let’s work well together.”
Betrayal.
“I know no one expected this, but surprise! It’s actually the Mirror Queen raid today. Everyone got your ropes tied tight?”
– Ropes?? LOL
– Wait are we supposed to be party members or something?
– So she’s got like 16,000 party members then?
– LOL at that point even the Mirror Queen would faint in terror.
“Sheesh, focus on the Mirror Queen raid already.”
The Mirror Queen raid.
Irene said it with surprising determination.
– Wow really?
– Totally didn’t see that coming lmao
– LOL Mirror Queen raid declared and even the Hero Guild tried to stop it, and I still didn’t
know
– Doesn’t matter, even if Irene declared war on the Hero Guild, I’d still watch
– Arrest this demon
The viewers didn’t even pretend to be surprised.
Because half the people here were die-hard fans who would show up no matter what Irene did.
The other half already knew about the Mirror Queen raid beforehand.
Basically, there were no clueless viewers left at this point.
And with that, Irene realized:
This kind of bait won’t hold their attention for long.
Mirror Queen and the Hermit Hero.
Both were excellent bait to gather attention…
But there was a major flaw.
Once the actual raid began, viewership might plummet.
Let’s start with the Mirror Queen.
That bait was practically nonexistent now.
Sure, people love dramatic and powerful boss fights.
When Elian fought the Witch of Destruction, he had insane viewership.
But that was only for the highlight moment.
During the actual raid lead-up, viewers tended to drop off fast.
Throw in some boring puzzles or traps?
Obvious how that ends.
Even if this one had the appeal of “top-tier demon castle raid,”
the Hermit Hero situation was even worse.
The only reason the Hermit Hero was popular was because no one knew who they were.
People didn’t care about the actual identity — they just wanted the mystery revealed.
But as the raid progressed, Exina would naturally show up on camera.
Her identity would become clear soon anyway.
So, they needed one last hook to keep viewers until the end.
And Irene decided to throw that bait right now.
“This will also be my official debut as a streamer-hero. Please take good care of me.”
– Wow, finally making your debut huh
– Just debut already!!!
– So now you’re a demon castle general-turned-streamer?
[Anonymous Donor] has donated 10,000G!
– You used to reject streaming, and now you’re teasing us with it?
– LOL is this a challenge
– Streamer (true) Hero (true) Concept (false) LMAOOO
[“Me First”] has donated 5,000G!
– Why’s she suddenly drifting into streamer mode??
“Maybe I had a change of heart. Or maybe… Lumineel recommended I try streaming. Who knows?”
Irene’s voice made it sound like it was something that happened to someone else, not her.
And the reactions in chat were full of disbelief.
The chat was full of question marks…until one comment shifted the mood.
– But who are those two fighting in the background?
– Are they just random drunkards in front of the demon realm LOL
– Drunkard (uses golden magic)
– Ah yes, our beloved Elian, who’s embarrassing no matter where he goes
[skagks] has donated 1,000G!
– So is Elian a regular member now?
Irene doesn’t stream all that often, but whenever she does, Elian always seems to be there.
Same during the cooking contest. And now too.
She glanced at the chat and naturally walked over to Elian.
“Hello. Mind introducing yourself?”
Elian was about to throw a magic bomb at something, but seeing Irene and the camera,
he instantly dropped his deadly expression and greeted them.
“Do I even need an intro? Just kidding—I’m Elian, and I’ll be leading the charge today!”
– But who’s he fighting again?
– I saw someone with brown hair earlier…
– Wait…
[Anonymous Donor] has donated 1,000G]
– Pretty sure that’s the Hermit Hero over there
The moment Hermit Hero talk started popping up,
Elian subtly stepped to the side, blocking Exina from the camera entirely.
Hiding the Hermit Hero while redirecting attention to himself —
now that’s veteran streamer instincts.
Irene knew exactly what he was doing.
She just gave a small smirk off-camera and said nothing more.
“Last time I got wrecked. This time, it’s payback. And really, who else but me is gonna defeat the Mirror Queen?”
– Uh, the person standing next to you maybe
– Who even is this guy again? I haven’t seen him stream in ages
– I think I lost my memory…
– Everyone’s piling in now like it’s a gold rush LOL
– I don’t know this guy, can I get a refund
“Refund? Hah, fine. Go hang out with someone else then!”
Elian stomped off camera, and returned… with a girl who was barely half his size.
By the time they entered the frame, everyone thought it would be Luna.
But when Elian let go of the girl he was carrying, someone completely unexpected dropped down.
“Hmm… I’m used to watching, but it feels strange to be on camera. What should I introduce myself as?”
She hadn’t given any information—not even a name—but the moment she appeared, the chat exploded again.
- ?????????
- Who is that?!
- We’re just casually introducing mysterious characters now??
- ????
- ??
Exina, who had collected more “hooks” than even Irene, stared at the screen intensely for a while.
Only after a moment passed did she smile and introduce herself.
“It’s Exina. Hmm… I figure just hearing my voice is enough for people to know who I am.”
- I don’t know!
- Wait, she was a Guild Master?!
- I knew I’d heard that voice—was it during the Hero Guild civil war?
- Huh? Wasn’t she supposed to be gone?? Still alive, huh?
- The Emperor’s still alive too, so what’s the big deal LOL
- ????????????????????
She didn’t expect to be identified this quickly.
Irene had considered the possibility, but she didn’t think the hive mind would be this fast.
I mean, that voice wasn’t even supposed to show up unless it was the Hero Guild’s civil war arc.
So really, the fact they figured it out was more surprising.
“Everyone keeps calling me the Hermit Warrior, but I’m not. I’m just an old lady who’s retreated to the back room.”
- Is getting humbled on this show like… a tradition?
- But why were you and Elian fighting earlier??
- I seriously thought she was a drunk person LOL
[Irene1] donated 10,000G!
- “Wow, abandoning the guild for 100 years and acting like the victim… totally different from Irene who’s been working hard since debut!”
- Okay but now I’m actually curious
- I wasn’t curious before, but that message got me interested
It was Exina’s first donation, but she instantly recognized who Irene1 was.
Of course. That horrid writing style had only ever shown up on the forums—and it belonged to none other than Tania.
But she couldn’t exactly call the Emperor into this.
Exina clutched her forehead.
“Well, uh… I mean, if I explain… there was stuff, okay? I was covering for someone else… and there were some dungeons I had to deal with…”
She rambled on like that for a while before realizing:
Unless she explained her connection to the Emperor, she couldn’t make this make sense.
But if she did say it? That’d be absolutely insane.
Tania, you—!
Tania had dug this trap with utmost care, and now Exina had no choice but to fall in.
And so, not even ten minutes after appearing on stream…
Exina got down on her knees.
“I am a sinner… I’ll explain everything after the raid, okay? So for now, could you please let this one slide…?”
[Anonymous donor] donated 3,000G!
I don’t know who this VTuber is but she kneels real well
I’m sure she wasn’t totally inactive
True. Even before disappearing she cleared over a hundred demon castles
Honestly, kinda boring now that we know she’s the guild master…
Right? Would’ve been cooler if she stayed a mysterious character like Irene
Exina glanced sideways at the chat.
Once it seemed like things had calmed down a bit, she quietly got back on her feet.
“I think I took up too much time. I’ll keep the next one short.”
She waved her hand and stepped back—
Back to where she had originally been standing.
Premium Chapter
Login to buy access to this Chapter.