Chapter 24: Rage’s Studio

To be honest, I used to think Glim had some talent for gaming.

After all, she’d managed to meet me in ranked matches by chance, and that kind of luck usually comes with at least a decent skill level.

But now.

“Aaaah!”

Those thoughts were steadily fading away.

The reason was simple: her performance was absolutely terrible.

[+HurryAndLeave: “Wow, seriously, Glim. What the hell.”]

[“I can’t help but laugh, lol.”]

[“Why does everyone play so horribly when they duo with Yottt?”]

[“Maybe Yottt’s the problem? Feels like he’s stealing everyone else’s skills.”]

[Pepe: “Energy Absorption Technique: Activated.”]

“Um, just stay in the back and focus on healing.”

It wasn’t a hard request.

There are many types of healers, but the one Glim was playing required her to do nothing more than hold down the mouse button from a safe distance.

“I only pushed in because I thought they were low! If you criticize me for this, I’ll get really upset, you know!”

“Ah, got it.”

[+HurryAndLeave: “Got it. Lol.”]

[“Just ignoring her, huh? Respect.”]

[“Ignoring her is the only play, lol.”]

[Pepe: “Why does Glim keep trying to do things? Just click your mouse and stay in the back.”]

I didn’t feel like scolding Glim.

She was a fellow streamer, after all.

She probably wanted to show off a bit since all three of us were broadcasting together.

“Well, how about this—do you want to play a sniper instead?”

This was the solution I’d come up with after some thought.

If she played a sniper, her viewers would have something to get excited about, and the chat might quiet down a bit.

Since she clearly wanted to shoot, there was no reason to stop her.

[+HurryAndLeave: “He’s just giving up at this point, lol.”]

[“To put it in real-world terms, this is like assaulting the bus driver and then deciding to drive the bus yourself.”]

[“That analogy is way too accurate, lol.”]

[Pepe: “But honestly, Glim is pretty good at playing sniper.”]

“Oh, really? Should I?”

Glim’s voice sounded incredibly excited, as though this was the answer she’d been waiting for.

If she was going to get this happy about it, she could’ve just said so from the start.

“Yeah, sure, do whatever you want. I don’t mind.”

“Me neither,” Ryu Arim added, clearly picking up on the situation and agreeing easily.

At that.

“Alright, then! I’ll show you the true art of sniping next round!”

Glim got back to her role as a healer for the rest of the current game, clearly in a better mood now that she had her plans locked in for the next match.

[+HurryAndLeave: “She’s so simple-minded, lol.”]

[“But honestly, that’s part of her charm.”]

[“A genuinely straightforward person…”]

[“Big thumbs up for Yottt silently dreading carrying the whole team, lol.”]

[Pepe: “Click.”]

The game progressed smoothly from there.

Finally, it was time for Glim to switch roles.

“Alright, sniper time. Hehe, watch and learn!”

[“If she was going to play sniper, why didn’t she just do it from the start, lol.”]

[“Why say you’ll heal and then change your mind halfway through? Just ride the bus, jeez.”]

[“Sniper incoming~ Sniper incoming~ Sniper incoming~”]

[“But seriously, doesn’t it feel like Glim’s going to get wrecked? Is it just me?”]

[“The team’s average rank has gone up a lot thanks to the win streaks…”]

Even with the higher average tier, I wasn’t too worried.

Snipers don’t typically face opponents head-on, so she should be fine as long as she played smart.

“Alright, I’ll show you what sniping is all about. Just watch.”

“Got it.”

[“Looks like no one else is expecting anything from her, lol.”]

[“This is the moment, Glim. If you don’t show us something now, it’s over.”]

[“Yottt’s probably underestimating you. Land three consecutive headshots and you’ll have him calling you noona in no time.”]

[“Let’s go, let’s go!”]

[“Guys like women who are good with guns, lol.”]

[“It’s just attractive—girls who are good at shooting, lol.”]

[“If I were a guy, I’d confess to Glim right now. You’ve got this.”]

The chat was buzzing with encouragement.

Everyone clearly wanted to see her dominate with the sniper.

“Just wait and see,” Glim said confidently.

The next game started quickly, and Glim wasted no time picking her sniper—a hero Jaehun had repeatedly chosen during their 1v1 matches.

“Oh, this is gonna be fun.”

“Good luck!”

With Jaehun watching, Glim locked in her sniper, and the game began.

“Sorry, but I won’t be reading chat for a bit. I need to focus.”

It was a genuine statement.

Playing as a sniper required full concentration, with no time to glance at the chat.

[“Jaehun reads chat while sniping and still destroys Glim, though. ”]

(Viewer banned!)

[“If you’re new to sniping, it’s smart not to read chat.”]

[“At least she’s not making excuses. Respect.”]

[“You guys are way too harsh, lol. Cheer her on a little.”]

[“Even if we cheer, will it help? Hmm, lol.”]

The toxic viewers were quickly removed, leaving a more supportive chat behind.

Glim seemed fully immersed in her role, playing her sniper with focus.

Thunk!

“Oh, you’re doing better than I expected!” Jaehun remarked, impressed.

When Glim played as a healer, it felt like she was deliberately underperforming.

But now, with the sniper in her hands, she was noticeably more effective—roughly 1.4 times better, to be exact.

“Come on, it’s me. I’m the queen of Diamond rank!”

“Oh-ho,” I said, amused.

The “Queen of Diamond.” It had a certain flair to it.

As I calmly focused on taking down enemies, I watched Glim’s performance with interest.

“Alright, climbing this wall and taking this angle… bam!”

She was in her element, buzzing with excitement as she rattled on and fired shots.

[+HurryAndLeave: “She’s so damn happy, lol.”]

[“Just an innocent kid… who enjoys shooting people in games, lol.”]

[“Is that even innocence at this point? Feels like the opposite, lol.”]

[Pepe: “Sometimes, you just gotta shoot people in a game. No big deal, lol.”]

[“Lmao, it’s like saying, ‘Doesn’t everyone casually eliminate enemies on the street?’”]

“She’s really putting in the effort,” I remarked.

“She sure is,” Ryu Arim agreed.

With small talk like that, we quietly kept the game going.

The next day.

As usual, I was at home working on some illustrations, occasionally tinkering with the music program.

‘It’s a relief the collab ended on a good note yesterday.’

I had been worried it might drag on too long, but things wrapped up nicely.

After Glim got overexcited with her sniper and ended up dying six times in a row, her confidence dipped.

We won two more games afterward, and I made sure to end the collab while the atmosphere was still positive.

What I had observed about Glim during the session was that she was a genuinely kind person.

She also had a bit of a simple, one-dimensional personality.

It made you want to look out for her, in a way.

As I reflected on this, my phone buzzed.

Brrring.

Rage was calling.

“Hello?”

“Ah, um… are you sure you still don’t want to visit the studio? I was trying not to bother you again, but the file you sent me was just so good.”

“Hmm…”

Under normal circumstances, I would have refused again.

But the fact that Rage was calling me back, despite being turned down previously, showed just how urgent this was for them.

After some deliberation, I nodded to myself.

“Alright, I guess I can drop by.”

“Really? Great! I’ll send you the address right away.”

“Got it, please send it over. I’ll head there right now.”

“Alright!”

The call ended, and moments later.

Ding!

[Rage: (Address)]

[Rage: Please come here. :D]

[Me: Got it.]

‘They must be really excited to be using an emoji like that,’ I thought, smiling at the enthusiasm.

With that, I grabbed my things and headed to the address Rage had sent.

“Is this the place?”

The studio Rage had directed me to was smaller than I’d expected.

Considering Rage had mentioned that their recent song did well, I thought they’d be in a much fancier location.

‘This is interesting.’

I stood in front of the entrance, waiting.

“Oh, you’re here?”

Rage appeared, their hair now dyed a striking pink.

The last time I saw them, they had calm black hair, but it seemed they’d gone for a bold change in style.

“Yes. By the way, your hair looks great.”

“Oh, thank you!”

“Should I come in?”

“Yep! Just be a bit quiet, though—there are other people inside.”

Rage led the way down a narrow hallway, walking carefully.

The hallway was lined with glass doors, and as I peeked through, I noticed people who definitely looked like musicians working inside.

It seemed like this was a hub for people in the music industry.

‘This is fascinating.’

Having never been to a place like this before, everything felt unfamiliar and intriguing.

I quietly followed Rage to a room at the very end of the hallway.

When we stepped inside, I looked around in awe.

“Wow… this studio is really nice.”

The studio was much more spacious than I had expected.

“Haha, when I signed the lease, I made sure to get the biggest space available,” Rage said, clearly proud, a slight smirk tugging at their lips.

“So, um, what program do you use? We’ve got pretty much everything installed here.”

“Hmm, I usually use…” I listed off the programs I was familiar with as I sat down and checked the computer.

Scanning through the installed software, I quickly spotted what I needed.

“Oh, here it is.”

“Phew, that’s a relief. I was worried we might not have it.”

I opened the program and let it boot up.

“So, what’s the plan? What should I be doing now?”

I’d shown up because Rage had insisted, but I still wasn’t sure what they wanted from me.

Looking over, I noticed Rage absentmindedly twirling a strand of their pink hair between their fingers, a thoughtful expression on their face.

“Just… play around with the audio. Do whatever you feel like,” they said with a casual tone.

The request felt heavier than expected.

‘No pressure or anything,’ I thought sarcastically, cracking my knuckles before focusing on the program.