The day after the broadcast ended, for the first time, the Alpha Code-registered heroes’ chat room came alive.
It was a monumental moment, as everyone conversed simultaneously for the first time.
“Congratulations, unnie. It wasn’t necessary, but thanks for cleaning up that extra mess.”
“Ha! Is that how a grateful brat acts, Dayoung? Aghh!”
There was a moment of rustling followed by Pepe’s scream suddenly cutting off.
Pepe… died?
While wondering if her head had split in a V-shape again, the quiet voice of Ajin, who was usually just a presence, echoed softly in my ears.
“Th-that was really amazing, unnie. I’ll make sure to edit this video… to look as cool as possible!”
“Thanks.”
Indeed, nothing beats a good pat-pat.
Though it might be a bit cheeky for a streamer to feel this way, the encouragement from fellow heroes felt more energizing than the praise of viewers.
It’s the rarity, perhaps. ‘How many people in the world are as rare as heroes?’
“You’re different! Not like the ones who whine to you to clean up their messes,” Dayoung muttered.
“Hey, I’m seriously grateful, okay? When did I ever whine to unnie? You don’t even know!”
“Well, whatever—”
As Ajin meekly withdrew, Dayoung shifted the topic.
“More importantly, unnie.”
“Yeah?”
“I think you should tone down throwing hints about face reveals.”
“Ah, that…”
Before I could respond, Dayoung dropped a link in the Alpha Code chat.
When I clicked it, I saw a flood of posts criticizing me.
‘And… what’s with this community?’
“Friede Gallery?”
On the top panel of the forum, my nickname was unmistakably displayed.
“They even created a gallery just for you, unnie. Your broadcast fans caused such chaos they had to make a containment zone.”
What?
‘A containment zone?’
‘What is this, a gulag?’
I felt a surge of indignation, like a volcano erupting.
Calling it a containment zone was unreasonably harsh.
They’re the viewers of my broadcast, after all.
‘Whether I do a mosaic face reveal or something else, it’s my decision. Why did they make this containment zone without my input?’
Driven by curiosity, I decided to take a look at the forum.
Refreshing the page, an endless stream of posts appeared.
Despite being a brand-new gallery, the activity level was overwhelming, unmatched by any other forum.
Perhaps it was due to the impact of last night’s brawl competition.
[Moderator, you scumbag! Don’t bait people with that nonsense!]
Author: ZekeGarterBelt
[Don’t insult the purity of my heart!]
[ToothpickGeneral: Soup… Retort…?]
[Can’t someone remove that mosaic? I’m dying to see it!]
[WashBasin: Give up… I looked it up, and Friede’s using the latest MS Room Moses version. Removing the mosaic is practically impossible. If you mess up while trying, you’ll end up with a lawsuit and a police record.]
[NHope5555: What a devilish woman… But I still can’t hate her.]
[Loo: Friede Gallery fans are losing their minds!]
[A plant lover, infuriated by Friede’s fake face reveal!]
Author: WeedCutter
[Even Buddha and Jesus would tremble at Friede’s deceit. Total Beelzebub!]
[ZekeGarterBelt: ?? Isn’t it Lucifer?]
[MidirTheEater: Mol? Lu]
[oo: Why Beelzebub if Buddha’s involved? Add Asmodeus to the mix!]
[Breaking news! Friede releases a statement on the face reveal scandal!]
Author: 00
[This counts as a face reveal. There won’t be a better one this season, or maybe even this generation. I’ve never dragged things out or baited you on purpose. And stop calling me your ‘noona.’ You shut-in losers…]
(A cool meme of Friede)
What on earth do they think of me?
[yaSergei: She never said that, but somehow it’s infuriating.]
[Loo: Ah, a face reveal! Lololol]
[LLAmpadu: This mosaic is driving me crazy, lolol.]
[KimSnapper: I’ll hold my breath until noona shows her bare face!]
[L: Okay, next corpse.]
[TheDominator: Bro, this guy’s laughing.]
[WashBasin: Leave him. He’s probably having sweet dreams.]
Though the tournament was discussed, people were mostly obsessed with the latest hot topic: last night’s face reveal issue.
Watching this, I was initially dumbfounded but soon felt a strange sense of satisfaction.
‘How should I describe this feeling?’
It’s like the pride you feel after playing a prank that you really wanted to pull off.
‘Did someone scribble on my screen?’ I wondered, wiping it with my finger.
-Swipe, swipe.
The friction noise of my fingers on the screen stood out.
Each time I refreshed, a new post replaced the previous ones.
A growing sense of excitement began to consume me.
‘This was… pretty thrilling, wasn’t it?’
Unlike the Soul Warfare gallery or OutVent, which were communities about the game, this gallery was purely about me—streamer Friede.
It wasn’t an official channel or a board I personally managed.
It was a community created without my knowledge, dedicated to talking about me.
“Isn’t this great?”
“This?!”
Dayoung’s confused response only stirred an inexplicable sense of mischief in me.
‘What kind of content should I try next?’
‘How about pretending to do a face reveal but only showing one eye?’
“You’ve really done it this time.”
Dayoung clicked her tongue in disapproval.
A mosaic face reveal—what a masterful bait.
“Honestly, it’s fun. For some reason, my ideas naturally lean toward this kind of content.”
Though speechless for a moment, Sehee eventually nodded.
Thinking about it, she’s always been the type to follow her own pace.
Getting flustered would only be a loss, so Dayoung steadied herself.
“Stop it already. The viewers put up with it because they love you, but if you keep piling on the bad karma, it’ll blow up in your face someday.”
“This is content. Pulling views like this makes you a true industry villain, Bitch-Sehee.”
“Connecting with Pepe on this makes me feel strangely insulted.”
To deceive viewers this much and still maintain popularity… maybe she truly is extraordinary.
Sometimes, her brilliance is almost blinding, and I can’t help but wonder, ‘What if I had been summoned to that world instead of her?’
I don’t know how difficult the trials she faced were, but…
‘Maybe I could have done it too.’
‘Not that I want to steal her place or anything like that.’
‘When you admire someone, sometimes you can’t help but imagine yourself in their shoes. Like now.’
“It’s okay, unnie. Do whatever you want to do!”
“Ha! Bitch-Sehee, aren’t you afraid of becoming a hated streamer and getting canceled?”
Ah, it’d be great if those annoying brats weren’t around.
Dayoung clicked her tongue bitterly.
[Preview of the Quarterfinal Match: Friede vs. Bisu]
With a two-weapon restriction in place, it’s difficult to provide an accurate preview as their main picks are locked.
However, since neither player will be using their preferred weapons, we’ll try to analyze the match based on the alternatives.
Friede specializes in using a broken greatsword, focusing on parries and counters.
Her sense of spacing is exceptional, and her reaction time optimized for parries and counters is nothing short of astounding.
In contrast, Bisu’s main picks are oversized weapons like poleaxes and the Rebel’s Greatsword.
Known for their OP reputation, these weapons are used in a whirlwind-style attack strategy that takes advantage of their wide reach.
Even if Friede can dodge the greatsword using her sense of distance and reaction speed, Bisu always aims for a reversal using his super armor-backed Iron Mountain technique.
For those who have seen Bisu play in Challenger League, he’s the quintessential infighter who invests heavily in strength and endurance stats.
While he may seem similar to Haldir in his focus on a solid playstyle, there’s a distinction:
Haldir uses the unique traits of his armaments to navigate matches, while Bisu relies on the super armor of oversized weapons to overwhelm opponents and capitalize on counters.
The key point in this match will likely be how Friede counters Bisu’s Iron Mountain technique.
Of course, if their weapons change, who knows?
***
[Comment Section]
[OO: It’s a shame about the two-weapon restriction. I wanted to see them fight with their main picks.]
[RedChrysanthemum: Bisu’s playstyle is surprisingly tricky to deal with, especially his habit of backstepping and following up with an upward strike using the poleaxe shaft. If Friede rushes in recklessly, she might get caught off guard.]
[Azini: Friede unnie will definitely win! I just know it!]
[Loo: Sure, your Friede’s going to get stomped this time.]
[Nek: She’s been building up bad karma ever since that lousy face reveal. Get ready to face the consequences, lolol.]
[Azini: What are you even saying?]
[UnnieAndMe: Just shut up and watch.]
[Pepe: Hahaha!]
***
It’s said that in Soul Warfare, no weapon holds an absolute advantage.
Every weapon has its unique potential, and depending on the user’s skill and playstyle, the tide of battle can always turn.
‘Isn’t that true for all games?’
Any game that follows the rule of “pick something and compete” doesn’t offer a choice with a guaranteed 100% win rate, regardless of genre.
Imagine picking a final boss character to face an opponent using a regular character in a fighting game.
‘Does that guarantee victory?’
‘Likewise, in an FPS game, does equipping the most powerful gun ensure a win?’
There are advantages and disadvantages, of course.
But as long as it falls within the game’s rules, it’s not the pinnacle of unfairness.
Even the concept of “gear advantage” is contained within those boundaries.
‘If it crosses that line, the game starts to collapse.’
If you’re wondering why these thoughts crossed my mind:
“Not using the broken greatsword?”
That question came from my quarterfinal opponent, Bisu, who had, without hesitation, chosen the OP Rebel’s Greatsword.
He seemed somewhat disappointed to see me not pick the broken greatsword.
‘I’m sorry if I disappointed you,’ I thought, silently apologizing.
But my decision to save the broken greatsword for the very last moment was firm.
I am Friede, the Hero of Light.
Even without the broken greatsword, as I declared during the broadcast…
‘I’ll show you the power of a true hero.’
Lifting the sword in my right hand, I vowed to the blade.
The Lantern Warden’s Rapier.
Its elegant design, with its gold-embellished blade, was impressive enough to please me.
The signal to start the match rang out.
“Let’s do this.”
The delicate blade, a stunning rapier adorned with golden threads, shimmered under the starlight.
‘The takeaway?’ Don’t be picky about weapons.