Chapter 97: I can’t give up Guanyin

The trajectory of the sacred sword drawn in the air blossomed like the Milky Way.

The golden hair and cape swayed with the dynamic movement.

Despite being the same color, they were so distinct that they exuded a mysterious allure, naturally drawing the viewer’s gaze.

‘Ah, the sight she just showed feels less like a game and more like a work of art,’ a thought surfaced in the mind.

Her overwhelming skill combined with such sanctity must make her a formidable opponent.

Look, even the highly skilled players active in the Challenger tier couldn’t stop Friede.

It seemed almost comical to attribute their failure solely to skill.

Judging by the expression of the defeated opponent, it was evident that they had simply been mesmerized by her appearance and lost focus.

“This is pathetic,” muttered Eunha, clicking her tongue in disapproval at the opponents’ lackluster performance.

As for Friede, whether Sehee would enjoy watching this, Eunha couldn’t be sure.

From Friede’s first-person perspective, her movements were intense, unrelenting, like the wind.

Of course, not all her opponents were so easily defeated.

Some were desperate, genuinely craving victory, especially as the season was nearing its end and they were trying to climb the ranks.

No matter how often one watched, it was hard to get used to her perspective.

Even when surrounded by multiple enemies, her viewpoint spun like a whirlwind, evading weapons coming from all directions and counterattacking simultaneously.

It wasn’t just stationary rotation; she moved fluidly while spinning like a top, making one wonder if it was even humanly possible to endure.

‘If someone got caught in a hurricane and spun around, would it feel like this? Or better yet,’ Eunha thought, ‘if clothes spinning in a washing machine had eyes and thoughts, it’d feel just like this.’

***

-Pew!

An arrow sliced through the air, piercing one of the enemies squarely.

As an opening was created, a blinding flash from the sacred sword filled the viewers’ screens, dazzling their eyes.

With a single charged strike, Friede unleashed a cutting wave from her radiant sword, breaking through part of the encirclement.

Despite being surrounded by chaotic attacks, she used the first charge of her sacred sword so precisely.

‘Does she seem… a little irritated?’ Eunha wondered.

Then, her instincts as a pro gamer kicked in, analyzing her opponent.

‘What if Sehee were up against her? How would she handle it? But in a team match, not a solo one.’

The best strategy for someone like Friede was, of course, to gang up on her. But even then, her team members weren’t fools; backup would inevitably come.

Ever since Friede’s name gained prominence through this brawl tournament, teammates had been coming to support her even without explicit communication.

‘In the past, she’d probably handle it alone in the enemy’s maze. Now, we’d have to rely on teamwork to win.’

While it might seem like a cowardly approach, ignoring Friede as much as possible and pushing forward on the other fronts could be the best option.

The maze had two sides. Even if Friede dominated, gaining an advantage in the other lanes could at least balance the game.

But the outcome would still depend on her teammates’ skills.

‘It’s still tough, though.’

While Eunha pondered her strategies, the game progressed quickly.

She let out an unexplainable sigh of relief when Friede and her team eventually pushed through to the respawn base and secured victory.

‘Why am I relieved?’

Confused by her own reaction, Eunha furrowed her delicate brow.

***

Regardless of her feelings, Friede’s stream carried on, filled with cheers for her stunning victory.

[Stop farming low ranks!]

[It’s fine if they’re getting farmed in Challenger tier!]

[Lol, if you’re mad, just win!]

[LMAO, half the opponents just turn into zombies after seeing her face. Too funny.]

[ROFL, what a feast!]

The reactions were overwhelming.

Then again, for viewers, Challenger players were the untouchable elite.

Watching high-level players crumble against Friede was undoubtedly satisfying for them.

Stream content thrived on such provocative moments, so Eunha didn’t let it bother her much.

A dry chuckle escaped her lips.

***

[Mission from LukaGung: 3,000,000 KRW! – Turn on your real-life cam and cosplay with clothes from home!]

“Ugh,” Eunha groaned internally.

As a pro gamer and streamer herself, she had received plenty of frustrating and absurd donation requests.

But then:

[Donation from ScarletLotus: 50,000 KRW! – Hey! You piece of trash! Don’t cross the line with her!]

Eunha couldn’t help but chuckle at the viewer scolding on Friede’s behalf.

Friede’s face reveal marked the start of her streaming career.

With a goal to reach the top of Challenger rank, she’d dedicated herself to climbing the ladder non-stop.

Relying solely on her appearance wasn’t a long-term plan; gaming was far more enjoyable for her.

Naturally, she had returned to her original content after the brawl tournament.

***

[Mission from LukaGung: 3,000,000 KRW! – Turn on your real-life cam and cosplay with clothes from home!]

[Donation from ScarletLotus: 50,000 KRW! – Hey! You piece of trash! Don’t cross the line with her!]

“Hey! You piece of trash! Don’t cross the line with her!”

[Mission from ChestIsGuidingAI: 2,100,000 KRW! – If you cosplay in a swimsuit, I’ll double the mission amount!]

[Donation from GarterBeltZeke: 20,000 KRW! – Sensei, please ignore the people above… Please… ㅠㅠ]

[Donation from SweetMan: 15,000 KRW! – If you’re planning to take legal action, let me know. I’ve saved all the evidence.]

Big donations and missions were something a streamer couldn’t easily ignore.

‘This is chaos.’

The chat was a complete mess, making her feel like she needed a cigarette.

The screen was filled with a whirlwind of donations and missions, blending raw desire and desperate resistance, creating utter chaos.

At this point, she couldn’t help but reflect on how it had come to this.

Rewinding the events in her memory, she eventually pinpointed the cause.

It seemed to have started before the last match queue was formed.

Her MMR had climbed so high that queue times were taking ages.

While zoning out, she suddenly remembered that she had disabled donations and missions.

‘I probably did that earlier during the face reveal, worried the chat might spiral out of control.’

She recalled seeing messages in the chat asking her to reopen donations and missions.

Feeling a little guilty for not interacting much with her audience, she decided to enable them again.

And now, here they were…

[LOL, the chat is a disaster.]

[These sick freaks are drooling over our girl’s face reveal. Disgusting! Upvote if you agree! I’ll start!]

[Upvote!]

[It’s gross to see weird missions while admiring her face.]

[True, it’s disgusting.]

[Admit it, you all want to see it too. Stop acting high and mighty, you hypocrites!]

[If you want to see Friede in a swimsuit, at least be honest about it! Upvote for no reaction! I’ll go first!]

She had no idea what to say to calm the situation.

No matter how hard she racked her brain, nothing came to mind.

[You should consider hiring a chat moderator, sis… The chat is getting out of hand @@]

‘A chat moderator… Oh, right, I forgot about that.’

Ajin was mainly her video editor, and she’d never really thought about assigning a chat moderator.

Now that she had done a face reveal, the intensity of the chat had escalated, and moderation was clearly necessary.

‘Pepe is at Dayoung’s place, isn’t he?’

This seemed like the perfect opportunity to address it.

“Everyone, please calm down.”

Of course, her words had no effect.

Even she hadn’t expected them to.

Thankfully, she wasn’t in a match yet, so she had some breathing room.

She decided to manage things herself for now.

Banning a few disruptive trolls brought temporary peace to the chat.

[Our queen has finally drawn the holy sword @@]

[The holy sword? Is this… a permanent ban?]

[It’s Tiananmen Square! Tiananmen!]

[Stop spouting nonsense! This isn’t Tiananmen!]

[This is Friede’s brand of democracy, that’s what it is!]

The chat was as chaotic as ever, even with the bans.

‘At least it’s quieter now.’

She knew it wouldn’t last long.

New volatile topics would soon emerge, reigniting the chaos.

To stay ahead, she decided to throw out her own topic first.

“The next stream will be a collaboration with Forming.”

[A collab with Forming?]

[Wow, as expected from a big name… Spotting promising rookie streamers!]

[Calling Forming a rookie feels a bit odd, doesn’t it?]

[True, there aren’t many streamers who fit the “veteran rookie” label better than Forming. LOL]

“I’m still coordinating with her, but it’ll be more of a real-life cam stream than a virtual one.”

[A real-life cam stream sounds great!]

[Why not collab with another streamer while you’re at it?]

[There’s this male streamer named Yoonjoon who’s trending these days. Maybe stream with him?]

[Shut up, you shippers!]

[Yeah, that’s so annoying.]

“There are no plans for collaborations with male streamers. Don’t worry.”

[Wow, she shut that down fast.]

[Our queen’s firm resolution… Bravo!]

[Truly iconic.]

“Forming and I will play some PC games, maybe do a mukbang too. Please look forward to it!”

The chat nearly reignited with shipping topics but fortunately settled down again.

‘Shipping, huh? It does feel a bit fresh,’ she thought sarcastically.

‘Not like I’ll ever participate. These things fade naturally if you don’t engage.’

For now…

‘Should I suggest a horror game for the collab?’