It’s not that kind of malicious broadcast

The season’s end. A period where all the emotions – joy, sorrow, anger, and pleasure – reached their peak.

In the old days of KoK, when updates were something one didn’t even hope for, the only festival was this end of the world scenario.

Even during such times, some people remained dedicated to the game, striving to find the limits of their own abilities. However, they were just a handful. It was literally the end of the world, after all.

Several percentages of players had already reached the tier they desired. Several more had reached a tier that they, realistically, could not break through with only a few days left in the season.

These individuals mostly left KoK temporarily to wait for the next season. Even if they returned because nothing else piqued their interest, they usually enjoyed the game with a relaxed mindset. They thought, “Finding my limits? Well, I can do that next season.”

However, not everyone could easily abandon their attachments and desires. There were always people who considered it common sense that the more medals adorning their chest, the better. Especially when those medals functioned like magic seals, making it even more important.

This season’s accomplishments determined the power of the “I achieved so-and-so rank, what tier are you?” secret weapon that would be used throughout the next season.

Hence, a certain percentage of players wanted to reach a tier they couldn’t achieve with their skills, even if it meant getting on the bus and being carried.

Some players even went to the extreme of entrusting their accounts, which were like their second selves, to others – a rather heretical choice.

It was no wonder that duo content became quite popular at the end of the season.

Although not a regular viewer of internet broadcasts, I sometimes watched videos uploaded on FanTube.

Streamers with broadcast titles like “Emergency Rescue Team” carried (or reverse carried) viewers’ promotion matches in duos.

Personally, I thought it was meaningless. It was interesting as content, but unless one planned to play duos for the rest of their life, what was the point of attaining a tier with someone else’s help?

Ultimately, you had to break through with your own strength.

—

It had been about two days since the broadcast where Lee Yena explained and apologized for many forgotten controversies and declared her self-reflection.

As viewers’ unease grew, despite their effort to laugh it off, wondering if she would really be reflecting for six months, Lee Yena’s broadcast suddenly went live without prior notice.

There had been a broadcast notice as promised sometime before—albeit with only a few seconds’ difference between uploading the notice and starting the broadcast.

This was a trivial issue that, by tacit agreement, no one pointed out.

“Ahem, can you hear me?”

– “Haha~”

– “Six months went by super fast.”

– “Where’s the self-reflection?”

– “You’re quite the controversial broadcaster.”

– “Time flies so damn fast.”

– “I can hear you well!!”

– “Please do ASMR.”

– “Heh ha.”

– “If you play music and sign off again, you’re dead, seriously.”

As always, the broadcast began with familiar greetings. The screen displayed a campfire against a black background. It flickered slightly, making it seem like a video rather than just a picture.

“I prepared a background screen during my period of reflection. Isn’t it pretty? You could just look at this without seeing me. How about we just watch the campfire together today?”

-User ㅇㅇ donated 1,000 KRW!-

“Can’t you please notify us when you’re joking?”

The teary voice in the donation message seemed to represent the feelings of the viewers. No matter what, even though it was hard to believe, it wasn’t possible for her to just fill an entire broadcast with only a background screen.

A scene of her playing the ocarina while viewers watched the campfire video together for 30 to 40 minutes was too easy to imagine.

“Kidding… just kidding. I’ve got things to do today. I’ll save this for another time.”

“Hehe.”

As she spoke, a slight smile formed. The chat window, as usual, was filled with chaos. From those cheering at her laughter to those protesting and insisting she shows her face, and newcomers asking when the “rogue lecture” would start.

For those who proudly declared themselves fans of Lee Yena, this was a very familiar scene.

Thankfully, the so-called “transient viewers” hadn’t flooded the broadcast yet. It had only been three minutes since the broadcast started. The people who had already tuned in were those who had long been accustomed to Lee Yena’s irregular broadcasting schedule, eagerly awaiting notifications.

Even with just these early followers, the viewer count was nearing 5,000. The broadcaster CravingWarmAmericano’s prowess was clearly on display. The viewer count showed the results of drawing in many people who stuck around due to the drama.

-User ㅇㅇ donated 1,000 KRW!-

[Six months went by so fast, teacher. It really feels like just the other day when you declared your break.]

“Hmm… really? I’ve had enough time for reflection… maybe there’s a bit of a time difference.”

– “Do you live on Pluto or something?”

– “Time difference?;”

– “She must have gone crazy.”

– “She really seems to be doing this on purpose.”

– “No one told you to reflect in the first place.”

– “If we had told her to reflect, she would’ve stubbornly not done it.”

Whether Lee Yena knew the extent of the interest still focused on her or not, or if she just didn’t care about the transient viewers who would flood in soon, she continued to have trivial conversations with her viewers.

-Choorook.

“Am I drinking again? It’s unfair. This is water. Should I get a breathalyzer?”

As time passed briefly like that, the number of viewers surged rapidly. In the chat, more and more people were asking when KoK would start. Most of them had usernames I had never seen before. Ironically, they were clean and ordinary usernames.

Usernames like ‘CarpoolingAndEatingWebersGetDevoured’, ‘BurningTrashGetDevoured’, ‘ArkAndGetDevouredGetDevoured’, were actually from existing viewers who considered themselves fans.

The chatbox filled with usernames made up of combinations of names and numbers, or common words. These nicknames obviously didn’t have much to do with internet broadcasting.

These were the true casual viewers who usually didn’t watch live broadcasts.

『Nah, definitely not doing shit.』

『Should we crack the whip with an ocarina?』

『Your voice is beautiful, host.』

『Is this a Rogue lecture???』

『What tier is this person??』

『Not doing KoK?』

『Let’s go for an 8-hour grind』

『Should we shake off the ants?』

『So many new viewers』

『KoK OST – The Rogue Opening – Demon King – The Rogue Battle Music – KoK Pick Music – Freestyle – Queen Maker OST Full Course Performance Let’s go』

The regular viewers, treating these visits from ordinary people almost like an invasion, acted out with petty jealousy. Still, she couldn’t help but feel a bit of anticipation.

With so many visitors, surely today we’d get to see KoK-

Just as if responding to those expectations, Lee Yena moved the mouse toward the KoK icon, then leisurely scanned the chatbox up and down.

“Only two days left until the season ends. Have you all reached Platinum? Oh, I see some of you haven’t… Then you shouldn’t be watching the broadcast. I should help you…”

Her tone filled with dissatisfaction.

Lee Yena caught the username of someone who posted, ‘I gave up because I’m in silverㅠㅠ’, and she hesitated for a moment. Soon, her mouse hovered over a temporary ban, clearly indicating what kind of ‘help’ she had in mind.

-User Desperate has donated 1,000 won!-

【Teacher, won’t you do a duo rescue content? 2 wins 2 losses, really desperate】

-User TenTimesMoreDesperate has donated 10,000 won!-

【I’m really desperate, a desperation you can see in numbers】

Of course, the help that viewers had in mind differed.

Despite her eccentricities, no one doubted Lee Yena’s skills. She was not only someone who streamed her way to the Challenger rank but also someone even professional gamers referred to as their teacher and sought guidance from. Moreover, she was renowned for being a master rogue, known for efficiently handling lower-ranked players.

If they could duo with her, it was obvious she could reliably escort them to Platinum more stably than anyone else.

-HelpMePlease made a donation of 50,000 won!-

【Teacher, please, I beg you. My friends keep teasing me, saying I smell like lowest rank, and if I think about enduring this for another year, I feel like I might die.】

Donations competed fiercely, increasing in amount. It seemed as though her murmuring earlier was part of the build-up to starting duo content. Just like other broadcasters.

However, no matter how long they waited, the line “How about we try duos?” never came.

-TopThiefOfAllTime made a donation of 1,000 won!-

【Teacher, I used to live in Platinum, but ever since last week, after playing 10 games every day as a rogue, I’ve been dragged down to the murky depths of Gold. Please, take pity on me and return me to my home. I beg you.】

As the number of viewers crafting elaborate backstories increased, considering Lee Yena’s known resistance to being swayed by money, the broadcast became more dramatic.

“Thank you for your donations. They will be used efficiently for the revival movement. Um… There’s no need to compete with your bids or donate excessively. Help will be given, of course. But…have you ever heard that saying?”

Pausing briefly to take a sip, it turned out to be water, much to the surprise of her viewers who never expected it.

“If you light a fire for a cold person, they’ll be warm for a few hours, but if you teach them to light a fire, they’ll be warm for their entire life.”

『???』

『Are you saying we need to die;;』

『Please, have a heart』

『Teacher…?』

『No way』

『Did she run out of controversies to stir?』

-YesYes made a donation of 1,000 won!-

【Isn’t it more like if you give someone a fish, they eat for a day, but if you teach them to fish, they eat for a lifetime…?】

In response to the reasonable query, Lee Yena simply shook her head lightly. If the camera had been on, viewers would have seen the slight smile that graced her face.

“Teaching you to fish…in this case, would mean teaching you how to win even if your team isn’t built around a rogue. It’s the proper way. Though it takes a long time to learn. But with only two days left…how would we manage that?”

But since her camera was still famously covered with blue tape, all viewers could perceive was the resolute tone in her voice.

“We’re going to learn how to light the fire. First, pick the rogue, and make the team adapt to having a rogue.”

With more determination than necessary.

“Let’s start by practicing how to unify everyone’s thoughts right from the pick-ban phase, shall we?”