It’s not that kind of malicious broadcast

《Alright. In such situations… first, you need to dig in deeply here. Now, let me give you a question. What do you think will happen if you go so deep and then encounter enemies?》

《Uh… you’ll probably be isolated and die…?》

《Correct. As expected from my number one student. Everyone, give a round of applause.》

-Clap clap clap

It made no sense to clap while playing a game. It wasn’t VR, and with a keyboard and mouse, you’d literally have to take your hands off the game to clap.

The chat was bombarding her with comments pointing this out, but Lee Yena, who had the philosophy of ‘not being swayed by the opinions of those weaker than me,’ continued to clap rhythmically.

Naturally, the one who grew anxious was StarPork, who had been dragged to the spectator seat, representing the lower-tier students.

《Hey, hey! They’re coming! They’re coming this way!》

《It’s alright. They can’t see from that angle. You should memorize these angles for later… Anyway, the correct answer is ‘you’ll die if isolated’. The opponents know this too, so they will come to surround the Rogue. They won’t let an easy kill slip away, risking the Rogue appearing behind their dealers.》

《No, they’re coming! I think they can see you!》

《Maybe it’s broadcast sniping. Or just extremely lucky. Either way, when the opponent has given up every other choice and is only thinking about killing the Rogue, their movements are predictable.》

Lee Yena had already cloaked herself and retreated, but the Warrior, who should have lost sight of her, boldly began a charge.

A clear indication of broadcast sniping, without even attempting to hide it.

《Hmm… doesn’t seem like it was just luck.》

-Boom!

Contrasting with her relaxed tone, a sharp attack sound echoed. But the massive axe predictably sliced through empty air.

It wasn’t so much dodging as it was predicting the move.

《Now, no solo Warrior would ever charge in so confidently. This means there’s at least one Knight blocking your retreat from behind… So now, the enemy’s focus has shifted to the rear, and on the surface, it’s a 4 vs. 5 in our favor. What does this mean?》

By stepping aside just one step, barely evading the axe by a paper-thin margin, Lee Yena continued her explanation while swiftly exiting the battlefield.

Escaping from an enemy who could decapitate you at any moment required skills likely at the Platinum tier. Did she really think such dodges were plausible at that tier? StarPork suppressed her urge to voice such doubts.

Regardless of intentions, having disrupted the lecture by shouting “Don’t encourage troll picks!” she felt obliged to cooperate with the current practical session, which was proceeding smoothly enough.

《…Does it mean we have the advantage on the surface?》

《Hmm… half right. Precisely, it means we can dominate the surface. This way, whatever we do, the opponents will be forced to respond, just like a dog’s tail wagging whenever the dog moves.》

The lecture that continued in a laid-back voice accurately pinpointed the advanced methods of underground operations. Though the explanation was fairly unkind, the main point was simple.

By using positioning to confuse the opponent’s movements and forcing them to redirect personnel to the rear, the allied forces with numerical superiority at the front could actively choose their battlefield.

At this point, as Season 1 was just wrapping up, the concept was unfamiliar. However, as the seasons continued and various concepts were established, this method would become common knowledge.

The problem was,

《And where we use our autonomy is practically up to the rogue. Since they’re alone at the front, they arrive first no matter where they go. So… for a while, the fate of this game is in the rogue’s hands. It’s like holding the leash of a dog that wags its tail.》

《What if our team doesn’t respond to what the rogue does?》

《Well then, they’d get bitten by the dog. And what should you do with a dog that bites?》

《Uh, can I not answer that…?》

It seemed overly rigorous in the intent to lecture on how to set things aflame.

* * * *

It was an ambitious educational broadcast. Although the person carrying the ambition had some issues, which also affected the direction of the education, the essence remained.

Somehow, the broadcast even had prepared observing students, making it quite a well-rounded lecture. However, regrettably—and fortunately for some—the thriving lecture had been on hold for nearly an hour.

Since the first game, the rogue could no longer be picked.

Even Lee Yena had not anticipated this situation. She had always played the rogue with indomitable will. It was unthinkable that anyone could stop her, who roamed the in-game battlefield with composed yet mentally challenging communication.

But to be precise, it was Lee Yena herself who had stopped.

It was the principle she had always adhered to that caused the problem. If someone else declared their pick of the rogue first, she would always yield.

However, perhaps due to the World Series Finals having changed the world, every queue she entered had a foreplayer.

『Snack: rogue underground』

『ZeroTour: ㄷㅈㅈㅎ』

『Snack: rogue first』

『ZeroTour: 2 rogue go』

And always, at least two people per queue.

『Snack: Stop whining and pick the knight yourself.』

『Snack: Check the stats ㄱ』

『Lemming: The 4th pick has a higher win rate.』

『Zeratul: Yep, that’s right.』

『Zeratul: But I have a higher pick priority.』

『Lemming: Just let the 2nd pick concede.』

『Lemming: Damn it……』

『Lemming: Are rogues always the last pick or something?』

『Rogue Revival Movement: Um……』

《Hmm… are these participants viewers? Even if they are, it’s inevitable…but perhaps not all of them are.》

Thus, for the fifth time, they failed to pick the rogue. In the first two attempts, Lee Yena had smiled and volunteered to play the farmer role, and for a few tries, she had dodged and changed her ID, but eventually, seemed slightly worn out. Her voice leaked out, sounding more melancholic than usual.

Not too long ago—specifically, during times when she would confidently say, “If you do this, your team will follow the rogue’s strategy. There’s no need to explain. Just open the Lich’s door and throw both your daggers at the Lich.”

The contrast of her current tone to those more assertive moments made her sound even more disheartened.

-ㅇㅇ donated 1,000 KRW!-

【Actors, please get a clue, seriously】

Viewers, feeling the frustration from the stalled flow, shared the sentiment.

-ㅇㅇ donated 1,000 KRW!-

【Hmm… it’s about time…】

These were the audience members who tuned in to see the famous rogue once in action. How many minutes had passed with not even a glimpse of a dagger in sight?

StarPork, feeling a sense of responsibility, threw out suggestions like grasping at straws-

《How about this, I queue up and try to pick the rogue myself? I’ll be aggressive!》

《It’s not a bad idea. But learning in real-time might be difficult. Razing also requires exquisite techniques…yeah.》

Lee Yena rejected softly with a faint sigh. She feared that in a situation flooded with so many players, if the gameplay was handed over, it might draw unnecessary aggro towards StarPork.

A brief moment of silence followed.

《How about we do this.》

Lee Yena, who had logged out of KoK from her alternate account, turned on Notepad and filled the screen with it.

《Of course… it might be because a lot of viewers are trying to participate. Looking at it now, there’s no problem with picking. Yes. Everyone is choosing bravely… and there don’t seem to be many people trolling just because they picked a rogue.》

While numerous question marks and chat comments about where the problem wasn’t, and that it was all problematic, were flooding in, Lee Yena let out a contemplative hum.

《Shall we gather collective intelligence? Now, everyone knows that Rogue 2 Undergound is the answer. But what’s the reason for conflicts in lower-tier solo queue?》

『Answer…?』

『Did I come to another world?』

『This is so dizzying.』

『Teacher, it seems like a mistake in the question.』

『It is the answer, though.』

『No rogues below Diamond, for real.』

『No matter how much, how do you do Rogue 2 Underground with someone you just met?』

『Mental people using league strategies in solo queue should just die.』

Seeing the chaotic flurry of chats filling the window, what was she thinking?

《Hmm… Hm. Hmm…》

After making a series of peculiar sounds as if deep in thought, she pressed the keyboard forcefully.

On the white Notepad screen appeared the word ‘Proof’.

《So, to sum it up… there are many people who think that pro teams are pro teams and solo queue is solo queue, and there are few who think that you can trust and run a rogue in a hastily assembled team… Seems to be the conclusion. Yes.》

Following that, a crude timer appeared on the broadcasting screen. It was a timer taken from some unknown website. Instead of knowing how to set it as an overlay, she just minimized the browser window and let the small timer stay there.

In one corner of the KoK screen, logged in as ‘GetDevoured’, the timer was counting down from 41:24:00.

《Then, isn’t it about proving it in solo queue as well?》

It was a timer indicating the end of Season 1.

《Rogue or the farmer supporting another rogue. I’ll do only one of the two.》

After changing the broadcast title, Lee Yena wrote:

“Rogue Revival Movement – Climbing (No Log-off)”

『Shall we see how far we need to go until the skeptics disappear?』

For some reason, she smiled a bit ruefully.

TL’s Corner:

The rare time when Yena gets bitten back by her antics.