Genius Archer’s Streaming - Chapter 197

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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The Genius Archer’s Streaming Season 1 Episode 197
67. The Challenger’s Wall (1)
Though the time was brief.
I concentrated as hard as I could to internalize the movements. Since Taco had already analyzed everything, it was simply a matter of embodying what he’d discovered—not particularly difficult.
‘My dominant foot is my right… so when I dodge, I push off with my right foot and shift left….’
This was my first time seeing Taco’s analysis documents like this.
So this is the level professionals train at. I felt genuinely impressed.
It’s awe-inspiring in a different way than archery, where you fight only against yourself without an opponent.
Archery is training to hone your own spirit, but this is training to penetrate your opponent’s spirit.
[Virtual Free Training]
I activated the basic training program provided by the capsule.
Here, I could move freely without the constraints of the game’s predetermined rules.
“Brain waves, full dive, virtual reality—they make it sound so grand, but this isn’t the real world. It’s ultimately just an extension of video technology,” Taco had said.
Recalling his words, I moved my body.
“So there are frames here too. When you move at ultra-high speed, you’re not actually moving that fast—you’re briefly disappearing between countless flickering frames.”
I pulled my arm up at maximum speed and swung it.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Because it’s a virtual world, acceleration happens much faster than normal human body speed.
It’s not subject to real physics—rather, output is applied as my thoughts move, and then the physics engine makes corrections.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh whoosh whoosh whoosh!
My arm moved faster and faster, creating afterimages.
Honestly, it’s almost impossible to distinguish with the naked eye. But what if I pushed my concentration to its absolute limit?
I focused all my consciousness on the intention to observe.
The moment my thought speed caught up with and surpassed the physical speed of this place.
Whoooong… whoooooong….
Everything flowed slowly.
“!”
Then I began to see it.
My arm, disappearing entirely in between.
‘It’s cutting out, isn’t it?’
The video’s frames couldn’t capture the full speed of my arm’s current input.
These are such minute differences that they’re barely visible even at this slow speed.
But there are definitely frames.
In other words, when moving at high speed in the virtual world, it’s like momentarily vanishing.
‘So that’s why bullets are dodged so easily.’
That’s why attacks that would be absolutely impossible to evade in reality slip through here.
“Professionals split these frames apart to either slip past their opponent’s attacks or force their own attacks through. You’ll see it if you watch Hong-cha,” Taco had explained.
After learning the theory directly through my body, I watched Hong-cha’s video again.
As she receives instantaneous acceleration from her right foot, her body moves as if abruptly cut off.
Like some cheap ghost movie special effect.
The problem is that this frame doesn’t have a single frame rhythm that all players share. Instead, the engine adapts fluidly depending on each individual’s circumstances.
Taco added that if it weren’t this way, the system would overload and the brain might literally melt.
In other words, the spacetime of someone moving at low speed and someone moving at high speed are different.
Professionals use this difference to both evade and land attacks.
‘This is insane….’
Sanghyeon honestly marveled at it.
Wasn’t this like special relativity applied to reality itself?
It was being expressed more exaggerated in the game, and actually being utilized in actual combat.
‘So this is what happens when you go mad for Reel.’
Only then did I understand why Taco didn’t seem to move particularly fast, yet was so good at deflecting attacks.
He possessed this kind of know-how.
And I myself had been unknowingly utilizing this as well.
There’s a clear difference between doing something knowingly and doing it without realizing it.
I watched Hong-cha’s footage once more, concentrating intently on the analysis.
‘Then to land my attack within that frame, do I need to move at a similar speed as much as possible?’
I pondered how I could land Ran’s pure white crystal and Reina’s arrows against Hong-cha.
I played the next video.
‘That’s it.’
Hong-cha pushes off the same way and dodges to the left. The opponent, anticipating this, had already thrown an attack there preemptively.
Hong-cha absurdly took the hit as if she’d thrown it at herself.
‘She’s lost control.’
A momentary acceleration has the benefit of extending the frame, but it carries the risk that one’s own perception might not be able to keep up with it.
‘That’s why you need to know their habits beforehand.’
Ultimately, this game transcends the battle of reaction speed and accuracy—it becomes a battle of reading the opponent’s psychology.
‘So this is the realm of a Challenger….’
I recalled Danmuji, who had fought against Miho.
Even Almond was utterly helpless before that monster who had already completed his growth.
The idea that Miho could beat someone like that made no sense.
It wasn’t Miho’s fault.
You can’t scold a middle schooler for not being able to beat a professional fighter.
‘I need to become a professional fighter.’
Sanghyeon once again felt the weight of the mission given to him anew.
I replayed Hong-cha’s footage as if entranced, analyzing it.

* * *
“Today we’re facing a team called the Red Carpets.”
Taco, as always, prepared the scrim with a simple briefing about the opposing team.
“The name itself is Red Car—Hong-cha—and Pets. Naturally, the person we need to be most careful about is Hong-cha.”
Tap.
As Taco touched the screen, a woman with fiery red hair appeared.
Her short hair suited her exceptionally well, and her gaze—sharp and seemingly arrogant—was quite provocative.
At first glance, she looked like she was saying, “I’m skilled, you know~”
“Everyone who knows the scene is aware, right? She has no professional experience and only played in amateur competitions. She’s gotten massive attention because she’s a female Challenger, and she’s been a successful streamer ever since. She’s also the girlfriend of Greentea, that Master ADC we faced not long ago.”
Taco added this remark.
Beyond that, he briefly reviewed her main playstyle, champion picks, and other details.
For Almond, these were materials he’d already watched dozens of times just moments before.
However, teammates who had barely reviewed the materials or were seeing them for the first time dropped their jaws.
“Wow….”
“She’s really good.”
“So frame-by-frame fights are what they call this….”
“See, brother? That’s why I was grateful I could even do that much against Danmuji?”
The viewers reacted the same way.
-Kyaa~!
-Now that’s an ADC!
-Hong-cha is seriously insane
-Her boyfriend must be feeling some self-doubt lolololol
-Wow a girl who plays ADC well… s e x y !
-Tsk tsk, Miho’s dance mad movie is better than this
-Challengers really move differently from the start. What even is this???
-Hong-cha! Please split Almond in half! Hong-cha! Please split Almond in half! Hong-cha! Please split Almond in half!
-Kill Almond who took away Reina… that’s all I’ve been thinking about from the start…
Though there were some odd opinions mixed in, overall they were marveling at Hong-cha’s play.
Considering Taco’s chat’s tendency to be sarcastic about most things, this was high praise.
‘She is good.’
Taco didn’t intend to ignore the actual power gap, but he didn’t want his teammates to feel discouraged.
He directed his gaze especially toward Almond as he spoke.
“No matter how much of a Challenger she is, the gap between pros and amateurs is huge. Especially in team games.”
He emphasized the phrase “team games” once more.
“Even among pros, there are plenty who don’t have the physical prowess Hong-cha does. This is a team game. If we just keep that in mind, we can win too. It’s not like their entire team is Hong-cha, right?”
Mid, which was considered the most important position, was Silver; Top was Bronze; Jungle was Platinum.
Bottom was Diamond and Challenger. It was a bottom-focused team.
Taco crossed his arms and stared intently at the team’s roster once more.
‘Well… if their strength is scattered half-heartedly, maybe going in like that from the start would be better….’
The Red Carpets’ team identity was clear.
A team like this might not win the championship, but they’d easily break into the top five.
‘We’re not in the top five yet.’
Taco checked the recently updated power ranking chart.
7th) Balloon Stars
A dramatic rise compared to their initial standing.
But they still weren’t in playoff contention—top five.
Since Taco had already committed to this tournament, he wanted to win it all.
Chin up.
He placed a hand on Almond’s shoulder and spoke.
“Don’t get intimidated. Let’s play well.”
Almond nodded.
“You’re better.”
Taco had said it to inject confidence.
It’s a tactic coaches typically use when facing strong opponents. If you enter the match already intimidated by the enemy’s very existence, there’s nothing you can do.
-????
-??What?
-That confidence buff is overkill
-Haha, Taco really knows how to read people!
-Baeksuk did it one-handed too. If he used both hands, he could spin-punch Hong-cha’s head lol
The viewers reacted intensely, but Almond himself remained composed.
“Yes.”
Whether he was better, he couldn’t say.
But having mastered the analysis footage Taco provided, he didn’t feel like he’d lose.
[‘Red Carpets’ has requested a practice match!]
The scenery shifted in an instant, and they were now in the champion select waiting room.
A landscape of jagged rocky peaks.
Across the flowing river, five Contractors stood in a line.
[Pick and Ban]
The ban phase had begun.
Red Carpets didn’t use a single ban card against Almond.
They trusted in their ADC’s power gap.
“As expected. We’ll make our stand with a mid ban.”
Whether to match their momentum or as strategy, Taco skipped any bottom lane bans.
In the end, Almond and Taco, Hong-cha and Lemon would face off without any restrictions.
Almond’s eyes met Hong-cha’s across the field.
She smiled with considerable confidence.
[Pure White Sniper – Ran]
She picked Ran.
It seemed they’d analyzed that Ran was Almond’s main pick.
Or perhaps, judging by that self-assured gaze, it meant something else entirely.
‘Are they telling me to come at them with both hands?’
Just then, as if on cue, a donation came through.
[Rubisword has registered a mission!]
[Challenger Kill]
[500,000 Won!]
-Wow!
-Rubisword with a generous donation after so long!?
-As expected from the Chairman
-Wait? If Almond gets a 500,000 won donation, doesn’t that mean he dies!?
“Wow. Rubisword, thank you so much. I’ll make sure to complete this mission.”
Kill the Challenger.
I recalled the time I faced Baeksuk before.
‘This won’t be easy.’
I had a memory of killing him with tremendous difficulty.
“Oppa. Pick me! Pick!”
“Ah. Yeah. I’ll pick you.”
With little time remaining, my teammate urges me on.
Thump.
A voice that now feels familiar reaches my ears.
〔Naturally, I’m the best, right?〕
As she removed her blue hood, long blonde hair fluttered in the wind.
[Cold-Blooded Arcane Archer – Reina]
-Waaaaaaa Reina! Reina! Reina!
-Sister!!!!!!
-Sister I’m dying!
-Reina summoned by 500,000 won!
-Reina don’t fall for it! That bastard called you for the money!
-It’s all over today!
-Ugh, when facing a couple, I guess I have no choice but to become a couple too… Is that how it works!?
Reina ㅠㅠ I didn’t even realize I was doing it because you took “Ran” away from me… This is so frustrating…
Reina was Almond’s most iconic pick, so the viewers’ reaction was exceptionally positive.
Donations poured in relentlessly. Despite Almond muting the donation voice during scrims, viewers kept sending donations.
Even so, Almond’s eyes remained calm and composed.
He was no longer the usual streamer Almond.
He continued to gaze at Hong-cha, who was smiling from the opposing side.
Right now, he wasn’t a streamer—he was approaching this with a professional’s mindset.
Ever since losing to Godanbaek last time, he had been equally motivated.
[The game will start in 10 seconds!]
Seeing Almond’s expression, Hong-cha’s relaxed smile faded slightly.
‘What is this.’
She bobbed her head as if loosening up her body.
‘She really looks like she’s trying to beat me.’
A Gold rank actually daring to challenge a Challenger.
Even if I’m generous and say she’s a Master because she’s beaten Masters a hundred times over….
‘A Master beating me would be absurd in itself.’
The skill gap must be on a level beyond words.
Yet the enemy is genuinely trying to win. Usually people would look for another way.
From that moment on, Almond left a deep impression on Hong-cha.
“Lemon, don’t you think she’s fun?”
“Almond? He’s so handsome!?”
“That’s not what I meant—I said fun….”
“Sigh. What do I do, unnie. My heart’s already racing thinking about throwing a Toad at Almond!”
“Ah… yeah.”
[The game begins!]

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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