Genius Archer’s Streaming - Chapter 580

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

The Genius Archer’s Streaming Season 3 Episode 50
18. Thorough Verification (3)
After the unprecedented phenomenon of streamers challenging Almond’s Challenge score began.
Posts like these started flooding the community.
[Breaking News) Skilled Streamer K Attempts to Verify Almond’s Challenge Points Fraud!?]
Clicking into these posts, the endings were all the same.
==== ====
…The streamer who went couldn’t even start the Elite difficulty and just had a Q&A session with an employee before leaving ^^
(Video)
==== ====
The attached video showed an employee giving robotic answers in a lifeless voice.
Lol, how am I supposed to verify anything when I have no skills lol
-What’s with that employee’s tone
└If I got any more annoyed I’d probably send an Amazon Express package their way
How persistently annoying must they have been asking about it lol
-Facts) Forget verification, they just went to ride the algorithm wave.
Without peering into their minds, their true intentions remained unknowable.
Some streamers probably did go for genuine verification, while others were just riding the controversy wave.
Either way, the conclusion was always the same.
Many people challenged the Hitman game, and all those people were failing.
They’re all going back while sighing lol
-Did these bastards really go in so confidently claiming to verify the Almond controversy??
└Some of them did
-Wait, is it true that 99% of these guys can’t even get Elite difficulty??
└It seems incredibly difficult
Among all the challengers, not a single person had set any meaningful record yet.
The challengers probably all hoped to gain some attention from the Almond score controversy.
But with things going this way, it was Almond who was getting the spotlight.
-What exactly did Almond do to pull this off???
-This Nut Fan… was actually incredible…
-At this point I’m seriously hyped for the international tournament too.
Almond on a winning streak lol
└This guy’s racking up wins while sleeping…
hahahaha for real
└Breaking News) Almond currently on a 14-win streak while sleeping!
The more they failed, the higher Almond’s reputation soared without limit.
Eventually, a post like this even got recommended and appeared in the trending issues.
15th) Almond’s current status
==== ====
Currently just drinking coffee at the hotel lol
Winning streaks while sipping coffee!
Simply… the GOAT!
The Greatest Of All Time!
==== ====
A post had gone up with a photo of Almond drinking coffee at the breakfast buffet—though no one knew exactly when it was taken.
-We worship you, G.O.A.T…!
-Just the GOAT…
-Honestly, looks-wise he’s literally the GOAT
G.O.A.T
An abbreviation in English meaning “greatest of all time,” it had been frequently used in sports and the arts industry.
At some point, it became common terminology in the esports scene as well.
This GOAT title was given only to the greatest players of all time, literally speaking.
In soccer terms, it’s a title only someone like Messi or Ronaldo would receive—so Almond claiming it was somewhat amusing.
But that was precisely what made it entertaining.
It showed just how dominant Almond’s momentum was right now.
-Is this a hidden coffee ad? Seriously a photoshoot
Is that seriously just something someone took a photo of? That’s crazy.
-This guy just stacks winning streaks by drinking coffee…
-Isn’t he the N.U.T. instead of the GOAT?
hahahahahaha
I can’t translate this as it appears to be corrupted or garbled text rather than coherent Korean characters.
└We worship you, the “N. U. T.”
Beyond just elevating him as the greatest, the community had begun worshipping Almond as an entirely new deity.
13th Place) Sang-hyun Yu<<< If this guy's a god, I'm upvoting like crazy
==== ====
Let me start~
==== ====
lol
I can't be sure of the exact meaning since "-ㄱㅊ~" appears to be an incomplete or informal Korean expression. It looks like it might be a typo or slang abbreviation, but without more context, I cannot provide an accurate translation.
-Upvoting like a madman
-Buddha? What's that! "The Archer" has arrived~!
Archer lol so funny lol crazy lol
Haha, that's hilarious!
Archer-nim lol
One might wonder why they'd go so far as to worship him as a god.
But community sentiment, once flipped, tends to become far more extreme.
It was similar in principle to how a counter-punch hits much harder.
And then, news arrived.
[Breaking News) Streamer Kkakddugi now playing as an Elite Agent!]
Finally, one of the many challengers had begun playing as an Elite Agent.
-Finally escaped the entrance section lol
-Seriously, how many hours was that lol
-Oh, Kkakddugi? That's manageable at least

* * *
At this point, the Booth Staff's capabilities were reaching their breaking point.
Despite the endless soulless responses, people refused to back down easily.
"Look, can't you just let us try the Elite Agent difficulty once?"
"That's right! We need to verify it! I'm Shinsen, an esports journalist! Just let me verify the Elite Agent difficulty once!"
Honestly, even the Streamers were fed up.
What's with all these Journalists showing up?
The staff members frowned deeply and responded once more in that lifeless tone.
"Difficulty must be earned on your own—that's the rule~ And if you couldn't even enter the difficulty in the first place~ well, that's already your verification~"
Setting aside their tone, their logic was sound.
Failing to enter in the first place was already verification in itself.
So what more needed verification?
Wasn't this just about slapping the tag "Almond's Elite Agent gameplay" on it and milking the views?
"So~ please leave~ go on… Ugh!?"
Someone from behind grabbed the Employee by the scruff and yanked him back.
"Hey, you fool! When the tide comes in, don't you row with it?"
It was the Manager.
He barked that at the Employee's ear.
Then he turned back with a business smile and handled it himself.
"Ah, my goodness… I apologize. Journalists, Streamers.
"Ahem… Well, it's fine."
"The Elite Agent difficulty is inherently designed to be difficult to reach. We're planning to implement it through the Almond Challenge event. We're coordinating it right now."
"Oh…! You're going to implement it!?"
"Yes, yes. I was running late coming back from wrapping up a meeting. It should be ready soon."
That's right. The Manager had been in emergency meetings this whole time to properly row with the tide.
"That way, people will truly experience what you mentioned, Journalist—the 'spicy heat' of this game! Haha!"
The new marketing angle for Hitman created through this morning's emergency meeting.
It was the "spicy heat."
In gaming terms, "spicy heat" refers to difficulty so challenging that it's hard to play through.
Some might ask: if it's so hard to play, why play it at all?
'That's something only someone completely clueless would ask.'
While it might seem odd to casual players, just as restaurants become famous for their spicy food, games often sell well when they gain a reputation for difficulty.
Especially when Streamers experience that spicy heat on behalf of viewers, people become curious and buy the game to try it themselves.
Similar to how spicy food mukbangs were once popular, this reflects the current market's characteristic of trends emerging through streaming.
That's why companies even pay Streamers to advertise their games.
But Hitman now? Streamers lined up on their own, wanting to taste the ultimate spicy heat.
Then I needed to show them properly.
The spicy side of an elite operative!
"Alright! The Elite Operative difficulty is now open! From this point forward, all challenges will proceed on Elite Operative difficulty!"
"Wooooow! Thank you!"
"Wow. I'm already in! This is insane!"

* * *
The streamer known as Challenge Hunter Kkakddugi.
He was extremely excited right now.
"Ha. Lady Luck is on my side. You all heard that, right? This is Elite Operative difficulty?"
Everyone else had failed without even getting the proper difficulty.
By sheer luck, they were just handing him the Elite difficulty from his turn onward.
-OMG let's go
-Show us what you've got, Kkakddugi!
-Let's restore some pride to us Kkakddugi fans lol
Despite achieving a ranking within the top 10, yesterday's challenge had left me feeling unsatisfied.
It was probably because I'd been eliminated so pathetically from the Zombie School challenge, which had lasted quite a long time.
'If only Almond hadn't been there….'
I died to Almond when I was a survivor, and died to him again after becoming a zombie.
Literally, Almond killed me twice.
No, as a Challenge Hunter, he killed me one more time, so that's three times total.
"A gentleman's revenge is never too late, even after ten years…! I'll show you!"
Kkakddugi stepped into the capsule while steeling his resolve.
It wasn't that I held a grudge against Almond as a person, but shouldn't I make a comeback as a skilled streamer?
And honestly, if I bring up Almond, the view count goes up….
"Ahem."
Kkakddugi roughly composed himself and waited calmly inside the capsule.
And he reminded himself.
'I have the advantage. I've seen all of Almond's gameplay.'
Of course I had to perform better than Almond.
Almond had started the game completely blind, while I had already studied all of his plays.
I'd already watched the video multiple times and memorized all the important points.
[Mission Start]
The game begins.
Acrid smoke engulfs my vision.
Cough! Cough!
[Ssssshhhhh….]
What reaches my ears is radio static just as stinging as the smoke.
[This is… ssshhhhh… Ran… ssshhhhh.]
The Operator's voice is so mixed with static that I can barely make out a few words.
My vision was obscured by the thick smoke, making it difficult to see what was right in front of me.
Even the chat window was barely visible, and no UI elements were apparent to my eyes.
'Was it really this bad…?'
I knew from the start that it would be quite disorienting, but experiencing it firsthand was far more chaotic than I'd anticipated.
'It's fine. I know what's coming.'
Kkakddugi quickly pressed his ear to the ground, focusing on the sound of the enemies entering.
Almond was proceeding without knowledge, but he already knew that five or six enemies would appear shortly.
'As expected.'
Thud. Thud.
Footsteps echoed.
Voices could be heard too.
"We have a living target. Appears to be an elite operative. Respond accordingly."
Kkakddugi instantly moved behind a pillar and leaned his back against it.
"Phew."
After exhaling briefly, he drew his pistol.
While flexing and unfurling his fingers to get a feel for the grip.
"Capture or eliminate? Eliminate. Roger."
The enemies had been ordered to eliminate him.
[Ssshhh… Eliminate all witnesses immediately….]
And he'd received the same order to eliminate them.
'My vision is starting to adjust now.'
The vision that had been obscured by smoke was beginning to become clearer.
It was clear enough to shoot the enemies without issue.
'They're beyond the executive office door.'
Kkakddugi was currently behind the pillar at the desk in the executive office, while the enemies were beyond the office door.
The moment they poked their heads in would be his opportunity.
"Breaching. Breaching!"
The enemies rushed in as a group.
"Hah!"
Kkakddugi held his breath and whipped around the pillar, bursting out with explosive speed.
'There!'
Kkakddugi instantly pinpointed the enemies' positions.
He immediately pulled the trigger.
Bang! Bang!
The fierce recoil and muzzle flash erupted.
'Got him!'
The bullet struck the first thug's chest dead center. Incredible reaction time and accuracy.
-Whoa
-That was insane
-He's crazy as always
Kkakddugi immediately swiveled the gun barrel and fired at the other operatives.
Bang! Bang!
Every shot pierced through the head and heart.
But then—
"!?"
——Bang!
A gunshot rings out. From a direction it absolutely shouldn't have come from.
'He was alive?'
It was the one I'd shot in the heart first. He'd survived and fired back at me.
Did he revive or something?
That couldn't be it.
'He never died in the first place…!'
Elite operatives don't die unless you hit their heads.
And conversely, they're extremely good at hitting players' heads.
Splat!
Kkakddugi's head explodes from a single shot.
-???
-Huh?
-?
Thud…!
My vision tumbles below the ground, gradually fading to black.
As darkness closes in, only this text glows brightly.
[Mission Failed]
"Enemy neutralized! Completely eliminated!"
Mission failed. In other words, I'm dead.
The chat that had disappeared came back online.
Haha, seriously, lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol
I'm dying laughing ㅋㅋㅋㅋ
-Haha, one-second cut lol
-Is this actually an elite operative? (not difficulty-wise)
That's so funny lolol
The kkakdugi broth splattered everywhere lol
The chat was filled with nothing but mockery.
Kkakddugi felt wronged.
Elite operatives appearing right from the start. This was the problem when difficulty was determined first.
Ironically, watching Almond's streams too many times had become my fatal mistake.
"Ah… ah. No, wait. This was a mistake. A mistake. Ah… I didn't expect the first enemies to be elites… ah seriously, don't clip this. Please don't clip this…."
Of course, he knew.
How hopeless it was to beg these viewers.
Hahahahaha~ you're being so picky~
-What's going on?
-Clip sound effect~
Sure enough, within minutes, a clip like this was uploaded to Kkakddugi's Tseugae.
[???: Ugh, seriously, stop clipping!?]
Hahaha, the almond that was drinking coffee is on a winning streak!
Before Almond even finished a cup of coffee, Ttayinnu left lol
-How did you only catch his neck, Kkak…
-???: Kkak…!(dead)

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