Gwanjongcheonma’s Game Broadcast - Chapter 180

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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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Episode 180
Korea versus Japan. The opening match.
If an all-kill had decided the contest, everyone would have naturally assumed Japan’s victory.
It would have been strange if Japanese fans weren’t bewildered by the opening match result.
-An all-kill right from the start? Samurai Japan’s momentum looks strong!
-You didn’t watch the footage, you idiot. We lost.
-Huh?????
-What is this?
-Hidden camera? That’s it, right?
-The fall of the Great Japanese Empire is herewwwwww
-Playtime shorter than waiting time at the airport lolololol
-You packed a swimsuit, right? The seawater’s cold though^^
-Humiliation, humiliation, utter humiliation! The eternal x-job defeated by Korea!
-Defeat? They got swept with a straight all-kill
-The Attention-Seeking Heavenly Demon is amazing!
-He’s the enemy but I’ve fallen for him…
-Truly worthy of an Asian gamer!
Beyond shock, the match result felt refreshingly novel.
If Japan’s atmosphere had been a funeral,
Korea was a festival incarnate.
-We won! We won! We won! We won! We won!
-Finally, one win lolololololol
-Is this Infinite Challenge or what lololol seriously lololol
-It really felt long TT Good thing we kept playing TT
-To witness this historic moment live;;;
-Best thing I did all year GOAT lololololol
└Relief lololol
└Following the Attention Seeker’s broadcast lol
└Liking the Attention Seeker’s YouTube subscribe button lolol
└Telling Mom I love her lololol
-Mom! I’m on the broadcast! Mom! I’m on the broadcast! Mom! I’m on the broadcast!
-How do you think Singularity feels? lololol
-They achieved what they’d never done before the moment we entered lolol
-Are the officials’ jaws hitting the floor!
-Look at the Captain’s expression lololol Honey just pouring out of his eyes lol
-Even a dad who got his kid a perfect test score wouldn’t look at them like that lololololol
Pshhh.
The moment the game ended, the glass door shifted to transparent.
The instant Hae-rang rose from the capsule and stepped onto the stage,
Uwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!
More than fifty thousand spectators erupted in unison.
Tingle-tingle!
Like the Iron Fist’s Blood Burst,
it felt as though lightning had struck down through the crown of his head.
Hae-rang couldn’t take a single step forward.
All of this tremendous roar—every bit of it was for him alone.
Over his time as a streamer, he’d received plenty of praise.
But their support had mostly come through the chat window.
The National Team Selection Tournament had been held in private as well,
so hearing the direct voices of gaming fans in person was a first for him.
This newfound dopamine rush, tasted for the first time in his life,
came in its most potent form.
Hae-rang received the “praise” roaring from tens of thousands through his entire body.
Thump.
He dropped to both knees on the ground.
If he’d kept standing, he feared his mind might cloud over.
Dopamine seemed to swim through every vein in his body.
In that dizzy flood of sensation,
Hae-rang interlaced his fingers to steady his trembling hands.
It was a posture that anyone watching would have easily misunderstood.
[Ah! Player Cheon Hae-rang has dropped to one knee! It looks like a posture of prayer! Could he be performing a Pray Ceremony? What a reverent and sacred sight!]
-So cool shivering shivering shivering
-Prayer ceremony alone in the spotlight shivering shivering
-Did our attention seeker even have a religion?
-Where did this prayer ceremony come from all of a sudden?
-You idiots, did you forget that Gwanjong is the Cult Leader?
-Cult Leader ceremony shivering shivering shivering
-Right lol if he’s the Cult Leader of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult it’s obvious he’d pray lol
-At this point I can’t tell if it’s a concept or genuine;;;;
-Ceremony GOAT lol lol
└Siuuuuu
└Salute lol lol
└Jiseong walking in Japan match lol lol
└Planting the Taegeuk flag on the pitcher’s mound lol lol
-The lighting is white too so incredibly reverent shivering shivering
-I want to join the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult!
-Join lol how do you register lol lol
-Attention-Seeking Cult Leader! Please accept us too!
“KOREA!KOREA!KOREA!”
Some in the crowd were chanting the name of the Korean National Team,
while others could be heard chanting the name of the legend that had spread across Europe.
“Thousand Horse!Thousand Horse!Thousand Horse!”
It didn’t matter which.
Every cry was praise for Hae-rang.
‘This is about….’
When he had reformed the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult and proclaimed the Heavenly Decree once more.
It was a roar comparable to when he had stood before tens of thousands of believers on the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains.
The greatest happiness Hae-rang had felt in his previous life.
It was being recreated before his eyes now.
‘Becoming a streamer was the right choice.’
It was a moment when such thoughts came naturally.
“Hae-raaaang!”
Team Heavenly Demon Divine Cult in the waiting area rushed toward Hae-rang with full force.
Joint, standing at the front, leaped and threw himself onto Hae-rang’s body.
“You crazy bastard. You actually did it!”
Da-hong and Hyeon-bin, who followed behind, couldn’t contain their excitement.
This victory was especially emotional for the two of them.
They were the ones who had suffered helpless defeats in every tournament they entered.
Hae-rang alone had resolved the resentment they carried,
so how deep must their gratitude run.
“Thank you, Hae-rang. Really, really thank you.”
“I’m grateful too, Hae-rang! I’m so glad I joined the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult!”
Even amid the roaring cheers that made the ears ring, his teammates’ words came through clearly.
Victory in the opening match.
This was merely the first step.
There was still a long way to go ahead,
“I feel incredible right now.”
Hae-rang, it seemed,
wanted to savor this feeling a little longer.
* * *
Korea’s historic first victory at the Capsule Cup.
Naturally, not just Korea but foreign media outlets poured in their attention as well.
Because Hae-rang alone had achieved an All-Kill,
all that interest converged on a single point.
“Player Cheon Hae-rang. We’ll move to the Interview Area.”
Numerous reporters were already seated, waiting for him.
A skilled interpreter was in position, ready for his responses.
Hae-rang glanced around and clicked his tongue.
‘That one sentence won’t work anymore.’
The single phrase that had left countless overseas gamers speechless.
He knew well that English-language Taunt had no effect outside English-speaking regions.
He simply wanted to skip unnecessary conversation.
There was only one reason why Hae-rang, who endlessly craved attention, avoided victory interviews.
Information about the other national teams.
Since Korea and Japan had faced off in the opening match, the remaining nations must now be engaged in fierce competition.
Especially since the winner of the very next match would become his opponent in the quarterfinals.
Hae-rang had decided to end the interview as quickly as possible.
“Congratulations on your victory, Cheon Hae-rang.”
A blonde-haired foreign journalist wearing horn-rimmed glasses opened the questioning.
“Thank you.”
“You’ve won with an All-Kill in your first WVC appearance. How do you feel about that?”
“Of course I’m delighted. I was also thinking of the fans cheering from Korea.”
“Against Japan, you employed a fundamentals-focused fighting style, which seems quite different from your usual approach. I’m curious what prompted this change.”
“Rather than a change, I’ve always emphasized fundamentals in fighting games. Since I’ve trained fundamentals thoroughly, I thought I could perform well with a similar style.”
This time, a German journalist with a striking prominent nose took the microphone.
“Before the WVC began, there were rumors of a Korean gamer circling the European Server and breaking through Gold Rank. Is Thousand Horses, the European ID of Cheon Hae-rang, correct?”
“Yes.”
“Thousand Horses—what does that mean?”
“It refers to a sports car with a thousand horsepower.”
“Ah. That’s quite a powerful image.”
The German journalist nodded, apparently satisfied.
The other journalists also tapped their laptops, understanding the meaning.
Hae-rang’s expression remained ambiguous.
‘It’s ridiculous, really.’
Thousand Horses.
It was just an ID he’d interpreted ‘Heavenly Demon’ any way he pleased.
The whole sports-car business
had been because of a request from his loyal manager, Choi Gang-sik.
[At least do this one thing my way with Thousand Horses! I’m begging you!]
The reason was that he couldn’t bear to see his managed player mocked internationally.
He didn’t understand why that would be mocking,
but since it was apparently a lifelong wish, he’d simply agreed.
“Your win rate on the European Server was quite high. How did it feel in actual play?”
“I heard it was fiercer than the Korean Server, but I didn’t notice much difference.”
“Ha. Since your record is good, it’s hard to argue.”
It was an answer that could easily have felt like provocation,
but the German journalist took it in stride.
Now, a Japanese journalist—from the defeated side—took the microphone.
“Cheon Hae-rang. Since the Capsule Cup began, South Korea has now won its first match. What do you think the problem was?”
A murmur rippled through part of the press section.
It was like scattering ashes over a celebration feast.
Not a question befitting such a triumphant first victory.
‘Why would he do that?’
‘Obviously—because I crushed Japan alone, they don’t like how it looks.’
‘He’s really harboring a grudge.’
Several journalists shot sharp looks at the Japanese reporter.
But the expression of the Japanese journalist wearing rimless glasses remained utterly composed.
In a way, it was intriguing.
How Hae-rang would answer this question.
But his answer was disappointingly simple.
“I’m not sure. It’s not my affair.”
“Not your affair…?”
“I don’t know why the previous national representatives struggled. Since I wasn’t part of that team. What matters is the future, doesn’t it?”
Beneath a kind smile, he had woven an edge as sharp and cutting as a Flying Blade.
Hae-rang concluded the interview with finality.
“The Soe-gwon Representative Team I’m competing for will be different from the past. From now on, it will be extremely difficult for Japan to beat Korea. Just as it was today.”
Think of them simply as a different team.
Different from Korea’s former national team.
Hae-rang rose from his seat, still wearing that smile.
The interview was over, but the Japanese journalist remained seated for a long time.
Her head trembled faintly as she pressed it to the ground.
* * *
“Haa!”
“Cha-ha!”
When Hae-rang returned to the Player Waiting Room,
the three of them were staring intently at the second match.
“Oh, Hae-rang!”
Ma Hyeon-bin, his eyes fixed on the match with obvious tension, greeted him.
“Yeah. How’s the score?”
“It’s one-sided.”
The second match, following the opening game.
Italy and Russia were in the middle of their clash.
“It’s 3 to 1, and Italy looks like they’ll take this round too.”
“I see.”
Hae-rang nodded and fixed his gaze on the screen.
As Capsule Games became more widespread, certain countries had emerged as dark horses.
Russia, playing against Italy, was especially one of them.
Perhaps because of the heightened senses honed in the heart of the Snow Field,
they had a particular talent for excelling in Capsule Games.
But even Russia seemed outmatched against Italy.

Italy’s second gamer had knocked out Russia’s captain.
Score: 4 to 1.
Not quite an All-Kill like Hae-rang had achieved,
but still a decidedly lopsided score.
A quick glance.
Hae-rang’s eyes took in the victorious Italian gamer.
His gaze drifted briefly toward Da-hong.
She remained motionless, her attention fixed solely on the figure on screen.
“How did the score progress?”
“Well. From a 1-1 tie, Italy’s second player went on to win three straight.”
Even Ma Hyeon-bin, as he explained the score, was noticeably careful.
There was good reason for it.
Italy’s second player, who had claimed three consecutive wins.
He was a gamer with whom Da-hong shared a particularly bitter history.
The player responsible for Da-hong’s disciplinary action at the International Competition,
and the one who had ruthlessly exposed her weaknesses.
‘Alberto.’
Crack.
A fracture appeared in Da-hong’s long fingernails as her fist clenched.

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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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