Master Swordsman’s Stream - Chapter 12

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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 12

Let’s go back to yesterday.
“There’s something we need to talk about?”
“What is it. Seriously.”
Alpaca was having a conversation with Lee Suhan, his editor and manager.
“The person doing the collaboration broadcast with me, they’ve only been streaming for 2 days. So I’m asking if they have full source material from their broadcasts.”
He was talking about the collaboration broadcast with a new streamer.
Lee Suhan spoke with a note of doubt in his voice.
Typically, New Talent Discovery Content featured streamers who were just starting to gain attention.
Whether it was some competition, a collaboration with someone, or whatever the occasion—as soon as a streamer began to receive interest, Alpaca would invite them to his broadcast both to boost his own content and to help them out.
The majority of viewers who came to watch the invited streamer’s appearance were new viewers.
It was content where Alpaca would mine through the invited streamer’s past history—in other words, their embarrassing moments from before they became famous—and use those stories to entertain and build rapport with the new audience.
That was exactly what New Talent Discovery Content was.
The time it took different streamers to gain attention varied wildly.
But.
A streamer who had only been broadcasting for 2 days was a first.
“But Suhan, there’s one thing you’re misunderstanding.”
“What’s that?”
“This person is coming in more like a Master Craftsman Invitation Format.”
“Master Craftsman Invitation Format? You’ve never done that before. Actually, wait—broadcasting for 2 days……. Oh!”
Lee Suhan clapped his hands as if something had just dawned on him.
“A famous master just started streaming! What kind of game master are they?”
Alpaca let out a sigh.
If he’d just watched today’s broadcast, he’d understand the whole situation.
But he couldn’t ask Suhan to keep up with every single one of Alpaca’s broadcasts when he was managing the AyouTube channel, handling managerial duties, and doing edits all on his own.
However.
“Assassins’ Twilight.”
“What? Some game like that has a master? Pff.”
Lee Suhan hadn’t missed watching the broadcast because he was busy—he simply hadn’t watched it at all.
He was too immersed in a game called “The League.”
It had been that way for several years now.
“I figured you’d say that. But trust me, you’d change your mind if you saw the video.”
As Alpaca fiddled with his phone and looked like he was about to show him something, Lee Suhan scoffed.
“Come on. So what if he’s good at some assassination game. I’m not watching. I’m not buying.”
You’ll have to watch it when you edit anyway.
Alpaca swallowed the rest of the remark.
“What’s so fun and hard about PvE? Huh? Games like that all have the same problem—you can clear them with just a little effort.”
PvE—Player Versus Environment—basically means a player fighting AI. It’s the opposite of PvP.
Ever since the past, Alpaca had been asking Lee Suhan to give Assassins’ Twilight a try, but Suhan refused, saying there was no fun in fighting machines.
“Anyway, so it’s basically like a Master Craftsman Invitation Format thing, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Then do whatever you need to. I’ve got another match to play.”
Just as Lee Suhan was about to head into his room.
“Oh, that’s right.”
Alpaca remembered something he’d forgotten. The reason he’d brought up the collaboration broadcast in the first place.
“Hey, can you lend me your Capsule for the streamer who’s coming tomorrow?”
“What? You’ve got a spare one.”
Lee Suhan’s expression turned serious.
“It has to be your Capsule. You switched to the most expensive one recently, right? They said their Synchronization Rate is a bit low.”
“How can a master have a low Synchronization Rate?”
Synchronization Rate.
A numerical measurement of how closely one perceives the virtual reality world to be like reality itself.
The assumption that a high Synchronization Rate leads to better Capsule gaming was half true—or rather, mostly true.
As a side note, there were cases where this number exceeded 100.
Those people became so deeply immersed in a fantasy world that felt more real than reality itself that when they emerged from their Capsule after logging out, they actually felt a sense of alienation from the real world instead.
It was like a diver getting decompression sickness when surfacing from a dive.
This was called Fantasy Decompression Sickness, and the characteristic of people suffering from this condition was that they demonstrated incredible performance in the virtual reality world thanks to their exceptionally high Synchronization Rate.
Lee Suhan thought for a moment before giving a short answer.
“No way. Absolutely not.”
“Why not.”
“You’re asking me to let someone worse at games than me use a brand new, barely-used beauty I just got?”
Even though Lee Suhan played games sporadically, he maintained a high Tier in The League.
“They’re better than you, actually.”
But Alpaca could see objectively that the streamer Jin Seojun was more skilled.
Even in PvE, not many people could pull off movements like that.
The problem was that Suhan wouldn’t even watch the video, and even if he did, he wouldn’t acknowledge it.
‘Ugh. Guess I’ll have to offer mine.’
His own Capsule wasn’t bad either.
No matter how much Alpaca was certain Seojun would obviously win, he couldn’t ask him to fight with his editor just to borrow a Capsule.
But suddenly, in response to Suhan’s question, a different thought took over Alpaca’s mind, and he felt a chill run down his spine.
‘Now that I think about it…… he showed that kind of gameplay with a low Synchronization Rate. So he was performing like that in a suboptimal state.’
Wow.
So how much better would he fight in reality?
What if he’s a gangster?
No, wait—he uses a sword…… a yakuza?
In Alpaca’s mind, he pictured a man with a large scar across his face wearing a floral shirt and wielding a katana.

* * *

“Hello. I’m streamer Alpaca.”

Seojun’s face looked exactly like the Avatar he’d shown in virtual reality.
‘I thought that since the Avatar was scanned from a real face, he probably just made it somewhat generically like everyone else, but it was a true direct scan!’
Fortunately, Seojun’s face was nothing like what Alpaca had imagined—he was a handsome young man with clean features.
Alpaca felt guilty about the strange assumptions he’d made yesterday.
“Yes, hello. I’m streamer Jin Seojun.”
Meanwhile, Seojun was also looking around the space.
He was curious about what the Studio of a long-running early-30s streamer looked like.
“It’s been a while, hyung. I’m here too.”
“Taewoo, it really has been a while. Come in, please.”
After shaking hands with Alpaca, Seojun followed him into a spacious living room.
It looked like an ordinary residence on the surface, but there was a clear sense that work and rest spaces had been strictly separated.
As Seojun and Taewoo settled onto the sofa, Alpaca went to the kitchen to make coffee, and a door that had been closed swung open to reveal a man with a fierce expression.
“Hello. I’m the editor, Lee Suhan.”
Lee Suhan reached out his hand to Seojun with a grin.
“I’m streamer Jin Seojun. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
Seojun felt strength in the handshake. Was this a power play?
“I heard your Synchronization Rate is low.”
“Yes.”
“But you game well.”
“Well, I do okay.”
Yesterday, while making a short teaser video for the collaboration broadcast, Lee Suhan had been able to observe Seojun’s gameplay.
And against his expectations, he found himself feeling competitive about the skill level.
Tap.
The strange tension broke.
Alpaca had set his cup down on the table with an audible clink.
Alpaca gave Suhan a sidelong glare and seated Seojun in a chair.
“Well, well. Now that we’ve introduced ourselves, shall we talk about the broadcast plan? Did you see the teaser video?”
Seojun nodded.
The video posted on Alpaca’s Fan Cafe and AyouTube along with the collaboration announcement.
It brilliantly showcased Seojun’s gameplay, interspersed with scenes of Alpaca boasting confidently, crafted for entertainment. It was concise but perfect for promotion.
“Thanks to you, Seojun, the response has been pretty heated. Since you clearly have skill, the video looks good, and there’s entertainment value. Great.”
Whether that response was genuine would become clear a little later.
“The editor did most of the work, honestly.”
Lee Suhan laughed sheepishly and scratched the back of his neck at the praise.
“Haha. No, really. But while I was editing, I noticed you’re genuinely good at games. Have you really only been gaming for 2 days?”
“Well, no. If possible, you’d need to keep this secret, but the truth is I played a bit in the past.”
Seojun thought there was no need to hide the fact that he’d gamed in the past.
“If it was in the past, when was it?”
“Seven years ago I played The League for a bit.”
Alpaca latched onto the “seven years ago,” while Lee Suhan zeroed in on “The League.”
“Were you good back then too? What Tier were you?”
Alpaca’s eyes lit up.
Tier is an English word meaning rank or level.
In games, it’s typically used to denote item quality levels or player rankings.
“Silver.”
Silver was the Tier where the average majority of players were placed.
“I don’t think so. You couldn’t suddenly get good at a game just from playing it again after so long.”
“Well…….”
Seojun shrugged.
Lee Suhan eventually accepted it. What could he say if that’s what he claimed?
But the current level of Seojun’s skill that he’d seen through the video was indeed comparable to that ranking.
So.
“Hey, Seojun. Want to spar with me in the Martial Arts Arena?”
Lee Suhan wanted to test himself against Seojun once.
After speaking, Suhan’s eyes darted around, gauging the reaction.
Seojun looked hesitant.
But Taewoo, sitting nearby, actually perked up and asked instead.
A meaningful smile playing on his face.
“Seojun and the Martial Arts Arena? Why?”
“I want to test our skill levels.”
“Against him?”
“Yeah.”
Ha-ha-ha!
Taewoo suddenly burst into laughter.
Lee Suhan stared at him, irritated, while Alpaca, lost in thought, lifted his head to look at Taewoo.
And Seojun had a feeling he knew why Taewoo was laughing.
“Hyung, don’t do that.”
“What?”
“Just…… don’t. Ehehe.”
“……?”
At some point, Taewoo was looking at Seojun with a mischievous smile.
Seojun understood what that look meant.
It was asking permission to tell them.
Since Taewoo had connections with these people and even if the information leaked out there’d be no proof, Seojun gave a nod of approval.
“Here’s another secret—if you want to spar with him in the Martial Arts Arena, just challenge the 10th Tier.”
Essentially, Taewoo was revealing that Seojun was the Unknown.
The eyes of both Alpaca and Lee Suhan filled with shock as they grasped the meaning.
“You…… really?”
“Of course.”
Taewoo pulled out his phone as if he’d been waiting for this moment and played a video, handing it to Alpaca. Lee Suhan immediately jumped up and moved to Alpaca’s side to watch.
And a stream of exclamations poured out.
“Wow.”
“Oh.”
“This one?”
“That’s Shin Hayeon, isn’t it?”
“So we’ve invited someone way more impressive than we thought.”
“I’m suddenly really nervous about today’s broadcast.”
“Wait, he didn’t even get hit once?”
“This is completely one-sided.”
“Damn, that final move was sick.”
Alpaca watched the video and Seojun in turn, his eyes growing more confident. He muttered “seven years ago” and sank back into thought. Lee Suhan finished watching the video and turned to Seojun.
“I’ll address you as hyung from now on.”
The look in Lee Suhan’s eyes, which had been regarding him as a rival until moments ago, completely transformed.
“Huh?”
“If you’re good at games, you’re hyung.”
Seojun’s mouth dropped open in confusion.
Strictly speaking, being addressed as “hyung” wasn’t even appropriate—he should be addressed as “sir” or something.
Seojun just decided to punch Kim Taewoo for laughing for no reason. He just felt like it.
And Lee Suhan glanced at his watch and tapped Alpaca on the shoulder.
“Hey, what are you doing? It’s almost time for hyung’s broadcast.”
“Oh? Nothing, nothing. Let’s get started! Hyung, here’s my Capsule…….”
“This way, please. Hyung. I’ll take good care of you.”
Alpaca watched with disbelief as Lee Suhan led Seojun toward the studio.
I need to reconfigure the settings anyway, you idiot.
Seojun followed Lee Suhan into the workroom, Alpaca sighed and headed to his broadcasting room.
There, he adjusted the Capsule settings.
He also gathered some snacks for the after-broadcast dinner that would happen once the game ended.
While Alpaca’s broadcasts had a lot of improvisation, he was always meticulous with these kinds of preparations.
Speaking of which.
‘He beat Shin Hayeon, even though it’s AI.’
Alpaca found himself wanting to continue building a connection with Seojun even after this broadcast ended.
And if Seojun really was that user he was suspecting…….
‘No, that’s too much of a stretch.’
Alpaca shook his head and entered the Capsule.

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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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