Master Swordsman’s Stream - Chapter 138

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

Chapter 138

[Tae-woo – 750 Points]

The timer’s numbers ticked downward.

[15]
[14]
[13]
.
.

Ha Yun-ho had always considered himself a troll with at least some intelligence.
He trolled, sure, but he always thought things through before acting.
So why, if he thought things through, did he keep trolling?
Because if the broadcast looked entertaining, he was the kind of person who couldn’t resist the trolling, even if it meant making things harder on himself.
And maybe that was why.
What little sense remained in Ha Yun-ho was beginning to clash with his trolling instincts.
‘Damn it. Am I really doing this? Tae-woo, have you lost your mind?’
This time, too, Ha Yun-ho was determined to bring Seo Jun onto his team, even if the path was rocky.
He’d planned to drive the price up steadily to 700 Points, establishing initiative suppression.
700 Points was his Maginot Line.
The maximum threshold where his trolling instinct and whatever sense he had left could coexist.
He’d even calculated that any reasonable person wouldn’t bid past that number.
Pick up a decent C or B-tier player with some of the remaining points, and leave the rest to luck.
And if someone else got in the way, he’d adjust the roles and grind it out himself. That’s what he’d planned.
But then.
The crucial variable he’d overlooked was probably who his actual competitors were.
Just because “reasonable people” wouldn’t bid past that point didn’t mean others wouldn’t—that logic only applied to sensible people, didn’t it?
‘They’re actually doing it.’
If even he, a half-troll at heart, existed, what were the odds that there weren’t other abnormal streamers out there?

[10]
[9]
[8]
[7]
.
.

Time dwindled away.
‘Anyway.’
He couldn’t tell if Tae-woo had bid thoughtlessly or if the lot truly warranted that price.
‘Raising it by 50 Points at once instead of 5—he definitely had the same goal I do.’
Initiative suppression.
And bluffing.
Tae-woo didn’t look it, but he was a Diamond-tier regular. Master was just a lucky fluke anyway.
In any case, Tae-woo’s current tier was mid-Diamond, Grade C.
That meant he had only 900 Points compared to Ha Yun-ho’s 995—95 Points fewer than the Grade E player.
This was without either of them having placed a bid yet.
Which meant if it went to the end, Ha Yun-ho would inevitably win.
‘The problem is, to go all the way, I’d have to spend at least 905 Points.’

[3]
[2]
[1]

‘Ah, forget it. Let’s go.’
Ha Yun-ho abandoned all further deliberation.
His inner troll had seized the helm.

[Ha Yun-ho – 755 Points]

Damn.
Let go.

[15]
[14]
[13]
.
.
[1]

[Tae-woo – 760 Points]

‘Come on.’
You’re really going to do this, huh?
What little sense Ha Yun-ho had been clinging to finally crumbled.

* * *

[3 seconds! 2 seconds! 1 second! Ah! Another bid! They’re spiraling out of control!]

Caster hollered with delight.
There was no way watching two people barrel toward damnation could be boring.

[Ha Yun-ho – 785 Points]

Enormous Points were being traded from the very start of the auction.
Points so large they would effectively eliminate either player from future auctions.

[Still, they seem nervous, bidding 5 Points at a time—and always filling all 15 seconds. Commentators, what are your thoughts? Bang Ju?]
[Haha. At this point, we’re all in on it. We all figured it out. Yesterday was all just: “Other team captains, don’t buy. I’ll buy it myself!”!]
[What was it like when you were directly managing it yesterday?]
[I’m not sure if you know, but I actually did a co-broadcast with Seo Jun, the player being auctioned, back when we were with For the Sect.]
[I see.]
[If he could show even half of what he displayed then when we get to Lieos, I’d say Seo Jun is a strong championship contender.]
[Oh really?]
[Yes. So I was wondering why these two also seem to have some connection but are acting like this.]
[Ah! I knew! I knew for sure!]
[Caster? Knew for sure…?]
[Alright! And in the meantime, the Points just keep climbing—we’re at 800 Points now. If we cross 900, Tae-woo won’t be able to bid anymore, no matter how much he wants to. And then!]

“Will it be Ha Yun-ho’s victory?”
Mental.
A streamer in his late thirties, stubborn and a veteran of major corporations.
“Hmmmm.”
He was the same man who, in the previous Lieos, had carelessly picked two top laners, two supports, and one mid laner in the auction—making himself the biggest wildcard.
When his team fell apart, everyone else’s fell apart too.
“Is it just this much?”
The funny part was that unlike everyone’s prediction of group stage elimination, his team had made the finals.
Mental simply laughed and said it was his gut feeling.
And truly, he’d just acted on that instinct.

[Tae-woo bidding at 850! Ah, we’re getting close to the limit. If he really wanted this, he wouldn’t be dragging his feet like this, right?]
[Ha Yun-ho is intelligent. As a Grade E player with more Points, he’s used that advantage well to build his team. But this time, it looks like he’s about to spend all but 95 Points—is it really worth that much?]
[Penguin.]
[Yes, Bang Ju.]
[Honestly, neither captain probably believes it’s worth that much.]
[Really?]
[But there is something called potential.]
[What? Potential’s an average, isn’t it?]
[No… well. I meant to say Potential.]
[Ah, I see.]
[As I mentioned, even half of what he showed before would be valuable enough. And we’ve already half-proven it with Kael and Eric. So wouldn’t a gamble of this scale be worth taking?]

A gamble.
Bang Ju had called the situation a gamble. Most people would probably agree.
No matter how high the potential, spending nearly all your Points was either a gamble or nothing.
The problem was.
“I want in too.”
Mental’s instinct, standing one step away from the current fight, was telling him to jump in.
“Ah. What will the viewers say.”
When the last auction had ended, public opinion had been quite harsh.
At that time, Mental had taken responsibility, channeled all the blame toward himself, and then had some back-and-forth with chat.
It meshed well with his usual concept of picking fights with viewers.
And the results later proved him right.
But that was just luck.

[Ah! Are we going over 900? Are we?]

[Ha Yun-ho – 905 Points]

He went over.
And Mental felt the rush.
“Let’s just go for it!”
Yeah. When did he start caring what viewers thought? And if I catch heat for it, I catch heat for it!

[Mental – 990 Points]

[Oh my! Mental, who’s been quiet this whole time, just went all-in!]
[Suddenly! Suddenly he appears!]

Mental laughed with satisfaction from behind the screen after making his move.
A real man had to be bold about these things.

-Ah… the auction’s biggest wildcard is at it again…
-Just a wildcard himself goat
-Mental was quiet and then ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
-Hyung… do you really want to die?
-It’d better work out, right?
-Love you Mental
-If you rig the auction like this and don’t even make finals this time, you’re done for ^^

Mental chuckled as he read the official account’s chat.
“Who said anything about working out.”
He’d made a choice in line with his instinct, so he leaned back in his chair with satisfaction.
“Actually, I like this better. No annoying thinking.”
When would he have thought otherwise.
“Seo Jun. Seems like we’d get along if we got close. Though I’m so bad at games I couldn’t team up with you. Hahaha!”
He laughed freely.

[Yes, that’s all-in!]
[So with all-in, you can only receive the last remaining player auto-assigned by grade, correct?]
[That’s right.]
[But it’s not over yet, everyone.]

Bang Ju spoke.
And Penguin responded.

[Ha Yun-ho is also going all-in? Ha Yun-ho has never been this reckless before!]

Beep!

[Ha Yun-ho – 995 Points]

“What? That didn’t work?”
As Mental expressed surprise, Penguin spoke again.

[There is!]

* * *

Mental had won an item in the third auction.
Until then, most people had praised him for getting a Grade C item cheaply at just 5 Points.
But because of those 5 Points, he’d missed out on Seo Jun.
The viewers’ evaluation was simple.
Actually, that’s better!

-Wow Ha Yun-ho’s taking that bomb ㅋㅋㅋㅋ
-We were worried how far the bubble would go but Mental’s stubbornness got broken ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
-Yun-ho is it really all-in? Yun-ho is it really all-in? Yun-ho is it really all-in? Yun-ho is it really all-in? Yun-ho is it really all-in?
-3 unsold items confirmed lol ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
-Gotta be insanely lucky lol ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
-Legendary level bidding
-If this doesn’t work out Bang Ju’s screwed
-Bang Ju’s the crime lord of the Demonic Cult

And Tae-woo.
“Why do I only have 900 Points?”
If he had 995 Points, he would’ve just thrown it all in the moment things got weird.
“Bad game.”
Tae-woo’s goal was championship victory.
And he knew better than anyone that the person closest to that victory was Seo Jun.
“Then all that’s left is building a good team, right?”
Actually, Tae-woo had prepared quite thoroughly.
So he could gauge each item’s priority at a glance, no matter what situation arose.
He had real talent for this kind of thinking.
He’d never cared about studying—if he had, he would’ve at least gotten into a university one tier below the one where his friend was probably having a good laugh right now (Seo Jun was actually exhaling deeply).
Anyway, if he just followed the plan he’d laid out, it should work.
But.
A sudden thought had just changed everything.
“Even if I build an insane team with these 850 Points, if I can’t stop that guy, I can’t win the championship, right?”
He’d realized that his team wasn’t the key anymore.
If he aimed for 2nd or 3rd place, it didn’t matter—but his goal was the championship, and if that was the case, he’d eventually have to face his friend.
Shouldn’t he prepare for that moment?
Even if his team got a bit weaker?
“If the situation calls for it, I’ll sacrifice some team strength just to shut him down.”
Tae-woo studied the auction order carefully.

* * *

“So basically.”
With the auction nearly done, Seo Jun exhaled and spoke.
“Right now, if Wind Sword gets assigned to Tae-woo’s team, it’s perfect. And he could basically get them for free. Yet.”
Sigh.
“Tae-woo deliberately didn’t bid, right? Trying to make Wind Sword unsold and snag another B-tier player to send to my team instead?”
Wow.
Things were really playing out this way.

-That’s straight up malice ㅋㅋㅋㅋ
-Even taking a loss himself just to screw over his friend wwwwwwwww
-Captain Bang Ju let’s go gank the next room!
-With this chance just switch to jungler. Send Wind Sword mid lol ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
-Is this that thing? If I can’t have it I’ll destroy it? That right? ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

“Haha.”
Not only had he driven up the price for nothing, but now he was screwing him over like this?
‘Yeah.’
It was possible.
Totally possible.
But.
‘Three mid laners is crossing a line.’

-Three mid confirmed no way ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
-Isn’t position overlap something that happens fairly often?
-And those three overlapping positions just happen to be A, B, C right? ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
-When lower tiers overlap you just swap them, no big deal. There’s no real difference between main lane and off lane for them
-But B and C going off-lane? That’s a massive power loss dude ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
-Still at least they’re all familiar faces, that’s nice!
-Who told you to go all-in huh lol ㅋㅋ

‘I didn’t tell you to go all-in.’
Seo Jun simply stared at the monitor with a sour expression.

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