The Fate-Seeing Genius Streamer - Chapter 30

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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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29. [Night Soul] Is It Really… That Difficult? (5)
The streaming window.
In an instant, the viewers’ excited reactions erupted—and then the chat began lagging as if paralyzed.
Then, from a certain moment onward, the lag cleared and the chat flowed like a waterfall, pouring forth with fervent responses.
-OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG;;
-The hidden route has a quest to find Halkenburg’s Non-Aggression Pact?? That’s absolutely legendary lol
-Wow.. So Halkenburg’s Non-Aggression Pact wasn’t a red herring after all..? I’ve been playing for ages and never knew..
-No way… That old geezer’s Non-Aggression Pact is… not dummy data, but an actual item that really exists??????
-?? So in the hidden route you can actually break Halkenburg’s Non-Aggression Pact?? You can see this crazy old man truly going wild…????
-Halkenburg’s Non-Aggression Pact quest exists?? What kind of hellscape is the hidden route trying to open up…?
-Wow;;
The hidden route.
The existence of a hidden quest observed at the world’s first newly discovered branching point in [Night Soul]. It too sparked heated reactions, but only briefly.
It was inevitable. [Night Soul] is an offline full-dive content—strictly speaking, a virtual reality game with what’s called a ‘shelf life’.
No matter how globally popular it becomes, it’s only temporary. Once players exhaust all in-game content of [Night Soul], they have no choice but to quit.
Even with multiple playthroughs, diverse story branches, and character interactions carefully constructed to overcome this, the outcome doesn’t change.
Naturally.
But———
There were exceptions.
A rare few virtual reality games—online full-dive content that has been serviced for decades since launch and established global prominence—were different.
[Eternal Saga], [Gun Ground], and PVP-focused online service games like [Infinite War], despite their status declining somewhat recently, operated on different principles.
And…
These globally popular online service virtual reality games shared one common trait.
Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha
-Is this real?? The Lacrantz Style virtual machine operation method was leaked, right?? I didn’t mishear, right?;
-??????????????????????????????????????????????????????
-Is this for real lol ten lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol
-Lol lol lol lol Where are all those guys who said the virtual machine operation method wasn’t leaked?? lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol
-??.. Does this even make sense?? You’re saying you can learn all of Gaming Martial Arts just by playing one match against a pro gamer??;
Talent that crosses the line
-Legendary talent monster;;
Gaming Martial Arts.
The essence of modern martial arts—transcending the realm of ‘sport’ into ‘killing technique’—in other words, the mindset of ‘certain death’. Its system and techniques.
Over approximately eighty years, Gaming Martial Arts evolved through the passage of time, advancing beyond practical combat focused on lethality, and became optimized for full-dive content.
As a result, modern Gaming Martial Arts didn’t stop at refining striking techniques and grappling arts for practical application—it advanced to developing entirely new systems and techniques.
An element absent in virtual reality games like [Infinite War], but indispensable in full-dive content like [Eternal Saga] or [Gun Ground].
That element was precisely the operation method for virtual machines.
The reason viewers’ primary reactions focused not only on [Night Soul] but heavily on the Lacrantz Style, which corresponds to Gaming Martial Arts, was exactly for this reason.
Because———
The fact that Joo Seo-jin had acquired the virtual machine operation method of the Lacrantz Style meant, in other words, that an unprecedented supernova had emerged.
* * *
Gaming Martial Arts begins with combat sports and presupposes mastering the operation of virtual machines.
The same applies to the Lacrantz Style—a discipline that Crack, a former World Championship winner from [Eternal Saga], has devoted his entire life to perfecting.
After refining pure combat through boxing, which corresponds to striking techniques, and wrestling, which compensates for its weakness in grappling, one finally encounters the true essence—the operation of virtual machines.
The systematic technique of virtual machine operation, which enables movements that defy the laws of physics in reality, is the decisive difference that distinguishes Gaming Martial Arts from ancient combat disciplines.
Even the Lacrantz Style, widely recognized for its excellence among Gaming Martial Arts, imposed strict limitations on transmitting the complete mastery of virtual machine operation.
Therefore───
Pfft─!
…It was more than sufficient—it was abundantly excessive—reason for Crack to spit out the water he’d been drinking while watching Joo Seo-jin’s stream at the team VEN dormitory, taking a brief rest after finishing his physical training.
Cough, cough─!
“…Ugh, guh, huff! A-no, no, no! W-wait. Wait, damn it! Wh-what is this? What the hell is—!”
Physical Training Room.
Sitting on a bench, Crack watched Joo Seo-jin’s stream on his tablet, muttering frantically in utter bewilderment.
“No—is, is this real? Does this even make sense? He learned the Lacrantz Style… not just the combat techniques, but the virtual machine operation method…?”
Astonishment.
No other word came to mind to express his emotion. It was, quite literally, beyond common sense.
It would already be absurd to glance at pure combat techniques once and replicate them, but to go beyond that and reverse-engineer the virtual machine operation method?
Nonsense. It was an impossible story. There was no way one could master all of Gaming Martial Arts in a single moment.
Crack rubbed his eyes with his hand, his gaze reflecting incomprehension.
‘This can’t be right. Logically, it really can’t be. Realistically, or even looking through all historical precedents, has there ever been someone capable of this? There hasn’t been… well, I can’t say definitively, but it would have to be extremely rare…wouldn’t it…?’
Even Crack, who had received complete transmission of the system and techniques from the current generation’s foremost disciple of the Lacrantz Style, had consumed an enormous amount of time learning all of it.
‘I didn’t learn virtual machine operation until about four years after entering the Lacrantz Style. And even then, it wasn’t complete—only a portion…of it. But this person….’
Right. Such a thing should have been impossible. Yet. It should have been impossible… but there stood a being who casually negated that very common sense, beyond the screen.
Joo Seo-jin.
‘The stance… the flow of virtual machine operation, the movement patterns, even the combination techniques—everything was set up perfectly. It’s hard to call it a low level…’
He was certain.
It wasn’t bluffing or luck. Whether true or false—without question—Joo Seo-jin had already elevated an entire system and all its techniques to the realm of a true master.
In [Infinite War], currently evaluated as the best in the e-sports industry for honing fundamentals, hadn’t he already demonstrated innate talent in pure combat techniques that surpassed even Crack?
In other words───
‘Then… did he really learn the virtual machine operation of the Lacrantz Style… by seeing it just once back then, and through ‘inference’ alone, grasp and master it on the spot…?’
It was real.
The Lacrantz Style. He had reverse-engineered and mastered the virtual machine operation of that Gaming Martial Arts, optimized and processed for [Eternal Saga]. Perfectly, at that.
Learning the striking and grappling techniques of boxing and wrestling, which constitute pure combat in the Lacrantz Style, by glancing once—I could accept that. But not anymore.
Going beyond perfectly learning pure combat techniques from a single glance, to actually infer what was ‘missing’—the core technique of virtual machine operation—and reverse-engineer it to master it, was an entirely different matter.
‘With only combat experience from [Infinite War], where virtual machines don’t exist… he inferred the existence of virtual machines and filled in the gaps…? What kind of person is he?’
It was nearly the level of a legendary master.
His caliber was different.
Beyond genius, it would be no exaggeration to call it a monster—truly violent talent.
The overwhelming presence that could shake the e-sports industry, enough to make his previous pride as a professional gamer operating in a realm different from ordinary people feel embarrassing…
He was the material to pursue perfection, perhaps reaching the same heights as the ancient professional gamer who created the Lacrantz Style, or even beyond.
‘This is… really unfair when you think about it.’
Crack felt a succession of complex emotions wash over him, and his smile turned bitter.
Bitterness. Followed by a sense of futility accompanied by a touch of self-loathing… and finally, at journey’s end, came regret.
It was a waste that such innate talent was being channeled into becoming a ‘streamer’ rather than a fellow ‘competitor’ on equal footing.
Such a terrible waste.
Of course, being a streamer wasn’t inherently bad. Among skilled streamers in the current era, quite a few matched or even surpassed professional gamers in ability.
Was that all?
Even after retiring from professional gaming, some maintained performances close to their prime through consistent self-management of their nervous systems, their bodies aging while their skills remained sharp.
Such individuals frequently participated in streamer tournaments, shedding their professional status to prove their pure skill through unregulated combat.
In fact, there were cases where retired professional gamers participating in prestigious global streamer leagues—competing across generations and backgrounds—became even more popular.
Yet despite all this, problems remained.
‘If such insane talent had been discovered just a few years earlier… truly, so much could have been different… it’s such a shame.’
The aging curve.
As physical age accumulated and athletic ability declined, an imperceptible gap emerged, and control ability deteriorated.
And naturally, no matter how thoroughly one trained, the nervous system couldn’t maintain its prime and could only decline gradually.
Anyone who understood how much that ‘slight’ difference in peak ability affected match outcomes among professional gamers would feel the same regret.
‘If only he’d challenged professional gaming in his late teens—or even early twenties…’
Even before virtual reality games emerged, those with natural athleticism and aptitude for combat sometimes achieved results rivaling real professional boxers and mixed martial artists.
When environmental circumstances didn’t align, some still managed to shine after developing their talents late. Extremely rare, but not impossible.
And…
Such individuals’ names were typically etched into history as legendary masters of combat.
Francis Cortez—a miner from South American mines who taught himself boxing, switched to mixed martial arts, and dominated the world stage with overwhelming physicality despite his late start.
Bernard Jackie—imprisoned for theft for roughly four years, who stumbled upon boxing by chance and became known as a legendary boxer after his release.
Jorge Cascano—a street fighter discovered by a streamer who was himself a street brawler, who entered the world stage without formal training and achieved tremendous popularity.
A plum blossom blooming in snow.
In prison boxing rings, narrow alleys piled with garbage, unnamed dilapidated gyms—talent bloomed regardless.
Shining brilliantly even in the harshest environments, in circumstances where one wasn’t even permitted to dream. That was talent.
Such individuals existed in distant ages, and the present era was no different.
Since virtual reality games invited combat masters and completely defeated them through Gaming Martial Arts, countless talents emerged.
Over long years, numerous Gaming Martial Arts styles were created, transmitted, and built into solid systems, yet ecosystem disruptors always appeared. Such individuals repeatedly rewrote the history of combat.
Chloe de Marseille, who presented the initial concept of virtual machine manipulation through neural transmission; Yagi Akato, who pioneered flow interruption to obstruct virtual machine control; and—
Gerhardt Larkranz, the great competitor who founded the Lacrantz Style, belonged to this category as well.
However, most such individuals followed similar paths and always met the same fate.
Declining from their prime due to aging, simultaneously realizing judgment errors from lacking high-level practical experience over extended periods… then retiring. No one escaped this predetermined trajectory.
Even talent bestowed by heaven ultimately remained mere potential without the right opportunity. Those who started earlier blocked the way, and it was destined to end in defeat.
Unfortunately, that was how most cases turned out.
‘If only he’d started a bit sooner, he might have established himself in this industry… it’s really bitter.’
Crack was also a professional gamer and a competitor with fighting spirit. Because he wanted to challenge even if he couldn’t win, he felt the regret as if it were his own.
If there was a pinnacle of the era, he wanted to stand beside that competitor. If he was in a position to challenge, he wanted to compete even if he couldn’t win. That was his nature.
But Joo Seo-jin’s age, according to what he’d learned through personal conversation, was twenty-eight—far too late to challenge the realm of professional gaming.
One could certainly reveal their innate talent and attain a high position, but it would end there.
“Tch. Still, at that level, there’s still a chance, isn’t there? It’d be a waste to just leave him as is, wouldn’t it?”
But.
Even so, he remained an attractive prospect. With that degree of genius, he might even achieve decent results if he challenged professional gaming later on.
In that case, I could tempt him once more—if he showed any interest in professional gaming, even a little, it wouldn’t hurt to suggest he take an entrance exam for a team.
‘For now, just to be safe, I could leave an email or something. Who knows? He might take an interest in this…or…?’
However.
Thud—
Crack’s movements froze instantly, and his complexion began to pale gradually.
He’d picked up his smartphone, intending to leave a quick message to Joo Seo-jin through the game app’s chat function…when something he hadn’t considered caught his eye.
Or rather—he’d thought about it, but had simply forgotten. Either way, an ominous feeling washed over him.
[Master]
-Voicemail (14 messages)
-Missed calls (27)
-Unread messages (99+ messages)
In that instant, a chill ran through Crack as he hastily opened the messenger app to check the unread messages. His face turned ashen.
-[Master]: Seung-jun, it’s me~ You know roughly what happened since we talked about it last time, right? Once training ends—or even during if you see this—get in touch with me.
“….”
It was simple.
The Lacrantz Style had been contracted exclusively to team VEN for transmission, with strict warnings against any external leakage of the techniques.
In other words—if Joo Seo-jin had acquired the essence of the Lacrantz Style, then naturally all eyes would turn to Crack, who had the most recent contact with him.
Thus, it was hardly strange that a demand for Crack to explain himself would arise.
-[Master]: Don’t overthink this. Let’s meet briefly once training ends. I’ve already told the director and coaches. It’s been a while—let’s strengthen our bond ^^!
“Ah….”
‘I really want to run away.’
The effect was tremendous! Crack felt his vision darken and his mind grow distant all at once….
* * *
At the same moment.
As the streaming chat exploded with comments, Joo Seo-jin closed his mouth upon seeing Halkenburg’s expression turn serious.
For some reason, it felt like he shouldn’t speak carelessly here. A thought that had occurred to him remained unspoken, confined to his mind alone.
‘Is it really that difficult?’
…Had he actually voiced such a ridiculous thought(?), he would have drawn all manner of criticism. Fortunately, it never left his lips.

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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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