[TS] Obsessed Gamer: The Ultimate Return – Chapter 113

-Na


-Rock


-Hey


-Na


-Ming


-Please, get rid of those bastard noobs who came out of nowhere.


-Hey


-Where the hell did these fucking newbies come from?


-Manager, what are you doing, damn it?


-Rock


-Hey

Although it was faster than I expected, I thought it was something I would have to experience someday.

The incident related to my departure from YSG was clearly something I had committed, and it was a past I had to fully reconcile with to survive as a pro.

‘…At least it turned out well.’

I have no intention of running away anymore, as I did before.


Let’s move forward confidently.


After all, this is the path I chose.

“Uh… well… it’s true that I was a trainee at YSG for a bit.”

Of course, it was a resolution, but my terrible way of speaking was not good enough to change just through a moment’s determination.

They say that sometimes body and mind act separately? Well, that was precisely the case.

-Huh


-Really?


-Why didn’t you say anything?


-Hey


-Ming


-Stay quiet

“…I mean, it’s because you didn’t ask?”

-That’s true too.


-Really, lol

Once I let it out, there couldn’t be a more pathetic excuse, but fortunately, the audience’s reaction wasn’t bad.

-Not asking is a fact.


-Ah, lol why didn’t you ask? lol


-It’s Taesik’s fault for not asking.


-Really, lol

The audience’s response was surprisingly mild compared to the heated one from earlier.


No, to be precise…

-Forget it, just explain.


-Explain.


-Hey


-Don’t deflect.


-Ming


-Hey

It was correct to say that the types of audiences can be divided into two categories.

In other words,

‘Did the new ones come in this time?’

There might have been coordinates marked somewhere, or perhaps someone from YSG talked about me somewhere…


Whatever it was, it was clear what I had to do.

“Just in case there’s a misunderstanding… the contract with YSG ended normally.”

-But then why are you called an escapee?


-Explain.


-Hey


-Ming


-Get rid of those who say “Explain.”


-Hey


-Really, this is so disruptive to the broadcast.


-Explain is still explain even if said backward.


-Nutjob.

The chat was literally going wild as the viewers started arguing amongst themselves.


I couldn’t let this situation continue any longer, so I slowly opened my mouth.

“…I have something to say about that part too. So, it’s true that the contract ended normally, but… it’s also true that it was somewhat unilaterally terminated.”

-?


-What are you talking about?


-Sir, your explanation is lacking.


-Is this… Korean?


-Please explain it so we can understand.

“Where should I start…?”

Since I wasn’t good with words, I decided to explain step by step from the beginning.

“So, to start off, I received an offer for the entry test from YSG.”

I began to tell my story slowly.


About how I took the entry test.


How I was practically told I passed, but after some thought, I rejected the offer.


Then, how the team later proposed a ridiculous contract again.

-?


-What kind of team contracts under such conditions?


-Really strange.


-Is that even true?

How the hell would I know, you guys.


They made the offer like that.

“Yes, it’s true.”

-Huh


-Whoa


-Well, in this world, where’s the team with a 100% win rate? lol


-They even have star potential, lol.


-Really, lol


-I’d set that condition too if I were the coach, for real, lol.

Fortunately, public opinion wasn’t too bad, so I continued speaking.

“So… I lived as a team member under those contract terms for a while, and then I terminated the contract. That’s all.”

I carefully cut out the latter part just for self-protection, but of course, stubborn viewers wouldn’t let that slide.

-But why did you terminate it? Juwon said you would practically be a starter from round 2, right?


-Really?


-Well.


-What kind of inside talk are you guys having?


-What should I even say…


In the end, I decided to be vague and avoid specific mentions.


Otherwise, if I talked about everything that happened, it would likely not be very good for me or YSG either.

“I just… felt like it didn’t match me. I think it was a bit different from what I thought professional gaming would be.”

The memories of that day briefly crossed my mind.


Ads, ads, more ads.


Shooting, shooting, more shooting.

I wondered what would have happened if I had endured until the end there.


Would I have reached the life of a professional gamer I desired?


Who knows… I don’t know.

But I have no regrets.


This is the path I chose.

-So, are you trying to form a team?


-You’re saying the team owner agreed, right?


-Do you think you can make it to the first division?

“Yes, yes, I do plan to form a team, and do I think I can make it to the first division? Of course, I do.”

That was my sincere belief.


I will take my team to the Red Cup.


I will definitely make it happen.

『‘Outlaw’s Slave’ gifted 10 Balloons.』


『“Have you tried scrimming against other teams?”』

“Ah, yes, yes, of course we have.”

The only thing I was satisfied with during my time at YSG was the scrims.


At that moment, each day felt truly fulfilling.


Facing off and winning against top teams from around the world…

To be honest, I must admit that I feel a bit nostalgic about that part.

-Oh


-Whoa


-Give us some scrim stories, let’s go.


-Extreme


-Rock

“Uh… I really want to share, but I’m not sure if I’m allowed to.”

In fact, there were no confidentiality agreements in the contract itself.


But since it’s still during the tournament period, and scrim information could directly influence our tournament performance, it falls under the category of proprietary information, after all.


Even though I’m technically an outsider now, there’s a sort of business ethics, isn’t there?

-That’s true.


-Damn.


-Internal info can’t be helped.


-Yep, yep.

Fortunately, it seemed the viewers were able to be understanding about that and didn’t press the issue too much.


I was maintaining my own boundaries.


Well… just because I keep my boundaries doesn’t mean the viewers have to, though.

『‘Outlaw’s Slave’ gifted 10 Balloons.』


『“According to Juwon, Outlaw has never lost a scrim.”』

What? Wasn’t I supposed to not say that?


I didn’t say that, so it’s fine, but… isn’t the security a bit too lax?

-Really?


-Insane, lol.


-So, did you really win every scrim? lol


-This is ridiculous, lol.


-There’s a trainee who wins every scrim? Zoom zoom.

『‘Kim Woo-chan’ gifted 10 Balloons.』


『“Even a 1 win 0 losses counts as undefeated, lol.”』

-Oh, lol.


-That’s true.


-LOL, I didn’t know that.


-Ah, lol.

At first, I tried to let it slide.


After all, I hadn’t even talked about scrims myself, so I thought they’d just handle it themselves within YSG.

But…

-But no matter how much of a solo queue beast you are, it won’t work in team games.


-Yep, team games and solo queue are completely different.


-True, true.


-It’s true the team leader is good, but pros are in a whole different world, haha.


-Yep, yep.


-Don’t diss the team leader, guys.


-Ah, lol. If it’s undefeated, that’s good.


-That’s also true, lol.

Seeing the narrative of scrims being labeled as 1 win 0 losses unfold before my very eyes… it felt quite strange.

“……”

Wait, I actually did pretty well in scrims…


Not just one win, but 10, 20 wins!


Although I couldn’t speak that fact out loud, maybe it showed on my face because the chat started shaking again.

-Team leader’s face turned crimson.


-Hongik humans, hey.


-Shivers, shivers, shivers.


-Ah, lol if you’re upset, just say it.


-Um, um, um.

“No, no…”

My lips were just flapping.


I wanted to say something but couldn’t.


If I said anything, it felt like I could cause another incident.


How many times have I troubled myself since I caused a ruckus?


I couldn’t let that happen again…

-Ah, lol I can’t resist the provocation.


-Goal.


-Success.


-Goal in.

I wanted to say it.


That except for a few teams like SY, I basically won against almost every team perfectly.


But that was just a distant wish.

『‘Outlaw’s Slave’ gifted 10 Balloons.』


『“I’ve felt this way for a while, but the main character seems overly sheltered, don’t you think?”』

-Yep.


-Yep, that’s right again.


-But honestly, if I had a daughter like that, I’d baby her too.


-That’s true, lol.


-‘Curfew at 6 PM.’

And then came the viewers’ teasing.


They were a pack of wolves, after all. There was no way they would let such good bait just sit there.

-Outlaw! Outlaw! Outlaw! Outlaw! Outlaw! Outlaw! Outlaw! Outlaw! Outlaw! Outlaw!


-You mean to say that person with that face would be a gaming shut-in…? ㅗㅜㅑ…


-Noona, I’m dying! Noona, I’m dying! Noona, I’m dying! Noona, I’m dying! Noona, I’m dying! Noona, I’m dying! Noona, I’m dying! Noona, I’m dying!


-Guys, don’t be fooled. It’s all an act. Does it make sense for someone with that face to be a hermit?


-For real, lol.


-There are only deceivers; no one gets deceived.

“……What do you want me to say?”


Fine, I won’t say anything.


“I’ll just play a game.”


I gave up any further communication that wasn’t actually communication and immediately queued up.


Gaming is always right.

*

SY Dormitory.


Typically, that place should have been buzzing with practice heat, but Choi Won and Park Yoon-ki were shaking their heads.

“How many days has he been like this now?”


“Right… Has it been about three days?”


“Seems serious.”

Their gazes turned to where Ryu Jin-hyuk was seated.


Normally, Ryu Jin-hyuk should be focused on practice, but these days, he was deeply engrossed in a female game stream.

Had it been anyone else, the coach or management would’ve put their foot down, but because it was Ryu Jin-hyuk, that didn’t happen.


It was practically a side effect of the excessive influence a single player possessed.

Meanwhile, the subject of their conversation, Ryu Jin-hyuk, didn’t seem to mind and couldn’t take his eyes off the monitor.


For the past few days, Ryu Jin-hyuk had watched Outlaw’s broadcast without missing a day.


And he had learned one thing.

‘For sure.’


It seemed oddly familiar, and finally, he understood.


Who Outlaw was.