As time passed, the outline of Prelude was fully revealed.
With the group stage finished and the intense Round of 16 concluded,
the quarterfinals, where only the prominent strong contenders remained, began a few days ago.
Most of the teams that strongly contended for the championship survived.
Cerberus’ AT, Reaper and Traveler’s Acid Gaming, and Phantom’s Veiled Nightmare.
Teams regarded as strong objectively lived up to expectations.
Of course, there were teams that performed even better than expected.
One of those was Japan’s Falcon team, centered around Insane.
Proving their rise as emerging strong contenders, much like Phantom had mentioned them as players to watch out for.
They showcased the top-tier ability of a Swordsman by directly marking Hashashin.
Considering the roles of the two classes, it was still accurate to say objectively that they were a step below Hashashin.
After all, the Assassin class has slightly less combat power compared to the Swordsman class.
But it seemed that they were expected to soon stand on the same level.
Their growth was incomprehensibly extraordinary.
It seemed like they had some great opportunity.
“Well, I didn’t really follow the matches since then,”
No matter who I am, I couldn’t keep up with all the matches.
After Sigma was eliminated in the Round of 16, there was even less reason to.
Their opponent was NA’s LB. An opponent with an overwhelmingly superior overall size.
And a Swordsman, to top it off.
It’s a problem that I inevitably feel a bit apprehensive about since I still can’t freely wield a sword.
Rather, if I hadn’t started kendo in the first place.
If I hadn’t acted like a child and thrown a tantrum for my parents.
If I had been someone who could open up honestly and had lived a life peacefully studying and going to university like the others.
If I had said “I love you” to my parents even once before they passed away.
If I had never been born.
If I had died during the fever I had as a child.
If I hadn’t whimpered about the fear and fallen off the rooftop that time.
“Ah, no. The last one was after the accident, so it doesn’t matter, right?”
Anyway, as soon as I grab my longsword, all kinds of sticky thoughts come up.
A Swordsman who can’t use his weapon properly—there is no reason for me to be jealously watching other people’s matches.
Still, I haven’t removed Swordsman from my sub-class, so this lingering attachment I have is really annoying.
It is a problem I have to overcome someday,
but I currently had no concrete plan.
There were things I wanted to discuss with my parents soon, so I thought I should visit their graves.
And, um…
“Da-eun. Da-eun?”
“Ah… Huh? Yes?”
“You’ve arrived. Haven’t you been pushing yourself too hard lately? You look tired.”
“I’m fine. I think I might’ve dozed off while thinking about other things.”
When did I fall asleep?
When I came to my senses, Elderlyn had already parked the car in the underground parking lot.
A different building from the studio I often visited.
Unlike the sleek and neat place, it had a strong impression of being old and abandoned.
Somewhere was leaking water, and the air was humid with a moldy smell.
It smells similar to the house I live in now.
Even though I practically live in Sigma’s accommodation, I haven’t vacated my room yet.
But that too will end soon.
I’m now receiving medical expenses support from Sigma.
With the broadcasting earnings also quite generous, there was no longer any reason to rot away in that tiny room.
“Yesterday, you broadcasted for over ten hours.”
“Well, I was going to play the game anyway, so it wasn’t really pushing myself to the limits.”
“Hmm. Still, be careful. Are you sleeping well?”
“You really don’t trust me at all, sister.”
“I wouldn’t say that… It’s more like I can’t leave you alone. It’s worrying, you know.”
Ordinarily, people call that feeling of worry and affection ‘can’t bear to let go’, don’t they?
Although I was briefly hurt for a moment, thinking of it this way made my mood improve.
If we keep discussing this topic, it’s clear that I’ll only hear more nagging.
I felt the need to change the subject.
“It’s pretty hot in the parking lot. It really feels like summer, doesn’t it?”
“You’re right. Speaking of summer, do you have a swimsuit?”
“Of course not. Where would I use something like that?”
The range of motion of my left leg is only about around the knee.
Even in water or while lying down, I can only move it slightly and with great difficulty.
My ankles and toes behave as if they don’t belong to me.
Despite that, I am horribly sensitive to shocks or pain.
If I bump into something wrong, it causes severe pain.
Swimming, fundamentally, isn’t something I can do.
Elderlyn knows this well, so why does she keep asking?
“You can at least take some pictures. The viewers would like that, right?”
“…I don’t want to. I won’t do anything vulgar.”
“Hmm…”
Elderlyn stares at me blankly.
For some reason, whenever I refuse anything vulgar, Elderlyn looks at me with an ‘Ah, really?’ expression.
Although she has never said it outright, it seems like she finds it funny that I refuse.
The thought briefly crossed my mind that Elderlyn’s lips curved into a smile.
“You say that, but I hear you work really hard on your grooming. Aren’t you secretly expecting something?”
“Grooming?”
I paused in thought.
What did she mean by that comment?
Following Elderlyn’s gaze, I tilted my head down.
Because of my chest, I can’t quite see the area around my abdomen,
but I realized her gaze was slightly below my stomach.
I suddenly remembered that I barely have any body hair below my neck.
Especially around the groin area—something that Elderlyn and Sansa had once mentioned, making my face heat up.
“That’s… It’s my constitution! I was born like this! I haven’t done anything to it!”
“Dear, don’t say that out loud. That’s not appropriate, Da-eun.”
“…”
*
After the game allowed broadcasts, I haven’t really turned on the camera yet.
My broadcast, after all, only has one main selling point: my skill.
If I have to pick another, it would be the refreshing speed provided by the Assassin class, right?
Some insist on pointing out other things, though I don’t give them much significance.
I mostly overlook the ceaseless s*xual harassment as playful taunting.
All in all, I’m dealing with quite a karma-heavy bunch.
These issues are something I have to endure and move past.
Although sometimes—very occasionally—I wonder if these people are actually serious.
Anyway, I don’t dislike the camera all that much.
Sure, it’s embarrassing, but it’s kind of like a new start for me.
Even if not frequently, showing my face occasionally might not be bad.
“So, how’s it going? I heard this is the biggest place in the country.”
“It’s massive. Honestly, the parking lot was in pretty bad condition.”
“It’s an old shopping mall building. There are recording studios and shooting areas upstairs.”
We’ve decided to borrow Elderlyn’s studio temporarily.
But I can’t lean on her forever, so I should eventually set out to prepare my own.
That’s also why I decided to visit a store today to look for broadcasting equipment.
It was a thrilling moment.
Buying equipment always has a unique resonance.
As I stepped inside, all the equipment seemed to gleam invitingly.
Today, I was at least determined to buy a microphone.
There were too many types to choose from.
“You can always test them out if you’re wondering which to pick. Would you like to try?”
“Is that really okay?”
“Of course. That’s one of the reasons people come to brick-and-mortar stores. You wouldn’t want to rashly buy something online at such prices. You need to try using it and listen properly.”
“Alright, let’s test it out.”
“Alright. We’ll go with that later after we finish looking around.”
Now I recall, there was a time when I used my phone to crudely record audio.
Compared to professional broadcasters, my audio quality was pretty bad,
but thinking about how people still liked it made my heart warm.
I decided to look around the store with Elderlyn, and while we’re at it, take a look at the recording studios.
Especially the shooting area, since I might have to rely on it later.
It seemed like Elderlyn wanted to take a picture with me someday.
Perhaps it might happen sooner or later.
When we arrived at the fourth floor in the elevator,
as soon as the door opened, Elderlyn waved at someone, seemingly surprised to meet them.
She probably ran into an acquaintance.
“It’s been a while, Sister! Is the person next to you a new face? They’re awfully pretty.”
“A close junior. She recently started broadcasting. Were you recording just now?”
“Yes, I just took a short break.”
“Then, could you possibly give this one a short tour?”
“Sure! Why don’t you come in?”
Initially, I thought it was fine.
How often do you get to tour a recording studio in my life?
Especially, these professional-grade microphones used here are said to far exceed those intended for broadcasting.
So, I readily went along,
but it seemed to be somewhat different from what I had expected.
“Um… Am I doing this right…?”
I placed the silicone-made earpiece inside my mouth.
I followed the instructions and moved my tongue to gently tickle it.
Then, I used my lips to s*ck on the earlobe, and the ASMR VTuber ‘Ryeo-hee’, observing from outside, gave me a thumb up.
The situation seemed to be turning strangely.
