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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 2
Chapter Title: League of Streaming
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League of Streaming.
On his way home, Seo-jun looked it up.
'Average live viewers at 300,000? Isn't this basically on par with a regular tournament?'
He'd heard from Tae-woo that the event drew a decent crowd, but he hadn't realized it was this big.
But after digging a bit deeper, he quickly realized that while 300,000 was impressive enough, calling it regular tournament level was his own misconception.
'Oh, regular tournaments pull in at least a million just in Korea.'
The finals reportedly drew 15 million live viewers worldwide.
For a Korean league, no less.
Capsule gaming's popularity had exceeded Seo-jun's wildest imagination.
Even reaching adults who barely had time to game.
Seo-jun had deliberately avoided capsule-related news until now, so the details had passed him by.
'So many people are watching... Guess I've really gone and done it.'
Even seven years ago, he hadn't paid much attention to the VR market.
But he knew it hadn't been this huge back then.
Once home, Seo-jun asked an expert.
A working streamer, no less.
"Hey, you know about League of Streaming, right?"
It was his friend.
Tae-woo, lounging on the sofa with his phone, answered.
"Yeah? Of course. I entered last year and got knocked out in the first round. Heh. Man, I wanted that grand prize so bad. What a shame."
Knocked out at lightspeed, and here he was talking about winning.
Seo-jun clicked his tongue inwardly.
"What was it?"
"A car. And the MVP got a supercar, no less. Pretty sweet prizes, huh? With all those viewers, companies line up to sponsor."
"Yeah, I looked up the viewership already."
"You did? Why the sudden interest in VR? You've never cared before."
"Beats me."
He'd lived just fine without VR for the past seven years.
And he could keep doing so.
So why had he looked up RIOS?
'Damn it.'
Truth was, he knew.
He'd just been turning a blind eye because there was no way around it before.
That VR session seven years ago?
It had been fun. Fun enough to crave going back.
Wasn't that reason enough?
'It's not like it's costing me 100 million won.'
Thanks to Oh Ji-hye's generosity, he could borrow it for free until the tournament ended.
It wasn't like it'd eat up years of his life.
'No reason not to.'
Seo-jun sat down next to Tae-woo.
From here on, it was less about why and more about how.
"Tae-woo."
Seo-jun's eyes began to gleam.
"Yeah?"
"What are the entry requirements for RIOS?"
"Why do you ask? Sigh. Officially, they don't say, but obviously you need to be a streamer. Mid-tier ones with decent popularity usually get in no problem."
"What if you're not popular?"
"It's a lottery. Viewers want familiar names, so no helping it. They don't only pick popular ones, though."
If you get in, great.
Tae-woo muttered.
"So how do you succeed as a streamer?"
"You serious?"
"Dead serious."
Tae-woo paused in thought, then straightened up with a snap.
The serious expression he rarely showed felt awkward.
"No clue."
"Really?"
"Yeah. Know what I hear most?"
Seo-jun shrugged.
"No idea."
"'Must be nice gaming and making bank. Easy life, no real grind.'"
"..."
"But do they know I've streamed every day for eight hours straight, four out of seven years, with average viewers under 100? Hmm, maybe covered the electric bill monthly? Felt like I crashed at your place for that first year after graduation."
"That so."
VR had grown the viewer pool, but streamers had multiplied even faster.
Their biggest headache? Attracting viewers.
"Still, I think I'm damn lucky. Could've taken longer than four years to hit it big. When it happens, it's huge. But we never know when. No one has the formula. What if you grind ten years and nothing?"
Tae-woo continued.
"Some who blew up to ten million in a year had five-year dark ages stuck under 1,000. Even grinding that hard, you might never make it..."
Sure, there were patterns and rules.
"But if I had to pick the key? Entertainment value, hands down."
Tae-woo launched into his explanation.
To succeed in game streaming, you needed either killer entertainment or top-tier skill.
Surprisingly, pure skill streams didn't draw crowds.
Too many pro broadcasts and edited clips as alternatives.
"Skill alone won't cut it. Not impossible, but tough. Check this."
Tae-woo pulled up an article for Seo-jun.
[Game streamers should focus more on being streamers than the game itself. Surprisingly, the game isn't that big a factor.]
One piece of advice from a famous streamer whose insight tested at 100% objectivity.
Seo-jun read it closely as Tae-woo asked again.
"You really into streaming now?"
"Just decided."
"Hah. Because of that? I won't stop you, but what makes you think you can?"
Seo-jun closed his eyes, deep in thought.
What gave him confidence?
For seven years, he couldn't properly access VR, but he was sure of himself.
'No one's matching me unless they're exceptional.'
Most games centered on swords, and even if not, it didn't matter.
Memories alone—he'd been through it all in his past life.
He opened his eyes slowly, holding back a smile.
It sounded ridiculous even to him.
"Guess... my skills?"
"It's not just about being good to become a streamer."
"Then how good do I need to be?"
Tae-woo thought it over, then said,
"Better than Shin Ha-yeon. Hell, better than her and you're guaranteed success. Bet on it. You know who she is?"
Shin Ha-yeon.
A top female pro gamer, more popular than most A-listers. VR meant Shin Ha-yeon; she meant VR. An icon.
The reason? Her overwhelming pro league dominance.
"Got it."
Seo-jun made up his mind.
Fine. He'd give it a shot.
That day, he messaged Oh Ji-hye to rent the capsule.
"So... you bought it because you're confident you can beat Shin Ha-yeon?"
"Yeah."
"You're insane. Then go pro."
"Too risky."
"You're actually crazy."
Oh Ji-hye's reply and delivery were lightning-fast.
Less than a day.
Like she'd been waiting.
One minor issue, though.
"Argh. Move aside for a sec, gotta connect this. Didn't I say call the installation tech? Or at least wait till my stream's done before touching it!"
Seo-jun silently bowed his head as Tae-woo scolded him while setting up the capsule.
"Hey, last time your phone broke in the shower, didn't I call you a total tech idiot?"
Something like that.
"How do you almost break this just installing it?! Damn, it looks expensive!"
Speechless, Seo-jun just kept stroking the capsule in the corner.
Tae-woo glared, plugged in the last cable, then flopped onto the bed.
"Phew, done. Your biometrics registered?"
"Yeah."
"Then you can log in right now."
"Thanks."
"Don't mention it. High-end model, though. Overkill for streaming, no?"
"Don't worry about that."
It's rented.
"Sigh. Where you streaming?"
"Travel."
Travel was the dominant game streaming platform.
"Same as me. Anyway, lemme see your stats. How good were you seven years ago to be this cocky? Got My VR installed?"
"Here."
Seo-jun fired up the app on his phone.
His VR ID info popped up: creation date, playtime, records—all for account management.
"Huh? Am I seeing things? A fresh newbie account, two days old? When'd you lose track of time like that?"
"Oh, that? Had one before, deleted and remade it."
"Bull."
"Swear."
It's true.
"Whatever. If you're really better than Shin Ha-yeon—no, better than me—I'll do all the chores from now on. If not..."
Huh?
No bait needed; the big fish hooked itself.
"You'll do them?"
"Scared? Chicken out and..."
Seo-jun didn't hesitate.
"Deal."
Good call challenging him.
"Whoa! No take-backs? Won't go easy just 'cause you're a newbie. Not starting your stream today, right?"
"Nope."
"Get in."
Seo-jun watched Kim Tae-woo head to his room, then climbed into the capsule.
The lid closed. He leaned back comfortably.
Closed his eyes, lost in thought.
Streaming.
He knew nothing about it.
Not the fun-loving type by nature, nor naive enough to think skill alone would do it.
So yeah, critics could call this a dumb waste of time, and he'd have no comeback.
Still.
Seo-jun's lips curved up.
'Everyone starts with way more weaknesses than strengths.'
Skip challenges because you're bad? You'd never go anywhere.
[Connecting to the virtual reality world in 10 seconds.]
[10]
[9]
[8]
[7]
[6]
[5]
[4]
[3]
[2]
[1]
Fwosh—
His vision went dark for an instant, then familiar sensations washed over him.
Whoosh!
Pure white light pierced his closed eyelids.
This was the lobby. An empty white room.
Streamers often chatted with viewers here before or after games.
Seo-jun's freshly made ID meant the lobby was bare.
'Gotta fill this place up with something.'
[#105979 has requested to add you as a friend.]
As he looked around, a message appeared.
Seo-jun accepted the friend request, and more messages followed.
[Kim Tae-woo has invited you to 'Training Ground.']
He accepted, and the scenery shifted instantly. A martial arts dojo vibe.
"You made it?"
Tae-woo approached, dragging a white robot-like doll from a distance.
"This is Training Ground. Basic game pre-installed in every capsule—no download needed."
"Like Minesweeper? We didn't have this back in my day."
"Your day? Say hi—this is our dojo AI, Kim Cheol-soo."
Tae-woo grabbed Cheol-soo's hand from behind and waved it like a puppet.
"Cute little guy."
"Heh. Keep getting your ass handed to you, and you'll flinch at his face."
"What kinda nonsense is that?"
Tae-woo flashed a knowing grin.
"Just try it. Fight first, talk after. Weapon?"
Obviously.
"Sword."
Tae-woo positioned Cheol-soo in front of Seo-jun, fetched a sword from a warehouse-like area.
"Catch."
Seo-jun gripped it.
A matching sword materialized in Cheol-soo's hand.
"Explanation time?"
"...Sure."
"Alright. Cheol-soo's a sparring AI. I named him. You're gonna fight him. Beat level 7, and I'll do the chores."
"Why not just fight you?"
"Can't half-ass it and hold back. Anyway, everything's equal here. Pure one-on-one skill test. Levels 1 to 10. I've cleared 8. Newbies? 4 to start."
Tae-woo shrugged.
"Assuming you actually have talent. Pros beat 9."
Seo-jun shrugged too, fiddling with the settings window before him.
"Good warm-up."
Looks fun.
"Pfft, I'll record this. 'Newbie friend dives into VR for first time, challenges level 4 fearlessly, gets wrecked and cries.' Title good? If it pops off, I'll even do a collab stream special."
Seo-jun just smiled.
"Watch quietly."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"Watching. What? Won't start?"
"Hmm, something's wrong?"
"Just hit 4 and go."
"Nah, why's level 10 locked?"
"Dude..."
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