Chapter 32: Choices (2)
“Just… come in for now.”
The house Sang-Hyeon and his grandmother lived in was just over 1000 square feet.
It was a big space for one person, so there wouldn’t be any problems if Ju-Hyeok moved in.
Sang-Hyeon didn’t have to move the capsule either and Ju-Hyeok would bring positive energy to this gloomy atmosphere.
Ju-Hyeok was quite excited.
“Hey! Should we order fried chicken tonight?”
He seemed to be enjoying the moment after running away from home. This marked the first time he left his parents ever since studying abroad. Plus, he had never moved in with a friend before. He felt excited like a student on a field trip despite being a thirty year old man.
“Let’s get some beer too!”
“...”
Sang-Hyeon couldn’t deny that he also enjoyed Ju-Hyeok’s presence. Living alone had been fun at first, but it quickly grew lonely. The atmosphere would definitely liven up if he had a roommate.
However, Sang-Hyeon couldn’t quite get past it yet.
“Aren’t you going to tell me why you left?”
Living away from one’s parents at thirty wasn’t unusual, but Sang-Hyeon still wanted to know the reason. He welcomed Ju-Hyeok while wondering what went through his friend’s mind.
“Sigh… I’ll tell you what happened the next time we go drinking.”
“I don’t drink if I’m streaming the next day.”
“Really? Then drink on a day off or something. Anyways, what are you going to do about the game?”
“What about the game?”
“You’re in a dilemma, Emilia or Rosenita.”
“Hmm…”
Sang-Hyeon hadn’t thought about it too much.
“I don’t think it’ll matter who I choose?”
He went to check how the forums reacted since they brought up the topic. Sang-Hyeon searched for the keyword Almond and multiple posts appeared.
.
[Almond, you nut! You’re inhuman!]
[Almond is a villain in my books…]
[God damn. He ends it there!]
[I’m gonna kill him if he ended it there just to betray Emilia.]
The posts all had brutal titles.
Snort.
Sang-Hyeon simply laughed it off. His mentality wouldn’t be swayed by them.
“Their reactions are pretty intense.”
“I’ve thought about what game you could play next.”
“Hmm? Next game?”
Ju-Hyeok suddenly changed the topic.
“Yeah, look at this.”
He plugged his laptop into a projector and displayed his data.
“Woah….”
Most people used this instead of large monitors lately. It made it easier to view all the data at once.
Ju-Hyeok spun his finger on the touchpad and the hologram rotated while displaying multiple data at once. It had to do with Sang-Hyeon’s viewer demographics and used the same organization format as their former company, so Sang-Hyeon understood it.
“Hmm… So?”
“So, the verdict is this.”
Ding.
The cluttered windows disappeared and one screen remained.
[Battle Large]
A video game teaser played on the screen. It showed a survival game with 100 players and seemed quite exciting.
“Doesn’t seem too bad, right? Should we try it out just once?”
Sang-Hyeon carelessly suggested playing it in the capsule, but Ju-Hyeok quickly stopped him.
“NO!”
“...?”
Sang-Hyeon looked at Ju-Hyeok as if to say, ‘You don’t want me to play it that badly?’
“Don’t you realize what your viewers want to see?”
“Being good at a game.”
“Not just good. A genius! You’re a genius at games!”
“How’s that different from being good?”
Ju-Hyeok had a frustrated expression and fixed his glasses.
“You can get good by just practicing, but what about geniuses? They’re born with talent and are good to begin with.”
“Huh? I do practice. I practiced shooting bows…”
“NO! You should at least show them your first time playing the game. You’re a terrible actor and don’t know how to lie, so you should just stream the first time for real.”
“???”
Sang-Hyeon looked totally confused.
‘Sure, maybe for Kingdom Age…’
Kingdom Age?was a single-player campaign game, so it wasn’t weird to just jump in.
However, Battle Large?was different because it was an online PVP game. This player vs. player game tested one’s individual skill and it had already been out for over two years.
Naturally, the game had its fair share of experts and most of the player base was experienced. It took a lot of work for beginners to adapt to the game. Being good at the game on his first try was too much to ask for.
The current player base had more experience and already put in the effort. Who could guarantee that Sang-Hyeon would be better than them?
That’s what Sang-Hyeon thought, but any other person would disagree.
“You set records even though it was your first time playing Kingdom Age.?Don’t you think you’ll do the same in Battle Large?”
“Yeah, but I’m only good at shooting bows. Isn’t this a game with guns?”
Sang-Hyeon shook his head.
Battle Large?was a shooter game. Sang-Hyeon wouldn’t have any advantages since he only knew how to shoot arrows.
“No, look at this.”
Ju-Hyeok brought up some analysis videos that showed Sang-Hyeon shooting enemies while riding a horse.
“You think this is related to archery? Well, maybe, but do you think your archery friends could do the same?”
“...”
‘Obviously?’ Sang-Hyeon was about to say, but it seemed unlikely once he thought about it again.
Archery was a very calm sport. No one would expect an archer to be good at soccer.
His play in the video didn’t have much to do with archery. 𝒃𝙚𝒅𝒏𝙤𝙫𝒆𝒍．𝙘𝒐𝙢
“Hmm… I’ve been running simulation training programs in the capsule. This is probably a result of that.”
“A simulation training program?” Ju-Hyeok only heard about it now.
“It’s something installed in the capsule by default. I’ve been running it often because it apparently helps with optimization.”
Sang-Hyeon told him he’d been clearing the simulations on maximum difficulty in every category.
Ju-Hyeok searched up the program’s name.
“Uh… What’s your highest score on the program?”
The simulation always gave a total score after the training finished.
“It was just shy of 12,000 points.”
“Jesus.”
Ding.
Another stat came up on the hologram.
“The program isn’t for professional use, but… you’re number 1 in the rankings for it.”
“Huh?”
Sang-Hyeon looked closer with a doubtful expression. Looking closer didn’t change the pixels and the data remained the same.
A line of numbers that represented Almond’s bio code sat on top of the rankings.
‘I’m… first?’
Kingdom Age?didn’t have any ranking systems or criteria to rank players. Players had no exact way to prove a new record that they achieved. Sang-Hyeon’s own feats hadn’t impressed him so far because it was his first time playing the game.
However, being ranked first in the simulation training program felt a bit different.
“Woah….”
He took a step back in shock and momentarily became speechless.
“I told you so.”
“Huh?”
“It’s not just archery. You’re talented in this area too! You just need to watch a guide video on Battle Large?and you can get started right away. You have to…”
Ju-Hyeok rambled on and felt excited that he had been proven right. As usual, his words didn’t reach Sang-Hyeon’s ears.
‘Rank 1…’
That label resonated in his heart more than he expected.
***
Sang-Hyeon decided to stream a little earlier today. He wanted to experiment with when to turn on his stream.
“I’m going in.”
“Alright.”
Someone else greeting him as he entered the capsule felt pretty good. Too bad it wasn’t a pretty girlfriend, but a robot like Ju-Hyeok. Still, it was better than having no one.
Fwoosh—?
A new world appeared as the lid closed and enveloped him in darkness.
[Daily Training Protocol Start]
The full simulation started as soon as he entered. Sang-Hyeon easily cleared the courses like going for a light jog.
[13,112]
He easily achieved over 13,000 points this time.
‘So this is a new record?’
This protocol wasn’t meant to be ranked with others, so no point chart appeared. However, Sang-Hyeon knew his previous score of 12,000 had been the highest and he just easily surpassed that.
He stood bewildered for a moment.
[Ju-Hyeok: Watch the Battle Large guide before you start the stream.]
Ding.
The video link from Ju-Hyeok popped up. Sang-Hyeon moved his hand and clicked on the video.
Swoosh—?
A strong wind could be heard accompanied by a hundred players descending with their parachutes. They began running all over the place after releasing their parachutes.
The players picked up their weapons and shot at each other as soon as they met. They held their shot if the opponent was too far away.
‘This looks fun…’
Thump—
Sang-Hyeon’s heartbeat quickened.
It gave him a different feeling than Kingdom Age.?A survival game with a hundred players sounded exciting, but watching the gameplay enticed him even more.
‘Not today though.’
He decided to wait for now. As Ju-Hyeok said, the viewers probably wanted to watch him play for the first time. Just knowing the rules would be good enough for now.
‘I should hold back if I’m going with the genius concept.’
Plus, Sang-Hyeon also wanted to experiment and see how much talent he really had.
[Alright, I watched it. I’ll start the stream now.]
He began streaming after letting Ju-Hyeok know.
***
Almond stood in the aftermath of the battle on the plain.
This virtual reality felt unbelievably immersive. Sang-Hyeon couldn’t believe he had been imagining himself playing Battle Large?a few moments ago.
Sang-Hyeon was Almond for now, a mercenary in the war between the Jeanneret and Talorant.
“How long are you going to make me wait?” Rosenita said with frustration in her voice. She wanted to hear the answer to her question.
[1. It’s an honor for you to recognize my potential.]
[2. I am still loyal despite being a mercenary.]
Sang-Hyeon would’ve needed at least a week to decide if he ever faced this situation in real life.
Rosenita didn’t seem so patient.
“Tell me now. Are you going to stand here all day?” she snobbishly pestered him.
However, the viewers thought this was part of her charm.
— Girl crush
— Crush girl
— Noona, please spank Almond!
— I love you unnie!
Emilia and Rosenita were both popular.
‘I’ll save Rosenita for next time…’
The game would get longer if he went with Rosenita. He already planned on slowly transitioning to a new game, so he wanted to finish this game with Emilia. It seemed like the loyal thing to do.
Almond finally said, “I am still loyal despite being a mercenary.”
Rosenita smiled instead of looking disappointed.
“Oh no, now I want you even more. You’re better than most knights.”
The soldiers dragged Rosenita away after their conversation. She couldn’t take her deep blue eyes off Almond as they took her away.
— Farewell, Rosenita!
— Damn…
— Almond, this bastard…
— :(?
Rosenita’s fans seemed disappointed. However, no one was obsessed enough to lash out at Almond.
“Ah… Almond.”
A faltering voice could be heard from behind him. The voice sounded soft and familiar.
‘Emilia?’
Emilia had arrived on the battlefield and surprised all the soldiers.
They spoke amongst themselves and agreed to bring her somewhere else since dangers could still be lurking. However, Emilia didn’t care and ran straight to Almond.
She ran over and hugged him as tight as her feeble arms could.