Season 2: Chapter 56. The Original Play (2)
Raiding was a feature officially supported by Treevy that allowed a streamer to send their viewers to another channel when their stream ended. Streamers typically used raids to support lesser-known or new streamers by directing viewers to their channels. However, it became more exclusive to special occasions due to controversies such as favoritism, pushing, or even perceived extortions.
[Almond has raided you with 18,452 viewers!]
Despite the nuances of raiding, Almond sent his viewers to another stream.
"Huh? A raid?"
The person Almond raided didn't particularly need it, which was probably why Almond felt comfortable sending over his viewers. Above all, Almond wanted his viewers to watch this stream.
— GumHa!
— Oh, it's Gum bro's stream lol
— Lol
— Just arrived and already dying lol
— Hi hi, refugees welcome!
It was Bubblegum's stream.
"What? Oh my. Thanks for the raid, Almond. Rather than raiding, could you... help me as a duo...?"
Ping.
Almond was no longer on Treevy.
"... He left."
— Lol
— He'll never help lol
— Almond sent viewers to Bubblegum to show off his skills lol
— Looks like he sent them to see the original route of Zombie School lol
— Show us the real Zombie School now!
Indeed, Almond raided Bubblegum with the hope that his viewers could watch the normal way to play Zombie School. As the one in charge of advertising the game, he felt responsible for having shown viewers a somewhat unusual route in the game.
"No, what's the original Zombie School? Ah, aaaaah!"
Bubblegum grew distracted by the chat and a zombie managed to scratch him.
[Scratched]
[Medical attention required!]
Ding!
[Refugee has donated 10,000 won!]
[Here you go!]
***
"Gasp... Gasp... Finally back."
Bubblegum barely made it back to the infirmary after acquiring three scratch wounds.
— Lol
— Half of the refugees from the spicy stream left, so funny!
— How's the spicy Bubblegum after the sweet Almond?
— Almond left burning mouths lol
— 5,000 viewers gone in a flash lol
When the raid began, Bubblegum's stream surged to 70,000 viewers. However, his frustrating gameplay caused 5,000 viewers to leave and the count rapidly dropped to 65,000.
"Ah, please leave everyone. I'm too lame. You won't be able to bear it. My teeth are breaking."
— Lol
— Forbes' top recommended stream by dentists
— Dental backed sponsorship lol
Bubblegum's gameplay was famously frustrating, leading to jokes that dentists sponsored him due to viewers grinding their teeth in agitation.
He possessed exceptional gaming skills in an unconventional way similar to Almond's, but in a completely different direction. His stream differed from Almond's in several ways, especially in Zombie School. The primary difference was the number of zombies.
— Why are there so many zombies here?
— Different difficulty level?
— Wow, this really feels like a zombie game
The difference was that Bubblegum had secured the infirmary for himself. In Almond's case, Baek Joon-Soo's gang had occupied that location and managed to systematically deal with all the zombies using golf clubs. In Bubblegum's case, he secured the only proper weapon in the school.
"Ah, there are more zombies in my game? No wonder it was so hard. You all saw it, right? It's not that I can't do it."
He brazenly made these comments while wrapping the last bandage on his third wound.
— Shaking...
— Cracking...
— So bad at this! So bad!
The viewers gave up on telling him the truth. This was the peculiar charm of the undaunted Bubblegum’s stream.
"Wow, having the infirmary is great! I can keep bandaging myself, right?"
— ... said Bubblegum, now a mummy.
— Let's find new friends...
— Doesn't look good at all
The fact that he was constantly bandaging himself wasn't a good sign, but this positive thinking was what allowed him to clear games despite his mediocre skills.
"I'll take a break now. I'm injured."
He lay down in a bed as if it were routine and pressed the [Sleep] button.
After a while, or about seven hours in the game, dawn approached as the sky faintly lit up.
"Ah, now I'll really play properly," he murmured a promise while changing his soaked bandages for fresh ones.
Of course, no one believed him.
— Lies as soon as he opens his eyes, lol
— Season 8239, 'I'll play properly'
— ??? Now I'll really start playing...
Unrestrained comments filled the chat, but Bubblegum didn't care. Rumors had it that he had a filter in his retinas and only saw comments he liked. He probably wasn't reading the chat properly.
[NutJob has donated 5,000 won.]
[Bubblegum, why don't you have any companions?]
A viewer who came from Almond's stream felt something was off and asked with a donation.
"Oh, that?"
Bubblegum was unfazed.
— Lol 'that'
— Lol
"Everyone died."
He had companions, but they all died. This was a familiar occurrence for Bubblegum, who already repeated this game several times. The loss of lives no longer mentally affected him.
Bubblegum nonchalantly moved on.
"Thank you for your support, everyone. I've been trying to get into the cafeteria, but it's too difficult. I'll try the convenience store again."
He had prioritized the cafeteria, but zombies overwhelmed that path.
"I think anything other than Choco Pies would be good. Eating only Choco Pies even gave me depression."
[Depressed]
Bubblegum pointed to his status window, which indicated his [Depression] status.
— Is that really the reason???
— Isn't it because you're alone and getting thrashed by zombies? Lol
— Maybe the person possessing your body is the one who's depressed?
— Seriously, who chooses their menu in this situation? Lol
— Lol, the luxury of being full yet depressed
Ignoring the viewers' skeptical comments, he moved toward the door to assess the situation outside. Peeking through a small window, there didn’t seem to be any zombies in sight.
"Alright, I'm going."
Creak.
He opened the door and stepped out of the infirmary.
***
"Kraaaaah...!"
Not long after he left, three zombies approached him.
"Huff."
Bubblegum took deep breaths and lured them one by one as he slowly retreated and pretended to flee.
"Come on, come... Aaaah!"
Thwack!
He struck a zombie's head with his golf club. It could’ve been a one-hit kill if he swung properly, but instant kills were tough for a human like him. The zombie collapsed on the ground and flailed. Bubblegum used all his strength while clubbing the zombie on the ground.
Thump!
He disposed of all three zombies like this.
— Wow... that took ages.
— Shall we try again tomorrow?
— Lol, is that a boss monster?
His cautious approach made the process slower, prompting viewers to chide him.
— Almond's nuts, be quiet for a while, will you? Lol
— Is it always like this here???
— Not this kind of stream
However, Bubblegum's regular fans found such a pace familiar. In fact, it was slightly faster than average. It was Almond who was the anomaly.
"Bubblegum's nuts. It's not F1 racing here, it's off-roading. Got it?"
— Spot on lol
— Off-road specialist lol
— Lol, so true
After briefly silencing the viewers, Bubblegum headed toward the convenience store again. The convenience store was on the basement floor, so he had to go downstairs.
About five zombies appeared while he cautiously descended the stairs.
"Whoa. Whoa."
Thwack!
With the higher ground, Bubblegum easily took down one of the zombies with a headshot.
— Oh, instant kill! Lol
— Nice!
— Nice shot, boss!
"Remember, having the high ground is advantageous. Just keep that in mind~"
Thwack! Thwack!
Eliminating zombies while descending the stairs was easy even for Bubblegum, who had played multiple rounds of this game already.
— So there's a difference like this?
— Almond's nuts just sweep everything away without even knowing lol
— Oh!
Bubblegum easily disposed of about half a dozen zombies.
“Easy~ right?”
He successfully reached the basement floor, but realized something and scratched his head.
“... Ah, I should've taken the west stairs.”
True to his poor sense of direction, he had unnecessarily descended the far east stairs.
— Typical Bubblegum ^^
— Lol, he did a Bubblegum
— Why didn’t anyone tell him? Lol
Just then...
Creak.
The door to the convenience store in the distance suddenly opened.
“!”
Bubblegum was startled and quickly hid in the nearest classroom.
“Ah, they look like Baek Joon-Soo’s gang.”
From his multiple playthroughs, he could almost instantly recognize which group the silhouettes belonged to. A group of delinquents cautiously emerged in the distance and headed toward the restroom. They were armed with broken broom handles and metal pipes from the store shelves.
“Ah, those scumbags. They’ve taken over the convenience store this time.”
Convinced of their identity, Bubblegum further concealed himself in the classroom.
— Bubblegum is like an experienced returnee!
— Bubblegum: The Returnee (literally)
— A returnee with nothing to show for it
Having played multiple rounds, he knew which scenarios made the game easier.
“Baek Joon-Soo’s gang taking the convenience store is the easiest route. Should I give up this round?”
— Lol, is he going to quit already?
— He gives up too easily! Is he really a returnee? Lol
— Come on, try a bit!
Unlike Almond, Bubblegum was quick to give up his life in the game.
“Ah, right. It's no fun if I keep quitting like this. They don't kill Hyun-Ah, right? She should be in the music room. Let’s make some allies.”
After the delinquents entered the restroom and the corridor became empty, Bubblegum stealthily moved to a classroom further ahead. He tried to get as close as possible to the music room.
Creak.
He opened a classroom door and hid again as the delinquents emerged from the restroom.
“Phew, it’s scary every time we go to the restroom.”
“What can we do about it...?”
They cautiously returned to the convenience store.
“At least the delinquents don’t have anyone with brains when they take over the convenience store. Look, they didn’t even think to close the fire doors, right?”
Bubblegum was referring to a character named Choi Ki-Su, the brain of the delinquents, who didn’t always join the delinquent group. Choi Ki-Su wasn’t with the gang in certain situations. Without him, the delinquents lack strategy.
“They’re just savage primitives right now. Good. Let’s do this, Bubblegum.”
After everyone disappeared into the convenience store, Bubblegum stealthily left the classroom and approached the music room.
“Heave-ho...”
The tension made his breath quiver. It would be certain death if Baek Joon-Soo's gang caught him, at least with Bubblegum's skills.
He cautiously peeked inside after reaching the music room.
“As expected.”
They had tied up the convenience store clerk, Hyun-Ah, and her limbs were bound to a pillar.
“She can discern what food might cause food poisoning. That’s a useful skill. Time to recruit a new ally.”
— Is that why?
— Lol, he’s so good
— Nutty Almond wrote “nothing in particular” for Hyun-Ah’s skills lol
Bubblegum carefully opened the classroom door and went inside.
***
“... So she had that ability, Hyun-Ah noona,” Sang-Hyeon murmured while lying in bed.
He had been checking his fans’ messages on Bubblegum’s stream through his phone and ended up watching for quite a while. Bubblegum’s stream was indeed entertaining and Almond learned a lot from it. Most of it was useless to him now though.
“Yawn...”
Feeling sleepy, he decided to check the community reactions before going to bed. He expected some positive comments since he provided two good reactions in today’s stream.
“Huh?”
His half-closed eyes suddenly opened wide.
“Why is this here...?”
The Zombie School Garden had always been favorable to him, but when had it changed like this? An unwelcomed title sat at the top of the list.
[What ^Nut^ Fans Are Hoping For]
The post was mocking his fans and instantly woke him up.