===
【Virtual VTuber Gallery】
[General] Do you remember when Shina beat Anna?
(Laura & Shina wedding pic)
Shh, the wedding is starting.
[Comments]
- Damn, lolololol
- I’m Sora, and I object to this wedding, nya!
ㄴ Woo-hyoo wwwww
ㄴ [Die Nya-kun]
- All this fuss over just beating Anna, lololol
- Why are there so many pictures of Laura & Shina like this?
ㄴ There’s an artist who only draws them, lololol
ㄴ That’s because Shina is the official main girl.
ㄴ Shut up, Shina's a damn side chick.
ㄴ Welcome, Sora.
- Mashina wins!
- Y’all are overreacting, for real, lololol
===
"Oh, Shina did well."
Barubara let out a hearty laugh.
"That was sick as hell. Coach, next time, let me play as a Dual Swordsman too! I’ll carry, I swear!"
"If the ban-pick situation allows it, we’ll see. Also, I’m not a coach. I’m the team owner."
"Coach, team owner—same difference! Hahaha!"
Barubara kept nudging Choi Gaho with his elbow.
Maybe it was because all the other team members were women, but Barubara seemed particularly excited to be hanging out with Choi Gaho.
Choi Gaho didn’t seem to mind either. He just shrugged.
"Mashina must have practiced a lot. That’s not something you can pull off by chance."
"Oh? So, even you, Coach, can’t do that?"
"I could, but I’d have to practice a bit. The parry timing is pretty generous, so it’s not impossible──"
With Choi Gaho at the center, the team was deep in discussion about Leviathan.
I half-listened to their conversation while summoning a fresh pot of black tea in this VR space.
Sipping my tea with some cookies, I briefly drifted into thought.
‘Anna has improved quite a bit.’
While Shina's performance was impressive, what caught my attention even more was Anna.
I had taught her how to play as a Technomancer before, but I had never trained her in one-on-one duels.
Even though she lost to Shina, her gameplay itself was nearly flawless.
Sure, finding Shina had been a lucky break, but getting to that point had also been an optimal strategy.
‘Did Vincent teach her? Or maybe…’
Did the team owner train her?
The owner of Cerberus was MadMask.
A pro-gamer who was practically a living trauma for Rinco.
A well-known player in the Chinese league as well. His skills were undeniably top-tier.
"Oroha, you’ve been deep in thought for a while. Do you have something on your mind?"
Choi Gaho suddenly spoke to me.
I set my teacup down on the table and turned my gaze toward him.
"Not really. I was just lost in thought."
"Please share."
"…Huh?"
"Even something small would be good to discuss."
Choi Gaho said this matter-of-factly.
"Watching the match just now, Laura might have come to some realization or had some doubts. However, keeping that realization to yourself isn’t ideal. If the team is aware of it too, it’ll be easier to strategize when we go up against Behemoth."
"Hmm."
He had a point.
Was this the kind of perspective a pro-gamer had?
It was a way of thinking that never would’ve occurred to me.
Maybe it was because I’d been playing solo for so long.
I had played many games in the past, but this was practically my first time truly playing as part of a team.
It was a valuable lesson.
"I was thinking that Anna has gotten a lot stronger."
"Anna, huh?"
I casually shared my thoughts on Anna.
Choi Gaho nodded.
"It was probably MadMask who trained her. He must have made her practice dueling as a Technomancer."
"Why?"
"That, I don’t know. It’s hard to read MadMask’s intentions. He’s got a bit of a shady side."
Shady?
"Are you two close?"
"Not really, but we’ve had meals together before."
That sounds pretty close to me.
As I was mulling over that, Barubara threw in a question.
"Come to think of it, Coach, why did you pick me over Anna? If you think about synergy with Laura, wouldn’t Anna have been a better choice?"
"If I hadn’t picked Rui, I might have considered Anna. Let’s say, hypothetically, Rui and Laura had a disagreement. Most people would probably side with Rui."
"I don’t plan on fighting with Laura, though."
Rui meekly raised a hand and interjected.
"It’s just a hypothetical. If such a situation were to arise, Barubara, whose side would you take?"
"If I absolutely had to pick one… I guess Rui? We’ve known each other for a long time."
"Exactly. Rui has more seniority, so it’s inevitable. But Laura is also the ace of Leviathan, so her voice needs to carry weight. That’s why I thought it’d be good to add either Anna or Sora."
The problem with Anna was that she was a hardcore Rui fan.
If push came to shove, she might side with Rui instead of me.
On the other hand, Sora was my peer, so she was more likely to support me over Rui, according to Choi Gaho.
"By that logic, why not just pick both?"
"If I had done that, Sora and Anna would’ve been fighting—cough—clashing every day."
"Khaha! Coach, you really get it! Your VTuber knowledge is on point! Kahaha!"
For some reason, Barubara found it hilarious and started banging on the table while laughing. He looked like he was having the time of his life.
"But personally, I don’t like that Anna ended up in Cerberus. Since she’s close with Oroha, their team will probably come up with countermeasures against her."
"Oh my, do you really think I’d lose to someone like Anna?"
【Rock King Dolkingkingking has donated 1,000 KRW.】
【"Someone like Anna" lmaooo】
【KuroBodyweightOutsideYou has donated 1,000 KRW.】
【"That’s kinda harsh, lol"】
"If that offended you, I apologize."
Choi Gaho immediately apologized, though his face didn’t really look remorseful.
"By the way, Mr. Team Owner, you said earlier that even small things should be shared, right?"
"Yes, that’s correct. Do you have something else on your mind?"
"You don’t usually show up outside of practice. Was there some kind of change in your mindset that made you join today’s stream?"
"……."
Silence.
Barubara, who had been laughing just moments ago, suddenly shut up.
Mero, who had been grinning in the corner, wiped the expression off her face.
Sora looked slightly flustered, Rui averted her gaze, and Kirin had an expression that screamed, "Did you really just ask that here…?"
But come on, isn’t everyone curious?
All six of us had been running practices together, but the team owner, Choi Gaho, had barely shown his face.
I get that he was busy with his pro-gamer career, but still, it would’ve been nice if he showed up a bit more.
"This is just a minor question I have, but I assume you’ll answer, right?"
"…Of course."
Ahem.
Choi Gaho cleared his throat.
"My wife told me to socialize more."
He said it with the straightest face.
And just like that, Barubara and Mero burst into laughter.
***
Match 3: Behemoth vs. Cerberus Results
Duel Mode
- Round 1: Mashina wins (Behemoth +1pt)
- Round 2: Vincent Edward wins (Cerberus +1pt)
- Round 3: Kanto Akito wins (Cerberus +1pt)
Arcade Mode: Behemoth wins (+3pt)
Gate Assault Mode: Cerberus wins (+5pt)
Current Scores:
1st. Cerberus – 17pt (4 matches remaining)
2nd. Behemoth – 8pt (4 matches remaining)
3rd. Leviathan – 7pt (5 matches remaining)
4th. Gryphon – 1pt (5 matches remaining)
The match between Cerberus and Behemoth had been intense, but ultimately, Cerberus secured the upper hand by winning Gate Assault Mode.
Personally, three key points stood out to me.
First, Behemoth’s ace was stronger.
Cerberus’ Vincent was skilled, but he relied more on game sense than raw mechanics. He seemed more suited for making strategic calls.
On the other hand, Asahina Hikari from Behemoth was more of an instinctual player.
If those two went head-to-head, Vincent would likely lose in pure mechanics.
‘Come to think of it, Behemoth was the only team that didn’t pick me as their first draft choice.’
All three other teams had tried to recruit me first, while Behemoth had prioritized Hikari.
And honestly, that had been the right call.
Between Vincent, Son Narin, and Hikari, the one I least wanted to go up against was probably Hikari.
Son Narin might be more skilled overall, but her playstyle actually had a clear counter.
Anyway, thanks to Hikari’s standout performance, Behemoth had been able to win Arcade Mode.
On the other hand, both team owners had participated in Gate Assault Mode, and Cerberus’ owner won the matchup.
So, while Behemoth had the stronger ace, Cerberus had the stronger team owner.
That was the second key takeaway.
And the third?
"So, who confessed first, Coach?"
"…Do we have to talk about this?"
More than the strategic aspects of the match, my teammates were far more interested in Choi Gaho’s wife.
It felt like we were high school students pestering a teacher to talk about their first love.
They were practically begging him to drop everything and spill the details.
"That’s enough for today… Let’s stop here and save that for later…"
"Oh come on~, don’t try to escape, Coach."
"Yeah! ‘Later’ when? ‘Later’ when!?"
Barubara grabbed Choi Gaho’s shoulder, and Mero whined like a child. Even Kirin, off to the side, looked like he was really hoping for some gossip.
Choi Gaho looked troubled, but there was no escaping this.
I mean, how could he possibly keep quiet about dating his wife since middle school?
Even I, someone who took games seriously, found this topic intriguing. Sora, sitting next to me, was also listening with great focus.
"Rui…, a little help here?"
"Hmm."
Rui hesitated but didn’t step in to change the subject.
Maybe she also wanted to hear Choi Gaho’s story?
She glanced at me as if asking, ‘So, what’s the plan?’
"We should probably set a date for the next collab, Mr. Team Owner."
"A collab… You mean a joint stream?"
"Yes."
I nodded.
As entertaining as Choi Gaho’s love life was, something else was more important.
Our six-man Leviathan team had grown quite close, but if we kept leaving Choi Gaho out, it wouldn’t look great.
Up until now, it seemed like he had been deliberately avoiding collabs to give us space, but at this point, he needed to start blending in with the team.
"If it’s just playing some games together, I don’t mind. My wife already told me to spend more time with the team, anyway."
"Oh~, such a devoted husband~."
"…Mero, please stop teasing me."
Choi Gaho sighed but ultimately agreed to the collab.
And a few days later—
Choi Gaho logged into Dungeon Seeker.
"Mr. Team Owner, do you like mealworms?"
"…Excuse me?"
"I got a sponsorship deal for mealworms."
This was a mansion dungeon.
The participants: Me, Son Narin, Sora, Mero, and Choi Gaho.
As we cooked rats and insects for food, I casually asked,
"I have way too many mealworms at home, so I’ve been giving them away to people."
"…I’ll pass. My wife wouldn’t like them."
"Actually, your wife said she’s fine with it."
"…What?"
I pulled up a message.
【"My husband is always in your debt! I love watching your streams ♡♡♡
Please feel free to boss him around! He’s so lazy—please give him a good kick in the butt!"】
"I saw your wife on social media, so I sent her a DM. She asked me to give you a proper kick. Should I do it physically?"
"…I’ll politely decline."
Yeah.
Our team owner was definitely whipped.