Chapter 8
1.
『Jibjig Gallery』
[Title: Tofu Dutiful Daughter, this bitch isn't suspended?]
[Posted by: Anonymous]
(A screenshot of Heukrangi and Bullet talking in the in-game chat)
Heukrangi was streaming when Bullet logged in, so someone gave her a mission to message them lol
Heukrangi was cracking up when she whispered to Bullet, but they replied that they weren't suspended. What the hell is this???
-Not suspended? Whoa, holy shit, that's a massive twist lmao
-For real??? I can't believe it
[Title: So you're saying this aim isn't hacks?]
[Posted by: Anonymous]
(A clip of Bullet killing an enemy hero in one second by shooting only their head)
That's skill? It's just a fluke? Does that make any sense at all???
-Still looks insane as hell, even after watching it again lol
-They said they were just having a good day... Or was it one of those days where everything clicks?
└Even if they're in great form, can you really aim like that? Their crosshair follows the head almost perfectly, doesn't it???
-You know to take anything Bullet says with a grain of salt, right?
[Title: There are a shitload of flat-earther bastards lmao]
[Posted by: Anonymous]
(A clip of Bullet saying that refusing to believe the Operations Team's verdict is no different from being a flat-earther)
You flat-earthers or what???
-Calling them flat-earthers is a bit much, fuck;;
-I'm a flat-earther. Am I allowed to insult Bullet???
└Fuck;; There are actually people who believe the Earth is flat?
└Are you a genius???
└Go ahead and insult them. I don't think Tofu Dutiful Daughter cares if flat-earthers talk shit about them;;
[Title: Tofu Dutiful Daughter says they have no parents?]
[Posted by: Anonymous]
(So You Lied to Us.jpg)
They said they weren't feeling well, but worried people would get mad if they just left, so they made up that excuse on purpose
-This person's about as dumb as Heukrangi…
-They were Tofu Dutiful Daughter, but without a dad or filial piety, they're just Tofu Girl lol
└The hell is wrong with this bastard;;
└That's DC for you
└Phew, that's satisfying lol
[Title: Tofu Girl says they used to be a total loser]
[Posted by: Anonymous]
From now on, any attack on Bullet will be considered an attack on me…!
-Someone's getting carried away lmao
-What a hardcore loner lol
-Oh~ so you're a true loner fan?
[Title: Heukrangi's 'masterpiece' surfaces lmao]
[Posted by: Anonymous]
(That cheating bastard finally got what was coming to her.jpg)
And now the callout begins lmao
-Still a masterpiece even after rereading it
-Whoa, but Heukrangi's virtual avatar creeps me out every time I see it. Fucking furry bitch;;
└I'm not a furry, I'm an animal lover, thank you very much
└Hello. I'm a child lover.
└?
└???
└(Korean men should die emote)
[Title: Tofu Girl says they're still going to compete in the tournament]
[Posted by: Anonymous]
Apparently Aura and Heukrangi, their teammates, and even Peanut Man, the tournament organizer, are all on board???
-I'm surprised Peanut Man gave the okay, even if the others did. I thought he'd kick them out for ruining the tournament
└It turned out they weren't hacking, after all. So it'd be hard to kick them out on those grounds, and the teammates are fine with it too
-Maybe it's because this is Aura's last tournament like she promised her viewers lmao. She's even taking that cheating bitch along lmao
└(Are you a flat-earther? emote)
└They made this shitty emote already;;
[Title: So which team do you think will win???]
[Posted by: Anonymous]
Who do you think is the favorite to win???
-One thing's for sure: it definitely won't be Aura's team
└Why not???
└Aura picked her teammates like an idiot. Aura and Heukrangi can at least pull their weight, but the two supports are absolute dead weight… And one of them mostly plays DPS, so they're fucked
└Even so, don't they have a chance with Tofu Girl? Their aim was good enough to get called hacks…
└Hmm… I dunno…
2.
“I-I-I’m so nervous…!”
My body was trembling all over. It was finally time to talk with my teammates for the first time.
[This isn't your first time. Why are you so nervous?]
“It is my first time…!”
[We've been practicing together for days now. What the hell are you talking ab— Ahem….]
-???
-Huh?
-Here we go again
-It's hilarious how Heukrangi is walking on eggshells around them lmao
-Wonder how long they'll put up with this…
-Kinda hot;
“It is my first time since I said I was going to get tofu and ran away…!”
Of course, it really was my first time. But it wasn't theirs.
[That's true, I guess. But… you're still holding on to that? We've already talked it all through, so don't worry about it.]
“You might be okay with it, Ms. Heukrangi…! No, you have to be okay with it…! But the others aren't….”
[…Why do you put it like that?]
-For real lol
-She's got a point
-What about Heukrangi, anyway;
“I-I’m just stating the facts.”
[I already apologized, didn't I? Give it a rest, you alligator snapping turtle of a bitch!]
“If an apology fixed everything, then why do we have laws and police…!”
[That's true, but…! I apologized, and I said I'd make it up to you too…!]
Ding—
[Hello?]
While I was bickering with Heukrangi, someone else joined. Her voice was pretty familiar.
“A-Aura…! Y-you're here…!”
[What? Why are you talking like that? It's creepy.]
[Seriously. Your tone is so different from earlier today, Bullet.]
“Y-you gave me a new chance, Aura…! I have to show you this much respect….”
With a solemn expression, I clasped my hands together and began to pray.
“Aura, my love. My light. My darkness. My life. My joy. My sorrow. My solace. My soul.”
[Stop… You're embarrassing me…!]
“If there are 7 billion Aura fans in the world, then I am one of them.”
[If there are 7 billion of them, then I'm an Aura unnie fan too?]
“If there are 100 million Aura fans in the world, then I am one of them.”
[If there are 100 million of them, then I'm an Aura unnie fan too?]
-Someone's getting carried away lmaoooo
-These people are such fucking idiots…
-Did you two really get close today?
-You didn't even get close today. Heukrangi was the one who publicly called them out first;;
-So you're both people who've been called out, then?
“If there are 10 million Aura fans in the world, then I am still one of them…”
[Stop it.]
A cold, low voice pierced straight into my brain. My whole body stiffened in an instant.
“Kkihyat!?”
[Understood.]
“Y-yes…!”
Silence fell over the voice chat for a moment.
-Cough, cough…
-I can't breathe ㅠㅠㅠ
-Hngh…
-Awkward~~~~~~
My body trembled. I wanted to say something, but I had no idea what.
‘Please. Someone say something…!’
Ding—
The silence only broke after the two streamers playing support joined.
[Hello!]
[What? Why's the mood so weird in here?]
Their lively, energetic voices finally made me feel like I could breathe again.
“G-girl smell….”
[What!?]
[What are you saying all of a sudden—!!! Girl smell—!]
Their giggly voices made a silly grin spread across my face too.
“Hehehe….”
[Eek! You're so creepy!]
-He's saying “girl smell” lmao
-Ahh~ that's lovely to hear~~~
-Why does he talk like some middle-aged guy…
[All right, all right. That's enough.]
When the laughter wouldn't stop, Aura stepped in to get everyone back on track.
[We've already discussed everything in the group chat, but I'll go over it again so the viewers know what's going on.]
[Some unfortunate things happened, but our team has decided to keep Bullet with us instead of kicking them out.]
[Waaaaaaah—!]
[Welcome—!!!]
The two streamers playing support clapped to welcome me.
“Hehe… Th-thank you….”
It was truly the first time women had welcomed me so warmly. Aura and Heukrangi, on the other hand, seemed a little underwhelmed.
“Hmm….”
[What's wrong?]
“It's nothing…!”
I was a little disappointed, but they were both people I was grateful to, all the same.
[Objectively speaking, our team isn't strong right now. In fact, we're probably near the bottom of the more than 100 teams in the Battle of Ruin.]
‘We're that weak?’
I tilted my head and checked our record. Even scrims were recorded, after all. The moment I looked, I could only stare in a daze.
[Defeat 3:0]
[Defeat 2:0]
[Defeat 3:0]
The match history was entirely red. Most of the losses were crushing scores like 3:0 or 2:0. It meant we hadn't even been able to put up a fight.
Scrim win rate: a whopping 4%!!! WE'RE FUCKED!!!!
“Wow. We're seriously fucked…”
[…Bullet?]
Aura called my name in a chilly voice.
“Y-yes!?”
[Could you… keep those thoughts to yourself?]
“S-sorry… I think my inside thoughts slipped out without me realizing….”
-What a crazy bitch lmao
-They're just saying it right out loud
-Ahh~ that's satisfying~
[So you really meant that sincerely….]
“Uh, yeah….”
[Then what do you think our team's problem is, Bullet?]
A trickle of cold sweat ran down my back. How would I know?
[Bullet?]
Aura pressed me for an answer. Whatever I said here could affect the direction of the team—and how popular my stream would get.
‘Do I back down? Or do I push further…?’
I didn't have to think for long.
I was already on a moving train. If I jumped off now, I'd only get left behind…!
“Uh, that I wasn't there…?”
[You were with us for every scrim. What the hell are you talking about?]
Heukrangi immediately called me out.
[Exactly!]
[That's right!]
Girl-Smell #1 and #2 agreed as well. How shameless….
“T-to be exact… I-I mean that the awakened me wasn't there…! The me back then and the me now are completely different people…!”
And I really am different. Completely. From head to toe. Even down to my soul!
[Are you saying that with you on the team, we might be able to break out of this losing streak?]
Aura's voice sharpened.
“I-I can't be sure… but I'll d-do my best…!”
[Hmm, good. As it happens, I just set up a scrim.]
“A-already!?”
I wasn't even mentally prepared yet!
“W-wait, there's a team that wants to scrim us…? We won't even be good practice…!”
-You really said that out loud…
-Fact: true
-We really won't be good practice;;
[…Let's see just what Mk.2 Bullet can do differently.]
Gulp—
“Y-yes…! A-and… there was something I didn't get to do during the clarification stream earlier. Could I say a few words to the viewers now…?”
[This sounds ominous… Go ahead.]
With Aura's permission, I sprang up from my chair and bowed my head.
“I-I’m sorry for the hacking controversy… It wasn't my fault, and you were all just talking nonsense, but things did get noisy because of me….”
-Are you insane?
-Huh???
“I’m really, really sorry, and I’ll make it up to you through my gameplay!”
Bullet's heading to the debut match…!