It’s not that kind of malicious broadcast

『Ark: Oppa』

『Ark: Are you busy?』

『Revan: It’s okay』

『Revan: What’s up?』

『Ark: It’s not about me』

『Ark: You know Yena』

『Ark: Do you think she’s okay??』

『Ark: She’s not doing anything strange, right??』

『Revan: Since her sister said she’s going with her』

『Revan: We should trust her』

『Revan: She’s family』

『Revan: I’m more worried that she won’t do anything strange』

『Ark: ???』

『Ark: Is GetDevoured’s disease contagious?』

『Ark: Where did our common sense go 😦』

『Revan: Stop saying weird things』

『Revan: I’m just saying that she’s the type who needs to do what she wants to a certain extent』

『Revan: Anyway, let’s not worry too much』

『Revan: She knows how to keep within good limits』

『Revan: In a situation like this, she’ll behave well』

『Revan: Unless she’s completely prohibited from doing anything and accumulates stress』

『Ark: I see…』

『Ark: You’re right!』

『Ark: Thank you』

『Ark: Thanks to you, I feel relieved』

『Revan: ㅇㅇ』

『Revan: You’re almost out of time for your broadcast, go get ready』

『Ark: But now that I think about it, isn’t it strange that you know so well?』

『Ark: You’re almost like a real oppa 🤔』

『Ark: Revan-ssi?』

『Ark: If this gets out, wouldn’t the room explode?』

『Revan: Just go』

『Revan: Is it really the contagious GetDevoured disease?』

『Revan: How many small GetDevoured Devoureds are there, anyway?』

『Ark: Yena still hasn’t given up on shipping us, you know.』

『Ark: If you treat me so coldly, won’t Yena be sad?』

『Ark: But I’m fine with it~』

(Revan was typing a message…)

『Ark: Just kidding, I’m off!!!』

(Revan was typing a message…)

* * * *

It felt like watching a foreign film. Sitting quietly on the sofa, now practically an audience member, I sipped my coffee that had no whiskey in it.

Lee Yeri and the CEO’s conversation was progressing quite rapidly. She was good at English too. With the real-world experience built up from keyboards and Discourse, I found it impossible to keep up with their fluency.

Not that I had any chance to interject… even if I tried, I wouldn’t be able to say a word. To begin with, the expressions and terms they were using were very different from what I typically used.

It was only natural. This wasn’t a conversation where lines like “Kill the priest first”,

“That’s not how you do it”, or “Even a monkey hitting random buttons could’ve pulled off that counterattack…” belonged.

Of course, my speaking and writing skills were much weaker compared to my listening and reading skills. I had mostly been a listener when playing on North American or European servers.

So, lines like “Are you suffering from a fatal disease where you die if you don’t use your strong attack?”, “If the wish-granting association comes, wish for them to cut off your fingers instead”,

“If you had used that overwhelming power to satisfy your wife instead of using strong attacks, the mailman wouldn’t have had a chance with her”,

“I’ll slit your throat, piss down it, and send you to heaven.” or “Finally, you’ll meet your parents; thanks for making sure you’ll meet them in a similar state”—those kinds of things, I could understand quite well.

… Back then, I had a lot of rough friends… and the mechanical censorship system encouraged twisted attacks as long as there were no swear words.

Their behavior was incomprehensible to me. As a decent person who pursued gentlemanly gameplay, I never spoke such harsh words.

Feelings built up during gameplay should be resolved within the game itself. Guessing your opponent’s parents’ professions and health conditions through various vociferous comments does not change the fact that you were outplayed.

Moreover, KoK offered plenty of in-game motions to vent any built-up emotions. There was a reason it was hailed as a masterpiece right after its release.

Despite my philosophy, having lived in a village of one-eyed people for a long time, I inevitably gained a good understanding of their language.

So, even though it was in English, I had some confidence in communicating about KoK.

However…

Judging by the scene, this seemed to be a space for three-eyed people.

Calmly, I took out my phone and activated a translation app.

“Hmm. So, in summary, you’re expressing concerns about the direction of the patch and the numerous bugs, correct?”

“Yes, thank you for understanding. My sister currently specializes in broadcasting Knight of Knights, but aside from that, she genuinely loves this game.”

“Ah, I see. It’s heartwarming to hear that someone with such immense talent who could probably conquer any VR game loves our game the most. It means a lot to us developers.”

“Yes, sir. Along the same lines, from a desire to see Knight of Knights thrive, we hoped to make a modest contribution… By using personal broadcasts to create issues and promote the game. Records show that many users watched Yena’s gameplay. However, we had no intention of using our influence to disrupt the company’s operations or game management.”

“Ah, we greatly appreciate that. As someone who has watched GetDevoured’s gameplay, I can’t imagine anything more impactful. It was truly spectacular.”

Was it just my imagination?

I had the feeling that the spirit had left the boss’s expression and words.

An attorney capable of performing exorcisms. It sounded impressive in itself, but… exorcising one’s own spirit? That seemed a bit too much.

“Yes. However, because Yena loved ‘Knight of Knights’ that much, she couldn’t help but have concerns borne out of love. If the rogue, the character she loves most and a key to the popularity of ‘Knight of Knights’, gets excessively nerfed, the game’s popularity might also decrease… That was her biggest worry.”

Lee Yeri continued to make her statement, seemingly indifferent to the CEO’s expression. It was hard to tell if she didn’t care about his reaction or if provoking such a reaction was her intention all along.

Her voice, clear and pleasant, flowed smoothly. Despite the constant stream of meaningless words, it was somewhat bearable to listen to.

… I felt like my soul was about to drift away. Why didn’t I bring some emergency alcohol?

“Oh… I see. Indeed, the rogue… is a charming character… and I think, one of the mascots of ‘Knight of Knights’. It’s not just because I designed the rogue’s skills.”

I must have drifted into a semi-conscious state within the endless swamp of explanations. At some point, the CEO’s gaze shifted from Lee Yeri, who had been leading the conversation, to me.

1 second. 2 seconds… 3 seconds.

… The pause felt a bit long. Should I greet him? Now that I think about it, we hadn’t properly greeted each other when we came in since we were busy greeting each other as a group.

Raising my right hand quietly, I mimicked the rogue’s initial greeting motion. I hoped that creating 30% of the rogue’s design and wanting some peace 70% of the time might make him appreciate it.

Honestly, I wanted to go to the convenience store. I needed a potion, urgently. However, disappointingly, there was no response from him. In fact, his expression became even darker… Hmm.

I guess it’s quite awkward for a twenty-something to mimic a game character’s motion sober.

… This feels embarrassingly awkward.

Fortunately, the CEO didn’t point out my action. He merely cast his eyes down and let out a long sigh.

Actually, this made me feel even more awkward.

“-Sigh. The truth is… ah, it’s not really a secret, but please consider this off the record. You see, I am, honestly, someone who only knows about game development. When we were creating the alpha version, work spread like wildfire, and everything was an all-out effort… Everyone threw ideas at each other, and we shouted to put garbage thoughts in the trash… That’s how it was. Back then, it wasn’t just about development. I did planning and skill design too… It felt like I was going to die. But thanks to that, I was able to get involved in designing the rogue’s traits, making it a good memory.”

“Ah, I see. Then-”

“But ever since we received large-scale investment for KoK, the planning and operations teams have become composed of carefully selected experts… Honestly, to be frank… sigh.”

The CEO started his speech, cutting off Lee Yeri, who was making appropriate interjections, but his words grew hesitant.

He sighed again, clutching his head as though overwhelmed by the pressure. Why were there so many people who didn’t handle their assets properly?

Yet it turned out that he really was the one who designed the rogue’s skills. That changed my perspective a bit. Should I give the prepared gift to him, then?

I shifted my posture slightly forward from my half-leaning position on the chair.

Everyone seemed a bit smarter in retrospect. Just looking at that well-stuffed developer’s pouch on his belly, it was evident that he was a skillful gamer.

Perhaps there was still some hope for Faraday. Wasn’t such a person present back then?

Now that I think about it… I couldn’t recall him at all. How did that happen?

Even after diligently watching all the developer interviews from the end of Season 2, hoping for some hint, his face drew a blank in my memory. That was a time when my efforts to compensate for my lackluster physicality extended into irrational realms.

Nevertheless, seeing him in person – whether he was the CEO or not – was a first.

Ultimately, these differences might account for it. After all, wasn’t KoK converting to VR KoK? Being surprised by a change in the development team configuration at this point seemed more foolish.

While such thoughts were being tucked away, the CEO, wearing a somewhat drained expression, slightly lowered his head.

“……No, never mind. Forget it. Anyway, at Faraday Games, our top experts are working on patches considering complex balances. Tell our Rogue Queen not to worry too much. Also, although it’s still under embargo—once we clear the bugs, it will be announced. So, to inform you in advance, three new characters will be added this season at four-month intervals. The first one is an assassin specialized in surprise attacks from the rear. For someone like ‘GetDevoured’, it will make the game even more thrilling.”

Wait a minute.

What did they just say—

“Oh, I see. I, and Yena too, will look forward to it as just another user.”

“Hold on a second.”

So, the reason they made such drastic nerfs to the rogue class… was to strip the assassination part and push it onto a new character.

That’s the same trick KoK started when it truly began to fall apart. They chopped off existing characters’ roles bit by bit, to sell new characters.

They were already planning to do that.

No wonder they’ve already set up a Korean branch and the tournament scales are massive… I was wondering if the company had a lot of money.

Maybe they just borrowed a ton of debt.

Well, it figures, since they made it into a VR game. Compared to the PC game version in a past life, it would need a lot more investment. And obviously, investor voices would become louder much quicker…

But even so, why butcher a perfectly functional game?

This, this is an emergency intervention even as an audience member.

Law and all that—leaving everything to others and sitting back to watch is dereliction of duty, as Lee Yena—no, as ‘GetDevoured’.

If that was the plan, I wouldn’t have started the broadcast in the first place.

“Not until there’s a knife at my throat. Want to see?”

So, even if Lee Yeri next to me tried to stop me, nothing would change.

For me.

For Yeri.

For the viewers. And most importantly, for the identity I’ve built up.

Having brought everyone here, don’t I have an obligation to act on my convictions?

So—

Even if the canary tries to stop me, I won’t hold back anymore.

* * * *

How could every single expression be so extreme?

However, as she turned her head to restrain possible reckless words, Lee Yeri eventually closed her mouth, unable to say anything.

“No.”

Because her younger sister, looking at her firmly, was gently smiling and shaking her head.

“Now, let me handle it. If anything happens, okay, I will take care of it. I’ve handled many incidents before. I’m experienced. It’s not something to brag about, though.”

-Hahaha.

And for some reason,

“Please. … Unnie.”

For the first time in a long time, the title “Unnie” felt warm, not burdensome.

Lee Yeri just widened her eyes and stayed silent.

TL’s Corner:

She’s pissed.