Chapter 55: Back in My Day (3)

The last time I truly felt the terror of collective madness was in the military.

After capturing two more outposts with the first platoon and regrouping with the main force, my viewers and I could only gape at the hellscape unfolding before us.

“Hey! Have you ever heard of teabagging?”

“In games like this, teabagging is the best part.”

“Hehe.”

These monsters were possessed by the concept.

Just because I took on the villain role, did my viewers also have to adopt the villain concept?

However, I quickly adapted to the scene.

This wasn’t the first or second time seeing the Evil Gang behaving this way.

They were simply transforming the desires squirming in the chat into actions.

—

-What is GsGeCheong?

-What is GsGeCheong?

-Like streamer, like viewers.

-Never thought of group teabagging.

-Look over there. It seems like they are having a competition on who can shake their hips better.

-Look at everyone shaking their hips so well. LOL

—

If we weren’t broadcasting on a tough channel, this scene would’ve been enough to get us a warning.

The sight of over ten players collectively messing around on enemy corpses would go down in history.

Meanwhile, the soldiers of the 7th Company were charging valiantly at the enemy to cover the disgraceful sight of their seniors.

On one side, people were trolling hard for the broadcast, and on the other, risking their lives for a reward leave.

It’s chaos, pure chaos.

But the soldiers in my first platoon had bright smiles.

Even though I created the opportunities, they captured three out of eight outposts.

At this rate, the reward leave would be theirs.

Moreover, my viewers who joined our team were surprisingly considerate of the active soldiers.

“Oh, junior, I can’t go any further.”

“My legs won’t move!”

“Senior! This is a game! You can’t be tired!”

“Since it’s a game, carry me! You said you can’t be tired?”

“Se-senior!”

“Oh, whatever!”

Since things were going so well, my viewers who joined the first platoon started causing trouble.

However, the soldiers of the first platoon happily carried their seniors on their backs with wide smiles.

As they said, it was a game, so they didn’t feel the strain.

Watching that warm scene, some viewers started making comments as if having seizures.

—

-Centaur mode?

-Centaur, you crazy bastard. LOL

-Wouldn’t it be awesome to shoot guns in that state?

-Really LOL Won’t the enemies run away in fear?

-Look at these guys thinking. There are so many mad lads.

—

There are so many who freak out at just a warm atmosphere.

There are too many twisted people in this world.

Of course, watching that warm scene didn’t make me very happy either.

I had planned to highlight scenes of active soldiers and viewers bickering, but the soldiers, buffed up by the promise of leave, had minds of steel.

Anyway, as soon as we joined the main force, we met the company commander.

Thanks to our team capturing most of the outposts, the game was nearly decided.

We were on the brink of victory.

Captain Lee Jin-sung of the 7th Company cleared his throat a few times, seemingly aware that I was broadcasting.

“First Platoon Leader, I received word that the division commander is watching this game live. He wanted me to convey that he’s pleased with your and your soldiers’ performance. Particularly, he found the scene of carrying the senior comrades on your backs quite impressive.” ȑ

“Th-thank you!”

For these people, it was essentially a training exercise observed by the division commander.

It’s probably for the best.

If the chaos of the main force had been broadcasted, this company might have been sent to the disciplinary committee.

I let the 7th Company talk among themselves and approached the viewers who were still showcasing their unique character on the enemy corpses.

A viewer who spotted me first waved happily.

“Our villain! Our villain! Do you want to join us?”

…Join you in what, you pervert?

“Viewers, did you know?”

“What?”

“Thanks to you guys, we might become famous overseas.”

“Awesome!”

“Our villain! Going global?”

Certainly, seeing it this way, it was a memorable scene.

How many are teabagging simultaneously?

Maybe, in the future, this broadcast will record a Guinness World Record for teabagging.

Wait.

That’s… not such a bad record.

As I gritted my teeth and glared at them, one viewer tried to act cheerful and spoke to me.

“Isn’t it like a club atmosphere? Isn’t it fun? Shaking our hips and enjoying together…”

Saying that, a few of them shot into the air to the beat.

Pathetic attempts to keep the concept alive.

I wasn’t about to let that slide.

“Hey.”

“…Yes?”

“You’ve never been to a club in real life, have you? So why are you talking about clubs?”

“Sniff.”

—

-LOL

-You really…

-Kkowiki) Streamer Sha/Innocence Controversy

-Stop the memory assault, you bad guy.

-Why are we all sad…?

-Hang in there, chat!

—

I felt much better after dishing out some payback.

As the game slowly wrapped up, amidst the rough insults from the foreign opponents and the continued teabagging from my viewers, the game ended.

I managed to get some useful footage, and once again realized all my viewers were maniacs.

As the game ended, a flashy sound effect played, and someone made a significant donation.

‘Strongest Ascending White Horse Unit’ has donated 100,000 won!

[As expected, proud warriors. Very… satisfactory…^^ The White Horse Unit’s… battle power akin to real combat… is impressive. Haha.]

Seeing this, ‘Mascot of the Ministry of National Defense, Gugeoni’ immediately followed with another donation.

‘Mascot of the Ministry of National Defense, Gugeoni’ has donated 10,000 won.

[Colonel?]

They mentioned earlier that the division commander was watching, so it might actually be the commander of the 9th Division.

Well, who cares?

He donated 100,000 won willingly.

I smiled broadly and bowed.

“Strongest Ascending White Horse Unit, Mascot of the Ministry of National Defense, Gugeoni, thank you very much for your precious donations.”

It was time to end the broadcast.

It might be because it was the first round of World of Battle today, but being an FPS game, I felt quite fatigued quickly.

Maybe it was due to the concentration needed for shooting.

“Still, it was fun broadcasting today thanks to the cooperation of the active soldiers. Do you agree?”

—

-Of course LOL

-Where else would we see such content?

-The viewers slightly crossed the line, but it was fun. LOL

-Today’s broadcast was packed.

-But are you ending the stream?

-Ending already?

Wow, they were quick to catch on.

They immediately figured out that I was about to end the broadcast.

But I’m a man of my word.

I flipped the viewers a casual middle finger and said, “For those who want to join the fan meeting, sign up as announced today. The deadline for applications is this Saturday. Some people were asking about a participation fee, but come on, do you think there’d be such a thing?”

—

-Haha

-Impressed by your big heart like a true conglomerate.

-I’m gonna go there and eat everything! (Nom nom).

-Shava

-You’re ending early today, so come early tomorrow. If you’re not early, I’ll unsubscribe right away.

-Bro! Before you go, curse us out one more time!

—

By now, my signature sign-off phrase had become a trademark.

I took a deep breath after reading the chat and pulled up the voice from my belly as I said, “Now get lost, you nasty pieces of trash!”

And so, the first broadcast of World of Battle concluded with a fairly good response.

—

6.

The next morning after the satisfying broadcast of World of Battle, I was awakened from a sound sleep by a call from Sung-jae.

He usually doesn’t call in the morning unless it’s urgent.

“Hello.”

As soon as I picked up, Sung-jae’s voice, sounding brighter than ever, came through.

“Did I wake you?”

“Oh, I paid for a gym membership yesterday anyway. I had to get up. But what’s up so early?”

Sung-jae held his breath for a moment, then spoke with a voice that seemed to be holding back laughter.

“Well, we got a call this morning from the Ministry of National Defense. So, it seems like…”

Sung-jae continued to explain.

In short, here’s what it boiled down to:

“So, the Ministry of National Defense is asking you to film a promotional video? For me?”

“That’s right. Haven’t you seen the internet?”

“What?”

“I’ll send you a link. Check it out and call me back.”

What kind of story was circulating that made him laugh so much?

As soon as the call ended, I received a link via chat, and I clicked it while yawning.

A ridiculous headline appeared.

“Title: Camaraderie Between Active Soldiers and Reservists.”

The article, with its absurd title, beautifully depicted the story of my viewers and the active soldiers of the 7th Company from yesterday.

The attached photo showed an active soldier carrying a viewer on his back, both smiling.

To those who didn’t watch my broadcast, it could easily be mistaken as a heartwarming scene between senior and junior comrades.

…Ministry of National Defense.

I underestimated you.

Scrolling down to the comments section revealed a sight to behold.

—

-Really… what a touching scene! Korea, truly reassuring.

-Cheering for you!

-Hahaha

-Did the journalist get paid by the Ministry of National Defense? LOL

-Hey! This year’s Pulitzer Prize is yours!

-What’s up with the comments here?

-LOL, the dependable active soldier there is my son. Go, my boy!

-These days… the military… has become so good. Training through games. The country is doomed…!

—

Even I, who was familiar with the internet, couldn’t predict the age range of the commenters, creating a dreadful atmosphere.

It was a comments section incomparable to the confusion I experienced yesterday.

The Evil Gang existed everywhere, along with elderly folks and even the mothers of active soldiers.

It seemed like all the netizens in Korea had gathered.

Because of that, the article’s view count was rapidly increasing, and related videos were soaring on various portal sites and social media platforms.

After checking all this, I chuckled helplessly and nodded.

They say life is seven parts luck and three parts skill.

After reviewing all the articles, I called Sung-jae back.

He answered immediately, as if waiting for the call.

“Did you see it?”

“No matter what, asking a villain like me to film a promotional video… Can a government agency really do that?”

I had firmly established myself as a villain on my broadcasts and had touched on many internationally sensitive issues.

It was a situation that could inevitably lead to controversy since I couldn’t be considered a typical public figure.

However, Sung-jae responded as if it was no big deal.

“That’s not our concern, is it? Besides, the pay is generous… Sorry, I’ve never received an outside request from the Ministry of National Defense while working at the MCN.”

After laughing for a while, Sung-jae composed himself and asked.

“Is there anything our side can help with regarding the fan meeting next Saturday?”

“It would be good to have some staff to assist. It seems difficult to manage alone.”

“Of course, we can provide that support.”

The fan meeting wasn’t a big issue.

“Anyway, you’re taking the job with the Ministry of National Defense, right?”

“If they’re paying, there’s no reason not to. Go ahead.”

“Let’s meet at the company sometime to discuss. They have a specific style in mind…”

…I really have no idea how things are going to unfold anymore.

Let it happen as it will!