It’s not that kind of malicious broadcast

It seemed like Buddha had once said in his teachings that life is suffering. At least, it felt like something he might have said.

As another wave of pain hit, the words popped into my head while I pondered which hurt more—the stabbing pain in my lower abdomen or the hammering ache in my back.

While clutching the blanket tightly in bed and groaning, I thought about the sayings of ancient sages and realized that not a single one of their words was wrong.

Perhaps any false wisdom had already perished in the flow of time, punished and discarded by countless generations.

“Hey, villagers! Look at what nonsense this foolish ancestor is spouting.”

And yet, I felt as if I was the one receiving those beatings.

Nevertheless, as the realization that life is suffering, and that physical pain is among the worst, consumed my thoughts, the duties I needed to attend to remained at the forefront of my mind.

Despite an overwhelming desire to procrastinate, an appointment was an appointment. Isn’t that just how life works? Even when brimming with enthusiasm, a minor physical ailment makes you want to rest at home.

But no matter what, if there’s a committed responsibility, you end up dragging your heavy body out. It’s funny how the human heart works. The more hardship you endure to achieve something, the prouder and happier you feel about it.

『MPain(Rogue) has been slain!』

『아따먹(Holy Knight) → MPain(Rogue)』

Thus, it was only natural that this secondary account was precious to me. This small, dear creation was forged by my blood, sweat, and tears—meant to spread pain to others and share it.

* * * *

Perhaps it was the startling appearance of the knight, dressed in a white tunic and short leather shorts, that drew attention. Until the kill log appeared in English, most viewers didn’t sense anything unusual about the screen Lee Yena was broadcasting, even though the client was in English.

The ID above the knight’s head was a strange series of special characters, clearly different from her usual in-game ID. After all, who could have predicted that someone who announced only a three-day break would return with a North American account of diamond rank?

『I. Will. Cleanse. This. Land.』

『Is this… a knight?』

『If I get killed by a knight dressed like that, I might actually quit the game in tears.』

『You said it was a knight special, teacher.』

『Maybe rogues are actually trash?』

『The end of the Korean-American alliance.』

『We couldn’t complain if this led to trade retaliation.』

『The appearance of an old player in underwear has traditionally been a symbol of a doomed game.』

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Her voice, filled with a gentle sense of accomplishment, sounded as if she was fishing for compliments.

Could there be a more mismatched voice to the image of a muscular man walking in his underwear? The grotesque sight of blood dripping from the blade of the enormous greatsword slung over his shoulder was particularly striking.

-You received a 1,000-won donation from ㅇㅇ!-

【We can ignore the clothes, but what’s up with that username, teacher】

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Maybe because the tier was lower than her usual activities, Lee Yena communicated with her viewers in a calm and languid tone while playing the game.

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Her voice exuded an air of leisure, as if she were merely observing the intense movements of the knight on the screen.

-Boom!-

One strike.

The sword slashed through the air without warning and struck the ground. Question marks filled the chat. Before the sarcasm about performing an exorcism finished, a rogue appeared smoothly from the other side of the sword.

The viewers who had been watching didn’t anticipate what happened next. The shock of the rogue, who was ambushed while in stealth, must have been indescribable.

<<……Actually, this knight can detect hidden rogues. I won’t say how, though. Don’t you think rogues need a buff?>>

Only one person remained unshaken.

* * * *

It was an absurd attack.

There wasn’t even a footstep to be heard. There hadn’t been any hint of an attack motion. How did the knight predict the rogue’s position, who was approaching stealthily?

But there was no time to reflect on the past.

The knight had spent stamina on a large, forceful attack, and had already forced the rogue out of stealth—time for a reset. The bloodstained knight unhesitatingly took another step toward the rogue, who was trying to reposition.

Raising the greatsword to head level, the knight aimed the sword’s tip at the rogue’s chest. The weight seemed burdensome, as the only armored hand lightly supported the blade at about one-third of its length instead of holding the hilt.

Facing the pressure of an imminent and forceful thrust, the rogue’s mind raced faster than ever before.

Encountering the knight was bad luck, and losing stealth made it a critical situation. However, the current battlefield was a narrow alleyway, with a corner just ahead. Obstacles that hindered the swing of an excessively large weapon were scattered throughout.

It was the reason few favored greatsword knights in such confines. In a cramped battleground where dodging space was limited, an overwhelmingly large weapon was initially intimidating—but what’s intimidation if you can’t even swing your weapon?

There were too many segments in Underground that nullified the greatsword knight’s choices. The current battlefield between the rogue and the knight was one such place.

Realistically, only thrusts and downward strikes were viable. An awkward horizontal slash would see the blade caught against the wall, turning the knight into a punching bag.

The knight, already looking fatigued and bleeding profusely, trusted his last resort skill. Even against the weakened rogue, a decisive counter could be fatal.

These thoughts swirled in the rogue’s mind while inching closer to the wall, the menacing greatsword seeming to grow in size.

A thrust aimed during a breathing pause—but it was a predicted thrust. Easily avoidable. A sidestep with minimal movement, followed by a counter to the face, should do the trick—

Just as the rogue tensed to execute the plan, the approaching sword tip retreated suddenly. A feint. But for what? The knight could only thrust or strike downward. The rogue’s sidestep remained a valid move.

Feeling reassured, the rogue began contemplating the counter move after evading.

-Vroom!

The knight began to twirl his massive sword, twisting his entire body.

No, could that even be called “twirling”? The excessively large and heavy sword had enough power to switch the roles of the subject and the object. Barely enduring the centrifugal force driving his body, the knight flung himself into the action.

The rogue realized he couldn’t dodge. It was far too late to escape that insane range.

However, it was a strike that would never connect. That enormous sword would fail to even scratch the rogue’s flesh and would instead collide with the wall. The sturdy underground wall was even more reliable than the knight’s large shield. Before the sword could be swung halfway, it would bounce off, throwing the knight off balance.

Thinking this, the rogue took a step forward to counter, only to witness the glowing red sword slice through the rock like tofu, rushing towards him—

“The fu—”

—Boom!

Unfortunately, the rogue couldn’t even finish his last words before the sword shattered the wall and cleaved through his chest.

As if to fill the void of his unfinished scream, the torn upper body of the rogue scattered along with the shattered debris.

* * * *

<>

Lee Yena’s dry voice carried an air of indifference. No one seemed satisfied with her explanation, almost as if she was introducing a simple recipe. The chat was full of questions like “What was that?”

<>

“Are the walls supposed to break?” indicating a state of near-explosion.

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Unbothered, she continued typing lightly on the keyboard.

<>

Yena expressed her dissatisfaction in a calm voice.

<>

In the screen, the blood-stained knight’s massive sword seemed to respond to her words, swaying lightly.

This was the ending of a video that, approximately five hours later, would soar to number one on the trending page of the English-speaking community’s largest platform, the R*ddit KoK channel.

TL’s Corner:
If I go down, you go down with me. 🙂