Translator: Wan ED/PR: Solarin
47. Loser Resurrection Match (2)
If one were to divide people into victors and losers, Dokgo Miro was sure to be classified as a loser.
The proof of that loss was that during elementary school 3rd year, she was planted with ‘camera phobia’.
While hoping to become an idol, Dokgo Miro kept avoiding cameras.
So even though such a good opportunity came, she couldn’t keep it[1] because of her fear of cameras.
Unlike in the first half, the staff was running the program fairly, but Dokgo Miro didn’t receive very good reviews.
‘I should have overcome the fear of cameras before such an opportunity came. I’ll lose… all because of me!’
Dokgo Miro didn’t blame the unfavorable circumstances and times.
Among those who achieved their dreams, the cases of people who got there comfortably were rare.
There was a Korean Wave star Player, who faced outrage from the public in the country and pushed through by jumping between minor roles in the foreign entertainment community and archived his dream.
There were also the righteous ones, who received recognition and support from their surroundings, like Blue Violinist Kwon Jane, who lost her entire family in England during Great Otherworld Conquest, and painter Hong Gyeonbok, who put down his brush during the Dark Age and fought together with Great Hero until the end.
Even so, those people didn’t crumble and archived their dreams.
‘The Person in the death match is the same. Among the Players participating in the Playlist there is no one without a story.’
Dokgo Miro’s death match opponent was the otherworld broadcast streamer, ‘BJ LocalBean[2]’, a person who wouldn’t lose against adversary and was certain to be a victor.
At the time of ‘Seokchon Lake’s Tragedy’.
Because he lost a game to a viewer and went to the theme park operated by the Namkung Local Specialties to carry out a punishment ‘Play alone in a theme park’.
And the moment when the high-ranking team, who was conquering the underwater maze of the Seokchon Lake was completely annihilated and the Enemies swarmed in, he, who was riding a moonrail and chatting with the viewers, was suddenly attacked.
Because he sustained an injury and fainted, he couldn’t cancel the broadcast and he ended up broadcasting live the tragedy unfolded in the theme park.
With that incident, the streamer’s broadcasting channel was shut down by the service and the streamer himself faced public ridicule.
‘He couldn’t handle anything like a Player’, ‘Such things happen when a so-called Player isn’t conquering and is broadcasting instead’, were the major responses.
‘BJ LocalBean-nim is a Player, but he has only a little bit of superpower and his combat power is weak.’
When it comes just to the combat power, even among the Players that streamer was the lowest rank.
Even if he was completely prepared, he was a Player who might be able to catch one Enemy at best, but the malicious comments didn’t stop.
Even so, the streamer didn’t give up broadcasting.
After waking up in the hospital and publishing an apology video, he started a new channel, and actively developed it from 0 followers.
Instead of the videos about daily life and self composed songs, the focus changed to the otherworlds and Enemies.
Over the span of a few years, he once again rose to become a popular streamer.
Although the popularity of the self-composed songs he sometimes published was terribly low, the spread by him content and the latest knowledge related to the otherworlds received positive reviews.
Like a joke, he shouted ‘I came to this audition to promote my channel! Please subscribe, like and comment on the Bean Channel!’, but the passion poured into the self-composed songs wasn’t a joke.
‘… Can I win?’
BJ, who survived at the doorsteps of death and amidst negative comments, and came back to rise to the position of a popular streamer.
An aspiring idol, who besides having a camera phobia, refused to go to school.
The opponent was already the victor and she was the loser.
The video of her singing the mission song was recorded a few times already, but the result wasn’t very good.
The video to be uploaded on the program’s official channel had to be submitted by tomorrow, but as the video taken by the VJ couldn’t be used at all, Dokgo Miro ended up saying she would record it by herself.
And now.
“Because I want to help the king.”
She received a suspicious suggestion from the suspicious vice class president.
* * *
Dokgo Miro, who heard my words, looked at me quietly.
“…”
At some point, Dokgo Miro was holding an item card in her hands.
She might have truly considered whether she should materialize a weapon, crush my head and the CCTV and run, or not.
Dokgo Miro glanced at my school uniform and then put the item card in her pocket again.
And asked:
“Why?”
“As I said, the king…”
“Get to the point. Why do you want to help?”
I guess the king hated changing the subject.
“There are many kids you helped, starting from elementary school days.”
“Did you live in Eungwang District? Where is your elementary school?”
“No.”
“Then why?”
Before being admitted to Eungwang School I had never taken a step into the Eungwang District.
Naturally, the elementary school I attended wasn’t an Eungwang District’s elementary school.
However, many people among the Playable Characters continued to live in the Eungwang District.
Thanks to Dokgo Miro’s actions, many people had a comparatively smooth elementary school life.
In fact, I would just help Dokgo Miro, even if she didn’t have a record of activities as a king, but somehow it didn’t seem like Dokgo Miro would be convinced if I conveyed such sentiment.
“I didn’t graduate in Eungwang District, but many of my acquaintances graduated from an elementary school in Eungwang District. Moreover, you rescued our class children that day.”
Dokgo Miro stopped asking for a reason, thought about it and then said:
“I’ll hear your suggestion.”
“Rather than hearing, it would be better to come to see by yourself.”
Dokgo Miro was a bit dumbfounded but nodded.
* * *
In front of the school’s main gates.
Usually, when a lot of time passed after the classes ended, it was quiet around here.
It was because all the students, who were going home went home, and the students who remained to wait for the club activities or studies were in the building distant from the main gates.
However, today there was a group busily moving around the main gates.
It was the 1st year class 0’s children, who were setting up a temporary stage
Sawol Seeum used the Flight skill and floated in the sky carrying items, and Min Geurin and Song Daeseok were setting up stage decorations they personally made.
Kwon Lena was tuning her violin together with Mok Uram and Maeng Hyodon was carrying and placing folding chairs in front of the stage.
Dokgo Miro, who saw that sight from the distance, asked as if she was about to grab me by the collar.
“Hey, are you thinking of making me busk right now?”
“Yep.”
“Are you crazy? How many recording devices are around here?!”
“All recording devices in front of the Eungwang School’s main gates were turned off. Look.”
Dokgo Miro examined the surroundings with sharp eyes.
And then made a bewildered face.
“They’re really all turned off.”
“Yep, our class children also won’t use any devices.”
I asked Hwang Jiho beforehand to turn off the devices around the main gates.
As I also requested that from the class children who wanted to help Dokgo Miro, they accept it without any complaints.
“Don’t you know that chairman-nim almost ruined the Playlist sub PD after he scratched his temper? How can you do this in front of the main gates?”
That won’t be a problem to worry about.
Because the bastard, who was connecting the amplifier behind the stage right now was the chairman.
“I received permission.”
“From the chairman-nim?”
“Uhuh.”
“Really? If they came after me later, I’ll sell your name. If it’s a lie, say it now.”
“It’s fine. If something happens, sell my name to the chairman.”
Because that bastard said ‘it seems fun’ while laughing, there was no problem.
He showed a friendly attitude towards Dokgo Miro, also because of Han Yi’s case.
“… But why do that in front of Eungwang School’s main gate?”
“You can’t show off all your abilities in the school, right?”
“That said, why here? If I’m going to busk, there are many other places.”
“We should use the point of you being an Eungwang School’s student to appeal to people, right?”
The most attention-grabbing point about Dokgo Miro who couldn’t show her stage, dancing or singing skills because she stiffened in front of cameras, was that she was a ‘current Eungwang School’s student’ and ‘one of the youngest participants’.
As one officially become a Player at the age of 17, in addition to being the youngest participant at the age of 17, she had the merit of being Eungwang School’s current student.
Even in her introduction on ‘Playlist’, the caption said she was Eungwang School’s student and the frequent conversations with Yeom Junyeol were put on the screen, emphasizing they’re a senior and junior, so we couldn’t not use it.
Dokgo Miro looked mortified by the situation, where nothing about her present self was attractive to the public besides her academic background, but it seemed she understood my thinking.
“Are people okay? You seemed okay when you were with our class kids before.”
“… As long they don’t take pictures, there is no problem.”
As expected, Dokgo Miro seemed to be fine with people.
In the current era, recording devices existed anywhere you went, and people owned devices so they could take pictures anytime.
So she almost wouldn’t be able to show off her abilities in places with people.
“Then there is no problem.”
“There is no problem? Don’t you know that the death match will be decided based on the video views?”
“So I expect you to show off all the skills you have in this death match.”
Dokgo Miro’s expression revealed the feeling of ‘how good it would be if I could do that?’.
As if she heard me and Dokgo Miro conversing and discovered us, Kim Yuri looked in our direction and waved her hand.
“Miro-ah, Uisin-ah! Here!”
Kim Yuri, who set the mic stand, waved her hand.
Smiling friendly, Kim Yuri ran towards Dokgo Miro.
“Miro, you have a mission song to sing, right? We prepared the MR version, but Uram strongly suggested for Lena to preform a live violin accompaniment. Let’s practice several versions.”
“Uh? Uh?”
Dokgo Miro was dragged by Kim Yuri’s hand and without even realizing it, she climbed the stage.
On the stage, which was still messy as organizing it wasn’t finished yet, Dokgo Miro stood in front of the mic.
I aimed for the time when the children’s attention was on Dokgo Miro and activated Gwangrim.
⟨Using Gwangrim ‘Player’s Trajectory’.⟩
I activated the ability of the character I prepared to use and moved as practiced.
“Lena-nim! Let’s start then!”
“… I wish you didn’t call me Lena-nim.”
Kwon Lena complained with a small voice, but Mok Uram smiled with a delighted face and put his hands on the electric keyboard.
Worthy of an instrument artisan, Mok Uram could play the piano, and when suggesting Kwon Lena’s performance, he also volunteered to play along.
“Hey, wait. I’m not ready yet…”
Dokgo Miro wasn’t able to adjust to the sudden situation, but Mok Uram started the performance.
Soon the mission song’s prelude flowed from the keyboard amplifier.
The death match’s mission song was a drama’s OST that conquered the music chart last year and was famous for several singers singing it in numerous versions like dance music, ballad, jazz, R&B etc.
Among them, Mok Uram and Kwon Lena were performing the ballad version.
Dokgo Miro was rather embarrassed, but soon took a deep breath and tightly grabbed the mic stand.
Was it because she didn’t feel like there were any recording devices around, it was outside her current school, and only children who had goodwill towards Dokgo Miro were around?
Her expression seemed much more natural and stable compared to when seen on the ‘Playlist’ up till now.
Soon, as the intro accompaniment passed and the song entered the prelude, Dokgo Miro opened her mouth.
“Wow…!”
Sawol Seeum, who just withdrew his Flight skill and came close to the stage, let out an exclamation and shut his mouth.
With the accompaniment of piano and violin which was just a simple tune, Dokgo Miro perfectly sang the song that she practiced hundreds of times.
The volume, breathing, tone, and the emotions in it, nothing was lacking.
As if Dokgo Miro was just waiting to come on stage without feeling the existence of cameras, she showed off all her skills.
‘I thought the first try was going to be a practice…!’
I even wondered if the song could turn out better than this.
The still awkward violin performance, the piano which covered for the violin performance, and the singing of Dokgo Miro in the center, who led the music, everything I heard was beautiful.
In the distance, even the students who were returning home, stopped in their tracks and lost their souls as they looked at Dokgo Miro’s stage.
As if excited by the fact that she sung the song exactly as she wanted right now, Dokgo Miro plucked a high note with an excited face.
Whoaa!
When the song and performance ended, about twenty people in the audience, including our class children, gathered.
Amidst the simple applause and cheers, Dokgo Miro smiled brightly and waved her hand.
“Nice, eh?”
Even Hwang Jiho clapped and gave such a review.
“Jo Uisin, if you’re done filming, come out. It’s really perfect, eh?”
As if even Hwang Jiho couldn’t figure out my location, he looked around while saying that.
Paat!
I lifted the Gwangrim ‘Time without Traces’, of ‘Colorless Man Jeon Muyeong’, the Playable Character who was currently Seong Gukeon’s chief aide and bodyguard.
At the expression of ‘filming’ and my sudden appearance, Dokgo Miro made a shocked face.
I stopped the video recording of the camera on the close-up face of the surprised Dokgo Miro.
*~*~*
[1] keep it — in Korean ‘keep it alive’, ‘bring back to life’.
[2] LocalBean — I don’t know if there is any connection but 콩 (bean) sounds like Kong. And local is ‘국내산 (guknaesan)’. 산 (san) means mountain. So if you remove ‘국내 (guknae, which would mean ‘in the country’)’, you’re left with Kong Mountain. Africa’s fictional mountains (Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mountains_of_Kong).
Translator’s note: … Wait a moment, BJ went there because he lost a ‘GAME’ to a viewer? Suspicious. (This chapter would be so healing if it didn’t throw me into a theory spiral.)
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