Chapter 3

What the hell is this now?

A little while after the stream ended.

A post went up on the [Neo Chronicle Gallery].

[ Looks like this shit game still has the exact same image lol ]

I quit and started studying, and I had a study stream on while I was doing it

But after studying, he started giving people advice?

I had it playing because he talks quietly

Then the moment Neo Chronicle came up lol

“Ah~ Old-Fart Beggar’s Revenge?”

hahahahaha

No matter how much you guys insist its image has improved, that’s exactly how normal people see it, okay?

Hug your fucking garbage game and die with it lol

└ Makes sense if he’s a normal person

└ hahahaha

└ The game has changed a lot these days, but I guess people still see it like that

└ Who is it?

└└ Jeong River

└└└ Where does he stream?

└└└└ Replays are on MeTube

A game’s image.

To people who play PVP games, those words mean nothing.

Even when they curse their own game, they often don’t care much if someone else curses it either.

Because they don’t feel any sense of belonging.

‘This game is seriously fucking garbage. I can’t play this shit.’

If someone complains.

‘Escape that mental-illness game.’

That’s the kind of response they get.

But RPGs are different.

Especially with online RPGs, it matters.

Because people pour not only time and effort into them, but an absurd amount of money as well.

It makes sense that they would feel a strong sense of belonging.

It was like how you could curse your own country all you wanted while living in Korea, but still feel offended if a foreigner cursed it.

Even so, things didn’t catch fire.

The [Neo Chronicle Gallery] was normally crawling with every kind of troll imaginable.

As a large community, it had the ability to police itself.

It wasn’t such an easy community to rile up with a single post that had no evidence.

Still, places like this had all kinds of people.

There were also hyenas hunting for MeTube views.

A couple of hours after the post went up on the gallery.

A typical rage-bait short appeared.

[ Why Did Neo Chronicle Fail This Peak Season? ]

Neo Chronicle is holding an unprecedented giveaway event this summer.

Veterans were ready to welcome both newbies and returning players, but?

(Rough graph of prices crashing)

As you can tell from the price of Dicial Cores, they received an unprecedentedly small influx of players, and no one could figure out why.

The veterans thought and thought.

Our game has been fixed, though?

It’s gotten way better lately, though?

Then they finally discovered the answer.

(A man sitting in a calm-looking room appears)

“Ah~ Old-Fart Beggar’s Revenge?”

(A child rounds his eyes and mouth, making a face of realization)

Ah!

At last, they understood why.

A script thrown together on the fly.

And even that was read by AI.

On top of that, it even included a source credit that clearly identified the target.

* Jeong River channel, currently live.

The [Neo Chronicle Gallery] might have had the ability to police itself.

But that only applied within the board.

When an “attack” came from outside, they actively fought back.

[ lol He evaluated it perfectly ]

(Clipped parts of Jeong River’s video)

“A game old farts play so they can act important.”

“Nothing original, just copying everything.”

“No development philosophy whatsoever.”

Upvote if you agree

Once malicious editing was added on top, the shield of “he’s just a normal person” finally stopped mattering.

[If he turned on a stream, isn’t he a streamer?]

If you do a study stream, does that make you a normal person?

Hmm.

And so their unified thoughts gained a direction.

[ We were bored anyway. Nice timing. ]

- Jeong River channel link

Let’s have some fun.

Along with words that had already spread across the internet, they finished their preparations.

_______________

Fuck, what the hell is going on?

I turned on the stream and adjusted the webcam setup a little.

Then I put the timer in its usual place and prepared to study.

I took out a mechanical pencil and checked the monitor.

Up until then, the chat window wasn’t visible on screen.

I’d forgotten about it, and when I brought up the chat window.

- Sorry I’m an old-fart beggar T_T Sorry I’m an old-fart beggar T_T Sorry I’m an old-fart beggar T_T Sorry I’m an old-fart beggar T_T Sorry I’m an old-fart beggar T_T

- A fuck-ugly bastard sure says some fucked-up shit

- Mom, when I grow up I wanna be an almighty normie! I wanna be an almighty normie who gets forgiven no matter what I say!! Mom, when I grow up I wanna be an almighty normie! I wanna be an almighty normie who gets forgiven no matter what I say!!

- Have you even played Neo Chronicle?

- You look exactly like the kind of asshole who runs his fucking mouth lol

- Go fucking die lol Go fucking die lol Go fucking die lol Go fucking die lol Go fucking die lol Go fucking die lol

- Did you even play the game before trashing it?

- Some bastard who doesn’t know shit is talking crap?

- Am I allowed to watch your stream even if I play a game with no development philosophy? Am I allowed to watch your stream even if I play a game with no development philosophy? Am I allowed to watch your stream even if I play a game with no development philosophy?

My eyes spun from the chat flying past in an instant.

Would it feel like this if you tried to distinguish individual drops in a waterfall flowing upward?

“W-What the hell?”

I looked away, wondering if actual people had really come in.

[Viewers: 360]

Three hundred and sixty? Is chat really this fast when 360 people are typing?

I looked back at the chat window.

All I could pick out were the curses scattered throughout.

I blinked and tilted my head.

I couldn’t understand what was happening at all.

First, I should see what they’re actually saying.

I stopped the chat scroll and started reading.

‘Just insults, more insults. What’s this development philosophy stuff about?...Neo Chronicle?’

Then I suddenly remembered the conversation from last night.

The advice session with the person who was worried because her boyfriend was too obsessed with Neo Chronicle.

‘So it’s nothing serious.’

Even if I’d cursed it, I hadn’t actually been expressing my own opinion.

Besides, I hadn’t insulted a person. All I’d done was insult a game.

If I explained it properly, this would probably blow over quickly.

At first I’d been so shocked that my hands were trembling, but I gradually calmed down.

“Everyone, everyone, calm down. I think there’s been some kind of misunderstanding.”

After I said that and waited for a moment, question marks started appearing amid the flood of insults.

- What misunderstanding?

-?

- Didn’t you say it?

I did say it.

I had repeated what my friend said, but the words had come out of my mouth.

When it comes to badmouthing someone, the person who passes it along becomes just as much of an asshole.

“Even if I was repeating what my friend said, I was still the one who said it. I’m sorry. I know absolutely nothing about Neo Chronicle. I’ve never played it either. So what I’m saying is, I didn’t say it out of malice.”

To begin with, the word misunderstanding was something I’d just thrown out there.

The real point was this.

First, show them that I was acknowledging what I did wrong.

“I’m sorry I talked carelessly about something I don’t know. You can curse me until you feel better.”

Second, empathize.

“But wow, that seriously startled me. Whew, I got cursed enough for an entire lifetime in three minutes.”

Third, even act a little pitiful.

This combo had never failed me in my life.

Those people would surely...

- So if you don’t know, that ends everything?

- We’re asking why you trashed it when you don’t know shit

- Ah~ you’re an almighty normie? Ah~ you’re an almighty normie? Ah~ you’re an almighty normie? Ah~ you’re an almighty normie? Ah~ you’re an almighty normie? Ah~ you’re an almighty normie?

- You told us to curse you, right? You fucking bastard?

- If there was no malice, why would you say something like that?

- Shut down your nobody stream~ Shut down your nobody stream~ Shut down your nobody stream~ Shut down your nobody stream~ Shut down your nobody stream~

What?

If anything, the proportion of insults had gotten much higher.

Why are they acting like this?

I admitted I was wrong, and I apologized.

Normally, people might add a few more words after that, but then they calm down.

What’s the point of getting even angrier from here?

That was what I thought, but apparently they thought differently.

The chat started moving even faster than before.

[Viewers: 542]

More people had come in, so the chat was scrolling that much faster.

Now I could barely make out the words at all.

On top of that, insults were starting to appear in the chat windows of the other platforms too, not just MeTube.

I stared seriously at the monitor, pretending to think.

In reality, my head was full of question marks.

Since I was streaming, I just wanted to give them the feeling that I was reading everything they said.

Because the camera was pointed at me.

Five hundred people had gathered to curse me.

They kept cursing even after I apologized.

And they weren’t even demanding anything.

It just felt like they were picking apart what I’d said and mocking me.

Like they were insulting me for the sake of insulting me?

“Okay. Got it. I’ll explain exactly what happened.”

Right, I should make sure they understand the exact situation.

If I explained what kind of situation I’d said it in and what nuance I’d meant it with, they’d understand.

______________

[MeTube Jeong River go go go]

Neo old-farts are swarming him and beating up an almighty normie hahahaha

(Summary of Jeong River’s remarks)

Looks like Jeong River’s about to blow up lol

Hurry over

There are many kinds of galleries.

Because they can be made around all sorts of topics.

Among them, the [OnAiri Gallery], which discussed internet streaming, had a huge permanent user base.

Especially when some kind of incident or controversy broke out, an enormous number of lurkers would swarm wherever it was happening.

After the post went up, viewers began flooding into Jeong River’s OnAiri stream in an instant.

On their screens was a neat-looking man who seemed to be desperately suppressing his anger.

= I already explained everything while watching yesterday’s stream replay with you...!

= I was giving someone advice, and I repeated something I’d heard from my friend.

= No, I’m not blaming the viewer or blaming my friend. I’ve said several times that I was also wrong for saying something like that...

Jeong River glared at the chat window.

To viewers accustomed to internet streams, his appearance was the type they would describe as “a stereotypical popular guy.”

And someone like that was calmly laying out a perfectly reasonable argument.

He was saying things completely detached from internet streaming culture.

= I admitted that I spoke without thinking and said I was sorry.

= But what exactly is the point of continuing to curse at me?

No matter what he said, the chat showed no change.

Long spam messages and short comments flowed like rough waves.

Jeong River, who had been frowning, suddenly read one of the messages.

= You’re saying that’s not the right attitude for an apology...?

= Hmm, what kind of apology do you want?

= A suit and a cro... maki? What’s that?

= I don’t have equipment like that.

= Then it’s not a proper apology?

= At least don’t stay seated?

= Kneel...? Are you serious?

His true thoughts were obvious from his face.

You could practically read that he was thinking, ‘What kind of power trip is this?’

[Stream Time 01:38:49]

The stream had already been going for nearly two hours.

And at that moment.

The newly arriving viewers began creating another current.

A new wave attacking the people who had been cursing him.

- Neo Chronicle cash-farmers, please calm down T_T Neo Chronicle cash-farmers, please calm down T_T Neo Chronicle cash-farmers, please calm down T_T

- So now Neo addicts are trying to bury a normal person? Neo addicts are trying to bury a normal person? Neo addicts are trying to bury a normal person? Neo addicts are trying to bury a normal person? Neo addicts

- Neo Chronicle users are killing people!!!

- Those Neo old-fart bastards got their feelings hurt lol

- They’re telling him to kneel because he insulted a game hahaha They’re telling him to kneel because he insulted a game hahaha They’re telling him to kneel because he insulted a game hahaha

- Is this really that serious~

- Neo Chronicle users, you fucking shut-in loser virgins, please stop bullying our guy T_T

The sense of belonging unique to RPGs.

And Neo Chronicle wasn’t the only major RPG in Korea.

The four major RPGs were even grouped together and called the Big Four RPGs.

And the Big Four subtly shared parts of their player bases as well.

In other words, users of other games and people who simply loved causing trouble had begun piling in.

[Viewers: 3,958]

The viewer count shot up in an instant.

Jeong River, who had been trying somehow to resolve the situation, pressed his fingers against his temples.

‘What the hell is this now?’