It’s not that kind of malicious broadcast

There was nothing in the world that was easy to understand.

That’s the biggest difference from games. Just as allies and enemies were not distinguished by clear colors, everything was fuzzy…and there were too many variables to consider. In reality, until time passed, one was often confused about whether something was good or bad.

This patch was the same.

A delay in the pre-season start.

Reading between the lines of the patch notes, it seemed like they wanted to change everything that needed changing and only then start the pre-season once the game was running properly.

In other words… it meant they were actually working.

It wasn’t as if there were no patches in the old KoK. Even a game that was barely surviving had patches. However, calling it real-time response was far from accurate.

Even in the times before the real signs of decline, when there was still some belief that the company would do something, all patches were significantly delayed.

I didn’t remember the builds of characters that resembled quirky sub-characters for no reason. Once a build was properly discovered, it would dominate for a fairly long time without being nerfed.

Back then, some extremists considered operating with only the six existing characters based on their unique traits. Perhaps…they just lacked development capabilities when I think about it now.

Anyway.

It was a similar yet different world, a similar but different game. It would be amusing to be surprised again at this point. Even so, though I couldn’t say this to anyone…honestly, I was quite surprised.

I was already taken aback when the rogue, who should have been nerfed only in Season 3, was nerfed immediately and excessively. At that time, my head was already burning up too much to calmly reflect.

But now was different. Imposing temporary restrictions, adjusting the season schedule, flexible balance adjustments…this was a game company capable of such things.

The builds I shared were only around five types, including those I posted on R*ddit with a sub-account and those I hinted at to Bio. I wasn’t even hoping for reactions from Faraday; I just thought I might catch people’s attention a bit.

I felt like a time traveler witnessing the Butterfly Effect. Excluding KoK, I hadn’t exactly gone back in time. Due to the change to a VR game concept, it was just that KoK was released a few years later.

So, things like coins or stocks from the future were far from my concern—that was reality’s matter.

In KoK, it was a bit different. At least until now.

But, but…

I read the announcement of the delayed pre-season schedule again. How much did they plan to modify to go this far? These folks always bulldozed through with their set schedules and directions, like a runaway train with broken brakes.

Firstly, they would somehow nerf Holy Knight, I presumed.

What was a bit hopeful was…originally, they nerfed the traits that Holy Knight specialized in abruptly and limited the maximum size of the greatsword, which garnered a lot of criticism. This time, it seemed like they were preparing a patch sensibly by blocking “Faithful Flesh” first.

At least it meant they had development skills good enough to instantly pinpoint the source of bugs, right? Or maybe that’s a bit too just generous an interpretation.

However, as I had always been an extremist supporter, there was no need to change my stance now.

Anyway.

As for other aspects… I hadn’t disclosed the WellPriest, so only Fireball and Magic Missile remained. Given the time the announcement was made, I thought their intention was to catch these before starting the new season.

“Then maybe they’ll be able to fix it properly.”

“Yeah.”

To be honest, it was quite a perplexing situation. Our protest schedule was already tangled. Originally, I had planned to hold the protest about a week after the preseason started—after people felt just how messed up that patch was.

Moreover, the showcase for the archer build was effectively impossible to proceed with. The Crossbow Assassination build, which I planned to introduce, was only viable once the Rogue gets nerfed. Given that the nerf patch was delayed along with the preseason, it was simply not feasible to demo it at this time.

“That’s a bit unfortunate.”

It was the only natural enemy that could counter the Rogue, and I had prepared quite a bit just to rile people up by saying, “We are in trouble now!”

I had investigated the predator-prey relationships among various animals for photo material… I wonder if this will ever come in handy someday.

Anyway.

Even though the patch delay was a minor change, the impact it had on me was surprisingly significant.

Above all else—if things started changing this much, I’d lose the informational advantage I held in no time. Along with the small connections that I held onto, thinking they shouldn’t vanish.

… Even so, my heart was fluttering a little more and more. Was it because, despite everything, I loved KoK?

Or maybe…

-Wooong

My phone buzzed insistently. I had no intention of checking it. The odds were over 90% that it was 322 whining again since the day before.

He did a good job broadcasting, so why was he complaining? Yesterday, he had as many as 15,000 viewers… and he probably made enough in this month’s rent through various 1,000-won donations from different people.

Including the donation I sent, but yeah. Who said he could eat without permission? I could still send another 150,000 won. Even considering interest, I could send up to 250,000 won.

-Wooong

I flipped my phone face down on the table and sat in front of my computer.

“What should I do now?”

Originally, I would have been busy growing my alternate account, refining builds, and stirring up things here and there… but now my schedule had some blank spots.

There were quite a few destructive builds I had, of course. But most of them were only feasible after various patches were applied.

As for what was usable in the current Season 1 state of KoK… there were some, but…

They were like minor bugs that acted as flavorful condiments.

-Wooong

-Wooong

With the Canary coughing up blood and Jinhee being roped in as an ally, it was a bit risky to heavily promote things through the broadcast.

“Then, then…”

Ugh, my head hurts.

“Maybe I’ll just play a game.”

Cooling my head might bring good ideas.

-Wooong

… And perhaps to divert the attention of that complainant too.

“This is a delivery. Leaving it in front of the door.”

“It’s here!”

Lee Yuna sprung up from her bed like a spring and landed as if she were rolling. If anyone had seen her, they might have thought her movements were overly dramatic just for a delivery.

For Yuna, who had been nervously waiting for the text all day, this was actually a very restrained reaction.

“Creak”

The evening was still early. Her parents were sitting on the living room sofa, watching TV. However, she was sure that one eye and one ear were directed toward her. Sneaking out seemed impossible.

In these situations, when leaving the house, stealth action wouldn’t work; acting and persuasion were more effective.

“Act natural, act natural.”

Yuna, who was about to enter her third year of high school, grabbed a large backpack and slouched her shoulders, heading towards the living room in her shabby tracksuit.

“I’m going to the library.”

“It’s late. Why don’t you study at home?”

“No, I can’t concentrate because of post-meal drowsiness. I’ll be back by 11.”

“Really? In that case, call me when you’re ready to come home. I’ll pick you up.”

“It’s just nearby. I’ll come home with Hyeri, so it’s fine.”

“With Hyeri? Alright then, but make sure to contact me if you’re running late.”

“Yes. I’m off.”

Success, perhaps? After bowing her head respectfully, she slowly turned her body towards the front door, careful not to let them notice her almost empty backpack.

“Yesss!”

Her joyful hum came after she had collected the package in front of the door and stepped into the elevator.

She opened the package with a cutter knife she took out of her pocket. Inside were two pieces of clothing wrapped in plastic. As she hurriedly opened them, a high-quality black hoodie and cloak greeted her.

This was the outfit she planned to wear to GetDevoured’s fan meeting.

She had debated whether to go or not for quite some time. But… there was no guarantee she’d get another chance. She was so shy that she could hardly call attending a fan meeting a fan meeting. No one knew if GetDevoured would ever hold another fan meeting.

Moreover, Yuna had a compelling reason to meet her. She wanted to personally apologize for the joke she made about a “roundhouse kick” during a previous event. She also wanted to thank her for not pressing charges and for forgiving her so generously. And she had handmade merchandise she wanted to gift her.

Once she had rationalized it to herself, everything went smoothly. Deciding to apply as a manager and do a semi-cosplay for the fan meeting didn’t even take a day.

“Although I’m entering my third year of high school, I might not be a great manager… but still, still!”

Challenges were always there. She wasn’t even remotely close to Master tier.

Her plan was to highlight her role as the operator of ‘GetDevoured FanTube’ and try to pass with the G-Tube recommendation.

“Oh! I need to borrow an ID quickly.”

Of course, she didn’t intend to lie to her favorite broadcaster. But… she might get cut off at the entrance. It wasn’t unusual for people to discriminate based on tiers and restrict speaking privileges.

To prepare for instances where pointing fingers without even listening came into play, having access to at least one master ID was essential.

However, on the internet, everyone and their friend claimed to be a master. Even scheduling inquiries through her friends who flocked to VR rooms whenever they could, airing them out over some connections within the school, didn’t result in anyone fitting that tier.

Fortunately, there was one among her kin.

「Bro, bro🖐🖐」

「Do you have any alternate accounts you’ve never used for a broadcast? 😭」

「One that’s at least Master Tier!!」

Her older brother by six years, Shihoon, responded rather swiftly.

「🪓: An alternate account?」

「🪓: I have one, but what’s up?」

「Could you lend it to me just once?」

「I promise I won’t play any games!! Really!!」

「🪓: If you’re not going to play games, why do you need an account?」

As expected, he was persistent with his questioning. But it was exactly as she anticipated. Lee Yuna quickly typed her prepared excuse.

「Mom signed me up for a bunch of academies since I’m a senior…」

「But while talking to a new kid at the academy, I boasted about how amazing my brother is at KoK??」

「They totally didn’t believe me?? 😠」

「So I told them I’d show them, but」

「I really don’t want to reveal your broadcast and all😟」

「So just let me log in with your alternate account in front of them!」

「Pretty please🙂🙂🙂」

「🙏 🙏 🙏」

Even after she saw the typing indicator disappear, no reply came right away—but Lee Yuna was confident. Her brother wouldn’t be able to resist this.

「🪓: (ID)(Password)」

「🪓: You can play games if you want, just don’t mess with my saved settings. And don’t mention my name or Tw*tch ID.」

「🪓: But」

「🪓: Do kids these days really use emojis like this?」

‘As expected!’

「Yeah, right??」

「Anyway, thank you!!!」

Suppressing another shout of joy, Lee Yuna accessed the Knights of Knights homepage. Just in case he changed his mind and altered the password later, she decided to take a verification screenshot ahead of time.

‘Old Man Shaves Builds… Nickname sense, seriously. I probably shouldn’t change it, right? Oh, what if someone asks… I should make up a story. Maybe if I say I don’t want to come off as a girl, GetDevoured would understand? Yeah, she would, right?’