NOVEL WEB Chapter 131
There’s a ton of content in Demon’s Saga.
Cooking, 19 modes, combat, exploration, weapon crafting, you name it… With infinite freedom, you can enjoy the game in countless ways.
We have bakers making cutting-edge bread using their real-life skills and gamers learning blacksmithing to craft weapons while chowing down on rice.
Of course, the most popular profession is the adventurer related to combat, but not everyone goes for that.
Even though combat can be fun, many people are scared of it. Or they’re just burdened by the fatigue of fighting.
This was also the case for Jang Minji, a specialized commentator in the arena.
Since long ago, she preferred watching fights over getting into one herself.
Having a knack for words and a decent voice, she briefly tried her hand at sports commentary. Although she got pushed out quickly by more popular commentators…
But hey, people live off the skills they’ve learned.
“What matches do we have today?”
Limited to what she learned, she chose to broadcast and commentate on various battles in the arena.
Fortunately, she had a decent amount of popularity. It turns out, many people share the same hobby of enjoying fight-watching.
Plus, the arena has a “spectator area”, making the broadcasting vibe pretty chill, so there was nothing to worry about.
However, events aren’t always happening, so lately, her streams have been a bit of a snooze.
“I really hope we get a good match today…”
[Oh no~]
[Another day of mindless watching? Getting boring…]
[Why not just enjoy the food fight? Just watch?]
[Come on, let’s head to the Plain, there’s an A-class adventurer friendly match going on there today.]
Well, luck was on her side today. Upon entering the arena around noon, she spotted Shin Hanbyeol sitting in the nearby stands.
“Huh?”
Spotting her, Minji headed over to greet her.
“Hello, Hanbyeol!”
“Oh, it’s you, Minji! Hello! Looks like you’re here to spectate again.”
“Yep, and what’s with you being in the stands?”
Surprisingly, they were somewhat familiar with each other. Being the top-ranked Hanbyeol, and frequent arena-goer Minji ran into her often.
Their interactions led to a more friendly relationship, to the point they could greet each other comfortably now.
[What’s up, why is Hanbyeol here?]
[Feels like I only see her inside the arena, so seeing her here is a nice surprise, lol.]
[Look at her height and figure, so jealous…]
Viewers chimed in, casually greeting her.
Hanbyeol replied lightly to Minji’s question.
“Oh, a known NPC wanted to get out and see the action, so I came to watch.”
There was a peculiar joy in Hanbyeol’s face when she said that.
‘A known NPC?’
Minji tilted her head in confusion, glancing back at the arena.
And she couldn’t help but be surprised. That NPC was someone she knew all too well.
No, he was someone almost every Korean player in Demon’s Saga would know.
Yor, the NPC who only roamed the forest, was out and about for a change!
Fans in the audience began to greet him joyfully upon seeing him. Minji quickly assessed the situation in her head.
‘This is an opportunity.’
His previous broadcasts always did at least decently well. Occasionally, they even went viral.
In the internet world, the appeal of a “male” character is huge. Not to mention, he has a laid-back personality and impressive skills too. It’s no wonder his viewership was high.
It got to the point where Yoo Chaerin, a small company, grew into a big enterprise thanks to him.
Thus, Minji quickly focused on the upcoming battle.
Not as much as Chaerin, but she too craved a little viewership boost.
As the battle began, Hanbyeol naturally started focusing on the fight as well.
Yor stepped into the arena, facing an unnamed opponent.
[Looks like it’s barehanded combat.]
[Their stances are super awkward, lol.]
[Who’s that opponent? Even though he’s a guy, he’s throwing punches without mercy, tsk tsk, got no manners?]
[Lol, so you’re saying he should just stand still and get hit?]
[Ugh… but honestly, he’s not fighting as well as I heard?]
[Seems like he toned down his stats, trying to go easy or something.]
[If you want to see a real fight, just check out YouTube for Dantalion’s duels… those are on another level.]
Contrary to expectations, the battle itself was pretty average.
There was no overwhelming spectacle from the NPC like one might hope.
Instead of flashy maneuvers, it was more straightforward and rough.
Although he showed decent dodging and blocking skills, it was hard not to feel a pang of disappointment. Of course, one could say that since they weren’t fighting themselves.
It seemed the audience felt a similar disappointment, with somewhat lukewarm reactions rolling in.
However, things took a turn when the match became a grappling battle.
[Huh?]
[Ooh?!]
[Wait, what the heck?]
Yor and his opponent collided. Bodies pressed against each other as they engaged in a clinch. Viewers erupted in various reactions.
[That lucky guy, seriously…]
[Is he even aiming for that?]
[100% aiming! I wanna join too, let me in!]
[I’ll report for sexual harassment, you better watch out for 2D rights right now, I’m so mad.]
[What arena is this?]
[I’m gonna hunt for a participation code.]
Some viewers decided to come directly to the spectator area to watch it in real-time.
Understandably so. Even Minji herself was momentarily lost in the action and forgot to react during the fight, albeit for different reasons.
“Wow, I might’ve wanted to join in…
From Hanbyeol, there were some strange mumblings. Thankfully, no one heard her low whisper.
“Grrr…”
After some tussling, the battle came to an end with Yor’s victory.
It was far from dazzling or intense as she had hoped. There were no special moves displayed.
Honestly speaking, Minji, who had somewhat become a sports commentator, felt she could’ve critiqued the fight dozens of different ways.
But what did that really matter? This match held more than just an ordinary brawl.
“Ahem, maybe I should join next time?”
“I really need to get my body moving again. It could be nice to join after such a long time…”
While all around, players were jabbing at the air. Having confirmed their participation codes in the arena, they were sending duel requests right away.
Watching that, Minji clicked her tongue but still contemplated sending her own request…
*
“You’ve received a duel request!”
“Will you accept?”
“You’ve received a duel request!”
“Will you accept?”
After feeling a bit embarrassed over the disgusting victory, a flood of duel requests started coming my way.
Windows shaped like leather gloves popped up, clamoring to have a duel with me.
Most requests even asked for barehanded combat.
Suddenly feeling shy faded away; I started putting the pieces together.
‘No way they’re…’
Was that jiu-jitsu scuffle really what got them all hype for duels?
After witnessing that embarrassing battle? For the first time, I felt like I understood these “women” in this reversed world! These creatures driven by lust!
But that thought was fleeting, as I decided to be a bit more generous.
‘Wait, that’s not it…’
Am I being too self-centered with these thoughts?
Honestly, I felt like my mind was stuck on this kind of stuff lately. I’m not some prince charming with delusions. I needed to widen my perspective.
Who knows?
Maybe they’re thinking they could easily win against my pathetic skills. The last battle was amateurish after all.
With my physical abilities capped, technical flaws showed through clearly.
Thinking about it, I had relied too much on physicality and gut instinct.
I couldn’t help but smile ruefully.
Fortunately, I wasn’t feeling too bad about it.
It had been a while since I last moved, and I actually liked the arena where I could fight proudly with risks involved.
‘No wonder Otherworlders improve exponentially.’
It’s been said for ages that experience is the greatest teacher.
One lesson learned through physical confrontation is worth more than a hundred theories.
Taking this chance, I decided to enjoy the arena a bit. With weighted sandbags on, bouncing around different spots might net me some gains.
“Ah, I’ll reject all these…“
With that resolution, I started rejecting all the duel requests flooding in front of me.
No matter how I looked at it, it felt like a rather shameful desire.
Tick tick.
With each rejection, cries of “Nooo!” and “Waaaah!” erupted from different corners of the stands. Glad I rejected them after all.
I returned to the waiting room, rebooting the matchmaking system.
Ability level set back to 60%, randomizing the rest.
After all, isn’t the fun part not knowing what will pop up?
I planned to roll with this for a while.
“Done!”
“It’s my turn now!”
“Why isn’t it barehanded combat?!”
That day, I eagerly participated in about six matches.
Fortunately, I hadn’t lost even once yet.