I May Be a Virtual Youtuber, but I Still Go to Work - Chapter 152

A big salute erupted, unlike anything seen before, backed by the support of professional teams.

In a way, it was a natural reaction from employees who had their company promotion at stake.

Thanks to that, a flood of posts came pouring in, and once again, the related community was completely taken over by Majia.

When checking real-time reactions to the ongoing content, the number of posts in the related community became another indicator, alongside the broadcast chat room.

For the moment, Majia was the president of the Battle Coliseum.

First place in the pre-final MVP voting.

A mid-term ranking that proved it by sitting at fifth.

And with fiery and outrageous reactions, she definitely left her mark.

It was ultimately the bait that Majia had scattered around that got this whole thing started.

That bait kept popping up at just the right moments, generating continuous synergy.

It was like a powder keg that got lit, and bang!

Right next to it was a fireworks warehouse, exploding in a pop-popper-pow!

One could say it felt like another explosion went off due to the last firework that shot up into the air.

There had already been several chances in the past where an opportunity to become the gallery owner came close to overtaking pro gamers in the Battle Coliseum gallery, hinting at some sprouts coming up from then.

But this situation, which seemed like a massive hit, was just an unintended benefit for Majia.

She had never used the stage so aggressively before, so she didn’t even know how well rigged her own stage was.

Truth be told, the plan Majia had prepared for today hadn’t even started yet.

“This MCN competition isn’t going to have much room for the kids to shine. No matter how much you want to shine a spotlight on them, their skills will end up being a stumbling block, making them clowns in the end. So, carry us as best as you can.”

“I trust Team Lead Ra’s suggestion, but are you sure that’s the way to go?”

“I’m saying this because it’s way more effective to win by any means necessary than to force a picture of the kids shining. You got that?”

“Yeah.”

Winning would definitely guarantee a boost in influx.

Wasn’t it Majia who experienced firsthand how the spotlight zooms in on the first-place team?

That was back in the last championship, in the competitive section.

At that time, it was a tough situation because of the trolling by the coach, Younggun.

Even with everyone expecting Younggun’s team to get eliminated, they flipped the script and came out on top, which caused an explosion of interest.

In the case of Parallel, they dragged that attention into illegal duet content, using it until all the juice was squeezed out.

This competition was similar.

Excluding the fact that Majia had enjoyed some popularity as a finalist MVP candidate, she was still ranked fifth overall.

The teams ranked first to fourth were packing it in tightly.

Before the late stages of the game, even the teams they had neglected because they were annoying started attacking Majia first when the late game hit.

When three semi-pros jumped into the smoke together, what could they do?

One double barrel could only take out one person, which meant for Majia, taking out two was her limit.

If the opponent was careless or just played it cool, it could be fine.

But those guys were also putting their lives on the line for this competition.

With the prize pool and the prestige of the tournament at stake, it made sense.

Anyway, considering the circumstances, there were expectations that Majia would become the final MVP, but no one could precisely predict how she would grab first place.

In other words, winning first here meant writing a drama.

The moment she writes that drama, she would receive benefits equivalent to or possibly greater than those received during the competitive tournament.

All of Majia’s tournament highlight videos would end up on Parallel’s official channel.

If you watched the official channel’s videos, you’d get algorithmically contaminated and naturally end up watching the videos of the other members too.

This might explain why Dohui desperately tried to get Jia’s video on the official channel.

However, even if the plan was perfect, there was still doubt on whether it was really feasible at the planning stage.

The BCK’s official caster, who was providing commentary, and Movgun both marveled at how Parallel B team maintained their ranking.

Yet, whether they could actually grab first place was still a question.

That sentiment was no different for Team Lead Ra Seunghyun.

“But seriously, do you think we can win? To be honest, I have my doubts.”

At that time, Majia said, “There’s nothing we can’t do. This isn’t a professional tournament.”

Humans are creatures that adapt to change, but not everyone can adapt to sudden changes.

That’s why we decided to call such capable individuals professionals who make money through gaming.

Thus, based on the buildup that had been accumulating throughout the first half, Majia invited her two teammates to a secret meeting room to prepare for a big play in the second half.

“Maru, and Ms. Dora, let’s have a little strategy meeting.”

[Strategy meeting?]

[Yes! Should we turn off the broadcast mics for a moment? Cuckoo prevention?]

“That would be great. Maru, can you take care of that?”

[Okay! Done!]

[Ready!]

Suddenly the three’s mics went silent, and viewers were shocked, but for Majia, it was a crucial moment.

She hadn’t even revealed the first letter of the strategy until now but called the members over only to prevent leaks.

They say to deceive the enemy, you must first deceive your allies.

“From now on, you two will wield smoke grenades. Keep your main weapons.”

Upon hearing this, Dora and Maru were taken aback.

[Us? I feel like we won’t be able to hit a single shot…?]

“It’s okay. We’re not planning on shooting people.”

[Then why bring them?]

In response to Maru’s follow-up, Majia calmly replied.

“I’ll show you the magic of how just aiming can take out a person.”

—

The fifth round began.

Observing the players pouring out from the plane crossing a large island, Movgun greeted it.

“Alright, the second half is starting! Caster! After these next four rounds, the first day of the MCN competition will end. We’ll find out who the strongest team is. This fifth round seems like it could have a massive impact on the final ranking. What do you think?”

“I agree. It seems like it will be an important round where someone might just unleash a bold move.”

Immediately after, the caster checked the status of the fifth-place team, Parallel B, who were actively farming, wondering if they’d make any bold moves to flip their rank before the last four rounds.

Sure enough, they were attempting something.

The caster gasped.

“Wait… why does Parallel B’s weapon composition look like this?”

He nodded at Movgun, as if asking for an explanation.

Unlike the caster from BCK who was covering the pro league, Movgun was more accustomed to unexpected situations on his current broadcast.

Movgun confirmed the squad’s weapon composition and chuckled before cautiously speaking.

“Um, to be honest, I was surprised too. I thought, are they trying to just give up the game or something? For a second?”

Dora had one of her usual guns and a double barrel.

Maru had the same.

Lastly, Majia, instead of the usual two double barrels, had picked an SMG and a sniper rifle.

And even her character wasn’t the Crazy Shot with shotgun bonus damage; it was Rebolt with SMG bonus damage and special abilities, Hook Hand and Rope, which focused on closing distances rapidly.

— What’s she up to now?

— ??

— Wait, is the shotgun ghost ditching the shotgun? Lmao

— Who are you!?

“I have much to say, but looking solely at the reaction in the chat, it’s clear that Majia using an SMG and sniper rifle is a huge twist.”

“Really?”

“Yes. This player is an expert at quick, aggressive smoke grenade moves. She handles double barrels better than any other g*n. Just pulling out a weapon she usually doesn’t use is like voluntarily reducing her combat power.”

“Hmm. For Parallel B, trying to catch up to the teams ranked first to fourth, it’s a peculiar choice.”

Movgun was confident about this because he had seen Majia hold a sniper rifle while pulling off kills.

Back then, she was definitely slower than Movgun.

It was impressive enough that she almost matched the speed of a former pro, but it felt like it wouldn’t suffice to take on all the diamonds positioned in the upper ranks today.

On top of that, had she ever shown she could use an SMG?

Without having seen it, how could anyone judge?

With Majia’s choices being difficult to understand, Movgun struggled to even comment on Dora and Maru’s double barrel choice.

If he really had to be suspicious, one thing had become predictable through Majia’s past actions.

A mischievous trickster.

That’s quite a fitting description for Majia, isn’t it?

“But there is one prediction I can make.”

“You’ve certainly put in the effort researching for strategies after repeatedly losing to Majia, haven’t you?”

“Not at all! Anyway, one expected thing is… it’s a sleight of hand.”

“Sleight of hand?”

“Yes. Making everyone think there’s a shotgun ghost in the smoke to avoid getting near. In reality, what’s inside isn’t Majia, but it creates the illusion that it is.”

The caster gasped in realization.

“The dead resonance tricks the living.”

“Exactly! Because if there’s a double barrel sound in the smoke? Most of the other players will probably think it’s Majia. And there’s no need to check. What if they go in and it really is her? The game could blow up!”

“Creating a dilemma like that, while the real Majia waits safely outside the smoke to ambush, is quite smart. Since she’s a final MVP candidate, people will definitely keep that in mind… very clever.”

“Double barrels are her favorite and strongest, but it’s not like Majia can’t sh**t other guns either. The issue is, I’ve yet to see her use an SMG.”

An SMG is only good for higher tiers; if used well, it can surpass shotguns as game-changers.

Thanks to its moderate range compared to shotguns, it can handle more situations.

If one can land every shot in a magazine, its DPS can surpass most shotguns.

People often say that no g*n can outshine a double barrel in sheer firepower.

But once the distance increases and the battle stretches past two seconds, the SMG usually has the upper hand.

What’s more, the moment a double barrel misfires, they could find themselves in a crisis, while the SMG can miss several shots while still guaranteeing at least one takedown.

Of course, controlling its recoil can be terribly tricky.

With its insane firing speed, aiming becomes wildly unpredictable, making it no simple task to land anything on the body or head of an enemy.

Which is why Movgun was worried about Majia’s fifth round, as she had never used an SMG before.

But still, Movgun couldn’t deny the glimmer of hope rising in his chest.

“But why does it feel like… even though it seems objectively unfavorable, when I think without the logic, I have this feeling she’s about to show something? Maybe it’s because I keep getting surprised by her outrageous plays…”

—

In truth, Movgun’s anticipation wasn’t misplaced.

Once she got hold of the sniper, unlike before when she tackled enemies running straight at her, Majia was now able to pick off distant targets first.

In the meantime, she intentionally refrained from scoring any kills or knockouts.

Majia meticulously hid the fact that she was wielding a sniper rifle.

As a result, there was virtually no close combat involving Majia.

This allowed her secret to remain perfectly intact until the final five teams remained.

And that particular moment was an excellent timing for Majia to showcase what she had prepared.

The enemy was caught off guard.

Just like they had done so far, the closest team to them quickly attacked once they saw the smoke surrounding them, signaling they had to act.

But that wasn’t a foolish move.

When facing the ranked teams, isn’t it comforting to ensure the wildcard Majia is firmly suppressed?

And the only one who could feasibly combine smoke and double barrels was Majia.

Only she had insisted on using only one type of weapon in the tournament.

As those who rushed in appropriately took cover and formed an encirclement to close the distance, the booming sound of double barrels echoed.

It was a warning shot from Majia, telling them not to come near.

“I see Majia.”

“Confirmed.”

“Let’s deal with the iron bronze who’s sticking out first. Threatening fire, go go.”

“Grenade incoming.”

Boom, boom! Canisters rolled on the ground, tracing an arc.

Unlike the two who were holding their ground in the smoke, the other two inevitably had to jump out after that threatening move.

As they experienced and anticipated today, the sound of numerous footsteps on the grass was heard, followed by one person revealing themselves outside the smoke.

The moment they confirmed the character was not Crazy Shot, everyone pulled their triggers in unison.

Tu du du du!

Drdrdrdr!

One of them surely going down was expected.

But why did one of the allies who formed a triangular encirclement also end up dead?

“What the?! Why did you d*e?”

The sudden report of a d*ath shocked the allies, but

the most surprised was the guy who got shot in the back of the head.

“Majia…? Huh? I got killed by Majia?!”