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[So was that the rabbit lololol]

[You look so cute, teacher!]

[Are you going to keep it like this?]

[So adorably cute wwwwww]

[A new character… Yeonkkot! It’s Yeonkkot!]

Receiving the hot support from everyone feels great.

The thrill that follows that electrifying feeling is something you rarely get to experience.

Suddenly, a thought crossed my mind.

If I were an ordinary hero in this ordinary world… wouldn’t I have defeated the Demon King and participated in a parade?

I couldn’t help but wonder if I would feel the same way now if such an event actually took place.

Well, since I’ll be returning to the modern world soon, I guess there’s no way to find out.

‘Still, thinking back to the previous tournament, it might have been even better.’

Oh, as I let my thoughts trail on this, I felt a strange sense of regret, but there was nothing I could do about it now.

Just then, like waking up from my deep thoughts, a donation message arrived via a system notification.

「Mr. Kim KkaeturaKku’s donation of 40,000 won!

—Hey sister, is the rabbit headset working?」

“Is it working? Well, I guess….”

That sounds like a pretty pointed question.

Friede fumbled with the back of the headset she was wearing.

Would virtual reality interpretations apply to even precision machinery? I can’t help but be excited.

Originally, it should’ve been that the rabbit ears on my head would wiggle with a button press…

But they were completely still, with only the right ear half-folded and frozen in place.

“It’s not working. Unfortunately….”

[What a pity]

[Of course it wouldn’t work. Virtual reality skins are just for looks.]

[If they could scan the internal structure too, that would be a tech singularity, right? lol]

[Since virtual reality and AI are already a thing, everyone is amazed. Uh-huh]

[Then go develop nuclear fusion if you’re so upset]

[Science major dead]

“Isn’t it still good? I particularly like the LED lighting colors; this is the best gift I received from Poming.”

[Only those in relationships will never be able to intrude on the yuri between Friede and Poming ㄷㄷㄷ]

[Our uncles who are watching the sisterly bonds feel warmed inside lololol]

[Is this perhaps something the Messiah is watching?]

[Oh my, why bring Poming into this? Friede-sensei’s true partner, Yeonkkot, is right there, keeping her eyes wide open!]

[Wasn’t the Friede and Yeonkkot combination the national rule?]

[Really lololol]

While this event now seems forgotten in most viewers’ minds, it was actually Friede who saved Poming, who was in trouble due to SUHO’s nuclear sniping in the past.

Although it’s awkward to say she was at the center of that controversy, the fact remains that she bravely faced it head-on, and everyone took it that way.

In other words, if I were to pick the first and closest streamer for Friede, it would undoubtedly be Poming.

Typically, that was a topic that wouldn’t go beyond this point.

Until the STK Brawl Tournament…

They had established themselves as rivals, clashing in final matches.

In the end, the victorious Friede embraced the defeated Yeonkkot, and the dance that rose with the sunrise is still recording overwhelming views on the official STK channel.

Amidst the time of Poming and the popularity of Yeonkkot, who suited Friede better?

This question quietly pops up from time to time in the Friede gallery and often stirs up the battleground.

「Mr. Sweet Man’s donation of 100,000 won!

—Sister… if you had to choose between Poming and Yeonkkot, who would it be?」

“Huh?”

When a strangely off-base question came through as a donation, Friede tilted her head in confusion.

What do you mean, choosing one over the other?

Poming and Eunha had different interests intertwined—there was no way to simply pick one.

Didn’t they understand how important these connections were in my life here, especially now without my family after returning to this world?

For some reason, I felt like this question crossed a line, and I instinctively frowned.

[Oh, Sweet Man, good timing for what you said]

[Let’s figure out the host’s preferences here]

[You’re being forced into an official stance!!!]

[This is going to get serious ㄷㄷㄷ]

[Who will the host’s best sister be?]

[Please tell us who your sister is!]

Watching the audience react like they were playing with fire, Friede’s expression settled back to calm.

‘Ah, of course they wouldn’t know.’

There’s no way the viewers could know about my personal life… well, that makes sense.

I almost felt a surge of anger, but after some careful consideration… I realized they didn’t seem to mean any harm.

In that case, there was no need for me to react sharply.

After all, what they saw was only the streamer Friede, not the human Jisehee.

As long as I don’t reveal my situation and circumstances, there’s no way they could know.

So, I didn’t need to attach any meaning to their words, and it wasn’t something to ponder over too deeply.

There’s this saying, isn’t there? If you care, you lose.

Ah, I managed to get through until now, but I almost messed it up this time.

Friede smiled softly, without a moment to think, and immediately responded.

“Both Poming and Yeonkkot are precious to me. Believe it or not, my social circle is small, so I want to make meaningful connections with the few people I have. These two are more than enough for me.”

[Ah, that’s boring @@]

[What we want is a catfight!]

[Of course, they’d say that lololol]

[What if Friede and Poming get into a messy situation because of this? Are you all responsible for that? What are you guys talking about?]

[Do you really have no boyfriend?]

[Where’s the chat moderator? Someone slap these monsters with a legal stick!]

[Wait a minute? Isn’t the moderator absent right now?]

[No idea]

If we leave things like this, it’s clear that they’ll be setting off a firestorm over trivial gossip.

I felt it was about time to tighten the reins, so Friede declared a state of emergency in a calm voice.

“All right, I’m going to stop rolling this topic. If I continue to let it roll, I’ll ban you all.”

[It’s Tiananmen! Everyone dome the Huangcha!]

[Shh shhhh shhhh]

[We will follow, our leader!]

[Broadcast on a national scale!]

[Everyone, don’t make her angry]

[If you make her mad, the Islam Warrior will come!]

[Oh… the Islam Warrior… now that’s a sure-fire method of communication]

In the past, there were those who would cause trouble without heeding such warnings.

Maybe it was thanks to the effectiveness of the sword dance Peppa performed during joint streams.

Today, surprisingly, the troublemakers seemed milder than usual.

Either way, thinking about quickly diving back into rank matches, Friede clicked the matchmaking button.

Due to her rapid succession of victories, her matchmaking score had skyrocketed, meaning it typically would take some time…

—Thud!

“Huh? That connected quickly?”

As Friede blinked in surprise at the swift matchmaking, the chatroom was heating up with new reports.

[Is this a targeted attack?]

[Seems like there are a few streamers watching the host’s stream and trying to take her down. Just received reports of two.]

[Yeah, I see. I’m following a few too, looks like they are trying to match up. lol]

[Haldiir and Gunda are in there too, right?]

[What the heck, is this a targeted attack Bermuda Triangle?]

[But what if they end up on the same team? What does that even mean?]

[If we’re on the same team, then Friede’s just going to drive the bus—why bother questioning it?]

[Friede’s bus is pretty nice though]

“Targeted attack? Hmm….”

I casually turned in the rank match, and it seems they were targeting me after all.

Should I accept it or take a break?

It was a brief moment of contemplation, but I quickly reached a conclusion.

‘I can’t run away from a situation like this.’

Whoever the opponent is, I face them head-on.

A hero can’t cowardly run from being targeted by streamers.

Without hesitation, I pressed the accept button, and immediately transitioned to the pick phase.

And within it…

“Why is it you??”

“Huh? Sis? Why are you matched right now?”

[?????]

[Huh? Why did those two pair together?]

[Isn’t that Yeonkkot and Seokgul-am? Did they duo queue?]

[Yeah, seems like it. Checking their records, looks like they’re currently duoing ㅇㅇ]

[They’ve just been on a ghostly four-game losing streak lol]

I spotted a familiar ID.

It was none other than STK Yeonkkot and Eunha also in the mix.

* * *

“Darn it, this is totally unfair. I’ll just negotiate and then bail, so keep that in mind.”

“Who’s talking smack? Why are you mindlessly charging in? Are you Friede’s sister? You seem to think you can handle it?”

“Shut up!”

I was desperately trying to lodge complaints, but, due to the limitations of virtual reality, it felt like a futile venting of frustration.

Yeonkkot and Eunha’s duo were sticking to their disastrous march.

A total of four consecutive losses.

Even when I recapped the game content, it was so mismatched that it was an utter mess.

If these two couldn’t cooperate as a pro team, that would indeed be odd.

Yet, isn’t there always a day in life where things just don’t go your way?

This just happened to be that day for Eunha, who firmly gritted her teeth in agitation.

Being someone who is hungry for victory, this kind of devastating defeat was hard to mentally digest.

However, she didn’t quit midway but pushed until the end, holding onto the superstitious hope that this might somehow help her luck.

“Let’s go for the last win.”

“Right, let’s try to win this final one! Let’s go!”

As she watched Yunsu, who was fervently rallying like crazy, Eunha let out a small sigh inside.

It’s hard to argue with some truth in what he said.

‘I should try my best too.’

So, mechanically operating the panel, she initiated the duo’s ranked match.

—Boom!

“Huh?”

“What’s this?”

Why is the matchmaking happening this quickly?

Exchanging puzzled glances with one another, neither of them could find a proper answer.

Usually, such a sudden match came about only when something was wrong, but what could it be?

“Hey, hey. Why think so much? Either way, we’re in it still.”

“Sigh, I don’t know.”

Indeed, whether or not we could win meant nothing.

Being a challenger doesn’t guarantee there’s no troll or malicious user lurking.

Whenever one might see a malicious player, interest in wasting time would often lead to dodging.

Next match could easily be dodged if just one person dropped out.

Right now seemed to be just that scenario.

As her mind searched for anyone likely to cause trouble during this timeslot, the screen transitioned into the pick phase.

And within…

“Huh? Sis? Why are you matched right now?”

I spotted Friede’s familiar white armor, golden cape, and the adorably cute rabbit ear headset she recently donned.

A delighted voice involuntarily erupted from me.