After that, nothing much happened.
Well… it seems like a lot did happen, but in conclusion, nothing had really changed.
The incident with the elf brainwashing attempt was kept under wraps from the police, the government, and the Hunter Association; we decided to handle it ourselves. Later, Olgania, Yujin, and Yeonseo also received news about it.
Upon hearing the news, Yujin frowned and said he would find the instigator in his own way. In an unexpected turn, Olgania responded casually, “Is that so?”
According to Olgania, elves have frequently been targeted by humans even in the previous world.
With their looks and longevity, they were valuable as slaves or labor, and there had even been elf-specific slave hunters.
The elves of Daesanrim developed average battle capabilities on the level of A-ranked Awakened Ones due to this background.
Whether they were human or not, outsiders had a long history of targeting elves and Daesanrim, leading to naturally higher personal powers and training levels.
Olgania remarked that, due to this incident, she intended to present measures related to mental barriers rather than physical training before disappearing deep into Daesanrim once again.
The brainwashing incident was deliberately not communicated to the South Korean government or the Hunter Association, likely to keep it as leverage for future negotiations or politics.
The fact that “I decided to naturalize back home, but before that, I was subjected to a malicious invasion” could yield a lot from the government.
And Lirisia returned to the area of Daesanrim, which was undergoing terraforming.
The brainwashing powder was incinerated, and while the whereabouts of the brainwashed mage who possessed the fragments was unknown, having already gone through one attempt, they would definitely not fall for it again.
The brainwashing only worked if one ingested the powder, so while the effects were certain, the requirement to consume the powder made evasion quite simple.
And I could return to my daily life.
Truth be told, all I did was follow Menelapie around, attending sessions at the National Assembly and the Hunter Association while spacing out. Most of the work was handled by Yeonhwa, acting as my guarantor, and in situations where difficult matters or my opinions were needed, Menelapie was meticulous and represented me without missing a beat.
As a result, I nearly became a subordinate to the government or something akin to a subcontractor, given my role in charge of the elves, but thanks to Menelapie and Yeonhwa leading the lengthy negotiations on my behalf, my responsibilities were greatly minimized. Unless the elves caused any fatalities or extreme incidents, I’d be able to live just like before without much difference.
For being in charge of 30,000 elves, this was an incredibly easy outcome.
With a newfound sense of ease, I naturally turned on my broadcast to test out the new drone.
“Hey! Long time no see! Did you miss me?”
-?
-Nope
-Not really
-Нет
-Where did Yane go?
And…
“So today, I thought I’d do some gallery exploration with you guys after a long time.”
As soon as I turned on the broadcast, I was shocked.
No, shocked doesn’t even begin to cover it.
[Honestly, if the Warrior and KawaiiHorned are cuter than Isia, that’s an upvote] (1192)
Votes: 10,293
『(Random video of Yane crying)
Well, that’s me first, haha』
[OMG]
[Cheat code number two]
[LMAO]
[Don’t say that! Our Seongnyeo is just a little insane; she’s slightly less pretty than the Warrior and a bit less cute than KawaiiHorned.]
– [You’re insane, haha]
– [You’re the worst…]
– [You killed it…!]
[LMAO, these guys are the worst, haha]
[You’ll just have to accept collabs now]
“YAAAAAAH!!! What is this?!”
-LMAO
-LMAO
-LMAO
-LMAO
-This is genius.
-LMAO
-So that’s how it is, huh?
-But it’s not wrong, is it?
-For real lol
These despised bastards had already switched their favorite while I was busy managing the elf operations.
Sure, I acknowledge that everyone has different tastes.
I fully understand that with the passage of time trends can change, which means the subscription rates of countless net runners could fluctuate.
“Ah, sure! Menelapie being super pretty is true! I’ll acknowledge that! Because she’s my Warrior!”
Honestly, I could argue that considering Menelapie’s looks, even by the standards of the previous world, she was stunningly beautiful, and based on 2088 Earth, her looks would not dull.
The titles “Empress of the Sun” and “Warrior of Gold” weren’t just given lightly.
Strong, yes, but she was rumored to be the most beautiful person in the entire Empire.
Some say if she weren’t an empress, she’d have been a dancing queen ruling the dark underworld.
Minstrels sang that if she weren’t a Warrior, she’d have been a national beauty capable of shaking nations.
Honestly, I shouldn’t have forgiven her for testing my hunger during our first meeting… but I couldn’t deny that seeing her incredibly gorgeous face had eased some of my anger.
Even so, Menelapie had, well… honestly disclosed everything to me and apologized.
She handled all the follow-up processing and support efficiently regarding me…
She even protected me after I expressed that I didn’t want to fight…
In conclusion, it isn’t wrong to say I was half-forgiving due to her looks.
I may have strayed a bit, but it was clear just how outstanding Menelapie’s appearance was, and it was easy to understand why others fell for her.
“Still, this doesn’t make sense. Why does Yane get to be cuter than me?”
This definitely crossed the line.
Hmph.
-?
-??
-? Excuse me?
-Yeh?
-?
-??
-What?
How could a mere side character, who appears briefly while not switching broadcasts, be cuter than me? It doesn’t make sense.
“So, I brought Yane here.”
“Eek?”
Now you can properly compare!
Yane is undeniably my magical companion.
Having received my baptism, Yane evolved from Bladed Centipede through my Seongnyeok.
Naturally, as Yane becomes more humanized, her base would be my physical form.
So, she should resemble me quite closely. If that’s the case, it means the basic appearance would not differ much from mine.
Here, we have the same looks.
But while Yane had a slightly creepy origin as a Bladed Centipede, I am the righteous Meat Fairy.
It’s obviously clear which one will garner a better reaction from people…
-Wow!
-?
-What’s this train of thought?
-Wow! Yane!
-Yane!
-Yane?
-Yane!
-Yane!
“…………”
“Eek?”
[‘KawaiiHorned’ has donated 400,000 won!]
Wow! Yane! I’ve been waiting for you!
[‘Kawatouri’ has donated 15,000 won!]
Yane! Yane! Yane! Yane! Yane! Yane! Yane!
“Eek, eek? Er… hi?”
-Wow! Now she can even greet us!
-So darn cute…
-Hehe…
-The body might be indecent, but the pure essence is delightful, haha
-For real, lol
-Yane!
-Mom, when I grow up, I want to become Yane! Mom, when I grow up, I want to become Yane! Mom, when I grow up, I want to become Yane!
-You madman, haha!
-Honestly, the way she reacts to donations rather than the amount is just so cute, isn’t it?
-Agreed
-For real, for real
“……….”
From the moment Yane appeared, the boom boom boom! of donations echoed prominently in the chat.
While I, having returned after a long time, received only a handful of donations as greetings, Yane started racking in hundreds of thousands as soon as she showed up.
“Eek, eek~”
“……….”
Yane seemed to enjoy the comforting sounds of the donation alerts, laughing and bouncing her arms, and indeed, she was adorable.
Truth be told, I know how fickle people can be.
Extremely, one could profess love one day and turn into an enemy the next—all part of human nature.
I was aware that not all those who came to watch me were solely there for me.
“…………”
Drop, drop, drop…
-?
-?
-?
-What? Is the streamer crying now?
-Lol, are you serious?
-Those are some clueless idiots over there
-Wait, are they for real crying?
-Nah, nah, this is collection time
-Wait, are they really crying over this?
-Start the juice, on
-?
-??
-They’re crying ㅠㅜ
Why, why am I suddenly crying?
I lived my life for you…
Even though my Warrior has returned and I’m no longer alone, back when I was by myself, your mere existence was comforting, and I’m broadcasting because I’m grateful for that…
Was it really so easy for you to just toss me aside like old trash?
Seeing those who I thought were on my side suddenly flip their loyalty so easily was like a snake slithering around in my heart.
I’ll be honest.
This is no joke; my heart is really hurt.
“…U…wa……..”
-Is now the collection time? What’s up?
-Lol, for real?
-Crying ㅠㅜ
-Wait, why are you whining like a kid?
-These idiots, just sit still for a moment.
[‘KawaiiHorned’ has donated 500,000 won!]
What’s going on? Please calm down.
[‘MintFlavoredOreo’ has donated 20,000 won!]
Hey, it’s our first donation. Please don’t cry!
“Uah, uhh… huck…”
Let’s calm down. Let’s calm down.
I can repair these dysfunctional tear ducts.
Bring my lips back up.
Then, at that moment, the door suddenly opened.
“Shia, you’ve worked hard on your broadcast. How about having this…?”
“Ah.”
“Eek…?”
With a pile of seasonal fruits in her hands, Menelapie walked in with a sunny smile, and upon seeing my face, she froze like a statue.
Ah, the stone-faced Warrior has become petrified.
Why did she freeze?
Thinking it over, I realized just how easy it was to misinterpret my current situation.
Yane was adorably licking away my tears for comfort, and here I was, surrounded by a sea of holographic chats, tears streaming down my face.
Menelapie had just happened to witness that scene.
“…………….”
-What?
-It’s the Warrior, isn’t it?
-Isn’t this scene super easy to misinterpret?
-Nah, nah, it’s not a misunderstanding.
-We’re toast.
-For real, lol
-Looks like we’ll have a lot of guests for collabs today.
-Haha…
After a brief moment, which felt much longer for me, as she scanned the chatroom, Menelapie’s petrified expression softened.
Her Golden Eye shone in that brief interval as she analyzed and understood the entire situation with her Warrior’s abilities. She gradually lowered the pile of fruits in her hand and turned sharply as her sword was drawn from her waist.
Oh…
“Which bastard dared to make my Shia cry? I’ll kill them!!”
“YAAAAA!!! Yane, stop her!!”
“Me?!”
Thankfully, the moment Menelapie entered, my drooping lips lifted back up.
Indeed, the presence of my Warrior made a tremendous difference.
“Nah, I said stop her!!”
“E-eek?!”
First things first, I need to prevent Menelapie from going after my viewers.
