Chapter 259. The Final Interview (3)
[Balloon Stars: 3 High Protein: 2]
The close match had a final score of three to two.
[Current Viewers: 401,000]
They achieved a record-breaking number of viewers and everyone considered it the best final match in the tournament's history.
— Woahhhhh!
— Almond! Almond! Almond! Almond!
Nearly everyone in the audience chanted Almond's name. Even those supporting the opposing team now took Almond's side.
— Almond was the MVP.
— It was awesome.
— Raina was a real piece of art.
— I thought they would lose because Almond didn't pick Flashy Blade this time…
Some people even cried.
The casters grabbed their microphones again with choked-up voices.
"Balloon Stars has won! They are the best team among the sixteen teams in this tournament!"
Kaboom!!
Fireworks went off, and multicolored lights illuminated the five Balloon Stars members.
— Woooaahhh!
Swoooosh!
The caster stepped onto the stage.
"No one expected this! One player left and the team had to reform! The new player was a rookie streamer named Almond, who was initially at silver rank!"
"That's right! And he didn’t have much experience until this point!" OrangeKing chimed in.
"Does this make sense!? That player's solo rank is now Diamond I. He’s almost reached Master! He's the main reason for the win in this tournament no matter what anyone says!"
Both casters nodded vigorously.
"Yes! We don't even need a vote! I will declare it! The tournament's MVP is Almond, especially in this final!"
"It was an honor just to watch such play in the mid lane. The tournament’s quality was better than expected and it was so much fun!"
"That's right! Everyone, give a big round of applause to today's winners who made this tournament so enjoyable!"
— Woooaahhh!
— We love you, Almond!
— Gum! Gum! Gum!
— Takoooooooo!
The stadium erupted in cheers and some audience members began firing fireworks they bought in This World with in-game cash.
Fireworks with Almond's face lit up everywhere. They even shot up fireworks in the shape of edible almonds.
Boom!
The caster announced amid the dazzling flames, "Time for the trophy!"
A massive trophy rose from the bottom.
— Wow, lol.
— How will they lift that?
— Isn't it too big?
It was literally the size of a house.
Just as everyone wondered how they would lift it, the winners began to grow in size.
"The winners will need to put some muscle into it, right?"
Swoosh!
"Wow!"
All five Balloon Stars members grew to the caster's size. Now, they were the right size to easily lift the house-sized trophy.
"Let's go!"
Following the caster's lead, all five rushed toward the trophy.
"You lift it first."
"That's right! Sang-Hyeon, you lift it first!"
Sang-Hyeon touched the trophy first.
— Woooaahhh!
— Well done, Miho!
— Well done, Gum!
— Almond, I love you! Marry me!
— Tako! I knew you could make it!"
— Strawberry! You did well too!"
The audience's cheers and the dazzling spotlight consumed everything.
Bang!
The trophy rose up and brightly shone.
‘... Wow.'
Sang-Hyeon couldn't help but open his mouth because his body began shining just as brightly as the trophy.
"What do you think!? It's worth winning the tournament, isn't it?! Hahaha!"
Tako also lifted the trophy while laughing and his body began shining as much as his head.
"Wow! I love this so much!!"
Next, Miho also touched the trophy and her avatar rose while covered in light. She looked just like an angel.
"Hahaha! Everyone! I won!"
"Give it to StrawberryShooter too!"
"..."
All the other team members brightly shone.
Boom!
With huge fireworks, screens emerged out of thin air and the tournament highlights replayed.
“Almond! Almond! Pen... ta kill!”
“This is crazy!”
“Did he just buy that from the shop?!”
“The spirits are all moving! What is happening?!”
“The disciple of ForeverAlone did this!”
The game footage had already been edited.
The caster picked up the microphone again.
"Everyone! From practice to the actual games, it was enjoyable to watch your countless efforts day and night!"
All the teams' practice sessions passed by on the screen: Red Carpet's practice, Solo Is Back's practice, and Green Tea Bagging's struggles, victories, and defeats.
Several emotions clashed. Everyone had tried their best while playing.
"Even though it's a competition among streamers to show everyone interesting games, they spared no effort for victory!"
The caster pointed somewhere. It was where the defeated players gathered.
Bang!
The lights came on. ForeverAlone, BlackTea, GreenTea, Lemon, SweetRadish, and others could be seen. They cheerfully waved.
"Give them a round of applause!"
— Wooahhhh!!!!
— Wow!!!!!
"And today's runner-ups with the silver medal! High Protein!"
Boom!
The light shone on team High Protein. Fortunately, they all wore bright expressions.
The audience also applauded and cheered for them.
"Alright~! And! This is important!"
The caster pointed to the screen behind him again.
"We will do the winner's interview! The POG (Player of the Game) for this final has just been selected. We will start the interview with the player who received POG!"
[Player of the Game]
Thump!
The light shot to Sang-Hyeon.
[Almond]
— Woooh!
— Almond! Almond! Almond!
"It was unanimous!"
All the votes from the staff selected Almond. He clearly carried his team all the way, so the decision was unanimous. Most people already expected who the POG would be.
Swoosh!
When everyone grew smaller again, the caster approached.
"So, Almond!"
He extended the microphone.
"How do you feel right now?"
***
Gulp.
Ju-Hyeok nervously swallowed while looking at the screen.
This moment came faster than he expected as they started interviewing the player who won the POG award.
'Will the production team do well?'
A few minutes ago, Ju-Hyeok sent the file created by Ji-Ah to the production team when their victory was confirmed.
[Please display this screen when interviewing about Almond's past.]
The production team had already prepared questions about Sang-Hyeon's past, so Ju-Hyeok proposed his own plan before they brought up any weird questions.
[It seems like a good idea! The director also approved it.]
Their response seemed good at first, but Ju-Hyeok didn’t know how they would play the video.
After all, he couldn't control every little detail. Even if he could, it would be rude to the production team. He had no choice but to leave it in their hands for now.
"Wow. They really won."
The researchers came back after lunch and sat next to Ju-Hyeok.
At first, they seemed uncomfortable in the house. Now they walked around like it was their own home.
"Ah, yes. He did it. Haha."
Ju-Hyeok scratched his head and awkwardly laughed as if he had won.
"You've worked hard."
"It's nothing. I did what I had to do."
These researchers continuously monitored the biometric data next to the capsule in case of any problems.
According to them, there were surprisingly no problems as if the gods had decreed that Sang-Hyeon would win today.
'I should also mention the capsule.'
The CEO said that if Almond won, they would proceed with additional contracts for the capsule.
'The advertising fees will be no joke.'
Ju-Hyeok felt proud and didn’t care that he thought about money even now. After all, that was his job.
“How do you feel now?”
Sang-Hyeon, on the screen, hesitated for a moment and took the microphone.
“I feel good.”
He gave a simple answer, but the audience exploded with applause.
— Wowwww!
— Almond! Almond! Almond!
— Wowww! Awesome!
— Almond, marry me!
***
The caster heartily laughed because of the audience's tremendous response every time Almond said something.
"Do you know that Almond was selected as Forbes' number one future prospect for kids this time?"
"…?"
Sang-Hyeon looked surprised as if he didn't understand.
"It's a joke!"
Light laughter spread from the audience at the joke.
"Anyhow, it wouldn't be strange if Forbes actually selected him for that, right?"
When the caster asked the audience, they answered like elementary school students.
— Yeeeees!
— Right!
— Who cares about Forbes! Bring more Almonds!
"How do you feel about this, Almond? Do you feel like your popularity has increased since participating in the tournament?"
Various odd comments popped up in the chat.
— ??? I was popular from birth.
— ??? Korean soccer is also popular.
— ??? Did I not raise the popularity of the tournament?
However, Sang-Hyeon gave a normal answer contrary to their expectations.
"Yes. A lot," he sincerely answered.
"A lot? How much?"
"I don't know the exact number, but I became most satisfied with my job as a streamer through the tournament."
The camera captured the faces of the other team members. They exchanged tender glances.
Sang-Hyeon also met eyes with them and spoke again, "Gathering our strengths with my team members and achieving something was a first for me. It felt different than doing it alone. In a good way, of course."
"Ah! You're not usually extroverted?"
"Yes. I don't meet people often."
"I know you've also had quite a career in a corporate setting! Was that team-oriented? Wasn't it Ahsung Corporation?" the caster naturally brought up his past.
That was one of the key points of the interview that Ju-Hyeok instructed the production team to focus on.
— Oh wow!
— Really??? A career in a corporation?
— He was an elite!
— Wow!
Audiences who didn't know about Sang-Hyeon murmured in amazement when they heard about his corporate life while his fans loudly cheered.
"I didn't achieve much during that time. It felt like it wasn't the right place for me. Through this tournament, for a brief moment, I felt sure of where I should be and I lived fully focused for the first time in a while."
— Why does this Almond nut speak so well?
— Did a walnut write the script for him?
— Selective competence. LOL
— He always speaks well. You should see him in commercials.
"Ah, I see. Finding one's place in society is really important, isn't it? For adults as well as wandering youths. You will all understand! But Almond, I heard you had quite a wandering period before joining the corporate world?"
The caster looked at Sang-Hyeon as if to ask if it was okay to proceed.
Sang-Hyeon nodded.
Then, the caster signaled to the production team and slowly continued, "I heard you had something you wanted to say in this final interview?"
"Yes."
"What would that be?"
Sang-Hyeon, who always answered promptly as if releasing an arrow, hesitated momentarily. His hand that held the microphone noticeably trembled even though they were in virtual reality where such a thing shouldn't happen.
— What?
— Ah, that thing...
— That thing, that thing.
— Wow, is it really?
Sang-Hyeon finally opened his mouth, "Not long ago... and according to what I've heard, I became a popular topic in a post a while ago. That was me in the archery video. My name is Yu Sang-Hyeon, and at the age of seventeen, I won a gold medal in an archery championship."
The entire audience fell into a brief silence after he managed to utter these words without too much trembling.
Ping.
The production team played the video clip that Ju-Hyeok provided.
— Yu Sang-Hyeon! The youngest! The youngest to...!
— A gold medalist!
— Wow, all ten points! This is incredible!
Sounds from ten years ago echoed in every direction. Many people covered their mouths in awe. This video also contained an interview with the seventeen-year-old Sang-Hyeon.
When the interviewer asked about his future plans, the young Sang-Hyeon answered tersely.
“I will win the Olympics.”
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