Season 5: Chapter 130. A Benefactor (3)

Even though Orange King's image leaned toward clownish, he was still the established official commentator for LIL Champions. His influence in games, especially tournaments, was top-tier. The reach of his words was the same, but with power came responsibility.

Orange King, despite appearances, was cautious about statements that could cause controversy. He generally avoided making definitive claims about things he wasn't certain of or even casually mentioning them.

"I can say this with certainty. This isn't staged."

He had to have a reason for saying this.

— What

— Certain?

— Wow

— There couldn't be evidence for this...

— ???

Viewers felt puzzled at his certainty. They knew he was the careful type, so it was strange that he'd make a definitive claim when presenting evidence or counterproof was difficult.

Orange King did have something that could be called evidence.

"You know when I went to give the lecture. Do you remember Almond turning off the stream and then asking me several more questions?"

He was referring to the behind-the-scenes conversation with Almond after the stream was turned off abruptly during the LIL special lecture. That proof was clear to him, except there was a problem.

— ?

— We only know the stream was turned off

— How would we know?? we weren't watching when the stream was off lmaooo

— ??? Raise your hand if you're not here~

— ?

Orange King blinked. "Oh, th-that's right. The stream was off."

The fact that the conversation happened with the stream off was the biggest blind spot.

— lmaooooo

— No alibi then LOL

— Done and done

— But why does that even matter???

— What did you say in there;

All Orange King could do now was make a claim based on his own memory. He couldn't help it. As someone had said, evidence wouldn’t exist for something like this.

"I don't know if you'll believe me, but I'm putting everything on the line when I say this. At the time, Almond genuinely came with an enormous amount of thoughts about strategies... and loads of questions."

— ?

— Fr?

— That can't be right

— Hm?

— Wow

— Dummy hiding his effort

— What

Orange King dropped the key statement here.

"At the time, he had over ten questions about split strategies alone, if I remember correctly."

— Interesting...

— What the

— Wow

— Wow... actually a bit moved lmaooo

— The nut man was working hard...

— fr?

— The Smart Young Man was right lmaooo

Almond had already shown considerable interest in split strategies. Around half of what he'd asked Orange King had to do with splits.

"That's why he got it immediately. Timing? I already taught him that. He answered the exam question exactly."

Timing was one of the most crucial elements for split strategies.

"When to split and when to regroup, this is something I always emphasize in Siege mode too. A team can't always go around separately. You have to come together when you need to. That timing is the core of a split operation."

Orange King wrapped up his point.

"Anyway, a staged-content verifier... What? Fakejin or whatever, good luck to you. I've shared the conversation I'm certain about from that time. Understood? It's not staged, absolutely not. And that’s not the kind of thing Almond does either."

This statement from Orange King was clipped and spread across countless communities. It was like distributing fire extinguishers to a burning district. Every time doubts about Almond and Sa-Rang surfaced, people brought Orange King's statement in response.

Generally, around sixty to seventy percent quieted down. The problem was the twenty to thirty percent of these demons. They didn't relent, instead bringing up Orange King and Almond's close relationship.

[Big: But then lol Almond got him the Civil Empire commentary gig. Of course, Orange King would shield him.]

— lmaooo fr

— People who haven't done social life don't get it lol

— Exactly

— Orange King proved what? He just said it

— You guys think Almond is some major power lmaooo... six months ago he was a nobody

└ Isn't that suspicious?

└ ?

└ People who blow up suddenly all have a reason, can't be without a backer lmaooo

└ ???

└ Genuinely unhinged people lmaooo

***

At the Mixed Nuts office, they had all gathered to watch the video of Orange King and Sang-Hyeon talking after the stream ended. This video had no video file. Only the audio existed.

"We synthesized this separately. Take a look."

They had synced it with the behind-the-scenes footage that Ju-Hyeok had filmed from outside the window.

“There's something I was curious about regarding split strategies... I've heard the top players do this...”

“So when you do a split and need to regroup, how do you know when?”

“Is there also a 4-1 split?”

In the footage, Sang-Hyeon fired off question after question about splits at Orange King. This was absolutely not the questioning level of someone who had just been told, “This is the right answer.” He didn't fully understand it but wanted to dig in, asking questions in a branching tree of inquiry. In other words, it was the perfect evidence to counter the current situation.

"Wow."Ju-Hyeok found himself applauding.

It was inherently far more difficult to prove innocence than to prove guilt. That was why the presumption of innocence was a fundamental principle in law. Of course, this was never upheld in reality. Failing to prove innocence didn't make someone guilty. Evidence proving Almond’s innocence wasn’t supposed to exist.

"But we have this! Ahahahaha!" Ju-Hyeok laughed heartily.

Evidence that seemed absolutely impossible actually existed. How good was that?

"LIL Pro demons, they'll never see this coming."

How flustered would those LIL Pro villains be? Proof of innocence that wasn’t supposed to exist was sitting right there.

"Let's sort out the counterarguments they might bring up in advance. First, that the audio was recorded after the fact..."

Ji-Ah nodded. "Yes. That's refuted by the video and audio sync being exactly matched to the behind-the-scenes footage. That behind-the-scenes video was already uploaded to YouTube."

"What if they say the sync itself was manufactured?"

"Hmm..." Ji-Ah's eyes moved. "If they suspect it that far... there's no way..."

"Those people are demons! Team Leader Seo, we need to properly exorcise them!"

"Ugh... I, I know..."

Ju-Hyeok grabbed and shook Ji-Ah.

BornToB raised his hand. "There's one more piece of solid evidence!"

"Hm? What?"

"The scene of me listening to this audio is all captured on camera."

"Oh...! That time!" Ju-Hyeok finally remembered.

BornToB had known the content of Almond and Orange King's conversation. When asked how, he had mentioned that the studio's internal recording audio existed separately.

Bang!

Ju-Hyeok's eyes flashed as he slapped the desk. "Hey! BornToB, let's go seal these demons right now."

Click!

BornToB snapped a salute and called out, "Sir!! The B in BornToB stands for Blocking, doesn't it!?"

It didn't.

Ju-Hyeok let it slide once. "Yeah! Let's go! Block Satoru!"

"Domain Expansion!"

Ju-Hyeok and BornToB cracked up together.

Ji-Ah quietly created some distance and stepped back.

'What? What are they doing...?'

***

"Again."

Meanwhile, the Knight Order was practically fleeing from the Abyss Shadow after the coach's cold reprimand.

Sweet Potato scratched his head in confusion. "Um... but does the coach hear our conversations?"

— lmaooooo why

— Talking behind her back?? lmaooo

— Sweet Potato...

— The weakest one always goes into politics~

"Oh, no! What do you mean talking behind her back?! That's not it. Just like, somehow, I feel like I can't speak freely..." Sweet Potato felt a pressure that was hard to explain.

Even calls or conversations could get reviewed. Sa-Rang wasn't micromanaging them, but the Knight Order members had shrunk on their own.

"Why? What do you want to say?" Sweet Radish asked, a little snippy.

"No, we didn't say anything about how we'd do the split... and just came in like this..."

They'd just come in like they were fleeing.

"Let's open the artifact box first."

Almond took the lead. The moment they entered the game, every second counted.

Creak...

The box opened, and weapons came out. It was a standard combination. Everyone found the weapons they wanted.

Almond stared at them intently. "What if we change the member combination for the split?"

Previously, they'd split with tanks and carry on one side with the remaining three on the other. This was standard. Logically, the two-person team would have a tank.

Almond, who loved tank play more than anyone, suddenly said, "I think the two-person side should be carry and mage."

— What?

— Then how do they hunt lmaooo

— That's suicide

— Hm?

— That's too extreme

Everyone responded negatively.

"The side that needs to grow the most should be the one doing the split, right? It’s the same in Siege."

Almond had his reasoning. Whatever it was, running a split meant the two-person side leveled up and grew stronger faster. Within a team, whose levels had to increase fastest? Naturally, it was the carry and mage.

"Oh...?" Sweet Radish's eyes went wide.

Of course, viewers and Almond noticed nothing.

Almond’s words had hit exactly on target.

"That's... not bad?"

Almond smiled. It felt like the first time their thinking had truly aligned. Now he was capable of having a game-oriented conversation.

"The essence of a split operation is really concentrating levels on certain players. It's not a bad idea. We just need to find the right means to achieve that goal."

It was something worth aiming toward strategically. They needed to practice it now.

"Then, should Lemon and Black Tea be the two-person side this time?"

If they were going to split this way, it was all about teamwork. Lemon and Black Tea would work better together. On the two-person side, the mage was effectively closer to a supporting role in the beginning.

"Sounds good~!"

"Oh, nice."

Lemon picked up the staff, and Black Tea grabbed the gun. Almond took the bow, and Sweet Potato took the shield. Sweet Radish took the spear.

"Team Potato Servant versus Team Maid," Sweet Potato said gravely, "I'll show you the power of Potato Servant."

"Ha? You're the weakest here." Black Tea fired back.

The two groups split apart.

— ?

— Those two, what if they actually break apart LOL

— Why are the two of them fighting lmaooo

— Oh maybe it'll actually work this time...