SWNOVELXO Chapter 182
“Professor Cheon Kyu-jin is doing pure mathematics? That’s like saying ghosts are eating radishes!”
That was the thought of Professor Baek, who shared the same floor research lab as Professor Cheon.
Professor Cheon’s major field was materials engineering.
Even if he primarily dealt with advanced materials, and even if he had some background knowledge of theoretical physics or analysis, it was undeniable that he had gone overboard.
He was certain that Professor Cheon had been approached by the parents of the young child to make a star as part of some scheme.
It was for this reason that he became the first person to testify that NoName was a fabricated genius.
“That Maria or whoever probably wrote up all the proofs for him.”
In the end, a pseudonym was revealed for the first author.
There was a good reason why, when creating “fake geniuses,” they always used mathematics instead of magic studies as the theme.
The industry itself was much smaller than magic studies, and the number of people who even knew the latest math trends was absolutely low, which meant that there were drastically fewer people worldwide to review the proofs.
So, when one submits dozens of pages of proof, it’s only natural that the time needed for verification increases significantly.
After all, if you suck up all the fame and later go missing when the fraud is revealed, that’s just a classic method used twenty years ago.
So why did Professor Cheon accept such a request?
“How would I know?”
Professor Cheon was the typical elite who graduated from Korea University and immediately transferred to the United States for his master’s and doctorate.
There isn’t a field that pays less than theoretical materials engineering, so Professor Cheon probably would end up transitioning to a poly-professor (political professor), was the cautious guess.
I don’t know exactly what kind of people that child’s parents are, but it was certain they must belong to a powerful faction in the political sphere. Otherwise, there would be no reason to take such risks.
Honk-honk!
The self-driving technology was advancing day by day, but there was no effort from the government to solve the rush hour traffic on the commute home, and the car horn blared in protest.
[172 – Twish TV]
“This guy or whatever, if he was going to use a car, at least change the channel properly before leaving.”
Professor Baek’s commute was always accompanied by the 132 Golf Channel.
His hand paused for a moment as he attempted to switch the channel due to the sudden appearance of a gaming broadcast.
[Da! Blory Team rejoices with a perfect 5 wins in the group stage! Congratulations on reaching the finals! Waaahhhhhh!]
He had heard a rumor that NoName participated in some gaming competition at a recent press conference.
Next to the interviewer holding the microphone stood a seven-year-old young child and a girl in an animal hoodie, both nervously standing on stage.
Professor Baek continued to watch Twish’s broadcast.
He mixed in some difficult game terms, and given that he was approaching his fifties, there were much more words he didn’t understand.
Then came the final interview question.
[NoName, you’re the only minor streamer along with player Kariri in the tournament! If your parents are watching this broadcast right now, I bet they’re really proud of you! If you have any words for your parents, please let us know!]
The interviewer handed over the microphone.
At the midpoint, Kariri was instructed to pass the mic.
The girl’s eyes and hands were trembling.
In contrast, the young child on camera was gripping the microphone with both hands, staring straight ahead.
[Er… um… I’m blanking on what to say suddenly. Still, I think I did a little better yesterday and today, but I don’t know how mom saw it. I’ll keep living coolly and bravely, so… please keep watching until the end. Today’s the day I really want to see mom. Love you lots.]
[Wow, NoName’s straightforward confession! Just hearing that makes my heart swell! I’m sure your mom would love it! But it seems like you live separately from your mom now, right?]
[She’s in heaven right now.]
[Huh…?]
“What?”
Honk-honk!
Professor Baek’s exclamation was drowned out by the horn sound.
[And since I don’t have a father, I’ll skip that part.]
The interviewer, who received the microphone, felt faint.
*
In a six-team round-robin match held over two days, Na-me’s team achieved a perfect 5 wins and secured a direct ticket to the finals.
-I believed in you, Kariri!
-You’re our hero!
-Wagal Leaf Village level LOL!
-LMAO the transformation is hilarious.
Opinions arose that Na-me’s performance didn’t shine as much this time compared to in scrims and the round-robin, but that was quickly silenced by Na-me’s interview.
[Wagal isn’t a game where everyone can be the protagonist. And our Blory Team has decided that the main character is Kariri.]
[Depending on who you funnel the resources to, the results can be drastically different. Leveling me won’t change much, but leveling Kariri will allow us to win the objective fights.]
[Are you disappointed about character selection? Nope, I don’t think it’s unfair. The tank assassin that everyone says is OP Kariri is the result of all our team’s efforts. I hope you recognize that effort.]
[In a single story, everyone can’t be the protagonist, but I believe there’s a story where each person is the protagonist. To those who want to see my performance, I’ll be the protagonist in this upcoming Fall Battle, so please watch over Legacy of Legends too. This is my first interview, and I think I rambled a bit; I’m grateful to everyone who has supported us.]
-Hell yeah!
-Pyap pyap pyap!
-Great speech!!!
-There’s one protagonist per story, that’s a great line!
-NoName seems to have a bit of a quotable tendency, haha.
-It’s way better than those cool kids who just brush everything off with cringe.
-So cute, LOL.
-The one rambling was actually Kariri though.
-Once Casori turned on, they literally gave up on English translation; it’s just hilarious, LOL.
The unique character traits of the two girls earned a lot of enthusiasm from the audience.
With that, the eager interviewer slipped in a question that wasn’t on the existing list.
Requesting a video message to send to their parents usually captured players in a shy moment projected on screen.
It could nicely conclude the warm atmosphere and even transform middle-aged people’s perception of gaming—truly a triple win.
-I want NoName’s parents too!!!
-Should we make him study or let him game?
└ That’s a genuinely happy dilemma, LOL.
-I’m curious about what kind of people they are.
But she shouldn’t have said that.
[She’s in heaven right now.]
The chat window exploded.
No, everyone seemed to have exploded simultaneously.
The chat that had been scrolling fast suddenly stopped at that moment.
-Huh?
-Did I hear that wrong?
-In heaven…? In heaven…?
-Must be referring to the SKY, right?
-???????
-Bi… Bibi… Bibi…
-BIAAAAAAAAAAAAANG!
-Quick, Talulla…! Talulla is needed!
-This is an emergency!!!!
-You mean your parents are not here? Both of them?
-Gasp!
-I’m not joking; this feels real…;
-ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ
-Is this true…?
-What did NoName just say? I didn’t catch it.
-The interviewer girl is totally done for!
-So is she really an orphan? Only 14?
-Tattoos, dropout, hikikomori… Ohhh… So that’s why…
-ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ How much foreshadowing…
The broadcast crashed right after that.
*
“It’s long past the age to get hurt by such things. Besides, you didn’t know, so it’s okay. Really, you can stop apologizing now.”
I helped the sobered announcer back to her feet.
She tried to say something, but her lips were trembling, and she ended up crying again, so I found myself comforting her instead.
In fact, I personally thought not having parents wasn’t a particularly special matter.
It would have been nice to have them around, but many had to give up on their dreams due to their parents holding them back—often in their past lives.
Especially after the war, children without parents were frequently seen on the streets, where blood relations became useless under survival threats.
Receiving the heartfelt apology from the announcer and the affectionate gazes from the Wagal team members, the atmosphere for the upcoming League of Legends tournament felt tense.
“Na-me…”
“No, Shia unnie, you don’t have to be so dramatic—”
“Na-me! Waaaah! I didn’t know you felt that way!”
Yushia lifted me up in her embrace. If I had known this would happen, I wouldn’t have changed my avatar.
“What’s wrong? We have a tournament to prepare for! What if you miss ganks because you’re too busy whining?”
“You… you…”
“What…?”
“Uwaaaaaah!”
“Don’t just cry; talk to me!”
“Sob… I! Sniff… I’ll be your mom now!”
“What are you saying! I’m getting adopted and living well! Even if I can’t help it, there’s going to be a thirty-year age gap with my adoptive dad’s sister!”
An abrupt silence followed.
“Ugh… That’s a bit much.”
“Right. Let’s hurry up and prepare for ban-pick.”
“Okay…”
Everyone’s really being dramatic.