Chapter 78 - Processing
[Breaking: Ego Stream Official Site Launched]
If you visit, it's a super clean, empty screen with a white background and just the logo.
Seeing the LIVE button at the bottom, it looks like he plans to broadcast from here now?
=[Comments]=
[Oh]
[That's cool]
[Wait, what's this 'Claim Damage Compensation' written in tiny letters at the bottom right? LOL]
└ [For real? LOL]
└ [LMAO, he's so consistent LOL]
└ [Is this a 'Villain' Alliance...?]
*
[I've been watching Egostic's live streams since the first broadcast, and I'm feeling quite emotional]
He started as just a somewhat novel Villain
Then the scale of his terror attacks gradually grew
And now seeing him form a Villain Alliance
It makes my heart feel full (?) or something LOL
And it's legendary that there are still 0 deaths even after all this LOL
=[Comments]=
[For real, it's heartening to watch him grow]
[Mangostick is a legend....]
[Seriously, it feels like just yesterday he was bickering with Stardus]
[He's been hitting new heights every day since the bridge terror attack LOL]
[But honestly, isn't 0 casualties rare even among A-Ranks? If he's promoted to S-Rank, he'd be the first LOL]
└ [Is Ego still A-Rank? Why?]
└ [For real LOL, I don't get it]
└ [The Association's incompetence is nothing new LOL]
└ [I'm not an Association official, but from what I've heard, Egostic's personal combat power is quite weak, so they've kept him at A-Rank since no one has died yet. However, given his hacking skills, influence, the severity of his terror acts, and the leadership he's shown now, they're internally considering a promotion to S-Rank.]
└ [Association employee bro.....]
└ [Thanks, Association employee!]
*
[Forget everything else, Electra <<< Like if she's pretty LOL]
I'll start LOL
=[Comments]=
[For real LOL]
[I ship EgoXElectra]
└ [SILENCE!!! EgoXStar is right there!!!]
[Honestly, the moment I saw her, I thought she was gorgeous]
└ [She looks like the Delinquent Noona who was the prettiest at our School LOL]
└ [Damn, of all the comparisons LOL]
*
[Honestly, it's a fact that Egostic and Electra are dating]
Egostic saving her the moment she's in danger.gif
Egostic holding Electra in a princess carry.gif
And especially this last scene
When Egostic shouts 'Electra-chu, 1,000,000 volts!' and Electra, who was pretending to be out, gets up to blast electricity LOL the chemistry is insane LOL
From today on, I ship EgosticXElectra... short for Egotra. Don't try to stop me.
=[Comments]=
[Honestly, they do have good chemistry LOL You can tell they must be close in private]
[Nope, Egostic belongs to Stardus~ Bye]
└ [Stardus? What Stardus? LOL It's been forever since Egostic last called for her.]
└ [What are you talking about? They literally just met this time.]
└ [No, I mean aside from just meeting, when was the last time Egostic actually called for her? LOL It's been ages.]
*
[Why the Egostic X Stardus ship is bound to sink... reasons]
To begin with, from a fan's perspective,
The possibility of a Villain X Hero pairing is practically zero.
Plus, looking at Stardus's personality, she's all about "Justice!" which is the exact opposite of Egostic.
The only reason they were shipped was because Egostic constantly called her out and mentioned her since the beginning.
But at some point, Egostic stopped calling for Stardus.
Just as the ship was starting to struggle, the golden-haired Electra appeared like a comet.
They have the intimacy of a Villain X Villain alliance.
That strangely friendly attitude they showed in the last video.
Honestly, Stardus is out, and he's bound to be shipped with Electra now. LOL.
So, do you Ego-Star shippers get it?
Pack your bags and leave the Fan Cafe.
The Ego-Tra shippers are taking over now.
=[Comments]=
[I can't give up Ego-Star~ I've been a die-hard fan since that Train incident~]
└ [For real. Newbies say this because they didn't see how sweetly Egostic took care of Stardus when she collapsed right after that train incident.]
└ [-Boomer-]
[Are there still people pushing Ego-Star? So outdated.]
[Stardus is out!]
*
"...."
She almost threw her phone for a moment, but she took a deep breath and regained her composure.
Right, it wasn't something to get so angry about. Why would she be shipped with Egostic in the first place? And she didn't care whether Egostic was with that girl Electra or whatever her name was.
But why was she so annoyed?
"...I don't like this."
Seeing the image of Egostic holding Electra tightly in a princess carry again, she felt an involuntary sense of discomfort.
Even the front page of the newspaper only showed a close-up of Egostic and Electra, editing her, Stardus, out completely.
Seeing the two of them looking so close was just... irritating.
With a displeased expression, she sat still for a long time, scrolling through her new phone.
Suddenly, a thought occurred to her.
Why am I so annoyed?
She adjusted her posture and sat up straight.
Right.
She had forgotten because of the irritation clouding her mind.
Why was she feeling so uncomfortable in the first place?
She held her head in her hands and began to think.
Yes. The more she thought about it, the more she realized she had no reason to be angry. So why did she feel so bad?
What did that guy, Egostic, have to do with her?
And so, she began to reflect on Egostic.
Egostic.
He was a Villain who appeared shortly after she became a Hero, just as she was starting to get used to the job. That was Egostic.
He was different from other Villains who simply destroyed the city or took hostages to demand money.
At first, some even wondered if he was a dark hero because he only went around killing other Villains, but those rumors vanished after his first act of terror.
And during that first terror incident.
At that time, he had specifically pointed out Stardus herself.
No, come to think of it, it was even before then. He had been targeting her through the messages he left behind after killing other Villains.
And in the next terror incident, he had pointed her out. As if it were only natural.
Moreover, when she was about to step out with her face exposed, he somehow knew and appeared to help.
In the next terror incident, he even contacted her directly, saying he trusted her and that she was the one who completed him.
In the end, he had even thrown himself into danger to save her.
Right. Until now, every time Egostic caused an incident, he had always singled out Stardus and remained by her side.
As she reflected on that, she suddenly realized something.
Just as Egostic always seemed to pay attention only to her among all the Heroes.
She, too, had focused most on Egostic among all the Villains.
"....."
Right.
Come to think of it, her life as a Hero had reached a point where it was difficult to discuss without Egostic.
She couldn't even clearly remember what she did before meeting him; she just captured one Villain after another.
But Egostic.
Her history with him had grown quite long.
A Villain who escaped every time using Teleportation, a skill with high mobility, only to cause terror again.
Yet there were no casualties, he eliminated other Villains, and he even saved people under strange pretenses.
He was a man full of secrets, a man who always singled her out and was constantly entwined with her.
Stardus, who had unconsciously begun thinking of him again, realized something.
She could no longer imagine a life without Egostic.
Egostic causing an incident, calling for her, and then her chasing after him had become so familiar.
Before she knew it, a life without that cycle was almost unimaginable.
"...."
Right. Looking back, Egostic had always called for her and her alone.
Whether it was killing Villains or the three terror incidents, it was all him.
But after that, he stopped calling her.
Yes. Specifically, starting from the bridge terror. Back then, he had blocked her access entirely.
Had they met at other times?
Those weren't times he had specifically singled her out; they were just coincidental encounters.
It wasn't him calling for "Stardus" directly.
Right. From a certain point onward.
He stopped looking for Stardus.
As she scrolled through her phone with those thoughts, a post caught her eye.
*
[Stardus is just a propellant lol]
She was just a propellant used for early Aggro.
I see people here saying Egostic is into Stardus or that he's Stardus-obsessed.
What a joke haha. Would Egostic really be that kind of guy?
He did that because Stardus is the A-Rank Hero in charge of Seoul to increase his presence by drawing Aggro.
Nothing more, nothing less.
Considering there hasn't been a single mention of Stardus lately, it's obvious.
He just used her for business and then dumped her.
He'll probably never single out Stardus again even if he causes another terror incident.
Actually, he hasn't called for Stardus since the airplane terror haha.
Stardus was just a fling.
Behind the scenes, Ego is living it up with Electra. All the attention he gave Stardus has shifted to her.
Ego-Star shippers, sorry for your loss haha.
*
Having read that far, she finally couldn't take it and threw her phone.
What did that person even know? He had called her personally during the airplane terror.
He had even risked his life for her in the Haneun Group basement, communicating where others couldn't see.
As she thought that far, she suddenly realized it.
The reason why seeing those two together had bothered her so much.
Until now, whenever it came to Egostic, she was always the one paired with him as his counterpart.
It was because some other useless woman had suddenly wedged herself between them for no reason.
"...."
Egostic had once told her that she was his Arch-enemy.
And now, she had come to agree with his words.
Whether she liked it or not, her greatest foe, her Nemesis, was Egostic.
And.
Their relationship was something only the two of them should settle, without anyone else getting involved.
Her head having cooled down, she stood up to quietly pick up the phone she had thrown toward the bed.
Right. Anyway, Egostic had definitely said he would see her again soon. She could deal with him then.
And.
Electra. That woman had to be dealt with as soon as possible.
She resolved.
***
"...Fuck, what was that?"
"What? What's wrong all of a sudden?"
"No... I just suddenly got a really bad vibe..."
Watching Choi Se-hee rub her arms as if she had goosebumps, I tilted my head and spoke.
"That's weird. I had a bad vibe like that too not long ago."
What's going on? Is everyone just feeling a bit drained lately?