Chapter 40: The Mysterious Game
-Katrina and Mirea... Who will be sacrificed to protect the protagonist?-
"What did you say?!"
"Damn it! No!"
"Argh! This developer, damn it!"
Inside the headquarters, the players gathered, all in a panic. That's right... to clear the Dragon Emblem, it was an absolute necessity to sacrifice one of the heroines. The system allowed one of them to enter level 25 with the protagonist, either the top priest responsible for party healing or the powerful mage with area-of-effect spells. However, there was only one player, me, who could enter level 25 at the moment.
"This is... I can't believe how gruesome this story is! The best healer, the top mage... we have to make a choice now, everyone! How could the creator force one of us to face death? The person who made this game is a damn sadistic director!"
Facing the final decision, I, the creator of the Dragon Emblem, was enduring a barrage of curses from the players gathered in the headquarters. But strangely, these curses felt quite satisfying. As the two characters had fought alongside the protagonist from the very beginning, no one was willing to give up on either of them.
At last, something interesting happened inside the headquarters just before the final level.
A spontaneous vote was held among the players to decide whom to sacrifice. While the players were deliberating, I took a moment to sip my drink. It was then that Shige approached me and spoke.
"Save Katrina, please, Junhyuk. She can't die. We need a healer for the final level."
"Shige, it's just a game. Why take it so seriously?"
Shige seemed to be emotionally involved, with tears welling up in her eyes as she pleaded with me. At that moment, Junpei also approached me and spoke.
"If you're a real man, choose the sexy sorceress, Mirea. Whether it's healing or offense, she can take care of it all in no time. I'm voting for Mirea, Junhyuk."
"Haha, is that so?"
"No, save Katrina!"
Chaos erupted, and amidst all the chaos, Yuki, who had been playing with me until the end, approached.
"Junhyuk, can I call you that?"
"Yes, call me whatever you like."
"It seems to me that the next stage is the final level. Please choose a character that can assist you in clearing it."
Her words brought silence to the headquarters. Yes, the most important thing was to clear the game. If the users who had watched my gameplay so far believed in me, it was likely that we could clear the Dragon Emblem when I got my hands on it. Therefore, the players in the headquarters cheered for me and handed over the decision-making power to me.
"The user vote resulted in a 52:48 decision to sacrifice Mirea, but we have decided to leave the final choice to the last remaining player, Kang Junhyuk. While I would personally love to sacrifice a spicy protagonist, it might not be the best way to play. So, Kang Junhyuk, make your choice! Who will you sacrifice?"
As I looked around at the users, all eyes focused on me, swallowing their dry saliva. After a moment, I chose Katrina. At that time, the preference was for a more noble image of a woman rather than just being sexy, and I thought that sacrificing her might move the users more, giving them a deeper impression.
"No, no!"
Amidst Shige's screams, Katrina stepped forward to shield the protagonist and took the dark god's attack, sacrificing herself. The protagonist, holding the fallen Katrina, transformed into the final awakened class, the Holy Gladiator, and began to confront the dark god.
What's interesting here is that depending on whom they choose to sacrifice, the protagonist's awakened state changes. If they had sacrificed Mirea instead of Katrina, the protagonist would have transformed into a stormy warrior. But what if both of them had died? In that case, there would be no awakening, making it much harder to clear, and even with good luck, there would be no true ending.
"Wow... the protagonist is furious. Their attack power is incredible."
The protagonist, radiating a blue aura, started displaying dazzling swordplay, and the players began to cheer as they watched in amazement. Men of this era tend to get excited about concepts like 'awakening,' 'transformation,' and 'fusion.' Well, I guess not much has changed for men even in the 21st century.
"Go, eliminate the dark god!"
Thanks to the protagonist's awakening, the final level turned out to be easier than levels 23 or 24. The protagonist, with nearly a one-on-one showdown against the dark god, began to overwhelm it with immense power. The emotionally invested users were shouting and cheering for me. Eventually, the dark god knelt before the protagonist's sword.
"Wow! It's over! This is the ending!"
"Phew, it's done."
I, too, felt a wave of relief as I finally completed the intense battle. As Katrina's funeral took place on the large projector screen in the headquarters, the users watched her funeral with a mix of anger and tears due to the forced choice.
The ending was met with admiration and appreciation for Katrina's noble sacrifice and the protagonist's awakening. Users started applauding with a sense of accomplishment.
"What an amazing game! It's a truly remarkable story... It's like watching a movie."
Shige, too, clapped with a solemn expression. Yuki was moved, covering her face with both hands, and Junpei wore a satisfied smile.
And... as the entire story came to an end, a message appeared.
"Hello. Thank you for enjoying Dragon Emblem. I am a Korean developer who loves family games. I created Dragon Emblem by myself over the course of a year."
"A Korean developer?"
"He created this game all by himself?"
The initial message made the room buzz with excitement. Everyone had assumed it was a game from a Japanese company, but the idea that it was created by someone from a foreign country was unexpected. People in the room began to express various reactions.
"The genre of this game, which I presented to you for the first time, is a simulation RPG. I sincerely apologize for the lack of consideration for our users in pursuit of extreme drama. However, if you are reading this message now, I believe you will be deeply moved and feel a sense of accomplishment beyond any game you've played so far. The cleared data for this game can be used as an additional feature in the upcoming sequel. Please keep the cartridge safely and enjoy the continuing story. Thank you."
"Wow... So there's a sequel coming!"
I never thought I'd be the one reading the message I sent. I smiled and put the controller down. Junpei, who had been watching the scene, came over and asked me.
"Hey... Kang Junhyuk, right? Would you consider giving the cartridge of Dragon Emblem to our Famitel network? We'll pay you 100,000 yen."
At that moment, a user at the event shouted.
"Sell it to me! I'll give you 120,000 yen!"
"No, sell it to me! I'll offer 150,000 yen!"
What? An impromptu auction? I looked around, bewildered by the various bids pouring in from all sides.
The user base for Dragon Emblem was mostly composed of adults in their twenties and thirties, with some financial capacity. Prices skyrocketed to 300,000 yen in no time.
"Uh... Hold on a moment."
When I tried to calm them down, the users who had bid eagerly stared at me with high expectations.
"I'm a Nintendo employee. I didn't mean to start an auction and don't want to sell this game. I believe everyone enjoyed the events we offered through Famitel. I will give the Dragon Emblem cartridge to Yuki, who unfortunately missed it."
"Really?"
Yuki, who was standing nearby, was surprised by my words and widened her eyes even more. I smiled and handed her the cartridge from the family.
"Take it. You are more than deserving."
"Uh... Can I really accept this?"
"Please keep it safe. There might be something for you in the sequel."
"Thank you very much."
Yuki bowed her head and thanked me with a big smile. As she did, Junpei, who was watching in astonishment, felt a pang in his side and stumbled as he continued the event.
"So... This concludes the mission to conquer Dragon Emblem. Kang Junhyuk's gameplay data will be detailed in Famitel next month, promising that all users will be able to clear the game. This has been Imimoto Junpei. Thank you!"
The event ended to the applause of everyone. While the Dragon Emblem cartridge was passed to Yuki, no one had any complaints. She had proven herself as a skilled gamer, and her beauty may have also played a role.
"Hey..."
After the event, while walking back with Shige, Yuki called me from behind and handed me a small note. She shyly said, "This is my contact information. If it's okay with you, please contact me. Well, excuse me now!"
She blushed and quickly ran off. I stood there with the note in my hand, watching her disappear in the distance. Shige playfully nudged my shoulder.
"You really hit it off with her, Kang Junhyuk, huh? Heh heh."
"Don't tease me, Shige."
"Well, you seem to have the looks and the gaming skills. Go for it, man. Girls like her are hard to find these days."
"Haha... Well, I'll think about it."
"But seriously, it's quite impressive. Dragon Emblem... How could they give players such decision-making power? Plus, designing all the levels by oneself..."
"Yeah, it was quite surprising. Level 24 had me shocked too."
"It feels like a day where you discover new possibilities in gaming. To think there's someone so incredible in Korea. It's both astonishing and..."
The incredible person you're talking about is right here. I chuckled to myself and patted Shige on the back, who was lost in thought.
"How about we grab some ramen before we go?"
"Are you treating?"
"Oh, come on, Kang Junhyuk. Just because there's a slight difference in our salaries..."
"Alright, I'll treat!"
"Gyoza (dumplings) too!"
"Goodness, really..."
- Dragon Emblem Revolutionizes Gaming! Now Everyone Can Clear It! -
With my gameplay data on their backs, Famitel began an extensive marketing campaign, breaking all-time circulation records and skyrocketing sales.
Particularly, Junpei's review, which awarded Dragon Emblem a perfect score of 40 out of 40, lamented that 40 was the limit for the review score, which had a tremendous impact.
Indeed, now that most players could clear the game, the demand was expected to increase. Making money is great, but if second-hand prices shoot up too high, it may prevent various users from playing. We'll need to prepare for the next step.
While on a business trip to Tokyo, I visited Chandra's workshop after taking a brief look around Akihabara's backstreets.
"Kang~ Kang~ Kang is here!"
"Oh, Kang! We work hard. We want money. We want lots."
Chandra's colleagues greeted me as I entered the workshop. Their Japanese was still a bit awkward, and they stammered as they spoke, giggling.
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