Chapter 145: Chapter 144: The Red Dragon Also Needs a Vacation
Zog carefully observed himself in the mirror, grinning to check his teeth.
He noticed a few were a bit crooked and slightly loose, which wasn’t very aesthetically pleasing, so he just reached in with a claw and yanked them out.
One of the great benefits of the Dragon Race was that their teeth grew throughout their lives. They never had to worry about dental diseases; at worst, they could just pull a tooth out, and a new one would grow in a couple of days.
He turned his head from side to side, checking the sides of his face for any dead skin or old scales and scraped them all off.
Finally, he straightened his bow tie, spritzed on some freshener, and looked quite dapper.
Nearby, Assistant Zor was reporting on the status of the mini-game demos.
"As of 4 a.m. this morning, *Druid vs. Necromancer* has sold 46,325 pre-orders, and is about to reach its first-stage goal..."
As the most popular game demo of the festival, the heavily-modded tower defense game had introduced an unprecedented new sales model.
Pre-orders.
And not just any pre-orders, but pre-orders with stretch goals.
Sales exceeding 50,000 units would add night levels; over 100,000 would add river levels; over 150,000 would add rooftop levels; and 200,000 would unlock a mysterious New Game+ mode.
Although all of this was planned for development anyway, laying out the "pie in the sky" was an attempt to see if they could increase the percentage of full-price purchases and convert the wait-and-see crowd into pre-orderers.
200,000 was no small number. The current consumer base that could buy games directly was only a few million; the vast majority of remaining players had to play on game machines.
The current game machines didn’t have the function to swap games. They were closer to arcade cabinets in nature, with each machine fixed to playing only a few specific games.
Aside from the free auto-battler game, the best-selling genre was fighting games, which had just recently broken a million sales. Most other games sold around a hundred thousand copies.
An average price of 60 Copper Coins was not exactly a consumer-friendly price for entertainment.
Of course, if the pre-order numbers really fell short in the end, they could always "fudge the numbers" a bit.
The game’s development costs weren’t high to begin with. Made by an all-student team, it would be profitable after just 30,000 copies, a milestone they had already far surpassed.
The main reason was that Zog himself wanted to play New Game+. As for the data, well, tweaking it was easy enough—a time-honored tradition in the game industry.
"That’s the situation with all the game demos."
Assistant Zor concluded his report.
The other mini-games varied in popularity, but all were significantly less popular than *Druid vs. Necromancer*.
This was all within expectations. This kind of game development festival was meant to cast a wide net, a training ground for future employees. He hadn’t expected any blockbuster hits to emerge.
"Alright, that’s all for today," Zog instructed. "I’m going on vacation, so unless it’s something important, don’t come looking for me for the next few days."
Although the assistant had his doubts—’The boss’s current life isn’t really any different from a vacation, is it? Working two hours a day is already trying so hard, so why make a special point of saying he’s taking a holiday?’—he kept them to himself.
But the first rule of workplace survival was to ask as few questions as possible about the boss’s affairs.
He shot a quick glance at Zog, who was now polishing his horns with oil until they gleamed, and left without another word.
’I really am one handsome Dragon.’
Zog concluded after repeatedly admiring the look he had so meticulously put together.
From both a human and a Dragon’s perspective, he could be called powerful and majestic.
"Let’s go!" Zog psyched himself up, officially starting his winter holiday.
He arrived at Furin’s residence not far away.
It was a snow house she had designed herself. The design was magnificent, in line with her usual preference for aesthetics over comfort.
KNOCK KNOCK.
Zog rapped on the door of the snow house with his claw.
"Coming, just a moment," Furin’s voice called out. A dozen or so seconds later, she opened the door, dressed in silk pajamas. "Zog?"
Because the Transformation Technique of a Golden Dragon was different from common Transformation Magic, they could still maintain the basic attributes of their Dragon form after turning human, unlike Ordinary transformations where their stats would change to human levels.
In short, Furin didn’t get cold either.
After a moment of slightly awkward silence.
"Haha—"
Furin suddenly burst out laughing.
"Don’t tell me you actually oiled your horns? Since when do you care about grooming?"
"Is it that funny?!" Zog’s face instantly flushed red, though it wasn’t like anyone could tell.
"No, no, it’s not funny. Not funny at all. Pfft hahaha..."
Furin reached out to grab Zog’s horns as she laughed.
"I’ve gotta say, they feel pretty good."
"That’s enough!" Zog flapped his wings, fanning a spark onto his horns. They immediately burst into flames, burning away all the oil he had so painstakingly applied.
"Weren’t we supposed to go to the Ice and Snow Paradise today?" Zog said, forcefully changing the subject.
"I’m surprised you’re so eager. I thought your ’Mhm’ yesterday meant you didn’t want to go."
The two Dragons had made plans to go out today over the Deer Spirit chat last night.
Although Furin seemed calm and collected now, she had been so nervous when sending the message last night that she’d been rolling around in her nest.
"What else was I supposed to reply with?"
Zog feigned composure, even though he had buried his face in his nest and giggled foolishly when he’d replied with ’Mhm’.
"Alright, alright, my mistake."
Furin turned around, and in an instant, she had changed into outdoor clothes and even had light makeup on.
The convenience of Magic meant there was no need for the half-hour, or even multi-hour, wait that usually preceded an "I’ll be right out."
The two Dragons arrived at the Ice and Snow Paradise.
There were clearly fewer people today. While every attraction had a line, it wasn’t packed shoulder to shoulder.
Furin and Zog were both holding popsicles in their mouths, drawing frequent glances from passersby.
Eating popsicles on a day like this, they weren’t the least bit worried about their teeth getting cold.
In the small plaza at the park entrance stood a meter-high pillar with a red button on top. A sign next to it read: DANGER! DO NOT PRESS!
"Dare you to press it?" Zog said suddenly.
"Alright, spill. What did you hide?" Furin knew it was one of Zog’s "schemes" without even having to think.
She had been present for the entire final phase of the Ice and Snow Paradise’s construction and didn’t remember a design like this.
"Just say whether you dare or not," Zog said, using a clumsy attempt to goad her.
"Tch." Furin scoffed.
’I know Zog all too well,’ she thought. ’If he were really that bold, would he still be a single Dragon?’
She strode over to the button in a few long-legged steps and pressed it without hesitation.
"WEE-OOO—"
A piercing siren suddenly blared, and the park’s visitors all turned to look at the "culprit," Furin.
Under everyone’s stunned gazes, a Teleportation Array lit up in the small plaza, and a monster wielding a Double-Headed Saber, with a form like a hybrid of an insect and a human, stepped out.
"A Superpower Beast! It’s a Superpower Beast from *Mechanical Warrior*!"
A knowledgeable onlooker immediately shouted out the monster’s origin.
"Whoa!"
A gasp went through the crowd.
Just then, several young people rushed out from the crowd, shouting in turn.
"Flame Dragon Armor, combine!"
"Wind Eagle Armor, combine!"
...
Then, five Mechanical Warriors engaged the Superpower Beast in a fierce battle.
Everyone could see it was a promotional event for *Mechanical Warrior* and cheered excitedly.
Everyone except Furin.
During the battle, the five Mechanical Warriors gradually fell into a disadvantage, and one by one, they were struck down.
The villainous Superpower Beast cackled maniacally.
The Flame Dragon Hero said weakly, "It seems we have to use that method."
"Which is?" asked the Wind Eagle Hero.
"Armor fusion, to summon the most powerful Emperor’s Armor."
"But who will wield the Emperor’s Armor?"
Five pairs of eyes turned in unison to look at Furin.
Furin, nervous for once, shrank back, but the Emperor’s Armor Summoner had already been thrust into her hands.
The crowd, stirred up by someone, began to chant in unison.
"Emperor Hero! Emperor Hero!"
Clutching the Summoner, Furin shot Zog a glare that could kill a Dragon.
Zog mouthed back: "You were the one who dared."
