After TGA ended, Ichin didn't linger and immediately flew back to Japan with Hazuki and the others.
After returning home, he stayed in for two days to adjust to the time difference before heading back to work at the company.
Of course, the "reward" he had previously agreed upon with Utaha and Yukino was fulfilled the very next day after returning home, leaving Ichin energized all night.
At the company, everyone was already looking forward to the release of Monster Train in two days. Although there were no plans for a physical release, the game had already gone up for digital pre-orders across all platforms.
However, as a small-scale roguelike deck-building game, it was unlikely for Monster Train to achieve massive sales. After all, the boom of card games sparked by Slay the Spire had long passed, and several similar titles had appeared in the meantime.
Still, thanks to the foundation laid by Slay the Spire and the accumulated player base, Monster Train would easily recoup its costs. The only question was how high its sales and profits would go.
Moreover, this game had originally been selected from employee ideas and expanded into a full project. Compared to making money, Ichin valued it more as a way to train developers within the company who had strong planning and creative abilities.
And the results proved that this approach was working very well. Combined with the company's already solid development capabilities, as long as the ideas were good enough, they could be turned directly into games.
Monster Train was one such example. So was Salt and Sanctuary, which had been revealed earlier at TGA and sparked heated discussions.
As a side-scrolling Soulslike, Ichin was confident that Salt and Sanctuary could sell at least a million copies.
After finishing his morning work, Ichin had lunch at the company cafeteria and returned to his office, planning to read for a while during his break.
There was no helping it, exams were only a week away. At this final stage of his senior year, failing would be truly embarrassing.
After reading for about ten minutes, there was a knock on the office door. Hazuki and Umiko walked in together.
Hazuki placed two oranges on Ichin's desk and, seeing the textbook in his hands, smiled. "It's rare to see you actually studying."
"Exams are coming up, so I've got to at least look at the books, right?"
Ichin set the textbook aside and looked at them. "So, what brings you here?"
"Just something small," Hazuki said. "Christmas is coming up soon. How are you planning to spend it?"
"Ah, Christmas… I almost forgot."
Ichin nodded, thinking for a moment. "I haven't discussed it with Utaha yet, but based on our usual habits, we probably won't go out anywhere. Judging by how you're asking… you want to hold a party at my place?"
Hazuki snapped her fingers. "Bingo! Got it right. So, is that okay?"
"I don't have any problem with it," Ichin said with a smile. "But don't rush. When Utaha and Yukino come to the company this afternoon, I'll ask them. I think they'll agree, but it's better to check first. Or you can just ask them yourselves when they arrive."
Umiko glanced at Hazuki with a smile. "See? I told you. We'd still have to ask Utaha and Yukino."
"Alright, alright. I was just asking while I was here anyway."
As she spoke, Hazuki peeled one of the oranges she brought, ate a couple of slices herself, then stuffed the rest into Ichin's hand before leaving with Umiko.
Ichin finished the orange and went back to reading.
In the afternoon, after finishing their classes, Utaha and Yukino came to the company and learned about the Christmas party idea from Hazuki.
Utaha happily agreed. "Sure! I was actually thinking that now that we've moved into a new house, such a big place would be perfect for some Christmas fun. There's still time, though, so let's plan it slowly. Maybe we can prepare a Christmas tree this time?"
"A Christmas tree? What about adding some light strips too?" Hazuki suggested.
The two immediately started enthusiastically discussing decorations.
After listening for a while, Yukino, who didn't have much interest in decorating, quietly slipped away and headed to Ichin's office.
Ichin had just returned from the development team and was reviewing some documents.
Seeing Yukino enter, he put down his pen and smiled. "Back already? Tired from classes?"
Yukino walked over, looked at his open arms, and sat down in his lap with a smile.
"Not really. As long as I study properly during normal days, I won't feel rushed when exams come. What about you? You barely attend classes, will you be okay?"
Gently pinching her nose, Ichin replied confidently, "Who do you think I am? A mere exam is nothing. By the way, where's Utaha?"
"She's downstairs, discussing Christmas decorations with Hazuki."
"So she agreed? Good. Then we'll have a lively Christmas."
As for how the house would be decorated, Ichin had no opinions. Whether it was Utaha, Hazuki, or Kō and the others, their sense of aesthetics was impeccable. He only looked forward to how good it would turn out, never worrying that it might look bad.
After spending some affectionate time together, Yukino stopped bothering him and moved to the sofa, taking out her tablet to browse on her own.
A while later, Utaha came in as well, excitedly telling Ichin about her discussion with Hazuki.
"Ichin, how about we set up a Christmas tree at home?"
"A Christmas tree?" Ichin asked, raising his head. "You mean a decorative one, not a real tree, right?"
Utaha nodded. "Of course! A real one would be troublesome. A decorative one is better."
"Alright, you guys can handle it however you like. Decorate it however you want, just don't go overboard."
Utaha had expected that response and smiled. "No problem, leave it all to me!"
Two days later, the company's second roguelike deck-building game, Monster Train, officially launched.
On its first day across all platforms, including pre-orders, it successfully surpassed 600,000 copies sold. While this was lower compared to the company's other titles, it was already very impressive for a small-scale card game.
Moreover, the game was expected to receive two additional clan updates in the future, bringing the total to six clans. This would greatly expand the number of cards and ensure a rich gameplay experience.
Seeing Monster Train perform so well, the company's employees were energized, already beginning to brainstorm new game ideas, hoping that next year, their own concepts would be selected and turned into full-fledged games.
...
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