Chapter 191. Sales Are Out
Without a doubt, Cities: Skylines is on fire.
As one of the few city-management sims in this world, if it had come from a no-name studio, plenty of people wouldn't have bothered to look. But if the developer is Gensokyo?
Anyone who follows games would at least try downloading it. After all, a niche pixel-art title once exploded in popularity thanks to a single work—To the Moon, right?
Maybe this one would bring a different kind of surprise, too.
Compared to the version in his head, Xander Masato had patched almost everything that would spike a player's blood pressure, and even cranked up the AI for those pesky civvie NPCs a bit.
Just a bit—too much would kill the fun.
So once people downloaded it and started building a city step by step with their own hands, they got hooked fast and couldn't pull themselves out.
The constant positive feedback during construction made time vanish. They started in daylight and looked up to find it already dark. Sirin, for one, played late into the night; even when Seele called her to dinner, she didn't go.
This kind of game is a time-devouring machine, and the content-rich Cities: Skylines is the crown jewel of the type.
By the next day, Sirin's stream highlights dumped a whole barrel of fuel on a fire that was already roaring.
At first, everyone had been advancing their cities by the book. Fun, sure, but still the usual sim loop: build, upgrade; build more, upgrade more. Sirin's stream kicked open a new door.
"Master, I've achieved enlightenment!"
A certain game-video creator watched Sirin's stream and was stunned into instant revelation, then went into seclusion—and emerged having devised a technique called the "Centralized Snow Collector."
Cue a feces flood across Golden Mountain that left players reeling; they dubbed him the "Excrement Celestial," and his follower count jumped by the hundreds of thousands.
Players marveled: this game is wildly free—so free it might be over the top.
With that degree of freedom, players naturally started cooking up antics. Some, fed up with traffic jams, built literal roller-coaster roads. Some bulldozed every highway just to watch the civvies go into battle-royale survival mode—urban King Yama energy.
Serious players found a surprise of their own. Once a city hit a certain scale, a perspective-switch option appeared in the corner.
Click it, and a tour bus spawned at the city gate; your camera hopped aboard. In an instant, the whole game's vibe flipped.
Those rough little house models became hyper-detailed assets, and the near-photoreal lighting made eyes go wide.
What they'd thought was PV bait turned out to be real.
That was a feature Xander Masato had deliberately upgraded: let players tour the cities they'd built from the bus's POV. Watch the wasteland you started with rise into towers; watch people living and walking along the streets; watch big and small cars running side by side—the bustle pulls you in completely.
Then the bus turned a corner, and a ribbon of shimmering river opened up ahead. Sunlight scattered across the surface; the sky was a flawless blue; ships hooted as they cut the water, hauling cargo out of the port and startling a flock of birds into flight.
It was the kind of view that takes your breath away—especially when you realize it's all of your own making. The sense of achievement is incomparable.
Half a month flashed by, and the Indie Game Fest had wrapped a week earlier.
"Looks like Cities: Skylines did pretty well."
At Gensokyo Company, on her lunch break, Bronya sat at her PC, scrolling through gaming news.
Ever since the launch on the Titan Game Platform, Cities: Skylines had been flooding the forums all week. People debated how to build their cities—and even more about how to cook up better stunts.
"It should be fine. The first-week numbers drop in two minutes anyway. We'll know when we see them."
At the table, unwrapping takeout with Seele, Xander replied casually.
"This is your baby. How are you so calm?"
"Sales aren't going anywhere—they're sitting there. No rush. Lunch is ready, though. Aren't you coming?"
With the dishes and rice set out, Xander pulled Seele over to the sofa.
"You two eat first. I'll join you after I finish this."
"This concubine is curious too~"
Kaguya rolled over in her chair, the little wheels going clatter-clatter as she came to Bronya's side. Bronya made room, and the two squeezed in to watch the screen together.
Seeing them glued to the monitor, Xander didn't hurry. He pulled the snugly seated Seele onto his lap, then began to massage Seele's white silk-stockinged legs.
Having stood for so long all morning, Seele must be tired. As her brother, he naturally had to work hard to help relieve her fatigue!
"Brother…"
Her voice trembled. Seele gave a token squirm, then stopped resisting, settling into his arms, soft all over.
Noon struck.
Bronya opened the Titan Platform's backend. Sales updated in real time, but timing the first-week snapshot had become a Gensokyo tradition—one to be savored.
Before Bronya and Kaguya could speak, a cheer pierced through the office door.
Hearing it, Xander's hand paused stroking the stockings, then chuckled lightly, his hand venturing a bit deeper, stimulating Seele to immediately clamp her legs tightly, squeezing the overreaching hand tightly with her full, soft, and springy thighs
"Judging by that, the results are pretty great~"
"Over five million in the first week—worthy of cheering."
Kaguya's tone was gentle. They were only mildly surprised; it was a game designed by Xander, after all. Those numbers made sense.
"Looks like, on sales alone, they've hit the targets I set. Not a waste of those newcomers mustering the grit to work so late every day."
After checking the figures, Bronya and Kaguya walked over. Bronya quipped, "They just joined and you're already PUA-ing them into overtime? Careful—they'll quit on you."
"I am not~"
Xander lowered his head and ruffled Seele's hair. "Ask around if you don't believe me. They're volunteering the overtime—and with that pay, the way you say it would make me sound like a scumbag boss."
"Fine, fine, you're not PUA-ing them. Also, stop messing with Seele and eat."
Catching sight of Xander's hand wandering under Seele's skirt, Bronya shot him a look.
"Bronya-sis…"
Already flushed, Seele burned hotter. Xander tried to pull his hand back—only to find it clamped too tight to withdraw at once.
Before Seele could react, Xander reached out his other hand and lightly patted Seele's butt. Instantly, she subconsciously parted her legs, allowing Xander to successfully withdraw his hand, then he held her and placed her beside him.
"Pfft~"
Bronya couldn't help laughing. Kaguya turned her head, cheeks pink. "So practiced, Seele," she murmured.
"H-Huh? Th-This…"
Habit is a terrifying thing. One pat and Seele knew to change posture.
The slight moisture on his fingertips was casually wiped onto Seele's stockings. Just as he was about to pick up his chopsticks, he was stopped by Seele, whose face was now completely red.
"Brother, go wash your hands!!!"
"It's not like we haven't eaten it before. I don't mind."
When he raised his fingers as if to sniff them, Seele couldn't take it. She grabbed his arms with both hands, misty eyes pleading.
"You're such a pervert."
"Husband, maybe don't bully Seele too much~"
Pinned by those eyes—and with Bronya and Kaguya backing her—Xander threw up his hands.
"Okay, okay, I'll go wash my hands—happy now?"
He stood. Instead of the office's private restroom, he headed straight out.
He opened the door and nearly ran into Kiana and Mei coming in.
"Shouldn't you be at lunch? Xander, what are you doing out here?"
Kiana pulled up just in time. Seeing it was Xander, she immediately felt a twinge of regret.
"Bathroom run—and to congratulate the new team."
He smiled at Kiana and Mei and stepped aside. "You two go eat. I'll be right in."
"Oh, fair. First-week sales over five million, right? They deserve congrats."
Kiana didn't know much about the details, but she could read numbers. That was an excellent result.
He let Kiana and Mei pass, then headed down the hall.
Smack!
Dropping into Xander's seat, Kiana gave Seele's thigh a friendly slap. "What's with you, Seele? Your face is so red—don't tell me you've got a fever?"
"Mm!!"
She managed to stifle the sounds up top, but not down below. Already sensitive, she leaked more at Kiana's pat.
"N-Nothing. Kiana, eat."
Forcing a smile, Seele wanted to cry. After lunch, she'd better hit the restroom and change her underwear.
…
In the shared restroom, Xander washed up. To head off Seele's complaints, he pumped a mountain of soap and scrubbed hard until his hands smelled clean and fresh. Then he stepped out.
The new team sat at the far end of the floor. You could still hear the occasional cheer. Even at lunchtime, the veterans didn't mind; they watched with grins, like they were seeing their younger selves.
"Ah, youth. We were just like that."
"Quit fronting, Bull King—you're only a year ahead of them."
"Isn't a year still earlier? Tch. Can't you play along?"
"Sure. Ohoho, you're amazing, old man! That work?"
"Bite me. Crawl!"
Passing the temporarily merged Yu-Gi-Oh! mega-team, Xander heard the two trading jabs, drawing a round of laughter. He chuckled, ready to move on—then spotted someone jogging up from the stairwell.
"Ling?"
In a cute pink-and-white dress, cherry-colored hair tied up and bouncing as she ran, she was pure youthful energy.
At his voice, Ling looked up. Her eyes lit, and she picked up speed.
"Don't go—wait for me!"
As she swept past, she tossed the line over her shoulder, then dashed to Yae Sakura's desk. From her tote, she pulled a big lunchbox. After whispering to Sakura, she fished out a small, neatly wrapped pouch, then pattered back to Xander.
Seeing her slightly out of breath, Xander smiled. "No need to rush. What's up?"
"N-Nothing."
She took a couple more breaths, then lifted the little pouch in both hands and held it out, turning her cute face aside, cheeks pink. "Here. These are the cookies you wanted to try last time. I accidentally made too many for Sis today, so… to avoid wasting them, I'll reluctantly give them to you. D-Don't get the wrong idea!"
"Don't worry. I won't."
"Eh?"
Her deliberately tsundere act amused Xander. He took the ribbon-tied pouch, then, seeing her startled by his unexpected answer, chuckled and patted her head.
"This tsundere mode works—better than last time's forced cool-big-sis mode. Ninety points."
Ling's expression flipped. She swatted his hand away.
"Tch. Not even that could take you down? Your resistance is pretty high."
"And stop touching my head! It'll stunt my growth!"
"Okay, okay~"
He could have sworn Academy Head Theresa had said that once. Just his imagination?
When Xander obediently withdrew his hand, Ling planted her fists on her hips with pride. "My goal is a figure as curvy as Sis's—front and back! I'll be a great beauty just like her! If you don't seize your chance now, you won't be able to reach me later!"
"Ling, don't say that!"
Sakura hadn't even picked up her chopsticks yet. That one line from Ling rattled her; red-faced, she scolded.
"Sis, hush. Your little sister is thinking about her life-long affairs!"
Sakura was tongue-tied to begin with. One jab from her little sister, and she was speechless. The amused looks from coworkers only reddened her more, and she could only send Xander a pleading glance.
He arched a brow and gave Ling a once-over.
Not curvy in front or back—plain as can be—and miles behind Sakura. He couldn't help saying, "Then you'd better work hard."
His pointed tone made Ling pout. She huffed. "Just you wait. When the time comes, you won't be able to reach my level!"
"Okay, okay. I'll be waiting to look up to you one day~"
Yae Sakura wife~.jpg
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