Chapter 40. That Man is Back!
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On December 12, 1990, Onmyoji 2 was officially released.
At Pokeni, the atmosphere was tense, as if facing a major crisis. Everyone appeared extremely nervous, afraid that Onmyoji 2 might repeat the disastrous failure of Prestigious Academy.
Even the company's HR, Ayase Akane, felt uneasy upon seeing the serious expressions on everyone's faces.
If the company really went bankrupt, would she be able to land another job smoothly?
Her eyes swept across the room. From an HR's perspective, every person had a number floating above their head.
For instance, hardware engineer Asakawa Hiroki had the number 500,000 yen. This was his current monthly salary, which was considered very high in Japan's gaming industry. Even at Nintendo, not many earned this much.
Salary equated to a person's market value.
And then there was Mika Ishino, sitting opposite Asakawa Hiroki…
Ayase Akane frowned slightly.
Although Ishino's current monthly salary was only 200,000, her value had a wide range of fluctuation.
Having created a smash hit like Onmyoji, her worth as a scriptwriter could skyrocket.
But with past flops like Heart of the Sword and Prestigious Academy, her future was uncertain.
Ayase Akane evaluated everyone's worth internally because, as HR, the value of the human capital she managed directly determined her own value to the company.
Emmm...
Still, the most valuable person in the company was probably President Kiyoshi Yuuma. After all, the art style of Onmyoji was fantastic and had made a name for itself in the industry.
Although his ability to steer the overall game direction fluctuated quite a bit, he was undeniably a talented illustrator.
And beyond that, it seemed the President also had some impressive programming skills hidden up his sleeve.
"If I could sell the President off, I wonder what kind of salary others would offer for him…"
Just as that thought crossed her mind, a hand appeared above her and then came crashing down with a sharp karate chop.
"Ow~"
Ayase Akane clutched her head and turned around with a look of grievance.
At just one glance, she leapt back like a startled kitten.
"Eh?! President?! When did you get here?"
"Hmm…" Kiyoshi Yuuma glared at her. "Since the moment you said you wanted to sell me."
"Eh?!"
Ayase Akane gasped. "I actually said that out loud?!"
"You did. Don't you even remember your own words?" Kiyoshi Yuuma said coldly.
Eh?!
Feeling guilty, Akane avoided his gaze and took another step back.
Am I really the type who talks to myself?!
She went quiet for a moment, then raised her head again. "But President, didn't you hear the part where I praised you earlier?"
"No." Kiyoshi Yuuma snorted coldly.
Eh?!
Something so important—I actually forgot to say it out loud?!
"So, Ayase-san, instead of working hard, what are you thinking about all day?" Kiyoshi Yuuma raised his hand again, preparing for another karate chop.
Ayase Akane quickly covered her head with both hands and shut her eyes.
But...
The chop never landed.
She peeked out slightly and saw a fair-skinned hand appear in front of her.
Snap!
Kiyoshi Yuuma flicked her forehead with his fingers.
"Oww oww oww~"
Ayase Akane jumped in pain, bouncing around the room.
"To deal with disobedient little kittens, you have to smack them on the forehead," Kiyoshi Yuuma finally chuckled. "Akane-chan, the company's not going bankrupt. So don't even think about selling me off."
Ugh~ Kuso!
This President!
He's got such a good-looking face, yet he always does the most annoying things…
"President!"
Ayase Akane puffed out her tiny chest and glared right back at him.
"Kongming's Art of War says: 'Before troops move, the grain must be prepared!' That means we should plan for the worst! Isn't that totally reasonable?"
"Kongming's Art of War, my foot! That's from Sun Tzu's Art of War, okay?!" Kiyoshi Yuuma couldn't help but burst into laughter.
Eh?
Ayase Akane paused, grumbling internally—
Since when did the President become so well-read?
"President!"
The 170 cm-tall girl wouldn't lose in terms of presence. She puffed her chest and declared righteously, "Eavesdropping on others is impolite, you know."
Huh?
Kiyoshi Yuuma couldn't believe what he was seeing — her self-righteous expression nearly made his blood boil.
"I mean seriously..."
It was clearly her fault, yet she could act so justified. Unbelievable.
"President, Ayase-san, both of you, stop arguing," said chief programmer Akanishi Ken, standing up with a grin. "Instead of sitting here worrying and doing nothing, how about we all go grab a drink tonight?"
Huh?
The two of them looked surprised and turned toward him at the same time.
"We're not arguing."
Kiyoshi Yuuma and Ayase Akane turned back with innocent expressions.
Hiss...
Akanishi Ken felt a chill and quickly waved his hands. "No, uh, nothing. Just forget I said anything."
After a two-second pause, Kiyoshi Yuuma spoke seriously. "No, I think you're right. Instead of sitting around worrying, why not finish early today? I'll treat everyone to drinks tonight."
"It sounds good!"
Ayase Akane beamed and nodded.
...
After work that evening, Hirose Furukawa dragged his tired body toward the train station.
Passing by a familiar game store, he instinctively stopped.
There haven't been many interesting games lately... should he go in and take a look?
Though he hesitated in his mind, his body moved on its own.
By the time he came to, he was already standing inside the game store.
"Welcome!"
The store clerk smiled gently when he saw Furukawa.
"Pokeni just released a new one, Onmyoji 2."
"Really?!" Furukawa immediately perked up.
"Really. It's right there, second row from the middle on that shelf," the clerk pointed him in the right direction.
Huh?
It's not tucked away in the corner this time?
It looks like thanks to the success of Onmyoji 1, the sequel is getting pretty good treatment.
Furukawa instinctively walked toward the shelf but hesitated just before reaching out.
Pokeni's previous game – Prestigious Academy – hadn't really been his thing. What if Onmyoji 2 also ditched the galgame elements?
If that's the case, he'd rather not buy it.
But then again, what if Onmyoji 2 contained important info about Asakura Haruka and Yuuki Rei?
He was torn.
Maybe... he should at least take a look first.
...
Furukawa walked up to the shelf and picked up the Onmyoji 2 game case.
His eyes scanned it up and down, and he finally breathed a sigh of relief.
There was a clear [16+] label on the box.
"Nice!"
"Looks like Tsubaki Furuhara is back."