Chapter 93. Do You Even Understand the Gold Content of the World's No. 1 IP?!
"Hey, over here."
There were many staff coming and going at the main entrance.
But no matter how crowded they were, there was always a semicircular gap to one side of the door that no one dared to approach.
Xing was standing right there.
She leaned against the wall with her arms folded, her face still wearing that fierce look.
No one knew what she had done, but every employee who passed her lowered their head, clearly not daring to provoke her.
Hearing her speak, many people glanced subtly toward the direction Xing had called to.
Noticing the four strangers, their eyes took on curiosity.
To be able to make this local tyrant personally come out to receive them, just who were these people?
Xing, of course, couldn't be bothered to satisfy their curiosity.
Without even looking at them, she led Xander and the others straight into Anti-Entropy's headquarters.
No one dared to stop them.
They walked all the way to the executive elevator and quickly arrived near the top floor.
"Out of the elevator is a lounge for communications.
The meeting will start in the conference hall on the inner side in one hour."
Seeing that Xing had no intention of stepping out of the elevator, Xander asked, puzzled, "You're not going?"
"My work has nothing to do with this.
There's still a ton to do.
No time to waste here."
She waved her hand, urging them to leave.
But just as the elevator doors were about to close, Xing suddenly called out, "Hey."
"Hm?"
"That, um… good luck."
Scratching her cheek with a finger, Xing's gaze drifted.
Her face slightly flushed as she spoke with some embarrassment.
Seeing this, Xander smiled.
"Then I'll borrow your good words."
As soon as his voice fell, the closing elevator doors cut off their line of sight.
"It really feels like Xing's temper has improved a lot."
Seele was a bit surprised by Xing's last words.
She covered her small mouth as she spoke.
"She grew up~"
Xander had just finished when Bronya immediately snarked, "No.
I think her attitude is still just as nasty."
"That's only toward you."
Patting the slightly glum Bronya, Xander turned and saw Cocolia walking toward them with a smile, wearing formal attire akin to a military uniform.
Quite a few people had already arrived in the lounge.
They clustered in twos and threes, discussing things that interested them.
As Anti-Entropy's number two, in Welt's absence Cocolia was undoubtedly the focal point for everyone present.
Seeing her take the initiative to walk over, the crowd naturally cast curious looks at the group who had just stepped out of the elevator.
Being watched by so many people, Xander kept his expression steady.
He shifted his steps to stand lightly in front of Seele, then took a step forward and hugged Cocolia, smiling as he said, "We're not late, right?"
"Timing is perfect.
Come with me."
Patting Xander on the shoulder, Cocolia led them to a long, empty sofa.
Drinks and snacks had already been set on the table beside the sofa for participants to take as they wished.
"Give me a few minutes.
There are still some matters I haven't finished discussing."
After settling her "kids," Cocolia returned to where she had been and started talking with a few sharp-looking middle-aged men about topics the group couldn't quite follow.
"Whew~"
Not used to scenes like this, Seele, Bronya, and even Kaguya had all been tensing up.
If Xander hadn't taken the lead, they might have even stuttered when speaking.
Only after those curious gazes politely moved away one by one did the three of them relax a little.
Seele clung tightly to Xander, her small hands gripping his palm as if only this could give her a deep sense of security.
Bronya was a bit better.
Sitting on the other side, she let out a long breath, gave her boyfriend a grateful look, and then curiously looked around.
"Kaguya, want some snacks?"
Picking up the fruit plate, Xander popped a strawberry into Seele's mouth, then looked to Kaguya sitting beside her.
"No need.
I'll just have some juice."
Pointing to the orange juice in front of her, Kaguya smiled at him.
At that moment, Xander suddenly felt his arm being tugged.
He turned in puzzlement and looked back at Bronya.
The moment he turned around, Bronya leaned in close with an excited expression and whispered in his ear, "Look, over there!"
Following her finger, he saw several young-to-middle-aged men and women chatting and laughing together.
After a moment of thought, he said, a bit unsure, "Designers from the Homu Adventure series?"
"Mm-hm.
Those few are among the main designers of Homu Adventure.
I didn't expect to run into them here."
Noticing Bronya's excited, thrilled look, Xander suddenly felt a bit uncomfortable.
It wasn't enough to make him angry, but a faint displeasure welled up in his heart.
"Aren't those your idols?
Do you want to go over and say hello and get an autograph?"
Even though Xander had deliberately tried to keep his tone normal, Bronya, who had been with him long enough, could easily hear the difference.
She withdrew her gaze, eyes shining as she looked at Xander's slightly unnatural expression, and her lips curled high.
"Jealous?"
"No!"
Xander answered instantly, but after locking eyes with those gray pupils for two seconds, he lost the battle.
A bit embarrassed, he turned his head away.
Bronya naturally wouldn't let go of such a fun opportunity.
She squeezed over and hugged him, chuckling as she leaned to his ear.
"If you're jealous, you're jealous.
Don't be shy.
I won't make fun of you~"
She poked his flushed cheek with a finger.
A strange thrill welled up in Bronya's heart, and her voice took on a coaxing lilt.
"Don't worry.
They're like running into characters I liked in cartoons when I was a kid.
When it comes to a real idol, in my heart there's only you~"
"I'm not jealous… it's just… I'm way better than them…"
Xander made a tiny, crafty rebuttal.
His face was a bit hot and his voice a bit small, but at that distance, Bronya heard every word.
"Mmph!!!!"
Xander suddenly felt himself being hugged even tighter.
Bronya also rubbed lightly against him.
Seeing the blush rise on her face, she bit his ear, her breath hot.
"What a shame we're outside right now.
I really want to tear your clothes open…"
"Huh???"
Pushing away the suddenly odd Bronya, Xander turned his head—only to see Seele sitting to the side watching the show and stifling a laugh.
The moment their gazes met, Seele straightened up with tightly pressed lips, but two seconds later couldn't help letting out a snort.
All right, all right.
Bronya is one thing, but you little Seele want to "turn the heavens upside down" now?
In an instant, Xander's wicked side rose.
He grabbed Seele's soft cheeks with both hands and started teasing her while holding her.
"Mmmph mmmph mmmph, Seele didn't do anything!!!"
On the other side, Kaguya instinctively scooted a bit farther away, picked up her juice, and watched the pile of three with great interest.
"Your son and daughter sure are lively."
The sound of their horseplay drifted over to Cocolia.
She turned around and couldn't help a small laugh, her eyes gentle.
Then she replied to the middle-aged man who had spoken, "They're just some kids who never grew up."
"You can't underestimate the creativity of kids.
They might bring us the biggest surprises."
"Let's hope so."
They offered the obligatory compliments without taking them seriously in their hearts.
Compared to seasoned designers, the achievements of a few kids just didn't stack up.
However, Cocolia suddenly remembered the confidence in Xander's attitude.
A thought popped up that even she found a bit surprising.
Maybe… he really could?
While they were roughhousing, Xander suddenly felt a push on his shoulder.
He looked up and met Kaguya's amused gaze.
She pointed to the side of the sofa.
Xander looked over.
A man in a suit with a mature look was watching him.
When their eyes met, the man smiled and nodded.
"Ahem."
Shaking off the combined clamp of Seele and Bronya, Xander wiped the saliva mark off his face, stood up, tidied his slightly messy clothes, and then smiled awkwardly as he offered his hand.
The man reached out as well, and they shared a brief handshake.
Xander said, "Hello.
Sorry you had to see such an embarrassing scene."
"That's not embarrassing at all.
I'm truly envious that you and your loved ones still have such pure and beautiful feelings.
Nice to meet you.
I'm Welt Yang."
"Loved ones, huh…"
Seele covered her cheeks shyly, silently expressing that if he could talk like this, he should keep talking.
But Xander and Bronya were far from calm inside.
Welt?!!
Xander's eyes widened in surprise as he looked the other man over carefully.
Beneath the short brown hair was a smiling face.
He wore glasses and had a mature, intellectual air.
Seeing his surprise, Welt chuckled softly.
"Xander, right?
I know you.
To the Moon and Hollow Knight are both excellent works.
I'm very happy to see such an outstanding young game designer appear in the world."
"Mm… thank you."
"No need to be nervous.
When the meeting ends shortly, do you have time to chat?"
Sensing Xander's nerves, Welt softened his tone and smiled warmly.
"Of course!"
"Good.
I'm looking forward to the surprise you bring us today."
Patting Xander on the shoulder, Welt walked toward Cocolia and the others.
Only after Welt had gone some distance did Xander come back to himself and let out a long breath.
"So that's Welt."
The creator of the current world-number-one IP, the Homu series.
Eyes lowered, he patted Bronya's head—she was just as dazed—and, sitting back on the sofa, gave her cheek a light pinch.
"How does it feel to meet your former idol?"
"It's fine."
With a sigh, Bronya no longer had the excitement from moments ago.
She relaxed into him, her hands gripping his tightly, and said softly but firmly, "We'll surpass him, won't we?"
Hearing that, Xander paused for a beat, then smiled and nodded.
"Of course."
...
After Welt arrived, everyone soon headed to the conference room and took their seats.
Aside from some of Anti-Entropy's higher-ups, the meeting included only the main people in charge of the AR glasses and the competing game designers.
Xander's seat was a bit toward the back.
In front of him, those designers who were already famous within Anti-Entropy Entertainment were raring to go.
Soon, everyone was seated.
It was a sizable conference hall, with a platform half a meter high at the front.
A four-to-five-meter display hung on the wall behind the platform, ensuring that the rows of people below could clearly see the screen.
Naturally, the first row was for the judges.
Welt sat in the center seat.
To his left was Cocolia.
To his right was a woman with twin red ponytails who looked rather impatient.
The others were Anti-Entropy Entertainment executives.
"Tch, what am I even doing here?"
Dr. Tesla—"Lobster"… no, Dr. Tesla—propped her chin on her hand, grumbling impatiently to Welt beside her.
"You're in charge of the AR project after all.
We can't realize the technical side of the games without you."
"All right, all right.
So boring.
Anyway, it's just a bunch of Homu spinoffs, right?
I'm sick of those."
She waved a hand, stopped looking at Welt's helpless expression, leaned back in her chair, and relaxed as she watched the middle-aged man on stage.
The files in her head surfaced.
He was one of the main designers of Homu Adventure, someone who had made an indelible contribution to the game that took the world by storm.
Tesla perked up slightly.
Soon, that designer began.
"As expected, it's Homu again."
Muttering under her breath, Tesla's interested gaze quickly turned to disappointment.
What he presented was the same old set from Homu Adventure, just ported from PC to AR glasses.
Not only her—Welt and the others also showed disappointment.
Seeing this, the designer on stage realized he had no chance.
He sped up and hurried through the rest.
Very soon, the second presenter—Homu.
The third—Homu.
The fourth—still Homu.
Finally, the seventh one wasn't Homu, only to be rejected because the gameplay was too niche.
With each designer's failure, the atmosphere in the conference room gradually grew heavy.
Tesla in the first row even yawned.
"Next… hm, Mr. Xander of Gensokyo Company."
The secretary's announcement made the three girls instantly sit up straight, and Xander stood at once.
After taking a deep breath, he walked calmly toward the stage.
Seeing him stand on stage and unhurriedly open his prepared materials, Bronya's heartbeat started to race.
In her view, many of the previous proposals had actually been quite good.
Even so, the judges had passed them without mercy.
No matter how much faith she had in Xander, she couldn't help getting anxious now.
There was no need to mention Seele and Kaguya.
Their hands were already clasped together as they stared at the stage, so nervous they didn't even dare to breathe hard.
On stage, Xander opened his prepared PPT.
Facing the rows of eyes turned toward him, he exhaled slowly, then put on a confident smile.
Behind him, the big screen displayed the first page of the PPT.
A group of oddly shaped yet adorable little creatures played happily on the grass.
In the very center above them was the title of this game.
Pokémon.
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