"Mr. Alto, our Reggie Trading Company is willing to offer 2 million Baileys to purchase all future rights to Plants vs Zombies."
The Reggie Trading Company representative stated.
This meant they'd make a one-time buyout, and subsequent distribution would have nothing to do with Alto.
"Sorry, I'm not selling the rights!"
Alto rejected it without a second thought.
"Our company has already shown tremendous goodwill. You must understand, your work is just an entry-level product. Even if you sell 100,000 copies, the revenue might not be this high."
"No thanks. Not considering it. I'll only accept revenue sharing!"
Alto contacted each willing distribution company one by one.
Lunaria's major merchant guilds had businesses spanning all industries. Two of them had magic item shops established throughout the entire city and even across several major cities in the Nation.
Over ten thousand years, various supporting industries developed around the dream world and have become well established.
From Moonstone engraving to distribution, complete industrial chains existed.
Reggie Trading Company was one of them.
But clearly, as a large-scale distributor, their terms were extremely harsh.
Either buy out all rights, or accept a regulated 70-30 split, the company taking 70% of net profits while not bearing Moonstone engraving costs.
Meaning if you produced too many and couldn't sell the excess, the designer would bear the losses.
Looking at these exploitative terms, with no distribution channels of his own, he'd have no choice but to surrender most of the profits.
This world wasn't like Earth in his previous life, with developed internet and convenient transportation networks.
Now he could only rely on these major merchant guilds' nationwide sales networks.
Only like this could Plants vs Zombies be sold across regions as quickly as possible.
"Mr. Alto, our Saint Oros Trading Company hopes to secure exclusive distribution rights for Plants vs Zombies."
"For profits, we can offer a 50-50 split. Most importantly, we can cover all Moonstone engraving costs."
Alto was tempted, mainly by that last condition.
For someone currently short on capital, this was incredibly important.
The cheapest Moonstone engraving costs at least 10 Baileys per copy.
Waiting for funds to be recouped before expanding production capacity and rolling out sales? The opportunity would be long gone.
But exclusive distribution meant Plants vs Zombies could only be sold through them, essentially a buyout anyway.
"I can give you exclusive agency, but only for one month."
"And I require you to engrave at least 100,000 copies for the initial release, with subsequent additions based on performance."
Alto presented his conditions.
The other party contemplated for a moment.
"We can agree to the second condition. Our company is very optimistic about this work!"
"But exclusive sales rights must extend to six months."
Six months were enough for them to reap most of the dividends.
After six months, once the hype died down, who knew if it would still sell?
"Three months. No more."
The other party fell silent again, presumably consulting with someone.
"Acceptable! Here's to a pleasant cooperation."
They then gave Alto an address.
Next, he'd need to go in person to discuss specific procedures.
Soon after, Alto arrived at the Saint Oros Trading Company headquarters.
After negotiating specific agreements, signing contracts, and submitting the final release version...
The final deal was struck.
Retail price: 28 Baileys. Profit share: 9 Baileys per copy sold.
Official release in three days.
The reason for not making it too expensive was, that Alto had his own considerations.
His current main goal was to rapidly upgrade his dream world, which required more people to purchase Plants vs Zombies.
Simultaneously maximizing his own recognition to pave the way for future works.
After a full day of hustling, he'd finally settled all distribution matters.
Next came the promotion and release.
He entered the dream world. At this time, the Plants vs Zombies' entrance had appeared in the Dream Corridor.
The version he'd uploaded here was a trimmed demo, only the first twenty levels and a few mini-games.
Many people were already experiencing it.
Clara was a girl who'd been disabled in both legs since childhood.
As a noble's daughter, she enjoyed a privileged life that ordinary people could scarcely imagine.
But her disabled legs had become a lifelong nightmare.
Her family had attempted various treatments, all ending in failure.
This was a peculiar hereditary condition; even using the elven treasure, the Fountain of Life, proved futile.
Unable to run through the forest like others...
So she spent most of her time in the Dreamscape, because in the dream world, she could have perfectly functional legs like any normal elf.
She wandered aimlessly through the Dream Corridor as usual, hoping to discover something interesting.
Soon, she noticed a strange world entrance.
Several plants with cute cartoon faces, plus strange creatures with bald heads sporting a few hairs.
"Plants vs Zombies?"
"What a strange name."
But looking at those adorable plants, her curiosity was piqued.
Soon she was completely immersed.
As the last zombie fell, a note dropped.
"Your demo version has ended. For subsequent content, please purchase the full version, exclusively distributed by Saint Oros Trading Company. -Designer: Alto"
Clara froze. Just when she was getting into it, she suddenly discovered there was no continuation.
Meanwhile, Moonstones were being urgently engraved, then transported to major cities and towns throughout the Moon Realm.
Dawn had barely broken when long queues formed at Saint Oros Trading Company's various Lunaria shops.
Some were audience members from the competition that day, some were there due to the recommendation of friends, and others were players who'd tried the demo in the Dream Corridor.
Magically illustrated posters were also posted at shop entrances, with magical formations projecting virtual images in the air, even with simple animations, looking incredibly fantastical.
As the shops opened, massive crowds surged inside.
"Shopkeeper, Plants vs Zombies!"
"Only 28 Baileys? So cheap!"
"Shopkeeper, I want two!"
"Waited three days, finally got it! Awesome!"
"Damn it, who stepped on my foot?!"
The scene descended into chaos as people scrambled in to buy.
At a luxurious manor estate...
Clara hurriedly ordered her servants.
Before long, a servant returned with an exquisitely packaged box.
Simple designs adorned the surface.
It was Plants vs Zombies' promotional cover art.
She impatiently opened the box. Inside lay a beautifully crafted Moonstone.
"This is the full version, right?"
She activated the Moonstone and immediately began experiencing it.
First-day sales were far more explosive than Alto had imagined.
Before even half the day haf passed, inventory at various sales points was already running dangerously low.
Some locations had many people who couldn't purchase copies. The Saint Oros Trading Company headquarters had to urgently dispatch additional stock.
The originally engraved 100,000 copies were supposed to last a week; they might not even last two days. They hastily made the decision to work through the night, producing more.