Still on the same day, Zaboru continued playing The Dark Guild for a while longer. What was supposed to be a simple test session had turned into several hours of genuine enjoyment. The game was still running on the television, the dark fantasy menu looping quietly in the background while its music filled the 51st floor with a heavy gothic atmosphere. Zaboru leaned back in his chair, controller resting loosely in his hand, and smiled with honest satisfaction.
"It's good," he muttered to himself. "Damn it, it's actually good."
He had already formed most of his thoughts. The combat had weight. The co-op was chaotic in a fun way. The character roles were meaningful. Burak was edgy but satisfying. Geoff was underrated. The online voice chat sounded like everyone was speaking through a cursed soup can, but somehow, that made it more entertaining. The Dark Guild was not perfect, but it was clearly made with effort, and Zaboru had always believed that effort in game development deserved to be recognized.
Just as he reached toward his desk to write down review notes, his private phone rang.
The caller was his secretary, Yumi Ichijou.
Zaboru picked it up. "Yeah, Yumi-san?"
Yumi's polite voice came from the other side. "Sorry to bother you, boss, but apparently Akechi Hamazou-san wants to visit you. He is already on the way to your floor. Is that okay?"
Zaboru smiled. "Yeah, it's okay, Yumi-san. Let him in."
"Understood, boss."
The call ended.
Zaboru placed the phone down and glanced toward the elevator entrance. Of course, he did not mind Akechi coming to see him. Akechi was family now, and even before that, he was one of the people Zaboru trusted most. But usually, when Akechi came announced through Yumi, it meant the matter was not casual. If it was only a normal visit, Akechi would either call directly or appear without much ceremony.
Not long after, the private floor door opened.
Akechi Hamazou entered with his usual calm, unreadable expression. He wore a dark suit, his hair neatly arranged, his posture straight and controlled as always. At first glance, he looked exactly like the Akechi everyone knew: stoic, cool, and impossible to disturb. But Zaboru had known him long enough to notice the small details. The silence around him felt heavier. His eyes were sharper than usual. His shoulders were relaxed, but not truly relaxed.
"Yo, Akechi-san," Zaboru said, raising one hand casually.
Akechi nodded. "Zabo."
He walked into the room and sat down near the television without asking. His gaze briefly moved toward the iPlay screen, where The Dark Guild's menu continued playing. The dark knight on the screen stood before a ruined gate, black flames licking the edge of his armor while the title music looped.
Akechi looked at it for a second, then turned back to Zaboru.
Zaboru leaned against the desk. "So, what business do you have today, Akechi-san?"
Akechi exhaled quietly. "Akaishidan has some trouble."
Zaboru's eyebrows rose. "Akaishidan?"
"Yes," Akechi said. "And honestly, we are stuck with it. I was hoping you could look at it later."
Zaboru chuckled lightly. "Hmm? A problem that Ayumi can't handle?"
Akechi's expression did not change, but his eyes moved slightly. "Ayumi is stubborn. Very stubborn. You know that better than anyone. But I am worried about her condition. She is pregnant with twins. She should not push herself too hard, especially not with work that requires long hours, pressure, and arguing with difficult people."
Zaboru's smile softened at the mention of Ayumi. "Yeah… that sounds like her."
"She has been trying to solve it herself," Akechi continued. "She acts calm, but she is forcing herself."
Zaboru leaned back in his chair, thinking for a moment. "Well, she might be really curious about what the problem is. If I help her right now without her asking, she might be pissed at me."
Akechi looked at him silently.
Zaboru gave a small helpless laugh. "You know Ayumi. If she thinks I'm stepping in because I don't trust her, she'll smile sweetly and murder me emotionally."
"That is possible."
"Right?" Zaboru said. "So I'll wait until she asks me for help. Then I'll help her. Besides, Akechi-san, Ayumi is stronger than she looks. You know that too."
Akechi sighed. "Somehow, I already predicted you would say that."
Zaboru grinned. "Because I am consistent."
"Because you are troublesome."
"That too."
For a moment, the atmosphere relaxed slightly. Then Akechi's eyes drifted again toward the television. The Dark Guild menu was still running. Akechi looked at the iPlay beneath it, then back at Zaboru.
"You are playing iPlay's recent game?"
Zaboru nodded casually. "Yeah. The Dark Guild. It's quite good, to be honest. I'm probably going to review it."
Akechi's expression remained calm. "Review it well?"
"Yeah," Zaboru said without hesitation. "Because the game is solid. I'm going to review it honestly."
Akechi stared at him.
The room became quiet.
Zaboru noticed the change immediately. His smile faded slightly. "What?"
Akechi slowly stood from his seat.
He did not raise his voice. He did not slam the table. He did not show obvious anger. That was what made it worse. His calmness became colder, more frightening, as if every emotion had been compressed into something sharp and controlled.
"Zabo," Akechi said, "you realize it was made by the same side that wants to harm your wife, right?"
Zaboru did not answer.
Akechi stepped closer. "They want to ruin Ayumi's life. They want to dig into her past, twist her reputation, damage her name, and use her as a weapon against you. They want to make your reputation plummet by attacking someone you love. And you still want to help them?"
Zaboru frowned. "I'm not helping them. I'm reviewing the game."
Akechi's gaze hardened. "Your words affect sales, it directly affects helping them."
Zaboru went silent.
Akechi continued, each word still calm but heavier than before. "You are not a normal reviewer. You are Zaboru Renkonan. When you praise a game, people listen. When you say a game is good, some people buy it because they trust your taste. You built your reputation as a gamer and creator. Your honesty has weight. That weight becomes power. And if you use that power to praise a product made by people who are preparing to hurt Ayumi, then yes, Zabo, you are helping them."
Zaboru flinched slightly.
When Akechi put it that way, it sounded ridiculous. Almost absurd. He imagined himself publicly praising The Dark Guild, only for Apple, ZUSUGA, Steve Jobs, or Zanki to benefit from that credibility while quietly preparing an attack against Ayumi's reputation. The thought made his stomach twist.
But another part of him resisted.
Because reviewing games honestly was part of who he was.
Before ZAGE, before the money, before the companies, before the politics, before the hidden organizations, before he became a public figure powerful enough to shift sales with a sentence, even before he is reincarnated to this world he had been a gamer. He loved games. He loved talking about them. He loved praising good work, even if it came from competitors. He hated fake reviews, corporate silence, and dishonest criticism. In his heart, a good game was a good game.
Zaboru looked at the television, where the dark menu kept looping.
"But…" he said quietly.
Akechi's eyes narrowed.
For the first time in a long while, Zaboru felt something close to hostility from him.
Not hatred.
Never hatred.
But anger strong enough to cut through every joke Zaboru might use to escape the seriousness of the moment.
Akechi spoke, his voice low. "Is everything a joke to you, Zabo?"
Zaboru's eyes widened slightly.
Akechi stepped closer, and the air around him felt heavier. "So far, you have moved through life with absurd confidence. Sometimes because you are brilliant. Sometimes because you are lucky. Sometimes because someone backed you up before the damage reached you, you know that well don't you But one day, if you keep acting like the world will always bend around your principles without consequence, you will learn that life is not that easy."
Zaboru lowered his gaze.
Akechi's voice remained controlled, but his eyes almost lost their usual stillness. "Ayumi is my sister. One of the people I care about most in this world. She has already carried enough shadows from the past. She does not deserve to become a battlefield for Apple, ZUSUGA, Zanki, or anyone else who wants to damage you. And if you, her husband, still want to be your goofy self and publicly praise the competitor preparing to harm her, then I am sorry."
Akechi paused.
His hand slowly clenched.
"I will hit you."
The words were quiet.
That made them more serious.
Zaboru stared at him.
Akechi Hamazou was still composed. Still cool. Still standing straight with that terrifyingly calm face. But Zaboru could see it now. He was close. Very close. Not because of business, not because of game sales, not because of Apple. Because this involved Ayumi. Because this involved family. Because to Akechi, Zaboru praising The Dark Guild was not a neutral gamer opinion. It was Zaboru giving warmth to people who were sharpening knives near his wife.
Akechi suddenly grabbed Zaboru's shoulder.
Not violently enough to hurt him, but firmly enough that Zaboru could not ignore it.
"Listen to me," Akechi said. "You can always change. You can always make exceptions. Being honest does not mean giving your enemies free weapons. Being fair does not mean being naive. Being yourself does not mean repeating the same behavior even when the situation has changed."
Zaboru's throat tightened slightly.
Akechi's grip remained firm. "Try to be realistic, Zaboru. Treat people according to how they treat you. If someone respects you, respect them. If someone fights you fairly, fight them fairly. But if someone targets your wife, your children, or your family's dignity, you are allowed to close the door. You are allowed to stay silent. You do not owe them your voice."
Zaboru did not answer.
The room became painfully quiet.
The Dark Guild's menu music continued in the background, almost mocking the seriousness of the conversation.
Zaboru slowly looked at the controller in his hand.
He thought about the online players he had met earlier. BlaNight, Duroro, Taku. They had been loud, funny, and completely unaware that they were playing with him. They loved the game. They had enjoyed themselves. The developers behind The Dark Guild had worked hard. Some unknown artists, programmers, combat designers, sound designers, level designers, and testers had poured their time into making something good. Zaboru did not hate them. In fact, part of him wanted to praise them because they deserved it.
But then he thought about Ayumi.
Ayumi smiling while hiding her worries. Ayumi standing beside him through chaos after chaos. Ayumi carrying their twins. Ayumi, who had trusted him enough to share a life with him. Ayumi, whose past was not some public entertainment topic for corporate warfare. Ayumi, who deserved peace more than any game deserved his review.
He thought about Zenshin and Arumi.
About the way they looked at him.
About what kind of father he was supposed to be.
Was he a gamer first?
A businessman first?
A creator first?
A husband first?
A father first?
The answer should have been obvious, but perhaps that was exactly why it hurt.
Zaboru had always liked the idea that he could remain himself no matter how large ZAGE became. Honest. Playful. Fair. Game-loving. A man who could praise competitors when they made good things. A man who did not let rivalry turn into bitterness. That sounded beautiful. It sounded noble.
But Akechi was right.
Sometimes beauty became stupidity if reality changed.
Sometimes fairness became weakness if the other side had already abandoned fairness.
Sometimes honesty did not require a microphone.
He could enjoy The Dark Guild privately. He could admit to himself that it was good. He could respect the anonymous developers who worked hard on it. But he did not need to publish a glowing review that would strengthen the very company whose leadership wanted to harm his wife.
Silence was not dishonesty.
Silence was a choice.
Zaboru closed his eyes.
For once, he did not make a joke.
He did not hide behind charm.
He did not try to escape the discomfort with laughter.
He simply sat with the truth until it settled inside him.
Then he opened his eyes and let out a slow breath.
"Fine," Zaboru said quietly.
Akechi's grip loosened slightly.
Zaboru looked at him, his expression more serious than before. "I won't review it. I'll stay silent. For Ayumi."
Akechi studied his face for a moment, as if making sure Zaboru was not saying it lightly. Then, finally, his expression softened by the smallest amount.
He released Zaboru's shoulder.
"You can still enjoy their games," Akechi said. "I know you love games. I know that part of you will not change, and I am not asking you to kill it. But you do not need to help them directly."
Zaboru nodded slowly. "Yeah."
Akechi returned to his seat and exhaled, the tension around him easing a little. "Good."
Zaboru looked again at The Dark Guild on the television. The title screen still looked cool. The music was still good. The game was still good.
But his relationship with it had changed.
He could appreciate it privately, but his public voice belonged to something larger now. His words were no longer only his own. They carried ZAGE, his family, his fans, his employees, and the people who trusted him. That was the burden of becoming influential. The same honesty that once made him beloved could become dangerous if used carelessly.
Zaboru smiled faintly, but it was not his usual playful smile.
It was quieter.
More mature.
"Sometimes," he muttered, "you really do have to change."
Akechi looked at him from the side. "Not completely."
Zaboru glanced at him.
Akechi's voice was calm again. "Only enough to protect what matters."
Zaboru was silent for a moment.
Then he nodded.
"Yeah," he said softly. "Only enough."
Outside the 51st floor, ZAGE Tower continued moving as usual. Employees worked, phones rang, Black Berry reports arrived, ZAGE Store numbers climbed, and the world kept talking about Zaboru Renkonan as if he were always confident, always playful, always impossible to shake.
But inside that room, in front of a game he genuinely liked but chose not to praise, Zaboru learned something simple and painful.
Being himself was important.
But protecting the people he loved was more important.
To be continued.
Please give me your power stone and if you want to support me and get minimum 50+ advance chapter and additional 1 chapter a week for 4$ considering subscribe to my patreon patreon.com/Zaborn_1997
Or buymecoffee https://buymeacoffee.com/Zaborn_1997 which same with patreon
current Patreon/buymecoffe chap 1323
Also Join my discord if you want https://discord.gg/jB8x6TUByc