Chapter 68. This is [Tsubaki Furuhara]!
---
June 21, 1991—Mermaid's Heart was officially released.
Urobuchi Gen appeared anxious and restless, even more nervous than when he first served as a scriptwriter.
So tense that his palms were sweating.
After all, this was his first game as the lead.
The entire game's script was completed completely independently by him.
If Onmyoji 2 still had a certain framework and could be considered a guided assignment, then Mermaid's Heart was completely letting Urobuchi Gen's imagination run free, doing whatever he wanted.
Even with such willful demands, Kiyoshi Yuuma fully supported him.
It had to be said—he had met a good President.
At the same time, Urobuchi Gen was also worried whether his performance and Mermaid's Heart's final results could live up to the President's trust.
So he was incredibly nervous.
His entire back was soaked through.
"Here."
Just then, a can of cola appeared before him.
Looking up, he saw it was President Kiyoshi.
"The weather's too hot. Drink something cold—it can help you calm down." Kiyoshi Yuuma said, pulling over a chair from nearby and sitting beside Urobuchi Gen.
Urobuchi Gen nodded gratefully and accepted the cola.
Pop.
Bubbles immediately surged out.
Urobuchi Gen quickly took a sip.
Wow~ So refreshing!
Seeing his appearance, Kiyoshi Yuuma couldn't help but smile knowingly.
Right now in the entire company, apart from the Mermaid's Heart project team members, everyone else was still busy with their own work.
Even Yokoyama, the Mermaid's Heart artist, after finishing the project work, was immediately reassigned by Chief Artist Sakata Taiji to the Diablo project team.
The two programmers, including sound department's Shirakawa Atsushi, were now also fully supporting the Diablo project.
Compared to Mermaid's Heart, Diablo needed more manpower.
If they wanted to complete it and release it this year, they'd have to work even harder.
To better train Mikami Shinji, Kiyoshi Yuuma also transferred him to the Diablo project.
With his abilities, he'd definitely be able to get up to speed quickly.
Perhaps after experiencing Diablo, Mikami Shinji would be able to work independently.
Kiyoshi Yuuma inwardly anticipated this.
Clack clack clack clack clack...
Throughout Pokeni, the relentless sound of keyboard typing echoed.
Everyone was immersed in their own work.
They seemed unable to sense even a hint of the atmosphere surrounding Mermaid's Heart's release.
Overall, the only people in the company who truly had time to worry about Mermaid's Heart right now were Kiyoshi Yuuma and Urobuchi Gen.
Oh, and of course, the marketing department's Takahashi Kazuma.
That was it.
At the same time, it was natural for Urobuchi Gen to feel under great pressure.
Kiyoshi Yuuma raised his chin, indicating with his gaze, "Do you see the HR?"
Urobuchi Gen followed his line of sight—
Ayase Akane was looking around at her colleagues while writing something in a small notebook.
"Guess what she's doing?" Kiyoshi Yuuma asked with a smile.
Urobuchi Gen shook his head. "I don't know. Probably like me—nervous about the project's results."
"No, she's estimating which people can be sold off if the project fails."
"No way?" Urobuchi Gen's small eyes widened enormously.
"President!" Ayase Akane's voice came from the distance.
The HR glared at Kiyoshi Yuuma. "Can you please stop thinking so badly of people?"
...
"Hey, I heard Pokeni released a new game."
"Yeah, yeah, it's called Mermaid's Heart."
"When does it go on sale?"
"Today."
"Should we go together in a bit?"
"Let's go, let's go."
Hirose Furukawa looked at this group of familiar yet unfamiliar colleagues in disbelief.
Hayamikawa and Kinoshita had both been normies before—how did they suddenly become game enthusiasts like him?
Furukawa didn't know whether to feel happy or upset.
Before, he used to treasure hunt and play games alone.
Ever since sharing Onmyoji, fellow enthusiasts in the company had suddenly multiplied, which really left him somewhat at a loss.
However...
As long as they liked games—
Then everyone was good friends.
Having one more person to share with, whether joy or sorrow, was quite delightful.
"Count me in." Furukawa quickly raised his right hand.
After work that evening, the group eagerly rushed to the game store.
"Welcome."
The shop clerk uncle saw Furukawa and smiled gently.
However, when he saw the two friends behind him, he suddenly froze.
Eh?
This guy actually has friends?
"Hello."
Furukawa bowed slightly and introduced them. "These two are my colleagues, Hayamikawa and Kinoshita."
"Welcome." The shop owner quickly greeted them politely. "Please feel free to look around."
Watching the figures of several people wandering around the store, the shop uncle couldn't help but tear up a bit—
Ah~
I thought Furukawa would die alone and lonely.
I never expected this person to actually have friends.
That's really wonderful.
Turning around, he secretly wiped away tears from the corner of his eyes, then the shop uncle turned back with a polite smile.
"Pokeni has a new release—Mermaid's Heart."
"Where is it?!" Hirose Furukawa's entire being became energized.
"Right over there on the shelf, middle section, second row." The uncle pointed him in the direction.
It was on a different shelf, but the position was still pretty good.
Several people gathered in front and looked, simultaneously frowning.
Hirose Furukawa walked to the shelf and picked up the Mermaid's Heart game box.
His eyes scanned up and down—a [16+] label was clearly affixed to the box.
However—
"Ah~ Why is it for Sega's MD?"
"Exactly." Kinoshita also felt troubled. "I didn't buy an MD. I have an SFC at home."
"Can you play MD games on an SFC?" Hayamikawa, a newly initiated normie player, asked a stupid question.
"Of course not. The machine interfaces are completely different—they're not compatible." Kinoshita chided.
Sega and Nintendo were old rivals—it was impossible for them to let each other's cartridges be compatible with their own machines. This was a matter of principle.
That's why there were all these comparisons.
But in reality, neither had thought through one fact clearly—
If you could be compatible with the other, wouldn't players be even more likely to choose you?
Of course, compatibility would also require obtaining authorization from the other party.
Given Sega and Nintendo's nature, this was simply impossible.
"I see." Hayamikawa nodded, simultaneously feeling that same sense of dilemma as Kinoshita.
"For the sake of [Tsubaki Furuhara], how about buying an MD?" Furukawa asked.
"Are you crazy?" Kinoshita couldn't help but click his tongue. "An MD costs 20,000 yen."
"But... this is [Tsubaki Furuhara]!"
"Emmmm..."
Everyone couldn't help but fall into a moment of silence.