The next afternoon, Aoki Haruhi, accompanied by Onmyoji 2's scriptwriter Urobuchi Gen and hardware engineer Senkawa Hiroichi, visited DUN Corporation.
In the conference room, Aoki Haruhi presented a new partnership proposal.
Tsuda Nao was somewhat surprised by the new proposal.
What's gotten into him? How did he change his mind overnight?
Today, Tsuda Nao wore a white suit and had her medium-length hair styled neatly, exuding an air of intelligence and professionalism.
"President Qing, you know DUN's investment standards and conditions, don't you?" she said expressionlessly, flipping through the proposal.
"Yes," Aoki Haruhi nodded. "After careful consideration, we believe it would be mutually beneficial for DUN to join this project. We've revised the proposal accordingly, and we think it benefits both Pokeni and DUN."
Aoki Haruhi hadn't slept well the night before.
Every time he closed his eyes, the words from the previous survey filled his mind:
[ We need Teacher Kogahara Tsubakiaki. ]
Written as "Kogahara Tsubakiaki," it was actually a code word for "galgame."
If Tsuda Nao hadn't forced Kogahara Tsubakiaki to "sell his soul" back then, the name Kogahara Tsubakiaki wouldn't even exist.
Now, Elite Academy's sales were abysmal.
Beyond the disastrous sales, many distributors had lost faith in Pokeni Corporation, severely impacting future pre-orders for Onmyoji 2.
If Onmyoji 2 also failed, Aoki Haruhi felt he couldn't bear the responsibility. The company might truly repeat its past mistakes and teeter on the brink of bankruptcy.
Given this, abandoning the galgame elements of Onmyoji 2 and developing it independently as it currently stood was clearly ill-advised. Aoki Haruhi had initially thought it would be fine with Lao Xu writing the script, but upon closer reflection, he broke out in a cold sweat.
The risks were too high.
In such circumstances, bringing in an investor was the most prudent choice.
More importantly—
The development of Onmyoji 2 had indeed hit a bottleneck. The project was already more than halfway complete, and switching to a small-scale galgame at this stage would undoubtedly incur significant additional costs.
First and foremost, a significant portion of the art assets would need to be replaced.
The original character designs would also have to be revised.
Most importantly, if they were to adopt the production methods of a galgame, the plot would require substantial alterations.
This meant that the profits from Onmyoji 1 might not be enough to cover the costs.
Aoki Haruhi immediately convened an emergency meeting with the Onmyoji 2 team that night. After careful deliberation, they decided to return to developing a galgame.
Though he was extremely reluctant, Aoki Haruhi steeled himself. Since Onmyoji 1 had already set them on this path, they might as well make the entire Onmyoji series into galgames.
Then, they could use the profits from the galgames to find a way to "come ashore" later.
With sufficient funds, Aoki Haruhi could challenge the industry's milestones—like creating their own Diablo. Who wouldn't want to aim for that?
If they couldn't have both money and integrity, he'd have to stay "in the water" for now.
"So, you've agreed to make the new game a galgame?" Tsuda Nao asked without looking up from the proposal.
"Yes," Aoki Haruhi gritted out.
This is the last time!
As long as Onmyoji 2 could earn enough to fund their next project, Aoki Haruhi vowed to think long and hard, choosing a project that would finally allow them to succeed.
Tsuda Nao nodded slightly and fell silent, immersing herself in the proposal.
After flipping through a few pages, she gradually became absorbed in the new story.
How should she put it?
Although the writing style differed from Onmyoji 1, this was undoubtedly a brilliant story.
If Onmyoji 1's prose was soft, poignant, and moving, Onmyoji 2's narrative structure revealed a steel frame.
This was clearly a story written by a man with a delicate touch.
Yet that skill still stirred something within Tsuda Nao.
Tsuda Nao alternated between smiling and frowning. Even though the script only contained detailed descriptions of the first few scenes and the final chapter, it still left her with a sense of lingering anticipation and an overwhelming sense of immersion.
Hmm...
About an hour had passed.
Tsuda Nao gritted her teeth and nervously turned to the last page.
Ah~ So that's how it ends.
It seemed unexpected, yet perfectly logical.
The crucial thing was—
She didn't know what to say.
Was this a comedy, or a tragedy?
For some reason, after finishing it, she felt a profound sense of wistful emptiness.
"This is amazing," Tsuda Nao exclaimed. "It's like savoring a delicious literary feast, and then... huh?"
Just as she was about to close the proposal, she noticed a letter from Aoki Haruhi tucked behind it.
[ Sorry. ]
[ I shouldn't have grabbed your hand to look at the window girl. ]
[ I have no feelings for her. ]
[ But... I want to see your body. ]
[ I mean it. ]
Hmm...
Tsuda Nao suddenly froze.
She hadn't expected Aoki Haruhi to actually do something like this.
The guy was such a—
Fool.
Tsuda Nao smiled silently, her eyes curving into crescent moons.
Huh?!
Urobuchi Gen and Senkawa Hiroichi watched from the side, utterly bewildered.
The final page of the story was supposed to be deeply melancholic and painful, yet Tsuda Nao was actually laughing.
Are all presidents just some kind of monsters—unfeeling, or perhaps emotionally unstable—who see the world differently?
President Qing had made a similar expression when he read my script.
Or maybe...
Urobuchi Gen frowned. Did I fail to grasp President Qing's intended tragic beauty? Did I write an inadequate story, causing President Tsuda to laugh instead of being moved?
Or perhaps she simply didn't like my story and it failed to meet her expectations?
But what about President Tsuda's praise just now?
Aoki Haruhi, sitting beside them like a motionless Buddha, observed everything with an inexplicable sense of joy.
You're looking at a completely different proposal than Tsuda. How could you possibly know what he's thinking?
"Although the writing style is completely different from Onmyoji 1, I have to admit this is a truly good story," Tsuda Nao said, closing the proposal and looking up earnestly.
"In that case, Onmyoji 2 is indeed worth our investment."
Moreover, Pokeni's proposal was quite fair: half of the budget would be invested by DUN, and the revenue from the game's release would be split evenly.
"Alright, please take good care of us during this time," Aoki Haruhi said, standing up and extending his right hand to Tsuda Nao.
"Yes, please take good care of us too!"
Tsuda smiled, rising to her feet and clasping his hand.
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