Translator: Dreamscribe
Bright light burst from everyone’s fingertips.
That light empowered the Saintess, allowing her to emit an even greater radiance.
As the Saintess clasped her hands together in prayer, a massive portal surged up behind her.
Bwoooong!
From within the portal, the sound of a horn echoed, followed by cheers as dozens of knights emerged.
A red-haired knight at the forefront raised a shining sword and aimed it at the Lich.
The light was with them.
"For Arsilan!"
As the noble cry resounded, all the knights raised their swords.
"Uwoooo! For Arsilan!"
"Charge!!"
The female knights and knights, radiating light, charged toward the Lich and the Skeleton army.
"Uaaaah!"
"Ugh, we should charge too!"
Some of the employees, perhaps feeling the surge of excitement, tried to rush forward as well, but Jinwoo held them back by their shoulders.
It was a fierce battle.
The ground trembled and rose, and the female knight and the Lich engaged in an intense fight, darting around the battlefield as if teleporting.
Han Yong-seon and the employees clenched their fists, watching the spectacle with anxious expressions.
The Lich, battling the female knight, suddenly created distance and soared into the sky.
"Pathetic humans! Die!"
The Lich traced a massive magic circle in the sky, and a colossal skull, shrouded in a black current, plummeted toward the ground. It was as if the heavens were collapsing, as if they were being devoured, and screams erupted.
"Saintess!"
"Yes! I am ready!"
The female knight, who had landed beside the Saintess, looked up at the sky.
As the Saintess extended her hand toward the female knight, she nodded and clasped the Saintess's hand. A gigantic sword of light appeared, exuding an overwhelming presence.
Fwaaaah!
The moment the Saintess and the female knight reached out toward the Lich, the sword of light shot toward it.
As the descending skull, poised to consume the earth, collided with the sword of light, a tremendous burst of radiance erupted, illuminating the surroundings.
"T-This can't be!"
Cracks formed on the skull, and it disintegrated into dust. The sword of light, continuing its trajectory, pierced through the Lich.
"Kraaaagh!"
With a scream, the Lich plummeted to the ground.
All the Skeletons trembled violently before vanishing into nothingness.
The Lich crawled along the ground, reaching a hand toward the sky.
"Lord of Erosion! S-Save me...."
Rumble!
The space cracked open, and darkness distorted as the upper body of a Dark Priest emerged.
The Dark Priest, exuding an aura of pure malevolence, looked down at the Lich and extended his hand.
[There is no need for weak trash.]
"Kraaaaagh!"
The Lich let out a final scream before being utterly erased.
The Dark Priest then turned his gaze toward the employees.
His finger pointed at them.
[Now, it is your turn.]
At the moment something massive began to emerge from his fingertip.
"Gasp!"
"Kyaaaah!"
Darkness engulfed the surroundings.
The video had ended.
Silence filled the room. No one moved.
Jinwoo walked over to the wall and switched on the lights.
As if waking from a dream, the studio's familiar interior came back into view.
Jinwoo looked at the employees.
All of them were drenched in sweat, wearing dazed expressions as if they had just experienced something unreal.
Even with the lights on, they remained frozen for a while.
Only the sound of heavy breathing could be heard.
Step. Step.
Jinwoo walked to the center of the studio and retrieved the video playback device.
Only then did the employees snap back to reality.
Turning around, Jinwoo looked at Han Yong-seon and the employees.
"It was pretty good for a concept video, right?"
At Jinwoo's casual question, everyone vigorously nodded.
"Th-That was really a h-hologram...?"
"I seriously thought we got transported to another world."
"Saintess...."
This was the typical reaction of Earthlings encountering magic.
With the addition of the territory residents, the scale had grown a bit larger, and as they worked on it, they had become quite invested. The end result was exceptional.
With a few tweaks, it could even serve as a teaser video.
"It… It was real, wasn’t it? Virtual reality...."
Han Yong-seon swallowed hard and muttered those words.
They were still in a half-dazed state.
Having witnessed a scene that shattered their existing understanding of reality, they would now believe it if someone told them that a virtual reality game truly existed.
“C-C-CEO-nim! I-Is it really okay to reveal something this incredible like this? C-Could this be a secret of Ohsung Group...? The value of a virtual reality game is beyond imagination!”
The Head of Development, who had been sitting on the floor, suddenly jumped up and spoke in alarm. Han Yong-seon and the other employees shared the same sentiment.
Just the hologram technology they had just witnessed was enough to shake the entire world.
It was a revolution in itself.
What if a real virtual reality game was created?
The Head of Development and Han Yong-seon trembled.
Dominating the gaming industry wouldn’t even be a challenge. FS Games would become the center of the world.
To exaggerate a little, this could be seen as a singularity that would change the course of human history.
“I-If a rumor spreads….”
The Head of Development lowered his voice as he spoke, and Jinwoo smirked.
“None of you believed it until you actually came here. Go outside and tell people that FS Games is making a virtual reality game.”
“Ah.”
“T-That’s true.”
Who would believe them? They would be treated like lunatics.
A virtual reality game out of nowhere?
Just moments ago, none of them believed it either.
It was on the same level as saying aliens were invading or that the end of the world was near.
“If anyone wants to resign, feel free to speak up. I’ll make sure you’re well compensated.”
None of this was even a secret.
There was no possibility of a technology leak. No one could transfer to another company and spread rumors, and even if they did, it would only be their loss.
Before coming to the studio, quite a few employees had been considering opportunities elsewhere, but now the very thought of leaving had vanished from their minds.
“CEO-nim. T-Then, what should we do?”
The leader of the programming team cautiously asked.
Developing a game on an entirely different level, virtual reality, rendered their existing engines and tools useless.
They were proceeding by patching things together as they went, but that wasn’t a problem. After all, Jinwoo was the only Archmage across both Arsilan and Earth.
“Forget everything about conventional game development.”
Of course, Jinwoo already had something in mind.
Programming, when broken down, wasn’t all that different from the implementation of magical formulas. While the direction would be entirely different from traditional game development, they would be able to adapt quickly.
“I’ll provide you with a new engine that I’ve developed. With AI assistance, it won’t be too difficult to learn.”
He hadn’t made it yet, but that wasn’t an issue, he could simply create it.
After all, he was an Archmage capable of such things.
“Let’s create this together.”
Jinwoo looked at each of them one by one.
“Let’s conquer the gaming industry no, let’s conquer global culture itself. With all of you, it’s possible.”
Everyone clenched their fists in determination.
Goosebumps spread across Han Yong-seon’s entire body. He was witnessing the beginning of a legend, and he was a part of it. As a game director, there could be no greater joy.
The other employees felt the same.
Excitement surged as they realized they were making history, and the atmosphere grew increasingly heated.
“We’ll start by renegotiating salaries. I’ll raise them by at least 20%.”
“Kyaaaaah!”
“Uwaaaaah!”
The studio erupted in cheers.
From this moment on, the employees were bound to Jinwoo.
He had wealth, he had magic, and he had the doraemon itself. And now, those developers were becoming a part of it.
‘Everything is going smoothly.’
Could it go any smoother than this?
Arsilan, once filled with despair, seemed just a little brighter now.
*
Blinder was an anonymous community platform where office workers could verify their identity using company emails to join. It was a space where they could freely discuss salaries, internal affairs, corporate culture, industry trends, and more.
Since company names were displayed, posts carried a certain level of credibility. Of course, some people bought accounts to post slander or advertisements for their own agendas, so absurd posts were generally filtered out.
Posts from Blinder often spread across various online communities. Most of them were either provocative or entertaining in nature.
Recently, a strange post appeared on Blinder, and it spread rapidly across several major online communities.
[Title: The Future of Korean Gaming—No, the Future of Korea Itself Is FS Games.]
FS Games.!*******
I’m here to drop some shocking news.
FS Games is developing a game that will change the world.
Next year’s BTA6? Eldos kring 6?
They’re nothing compared to FS Games’ new title.
Anyone working in the gaming industry might faint from the shock.
They’ll be clinging to FS Games’ legs, begging to be allowed to play.
Because they’re developing a v-i-r-t-u-a-l r-e-a-l-i-t-y game.
CEO Lee Jin-woo, is a god and a savior.
He will deliver the utopia that every gamer dreams of.
This is bigger news than Bitcoin, get on board now.
Right this instant.
Join the unstoppable movement.
[ND Soft.!*******]
Dude, are you a moron?
[Government Employee.!*******]
FS Games? LOL, what a load of bullshit.
[Neson.!*******]
Is this the prelude to another storm? Who doesn’t know FS Games is completely doomed? It’s just a playground for some chaebol kid now. Even the mobile game they were going to import was taken by TACO. ㅋㅋㅋ
└re:[New Company.!*******]
They’ve totally lost it. Better start looking for a new job ASAP.
└re:[New Company.!*******]
Isn’t this just sarcasm? That’s how it looks.
[Prusoft.!*******]
I left FS Games, and the game we made is now in early access. The international response has been amazing. ㅋㅋㅋ they must be jealous. You should have left too.
└re:[New Company.!*******]
Didn’t FS Games say they were suing over that?
FS Games was already a meme among the gaming community, but after this post, the ridicule only intensified.
A sarcastic meme featuring Lee Jin-woo spread like wildfire:
"Lee Jin-woo has invented superconductors! The U.S. President has declared an e-m-e-r-g-e-n-c-y visit!"
"Lee Jin-woo has developed a time machine! W-o-r-l-d d-o-m-i-n-a-t-i-o-n!"
"Lee Jin-woo has achieved nuclear fusion! F-r-e-e e-l-e-c-t-r-i-c-i-t-y!"
"Lee Jin-woo has created an anti-gravity device! S-p-a-c-e e-x-p-l-o-r-a-t-i-o-n!"
"Lee Jin-woo has mastered alchemy and can create gold! G-o-l-d d-u-p-l-i-c-a-t-i-o-n!"
These memes, which featured a photoshopped image of Lee Jin-woo’s old photo published in Nature, spread exponentially. The fact that he had been wearing a lab coat in the picture only enhanced the meme’s comedic effect.
"Hmm."
Jinwoo was in his car, browsing through the memes about himself.
Sitting beside him was Kim Han-soo, his secretary and bodyguard. Upon seeing Jinwoo’s expression, Kim Han-soo shut his eyes tightly.
Grit!
They were mocking a true genius without even realizing it.
Kim Han-soo’s anger surged to the point that he wanted to take immediate action against them.
Calming himself, Kim Han-soo spoke up.
“Uh, well… the headquarters keeps contacting us about this. Should we take legal action? Just say the word, and I’ll summon the legal team right away.”
If Ohsung Group’s legal team got involved, they could wipe this out in an instant. But Jinwoo simply chuckled and shook his head.
“It’s fine.”
“But…”
“This is actually great publicity. It’s entertaining, and I like it.”
They were spreading awareness for him at no cost. The more attention, the better. Eventually, these memes would flip and turn into praise.
His image didn’t matter.
Jinwoo only cared about whether something helped him save Arsilan or not.
“Besides, some of it is true.”
“Huh?”
Jinwoo was an Archmage.
With magic engineering, creating an anti-gravity device, a room-temperature superconductor, or even gold through alchemy was entirely possible.
The only thing that was impossible was a time machine.
“Except for the time machine, I can make everything else.”
“W-Wait, seriously? H-Huh?!”
Kim Han-soo was so shocked that he immediately believed him, without even a hint of doubt.
“I’m joking.”
“Haha…! Hahaha….”
Kim Han-soo laughed out loud, but as he glanced at Jinwoo’s face, his laughter froze.
Even though Jinwoo had said it was a joke, something about his demeanor made it feel too real, like he actually could make those things.
Kim Han-soo swallowed hard and forced himself to speak.
“…As expected of you, CEO-nim! Even your jokes are top-tier!”
He instinctively resorted to flattery, trying to bury the unsettling thought in his mind.
*****
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