Chapter 13: Thoughts on the New Game

It wasy birthday yesterday so i was in a hurry posting, but now, with my B-Day, every ff gets a bonus 2 chapters this day!

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Initially, the Grey Serpent wasn't a complete digital life form. It was the residue of Bronie' intense survival instinct during her exploration of infinity.

A mere scrap of flesh and mind.

Later, Bronie divided it into multiple parts, and eventually, as the end approached, the Grey Serpent survived into the new era, ans went to even establish organizations like the World Serpent.

Just like the Ship of Theseus.

Grey Serpent kept dividing itself, constantly replacing parts of its body with mechanical prosthetics. Constantly evolving, constantly contemplating. But inadvertently, it evolved to heights Bronie had never reached.

Perhaps, can Grey Serpent truly be defined as a digital life form? Even though each Grey Serpent shares the same memories, each one has a different personality, and some may even have the potential for individual Grey Serpents to betray.

After developing for so many years, if they were to be classified as carbon-based life forms, it probably wouldn't be appropriate. Even if ten Grey Serpents were left with only flesh after removing the prosthetics, their flesh probably wouldn't be enough to fry a small dish.

Therefore, in terms of data, Bronie also holds an infinitely high advantage. Of course, there are also issues with Bronie's extensive experience.

After all, in his own Cyber Arc City, there are indeed entities like the Grey Serpent. They're basically old acquaintances.

So there's also this layer of reason that allowed Bronie to successfully infiltrate a spy into the World Serpent.

...

Finally back in the rental apartment, Bronie collapsed on the sofa, as if entering sage mode.

The Flame Chases inside Elysian Realm had already admitted their defeat and accepted their deaths.

And from the bottom of their hearts, they believed that after death, the undead would, at most, become epitaphs, providing the only assistance to successors by giving them Signets and some experience in resisting Honkai.

But such thoughts were quite normal. Considering that simulations themselves are very special, time is almost useless to them, so in some matters, their stubbornness will exceed human imagination. This is also how the Herrscher of Corruption managed to break into Elysian Realm to cause trouble.

To make their decision change, what is needed is long-term, slow, mutual influence.

And Bronie looked at the current time. The current time period, even the establishment of the Saint Freya Academy hasn't occurred yet.

Which means its still indeed an extremely long time before canon. So the upcoming game is very important. In terms of plot, gameplay, and themes.

As sims, they have accepted their deaths and are unwilling to take another step forward to move on.

But Bronie feels that as sims, they've changed their form of existence, having their own lives completely different from their real selves, and they when tbey take another step forward.

Of course, perhaps there's also a technical factor, but such things can be overcome. So what game should be used...

Bronie pondered and felt a bit frustrated. "Forget it, I'll just check the comments on Sbeam. It's been three days, there should be some comments by now."

With no inspiration for now, Bronie just gave up directly. It's better to see if his game has defeated those yellow-skinned rabbits. Although the yellow-skinned dolls look ugly and cute, Bronie still prefers a bit more second-dimensional style.

[No culture, just some uninformed comments: God among gods!]

[This game made me cry buckets, I played for a long time, only to realize that in such a small game, there could be such profound truths. The memories it brought for a small money are worth it!]

[Do I need to praise this game?]

[A snowman feels happy because of me, which fills me with determination for life!]

Continued, there were thousands of comments, all of which were overwhelmingly positive.

In just three days, the Undertale sales reached thirty thousand copies, each priced at thirty-five dollars. After deducting the platform's share, that left six hundred thousand dollars!

Then, opening the search engine, the game "Undertale" immediately rose to fifth place in the trending searches.

While the top few were either national events or entertainment news, this small-scale game managed to stand out from various hot topics, which could only mean that Bronie's luck was actually quite good.

This was also thanks to the promotion by streamers on the internet. It seemed that on the first day, some streamers found this game.

After Bronie entered the live broadcast room, she learned that this streamer often sought out new games to try, regardless of their quality.

If it was a good game, he would even spontaneously make videos to promote it.

It was because of this passion for games that "Undertale" gained popularity so quickly, and countless players were still flocking to it. Looking at the game data in front of her,

Bronie's mood improved significantly.

Unfortunately, when it came to the game itself, she still felt a bit lost.

Bronie could create many games, but finding one that could truly captivate the Flame Chasers of Elysian Realm wasn't easy.

"Undertale" was indeed a good game, capable of providing a heartwarming story like that of an angel, while also delivering a heroic tale akin to that of a demon. It encouraged people to interact with others with kindness. However, it seemed to lack something in helping sorrowful individuals emerge from their shadows, especially for those Flame Chasers who had almost given up hope.

"In my bar, does working make you unhappy? Or is it because you came back a little later and accidentally skipped dinner?"

The next day, Raven returned to the Arc City.

Although she had become a cadre of the World Serpent, the recent World Serpent was quite leisurely with nothing special to do.

It was just that the intruder into Elysian Realm, a hacker named Haxxor, had been playing tricks on Grey Serpent.

While it was no big deal for the World Serpent to humiliated, if they were completely exposed, would they still be able proceed with the future Project Stigma?

Naturally, Raven also received the a task for searching the Hacker. After all, it was related to her.

It was said that the hacker came to find Raven. Honestly, Cioara couldn't understand who and why she had offended anyone.

Fortunately, with Grey Serpent unable to obtain much information, he was unlikely to take any action. So Cioara returned directly to his bar to wait temporarily.

Days of fighting and killing were not what Cioara enjoyed.

Notifying Bronie to come to work, Cioara didn't expect Bronie to actually show up. It had been nearly half a month since she last came back, and Cioara didn't know if Bronie had enough money.

Grey Serpent said he had sent Bronie some money, and if she didn't squander it, it should be fine.

"I have a friend."

"Um, is that your opening line?"

"I don't know why, but she locks herself in her room day and night, never wanting to go out. For her, it seems that nothing outside is worth her attention, and that's very worrying."

It didn't sound like she was talking about herself at all.

"Could it be depression?"

"No, she can still communicate, and there's no communication barrier. It's just that she's been through some setbacks before, feeling like she's already dead in this world, and as a dead person, she shouldn't interfere in the world of the living."

"That's quite an unusual thought."

"Yes, yes, I'm not good at expressing myself, so I don't really have any good solutions. Do you have any suggestions?"

"My suggestion is to beat her up, then drag her out. The idea of not interfering in the world of the living is nonsense. If souls really exist after death, I'd definitely cause a ruckus."

Then Cioara noticed Bronie staring at her with a very subtle expression.

Those eyes, they look like they are reminiscing something?

And also a hint of ridicule to her!?

Damn it!

How could she think it that way!?

Haa it been too long since she was on the battlefield, causing the instincts of a mercenary to go awry?

No, no, no. In Elysian Realm, her instincts saved her life!

Although she didn't know what Bronie was up to at this time, insisting on escaping was definitely the right decision overall.

"Is there such a thing as having a soul after death? To be honest, I don't really believe in things like souls, but you've given me something to think about."

Watching Cioara talk confidently, Bronie knew that Cioara's mental state in Elysian Realm had also undergone quite an improvement.

At least she's no longer the type of person who's completely hopeless about life, only numbly making money to buy islands.

It's just that she's probably still a bit confused in her heart. She doesn't know what she should do.

"Direction? What direction?"

At least for now, Cioara still has a small goal in mind. Like taking care of the little girl in front of her who came from who knows where.

"As for me, my dream is to be a game developer!"

Miss Cioara noticed something unusual. But isn't it normal for children to like games? It's just that Cioara felt a bit strange in her heart. Why is it such a coincidence? In Elysian Realm, where life and death were at stake, she inexplicably came into contact with games that she rarely had the opportunity to encounter.

And after coming back, Bronie also mentioned her desire to become a game developer.

No, no. The Bronie in front of her is just a kid who doesn't even look like she's sixteen years old. How many kids like this have the ability to invade the Elysian Realm?

"Making games is not as simple as you think. Although I don't want to discourage you, programming is based on mathematics. If you don't study well, you won't have the foundation to become a developer!"

Do you want me to go to school?

"But I'm a genius."

"Oh?" Now Raven was a little curious.

"If you ask me to take a college entrance exam, there's definitely no problem. But if you want me to become a doctor, it's probably not possible. However, if I put in a little effort, it should be fine."

"Maybe you should save these dreams for nighttime. Or maybe you've been sleeping poorly lately, so you're having these dreams early?"

"Isn't your bar open at night?"

Oh, right! Cioara just realized.

But judging from Bronie's demeanor, she didn't seem like she was joking. So...

"Are you really going to do it?"

"You've given me inspiration, so I'm already working on it."

I didn't expect Bronie to be such a man of action.

Fortunately, the bar was still open, and there were no customers so far. Probably because it had been closed for too long, so the mercenaries didn't know the opening hours yet.

Thinking it would only be three days, she didn't expect it to take so long to come back. So with no one in the shop and no work, Cioara had plenty of time to chat with Bronie.

Bronie, dressed in a work uniform, exuded an indescribable competence from head to toe, looking like she had done this job before. And she was flawless in mixing drinks. Who knows why such a small kid is so familiar with mixing drinks.

But now that she think about it, when Bronie said she was a genius, it seems to be true.

"So have you figured out what kind of game you want to make?"

"Yes, human exploration of life is always accompanied by an inevitable topic, which is death, isn't it?"

"Hmm... Your words remind me of a friend who talks incoherently all day."

Cioara didn't interrupt Bronie's enthusiasm, but let her continue. Because she sensed that Bronie's motivation to make games actually came from her concern for that friend she thought of.

"Sometimes, a story, an experience, a touching song, or a shocking painting can all become a turning point for a person. And games, like these things, can bring joy to others and inspire them."

"Hmm... I understand your idea, but isn't it very expensive to do this? Do you need investment?"

Since Bronie has decided to do it, and this idea really reminds Cioara of the game called "Undertale", it's fair to say that what Bronie said is correct.

"Normally, making a game is often not the work of one person. Whether it's music or art, these things usually need to be outsourced. Do you have any channels? If not, then I'll have to do it myself."

"I've never seen you so proactive at work before. And where did you get this laptop?"

"I develop games to create value for myself, not to work for others and create value for them. Of course, I'm more proactive in getting things done!"

As her small hands tapped on the keyboard, making crisp sounds, Cioara couldn't help but feel that Bronie was really quite peculiar. Something about her background seemed off, her abilities were unusual, and her reasons for being here were equally puzzling.

As Bronie clicked on "New Folder" and then renamed it, he typed out a few large words: "Spiritfarer."

"Are you truly considering investing in me?" Bronie looked at Cioara, seeking confirmation once again. What had started as a joke now took on a serious tone.

With not much else to occupy her time, Cioara thought investing in a game could help pass the time. Perhaps it was due to the influence of "Undertale" that Cioara still had a somewhat positive attitude towards games. It didn't matter if the game was simple; the core was still important.

So Cioara said,

"If I'm going to invest, you should at least create a presentation, right? If I don't even know what I'm investing in, then my money will go down the drain, won't it?"

"That's true. It's my first time making a serious game, so I'm not very familiar with the process. Once I finish the proposal and we make some progress with the game, I'll give you a proper presentation."

Bronie's assurance only fueled Cioara's suspicions further.

Was she really the intruder in Elysian Realm?

Why did she suddenly have such about it thoughts?

In the end, Cioara shook her head. Perhaps she was just overthinking things.

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Poll at patréon for new 2 fics for May and June.