Chapter 25
“B-Big trouble. Big trouble.”
Hina came running, flustered.
Her eyes were darting around, a clear sign of how panicked she was.
Could there be a bug in ‘Maple Leaf Story’?
“B-Big trouble, Rai. Biiig trouble—”
“What’s wrong?”
“T-The Council has requested our attendance…!”
Hina handed over a trembling piece of paper.
It was a notice requesting the Illusion Magic Tower’s attendance at the Council regarding the agenda they had submitted.
“Oh, so this is how they send it.”
“H-How did this happen—”
It was about the mass production request for the two artifacts, ‘Maple Leaf Story’ and the soon-to-be-released ‘Championship of Legends,’ as well as the recognition of the Illusion Magic Tower’s contribution (for the purpose of tower expansion).
These were the three requests we had submitted to the Council not too long ago.
It seems that for these approvals, the Tower Master of the requesting tower has to personally attend the Council meeting.
“Well, what can we do? I mentioned before that this might happen sooner or later.”
“B-But I… I don’t want to go to the Council…”
“Pardon?”
Hina flapped her hands and started explaining about the Council.
Apparently, all the Tower Masters gather every month to vote on various agenda items.
“But I’ve never seen you attend a Council meeting before.”
“T-That’s because… the Council is scary…”
Normally, Hina should have been attending all this time. It seems she had been avoiding it on her own.
Should we be thankful or sad that no one mentioned her long absence from these meetings?
“Normally, you can bring up to two assistant mages. This time, how about you have Rai attend with you? They’ll probably want to see the artifacts demonstrated as well.”
“That’s a good idea. Let’s go this time, Tower Master. If we don’t, we won’t be able to make money.”
“Hweh…!”
Following Rain’s suggestion, Hina and I ended up attending the regular Council meeting in Trinity.
Moreover, they wanted a demonstration of the artifacts.
It’s possible, but considering the time required for account creation and going through the tutorial, it won’t be short.
The real fun starts after completing the tutorial.
After some deliberation, I ultimately decided to demonstrate ‘Championship of Legends’ at the Council.
At least a single game has a set duration.
Also, mages have a strong sense of accomplishment and competitiveness.
I thought they might enjoy ‘Championship of Legends’ more, as it provides a sense of victory in every match.
And finally, on the day of the Council meeting—
“9 in favour, 21 against. The motion is dismissed.”
It was mercilessly rejected.
Of course, our achievements were not recognized, and the tower expansion was deemed impossible.
“No way…”
“Are the Tower Masters insane?!”
“They’re more closed-minded than I expected. Truly.”
The people of our tower despaired at the news.
I was deeply disheartened as well.
I thought we had a chance, given the immense popularity of ‘Maple Leaf Story.’
But it turns out that Tower Masters are far removed from ordinary humans.
“That’s why we should have let them try ‘Maple Leaf Story’! They would have all agreed then.”
“Should we have…?”
Was my decision wrong?
With the time constraints, I thought the Tower Masters, who were incredibly powerful beings, would be more interested in ‘Championship of Legends’ rather than starting from level 1 in ‘Maple Leaf Story.’
I began to blame myself.
To resubmit a dismissed motion, I need the consent of 10 Tower Masters.
And then, I would need more than half of the votes in favour to get it approved again…
Given that it was already rejected once, it won’t be an easy path.
“Still, if we keep working hard like before, won’t we have another chance once we become more famous?”
Medeia tried to lift the mood.
Medeia herself can’t produce artifacts due to her attribute affinity.
The production team members didn’t look pleased at the prospect.
It wasn’t just that the mages were overburdened.
We couldn’t continue at the current pace.
‘Maple Leaf Story’ is an MMORPG, so even with few users, they can still play.
But ‘Championship of Legends,’ an AOS genre game—commonly known as COL—doesn’t work like that.
It’s a 5 vs. 5 real-time match-based game.
If there aren’t enough users, it will take forever just to matchmake a game.
While we can’t control the hearts of users who choose to play,
At the very least, we must ensure that there’s no shortage of users due to a lack of artifacts.
If COL had been released back in my previous life, when computers were not widespread, it would never have succeeded.
“Still… just securing the number of users alone requires approval… If we want to produce enough artifacts to support the basic number of COL users, it would take at least 3 to 4 years of continuous manual production.”
Upon hearing this, the expressions of the production team grew even more despondent.
There was a limit to how much we could manually produce artifacts.
If we could obtain mass production approval from the Council, we would receive another artifact capable of producing the specific artifacts we need in large quantities.
With that, machines would handle artifact production automatically, removing the need for manual labour.
It would also increase speed, so we wouldn’t have to worry about shortages.
In short, mass production approval is essential for the release of COL.
Of course, the user base for ‘Maple Leaf Story’ is still too small, and considering the long-term need to continually produce artifacts, Council approval is critical.
“Haa… Let’s think about it a bit more for now.”
Everyone returned to their respective rooms.
I went up alone to the top floor, where the server for ‘Maple Leaf Story’ was located.
Staring at the light of the massive maple leaf-shaped artifact, I felt a little more at ease.
“Huh?”
There was already a visitor there.
I was surprised because she wasn’t from our tower.
I could sense an overwhelming mana wave from her.
“…Impressive. I don’t know much about illusion magic, but just the thought of coming up with something like this… It’s almost a waste that you’re just an illusion mage.”
“…Who are you?”
She was wearing the robe of an electric mage.
As she turned around, her hair swayed. Seeing her face, I remembered.
“Electric Tower Master?”
“Yes.”
I didn’t ask how she got in.
There’s no point in questioning a Tower Master about such things.
“What brings you here…”
“…Championship of Legends.”
“Pardon?”
“That artifact. How can I get one?”
“…Excuse me?”
The Tower Master of the Electric Magic Tower is known for her cold and blunt demeanour, despite her beautiful appearance.
I’ve heard that she’s even been labelled as ruthless.
If it weren’t for the established agreements, it’s said that she would use her monstrous strength without mercy.
But somehow, she seemed a bit embarrassed at the moment.
It looked like her cheeks were slightly flushed.
“That artifact… It hasn’t been released yet. The game requires a large number of users. So, I initially planned to release about 100,000 artifacts globally in bulk, but… we’re in a tough spot since the mass production was denied.”
“…100,000 units. So, there’s no way to get even one?”
“There are a few, but you wouldn’t be able to play alone. It’s a 5 vs 5 game. And to enjoy it properly, more users need to be secured.”
“I see… I was too hasty.”
She seemed to understand right away, as expected of a Tower Master.
However, she still wasn’t leaving.
“…Is there something else you want to say?”
“Hm, ahem.”
The expressionless Electra, the Tower Master of the Electric Magic Tower.
Upon closer inspection, it looked like her lips were twitching slightly.
“I, I voted in favour.”
“Pardon?”
“Championship of Legends. I mean, I supported the mass production.”
“Ah… Thank you. But unfortunately, it was still rejected.”
So, Electra was one of the nine people who voted in favour.
I understood that, but she still didn’t move an inch.
She simply continued to gaze at the brightly shining main server of ‘Maple Leaf Story’.
Ah, I need to update this quickly.
Feeling a bit annoyed, I was about to speak up, but realizing her presence, I closed my mouth.
Honestly, she was a bit intimidating.
Unlike Hina, Electra’s image was that of a transcendent ‘Tower Master’ full of majesty.
In the end, I gave up on trying to send her away and started mumbling like a complaint.
“Maybe I was being greedy. Honestly, I thought that if I let them play COL, everyone would find it fun.”
“COL?”
“I mean, Championship of Legends. That’s what we call it for short. Anyway, I thought everyone would enjoy it since they have a strong sense of competition and desire for achievement, but I guess not everyone did.”
“Hmm, that’s true. But it was impossible for everyone to like COL at that time.”
“Pardon?”
Electra turned her head to face me.
Our eyes met, and I couldn’t look away from her electrifying, lightning-shaped pupils.
“It’s true that most mages crave intellectual activities. Their sense of competition and desire for achievement are also historically strong. Furthermore, the strategic elements of COL are certainly something that mages would appreciate. And for us, the Tower Masters, who have reached the peak of accomplishment, that’s even more so.”
“…Then why was it rejected?”
“First, it’s because of the fundamental disregard towards the Illusion Magic Tower. Unless you overcome this deep-seated prejudice that has existed for a long time, the stiffened fingers of the Tower Masters won’t budge.”
I had expected this, but hearing it directly still stung.
The Illusion Magic Tower is still being ignored. Especially among the mages.
“Is there a second reason?”
“One game wasn’t enough for everyone to appreciate COL’s fun.”
“Is that… so?”
“Think about the basic structure. If one side wins, the other side loses. Naturally, half of the participants end up not feeling the joy of victory.”
“Ah…”
It felt like I had been struck in the head.
It was obvious that, after just one game, half of them would be left feeling defeated.
Why didn’t I think of that?
“And the rules of COL aren’t familiar. Even if COL is enjoyable, it’s not easy to grasp all the elements and recognize its value in just one playthrough. Of course, it was easy for me, but not all Tower Masters focused on COL. Let alone those who lost—they probably didn’t retain any interest in COL at all.”
That too was exactly as Electra had said.
In my previous life, COL was also a game with a fairly high entry barrier.
You have to know how the game works and experience a few victories before realizing that COL is an addictive game you can’t quit.
No matter how smart a Tower Master is, it’s impossible to feel all of that in just one game.
I was foolish.
The essence of COL was like that from the start.
How could I think that I could win over the high-and-mighty Tower Masters’ hearts with just one game?
I had become too conceited after the success of ‘Maple Leaf Story’.
I should have been more cautious.
As a developer, I failed to consider something so obvious.
I felt pathetic for foolishly charging at the Council.
“Hah… you’re right.”
I smacked my lips and sank to the floor.
My heavy head naturally hung low.
“I was stupid to think they’d find it fun after just one game.”
“If they try it a few more times, I’m sure they’ll get hooked. At least according to my senses.”
“But the opportunity has already slipped away. I can’t exactly go around asking the Tower Masters to ‘please play it just a little more!’”
“…It’s not that there’s no way.”
“…Pardon?”
I lifted my head, which had been drooping.
Electra’s golden eyes, charged with electricity, were still looking at me.
“Before Trinity was properly established, before the Towers rose up, the schools at that time…”
Still expressionless, Electra began to speak.
The more I listened, the wider my eyes became.
“You mean you want to set the Towers against each other?”
“Yes.”
“Is that… really possible?”
“If my prediction is correct. And my predictions have never been wrong.”
What Electra was suggesting was a tremendous plan that would make the Tower Masters, no— the mages—fall into COL.
—
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