NOVEL NEXT Chapter 44: Chapter 43: Unexpected Guest
Zaboru's black-lidded eyes widened in disbelief. He had expected Akechi and Ayumi to visit, but not this person—their sister, the infamous Asumi Hamazou! Before he could react, Ayumi lunged forward and wrapped him in a tight hug.
"Haha! Zaboru-chan, long time no see! I can't believe you never tried to contact me secretly~" she teased, her hands shamelessly roaming over his body.
"U-Umm… A-Asumi-san!?" Zaboru stammered, trying to pry himself free, his face turning crimson.
Ayumi, her face burning with embarrassment, shouted, "Nee-san!! You promised not to do this! You swore you'd behave if you came with us!"
Akechi stood to the side, observing with an awkward expression, unsure whether to intervene. Meanwhile, Asumi simply grinned, finally letting go of Zaboru, but not before playfully ruffling his hair.
"Ohhh? Did I say that? My bad~" she mused, feigning innocence. Then, flashing a sly smirk at Ayumi, she added, "You're just jealous, aren't you? If you don't want me to steal your man, you better make him yours quick. Otherwise, I just might, you know~"
Ayumi grit her teeth in frustration. "Nee-san, stop talking nonsense!!"
Akechi sighed and finally stepped in. "That's enough, Asumi. You're making everyone uncomfortable. You promised to behave, so keep your word."
"Tch, nii-sama is as strict as ever," Asumi pouted but ultimately relented, casually strolling around the office. She made her way to Zaboru's refrigerator, grabbed a canned soda without asking, and plopped down into a chair, cracking it open with a satisfied sigh.
Zaboru let out a tired exhale and turned to Akechi and Ayumi. Akechi, as stoic as ever, had the faintest trace of discomfort on his face, while Ayumi looked apologetic.
"I'm really sorry, Zaboru," she said, bowing her head slightly. "She insisted on coming because she was curious about where we were going… She promised to behave, though…"
"I'm a good girl here~" Asumi chimed in from her seat, lifting her soda can in a mock toast.
Zaboru sighed again, rubbing his temple. 'How can siblings be so similar yet so wildly different?' he wondered. "Anyway, welcome, you three. Feel free to grab a drink from the fridge—just like Asumi-san over there."
Asumi raised her can. "Mmm~ this is the best cheap soda for peasants~"
"Nee-san! That's rude!" Ayumi scolded, glaring at her older sister.
Asumi merely shrugged in response.
Zaboru decided to ignore the banter and turned to Akechi. "So, this week, I made two games for you. They're not as advanced as Final Fight, but I think you'll still enjoy them."
At the mention of Final Fight, Akechi's eyes lit up. "Zaboru, who is Zabo-man? Why does he keep appearing in all your games?"
Ayumi eagerly nodded. "Yeah, he's everywhere! Sometimes he's an enemy, sometimes an ally, and sometimes even a boss! When we finished Final Fight with a high score, we were shocked to find a hidden boss even stronger than the final boss—Zabo-man!"
Zaboru grinned proudly. "Yeah, I wanted to create a recurring character—something for players to look forward to in every game."
Akechi, who had been given his own ZEPS last Sunday, suddenly said, "Zaboru… I want my own character in some of your games too."
Zaboru frowned slightly. "I don't think I can do that, Akechi-san. I don't just insert characters randomly beyond easter eggs."
"I'll pay you two million yen," Akechi countered without hesitation.
Zaboru was momentarily stunned but quickly shook his head. "Sorry, Akechi-san. I can't do that. My games are my creations—they're precious to me. If I start changing them just for money, then they won't be my games anymore."
Akechi pouted slightly but quickly returned to his neutral expression. "Fine then. Let's check out the new games."
With that, Akechi and Ayumi powered up the ZEPS and started playing Punch-Out. The two quickly became engrossed, enjoying the unique mechanics. Meanwhile, Asumi sipped her soda and watched from the sidelines with mild curiosity.
After a while, Akechi switched to Hang-On, a colorful motorcycle racing game. Unexpectedly, Asumi's interest was piqued. "Whoa! This looks so cool!" she exclaimed, her eyes sparkling.
Asumi had always loved motorcycles, and her enthusiasm showed. She practically wrestled the controller from Akechi, much to his annoyance, and started playing eagerly.
"I didn't expect that…" Ayumi murmured in surprise.
Zaboru chuckled. "People have different tastes. You can't expect everyone to love or hate the same games—it's all about preference."
Ayumi nodded thoughtfully, taking the lesson to heart. Then, she turned to Zaboru. "Zaboru, I've been working on my game. It's about 65% complete now, but I'm stuck. I want enemies to ricochet off walls when hit, but I can't seem to implement it properly. Can you help?"
Zaboru's interest was piqued. "Hoo? Ricocheting, huh? That's a pretty advanced mechanic. But actually, it's similar to jumping mechanics. You just need to tweak it—add a function so that if the enemy is blasted into a wall, they bounce off instead of stopping. It's all about adjusting the hit detection and assigning a proper reaction to it."
Ayumi's eyes widened. "Why didn't I think of that?! I'll try my best to implement it!"
Zaboru nodded. "Keep at it, Ayumi!"
She smiled, but then her mood dropped slightly. "I've been working on this game for months, and it's still only 65% done… Meanwhile, you've made so many games since we met. Is it because I suck, or are you just insanely talented?"
Zaboru smirked. "To be honest, you're pretty good, Ayumi. But compared to me? I'm just built different."
Ayumi laughed. "Yeah, maybe! Haha!"
Meanwhile, Asumi and Akechi continued bickering over the controller, both fully invested in Hang-On. After a few more hours of gaming, the Hamazou siblings finally prepared to leave. Before heading out, Akechi handed Zaboru a fat stack of cash—600,000 yen.
"These two games were worth every yen," Akechi said simply.
Zaboru took the money with a grin. "Thanks for your business, Akechi-san."
After they left, he stretched in his chair, grinning ear to ear. "600k, get!"
To be continued…