Game Creator in a New World

While chatting with Bella, John scratched his head absentmindedly, feeling somewhat helpless about the situation. He had completely miscalculated the timing.

Mystery jackpot? Initially, John had planned for the mystery prize to be a Devil Fruit from the pirate game he was designing. It was meant to serve as the ultimate prize for the Minecraft module collection contest and double as an advertisement for One Piece. But with the game not yet completed, the timing didn't align as planned.

John quickly replied, "Have the cash bonuses been distributed?"

"Yep! The financial team handled that. We're just waiting for your mystery prize, boss!" Bella replied, teasing him slightly.

John knew that although he often kept things vague, the team was efficient and capable. He responded, "I can either give you a powerful item in the new game, or if you don't want to wait, I can give you 10 million Dragon Coins instead."

"Wait, the mystery prize is worth 10 million Dragon Coins?! 😳" Bella was clearly taken aback, expressing her surprise with a series of shocked emojis.

John smirked. "To me, it's worth a fortune, but you might not think so. Your call."

According to John's in-game currency exchange, 10 million Dragon Coins equaled one billion Berries, which was a fair price for a Devil Fruit in the One Piece universe. But the fruit he was offering wasn't just an ordinary one—it would have exceptional abilities, making it a priceless reward.

"I'll have to discuss this with Sarah and the rest of the team," Bella replied, hesitating. After all, she had entered the competition as part of the Edge Horizon team, so the decision wasn't hers alone.

"No rush. I won't give out the reward until the game's finished. Focus on the work you're doing with Identity V for now," John reassured her, smiling. After that, he returned to working on his pirate game with renewed focus.

John hadn't intended to stay up late, but after seeing that someone was profiting off a knockoff version of his unfinished game, he couldn't help but work faster, wanting to release the real One Piece game as soon as possible.

In the next room, the Edge Horizon team was just as surprised when Bella shared her conversation with John.

"Look at this! These are the boss's exact words. See, I told you it was worth entering the contest!" Bella said proudly, smiling with satisfaction.

"A prize worth 10 million?" Sarah Evans, the team leader, looked amazed.

"Yup! I said it was the right move to join!" Bella grinned as she asked, "So, what do we choose?"

"The boss said we have to wait until his game is done. I think the prize will be tied to One Piece," Olivia Su mused. "What if it's a voucher for 10 million in-game currency?"

"Maybe the boss is preparing a pay-to-win scenario?" Olivia's guess, while off-target, made Sarah shake her head.

"Not necessarily. Remember when the boss mentioned added value? I think it's something unique—like a rare Pokémon," Sarah speculated.

The information John had shared with them only covered the basics of the One Piece universe—the world map, factions, and so on. There was no mention of Devil Fruits, so the team was in the dark about the true nature of the prize.

"Something like a dragonite?" one of the others wondered aloud, thinking of the current prices for rare Pokémon in the Second World game. Rare Pokémon often sold for hundreds of thousands or even millions, and pay-to-win players were always ready to spend.

"The boss is serious about this," Bella said, a little pouty. "No matter how much I ask, he won't tell me anything."

"Well, we'll just have to wait for him to finish the game. I trust him," Olivia said confidently.

"Me too. Let's go with the mystery prize," Sarah agreed. "Besides, it's not like we're short on cash."

"And if we ever need money, we can always ask the boss for it!" one of them chimed in, lightheartedly.

Their decision was unanimous: they'd wait for the mystery prize.

Three days later, under John's determined pace, the One Piece game was finally complete.

There was no need for an internal test; if there were bugs, the system would notify John and allow him to fix them during development. Some settings might be slightly off, but that could only be ironed out with public feedback once the game went live.

With the hype already brewing, thanks to the Edge Horizon team hinting at the mysterious 10-million-Dragon-Coin prize and John's upcoming game, excitement for One Piece grew even more.

Of course, the knockoff One Piece World tried to ride the wave of this excitement, making a last-minute cash grab.

John logged into the Dragon Kingdom game platform and uploaded the completed One Piece. The game approval process in this world was fairly relaxed, and with John's status as a tenth-level virtual game designer, the game was quickly cleared for release.

Finally, it was time for the players to set sail.

A/N: Thanks for reading and Donate some power stones for extra chapters.

Check out my Patreon to read up to chapter 50: Patreon.com/AncestorX

Enjoy ✌️!