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Chapter 232: Tsubaki's Request
The sight of her singing on the screen was akin to an angel, captivating everyone as they held their breath, all ears attuned to her voice.
Unlike the first title song, "Please Hold Me," this song carried a completely different vibe. It felt like Tsukaki was bidding both a first and a final farewell to everyone present in this place.
Gradually, as her song concluded, she lifted her head to meet the audience, speaking in her usual tone.
"Hello. I'm Sawano Tsukaki, playing the role of Tsukaki Sawano, the virtual idol of Virtuoid. I apologize for greeting you through the screen today."
On the screen, she seemed short of breath, clutching her chest briefly, taking a moment to steady herself.
"Though the day you all came to see our performance, I was admitted to the hospital soon after. I want to get better soon and stand on stage confidently with my colleagues. Will you all be there then too?"
Did her question reach the audience?
Her eyes, now large and moist, started pooling with tears.
"Thank you. Thank you all"
She bowed repeatedly to the users seated in the audience, brushing her fallen hair back as she smiled.
But despite singing only one song, her cheeks were already flushed, and beads of sweat trickled down her neck and forehead, clearly indicating that Tsukaki wasn't in the best condition.
"Is she really okay?"
Though anxious, recalling Tsukaki's face, long-awaited for this day, I couldn't simply stop the live performance here.
"I've arranged for a doctor just in case something happens. If anything goes wrong, we can handle it promptly."
At that moment, she spoke to the audience through the screen again.
"Now, the next song for all of you"
Surely, Tsukaki wouldn't attempt to sing Sheryl's song in this situation, would she?
Although it would undoubtedly be a special performance if she were in perfect condition, tackling a powerful Sheryl song with her current condition seemed a bit challenging.
But the collaborator she named turned out to be an unexpected surprise, defying everyone's expectations.
"No way, really?"
"Oh, this feels entirely new!"
The users present at the scene instantly understood her intention and cheered towards the screen. At that moment, another person appeared behind Tsukaki.
With brown short hair, she sat on a chair placed on stage, delicately placing her guitar on her lap.
"Kanna?"
Unexpectedly, as the audience was about to erupt into excitement at Kanna's sudden appearance, she and Tsukaki locked eyes. Strumming the opening chords of Tsukaki's debut song, "Cheering Song," Kanna began playing her guitar.
"Dear you, it's been such a tough day"
Smiling at each other during the song, even the users in the audience began to enjoy their live performance with warm hearts.
"Hmm, I had planned for a heroine duet live later"
However, looking at the two on the screen, it felt much more natural than if it had been staged forcibly.
Kanna's surprise appearance caused a stir in the audience momentarily, yet Tsukaki's rendition of the cheering song, heard through her voice, brought a different feeling compared to Erica's version. Users found themselves enjoying the performance of both these girls.
"I will always cheer for you"
As the song ended, everyone in the audience stood up, applauding and cheering for the two singers.
Whether the applause from the audience was heard by them through the screen or not, tears streamed down the cheeks of Tsukaki and Kanna, holding hands on the screen.
---
After the second Virtuoid live performance ended, the showdown between Tsukaki and Sheryl garnered immense popularity among gamers, making it challenging to determine the superior performance.
Tsukaki's stage, collaborated with Kanna, was splendid. Yet, Sheryl, with her powerful charisma, managed to captivate fans with her dazzling performance and vocal prowess.
"Looking at this, we can say that Virtuoid has successfully established itself in the new genre market."
Reviewing the sales graph of Virtuoid in the meeting room, CEO Kawaguchi nodded with a satisfied smile.
With two months of sales trends, Virtuoid, among the software released by Pentagon Soft, had achieved record-breaking sales figures, firmly securing its place as the top title that propelled not only the software but also the complete Laon and portable Laon to greater heights.
But what's even more daunting about Virtuoid is that there are still seven remaining unreleased character candidates
"If this popularity continues, someday I might even stage the dream concert of an idol singer at the Tokyo Dome," a sudden thought crossed my mind.
"Then, with that, I'll conclude the sales report for Virtuoid idols."
Mr. Hayashi, the head of the second development team, politely bowed to the staff gathered in the conference room before returning to his seat. At that moment, Mr. Kawaguchi, sitting beside me, turned to Hayashi.
"How was the honeymoon trip with Kaori?"
Having just completed their second live performance, Hayashi and Kaori had spent a week on a honeymoon trip, returning with a slightly sunburnt and gleeful appearance.
Hayashi scratched the back of his head awkwardly, nodding, and the room filled momentarily with congratulatory banter on Hayashi's marriage.
As always, amidst the cheerful atmosphere, the meeting concluded, but Mr. Kawaguchi asked me to stay back separately.
"Junhyuk, would you come to my office for a moment?"
"Ah, yes. Let's go together."
A while later, in the spacious office with a pleasant view alongside Mr. Kawaguchi, I sank into the sofa, relaxing my stiffened neck.
"You seem worn out."
"Yeah, even with a higher position, work doesn't seem to ease up."
"Being occupied without a moment's respite despite the elevated rank means the company is running fairly well, I suppose."
Seemingly fatigued himself, Mr. Kawaguchi rubbed his shoulders and sat across from me.
In his hand was a document, which he slid across the table, breaking the silence.
"So, regarding what you wanted earlier, it's been approved through negotiations with Sensony."
"I see, just when I thought I could finally breathe..."
"No time to relax, huh?"
"Still, better than a long-distance business trip to the States."
"I agree on that front."
"However, how about Mintendo?"
To my query, Mr. Kawaguchi wore a regretful expression, lowering his gaze.
"We tried our best to persuade them, but it was difficult to find common ground with Mintendo."
"Is that so."
"Perhaps it would have been better if Junhyuk went instead of me..."
"No, your presence might have had the opposite effect."
"Yet, it's a bit regretful that Mintendo won't be part of the gaming show."
"Can't be helped. Setting the precedent at this annual event, securing significant players from the start ensures a smoother run in the future."
"I completely agree with that."
"How many companies confirmed their participation?"
"So far, along with us, Sensony, and even NEGA, several major third-party developers expressed their willingness. Around 83 companies are expected to participate, including smaller enterprises."
"The participation rate seems better than anticipated."
"If we successfully conclude this event, the number of participating companies might increase significantly from next year."
Listening to Mr. Kawaguchi, I glanced over the document, wearing a satisfied smile before placing it back on the table.
"Shall we start preparations then? For the first-ever Tokyo Game Show."
"The Game Show... just hearing the title gives an exhilarating feeling."
&
The Tokyo Game Show slated for early December 1995 disappointed numerous gamers due to Mintendo's absence.
The anticipation of witnessing the graphics of the new Super Marigi series and the physical presence of Mintendo 64 mercilessly betrayed gamers' expectations, leading to this evaluation of the inaugural Tokyo Game Show:
"A Game Show without Mintendo is not a true Game Show."
Though Mintendo had indeed revived the gaming industry globally with Family and Super Family, they couldn't be perennially acknowledged as the kings.
They had vacated the throne for too long.
While Sensony, NEGA, and Pentagon were gearing up for their next-gen wars throughout 1995, Mintendo was exceedingly secretive about Mintendo 64.
All that was known was their usage of cartridges instead of CDs.
It was expected to boast the best performance among currently available consoles.
Super Marigi 64 in development for Mintendo 64 was set to revolutionize gaming as we knew it.
But due to the over-hyped advertising by Mintendo in magazines, gamers were starting to question if it was just a damp squib rather than an explosion of excitement.
Sometimes, it's crucial to detonate at the right moment, just like this.
In the special issue of the Fami-Telecom reporting Mintendo's absence, the next page carried this passage:
"The second episode of Dragon Emblem 2 to premiere in the inaugural Tokyo Game Show."
>
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