Game Developer in the World of Anime

Changing into indoor slippers and entering the living room, Utaha immediately noticed Ichin sitting in front of his computer, already immersed in work.

Walking up to him, Utaha playfully poked his cheek and smiled. "After a whole day of classes, you're diving straight into work? You really can't sit still, can you?"

Ichin chuckled, glancing at her. "Class isn't exactly a challenge for us, is it?"

"True," Utaha agreed.

Their casual exchange left Kō Yagami, who was seated at the desk next to Ichin, rubbing her temples. "You two academic elites really love to flex, don't you? Back when I was in high school, I couldn't care less about studying. Drawing was way more interesting, and since I wanted to break into the gaming industry, I started working right after graduation."

"Everyone's talents are different," Ichin said with a smile. "For someone like you, Kō, who has exceptional talent in art and design, diving straight into the workforce makes sense and leads to great results. But for most people, learning as much as they can is always beneficial."

Shinoda Hajime glanced over, curious. "Ichin, with grades as good as yours, which university are you aiming for? Tohoku University? I remember you mentioned you'd stay local for college, right?"

"Yeah, probably Tohoku University," Ichin nodded. "If I have the ability, I'll naturally aim for the best collage. Plus, I'm considering applying for a recommendation to save on test prep time and spend more of it here at the studio."

Shinoda clapped her hands in surprise. "What about you, Utaha?"

"Me? Of course, it's also Tohoku University," Utaha replied confidently. "Though Ichin-kun has taken the top spot in our year, I'm not going to lose so easily. Tohoku University won't be a challenge for me either."

Yun Iijima sighed in admiration. "Tohoku University is no challenge for you… You two really are amazing."

Given Ichin's skill in game development, no one doubted his words. Even if he didn't attend university, his abilities and the success of the game development studio would undoubtedly bring him great achievements.

After all, just one game, Slay the Spire, had already gained traction in the gaming community, with forums both domestically and abroad buzzing about it.

Waving off their praise, Ichin said, "Alright, enough about me. There's still some time before the workday ends—let's keep at it."

With that, he turned to Utaha.

"What about you? I'm working now, so I won't have much time to spend with you."

"No problem," she replied, pointing at an empty desk and computer nearby. "I can work too. Seeing everyone so focused, I can't slack off either."

Pulling out the chair at the empty station, Utaha sat down and took out a USB drive. "If you're all working this hard, I need to start putting in the effort too."

Inserting the USB into the computer, she opened the document for the second volume of her novel and quickly entered her writing flow.

Umiko, coming out of the kitchen with a cup of coffee, noticed Utaha busily working at the computer and asked curiously, "Utaha, what are you working on?"

She walked over and caught sight of the screen, filled with lines of text.

Since everyone in the studio was trustworthy, and Utaha had gotten to know them well over the past few days, she decided there was no need to hide her true identity here.

After typing out a line of text, Utaha chuckled lightly and said, "I'm working on a light novel. The first volume has already been published, and I'm currently writing the second one."

"Wow~~~!"

Umiko widened her eyes and moved closer to Utaha, inspecting the text on the screen. "I don't read many light novels. What genre is it? If it's survival-shooter themed, I might actually check it out."

"There aren't really any novels like that in the industry yet," Utaha said with a slight twitch of her lips. "Mine is more of a youthful romantic comedy. I'm doing my best to write in that direction, and Ichin-kun has given me a lot of useful suggestions."

"Wow, Utaha, you're a writer too? That's amazing!"

Kō Yagami, hearing this, joined in curiously and looked at the screen. "What's the title of your novel? I'll buy it and read it!"

"The Metronome in Love."

"Wait, The Metronome in Love???"

Across the room, Aoba Suzukaze shot up from her seat, exclaiming in shock, "So, Utaha, you're Kasumi Utako?"

Rin Toyama looked at Aoba's reaction with amusement. "Oh my, Aoba, do you like reading that kind of novel? It makes sense, though. Girls your age are bound to have some romantic fantasies."

"That's not it!" Aoba waved her hands in denial, her face flushed. "It's not me—it's Nene! She's been obsessed with The Metronome in Love recently and keeps recommending it to me!"

"Ah, Nene," Rin nodded knowingly. "She's in her second year of college now, right? She's so cute; I bet boys are lining up to confess to her."

"Actually, no," Aoba replied, shaking her head. "You know she's attending an all-girls university, and she doesn't participate in cross-campus mixers or anything like that. She's been pretty focused on her studies lately. I only saw her once during Golden Week. Plus, with Eagle Jump disbanding, I haven't told her yet. I'm worried she'll feel sad when she hears. She's a huge fan of Fairies Story, just like me."

Sakura Nene, Aoba Suzukaze's childhood friend, was currently in university. Last summer, she worked as a temp at Eagle Jump, helping with bug testing for Fairies Story 3.

"You haven't told her yet, huh?" Umiko nodded in understanding. "That girl may be a little scatterbrained, but she truly loves the Fairies Story series. She did a great job as a tester back then. You should tell her. At least she'll know that we're all still working together and can create great games."

Ichin added with a smile, "Yeah, let your friend know. We're having that cooking competition this weekend, right? You could invite her over to join us as a judge or something."

Aoba's eyes lit up with excitement. "Really? I can invite her?"

"Of course," Ichin said with a laugh. "Didn't Utaha bring someone over yesterday? As long as they're trustworthy friends, they're always welcome here."

"Got it!" Aoba said happily. "I'll tell her about it tonight!"

By 6:30 p.m., Ichin dismissed everyone on time. The development of the new game had just begun, so there was no need to rush. Taking things step by step was the priority.

After everyone left, Ichin locked up and headed home, while Utaha also returned to have dinner.

Back in his kitchen, Ichin pulled out his phone and started a video call—to his mom.

...