Pokémon, but cultural invasion.

Lika was not elated by the players' overwhelming victory.

In her view, this only corrected some misconceptions, or perhaps not at all; it just made the players' voices louder.

But none of that matters anymore.

Now that the stage play has come to an end, has Izumi's studio returned to the right track of making games?

She is looking forward to the studio's next project.

To avoid repeating the same mistake, Rika made sure to inquire about the reservation of the trial qualification well in advance.

The method was also quite crude—spending money.

The effects are immediate.

She didn't feel bad about spending the money, firstly because the amount was small, and secondly because the previous crowdfunding had already proven that the studio would use the funds for game development.

For Lijia, spending money to improve her gaming experience was well worth it.

She was overjoyed when she received the reply that she could try it out.

Perhaps at that moment, Lijia never imagined that every slogan she posted on her account would soon become a boomerang that would hit her head with deadly accuracy.

"However: Boss, you released the first walkthrough video for 'Plant Life,' so will you ever make a walkthrough challenge for another game in the countryside?"

In a good mood, Lijia replied to a comment, which was unusual for her.

"Yes, and the completion speed will be faster than you think."

Chapter 47 I Want to Check the Cards

The screen is divided into hundreds of small squares, each running a game scene at a different progress.

"I need to have my license checked."

Izumi lay half-reclined in front of the computer, waiting for the results of the Polygon simulation.

Shortly after the official release of Plants vs. Ghosts, he discovered something strange.

Logically speaking, bugs are an unavoidable part of any game development process.

Even games that have undergone several rounds of testing often have numerous bugs on their first day of release.

Digital Alloy's after-sales service also includes free hotfixes after the game's release.

Strangely, despite the official launch of Plants vs. Ghosts and its being played by tens of thousands of people, there were very few bugs reported by players.

The number of bugs is so low that it's only in the single digits, and the bugs aren't caused by the game itself, but rather by incompatibility between the game and other running software.

This was something Izumi couldn't understand.

In his understanding, no matter how rigorous a game is checked, there will always be some loopholes hidden in the background, which cannot be discovered without a large number of running samples.

A game without bugs shouldn't exist in the world.

Digital Alloy provides him with very short lead times for each code prototype, making it impossible for him to spend a lot of time on simulation.

They never made any corrections to the code they sent before, as if they had complete confidence.

This is also something that Izumi-ki finds incredible.

Although code is typed by programmers, the creation of the program, how lines of code will be combined and how it will ultimately run, is a complete mystery to the creator.

Quanshu couldn't imagine that anyone could write a string of code that wouldn't make a mistake even if it were stacked and run with stable and high efficiency.

Unless... he can guarantee that every single character he types from the very beginning is absolutely correct.

Just like an exam paper, only those who know the answer key will not make any mistakes or scribbles when they write.

Thinking about it carefully, this is a bit scary; even the Porygonians don't have this ability.

The running game squares stop simultaneously, the cartoon Porygonian image sways left and right, and text appears in the dialogue box:

The code has no problems.

[Continue testing?]

"No more testing needed. That concludes today's work."

Quanshu waved his hand.

There were no error reports after thousands of simulations, so there was no point in continuing to run them.

He even suspected that the final code, like Plants vs. Ghosts, was the legendary, error-free perfect code.

The screen's faint light dimmed, but this time, the Porygonian didn't leave immediately as usual.

The black and white dialog box flickered.

What is the meaning of work?

This is... a question from Polygon?

Quanshu, who was about to disembark, had no idea that it would think about such a question; in some ways, it was much smarter than its own Salt Stone Treasure.

Considering that this polygonal beast had helped him many times.

Izumi, who was about to say "Let's go to the dock and get some fries," swallowed the words that were on the tip of her tongue.

"For human beings, work is essential for independent survival. It not only provides a material foundation but also allows them to gain a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction from their work."

Quanshu frankly stated, "Society needs different divisions of labor, in which people enjoy the services provided by others, so adults who do not work are seen as outcasts."

"Whether it's voluntary or forced, people still have to work. As for the meaning of it, I don't really know either."

He is not a philosopher, he does not understand profound and complex theories, nor is he a sociologist, he cannot unravel the patterns like peeling back layers.

He couldn't answer the question posed by the multifaceted beast.

The dialog box refreshed again.

Do Pokémon need to work too?

The spring and the trees remained silent.

This issue does not necessarily mean that the multi-faceted beast is being exploited or has become bored with its work.

It was simply contemplating the reasons for its work.

He found the service reward feature on the job recruitment website and paid a small tip.

"You did a great job today. Go buy something you like from your trainer."

Finding a favorite barbecue restaurant after a long day of work is a small pleasure that Quanshu finds while working.

【Thanks.】

The cartoon image of the Porygon pauses on the screen, as if it is thinking.

Then it gradually shrank and disappeared.

The computer desktop returned to normal, and Quanshu glanced at the brownish-yellow game icons.

With the game itself completed, the next step is to consider how to market and distribute it.

"With 'The Little Mermaid' having just premiered, isn't it too much to promote this game so heavily? Won't that attract too much hatred?"

He needs to consider his personal safety, so he should choose a more low-key way to release the information.

Although he had chosen a shield in advance.

...

What is the meaning of work?

On the other side of the sea, the same question popped into the head of a certain Pokémon.

Zuvuch Manor, Mt. Greenmoon City, Hoenn Region.

A group of blue-green quadrupeds were in a specially designed large room, their bodies covered with a layer of illusory pink iridescence.

Under the violent output of psychic power, the keyboards of more than twenty computers around were clattering incessantly.

"Boss, why do we have to work?"

The giant metal monster in front of machine number 18, despite its metallic face, had a sorrowful expression.

The super neural network, composed of four brains, allows them to communicate with each other even when performing computationally intensive tasks.

Signals are transmitted between magnetic local area networks that they form with each other.

"Because you haven't finished paying off the loan you took out on the shopping app last month by the 18th, it will be overdue tomorrow."

"If the collection text messages are sent to your home and Young Master Daigo finds out, you're dead."

The leader's words were widely accepted by the other Metagross monsters.

"That's right, that's right. Number 18, you went too far by overspending. If this affects everyone's freedom to access the internet in the future, not only the boss, but I will be the first to kill you."

Sensing the other party's number, Number 18 became unusually angry.

"Number 17, how dare you talk to me like that? If you hadn't been spending a fortune on this trashy game, you wouldn't be working with me at this hour!"

The emergence of a pair of brilliant minds within their tribe has given the leader, Megalomon, a real headache.

Their population lives on the Zvoch Estate and has no worries about food and resources.

However, some requests are not allowed.

For example, number 17 likes to spend money on in-game purchases in mobile games, and number 18 likes to buy some trendy but meaningless junk items online.

It's said that it's not allowed, but actually the leader is too ashamed to report it to the manor's steward.

This led to the idea of ​​pretending to be an internet service company online to earn extra money.

All members of the community were very satisfied after it was put into practice.

Everyone has little hobbies they don't want others to know about, and having a secret stash of money is one way to improve happiness.

However, some money-grubbing individuals have gone even further, even resorting to loans.

Metagross Number 18 bought a large ship, but doesn't know where to put it on the estate.

Number Seventeen imitates humans in the game, recruiting soldiers and engaging in a protracted war with the opposing faction.

The company defaulted just before the repayment date.

In order to pay off the debt as soon as possible, the leader recently raised the prices of all services.

"Hopefully, this won't affect the studio's business."

Those two good-for-nothings should really be kicked out of the manor and sent out into the wild to suffer.

There is no problem with Chapter 48.

The game is so complete that it could be released directly, let alone tested.

But there's no rush. Izumi sent the game's content via email to the donors who wanted to try it out in advance.

Although there was only one player who tried it out, who knows?

The next day, he went to Yuhong City.

"This is... Yuhong."

I heard that in the past few days, a group of enthusiastic fans have been inquiring about him in places like Hualan and Shenhui.

Quanshu decisively chose to run away; as you know, he has never accepted stalker fans.

He never appeared in Yuhong City, and wearing a hat meant he didn't have to worry about being recognized by passersby.

But as the Hua Lan stage play continues to be performed over the next two days, more and more people in Kanto will remember his name.

I'm afraid even Yu Hong won't feel at ease staying here for another couple of days.

As a bustling metropolis second only to Goldenrod City, Yukiho boasts the largest chain department store in the entire Kanto region—Yukiho Department Store.

It is on par with the Shizuoka Department Store in the Hoenn region.

Besides its renowned department store, Gyoko is also home to the largest arcade in the Kanto region.

This is also one of the reasons why Quanshu chose Yuhong.

However, due to residents' concerns that the game center would damage Yuhong City's image, there has been less and less publicity about Yuhong Game Center in recent years.