Green plums cannot become lovers.

The game's protagonist is a boy who transfers to a high school in a small town and joins the astronomy club, which is on the verge of being disbanded, because of his interest in the starry sky.

There, he met three girls with very different personalities.

The plot unfolds at a leisurely pace, the dialogue flows naturally, and the characters are vividly and three-dimensionally portrayed. Akane Akasaka soon discovers that this is more than just a simple romance adventure game.

The story intertwines the pursuit of dreams, letting go of the past, uncertainty about the future, and the delicate and realistic emotional changes between young men and women. The discussions about the starry sky are not just for romance, but also carry the characters' reflections on life, loneliness, and connection.

She had originally intended to quickly skip the dialogue, but she was unknowingly drawn to the words that Shizuka and Kasumigaoka Utaha had polished together. The dialogues didn't deliberately show off their literary talent, but they always managed to precisely touch the softest corners of people's hearts; the inner monologues were unpretentious, full of the confusion and longing of real young boys and girls.

The visuals are impeccable; the collaboration between Marina and Eriri has created a wonderful chemistry—Marina excels at creating scenes full of atmosphere and life, with delicate and gentle brushstrokes.

Eriri excels at capturing the expressions and emotions of her characters, creating characters with lively eyes and rich expressions. Her CG compositions are exquisite, and her lighting and shadow effects are highly atmospheric, especially the several key starry sky scenes, which are magnificent, profound, and breathtakingly beautiful.

And the music for Anwa and Asuka... Akane Kousaka is a professional in the music industry, and she knows all too well the value of these scores. Each piece is not just "pleasant to listen to," but perfectly serves the scene and the emotion. There are cheerful and everyday pieces, tranquil and lonely ones, warm and healing ones, and that theme melody that plays during key plot points and makes your heart tremble.

The music, visuals, and text are seamlessly integrated, greatly enhancing the game's immersion and appeal.

She had planned to play for half an hour, but when her phone alarm went off, she realized she had been immersed in the game for more than two hours.

She turned off the alarm clock and, almost without hesitation, chose to continue.

The story has reached its first crucial turning point. The protagonist must choose which heroine to accompany on an important astronomical observation mission. Akane Kousaka hesitates. She finds herself seriously considering the potential impact of each option, analyzing each character's current psychological state and needs—something she has never done before when playing this type of game.

She chose the quiet girl. The story unfolds gently and delicately, with the two of them adjusting an old telescope together on the deserted school rooftop late at night, waiting for a specific celestial event.

As the conversation deepened, the girl cautiously opened up, explaining why she was so fascinated by the starry sky, yet afraid to express it in front of others. The background music was an extremely gentle piano piece composed by An and Asuka, tinged with loneliness but mostly warm.

When the starry sky in the game was finally clearly displayed in the telescope, the girl let out a soft exclamation, and then whispered, "Thank you for coming to keep me company." Even Akane Akane herself didn't realize that the corners of her mouth had turned up slightly.

The sunlight outside the window had shifted imperceptibly, moving from the east side of the office to the center. Her assistant gently knocked and entered, reminding her that she had a lunch appointment with the publisher. Akane Akane suddenly realized this, glancing at the time in the lower right corner of her computer screen—it was already 1 PM.

She played for almost four hours straight without getting bored or wanting to quit. On the contrary, she was eager to know what happened next, to see how the characters would develop, to hear more of the beautiful music, and to admire more of the exquisite visuals.

This is simply...unbelievable.

"Ms. Kurosaka?" The assistant looked at her cautiously. "The publishing house's guests are already downstairs..."

Akane Akasaka took a deep breath, forcibly pulling her attention away from the game world. She saved her game progress, exited full-screen mode, and the computer desktop reappeared. But the atmosphere of that summer town, the voices and smiles of those characters, and fragments of those melodies seemed to still linger in some corner of her mind, warming slightly.

"I understand." She tried to make her voice as capable and steady as usual. "Please ask them to wait a moment, I'll be right there."

After the assistant left, Akane Kousaka didn't get up immediately. She leaned back in her chair, her gaze returning to the now-closed game icon on the screen, her heart filled with turmoil.

Shocking? Yes.

She was truly amazed by the quality of the work, completed by six high school students in two and a half months. Its completion, technical execution, artistic expression, and narrative quality far exceeded her expectations, even surpassing many of the commercial projects she had worked on.

But more than anything, it was an indescribable...touching feeling.

She's played too many games and read too many stories, developing an almost ruthless business acumen and a sense of aesthetic fatigue. But "Where the Stars Go" is different. It doesn't have dazzling technology, nor does it have any kitschy elements deliberately pandering to the market, nor does it have any formulaic plots based on commercial calculations.

What it possesses is an almost clumsy sincerity—a love for the starry sky, reflections on growth, and a cherishing of the bonds between people, all conveyed without reservation through words, images, and music.

That kind of sincerity has the power to penetrate everything.

She recalled what An and Asuka had said when they left—that "the quality might still be rough"—and couldn't help but feel speechless. This kid was either overly modest, or he had terrifyingly high standards for his team.

This is hardly "rough"! It's clearly a raw stone that shines brightly even before it's been polished! No, it could even be described as a rough gem that has already been partially sculpted!

During lunch, Akane Akasaka seemed somewhat distracted. The publishing house guests discussed the latest market trends and collaboration plans, and although she answered fluently, her thoughts kept drifting back to the game, back to those boys and girls who were working hard in the summer heat.

Do they know what they've created?

Do they know how much touching power is contained in this seemingly "naive" work?

After a hurried lunch and canceling a less important afternoon meeting, Akane Akasaka almost couldn't wait to get back to her office, close the door, and reopen the game icon.

The starry sky unfolds on the screen once more, and the summer breeze seems to blow through the screen.

This time, she was no longer acting as a picky producer, but as a pure "player," immersing herself in the experience.

As dusk settled outside the window, the city lights began to twinkle. The office's main light was off, only the glow of the computer screen illuminating Akane's focused profile. She completely forgot about time and fatigue, following the boy and girl in the game, experiencing their encounter, their growing understanding, their confusion, their arguments, and their reconciliation in that fictional yet incredibly real town, gazing at the stars together, searching for their own individual light.

When the game finally reached an ending route, the ending theme "Beyond Memories" began to play, and the credits started rolling, Akane Akasaka suddenly came back to her senses.

In ten hours, two ending storylines were completed.

She leaned back in her chair, remaining motionless for a long time. The office was silent, save for the low hum of the air conditioner, and the light from the screen flickered in her eyes.

After a while, she picked up her phone, found Anhe Asuka's number, and dialed it.

The call was answered quickly, and a boy's voice came through, tinged with a hint of confusion: "Sister Zhu Yin? What's wrong?"

Akane Akane stared at the frozen ending scene on the screen—a boy and a girl sitting side by side on the dome of the observatory, gazing up at the starry night sky, their silhouettes appearing small yet incredibly resolute under the starlight.

She spoke, her voice slightly hoarse, yet carrying an undeniable firmness:

"Asuka, call your entire team together."

"Come to the company tomorrow, Mr. Yi Lingyin, Chess Dance IX?4, Dad?"

"We need to have a serious talk—about the future of your game."

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone, then An and Asuka responded with a hint of understanding and a smile:

"it is good."

The following morning, before Toyonosaki Academy had even started its classes, the late summer sunlight streamed through the floor-to-ceiling windows of Rouge En Rouge's office, casting large, bright patches of light on the floor.

When An and Asuka led the five girls in, Akane Akasaka was facing the computer screen, her fingertips hovering above the mouse, her brows slightly furrowed, her expression unusually focused.

On the screen, the plot of "Where the Stars Fly" is at a crucial turning point in the second female protagonist's storyline. The background music features a gentle piano melody interspersed with electronic sound effects simulating raindrops, creating an atmosphere that is both slightly melancholic and full of hope.

Akane Akasaka didn't even notice them coming in until Marina couldn't resist peeking curiously at the screen—

"Ah! Akane-nee is playing with this CG I drew!" Marina exclaimed softly.

Akane Akane snapped back to reality and looked up. Her gaze swept over the six people in front of her. The boy stood at the very front, his expression calm yet carrying a barely perceptible hint of anticipation. Behind him, Shizuka and Ai's faces were filled with tension and excitement.

Further back, Kasumigaoka Utaha stood gracefully, her wine-red eyes displaying her usual composure, but her slightly pursed lips betrayed her concern for the outcome. Eriri, on the other hand, turned her face away, her fingers unconsciously twisting the strap of her schoolbag, while her azure eyes couldn't help but steal glances at the computer screen.

"They're all here?" Akane Kousaka closed the game, but didn't exit the game. The game's ending screen froze on a CG of the three heroines standing side by side, gazing at the starry sky—that was the key scene that Marina and Eriri had spent the most time on and revised the most.

She leaned back in her leather office chair, placed her hands on the table, and slowly scanned the faces of the six people.

For a moment, the air seemed to freeze. A gentle breeze, warmed by the constant temperature, blew from the air conditioner vents, ruffling the edges of several documents on the desk. The faint sound of traffic drifted from the distant street.

Then, Akane Akasaka smiled.

It wasn't a formulaic smile from a career woman, but a genuine smile filled with amazement and approval, which even brought out fine lines at the corners of her eyes.

"Sit down." She gestured to the sofa area on one side of the office. "Thanks to you guys, I stayed up all night last night."

Everyone sat down as instructed. The sofa was soft and spacious, but no one truly relaxed.

Akane Akasaka stood up, but instead of immediately going to the sofa area, she strolled to the window and gazed at the Tokyo street scene at the end of the summer night, remaining silent for a moment.

“I’ve finished working on three main storylines.” She spoke with her back to them, her voice calm but each word clear and powerful. “I was working on it until 3 a.m. last night. If I hadn’t had a meeting this morning, I probably would have stayed up all night.”

She turned around, her eyes piercing: "I have to say I underestimated you, not just your abilities, but also the completeness and... impact of your work."

Her evaluation was succinct and straightforward:

"The script is extremely well-made. The 550,000-word text has no obvious padding or redundancy, the transitions are natural and smooth, and the characters are three-dimensional and realistic. Shizuka and Kasumigaoka, your work in emotional description and dialogue polishing has surpassed that of many professional screenwriters."

Shizuka's face flushed slightly, while Kasumigaoka Utaha nodded reservedly, but the slight upturn of her lips revealed her enjoyment.

“The original artwork and visual presentation…” Akane Akasaka turned her gaze to Marina and Eriri, “The exquisite quality, composition, lighting, and atmosphere of the CG have all reached the level of commercial works.”

What's even more remarkable is the consistent yet distinctive art style—Marina's signature slice-of-life scenes blend beautifully with Sawamura's nuanced character expressions. The opening animation's storyboarding and direction even reminded me of some professional animation studios.

Marina chuckled twice, while Eriri turned her face away, but the tips of her ears peeking out from under her hair were slightly red.

“Music and sound effects,” Akane Akasaka looked at An and Asuka, a complex emotion flashing in her eyes—admiration, pride, and a touch of indescribable感慨 (gǎnkǎi, a feeling of deep emotion or reflection). “Twenty original background music tracks, each one perfectly matching the scene and precisely guiding the emotions. Some of the melodies have reached the level of being able to be released as solo singles. Asuka, your talent in music is truly becoming more and more profound.”

"Thank you, Sister Zhu Yin." An Hefei accepted the praise without hesitation.

"As for the overall technical implementation," Akane Akasaka sat back in her office chair, resting her chin on her hands, her eyes sharp, "the program is stable, the UI interaction is smooth, the option branching logic is clear, and the triggering of voice and sound effects is accurate—by the standards of a student team, this can no longer be described as 'excellent,' it's simply 'amazing.'"

Her comments grew increasingly harsh, and the atmosphere in the office gradually shifted from tense to a suppressed excitement. The girls exchanged glances, and the corners of their mouths began to involuntarily turn upwards.

But Akane Akasaka changed the subject: "So, what are your plans next?"

This question surprised everyone.

After a moment's thought, An and Asuka spoke first: "Our initial plan was to upload the game to a doujin game platform like DL and price it at around 3000 yen. After all, it's our first time making a game, so it would be best if we could break even, but if not... we'll just consider it as gaining experience."

His tone was pragmatic, devoid of unrealistic fantasies. This was also the result of numerous internal discussions within the team—if a game made by six high school students could be played and enjoyed, that would be a huge success. They didn't dare to expect too much in terms of commercial returns.

But Akane Kousaka shook her head.

She shook slowly, but resolutely.

“Not enough,” she said, her voice filled with unwavering certainty. “This kind of work shouldn’t be buried among tens of thousands of fan works, selling for only 3000 yen, waiting to be discovered by a chance player.”

She stood up, walked to the whiteboard in the office, picked up a marker, and said crisply, "Listen up, I'm going to overturn your plans."

The pen tip glided across the whiteboard, making a clear "scratching" sound.

"First, pricing. 3000 yen is a serious underestimation of the value of this work. Considering its amount of text, art, music, and overall completion, the standard price for a commercial visual novel should be between 3000 and 20000 yen. Considering that you are a new team, I suggest a price of 4800 yen—attractive without being cheap."

"Secondly, distribution channels. Selling only on DL is a waste. I will contact my connections on major digital distribution platforms. At the same time, we will also produce a physical edition. The limited edition can include the original soundtrack CD, art book, and bonus booklet, priced at 10000 yen. As for physical distribution channels, I will negotiate with some specialty stores to put it on the shelves."

"Third, promotion. Good works need to be seen. I will use Rouge En Rouge's media resources to arrange game media reviews, contact game streamers to do live broadcasts, and do pre-release promotion on relevant forums and communities. Marina and Shizuka, as the original authors, you can also appropriately mention it to your own fan groups."

As she spoke, she wrote down keywords on the whiteboard: pricing, channels, advertising, physical stores, and numbers. Her handwriting was sharp and her thoughts were clear.

The people in the sofa area were completely stunned, staring intently at the whiteboard.

This is completely different from their previously envisioned simple process of "upload, price, wait," and it's not even on the same level.

Akane Akasaka turned around and snapped the marker back into its slot. She placed her hands on the edge of the desk, leaned slightly forward, and looked intently at them.

"Therefore, my suggestion is—"

She paused, making sure everyone was fully focused.

"I invested in this project."

Seven words, clear and powerful, echoed in the quiet office.

"Not as an 'older sister' or as a 'producer'."

Akane Akasaka said each word carefully and seriously, “It is based on the professional judgment of the founder of Rouge En Rouge and a producer with many years of experience in the industry—I am optimistic about the market potential of ‘Where the Stars Fly,’ I am optimistic about the achievements it may make, and I am optimistic about the reputation and revenue it can bring to the company. Therefore, I want to invest in it and operate it as a serious business project.”

She looked at An and Asuka: "Asuka, your team retains all copyright and creative control over the work. Rouge En Rouge, as the publisher and investor, will be responsible for all commercial operations—channel negotiations, production, marketing, and sales logistics. Revenue sharing will be negotiated according to industry standards, and I guarantee you the most favorable terms."

“This isn’t charity, this isn’t favors,” she emphasized. “This is a business deal. I believe your work can make money, that’s why I’m investing. Understand?”

A long silence.

Sunlight moved slowly through the office, making the dust particles floating in the air clearly visible. The faint "ding" of the elevator arriving could be heard in the distance, but time seemed to stand still within the office.

Then, Marina was the first to jump up.

"That's so great!!" Her voice trembled with excitement. "Sister Zhu Yin... thank you so much..."

Neither of them expected things to turn out this way. They had only intended to gain experience with this project, but instead, they were immediately recognized and invested in.

This is undoubtedly the best reward for their hard work over the past two months.

An and Asuka looked at Akane Akasaka and nodded solemnly: "Akane-nee, thank you. We will cooperate well."

"You can't refuse to cooperate even if you want to."

Akane Akasaka laughed, her eyes flashing with a sharp and expectant light. "From today onwards, 'Where the Stars Go' will no longer be just your club's work, but one of Rouge En Rouge's key projects."

She walked to the whiteboard and, at the very bottom of the row of keywords, forcefully wrote a line of large characters:

"Target: 10000 units sold in the first month."

The days that followed felt like they were on accelerator.

With Akane Kousaka's efficient and almost forceful promotion, the commercialization of "Where the Stars Lie" unfolded at an astonishing speed.

The contract was finalized within a week—the team retained all creative rights, Rouge En Rouge obtained exclusive distribution rights, and revenue was split proportionally. The terms were so favorable that Shizuka, who was in charge of the legal terms, checked them several times.

The design and production of the physical edition started simultaneously. Marina and Eriri stayed up all night drawing illustrations and setting materials for the limited edition bonus; Shizuka and Kasumigaoka Utaha selected classic lines and scenes from the game to compile a bonus booklet; and An and Asuka worked overtime to remaster the game's background music and produce an original soundtrack CD.

Xiao Ai became the busiest "logistics manager," coordinating everyone's time, preparing materials, and even learning to help with some simple communication.

The digital version is also being launched in full swing.

The promotional campaign officially launched at the end of August. Game media outlets received review codes, and well-known Galgame streamers received collaboration offers in their inboxes. Carefully crafted promotional posts and discussion threads began appearing on relevant forums and communities. An and Asuka, along with several other girls, also subtly promoted the campaign on their social media accounts.

In early September, a week before the start of the school year at Toyonosaki Academy, the digital version of "Where the Stars Fly" was simultaneously released on platforms such as Steam and DMM, priced at 4800 yen. The physical limited edition was priced at 10000 yen and included bonuses such as an original soundtrack CD, a full-color art book, a special booklet, and miniature merchandise featuring the three heroines.