After Zaboru went ho, he quickly rushed to his office and began brainstorming ways to earn more money within the next two months.
"How should I make money... sigh. The 2 million yen I earned from selling my arcade ZAS to Toki-san and Satonaka-san isn't nearly enough. I still need to pay my employees, cover bills for my company, pay for advertisents for my ZEPS... aghh." Zaboru groaned in frustration but quickly cald his mind. "Should I look for an investor? But I still want 100% ownership of my company... Company, my ass. I haven't even made it official yet. ZAGE is still in the process of becoming a full-fledged company, and I still need a product to sell—which I don't even have!"
He let out a deep sigh. "Well, it is what it is. For now, let's complete two gas this week. After that, I'll figure out the money problem."
With that, Zaboru turned his focus to his computer, working tirelessly on creating new gas for his ZEPS console. He had already developed a new ZEPS unit for his office, allowing him to test his creations in real-ti.
Seven days passed. Now it was Saturday.
In that ti, Zaboru successfully recreated two iconic gas from his previous life. Thanks to his Deep Dive mory ability, he could recall the exact gaplay chanics of two of his favorite childhood gas: Excitebike and ga Man! Both were legendary titles in his past life, and now, through his hands, they would be introduced to this new world.
Currently, he was playing Excitebike, testing out the chanics.
"Haha! This ga is always fun! I really like it. And ga Man is great too."
As he lost himself in nostalgia, a voice suddenly called out from the office entrance.
"Pardon the intrusion."
Zaboru raised an eyebrow. "That sounds like... Ayumi?"
Sure enough, Ayumi Hamazou and Akechi Hamazou stepped into his office.
"Wow, Zaboru! This place is starting to look like a real office already! And you have five PCs now? Aren't you tight on budget?" Ayumi remarked, looking around in surprise.
Zaboru scratched his head. "Oh, hello, Akechi-san, Ayumi. And yeah, four of these PCs are actually my dad's. He said they weren't being used in his office, so I took them. Anyway, co in, co in. Unfortunately, I can't sell ZEPS yet."
He led them to the main office space, still sowhat ssy with scattered papers and notes. However, what caught both siblings' eyes was the television screen displaying Excitebike in action.
"Zaboru! Is that a new ga for ZEPS!?" Ayumi gasped excitedly.
She quickly approached the console, while Akechi's eyes widened in intrigue. Without hesitation, Ayumi picked up the controller and started a new ga, her curiosity getting the best of her. anwhile, Zaboru went to prepare drinks for his guests.
"How do I play this?" Ayumi asked.
Zaboru returned with the drinks and explained, "Use the D-pad to control your bike and navigate the track. Avoid obstacles like potholes and bumps. Press the X button to accelerate, release it to brake, and press the O button to activate Nitro for a speed boost—but be careful! It consus a lot of fuel."
Ayumi suddenly noticed sothing different. "Hey... this controller isn't like mine! The buttons aren't labeled 1 and 2; they have X and O instead. Is this a new design, Zaboru?"
Zaboru nodded. "Yeah, it's cool, right?"
Ayumi grinned and continued playing. anwhile, Akechi was intently watching her gaplay, his expression full of eagerness. After a couple of minutes, Ayumi noticed her brother staring too much.
"Nii-sama, do you want to try?"
Akechi nodded imdiately and took the controller. As expected, he quickly beca engrossed in the ga, his focus sharpening as he maneuvered through the track. Ayumi sighed, taking a sip of the cold soda Zaboru had given her.
"So, what's the other ga, Zaboru?" she asked.
"It's called ga Man. It's similar to Mario, but instead of jumping on enemies, the main character is a kid robot who blasts enemies with his arm cannon. Plus, he can gain new abilities as he progresses. I made this version even better by adding extra power-ups," Zaboru explained proudly.
"Wow! That sounds aweso! I want to try it later," Ayumi said, excited.
Soon after, Akechi, still eager for more, switched over to ga Man and started playing. His attention was completely absorbed by the ga. Ti passed, and before anyone realized it, an entire hour had gone by.
"Nii-sama! I know you like gas, but I want to play too!" Ayumi complained.
Akechi's eyes widened as he glanced at the clock. "What?! I've been playing for an hour!?" Reluctantly, he handed the controller over to Ayumi, still visibly captivated by the ga.
Zaboru chuckled, but then Akechi suddenly turned to him with an intense look.
"W-what is it, Akechi-san?"
Akechi spoke in a firm tone. "I want these two gas."
Zaboru hesitated. He had already planned his first batch of gas for sale, dividing 800 cartridges among Pac-Man, Mario Bros., Super Mario Bros., Donkey Kong, and these two new gas.
"Umm, that might be a problem, Akechi-san..."
"You promised that I could buy new gas as soon as they were ready!" Akechi countered.
Zaboru scratched his head. "Yeah, but these aren't ready yet. They're not for sale yet, Akechi-san..."
Akechi imdiately responded, "I'll pay 600,000 yen for both of them."
Zaboru's eyes widened. "S-Six hundred thousand yen!?"
Ayumi sighed. "You've been having financial troubles lately, haven't you, Zaboru? ZEPS isn't even in full production yet, and I bet you still need a lot of funds to make sure everything runs smoothly, like hiring employees and all that."
Zaboru hesitated but nodded. Akechi continued staring at him.
"So how about this, Zaboru? 600,000 yen for both gas. If you can create more before the ZEPS launch, I'll buy those, too. I want exclusive access to gas before they go public."
Zaboru's mind raced. 'This is practically early access... but the price is insane! Still, Akechi is loaded...'
After a mont of thought, he responded, "How about this, Akechi-san? I accept your offer—300,000 yen per ga. But I'll extend the deal: after ZEPS officially launches, if I or my company create new gas or consoles, you'll get all of them for free... for life. It's the least I can do for what you're doing for ."
Akechi's eyes widened in surprise. Free gas and consoles for life? It was an insane deal, but he could see Zaboru's sincerity and pride behind the offer. He smirked slightly. "Deal, Zaboru."
Ayumi smiled at the transaction and continued playing ga Man again. After three more hours of gaming, the Hamazou siblings bid farewell. Akechi would deliver the paynt next week, and if Zaboru made more gas within the next two weeks, Akechi would likely buy them as well.
As they left, Zaboru sat in his office, staring at the ceiling.
"Did I just land the best side job ever...? Or is this even a side job at all?"
Either way, he knew one thing for certain—he couldn't just make low-quality gas and expect Akechi to keep paying. He had to create sothing truly worth the price. And with that thought, he began planning his next ga.
To be continued...
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