December 2nd arrived, and Northstar Games snapped right back into its usual storm of activity.
The three-day break had helped—at least on paper. In reality, most of the staff came back looking even more energetic than before, as if resting had only made them hungrier to work.
When Daniel finally walked into the office that morning, he was greeted by a crowd of bright-eyed, rosy-cheeked coworkers who looked like they'd already been awake for hours.
"Daniel! Why are you so late today?" someone yelled the moment he stepped through the door.
Daniel narrowed his eyes and spotted the loudest offender—one of the younger team members, Ryan Cole—grinning like he'd just won a prize.
Daniel didn't even answer at first. He rolled his eyes, checked his watch, and spoke in a deep, offended voice.
"Late? You guys are the ones who are too early."
He pointed at the time.
"It's barely after eight. Why are you here an hour and a half early? Are you allergic to your own homes?"
Ryan Cole scratched his head and laughed.
"We were bored at home. Oh—by the way, Daniel, why didn't you come to the Animal Party event last night?"
Daniel walked over and kicked Ryan lightly in the shin.
Then he went straight to the snack corner, poured himself coffee, leaned against the wall, and sighed like a man whose soul had been drained by loud people.
"You were playing with the art team," Daniel said. "If I went, who would give me a seat? I'm not about to stand there like some awkward third wheel."
Ryan nodded seriously like he understood.
"Fair."
Then Daniel's expression sharpened a little.
"Alright. How are the equipment designs going? The stats won't bug out, right?"
Ryan straightened, proud.
"No issues. I checked every single item. All attributes apply correctly after equipping. They're ready for Ethan Reed to review as soon as he arrives. Once he approves it, we can implement everything. I think we can start the first wave of real testing by mid-month."
Daniel nodded while sipping his coffee.
"Good. Don't mess up. Ethan looks exhausted lately. Don't give him extra problems."
The moment Ethan's name came up, both Daniel and Ryan's faces shifted into honest admiration.
How could they not admire him?
Everyone knew Animal Party had been a one-day concept—something Ethan Reed thought of almost casually. And yet that "casual idea" had turned into a monster hit, with single-day sales surpassing 70,000 copies.
That wasn't just success. That was a record.
It had set a new one-day sales high in Skybound's indie game section, and now the weekly forecast looked like it could break 400,000 copies.
If that happened, the future funding for Neon Myth IV would be completely secured.
And it all started because Ethan needed a fast project to generate cash.
To every programmer in the building, Ethan Reed had basically become a legend.
My Ethan… he's ridiculous.
Daniel finished his coffee and returned to his desk.
Even though it wasn't officially clock-in time yet, almost everyone had already started working by choice. There was no complaining, no dragging feet—just keyboards clacking, design boards open, and half-eaten snacks scattered like trophies of war.
Finally, at exactly ten in the morning, Ethan Reed and Vivian Frost walked into the office one after the other.
The group near the door immediately stood straighter.
"Boss, good morning!"
"Chief Planner Ethan, good morning!"
Vivian smiled brightly and returned every greeting with warmth. Ethan simply nodded, moving forward with the calm, tired focus of someone who had slept far less than he should.
As they passed the workstations, Vivian raised her hand and waved to Daniel.
"Oh, Daniel," she said casually, "come to my office in a bit. Ethan and I need to tell you something."
Daniel blinked.
"Okay, Boss."
A few minutes later, the three of them were inside the small office.
Vivian set breakfast on the table. Ethan opened the bag and started eating a simple breakfast wrap like it was the first real meal he'd had in days.
Daniel rubbed his nose.
Yeah… this scene is normal now.
If anything, it had become the most dangerous kind of normal.
Because the entire company—employees, interns, even the cleaning lady—had started whispering the same thing:
That the relationship between Vivian Frost and Ethan Reed was… weirdly close.
Not suspicious in a shady way—just intimate in a daily-life way. Two young people spending every day together, partners in the same company, and the boss bringing him breakfast nearly every morning?
It was basically guaranteed that people would misunderstand.
Daniel had tried to stop the gossip a few times.
But even he couldn't deny it—
He was curious too.
Vivian, totally unaware of Daniel's internal drama, leaned forward with a grin and dropped the real topic like a bomb.
"Steam wants the overseas marketing rights for Animal Party," she announced happily. "So we need to send someone to the U.S."
Daniel's eyes widened.
Vivian continued, speaking like she was delivering a grand mission.
"Ethan and I discussed it. Neither of us can leave right now—we need to stay here and oversee the bigger picture. So as Northstar's third most reliable person, this mission falls to you!"
She finished with a proud boss-like nod, as if she had just promoted him to commander of a fleet.
Ethan nearly choked on his breakfast.
His eyes shifted toward Vivian, full of disbelief.
Because honestly… there wasn't much difference between Vivian being in the company or not being in the company.
She was basically a mascot with authority.
But Ethan didn't say it out loud. He just rolled his eyes and kept eating.
Daniel, meanwhile, was completely moved.
Me? Third most reliable?
He clenched his fist and spoke seriously.
"Overseas business trip? Okay, Boss. If the company needs me, I'll go."
Vivian nodded with satisfaction.
"Good. You can bring two assistants. Food, hotel, travel—everything reimbursed. Eat whatever you want over there. Don't hold back."
Ethan stared at Daniel like he was watching a good-hearted student walk into a trap.
Because since ancient times, when had a programmer team leader been sent abroad to negotiate contracts?
But Northstar was short-staffed, and they needed someone they trusted. That was the reality.
Vivian glanced at Ethan.
"Uh… Ethan, what did Steam say again? Remind me."
Daniel also looked toward Ethan.
Ethan swallowed his food.
"First offer was a 70–30 split," he said. "We take seventy, they take thirty. That's double Skybound's cut, but Steam is a huge platform, so it made sense."
Vivian nodded instantly.
"Then it's fine. Overseas sales are a win-win."
Ethan lifted a finger.
"No. It's not seventy-thirty anymore."
Vivian froze.
"…What?"
Ethan continued calmly.
"It's 60–40 now. After talking with Stephen, I gave them an extra ten percent."
Vivian's face turned into pure confusion.
"Why didn't you tell me last night?"
Ethan looked at her like she had asked the strangest question in the world.
"Didn't you say I was in charge? Isn't that how we've always done things?"
Daniel stood there silently, but his smile started drifting into something uncontrollable.
They were clearly discussing business…
So why did it sound like a couple bickering comfortably?
I'm a grown man. I can find my own sweetness in this conversation. Please continue. Don't mind me.
Vivian coughed, slightly embarrassed.
"…Okay. I did say that."
She didn't press further, because honestly, her mindset was simple:
Without Ethan, Northstar would've collapsed long ago.
Now the company had revived, and it was mostly because Ethan kept making miracles happen.
So Vivian's rule had become:
Whatever Ethan wants to do—support it.
Still, Ethan volunteered an explanation.
"That extra ten percent is for Steam to build and maintain overseas servers," he said. "That means we only share revenue—Steam handles all server infrastructure abroad."
Vivian's eyes widened again.
Stephen had apparently agreed immediately.
Ethan almost laughed as he remembered it.
Foreign players had been suffering for days trying to access the game. Some were using weird workarounds, some were stuck with terrible connections, and Steam didn't want to watch rival platforms take the lead.
For once, it wasn't domestic players struggling to play foreign games.
It was foreign countries begging to import a domestic party game.
Animal Party had reversed the usual flow.
Ethan also knew something else—something bigger.
Animal Party might actually become even more popular overseas than in the local market.
And it wasn't just Steam calling.
Even some console platforms had reached out, hoping to get a version for their systems.
But Ethan had already decided:
No console version.
Animal Party had been created fast. It wasn't the kind of slow-polished masterpiece that took years. And if the console version couldn't maintain stable performance, it would damage their reputation.
Right now, even the PC servers were close to collapsing.
In the past few days, players kept reporting disconnects, lag spikes, and random matchmaking failures.
Ethan hated it.
But there was only so much a small company could do.
Optimization had already been pushed to the edge.
If it still didn't work?
Then it was a network or regional issue.
They could only expand later.
For now, players would have to endure it.
Daniel finally asked, carefully:
"So if I go… I just need to sign the contract, right?"
Ethan nodded.
"Yeah. But your English is good, right?"
Daniel's smile turned confident.
"Daily communication is no problem."
Ethan nodded again.
"Good." Then he leaned back slightly, smiling in a way that immediately made Daniel's stomach tighten.
"Because there's one more thing I need you to do."
Vivian also looked at Daniel—mischief shining in her eyes.
Daniel suddenly felt nervous.
Why are they smiling like villains?
---
Far away, in Lumen City, inside Skybound Headquarters, a very different meeting was happening.
On the ninth floor, in the operations director's office, Manager Zane, Logan Fairchild, and two other senior staff members sat around a table.
The operations director rubbed his temples, looking annoyed.
"About Animal Party," he said. "Steam is preparing to cooperate with Northstar Games. This is their first time actively requesting a domestic studio to join their platform."
He exhaled slowly.
"Normally it's the other way around. The whole world begs Steam."
Logan Fairchild whistled softly, half amused, half impressed.
"What goes around comes around," he said. "Seems like Northstar didn't even plan to release it overseas. Steam waited a few days, realized Northstar wasn't uploading, and got anxious."
He leaned forward slightly.
"And there's another rival platform watching like a hawk. Whoever gets Animal Party attracts a massive wave of players."
One of the managers asked, "Couldn't Northstar just release on both platforms?"
Manager Zane shook his head.
"They could, but Steam clearly negotiated something exclusive. They're already preparing the contract."
The conversation shifted.
"What about Neon Myth IV?" someone asked. "No one in the industry has heard anything solid."
A female manager hesitated, then spoke carefully.
"Northstar's secrecy is strong. But I heard Animal Party was… an accident."
The director looked up sharply.
"An accident?"
She nodded.
"Ethan Reed created it because they needed money. The goal was to raise funding for Neon Myth IV. So… the biggest hit of the year was made because they ran out of cash and urgently needed something to sell."
The room went quiet.
Because the idea was absurd.
A studio runs out of money, so they rush out a new game to make money…
And it becomes a record-breaking hit.
Manager Zane didn't speak for a moment.
He had watched Northstar's rise closely.
Six months ago, they were barely on anyone's radar.
Now they had multiple hits, and Animal Party had already pushed insane numbers in just days.
If he were a competing developer, he'd be furious.
But Skybound was a platform.
The better the game sells, the more Skybound earns.
So instead of fear, what Skybound felt was greed.
They wanted Northstar to keep "rolling" the industry even harder.
The operations director smiled.
"Keep a close eye on the rankings. They must reflect real-time performance."
He tapped the desk.
"If Animal Party is already popular, then we make it even more visible."
Manager Zane nodded.
"Understood."
The director continued.
"And keep close contact with Northstar's boss. Next year, Northstar will transform again. We need to keep our partnership strong."
Logan Fairchild nodded too.
After the meeting ended, the director stayed alone in the office and lit a cigarette.
He watched smoke drift upward and smiled quietly.
The indie game market had been silent for too long.
But Northstar Games?
They were like a predator dropped into a lazy ecosystem—forcing everyone else to panic, innovate, and adapt.
If old companies didn't change, they'd be wiped out.
Still… the thought made his spine feel cold.
Animal Party. Getting Over It. Night of the Full Moon. Neon Myth IV…
And behind them—
One planner.
One producer.
Ethan Reed.
Why had nobody heard of him before?
The director unlocked his phone, opened the Official Blog, and searched for Ethan Reed's account.
The last post was the Animal Party announcement.
He stared for a moment, then made a decision.
Using Skybound's verified official account, he clicked:
Follow.
------------------------------------------
Extra chapters available on patreon ❤️🔥
patreon.com/Samurai492
__________________________________