Game Developer in the World of Anime

The weekend lunch with Utaha didn't stir up much of a ripple in Ichin's life. After returning, he resumed his mundane routine of game development.

While developing the game, he was also contemplating the upcoming release, calculating how much time he had left to complete it. Although launching an early-access version before fully finishing the game wasn't ideal, waiting to release the full version would require significantly more time.

Thus, Ichin decided to go ahead with the early-access release for his first game. Once he gained more experience or established his own studio, he could focus on launching complete versions in the future.

Ichin wasn't sure if his efficiency in game development had increased because of his transmigration or not, but he noticed a significant improvement compared to his previous life. Many parts of the process that seemed tedious and challenging before now came easily to him.

"Could my mental abilities and programming skills really be this exaggerated after transmigrating?" he wondered.

Of course, this was all good news, as he could now develop games more efficiently.

To further speed up his progress, Ichin even applied for permission from his homeroom teacher, Shizuka Hiratsuka, to use an empty classroom during lunch breaks to work on his game with his laptop.

Initially, Hiratsuka wasn't inclined to approve his request, but after Ichin promised to secure first place in the exams, she agreed to trust him just this once.

That afternoon, in the newly secured empty classroom, after finishing his lunch, Ichin resumed his work at the laptop.

Not too far away, Utaha, who was sitting in a nearby seat, watched him intently as he immersed himself in his work. After a moment, she spoke up, "Ichin-kun, could I bother you for a moment?"

Stopping his work, Ichin looked at her, "What's up?"

Utaha had known about the classroom arrangement from day one. She happened to overhear Ichin's conversation with Hiratsuka when she went to the office that day, and boldly decided to use the classroom as well.

With the weather getting hotter, Utaha didn't want to eat lunch on the rooftop anymore, nor in her regular classroom. When she heard Ichin request the empty classroom, she jumped on the opportunity.

Ichin didn't mind Utaha's request; after all, the room was spacious, and it wasn't like he needed to occupy the entire area. Allowing her to use the room during lunch didn't interfere with his game development at all.

Glancing at Ichin's laptop screen, Utaha asked, "You bought my novel earlier. Did you get a chance to read it?"

When she asked this question, there was a hint of anxiety in her voice. Lately, she had been searching online for reviews of her novel. Although the reviews were sparse, they were a mixed bag of praise and criticism, with most of them being fairly balanced. However, this was her first time hearing direct feedback from a reader in person.

"Your novel? Yeah, I read it. I even finished one of the volumes," Ichin nodded, not making anything up.

These days, in the gaps between game development, Ichin would read The Metronome in Love by Utako Kasumi before going to bed. In his past life, he knew from anime that Utaha Kasumigaoka was a light novel author, but now he had the chance to judge her work firsthand.

Upon hearing Ichin say he had finished reading it, Utaha immediately asked, "How was it? Do you have any thoughts?"

While asking, she even pulled out a notepad and pen, clearly intending to take notes. Given that Ichin had come in and overtaken her as the top student in their grade, Utaha felt that his evaluation carried some weight.

Glancing at his laptop, Ichin realized that if he didn't provide a proper answer today, Utaha wouldn't let him off easily.

He adjusted his chair to face her and said, "Well, let's put it this way—your first volume didn't cover a lot of plot. The main storyline is just the process of the male and female leads meeting and getting to know each other, with some sweet little stories interspersed in between. Thanks to your good writing style, reading it felt pretty pleasant overall."

Hearing these compliments, Utaha felt quite happy, but she knew that not all of Ichin's feedback would be positive. And sure enough—

"But," Ichin continued, watching Utaha's smile fade, "from the content of your first volume, I can't discern the tone of the story moving forward. Is this going to be a pure love story, a lighthearted romance that would be ideal for a TV adaptation? Or will there be changes in the storyline, with the main characters facing various challenges and either reaching a happy ending or being unable to stay together in the end? Have you considered these aspects?"

Ichin's words left Utaha speechless.

Much of what he pointed out was precisely what her editor had mentioned—the need for a clear tone and direction for the story's future development. But she hadn't expected Ichin to point it out today as well.

Seeing Utaha's expression, Ichin could tell that she likely hadn't fully considered these things. It didn't surprise him too much.

"Well, it's normal," Ichin said with a reassuring tone. "After all, this is your first published book. Just take it step by step. The editors at the publishing house will definitely give you some useful advice."

Utaha nodded, looking at Ichin, "A lot of what you said overlaps with the suggestions from my editor. I've been thinking about the direction of the story too. Originally, I just wanted to write something and try submitting it for a competition, and I ended up winning. Honestly, when I found out my novel would be published, I was extremely nervous. Expanding the contest entry into a full novel took a lot of effort."

"The early stages are indeed the most exhausting," Ichin agreed. "When I started learning about game development, it was overwhelming too, but it got easier after I got the hang of it."

"You're beyond just getting the hang of it at this point," Utaha replied with a wry smile, glancing at the laptop on the side.

Although she didn't understand much about game development, she had heard Ichin mention that the game would soon be ready for an early access release, meaning it could be semi-launched.

Utaha wasn't clear on how much time the planning stage took, but Ichin had told her that formal development began after he arrived in Japan. This meant it hadn't even been two months until now.

And on top of all this, he was still keeping up with his studies, having taken first place in the opening exam.

Compared to herself, wasn't he the real genius?

…

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