Noirin, the fluffy little priest with round black hair, is the youngest among those who have undergone the coming-of-age ceremony.
Despite lacking some skills, he’s quite smart for his age, especially when it comes to card games. Noirin has this talent for making games fun.
It seemed like this talent stemmed from Noirin’s desire for everyone to have a thrilling and joyful experience, and I knew exactly what job would suit that talent.
He’s destined to become a Level Designer.
“Just combine the basics I’ve laid out to create enjoyable stages—basically, something like what I designed. You get what I’m saying, right?”
“Yes… I think I understand how to do it, Yuren-hyung.”
I had set up an editor structure in the super Mario prototype made with the Boyer game engine so that other wizards could easily combine characters and items.
This way, even those who don’t know the Void Magic can still participate in game development as long as they can handle magic.
After my explanation, Noirin nodded, seemingly catching on.
But his expression looked a bit gloomy.
“But Yuren-hyung, can I really do well?”
“You can do it! Are you doubting the eyes of the hyung who chose you?”
“Oh! No, it’s just that it seems like a big deal…”
Seeing Noirin’s expression reminded me of the day I was assigned a major project for the first time in my past life.
There was a shortage of people, and the team lead, who thought highly of me, gave me a chance. I remember being so scared that I couldn’t sleep that night.
What if I mess up? What if other team members get hurt because of it? Those fears haunted me.
I sat next to Noirin and patted his shoulder.
“Everyone struggles at the start. I was once pretty lacking too… At that time, my Master told me this.”
I shared a piece of wisdom that had empowered me throughout my past life.
“Success is not permanent, and failure is not fatal. What matters is the ‘courage’ not to give up.”
“Yuren-hyung…”
That wasn’t something my Master said, but rather a quote from my team lead in my past life.
It was a famous quote by Mike Ditka, a professional football coach, and I loved how it resonated with the spirit of continuously challenging oneself, just like in games.
After hearing my words, Noirin declared with determination.
“Got it! Yuren-hyung! I’ll muster up my courage and give it a try!!”
Noirin, with a resolute look in his eyes like Jiren, prepared himself.
Seeing that little kid grow so much brought out a proud smile from me.
Meanwhile, outside, Master, who had been watching us, communicated to me through telepathy.
“(Disciple, I never said anything like that…)”
“(Please understand a bit. Master, just wait. I’ll get you some gourmet strawberry ice cream soon.)”
“(Alright! I got it, Disciple!)”
Words have a different power of impact depending on who delivers them.
I borrowed a bit of Master’s honor with some fancy ice cream.
With this, I secured a Level Designer, not a slave.
Alright then! Let’s get back to work!
*
There’s a famous anecdote about ‘Miyamoto Shigeru’, the god of games who created Super Mario.
(╮°-°)╮┳━┳
(╯> △ *
Meanwhile, at that moment, Jiren and Karen from the Tetric 2 team were busy working too.
Karen had less magical ability than Jiren but compensated with enough knowledge, action, and management skills to handle him.
She was like a modern-day PM (Product Manager).
“Jiren, wouldn’t it be more fun if we do it this way?”
Karen continued to discuss ideas regarding enhancing the fun factor while creating the Tetric 2 battle mode with Jiren.
Before long, Jiren found himself unintentionally engaged in the work.
He noticed that Karen’s demeanor resembled that of Yuren-hyung.
“Try a bit harder, Jiren! You can do it, I believe in you!”
Seeing Jiren slack off due to struggle and fatigue, Karen caught on like a ghost and gave him tasks.
Gentle coaxing and a bit of flattery made it so that Jiren had no choice but to comply with Karen’s requests.
It felt a lot like Yuren-hyung’s style.
“Are you feeling exhausted? Here, have this while you work, Jiren.”
Whenever Jiren looked like he was about to give up, Karen brought him snacks or food to keep him going.
And then, she would have him work.
The reason why the Irene School priests trusted Yuren so much was precisely because he looked after them.
Despite making a bunch of money from Tetric this time, Yuren mostly didn’t spend it on himself but rather on the priests and Master.
Jiren also received a decent allowance equivalent to a year’s worth of pay for an average company executive.
Just like Yuren-hyung, Karen continually fed him and got him to work.
After three days of all-nighters, in a fading state of consciousness, Jiren thought to himself.
Yuren-hyung had turned Karen into a monster.
Then, two weeks later, on a bright sunny day, during a brief lunch break in the school’s backyard, Jiren and Noirin finally met again after a long time.
“Jiren-hyung… Are you okay?”
“………Do I look okay to you?”
Noirin was stunned by Jiren’s appearance after such a long time, but he didn’t have the strength to be shocked.
Jiren looked gaunt, nearly a living mummy, and seeing him, Noirin spoke with dazed eyes.
“No, you look like you’re about to enter eternal sleep.”
Jiren, who looked like he might collapse, glanced at Noirin.
The dark circles around Noirin’s eyes were as deep as his hair, making him look just as depleted.
“But… Are you okay?”
“No, I feel like I’m gonna go down with you, Jiren-hyung.”
As they looked at the blue sky, the two opened up to each other after so long.
“Yuren-hyung, I didn’t know he was like that…”
“Yuren-hyung was indeed like that… But I also didn’t expect Karen to be like that.”
Having worked with Yuren, Jiren knew just how strong-willed he was.
So, he felt somewhat relieved to be partnered with Karen.
But he never imagined that Karen would turn out to be Yuren-hyung mk.2… Jiren scolded himself for underestimating the two.
“It would have been easier dealing with the border squad incident.”
“Seems like it…”
Noirin hadn’t done much work during that time.
But he watched the older siblings work and learned well enough to realize how much tougher game development was.
Just as the two began to gaze at the sky again, they heard that terrifying voice echoing from the backyard.
“Noirin! Where are you? It’s work time!”
“Jiren! It’s time to work.”
Aaaah… They’re coming…
At the horrifying sounds coming from the backyard, Jiren and Noirin stood up weakly.
“Let’s go… The bosses are calling.”
“Yes… Jiren-hyung…”
With powerless steps, they moved forward.
And inwardly, they thought:
‘May my hardships lead to the success of the game…’
*
– One month later –
“It’s complete…”
It had been a month since Noirin and I started developing ‘Super Mario’, while Jiren and Karen worked on ‘Tetric 2’.
Our efforts paid off as both games successfully reached completion.
Noirin and Jiren especially had a tough time.
They definitely deserved a three-day break.
Today, we demonstrated the new game to the little priests for the first time.
The results were…
“Yay! Whew~ Yay~”
“Run, run!”
“Jump! The cannon’s coming, Master!”
“Got it! My disciples!!”
The response was explosive, as expected.
Master showcased supernatural skills while crushing Koopa Troopas into splatters.
He destroyed every last block while soaring through the map, and the other priests cheered wildly at the sight of that mustachioed hero.
Finally, all preparations were complete.
Now, it’s time to head to the royal road!
