GAME CREATOR SYSTEM

Apparently in the same way that I was analyzing the man in front of me, he was also staring at me curiously and studying me.

The difference was that I'm sure he could find out almost anything he wanted to about me, while I was in complete darkness facing him.

We sat in silence for at least three minutes until I decided to break the deadlock.

"Hello Headmaster, Professor Pine said you wanted to talk to me about something?" I asked.

Blinking in apparent surprise, the principal quickly recovered as he smiled at me and nodded to the chair in front of his desk. "I'm sorry young Brooks, looking at you reminded me of some confusing things from an old man's mind... I didn't mean to sound rude, have a seat."

Nodding my head and ignoring the drivel he'd probably made up, I just sat back in my chair and looked at him curiously.

"Professor Pine was very complimentary of Runestone to me, describing his exploits in managing to replicate False Neurological Feedback in an F Rank game, something very commendable kid." He said while adopting a kindly grandfatherly attitude, the same one he used during the speeches he gave at the beginning of each year. "Would you like the college to help you spread the news? That would be a great way to get a good job when you graduate."

Hearing his proposal, I didn't even have to think twice before politely declining. "Thank you very much for the opportunity, Director, but I'm not interested."

At my reply, he became interested, leaning a little closer to the table, looking at me with interest but not surprise. "Really? Can you tell me why?"

"I feel that by becoming an employee of a Guild or some big company I would be limiting my creativity, being forced to just make games the way they want, to please the Players they want, and that's not what I'm looking for when developing games." I explained.

With the smile widening a little more on his face, the director asked me. "And what are you looking for?"

This question caught me off guard.

Ever since I woke up with an otherworldly consciousness, I'd just carried on with the college task of developing a good F Rank game.

With that assignment I just acted like a good RPG player from the other world and kept going for bigger numbers.

More Players, more Mana, more money, more engagement, more everything.

But if I think about it now, I never planned any of this, it all just came naturally to me.

I know so many fun games that are light years ahead of the games in this world, I know so many possibilities for Players to get stronger while having fun.

Seeing so many methodical and tedious trainings being called "games" made me a little angry, for someone who knew Games that were considered masterpieces, everything that this world called "games" seemed like an insult to me.

Thinking about it, I think I know what I want...

"I want to show people what real games are." I let it slip out loud.

As soon as I said it, I realized that what I'd said could be considered a great offense to the Director.

What did a mere Rank F Game Creator know about games to be able to judge works made by Game Creators with much higher Ranks than me?

Could a Rank F Game Creator even remotely understand the complexity of a Rank A game?

This made me look worriedly at the old director, who despite what I said, had an even bigger smile on his face.

"Ohh, do you think the other games aren't real?" He asked me as his bright blue eyes analyzed me intensely.

"That's not what I meant..." I tried to defuse what I said, afraid that it would escalate and become a big problem.

But before I could finish explaining myself, he interrupted me.

"No need to deny what you said, just explain your point of view kid, I won't penalize you for thinking." He laughed.

Confirming that he really seemed to mean it, instead of answering directly, I put a question back to him.

"Principal Prescott, is Black Jack considered a game?" I asked.

My question made his eyes shine even brighter, but he answered with a nostalgic expression. "Yes, Black Jack is one of the games I played the most when I was your age, many students brought hidden decks to the magic school to play during class breaks."

Hearing his reply, my head nodded in agreement. "You took hidden decks to school, not because you wanted to get stronger, but because it was fun, right?"

Seeing where this was going, he nodded. "Yes, the only purpose of the deck was for fun."

"If in your day you had another game available, a game called [Knife Throwing Training in the Dark], would you still try to take a Player Core to school to have fun during lessons playing that 'game'?" I asked.

"No, I'd probably still take Black Jack to school." He answered honestly.

"Why is that? Aren't they both games? Why does one have to be fun and the other not?" I asked.

"But Black Jack wouldn't make me stronger." The director offered a counterpoint that it was clear not even he believed.

"But Runestone makes you stronger, and it's just as fun, if not even more fun than Black Jack." I finally came to the conclusion. "The way I see it, a game can be a game even if it doesn't make you stronger, but training that makes you stronger can never be a game if it's not fun."

Clap Clap Clap

As soon as I had finished speaking, the old Director stood up from his chair while clapping his hands at me, bringing me back to reality and realizing who I was arguing with.

"Very well young man, as soon as I saw Runestone I realized that your worldview was completely different from that of the other Game Creators. I didn't call you to talk because of your use of False Neurological Feedback in a Rank F game, even though you're the only one who's done it in a low Rank game, that doesn't make you very special compared to the geniuses who invented this technology. The reason I called you was because of your mind!" He said, surprising me.

The perception I always had of old people was that they were stubborn, hard-headed and hated change. So I never imagined that the old principal would actually be the complete opposite of that!

'I guess that makes sense, after all, someone with a closed mind would hardly be able to delve as deeply into the world of magic as he did...'

Noticing my surprise, he laughed even more before asking me another question.

"Tell me, young man, what are your thoughts on the fighting Supernaturals invading dungeons around the world?" He asked me expectantly.

This was another point that I had never given much thought to.

In my other world I didn't even know if magic existed, while in this world, as an orphan, the only access to the supernatural world I had was from television stories or social media posts, which never caught my attention.

I only delved into this world after college, which didn't give me much access to it either.

"Honestly? I don't have any opinion about them..." I said honestly, before explaining my points.

Hearing this, the old principal raised his eyebrows in surprise and sighed in disappointment.

"I believe that some things need to change in college teaching..." He said quietly, more to himself than to me. "As a Game Creator, your game is currently responsible for helping hundreds of Players not to die in dungeons every day, the more popular you get, this responsibility will rise to thousands, tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands, maybe even millions of people who depend on your games not to die..."

Listening to his explanation, a weight came down on my chest.

I really only thought of the game as something fun that would make me grow in the future, never considering the Players' lives as my responsibility...

But even if I heard that now, it was still hard to change my perception, and apparently the director realized it too, but changed the subject.

"How about it, young Brooks, since you don't intend to get involved with Guilds or companies after you graduate, do you want to develop as an independent Game Creator and open your own company in the future?"

Thinking about this question, I nodded.

Working for people with limited thoughts about games was out of the question unless it was my last chance, but as long as I had other opportunities, I would prioritize my own freedom.

With my nod, he continued. "How about it, this old man has some apartments near the city center. Some of these apartments are empty, I can rent you one of these apartments for a cheaper price to help you with your future development."

Hearing this, I was confused. "But why?"

Shaking his head as he sighed, he explained. "My granddaughter got into a fight with my son and ran away from home after my son tried to stop her from becoming a Player. Today she lives in one of my apartments..."

Understanding where this was going, I asked. "Do you want me to help convince her to come home?"

"No, no, it's actually the opposite. This old man traveled alone to London in his youth to learn magic at a school that claimed to be the safest in the world but was invaded by a different enemy every week..." He laughed. "Since you don't have an opinion on Players, the payment for the discount I'm going to give you on the apartment rent is that you help her, giving her the support she needs to develop as a Player and follow her dream."

Listening to this explanation, I was even more confused: "And how am I supposed to do that? Go to dungeons with her?"

If he wanted me to go to dungeons, I would readily deny it.

Why risk my life in exchange for a few dollars off the rent?

Fortunately, he shook his head in denial. "No, you won't need to enter any dungeons. As she lives alone in the building and only accepts visits from her mother from time to time, I only ask that you be available if she needs help, but you won't be obliged to help with anything you don't feel like."

Thinking that I wouldn't be obliged to do anything, this idea began to seem more acceptable in my mind, so I accepted this agreement.

'I still think this old man is planning something other than what he said, but as I won't be obliged to do anything, in the worst case I'll just have to find somewhere else to live.

////NunuNote////

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