Game Developer in the World of Anime

After school in the afternoon, Ichin and Utaha headed to the company. Eriri and Yukino came along too, riding in Ichin's car.

Technically, they were still studying when they were at the Service Club, but the main issue there was the lack of air conditioning. Compared to that, the company office was much cozier—and you could pet cats too.

After checking on everyone's work progress, Ichin walked over to Hazuki's side.

"You guys didn't play games during work today, right?"

Hazuki smiled and replied, "Don't worry, we didn't. We just played a bit during the lunch break. Everyone likes gaming, sure, but we know how to prioritize tasks."

"Good then."

Ichin then asked about the ongoing negotiations with Microsoft regarding getting their game on Xbox and Game Pass. After confirming that Hazuki was still following up consistently, he left the matter in her hands and returned to his office.

Ichin's office had always been the quietest space in the company. So whenever she came over, Yukino used it as her study room.

As for the meeting room, it was frequently needed for team discussions, so it wasn't suitable for regular use.

When he entered the office, Utaha had already prepared a cup of coffee for him.

Sitting down, Ichin took a sip and began working on his tasks. As for his review session, he planned to do it later that evening at home.

About half an hour later, Utaha finished a mock math exam with ease. After checking the answers and seeing she got a perfect score, she stretched lazily with satisfaction.

She glanced around the office. Ichin had his headphones on, immersed in work, while Yukino was solving problems. So Utaha quietly got up, stepped out to get a pot of coffee, and came back.

She topped off Ichin's cup first, then poured some for Yukino too.

Yukino was deep in thought over a math problem when she noticed Utaha pouring her coffee. She quickly said, "Thank you, Senpai."

"You're welcome. I just finished up and thought I'd take a break."

After setting down the coffee pot, Utaha glanced at the problem Yukino was working on and said with some surprise, "You're already doing third-year problems?"

Yukino nodded. "Yeah, I've already finished all the second-year material. Now it's just about regular review. So I've started studying the third-year content in advance."

Pulling over a chair to sit next to her, Utaha looked impressed. Yukino wasn't just skimming the beginning—she had already made it deep into the material. Her pace was truly impressive, and from the looks of it, she wasn't just rushing through it either. She genuinely understood the concepts.

"As expected of you, Yukino. You're moving really fast. But don't push yourself too hard—you can slow down a bit if you need to. And if you come across anything difficult, feel free to ask me or Ichin. I'm a bit better at Japanese literature, and Ichin's strengths are English, math, and physics."

Yukino didn't reject the offer. She hadn't finished all the third-year content yet, and when self-studying, she would occasionally run into challenging problems. She didn't mind asking for help.

During last semester's final review period, she had consulted both Ichin and Utaha when working on some advanced questions.

After solving two more problems, Yukino took a sip of her warm coffee, then glanced over at Ichin, who was still working. She asked softly, "Senpai's not studying right now?"

"Him?"

Utaha, who was flipping through some English reading passages, replied, "When he's at the company, he mainly works. He studies at night when we're home. As for me, things with my novel are settled—the second volume has already been submitted, so I'm doing some practice problems now and planning to relax tonight. I haven't had much time to play with my new Pokémon game yet. Plus, we need to start preparing. After the exams, we're going back home to spend the New Year with Ichin's parents, so we'll be taking a few days off."

"You've both already been accepted to university, so taking a break shouldn't be an issue."

Yukino glanced at Utaha, then at Ichin. As for their relationship—of course she was a little envious. But she also understood that such things couldn't be forced, and she had no immediate plans for romance anyway. Her goal was to get into the University of Tokyo and become a lawyer.

Everything else could wait.

She'd already made it clear to her family that she wasn't going to inherit the family business, so she wasn't being pressured to marry early. Even if she were, her sister Haruno would be first in line—no way it'd be her turn yet.

As Yukino mentally complained about this, Haruno—who was studying in a university library—suddenly sneezed.

A girl next to her kindly handed her a tissue. "Haruno, are you catching a cold?"

"No, no." Haruno took the tissue and wiped her nose. "Someone's probably talking about me behind my back. Must be my little sister."

"Your sister, huh? You've said she's really pretty. When do we get to meet her?"

"Next time, maybe. She's pretty shy. Probably won't be able to keep up with you guys."

After that, Haruno pulled out her phone and sent Yukino a message.

Yukino, were you just thinking about your big sis?

Yukino stared blankly at the message for a moment, then silently replied:

Please don't be so full of yourself.

Then she muted her phone and went back to solving problems, ignoring whatever Haruno might send next.

—

That night, after dinner and a bath, Ichin began studying in the bedroom. Utaha, having finished drying her hair, sat on the couch with her Switch and headphones on, playing Pokémon Legends: Arceus.

Her progress wasn't very fast—around six or seven hours in, still in the early stages. She wasn't influenced by the others at the company who were much further along. She continued to play at her own pace, determined to catch every available Pokémon at each stage.

Over an hour later, Ichin finished everything he had planned to review for the day. He set down his pen and closed his textbook.

Turning around, he saw Utaha sitting on the bed, focused intently on her game.

Taking off her headphones, she saw Ichin walk over and suddenly wrap his arms around her while peeking at her screen.

For her starter, Utaha had chosen Oshawott. It had already evolved into Dewott at level 25, still a while away from its final evolution into Samurott.

Seeing him, Utaha took off one side of her headphones. "Done studying?"

"Yeah, I finished everything I planned for today."

He gave her a quick kiss and asked, "So, how's it going so far?"

"Not bad. Compared to Sword and Shield, this one's more appealing to me—especially the story. I like the vibe of it. How about you? Aren't you going to keep playing? Your progress is even slower than mine."

"No rush. I'm going to grab some snacks. Want anything?"

"Hmm… bring me a bag of chips—and some juice too."

*