Chapter 15
Chapter 15
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 15
Chapter Title: Third Production Launch
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Not long after, the third production schedule for Maple Leaf Tale arrived.
This time, sales were set to take place not only at the Trinity Merchant Guild headquarters but also in several major cities.
It would probably draw in an even wider range of users.
Thanks to the new mages working hard, they finished the schedule ahead of time.
"I-I can't do any more..."
"Save me..."
They looked just like developers right before open beta.
The moment artifact production wrapped up, the mages collapsed on the floor and passed out.
"It'd be nice if we had one of those too. Don't we have any, Tower Master?"
"Th-That requires approval from the Trinity Council..."
"Hm."
What they were talking about was the tool for mass-producing artifacts.
Artifacts deemed worthy of mass production could be duplicated using that tool.
It seemed like a support system, but only for artifacts approved by the council.
For now, that was something they couldn't do anything about, so they put it off.
"W-Well then, I'm off to catch up on my gaming..."
Hina headed to her room to play her game.
I stayed behind to handle the remaining updates.
With users surging in all at once, there was a lot to keep an eye on.
And on top of that, they planned a week-long event this time.
An experience gain double event, to be exact.
It was like an annual tradition anyway, and it would help new users catch up to veterans quickly.
No max-level users had appeared yet, so it was fine to hand out extra experience.
Soon, ten thousand units of Maple Leaf Tale went on sale.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ The popularity of the third batch of Maple Leaf Tale artifacts was tremendous.
Even more people crowded in than during the second batch.
Despite splitting sales across locations, lines filled the cities.
"When the heck did you get here?"
"I've been waiting here since two days ago. To buy one right away and dive into Maple Leaf Tale... heh heh heh..."
Some had even lined up two days early.
Maple Leaf Tale's popularity was that insane right now.
This might just be the beginning.
Compared to the world's population, the number of released artifacts was still tiny.
"Haa... I came all the way to this distant city, but at this rate, I might not get one."
"They produced 10,000 units this time. Could be risky if we're not careful."
"I see commoners in the line too."
"They dropped the price quite a bit this round."
Plenty of commoners were mixed in among those queuing up.
There were no status restrictions on purchases, and the price had come down.
Most buyers were still nobles, but no one picked fights with the commoners.
"Hah... With me back here, some lowly farmer's kid is up front? This is..."
"P-Please stop, Count. Earlier, the Withud Marquis got caught harassing a commoner and ended up blacklisted."
"What?"
"It looks like the Illusion Tower strictly enforces first-come, first-served. Break the rules, and you might never play Maple Leaf Tale again."
"W-Well, can't be helped then... Sigh..."
And so, the third sale proceeded smoothly.
Even with the lower price, existing users didn't complain.
They'd compensated by granting veteran players the The stats weren't great, but it gave that sweet sense of superiority over others who didn't have it.
Plus, the event kicking off with this launch helped quell any grumbling.
"Oho, what's got you so fired up, Magic Minister? Not like you to be this enthusiastic."
"Gotta clock out quick and game."
"Maple Leaf Tale, huh?"
"Double experience every evening starting today!"
"W-What?! Uwoooooh! Punching out early today!!"
An event where all experience gained during evening hours—when most people rested—doubled.
It even sparked a global "early out" craze.
"Your Majesty... Are you really going to..."
"-Hey! I told you not to call me that here!"
"Y-Yes, Count. But will you really pull an all-nighter queuing? The night air's still chilly."
"Can't you see the line behind us? An hour later, and I wouldn't have gotten my Maple Leaf Tale. Right?"
"It... could be. But Your Majesty lining up personally is a bit..."
"I said not to call me that! If I don't buy it myself, I can't use the artifact!"
The noisiest spot this time was the empire's capital, the Imperial City.
With its huge population, crowds swarmed the merchant guild branch there.
Over a thousand had lined up by the night before.
Among them was the emperor in disguise.
'Hah... Why'd the Illusion Tower make such rules? But damn, the popularity's off the charts.'
The knight order captain, serving as escort and advisor, sighed and scanned the surroundings.
Incredible turnout, just as the rumors said.
People queued strictly by order, regardless of status.
Normally, an emperor doing this was unthinkable.
But the creators of Maple Leaf Tale were Trinity mages from the Illusion Tower.
The empire was powerful, but Trinity was on another level.
They had multiple S-rank primal attribute mages who could level a city solo.
With the treaty keeping them focused on magic research, there was no upside to provoking them.
To buy their artifacts, you had to play by their rules.
"You should grab one too. Opportunity like this won't come again."
"...Yes. I will."
Thus, the emperor and knight captain queued through the night.
They each bought a Maple Leaf Tale amiably.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ A while after the third launch.
Galliard visited the Illusion Tower after a long time.
He'd already surpassed level 120 and done his fourth job advancement.
"Pardon? You died? But Dark Knights have Reincarnation, so they don't die easily."
"Even that wasn't enough."
He'd died while playing Maple Leaf Tale.
Dying from poor HP management happens plenty.
But his class was Dark Knight, with resurrection skills.
A Dark Knight dying mid-hunt was rare.
"That Zakum boss was brutally tough."
"...Pardon? You tried to solo Zakum?"
Turned out he'd attempted Zakum solo.
This old man's something else...
In my past world's game, Zakum debuted before fourth jobs.
It was so strong it went unconquered for ages.
The first raid team that cleared it was legendary.
After fourth jobs, clear times plummeted.
And later, it became a total pushover.
My Maple Leaf Tale starts with fourth jobs available.
But to capture that original raid romance, I cranked Zakum's difficulty way up.
Even an all-fourth-job raid might struggle.
And right now, fewer than 30 players had hit fourth job.
"With the recent double EXP event, high-level users will multiply. Gather them for a raid team."
"Guess I have to. But how do I recruit? Not everyone's on my friends list."
"Use the megaphone. Everyone'll be interested. No one knows Zakum yet, but once they do, they'll all want in."
"Megaphone? How do you use it?"
"That... requires cash shop..."
"Cash? Us old folks can't handle that complicated stuff..."
In the end, I took Galliard to the central bank and set up his account.
That's why he'd come.
Soon after, he posted a Zakum raid recruitment notice.
High-level users worldwide reacted.
"R-R-R-R-R, Riot! W-What's this? Z-Zakum?!"
And our tower had a user matching Galliard's level.
"Oh, Tower Master saw it too? Galliard's recruiting for a raid."
"Y-Yeah...! But that old man's higher level than me now...! All Riot's fault!"
Pow pow pow—
Hina flailing her cotton-candy fists.
She'd slacked on gaming during third production, dropping her rank a bit.
Still top-tier, though.
Looks like Hina'd join the raid too.
"Sorry. But here's a pro tip instead."
"Pro tip...?"
"Yeah. If you ever clear Zakum, tons of items drop, right?"
"Y-Yeah...?"
"Ignore everything else and grab the one that looks like Zakum's head first."
"Head?"
"Yep. You'll get it when the time comes."
I buffed Zakum's Helm specs to match the higher difficulty.
It'd become mediocre later, but originally, Zakum's Helm was hugely coveted.
Once its identity leaks, folks'll go nuts for it.
"Now that you're out, get back to work. Time to prep the next game."
"Uwaaaah, I hate work~"
Hina bolted.
Guess I'm stuck with it again.
But the new mages were decent, so manpower had grown.
Next game was Championship of Legends.
Modeling tons of champions would take time.
But Maple Leaf Tale's hype wouldn't die by then.
While players enjoy it now, a dev like me has to think ahead to the next one.
But the raid drew even more attention than I'd imagined.
Bang bang bang bang—
Someone pounded on the tower door soon after.
Not just one or two.
"Who..."
"What does the Illusion Tower think of this Zakum raid?!"
"Rumors say ranking #1 player and raid leader [Fallen Power Warrior] is Riot, the Illusion Mage who made Maple Leaf Tale—is it true?!"
"What's the Illusion Tower's predicted success rate for this raid?!"
"The emperor expressed interest in joining the Zakum raid—what's your take?!"
"When's the next production schedule?!"
"Is it true named player [Empire's Light] is joining?!"