Chapter 16
Chapter 16
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Translator: Silver Dragon
Chapter: 16
Chapter Title: 19 Dead Hills
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"Do you know what this is?"
"You guys didn't come here to play. You came here to work."
I was the one who'd called them here to work, but seeing Jason's face made my head throb just a little.
Even now, the guy was clutching a floppy disk in one hand, practically buzzing with excitement, like he was on a damn field trip.
'He's definitely one of Caltech's Seven Wonders.'
Caltech had the usual Seven Wonders like any school, and one of them was the fact that Jason still hadn't gotten academic probation.
Anyone smart enough to get into Caltech wasn't an idiot by any means, but this guy skipped classes like it was his job and dozed off during the ones he actually attended.
But,
'That's exactly why I brought him on board.'
That's why I'd targeted Jason.
The fact that a slacker like him was still hanging on at Caltech was proof of just how talented he really was.
I'd dealt with a similar case back when I was team leader at Nothing.
A team member who half-assed everything but still delivered on deadlines.
The other colleagues didn't think much of him, but I'd put a lot of trust in that subordinate.
In this industry, creative ideas mattered more than diligence.
They needed people who produced something unique, even if they seemed unreliable, over those who churned out predictable crap no matter how hard they worked.
"You're gonna freak when you see this."
"What the hell is it?"
"Just wait. I'll install it right now."
Jason was itching to show off whatever it was.
"What? It's Dead Hills."
Curious about what he was so eager to demo, I glanced at the computer screen he was fiddling with. Sure enough, Dead Hills was installing.
"No way you brought that with you."
"Of course I did. Huck's gonna lose his mind."
Rogers, who'd come along with Jason, seemed to know what it was, shaking his head like it was no ordinary thing.
"Didn't expect you to show up too."
"Eh... Vacation's boring. Tired of tagging along with my parents to resorts all the time."
I left Jason messing with the computer and started chatting with Rogers.
Rogers.
I'd invited him on a whim when I called Jason, but I hadn't really expected him to come.
Jason was the school troublemaker, separate from his skills, so I'd figured he'd bite. But Rogers was popular everywhere—unlike Jason.
Born to doctor parents, loaded family, sociable personality, athletic all-rounder, handsome as hell.
And on top of that, he was one of the top students at Caltech. Hell, there was a truckload of people who'd kill to have him around, not just me.
"I don't buy that you dropped out on a whim."
"Well, not exactly a whim."
"Whatever it is, if it's a game you're making, it'll probably be fun."
Rogers patted my back, grinning as he bragged about clearing Dead Hills hardcore mode.
"That's fake!"
"That again?"
"We at the Recognition Association don't count clears with legendary characters in hardcore mode."
Jason, who'd been eavesdropping, yelled out.
"True Dead Hills hardcore clears only count up to epic gear—the highest legit grade in the game!"
"Who the hell made that rule?"
I shot back, dumbfounded.
"Who else? Dead Hills fans! We don't recognize luck-based clears!"
"I'm the developer."
"What does the dev know?!"
...Hmm. Was picking Jason really the right call?
Doubt started creeping into my mind when Jason's voice rang out again.
"It's ready! The real Dead Hills is here!!!"
"What? The real Dead Hills?"
The phrase "real Dead Hills" set off all kinds of alarm bells.
Rogers looked like he knew something, but he was already turning away, pretending to mind his own business.
No choice but to follow Jason's beaming gaze to the monitor.
"You crazy bastard!!!"
The screen was filled with nearly naked women in bikinis plastering the Dead Hills start screen.
"How the hell did you crack the game open?"
"Come on, I helped you develop it. Copied the source code back then."
"You lunatic... And you call that helping?"
My head was pounding.
Source code was the crown jewels of any program—supposed to be locked down tight. And this idiot had snuck a copy.
If he'd had malicious intent, free rip-off versions of Dead Hills would've been flooding the U.S. by now.
'Wait, doesn't he already have malicious intent?'
Jason was glancing at me sidelong from the side.
To a stranger, he might look pitiful, all deflated. But anyone who knew what he'd done wouldn't feel an ounce of sympathy.
"Dead Hills adult version, huh... Where'd you spread this?"
"Didn't spread it! Just shared among like-minded bros... And it's not adult! Just bikinis, right?"
He protested like he was wronged, but this was straight-up 18+ material by any standard.
People think America's all open-minded, but it's more conservative than Korea in some ways.
They just respect adult freedoms and don't meddle.
But with an all-female cast in bikinis, bunny girl outfits, and the like? Jason's Dead Hills was begging for an AO rating—or a police escort.
"How'd you even draw these characters? The pixel art looks hand-crafted, stitch by stitch."
I could buy Jason hacking the source to swap characters to women, but this level of graphics work? No way solo.
Jason and I had spent a full month on the original Dead Hills character sprites—referencing real photos, even.
Yet this 18+ version had better quality graphics than the original.
Impossible for Jason alone. Someone was backing him.
"Can't say! They're my blood brothers..."
"Huck, remember the Wa-Japanese Club kids?"
"You traitor!! Selling out your comrades' names."
"They're not my comrades. Anyway, word is they teamed up with Jason on this."
Ah, that explained it.
The puzzle pieces clicked in my head.
Caltech was full of geniuses, sure, but it was still an engineering school.
And where engineering students gather, you get that gloomy aura... and otakus.
'Didn't expect them in American engineering, though.'
Caltech had a bunch of kids obsessed with Japanese culture—especially anime. We called their club the Wa-Japanese Club.
Official name was something like "Asian Culture Research Club," but whatever.
"You made this with those guys?"
"They're innocent! It was all me—kill me if you must!"
"Not killing anyone. But if this leaks, AE—not me—will slap you with lawsuits. Can't protect you there."
"Don't worry! I'll make sure it stays inside the club!"
Not reassuring at all, but he'd promised, so I'd let it slide for now.
"So, why'd you call us here? New game dev?"
"I've never coded games before, so not sure I can help."
Once the chaos died down, I finally got to explain why I'd summoned them.
"I think Jackson and I can handle the new game dev on schedule by ourselves."
"What? Then why call us?"
Jason demanded, wondering why he'd been dragged here if not for game work.
I explained Scarlett's offer from Seton the other day.
"Conversion? That shouldn't be hard."
"If it's just us, maybe tight, but they're sending tech support? Then it's just assist work—no biggie."
Converting a PC game to console wasn't tough with console techs on hand.
Just needed specs and quirks explained, then adapt accordingly. No game dev experience required.
"You think I'd call you two for that?"
"Then what?"
"Huck, don't make that face. Every time you do, it's some insane scheme."
Insane scheme? Rogers was picking up bad habits hanging with Jason.
And what was wrong with my face?
It was the same gentle smile I'd worn as Forgarden's main director during live streams.
The fans had lost it.
They weren't wrong, though.
Conversion? I could do it myself.
Tight with the new game dev, sure, but it was my game—most efficient if I handled it.
What I needed them for was something else.
"Let's make a program."
"A program?"
Caltech's star student and its top delinquent—in their own ways.
I'd handle the core coding, but needed manpower to fill in the gaps.
And these two had the skills for support programming I could trust.
"Doesn't sound simple... What kind of program?"
Rogers had already clocked it wasn't a walk in the park from "program."
Jason, meanwhile, treated it like a homework assignment, casually playing his 18+ Dead Hills.
"Chat."
"Chat? Like email?"
"No. Real-time chat program."
Rogers's face went stone-cold at my words.
"You... insane bastard!!!"
And there it was—the historic moment Rogers swore. I witnessed it firsthand.