Chapter 34
Chapter 34
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Translator: Silver Dragon
Chapter: 34
Chapter Title: Approach
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- It's only natural that subordinates can take a break while superiors cannot.
Scarlett recalled Seon Woo-hyuk's shameless face as he dumped work on her.
'Still, this is better.'
She had been planning a trip to Europe during the month-long company-wide rest period imposed across all of Savior, but it had been forcibly canceled, leaving her a bit heated.
Even so, being handed a task that wasn't just busywork but tied to the company's future didn't feel bad at all.
What was amusing—or perhaps intriguing—was how Seon Woo-hyuk, whom she'd only recently met, trusted her so completely and granted her full authority.
At her previous company, Seton, even when she wanted to work, the president got in the way, so she actually preferred the current breakneck pace.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Daniel, development team leader at MiniSoft."
"Hello. I'm Scarlett, CAO of Savior."
Scarlett, lost in thoughts of Seon Woo-hyuk as she sat in her chair for a moment, soon shook hands warmly with the man who entered the meeting room.
"I've reviewed the proposal you sent regarding this Byte Line exclusive contract."
"That's a relief. MiniSoft wants to maintain a strong partnership with Savior."
Scarlett found Daniel's brazen words absurd, but since it was a meeting, she kept her smile in place.
'Failed to steal Byte Line outright, and now you're talking big.'
Byte Line was now used casually by major U.S. companies as if it were a given.
But Scarlett hadn't forgotten that MiniSoft was the one spreading rumors and even threatening people not to use Savior's program right when it launched.
Not just MiniSoft—Waffle, their usual arch-rival, had joined in the attack too. Without IBM stepping in back then, they might have faced serious trouble.
Just thinking about it still left lingering resentment toward MiniSoft.
But showing those emotions wouldn't gain her anything, so Scarlett simply smiled it off.
Emotions were something she calculated in dollars.
"If we revise a few clauses in your proposal, we can accept the exclusive contract for Byte Line on Window."
"A good start. Shall we hear the conditions?"
Contracts rarely close on the initial terms.
Negotiating details was standard procedure.
Daniel focused instead on her saying they 'could accept' it.
- You must make this Byte Line deal happen.
It was due to the special directive from MiniSoft's CEO, Bill Heights.
'When they teamed up with Waffle to attack, and now that things have changed, they flip and demand we snag Byte Line.'
MiniSoft and Waffle were locked in fierce competition over the computer OS market.
Of course, since Window 3.0's release, MiniSoft dominated with overwhelming performance, but Waffle's loyal fanbase was rock-solid, leaving the ultimate winner uncertain.
In that situation, when word came that Waffle was approaching Savior for exclusive Byte Line supply for their OS, MiniSoft couldn't just sit idle.
"First off, the exclusive period is fine, but you proposed $2 million annually in royalties... That's unacceptable."
"How much do you want?"
"$10 million a year."
"...Are you joking? No company would pay $10 million a year in royalties for one program!"
Daniel was furious at Scarlett's words.
What they were after wasn't Byte Line itself, just exclusive supply rights for Window OS.
Merely the right to use it exclusively on Window—and $10 million for that was absurd, incomprehensible by any standard.
"If you think so, we can call the deal off. Waffle's already offered $5 million, so getting just double that from MiniSoft, who has higher market share, feels like a very generous term to me."
Daniel pushed back hard, trying to haggle down the royalties, even sweet-talking, but Scarlett showed no sign of budging from $10 million.
'Damn it! If not for the CEO's orders, I'd walk right now.'
Bill Heights, who normally despised Waffle, had insisted on securing Byte Line no matter what.
In the end, Daniel had no choice but to accept.
"Fine. $10 million annual royalties accepted. Can we proceed with the contract now?"
"Great. One down. Shall we move to the next condition?"
"What? There's more?"
Daniel couldn't fathom Savior demanding more after already quintupling the royalties from $2 million.
"This is the last one. You've seen our Byte Line expansion roadmap, right?"
"Yes, I reviewed it."
"Byte Line won't stay just a simple chat program. We're expanding it step by step into an office suite."
Daniel, already aware from the materials, nodded.
'That's why both Waffle and MiniSoft are desperate.'
When Savior announced Byte Line's expansion plans via trade shows and their homepage recently, the industry went into a frenzy.
'Crazy! A word processor that handles every document format?'
'Not just that—spreadsheets too. And from the specs, even beginners can handle formulas easily!'
'It even has a calendar for scheduling with reminders. How do they nail exactly what's needed?'
Byte Word, Byte Cell, Byte Planner.
These three expansions, set to launch soon, would be invaluable not just for office workers but everyday users.
And their seamless integration with Byte Line—the now-essential program everyone said they couldn't work without—was hugely appealing.
'Only after trying Byte Line did I realize how garbage my old chat apps were.'
Users who'd already experienced Savior's quality via Byte Line had sky-high expectations for the expansions.
In short, Byte Line's value was sure to soar in the future.
"You set the exclusive period at 10 years, but during that time, MiniSoft must agree not to develop similar programs to the Byte series."
"That's..."
Daniel had no choice but to panic at Scarlett's final condition.
'How did they figure it out so fast?'
The real reason MiniSoft was willing to pay $10 million a year for Byte Line exclusivity.
To buy time to create copycat programs.
- Block it from going to Waffle first, then develop and release our own version during the exclusive supply period.
MiniSoft had planned to rip it off immediately.
'No idea who designed this, but even copying it is tough. Unlike existing chat apps, it seems built on a new protocol... and they've already patented it. Copying means a lawsuit for sure.'
Even MiniSoft's devs—hailed as America's best programmers—concluded replication was impossible right now.
And just as they resigned to the exclusive deal to buy time...
Daniel realized Savior had seen through their scheme, and his head throbbed.
"What's your call? Heads up—after this MiniSoft meeting, I have one with Waffle, so we should hurry."
Scarlett openly threatened to sign with Waffle if they refused, flashing a relaxed smile—the opposite of Daniel's tension.
This time, it wasn't feigned; it came straight from her heart.
'Scarlett will handle it fine.'
I trusted her to negotiate with MiniSoft in my place.
At this point in time, if we played on Bill Heights' deep resentment toward Waffle well enough,
they'd likely swallow even the most outrageous demands.
'Treat them not as a corporation, but as thugs, Scarlett.'
'Thugs?'
'You know how shameless they are.'
MiniSoft's intentions when they shoved the exclusive supply deal at us recently were transparent.
Obviously, just buying time to make copycat programs.
To those who only remember Bill Heights in his later years as a philanthropist, it might come as a surprise.
But we must remember: in his youth, Bill Heights was so underhanded and petty that even calling him a 'thug' felt generous.
"Thank you for taking the time to talk."
"No, no. We're interested in Uni's project too."
"Really?"
Even this guy from Uni shaking my hand with a smile—how much thug-like behavior had his company pulled?
"At Uni, we're sparing no effort to enter the console manufacturing market this time."
Shuffle—
The man spread a stack of documents across the table.
He was Ken Agara, head of Uni's Information Processing Research Lab.
"Nendo and Seton are impressive companies, sure. But honestly, the console market right now is stagnant. They're more worried about squeezing sales from the old stuff than pondering future tech."
Ken began explaining the documents one by one.
"The game market's future is 3D graphics—plain as day. Next-gen consoles need powerful graphics performance and higher-capacity storage media!"
The documents detailed the specs of their console in development, including components.
"Can you... really show me this so freely?"
"It's top secret, of course, but no worries. No one else could build this without Uni's tech."
The reason he shared the detailed specs without hesitation.
Confidence that no one else could replicate their design.
'Definitely specs and costs only a giant like Uni could pull off.'
I knew it.
This Ken Agara, beaming with confidence now, would dominate the console market for years.
And Ken Agara surely never imagined.
That right before his eyes sat someone who could grasp the core of that console design and blueprint at a glance—and create something even better.