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Still, the same principle held true: people who were so self-absorbed were truly terrifying.
Max had no intention of keeping all the agency rights in his own hands forever.
Ultimately, to harvest emotion points from players worldwide and to properly promote the game, he couldn't do without overseas agents.
Max simply didn't have the time to haggle with every country individually. He could leave that to local powerhouses who understood their markets.
But you couldn't treat Max like a pushover.
Five million US dollars? That was less than what Goose Corporation had offered!
And Goose Corporation's offer had been insulting.
What kind of person did this Korean executive think he was, trying to lowball Max on overseas agency rights?
So, listening to the executive president on the other end rambling on in his broken accent, Max had shut him down with a single sentence.
And hearing the other party still wanting to boast about how amazing his conglomerate was—
Max didn't even think twice. He simply hung up.
"What's wrong?"
His companion looked up from her plate, curious.
"Nothing. Just some idiot trying to get something for nothing. I shut him down."
Max picked up his chopsticks again.
"Come, eat. You've gotten so thin recently."
"Have I?"
"Eat. But keep your hands to yourself."
"Didn't you tempt me first?"
"..."
Perhaps this was a case of one thing conquering another.
Faced with her boldness, all Max could do was protest with silence.
Watching Max rendered speechless, she chuckled softly, then placed a slice of cooked beef onto Max's plate.
"By the way, all the things you asked for have been ordered online. But can you really do it? Making 100 figurines in three days, and you have to livestream tomorrow night, and catch a flight the day after tomorrow."
"Where there's a will, there's a way, right?"
Max grinned.
"Believe in me. I'm the Superman who can conquer you."
"That's true."
"Speaking of which, aren't you going to try my game?"
She shook her head slightly.
"I don't feel like I have that much time. After all, I can't always rely on you to support me. I need to find a job for myself."
She paused, considering.
"And I feel like if I lie in bed for too long, my body will become useless. I'm more of a real-life exercise person."
"If you put it that way, I'm speechless."
Her words actually gave Max quite a bit of inspiration.
Although the VR technology in this world was more advanced than anything in his previous life, it also made it easier for people to become lazy.
After all, it was a direct brain experience. Unlike the original world where one had to wear various cumbersome devices, here you could just lie down and dive in.
At the same time, the game duration was too long.
Although a Holy Grail War could be resolved in an hour if played aggressively—
Normally, it would take at least three or four hours.
Players like Maverick, who often had drawn-out matches full of scheming and hiding, would sometimes play for seven or eight hours straight.
For wealthy players with nothing but time, it didn't matter.
But for the vast majority of ordinary people—people with jobs, families, responsibilities—this time commitment was simply too long.
So, next, he would have to come up with something like quick matches.
Shorter formats. Faster resolutions. More accessible gameplay.
He also needed to slightly reform the ranked matches. Balance adjustments. Better matchmaking.
At the same time, various smaller features like the Holy Grail Front mode and additional single-player content also needed to be released.
The to-do list kept growing.
Thinking of all this, Max looked at his companion with a hint of exasperation.
She'd given him good feedback.
But she'd also just added about fifty more hours of work to his schedule.
The next few days were a blur of activity.
Max had three major tasks to juggle:
Task One: The FA Chapter Beta Test
The multiplayer mode needed final polishing before the streamer showcase. Maverick, Chen Ge, William, and the eleven platform-selected streamers would all be testing it simultaneously.
Any bugs or balance issues needed to be identified and fixed before the public saw it.
Task Two: The Phoenix Nest Exhibition
The game exhibition was in two days. Max needed to prepare his presentation, his talking points, and his answers to the inevitable questions from industry people and investors.
He also needed to mentally prepare himself for the "talking about dreams and painting big pictures" portion of the event.
Corporate speak wasn't his forte, but he could manage.
Task Three: The Figurines
One hundred custom figurines for the giveaway winners. Hand-painted. High quality.
Three days.
This was going to be tight.
But Max was nothing if not efficient.
By the time the sun set on the first day, he'd already finished twenty figurines. His hands moved with practiced precision—base coat, detail work, finishing touches.
The system's various crafting skills were proving useful for something other than revenge for once.
By midnight, he'd finished forty.
By dawn, sixty.
His companion brought him coffee and occasionally forced him to take breaks, but otherwise let him work.
"You're insane," she observed, watching him paint Nero's golden armor with microscopic precision.
"I prefer 'dedicated.'"
"Same thing, in your case."
She wasn't wrong.
Meanwhile, across the country, fourteen streamers were logging into the FA Chapter beta for the first time.
Maverick was among them.
His chat was already exploding with anticipation.
[Hyped_Harry]: IT'S HAPPENING
[Excited_Eddie]: TEAM HOLY GRAIL WAR LET'S GOOOOO
[Worried_Wendy]: Please don't let Maverick's curse affect his teammates
[Optimistic_Oscar]: Maybe the curse only applies to solo matches?
[Pessimistic_Pete]: Or maybe it spreads to everyone around him like a contagion
[Maverick]: "...Thanks for the vote of confidence, everyone."
He took a deep breath.
Selected the FA Chapter.
And dove in.
Let the test begin.
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