After Your Name was released, it became an absolute sensation.
The main reason was that everyone knew this was likely to be Master Kohara Tsubaki's final work before his retirement. As a result, almost every player with any affection for Pokeni's games rushed to buy Your Name.
This was unprecedented in the gaming world.
In just one short week, Your Name had already sold over 300,000 copies.
It was nothing short of a miracle.
What made it even more unbelievable was that the game was a galgame. People couldn't believe this was actually happening.
And the most staggering part was—
The only reason Your Name had "only" sold 300,000 copies was because the cartridge burning production couldn't keep up with the demand.
Sega itself hadn't expected to release another masterpiece on the Mega Drive after Pokémon.
When Aoki Haruhi went to work that morning, he found a massive crowd gathered in front of the company entrance.
What the hell...
In all his years, Aoki Haruhi had never seen such a huge commotion.
His heart skipped a beat—
Could it be...
No, wait. Didn't I give my latest work, Your Name, a happy ending?
What?
Are they still not satisfied?
Are these players twisted? Do they only enjoy games that break their hearts?
Surely not...
Or...
Could I have offended some organization? After all, even gangs are legal in Japan.
But Aoki Haruhi still couldn't figure it out. How could he have possibly offended a gang boss?
Could Tsuda Nao's identity be more complicated than it seems? Maybe she's a second-generation boss?
In just a few minutes, Aoki Haruhi had already run through every worst-case scenario in his head, even hesitating about whether he should just leave this place entirely.
At first, he was terrified.
But as he got closer, he saw that the crowd wasn't causing any trouble. They were just standing there quietly. The front row of people was holding two banners that read:
[Master Kohara Tsubaki, Please Don't Retire!]
[Master Kohara Tsubaki, We Miss You!]
Tsk, tsk. Seeing this, Aoki Haruhi felt a strange surge of emotion.
When the crowd saw him, they just gave him a cursory glance before looking away.
No one had ever seen Kohara Tsubaki, but everyone knew that Aoki Haruhi and Kohara Tsubaki were two different people.
Famitsu had even tried to interview Kohara Tsubaki, but Aoki Haruhi had turned them down. Now, Kohara Tsubaki's identity had become even more mysterious.
Besides, their goal was simply to ask Kohara Tsubaki to return. As long as someone at Pokeni saw the message, that was enough.
Who Kohara Tsubaki actually was no longer mattered.
After returning to the office without further incident, Aoki Haruhi slumped into the president's chair and let out a long sigh of relief. His back was drenched in cold sweat.
"President, your coffee."
Ayase Akane set the coffee in front of him. Seeing Aoki's disheveled state, she couldn't help but giggle.
"You saw it downstairs too, didn't you?"
"Yeah," Aoki nodded. "How could I not? With that many people and such a massive display, who wouldn't be terrified?"
"Terrified?" Ayase tilted her head. "I'm just touched. Why be scared?"
Only Kogahara Tsubakiaki himself would be scared, right?
No, to be precise, only the President, who has discarded the identity of "Kogahara Tsubakiaki," would feel terrified.
Everyone else is just deeply moved.
To have players remember him so fondly... this was truly a producer's finest hour.
Honestly, Ayase Akane was quite envious of Aoki Haruhi. Even under a pseudonym, he had won the hearts of the players.
Seeing the banners below, Ayase finally felt a flicker of the joy and pride that came with being an employee of a game company.
"President, you have no idea how jealous Wada is. He'd give anything for his own name to be on those banners. He even said that being remembered by players is the greatest achievement a game producer can have."
"If it weren't for the rules, Wada would retire the name 'Gen Urobuchi' tomorrow."
"Huh?!" Aoki Haruhi was taken aback.
"Is Wada out of his mind?"
"Mhm. He really is," the Little HR giggled, covering her mouth.
Aoki Haruhi froze for a moment before quickly realizing that she wasn't just laughing at Gen Urobuchi—she was laughing at him, at his Kogahara Tsubaki persona.
Aoki Haruhi cleared his throat and said seriously, "I'm retiring the Kogahara Tsubaki name so I can better utilize the name Aoki Haruhi. Besides, I plan to hand it over to Gen Urobuchi and the others in the future. It's not like Wada's vain desire for fame, okay?"
"Mhm, you're right, President."
Ayase Akane didn't argue, just smiled playfully, having no intention of exposing him.
"But Master Kogahara Tsubaki, couldn't you have just retired quietly in a few years? Why make such a huge deal out of it? Now the whole world knows."
Aoki Haruhi flinched, nearly knocking over the coffee cup on the table.
"Ayase-san, you must not let anyone know that I am Kogahara Tsubaki! Otherwise, the players down there will eat me alive!"
Heh.
You're quite self-aware, aren't you? You enjoyed tormenting the players, but now you're suddenly acting all innocent?
"But..." Ayase Akane looked at Aoki Haruhi with a smile and said, "President, I think you're overthinking it. Even if someone told the players that Aoki Haruhi is Kogahara Tsubaki, they wouldn't believe it."
"Huh?"
Aoki Haruhi blinked, momentarily stunned. What are you getting at?
"Kogahara Tsubakiaki's games are completely different in style from yours, you know?" Ayase Akane said with a smile. "I overheard players saying that Aoki Haruhi is way worse than Kogahara Tsubakiaki. It's only because your last two games showed some improvement; otherwise, Aoki Haruhi would be Pokeni's most useless producer."
Ugh...
Aoki Haruhi frowned deeply.
Hmph. This little HR is getting bolder and bolder.
Still, Ayase Akane's words helped him calm down a bit.
Though her words stung, he had to admit she had a point. The games he made were so different in style from Kogahara Tsubakiaki's that players would never even dream of linking them together.
"Have you found a new address for the company yet?" Aoki Haruhi asked as he sipped his coffee.
The little HR shook her head, then paused and nodded.
"I've found a few places. I was planning to take you to see them this weekend, but I didn't expect the company entrance to be blocked by protesters."
Aoki Haruhi slammed his hand on the table. "That's exactly why we need to move quickly! We need to get away from Kogahara Tsubakiaki's latest wave of trouble."
Ayase Akane blinked, then nodded obediently. "Oh, I understand, President."
Aoki Haruhi accompanied Ayase Akane to inspect several properties she had found.
Japan in the 1990s was remarkably similar to China twenty years later, with numerous office buildings already dotting the landscape.
The burst of the bubble economy had left many companies bankrupt, resulting in a surplus of vacant floors.
With property values plummeting, real estate had become a "hot potato." Buying or renting was now incredibly easy.
For property owners, excess real estate was a burden, especially with the taxes involved.
Leaving office space vacant was a waste, so the Little HR had found some excellent options—spacious, bright, and located near the heart of Tokyo.
The buildings also offered ample parking.
After visiting several locations, Aoki Haruhi was satisfied with all of them but couldn't decide on one.
The current office they were viewing was an entire vacant floor—a bare shell without any interior finishing. It was vast, roughly 500 square meters, with a few support columns breaking up the open space, which still smelled strongly of fresh concrete.
The real estate agent was extremely enthusiastic. Knowing that Aoki Haruhi was coming to view the space today, she had gone so far as to place a few sofas and a small coffee table on this floor, even brewing tea and serving it to him.
The sofas and coffee table looked completely out of place in the surrounding environment.
It was obvious how long this floor had been sitting on the market.
"President, you can partition off a separate office for yourself right here," the agent said, walking to the northeast corner against the wall. "The light is better here. If you install a glass wall around it, you'll be able to oversee everything from inside."
"It's spacious and bright. You could even put a large bed in here."
"And out here," she continued, "you can set aside twenty square meters for your secretary. Anyone who wants to enter your office will have to go through here first. The secretary can screen visitors and relay messages—the confidentiality will be top-notch."
Aoki Haruhi looked up, imagining the scene she described, and couldn't help but grin.
Watching him, Ayase Akane felt a chill of apprehension and quickly pleaded, "President, I really don't think we need a separate secretarial office."
"Hmm?"
"Think about it. If there's a secretarial office separating you from the employees, you'll seem so unapproachable! It'll be such a hassle for people to discuss things with you. We're a game company, right? We don't need that kind of formality."
Ayase Akane furrowed her small brow. It's not like you're some world leader. Is someone really going to try to assassinate you?
"Hmm, you make a good point."
Aoki Haruhi clasped his hands behind his back and paced slowly, pondering the current layout.
"There's no need for a separate secretarial office. After all, the secretary will be in the same room as me."
"Pfft—!"
Ayase Akane nearly spat out a mouthful of blood.
"How can you say that? People outside will start talking!" The Little HR's face instantly flushed red.
"Besides, President, don't you have a girlfriend?"
Seeing her flustered expression, Aoki Haruhi couldn't help but find it amusing.
He smiled dismissively. "I never said you would be the secretary. Aren't you the HR?"
Ayase Akane was left speechless, her eyes glaring at Aoki Haruhi as if she wanted to devour him.
Hmph.
When the President needs me, I'm his "little secretary."
When he doesn't, I'm just "HR"!
"Huh? Isn't that..."
Just then, Aoki Haruhi, who was standing by the window, let out an exclamation.
Ayase Akane followed his gaze across the street. There, right across from them, stood the Sony Building.
The Sony Building in Ginza, Tokyo, was the ultimate symbol of Sony.
Opened to the public on April 29, 1966, it featured eight floors above ground and five below.
The building housed Sony's showrooms, specialty stores, event centers, and venues for photography exhibitions.
It was, without a doubt, a landmark of Ginza, Tokyo.
"Yes, that's President Tsuda's company," Ayase Akane said.
Tsk tsk.
Aoki Haruhi had been quite fond of this location, but now he was suddenly hesitant.
Ginza was one of Tokyo's most prosperous districts, where every inch of land was worth its weight in gold. Having just partnered with Sony to create a game console, moving right across the street from them seemed... a bit too intimate, didn't it?
He wondered how the outside world would perceive it.
The building Aoki Haruhi was in certainly couldn't compare to the Sony Building across the street, but the fact that they could see each other across the road felt strange in a way.
After a moment's hesitation, Aoki Haruhi ultimately decided to choose this location as the new address.
After all, this was just a transitional phase. Once Pokeni became wealthy in the future, it would need its own dedicated building, just like Nintindo.
In Aoki Haruhi's imagination, however, it would be wonderful to create a "working garden," much like Disneyland.
His ideal office environment was to transform the company into a semi-open theme park where employees could both work and play games.
The non-office areas would be open to visitors, who could enjoy the park's attractions and play P Corporation's games. All new titles and merchandise would be sold within the park.
Statues of Pokeni game characters and cosplayers would be everywhere, giving players the feeling of having entered a fantasy world.
For example, Onmyoji would have its own dedicated themed area, complete with a Shinto shrine and Miko.
Diablo would also have its own dedicated themed area.
They could even hold occasional events there. How exciting that would be!
Of course, for now, all of this existed only in Aoki Haruhi's imagination.
The prerequisite for all of this was, first and foremost, to have the money.
Once the agreement was signed, the deal was finalized.
The new company's offices would need to air out for over half a year after renovation, meaning the earliest they could move in was the second half of the year.
"You really do have a strange connection with Sony, don't you?"
During dinner that evening, Tsuda Nao couldn't help but smile after hearing Aoki Haruhi's decision.
"It's only temporary," Aoki Haruhi replied with a grin. "What's wrong? Are you jealous?"
"Heh, how can I be jealous of a company?" Tsuda Nao laughed. "Do you like Morita Akio? Or Kutaragi Ken?"
"Cough, cough!"
Aoki Haruhi nearly spat out his water.
"Then how about I move right across from DUN? Would you like that?" He set down his knife and fork and looked Tsuda Nao straight in the eyes.
Tsuda Nao paused, her brow furrowing slightly as she lowered her head to focus on cutting her steak.
"I don't mind, but haven't you always disliked people associating Pokeni with DUN?"
Aoki Haruhi truly liked Tsuda Nao, but she wasn't particularly keen on DUN's influence affecting her career.
After all, DUN's main products were still blue-themed.
Although Pokeni made galgames, it hadn't developed in the blue direction, partly to avoid suspicion (actually, it was the Great Firewall, oh how I hate it~!!).
"I'm just afraid that being too close will make you uncomfortable," Aoki Haruhi blurted out. "The people in your company still don't know about our relationship, do they?"
Tsuda Nao's fingers stopped, and her whole body paused.
But the next second, she smiled faintly.
"Aoki-san, is it really true that Pokeni and Sony don't have any future collaboration plans?"
Tsuda asked with a smile, her tone full of suspicion.
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