Started as a comics editor

Chapter 286 From Resonance to Trembling
"Miss Li, we should prepare for the next game."

"Are you in such a hurry?"

Upon hearing Tang Yao's words, Li Xue straightened up slightly in surprise, her chin leaving Tang Yao's shoulder.

She glanced at the screen, which was still stuck on the community discussion page, and then whispered, "Undertale's popularity is still at its peak, its reputation continues to grow, sales are still rising, and the player community is buzzing with discussion... Isn't it a bit too fast for us to switch to a new project now? Shouldn't we take advantage of the momentum to consolidate it a bit more?"

"Need not."

Tang Yao turned to look at Li Xue and replied with a light laugh: "Miss Li, it is precisely because the popularity is at its peak that we need to be even faster. The success of Undertale has opened a gap for us, allowing players and the industry to see another side of Avalon—we are not only good at making money-making online games, but we can also make independent masterpieces that are shocking and thought-provoking."

This understanding and expectation is as precious as gold.

But just like waves, popularity has its peaks and its inevitable declines.

Speaking of which.

She paused, then continued, "And although Undertale isn't a huge game, there's still a lot to discover... It's a long-term game, so let it slowly develop and thrive in the player community, that's enough."

There's not much we can do.

That is indeed the case.

At the beginning of the game, the most eye-catching part is definitely the pacifist route, and the emotions it evokes.

However, some people will definitely consider whether it's possible to kill all the monsters and thus unlock the massacre storyline. This is a normal idea for players who want to experience the full game content... but it's a huge undertaking!

Players need to go crazy, searching everywhere for monsters to kill, eliminating every single monster on every map.

This isn't just killing on sight; it's a massacre, a complete cleansing! We need to clear all the monsters from the map.

The conditions are extremely demanding.

Moreover, the difficulty of the genocide route is incomparable to that of the peace route and the normal route.

The first two still have some loopholes that can be exploited.

But the massacre line.

Leaving aside SANS, just the Deterrence Fish in the Slaughter route alone would probably give many players here a real headache.

Furthermore, the subsequent genocide storyline conveys the core idea of ​​breaking the fourth wall and achieving "what you do is what you get," as well as the crucial issue of save file corruption, which prevents players from ever going back and makes the dangerous operation of "peace is hypocrisy" truly worthy of much thought and interpretation.

This setting elevates the theme of the genocide storyline to a new level and makes the entire story background even more bizarre.

Is the player in front of the screen the demon? Or is Chara, who appears at the end, the demon? Who exactly is the character the player controls? This meta-integrated setting will blur the line between the game and reality, and will likely give rise to a lot of fan-made content.

just.

The conditions for reaching the massacre line... really, really test the player's willingness to do despicable things.

After all... this is something only someone with a lot of free time would do.

It is absolutely impossible for a normal player to trigger this ending.

If a player ever gets tired of aimlessly wandering the empty map and goes straight to the final boss, even if they only miss one monster, the game will revert to the normal ending.

The players who trigger this ending are most likely those who came for the massacre...

But right now everyone is still focused on the fact that Undertale is a spiritually healing game, so probably no one will want to do that right away.

This game's profound meaning has only just begun to reveal the tip of the iceberg to players.

This really needs to ferment completely.

The daylily buds are all cold now.

Tang Yao couldn't possibly do nothing.

What she needs to do now is not to rely on a single game and live off past successes, but to capitalize on her momentum and prove herself to everyone through continuous action.

First, Undertale is not an accident, but an inevitable product of Avalon's accumulated experience and creative strength in the game industry.

Secondly, Avalon will not stop here. Avalon has the capability, ambition, and ability to continuously produce high-quality and in-depth works, and Avalon Game Assistant will not lack high-quality games.

"In short, just remember one thing, Miss Li."

Although Tang Yao was lost in thought, she didn't completely drift off into her own world and quickly came back to her senses: "We can't be satisfied with the praise we're getting now. This is just a trial run. We can't let everyone think that Undertale is just a fleeting accident. The game's popularity won't disappear out of thin air. That's the advantage of buy-to-play games. It's always there, and you can play it anytime you want without any impact."

Upon hearing this, Li Xue nodded thoughtfully, then asked, "And what's next..."

"Let's watch 'Outlast'."

Tang Yao briefly recalled the situation of the two project teams: "This game is currently progressing the best. If we don't consider the console version they actively added... this game is completely finished. Moreover, this game can be considered to echo Undertale. If Undertale uses non-killing and choices to convey healing and determination, then Outlast uses inescapable despair to drive players to the brink of despair."

Players no longer have choices; instead, they take on the role of an unarmed journalist who survives with only a night-vision camera.

This leap from emotional resonance to physical thrill... well, just right.

"........."

Upon hearing this, Li Xue's beautiful eyes widened slightly as she looked at Tang Yao in disbelief.

Does this girl even know what she's saying?

How can these be the same? How can they be considered to be related?
How come it's just right?

"what?"

Tang Yao noticed Li Xue's gaze and saw that she looked incredulous. As if she had guessed something, she gave her a light glare: "Undertale heals people's hearts with love and choices, while Outlast stimulates adrenaline with pure fear and helplessness... How can this not be called echoing each other? They are both extreme emotional experiences. One proves that we can do a good job of storytelling, and the other proves that we can do a good job of atmosphere, perfectly covering the two extremes of the player's emotional spectrum!"

"..."

Li Xue was momentarily speechless at Tang Yao's polarized emotional spectrum. Recalling her own state of mind while watching Tang Yao play "Outlast," she remained silent for a while before muttering under her breath, "Then the players are truly blessed to have you..."

"of course!"

Tang Yao straightened her back, her full and proud figure trembling slightly, and said confidently, "This is exactly the effect we want. We call this a split personality... no, we call this showcasing the infinite possibilities of Avalon!"
Imagine, when everyone is still immersed in the afterglow of Undertale and thinks that we will continue to make heartwarming short films or similar works, we suddenly throw out Outlast, a film that can scare people so much that they will jump out of their chairs... This impact and the buzz will surely arouse everyone's curiosity and make them want to ask: What kind of company is Avalon?
This is a hundred times more effective than simply making another Undertale-like game... Hmm!

To the end.

Tang Yao herself seemed to believe it, nodding solemnly with a nasal tone full of certainty, her full breasts trembling slightly as she straightened her back.

"..."

Li Xue's gaze was unconsciously drawn to it, but she quickly looked away and turned back to Tang Yao, who was beaming and logically consistent. She continued to mutter under her breath, "So this is your plan to torment the players, is that it?"

"Speak up."

They were sabotaged again.

Tang Yao immediately raised her hand as if to pat Li Xue, but the movement was slow, more like a playful gesture between friends.

Li Xue had anticipated this, and with a light laugh, she shrank back, nimbly dodging the weak attack: "That's right, one minute you've moved the players to tears, and the next you've made them run for their lives in a mental hospital... This experience is torture, a complete contrast of hot and cold!"

"This is called enriching the player's emotional experience! Do you understand?"

Tang Yao, having missed her first attack, simply stood up, walked around the table, and chased after Li Xue, reaching out to scratch her: "Serves you right for being so talkative! Serves you right for questioning the boss's strategic vision!"

"Haha... Tang Yao! Stop it! It tickles!"

Caught off guard, Li Xue was tickled by Tang Yao, her body trembling uncontrollably. She twisted her body to dodge while trying to grab Tang Yao's mischievous hand.

The two started fooling around next to the office chairs, instantly dispelling the serious atmosphere of their previous discussion.

...This is the side effect of Tang Yao being quite idle.

As they talk, the two of them can quickly transform from reliable working professionals into close young friends.

Ok.

It has nothing to do with the fact that the two of them like to hug and cuddle.

Li Xue, a typical career woman, was laughing and panting at the same time. She barely managed to grab Tang Yao's wrist before she could catch her breath.

She glared at Tang Yao gently and whispered, "I think you... can be quite mean sometimes."

"There's no other way." Tang Yao played around for a while, and she was also a little out of breath, her full chest rising and falling with her rapid breathing.

She didn't break free from her grasped wrist; instead, she leaned her body weight against Li Xue, her voice tinged with a playful languor, but the content returned to the main point: "That's how you create buzz."

"You really didn't mean to torture the players?"

Li Xue adjusted her posture slightly to make Tang Yao more comfortable, and asked with a light laugh.

Am I really that bad?

Tang Yao took a deep breath, straightened up, and reached out to gather her long, soft hair that was draped over her shoulders: "It just so happened that we came across this game, and there just happened to be a game that could be in stark contrast to Undertale... Undertale and Left 4 Dead were the first projects to be launched, while Outlast was something we came up with while traveling."

"But I doubt that players will think that way."

Li Xue gently shook her head and smiled softly, "They would only think that the person who made such a heartwarming game as Undertale must have a little angel living in their heart. But then that little angel pulled out something like Outlast that can scare people so much they wet their pants. The contrast is... If any player were to play Outlast with the mindset of Left 4 Dead, then Avalon would probably really become a devil."

"The Genocide route in Undertale is not a warm one."

"Nobody's playing the genocide route yet, is there?"

"It makes sense..."

Upon hearing this, Tang Yao showed a thoughtful expression, but quickly recovered and waved her hand: "Devil or not, Outlast is a good game anyway..."

"Row."

Upon hearing this, Li Xue didn't say anything more, but simply nodded and smiled, "Then I'll make the arrangements later."

After all.

She wasn't questioning Tang Yao's decision; she just wanted to spend more time with her.

"Ah."

Tang Yao didn't say anything more, and continued to struggle with her long, smooth hair.

once.

She had actually considered cutting her hair short, but Tang Xun stopped her from doing so.

As for now, she's gotten used to it... and hasn't had any similar thoughts since accepting her identity.

However, despite her habits, she still sometimes does look a bit clumsy when tying her hair up.

It's probably because Xun is at home and Li Xue is at the company.

And the other side.

Li Xue was about to leave when she suddenly saw Tang Yao struggling with her long hair in a slightly clumsy way, and her glossy red lips unconsciously curved into a gentle smile.

She turned around immediately and said softly, "I'll do it."

Upon hearing this, Tang Yao immediately and obediently lowered her hand, handing her long, flowing hair to Li Xue.

Li Xue took a step forward, her fingers deftly tracing the smooth strands of Tang Yao's hair, her movements practiced and gentle, carrying a tacit understanding that came naturally.

She skillfully gathered her hair and began to comb and tidy it up.

The office fell silent for a moment, with only the soft rustling of hair and the two people's light breathing remaining.

Li Xue leaned slightly forward, focusing on her work, but in that instant, her gaze inadvertently swept over Tang Yao's beautifully shaped neck and the two of them facing each other with their proud curves... The curves rose and fell slightly with their breath, carrying an unconscious attraction.

Perhaps it was the quiet and intimate atmosphere that was the culprit, or perhaps the relaxed feeling from the earlier playfulness hadn't completely dissipated.

As Li Xue picked up the last strand of hair that needed to be secured with her fingertips, she said softly, "Speaking of which... Tang Yao, you still haven't answered my question from last time."

Tang Yao asked, somewhat puzzled, "Hmm?"

"What exactly is the difference between your bust and bust size...?"

Tang Yao glared at Li Xue slightly: "How do you still remember?"

Li Xue whispered, "Because I'm very curious..."

"Don't tell you!"

"That's 20..."

"I...you stop right there!"

……

evening.

Tang Yao left work on time, a rare occurrence, leaving the bustling Avalon building and the game behind.

After all, a game that has achieved success needs a break.

But when she returned home, to her own quiet space, the pressure quietly surfaced, mixed with an indescribable...concern.

Especially after taking a shower.

It's around eight o'clock in the evening.

inside the room.

Tang Yao, wrapped in soft pajamas, stood in front of the dressing mirror, looking at herself... Li Xue's words from earlier that day kept repeating like a curse.

"impossible……"

Looking at herself in the mirror, as if trying to convince someone, Tang Yao whispered these words...

But in the end, she couldn't resist the damned urge to verify that Li Xue had stirred in her heart.

She went deep into the wardrobe, rummaged around for a while, and found a soft leather measuring tape.

then.

It's like a sound.

With a tragic, resigned air, she pressed the cold measuring tape against her skin.

At the same time, I took a deep breath, tried to clear my mind, and recalled the measurement method I had seen online. I clumsily measured the bottom first, and then wrapped the measuring tape around the fullest part of my body, carefully pulling it tight to make sure it was level.

She held her breath slightly and looked down at the scale.

The numbers came into view clearly.

Tang Yao's beautiful eyes widened instantly.

Unconvinced, she loosened the measuring tape, carefully adjusted its position, and measured it again with even greater precision.

The same numbers lay there, cold and lifeless.

"..."

The room fell into a deathly silence.

Tang Yao remained in the position of looking down at the measuring tape for more than ten seconds without moving. A strong sense of frustration overwhelmed her like a tsunami.

then.

Her fair legs went weak, and she became utterly powerless. Despondent, she knelt on the carpet and, with a blank expression, tossed aside the soft ruler in her hand.

Some doubt about life.

Really? You could tell that?

Destroy it.

this world……

(End of this chapter)