"Please, I'm begging you, act normal. People are going to think we're insane!"
With considerable effort, Ethan pried Sam off the arcade machine. He then gave the newcomer a slight nod and greeted her awkwardly.
"Miss, would you like to try the new arcade game we developed?"
This was undoubtedly the strangest introduction in the world.
Vivian's mouth twitched, and she unconsciously took half a step backward, inwardly cursing her luck.
She had run into two gaming nerds.
She had often heard that these people were eccentric, never participated in campus activities, and spent all day wasting their youth in game stores.
'I should've known better than to get involved. Have I somehow become part of their play?'
"Uh... haha, I was just passing by. I didn't even bring any coins. If there's nothing else, I'll be going now."
She wanted to get away from this place as quickly as possible.
"It's okay, miss. The first game is free."
Seeing Vivian about to leave, Ethan called out to her. He pulled a quarter from his pocket, his expression as sincere as could possibly be.
Vivian knew what an arcade machine was, and she knew what video games were.
In her opinion, they were nothing more than a new scam designed to exploit consumers nostalgia.
Still...
This was the first time she had ever seen someone set up an arcade machine outside their own home.
Shouldn't these things be placed in front of convenience stores or bars?
Looking at Ethan's harmless smile, then at Sam, whose gaze was practically glued to the arcade machine, Vivian found herself wavering.
Once curiosity seized control of the high ground of the mind, reason was obligated to step aside.
'Hmm... it's free anyway. Trying it won't hurt.'
With that thought, her retreating steps came to a halt.
She accepted the coin from Ethan.
For some reason, she felt that there was something difficult to describe hidden behind his smile, as though he were eagerly anticipating a spectacle.
"Is it really free? This isn't one of those scams where you suddenly force people to pay afterward, right?"
Her cautious nature compelled her to ask.
"Honest business, miss." Ethan nodded.
"25 cents per game."
Vivian pulled over a stool and sat down, carefully examining the machine.
A large "TETRIS" logo was painted across the cabinet.
It looked as though it had been drawn directly by hand, and the paint hadn't even dried yet.
Below that hung an eight-digit LED display, obviously intended to show players' scores.
The monitor was somewhat old, but the image on the screen was visible enough.
There were only some simple blocks displayed.
Several instructions were written on the control panel, briefly explaining how to play.
But Vivian's attention wasn't focused there.
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Following the row of buttons toward the right, she noticed another identical set of controls.
"Does it have multiplayer mode?"
Although Vivian rarely played games, she was familiar with popular titles like Pac-Man.
Pac-Man had features such as alternating challenge modes.
Ethan smiled and pulled out another coin, tossing it to Sam.
Sam immediately understood.
Ethan was finally allowing him to play.
He happily rushed over and sat on the other stool.
"If you don't mind, we can have a match."
The fact that the arcade machine was now being made available for everyone to try had already become an established reality.
He could only accept it.
Although he could no longer monopolize it, he could still become the person who loved Tetris the most!
For some reason, Vivian felt that Sam harbored an inexplicable hostility toward her.
It was almost as if she had stolen his beloved wife.
The absurd feeling annoyed her.
She had come over to help him.
Not receiving a thank-you was one thing, but why was he acting so hostile?
Now she absolutely had to win.
She was going to teach this rude jerk a lesson.
Vivian immediately inserted her coin.
The screen displayed an option asking whether she wanted to skip the waiting period and enter single player mode.
As soon as Sam inserted his coin as well, the option disappeared.
The screen split into two, and the game immediately began running.
Ethan yawned.
From an angle neither of them could see, a satisfied, mischievous smile appeared on his face.
He hadn't expected Sam's bizarre behavior to accidentally help him reel in his very first customer.
25 cents to bait the hook.
The cost was incredibly affordable.
"Sam, I'm going back to sleep. Remember not to hog the machine. If someone wants to play, be a good boy and give up your seat."
After giving his instructions, he dragged his heavy body back to his room and collapsed onto the bed.
Converting this arcade machine to support two-player battles had been anything but simple.
Both the code and the hardware required extensive modifications.
Porting the version he had written on the Commodore 64 over to this Z80 system had been especially exhausting.
Even with the system's assistance, the work had nearly killed him.
The addition of hardware knowledge had made Ethan realize just how much potential existed here.
A machine that supported multiplayer could effectively double the coin insertion rate.
At the same time, competitive gameplay would naturally create rivalry.
Winners would become addicted to winning.
Losers would refuse to accept defeat.
The result would be endless rematches and continuous coin drops.
Ethan buried his head into the pillow and fell into a deep sleep.
He didn't know how much time had passed when the nonstop system notifications ringing in his head suddenly woke him up.
[Ding!]
[Milestone Completed]: 10 players gave positive reviews after playing the arcade machine
[Reward]: Free Attribute Points ×5
[Milestone Completed]: Arcade machine reached 100 total play sessions
[Reward]: Free Attribute Points ×5
[Milestone Completed]: Return player rate exceeded 60%
[Reward]: Skill Pack ×1
[Milestone Completed]: Completed an all-night work session
[Skill Acquired]:
[Hardened Body]: [Maximum Stamina ↑, Rest Efficiency ↑]
...
"Huh?"
Ethan rubbed his aching head as he climbed out of bed.
Suddenly, a refreshing sensation surged from the soles of his feet all the way to the top of his head.
The aftereffects of pulling an all-nighter instantly disappeared by more than half.
Someone outside was making a tremendous amount of noise.
The entire area sounded chaotic.
Sunlight filtered through the thin curtains, informing Ethan that it was already midday.
He stretched his sore joints, stiff from sleeping in a terrible position, then shuffled over in his scuffs and pulled the curtains open.
The scene outside struck him like an uppercut that instantly cleared away all drowsiness.
The neighborhood where Ethan lived was a typical residential district.
Aside from two convenience stores and an arcade that had already gone out of business at the street corner, there were no other businesses around.
Anyone wanting to go elsewhere generally had to drive a car or ride a bike.
Because of that, this street was normally a peaceful haven of quiet and relaxation.
But now, everything outside had completely changed.
Several young men and women sat casually along the roadside, chatting and laughing beneath the blazing midday sun without a care in the world.
Even more people had formed a queue that stretched all the way down the street.
And the thing they were willingly standing in line under the scorching sun to play...
Was the Tetris arcade machine sitting in front of his apartment.