By the end of May, Tetsu Kobayashi received this month's royalties—not much, only a little over forty million yen. Even so, it pushed his savings past the one-hundred-million-yen mark.
And in June, the esports tournament sponsored by Bandai officially opened in Tokyo.
This year's event was far larger than the first. There was no way Yosuke Shimayori's game shop could hold everyone, so he'd had to file a request with the local ward office to secure enough space.
Arriving early, Tetsu Kobayashi was stunned by the sea of people.
"There must be a few hundred here!"
Behind him were the Atlas Trio, who'd taken the day off especially to watch.
Tsukasa Masuko scratched his cheek in amazement. "I thought there'd be four or five thousand!"
"Once you pass a hundred people, it already feels like a massive crowd. This place couldn't fit thousands."
Tetsu led the three inside as he explained casually.
"With a bigger event comes more formality. I'm not competing this time—just judging. There are three game categories this year: Kobayashi Puzzle, Tank Battle, and the newly released hit, Jormungandr."
"There's also a big television set up for live viewing outside, but someone has to do commentary, otherwise it'll be silent."
Yuji Naka blinked. "That must've cost a lot. Bandai paid for that?"
"I did," Tetsu replied without looking back. "Only a few hundred thousand yen. Consider it an investment in the audience's experience."
He had said he wouldn't help organize things this year—but spending a little money was fine.
The prizes included Bandai's sponsored Salamander fighter craft model, shop trial-play rights from Yosuke, several SG-2000 consoles with light guns obtained through Tetsu's personal connections at Sega, and finally, limited-edition Jormungandr cartridges donated under the Atlas name—meaning, from his own wallet.
Unlike the earlier "Iwasaki Isao" limited edition, these had no Anno Hideaki artwork, no Kitagawa Go character illustrations, and no personal message from Tetsu—just his signature on the standard packaging.
Overall, he'd spent less than half a million yen.
Inside the venue, attendants in Old Dixie uniforms moved through the crowd balancing trays of drinks and fried snacks.
Yuji Naka's eyes widened. "Those are Old Dixie's waitresses!"
"Yep. Since today's a holiday, I asked them to pre-fry a batch of snacks and sell them here with drinks. Anyone who helps gets double pay."
Tetsu spread his hands. "And everyone pays—eight hundred yen a set!"
Even he wasn't exempt. Looking over the crowd, he spotted Nene Anezaki and the other staff weaving among the attendees.
Rinko Kobayakawa was in the players' line, waiting to enter—not looking too nervous. Noticing Tetsu's gaze, she turned and waved with a bright smile.
After that, Nene also glanced over, but the moment she saw Rinko's expression, her own smile faded into a polite bow before she walked off to continue selling.
Yuji Naka shot a side-eye at Tetsu.
"What are you looking at me for? Look at the tournament."
Tetsu pulled down the brim of his cap and headed to the judges' seats.
Because Bandai was involved, a TV crew was recording again. Yamashina Makoto didn't come personally, but sent staff to assist.
After Yosuke delivered an impassioned opening speech, he introduced the judges.
"Besides myself, we have two heavyweight judges this year!"
"First—Mr. Mizuno, the official representative sent by Bandai!"
Polite applause.
"And this one needs no introduction! Last year's Tokyo champion—the Blue-Eyes White Dragon!"
Tetsu removed his hood and bowed. "Good morning, everyone. I'm Blue-Eyes White Dragon."
He had long accepted the nickname.
His introduction set off a wave of excitement—no one cared about a business representative, but last year's champion? That, everyone remembered.
After bowing, Tetsu sat down, letting the host take over.
"The scale is bigger this year, but since we've split into three categories, it's actually simpler—fewer players per event."
He skimmed the signup list. As expected, most entrants were from Tokyo and nearby areas like Yokohama.
Esports just wasn't big enough yet to draw competitors from across Japan or overseas.
"Huh? Someone from Kansai? That's rare."
Only one player from Kobe.
Name: Hideo Kojima.
Tetsu suddenly lifted his head and scanned the players.
Soon he spotted the young man—square glasses, scholarly aura, absolutely the type who would one day follow Vtubers.
"Oh my—too beautiful. Isn't that Hideo Kojima? And here I thought I'd only see him if I stared toward Konami's building."
Tetsu truly hadn't expected this. At this point in time, Kojima should still be in school!
Hideo Kojima—future Konami producer, later split from the company. Known for Metal Gear… and Tokimeki Memorial, yes—that Tokimeki Memorial.
One was a stealth-action classic, the other a romance adventure game. Two completely unrelated genres, somehow linked through one person.
That said much about Kojima's personality.
In Tetsu's eyes, Kojima was the perfect example of a "star creator": few games, massive influence. Unlike many "star creators," though, he actually had both technical and creative skill.
After giving him a glance, Tetsu looked away.
Kojima hadn't graduated yet, and wasn't the type to abandon school like Yuji Naka. He wouldn't be joining any company soon.
Still—making early contact wouldn't hurt.
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