[From:[email protected]]

[To:[email protected]]

[Subject: The Truth Must Be Revealed]

You don’t know me, so I’ll keep it brief. They’re probably monitoring me.

I have been working as a software consultant for the Mukov Psychiatric Research Group at Mountain Mental Hospital for two weeks.

During this time, I witnessed the development of utterly ruthless drugs. To be honest, these people are damn cold-blooded monsters.

Something extremely horrifying is happening here. I can hardly believe what I’ve seen.

The doctors say that the sleep therapy is too deep, causing patients’ minds to fracture even worse.

These people are suffering inhuman torture, and the Mukov Group is profiting from it.

Damn it!!!

After reading the message, Moriya’s head buzzed with a loud ringing!

He was damn right to suspect this!

Golden Wind really had a hidden ace up their sleeve!!!

The previous game, To the Moon, was just an appetizer!

Their real killer move was only just now revealing itself—

A brand-new horror masterpiece personally helmed by Gu Sheng, former senior executive of the Silent Hill PT development team, produced in collaboration with Golden Wind’s actual project team!

Following the PT ending Easter egg, this would be another terrifying and bizarre twisted adventure for the fearless reporter Miles in his pursuit of the truth!

Damn! Damn! Damn!

At this moment, Yamamoto Tsunashiro was still smugly describing how good the situation was, forecasting the sales after Silent Hill’s release, and praising President Kamikoshi’s wise and brave leadership in overruling dissent.

Moriya was so furious he couldn’t hold back and bluntly interrupted Yamamoto:

“Stop talking nonsense. We’ve got big trouble. Look at this.”

Saying that, Moriya sent Yamamoto a screenshot of the email translated simultaneously into Japanese.

Yamamoto, caught mid-sentence and a little annoyed, muttered, “What the hell?” and casually opened the screenshot Moriya sent.

The screenshot appeared on the projection screen.

Everyone looked up to see it.

The next second—

The conference room erupted into chaos!!!

“Wait! This... this looks like the full version of the PT ending Easter egg email...?”

“Hiss—! It’s that email!”

“Miles Upshur! That’s right! The protagonist of PT!”

“This... is Golden Wind’s horror game?”

“We... we’ve been targeted!”

“What the hell is this?! Where did it come from?!”

Among the noisy voices, Yamamoto’s was especially terrified!

After all, Silent Hill was personally handled by him!

He was most familiar with the previous PT!

He immediately recognized this was the Easter egg left at the end of PT!!!

“Mind your attitude, Yamamoto,”

Moriya pointed at him:

“Are you questioning me?”

Yamamoto was at a loss for words, anxious and fearful: “Uh, I...!”

He glanced at President Kamikoshi sitting at the head of the table. Kamikoshi’s brows were tightly furrowed, looking even more anxious than him!

He waved his hand, signaling Yamamoto to be quiet.

Kamikoshi frowned deeply and looked at Executive Director Moriya Tetsuya:

“Moriya, what is this...?”

“This is an invitation letter for Golden Wind’s latest horror masterpiece. I had previously left my phone number with Golden Wind, so I received it,”

Moriya’s face was grave:

“The worst-case scenario I feared has happened. Golden Wind hasn’t been idle during this time. They’ve been developing a horror blockbuster to rival Silent Hill,”

“There’s no doubt this message was sent out en masse,”

“Now, players all over the world who have ever played or come into contact with Golden Wind’s games should have received this message...”

At this!

Moriya took a deep breath, nodded slightly to Kamikoshi with a solemn expression:

“The battle has officially begun, and we must join the fight.”

Buzz—!!!

In an instant!

Kamikoshi felt as if struck by lightning!

They had been ambushed!!!

After so many years as president, Kamikoshi was greedy but not stupid!

He quickly understood Golden Wind’s sinister plan!

Suddenly, he recalled Golden Wind’s previous reply:

[When the mountain doesn’t turn, the water will. Looking forward to our next encounter (smile)]

“Baka! Bakayarou—!!!”

Kamikoshi slammed the table with a bang!

His blood pressure soared and his face flushed bright red!

Damn it!

Golden Wind had been planning this evil all along!

Their seemingly casual response and total silence about PT and Silent Hill were just tactics to confuse them!

Golden Wind had been scheming this ambush for months!

During this time, they even released To the Moon as a smokescreen!

Now!

Golden Wind was indeed back to face them again!

But this time, they came wielding knives!

Kamikoshi was nearly furious enough to go mad!

He glared fiercely at Yamamoto Tsunashiro, who had once urged him to kick out Golden Wind and stubbornly defended Silent Hill, wanting to slap him twice on the spot!

At this moment!

Yamamoto was dumbfounded too!

At such a critical time, Golden Wind suddenly struck!

The former ‘King of Horror’ Gu Sheng held a sharp blade and stabbed right into their main artery!

What to do?!

Run?

No way!

The development cost was 15 million dollars, marketing cost 23 million dollars, totaling 38 million dollars!

Quit now?

Who the hell dares?

Not just Yamamoto, even President Kamikoshi wouldn’t dare back down!

If they wasted 38 million dollars, the board would sink them straight into the Neon Sea!

What? You say Kamikoshi is the chairman?

What about the chairman?

Even if he lost 38 million, the board would revolt and sink him anyway!

“What... what do we do?”

Caught off guard, even Kamikoshi panicked, his head buzzing.

He looked at Moriya Tetsuya and regretted it!

Moriya had already noticed the signs and suspected Golden Wind’s sinister intentions!

But he had been blinded by greed and swayed by the useless and troublemaking Yamamoto!

Now!

Faced with crisis, he could only turn to the usually calm Executive Director Moriya for help!

But!

Moriya just sneered coldly inside!

What use am I to you now?

The marketing has already reached this stage!

In half a month, the game will be released!

Look at me, who the hell else do you expect me to help?

“We have to grit our teeth and fight,”

Moriya said:

“We only have one way left, President,”

“Continue to increase investment and confront Golden Wind head-on, suppressing them with exorbitant marketing costs,”

“Otherwise, all previous investments will be lost.”

Silence!

A deadlock.

Just as Moriya predicted.

Now, with just Silent Hill left to launch, they were trapped in a hopeless gamble.

One step back and they’d lose everything.

One step forward and they risked their souls.

Look at Moriya’s calm face, at Yamamoto’s terrified expression, and at the confused and shocked crowd in the meeting room.

After a long moment!

Kamikoshi could only slump back in his chair weakly, his lean figure sinking into the boss chair, waving his hand:

“Marketing department, go back and calculate costs. We have no choice but to gamble everything.”

With Kamikoshi’s gesture!

The marketing war between Golden Wind and Komera officially began!!!

...

No doubt!

The sudden email had instantly caught the attention of all players!

After all, such a novel marketing method was unheard of and unseen by players!

This dimension-breaking teaser instantly sparked a heated discussion in the player market!

“Holy crap! Holy crap holy crap! I got Xiao Huang’s email! [Picture (click to view)]”

“Miles! Aaaah! Miles is back! Damn!!!”

“Damn! That old thief Ganlin! Genius! You’re a pureborn genius! This marketing gave me goosebumps all over!”

“Me too! Scalp tingling! So damn immersive!”

“Back! Back! Horror game! Your emperor has returned!”

“Outlast! Escape! Damn, even the game names are dripping with hellish vibes!”

“The old thief is here! Horror’s back! Xiao Huang’s here! Hell’s peace is restored!”

“Kill K dog! Kill K dog! Still damn Kill K dog!!!”

“I told you the old thief couldn’t give up PT! Luckily, we still have the Easter egg!”

“He actually made a new game based on the Easter egg! I’m crying!”

“So on point, bro, hurry up and release it, bro, I can’t sleep tossing and turning, feels like ants crawling all over me, I beg you, just release it one day earlier, I swear after playing Escape I’ll never touch horror games again, I really can’t take it anymore, bro...”

“Suggest a thorough investigation, doesn’t feel staged.”

“Hahaha, ridiculous!”

“Look at you all laughing! Pathetic! Have you forgotten we were supposed to play the Silent Hill personally handled by the old thief? Where’s your passion? Where’s your backbone?”

“If you say that, I damn sure can’t sleep! I’m just a 360-degree Thomas spin cursing KOMINA!”

“Fxxk KOMINA!!!”

“...”

Player uproar!!!

Everyone!

Yes, everyone—including Gu Sheng himself—had seriously underestimated PT’s impact on the horror game community.

They had also underestimated the ‘King of Horror’s’ market pull!

In just one day! Twenty-four hours!

Golden Wind was like a huge dump truck flooring the gas!

In an instant, it crushed the hard-earned 8 million dollars Komera spent on public relations into a mess!

The Fxxk KOMINA chant swept the gaming community again like wildfire.

Even stronger than before!

And this!

Was only one of Komera’s many holes!

Besides!

The media also turned against them!

Though “turned against” wasn’t quite accurate since they were paid and obligated to promote Silent Hill.

But!

They weren’t prohibited from promoting Escape!

The media were clever!

Almost instantly after receiving the news, they found the most eye-catching angles to report!

“The King of Horror Returns with New Work ‘Escape’! Battles Former Employer Komera!”

“Revenge Battle! Golden Wind Announces Latest Horror Masterpiece Release Date, Clashing Perfectly with Silent Hill!”

“Silent Hill is Not Silent! Can Escape Escape? Mid-month, Two Horror Blockbusters Face Off!”

“Handing Down Former Employer! King of Horror Gu Sheng Brings Fear with ‘Escape’! Facing Off Against His Own Creation ‘Silent Hill’!”

“...”

The more damaging, the better!

The more attention-grabbing, the better!

After all!

Golden Wind and Komera’s bitter breakup had stirred high discussion in the gaming world before!

Now, the media naturally put the two games side by side to compare without hesitation!

The news drove Kamikoshi nearly insane with anger!

It must be known!

Silent Hill’s current attention was because they spent a fortune hyping it up!

But now, the media and players tightly bound Silent Hill and Escape together!

Essentially, Golden Wind got the same marketing resources as Silent Hill without paying a dime!

For a time!

Silent Hill was besieged on all sides, and Komera was in total crisis!

Three million! Five million! Ten million!

PR funds poured in like water!

But!

The explosive public opinion was like a breached dam that could not be stopped!

Now, even Kamikoshi couldn’t sit still!

Silent Hill was like a black hole, greedily devouring their funds!

This situation could no longer continue!

“Thirty-seven million eight hundred thousand!”

Bang!

Kamikoshi slammed the financial report hard on the table!

In just three days!

Silent Hill’s marketing expenses had reached a terrifying 37.8 million dollars!

But!

The money was spent with little effect!

The overwhelming media chatter and player disparagement all foreshadowed a bleak future for the Silent Hill IP.

What to do?

Kamikoshi frowned deeply, pondering helplessly, even wanting to retire quickly.

But retirement wasn’t that simple.

At least, not now. Not unless he could withstand the pressure and perform a flying escape.

“Who the hell are you all looking at, you useless bunch!”

Seeing no one spoke in the meeting room and all eyes fixed on him, Kamikoshi was furious.

He grabbed the financial report and smashed it towards Yamamoto:

“Speak! What plans do we have now?”

Damn it.

Kamikoshi wanted to kill this bastard.

If not for him, he could have retired peacefully, not be this miserable today!

“I... I... uh...”

Yamamoto’s eyes were bloodshot, his face purple with frustration!

Since Escape was announced!

He hadn’t slept a full night!

Almost every day he was woken by nightmares of Silent Hill’s plummeting sales!

And Gu Sheng’s face gradually distorted in his mind, sometimes turning into a terrifying ghost from Phasmophobia, sometimes into Lisa from PT, whispering in his ear: You’re dead this time.

The title he once despised, King of Horror, now felt like a curse deeply rooted in his heart, haunting him day and night like a nightmare.

“You useless fool...”

Seeing Yamamoto couldn’t say a thing, Kamikoshi opened his mouth to curse loudly.

In desperation, Yamamoto’s mind raced and suddenly a spark lit up!

“Boss! Boss, I have an idea! I have an idea!”

“Hmph,” Kamikoshi snorted coldly, “Speak.”

Yamamoto struggled to organize his thoughts!

He said: “Our current situation is complicated with no clear focus, almost aimlessly patching one hole while another opens,”

“I was just thinking, since total suppression is impossible, can we focus our strength on the key point and strike decisively?”

“Oh?”

Kamikoshi, sensing hope, restrained his emotions and nodded for Yamamoto to continue:

“Go on.”

“Ha, yes—”

Yamamoto nodded:

“I think, since Golden Wind is a Chinese gaming company, China is their base of influence,”

“So...”

“If we can find a local partner company in China, control the influence within China, and support local spokespeople to fight there, wouldn’t that effectively suppress the spread of their influence?”

Hiss—!!!

At this, Kamikoshi’s eyes lit up, secretly thinking Yamamoto finally gave a useful suggestion.

“Then...” Kamikoshi squinted slightly, “Who do you think we should cooperate with to suppress Golden Wind most effectively?”

Upon hearing this!

Yamamoto thought for a moment!

“In China, only two major gaming conglomerates could threaten Golden Wind,”

“Yiyou and XunTeng,”

“And Yiyou, as Golden Wind’s long-term partner, is impossible to turn against them at this critical moment, so—”

At this point, a crafty gleam flashed in Yamamoto’s eyes!

“I think XunTeng, which has had many conflicts with Golden Wind before, is a good choice...”

-----------------

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by lotustale.com