Chapter 39: The Game and the Game

** Harper **

Harper was getting distracted, thinking about the whole bizarre situation with Eli and wondering what he was trying to get at with those questions, when the attention of all the VIPs in the room suddenly snapped in her direction.

Geez, was that part of Eli's plan too? Did he want to give her a heart attack?

"A game like this can easily take many different directions when it comes to user experience," the man who spoke earlier continued. Harper didn't know his name or title, though he must be the person she was warned about earlier who liked to ask tricky technical questions. "Which aspect of gameplay are you planning to focus on? Adventure, strategy, action, puzzle solving, or something else?"

That was an easy one, thankfully. "Adventure," Harper replied without a second thought. "There will be a mix of all the above, but my goal is to create an immersive open world for the player to explore. Maybe combined with some factual details about physics and astronomy as well, to make it feel more realistic."

A smile that suggested increasing interest appeared on the man's face. "Hmm. I have always liked educational entertainment choices myself. Have you considered incorporating VR into the mix? It is very suitable for the kind of user experience you're after."

Hell yes, of course she had considered it! Harper had always dreamed of creating an epic, fully immersive VR game, but … "Yes, that would undoubtedly take the experience to another level. However, given the complexity of the new technology …" She tried to phrase her words most appropriately. "Our current design is centered around the same gaming platform that we already have in house for the kingdom-building products. The strategy and action aspects rely on the same mechanics we've already developed for FPS. To incorporate something such as VR that we don't currently have in our portfolio … would require further research and development."

"And budget," another man from the investors group said. Harper didn't recognize him either, but she assumed that anyone raising the topic of budget was likely the CFO or some similar personnel within that department. "The budget proposed in our earlier meetings" — he flipped through a document folder in his lap — "barely covers a brand new project of such a scale. To go that direction would mean making this the sole focus of your company for quite a while, which is too substantial a risk."

"For something with such a bright outlook and breakthrough value, I'd argue that the risk is worth it," the first man countered.

"I agree a hundred percent." It was Eli who spoke next. Harper's eyes snapped toward him immediately, and she found him … smiling at her? "That would be an important topic to include in our risk management discussions. But for now, perhaps we should not derail the meeting." He nodded back at the podium, where Naomi had been standing silently for over five minutes by now. "Thank you for entertaining our questions. Shall we move on?"

The presentation continued. Harper turned back toward the projection screen and resisted the urge to make more eye contact with Eli.

~ ~

When the meeting reached an end, Harper let out a long breath and rolled her shoulders. Finally … It was the last item on the agenda, which meant that this most dreaded day known to her company's history had officially ended. She still hadn't figured out what the whole thing with Eli was about, and speaking of the future prospect of her project—

"Harper." Brandon's head appeared over her cubicle divider as soon as she sat down. "Do you know Malcolm Smith?"

Harper blinked, not quite catching the name at first. "Who?"

"Sterling Trust's technical advisor, the one who was asking questions about your proposal."

"Oh. Um … No?" Harper absorbed the information and what it implied. It must've looked bad that the discussion among the investors had turned her proposal into something beyond the capability of the company. "Did I answer his questions wrong? I wasn't thinking that the VR stuff he brought up would become a conversation related to budgets …"

Brandon gave her a somewhat odd look. "No, that's not the issue. So if you don't know him … Do you think Eli Sterling could've shared with his colleagues which proposal was yours?"

"… What?" Harper was at a loss how to respond to such a weird question. "I … No, I mean, Eli doesn't even know which proposal is mine. I had no idea he was leading the investors group until he came in today, and I don't just randomly go tell everyone what I've been doing at work. So, no, I don't think he could've told his colleagues something that he had no clue about himself."

Brandon turned his head to the side. It wasn't until then that Harper realized he wasn't alone. A couple of marketing managers and program directors were standing somewhere behind him, all looking thoughtful. The scene was a bit eerie.

"Malcolm is pretty known for being sharp on good market potential," one of the other managers muttered.

Brandon nodded solemnly before turning back to Harper. "Alright. You've done an impressive job today, Harper. Go home and get some good rest — we're looking forward to more great work from you soon."

Harper stared a bit confusedly as the group left her cubicle. From what they just said … Was it actually a good sign that she was drilled with those questions at the meeting? Were the managers actually giving her proposal some kind of reconsideration because of it?

A sliver of hope winked to life inside her. Somewhat absentmindedly, she wondered if this would turn out to be a day worth celebrating. Her thought drifted with that wishful excitement as she resumed packing her things to go home, and she had completely forgotten about the previous arrangements she'd made for the evening until her phone buzzed, lighting up with a new text message:

[ Eli: Meet me in the parking lot? ]

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