Chapter 140: Game Night

The three of them stared blankly as Kojima inserted the game cartridge into the NovaBox's card slot, then all burst into profanity.

"What the hell? Why is this a GAMENOVA game??"

The overwhelming sense of dissonance was almost beyond belief.

"They're probably trying to appeal to the Japanese market. You know how people have criticized the themes of their own games several times already."

"That makes sense, but this feels way too forced. It's like they just looked up some reference material and copied it over."

"Yeah, it feels like they took everything they thought Japanese people would like and crammed it all together."

While waiting for the game to load, the group chatted away. The cover art alone had already given them plenty to talk about.

It wasn't just Momotaro, the classic folk hero. Kintaro, Urashima Taro, the Zashiki-warashi, Princess Kaguya, and many other iconic figures had all been designed with highly recognizable visual traits.

It was basically a case of throwing in every legendary figure they could think of. It felt giant mishmash of Japanese folklore.

"Anyway, it's basically Monopoly gameplay, right? Let's just start already."

The game opened with the familiar character selection and naming screen.

Thanks to Monopoly's inherently turn-based hot-seat gameplay, Momotaro Dentetsu required virtually no extra processing power to support up to four local players.

They didn't even need extra controllers, as just a single controller was enough.

"You know... I have to admit, these character designs actually seem pretty well thought out."

Kojima carefully read through several character descriptions before realizing something. Each character possessed completely different abilities, and they weren't just cosmetic skins.

"Urashima Taro starts with a Turtle item and doesn't have to pay shipping fees when crossing ocean spaces... Wait... that's actually surprisingly fitting."

In the legend of Urashima Taro, he rescues a sea turtle, which carries him to the Dragon Palace beneath the sea, where he is gifted the mysterious Tamatebako.

"Could it be that they actually did their research?"

The other roommates also sensed that something wasn't quite ordinary. These characters definitely weren't just wearing famous folklore as a cheap skin to chase popularity.

Urashima Taro represented Kanagawa Prefecture, Kintaro represented Shizuoka, Momotaro represented Okayama. Rather than being a random stew of fairy tales, it felt more like a collection of famous legendary figures representing different regions throughout Japan.

"Quit wasting time. Let's get started."

When the four of them saw the game board, they all fell silent. It looked nothing like the circular Monopoly board they remembered.

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The starting point was naturally Tokyo Station. But from Tokyo Station, railway lines stretched in all four directions.

Head north and you could ride the Hokkaido Shinkansen all the way to Sapporo. Head south and you could reach Nagasaki on Kyushu. It wasn't a loop at all. It was... no, it was a radial railway network.

While non-circular maps weren't something GAMENOVA had invented, creating one based directly on Japan's real railway network was an incredibly rare idea.

"This is incredible..."

Even Japanese developers themselves probably couldn't achieve this level of authenticity.

"Oh no... this is basically Kondo's home turf."

Recovering from his shock, Kojima joked. Out of the four of them, Kondo was the only true railway nerd. He loved trains so much that he regularly borrowed Kojima's camera just to photograph passing trains.

This game was practically made for someone like him.

"Seriously. I know Japan's railway network by heart. I've got this in the bag."

Kondo grinned, his eyes sparkling as he impatiently waited to start playing.

"Kondo, kisama!"

Once again, Kojima had been forced to pay an outrageous toll after passing through property Kondo had purchased along the Mount Fuji railway route.

Kondo's railway knowledge had given him an overwhelming advantage over the other three. Right from the start, while everyone else was still wondering which route to take, he had immediately headed south.

By the time the others were still learning the game's mechanics, Kondo had already turned both Shikoku and Kyushu into his own personal stronghold.

"Seriously, isn't anyone going to stop him? Don't you have a Steal Card?"

"Me? You think I'm stupid? Then who are you planning to use that damn Grim Reaper Card on?"

"Trust me, bro. Let's head to Kyushu together. You use the Steal Card, I'll use the Grim Reaper, just honest cooperation between friends."

In the world of Monopoly, nobody's words could be trusted. That was the very first lesson anyone had to learn if they wanted to survive.

Every seemingly balanced relationship existed only because everyone was threatening each other with the resources in their hands.

And that fragile balance… Only needed the slightest outside force before it came crashing down.

"I swear today's Thirteen Orphans hand used up all my luck for you! Your luck is absolutely on fire!"

Kondo's luck today was frighteningly good. It was as though he could control the dice themselves, rolling whatever number he wanted.

Meanwhile, Kojima seemed to have spent all his good fortune at mahjong earlier that day. This entire game had been one disaster after another for him.

"My luck can't stay this bad forever. It's about time I got some lucky break."

As he spoke, Kondo rolled the dice, and they landed on 3.

Three spaces ahead of him was a square marked with a question mark, an Event Space.

Landing there would trigger a completely random event. Normally, it might reward money, grant an item, or do the exact opposite and take something away.

But considering Kondo's overwhelming lead, even losing two item cards wouldn't really matter. His holdings in Shikoku alone were enough to let him develop comfortably.

[You boarded the wrong train! You've been taken to Sapporo!]

"...?"

Kondo stared blankly as his character was transported from the southernmost reaches of Kyushu all the way to Hokkaido at the northern tip of Japan, and for a long moment, he was speechless.

"What kind of wrong train sends you across the entire country?!"

That one event instantly destroyed every plan he had made. Even worse, Hokkaido happened to be Kojima's territory.

Over the course of the game, Kojima had invested in almost every property throughout Hokkaido.

From small yakitori restaurants and sushi shops to massive ceramic factories, the entire region had effectively become Kojima's private backyard. So, getting dumped there definitely wasn't going to end well.

"Haha! So, it's finally your turn! You've had it too easy up until now. Time for some bad luck!"

The other three couldn't have been happier. Kondo had spent the entire game steamrolling everyone, so watching him crash and burn now was even more satisfying than winning themselves.

"Hideo! I order you to march north and crush Kondo!"

"Say no more!"

Kojima had been waiting for exactly this opportunity. After suffering through so much bad luck, he had finally stumbled upon a golden opportunity gifted by fate itself.

He had to seize this chance and beat Kondo down so thoroughly that he would never recover.

"Here we go!"

The die slowly rolled… and stopped on 1.

The very next space was another Event Space.

Gulp.

Success or failure… it all came down to this one roll.