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When Marcus Hale finally stood up again, it was already 11:00 p.m.
He had spent the entire day sitting at Tank's workstation, completely absorbed in the screen in front of him. From morning until night, Marcus barely moved—headphones on, posture fixed, eyes locked onto the unfolding story delivered by Northstar Games.
Tank was honestly worried.
Aside from eating and brief trips to the restroom, Marcus had not spoken a single unnecessary word. He didn't check his phone. He didn't complain. He didn't even stretch. He simply disappeared into the game, as if the outside world no longer existed.
By the time he had progressed to two-thirds of the story, reaching Skybreak Ridge, Marcus finally stopped.
On that lonely peak, watching the quiet conversation between Luna Ash and Jace Kellan, Marcus slowly removed his headphones.
He exhaled.
His entire body began to tremble.
Leaning back in the chair, eyes closed, he stared up at the ceiling, struggling to swallow the lump lodged firmly in his throat.
"What an incredible story…" he whispered hoarsely.
"This is truly a masterpiece."
Then, suddenly, his voice rose.
"We should be watching works like this. Studying stories like this. Films, games, animation—real stories with heart."
"No wonder it scored a 94% approval rating. From a creator's perspective—story, visuals, music, voice acting, dialogue—everything is flawless. It completely crushes most animated films released this year."
Marcus spoke as if possessed.
Nearby, Tank and the bespectacled assistant Bubbles were quietly eating a late-night snack. Watching Marcus swing between silence and emotional outbursts, Tank felt deep sympathy… while Bubbles found it borderline terrifying.
But honestly?
That was just how deep-blue creative personalities were.
"I've decided."
Marcus abruptly removed his headphones, inhaled deeply, grabbed his phone, and dialed a number.
The call connected quickly.
A calm, familiar voice answered.
"Hello?"
"Mira Vale, I've found the breakthrough."
"…Really?" Mira replied cautiously. "I've also been considering a new direction, but I wasn't sure—"
"Forget yours for now," Marcus interrupted impatiently. "Listen to me. We have to do this. This will resonate with a massive audience."
"We've been limiting ourselves all this time. Games are absolutely something we can analyze."
"A game?" Mira paused. "…Alright. Go on."
"Do you know Neon Blade: Echoes of Lumen?" Marcus said firmly.
"Our next project will be based on it."
"The content density is insane. I've reviewed the entire storyline—we can easily break it into five or six full episodes. We won't have to worry about running out of material this month… or the next."
Across the line, Mira fell silent.
Meanwhile, in a hotel room miles away, Mira Vale—who had just returned from a business trip attending a BiliZone film and television summit—slowly turned toward her laptop.
On the screen was a game recommended by a collaborator she trusted deeply:
Caleb Knox.
The title stared back at her.
Neon Blade: Echoes of Lumen.
She rubbed her forehead.
"…What kind of coincidence is this?"
---
"Damn it, I'm losing my mind these past few days."
In a late-night SharkStream livestream, Bubbles—once infamous as a so-called "gun king"—ranted loudly into his microphone.
His voice was rough and hoarse, like a flock of arguing birds, and right now he was gnawing aggressively on duck feet while venting nonstop.
"LilySixSix keeps crying, saying the game is too heartbreaking," he complained.
"She says Mira Vale is beautiful, sure—but Luna Ash is on another level. She keeps calling her name in her sleep!"
"Is it really that good?" Bubbles scoffed.
"Even Tank cried while playing. He went insane in the group chat at three in the morning, screaming about how amazing Luna Ash is!"
The chat exploded.
[Never played it, but I cried just watching LilySixSix play.]
[Luna Ash is the ultimate white moonlight. No contest.]
[Gameplay 5/10, Visuals 9/10, Music 9/10, Story 10/10]
[Bubbles, go play it. You'll cry for sure.]
"I don't play games like that," Bubbles said stubbornly.
"I can't focus. It's not my thing."
But the truth was, curiosity was eating at him.
His wife. His idol. His closest friends.
Everyone was playing Neon Blade: Echoes of Lumen.
Everyone was crying.
The group chat felt like a digital funeral.
More messages flooded in.
[Search BiliZone—someone uploaded the full animated cutscenes.]
[Skybreak Ridge destroyed me. Luna Ash's fate was brutal.]
[The savage at the mountain peak and the tomb-raiding pig demon—Northstar's storytelling is insane.]
[Rocket sent. Go watch it, Bubbles!]
"…Huh?" Bubbles blinked.
Someone actually sent a rocket donation just to make him watch a video?
"…Alright," he muttered.
"That's not something I can ignore."
---
By the fourth day after launch, as more players completed the game—or experienced it through videos—the impact of Neon Blade: Echoes of Lumen began to spread uncontrollably.
Discussion exploded across forums, Official Blogs, SharkStream, BiliZone, and long-form platforms.
That afternoon, around 4 p.m., a post suddenly appeared on a major Q&A platform.
Title:
"Why I Love Neon Blade: Echoes of Lumen."
The post included an image at the top.
Under a full moon, four young figures sat quietly on a grassy slope, facing the night sky. Below them, peaceful lights glowed faintly.
---
Why Do I Love Neon Blade: Echoes of Lumen?
— Rowan Slate
I finished the game yesterday.
I know I'm still overwhelmed by emotion. I probably shouldn't be writing this yet—but today, while sitting alone with my thoughts, I realized something.
The greatest impact of a story isn't the shock at the beginning—it's what lingers long after it ends.
I can't stop thinking about this game.
And that made me wonder—years from now, when I suddenly remember it, how much will it still affect me?
Do I love it because of one specific character?
I thought about it carefully.
And realized something strange.
I don't have a single favorite character.
I remember all of them.
I remember Jace Kellan—that naïve boy who once thought wild boar was the greatest food in the world on Skybreak Ridge. From a mountain savage to someone who walked across the world, from ignorance to understanding love, from wandering to standing before two quiet gravestones.
I remember Logan Fairchild, who once hated monsters, then slowly learned that good and evil were not so simple. When he said, "I will keep this promise for life," he finally understood the world.
I agree with Northstar's description of Mira Vale—a woman who feels like she belongs in the heavens. Calm, elegant, passionate beneath restraint. How could someone like her exist in a mortal world?
And Luna Ash…
I feel sorry for her.
Beneath her cheerfulness was pain no one else could bear. At less than twenty, she carried the fate of her entire family. Her brightness wasn't reckless—it was resilient.
After writing this, I realized—
It's not that I don't have a favorite character.
It's that I love all of them.
I remember their words.
"You idiot! Pig-headed savage! Who said I want to marry you?!"
"Meeting you taught me what it means to care."
"I will keep this promise for life."
"I'll live fully and die without regret."
"Life is just a fleeting dream."
Their voices are etched into my memory.
They weren't chasing immortality.
They were chasing cause and effect.
Fate. Choice. Responsibility.
Jace Kellan truly embodied:
"My fate is my own."
I believe he and Luna Ash lived happily on Skybreak Ridge.
She was his beloved wife.
At this point, I'm already crying again.
Please forgive the rambling.
I just truly love Neon Blade: Echoes of Lumen.
---
That night, as more endings were reached, a trending topic exploded across the Official Blog:
#NorthstarGamesYouHaveNoHeart