Nobuo walks home after work, his steps heavy, his entire body aching from the long day at the construction site. Every movement feels slower than usual, his muscles sore, his hands still carrying the rough sting of labor. In his hands, he carefully holds some food for his siblings, making sure not to drop it despite how exhausted he is.
He lets out a long sigh, stretching his neck slightly.
"Damn… another day… another super tiring one…" he mutters quietly.
But even then, a small smile appears on his face.
Because in his mind, he can already picture it.
His siblings' faces.
Their bright smiles.
The way they run toward him when he comes home.
That alone… is enough.
It always has been.
However—
The moment he turns the corner toward his house—
He stops.
Completely.
"…Huh…?"
His eyes widen.
Because what he sees… doesn't make sense.
Parked right in front of his house…
Are multiple ZAGE trucks.
Large.
Clean.
Shiny.
And completely out of place in this small, modest neighborhood.
For a second, Nobuo just stands there, staring.
His brain refuses to process it.
"…No way…"
The quiet street feels different now. Neighbors are peeking from their windows, whispering, watching. The atmosphere has changed—tense, strange, almost unreal.
Nobuo's heart begins to beat faster.
Louder.
He tightens his grip on the food in his hand—
And runs.
"What are these!? What happened!?" he shouts, his voice filled with confusion, panic, and disbelief.
One of the men wearing a ZAGE polo shirt turns toward him and smiles politely, as if this situation is completely normal.
"Ah, Nobuo Kisaragi-san, am I correct?" the man says calmly.
Nobuo freezes again.
"…Y-Yes…?"
"We are from ZAGE," the man continues. "Our boss is on the way here as well… but these deliveries—"
He gestures toward the trucks.
"—are prepared for you."
Nobuo frowned, his suspicion immediately rising. After everything life had put him through, he couldn't just trust a group of men in uniforms standing in front of his house with huge trucks, even if they claimed to be from ZAGE. "What is this? I'm not buying anything from this," he said firmly, taking a step forward while keeping his body between the strangers and his home. His voice was calm, but his eyes were sharp, already preparing for the possibility that this was some kind of scam or trick.
Then, from behind the doorway, his little brother and little sister appeared. Both were still in middle school, and the moment they saw the unfamiliar men and the trucks, they instinctively moved behind Nobuo, peeking out nervously from his back. That small movement made Nobuo's expression tighten even more. No matter what happened, he had to protect them first. Seeing the situation grow awkward, the ZAGE employee scratched his cheek with a troubled smile. "Umm… we really are from ZAGE, you know…" he said, sounding more helpless than offended. "Okay, how about this? Please wait just a couple of minutes. Our boss will come soon. Well… he somehow didn't want to come with us by car, so… just wait a little."
Nobuo nodded, but his wariness didn't disappear. His shoulders remained tense, and his younger siblings still stayed half-hidden behind him, watching the ZAGE employees with nervous curiosity. The men in polo shirts tried their best to look harmless, but with several large trucks parked in front of a modest house at night, even their polite smiles couldn't completely erase the suspicious atmosphere. For Nobuo, who had learned to be careful with everything, the situation still felt too strange to accept easily.
Then, not long after, a faint rattling sound came from the street. Everyone turned their heads almost at the same time, expecting an expensive car or at least a proper company vehicle. Instead, what appeared from the corner was a bicycle. Riding it casually was none other than Zaboru Renkonan, one hand on the handlebar while the other held a taiyaki he was eating without a single care in the world. He looked completely relaxed, as if he had only come out for an evening stroll rather than arriving at someone's house with multiple ZAGE trucks waiting for him.
Zaboru slowed down, noticed the strange tension in the air, and tilted his head. "Huh? Why is it like this? Why is the tension so heavy?" he asked, genuinely confused as he glanced between Nobuo, his siblings, and the employees. The employee in the ZAGE polo shirt let out a tired sigh. "Well, Boss… somehow we look like shady guys because you didn't want to come with us."
Zaboru laughed immediately, completely unbothered. "Keitaro, relax. It's a windy night, so it's the best time to take my Silver Wrecker for a stroll and enjoy taiyaki." He lifted the half-eaten snack slightly as if that explained everything. Keitaro sighed again, but despite his exhaustion, he couldn't help smiling. This was exactly the kind of strange thing their boss would do.
Nobuo can't believe his eyes. For several seconds, he simply stands there, staring at Zaboru as if his mind refuses to accept what he is seeing. A billionaire, one of the most famous men in the world, has just arrived in front of his small home riding a bicycle while casually eating taiyaki. Who in the world would believe something like this if he told them? Even his younger siblings are frozen behind him, peeking out with wide eyes, unable to decide whether they should be scared, amazed, or excited.
Still, Nobuo forces himself to snap out of it. The trucks are still there, the ZAGE employees are still waiting, and his house is still surrounded by something he doesn't understand. He tightens his grip on the food bag in his hand and asks carefully, "Zaboru-san… why are these trucks in front of my home?"
Zaboru grins, finishing the last bite of his taiyaki before casually wiping his fingers. "Well, it's simple, Nobuo. I wanted to give you a reward." His tone is light, almost playful, but there is a strange sincerity behind it. "Somehow, fate is saying this should happen. You are the first-ever ZEPS player, after all. That means something to me."
He steps closer, his grin softening into a more genuine smile. "So… I want to give you a special gift. First, this is for you."
Zaboru chuckled and reached into his pocket before taking out a small, carefully crafted medallion. It gleamed softly under the streetlight, its surface engraved with the ZEPS logo and the words "1st Player: Nobuo." The moment Nobuo saw it, his eyes widened in shock. He hesitated before accepting it, almost afraid to touch something that looked far too valuable for someone like him. "T… this is real gold!?" he asked, his voice cracking slightly as he stared at the weighty medallion in his palm.
Zaboru chuckled again and nodded. "Yeah. You noticed? It's 91 grams of gold, because we met in 1991, right? You can hold onto it, keep it as a memory, or do whatever you think is best with it." His tone was casual, but the meaning behind the gift was anything but small. Nobuo nodded slowly, still feeling like none of this was real. His fingers tightened around the medallion, and for a moment he could only stare at it, remembering that park from ten years ago, when he was just a kid playing a new console without knowing he had become part of something historic.
Then Zaboru glanced toward the trucks and continued, "Yeah, honestly, that medallion is the gift. But these…" He pointed at the vehicles parked in front of the house. "These are an investment." Nobuo blinked, unable to understand what he meant at first, while Zaboru's smile grew more knowing. "I know how good you are. Back then, you actually joined some competitions, right? And when you played arcade games, you often shouted nonsense while playing—but people loved watching you because of it, didn't they? they found you really funny" Zaboru chuckled warmly, not mocking him, but remembering something Nobuo himself had almost forgotten. "So, I'll give you all of this."
Zaboru pointed toward the trucks with a casual grin, as if he wasn't casually changing someone's entire life. "All of this is for you. High-end PCs, powerful enough for streaming, editing, recording, and playing the newest games without trouble. There are also physical copies of every ZAGE game released so far, a new LCD TV, three ZEPS 3 units with full accessories, and three ZGBA units too—hehehe. One for you, and one each for your brother and sister, so the three of you don't need to fight over who gets to play."
Nobuo could only stare, his mouth slightly open, unable to form words as Zaboru continued. "And that's not all. We're also giving you YaDo subscription TV, Sendou Fiber internet, the newest AKAI Z2-Phone for you and your siblings, an AKAI Z-Focus, and even a Z-Guitar Controller. With all of this, you can start making content for YouTube properly. You can stream, record videos, play games, review them, shout nonsense like you used to, make people laugh, and maybe… turn your life into something completely different."
The words hit Nobuo harder than the gifts themselves. These weren't just expensive items. This was a door being opened in front of him, a path he had never dared to imagine because reality had always forced him to look down instead of forward. Zaboru then stepped closer and placed his hand firmly on Nobuo's shoulder, his expression still playful, but his eyes strangely serious. "I see something in you, Nobuo. You are destined to be a streamer."
Then Zaboru grinned wider and said with complete confidence, "You are very cool."
At that moment, his "Blessing Words" ability quietly activated. The words weren't loud or dramatic, yet they carried something powerful, sinking deep into Nobuo's heart and awakening the dormant potential hidden inside him. His instincts, confidence, timing, humor, charisma, and ability to entertain others all sharpened at once, like a locked door inside him had finally been opened. Nobuo didn't fully understand what had just happened, but he felt it—something warm, something bright, something telling him that maybe, for the first time in years, he was allowed to dream again.
Zaboru wasn't lying. When he met Nobuo at the gyoza shop and looked at him with his "Living Scan" ability, he saw something hidden beneath the exhaustion, poverty, and years of forced responsibility—a dormant talent called "Super Funny Streamer." It was not just a vague possibility or a childish dream. It was real potential, buried under hardship because Nobuo never had the time, tools, or freedom to properly use it. Later, Zaboru quietly did some digging and discovered that Nobuo had actually been somewhat famous in local arcades years ago. People remembered him not only because he was good at games, but because he was ridiculously funny while playing, shouting nonsense, reacting wildly, making strangers laugh, and somehow turning even simple matches into entertainment. To Zaboru, that kind of talent was too precious to leave buried forever.
Zaboru chuckled, his tone becoming lighter again, though his eyes remained serious. "Of course, this isn't completely free. You'll pay me later." Seeing Nobuo tense slightly, Zaboru raised one hand calmly. "Relax. I'll give you two full years. Use that time to grow your YouTube channel, learn streaming, build your audience, and make something out of this. Then, in the third year, I want you to pay me back a total of one million yen." He smiled, not cruelly, but with the confidence of someone giving a challenge rather than charity. "If you can't do that, it's simple—I'll take back the tools. That's all. No interest, no debt collectors, no dirty tricks. Just effort, growth, and results. Is that okay with you?"
Zaboru then walked toward Nobuo's siblings, who were still standing behind their brother with wide, nervous eyes. Their names were Nobita and Nana, and although they were clearly excited to see someone as famous as Zaboru in front of them, they were also shy, clutching Nobuo's clothes as if he were the only shield they trusted. Zaboru crouched slightly so he could meet their eyes more comfortably, then chuckled with a gentle smile. "I also heard these two siblings of yours have really good grades, huh?" he said, glancing back at Nobuo. "Top scorers in middle school, both of them. That's not something ordinary."
Nobita and Nana froze for a moment, surprised that Zaboru knew about them too. When he gently patted their heads, their nervousness cracked instantly into excitement. Their eyes sparkled, and even Nobita, who had been trying to look mature in front of his older brother, couldn't hide his smile. Nana looked like she might burst from happiness, staring up at Zaboru as if she had just met someone from a dream.
Zaboru looked at them for a moment longer, and his expression softened. "Well, let ZAGE take care of them too," he said, his tone warm but firm. "ZAGE has a new scholarship project. We're going to train talented students, especially high school students, in game-related fields—programming, art, design, music, hardware basics, storytelling, marketing, and even streaming culture. Of course, it's completely free. If they qualify and keep working hard, they'll even have chances to study outside the country and learn many things directly from different ZAGE branches and also work at ZAGE in future."
He then turned back to Nobuo and added, "And I'll personally recommend them."
For Nobuo, those words struck even deeper than the equipment. His siblings' future—the thing he worried about every single day—was suddenly being opened in front of him. It was true that hardship had made Nobita and Nana unusually mature and hardworking. They studied relentlessly, always placing at the top of their middle school, not because life was easy, but because they understood how much their brother sacrificed for them. They wanted to become people who could help him one day. And now, because of Zaboru's offer, that dream no longer felt impossible.
Nobuo couldn't believe his ears or his eyes. For a moment, he simply stood there, unable to speak, his throat tightening as the reality of Zaboru's offer finally began to sink in. One million yen in three years sounded like an enormous amount to him, but compared to the chance being placed in front of him—the chance to stream, to work toward something he loved, to possibly change not only his own life but also the future of his siblings—there was no way he could refuse. His eyes grew wet before he could stop them, and he quickly wiped them with the back of his hand, embarrassed that he was tearing up in front of everyone.
Then, with both hands, Nobuo grabbed Zaboru's hand and shook it firmly, his voice trembling but filled with desperate determination. "DEAL! I will definitely pay it back, Zaboru-san! I swear I will! And I'll never forget this for the rest of my life!" He bowed his head deeply, his shoulders shaking slightly. This wasn't just gratitude over expensive equipment. It was gratitude for being seen. For being trusted. For being given a chance when he had almost convinced himself that people like him didn't get chances like this.
Zaboru chuckled and nodded casually, as if what he had just done was nothing unusual. "Relax, Nobuo. You're not begging. You're not receiving pity. You're accepting an opportunity because you have talent. You deserve this. And those two…" He glanced toward Nobita and Nana with a small smile. "They deserve their chance too. Good grades, hard work, and strong hearts should be rewarded, shouldn't they?"
Those simple words broke something inside the three siblings. Nobita's lips trembled first, and Nana quickly covered her face as tears spilled down her cheeks. Then both of them stepped forward and bowed deeply to Zaboru, their small bodies shaking with emotion. "T-Thank you very much!" Nobita said, his voice cracking. "We'll study hard! We won't waste it!" Nana nodded again and again through her tears. "Thank you… thank you so much… we'll make Nii-chan proud too!"
Nobuo looked at them, and that was when he finally couldn't hold it back anymore. Tears fell from his eyes, hot and uncontrollable, because for the first time in years, the future didn't look like a wall pressing down on him. It looked like a road. Still difficult, still frightening, but real. Open. Possible. Zaboru only smiled at them, scratching his cheek as if the crying made him a little awkward. "Good. Then work hard, all of you. That's enough for me." The ZAGE employees standing behind Zaboru also began to tear up as they watched the scene unfold. Some tried to hide it by looking away, while others simply lowered their heads, unable to keep their emotions from showing. This was exactly why they felt proud to work at ZAGE. Their boss was different from others—not just because he was rich, famous, or brilliant, but because moments like this revealed what kind of person he truly was.
If it had been another company leader, they would have brought cameras, reporters, and a whole publicity team. They would have recorded Nobuo's tears from every angle, turned his hardship into an advertisement, smiled for the public, and then quietly forgotten about him once the image of being a "good person" had served its purpose. But Zaboru was not doing any of that. There were no cameras, no staged speeches, no attempt to make himself look noble. He simply saw potential in Nobuo, saw the burden carried by three siblings, and decided to help in his own strange but sincere way.
That was what made it feel genuine. Zaboru didn't care about publicity at all. He didn't even seem to realize how deeply his actions affected the people watching. To him, this was just something he wanted to do, something natural, something obvious. And because of that, the employees felt even prouder. They weren't just working for a game company. They were working under someone who could change lives without needing applause for it.
After that, the ZAGE crew quickly got to work, unloading the items from the trucks and carrying them carefully into Nobuo's house. What had once been a small, modest home suddenly became filled with things Nobuo had only ever seen in stores, advertisements, or other people's rooms. High-end PCs were placed properly, the new LCD TV was set up in the best spot, the ZEPS 3 consoles and ZGBA units were arranged neatly, and the boxes of games were stacked with almost unbelievable care. The technicians even installed Sendou Fiber and connected the YaDo TV channel service on the same night, moving so efficiently that Nobuo could barely follow what was happening.
Nobita and Nana were completely overwhelmed with happiness. They kept running from one thing to another, touching the consoles, staring at the TV, looking at the phones, then looking back at Nobuo as if asking whether this was really allowed. Their laughter slowly filled the house, louder and brighter than it had been in a long time. Even the ZAGE employees smiled while working, clearly affected by the children's reactions. By the time everything was finally finished late at night, the house no longer felt like the same place. It felt unreal, almost like a dream that might disappear if Nobuo blinked too many times.
Now, inside the Kisaragi household, there were so many new things that the siblings didn't even know where to start. Nobita and Nana sat in front of their new consoles, laughing and shouting as they played together, their faces glowing with pure joy. Nobuo stood behind them for a while, quietly watching. His body was exhausted from work, his eyes still slightly red from earlier, but his heart felt strangely light. For the first time in years, the sound of his siblings playing didn't carry guilt or worry in the background. It simply sounded like happiness.
He looked at the equipment, the games, the internet setup, and the future that had suddenly appeared in front of him. Then he lowered his gaze slightly and thought, 'Zaboru-san… I'll never forget this. One day, I'll definitely pay it back.' The thought was not just about money. It was a promise—to work hard, to grow, to protect this chance, and to become someone worthy of the trust he had been given.
He thought, 'One million yen in three years… by streaming.' For a moment, the number still sounded absurd, almost impossible for someone like him, but then he slowly grinned. 'Where is the hard part in that? At least now I have a chance… and I will prove that I can do it.' The thought burned quietly inside him, not as arrogance, but as determination. Nobuo had already experienced worse than this. He had survived hunger, exhaustion, fear, debt, loneliness, and the pressure of raising two younger siblings while still barely being an adult himself. Compared to those days, compared to the feeling of having no path forward at all, this challenge felt different. It was heavy, yes, but it was also fair. It was a mountain he could actually climb, step by step, with his own hands. For the first time in years, his confidence did not feel fake. It felt earned. He had been given the tools, the chance, and the trust—now all that remained was to prove that Zaboru had been right about him.
With that, Nobuo finally grinned. He walked over to his siblings, sat down beside them, and joined their game. Nana immediately cheered, Nobita laughed, and for the first time in a long while, Nobuo let himself enjoy the moment without thinking about tomorrow.
And once again, Zaboru changed someone's life without asking for praise, without needing the world to know, and without treating it like anything extraordinary. To him, it was simply a chance worth giving. As for Nobuo's story, this night would become the first step toward something far greater than he could imagine. One day, he would become very famous in his own right—but that is a story for another time.
To be continue
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