Three days passed in the blink of an eye.
On the fourth day, the DreamNet Cafe officially began charging for its services.
However, the expected drop in customers never happened.
The place was still packed with eager players.
"Only two Bailey an hour? That's way too cheap."
"Boss, open a machine for me!"
"Hey, admin! Add another hour!"
After opening for business properly, the cafe charged only two Baileys per hour. The price had been carefully calculated with multiple factors in mind. It was set right at the level most residents of the Imperial Capital could comfortably accept it without straining their budgets.
The operating costs of the cafe weren't particularly high anyway. After deducting expenses such as rent, wages, and taxes, the daily income was still quite impressive.
But that wasn't the main point of the operation.
The real goal was to promote the Dream World and Moonstones, attracting more people to purchase them for home use. That alone could generate a considerable amount of revenue.
After three days of free operation, the cafe had already accumulated a large customer base.
Even after charging began, the players' enthusiasm remained unstoppable.
During the day, it wasn't too bad since most people still had to work to earn a living.
But once evening arrived, the place was absolutely bursting at its seams.
It quickly became obvious that one cafe alone wouldn't be enough to meet the demand.
Alto immediately decided to open up a new cafe. His expansion had to begin as quickly as possible. At the same time, he also contacted Lunaria and arranged for a massive shipment to be transported to the Imperial Capital as soon as possible.
Upon receiving his orders, Joseph sprang into action with his usual efficiency. He contacted partners everywhere and began planning the locations of internet cafes across Solaria.
The goal was simple and ambitious. Cover the entire Imperial Capital in the shortest time possible.
Meanwhile, thanks to the releases of Liberty City and Ark: Survival Evolved, Alto's startup trading company has now found its finances greatly improved.
Liberty City had already sold twelve million copies across the empire.
And Ark: Survival Evolved, in less than a month since launch, had surpassed seven million sold units.
Since the games were now published and operated by his own trading company, costs had dropped to an absolute minimum while profits had become substantial. Combined with various small games and channel revenue shares, the total earnings had already exceeded one billion Bailey.
With over a billion in newly injected funds, plus the previous five hundred million in reserves, his company now had nearly two billion Bailey as working capital.
Alto, for the first time in his life, could truly be described as wealthy and powerful.
But this was only the beginning of his ambitions.
He firmly believed that once his expansion to Solaria was done, sales would continue to rise exponentially.
Evening settled over the city.
Lake once again passed by the entrance of the experience center on his way home.
Watching the crowds going in and out, a trace of envy appeared in his eyes.
But today the shop had started charging for access.
Although it was only two Bailey an hour, the money he earned had to support daily expenses and his mother's medicine. He simply couldn't afford to waste it on games.
After hesitating for a moment, he quietly walked away with his head down.
------------------
Ark World
Jose was currently locked in a battle of wits with a Tyrannosaurus Rex.
From the moment he first saw the magnificent dinosaur, he had been captivated by its overwhelming presence. Ever since, he had been trying every possible method to capture it.
On an open patch of land behind a hillside stood a massive trap structure he'd painstakingly built over the course of a few days.
Holding a long-barreled hunting rifle, he fired a shot at the T-Rex that was hunting in the forest.
The dinosaur instantly became enraged by the attack.
With a thunderous roar, it charged straight toward Jose, completely enraged.
Seeing that his maneuver had worked perfectly, Jose turned and sprinted for dear life, trying to lead the furious beast straight toward the trap he'd prepared.
As long as he succeeded, the mighty T-Rex would become nothing more than a lamb waiting for its slaughter.
Reaching the top of a slope, he stopped and looked down at his creation.
The T-Rex was already rushing up the incline behind him.
Jose taunted it again with another shot, then jumped straight into the trap below.
"Now I just need the T-Rex to jump in after me."
Standing inside safely, he watched expectantly as the dinosaur reached the top of the hill.
The T-Rex stared down at him from above.
Man and dinosaur locked eyes in a tense standoff.
"You jump first!"
But the T-Rex merely snorted out a puff of hot breath from its nostrils.
Then turned around and walked away calmly.
Jose stood there completely stunned by its unexpected intelligence.
"Didn't expect this thing to be that smart..."
He clasped his hands together and fell into deep thought, feeling a bit dejected.
"Looks like I'll need another strategy."
Over the next few days, he tried method after method to capture the beast.
Facing it head-on didn't work well at all.
And along the way, other carnivorous dinosaurs would also interfere. One careless moment could easily mean instant death and lost progress.
Eventually, he captured several thick-skinned herbivores to use as bait.
He used them to circle the T-Rex and draw its aggression while he attacked from a safe distance.
The strategy worked beautifully after he made some adjustments.
After a fierce battle that lasted nearly an hour, the massive creature finally collapsed unconscious.
"Boshita! This time you're dead for sure! Hahaha!"
Deep within the dense forest, ancient roars echoed through the air. The deafening cries sent flocks of birds scattering into the sky in panic.
Jose looked at the T-Rex before him, and the flames of revenge burned brightly in his eyes. With such a powerful ally, he could finally settle the score with that smug bastard.
This time, after taming the T-Rex, he didn't rush in recklessly like before; instead, he spent a considerable time leveling it up through hunting.
Now the beast had reached level 98, far beyond most creatures.
[Tyrannosaurus Rex] Level: 98
Health: Level 16 Stamina: Level 12 Oxygen: Level 8 Food: Level 9 Weight: Level 9 Melee: Level 35 Speed: Level 8
The T-Rex's attack growth was among the top in the game.
With its melee level now at 35, it could practically devour enemies in a single bite.
Its health growth was also excellent for tanking damage.
Aside from its massive size and slightly slower attack speed, the T-Rex had almost no real weaknesses.
Riding the giant beast proudly, Jose marched through the forest with heavy steps that shook the ground.
Smaller trees snapped like twigs beneath its bulk, and soon enough, he reached Boshita's base once again.
By now, Boshita had upgraded the place into a full stone fortress. The tremors from outside quickly caught his attention.
Climbing to the top of the castle wall, he gazed down.
'Ah, the same old troublemaker had come back again for another beating.'
Outside the walls, Jose spotted Boshita's head appearing above him and burst into mocking laughter.
"Boshita! What, scared already? Come out and beg for mercy, and I might consider letting you live today!"
Boshita said nothing in response.
His figure disappeared from the top of the fortress.
"Come on out! What kind of fighter hides like a turtle in its shell?!"
But Jose didn't have to wait long for his answer.
The fortress gates slowly opened with a mechanical grinding sound.
Boshita emerged casually, riding a Spinosaurus.
The moment Jose saw it, he laughed even harder. Raising his binoculars, he took a closer look at its stats.
[Spinosaurus] Level: 105
"Hahaha! Don't tell me you don't know a Spinosaurus can't beat a T-Rex! Where are your other dinosaurs? Bring them all out, and I'll wipe them out in one go!"
He was feeling overconfident right now after his recent victories.
After all, while leveling his T-Rex earlier, he had encountered a Spinosaurus before, and his T-Rex had dealt with it effortlessly.
"To deal with a weakling like you, one dinosaur is enough."
Boshita yawned and spoke lazily confident.
"Hmph. Your Spinosaurus might be a little higher level, but my T-Rex isn't afraid of you!"
"Prepare to die!"