How to Live as a Martial Arts Writer in a Fantasy World

53 – 53. Midterm Exams

53.

“Did we fail to secure it?”

The space it happened in was cloaked in a darkness like a curtain.

The person, clad in a hood, who & sat upon the black throne looked downward at his servant who knelt before him, crossing his legs languishly.

Seven black magicians.

The one who looked on the seven black magicians, representatives of the Seven Great Fires, was undoubtedly the head of the Graphite Sect.

“A Radios, huh. So, the Empire’s shield moved due to a mere book?”

“The book seems secondary. The Empire seems to be actively mobilizing the intelligence agency.”

“They’ve mobilized the intelligence agency?”

The leader tugged at the chin visible beneath his hood.

The topic of the conversation shifted.

“What about the ones we sent to Ossrian?”

“They’re currently in hiding. It appears that they will start their activities soon. We have succeeded in forming a public opinion under the radar that the current Lord should be removed.”

“Good. Is the spy we sent to the Academy working well?”

“It has been confirmed that as planned, Allen Edd is staying close to Von Muller. It seems he will hold a fairly important position by his side.”

“Huh. Can we bring the author of the Shuren Chronicles?”

The seven black magicians remained silent.

It was because they knew that the cult leader was greatly interested in the author of the Shuren Chronicles, Allen Edd.

From Noble mtl dot com

The sect leader is blessed with the ability to learn skills or magic just by reading them in books.

Given his interest, they had the burning desire to carry out his mission.

But the opposition was formidable.

The fact that the sword of the empire, was from the Duchy of Muller, presented a problem.

The cult leader clicked his tongue, as if he hadn’t expected much.

“Enough. For the time being, let’s carry out our external activities more discreetly.”

“Understood.”

***

“I’ve prepared the props needed for the play. Is this enough?”

Upon seeing the massive pile of supplies behind Felicia, the theatre students gasped.

To create a play of Schuren’s caliber, necessary fabrics, set decorations, and a large amount of paint—requested from the students in the art department to decorate the stage backdrop—were required.

The items brought by Felicia were the most needed for the art students preparing for the Schuren’s performance.

“Thank you so much, Princess!! We are truly grateful!!”

Expressing his gratitude, the representative of the theatre kept bowing to Felicia’s generous offer. The theatre was already in a state of emergency over the cost of materials, and Felicia stepping in to help was a blessing.

With a slight smile, Felicia spoke.

“I love Schuren’s work too. And I want to help Allen as well.”

Though unclear about other matters, her intention to help Allen was genuine.

She was fully aware that her joining the club might’ve caused a hindrance to Allen. Hence, she wanted to help him even if it meant in a small way.

But it mattered.

“Thank you, Princess! We really appreciate it!”

“If you ever need help again, let me know. I’m here to assist.”

“No, your help this time is more than enough! We’ll discuss the music and remaining prop requirements with our music department members!”

“I see.”

Felicia seemed slightly disappointed.

Seeing her expression, the representative of the theatre hung his head.

“We won’t forget the favor you have done for us, Princess. We appreciate it!”

“I’m just glad I could help.”

A sigh escaped Felicia’s lips.

“Well, I’ll be off now.”

“Goodbye!”

Welcomed by the farewell from the theatre students, Felicia left the art building and returned to the clubroom.

***

“So you’ve finally retrieved the original?”

“Yes, sir. I’m fortunate that the casualties of the White Lion Knights were not severe and a significant number of the black sorcerers appeared to belong to the Graphite Church and were eliminated.”

Again, the message was from the Duke of Ledios.

It was naturally a slightly blood-stained copy of the Shuren Swordsmanship Manual. Alan viewed the label indicating that it was an early edition, confirming it to be the original copy he once had.

Alan mercilessly tore it into pieces and threw it into the waste bin. A short flame rose and died down from the trash can under a trash incineration spell.

“I did burn the copied version, but I was somewhat uneasy. I didn’t think you would recover this.”

“Now that it’s been revealed that it’s related to the black mages, Your Grace, you will likely have to take matters into your own hands.”

“My father?”

“Yes. It seems he knew that the black mages had their hands in the academy.”

At Meia’s words, Alan slightly furrowed his brow.

Black mages.

He couldn’t understand why they would be interested in his work. It didn’t look like they were enjoying it enough to collect it. There must have been a purpose.

For now, he could only hope that something like the swordsmanship manual wouldn’t be recreated.

Meia spoke.

“The midterms are coming up. Are you confident?”

“I’d have to say yes even if I’m not. Just thinking about it gives me a headache. This humanities department is a hassle.”

Alan clicked his tongue.

Just like any other day, a manuscript was placed in front of Alan, who was seated at his desk. He had always enjoyed the smell of fresh paper, it was warm and inviting.

The manuscript paper that Meia brought had excellent quality. How she managed to procure such warm paper remained a mystery, but he let it be.

“Are you going to start working on the sixth volume?”

“The midterms are one thing, but I still have to write the sixth volume.”

He wrote flawlessly up to the fifth volume, but with the sixth one, he was busy with classes and all sorts of things, forcing the publication to be delayed due to lack of spare time.

This point had already been communicated to Adonell Publications.

The weekly comic serialized in the Glinghairs newspaper had deliberately slowed down its pace, so by the time the sixth volume came out, he thought it would be serialized up to the latter part of the first volume.

Alan began to write with swift strokes of his quill.

“What is the plan for Irene, sir?”

“Why? Growing a little interested?”

“Although it is an honor to be the first to read an early draft of the Shuren Chronicles, it’s also true that it’s hard to contain one’s curiosity.”

With her calm voice, Meia unveils her strong curiosity.

Alan chuckled slightly.

“Irene is a character filled with rage. She’s full of anger toward the organization that is using her. And blind emotions usually consume a person in some direction.”

“Does she die?”

“Well, if I tell you that, it would spoil the fun, wouldn’t it?

“Anyway, the first proof is my responsibility.”

Alan shrugged his shoulders.

Irene and Shuren: they are similar in a sense.

Irene seeks revenge against the church, as does Shuren who craves vengeance for his fellow inmates. Both are fueled by the emotion of anger and the urge for vengeance.

However, their methods differ slightly.

Irene is intent on disrupting the church’s plot, even by using others as her means, whereas Shuren wants to exact his revenge without other’s help.

Irene, who desires to achieve revenge with someone else’s help, contradicts Shuren who insists that revenge should be accomplished only by his own hand.

Their subtle differences become a point of friction.

‘Conflict is inevitable in human relationships. In this phase of getting to know each other, it’s even more so.’

In the fifth volume, after Irene and Shuren leave the wilderness having settled an issue with the orc tribe, they wind up locking horns.

-“I’m offering you information. Why won’t you accept?”

-“That’s my decision.”

-“Why do you decline when I can help expedite your revenge? It’s beyond me.”

-“I may accept aid. But it seems to me you’re using me to achieve what you want.”

-“…!!”

-“Don’t involve others in your revenge. Revenge should be accomplished through your own efforts.”

-“Who are you to lecture…!”

‘Given Shuren’s vow to regain the dignity of his stolen martial arts clan and Irene’s inner turmoil, differences of opinion are bound to emerge.’

Conflict arises from their individual interpretations of revenge.

If the two are to understand each other, they must accept their differences.

Otherwise, their encounter will inevitably end in tragedy.

Alan said,

“Let’s leave that as a preview for next time.”

“…If you insist, sir, I have no further comments.”

“It’s going smoother than I thought.”

A joyful smile crept to the sides of Alan’s lips.

“In the sixth volume, I guess we are moving to another country.”

“Another country you say?”

“The state of the elves. To be precise, one of the nine major clans on the continent, the ‘Utya’ clan.”

Alan’s clan, the Lucica, is a subordinate clan of the martial arts.

More precisely, it can be considered a sect with strong hues of shamanism paralleling Daoism.

A master from past generations was influenced by the Shaman clan, known as the Wutia clan, to establish a sect of silver, named the Lusika clan.

“And the reason Villon targeted the Lusika clan was because of the sacred object of the clan that the Lusika clan kept.”

Precisely, it was necessary as a key to open the door to another world, specifically, the Lusika clan’s interdimensional sword.

In the process, Villon captured a traitor of the Lusika clan.

“In the end, Villon, Lutena’s goal is to destroy this world that gave him pain. He vows to take revenge on those who caused him pain, even if it means erasing the world.”

In the end, perfectly suit to the theme running through The Chronicles of Shuren, not only the protagonist and the heroine but even Villon cannot escape the shackles of ‘revenge’.

In order to break this cycle of revenge, Shuren is traveling.

Of course, Shuren himself doesn’t know this, but naturally, it’s what Allen knows, from the omnipotent author’s perspective who determines Shuren’s path.

Allen’s quill danced on the manuscript.

“Hmm, good. I should go like this.”

A smile crossed Allen’s lips.

***

[1. Describe the most significant impact of the publication of The Chronicles of Shuren on imperial literature.]

Upon reading the essay topic for the literature exam, Allen clasped his head.