Chapter 155
Chapter 155
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 154
Chapter Title: Empire Literature Contest Rankings
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"Speaking of which, 80 points..."
"Shh! You there!"
"S-Sorry!"
Even amid the brief commotion, new entries were being engraved on the announcement board. They weren't carved too deeply. If new information came from the Emperor later, they'd have to erase them and update with the fresh details.
Heating the letters and engraving them repeatedly like that would ruin the boar hide, but no one among them cared about that.
Boar hide, which accounted for over 80 percent of the Human Empire's clothing production, was ultimately low-grade stuff. Once it got too damaged from use, you gathered ten pieces, spent 1,000 gold to combine them, and it was reborn as pristine mid-grade hide. Unlike boar hind legs that no longer sold because mid, high, and top-grade hides were in high demand for crafting.
Ssscch.
"Wow..."
"So many. These are all the works that made it to the finals, huh."
In the end, the board listed a total of 350 works, their authors, and their scores. That was an impressive number already, but there were still over eight months left until the final deadline.
The civil servant mage explained that they expected over 500 works to be posted by the end.
"But what's the scoring criteria, anyway?"
"No idea."
The 1st Empire Literature Contest was the hottest topic on the continent right now. Wherever Imperial citizens gathered, they talked about the contest.
It was only natural.
The grand prize, Kashim, wasn't just any pet. It was a living legend that could slaughter over a hundred monsters with a single roar and fly more than a thousand kilometers in a night.
Winning it was on a whole other level from hitting the lottery on Earth for hundreds of billions of won—something that would make even that seem trivial.
Even a roadside beggar could skyrocket to a core figure in the Human Empire the moment they got Kashim.
'The Emperor's closest aides haven't even been granted permission to summon theirs despite owning one. It's even more true now.'
'In essence, they'd have a legendary pet second only to the Emperor.'
'And if I—or at least my faction—gets it...'
That wasn't all.
Just placing meant getting a citizenship ID, ample prize money, and the honor of having the Emperor himself read your work...
In the Human Empire, where everything from wealth and fame to growth and promotion had been settled through [Combat] alone, this cultural bombshell was shaking the continent with terrifying force.
"That's it! Next update will be on the 1st of next month!"
At the civil servant mage's shout, someone asked.
"The scores change every month?"
"According to the official notice we received, yes. They say it'll increase every month. The pace might speed up or stall out. Anyway, I'm off."
People flocked to the board after the mage left. Since they weren't ranked by score but by submission order, the points were all jumbled. Folks clustered in groups, checking the scores. Some even pulled out notebooks to jot them down in order.
"Only one above 10,000 points."
"The Emperor Knight one?"
"Yeah. Overwhelming. And..."
People whispered while eyeing the high-scorers.
"Ears. That's 3,700 points. Pretty high."
"New Sprouts is 3,100 too."
"High Wind from Elf Swordsman is 2,300—not something to ignore!"
Emperor Knight Never, topping 10,000, was the exception. Most works hovered between 500 and 1,000 points. Out of 350 entries, only nine broke 2,000.
The score gaps were so brutally wide that contestants were left dazed, but the spectators saw it differently.
"Looks like Never's got a high shot at Kashim."
"Know who it is?"
"Just the author name. But my buddy who just joined the new Culture Department says..."
People started moving to secure the top contenders. Good writing didn't mean real-world strength, so they aimed to intimidate or befriend them early!
These efforts were highly organized.
"We got intel that a waiter here writes every day."
"But a kid really taking first in the contest?"
Some men arrived at an inn in Iron Castle. You couldn't see their inventory weapons, but their cloth robes and leather armor marked them as warriors and mages.
"You idiot. Think about the waiter's name!"
"That cheeky brat? Name was definitely... Yes...? Wait. Yes? Never?"
Opposite meanings, but plenty meaningful. The men exchanged glances and entered the inn.
"Welcome~!"
"Hey~ Innkeeper. Long time no see. Let me see..."
The man casually scanned the inn. The innkeeper clicked his tongue.
"You're here for Yes! Sorry, but the kid's gone."
"Damn! Someone beat us here! Who?"
The burly men's vibes turned menacing. A bust was fine, but getting scooped right under their noses?
"We came the second it was announced... What bastards? You know our guild master just got a rare class? Mess with Glaive Guild and..."
He threw threats. All guild members were players, so it was a brutal situation, but the innkeeper wasn't fazed.
The entity involved here dwarfed their mid-sized guild.
"Who else? The Emperor's knights. They took the family and left a week ago via subway."
"Ah..."
"Oh..."
"Damn... Of course. Makes sense."
The men's aggressive energy deflated instantly. Who'd strut in the face of the Emperor's name?
He fed thousands—maybe tens of thousands—of starving people.
Built massive fortresses like Iron Castle with a single command.
Gave slaughter-threatened humanity the player potential, plus priceless skill books and items no one else could provide.
Rode a drake that crossed skies smashing thousands of monster heads in one blow, and pets mountain-sized.
'And the scariest part? None of it's rumor...'
Even half the players here had witnessed it firsthand. No exaggeration to say half the Empire had.
The Emperor wielded world-shaking power and impact with every move, plus insane activity levels. Every Imperial citizen witnessed his might at least once during the Empire's formation.
Missed it?
You'd still hear about it endlessly from everyone around.
How could you not brag about watching puny walls explode into 30-story apartment complexes sprouting buildings inside?
Or describe drunkenly seeing tens of thousands in heavy armor headless from one hammer swing?
If you could hold that in, you weren't human. Even if the listener got annoyed, you'd keep talking.
The Human Empire's Emperor was a living god.
Savior descended to rescue doomed humanity.
"Looks like the Emperor's specially managing the authors."
"Heard literature and art aid his powers."
"Pfft... Bust. Let's grind levels!"
Glaive Guild members gave up cleanly and left the inn.
Similar scenes played out across the continent.
* * *
Two weeks had passed since the Five Dragons Net contest began.
Over three months in Ardenia. Eating, sleeping, even hunting there made the time dilation natural.
"Ugh..."
I stretched luxuriously rising from the fancy bed. Chakra sleep worked fine, but bed rest had its own charm.
"About four months now... Time to refresh purchases."
The Five Dragons Net contest—aka [Novel Arena]—was a paid serialization event.
First 15 chapters free, then paid to rack up points.
Luckily, [Total Purchases] showed on the board, no need to sum per chapter.
"Let's see. Emperor Knight Never... 46th. Overwhelming first in Ardenia, though."
Sure, Emperor Knight Never was great, but author [Never] was a total no-name rookie from 34th Earth. In this massive contest with big-name pros jumping in, it couldn't explode overnight!
Even so.
Emperor Knight Never (Never): 74,217 points.
"Average purchases over 1,500."
Not insane views. Pros averaged 3,000+ buys per chapter; popular ones hit 10,000 easily.
But that didn't mean low revenue.
"...Nice."
Webnovels were 100 won per chapter. 10,000 buys meant 1 million won revenue.
So total 74,217 points?
"7,421,700 won."
Plus double points event. Five Dragons Net took 25% cut, but no CP meant over 10 million won easy.
'A single Ardenian author rakes this in.'
And there was only one.
For example:
Golden Mage Tower Myth (Seeker of Truth): 911 points.
Total flop. Average 15 views—most writers would quit for something else.
But even flops like this netted over 100,000 won combined. Copy-pasting was work, but at 20 novels a day now, no issue.
"Money... duplicates itself!"
Only 15 of 60 event days gone. Pacing serialization meant future earnings dwarfed current.
"Definitely right to gather writers."
I'd summoned Never and all first-scorers over 1,000 points to my current Great Earth Castle.
They were probably en route now, families in tow, escorted by knights or soldiers via subway.
"And... All authors hitting 10,000 total purchases get honorary titles, pensions, special protection. If these gems die unknown..."
The Human Empire embracing most Ardenian humans and demi-humans brought countless talents.
Veteran knights who'd hunted hundreds of beasts.
Mages devoted decades to training.
Blacksmiths forging guns with hammers.
Mystic spirit handlers.
But what was the top talent?
'Novelists are the best...!'
Swordmasters, mages, spirit users, engineers—all great, but Ardenia-limited.
Novelists?
They earned on Earth.
From a company president's view, fixed-task employees differed from profit-generators.
Give 2 million won salary but bring 200-300 million? Irresistible.
Cherish them. Neglect them? Company tanks.
"Yeah. Time for ranks."
9th-grade authors first. For contest placers.
'No big perks. Anyone can do it.'
No talent? Persistence gets five books done. They get author IDs replacing citizenship and pocket change prizes.
'Then 8th-grade.'
10,000 purchases cutoff. 1 million won revenue.
Not hard. Only Never topped 10,000 early due to low volume and recency.
Five-book novel: 125 chapters, 15 free, so 110 paid. 10,000 buys averages 91 per. Even two-digits works for more volume.
'Perks: Author ID, pension. Three-year term, renewable if writing.'
Added sweetener.
'Free housing while qualified. 8th-grade: studio apartments.'
Write hard, never starve. Many like that? Eats budget, but worth it.
Why not?
They hand me 1 million+ cash each.
'Next, 7th-grade. Get serious.'
Cutoff 20,000-30,000. 3 million won makers.
Author ID, boosted pension, housing, plus high-class 'selection right'.
'6th-grade.'
100,000 cutoff. 10 million won. Five-book average 1,000 buys.
Mid-tier on 34th Earth, but full-time viable.
Author ID, generous pension, 35-pyeong family home, rare class pick.
'5th-grade.'
300,000 cutoff. Five-book average 3,000 views. Top popular level, not peak.
Author ID, richer pension, ~50-pyeong home, rare class/pet/guardian spirit picks.
"This pace, 4th-grade gets hero classes. Contest winner gets legend pet anyway, so fine."
Stopped at 5th for now.
Like a level cap.
'4th+ after writer org stabilizes and profits roll in.'
I compiled the [Author Rank System] into an official document and sent to Flower. She skimmed, nodded.
"Will deliver. Oh, 12 new works just arrived."
"Eager participation—great. Send them up."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
After Flower left, I grabbed a manuscript from the desk pile.
Time to copy today's twenty novels.
Memorized a page fast, then.
"Log out."
Heading to Earth to continue when.
"Meow! Meow!"
"What? Who?"
Too many contacts lately; blocked most except a few.
"Director Allen? Or PD Taeseok?"
Nope.
"Long time no see. Jaeyeon-ssi."
"Oh, CEO Bae Sarang."
Nemesis CEO—the one behind Revenge—calling personally. Exchanged numbers when swapping 40 billion in stocks for diamonds, but the boss herself?
"Your name's everywhere lately. Knew you were exceptional, but Game Master's apostle...?"
"Just lucky."
We chatted. Revenge, briefly endangered, now 34th Earth's sole VR game, boosting hot Nemesis to all-time highs.
Mid-talk, I asked.
"So, what's up?"
Sarang replied.
"Wanna shoot an ad?"
Of course I'd ask.
"How much you offering?"
"..."