Time to Drop the Next Novel (2)
I already had the synopsis for a full second volume ready. As for how to tie together the trashy romance between Schwald and Sophia, the answer was simple. I would plagiarize it outright. I'd take the original author's plot and rewrite it from Milene's perspective, changing only the names. Since the point of view was completely different, the result would be worlds apart from whatever that hack had written. And if I wanted to snipe at them, this was the perfect way to do it.
That shameless woman would probably scream, "Don't plagiarize!" But when a character with zero importance becomes the protagonist, there are plenty of excuses available. Right now, in the royal capital, both nobles and commoners knew about Milene, the prince, and Sophia. Of course, the romantic interpretation was mostly popular among the nobility—specifically the academy crowd. Most commoners were more like, "Oh, that happened?" In other words, while it might be subconscious, they had heard the rumors. So what would happen if a novel with a similar setup started circulating?
The nobles might not care, but the commoners who read for entertainment would react differently. Especially now that my books were spreading widely among the masses, romance novels were being sold at rock-bottom prices. It was all thanks to Publisher Hugo's scheme to cash in on my popularity by flooding the market with cheap editions to empty the commoners' wallets. Surprisingly, it had been a massive success. I'd always thought mass-produced romance novels should be sold cheaply anyway.
So in that climate, what if I wrote the story of Milene, Schwald, and Sophia from Milene's point of view? A romance about a wronged woman. Or maybe I didn't even need to make it a straight romance. A refreshing "villainess gets her revenge" story could work too. But to encroach on the romance market, slapping that label on it might be smarter. I could add some entanglements with the second or third prince. Or just introduce new male characters. After all, it wasn't my real story anyway.
If I wrote it like that, people would inevitably think of Milene, Schwald, and Sophia while reading. And then? They'd start wondering: Wait, maybe Milene was actually the wronged one? The vast majority of the kingdom were commoners. Their mouths couldn't be silenced. In this era of the great novel boom, the impact would be enormous. Eventually the story would reach the ears of everyone connected to Milene, Schwald, and Sophia. I might be stuck here, but those two would have problems. They couldn't exactly suppress the suspicions of the common people.
And since Schwald was aiming for the throne, he wouldn't just sit back and watch his reputation crumble further. He'd thrash around desperately to survive. Perfect timing too, with all the talk about the Demon King reviving. He'd step forward to play the hero and "calm the people." In short, the novel I was writing would simply be a push against their backs.
"So let's give it a try."
I twirled the pen between my fingers and gazed outside. Then a sudden thought occurred to me—what if that idiot prince failed? Original work or not, I was Milene now. For Milene to survive, the broad framework where Schwald defeats the Demon King with plot armor had to remain intact. Even if he failed, though, there were other options. As I'd said before, this world was a mishmash of every novel that hack author had plagiarized and mixed together. Naturally, he wasn't the only hero. Various settings related to the Demon King had been added later too. Of course, I'd skimmed over some parts because they were tedious. With all that copy-pasting, there was no need to read every line with care. The middle and latter parts had so many similar elements that I'd speed-read through them. There had been Demon King-related content in those sections, so the author must have handled it somehow. In the end, it all wrapped up with Schwald and Sophia living happily ever after. With Sophia as the true mastermind, of course—the villainess gets her happy ending.
I didn't know the details of what happened to the other hero-candidate friends in the middle. Using them would be a gamble. Still, I was worried about how that part would affect me now. Everything else didn't really matter.
"For now, it's magic."
The moment the magic books Jerry sent arrived, I decided to read them.
"Um, miss? Magic?"
Ritz must have overheard, because she approached.
"Yeah, I want to learn it."
From Milene's memories, I knew a bit, but it was still better to learn properly from the beginning myself. Forcing together those fragmented memories wouldn't work.
"I know a little magic. I could teach you the basics."
Oh, so Ritz could teach? Well, if she was going to swindle people, she'd need at least that much skill. Made sense. As for me, aside from writing, I had nothing else to do.
"You know magic?"
"Yes. I used to teach basic magic to the children in my village."
"Oh, you're pretty smart. All right, teach me."
Jerry and the publisher had told me to take it easy anyway. Learning magic in my free time should be fine. So I began studying magic under Ritz's guidance.
In this world, mana exists in nature, and humans are born with it due to that influence. However, each person has a different capacity for holding mana. By manipulating that mana, one can use magic. The amount consumed varies by the grade of magic. So someone with a large mana vessel would have talent as a mage. That said, a large vessel wasn't always better. Beginners who couldn't control their mana found it harder to learn, so people with moderate capacity who could build up slowly were preferable. Of course, a natural genius who could handle a large vessel from the start was considered the best. But that was apparently difficult.
"Normally, to measure the size of your mana, it's best to visit the adventurers' guild or a magic-related institution. In villages, churches sometimes offer it too."
"Isn't there a way to check it myself?"
Going all the way to the Magic Tower or somewhere just for this seemed excessive. Besides, even if I could, the adventurers' guild was off-limits, and both the Magic Tower and the church were connected to Sophia's reverse harem members. Not a good idea.
"There's a method using magic stones."
"Using magic stones? How does that work?"
"It's rough, but you pour mana into the stone. Beginners who just started magic and are checking their capacity usually make the stone glow faintly."
I could guess the principle. That would make a good episode for the mage character in my novel.
"So the brighter the light, the more mana you have?"
"Yes. I happen to have a magic stone. Would you like to try?"
At my question, Ritz pulled out a blue stone from her pocket. Ah, that was a magic stone. An item that acted as a catalyst for anything involving mana.
Whoosh. Crack.
The stone suddenly glowed, then shattered completely. What the hell? Was this a hidden camera prank? Why did it break? Was it expensive? No. There was no way Ritz, who stuck to me to leech off my allowance, would buy something expensive.
So the fact that it shattered... did that mean...?
"What does this mean?"
"Um. Either the magic stone was defective, or..."
"Or?"
"You have an enormous amount of mana. One of the two."
"So it's probably defective, right?"
Even if I was a saintess, that didn't necessarily mean my mana itself was strong. Being strong as a saintess didn't make me a mage.
"No, this is one I bought after it was certified for daily use. It can't be defective. Even defective ones are usually unrefined raw stones."
Then did that mean this body had incredible mana?
"So I'm actually amazing at magic?"
"Yes. Um, but miss, I've been wondering for a while..."
"Yeah?"
"Don't you attend the academy?"
"Ah. The academy."
The academy. The place I'd essentially been forced to drop out of. I couldn't go there now. There was no reason to return anyway. If Milene showed up there, it was obvious I'd be ostracized with comments like "How dare that condemned woman walk around here?" Sophia would probably lead the bullying. Even though I was from a noble family, my name had been struck from the register. I was Milene in name only. I could clearly picture Sophia beating me. Better not to go. Besides, I had no way to get in. The palace might help if I asked, but I didn't want to.
"Most people living in the capital attend the academy. Even villagers have educational institutions in their regions. Is there some reason you don't...?"
She was right. People in the capital were either quite wealthy or, even if commoners, reasonably well-off. Slums existed, but the city was a highly developed magical metropolis distinctly different from the countryside. Naturally, children went to the academy. In fact, the Royal Central Academy accepted not only local nobles but also children with recommendation letters from nobles.
Hmm, should I tell her? Actually, she was a former slave. It shouldn't matter if I told her. Since she hadn't freed herself from slavery, she wouldn't do anything that would harm her master.
"Well, I suppose it's fine to tell you. You already know the story of the condemned lady, right?"
"Ah. Yes, I do."
"That protagonist is me."
"Eh? Miss, you... r-really?"
She looked like she couldn't believe it. Understandable, since the rumors painted me as a villainess.
"The condemned woman's name is Milene. My name is also Milene. There aren't two people named Milene in the capital, are there?"
"But... miss, you freed us..."
"Yeah. So, well, I won't claim I'm a good person, but this was all because of the circumstances of those in power. To put it precisely, it was a big deal made out of little brats from noble families squabbling among themselves."
"Ah, I understand what you mean."
In short, it was the juvenile version of dirty noble infighting. Though calling them juveniles was a stretch—they were high school age, just before adulthood. To me, they were still kids. And it was the girls' behind-the-scenes power struggles. If it had been the original Milene, maybe not, but as Milene MK2 who had possessed her, I could only scoff. Really, if it had been before the condemnation, I would have faked my death and run away.
"That's how it is. Nobles fight not just in the political arena but in school, bickering from an age when their blood hasn't even cooled yet. Especially the girls—they fight a lot over men. Prince Schwald was closest to the position of crown prince and very popular with women. You get what that means, right?"
"Ah, so..."
Ritz was a quick-witted girl. She understood immediately. In short, all of this was the result of two women fighting over a prince.
"Anyway, that's the story. So going to the academy is awkward. I don't have tuition money, and there's no reason to go."
"But if you want to learn basic magic, attending would be good..."
It was impossible. Going to the academy now would be like a rabbit walking into a den of beasts. No one would take my side, and there wouldn't even be neutrals. They'd all just torment me together.
"The teachers probably wouldn't even want to teach me. They'd treat me like I was invisible, so it wouldn't matter."
"Still, it's a shame."
"If I need to, I'll just study on my own."
Besides, if I was going to write about the hero's mage companion, I'd have to do it that way. The mage part was about to appear in the story I was writing. For all appearances, I was someone who had lived in Korea, a society obsessed with academic credentials. To me, who had studied everything under the sun, magic was nothing special.