Chapter 42
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 42
Chapter Title: Director - 5
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Seo Ji-woo frowned.
"Three of them...?"
"I'm not asking for too much. Some might even benefit you too."
I had no intention of making unreasonable demands.
Though this negotiation was possible only because I had leverage over him, we each held the other's leash in this situation.
No one at the table wanted this deal to fall through.
Mutually assured destruction.
Ironically, it was only after threats were stacked upon threats that the demands stayed at a level the other side could nod to.
"What kind of content do you usually upload? Just filming first clears seems like the videos would be too infrequent."
"Of course not just that. The reactions are good, and there's plenty of footage, but clears don't happen in a day or two. Ah, now that I think about it, maybe I could if I really wanted to?"
"Don't change the subject. Answer the question."
That didn't mean the atmosphere had to be peaceful.
I'd laid out what I could offer, so now the director had to put his cards on the table too.
"The themes vary, right? We film a ranker hunting, do interviews. Even follow them around eating and hanging out."
"Like inviting guests on a program?"
"If you're talking about a corpse-filled guest show, sure, kinda. No fixed cast or anything."
Sometimes they filmed introductions to entire guilds or covered missed events from first clears as side stories.
The locations differed, but the role was no different from the director outside.
"Good thing you've done a lot of this."
"...?"
"Just do what you normally do. Only the people in the videos change a bit."
Let's start with the first demand.
Seo Ji-woo fiddled with the camera.
The performer wasn't ready yet.
"Oh ho! So teaching swordsmanship in front of that square thing means prospective disciples watch my teachings from afar!"
"That's right. It might be hard to immerse yourself, but just pretend there's someone in front of you and speak comfortably."
"Got it! Leave it to me!"
Good, the reaction was as expected.
Tiana didn't fully grasp the camera's functions, but she was thrilled at the idea of introducing her swordsmanship to countless people.
"Um... is that what I think it is?"
The director stood blankly, scratching his cheek.
"Filming a village intro, and interviewing villagers—what's the point?"
"What else would I ask you to film? This is something only you can do with your trait."
"True, but how does that benefit you...?"
The director, starved for attention and focused only on filming first clears, didn't know.
The perceptions of villages passed by weren't important.
He'd only ever thought about filming famous adventurers; villagers never crossed his mind.
"Remember, this isn't my only demand. Every village in the Tower, including any new floors we discover on clears."
"I know, I know. More footage for me is great. Not sure if it'll be popular, though."
Rankers were famous for their unique, attention-grabbing elements, but also because they were frequently exposed to the public.
Whether admiration, envy, or even parasocial feelings, the masses built inner closeness with rankers on camera.
If villagers got that chance too, maybe things would improve.
I didn't want them famous, just not ignored.
The video's purpose was simple:
To make people see them as 'people' no different from anyone else.
"Ready?"
"O-Of course!"
That's why she accepted Seo Ji-woo's clumsy threats without much fuss.
She probably thought it was a perfect plan, but after all the hardship, he wasn't yielding easily.
I had plenty of ways to derail the deal, but no need to.
He had what I needed, and I had what he needed.
If possible, I wanted to use the camera for things like this.
"Then let's start."
The director gave the signal.
The camera rolled.
"Uh, um..."
First-time filming experience.
She hesitated, unsure how to start.
"Try starting with a simple self-introduction."
The director assisted.
His earlier confidence wasn't empty; her eyes sharpened quickly.
"Ah, greetings! I'm Tiana, the swordsmanship instructor at this training hall!"
"Good. What do you usually do with your time?"
"As an instructor, I wait for adventurers to come learn swordsmanship. Lately, I've been managing the hall and training diligently to keep my skills sharp."
The director adjusted the camera.
From centering Tiana, he widened to show the training hall's interior.
Not much to introduce.
Training dummies.
Stacks of swords.
"Could you show some training too?"
"Of course! First, the vertical slash stance. Watch closely and focus."
Most of Tiana's footage would probably be her swinging at dummies.
Her lessons showed no sign of ending.
One technique took at least 20 minutes.
Vertical slash, then horizontal, thrust, swing.
It showed how much detail hid in basic swordsmanship.
Adventurers rushing to Floor 2 in days missed her precise explanations entirely.
⋮
Midway through Tiana explaining downward strikes, the director spoke up with difficulty.
"Instructor? Isn't this enough?"
"Enough? I haven't even covered half of half!"
"Ah..."
Seo Ji-woo probably wanted to say most would be cut for length.
But he couldn't spit it out.
The first demand had conditions:
No disrespecting villagers, use honorifics, no ignoring or restricting actions.
That was the price for not smashing the camera.
"Wouldn't it be boring if you explained everything here?"
"Hm?"
"Stopping here might make adventurers wanting more come visit to learn the rest."
"Aha, sound advice. Leave some for in-person teaching."
Seo Ji-woo glanced at me.
I nodded: within limits.
"Any last words?"
"One!"
Tiana steadied her breath.
"There was an adventurer who claimed to be the best with a sword!"
"The Sword Saint?"
"Yes! I'm the instructor who first taught him! I can make anyone a great swordsman—come without hesitation!"
Recording ended.
The director lowered the camera.
"Nice closing line."
"R-Really? I thought hard about it. Glad it wasn't weird."
"Good work. I'll edit it well and upload."
I hadn't expected the Sword Saint mention.
No hint given, but it was perfect for drawing outsiders to the Tower as the director wanted.
Attention-grabbing; he looked very satisfied.
Tiana hurried to my side, spilling urgent excuses.
"O-Of course, my best disciple isn't the Sword Saint—it's you!"
"It's fine. No, you did great."
"Just mentioned him for fame! Don't feel bad..."
"I hate being mentioned too."
"Then you're relieved."
She'd worried about calling the Sword Saint her disciple instead of me.
I hadn't cared, but her adding it felt oddly nice.
"You're the best teacher too, Instructor."
"..."
This line was embarrassingly heavy.
For speaker and listener alike.
"Ahem. Anyway, thanks for the opportunity."
"No problem. Good work filming."
Still tons of people left to film.
Just finished the first.
"Before you go... a spar?"
"Same as always."
"So, no?"
She drew her sword instantly.
"You have more to film—now?"
"Crack."
"Huh?"
"Camera breaking sound."
"..."
The second to film was Ellie.
Maybe the biggest reason I made this demand.
The Tower isn't a game; receptionists aren't NPCs.
Ellie practices guest service during off-seasons.
Explaining quests, guiding to forests, notifying rewards, deadlines, cautions.
Always her best for unexpected questions.
Other adventurers visit rarely, but my daily visits keep her sharp.
But as a daily receptionist, I knew: they interrupt her prepared lines.
Like skipping game dialogue to grab quests faster.
They know interrupting is rude.
"—So that's it. Filming one by one. Sound good?"
"Sounds great! I want to!"
"We'll handle filming and editing, so just do your usual naturally."
I'd worried during Tiana's, but Ellie would be fine.
That day, I learned something new about Ellie.
"A-Ah. Eek... Th-That. U-Um..."
She stammers badly when nervous.
Really badly.
"S-Sorry. Can we do it once more?"
"We'll delete this and restart."
Her daily voice was stable and pleasant among villagers, but the camera turned her electric.
"Ah, uh. A..."
"This won't work."
"Sorryyy..."
Recording attempts continued until sunset.