Chapter 32
Chapter 32
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 32
Chapter Title: Don Quixote (8)
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Just before Edn was about to deliver the Don Quixote manuscript, Katiranya found a secluded spot.
More precisely, it was a densely wooded area on the outskirts of the city.
The reason was none other than a familiar, all-too-familiar aura.
Upon arriving at the small forest, she glanced around briefly before speaking in a calm voice.
"Come out."
At her single command, the hidden being revealed itself.
He immediately dropped to his knees and bowed his head.
"Our liege. Have you awakened?"
"Yes. I woke up not long ago. But why are you here? Alter."
He was one of the thirteen knights created by Katiranya.
In terms of rank, he was around twelfth, but rankings held little meaning among vampires.
It was merely a mark that he had been chosen twelfth.
Alter was overjoyed at the fact that she had awakened.
But at the same time, worry flooded in.
What if our liege abandons us again?
Didn't she discard us before out of boredom?
After a moment's thought, he dismissed it as a useless notion.
Besides, what impious thought was this before his liege?
Alter bowed his head even lower and spoke.
"Our liege. Please, guide us on our path ahead."
"With what?"
"Our kingdom has maintained silence through the passing years. But lately, cracks are beginning to form. Not long ago, a vampire was slain by a human."
At the word "death," Katiranya's eyebrow twitched.
Noticing this, Alter desperately hoped she would issue a command to act.
Until now, the vampires had remained silent, isolated, and in seclusion.
All because their liege, Katiranya, had fallen into a deep slumber.
But those cracks were starting to widen.
Vampires' lives were long, so it wouldn't become a problem immediately.
"We don't know when it might become an issue within the next few years."
"Hmm."
On the other hand, Katiranya felt little about it.
Death was unfamiliar to vampires, so she was merely startled for a moment.
There were no deeper emotions.
Besides, she had structured the kingdom to operate without her.
The first among the thirteen knights—equivalent to a duke among humans—would be ruling in her stead.
If nothing had happened during her seclusion, a bit more silence wouldn't be an issue.
Judging thus, Katiranya issued her command in a calm voice.
"I am enjoying myself here right now. I've come across something more amusing than expected."
"That means..."
"Maintain the silence. Keep silent, and only come find me again when it's truly unbearable."
Alter felt an involuntary pang of disappointment.
He sensed that their liege still had no interest in them.
The thought struck him as both irreverent and unfair.
Realizing this, he startled himself, his shoulders twitching slightly.
Katiranya noticed but didn't inquire.
She simply turned away with an indifferent expression.
"So be cautious around here. Understood?"
"Yes, as you command."
"Good."
Katiranya stepped away, seemingly satisfied.
Thinking of reading Don Quixote, she hummed a little tune to herself.
With her parasol up, she headed back toward the city center.
Meanwhile, Alter could only lower his head as he watched her retreating figure.
"Our liege."
His voice carried deep sorrow and complex emotions.
The slightly cracked tone was laced with weariness.
"Please do not abandon us."
It was as devout as a prayer to the gods.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Don Quixote Part 2 is subject to quite a few differing interpretations.
There are discussions about the message the author intended to convey within the work, but they're somewhat superficial.
The protagonist of this book, Don Quixote, ultimately dies.
He, who chased ideals and romance, is forced back to reality.
Afflicted with severe depression as a result, he slowly wastes away.
Those around him try to restore his vitality, but they fail.
In the end, Don Quixote dies in reality.
The man who lived in ideals and dreamed of romance.
Ironically, he doesn't die during an adventure but upon awakening to reality.
Of course, that's not what I'm getting at.
The ending sparks all sorts of opinions.
Some say Cervantes killed him off because he didn't want to write anymore.
Others claim he did it to put an end to the pirate editions circulating.
Still others insist it was planned from the start.
After all, Cervantes died not long after writing Part 2.
"I'm leaning toward the second one."
Having released Don Quixote Part 1 in three volumes, it's enjoyed tremendous popularity.
The settlements coming in are one thing, but even overhearing street talk confirms it.
Everyone's buzzing about Don Quixote's ridiculous yet valiant adventures.
The problem is the constant pirate editions popping up.
Fake sequels claiming to be the next installment keep appearing.
Of course, I get it to some extent.
People want the next part, but it hasn't come out.
Or maybe they just want to ride the popularity wave.
Still, it's pretty infuriating, isn't it?
I never said I wouldn't write more, and yet here they are.
Besides, I can guess why this is happening now.
Because I wrote a satirical novel telling them not to follow it up, so out of spite or whatever, they're putting out their own sequels.
Can't write a follow-up?
Then it must be fine for me to do it, right?
Something like that.
That's one reason I'm hurrying to write Part 2.
Part 2 depicts Don Quixote's struggles and anguish between reality and ideals.
One charm is that the characters are aware of Part 1's events.
Don Quixote goes through various ordeals because of it.
Unlike Part 1, it's not just adventure tales.
It includes the story of one man torn between reality and ideals.
Though it ends on a sad note, it's worth pondering the message at least once.
"Phew, all done."
About a month after delivering the last manuscript, I completed the Don Quixote Part 2 manuscript.
There were revisions here and there, but this is pretty fast.
Worth skipping meals just to write, that's for sure.
"Alright, time to deliver it."
I took the manuscript pages to Jenectra Publishing House, only to witness a full-grown man bawling his eyes out.
"Waaah! Why... why did you kill him?!"
"Uh, boss?"
"How could you kill him off?!"
Hey, you lunatic! I didn't kill him!
Foren clung to my pant leg, snot and tears streaming down his face!
Keep begging me to save Don Quixote, but there's no more story beyond this!
If I were the original author, maybe, but as someone transplanting an Earth work, what more could I do?
Of course, I could if I tried.
But that wouldn't be Don Quixote anymore.
It'd just be some hack unwilling to accept the end, spinning lies.
Fine for a parody writer, but that's not me.
In the end, I had to pry Foren off and flee.
If I hadn't escaped, I'd have been stuck there all day.
"Phew. Managed to get out."
I could already picture the future if I hadn't.
Trapped in a small room, eating nothing but dumplings!
"Oh, wait, no dumplings here."
Now that I'm out, pointless worry.
I headed home with light steps.
And a few days later.
"If the world has gone mad, who can stay sane? Having too straight a mind is the real madness!"
Don Quixote stirred up yet another storm in various ways.
To the point where lines not in the book came out of Edn's mouth.
Surprisingly, that line matched dialogue from a musical based on the original Don Quixote.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Don Quixote Part 2 was also published in three volumes.
The difference from last time? They all came out on the same day.
No one knows why.
Rumor has it the boss was in poor mental and physical shape.
So he published them all at once, forgoing staggered profits.
"What on earth..."
Today's salon was a bit special.
Not people who'd read ahead sharing thoughts, but reading together.
In other words, a reading session.
"Is everyone here?"
"Yeah. Let's read it once."
Someone with a good voice and clear tone opened the book and began reading aloud.
The nobles listened to his voice while reading their own copies of Don Quixote.
Those without one shared with a neighbor.
"Well, this one's unique. The characters know their own story from the book."
"Yeah."
At first, they read along enjoyably.
But as the story progressed, a common emotion welled up among them.
"Ugh... Don Quixote."
"Ah, as you said. Freedom is a precious gift granted to humanity."
As they read Don Quixote, they felt as if they too had leaped into the boundary between reality and ideals.
But every story has an end.
In the end, Don Quixote returns to reality and slowly fades away.
Making the efforts of those around him all for naught.
Once the book was finished, no joy lingered in the room.
Only a solemn atmosphere mourning the dead Don Quixote.
Some even sobbed quietly.
In the ensuing silence, one man slowly rose.
"Will you all join me?"
At first, no one understood.
But his next words stirred their hearts.
"He who dreamed of ideals and lived them, Don Quixote! He who knelt to harsh reality, Don Quixote! We must remember him!"
"Yes. Let's commemorate him!"
No one opposed.
Instead, they fanned the flames higher.
After all, this was a gathering of book lovers who immersed themselves in stories.
What reason would they have not to, if not fully engrossed?
A few days later, something special happened in Rlangbur.
A wave of mourning for Don Quixote's death swept the streets.
As if a real person had died, everyone drowned in sorrow.
Of course, some didn't get it, but they didn't interfere.
Watching the scene, I could only slap my forehead.
It's not even a real death—what's with this spectacle?
"Wonder what'll happen when I write Sherlock Holmes later."
I'd been planning to someday.
But seeing this, it felt like I absolutely shouldn't.
Don Quixote somehow got accepted.
"No matter how I think about it, they'll probably try to kill me over Sherlock Holmes."
Even original author Conan Doyle got hounded for years, right?
And now me?
In this insane situation where Don Quixote gets mourning waves.
If I wrote Sherlock Holmes...
Ugh, chills just thinking about it.
For now, I slipped away.
Not just fleeing—today was special.
My personal lab was finally complete.