Chapter 60
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 60
Chapter Title: Do the Three Brothers Dream of Peach Blossom Paradise? (2)
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"...What in the world have you created?"
Staring at Ulysses—real name Kim Yul—who was briefing them with a serene expression.
Eisen couldn't hide his shock.
This weapon called the "Heavenly Sovereign Cannon" completely shattered every bit of common sense he possessed.
Of course, gunpowder had been discovered and applied long ago. The fireworks that lit up the night sky during festivals were powered by it, after all.
But for various reasons, the technology had fallen by the wayside.
There was no need to research such a volatile substance that exploded at the drop of a hat, not when superior magic was readily available as a substitute.
And its potential didn't even come close to matching the power magic could unleash.
...Or so it hadn't.
Not until he'd just witnessed the Heavenly Sovereign Cannon spew fire right before his eyes and utterly demolish a stone fortress wall.
He was a capable battlefield commander first and a prince second.
Naturally, his mind raced with visions of what would happen if these weapons were deployed in actual combat.
A sturdy, massive fortress built by the enemy.
Rows of Heavenly Sovereign Cannons lined up in front of it.
A signal given, and they all fired at once—with a roar like the heavens splitting open...
"It's exclusively for the Demon Realm. My sponsor grumbled that if it ever got used in fights between humans, they'd wipe us all out on the spot."
Kim Yul's words snapped Eisen out of his reverie.
"Your sponsor?"
"I've got some connections here and there. Can you see the engraving on the Heavenly Sovereign Cannon?"
Eisen's eyes, overwhelmed by its inner performance until now, finally took in its outer design.
For a mere weapon, the engraving was excessively ornate and meticulously crafted.
From the majestic dragon head that looked like it could be the cannon barrel's maw, to every single scale delicately etched—and those scales were even gold-plated to boot.
Only then did Eisen recall what Duke Schneisen had mentioned not long ago about Kim Yul's "shady backer."
"No way."
"No way kills people, and dragons kill people too."
Kim Yul reminisced about the tongue-lashing negotiation he'd had with Yellowy not long before.
- Whaaat? Why meee? I don't even have gold to eat!
Dragons were inherently greedy creatures by nature.
Sure, there were enlightened individuals who lived through eons with a detached air, but dragons were beings who found comfort in hoarding any and all tangible or intangible assets in their lairs.
But.
- Do you know the origin of the name "Heavenly Sovereign Cannon" by any chance?
Kim Yul didn't beg or haggle. Instead, he focused on storytelling—the method Yellowy loved most.
What was the Son of Heaven? The one who ruled the world in place of the heavens themselves! Even if its authority was somewhat diminished in the Two Heroes tale, it still meant the master of vast lands!
What was the Supreme Leader? The one who ruled the world in place of humanity! No novels featured one as the protagonist yet, but it signified the master of all living beings!
Put them together, and you got the Heavenly Sovereign Cannon!
What a noble and grand name! It was perfect for the supreme being Esthea Golden Lintberryus!
It was bizarre logic that would have made the two mustachioed war criminals from the Hissi clan—currently stewing in hell's hot springs—clap like seals.
- Hmm...! It fits... it's cool...!
Having received assurances that her name would be endlessly praised, and furthermore, that her majestic form would be engraved on the cannon barrel.
- Fine, for that much!
Esthea fell to Kim Yul's silver tongue.
"...So the rumors were true. How the hell did you tame a dragon?"
"Tame? Don't say such dangerous things. Think of it as establishing a mutually beneficial, symbiotic contract. Anyway, I'd like to supply these Heavenly Sovereign Cannons to the Empire. Is this satisfactory?"
"Certainly. They have more than enough value."
Of course, the new weapon itself overflowed with worth.
But what truly shifted was his vague expectations turning into solid certainty.
This guy.
Squeeze him, and damn, he's competent as hell?
Eisen resolved inwardly.
No matter how he looked at it, this man seemed molded entirely from pure competence. He had to recruit him and slot him into his staff, no question.
If Kim Yul knew, he'd have bolted to Roselin that very day, bawling his eyes out and begging for asylum in the Holy Kingdom. It was a horrific notion.
Lately, it felt like he was getting tangled in weird incidents more and more frequently.
You know that vibe, right?
Like in Japanese light novels or Korean webnovels, where the protagonist sighs, "Haah... I just wanted to live quietly, yare yare." That so-called OP protagonist energy.
Whenever he saw that, he'd think, Why do they go looking for trouble? If you want to live quietly, why show off like that?
...But now that's me?
At this rate, he might quit writing novels and pivot to all-purpose entertainer-cum-entrepreneur.
Sure, he'd rake in way more cash that way.
But money solved 99.9% of problems without touching the remaining 0.1%.
He could stack gold bars into a tower and throne atop it like some capitalist emperor.
But he couldn't buy people's hearts.
...One cannon sale, and bam—he'd snagged the Second Prince's heart. But that wasn't bought with money, so whatever.
Without all the skills he'd acquired so far, he never could've succeeded like this.
He'd survived by talking his way out more than once.
And by martial skills, more times than he could count.
So he couldn't abandon his true calling.
"How about you stop rolling around and get back to writing?"
"Eek...!"
But...!
I don't wanna write...!
.
.
.
The sudden writing slump—slump for short—had a simple cause.
Story progression stalled?
As if. His novels never hit a wall like that. Coldly speaking, he was just handling editing and adaptation duties.
Wrist hurts?
It always ached now and then, and when it got unbearable, he'd run to Roselin, whine, and it'd heal right up. Sure, it'd relapse just as fast.
No, a deeper reason.
"No matter how I think about it, there's no good answer."
"You chose Romance of the Three Kingdoms as your source material, so you should've expected this. If it'd been this popular back when Luo Guanzhong was alive, even he would've felt his life was in danger. Even among Joseon-era reciters—"
Yeah, yeah.
According to the Veritable Records of King Jeongjo, a reciter who read the Im Kyung-eop Biography with such gripping immersion that he got too into playing the villain.
- You're the traitorous Kim Ja-jeom!
Misplaced patriotism stabbed him to death in a gruesome frenzy.
And such over-immersion wasn't just a thing of the past.
Even in modern Korea, it happened plenty.
Actors playing villains too convincingly, drowning in hate comments on SNS, or getting yelled at on the street: "Don't live like that, you scum!"
"At best, I'll end up like this world's Conan Doyle."
"Oof."
That's what he wanted to avoid.
This tin can. You've been jinxing me all afternoon.
Heaving a deep sigh, he took another look at the paper that was the root of his agony.
‘Two Heroes’ Series Character Popularity Poll
1st: Guan Yu
2nd: Zhuge Liang
3rd: Zhao Yun
4th: Liu Bei
5th: Cao Cao
[...]
Character popularity polls were such a fun culture.
If his fave ranked high, he'd feel irrationally pleased. If one he dissed topped the charts, he'd mutter "Hm, I guess that's how it is" while seething inside.
Just a byproduct of democracy, yet it scratched him raw anyway.
One thing was clear.
Spots 1, 4, 5.
And 8th place, Zhang Fei too.
When he massacres them all...
Can I handle the fallout?
Kim Yul wandered the wilderness in a daze for a while.
Of course, he kept writing to finish the manuscript, dutiful as ever.
The conclusion was set, but he kept circling the issue, so progress dragged.
Finally cashing in on the serialization!
This is right. The pacing was too fast before...
Kyarruk, kyaak!
Surprisingly, the detailed padding-out got good reviews, buying him some time before the inevitable backlash.
Of course, Historie—the era-given sage and pinnacle of intellect—had long since handed him the answer sheet.
- Just switch to a no-kill route. You don't need historical accuracy anymore anyway.
But the demon of fidelity, Kim Yul, rejected it.
Spouting about historical butterfly effects, humans die anyway, and every excuse in the book to preserve the plot's purity.
Thus, after going in circles, the core issue remained unsolved.
So Kim Yul stepped into a salon—the grandest in the Imperial capital, Jean Renobil Salon.
Ego-searching was a writer's instinct.
All writers thirsted for attention inevitably, and Kim Yul was no exception.
He also figured knowing the public mood would help him dodge the worst stones.
.
.
.
Salons weren't just for wholesome literary discourse among enthusiasts; they hosted all sorts of events.
The prime example: debates.
Sure, if it started with a contentious thesis, it could turn into a so-called "pit fight," but today was a literarily enriching discussion.
Today's debate topic:
On the Catharsis Provided by Tragic Developments.
"Tragedy can sometimes be the perfect seasoning to elevate a novel's flavor. Take, for example, the heroine in The Swallow Knights' Tale. By part two, it's revealed she endured horrors like gang rape. And yet..."
"Boo! Gang rape?!"
"Drag that bastard out!"
A few eggs flew from the furious crowd up on the platform, but he still saw nods of agreement amid the chaos.
Listening to the back-and-forth that followed, Kim Yul sorted his thoughts.
That lunatic deserved the eggs for yapping about NTR, but the other points were worth noting.
People had extreme resistance to unforeseen tragedy.
Then.
Just lay the foreshadowing on thick from the start.
And make 'em say, "Damn, even his exit's a work of art."