Chapter 65
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 65
Chapter Title: Intermission: The Saintess of Orléans (1)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Today.
As Chloe read through Kim Yul's novel—the one she'd set aside for a bit—her emotions shifted every which way.
First came denial.
"Kwaaang! There's no way! There's no way Liu Bei could fall like this, or the high elves could crumble...!"
She even compared the newspaper serialization to Kim Yul's manuscript, double-checking if what she'd seen was real or if someone had swapped it out on the sly.
"Kim Yulll...! And you have the nerve to demand my trust after this? What a wicked, evil, rotten man...!"
Her boiling rage led to a loud "kraaang," keeping the staff away from the president's office for a good while.
Then came...
"Hmm, this must be a dream, desuwa. I've just been so unwell lately that I'm dreaming all this..."
Bargaining.
"Ugh, ughhh..."
Depression.
That was when Kim Yul found Chloe curled up in her chair, face buried, sniffling away.
"Kim... Yul..."
She'd planned to give him a piece of her mind the second she saw him, clutching that fury to her chest—which she proudly considered above average, and by no means small.
But the moment she laid eyes on Kim Yul's face...
Chloe felt her anger slowly ebb away.
A terribly haggard face.
Dark circles that seemed, with a touch of exaggeration, to reach his cheeks.
His features filled with guilt and bitterness.
Yeah.
If even she, a mere reader, felt this down...
How must the author feel, having poured love into his creation from part 1 onward, only to kill off that character in the end?
"Get rid of those protesters outside for me."
"Making them into death fodder, desuwa...!"
Reversing through the stages back to anger, Chloe shot out like lightning, grabbing Kim Yul's collar and dangling from it.
"Zhuge Liang's magic has to include a resurrection spell, desuwa!"
"No such thing."
"Ugh, ughhh..."
"Tch."
Blasting through bargaining and depression once more, she finally reached acceptance.
"Phew. So what happens next, desuwa? Zhuge Liang naturally works for Liu Bei's revenge, right?"
"Yeah, sure. He's a loyal retainer, after all."
At least...
The high elf bloodline passed to the successor Yuxian, and she'd gotten confirmation that part 2's protagonist, Zhuge Liang, wouldn't betray him. Chloe's furrowed brow eased a bit.
Her elf ears, which had drooped completely, perked up again, twitch twitch.
They began returning to their usual angle.
"Phew, this is truly the last time I'll hold back, desuwa."
Leaving Kim Yul with a warning, Chloe strode to the office window and flung it wide open.
"Disperse, desuwa!"
At that single shout...
The full-elf alliance protesters, who'd been swallowing their rage like they wanted to burn the building down, muttered "ding, dismissed" and slowly withdrew from the protest site.
"...You didn't put them up to this, did you?"
"As if, desuwa."
"Your speech is getting weirder by the day..."
"Must be your imagination, desuwasawa."
Kim Yul theorized that Tylenol's liver toxicity might harm elves.
Of course, that wasn't the case.
.
.
.
Gazing at Kim Yul, who soothed her with all sorts of behind-the-scenes stories that couldn't fit in a serialized novel—ones only in his head...
"Kim Yul sometimes writes like he's penning a history book instead of a novel, desuwa."
Chloe hit the nail on the head.
Kim Yul just sheepishly scratched the back of his head.
Anyway.
With his natural storyteller's talent, plus slyly weaving in tales to lift her spirits and delight her ears...
Chloe's heart had softened quite a bit.
Only then...
"Oh, right."
Chloe rummaged through her desk drawer and handed Kim Yul a letter.
"The troupe leader asked me to pass this on, desuwa."
"Hm?"
Kim Yul tilted his head.
The leader's office of the Fantasy Horizon Troupe.
"You seem to have a real talent for tragedy. Why not pivot to playwriting while you're at it?"
"...Haha..."
The troupe leader teased the young, spirited man before him—Kim Yul—watching his reaction.
He noticed one collar button missing, as if it'd been vigorously tugged and torn by someone.
Probably Chloe's doing.
Since he killed the high elf.
"Anyway, personally, I loved the development. This is sincere."
"Should I be grateful?"
"No need for that."
As he'd told Kim Yul...
The troupe leader thought Two Heroes unfolded in the smartest, most perfect way.
Unlike Cao Cao, who charged straight ahead ruthlessly for his grand cause, without blood or tears...
Liu Bei stood at the opposite pole, embodying humanity itself.
If he'd chased the greater good there, abandoning revenge for his brothers and compromising with the tide?
All of Liu Bei's built-up character would collapse.
And if he'd defied his loyal retainers to rush into the final battle, winning via protagonist buffs from the previous leads?
Guan Yu and Zhang Fei's deaths would just be fodder for the prior hero's awakening—nothing more.
"Liu Bei is a character completed by his tragic end. How's that for an interpretation?"
Peering into Kim Yul's flustered expression, the troupe leader was convinced his reasoning was spot on.
And taking it further...
He confirmed Liu Bei's death was meticulously designed.
As expected.
A terrifying talent.
He'd sensed it before, but...
This author, Kim Yul, was definitely different from those who mechanically filled daily quotas.
Peek into his head, and you'd probably find vast layers of settings stacked neatly.
"So, when do you think the Zhuge Liang arc will wrap up?"
"Hmm."
To the troupe leader's question...
Kim Yul briefly reviewed his plans.
Remaining story.
Stabilizing the succession.
Conquest of the Southern Barbarians, Seven Captures of Meng Huo.
Northern Expeditions.
And... the Battle of Wuzhang Plains.
"Not within a month or two, probably."
He'd already decided long ago: wrap the main story at Wuzhang Plains, and do side stories post-finale if needed.
Plus, he'd been serializing Romance of the Three Kingdoms too long anyway.
So he'd been mulling a quick end and back to published novels.
Striking that opening...
"Then, if you can spare time, how about planning one more magical play?"
The troupe leader's proposal pierced Kim Yul's heart.
"Tough day, huh, Kim Yul."
"You too, slaving away to soothe the little rascal."
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
What kind of life did you even live?
Everyone he knew was chiming in with "So why'd you kill Liu Bei?!" It left a heavy pit in his chest.
Even Roselin, whom he'd pegged as romance-only...
- Author... It's so sad...
Her eyes, dotted with teardrop emojis, scolded him, leaving his HP near zero.
But.
"They want to do one more magical play."
"Oh."
Work's work.
After refueling Tin Can, who sat primly at the table like a baby bird, chirping with her spoon raised...
They dove into debating materials.
"This time, the troupe leader gave specific constraints. Gotta build around them."
"What are they?"
"Simple if simple, complex if complex."
One.
The protagonist must be of common birth.
Two.
The era's backdrop must be chaotic.
Three.
The protagonist needs allies.
Four.
The finale ends in the protagonist's tragedy.
"Hmm."
Tin Can's earrings began sparkling.
He'd only recently learned: not just semiconductor-lookalikes, those earrings actually boosted her processing like some magic tool.
What fantasy sorcery is this?
Once loaded...
"Hyunggyu, what do you think?"
"Hyunggyu, huh."
It fit all the criteria.
Jing Ke screamed Jing Ke: the dagger-from-the-map moment.
When Qin Shi Huang unrolls the map with Fan Wuji's head on the table, and the dagger rolls out—that's peak drama.
Often featured in dramas and films, easy to adapt for theater or short story.
Minor issue?
"Even so, writing an emperor assassin story in the empire feels off."
"Ah. Overlooked that."
Tin Can readily admitted her oversight.
Tempting for debating what makes an assassin, but...
Not yet.
Too soon.
"Spartacus then?"
"Good. Ties to the Caesar story too."
More candidates poured from Tin Can's lips.
All had merits, solid narratives, overflowing charm.
If time were infinite, he'd sweep them all—but it wasn't.
So, hashing it out carefully with Historie...
"As expected."
"Jeanne d'Arc is the answer."
They reached a conclusion.
Three Kingdoms covered Eastern tales plenty long; time for a Western history turn.
Perfect fit for the troupe leader's conditions.
And her personal saga was ideal for a protagonist-focused play or single-volume novel—no lacks there.
"Shall we start the study session?"
"I'll search academic papers first."
He put his head together with his grad student to brainstorm.
Troupe leader.
You wanted protagonist tragedy?
I'll wring out your tears and snot.