Chapter 32
Chapter 32
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 32
Chapter Title: No Growth At All
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"Ooh, here it is!"
The section chief looked up, brimming with excitement.
He looked just like a puppy getting hyped over a giant toy, and a chuckle slipped out of me.
"...Wow. It's so cool."
"Yeah. It's pretty."
Amelia and Yoo Siu gazed at the mountain in admiration.
It really is pretty.
Back when I was in my original world, I'd spend all day holed up in my room staring at my computer or phone, so I never really bothered with scenery.
Landscapes untouched by human hands are more beautiful than I'd imagined.
...Well, calling it untouched is a lie in the first place.
A criminal organization's branch is hiding in there.
⚙ WRITER-NIM ⚙ This looks fun...! I'm super excited! "Really looking forward to it... Right?"
"Yeah! I'm excited too!"
Even Academy students act like kids after all?
They all seemed thrilled at the thought of chilling at a mountain lodge instead of sitting through classes.
Especially Amelia and Yoo Siu.
Those two have been glued together since earlier.
...What's up with that?
"Amelia?"
"Eek?! Uh, uh. Arte. What's wrong?"
"Nothing, just... Curious what you two were up to."
"Uh, yeah?! No, it's nothing. S-Sorry! I'll back off right now!"
Anyone could see they were getting along great. It was heartwarming.
But the second I talked to Amelia, she freaked out and put some distance between them.
...Ah, I get it.
They're embarrassed!
"No need to apologize."
I should be the one feeling sorry.
Ugh, is it because I've never dated?
I totally missed the pink vibes in the air.
They were having a sweet moment, and then I barged in like an idiot.
I've seen that scene tons of times in light novels.
The male and female leads are just about to kiss when some clueless extra jumps in, and they pull apart all flustered.
Watching them wave it off like "it's nothing" always got under my skin.
I remember fuming, wondering why the hell anyone would interrupt like that.
And now I'm that clueless interrupter.
Somehow feels kinda bad.
The section chief had already dashed ahead, all excited on his own.
Amelia and Yoo Siu were whispering to each other again.
...Hmm, no one's watching. Should be fine.
I subtly shifted the thread inside my necklace.
"Gack?!"
"Oops. My bad... You okay?"
"Guh, *cough*. Y-Yeah, I'm fine."
Hmm, still not getting the hang of it. Gotta practice more.
The ability Writer-nim gave me lets me manipulate threads from any clothes I see as clothing.
Condition is I have to be wearing them.
I've gotten so used to it that I can wield it as naturally as my own limbs now, but creative uses are still tricky.
And those creative uses aren't all that fancy anyway.
I can control the threads until the mana infused in them runs out.
So by packing them full of mana ahead of time, I can manipulate threads I've already loosened from clothes.
...I tried stockpiling a bunch into thread balls, but Writer-nim shut that down.
She'd buffed the ability to offset the penalty, but ditching the penalty would make it straight-up broken.
Said it'd be no different from a webnovel protagonist.
She's only ever that decisive about stuff like this.
...Anyway.
That's why pre-loosened threads are tough to handle precisely.
Pulled too hard and Laira ended up gasping like a dog on a leash.
A little more force and her head might've snapped clean off.
Gotta reflect on that.
Maybe practice a bit next time before using it.
"Alright, Laira. If you would...?"
"Uh, yeah. Got it."
I flashed her a smile, and she vanished like she'd gotten the message.
...Good. Major variables are sealed away now.
Time to hear that story I'd been dying to get.
"Writer-nim, don't you think it's about time to spill the beans?"
⚙ WRITER-NIM ⚙ Heh, hehehe... Yeah. Should be fine to tell you now...! I thought I was gonna die of curiosity.
I'd begged her to tell me, but she kept her lips sealed, saying she absolutely couldn't.
Finally gonna hear it.
She said she'd come up with some killer setting!
How much had she grown?
Hoping it's a good one.
⚙ WRITER-NIM ⚙ The thing is, Übermensch's motif is animals, right? "...Yeah?"
Injecting animal factors into their bodies to surpass humanity? Obviously.
⚙ WRITER-NIM ⚙ So, the executives have to be famous animals! That's what I figured! Writer-nim laid it out like she'd just made some groundbreaking discovery.
She only now realized that...?
Saying "Übermensch executive... injected with pygmy hog factor!" would just get readers going, "Pygmy hog? What the hell is that, you degenerate?"
But a famous animal? Way easier.
"Übermensch executive... tiger factor!"
Much simpler to grasp. No explanations needed, and it sounds badass.
No, hold on.
She hasn't finished yet! You gotta hear people out to the end!
I trust Writer-nim!
⚙ WRITER-NIM ⚙ But shoving in just any famous ones felt kinda lacking somehow... What if they had symbolism? That's what I thought! "Oh, symbolism. Nice."
I tamped down the urge to cheer.
Yeah, our Writer-nim's just inexperienced.
She can pull it off.
⚙ WRITER-NIM ⚙ Right?! So I went with super famous symbols! Pulled from the Chinese zodiac! There are twelve executives total! "...Pardon?"
Splash.
It felt like a bucket of cold water doused the wildfire raging in my mind.
W-What did she just say?
...Chinese zodiac? Twelve executives?
⚙ WRITER-NIM ⚙ Rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, goat, monkey, rooster, dog, pig! Hehe, tons of material! Ah.
Writer-nim's giggling voice lingered in my ears, all smug about her overflowing ideas.
I'd just said to hear people out to the end, hadn't I?
And boy, was that advice spot on.
No growth at all.
"Um, Writer-nim. You didn't already lock that into the setting, did you...?"
⚙ WRITER-NIM ⚙ ? Yeah, I did? I somehow swallowed the string of curses bubbling up.
Stay calm, Arte Isis. Stay calm.
Writer-nim's a guppy... Writer-nim's a guppy...
To keep from dying, gotta pat her gently...!
⚙ WRITER-NIM ⚙ Uh? "Even if you do three per arc, that's four full arcs minimum."
⚙ WRITER-NIM ⚙ ...Uh?! "And if you off three right at the start, the next batch shows up with zero tension?"
⚙ WRITER-NIM ⚙ [...] "Start slow with one or two, then dump the rest later? Cue the power inflation whining. You ready to deal with that...?"
I waited a good long while.
...No response.
I held my patience and waited some more until a meek, crawling voice finally piped up with a weak counter.
⚙ WRITER-NIM ⚙ B-But... If I don't bring them all out, it should be fine... right? "These aren't random side characters. We're talking the main antagonist faction's executives. You gonna leave them out entirely?"
⚙ WRITER-NIM ⚙ Hiiing... This is nuts.
How the hell do I even fix this?
"Writer-nim, couldn't you just scrap them all...?"
⚙ WRITER-NIM ⚙ Not just one or two, but all twelve... H-Hard. Hah, fine.
She can't just wipe them out, so no choice.
Gotta make do with the baked-in setting somehow.
I cooled the heat building in my head.
No point grilling her here.
What if she drops the story midway?
The world ending is a no-go.
"So, how many are in this lodge?"
⚙ WRITER-NIM ⚙ Th-That is... One executive and 200 underlings... "...200? Hey, how many freshmen does the Academy take in per year again?"
⚙ WRITER-NIM ⚙ ...300. I didn't even have the energy to get mad anymore.
One executive commanding 200 goons.
Typically, the more executives, the wider the variance in their forces, but let's assume the others are similar.
That's 12 times 200 = 2,400 villains.
Even if every single Academy student graduated and turned villain tomorrow, it'd take eight years to hit that number?
Setting's busted.
...No helping it. Hate to say it, but.
As much as I don't want to, looks like I have no choice.
"Writer-nim, could you spare me one extra uniform?"
⚙ WRITER-NIM ⚙ Y-Yeah...? Uniform? "Yeah. Think I'll need one."
I really didn't want to burn through my ability like crazy.
Spamming it in broad daylight would be insane, and even at night it'd scream "not right in the head."
But luckily, this is the mountains.
A place untouched by anyone but Übermensch.
Just giving a free show to guys who're gonna die anyway.
Dead men tell no tales, after all.
As long as the club folks don't catch on, it'll be fine.
"I'll just kill 'em all. That cool, right?"
⚙ WRITER-NIM ⚙ R-Really...? "Yep. Somehow make it work."
The villain headcount's way too high...
Hmm. Say they're villains who fled overseas and settled here.
They should've thinned their own numbers fighting each other, but for some reason, they banded together instead.
That's how Übermensch ballooned.
Should patch it up fine.
...Total shoehorned setting, but what can you do.
How else handle 2,400?
"Whew, dinner's gonna be a busy one tonight."
Can't wipe out the full 201, executive included.
Need to leave enough to jump Yoo Siu's group.
...Maybe around fifteen?
This ain't Alibaba and the Forty Thieves. It's Arte versus 2,400 beasts.
Way too many.
At this rate, readers might start calling me "Editor-nim" instead.
The thought crossed my mind.