My impression of seeing the newspaper could be described in one word.
Even if something was wrong, it’s been wrong for a long time.
I was just writing a book for killing time, and the world was already in chaos. In this world, science was not well established, and there was no radio, let alone a smartphone, so only newspapers informed the world of news.
However, the theme of the book I wrote had made headlines in this newspaper. I couldn’t help but be bewildered.
“Hahahaha! As expected, my eyes weren’t wrong! Good Job! Our youngest son”
While I was reading the newspaper with a stupid look on my face, I heard a loud laugh in front of me.
I took my gaze away from the newspaper and raised my head in a dazed frenzy.
Red hair that had grown like a mane and a well-kept beard. Golden eyes gleamed like a raptor.
Hawk Ducker Michelle was the name of this middle-aged man who exuded masculinity like a veteran warrior.
He was my father.
“Yes indeed. I have already told you. Isaac excels as a scholar rather than a knight.”
A beautiful woman clapped Hawk’s thick arms and made a fuss next to me.
Long indigo blue hair down to the waist and doll-like facial features. Her eyes were unusually purple.
Everyone would have noticed at this point, but the woman who only appeared to be in her early 30s was my mother, Anna Ducker Michele.
“My Isaac is great too. Everyone says they are looking for you.”
My mother smiled gracefully as she congratulated me with a happy expression on her face.
‘I’m sorry, Mother. That doesn’t help me at all.’
The words above rose up my throat, but I barely suppressed them. Because I didn’t want to ruin this peaceful atmosphere for nothing.
I just laughed awkwardly like an idiot.
“…Can’t you keep it anonymous?”
But shouldn’t there be a last line of defense? In a timid tone, I inquired of my parents.
It was possible because my parents assisted me in publishing my novel anonymously.
I’m telling you right now that I don’t want to get caught up in a noisy environment. Even the newspapers are making a big deal about it right now, but I have no idea what’s going on outside.
“Okay. If you want, I’ll do it, but your identity will be revealed sooner or later.”
“Why?”
“Even if your father is a nobleman, he’s just a baron, and with the imperial family looking for you, how long do you think it will go on?”
“Ah.”
My father’s explanation made sense to me. My father was a Baron, the lowest among the five ranks, no matter how noble he was.
Furthermore, my father was a common knight who rose to aristocracy through a couple of serious achievements, making it difficult to say that he was a proper aristocrat.
So, if you’re determined to find me from above, it means I’m helpless.
“But, don’t worry too much. I understand your worries. Your father will put an end to this as soon as he can.”
My father softly smiled and patted my head, as if he had read my worried mind. The calluses felt rough and hard to the touch, but my mind was at ease.
“Mom will also investigate the situation as thoroughly as possible at the tea party. Mom wants Isaac to have a good life.”
“Mother…”
How warm was this warmth? With an emotional expression, I looked at my parents.
The reason why I was able to recognize them as parents were because of this warm warmth.
Then my mother smiled and said to me in a gentle voice.
“So Isaac. Can mother ask this one thing?”
“What is it?”
“When is the next episode coming out?”
“… …”
“Your mother is waiting for Lily and Jin to get together.”
It drained all of my enthusiasm.
I lowered my head, wistfully looking at her smiling face.
Her emotions were touching, but there was something I couldn’t bring myself to tell my mother.
‘Jin is the final boss, Mother.’
There were supporting actors who rode a love line among the characters in Xenon’s biography. These were ‘Lily’ and ‘Jin’ mentioned by my mother.
For reference, Jin was a demon, and Lily was a priest who was also revered as the next saint.
Looking at it alone, it may appear to be a passionate love line, but in my previous life, I was called a professor at Satan University.
In the final act, Jin will accept the remnants to completely destroy the Great Evil and establish himself as the story’s final boss.
The main character, whose mental state has been shaken, is defeated, but the fact that he desperately seeks Lily through his will is an added bonus.
‘…it’s really fucked up.’
It was okay for my family to read my novel. However, when I hear it from their mouth, my heart trembles.
Should I change it to a happy ending now? That’s what I thought, but I can’t do that because I have a lot of double-track and bait that I had done so far, making it impossible.
I have time left until the ending anyway, so my life will be stuck until then.
“Honey, don’t put too much pressure on Isaac because he’s going to enter the academy soon. What if the story goes awry?”
“Oh, writer Isaac? I’m sorry if did something wrong…”
“Oh, come on!”
In the end, when I shouted out of shame, my parents burst into laughter that matched their personality. On the other hand, my face was reddening in real-time.
“I’m sorry, dear. Anyway, are you going to enter the academy with literature rather than martial arts?”
My father stopped laughing and asked me. I calmed my excitement and thought of the academy I would attend in the future.
The Academy, or ‘Halo Academy’, was the best educational institution in the country.
As the best educational institution, it boasts a huge curriculum, just like the universities of my previous life.
It was divided into two categories: martial arts, which emphasized strength, and literature, which emphasized intelligence.
‘Why would I go into martial arts?’
Because monsters existed in this world, there were monsters like tigers, lions, elephants, and other ‘like’ monsters. And, like the main characters in other novels, I have no talent for raw strength.
In the past, my father trained me harshly to become a knight like him, but he gave up because I was so mischievous.
“Yes. I prefer literature to martial arts.”
“Hmm….I see what you mean. Instead, daily physical training is essential. Okay?”
“Of course.”
I did physical training on a regular basis. Because physical exercise improved not only physical strength but also patience.
Previously, I was able to concentrate on writing for 3 hours after only 30 minutes in front of the computer. As a result, I was able to publish one book per month.
However, because I wrote with a pen tip now, calluses were deeply etched, but I didn’t have to be concerned.
“Do you intend to continue writing after you go to the academy?”
This time, my mother asked me a question. She looked worried that I might enter the academy and focus on my studies.
As a child, it was natural for me to focus on my studies, but my mother, on the other hand, was more concerned about my novel.
It was a bit absurd, but considering the ripple effect of my novel, it was understandable.
“Well… I have to write. It’s not like I don’t have a break. Instead, I think one book every month or two would be better, even if it’s short.”
“It’s a shame. But focus on your studies. You have your siblings there, so call them if you need to.”
“Yes.”
Halo Academy was a must-attend for nobles, and so had my siblings.
However, not only as a student but as a teaching assistant. A teaching assistant was a position that only a few outstanding students could hold.
In addition to that, they could be said to be among the talents that many knights are already paying attention to.
“By the way, it’s amazing. Your brother and sister are all knights, but you’re a writer.”
“It must be like me. I was also quite good at writing when I was young.”
“Then shall we have another child? I wonder what will happen this time?”
“Oh, my gosh. Isaac? Dad and Mom are going out for a while, so see you in a little bit–“
My parents left my room hand in hand. I blinked as if a storm had passed by.
“…Hoo.”
The ground had vanished, and only sighs could be heard. I was still baffled as to how this happened.
I just used my previous life’s job to write, and the repercussions were terrifying.
‘I’m not going to write today.’
I murmured and unfolded the finely folded newspaper. As soon as I opened the newspaper, it was full of news about my work.
Sometimes, some famous people criticized the quality of literature, but it was swiftly buried.
‘…Is this something worthy of such praise?’
Despite the favorable reviews, it was hard to believe that the treatment of demons had changed.
The devil devoured the world 3,000 years ago, and demons have discriminated been against by humans for more than 1,000 years. However, it was difficult to believe that such discrimination had vanished after only one novel.
In fact, my work was neatly buried, but it was reliable that my father worked behind the scenes so that I wouldn’t be heartbroken.
The ripple effect was at an unbelievable level, to the extent that it made me think like this.
“Whew… Let’s finish it quickly and do something else…huh?”
While flipping through the newspaper, there was a piece of news that suddenly caught my eye.
– Cecily Drat Aicilia Bean, Princess of Helium. She’s going to attend the Halo Academy. Minerva Empire also granted permission.
– Now that the discriminatory gaze towards demons has been alleviated due to the influence of Xenon’s biography, for the friendship of each country…
“… …”
Don’t be such a jerk, eighteen.
{T/N: The word is ‘십팔’ which translates to ‘18’. The number eighteen is pronounced Ship-pal (십팔). If you say this number with even the slightest error in pronunciation, it sounds like the F word in Korean (shi-bal / 씨발). It’s so similar that ’18’ is often used as slang on chat rooms to replace the F word}
* * *
“Are you sure you’ll be okay? Cecily, before I am the king of the demons, I…”
“It’s okay, Dad. Haven’t I already made all the preparations?”
A man and a woman were conversing in a dimly lit room.
Jet-black hair, blood-red eyes that glowed in the dark. Finally, even the horns protruded from his head like a demon.
They were demons
“This is my choice. And Dad also knows that now is the right time for other tribes and demons to form friendly relations with each other, right?”
A beauty, with her ebony hair up to her waist, said to the man in front of her.
In line with her alluring voice, her beauty was elegant and beautiful that it could be called fatal, and her body was mature enough to stimulate the dark minds of many men.
Because of her appearance, she exuded an aura that would tear people’s hearts even if she were still.
“That’s right…”
The man in front of her crossed his arms and smiled bitterly at her question.
It seems that the age difference between them wasn’t much, but the demons had a longer lifespan compared to original humans. So, it was not at all strange that demons had a relatively young appearance.
Descaldrat Eisilia bin Helium, the woman’s father and the man known as ‘The Demon King,’ responded while looking at his daughter.
“It’s because I can’t believe it either. I know that the way people look at our people has changed since the book appeared in the world. But the emotional gap doesn’t heal easily.”
As Descal said, the discriminatory gaze towards demons had greatly decreased, but the conflict that had occurred in the meantime was still deep.
There were still demons who turned into devils in the world, and there were people who were harmed by those demons. Even if the damage was unintentional, problems arise from the moment it occurs.
At that, Cecily, the daughter of the Demon King and the only princess of Helium, smiled and opened her mouth with timid words.
“Did you read Xenon’s biography too? Remember what Sakran said at the end of the fifth volume?”
“… -..”
Descal did not reply.
That scene left a lasting impression on himself as the Demon King.
At the same time, it imprinted on the readers of the book as a ‘race that wants to prove to be human’ rather than a ‘demon’.
At that moment, there was an evaluation that Sakran was the true protagonist, and no one else.
Meanwhile, Cecily was the first to speak up when there was no answer from Descal.
“Sakran looked at the people he had protected in his final moments and said, Don’t be afraid to become the devil yourself for the sake of your loved ones. That is true human courage and sacrifice. I die not as a demon, but as a human. He said.”
“…”
“Despite the fact that it is a fictional story, I do not believe it is fiction at all. The author of this story must have been very grateful to our people in the past. Otherwise, he would not have written such a moving story that fully revealed our people’s pain and suffering.”
– Cecily, with her hands, clasped tightly together and a glum expression on her face. She was so moved that she didn’t realize what kind of face she was making.
But if Isaac saw this, he would think to himself:
I believe I saw that in a game. I wrote it without thinking about it because it was from my previous life and there would be no plagiarism issues.
Cecily, on the other hand, had no way of knowing. She had simply mistaken herself.
Descal looked at Cecily with a complicated expression, who was drowning in her imagination and gently touched him.
“…Sakran is the head of the ‘Demon hunter’ that kills his demonized people. As you may know, there is a secret organization in Helium that carries out the same mission.”
In Xenon’s biography, there was a group that punished people who had become demons because they couldn’t overcome their desires.
{T/N: It kind of goes like this – the demon folks aren’t originally a demon. They have demon blood in them because they are the descendants of the Great Devil. However, if they cannot overcome/or lose to their desires, they turn into demons/monsters and kill/harm/cause damage.}
The name was ‘Demon Hunter’ and it was set to have a much stronger power than other demons by accepting some of the power of the devil.
However, the problem here was that there were associations that carried out similar tasks in Helium.
“You mean ‘Reaper’? Of course, I know. My guess is that the author of this book probably got the favor of a member of the Reaper.”
Cecily nodded, falling into the illusion of being alone again.
If Isaac saw this situation, he would say the same thing as before.
I’ve seen that in a game too. It was really written without any meaning or intention.
However, as previously said, it was sad that they had no way of knowing Isaac’s heart.
“This is why outsiders are questioning whether demon hunters really exist. Thanks to this, they have been able to use this as an opportunity to come out in the open.”
Those who had turned into demons were killed by the same people. Just by looking at this, you could see how strong the Reaper was and how holy and noble the organization was.
Also, the Reaper suffered from terrible mental pain whenever they killed a demon that was originally their kin. So, the Reaper had a much higher rate of suicide than being drunk with power and turning into a demon.
Due to the specificity of this mission, they were active in the dark, but after the release of Xenon’s biography, they had the opportunity to come out in open.
Furthermore, some high-ranking demons who read the book even suggested that it be officially established. There was no such thing as good news for a Reaper who accepts their holy destiny and works without any reward.
“Anyway, if that’s your will, then don’t be discouraged. Instead, don’t be so sure that the author in the Minerva Empire. If he has published it anonymously, there’s a good chance he’s a hidden sage. Even if you meet by chance, be polite.”
“Dad. I’m an adult now, too?”
Cecily shook her hand at Descal’s worried words and trembled softly. Still, Descal couldn’t hide his expression.
He only had one daughter, but he was anxious as a father because she was so playful.
Her beautiful appearance was dark and insidious, and her sly, lustful hands reached out. There’s no need to worry about that, either.
Cecily had the ability to easily blow up a mountain. She was not stated as the next demon king of Helium for no reason.
“Ah- I want to meet you soon. Benefactor of our demons…”
Cecily clasped her hands tightly, looking forward to meeting the author.
Descal shook his head at her appearance, which was no different from a serious illness.
– – – End of Chapter – – –
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