Just as Ragnar was having a cozy little chat with the Empress.
“Ugh, so annoying.”
Serika glared at the two of them with an extremely irritated expression on her face.
She was currently in a really foul mood.
But it wasn’t like Serika had started the day in a bad mood. In fact, just this morning, she’d been in an absolutely great mood—because she’d heard that the Empress herself would be coming to see Ragnar regarding some anime-related matters.
“Incredible! The Imperial Household is actually taking interest in your anime! Congratulations, Ragnar!”
Serika had genuinely congratulated him from the bottom of her heart. Honestly, up until now, she’d felt a little sorry for Ragnar. After all, he’d received a large investment from his father, Duke Grinevalt, to produce The Mysterious Disappearance of Eli and Hammel…
…and as a result, he’d apparently agreed to hand over a significant portion of the ticket sales to the duke. Though in exchange, he did gain the rights to sell various merchandise related to Eli and Hammel. Still, Serika couldn’t help but think Ragnar had gotten a raw deal. After all, no matter how much anime merchandise sold, could it ever compare to the sheer profits from ticket sales?
From what she’d heard, Eli and Hammel was currently smashing box office records across the empire. Nobles and commoners alike were going berserk trying to get their hands on tickets. And while Duke Grinevalt was raking in the cash from ticket sales, poor Ragnar—with only merchandise rights—wasn’t seeing nearly as much profit. Considering all the time and effort Ragnar had poured into creating the anime, it basically amounted to free labor.
That’s why Serika had been so thrilled when she heard the Imperial Household was showing interest in Ragnar. “The more attention the royal family gives him, the bigger the future benefits for Ragnar will surely be!” she’d thought excitedly.
But then…
“…I see, so that was your grand plan all along…”
SPLAT.
“Uh… Your Highness? Maybe we should… let go of my hand first before continuing?”
At the moment the Empress grabbed Ragnar’s hand during their conversation…
“…!”
For some inexplicable reason, Serika felt her emotions sinking into an endless swamp of despair. “Ugh, this is so annoying…” She wanted to tell the Empress to let go of his hand, but as the daughter of Duke Grinevalt, she couldn’t possibly speak out against royalty directly. Even as a duchess, there were still lines you didn’t cross in front of actual imperial blood.
So all Serika could do was watch silently as the Empress held Ragnar’s hand.
Her fists clenched tightly, though she herself didn’t even know why.
“…Damn it, I can’t believe this.”
After the meeting with the Empress ended, I sighed deeply, cradling my aching head. “Of all things, I never expected they’d ask me to make a TVA anime.” Of course, this world doesn’t have Earth-style televisions, but unfortunately, there are artifacts that serve a similar purpose. Specifically, ones used by the Imperial Household to broadcast announcements to major cities and government offices. The Empress had proposed modifying these to broadcast anime empire-wide.
– Since this will air across the entire empire, it’d be great if we could make it a long-running series. Say… fifty episodes?
– Fifty episodes?!
Needless to say, I was speechless upon hearing her suggestion. It took me two whole months to create a mere two-hour movie (Eli and Hammel*), so I couldn’t even begin to calculate how much time and effort fifty episodes would require.
– Don’t worry about costs; the Imperial Household is prepared to provide you with a substantial budget.
– …
– Looks like you’re too moved for words. I’ll always support you, my dear.
– No, that’s not exactly…
– If this project turns out well, we might sponsor your next one too. So give it your best shot!
…Please cancel that last part.
As I sat there lost in painful thoughts, Serika finally spoke up in a curt tone, her lips pouting since the moment I’d been talking alone with the Empress.
“Well, regardless of everything, this isn’t necessarily bad news for you. Being directly supported by the Imperial Household means you can create whatever you want, right?”
Though her lips remained stubbornly pouted the entire time. What was bothering her so much anyway? As someone born into the untouchable peasant class, I guess I’ll never fully understand the mind of a noble lady.
“Just accept the Empress’s offer. You can’t refuse anyway, and it’s beneficial for you.”
“Hmm… Is it really that good for me?”
“I mean, originally I planned to chill at home for a few years living the NEET life…”
But if I take on this fifty-episode anime project with imperial backing, there’s no way I’d be able to relax anymore.
And there was an even bigger problem looming ahead.
“If things go wrong… I might end up becoming the unpaid slave of the Imperial Household, forced to make anime forever!”
See, if I manage to create this epic fifty-episode anime and it becomes a massive hit across the empire…
The Empress would almost certainly order me to start working on the next one.
Why? Because it’s far more efficient to keep reusing an existing skilled slave rather than finding a new one. Especially when said slave has already proven themselves capable of hitting home runs repeatedly.
It’s the same reason professors often exploit talented graduate students under their supervision without letting them graduate.
“But I can’t intentionally ruin an anime made with imperial funding either…”
If I tried making something ridiculous like Kimchi Warriors, the enraged Empress might very well chop off my head and display it in front of the palace. This isn’t a democratic society—it’s a dirty caste system where such actions are entirely plausible.
Plus, even if I dislike working, as an animator, I’d feel extremely uncomfortable deliberately ruining a project.
“So what should I do? Is there any good solution?”
How can I create high-quality anime while ensuring the Imperial Household doesn’t ask me to make another one afterward?
Then, after pondering for quite some time, a brilliant idea came to me.
“Mecha anime.”
“Huh?”
“And LCL… no, orange juice ending.”
“Huh? What are you talking about?”
“If everyone turns into orange juice at the end, it’ll neatly wrap everything up, won’t it?!”
Long ago, there was a legendary anime that rocked all of Japan. It became a cultural phenomenon, hailed as a masterpiece to this day. But it also famously destroyed people’s minds by wiping out humanity in its ending.
Sure, technically there are plenty of anime that kill off humanity in their endings, but this one gathered all the hate and criticism due to its prominence.
And I intended to plagiarize… err, benchmark this anime.
Because it perfectly fit what I wanted: a critically acclaimed anime that simultaneously gets trashed for its absurd ending.
“Heheheh…”
Let’s see how they react when I turn all of humanity into orange juice at the end. Will they really still want me to direct their next anime project?
