After finishing my discussion with Kayla about the Knight King… no, I should now call him the Hero King, I returned to the recording site.
Only to find a scene I never could’ve predicted.
There they were—Serika and Kaizel happily chatting away after the recording session ended.
Of course, it was surprising that those two were talking, but it wasn’t necessarily bad.
Except for one small issue.
And that was…
“Hooh. So summarizing your words, Lady Serika, Lord Ragnar completed the script of ‘The Mysterious Disappearance of Eli and Hammel’ in just a single day?”
“Yes. I saw it with my own eyes, and it was utterly unbelievable. Who in this world would believe that the story of ‘The Mysterious Disappearance of Eli and Hammel,’ which moved the entire Empire, took only a day’s worth of effort from Ragnar?”
“Ugh. Truly, Lord Ragnar is the Empire’s greatest genius. Impressive. Of course, the creator of ‘Knight Shin Chronicle’ should be capable of such feats. By any chance, are there other stories involving Lord Ragnar?”
“Oh, speaking of which, something happened when we produced episode 15 of ‘Knight Shin Chronicle’—”
“…”
Those two were enthusiastically discussing behind-the-scenes stories related to ‘The Mysterious Disappearance of Eli and Hammel’ and ‘Knight Shin Chronicle.’
If some random guy had asked Serika questions like these, I’d probably think, “This dude has dirty intentions toward Serika.”
But if it was Kaizel? That changes things.
Why?
Because unlike others, Kaizel was the real deal.
Being someone who spent over ten years as a hardcore otaku both before and after reincarnation, I can say with certainty: if Kaizel had been born on Earth, he’d undoubtedly have become an absolute hardcore anime fanboy.
“Ah, you know episode 15 of ‘Knight Shin Chronicle’? Episode 15 was the one where Luke dies due to the rampaging Unit Zero. If I recall correctly, at 14 minutes and 37 seconds, a children’s song starts playing, and exactly 2 minutes and 30 seconds later, it ends. What does this mean…?”
“…”
Look at that.
Even Serika, who recently transitioned into voice acting and became a fellow otaku, looks slightly exasperated by Kaizel’s intensity.
I’m pretty sure even Ricardo would react similarly if he were here.
While both Ricardo and Kaizel are consumed by their passions, there’s a difference: Ricardo’s obsession is fake, while Kaizel’s is genuine.
It’s like how Maric, who usually pretends to be intense, would be shocked by his boss’s true fanaticism.
In short, in this world, nothing beats someone dedicating their life to anime fandom.
Thus, Kaizel, Serika, and I enjoyed a lively conversation about anime.
And eventually…
“Something I’ve noticed since last time… Ragnar, you and I really click. In the Kingdom, there are only idiots who don’t even know basic specs or details about Unit Zero.”
“…”
Kaizel sighed, looking up to the heavens as if lamenting.
“Though we weren’t born at the same time, through the shared connection of ‘The Mysterious Disappearance of Eli and Hammel’ and ‘Knight Shin Chronicle,’ we’ve become practically brothers. From now on, I’ll talk to you casually. And you can do the same with me. We’re already honorary brothers.”
“…Uh, honestly, that feels a bit overwhelming…”
“…”
“…No. Alright, let’s do it. Friend.”
That way, half willingly, half not, Kaizel and I became otaku friends.
Not that it was all that surprising since I was already childhood friends with Serika, the daughter of a duke.
Anyway, once we became friends, Kaizel shyly approached me with something.
“Hem, Ragnar. As a commemoration of us becoming close friends, I have something I want to show you. Something I haven’t shown anyone else yet. But I feel you deserve to see it.”
“…Something you want to show me?”
Honestly, I wasn’t interested or eager to see it, but I didn’t really have a choice.
When Kaizel handed me what he had hidden, I couldn’t help but gasp in surprise.
“It’s a manga… and it’s based on ‘Knight Shin Chronicle’…”
That’s right.
Kaizel had given me a doujinshi (fan-made comic) of ‘Knight Shin Chronicle.’
“You know, our kingdom has had a thriving manga culture for ages, and I’m a huge manga enthusiast.”
Kaizel scratched his head as he spoke.
“When your ‘Knight Shin Chronicle’ became a massive hit across the kingdom, many people started drawing manga inspired by it. Inspired by this trend, I also decided to create one based on my tastes.”
“…Hmm.”
I flipped through Kaizel’s doujinshi.
‘This is impressive. I expected doujinshi to appear eventually, but this is sooner than I thought.’
It was possible because the manga industry in the Richard Kingdom had long been advanced.
‘The artwork quality is surprisingly good. Maybe selling these officially at future festivals wouldn’t be a bad idea…’
As I lost myself in thought, Kaizel looked at me anxiously.
“Um… Are you mad?”
“Huh?”
“Since we created manga based on ‘Knight Shin Chronicle’ without your permission, I thought you might be upset. If so, I sincerely apologize.”
With that, Kaizel bowed deeply.
“Just in case, the profits from ‘Knight Shin Chronicle’-themed manga have been held by the kingdom. If you wish, I’ll hand them all over to you—”
“No, there’s no need for that.”
However, I cut Kaizel off.
“It’s fine to create manga based on ‘Knight Shin Chronicle,’ and it’s also okay to profit from it. At least until someone tries to turn it into a large-scale business, I won’t interfere.”
“Is… Is that really true?”
Kaizel stared at me wide-eyed, clearly disbelieving.
Allowing manga creators to earn money through doujinshi isn’t a significant loss for me.
Why?
‘Because new fans will discover the anime through these doujinshi, and some of those new fans will go on to create more doujinshi, creating a positive feedback loop.’
In Japan, works that have maintained popularity for decades often owe their longevity to the original creators being lenient about fan-made creations.
So, it makes sense to encourage doujin activities rather than restrict them here too.
Because ultimately, fostering this kind of activity will lay the foundation for greater profits through ‘Knight Shin Chronicle.’
Once I allowed doujin activities openly in the Richard Kingdom, Kaizel handed me the doujinshi with a grateful expression.
“Thank you so much. It’s nothing special, but consider this my gift. As I mentioned earlier, it’s a manga I drew filled with my personal tastes. If you ever visit the Richard Kingdom, I’ll gladly share more of my creations.”
“…”
With that, Kaizel left with a satisfied smile.
Serika, standing beside me, looked curiously at the doujinshi in my hands.
“Hey, Ragnar.”
“Yeah?”
“Can I take a look at this? A self-drawn manga by Prince Kaizel based on ‘Knight Shin Chronicle’? Now I’m curious.”
At Serika’s request, I handed her the doujinshi.
And then…
“…Huh?”
Serika tilted her head, puzzled, as she carefully examined the contents.
“What is this?”
“What’s wrong? Is there a problem?”
“Not a problem… but…”
Serika stared at the doujinshi in confusion.
“This is supposed to be a self-drawn manga based on ‘Knight Shin Chronicle,’ right?”
“Yeah, that’s what he said.”
“But why doesn’t Kai, the protagonist of ‘Knight Shin Chronicle,’ appear in this book? It’s only Saya and Eilian from start to finish?”
“…”
“Besides, Saya and Eilian weren’t exactly close in ‘Knight Shin Chronicle.’ Yet, in this manga, they’re portrayed as best friends. Isn’t this a complete setting breakdown?”
Serika murmured seriously.
Unfortunately, I immediately understood what kind of doujinshi Kaizel had drawn.
‘So that’s what he meant by “filling it with his tastes.”’
While doujinshi are generally made for this kind of niche appeal, isn’t Kaizel pushing it a bit too far for this era?
This seems like something that’s at least a hundred years ahead of its time in this fantasy world.
Have I accidentally unleashed a deep, dark beast into the kingdom’s doujin community?
Should I ban doujin activities altogether before it’s too late?
I found myself lost in serious contemplation.
