Editor 44

I Woke Up and Became a National Hero (1)

Behemoth meowed and perched neatly on Cleio’s knee.

The weather had turned to autumn, chilly enough to make the cat feel like a cozy heater.

Cleio, sluggishly leaning his back against the headboard, blinked his bleary eyes.

As his vision finally cleared, what appeared before him was strange.

Second floor, far left bedroom in the Aser estate. His familiar room was buried in splendid flower baskets.

‘What’s with all the flowers?’

Before he could solve the mystery, the bedroom door flung open with great force.

Bang—!

The one who burst in was a sturdy young man, looking at least two meters tall.

“You’re awake!!!”

Cleio’s head rang at the thunderous baritone.

“…Who are you? What are you doing here?”

“Forgive me!!! I am late to introduce myself. I am Swain Temple, a knight of the Royal Capital Defense Force. I was dispatched to serve as your escort, Sir Cleio Aser. I am delighted that you have awoken!!!”

“Uh… could you please speak more quietly? My head is throbbing.”

“My apologies!!! I was just so glad to sense that the magician had awakened!!! But instead of standing here, I should fetch people. Please wait a moment.”

Cleio blankly stared at the still-open bedroom door.

As the knight named Swain caused a commotion, Madam Canton and Dione appeared as if they had been waiting on standby.

Both looked haggard, as if lacking sleep, and Cleio felt a bit sorry.

Madam Canton summoned the physician for Cleio’s examination, but physically he was fine. He only felt lazily refreshed, as if after a sound sleep.

‘Of course, I wasn’t injured anywhere, just some muscle pain and ether depletion.’

Once Cleio was confirmed safe, Madam Canton hurried to prepare a meal, and Swain disappeared to contact the palace.

Taking advantage of the moment, Dione approached the bed and whispered in a small voice.

“The royal physician and chief magician of the Defense Force visited one after another on the first day. Your ether was just depleted so you fell unconscious, but they were all set to drag you to the palace for observation. Those research magicians were practically delighted a magical beast appeared…!”

“And yet you managed to bring me home.”

“Royal Magician Inspector Zebedi, who rushed to the scene first, swung his robe and ordered you home for rest. After applying [Cleansing] and [Purification] magic, there was nothing left to do. Even so, the Defense Force refused to let you go. That’s why that knight over there ended up guarding your bedroom.”

“You must have all gone through a lot these past days.”

“I’ll take all the praise after this. First off, I put the beaststones from the magical beast in the bedroom table drawer. They’re small and you were holding them so tightly, I don’t think the knight saw. If the royal magicians notice, they’ll take them away for ‘investigation’ and who knows when you’ll get them back…”

“You did really well, Lady Dione.”

If he’d lost a beaststone that could project magic formulas outside the circle, he wouldn’t have been able to sleep at night.

“I should be thanking you. I only survived thanks to your defeating the beast! But I’m curious—where you killed it was at the boundary of Lundane City and Selva Province, yet you dragged it all that way in such a short time. Why?”

“To reduce civilian casualties… though I doubt you’d believe that?”

“That’s not really your style, is it?”

“You’ve judged me well.”

“Anyway, that area’s been closed off. All the magicians in the Defense Force flocked there in excitement, so the investigation won’t finish quickly.”

‘The way the research magicians behave is just the same as in the previous manuscript. Good thing I lured the beast away.’

Cleio smiled in satisfaction.

The strenuous effort had paid off. His land was safe.

Watching his expression closely, Dione seemed to sense something and flashed a partner-in-crime smile.

“You knew this would happen, didn’t you? I’d wondered why you suddenly lured the beast away after calmly holding the barrier…”

“I can’t give a definite answer, but I’d say Lady Dione’s speculation is mostly correct.”

“Ha, I knew it. That’s why you’re the partner I chose. Let me sum up everything that happened while you slept. First, those flowers came from His Highness the Crown Prince, several nobles, members of the commoner’s and noble’s assemblies, and the neighbors.”

“Only four days since the incident and it’s gotten quite grand.”

“What are you talking about? The grand story hasn’t even begun yet.”

With a quick turn, Dione brought the pile of newspapers and weeklies stacked on the desk and spread them on the bed.

From the childish yellow press to the pretentious royalist papers, to left-wing publications—it was a diverse array, but the front page headline was nearly the same everywhere.

Picking up the top newspaper as if touching something suspicious, Cleio wanted to erase the memory of reading the article.

<According to Sir Swain of the Royal Capital Defense Force,

“His magic was a miracle. Daring, enormous spears rained from the sky and impaled the beast as if meting out judgment. The strength was beyond words…”

>

“Kyaaaa—meow! (This is insane. How am I going to show my face? Hahaha!)”

The cat curled up in Cleio’s arms, peeking at the article with him, started cackling and showing teeth first.

So entertained, its trembling body could be felt pressed against his own.

When the embarrassed Cleio moved to roll up and put away the newspaper, a firm front paw slapped down, fixing the page.

“Oh, Behemoth, are you reading the newspaper too? Your master’s exploits are amazing, aren’t they?”

Caught between the girl and the cat, Cleio read the article awkwardly, unable to do anything else.

<“He glanced around the shop, where everyone was frozen in fear, then leapt alone to face the beast! Right in front of the monster battering itself against the café to reach the people inside! The resolve in his eyes! His actions were so heroic, I just couldn’t stop my tears….” (Mark Gillier, 46, proprietor)>

And so on and so forth. The contents were similarly embarrassing. Cleio’s ears turned red.

The café owner had definitely cowered behind the counter—when did he ever see Cleio’s eyes, anyway?

‘Can you even give false testimony like this and not get in trouble with the media arbitration board? Or does that not exist here?’

The public, starved for drama after a long peace, seemed entertained by the debut of the boy magician who defeated a magical beast.

“Are you just feeling shy? You haven’t tasted the sweetest part yet! Quickly, read the Clarion article. It’s a far-left republican magazine, and it’s rare for it to agree with the Lundane Standard.”

Dione, laughing uproariously, thrust an oversized weekly magazine at him.

‘Oh, for god’s sake. I was just protecting my land!’

Overblown praise wrinkled his face in embarrassment; Cleio never imagined these external consequences.

“So, how does it feel to wake up and suddenly be a celebrity?”

“Does fame feed you? All you get is trouble. It’s uncomfortable.”

“Fame and honor always evade those who seek them and cling to those who flee. What can you do?”

“Well, I guess there’s one good thing. With this illustration, people won’t recognize me on the street.”

The dramatic five-column pen drawing on the paper’s front page depicted a confrontation between a ferocious beast and a tall and handsome young man.

The young man, his long robe billowing, wand outstretched, was tall and attractive.

‘Imaginative portrait. I was wearing my morning coat, wielding Dione’s parasol not even a wand, and the wolf Vargr didn’t look that monstrous.’

Only after a while, freed at last from the cat’s insistence, Cleio crumpled the newspaper and threw it on the floor.

Seeing Cleio’s horror-stricken expression, Dione wiped the smile from her lips.

“What will you do by ignoring it? Now you’re the hero who protected the capital with your own life. When you leave the estate, you’ll have to behave accordingly.”

“Behave accordingly…?”

“Once you’re recovered, you’ll have to send your thanks for those flowers and gifts.”

“I’m not doing that.”

“People will call you rude, you know?”

“I’m not polite. I won’t be in the future either.”

“Would your father think the same?”

“My father?”

“With all this commotion, of course I contacted him. He’s just returned with the merchant company to Centrum, so he hasn’t left yet, but he’ll be coming to the capital within the week!”

“What would he have to say, anyway?”

“Maybe he’ll want to offer praise for your achievement?”

‘Praise my ass. Unless he’s transferring the deed to this house, I have no business with him.’

.

.

.

Madam Canton brought out porridge topped with figs and syrup, and warm herbal tea. It warmed his empty stomach well.

Though the Defense Force’s chief magician had cast [Cleansing] after the exam, rolling in beast blood left him feeling grimy, so he took a long bath as well.

While bathing, as he had requested, all the flowers and random clutter were removed from the room.

Feeling more refreshed, Cleio lay on fresh sheets, rolling the mica beaststone in his hand.

As in the previous draft, this would have been Arthur’s trophy.

Of course, he had no intention of giving it up.

‘We’ll move together anyway, so I’ll use half for the original purpose and the rest for myself. It’s not like I need to use it all.’

He wrapped the mica beaststone in a handkerchief and put it in the inner pocket of his school uniform jacket hanging in the wardrobe. He thought he should buy a subspace wallet instead of a pouch.

‘And this, unique skill…’

Lifting his right hand as he lay, he sent ether through it.

Over his bony right hand, sky-blue metallic lines in a rectangle appeared.

‘Promise’ displayed its familiar string.

[Unique Skill: ‘Editor Privilege’ (3/3)]

Soon the ether drained away, the stigmata blurred, and the golden letters faded as well.

‘Editor Privilege’

A power that seemed it could change anything, yet perhaps could change nothing.

A flawed authority that could only be used to fulfill the author’s intentions.

This was the reason Cleio Aser, or “Kim Jungjin,” existed.

Wealth, magic, and now even fame—however temporary—he had obtained. It was impossible to believe none of this was influenced by the author.

The more he received from this world, the heavier his heart grew. It felt like an order to work even harder.

‘Damn author… If you want something, leave me a Post-it or something. It’s obvious that Arthur becoming king is the destined ending, but besides that, I’m in the dark. What part of the last manuscript did the author dislike so much as to rewrite the whole thing?’

The task laid before Cleio was daunting and convoluted.

First, there was no way to tell in the what changes were the author’s revisions versus what was plausibility breaking down from instability in the manuscript.

This script carried no glosses or annotations.

He was its first interpreter, and he alone must deduce and annotate the author’s intent.

A false interpretation could literally lead the world to disaster.

‘What a damn role this is. Fuuu…’

Compared to this, the city’s fuss over him as a hero was nothing. A boy who slew a single magical beast—people would soon forget.

Vargr’s appearance was only the prelude to what would come next.

‘Good times end too quickly.’