novelhk Page 22
Page 22
The fog in Fim's eyes thickened... Doesn't he like it? No matter how you look at it, this character really likes the protagonist.
But seeing how confident Migo was, Fim began to doubt himself—could it be that he had misunderstood?
Human emotions are so hard to understand.
At this moment, Swell, who had been pondering for a while, spoke up:
"Speaking of which, this reminds me of something else."
"The explosion of products from the border demons seems to have only happened in the last few years. Before that, whether it was earth demon dolls or comics, they were just simple inventions within the earth demon and paper demon races, with no trace of mass production and dumping into human kingdoms..."
Kleidina suddenly realized, "Compared to the works from previous years, neither the dolls nor the comics are of such high quality..."
"Swell, do you have any leads?"
“There’s a rumor,” Swell said, not entirely certain. Being a book demon didn’t mean he could hear everything; there were many limitations, so he wasn’t always entirely sure about the source of his information.
"It is said that Hester Kur, the rebellious third prince of the Kingdom of Kur, is lurking in the territory of the demons on the border."
“The rebellious prince Hearst?” Kletina frowned.
As an important member of the royal family, she had naturally seen the other party's information. He was a slender prince with a somewhat cold demeanor.
Because he was inferior to the first prince, Otta, in the long-standing competition for the throne, and dissatisfied with the old king's increasing favoritism, the third prince, Hearst, led some forces to rebel against the kingdom three years ago, but he did not cause much harm to the kingdom and has disappeared in recent years.
In their demonic eyes, this was just a classic scene they'd seen too many times, a human joke they occasionally brought up.
If it were an ambitious figure who had successfully divided the kingdom, they might still be willing to offer some assistance, but now it seems that the rebellious prince Hearst has little energy left, and has even come to associate with those border demons whose magic is weak.
"No need to pay attention."
Kleitina quickly made a decision: "The main plan at present is to put pressure on the royal family of Ota, while looking for opportunities to infiltrate them."
"It's a pity that if the Sixth Demon hadn't been so badly injured, our plans in the capital wouldn't have been in such a passive position." She shook her head regretfully.
Swell said softly, "Sir, please don't say that. If we hadn't paid the price to capture the hero Mino, we wouldn't have obtained so much crucial information."
"Yes, you're right. In that case, it's up to you, Swell."
"Don't worry, Lady Kletina." Svir's will-o'-the-wisp stirred restlessly.
“I will make sure that not a single comic book in Ota’s study is left.”
……
wilderness.
Chaotic divine energy and remnants of magic entangled in the air.
The relentless gale formed a stratum, making passing merchants gasp for breath. The dark sky, with a certain point as the dividing line, clearly stopped on the barren land.
On one side is the human territory that is gradually being rebuilt from ruins, and on the other side are the outposts of the Demon King's army and the dwellings of low-level demons hidden in the depths of darkness.
This is the Minoan sacred border.
Since Mino was born as a hero and restored the kingdom to its original borders, this dividing line has been given this name.
The other end of the line... is the territory of the border demons.
Paper Demon Clan, core of the territory.
Inside a roughly constructed tent, the paper demon chieftain, Golden Paper Demon, cautiously knocked on the door of the human's residence.
"Lord Hearst, um... I wonder... is it finished yet?"
Inside the tent, the lights flickered. On the messy table covered with the molted skins of paper demons, a dark-rimmed man with gold-rimmed glasses and an air of scholarly refinement raised his head in dissatisfaction.
"What's with the rush?! Are you in such a hurry?!"
"Also, call me teacher!"
The Golden Paper Demon, his face contorted with worry, said, "Professor Hearst, how can you not be anxious...? The scheduled release date for the tenth volume of our 'Superego' is... already a death knell for you!!!"
"If we can't release it on time, the reputation of 'Frontier Library' that we've worked so hard to build will be ruined! Sigh!"
During the conversation between the human and the demon, the knight guard Sil, dressed in black armor, stood to the side, his expression a mixture of numbness and a hint of utter pain.
He initially sought refuge with this cunning and ruthless third prince.
It wasn't for him to be a part-time bodyguard doing blackouts while he and the demons discussed the details of the comic!
Look!
Border Demons!
A traitorous prince!!!
What a sinister and evil scene it would have looked together, but it was completely ruined by the utterly tasteless dialogue between these two!
Also, isn't it a mistake to shorten the comic "The Hundred Great Demons Who Love Me So Much" to "Super Me"? Since it's already a published comic, at least come up with a better-sounding abbreviation beforehand.
The Golden Paper Demon argued with Hearst for a while longer, and only after receiving Hearst's promise that he would "deliver the manuscript on time" did he breathe a sigh of relief and leave the tent.
At this moment, the Black Knight Sir sighed.
—Prince Hearst, the traitor, pen name "Aiguo-kun," is the author of the top-selling monthly bishoujo romance manga "The Hundred Great Demons Who Love Me So Much." He is known in the industry as a master of delicate emotions, a cute and quirky art style, and close-ups of bishoujo's exposed skin. He is hailed as a seasoned master of emotions... what a load of rubbish!
Good heavens, Hearst, like that guy Otto, is still a bachelor! He's just a reclusive prince's fantasy, readers, don't be fooled by this guy!!!
You, a prince of a traitorous kingdom, are you doing a side business here?!
Seeing Hearst pick up his pen and tap it lightly on the table, the Black Knight Sear took a deep breath and stopped his inner grumbling.
Immediately afterwards, he heard Prince Hearst utter a deep question.
"Syl, what do you think is better for the next volume? Should we have the arrogant and clumsy twin-tailed succubus showing off her panties, or should we have the mature and seductive vampire duchess taking a bath?"
"What the hell?!" Hill roared through gritted teeth.
Chapter 30 They are all my wings
"Your Highness, it's been three years! Do you know how you've spent these three years?!"
Like a lit dynamite, the Black Knight, Sil, spoke rapidly:
"First, they collaborated with the Earth Demon Clan to develop harmless, beautiful miniature clay dolls. Then, they produced serialized comics similar to story dramas with the Paper Demon Clan. They even linked these brands together and named it something like 'Frontier Library'?!"
"Next! What are you going to do next? Go find the Light Demons and make these clay figures and paper dolls move?!"
Hearst listened calmly, gently adjusting his glasses.
"You discovered all of this. Actually, this plan was started a long time ago..."
"Enough!" Syl exclaimed, looking utterly exasperated. "I don't want to be blacked out anymore!!!"
Hearst finally nodded as if he understood, "In that case..."
"Then we'll entrust the most stylish part of the outlet to you—"
"I killed Ni!!!"
Syl, panting heavily, drew his longsword.
Hearst raised his hand, and a piece of paper fell from the table, merging with the pile of papers on the floor.
The next instant, many papers lit up, and Syl was as if he had been swept away by demonic energy, suddenly becoming desolate and powerless.
"This, this is..."
Syl quickly used his strength to drive it away, a look of surprise on his face.
“These are pages from Volume 1, Volume 2… and even Volume 10 of ‘Superego’.” Hearst presented the papers to Sear. “Did you think the magic on these pages was just ordinary residue?”
"But there is the most invisible trap on it... A single scroll of paper is nothing, but once ten scrolls of paper with different magical structures are gathered together, they will form a source of magical pollution that seeps into the soul."
A fervent light shone in Hearst's dark eyes.
"After that, the infected person will become extremely addicted to and crave this comic, and in the end... they will be unable to distinguish between virtual and reality."
"At that time, it will be very easy for us to destroy that person or control him as a puppet."
"And once the right person is found, the entire kingdom will fall into my hands."
Syl looked surprised, then realized something: "Your target is, First Prince Ota?!"
"Yes."
Hearst curled his lips into a smile. "As a brother who has been with me for many years, ha, what a disgusting word. I know all too well what that idiot likes... It's a pity that if it weren't for the fire in the capital that seemed to have destroyed the demon dolls in the bookshelf, Ota would be under my control by now."
"Thank goodness, I'm always in the habit of having a few backup plans—as the source of publication, I'm pretty sure Otta has already collected the first nine volumes of the comic."
Hearst gave a sinister smile:
"My foolish brother, drown in your obsession with anime characters..."
Siel sat to the side, weighing the scraps of paper in his hand, then frowned and asked with some curiosity, "What if, in any case, those nine volumes of comics are destroyed?"
“That’s impossible,” Hearst said confidently.
"Given Otto's timid and vain nature, he would only lock such obscene comics in his most secret drawer and only dare to take them out to secretly admire them in the middle of the night."
"You know your drawings are awful..."
"In short, unlike dolls with detachable clothing, bishoujo manga is full of inexplicable past scenes, so Ota will only hide it in a place where no one can access it."
“And amidst the layers of security at the palace,” Hearst glanced at Syl, “would anyone dare touch Ota’s personal belongings, or even destroy them?”
"Even the brave Mino wouldn't dare to do it!"
Syl's spirits lifted, and he became excited: "As expected of Prince Hearst, I knew you weren't the gloomy, useless, disgusting cartoonist you looked like!"
Is there anything I can do for you?
"Yes, blacken it."
Syl's face fell again.
……
late at night.
Prince Otta, exhausted from a day of official business, stretched.
He looked around, the weariness in his eyes quickly subsided, and with anticipation, he took out a key from his pocket, bent down, and gently opened the keyhole in the drawer.
Opening the drawer, rolls of brightly colored bishoujo manga came into view.