Work Text:
“I got myself into a real nice pickle, didn’t I?” The Traveller muttered to herself and tried very hard not to tear out her own hair.
“Suure, let’s just start a random manga inspired by my own dreams. The inspiration will neeever run out! Ugh.” She scoffed at her own naivety and did her best to ignore her editor’s latest message.
The earthquake did allow her to stall for time (shocking events ftw), as did her earlier collapse during the Stellaris Cup slash summoning ritual, but she was quickly running out of time and options.
In Passing, volume 1, ended with the Tyrant locking the protagonist in a cage, shattering her beloved artifact after he proclaimed that the Silver Knight was dead.
Except in reality, the Silver Knight turned out to be the villain and the Tyrant was willing to do anything, including sacrificing his own life, to save his world and its people. Writing him as comically evil now just made her stomach roil. It would be an insult to his honorable sacrifice, to keep him so… two-dimensional.
But what else could she do?
Introduce new characters in the last pages of volume 1? Highly unprofessional. Another twist that would only leave people hanging and give her more time to try and weasel out of this? Pure bad writing.
She couldn’t even write “rocks fall, everyone dies” since the Archmage would have definitely found a way to prevent that.
She banged her head on the table.
Seriously, she should just switch genres. BL would do. Have the Silver Knight and Tyrant marry to establish peace while the protagonist runs away with Ayn to rule the Frozen North.
“Or should I just switch to a Reverse Harem?”
She could position the Silver Knight and his Rebel army as the original occupants of the North, unhappy about something from the past. (The previous Emperor’s lax attitude towards the butterflies? Maybe make it the typical North’s Monsters.) Make the Tyrant a better ruler who solves the problem, with the protagonist’s help of course, and force both sides to enter peace talks. Then marry them both to keep the peace.
Or maybe not marriage. It might be too far off from the traditional romance. Someone would have to lose. But which one?
Then she realized it didn’t matter. Whoever the protagonist chose, the other male lead would gain something too. If she married the Silver Knight, the Emperor would get a stable Empire with no rebellion threatening his position. The Silver Knight would become the Duke of the North and be officially tasked and supported in his endeavor to destroy the Godh- er, Otherworld Empire’s monsters. An honorable Knight like him would accept those orders and the rebels would follow him, becoming the Protectors of the North. The Protagonist, his wife, would of course follow too.
And if the Emperor won, he would cede his throne to the Silver Knight, and go deal with the monsters himself, as the Dashing Rogue he was; the Protagonist with her special powers accompanying him all the way.
As to who would win her heart… She tapped her pen on the desk. That would be the hardest choice. But she’ll decide when she’ll get there. Maybe do a coin toss.
Seriously, the only problem was that Cael didn’t have black hair and red eyes to be a proper Duke of the North, and the plot didn’t allow her to squeeze in Ayn.
She tapped her pen on the empty paper again.
That… could work.
It would of course take at least another volume, maybe two, to properly establish the Tyrant’s personality and explain his previous actions. Then she’d have to reexamine some of the Silver Knight's actions to put a not-so-holy spin on them, but still keep him likable enough to have him remain as the male lead. But it was doable.
Suddenly inspired, she started the rough sketch.
Tyrant and the Protagonist, having a long discussion while she’s in the briar cage. The Traveler just stared as the words all but poured out of her, giving the Emperor a voice. A reason, a personality. An almost-argument that turned into an honest discussion about the state of the North and the Empire.
Sparks flew between them. Just as they did between her and Lars, if she was honest.
A promise. The Emperor and the Heroine joining hands to protect innocent people. Heroine was now an honored guest.
Well, that would do for chapter one.
She quickly sent the sketches to her editor, hoping he’d be happy, and started on chapter two.
A meeting with the Emperor in a rose garden. A stroll around town. Almost kidnapped by the rebels, only able to convince them at the last second that she wished to stay and negotiate with the Emperor.
Worries about the still missing Silver Knight.
It was strange how it both was and wasn’t following all those things that happened in Godheim.
The story came pouring out of her. All that happened, slightly changed to better fit the ‘In Passing’ narrative. Simplified in some places. New details added in others, to cover any plot holes. At some point, she even worried it would be too much content for a single volume. But she persevered.
By the end of the day, her desk was a total mess of papers, her fingers were black from the pencil, and she had a horrible crick in her neck.
The Protagonist must have been tired too. She kept running back and forth, doing her best to appease both sides, to get them to talk.
The Dashing Rogue Emperor and the Enigmatic Silver Knight agreed to peace talks by the end of volume 2.
She breathed a sigh of relief.
Her phone rang, notifying her of her editor’s message. With her stomach in knots, she took a deep breath and read the message.
He liked it!
He liked her latest chapter, start of a new volume, and even commented how much her writing style improved.
Well, that was a relief. Now she could continue in peace. Considering how… adventurous her life became as of late, she should finish the story within the next volume or two, just to give her readers some closure and so she can concentrate on her studies and Travels.
She glanced back at the papers covering her desk. Most of the scenes were of the Emperor and the Heroine, bonding over their common goal and interest.
Something told her Lars was going to really like this volume, when it finally came out.
Maybe she’ll send him a copy?
Several Months Later…
Lars had liked it. He definitely, definitely liked it, going by the star-struck look in his eyes whenever he looked at his volume 2 of In Passing. She knew that because that ridiculous man kept reading it in public places like the local garden and café and waxing poetic about it to anyone who would hear him. Including her.
By now, she was almost 100% sure that he knew she was the author and did it just to mess with her. This man was truly ridiculous.
She was secretly glad that he liked her work, though.
And if the weird looks he kept giving Cael were any indication, he also liked her BL and Reverse Harem Doujinshis.
She smirked evilly.
Hehehe, maybe she’ll plot a situation where these two meet in real life, preferably over dinner at her house so she could watch.
A girl needed to get her inspiration from somewhere , right?