episode_0015

‘Ugh… … !!’

Are you an academy student?

A single word that Princess Diana shot like an arrow.

The moment I heard this, I froze as if I had been flash frozen.

After that, I couldn’t even hear what the princess was saying.

Roughly, they determine the grade level based on my vocabulary, and also my physique and calluses.

I almost fainted as I watched her use her observation skills to guess the correct answer like a pair of tongs.

‘No, what Sherlock Holmes are you?’

Just glance at a person and their personal information pops up as if you searched for them on your smartphone?

I’ve heard rumors that he’s smart, but I never thought he’d be this smart.

“So then who is hiding under this mask? Should I make it myself, or should I be honest and reveal my identity now?”

The last question I heard properly.

It is a warning that is practically an ultimatum.

It was like threatening someone by saying, ‘Just open your mouth, or do you want to get hit and open your mouth?’

‘shit.’

It’s burdensome to reveal my identity, but it’s better than being disliked by the future empress.

“Well, I guess I should reveal it. I’m a loyal subject of the Empire, hahaha.”

He tried to look calm and smiled, looking straight at the princess.

At the same time, he brought his right hand to the mask and prepared to take it off.

That was when.

“… … Foot.”

The princess tightly grabs my hand as I try to take off the mask.

She took my right hand away from my face and placed it on the table, grumbling.

“Just kidding. I have no intention of forcing you to reveal your identity. If you want to continue to hide behind anonymity, feel free to do so.”

“Is that so? I am truly touched by Your Majesty’s generosity.”

“Haha, don’t say things you don’t mean.”

The princess stands up from her seat with a smile that is both sexy and sophisticated.

Just like that, she turned her back, her silky clothes fluttering in the wind.

“It was nice meeting you, Phantom. I’ll be heading back for today.”

“Huh? Already? It hasn’t even been 30 minutes since the fan meeting started… … ”

“Just meeting him in person is enough. You’ve earned enough, so you can take a break. Wouldn’t it be tiring to balance your life as an academy student and as a great writer?”

“… … Thank you for your consideration. Please take a look, Your Majesty.”

In the end, I couldn’t deny it until the very end.

In a moment, I was caught up in her pace and so much was revealed.

Before you know it, it’s already too late, and you don’t have time to do anything.

‘I feel like I’ve been possessed by a legendary nine-tailed fox.’

Maybe Diana is actually a gumiho.

The cute back of a cat walking in front of me, wagging its tail. I am confident that I won’t be surprised if nine tails suddenly pop out from there.

“Oh, right. It’s best not to ignore letters from fans, Phantom. ”

Before leaving the reception room, she turned her head slightly and added a few words of advice.

“Even if you are a great writer sent from heaven, if you don’t even get a reply because the content is not satisfactory, it’s bound to be disappointing.”

“Yes?”

“Hehehe.”

Cleopatra of another world suddenly left me, leaving me blankly, not knowing what the words meant.

And about 10 seconds after she disappeared.

“Ugh… … !!”

I finally realized the chilling truth of the advice she left behind.

‘W, W, W, could it be that I, I, the sender of the letter that came last time… …!’

I feel like I’m really getting older today.

“How was it, Diana? Your 1:1 interview with the Phantom author?”

The first person the princess encountered after leaving the theater reception room was none other than Rosaline Wenford.

She stood there, cosplaying as Julia Caesaris, her face filled with anticipation, holding a small picture frame tightly in her arms.

“What kind of person was Phantom? A gentleman who was both gentle and delicate? Or a surprisingly blunt but deep thinker?”

“Calm down, Rosalind. I’ll go back to the dorms and tell you everything.”

“Yeah. Hehe.”

Rosaline nods her head and smiles innocently like a girl.

Diana asked, glancing at the picture frame she held close to her chest like a treasure.

“You like it that much? You got an autograph as the second prize?”

“Of course. Look. I wrote my name here too.”

“The playwright Phantom to the Duchess Rosaline Wenford

“I hope that only cloudless spring days will continue to be waiting for you.”

A phrase written in black ink on a pure white paper surface inside a frame.

It was a very plain and ordinary gift, but Rosalind was so happy that she didn’t know what to do even after losing first place.

“The author of Phantom must know that our family was saved thanks to Phantom’s work. That’s why he wrote such meaningful words of encouragement along with his autograph, right?”

“Well.”

“Chi. What is that, such a shaky answer? You should have met the Phantom writer instead of me.”

Diana refrained from making rash remarks just in case.

If Phantom is one of the cadets, he may be a close acquaintance of Rosalind.

Since all possibilities are still open, it is forbidden to jump to conclusions.

First of all, the age range is either 1st or 2nd grade.

There is a young master who is quite tall, belongs to a noble family, and has brown hair.

If there are any families that fall into that category, it would be Schwartz, Cromwell, Granada… …

‘… … and finally, Arture.’

It is still unclear which answer is correct.

But just reducing the sample to this point was a very satisfying achievement.

That’s why Diana decided not to be impatient.

The process of tracking down a mysterious man named Phantom.

Because it was after that that I truly enjoyed it.

So Rosaline and Diana, the two best friends, were walking together through the theater.

A large mirror exclusively for the costume room, temporarily set aside for the event.

Diana, who had been passing by, suddenly stopped walking.

And then he began to leisurely admire his own reflection in the glass.

“Hmm… … ”

“What’s wrong, Diana?”

“No, nothing. Haha.”

She transformed into Cleopatra, the Queen of Egypt, rather than Princess Diana.

That gap gave me an indescribable, deviant pleasure.

… … On this day, the princess discovered a new hobby.

Cosplaying your favorite character is a fairly expensive and secret hobby.

A character imitation contest by the Phantom author that caused a stir throughout the capital.

As the heat died down, the whirlwind of laughter brought about by the Chaplin Comedies also gradually died down.

No matter how strong the stimulus is, if you continue to be exposed to the same stimulus, it will gradually become dull.

The Phantom, a playwright who had suffered from measles once, released a sequel to after an appropriate interval.

So that the audience can slowly adapt to the humor and build up the necessary tolerance.

Could that be the reason? At least the aftermath of Charlie Chaplin-style humor first appeared in this world, fortunately, did not show up as maddening as it did.

Instead, the theater world of this other world is faced with a completely different problem.

“Is this a forgery?”

“Yeah. Fake.”

Hoo, Isabella explained, blowing a long puff of smoke from her cigarette.

“Comedy is relatively easy to imitate. And there are so many gimmicks and concepts that are similar that it’s hard to go through them all.”

“Hmm… … ”

A flood of farces that are almost a direct copy of Charlie Chaplin-style slapstick.

The trouble that had been quiet during the time of and has raised its head.

Moreover, if you listen to Isabella’s explanation, it is clear that she did not just copy, but copied the in a very vulgar way.

From obscenities, suggestive language, black humor to personal mockery, and even shameless dissing of the original work.

In order to strengthen commerciality, they used any means necessary to undermine Chaplin’s dignity.

‘Actually, I’ve been concerned about this since I started working with Charlie Chaplin… … ‘

Phantom’s previous works were box office hits that demonstrated encouraging and symbolic performances.

Even though it has such a great social influence, it is hard not to feel comfortable imitating it.

‘ brought the Wenford family back into politics, and changed the imperial family, and you’re plagiarizing that without any thought?’

It would be difficult to do this recklessly unless you have ten necks.

However, comedies that were simply intended to elicit laughter were a different story.

It’s not even a world where copyright-related concepts are clearly defined right now.

By medieval standards, it was difficult to claim ownership of gag elements such as slapstick, satire, and humor.

To put it simply, the common perception of people from another world is, ‘It’s not a drama, it’s a comedy. If it’s fun, I can follow it, right?’

‘In fact, there’s no need to only bring up other-worldly cultures that are close to the Middle Ages.’

Even in the stand-up comedy scene of the United States, a modern human rights country, wasn’t there a rife issue of plagiarism of all kinds of humor until the early 2000s?

Of course, countless comedians have been embroiled in controversy, including Bill Cosby, Amy Schumer, and Robin Williams.

There were even people like Carlos Mencia who were harshly criticized for making a living off of plagiarism.

“I’m sorry, Phantom writer. The script you wrote with so much care ended up like this. I feel guilty as an actor for not being able to protect the character.”

“No, those who act without moral intent are the bad ones. Miss Isabella does not need to apologize.”

He consoled the actress who was embarrassed as if she had done something wrong.

Anyway, I had to find a way to solve this problem.

Of course, I did adapt it a bit, but I copied Charlie Chaplin’s work as is, so I have no right to talk about it being a masterpiece.

But there was another real reason why we couldn’t just ignore the current situation.

‘If we leave this kind of thing alone, the original work will also suffer.’

When low-quality copycats run rampant, they end up damaging the image of the original.

Even if we try to crack down on it, it is difficult to do anything because the related laws and awareness itself are lacking.

‘Isn’t there a better way?’

That was the moment when I was trying to come up with a solution.

“Hey, boss! A guest has arrived!”

Knock knock! said one of the staff members from outside, knocking on the reception room door.

Isabella frowned slightly and replied in a sarcastic tone.

“Why are you here when we don’t have any plans? Don’t you know that we don’t meet people who don’t have a schedule? Send them away.”

“Ah, no, I, uh… … I didn’t come to see you, Captain… … ”

At that moment, with a bang! The door that had been tightly shut suddenly opened.

Then two knights with crosses on their chests entered the reception room.

‘Hey, what’s going on all of a sudden?’

Paladin?

They are holy warriors belonging to the Cheonshin Church and act under the orders of the Pope.

They stand firm, glaring at me and Isabella, wearing their winged helmets.

And behind them… …

“Please forgive my rudeness, gentlemen. I have come to you on urgent business for the Vatican.”

… … A beautiful woman dressed as a nun appeared.

Silver hair that sways gently like pure white snowflakes.

Eyelids that close gently and do not open, as if taking a light sleep.

And an elaborately designed jeweled cross decoration hanging from the neck.

“Are you the hot topic writer, Phantom?”

A nun of mysterious age introduced herself with a mysterious smile.

“My name is Saint Beatrice. It’s nice to meet you.”