episode_0080

The alchemist seemed like a pretty light-hearted person because he was smiling cheerfully the whole time.

In the first place, neither of us were very weighty people, contrary to the name ‘transcendant’. It is said that alchemists have lived for hundreds of years… Sometimes, he actually looked younger than me.

The alchemist chuckled and explained the newly created medicine.

“Actually, the medicine that turns you into a beetle is not that useless! Among plays with transformation as a motif, there are quite a few people who need this ridiculous medicine.”

“Is that so? Well, if used in a play, it would be much more realistic than fantasy magic.”

“I thought it would be fun, so I made a connection and gave the theater company some medicine as a gift─ Oh, are you used to dealing with possibilities?”

“I wasn’t originally a wizard, so I wasn’t very familiar with it… We are making adjustments so that the world does not become greatly damaged.”

“That’s not bad either! Doesn’t the world get ruined so easily? For example, if I create a rain cloud with an elixir of immortality and make it rain for eternity, the world will become quite terrible after just 100 years. It’s a shame.”

I also nodded and agreed with the alchemist’s words.

Among the many possibilities that have become possible to ‘predict’ since the Transcendence, a Great Depression will occur in the future due to the Foundation controlling all of the Empire’s wealth, or a world war will belatedly break out after the invention of asymmetrical power, leading to ‘mutually assured destruction’. There was also a scenario where humanity, unable to master the concept, was destroyed by war.

I cut out those possibilities as if pruning, but there were still infinite possibilities remaining in the world. The possibility that trivial and insignificant things lead to a grand destiny.

The discussion about the free will of the church came to mind in that it cuts off infinite possibilities to make things look good.

No matter how much I tried to leave only a future ‘not destroyed by books’, there were still infinite possibilities in the future. It is the possibility of a fractal-like form in which one branch has an infinite number of branches, and such a structure is repeated infinitely.

“Since I became a transcendental master of alchemy, I have gained eternal life in my hands and the ability to skip all trials and errors, but it is nonetheless a joy to be able to come up with a new medicine like this. haha! In that respect, Homer’s writings are very precious to me.”

“I understand. I also enjoy experiencing quite unique cultural developments while publishing books.”

The alchemist’s words reminded me of a strange play that is popular in the Empire these days.

Although I did not see the play in person, I did read the script myself.

And, I couldn’t help but laugh out loud when I read the whole thing.

“I was a little surprised when ‘Rider’ suddenly appeared.”

“What is a rider?”

“Hero.”

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Not long after ‘Metamorphosis’ was published in the Empire, ‘Metamorphosis’, like other works of Homer, was also adapted into a play. A play starring a dirty and ugly beetle was certainly unpleasant to watch, but the work of art made even such unpleasantness a beauty worth consuming.

The quality of the play has also improved as it has been able to receive a lot of support through the Homer Foundation.

The purple magic tower that is the home of fantasy magic, the white magic tower with cutting-edge optical technology such as photography and projection, the blue magic tower that specializes in installing structures, and the gray magic tower that is good at engineering devices. Even if you simply pay money, the magic towers where even exchanges are generally impossible, only sent technical advice for one ‘play’.

Even the most important ‘beetle’ was able to be acted more realistically through the ‘medicine that transforms into a beetle’ created by an unknown alchemist.

Thanks to this, all seats for the play adapted from ‘Metamorphosis’ were immediately sold out.

and.

“Wow, that beetle looks really creepy… .”

” Strangely enough, the disgusting part seemed to have been removed… Well, it’s really scary because it grows to the size of a human.”

“Haha, is that so? thank you! I will work hard!”

“Oh, he’s resting comfortably in the waiting room. We’ll be out for a while… .”

A 4-year actor at the Firefly Theater Company.

‘Presender Howlen’ was in charge of Gregor Samsa, the main character of ‘Metamorphosis’ – ‘Beetle’.

In fact, even though it was only my 4th year, I still didn’t have enough experience to play the lead role in such a large-scale play. Isn’t the rule in theater that you have to survive by doing small roles or odd jobs for about three years? The 4th year was, at best, the level of having just peeled off the ‘newbie’ label.

However, thanks to that ambiguous status, Howlen was able to win the ‘beetle’ position that mid-level actors hate.

Since he was the main character, he was too sensitive to put it off to newbies, but the ‘beetle’ appearance was so disgusting that it was too scary to take on the role himself. Howlen, who was thirsty for a leading role in such an uncomfortable situation, quickly accepted it.

“Whoa, I’m nervous. That ‘Homer’ writer’s work was my first lead role. And in such a large-scale play… . Haha, is this a dream?”

Howlen, who was stroking the ‘Transformation’ scenario with his thin, furry beetle hand, strengthened his will.

I tried slapping my hard, shiny cheek with my clapping hands, and I looked in the mirror and thought about how to act, immersing myself in Gregor.

Gregor is the head of the family who has become alienated because he can no longer work.

The despair, pain, guilt, misery, and agony felt by Gregor, who went from being the pillar and rock of the family to a nuisance in an instant—all those emotions were pushed to the limit.

and.

“Howlen! The play starts soon! Are you ready?!”

“Yes!”

The play has begun.

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Because Gregor had turned into a beetle and was unable to speak, all of Gregor’s lines were replaced by narration.

Howlen’s role was simply to make squirming sounds and wiggle his many legs.

[“If you wait a little longer, it might get better.”]

Howlen flinched while listening to the narration of his senior, an actor of 10 years.

Like a bug. Wriggling. It had dozens of thin legs hanging limply and looked disgusted and despairing.

[“How about I just sigh one more time and forget about all these absurd jokes.”]

Some audience members ridiculed Gregor, some audience members clicked their tongues in sympathy for Gregor, and some audience members blushed as if they sympathized with Gregor’s feelings.

However, all the audience’s attention was directed towards the sweet-voiced ‘narration’ rather than the ugly beetle ‘Howlen’.

They received the story not through the squirming of an ugly beetle, but through an inner voice they could easily understand.

[“Numerous legs, pitifully thin compared to the thick, round body, waved helplessly before my eyes.”]

No one bothered to look closely at Howlen’s carefully acted wriggles.

Theater is often said to be ‘the actor’s art’. In that respect, Howlen is now closer to a prop than an actor.

Nevertheless, Howlen performed with all his might.

My first lead role, a work by Homer, the writer I most admire, a job as an actor, a dream I have had in my heart since I was young.

Everything that makes Howlen what he is today made Howlen act at this moment. Art is ultimately just an act of self-satisfaction. And, the greedy people who could not be fully satisfied with any self-satisfaction were the group called artists.

Since Howlen was a registered artist with the ‘Homeric Artist Foundation’, he fully demonstrated the passion of an artist.

That’s how the play ended.

“Actors, please come up on stage!”

The curtain call has begun.

Some actors received flowers as gifts from the audience. A lot of cheers and support poured out towards the actors.

but.

There was not a single audience member who gave flowers to the ugly beetle.

“Senior! The narration was really good! I was so impressed!”

“Haha, thank you.”

There were no colleagues to thank Howlen for his hard work.

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Finishing the play.

Howlen trudged home, feeling terrible helplessness.

Because the effects of the ‘transformation potion’ had not yet worn off, the body was completely covered with a loose coat and hat that hid the shape of the body.

‘… ‘Am I not suited to being an actor?’

Four years is definitely a long time.

This was enough time for me to admit that I had no talent. Memories of my classmates who got the lead role one step ahead of me, the cold stares from my seniors, and the small role that was ignored by the audience at the curtain call. All these experiences were whispering to me, ‘You don’t have the talent to be an actor.’

Those whispers become clearer as your career progresses.

As I took on more important roles in the play, the surroundings became eerily quiet. An incompetent senior who takes advantage of his years of experience to take away opportunities from his juniors, an incompetent junior who cannot even act due to his accumulated years of experience, and a motive who puts his fellow players to shame by falling behind for a long time.

That was the position in the troupe that a man named Howlen held.

In Homer’s fairy tale, which he loved, the Little Mermaid could not reach the prince because she had no legs, and she could not express her feelings to him because she had no voice.

However, even though Howlen had two legs, he could not reach the hearts of the audience, and even though he could speak fluently, he could not move the hearts of the audience.

So what meaning do they have in the end?

Howlen had no talent.

A talent that can shine.

I realized it too late.

Howlen was just a beetle that couldn’t even become a firefly.

[“If you wait a little longer, it might be okay.”]

[“How about I just sigh one more time and forget about all these absurd jokes.”]

[“Numerous legs, pitifully thin compared to his thick, round body, waved helplessly before his eyes.”]

Let’s admit that fact.

My vision was distorted.

Tears poured from my eyes and I could no longer walk or move. A whimpering moan came out of its mouth, drowning out the noise of the surrounding insects.

It looked very fitting for a mere beetle.

At that time, Howlen, who had become a ‘beetle’, was crying ungainly for a long time.

“Keueuuu─.”

“Someone, please help me!”

“─What?”

From somewhere, a scream was heard.

When I looked, I saw a one-armed, one-legged disabled person looking around in confusion. There was a track in front of it, and on the track was a disabled person in a wheelchair made by the ‘Little Prince Foundation’, his face red and crying.

The wheels of the wheelchair seemed to be stuck around the tracks.

The one-armed, one-legged disabled person was someone Howlen also knew. He was a pretty famous watchman who did the night watch job that everyone avoided. Isn’t one-armed and one-legged a thing that common?

Around the wheelchair, several disabled people were struggling to get the wheelchair out. Was he on his way after receiving supplies from the Homer Foundation?

And, it seemed like it would be difficult for them to pull the wheelchair out. In fact, some people fell because they used too much force. On one side of the track, an imperial magic locomotive was running with a roar.

“… … .”

The moment I figured out the situation.

Howlen’s body was already running toward the tracks.

Not just two feet, but using all of the beetle’s legs.

Countless legs wriggled and pushed the ground, and Howlen approached the track at a speed similar to that of a locomotive.

With its thin, hairy legs, it pulled the fallen person up, and also pulled the wheelchair. Suddenly, for some reason, the wheelchair became completely entangled with the track fence.

Howlen broke the rope by gnawing it with his teeth.

It was truly ‘bug-like’ behavior. Lately, the locomotive passed by the tracks, and the people who saw Howlen’s appearance were scared and took a step back.

“Ah, that… It looks dangerous, I’m sorry.”

“Monster─.”

“Are you the one who saved us? Thank you.”

and.

A woman holding a pure white cane in her hand.

I took a step closer to Howlen.

“I was anxious because the locomotive’s horn sounded, people around me screamed, and I even fell… I think I survived thanks to you pulling me together. Did I understand it wrong?”

“Oh, no. What I asked is probably correct. Maybe.”

“I see. Thank you so much again. Thanks to… I lived.”

The woman was blind. Therefore, even after seeing Howlen’s ‘beetle’ appearance, he was not scared or disgusted.

Thanks to the woman, other disabled people were also able to calmly reflect on the situation.

“Thank you. That monster… No, what should I call it?”

“It is called Presender Howlen.”

“Yes, yes. Mr. Howlen… . thank you. Thanks to you, my life was saved.”

and.

One by one, each person politely expressed their gratitude to the ‘beetle’. Some people cheered and loudly expressed their surprise at Howlen’s performance.

To Howlen, this whole situation felt like just a dream.

Belatedly, Howlen remembered that he had been crying. I was so embarrassed by the sudden situation that I forgot about it for a moment.

So Howlen did what he did.

“Huhhh… .”

That’s crying.

That was the reason why the ‘weird play’ in which a beetle saves people became popular.