Joseph is an ordinary young man. Like most young people in Northrick, he had all kinds of dreams in his childhood and wanted to become a hero sung by bards. However, under the dual oppression of family pressure and cruel reality, he had to become a staff member of the Northrick Grand Theater with the help of his family.
Today, he came to the Grand Theater to work at night as usual, but the difference was that the Grand Theater looked different today. Not only was the stage used for performances moved directly outside the door, but the decorations and props that Viscount Banier used to attach great importance to were now thrown at the door like garbage.
Just when he thought that this big theater might go bankrupt, the bustling scene in front of the theater made him rub his eyes in disbelief.
"What is this? I remember no theater troupe coming here recently."
Joseph's confusion was also the confusion of the staff around him. Due to scheduling issues, these people who were only on night shift today had no idea what had happened during the day. After the shift leader called their names, a group of people belatedly began to guide the chaotic crowd to line up.
Then, after observing the crowd, Joseph was even more surprised to find that the people queuing at the door were not the ladies and upper classes who loved to watch stage plays, but the common people who would never have been able to come to the theater in the past!
When this group of ordinary people who had nothing to do with the word art were chatting lively in front of the theater, Joseph also heard the general meaning from their words, that is, the Northrick Theater seemed to be holding an unprecedented performance tonight, and the name of the performance seemed to be a movie called "KonoSuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World".
Joseph, who had never heard of such a strange thing, discovered something unexpected after further investigation. He saw that the tickets of the Northrick Theater, which used to cost at least five silver coins each, were now uniformly changed to five copper coins each, and the distinction between first-class and second-class tickets was completely erased, as if to allow everyone in the town to appreciate this new form of performance.
This unprecedented situation made Joseph feel unbelievable, but driven by curiosity, he quietly got a ticket to watch the show as a staff member, and then took advantage of the gap in the schedule to follow the first group of ticketed audiences into the theater.
Although Joseph had the opportunity to sneak into theaters in the past, he really couldn't understand the stage plays and even fell asleep while watching them, so he never watched any stage plays again after watching them once.
But this time, looking at the words "Movie Ticket" written in large letters on the ticket, Joseph couldn't help but feel a little bit of anticipation in his heart, and he found his seat as soon as possible.
Chapter 37: Hard to Guard Against
Chapter 37
In the cinema, when the broadcast of "KonoSuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World" ended and the magic crystal on the ceiling of the hall slowly lit up, the laughter in the entire cinema was still lingering.
Just now, when the protagonist was in agony because he owed 40 million, the cinema erupted in amazing laughter. It can be said that the audience, who had been laughing from beginning to end, reached a certain emotional peak at the last moment, and the laughter that had been continuous before burst to a climax.
"Oh my god, this is so funny! This is the first time I've seen such an interesting story. It ended so abruptly. There should be a sequel!"
"Yeah, and that girl is obviously a goddess, so why is she so useless? The most important thing is that she should be very useful, so why is she so useless!"
"What the hell is that explosion magic that can only be used once a day?! Is there such a weird magician in this world?"
"That masochistic female knight is actually kind of cute..."
"If I were the protagonist, I would have been driven crazy a long time ago, hahaha."
"In comparison, I think the Dullahan is a positive character. The chivalrous undead were defeated by the protagonists using despicable means..."
“… … .”
All kinds of emotions burst out at the end of the film. As the first audience to see the film, they obviously had a lot to say to those who hadn't seen the film yet. Although they wanted to stay and savor the experience, they didn't plan to waste too much time and planned to leave quickly.
However, just as they were about to leave, the video screen that was originally showing the credits suddenly changed again, and a small monster shop suddenly appeared on the screen.
On the screen, all kinds of monsters in the monster shop are presented, and some sharp-eyed viewers have recognized that some of the monsters in it are exactly the same as the monsters in the movie "KonoSuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World"
As expected, as the store manager Lawrence appeared in a hurry, he was stunned for a moment, and then said awkwardly in a slightly awkward tone: "Good news, good news, Lawrence Monster Store and the movie "KonoSuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World" have started to cooperate. Do you want to hug the slime that appears in the movie with your own hands? Do you want to interact closely with cute monsters? If you are interested in monsters, welcome to Lawrence Monster Store to buy them. The address is..."
Since Du Lin was not good at designing this kind of advertising copy, Lawrence's advertising design was quite similar to the lines of a large power generation company on a certain website.
Although it does not have the brainwashing appeal of "If you are a brother, come and do XXX" that is inserted in modern video websites, for people in this world who have never been exposed to advertisements, no matter how simple the advertisement design is, their attention will be attracted at once!
As the image of the Monster Shop on the screen gradually disappeared, the audience who remained there suddenly became excited.
"He just said that the monsters in the movie can be bought!!"
"Really? I suddenly think slimes are so cute. I really want to buy one and raise it!"
"Now that you mention it, I wanted to buy a monster before!"
Driven by the atmosphere, everyone present became interested in monsters. Although some people knew that there were rumors of injuries in Lawrence's monster shop before, they all chose to forget about it and continued talking about it.
Soon, after seeing the last scene freeze on an advertisement for the Southern Adventurer's Guild recruiting adventurers, all the audience left the theater with a variety of emotions.
... ... .
The movie was over and even most of the audience had left, but Joseph, who remained there, was still in shock for a long time. For Joseph, this hour and a half had completely overturned his outlook on life!
From the beginning to the end of the film, it was as if he was following the ordinary but thoughtful protagonist in the film through the entire adventure. Although the whole story of "KonoSuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World" is very absurd and nonsensical, for Joseph, it was the life he had always dreamed of but could not get!
"Damn it, what on earth have I been doing all these years..."
The smile gradually faded. Although he laughed heartily like everyone around him when watching the movie, when he really reviewed the entire movie, Joseph suddenly realized that the protagonist in the story before the time travel was exactly the same as himself now.
There are things I want to do but I am unwilling to do them. There are things worth looking forward to but I dare not complete them. Every day I just listen to others and do the same things over and over again... ...
Compared to the protagonist in the story who traveled through time and space and lived happily despite the pain, he felt that he was very stupid and sad for living such a boring life.
"I really want to be an adventurer..."
What came out of his mouth were the words he repeated countless times in his childhood. The desire that Joseph had for the first time after seeing the heroic figure of the adventurer in the story picture book gradually disappeared with the passage of time, but now it came up again after watching the movie "KonoSuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World".
I want to end this boring life, I want to make my life more exciting, I want to live a messy but exciting life like the protagonist in the story, I want to... become an adventurer!
All of a sudden, as if knowing his inner thoughts, the advertisement of the Adventurer's Guild on the screen appeared in front of him. The slogans such as "Want to change your life?", "Want to live a wonderful and interesting life?", "Want to find your dream?" etc. struck Joseph directly in the heart and made him have an irresistible impulse. Recalling the plot of "KonoSuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World", Joseph slowly clenched his fists, and then walked out of the theater with determination.
On this day, the South Territory lost a theater worker and gained an adventurer who made a living by adventure and fed on dreams.
At the same time, Du Lin, who was standing on the third floor of the cinema and had been paying attention to the premiere to prevent any problems from occurring, was watching with satisfaction the audience members leaving the theater happily one by one.
He had already found his seat when the movie started and was looking forward to the audience's performance. As he expected, the story of "KonoSuba: God's Blessing for a Better World" hit the funny spots of the people in this world, and the laughter in the theater almost never stopped throughout the entire movie.
In this way, with such a successful premiere as a starting point, the next step is to let the audience who have seen the film continue to spread it. Before long, Northrick and even the entire southern region will be talking about "KonoSuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World" and the movie for a long time.
Chapter 38 Adventurer's Guild
Chapter 38
In the following days, the reputation of "KonoSuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World" skyrocketed in Northrick, and it became a household name in just a short period of time.
While people were discussing the story of "KonoSuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World" on almost every street corner, the new form of performance, the movie, spread at a terrifying rate, and the people of the entire Northrick knew that the Northrick Grand Theater was broadcasting this new form of film.
At the same time, movie flyers produced by the Northrick Grand Theater were also circulating in the streets and alleys. Whether it was the door of a tavern or the square alley, you could see or hear its existence.
In Northrick, people are always talking about "KonoSuba: God's Blessing" and movies. Having watched "KonoSuba: God's Blessing" has even become a well-known achievement in the social circle. Often, those who have had the opportunity to watch the movie in the Northrick Theater will have a group of people surrounding them in the tavern, asking about the movie.
Those who had not seen the movie would calculate the time for the Northrick Theater's invoice to be issued every day, and go to Northrick to buy the movie as soon as the invoice was issued. In the end, there were even people who would block the invoice counter the night before and queue up day and night.
Fortunately, no one has thought of scalping, an industry related to ticket sales, in the short term, otherwise it would have caused a lot of trouble.
... ... ..
Northrick, the Adventurer's Guild.
Sitting in the lounge on the second floor of the Adventurer's Guild, Du Lin took the tea handed over by the Guild Master of the Southern Territory Adventurer's Guild and looked at the lively scene outside the window. He couldn't help but say, "This is really amazing. The threshold of the Adventurer's Guild registration office has been almost broken in the past two days. And this is just the beginning. The number of adventurers in the Southern Territory will probably increase at an unimaginable speed in the future."
Hearing Du Lin's words, the Guild Master just smiled and replied, "This is all thanks to the movie and advertisement you made, Lord Du Lin. Although I thought of this the moment I saw the movie, the fact still exceeded my expectations. The impact of the movie on people far exceeded my imagination. I heard that even many magicians hidden in the southern border have joined the Adventurer's Guild. I didn't expect that even extraordinary magicians could not resist the charm of the movie..."
"Haha, magicians are still human after all, and no human can resist the charm of movies. I believe that if the movie "KonoSuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World" spreads to the imperial capital, the Adventurer's Guild will have a large number of magicians who originally liked to stay at home. I also estimate that there will be more chuunibyou people who use staffs to throw fireballs randomly."
Although he used a joking tone, Du Lin's expression did not look joking at all.
The guild master, who understood Durin's meaning, showed a funny expression, and then changed the subject, asking: "Viscount Barnil has already gotten used to the series of procedures for launching a new form of performance such as movies, but even so, there is still a shortage of supply. A theater that can only accommodate about 50 people is really a drop in the bucket for a town with more than 10,000 people."
Hearing his words, Du Lin, who had been thinking about this question for a long time, slowly replied: "I have already prepared the copied imaging crystal. It will be put into use after Vanir completes the expansion of the theater. The schedule of the performances has also been prepared. At least in the short term, we don't have to worry about people not being able to buy tickets."
Durin has already taught the method of imaging crystal projection to several apprentice magicians under Vanir. This kind of work that can be done with magic power is very suitable for novice magicians who can't even reach the beginner level. But even so, Durin has already started to make imaging crystal switches that ordinary people can use. After all, he has not given up the plan of selling DVDs.
As for Durin's answer, the Guild Master, who had already heard it, simply said silently: "That's good. By the way, I heard from Viscount Barnil before that Lord Durin, are you planning to cooperate with him to create a special industrial chain?"
"Well, I have submitted an application to Northrick for industrial and commercial registration. Although it is a new industry, it has been recognized with the testimony of Viscount Banil. From now on, you can officially call me Director Du Lin, and my company is going to be named Edward Film Studio. By the way, the Northrick Grand Theater has now been officially renamed the Northrick Cinema!"
Du Lin had a big smile on his face when he said this, but the Guild Master did not dare to neglect it and said immediately: "Congratulations to Director Du Lin. I'm afraid there will be news about the next new movie soon. If there is a chance, I would also like to try to get a role."
"Barnil told me something like this before. However, since Edward Film Studios has now become a formal industry, the recruitment of actors must also be based on formal auditions. If you, Guild Master, can really pass the audition, I don't mind you playing a role."
Du Lin's answer was very official, and it was also a polite refusal. The guild master of the Southern Adventurers' Guild did not mind it too much, and just said slowly: "In any case, the future development of the Southern Adventurers' Guild will thank you for your help, Director Du Lin."
“It’s just a mutual benefit.”
In response to Du Lin's indifferent attitude, the Guild Master suddenly said, "By the way, there is one thing I want to tell you, Lord Du Lin. I submitted the report on investing in your film to the headquarters of the Adventurer's Guild of the Empire. I originally thought that it was just a matter of business and that people who don't know about it wouldn't be interested in movies. However, unexpectedly, that person found me after seeing the report I submitted, and seemed to be very interested in movies."
"That person?"
Hearing Du Lin's question, the Guild Master showed an embarrassed expression, and then said, "She is of the same status as me, and controls the entire Northern Adventurer's Guild. And unlike the Southern Territory, a businessman like me who is only slightly wealthy can become a Guild Master. The ecology of the Northern Territory is completely the law of the jungle. To be able to sit on the position of Guild Master in a place like that, her strength and identity must be extraordinary."
Yes, it is completely different from the South. Because the North borders the undeveloped dark territory, the adventurers there have to fight all kinds of monsters, magic beasts, and undead every day. Therefore, compared with the average first- and second-level adventurer guilds in the South, the adventurers in the North are more strictly divided. To get to the level of the leader of the Adventurer's Guild in such a place, you must at least be a top figure in the empire.
Although Du Lin didn't know why the other party, a transcendent being, would care about the movie he made which was halfway across the empire, since the other party was interested, Du Lin had no intention of refusing.
"When will we meet?"
In response to Du Lin's question, the Guild Master simply said helplessly, "Well, she followed here as soon as she heard about the incident. She should be watching a movie in the cinema now. She will probably come to you on her own initiative later."
Chapter 39 New Movie
Chapter 39
After hearing the words of the Guild Master, Durin, who did not expect that the Guild Master of the Northern Adventurers' Guild would arrive so soon, hurriedly wanted to get up to meet the other party. However, he did not expect that the moment he stood up, the door of the room slowly opened, and then a graceful figure slowly walked in from outside.
She was a tall beauty with dazzling blonde hair and a slim figure. Although it sounds a bit subtle, in fact, anyone who saw such a dazzling woman would use this description.
Seeing Du Lin's surprise, the head of the Southern Territory Guild quickly said, "Uh, let me introduce you. This is Ms. Alyssa David, the head of the Northern Territory Adventurer's Guild."
Hearing the words of the Southern Border Guild Master, the woman named Alyssa showed an inquiring expression, and Du Lin quickly replied: "Hello, I am Du Lin Edward, and I am also the screenwriter and director of the movie "KonoSuba: God's Blessing on This Beautiful World"."
Seeing that the other party revealed his identity, Alyssa also lifted the hem of her skirt slightly, slowly walked to Du Lin, and nodded, "I have heard of your name for a long time. Whether you are the youngest great magician or the director of a new thing like movies, you make me admire you very much."
Unexpectedly, the Guild Master of the Northern Adventurer Guild faced him with such a serious attitude. As a result, the usually cheerful Du Lin was unable to recover for a moment. After being stiff for a moment, he instinctively said, "I didn't expect that the Guild Master of the Northern Territory would also be interested in movies. Can I ask what brought you to the Southern Territory? It's impossible that you really just came to watch a movie."
Although there are convenient tools like teleportation arrays between towns in this world, ordinary people cannot afford them due to their high loss and high price. Only truly important people, like the two guild leaders in front of them, can use them. Even ordinary nobles are not qualified to use them.
In response, the beautiful woman seemed to sense that Du Lin was not used to such a formal way of communication. She suddenly half sat on the ground in a slightly indecent posture. Seeing Du Lin's surprise, she just smiled and replied, "I can see, Director Du Lin, you don't seem to like the way of communication between nobles. In fact, I personally hate that kind of formal atmosphere. Compared with drinking afternoon tea in the castle with a fake smile, I still prefer the simple way of communication between adventurers."
"Are you an adventurer too?"
Now Du Lin finally understood. Although the blonde beauty in front of him looked aristocratic, it was obviously just an illusion. She was undoubtedly a true adventurer at heart.
After hearing his words, Alyssa simply nodded and said, "Before I became the Guild Master, I was also an adventurer. The North is different from here. Only those who stand out from countless adventurers can become Guild Masters. I am lucky. Because my rank and adventurer level are relatively high, I took over the position of Guild Master."
"Can I ask about your rank?"
"Haha, it's not that high. Compared to Director Du Lin, you have become a great magician at a young age. It took me more than ten years to barely reach the level of a sword master."
Although Alyssa appeared very calm when she said this, it was obviously impossible for Durin and the South Territory Guild Master beside her to remain calm. After all, although the rank of a swordsman is the same as that of a magician, which is the sixth rank, no one has yet reached the sixth rank of a swordsman. Therefore, the fifth rank swordsman is currently the pinnacle of swordsmen.
Unexpectedly, there was actually a top-level expert in the empire sitting in front of him. The head of the Southern Territory Adventurer's Guild felt a sense of disparity. At the same time, Du Lin, who was the first to react, asked, "So what is your purpose?"
"Oh, I almost forgot."
Alyssa, who showed a completely different confused side from her appearance, said quickly: "I have watched the movie directed by Director Du Lin. To be honest, it is very exciting. Although the things shown in it are obviously closer to the adventurers in the southern border, it also moved me as a former adventurer. After watching it, I even had the urge to pick up the sword again and go back to being an unknown adventurer. Of course, this has nothing to do with the purpose of my visit. After all, I came here purely for the film technology, but I didn't expect Director Du Lin's script to be so excellent..."
Alyssa did not hide anything. She said straightforwardly that she came for the film technology. Hearing this, Du Lin just said helplessly: "Although I am very happy that you like this movie, I can't hand over the film technology for the time being. Unless the empire establishes a standardized patent system in the future, I will not hand over the film technology."
Yes, although Du Lin was very clear about the impact that the technology of magic recorder and imaging crystal would have on the world, it was precisely because he knew these impacts that he could not spread the technology so directly. After all, directly spreading the recording technology would only make a small splash in this world. If he really wanted to shake up the world and bring about changes in the world, what he needed to do was to make countless people willing to liberate their privately owned technology from the tradition passed down from generation to generation, that is, to create a sound patent system in this world!
In this way, those dusty ancient traditions will have a gap to loosen, and magic, a technology beyond understanding, can be cracked bit by bit by people's wisdom. Only then will this world have the possibility of becoming the beautiful world that Durin hopes for.
In response to this, after hearing what Du Lin said, Alyssa quickly said, "You misunderstood, Director Du Lin. I don't want to acquire the technology to make movies. My purpose of coming here is actually similar to that of the Southern Territory Guild Master. I hope that you can also make a film about adventurers for the North Territory!"
Yes, after learning about movies for the first time, Alyssa felt like she had discovered a new world. She had never imagined that there was such a thing in the world that could turn stories into images for people to watch.
After learning about the changes in the Southern Adventurer's Guild, she immediately thought of looking for the filmmaker Du Lin, and all this was for one thing...
"To be honest, our North Territory is not like the South Territory. Almost every day, young men and women from the villages come to the town's Adventurer's Guild to register with great enthusiasm, hoping to make a name for themselves in the adventurer field with their own strength. However, the monsters in the North Territory are far more terrifying than those in the South Territory. Even to defeat the lowest-level goblins, you need at least an experienced adventurer to lead you in order to complete the mission safely."
"However, although the Adventurer's Guild has always been guiding new adventurers, hoping that they can judge their own strength more rationally, so that these novice adventurers can safely pass the first hurdle, due to the large number of adventurer novels from the imperial capital that were spread to the southern border some time ago, this kind of thing that has no evidence at all and is purely created without thinking has suddenly become popular."
"Therefore, recently our Adventurer's Guild has suddenly attracted a large number of young people who have read too many adventurer heroic novels. They firmly believe what is described in the novels and completely sneer at the propaganda of our Adventurer's Guild. Not only do they not listen to our warnings, but they also think that it is us ignorant adults who are trying to prevent them, the future heroes, from saying these sensational words. So they privately organize their own teams and start adventures."
"As a result, the death rate of new adventurers in our Northern Adventurer's Guild has increased at a terrifying rate. However, the Adventurer's Guild cannot force these new adventurers not to carry out commissions, and we have no advantage in publicity. After all, compared with the relatively interesting novels, our guild's reminders are really not up to par."
"Therefore, when I saw the movie mentioned by the Guild Master of the Southern Territory during my last report, I immediately thought of this incident and came to the Southern Territory to seek help. I hope Director Du Lin can make a movie for the Northern Territory that is related to the real life of adventurers. Of course, it is not the life of adventurers in the Southern Territory where monsters are basically unseen, but a realistic and cruel movie that is in line with the environment of the Northern Territory!"
Chapter 40: The Movie That Sweeps the South
Chapter 40
Hearing what Alyssa said, Du Lin couldn't help but be stunned. He didn't expect the other party to make such a request to him at this time. It would be fine if he couldn't complete it, but Du Lin knew that he could complete it. He already had an idea for a new video that met the other party's requirements.
But no matter what, the current "KonoSuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World" is still being broadcast, and the TV version has been scheduled to be filmed soon. At this time, they suddenly turn around and shoot a new movie... ...
As if she had seen Du Lin's dilemma, Alyssa said quickly, "I know my request is a little unreasonable, but I'm still asking you, Director Du Lin. This concerns the lives of many new adventurers. If it weren't for this, I wouldn't have to come all the way to the South. As long as you can complete the movie I asked for, I can promise you anything I can do as the head of the Northern Adventurers Guild."
Alyssa's words revealed her persistence in this matter, and Du Lin, who heard her words, thought about it and nodded: "Well, the filming of the TV version of "KonoSuba: God's Blessing on This Beautiful World" will be delayed until winter. It's okay to take the time to shoot another movie during the few months here."
"Really?!"