NOVPUBChapter 249 – When Did You Befriend a Wild Woman
“If I could hate you, hate you with all my might, avoiding you at every encounter…”
Igor hummed the theme song of Shadow Drama softly as he penned down his thoughts in a notebook. This signified that he had finished watching yet another series ranked in the top ten of the “Hot Drama Ranking List” of the year.
Indeed, even entertainment works have their Ranking Lists. Points from the Gospel Ranking List are proportionally distributed to investors, producers, actors, crew members, and so on. Because of the existence of these lists, the quality of Shadow Dramas in the Gospel Kingdom far surpasses that of the Blood Moon Kingdom.
It’s not that Igor is fawning over foreign talent. For instance, the Blood Moon Kingdom currently has a market driven by viewer numbers, where the most influential actors snatch the largest slice of profits. Here, however, Shadow Dramas are writer-driven, with the scriptwriter’s authority on par with the director’s. They not only reap the most benefits but also have a say in the filming process and actor selection. As a result, the more popular the drama, the more flawless the pacing of the story. It’s designed to hook you from the first second, turning you into a relentless binge-watching machine with the sole thought of ‘just one more episode.’
Beyond the script, filming equipment, cinematography techniques, dialogue delivery, actor selection… in almost every aspect, hardware and software alike, the Gospel Kingdom’s film industry completely outshines that of the Blood Moon Kingdom. The gap between them is as vast as that between the Time Continent and the Sea of Knowledge—not even on the same level.
Igor is increasingly convinced that the Blood Moon Kingdom is the most worthless country in the world. It can’t compare to the Gospel in urban development or culture. Even the Blood Moon’s Cult Leader pales in comparison to the Gospel’s Eternal Calamity. Aside from having a rounder moon, the Blood Moon Kingdom is utterly devoid of merit.
However, Igor’s binge-watching isn’t without purpose. He’s been watching dramas at eight times speed for the past few days in order to observe the desires of the Gospel Kingdom.
Entertainment pieces are a reflection of the contemporary human psyche, and the more popular they are, the more this holds true. For example, romance dramas in the Blood Moon Kingdom always start with an unexpected event, stemming from the Blood Moon people’s yearning for extraordinary relationships and their disdain for their own real lives;
Similarly, many crime dramas feature protagonists framed by corporations, councilors, and government Operators, indicative of a shared recognition among the people of the Blood Moon.
Even cases of babies being switched at the nursery have inspired urban sentimental dramas, where a child with high overall quality is mistakenly placed in a Lower-class Nursery, and one with lower quality ends up in a Higher-class Nursery. As their lives unexpectedly intertwine, it reflects the Blood Moon Kingdom’s obsession with nurseries.
In recent years, apocalyptic dramas have been especially popular in the Blood Moon Kingdom. Sudden catastrophes obliterate everything, followed by the protagonist’s thrilling rise to power. This indicates that it might be time for the Blood Moon Prisons to consider expansion plans.
One of Igor’s preparatory tasks was to investigate what kind of dramas customers preferred. If they enjoyed apocalyptic dramas, he would steer the conversation towards criticizing society and expressing disdain for the world. If they were fans of romance dramas, he’d share his own love stories. Given his good looks, any romantic tale seemed plausible with him in it.
The entertainment content that customers enjoy can reflect their desires, and the popularity of certain dramas can reveal a country’s most superficial conflicts.
Igor certainly made significant findings. The two hottest genres in the Gospel Kingdom were Occupation Drama and domestic rivalry dramas, sometimes blending into one.
Occupation Drama focuses on stories about specific professions, including but not limited to Red Caps, professional gamers, rope-skipping athletes, Fashion Designers, Medics, chefs, and more. The basic plot follows the protagonist joining a new industry, gradually growing and understanding the industry’s narrative, and ultimately achieving success in both career and love, culminating in a spot on the Gospel Ranking List.
domestic rivalry dramas, on the other hand, depict the internal struggles within a Family. Typically, the eldest male is not very talented, whereas the younger, illegitimate son has already made it onto the Gospel Ranking List, leading to a battle for the inheritance.
When these two genres merge, the story evolves into one where the rebellious protagonist must enter the ancestral trade to inherit the Family fortune, eventually becoming number one in the industry and securing a place on the Gospel Ranking List.
For Igor, these were intriguing drama genres. Occupation Drama subtly conveyed the concept that “no profession is too lowly,” and unlike the pale lip service to equality in the Blood Moon Kingdom, the Gospel Kingdom’s occupational equality was one of equal treatment. If a profession had a Ranking List and one attained a high ranking, even a Social Idler who writes novels could earn the same Points rewards as a Sorcerer Professor.
domestic rivalry dramas might seem like mere curiosity towards the Family dynamics of the wealthy, but they are deeply rooted in the realities of inheritance distribution.
After intense binge-watching, Igor now had a rough understanding of the Family concept. Despite being a Con Artist, he couldn’t grasp why anyone would struggle for their offspring, but he accepted that this peculiar phenomenon existed.
If he hadn’t misunderstood, parents in the Gospel Kingdom would leave their estate, including “professional skills” accumulated over a lifetime, to their progeny. If the parents were ranked Chosen Ones, their children would have an easier path to becoming Chosen Ones themselves.
The situation would be simple with only one child. But what if there were two? What if one child, though diligent and Talented, was not favored, while the other, favored but lacking Talent?
This is the soil from which domestic rivalry dramas grow, with plots that resonate with the Audience, hence their high viewership ratings.
Whether it’s Occupation Drama or domestic rivalry dramas, one key element is ever-present: the Gospel Ranking List.
Indeed, there’s hardly a drama where the Gospel Ranking List doesn’t appear.
It could be the spark of conflict, the protagonist’s dream, or the driving force of the narrative… Everything leads back to the Gospel Ranking List.
It’s as if being listed as a Chosen One solves all problems; failing to become one renders a character a failure within the story.
But that’s no great concern. In the Blood Moon Kingdom, those without power or wealth are considered superfluous; here it’s simply replaced by the Ranking List status.
There will always be something for people to chase after, a marker to distinguish the high from the low. Even in the Nursery, the charming child who is often praised holds a higher status than the ugly child who constantly has a runny nose.
Igor didn’t think there was anything wrong with the Ranking List. On the contrary, he found it to be an excellent system.
Fairness and direct oversight by the Divine Master… These were labels Igor dared to use only when conning his more gullible clients.
Even a con artist like him thought the Gospel Ranking List might be a bit over the top, which says a lot about its extremity.
Compared to the Blood Moon Kingdom, which relied on the Moonshadow for social stability, the sacred bloodline to drive technological revolutions, and the rest of the clans as mere cogs and fuel, the Gospel’s Ranking List is infinitely better. It effortlessly motivates the populace to strive for a lifetime, squeezing out every last drop of their potential.
In terms of exploiting the masses, the Blood Moon Sovereign could learn a thing or two from the Omniscient Weaver.
Flipping through his notebook, the Shadow Dramas revealed many odd sketches of the national psyche. For instance, the heroine of most dramas is decided from the start, and no third party can interfere; strange rumors about the Sewer often arise, although they differ in content, they reveal the Gospel citizens’ fear of the Sewer…
However, Igor was puzzled by the absence of court dramas.
He was quite curious about the imperial royal family of the Gospel Kingdom, and he figured the general public shared his curiosity. The absence of such dramas could indicate that the royal family had banned the production of related series.
There were a few fairy tale animations that featured the royal family, but Igor never watched cartoons. They were for children and a waste of time in his opinion.
Checking the time, Igor headed from the Audio-visual Room to the living room for breakfast. He caught Ashe cursing as he came out of the game room.
“You’re playing virtual games this early in the morning?”
“What else am I supposed to do? I haven’t topped up any money, so I have to spend time leveling up and getting equipment,” Ashe replied gruffly.
“No, I mean, don’t you have anything else to do this early in the morning?” Igor was somewhat displeased: “Don’t tell me you actually think you’re here on vacation? At the very least, spend some time gathering intelligence, reading books, or watching documentaries.”
Ashe thought for a moment: “I’m investigating the characteristics of players who like virtual games, trying to sketch a profile of their community, to pinpoint their pain points, and to empower our plan which we haven’t written a single word for…”
“Any results?”
“I just got killed in the wild for the tenth time. It shows that the players here are all a bunch of hybrids.”
“Then why not just stop playing?”
“But it’s fun! The story’s good, the graphics are great, and although I can’t beat other players, I can beat the monsters. The sense of combat is really satisfying.”
Ashe gritted his teeth and said, “Actually, if I just spent a little money, I could enjoy the game a lot more. At least I’d be able to escape if I couldn’t win, but I just don’t have the money… When is Annan going to pay me!”
“Annan won’t give you money, can’t you earn it yourself?”
“How?”
“Create a female character and lure male players into giving you gifts. This way, you can bypass the Bracelet restriction, and Annan can’t control you.”
Ashe looked troubled. “But I don’t know how to act like a cute girl, I might not be able to seduce male players.”
“You’ve already skipped over the psychological barrier of ‘acting’ and are thinking about how to become cute? If I had met you earlier, you might have become my partner,” Igor said sarcastically. “Your daughter is quite cute, just mimic her usual actions.”
“Mimicking a little girl is too weird, I don’t want to do that, Aunt Bukin.”
Ashe continued to spar with Igor in a friendly exchange of punches and kicks, asking, “By the way, Igor, do you know of a way to calm someone down quickly—without needing a spirit?”
“I’ll teach you, just like what I’m doing now. Make your hand like a blade and chop towards someone’s neck at a 45° angle with force. The other person will most likely calm down—permanently.”
“Hey, Mr. Igor, I beg you, please kindly give me some guidance.”
Igor looked at Ashe, who was pleading with his hands together and winking, and his mind went blank for a moment.
This seems to be the first time he’s asking me for help… Igor scratched his head impatiently, walked behind him, and fiercely chopped the back of his neck with a hand blade.
“If you’re not going to speak, why hit my neck!”
“To calm you down,” Igor said irritably. “For someone like you, this move is enough. Different ages, appearances, heights, and races all require different methods to calm down. If you’re not more specific, then this is all you get.”
“Oh!” Ashe seemed to take the advice of a professional to heart. “Well, she’s a beautiful Human Race woman with a great figure, likes to wear skirts, just a little shorter than me, 19 years old, often changes her hair color and hairstyle, has a lively, dignified, aloof, and scheming personality, and her main attack method is from the Fist and Claw Faction…”
“Annan?”
“It’s not Annan.”
Igor was shocked: “Σ(っ°Д°;)っ When did you meet a wild woman?”
