Animation Producer in a Fantasy World

The time was the late 90s to early 00s.

It’s a fact that today’s MZ otakus don’t know well, but it was the period that otakus on the verge of being abandoned in the mountains mumbled “those were the good times.”

Unlike today when people lament “there’s nothing to watch these days,” it was the golden age of animation where there was an overflow of things to watch every day.

Therefore, at that time, it was an era where numerous followers of animations were rampaging like the Spring and Autumn period and Warring States period.

It was also an era of survival of the fittest where people never stopped biting each other, saying “the anime I’m into is the best in the world” and “the anime you’re into is only for losers.”

However, today, after about 20 years have passed.

The animations that boasted of enormous groups of followers at that time have now almost disappeared from people’s memories, except for the documents written on Namuwiki.

But even so, beyond just surviving.

There was one mega IP that still had an enormous number of followers to this day.

Although it started as an R-rated visual novel at first.

Now, forgetting even such “roots,” it perfectly continues its lineage as a moe gacha otaku game, keeping up with the times.

The Emperor wants an anime based on the Knight King legend.

My master wants an anime with a magician as the protagonist.

Then, wouldn’t that work be the perfect answer to simultaneously satisfy the Emperor and my master’s demands?

‘This is not bad? No, it’s really good?’

After calculating various things in my head, I ended up thinking that it wouldn’t be so bad to make this work this time.

It’s a work that has enjoyed tremendous popularity for over 20 years on 21st century Earth.

In fact, during my middle school and high school days, about half of the share of my chuunibyou was from this work.

‘No, honestly speaking, how can I resist the thrill of being a champion of justice?’

At the time when one’s sensitivity is abundant, isn’t it innocent to be enthusiastic about that sentiment of cutting off one family member without hesitation to save 100 people?

In fact, even I used to answer quietly like this when the teacher asked about a person I respected:

‘Emiya Kiritsugu.’

‘Child, who is that? Is he perhaps a great person?’

Ah- You don’t know.

There are only half-baked people everywhere.

‘Once… he was a person who pursued justice….’

‘Ah… I see….’

It must have been difficult to understand.

‘Justice’ in this day and age.

I still vividly remember the teacher looking at me with eyes as if looking at a pubescent child.

And I often recall that moment and think:

If the teacher had known what kind of life Kiritsugu had lived.

At that moment, the teacher would surely have shed tears and sympathized with my words.

Anyway, since it was a work I was once not just immersed in but enthusiastic about, if I made an animation based on this motif, success was practically guaranteed.

But.

“You’re saying… to make the Knight King a woman?”

Kaya speaks to me with a somewhat trembling voice.

She was making an expression as if she had seen a life form that should never exist in this world.

“…..”

“…..”

Serika and my master were also making expressions similar to Kaya’s, just on different tracks.

“D-Director. Even so, that’s a bit… no, apart from personal preference, it seems like a somewhat dangerous thing to do.”

“Pardon? Why?”

“First of all, I don’t think changing the Knight King to a woman itself is bad. In some aspects, it’s even novel. But-”

Kaya spoke, letting out a low sigh.

“Have you perhaps forgotten? The Knight King is not an ambiguously gendered character appearing in legends or fairy tales, but the founder who established this empire. He’s a real historical figure written about in history books. In that sense, the act of you changing the Knight King’s gender to female means-”

“…It could be seen as an act of insulting the imperial family, descendants of the Knight King, and by extension, the Emperor.”

That’s right.

Unfortunately, I had momentarily forgotten that this world is a fantasy world, and an incomparably barbaric caste system is vividly alive and breathing.

No matter how much the Emperor said he wouldn’t interfere with anime production, this was a problem of a different dimension.
It could be seen as directly challenging the authority of the imperial family if not careful.
Of course, as an awakened democratic citizen, I could understand this fact but couldn’t sympathize with it.

‘British people even liked it when the gender of the Knight King was changed.’

Even when the Knight King’s gender was daringly changed to male in Japan, British people not only didn’t consider it an insult but even liked it, saying it was cool!

It seems the inhabitants of this undeveloped fantasy world can’t understand a fact that even British people, who can be said to be the source of all problems in the world, can understand.
Even in the neighboring country of Japan, didn’t a novel about a middle-aged man being reincarnated in another world as a young female soldier and becoming successful become a huge hit?
As I frowned at this unexpected obstacle that I hadn’t thought of, Serika, who had been sitting quietly beside me until now, carefully opens her mouth.

“Um… Ragna. Come to think of it, Father also said he had a few themes he wanted you to make into anime.”

“…The Duke as well?”

No, it’s not like they’re asking for countless handshakes, why are there so many people asking me to make anime?

“What did the Duke request to be made?”

“Hmm… So… Was it an adventure story about collecting 7 wish-granting beads? And he asked how about an adventure story of a half-demon protagonist collecting fragments of a shattered bead that strengthens demon power.”

“…What?”

For a moment, I doubted my ears.

So, what did you just say?

What beads? Wish-granting beads?

And what’s this about collecting fragments of a shattered bead that strengthens demon power?

“And what else was there…. He said a story about a protagonist who joins some organization to save his sister who became a demon, or a story about two prideful geniuses engaging in a battle of wits to find and kill each other might be interesting. I think the protagonist’s name was Ruanox.”

“…..”

Isn’t Ruanox the name of a genius who could have changed the fate of Joseon if he had been born in Enlightenment era Korea?

When I didn’t say anything to Serika’s words, Serika looks at me with somewhat anxious eyes.

“W-Well, even you think it’s a bit lacking, right? Ahaha, I’m sorry to Father, but let’s pretend I didn’t say what I just said….”

“…No, it’s fine. The Duke’s ideas are not bad.”

“Huh? Really?”

“Yeah. I’m seriously considering making an anime based on the Duke’s ideas.”
In fact, the Duke’s ideas were far beyond just not bad.

Perhaps, if the Duke had been born on Earth, wouldn’t he be serializing a mega work following One Piece by now?

‘That person, he’s not actually from Earth like me or something, right?’

Well, now is not the time to be curious about the secret of the Duke’s birth.

What’s important is that there are parts of the Duke’s ideas that I can rip off.

Especially, among them, the very thing Serika mentioned last.

‘A battle between two prideful geniuses. And a battle of wits.’

As soon as I heard this, there was one subject that came to mind immediately.

In the early 21st century, a work that enjoyed tremendous popularity surpassing even ‘One Piece’ in some sense.

A work that has been adapted into all kinds of media from anime to movies, dramas, and even musicals, and continues to be famous to this day.

It’s that work which is evaluated to have endlessly raised its completeness not only through breathtaking battles of wits between geniuses but also through philosophical themes like “Is killing evil people really justice?”

Then I should make a choice at this point.

Whether to produce an anime based on the Knight King legend, or to produce an anime based on the battle of wits between geniuses.

After contemplating for a long time whether to prioritize the production of “Knight King” or “Ruanox,” I finally made a decision.

“It seems better to use the ideas the Duke mentioned to make the next work. I’ll make the Knight King legend after that.”

“What?”

“Really?”

Meanwhile, Serika and Kaya look at me with surprised eyes, as if they can’t believe my decision.

“Why? Although there were dangerous parts, an animation about magicians and the Knight King legend also seemed quite interesting….”

“That’s precisely why.”

“…Pardon?”

“A Knight King who isn’t a blonde beautiful girl…. I just don’t feel motivated to make such an anime.”

“…..”

‘…Goodbye, Saber.’

I’m truly sorry I couldn’t protect you.
Thus, I bid farewell to her who had always been alive and breathing in my heart.

Vowing that if I can’t make the Knight King a woman, I’ll at least make beams come out of the sword instead.