You are very strong, but my painting style is better than yours!

Could this guy be...? If that's true, then he's incredibly valuable!

"Alright, now it's time to test my talent!"

Matsubara Takashi's energetic self-encouragement roused Iori from her reverie.

"So, it's not enough for me to write it alone; it has to be published so that many people can see it and agree with it—only then can Ceresia's ability settings be changed?"

"The work has left a deep impression on many readers and players, thereby gaining more 'resonance' and meeting the conditions for manifestation."

Kubo Hide murmured, "Such a worldview... it can't be said to be rare. It seems that there is a similar setting in 'Yatato Shin'."

Meteora also said, "Just as ancient people gave personality to natural phenomena and created gods in their imagination, modern people give life to characters in novels and games, creating 'heroes' and 'demon kings' in virtual worlds."

I've heard that some magic summons 'imaginary gods' into reality as familiars, which is somewhat similar to our situation."

"Oh, I understand!"

Shui Xiaosa immediately understood: "It's about recognition! Recognition!"

There are many versions of myths, but the one that is most widely accepted by the public is always the one that is most widely circulated. When adapting a story into a work of art, the version with the highest level of acceptance will be used.

The same goes for characters. For example, the anime series "Menma Den" was filled with a lot of original content and settings in order to catch up with the manga's progress and to prolong the time... However, when fans discuss it, they almost always ignore the original content and treat the settings as if they don't exist.

Even when a new season of the anime was released later, it automatically skipped the original content!

"The accepted settings will be retained, while the unaccepted settings will disappear."

Iori smiled and said, "It's just like an idol popularity contest, pretty brutal, isn't it?"

But then again, if it's just "public perception," it's quite easy to manipulate.

—At least it's no problem for Iori.

You don't even need any special abilities; just making good use of the power of the media and the modern entertainment industry is enough.

Avatar, Transformers, and The Avengers—these works, which are not particularly outstanding in terms of "storytelling," have garnered extremely high recognition worldwide thanks to groundbreaking special effects technology, stirring soundtracks, and adrenaline-pumping sensory experiences.

And most importantly:

A mature and powerful marketing and distribution system!

The saying "good wine needs no bush" seems utterly ineffective in today's information-saturated society. Although it's hard to admit, marketing and promotion are extremely important aspects of artistic works.

This can be seen from the ratio of development costs to marketing costs.

You don't need a "perfect" work, just capture the most attractive aspect!

Once humans are satisfied in certain aspects, they will automatically ignore other unreasonable aspects, whether it is religion or fandom... This is what is called "identity".

With the technological prowess of the worlds of "Overlord" and "Fate/Grand Order," Iori could launch a global propaganda offensive... Of course, if it's too exaggerated, it could easily arouse public suspicion and resentment.

Well, let's not think about that too much right now. Let's see the experimental results first.

However, it is indeed time to seriously examine Altair's value.

Even though they're treated as mere tools, the value of a three-star character and a limited five-star character is naturally different.

……

"Oh, by the way, Mr. Matsubara, now that this has happened, shouldn't we notify some of our colleagues and tell them to be careful about their personal safety?"

During the experiment, illustrator Ms. Marigne suddenly seemed to remember something and became very nervous.

"Hey, think about it. Although Miss Celestia is very friendly to us, there are definitely characters who are very unhappy with the Creator, right?"

Matsubara Takashi stopped typing and fell into deep thought.

Yes, just because Celestia didn't retaliate against him doesn't mean other characters won't retaliate against their authors.

For example, the female knight "Alice Tria" I met that day... That's relatively good. Twisted, paranoid, and crazy characters are not lacking in any work!

Matsubara Takashi's mind flashed through several "infamous" colleagues, and cold sweat broke out on his brow.

"Something's wrong! Those guys are in mortal danger!"

In the worst-case scenario, the body may not even be found.

No, for some of them, being found by the characters they created might actually be a relief if they died.

"But... how do I notify them?"

To start by saying 'be careful of the characters you create'—they'd probably think we're crazy, right?

"No, Fujimoto might believe it."

Kubo Hide said thoughtfully, "That guy really did think about what to do in this situation... but he's always been strange, and none of us seniors paid any attention to it."

"I'm very worried about Tanikawa-senpai. He should be out of danger, but what if his leading lady comes to life..."

Matsubara Takashi's throat bobbed: "That's no joke!"

"No, the Military Princess probably wouldn't summon someone she can't control."

Iori took the tablet, swiped it a few times, and then put it on the table.

“We just need to do our own thing... Being able to contact these people should increase the acceptance of the ‘setting’.”

"Let me see... the voice actors?"

Chapter 459 Speaking of which, there are quite a few voice actor fans.

"It seems that the other side is determined to stand against us. Although there is no movement now, they will come to us sooner or later with swords in hand."

The middle-aged man, Blitz, leaned against a cracked stone pillar, calmly smoking and exhaling a series of puffs of smoke from his mouth and nose.

He is a character from Code Babylon, a bounty hunter in a cyberpunk world, and also a former police officer.

He wore a thick coat that seemed to conceal something, had a thick, lion-like beard, and wore glasses that concealed his sharp eyes. You could smell a strong tobacco scent when you got close to him, but it wasn't the high-quality kind you'd see in spy movies; it was a chaotic mix of luxury and cheapness, proving that this man wasn't into it, but simply wanted a way to relieve stress.

Blitz doesn't possess the fiery passion of the female knight Alice, nor the naivety of Mamika; instead, he exudes composure, ruthlessness, and a tough-guy aura that lies somewhere between a gangster and a soldier.

Even so, he was already over forty years old, making him somewhat different from the other summoned characters.

"Or should we just leave it alone and wait for ourselves to fall into a disadvantageous position?"

Wearing a blue coat, the Sorrowful King stood in the moonlight and chuckled softly, "Does the old man have other ideas?"

"Generally speaking, we wouldn't let the enemy move freely, right? We could easily start the war ahead of time, since we have a numerical advantage right now, don't we?"

Blitz pulled a punk-style heavy pistol from his pocket, staring intently at the somewhat scratched gun barrel.

The gangster-looking man said in a deep voice, "Moreover, if we use the [gravity bullet] fired from this gun to carry out assassinations, then I am confident that I can kill everyone except that guy named Iori."

"Once our numbers are reduced, the enemy won't be able to gather a 'faction' equal to ours, right?"

"It's a really hardcore fighting style, just like the yakuza tactics in old movies."

The Sorrowful King clapped his hands with a smile, but rejected Blitz's suggestion.

“We can’t do that, old man. Not only should we not disrupt their camp, we should even hope that it will take shape soon.”

"Oh?"

Blitz frowned slightly, seemingly puzzled.

"Because it's not all bad for us either."

Blitz narrowed his eyes slightly: "Is there anything I don't know?"

"Our princess has the ability to manipulate cause and effect; if she wants to, there is basically nothing she cannot do."

Of course, this is on the premise that the laws of the world begin to fail and are unable to restrain the princess's abilities!

Since what the princess did was, strictly speaking, exploiting loopholes in the rules, her authority would naturally expand infinitely once those rules were disrupted.

Whether it's altering your 'life' or simply changing your 'worldview', it will be effortless.

—To achieve this, the number of characters must be large enough, and the more intense the conflicts between them and the more complex the cause-and-effect relationships, the more it will disrupt the order of the real world.

Blitz's eyes, hidden behind his sunglasses, suddenly lit up: "That's very tempting."

"What did you say?!"

An excited voice rang out, and a blonde female knight in heavy armor strode over, asking with a solemn expression.

"King of Sorrow, are you telling the truth?"

"Of course, this is much more convenient than having the [Creator] change the work."

However, nothing like this has ever happened before. Just to be on the safe side, the 'Creators' must keep them under control. As long as they can be controlled, coupled with the princess's abilities… even if there are setbacks, they can certainly be resolved properly.”

“Creator…you wretched god…”

Muttering to herself, the female knight quietly clenched her fist.

The magical girl beside her looked at her with some concern: "Alice-chan..."

The Sorrowful King glanced at the pink-haired Jasmine, his eyes flashing.

This girl is very innocent and kind, and in theory, she should be the type that is easiest to manipulate and exploit. But perhaps because of her character design, she is not so easy to deal with.

After all, no matter how much he tried to fool her, he couldn't possibly make her harbor murderous intent towards others. Ever since this little girl fought with him and killed a few familiars, realizing that "blood really does flow and people really die in this world," she's become timid and hesitant, no longer unleashing her energy beams at the drop of a hat like she does in the anime.

To be honest, judging by strength alone, Mamika is probably one of the top performers among them, but in crucial moments, she really can't be considered a reliable fighting force...

"Isn't this good news for you, Ms. Mami?"

Since you despise fighting and bloodshed, then by simply unleashing Princess Alice's abilities, you can easily change everything. Princess Alice can save her homeland without getting her hands dirty.

Aren't you a magical girl who wants to bring 'love and hope'? Now your companions are waiting for your help~

"Well!"

Momiji's body trembled slightly, and she stood there for a moment, not knowing how to react.

She knew her destructive power was too great, so she had been restraining herself from taking action in reality, but now the words of the Sorrowful King had shaken her resolve.

"Shut up!"

Alice reached out and stood in front of Mami, as if to protect her from the King of Sorrow.

"You heretic! You are not allowed to disturb Momiji's mind!"

Whatever choice she makes, that's her own business. She's a kind girl, and she's never been on the same path as you... or me.

She has her own principles, but you're using words to manipulate her. I absolutely cannot tolerate this kind of exploitation of others' weaknesses!

"Ah, sorry~"

Seeing the ever-changing expressions on Mami's face, the Sorrowful King smiled slightly. He had always been a bit of a comedian in his own works, and he also quite despised those innocent souls full of hope and purity... Alice Tria was right, he was indeed a "heretical figure".

"If things could develop this way, that would be great, but isn't 'disrupting order' a very dangerous thing?"

Blitz smoked his cigarette, his words slowly escaping with the swirling smoke.

"I'm quite old and don't understand things like magic or laws. But if the princess in military uniform wants to improve her abilities, she must break the 'laws' of reality. But I think 'laws' are very important... They can't be without any hidden dangers, right?"

What you're doing is like digging a tunnel in a dam; if you're not careful, the real world will be thrown into chaos, like the end of the world or something—right?

"You could say that."

The Sorrowful King admitted it without any psychological pressure.

"But I've been through something similar, and honestly, it's not a big deal. Humans still survive... These primates are surprisingly resilient!"

"Well!"

"..."

The crowd fell silent, their expressions varied, but it was clear that they all felt some resistance.

Alice and the others are not villains; in fact, they are portrayed as protagonists. Even though this is not their home world, it is impossible for them to accept such a development!

“Our homeland was born from the imagination of the inhabitants of this world… If the world is destroyed, I don’t think the associated fantasy world will be safe.”

Blitz remained calm: "By then, it will be a lose-lose situation, which is not what we want to see."

"Don't worry, it's just a matter of finding the right balance."

The Sorrowful King was unconcerned. "To fulfill your wishes, you don't need to go to that extent. Just slightly breaking the rules will have a negligible impact on the overall stability of the world."

"Is that so? You're not lying to us, are you?"

"Would I gain anything from lying to you?"

The Sorrowful King, acting as if he were the spokesperson for the Military Princess, smiled and replied to everyone, "You'll have to see for yourselves how things will develop."