The academy’s daily schedule was generally not too demanding. Of course, the amount of time varied depending on how many classes a student chose, but if they only took the required major and general education courses, they would find themselves with quite a bit of free time.

“Edric, let us handle this.”

“…Alright, then I’ll take care of something else.”

Most students spent their free time joining clubs to pursue hobbies or study areas where they felt they were lacking. The comic club was no exception, bustling with students who had finished their classes for the day.

“So, we need to connect this scene and that scene as naturally as possible with 12 drawings, right?”

“Yeah, the professor said we have to fill in the middle and flesh out the story from start to finish.”

The art students in the comic club were hard at work, continuously sketching. Rupert had tasked them with creating a 10-minute animation as practice, leaving no time to waste.

At first, the students thought that making a mere 10-minute animation wouldn’t be too difficult. However, they soon realized how labor-intensive it truly was.

Fortunately, Rupert had offered to excuse them from their other course assignments, allowing them to fully focus on the animation project.

-Of course, your grades will depend on the final product.

With the promise that the club project would count toward their grades, the students became even more motivated.

“We’ve started composing the music little by little to match the script.”

The music students, though still in the early stages of their learning, were also working hard to create a fitting theme song for the animation. Each member was using their skills to contribute toward a project they hoped to showcase at the semester’s end.

However, two members seemed to be drifting on the outskirts of the project.

“The theme needs to be short and simple, yet leave a strong impression. Maybe we should take it in this direction…”

Among the group referred to as the Academy’s “Big Four,” Prince Adrian of Silvania was busy writing the script. As a student of the Humanities Department, he was more knowledgeable and cultured than most of the others in the club, making him well-suited for the job.

Amelia, the heiress of the Bluewell family, was also putting her magical talents to good use, helping the others in various ways.

However, Edric and Kyle, the two future military prodigies, were at a loss.

“What can we do, Your Highness?”

“We’re pretty useless here. Maybe we should go get some snacks.”

Both Edric and Kyle, predicted to become the top two students in the Military Department, were left standing awkwardly in the corner. They had already caused a few accidents due to their lack of skill in drawing or delicate tasks.

‘Is this supposed to be a goblin?’

‘No, I tried drawing the female protagonist…’

‘Ah! Sir, that’s the paper we need for the project!’

‘S-Sorry about that.’

Their drawing skills were akin to those of children, and their lack of precision made them unsuitable for more delicate work. After causing several blunders, they had learned it was best to just stay out of the way, though they occasionally brought snacks to make themselves useful.

“It’s a shame. I wish I could create something with my own hands,” Edric lamented.

“Just like you have a talent for swordsmanship, others have different talents. That’s all it is,” Kyle replied, trying to comfort Edric, as he had only joined the comic club to follow his friend. He didn’t mind not being able to participate, but Edric seemed disappointed.

However,

“I’ve never once thought I had a talent for swordsmanship,” Edric said.

“What?” Kyle blinked in disbelief.

He had been hailed as the greatest talent in his family’s long history, yet the Third Prince, who had defeated him in a duel, was saying he wasn’t a genius?

Kyle could hardly believe his ears; it almost sounded like a joke.

But Edric’s words were sincere.

‘There was no mana in my sister’s sword back then, but the murderous intent she wielded was something I had only ever felt from my master.’

Edric, who had once been beaten mercilessly by his sister Iolyn with a wooden sword, had learned to rid himself of arrogance from that day forward. Ever since then, he had pursued swordsmanship with relentless effort, receiving guidance from the Sword Saint to reach his current level.

“If being a genius means accomplishing something without effort, then I am certainly not a genius.”

Edric spoke with conviction.

“But if a genius is someone who achieves greatness through hard work and perseverance, then perhaps I am.”

The Edric who once took pride in his natural talent was gone. After being beaten down by his sister with a wooden sword, he had never let go of his own, training day after day, until his calluses turned into hardened scars.

While others sought the Sword Saint for guidance but dared not challenge him, Edric was the one who charged in relentlessly, day after day, despite countless defeats.

“If you’re not doing something because you can’t, it’s because you’ve never tried.”

With those words, Edric grabbed a G-pen and settled himself at a corner desk, sketching on a blank sheet of paper.

Though his fingers were not yet calloused from holding a pen, he knew that by the time they were, he would have become a genius in this, too.

“The contest ends tomorrow.”

“You’ve worked hard, Guild Master.”

For the past seven weeks, countless submissions for the comic contest had been pouring in through the various branches of the Yuren Merchant Guild.

Some people complained that the deadline was too tight, but that had been Rupert’s intention all along.

‘If you want to serialize in a magazine, you need to be able to produce at least one chapter every two weeks.’

Getting published in Rupert’s magazine meant becoming a professional, and in the world of comics, the most critical factor separating amateurs from professionals was time.

Many amateurs could draw well and tell a good story. However, the reason they didn’t make it into major magazines was their slow production speed—sometimes taking weeks or even months to complete a single chapter.

Rupert wanted to weed this out by setting a short deadline. Contestants had to submit three chapters in six weeks, which meant they had to produce one chapter every two weeks to meet the requirement.

With one week for planning and six weeks for production, Rupert had intentionally set the contest period at seven weeks.

“Of course, most of the entries were submitted by people drawn in by the prize money, but it has certainly caused quite a buzz.”

Esteban, the head of the guild, smiled as he sipped his tea. The contest had generated more attention than expected, and selling the tools needed to create comics had already brought in more profit than the cost of organizing the contest.

In recent days, not just in the capital but across the empire, it wasn’t uncommon to see people clutching pens and paper wherever crowds gathered.

As a result, an overwhelming number of submissions had been delivered to the main branch, so much so that the staff judging the entries were practically having nightmares about comic pages.

“I only received the ones that passed the first round, but even that was overwhelming.”

The guild staff had filtered out the entries based on the criteria Rupert had provided, and from there, Rupert personally reviewed each of the remaining submissions.

Surprisingly, it didn’t take as long as expected.

Most of the entries failed to make it past the first chapter, leaving only three in Rupert’s hands.

Considering the number of submissions, it was an extraordinarily low survival rate.

“I’m quite curious to know which works you’ve selected, young master.”

“Well, two of the works were so outstanding that they were natural picks. The third, though, had a certain indescribable feeling about it, which is why I chose it.”

Esteban was curious but refrained from asking further. The fairness of the contest was paramount, and he didn’t want his inquiries to influence Rupert’s judgment in any way.

‘Lin and Ismael.’

Rupert thought about the two standout works.

The manuscript submitted by the artist named Lin was about mechanical dolls.

‘It was entirely different from Saint’s work.’

While both stories involved characters aspiring to become human, Saint’s had a philosophical tone. Lin’s, however, was a classic shonen manga through and through.

The intense, heart-pounding battles between secret societies that controlled mechanical dolls had immediately caught Rupert’s attention.

What stood out most was the artist’s ability to capture the dynamic action scenes with a surprisingly high level of skill.

‘There were still a few awkward parts, but the raw talent was undeniable.’

The awkwardness came not from a lack of drawing ability but from the artist being new to the medium of comics. It was something that could easily be improved.

Rupert had marked Lin’s work as a top contender.

The second work that had impressed Rupert was from an artist named Ismael, who had created a story set at sea.

The tale followed a young boy from a coastal village who set out to hunt the whale that had swallowed his father. The vivid portrayal of the sea was palpable.

In the story, the whale represented both the awe-inspiring power of nature and a formidable challenge for the boy to overcome.

The journey of the boy as he struggled to venture into the sea had left a deep impression on Rupert, making it difficult for him to decide which of the two works deserved the top prize.

‘And then there’s… this one.’

Thinking about the third work he had selected, Rupert’s expression grew more serious.

‘The Avenger.’

While the quality of the story, art, and pacing was exceptional, it was a work that pushed boundaries too far.

It was a story that was ahead of its time, perhaps too ahead, making Rupert deeply conflicted.

Was it right to select this work? Or should he avoid the potential controversy and danger it might bring?

Finally, Rupert made his decision.