Chapter 19: Steam Locomotive (1)

After accepting Professor Elena's suggestion, my daily life changed a little bit. Previously, I would go to the library or have a quick meal and head back to my dorm, but these days, I visited Professor Elena's lab.

And today was Friday when all classes end. After mailing the eight-volume manuscript of Xenon's Saga to my parents, I went straight to the lab. I didn't forget to knock before entering the lab.

After a while, I opened the door and entered the lab, which had a distinct musty odor. As soon as I opened the door, I saw Cindy sitting at her desk and writing something.

"Hello. Cindy."

"Hello..."

Anyway, Professor Elena was often away on business trips, but not Cindy. She always greeted me with the appearance of a haggard corpse. I had grown accustomed to her appearance and had stopped paying attention to her.

"How are you today? Are you still tired?"

"Maybe a little better...? I don't know..."

That slagging tone seems to be beyond repair. I heard she's been tired for years, not months, but it must be difficult. If she were a human, she would have died from exhaustion, but elves seem to be resilient.

I sneaked aside after staring blankly at Cindy, who appeared to be sitting at her desk writing her thesis. I don't know how to write a thesis, but Professor Elena asked me to assist with the writing process instead. So I kept an eye on how serious it was...

"...Cindy?"

"Yes...?"

"Can you stop writing for a moment and read what you wrote?"

"Why?"

That's how serious it was.

I held back the above words and urged Cindy again.

"Read it. From the middle here."

"Ugh... The human war that followed the tribal war clearly demonstrated the dark side of humanity, and it was the reason why the Minerva Empire was able to establish itself as a great power, and it's the reason why many countries are still crying for independence. The Kingdom of Mechterton, the Empire's adversary, has formed an alliance with neighboring kingdoms..."

"Stop."

That's about it. It's legible and it's five minutes before the mess.

'It's like reading my first work...'

In my previous life, I was praised for having good writing skills, but I was never good from the beginning. Rather, what kind of story was my first work? The readability was so bad that the word came out of my mouth. Cindy's current thesis follows the same mistakes that first-time writers make.

Mistakes in repeating the same word or linking sentences together for readability. This is one of the most common mistakes beginners make.

She must understand the essential problem well, so I asked Cindy, who was making a confused face.

"Cindy. Do you understand what this means?"

"What do you mean...?

She tilted her head and asked the question. I sighed heavily at Cindy's situation of not knowing what the problem was.

'Even so, this is a bit harsh...'

I've criticized the novels in this world for being like an SAT English test, but the thesis was an exception. A thesis is a type of record written by a researcher based on his or her own research, so it does not matter if technical terms appear.

A thesis, however, should clearly communicate what the researcher wishes to say to the other person.

I have no idea how to write a thesis, but I am well aware of its purpose. At the very least, it should never be used arbitrarily as Cindy did.

As I was pondering where to begin, I asked a curious question.

"Cindy. Have you ever read Professor Elena's or someone else's thesis?"

"There are many..."

"But you write like this?"

I once read a thesis she wrote with Professor Elena's guidance. I was a little confused because technical terms appeared in the middle, but thanks to the many books I've read so far, I was able to thoroughly read it.

Cindy blinked slowly at my absurd question and responded quietly.

"Even if I try to write like that... If I keep writing, it will start to sound like the thesis you read..."

"If you are evaluated later, you will be rejected because you are similar."

"yes..."

Her memory was good, but her application ability was inferior. From my human standards, she was an idiot, but from an Elf's point of view, Cindy was perfectly normal.

As mentioned before, human beings inherently lack strength and ability compared to other races, but there are 'acquisition' and 'adaptation' that can make up for them. If we compare the entire race, elves are normal and humans are abnormal.

As previously stated, magic has historically been praised as a 'force' that can only be used by those chosen by the gods. Until the tribal war 300 years ago, only elves, demons, and a few humans possessed the ability to use magic.

3000 Years Ago, Demon Wars? There were no records of humans using magic during that time period, only a few elves. The Tribal War 300 years ago was when the magic began to flow into humans in earnest.

In any case, in less than 500 years, humans have transformed it into an ability that anyone can use, given their background, talent, and hard work. From the point of view of the long-lived Elves, the speed of development was truly terrifying.

'I'm suddenly curious. Why are humans so quick to learn?'

It was something I took for granted when I was on Earth, a world where only humans exist. Even in creations, humans were programmed to learn faster than other races.

But, since I was reincarnated in this world, I was very curious. Why do humans learn more quickly than other races?

While I was repeating the question in my head, Cindy asked me in a languid tone.

"So when are you going to teach me...?"

"Oh, yes. Professor Elena instructed me to teach you, so I must do so. Just one question."

"What is that?"

"Has Cindy never learned to write?"

I already have to tell her the basic knowledge, but I asked just in case. If she's learned roughly, she'll see the hope at least.

Cindy blinked slowly at my question and answered quietly.

"There were a few people who taught me how to write..."

"Huh? What do you mean? Didn't you say Professor Elena wasn't there?"

"It was someone else who helped, and there were a few people who taught me for money..."

Then she answered in a more complex, subdued voice than before. Her pointy ears drooped down below her.

"Don't run away saying you can't teach me anything anymore..."

"... ..."

"I'm a little... I guess I'm a little slow by human and elf standards..."

{T/N:- feeling sad for her.}

For some reason, I had the impression that I had been caught.

━─━─━━─━「₪」━━─━─━─━

Xenon's Saga had always been like this, but Volume 7 caused even more of a stir than usual as soon as it was released. It was because the author abruptly ended the story at a crucial point, and it broke the hearts of many readers.

As a result, the Crown Prince of Minerva said he will arrest and imprison the author in the imperial palace, or the Princess would pressure him to publish the next volume as soon as possible.

There was a lot of turmoil in many ways, but there was a saying that time was the best medicine and it gradually stopped and they waited for the next book. The readers also calmed down and focused on their jobs while waiting for the time to pass.

The 7th volume of Xenon's Saga was then published, and about a month later, the release of the 8th volume, which everyone had been waiting for, was announced in the newspaper. There was, however, one sentence that piqued my interest.

[It contains scenes that may be offensive to the nobles.]

The above phrase was published by the publisher who reviewed the manuscript first. Not only the nobles, but also the vast majority of commoners, were perplexed by that phrase.

What kind of scene was it that suggested it might offend nobles who aren't even commoners? The answer to that question was only known after the publication of the new Xenon's Saga.

[There is nobility above the people, a king above the nobility, and the king can only exist because the state exists. However, it is the people who support the state. In other words, whether it's a king or a noble, it means nothing in front of the people. But, Count Crost. You're destroying the state's foundations just for being offensive. It is truly the conduct of a nobleman. Don't you think so?]

The character in the novel, it was said by a nobleman, but it was a harsh criticism. Even if it is a fictional story, it is only the author's job to create the story.

So far, no books or paintings have satirized or criticized the nobles' atrocities, but Xenons' Saga was too straightforward. Considering the ripple effect of Xenon's Saga, it was undoubtedly a very dangerous statement, although not unusual.

- A scene that clearly exposed the dark side of the aristocracy.

- In reality, there are many cases where nobles intimidate commoners. It was just hidden from everyone.

- History repeats itself. If this goes on, an incident like the 'Zeros Revolution' will happen again.

In fact, there is an event similar to the 'French Revolution' on Earth in this world. It was the 'Zeros Revolution' that broke out in the Kingdom of Teres, which has been regarded as the eternal enemy of the Minerva Empire.

Because a great man named Zeros was the leader, it is called the Zeros Revolution for convenience.

Because of that one revolution, the kingdom of Teres was reeling and many corrupt nobles were brought down. Although the revolution itself was not successful, its aftermath was truly terrifying, enough to raise awareness.

However, despite such a major incident, the nobles still looked down on commoners. On the contrary, there were cases where it was more viciously concealed and thoroughly prevented from being known externally.

- Nobles and commoners are different from birth. Even the author of Xenon's Saga doesn't think it's such an insult.

- A novel is still a novel. If it were a commoner like Xenon, he would have been given a title rather than confronting aristocrats.

As a result, some nobles harshly criticized the first half of the 8th volume. However, only a few nobles are expressing criticism, and the majority of nobles are only expressing bitter reactions.

One critic commented on these numerous responses.

- Most of the nobles who read this story and got angry were treating commoners as slaves. Wouldn't the prisoners be openly treated as slaves? It can only be said to be a truly aristocratic mindset.

The mouths of the nobles who poured criticism and reproach on such a heavy fact were shut tight. There was no such scene.

Anyway, due to the beginning of the 8th volume, countries with aristocratic classes became noisy for a while, but countries without a noble class went on.

The nobleman who put Xenon, the main character, in danger, was eventually stripped of all his posts and imprisoned, and Xenon headed to the land of the dwarves for a short break.

Many readers expected it because it was the first time in Xenon's Saga that he traveled to a country of a different race, rather than a human country. Naturally, among them, the Dwarves had the greatest expectations and concerns.

"Ummm..."

"How about it? Isn't it worth a try? Here's a rough description and pictures."

A dwarf with a thick grey beard and an odd-looking face was focused on the drawing on the paper.

Next to him, a young dwarf with a beard that barely covered his face was rushing with an excited expression. The gray-bearded dwarf concentrated solely on the drawing, ignoring the urgings of the dwarf next to him.

What he was looking at was a painting that appeared in the middle to late part of the 8th volume of Xenon's Saga, which was published this month.

What he is currently seeing is a painting that appeared in the mid-to-late part of the 8th volume of Zeno's biography published this month. It was attached with some kind of adhesive to prevent it from falling off while reading it, but I found it later.

Then, the gray-bearded dwarf tilted his head and muttered the name of the picture mentioned in the book.

The name of this lump of iron is a steam locomotive?"

"Yes!"

"But this huge lump of iron moves through a special engine? Only on a special road called 'Railway'? Not only in the front, but also in the back, like a wagon?"

"Yes!"

"Does moving the wheel maximize the rattling of the lid when boiling water in the kettle?"

"Yes!"

Whenever the gray-bearded dwarf asked a question, the young dwarf responded brightly. The gray-bearded dwarf burst out laughing at this.

"Hahaha. Son? Don't talk nonsense. Novels should be read as novels. When you substitute it for reality, it gives you a headache. We just need to make better weapons."

"But Father. It's realistic. Wouldn't it be better than nothing at all?"

At his son's question, the gray-bearded dwarf waved his hand and said in an implausible voice.

"It's realistic, and this father is old and can't afford to make something like this. I'd rather gather like-minded people and make them all together. You'd rather get like-minded people together and make it all together. And here they say coal? It's full of stones, so take care of it. We need more hearthstone than black stone."

"Then aren't you going to help me?"

"I can't help you directly, but I can support you with money. It'll be easy to find people like you who are reckless idiots."

"Okay! Please wait a moment! I'll collect them soon!"

The young dwarf responded vigorously and ran back and forth out of the forge. The gray-bearded dwarf smirked at his son's passionate look, then glanced down at the paper once more.

The quality of the paintings cannot be described in words, but the general appearance was clear. There was also an explanation included with the book so you could see what it is used for.

'Your imagination is great. How did you come up with this idea?'

It was an idea that even the dwarves, a race of artisans and called the masters of creation, and even the gray-bearded dwarves, the best of the dwarves, couldn't help but admire. In the current climate, where many people believed there was no substitute for magic, the appearance of such a 'machine' will surely cause a massive upheaval.

It was clear that 'humans' would benefit the most. Even if they lack natural abilities, they have an unrivaled ability to learn and adapt.

Perhaps the invention of the steam locomotive would give way to machines instead of magic.

'Did this guy come from another world?'

{T/N:- *cough* *cough*}

The gray-bearded dwarf had no choice but to ask such a question sincerely.

- - - End of Chapter - - -