Chapter 51. All Theories About Merlin, the New Work "Lunar Coral"!
"Woohoo~ I'm rich!"
Outside the yard of Happiness Manor, a young man dressed in white smiled faintly.
He stood beneath a stunning cherry blossom tree, starlike sparkles gently floating around him, bringing a sense of dreamlike, mystical beauty. A breeze brushed past as the scent of youth lingered in the air.
Cherry blossom petals fell like rain, highlighting even more the elegance of this young master.
The atmosphere was filled with mystery, enchantment, elegance, and purity…
A person as radiant as jade, blossoms like snowflakes in the wind, the land like a painted scroll.
Rippling waves of silver light spread out, and on the interface screen, lines appeared:
[Creator: Raku Sou]
[Life Rank: Celestial-Human Realm (Tier 3, Early Peak)]
[Bloodline: Ancient Red Dragon (Diluted)]
[Available Secret Arts: Isayama-Style Swordsmanship, Isayama-Style Spell, Mana Burst...]
[Theoretical Lifespan: 819.7 years]
[Divine Authority Jade: 6,872,361.01]
The Celestial Curtain plan was flawlessly executed—he earned six million Divine Authority Jade in the blink of an eye!
A massive win…
So massive it was insane…
If it weren't for the need to increase Celestial Curtain's credibility—especially when the scene "Anato to watashi no Master ka?" appeared, recreating the image of Britannia in the skies over Glastonbury—Raku Sou's Divine Authority Jade would have already surpassed seven million.
But this price was absolutely worth it!
After the Glastonbury event spread…
The growth rate of Divine Authority Jade, which had shown signs of slowing down, suddenly shot up like a rocket into the atmosphere…
Especially at the final moment of the illusion—the mysterious smile of Merlin.
As if from across a millennium, it mocked and looked down upon the hundreds of thousands of visitors.
Many felt a chill, their hearts pounding.
Netizens frantically pounded their keyboards, a mix of excitement and shivers, discussing non-stop:
"What was Merlin laughing at? Was it the decay of etiquette in future generations, the collapse of morality…"
"No, I suspect that smile held a kind of smugness, a restrained boastfulness. This abnormal phenomenon only occurred after the Celestial Curtain descended. It's very possible that the longer the Celestial Curtain remains, the more era-defining events will take place."
"If the story of the parallel world becomes widely known, maybe the Heroic Spirits could even descend into our world."
"No no no… you people are way too delusional."
"I feel Merlin's smile carried a trace of pity, as if he sympathized with King Arthur."
"That's reasonable, and come to think of it, why the hell is Merlin so handsome?!"
"Could he be an Incubus?"
"…"
At first, everyone was speculating whether Merlin had seen the scenes of the future.
What was the meaning behind that mysterious smile, why did he want to laugh upon seeing the people of the future…
But as time went on, the discussion got increasingly ridiculous.
A female netizen who loved reading Badass CEO stories claimed to be a professor of psychology at the world-renowned "Stanford University." Through frame-by-frame analysis, she claimed to have uncovered all the emotions hidden in Merlin's smile.
She then furiously typed up and posted what she called an academic essay.
[He appears to be gently smiling, but in truth, it is mockery.]
[In his eyes are one part disdain, two parts indifference, three parts ridicule, four parts apathy, and ninety parts complete contempt, like a divine being looking down the monke upon the mortal world in arrogance...]
[Dissatisfied with how the Celts are currently treated, he descended into reality to punish the British.]
"The fuck is this pie chart bullshit!"
Many netizens turned stone-faced, angrily cursing her out.
Since the post was absolute nonsense, clearly written to bait views with a clickbait title, it got instantly blasted to hell.
British netizens especially lost their shit, cursing up a storm.
But regardless of what was said, "Director" Raku Sou nodded in deep satisfaction.
Say whatever the hell you want.
The script he edited himself didn't have a single flaw—as long as it went viral, the number of people believing in Fate/staynight would keep growing.
All of that was motherfucking money fueling his rise in power!
Of course, many people also remembered a certain author on Twitter—someone named Merlin—who wrote Land of Steel.
That novel was beyond strange, exuding a bone-deep eeriness.
Not only did it have a highly realistic world setting and grand, epic scenes, but with just a few brushstrokes it painted a moving, tragic story—majestic in scale yet never lacking in the delicate emotions of its small, humble characters.
Music, language, and illustrations all reached their peak, drawing readers into the world of the story completely.
And yet, a work of art this precious… was entirely free…
Strange.
Far too strange.
It was as if Land of Steel wasn't some treasured artistic masterpiece, but just a fire safety manual.
As if there was a kind-hearted firefighter holding it, simply spreading public awareness.
But everyone knew—if it weren't for several world-class teams pouring months or even years into meticulous crafting, there was no way Land of Steel could've been created.
If it were truly man-made, then surely it should be monetized, right?
The author Merlin in the real world.
Merlin – the Flower Magus in the parallel world.
Could there be some unspeakable connection between the two?
Maybe…
Everyone held their breath, spines stiffening, the tension so great they could barely breathe.
Could it be… they're the same person?
Netizens across the globe clenched their fists, took deep breaths, and with a burning thirst for knowledge, began to read each word, each sentence of the mysterious work Land of Steel...
And were instantly hooked.
Excitement, exhilaration, imagination soared…
The story was too damn good—no matter how many times you reread it, dozens of times even, it never got old.
That thick, visceral sense of apocalypse hit you straight in the face, blurring the line between reality and fiction. You followed the characters' point of view, uncovering the truth step by step.
But the most infuriating thing—was that the author stopped updating right at the climax, leaving a goddamn cliffhanger that drove everyone insane!
Absolutely fucking brutal!
When it came to cliffhangers, who could ever compare to Merlin?
The internet exploded, furious comments flooding in, begging for updates.
"Merlin, hurry up and update!!"
"Fuck, if you don't update I'm gonna die for real!"
"Will this series ever update in this lifetime?"
"There were many novels laid before me, but I chose Land of Steel, and thus began my journey of spiritual torment."
"Do you know, I have a friend who also writes. She kept updating regularly and now she's so rich it's insane—ah, I don't mean anything by that, just saying."
"Seriously suspect Merlin-sensei has already fucking forgotten about this unfinished story."
"Merlin Merlin… what a god-tier name, but damn, you lost all your conscience!"
"Feels like I'm addicted—reading until I forget to eat and sleep, completely immersed in the plot. If there's no update, I refresh every three minutes or I feel like crap."
"Merlin-sama, hello. I'm your loyal reader. I hope you update more often. Don't be so unreasonable. Otherwise I'll kneel, drool, and lick your feet while begging you, sob sob T﹏T."
The readers' wails practically tore open the sky.
Some of the oldest update-pleading comments already had tens of millions of likes.
Even non-Japanese netizens scaled the firewall out of curiosity to read the story, only to get pissed off to the point of vomiting blood from being left hanging mid-story.
"Fuck's sake, at the very least finish the battle between A-Ray and humanity's fight for survival…!!"
"Next time for sure~."
A certain Raku Sou looked at the comments and smiled, "Ehe~."
His anonymous username was Merlin—he had to stay cool, maintain that aura of mystery and style.
Was he really going to just pop up and start writing again just because the readers were cursing and begging?
Hell no!
However…
Even if he wasn't going to fill the hole, digging a new one wasn't a bad option either.
Have "Merlin" debut a new Type-Moon World project, keeping the mystery alive and stirring up another frenzy. If he ever revealed himself as Merlin in real life, it would shake the entire world.
But what project should he choose?
Raku Sou rubbed his chin, lost in thought.
How about something opposite from Land of Steel… Lunar Coral?!
"Shwaa~"
With gentle silver ripples, threads of sparkling light landed on the young man's palm.
Staring at the NZT-48 pills in his hand, Raku Sou thought for a moment—then tilted his head back and swallowed them all.
Immediately, ideas surged forth, an unstoppable tide of inspiration flooding in. His eyes lit up. He sat down at his computer and hit the power button.
B.B-chan (Internet), linku starto~!