Chapter 9: The Filming Plan for Nosrick City
Re-written date: 5 / 15 / 2025
. . . . . . . . . . .
"Roy? A Grand Mage?... That happened?"
It wasn't that Edward had a poor memory—it was just that he truly had no recollection of the matter. Clearly, the Edward of the past had been so obsessed with magical research that he completely ignored the people around him, as well as the effects of his own actions.
Only after carefully reviewing his memories did Edward finally recall who the man was.
"Ah, it was that guy? The one who joined the military straight out of the Mage Tower and became the Empire 'lapdog'—Major Roy?"
"Why is that the only thing you can remember?! Yes, that's him. After proving himself in the military, Major Roy was recruited by Grand Duke Viktor and now serves as the chief mage of the Viktor family..."
"What a coincidence..."
Winry gave him a puzzled look, not understanding what he meant.
But Edward, ignoring her confusion, simply smiled. While feeling excited about potentially having found an actor for his future film project, he also said with renewed enthusiasm:
"Looks like we've got to work harder. We haven't even finished filming 'KonoSuba', so how can we be thinking about the next project already? Let's keep going—let's make a movie that moves the entire world!"
"Uh... okay..."
Winry, clearly dragged back into the castle by Edward's burst of excitement, gave the boy beside her a helpless look. Then she glanced back in the direction where Roy had disappeared.
Why would someone as talented as that Grand Mage keep coming to Durin Family castle so frequently? Even after all this time, Winry still couldn't make sense of it.
But one thing was certain:
Though Edward seemed like a reclusive boy shut inside his family's fortress, in truth, countless eyes from across the world were watching this remote southern borderland.
. . . . . . .
That afternoon, after a bit of overacting, Zat and Aya finally stirred from their slumped positions at the dining table in the lounge.
Zat, face red with embarrassment as he recalled the foolish things he'd done earlier, let out a sigh and slowly stood up—just in time for Edward and Winry to walk in through the front door.
"How are you feeling? If you're ready, we can head out right away."
Zat breathed a sigh of relief that the lord wasn't upset with him, then mumbled uncertainly:
"Head out? Head out where?"
"Didn't I say? Once we wrapped the first scene today, we'd go scout the next filming location."
"Ah, right... that was the plan."
Although Edward used very modern phrasing, Zat—now more familiar with his unique way of speaking—quickly understood and said,
"Understood, Lord Edward. Aya and I are ready to leave at any time."
Before Aya could say a word, Zat, already predicting her lazy reaction, quickly silenced her. All that was left was the girl's muffled protests.
Watching this pair of comedic misfits, Edward couldn't help but smile.
Then he said, "Well then, Winry and I have already discussed a suitable town for the next shoot. Let's head out!"
"Head out?"
Before anyone could voice their confusion, magical light began to glow beneath Edward's feet.
. . . . . . . .
Teleportation Magic—one of the spells reserved for Grand Mages. Without the immense magical power of a Grand Mage, an ordinary mage couldn't possibly sustain such a spell. They would instead rely on teleportation circles or other magical aids, which were far inferior in both speed and range compared to a Grand Mage casually casting the spell.
In that sense, teleportation magic was a symbol that distinguished Grand Mages from those of the lower rank.
And the fact that Edward could use it without aid proved without a doubt that he was, in every sense of the term, a true Grand Mage.
As the magical glow gradually faded, the group found themselves standing directly in front of the large town of Nosrick City, located dozens of miles from Durin Family castle.
"A– amazing!"
"..."
Compared to Zat and Winry's awe, Aya simply touched her head nonchalantly, clearly unaffected by the novelty of experiencing teleportation magic for the first time.
Meanwhile, Edward, who had just cast such a high-level spell for the first time, wore a wry smile as he sensed his drained mana. At the same time, he enjoyed the unfamiliar sensation with a hint of amusement.
Originally, he thought magic was kind of boring, but now even he had to admit—it was pretty interesting. Still, in Edward's eyes, any magic that couldn't be used for entertainment was meaningless.
So even though he had just traveled dozens of miles in a flash, he wasn't exactly thrilled. What he was excited about was continuing the filming of "KonoSuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World!"
Looking at the town just ahead, Edward spoke:
"Anyway, you've all read the script, right? You know what happens next?"
Zat responded first:
"Yeah, I know. After being transported to the other world, Aya—I mean, Aqua—and I arrive here, then go to the Adventurer's Guild. But we discover that my abilities are trash and I can only become the weakest adventurer, while Aqua has insane talents and becomes a high priest. Even so, our first quest ends up being... working at a construction site..."
Satisfied with the summary, Edward nodded, knowing this guy had probably read the script over and over again last night.
"Exactly. But considering some issues, I've trimmed the plot a bit. The Adventurer's Guild part has been postponed due to difficulty in setting it up. I've also adjusted the content to align better with how adventurer guilds work in the real world. So we're going to start filming directly from your first adventure—the construction site part. Since this scene relies on exaggerated humor, make sure your acting is over the top."
"Got it!"
"Yes, sir!"
Hearing their replies, Edward began surveying the town ahead. Once he was sure there were buildings similar to what appeared in the anime, he said:
"Alright, let's start with your arrival in the other world—capture that sense of anxiety and wonder!"
. . . . . . .
Later that afternoon, on the streets of Nosrick City, two figures dressed in unusual clothing suddenly appeared.
This drew the attention of pedestrians, who all paused to gawk at the strange pair. What they didn't know was that a small, inconspicuous magical device hidden nearby was recording everything that was happening.
One of the two, the man in strange clothes, began to speak first, his face filled with disbelief:
"So this is the other world? I'm really going to use magic and become an adventurer here... An adventurer?! Ah, goodbye, shut-in life! Hello, other world! This time I'm going to live properly!"
While Zat shouted with excitement, the blue-haired goddess beside him held her head in disbelief, nervously running her fingers through her hair.
Zat gave her a look of disgust and said:
"Hey, could you not freak out so loudly? What if people think I'm the companion of some crazy woman? Ugh. Anyway, shouldn't you be giving me that thing? You know, that thing! Look what I'm wearing! Pajamas, seriously! I was just out to grab something from the store, and now I'm here looking like this! Can't you at least give me the bare minimum of gear—"
"Aaaaaaaahhhhhh~~~ Aaaaaaahhhhhh~~~!"
Before he could finish, the already emotionally-overloaded goddess let out a screech and lunged at him like a humanoid zombie, grabbing his collar and shaking him wildly—like some adorable, chibi-fied zombie T-Rex on a rampage!