Application Form for the Manga Club
Name:
Department:
Reason for Application:
The second prince of the Sylvania Kingdom, Adrian Belmont, sat at the desk in his specially arranged dormitory provided by the academy. He was staring at a piece of paper.
While the Imperial Academy generally adhered to a two-person dormitory rule, this time, the exception applied to only two new students. One was the Empire’s third prince, Edric Bell, and the other was Adrian himself.
Although it was common for nobles from other countries to study in the academy, it was the first time a member of royalty had enrolled, so the academy had no choice but to pay special attention.
Thanks to this, Adrian was able to use his dormitory alone without any interruptions and was filling out the application form for the manga club while deep in thought.
“Why are major figures, including the third prince, trying to join not just classes but clubs?”
From the moment Adrian decided to study in the Empire, he had only one goal: to destroy the hateful Empire that invaded his homeland, Sylvania, and plunged it into chaos.
He came to the Imperial Academy with the belief that to defeat the enemy, one must understand the enemy.
Of course, such an unprecedented move sparked numerous rumors among the common folk. When he heard the whispers that he had fled from a succession struggle, he could only let out a hollow laugh.
“Still, being able to observe the famed Imperial Academy firsthand isn’t entirely without benefits.”
While studying at the academy, Adrian aimed to grasp as much of the Empire’s strengths and weaknesses as possible. He hid his inner fury, presenting a soft and humble demeanor as he worked hard to adapt to the academy.
He was deliberately sociable with the Empire’s nobles, going so far as to engage in flattery to win their favor. The person he worked hardest to get close to was none other than the third prince, Edric Bell.
“It’s veering off from my expectations, but I suppose I don’t know everything yet.”
Adrian’s attempt to become close with the third prince was to plant a bomb within the Empire.
Just recently, rumors had circulated that the position of crown prince was precarious, and this news had reached not only the Empire but also neighboring Sylvania.
People were openly discussing the next crown prince, and Adrian wanted to seize that opportunity.
By getting close to a royal who seemed to have the potential to become the next crown prince, he would sow the seeds of suspicion.
If things went well and the Empire descended into chaos over the succession struggle, that would be the moment Sylvania could start rising back up.
However, that plan was on the brink of collapsing.
The crown prince, once branded as a wastrel, had now established an unprecedented stronghold.
Not only had he eradicated a Dark Wizard organization that threatened the Empire, but the tale of him sacrificing his right arm to protect his soldiers was now common knowledge, even among the village children.
His popularity was genuinely remarkable.
Especially when the sight of the crown prince donning a new golem arm instead of his lost right arm was revealed during the royal parade, people rushed to call him the “Steel Prince” and praised him.
“No… it’s too early to give up.”
Yet Adrian had no intention of giving up.
Though he had yet to create a strong connection with Edric Bell to understand him well, he was convinced that Edric certainly coveted the position of crown prince, if not the emperor’s throne.
He recalled the time he had attended a celebratory banquet hosted by the emperor for the nobles.
At that event, he distinctly saw the gaze of the third prince fixed intently on the crown prince.
It was not a gaze of familial admiration but one filled with greedy desire.
“He is indeed a frightening individual.”
Despite the fact that careful information gathering had yielded no concrete evidence that the third prince harbored ambitions for the crown prince’s position, his behavior resembled that of a predator biding its time.
“I must somehow use the third prince to sow discord in the Empire.”
Of course, he was well aware that such actions were incredibly risky.
However, he knew that there was no way to overcome the imposing wall of the Empire without taking risks.
In the event that things went awry, he had steeled himself to fully bear the consequences, even going as far as to take his own life.
He had already told his brother, who would inherit the throne of their kingdom, to prepare for the possibility of having to abandon him if something were to happen.
“To do that, I must join this club at all costs.”
There were rumors that not only the third prince but also the young lady of the Bluewell Duke family and the heir to the Marchioness had applied to this club.
Unfortunately for Adrian, he lacked military talent, so applying to the military department was out of reach for him.
However, he unexpectedly signed up for the “Understanding Art” class to at least attend some cultural courses.
Whatever the reason, since the third prince had signed up for the cultural lecture and the new professor, Rupert, had created a manga club, Adrian felt he had no choice but to apply.
Not only Adrian but nearly all new students and current students at the academy had applied, leading to an astonishingly high level of competition, yet he wasn’t overly worried.
If the professor had any sense, he wouldn’t be dismissed.
“Yet, this person rumored to be quite ominous…”
Adrian, who had never previously regarded Rupert Somerset as a threat, could not help but feel a growing sense of unease about him.
Rupert was the author behind the fairy tales and comic books that had been trending in the Empire and essentially the practical head of the Somerset Count family.
Additionally, he was also rumored to be an aide to the crown prince, making him one of the most talked-about figures recently.
Becoming the Empire’s youngest professor was already a talking point, but the reports of what he had done during his lecture time made him seem exceptionally cruel and ruthless.
Rupert’s newly established manga club was now at the center of attention within the academy.
Having advertised that only ten would be selected, Adrian felt a little worry creep in.
The opportunity to interact with the third prince directly, along with observing potential future power players in the Empire and the notable figure of Rupert Somerset, was not something to be missed.
*
After finishing the lecture, the talk of the town, Rupert, returned to his office and was immersed in organizing documents and working on the storyboard for “The Iron-Blooded Alchemist.”
“What’s going on? Why are there so many applicants?”
In reality, the amount of paperwork that an academy professor usually dealt with wasn’t particularly overwhelming, but for Rupert, it was complaints about the workload he had brought upon himself by founding the club.
He created the manga club to recruit “talented individuals”—or, rather, “slaves”—to use for his animation production work.
As the club could only accept one club per person, it was almost ridiculous how high the application rate was, leading Rupert to once again spend time sorting applications.
Moreover, he needed to quickly finalize the remaining storyboards for volumes 9 and 10 of “The Iron-Blooded Alchemist” so that Saint and Sena could begin working, adding to his urgency.
Gulp.
Though he had tried to minimize his consumption of vitality potions ever since discovering they contained narcotic properties, he still held onto at least one bottle.
“The saintess did say that one bottle a day is okay.”
Rupert had to draft the application guidelines for the contest they were preparing in conjunction with the trade company as well, since the competition was about selecting works to publish in a comic magazine, making it all the more important for Rupert to involve himself in the selection process to find works that appealed to him.
The merchant had already expressed reluctance, claiming that since the prize money for the contest was excessively high, they expected hundreds or even thousands of submissions.
Rupert certainly didn’t have the time to check every single one of those works, so the staff needed to prepare filtering criteria to help them sift through the entries.
“Aida is going to be upset again.”
Rupert was worried that he would return home late today.
* * *
“Take a look at this!”
At the Yuren trade company’s branch in a rural part of the Empire, a crowd had gathered outside.
It was a rare occasion for people to gather at the trade company unless it was the release date for comic books or fairy tales.
The fact that a crowd had formed now, when the release date was still some time away, was clearly unusual.
“You too… can become a manga artist. We are waiting for the second Rupert Somerset.”
Since fairy tales and comic books had begun to spread, many people had learned to read, even if only haltingly, allowing them to understand the content of the posted notice.
“Universal Ultimate Manga Contest?”
The notice displayed the release dates for volumes 9 and 10 of “The Iron-Blooded Alchemist,” alongside the contest guidelines.
“Wait, does that mean we have to draw a comic and submit it ourselves?”
“Looking at the explanation, that’s right! It says a minimum of 15 pages for one episode, and up to three episodes can be submitted to the Yuren trade company for judging.”
Initially, the crowd showed interest in the details of the contest but quickly lost it.
“But I can’t even draw a comic!”
“Making 45 pages for three episodes? That’s at least a month’s worth of struggle!”
While it might seem easy in theory, drawing was another matter entirely, and the “Universal Ultimate Manga Contest” was on the verge of being dismissed as just another inconsequential occurrence.
However,
“Wait, the first prize is 100 gold?!”
“They’re selecting two works, and there are cash prizes up to third place!”
“Are you kidding? This is an opportunity we can’t pass up!”
The mention of a 100 gold first prize at the end of the notice was enough to turn everyone’s heads.
“Isn’t Hans from the crossing area really good at drawing?”
“I have a great story idea in mind; if I use it, I’ve practically secured the grand prize!”
“But don’t you need tools to draw a comic?”
– From beginner manga artist kits to high-end tools for seasoned professionals! Come visit Yuren trade company!
The Yuren trade company staff set up a stand next to the notice, displaying comic-related tools as if they had been waiting for this moment.
“If you want to aim for the grand prize, you’ll need good tools…”
“Oh! This pen is said to be made by dwarves!”
“Ah… drawing on this kind of paper is bound to be exhilarating!”
Most of the manga tools sold at the Yuren trade company were developed in the Somerset workshop.
By the end of the first day of the notice being posted, Rupert had already recouped the prize money from the earnings of the tool sales.
My site has received a lot of DMCA notices, lol. From now on, I will update the MTL on https://darkmtl.com/.
The site is fast and lightweight because there are no ads yet. However, the theme is different from Cybor-TL, so take some time to familiarize yourself.
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Thanks for the chapter ☺️
Greed for the steel arm, I supposed