Chapter 121: Chapter 120 : Rippling Out (Part 2)

“...Check out the anime section again.”

At Rei’s suggestion, Samuel promptly made the request. Seconds later, his mind’s eye returned to the display; it immediately flickered in surprise upon finding a second new ‘item’ present.

“Introduction to anime/manga production,” he read out the title with a mutter.

Going silent, he requested to go into it. He was shown another page, giving the basic description and info. As he did, so did the others. The group collectively jolted when they caught the length of the video.

‘Thirteen hours long!?’

Spun in a frenzy, Samuel’s words raced through the telepathic link. A second later, the video began streaming into his mind. It was animated as well, though its art style was much simpler than the Dragon Prince movie.

The video opened up in an empty classroom. The audience was placed in the shoes of a student. Sitting at their desk, the student examined the classroom they were in. After doing a full sweep, the door to their right slid open and a person entered. Samuel examined the person closely. His build suggested he was male, and a middle-aged one at that. He was short, had short black hair, and from the gaps in his clothing, one could tell that he was light-skinned.

He wore a white long sleeve t-shirt, black pants and black shoes. While his outfit was unremarkable, a single accessory made him more than stand out, his white mask decorated with a large black circle.

This mysterious figure shut the door and then moved to the centre before turning to the viewer.

Welcome welcome. So, you’ve taken an interest in the world of anime and manga, lovely. Don’t worry, you’re in good hands. I’ll show you everything there is to know. Oh, yes, I nearly forgot my manners. Allow me to introduce myself. I am a Professor Zakute Umosa of the Silver Path. I’ll be guiding you on your wondrous journey. Now, let’s begin, shall we?

The aged voice filled with passion gripped Samuel’s consciousness, and before long, he was listening intently to the lecture. It was only at an Enviso employee’s voice did he manage to break out of his daze.

[Sir, our services end in thirty minutes so…]

[Ah, I see. Then, can you skip a bit ahead, an hour in will do.]

[Yes sir.]

The video was sped up in the Natural’s mind to reach that point. From there, Samuel watched a bit then skipped ahead, watched a bit then skipped ahead, watched a bit then…until he reached the end.

And we’ve arrived at the end, mind you, the end of the lecture, not learning. There’s still much else to cover in regards to the marvellous world of anime and manga, but that will have to be covered in the future. Study and master the techniques I’ve explained. Doing so will surely allow you to produce something amazing. Well, I’ll leave on that note. Farewell, my students. Envision, create, and spread truth and justice across this world.

Following a final animation, the video came to a close. The group, having gone silent sometime during the runtime continued their silence in the seconds following the video’s end, until finally, Samuel creaked his neck Ray’s way and said, “I have so many questions.”

“Me too.”

“Me three.”

Following Samuel’s utterance, Joan and Jeff voiced one after the other.

Ray shrugged. “Fire away then.”

Given the go-ahead, the trio traded glances, communicating the order they’d go. Deciding to go in the order they spoke, Samuel cleared his throat and began.

“Ah, first, the identity of the lecturer, Zakute Umosa. You created this video, right. So, who is this? I’ve never heard about him before, and upon request, even the White Hawk’s database came up with nothing. Is this an actual member of the Silver Path or someone purely fictional? That’s my first question. My second one concerns the method of production,” Samuel paused, shut his eyes and did a final skim through his recent memories before continuing. “I didn’t watch the whole video but from everything I saw, I know a lot of paper is needed to produce anime. And, from the few stops at your house, I know you don’t have nearly enough to make the movie. So, how did you make it exactly?”

*Munch*

With Ray occupied with the important task of snacking, Ralf stepped up to answer.

((The video was made by us, but as mentioned, we didn’t want this fact known. Zakute Umose is a real Silver Path member - or I should say was. He’s long dead. We used him as a model because he’s one of the forefathers of anime. As for why you haven’t heard about him, well, most Silver Path members aren’t known to the world, and some exist in special states like Rei and Silver, who are members but can’t be discovered by normal means.))

((Now for the second question. You’re correct, we didn’t use the method we’ve shown in the video. The video was put out there to help others make anime and manga. There’s very little overlap between the methods shown and our method of production. We don’t need paper or tools, our method is simple - we just think it into existence.))

“Think it into existence?!” Samuel’s voice jumped at the claim. The others showed similarly shocked faces.

((Yep yep,)) Ralf confirmed. ((The method we use is far superior to the ones shown. It allows us to create things very quickly, expends no resources like paper or ink, leaves no waste behind and also allows us to produce things at a higher level of quality than is achievable by regular means. Until the technology catches up, no one will be able to match the technical quality of the anime we produce. As for manga, our method is also superior, but it’s more of an even playing field. With the likes of Naturals being a thing, I’m sure we’ll have high-quality manga soon enough. I imagine, there are plenty out there right now already working on this as we speak.))

“I have no doubt about that,” Samuel nodded. “So, you just ‘think it into existence’, what a method. It sounds ridiculous, but coming from you, that’s about par for the course.”

“Really is,” Greg added with a rub of his beard.

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“Next question,” Ray said, having just finished off his immediate delicacies.

“Um, why…why even put out the video in the first place?” Joan asked.

((You mean to ask why we didn’t try to monopolise it?))

The middle-aged bartender nodded.

((No way we’d do that. For one, it’s not even our original creation, so doing that would be unbecoming. Though, even if it was our original creation, we wouldn’t keep it to ourselves. As much as we love creating, we love consuming just as much. The end goal is to sit back, kick our feet up and relax and have an endless array of anime and manga to enjoy. Monopolising it for the sake of money is pointless to us. Right Ray.))

“Indeed.”

“Mm, I see, that’s very admirable of you.” Looks of admiration were garnered from Joan and the others at the words.

Ray’s eyes moved to Jeff. “Your question?”

“Um, I was just wondering when the next part is coming out.”

“Tomorrow.”

“That soon?!” Jeff’s eyes widened.

“So Ralf didn’t tell you. We plan to release a new movie every day until the Challenger Series ends. From there, well, it’s still up in the air.”

“Whoa, that’s great!”

The group burst into excitement at the revelation. With it being news to her as well, Hana was overjoyed. She leaned forward and engulfed Ray into her embrace and proceeded to squeeze him tightly. Being an artist and mother, she was especially excited to see more anime.

After a wave of celebratory words, Greg rubbed his beard and asked the question on his mind.

“That’s fantastic news. I’ll be watching them all, that’s for sure. If what follows is even half as good as what we just watched, I’ll be more than happy. So many more movies to come. Hey, have you already made them all, or do you still have to make them?”

Hearing the question, Ray’s eyes flashed with the light of opportunity. He quickly spoke.

“We’ve made nine so far, so we’re not even halfway done. Before coming over, I was working on the tenth one. Speaking of that, I should continue working on it. I’d rather complete early than rush anything.” Saying this, Ray swept his gaze over the crowd. “It’s been good meeting you all. All of you have helped my other self and mother in some way…for that, I thank you. For now, farewell.”

“Ah, going already,” Greg’s face fell with disappointment. “A shame, but understandable.” He quickly picked himself up to deliver his next words. “The feeling is mutual; it was good to finally meet you Rei. Definitely not what I expected, in a good way. Hope to see you around.”

The others followed up with similar sentiments.

Ray nodded at the final speaker then glanced back at his mom. “See you later, okay.”

“Yeah, see you son.”

Ray shifted back to the Mental Space, but not before lovingly rubbing his cheek against Hana’s, leaving hers and the others’ faces flushed in the immediate aftermath.

‘Haa,’ Arriving at his destination, Rei let out a great sigh. ‘That was a special type of exhausting. My battery is red and beeping. Got to recharge.’

He plopped himself on the couch and materialised a milkshake. As his lips closed around the straw, his other self’s voice reached him, saying simply, [[Good job,]] before the Mental Link was cut.

Ray’s being warmed at the praise. Becoming aware of the fact, he sighed a long sigh. ‘It seems I’ve changed quite a bit. Though...I can’t say I’m against it,’ he thought, remembering the endless amount of joy this change had brought him.

He wouldn’t simmer in his rose-tinted thoughts for much longer though. Remembering the positive reactions he garnered from Hana and others spurred him into action. So, making true to his words, he dove into the task of making more anime as thoughts of not wanting to disappoint swirled through his head and heart.

While he was doing this, Ralf passed the time cheerfully with Hana and the others.

In retrospect, Ray would be glad he got out when he did, as not a minute after he left, the Duke’s group arrived, bubbling with excitement, armed with a thousand questions in their machine gums, too eager to let it spray. Riddled, Ralf riddled back.

The night was a lively one.

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