AutumnXd
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CHAPTER 14
🕑 Added 2025-04-30 09:49:35 +0000 UTC“So, you’re saying that is the infamous, uncontrollable natural disaster—the Ancient Red Dragon, Zhuo Ge?”
On the third floor of Zhuo Ge’s Toy Store, Aisha brought Yuno in front of a certain someone who was currently sprawled across the couch, lazily flipping through a comic book.
“Yep, that’s him. He just looks small right now because he’s using a size-altering gadget.”
“Oh, come on. I’m already under a ton of stress. Don’t joke around like that.” Yuno was clearly not in the mood.
“I’m not joking! Zhuo Ge, come on—prove you’re really Zhuo Ge!” Aisha flailed her arms anxiously, her oversized plush mascot paws swishing through the air.
Zhuo Ge slowly rolled over on the couch, blinking at Aisha with a blank, innocent look.
“…Haha,” Yuno let out a dry, stiff laugh. “What a funny joke. I’ve got stuff to do.”
Wait, what?!
Aisha was stunned. Was Zhuo Ge really going out of his way to sabotage her that hard?
“He’s got an idea for recording scenes that’s even better than record magic!”
“ROAR!”
Zhuo Ge got a little too excited, and accidentally released a burst of pressure that blanketed the entire room.
Yuno failed his Will save and was immediately struck with panic.
His knees gave out as he dropped to the floor, scrambling backward like a terrified crab. He didn’t get far before his eyes rolled back, and he passed out cold.
“Uh, whoops. That was an accident.” Zhuo Ge scratched his head awkwardly. “Hey, it’s a toy store. You gotta keep a few surprises around, right?”
Good thing his current size kept the roar from being too loud, and the room’s soundproofing held up—otherwise, the whole lower floor might’ve been knocked out cold.
One dragon and one human dragged Yuno’s limp body onto the sofa.
SMACK—
“Roar? (Should we hit him again to make it stick?)”
“You try it then.”
“Roar! (What if I accidentally kill him!?)”
“Fine, I’ll do it.”
SMACK!
“That’s for stealing my toys when we were kids!”
SMACK!
“That’s for putting glow-in-the-dark potion on my clothes!”
“Roar. (Dang. What’d this guy do to you?)”
SMACK!
“My dearest brother, whew, I’m getting tired here.”
“Roar? (Wait, what!?)”
Eventually, Yuno groaned and came to, both his cheeks burning like fire.
When he opened his eyes, he thought he saw two dragon heads. One was plush… the other looked real.
“AHHHH!” Yuno screamed and rolled off the couch. “Aisha, RUN! I’ll hold it off!”
Aww, he does care about me, Aisha thought, a little guilty. She casually pointed next to her. “He’s the one who smacked you.”
Eventually, Yuno was pinned back onto the couch and calmed down.
“So you’re telling me… you’re really the manager of Zhuo Ge’s Toy Store?”
Aisha nodded.
“And the real boss behind the store is the red dragon Zhuo Ge?”
Another nod.
“And you work for him. And you want to pitch my project to him?”
Vigorous nodding.
Yuno rubbed his face like he was trying to make sense of reality. “Okay… go ahead and explain your project.”
“You mean explain it to…?”
“He’s the one asking. Just go for it. He understands.”
So Yuno launched into his entire theory—detailing all his guesses, the current missing components, and the conceptual framework of his invention.
Aisha fell asleep three times during the explanation.
Yuno had a gift for wrapping obscure terms in layers of nested clauses, turning what could be said in a sentence into monstrous academic paragraphs.
A true academic. The kind who’d write a 60-page paper on how spoons work.
Still, Zhuo Ge got the gist of it: Yuno was trying to invent a camera.
Given this world was still in its steam-tech era, it wasn’t based on photoelectric sensors, but on magic crystal photoconversion. Functionally similar—turning light signals into a manipulable output.
And they were going straight for a color camera.
“So what’s the biggest problem right now?”
“The whole setup can’t run for long. Current magic-power devices are affected by crystal resonance. We need something that can actively stabilize the energy output.”
“Why not just have a mage power it?”
Zhuo Ge pictured it: every camera operator with a robed mage trailing behind, clutching a power cord. That’s another job created! He was practically saving the economy.
“That won’t work. Magic from living beings fluctuates and interferes with the crystals.”
“…Wait. You said living beings, right?”
“Yes. Only living creatures can regulate their magic output—non-living objects just—wait a second…”
It dawned on him who he was talking to.
A dragon. A possibly undead-friendly dragon.
Excitement lit up his voice. “In theory… sentient undead could work too!”
“Perfect. Go grab your prototype and tools. We’re going to visit one of Dragon Isle’s specialties.”
Thirty minutes later, the trio arrived at the mixed-species quarter.
Yuno was visibly nervous. He’d never been in a place like this—rumors said it was crawling with danger.
An orc approached to greet them.
“Lok’tar Ogar!”
Zhuo Ge gave a slight nod. He kept orcs around just to hear that one line.
Led by the orc, they walked through streets where windows slammed shut and doors bolted. Even stray dogs tucked their tails and ran.
They reached a district marked with red paint on the doors—Zhuo Ge’s stronghold in Twin Tower City.
Inside the central building, goblin 104, sharply dressed as always, stood at attention with a line of undead behind him.
“Master, they’re ready.”
“Excellent,” Zhuo Ge said, turning to Aisha. “Let him pick one.”
Yuno’s hands worked much faster than his mouth. In no time, he’d hooked the entire setup to one of the undead.
“Ready to test.”
Now, what should they film?
Zhuo Ge thought for a moment. “Send in Toto. And tell her to bring a yo-yo.”
A flash of light, and half-elf Toto appeared holding the unreleased next-gen Butterfly Dance yo-yo.
She looked around nervously.
What was this? Was she being executed for stealing extra portions at the employee buffet? Surely they weren’t that petty!
What’s that weird device on the undead?! Was this some twisted ritual?
“We’re shooting a yo-yo tutorial,” Zhuo Ge announced. Might as well make something useful.
“Uh… what about my shop duties?” Toto asked hesitantly.
“On hold. From now on, you’ll work fully with Yuno—the human guy over there—to film a complete tutorial series. Triple your current salary.”
Zhuo Ge knew her well. Toto’s greed rivaled that of dragons. Her work ethic scaled directly with her paycheck.
After a few trial runs, the undead had mastered camera operation. The only unsettling part was jamming the power source into the spirit body—it looked mildly cultish.
And thus, on the 9th of June, Year 852 of the Third Age, the world’s first film was officially completed. Runtime: 3 minutes, 20 seconds. Content: A half-elf demonstrating how to make a yo-yo sleep and return.
Soon after, a contract landed on Yuno’s lap.
“Quit your old job and work for me. Your sole mission: optimize this camera. Make it portable. Versatile. Long-lasting. If you need assistants, just tell Sin 104. He’ll find them.”
Yuno didn’t even hesitate.
Maybe working at the institute was scarier than working for a dragon.
Zhuo Ge had expected cameras to arrive decades later. With things moving this fast, he was in an excellent mood.
Traditional theaters… are you ready for some competition?
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