Chapter 338 - A Guide for Background Characters to Survive in a Manga

Chapter 338: The Real World Su Bei: "?" "What kind of bizarre setting is this?" he couldn't help but comment, "Isn't it not yet time for the extras? Why is there something so strange already? Am I about to start a new sub-plot?" This time, it was the author's turn to be perplexed, and he was deeply astonished: "No, you just broke the fourth wall! Suddenly talking about extras, and all." Su Bei put on a profound expression: "Isn't it reasonable that after breaking through the fourth wall of the manga world, I accidentally broke through the novel's fourth wall as well?" "Reasonable my foot!" the author exclaimed in frustration. “Are you secretly a character from someone else’s work? If anyone is borrowing my world setting, they should prepare for my legal department! Don’t underestimate my legal department; it can rival that of DiSony!" Just as he finished talking, he clutched his right cheek in pain. "Ouch! That was a harsh hit." "Thanks for the compliment, but I was just kidding." Su Bei replied nonchalantly, his playful persona had just flared up. He had no idea about any other work. The author quickly dropped his exaggerated demeanor: "I was joking too." Where would he get a legal department? The two of them exchanged a silent glance. The author coughed and said, "Anyway, take care of yourself, and try not to get caught up in any strange events. Even though there are no Nightmare Beasts or superpowers in this world, there are many small worlds. If I remember correctly, you should automatically return to the manga world in about an hour... oh no, now it's half an hour. So it doesn't matter. I won't jinx you, just be careful." Su Bei gave an OK sign: "Got it." The author's statement about not jinxing him meant he wouldn't say anything like, "Just don't die within this half an hour." Saying that out loud would have sounded too much like tempting fate, better to keep it unspoken. Pushing open the door to the outside world, Su Bei quickly walked downstairs. The real world was quite different from his own; it seemed much more advanced. On the streets, sweeping robots could be seen in action, leaving everything neat and clean. There were also flying vehicles in the sky, clearly personal transports. Like traffic lights for cars, the sky had signals for these aircraft to follow. This strange yet familiar sight was due to never having seen such advanced technology, but it slightly resembled the futuristic worlds he wrote about in elementary school essays. A technological world? Su Bei was a bit surprised. Wait, what is that? Suddenly, Su Bei noticed someone in the distance washing a car by hand. The cloth was continuously spraying water, making it self-sufficient for car washing. Surely, that cloth couldn’t be a product of technology, could it? No, it wasn't the cloth, but rather the hand holding it was capable of spraying water. Is this a superpower? Su Bei wanted to go over and ask, but feared being seen as an oddball. After all, anything that can be used openly on the streets must not be a secret. If he went to inquire, at best, he would be seen as ignorant; at worst, he might get detained. After all, manga characters coming to the real world isn't unheard of; who knows what they're thinking. Suppressing his curiosity, he continued forward and soon arrived at a school. At this time, elementary students were about to be dismissed, and little kids began trickling out from the school building. Suddenly, Su Bei’s eyes narrowed. What was floating beside those kids? Dolls? If he wasn't mistaken, small, talking, floating dolls were sure-fire indicators of transformations, right? Magical girls? YeOli? Guardians O'Heart??? Su Bei's mouth dropped open in disbelief, a rare expression of shock on his face. He no longer wanted to continue exploring, and only wished to get back to ask the author what kind of world this was. Robots, superpowers, magical girls—a mishmash of everything? How can that be right? With a head full of questions, Su Bei couldn't hold it anymore and turned around. With so many systems of abilities, he feared he'd accidentally encounter something he shouldn't. Better to get back quickly for safety; if he didn't return, he'd be in trouble. However, he hadn’t gone far when he faintly heard a familiar term. That little girl seemed to be talking about "King of Superpowers." After all, it was his own anime. Although he often communicated with readers via forums, he’d never met real manga readers. Su Bei couldn't help but step back to eavesdrop on their conversation. The girl with the pink fairy by her side said righteously, "Ai Baozhu is the best! You guys who don't like her have no taste!" "We don't dislike her; she's just not our favorite," the nearby little boy argued. It's worth noting that the boy had a blue fairy by his side, fitting stereotypes quite well. "Not your favorite means no taste." The girl stated seriously, then curiously asked, "So who's your favorite?" "Of course, it's Jiang Jiang Jiang Tianming!" The blue fairy boy became excited about his favorite character, "I really love this protagonist, he's like my duplicate—smart, wise, calm, and composed." "And your looks?" the purple fairy girl next to them rolled her eyes, arms crossed, looking cold and sarcastic. The pink-haired girl turned to her, "Little Qing, which character do you like best? Don't deny it. I've seen you sneakily reading 'King of Superpowers'!" Caught by surprise with her secret revealed, Little Qing’s face flushed, then she replied, "My favorite character... should be Su Bei. I want to be like him." "I love Su Bei too!" another red fairy boy exclaimed excitedly, "He's so handsome! Why don’t I have a fate-based superpower?!" No sooner had he said this than the red fairy by his side mercilessly kicked him: "Saying that in front of me, are you seeking death?" The red-haired boy yelped, clutching his forehead comically. Unfortunately, no one sympathized with him; they all started discussing Su Bei instead. As a major character in the recently concluded storyline, Su Bei was on everyone's mind. "I wonder if Su Bei is dead... I hope he isn't, otherwise I'd really cry," the pink-haired girl said, face downcast. "I really like him." Talking about Su Bei's potential death, even the aloof purple fairy girl lowered her spirits: "Why did it have to be Su Bei to die? If it were anyone else... not that others deserve it, but they seem more likely to make such decisions. Why Su Bei?" The children all sighed in unison, looking downcast. Standing not far away, Su Bei found the scene amusing. The puppet at the end of the story had already led many readers to speculate he was alive. The past few days, Su Bei browsed forums filled with fans hoping Jiang Tianming and the others would grieve for longer. Seeing genuine concern about his death from young readers, he was unexpectedly quite touched among the laughter. Manga readers, such an audience, became nearly useless to him after his crisis ended. Nevertheless, having people care about him without expecting anything in return was a great boon. It gave him a sense of strength whenever he thought about it. Of course, just occasionally. If he thought about it too much, he'd feel embarrassed. Checking the time, Su Bei turned towards a public restroom. Thankfully, the real world also had public restroom settings, allowing him a discreet place to vanish when he returned. Disappearing on a busy street might cause chaos, which could trouble the author. Causing the author trouble might be something Su Bei anticipated, but if it interfered with drawing the manga, the "Manga Awareness" would likely cry. Originally, he intended to quickly return and question the author about the strange world with so many mixed power systems, but eavesdropping on the kids’ conversation took up time, and now he had to return to the manga world obediently. Though asking the "Manga Awareness" would suffice, being the author's subconscious, it must know a lot about the real world. In the moment he returned, Su Bei was very grateful for choosing to hide in the restroom where no surveillance or human eyes could see him. If a golden hand suddenly appeared from a magic circle on the street to grab him, he would die of embarrassment. Following the same process, he returned to his room and let out a long breath: "I'm back!" "Welcome back!" The "Manga Awareness" cheerfully exclaimed, even popping a small party popper in celebration. Su Bei poured himself a glass of water and gulped it down. Once he regained his composure, he asked, "When I visited the real world, I encountered so many strange power systems. Why is that?" This was information that needed no concealment—in fact, there was currently nothing left to hide from Su Bei. The "Manga Awareness" explained: "Because the barriers between worlds in the real world aren't very stable, they tend to connect with a variety of worlds, including the product worlds like our own. Some people accidentally enter and might bring abilities from those worlds back with them, creating a reality filled with diverse power systems." So that's how it is, Su Bei realized. But soon, he grew curious again: "Then shouldn’t authors strive to construct powerful power systems and integrate them with the world's foundation to make themselves and the real world stronger?" "Of course not!" The "Manga Awareness" sounded a bit surprised. "Why would you think that? If everyone focused solely on the power in their works, eventually the real world could be breached by the worlds from their stories." Contemplating further, it offered a more straightforward explanation: "For a world to be integrated with the foundational world through approval, the primary condition is that it cannot exceed the strength of the real world." "Very meticulous," Su Bei gave a thumbs up, though he was pondering another thought. If they secretly developed beyond the author's view, wouldn't it be possible to break the fourth wall with their own strength? He had to stop this train of thought; indulging further might turn him into some antagonist sparking a world war.