Became an American Retro Novelist - Chapter 226



Only Noblemtl

226.

Two days after the successful conclusion of the 33rd Worldcon in Atlanta, the Los Angeles Times devoted a large space to a special article in its culture section. This was quite unusual, as other newspapers and magazines had also reported on the Hugo Awards, but had only briefly mentioned the results.

It had to be that way, because the author of that article was none other than Julia Chandler.

She briefly described the history and scale of American SF, and explained the authority of the Hugo Award. Then, after giving a brief plot summary of each award-winning work, she moved on to the Losers series and explained the enormous significance of a novel that won both the Hugo Award and the Nebula Award.

Julia smiled proudly as she checked the article through the printed newspaper.

‘I wrote it, but it’s actually a bit biased.’

But so what? This is the Los Angeles Times. No one will say anything if they promote a writer who once published novels in this newspaper.

Julia was so delighted with the award as if it were her own that she happily wrote the article with a little, no, a lot of selfishness.

Winner of both the Hugo Award and the Nebula Award.

It was by no means an easy feat.

Even talented writers who have won two awards multiple times have not easily achieved the result of winning both awards at the same time. In an environment where thousands of new novels are published throughout the United States every year, it is extremely difficult to be recognized for both literary quality and popularity.

But Julia thought God’s ‘Losers’ series deserved the crown.

A masterpiece that swept the year. A science fiction novel that made the talent of the writer Shin spread not only within California but also outside. A product of imagination that made many people ponder and discuss each other, and at the same time, made them look back on their own lives with a touching and lingering ending.

There, Julia showed off her talents and fired a congratulatory shot.

‘Congratulations, Mr. Shin.’

She smiled happily as she thought of the god who must be enjoying the glory of a Hugo Award by now.

The news of the new author’s award, published in a special article in the Los Angeles Times distributed throughout California early that morning, brought joy to many who were working hard to live each day.

Many people shared their feelings of joy over the new writer’s award as if it were their own.

“Oh my, Mom! I heard that Mom got a prize this time!”

“Congratulations! Seriously! Your son must be so proud!”

“I guess I can get married!”

“Hey, no! I’m still a student!”

The Mother of God with her mouth hanging from her ear among the people of the Korean community.

“Haha, this writer! I knew you could do it!”

“That’s right. You’ve been writing really interesting stuff since ‘Mother.’”

Dinner was filled with laughter at the Fisher couple’s table.

“hmm······.”

Juan Vega, the night watchman at the glass factory, nodded silently.

“’Losers’ was the best.”

“Yeah, that’s it.”

“Here, give me one mashed potato!”

Meshbeard Al and his trucker friends sat together in the restaurant, chatting away.

“Master! Did you hear the news?!”

“Ah! I never thought God would win the Hugo Award!”

“I, I! I can’t stand it! I’m tattooing God’s name······!”

“Huh, it’s amazing that ‘our god’ can produce such wonderful results.”

There was also a lot of commotion at Kitten’s Comic Book Store. In particular, the owner, Kitten, seemed to be planning a special discount event to celebrate ‘Our God’ winning the Hugo Award.

And finally, friends who God personally contacted over the phone.

“God. You are number one.”

Dupi, who had just finished working out at home, pushed up his glasses.

‘Brother Shin, congratulations!’

Jiwoo smiled brightly after reading the article in the Los Angeles Times.

“Ah······! It’s really so cool!”

Alexa would shout that out over and over again while reading a script in her office.

While those who knew God directly or indirectly or felt close to Him were each rejoicing in their own way, Shin, who had returned to Stanford University, was faced with a very uncomfortable situation.

“Congratulations, my lord. What a wonderful achievement.”

“Go, thank you.”

This was because Edward MacMillan called me into his office and personally made me coffee.

I was truly grateful for the gesture, but the recipient felt a tremendous sense of burden.

***

Winning both the Hugo and Nebula Awards simultaneously created quite a stir at school.

Now, wherever I went, everyone would see my face and whisper to me. Now, it wasn’t just my friends from the creative writing department or my dormitory, but there were also people who would suddenly come up to me and ask for my autograph.

At first, I was worried about what to do, but as long as it wasn’t a situation where it could be a nuisance to those around me, like right before class started, I decided to gladly accept the request and give my autograph. I thought that was the fate of an author who had won two prestigious awards.

But once the signing started, it never ended with just one person. After that person finished, the next person waited, and it was not uncommon for a line to form.

In this daily routine of dealing with each person one by one, the fall semester of my third year began, and after about two weeks, it seemed like most of the people I could meet among those attending this school had gotten autographs. But from one day on, the number of autograph requests decreased noticeably.

“······Now I can finally walk around a little more comfortably.”

A leisurely afternoon at a cafe after class.

There was no request for an autograph for quite some time, so I slumped my shoulders and let out a long sigh.

John Smith, sitting across from me, laughed heartily like a giraffe eating its favorite leaf.

“God, you’ve really worked hard!”

“Was it that much?”

Kate Moore tilted her head.

As she entered her third year and began to specialize in her major, she became so busy with her classes that she rarely met with the three of us from other departments. However, according to her, she continued to come to this pulp fiction club to talk about genre fiction because ‘there was no benefit to it.’

“Yeah. Lately, wherever she goes, she gets attention.”

Rebecca Wong looked at me with her characteristically sharp eyes.

Kate nodded, convinced.

“Well, it is a tremendous achievement.”

“What does performance and signing have to do with each other······?”

“Before, even the kids who just thought it was okay to have it, now think that your autograph will have a huge premium in the future.”

“Haha! I guess everyone just realized the true value of God!”

It wasn’t a comforting(?) experience that really resonated with either of them.

I smiled bitterly and leaned back in my chair.

This time has become extremely precious to me.

There have been many changes in this club over the years.

John Smith’s ‘Warrior’s Way’ began serialization in Guns and Sword magazine under Simon’s control. Rebecca Wong’s short stories were also steadily published, with Julia’s feedback and some level of adjustment, whenever there was a manuscript lapse in the culture section.

So that’s one of the biggest changes that’s happened.

That is, if they wanted, each person could have one cake.

In a place where people talk about novels, a steady supply of sugar is essential. And now at least three of them were making money by writing novels.

That means, even if we eat cake at every meeting, we don’t have to worry about the financial burden.

‘I could have bought it for you whenever I wanted, but every time we meet, it seems strange that I’m the one buying it.’

Is this the taste of success? How delightful.

While they were thinking that way, everyone took something out of their bags.

It was ‘Kung-fury: Comics’ issue #13 that came out just this week.

Yes, the series has reached this point.

The comics developed in a different direction from the novel, with Zero appearing in the middle and revealing his design and presence, and it ended with the two characters finally facing each other in issue #12.

And in the hot new issue #13, they square off.

“Okay, let’s get started.”

Rebecca took a bite of her carrot cake and opened her mouth.

“This issue was good too. I never really had a hobby of reading comics······.”

“That’s right. The action scenes were awesome!”

“It’s just a painting. How can you think that’s cool?”

“You can imagine!”

Interestingly enough, each of the three found the fun factor of ‘Kung-fury’ different.

John Smith found the action sequences and each superhero’s superpower settings interesting, Rebecca Wong paid attention to the racial issues embedded in the film’s worldview and how they were resolved in the narrative, and lastly, Kate Moore was interested in the chemistry between each character and the psychology and actions of the main character, Kung Fury.

Although everyone had different impressions, we all ended up becoming fans of ‘Kung-fury’.

‘That’s amazing.’

This means that even when reading the same novel or comic book, each person can have different thoughts.

While the kids were chatting away excitedly, each sharing their impressions, I took out Issue #13 from my bag and looked through the comic once more.

In a dark alley in Los Angeles.

The US government’s declaration of a state of emergency made people reluctant to go out at night. But even in such circumstances, or rather, because of such circumstances, ‘evil’ was able to operate in secret.

Kung-Fury, who has been patrolling the streets on his own as a superhero with no particular intention of promoting a kung fu dojo, finally faces ‘him’.

It was the cyborg ninja, Zero.

A black shadow rushes in without saying a word.

There’s Kung-Fury, who fights back with his martial arts skills.

“Ugh, you’re killing me!”

“······?”

“why?”

John trembles as he recalls the moment depicted in the novel, and the two women do not understand.

Here, strictly speaking, I was on John’s side.

Kung-Fury vs. Ninja.

Ninja vs Kung-Fury.

What should I call this romance? It was something close to something that only men could understand, but anyway, it was cool.

The two continued to fight for a while. However, Kung-Fury was eventually defeated by Zero’s unpredictable attacks using smoke bombs and a cyborg body. He was held by the neck and was in danger of having his powers taken away, and at that very moment, someone attacked Zero.

An explosion of carbon dioxide separated the two men.

Kate Moore, who happened to notice the relationship between Kung Fury and Sodapop, was so excited that she took the novel she brought with her comics out of her bag and started reading it herself.

······I don’t understand why he always links male and female characters into romantic relationships, but he himself never dates.

“Are you okay, Fury?!”

It was soda pop.

Kung-Fury, who had been hit by the wall due to the impact of the carbon dioxide, stood up in deep pain. Then he looked at Zero standing up on the other side. His red eyes shone sharply, and the ninja pulled out the sword attached to his back as if he could not do it.

Sodapop, who had come close to Kung Fury, could not help but be astonished when he finally saw his opponent’s appearance.

“Isn’t that the terrorist that appeared on TV a while ago?”

“That’s right. For some reason, he attacked me. And the moment he grabbed my neck, I could feel the strength slowly draining from my body. Be careful. If he catches me, it’s over.”

“No······! Let’s just run away!”

“no.”

“why?!”

“It’s not that simple.”

Kung-Fury took a deep breath.

Breathing learned from Shifu.

Step on the ground. And punch.

Ppaang-!

The sound of cutting through the air shook the atmosphere. Sodapop’s eyes widened.

Kung-Fury said.

“I’m angry right now.”

Joe just wanted to live peacefully and quietly.

Unable to bear the fact that he was being consumed as a ‘war hero’ in the cold reality, he gave up all the glory he would receive from the country and came to America. But it was the same here. Many superheroes were being sacrificed as sacrifices for the propaganda of the country.

As Kung Fury experienced that reality again, only one thought came to mind.

‘I’m angry.’

This whole situation is so disgusting that I can’t stand it.

That is why, for himself alone, he dared to practice ‘good’ even if it was ‘fake’.

Because that’s what he thinks a ‘superhero’ is.

Even if it means covering yourself in filth and suffering, you pursue righteousness.

And there, terrorists were clearly an evil that had to be eliminated.

“How pure.”

A robotic voice came out from near Zero’s mouth as he heard Kung Fury’s words.

“Mom, you can talk!”

“I know how to do it. I am human.”

Zero staggered forward.

“A pure and utterly typical ‘superhero.’ A sacrificial lamb who fights because he thinks it’s the right path, without even realizing that he’s being consumed as a dog for the country. That’s exactly you.”

The arm holding the sword began to spin violently. It became a whirlwind, swallowing up the surrounding dust, rolling newspapers, and trash.

“I will make you a sacrificial lamb for my ambitions. Kung-Fury.”

Despite Zero’s continued provocations, Kung-Fury said nothing.

Sodapop, who had been biting his lips in front of the previous statement that seemed to pierce his heart, hesitated whether to run away or not, and soon spoke to Kung Fury in a cautious voice.

“Phew, Fury. Say something.”

“Sorry, I’m a novice so I don’t understand English.”

“······.”

Sodapop, who can neither laugh nor cry, and Kung-Fury, who keeps breathing while maintaining his posture.

A zero whirlwind flew towards the two people.

“Oh, I really liked this part.”

Rebecca suddenly shrugged her shoulders in triumph and explained why she liked the ‘ching-chang-chong’ part.

“My father is exactly like that. He usually talks well with other people, but when something bothers him or he gets into a difficult situation, he takes the position of ‘I don’t know English.’ He even imitates whining. And does that guy get really angry when other people whining? It’s ridiculous. Isn’t my father the one who wants racial discrimination more than anyone else? What do you all think?”

“······.”

“······.”

“Why is no one saying anything?”

“Hey, Rebecca.”

I answered on behalf of the two white guys(?) who avoided eye contact as ‘members of the same race’.

“If they agree to this, they’ll be trash the moment they do it.”

“ah.”

Rebecca nodded in understanding for a moment.

The rest of the story is filled with the kind of intense battles that John Smith loves.

Kung-Fury attacked alongside Sodapop, being careful not to get his neck grabbed by Zero.

Kung-Fury’s body as a machine and his skills as a ninja combined with his swordsmanship pushed him back, but the tricky movements of Wing Chun learned from Shifu and Sodapop’s assistance helped bridge the gap between the two. Thus, Kung-Fury’s fists finally succeeded in destroying Zero.

『Woojijik-!

When I grabbed Zero’s head and ripped it off, the sound was like a tree breaking.

His head hit the floor, and Zero’s head let out a strange laugh. It was a reaction that he hadn’t expected this to happen.

It can’t be helped.

Because Kung Fury didn’t fight with ‘super powers’, he fought with the power of ‘Wing Chun’.

Kung-Fury, now covered in wounds, took a step back, breathing heavily.

“That’s interesting. It’s really interesting.”

“······.”

“What did you say your name was?”

“Why should you answer?”

“Of course, I already know. Kung-Fury. A superhero with a righteous heart who is not suited for this era and this country. A righteous bystander who is helping to deceive this society. However, purity is a sin. You are nothing more than a puppet of the U.S. government, and in the end, you will destroy everyone.”

Kung-Fury thought Zero was making a big mistake.

He became a superhero just to make money and survive in this American society. He wanted to make his kung fu school prosperous, make money, and live in peace. But why can’t he do the right thing just because he’s pursuing personal happiness?

Beneath the mask of the hero is just a slightly strange eccentric with some troubles, and doesn’t everyone have a strange, eccentric side to them?

Joe was the same. It was just like that, but Zero was definitely misunderstanding something.

He said that he was one of the few ‘heroes with a righteous and just heart’ in this world.

But instead of correcting the misunderstanding, Kung-Fury spoke.

“Think whatever you want.”

“Hehe, see you next time, Kung-Fury. ······If you can survive here.”

With that, sparks rose from Zero’s body.

“what······?!”

“Fury!”

Sodapop, who had rushed in, tried to put up a carbonated barrier to extinguish the flames. However, the flames that had already started to burn spread like a blazing fire, consuming everything. Sodapop’s eyes widened. That was because the flames showed a strange ripple like the flames of Firestorm that he had seen in Tag Up before.

“under······.”

Why on earth is that?

Why does this terrorist feel so uncomfortable with himself?

Leaving the unknown question behind, Kung-Fury watched Zero disappear into the flames.

“Kung-Fury-! It’s too strong-!!”

John Smith shouted excitedly, opening to the page of issue #13, which contained a cut of Kung-Fury with his back to the flames.

······I was embarrassed because everyone was staring.