Chapter 155

Despite its gorgeous opening event and significant fame, the stationery store was quiet.

"Oh—human!" The Autumn Demon with bright red hair, who had been sulking behind the counter, stared at me. "Why do you look like that?" His eyes held a look of serious desperation, as if I were his last hope.

"I've been waiting! I've been waiting for so long!" The pride he'd felt about becoming a boss was long gone.

Curious about what was happening on this street, I asked directly, "What's the atmosphere like in this kingdom?"

The demon squeezed out an excuse. "Ugh… everyone here is a wizard who uses their power. As soon as I put out a product, they immediately copied it! So all the customers scattered…"

"In short, they're selling counterfeit versions of our products, right?"

"Yes, exactly!" The demon looked at me with tearful, unjust eyes.

I stared out the window, a feeling of despair creeping in. I saw the same shops I'd noticed earlier, all selling items that were blatant copies of mine. What's the way to overcome this situation?

"If the law can't save me, I'll have to take matters into my own hands. Let's just blow up the plagiarists," I muttered sullenly.

"Heh… that's truly devilish, yes!" The demon seemed startled.

I stroked my chin, deep in thought. The demon shook his head and spoke, as if making a serious declaration. "My ideas shine on humans, you know."

"Hmm?"

"All my ideas are being stolen. I'm going to die of frustration!"

"Wait…" My thoughts, which had been racing in a different direction, stopped. "Original?"

"Yes, the original! I'm the originator! They're all stealing from me!"

The word "original" gave me an idea. It was a marketing strategy perfectly suited for a time when fakes were everywhere: Originality Marketing!

"Dirty humans who copy the abilities of smart demons like me…"

"Yes, you're so smart! You've given me a great idea. It's all thanks to you." I hugged the demon tightly and kissed both of his cheeks.

His face turned as bright red as his hair. "What is this perverted act!"

His way of speaking was starting to sound like the Winter Moon Demon, but I dismissed it as my imagination.

"You're a demon, why are you scared of kisses?"

"Who, who said I was scared! Do it again! Do it again!"

I kissed him on the top of his head. "Listen up," I said.

The demon, with lipstick stains on his cheeks, looked at me, seemingly not expecting me to take his opinion so seriously. I was already prepared, though. I grabbed his hands and declared sternly, "Pour all your original ideas into me."

The demon's eyes lit up. "Well, listen to this. In the demon world, I was known as the 'Idea Bank.'" He chattered on for hours, and he wasn't kidding. The sheer volume of his ideas was impressive. I was so moved that I decided to make a special addition to his salary.

"You're a genius! How about we create a prize lottery?"

"Okay, just you wait. I'll pour out some great ideas!" The Autumn Demon clenched his fist and shook it enthusiastically.

A grim, vicious smile appeared on my face. They're all dead. I'll show them the true power of the original.

One Month Later

Royal Street in the Magic Kingdom, a well-known street for general stores and cafes, was once again bustling with activity. It was located in the center of the royal road, and the shops here were quite trendy, constantly changing their inventory to keep up with the latest fads.

But the most popular shop at the moment was "Mel's Stationery Store," which had come from another empire. Its items were unique and strange, capturing everyone's attention. The wizards of the Magic Kingdom were pioneers by nature, so they were even more curious.

Of course, the people who watched the stationery store most closely were the other merchants on Royal Street.

The owner of a general store and a tall, burly man from the hardware store were chatting near the stationery store today.

"I wonder what kind of new items that stationery store will have this time."

"Hmm, I don't know. The extra-tall yo-yo they released last time was hard to copy," said the hardware store owner, rubbing the back of his nose. He had spent a lot of time trying to recreate the two-meter-tall toy. "I hope this time it's something easy to copy."

A young man from a flower shop passing by gave them a short gesture. "No, that's against morality."

A red-bearded man, nicknamed "Ginger," sneered. "You just have to succeed. It's good to be the best. I'm the one who will succeed anyway."

As they were about to leave, a girl about fifteen years old passed by with a cart full of flowers.

"…Isn't that the owner of the stationery store?"

"Whoa."

"Look closely! Something new is about to come out!" The three men's eyes were fixed on the stationery store's exterior wall.

The girl tapped her cart, and a flower flew into the sky, creating the word "Original" in mid-air on the wall.

"What does that mean?" All the merchants on the street came out and started chattering.

Ginger, the most obsessed with the stationery store, muttered with a bewildered look. "What the hell does 'original' mean?"

"Why would you write that out of nowhere?"

"Let's observe it more carefully."

Despite their determination, nothing unusual happened at the stationery store. However, after some time, they began to understand the meaning of the word.

"Why are there no customers today?" The owner of a general store who had invested a lot in copying the stationery store's products rubbed his mustache nervously. He had even borrowed money from the bank to make more. "It's not even a holiday."

Impatient, he threw a duster to the floor and opened his store's door. He was shocked. There was no one in front of his store. But there were plenty of people on Royal Street. He looked down the street and realized what was happening.

Young nobles in the Magic Kingdom were lining up in front of the stationery store!

He stood in front of his own shop, his voice trembling. "What on earth is happening?"

Ginger, standing next to him, quietly took a puff from his cigar. "Huh, you didn't know? I heard they distributed a pamphlet to the children. Did you see it?"

"A pamphlet?"

"Yes! Something about 'copyright infringement.' They gave a lecture, like, 'Don't buy copy products! Raise awareness!' or something."

Copyright infringement? A pamphlet? A lecture? And why were those children lining up in front of the stationery store? Why weren't they buying the cheaper copycat products anymore?

Ginger, glancing at the bewildered merchant, stubbed out his cigar on a fence. "Come to think of it," he said. "Have you noticed anything strange this past month?"

"Yes?"

"There were a lot of strange noises coming from that stationery store, right?"

"Oh, I just heard a loud squeaking sound."

He hadn't thought much of it at the time. He'd assumed they were playing the piano or drums. When he'd heard gloomy sounds, he had just passed by, wondering if a wizard had summoned a strange ghost.

But now, he was going crazy, wondering what those strange sounds meant.

"What the hell is going on?"

"Something we don't know about!"

The two men felt the urgent need to find some clues.