I am a literary giant in Japan

The classical maid, who had just received the latest issue of "The Sea of ​​Books" from Simeon II and then devoured "My Apprenticeship" in one go, looked up again and realized it was almost noon.

"Oh no! I need to quickly inform the editorial department of 'Book Sea' that His Majesty has approved the publication!"

The classical maid lifted her skirt, clutching the book "The Sea of ​​Books," and looked around to make sure no one had noticed her "lazy behavior." Then she hurriedly ran towards the palace gate.

The captain of the royal convoy, who had been waiting outside the palace, saw His Majesty Simeon II's maid in such a panic for the first time, so he went to greet her without waiting for her to run over.

"Ms. Marilyn, is there something important to inform others?" he asked, dressed in a suit and tie, his expression grave, after bowing slightly to the classical maid.

The classical maid Marilyn was still secretly worried about her peeking at "My Apprenticeship" when she was startled by him. She shook her head with a hint of displeasure: "No, it's nothing important. I just need to inform the editorial department of 'The Sea of ​​Books'."

"The editorial department of 'Book Sea'?" The team leader was even more puzzled.

"The Sea of ​​Books" is a well-known literary magazine in the Kingdom of Bulgaria, but it has always been disliked by Simeon II and others due to its overly sharp language and disrespectful attitude towards the royal family.

In the past, the publication of such literary magazines was generally handled by the cultural administration department, and royal family staff like Marilyn rarely got involved.

"Yes." Marilyn didn't want to say anything more to him, and lifted her skirt to continue walking forward.

Seeing her anxious and impatient expression, the team leader became even more curious.

He stepped slightly to the side, not making way completely, and continued to ask, "Did 'The Sea of ​​Books' offend His Majesty? It seems to be the first time a person of your stature has personally gone to the editorial department to inform him."

The team leader's behavior of seeking out gossip had crossed the line for the royal family. Marilyn originally wanted to reply, "It's best not to ask things you shouldn't ask," but when she looked up and saw his appearance and mannerisms, which resembled a certain supporting character in "My Apprenticeship," she replied as if possessed, "You'll know what's going on when 'The Sea of ​​Books' goes on sale this afternoon."

"We'll know after 'The Sea of ​​Books' goes on sale this afternoon?"

I understand. Please take care.

If there's anything I can help you with...

Sensing Marilyn's displeasure, the convoy leader stepped aside, bowed, and only managed to finish his sentence before the sound of his small leather shoes fading into the distance filled the air.

1999年6月3日，下午1点30分。

The weather in the Kingdom of Bulgaria is gradually heading towards the hottest part of summer, and fewer and fewer pedestrians are strolling on the streets.

Wearing a small felt hat and a gray vest, he pushed a newspaper boy whose size was completely disproportionate to his own, weaving through the streets and alleys like a madman.

They are employed by human resources intermediaries who have long-standing shady dealings with major newspapers and magazines, assisting in the sale of various newspapers and magazines at the lowest possible prices.

The Kingdom of Bulgaria is like the Republic of China before World War II, with luxurious cities full of song and dance and extravagance on one side, and slums where people are starving and poorly clothed on the other.

In the same city, you can see towering steel forests, rows upon rows of lavishly decorated high-end bookstores, and also chaotic, carpeted literary shops full of pirated publications.

In order to reach the largest possible readership, both high-end literary magazines and tabloids that specialize in publishing celebrity gossip will hire a large number of newsboys to promote their publications everywhere.

Although the newsboy named Sharif is only twelve years old, he is already a "veteran employee" with more than five years of "work experience".

At noon today, as usual, he and his friends waited early at the gate of "Big Boss" Turgenev's villa, patiently waiting for the head maid to deliver the afternoon's tasks. Sharif was a relatively diligent and well-regarded newsboy, selling nearly 300 different magazines and newspapers a day. On average, he earned about 2 Bulgarian leva (equivalent to about 100 yen) for every 30 copies sold, barely enough for him to live on in bustling Sofia.

He had thought that his job this afternoon would be to deliver those obscene tabloids, but to his surprise, the beautiful head maid had someone carry in bundles of brand-new copies of "Book Sea".

"One bundle per person. You can come back for more when you're done selling them. Your commission will double. If you sell more than ten bundles a day, your commission will double again."

Sharif vividly remembered the words spoken by the head maid, who had a pretty but expressionless face.

"Ula!"

This is the sound of countless newsboys cheering and jumping for joy after hearing the good news.

"Book Sea" is a thick, full-length literary magazine with a high price per issue. The cost of the issue is already considerable. If the price is doubled or doubled again, and ten bundles are sold in a day, the income would be equivalent to half a month's "salary" for Sharif!
Sharif, who occasionally reads magazines, couldn't understand why the "high and mighty" Booksea magazine would change its distribution strategy and fly from the large bookstores that were out of their reach into the homes of ordinary people like them.

If you can’t figure it out, don’t think about it.

At this moment, Sharif, carrying one thick volume of "The Sea of ​​Books" after another, quickly shuttled through the streets and alleys, deciding to focus his attention on selling magazines first.

The afternoon sun reduced the number of pedestrians on the street by more than half, but this did not dampen the enthusiasm of the newsboys to sell magazines.

If no passersby wanted to buy books, they would knock on doors one by one to ask, or simply wait outside office buildings or cafes, asking anyone who came by – sometimes a blind cat catches a dead mouse.

After lunch, the team leader, who had come out for a drive, parked his car on the side of the road.

He rolled down the car window, smoking as he recalled what Marilyn had said to him that morning.

"Will we know the truth once 'The Sea of ​​Books' is released? That sounds both strange and bizarre."

The team leader was also a veteran among the royal employees, having served Simeon II for almost ten years.

Since escaping those turbulent days, Simeon II has rarely left his magnificent palace.

Sofia's development has been stagnant for the past decade, while the Kingdom of Bulgaria has been downgraded from a near-developed country to a developing country, and now has to rely on the support of the massive Russian bear.

Even so, Simeon II continued to do as he pleased, never caring about the lives of the people, seemingly determined to spend the rest of his life in the palace.

Such a monarch, resembling King Zhou, would rarely become enraged over anything.

As long as you have money and women by your side, who cares about the fate of the country?

But judging from Marilyn's tone this morning, Simeon II was clearly furious.

Just as the team leader was pondering, Sharif skipped and hopped past him with small steps.

"Hey! Little one! Do you still have 'The Sea of ​​Books'?"

The convoy leader flicked his cigarette butt away, deciding to "see for himself" and take a look at the "Sea of ​​Books" that Marilyn had described. (End of Chapter)