Mystery Detective of the Steam World

Chapter 523 Different Circles
After the release of the first episode of "Iron Legion", it quickly became a hit in the Empire.

The previous "Betty the Dog" was quite popular, but it was mainly liked by children and women, which is normal. After all, Levi originally drew it for Alice and her friends; he couldn't very well draw something R18, could he?

Therefore, boys, teenagers, and young people generally have a very average opinion of "Betty the Dog".

But Steel Legion is different.

The sheer weight of the mecha and the thrill of the battles completely captivated the hearts of many young people!
The plot, in particular, is a prime example of a satisfying and enjoyable story.

Li Wei had seen this kind of routine too many times; it had become industrial fast food, so he could just copy it directly without even bothering to think for himself.

But for people of this era, the novels they read emphasized artistry, focusing on tragedy and a pretentious, artsy vibe, like the eccentric romance novels written by Matilda. They'd never experienced anything like this kind of feel-good story before; they were completely blown away, screaming with pure awe – pure bliss!
Who wouldn't want to be the protagonist, piloting a mech and engaging in an exhilarating battle with monsters?
And another important point is that in "Iron Legion", Levi made extensive use of various camera angles to create momentum.

For comics, a sense of perspective is very important. When Li Wei drew "Betty the Puppy," it was similar to a four-panel comic, so he didn't need many angles or perspectives. He just needed to draw how cute Betty the puppy was.

However, Steel Legion obviously couldn't be done that way. In order to show the intimidation of the monsters, the shock of the mechs, and the impact of the group battles, Levi made extensive use of shots from various angles.

This is nothing short of a game-changer for the world.

It's important to understand that a sense of cinematography only emerged after the invention of the camera. Unlike painting, photographers need to consider how to capture a dynamic, three-dimensional world using a fixed lens. This isn't something that can be achieved in a year or two. Some newspaper reporters in the world today can grasp this feeling, but they only know the surface without understanding the underlying principles. They just feel that shooting this way will be effective, but they don't understand the underlying mechanisms.

This is normal; many things in humanity are like this. Why is that? I don't know. But they know it's possible, and as long as it can be used, that's enough.

As for the underlying principles, we can study them gradually in the future.

Therefore, the camera lens is still in its infancy in this world, because film and television have not yet been invented, so this aspect is naturally far from mature.

But for Li Wei, was this any big deal? His world was overflowing with classic animation, comics, and movie scenes; whatever he wanted to express, he could find similar ones and simply copy them. Those were the pinnacle of animation and movie composition from that world—bringing them to this world was like a game-changer.

The kind that can turn you into a two-dimensional foil with a single slap.

In a world where cameras had only been invented a few years ago, they had never tasted such a delicacy before, and were so badly beaten that they didn't even know their own names anymore.

Therefore, when Li Wei said he was going to open a studio, many people were quite excited and eagerly signed up.

Many of them were unknown painters.

There was something Li Wei wasn't quite aware of: he was a very awkward figure in the imperial art world.

When Livy first painted "Betty the Dog," the art world secretly mocked it because many artists thought it was black and white, uncolored, and not realistic (of course, Livy wanted to paint something cute to appeal to children), and was simply a mess.

Therefore, many artists privately ridiculed "Betty the Dog," but since he was an aristocrat and it was just a hobby, no one really said anything. Besides, there were plenty of aristocrats with nothing better to do; one more wouldn't make a difference. In the eyes of many artists, Livy was just trying to create a sketchbook, but with mediocre technique. Even if it were released, it wouldn't have been very popular.

As a result, "Betty the Dog" became an instant hit, so popular that almost everyone in the empire knew about it, leaving the artists completely dumbfounded.

This isn't right!

How could it be so popular?
He didn't even put on any color!
Instead of drawing a proper picture, he draws this grid pattern! And the puppy he drew isn't realistic at all!

Why do you guys like this so much?!

What truly broke these artists' hearts was the nationwide popularity of "Betty the Dog," appealing to everyone from commoners to nobles, from the elderly to children!
It's worth noting that even these artists' paintings aren't generally well-liked by the average person. Some people might even think, "Sunflowers are everywhere, so why do you have to paint one?"
He's insane.

But that doesn't matter. In the eyes of those artists, ordinary people are just vulgar and don't understand art. Their paintings are for the upper class who understand art; it doesn't matter if the lower class can't understand them!

As a result, when "Betty the Dog" came out, these people were so angry they almost vomited blood.

There were even some innocent children who said, "I think Betty the puppy is prettier than this," which almost made them faint on the spot.

Do you even understand art? Do you understand technique? Do you understand mood?
If Li Wei were merely a painter who made a living from this, these artists would certainly criticize him vehemently, regarding his style as heretical and evil, and then try to relegate it to the category of vulgar and childish children's books, or better yet, completely ban him.

Unfortunately, Li Wei is not someone they can simply blacklist.

What's worse is that Li Wei doesn't join their circle at all and doesn't hang out with them!

It's not that Li Wei looks down on these artists; it's just that he really didn't intend to put comics into the art world. After all, modern people know that although they are both paintings, comics and oil paintings are not the same category.

Do you think comic conventions and art exhibitions are the same thing?
Li Wei had gotten used to it and never thought about it in that way. In his view, you paint your oil paintings and I paint my comics; we have nothing to do with each other.

But this is fatal for the art world.

More importantly, for these artists, they paint not for money, but for fame.

But Li Wei happens to have both.

Unlike other artists whose fame is only known to "professionals," Li Wei's fame transcends his circle; people of all ages and genders, regardless of status, gender, or age, know him.

What about the money? Although Li Wei's "Betty the Dog" was inexpensive, not expensive, and followed a low-profit, high-volume strategy, Li Wei wasn't too concerned about the profits, as long as he didn't lose money. However, according to investigations and statistics by curious reporters, "Betty the Dog" was also incredibly profitable; they couldn't earn that much money even if they painted a hundred paintings.

What really broke these artists' nerves was that not only could the picture book of "Betty the Dog" sell for money, but so could related items!
The Betty the dog plush toy sold at Levi's boutique is especially popular! Now that "Iron Legion" is a huge hit, the store immediately started selling mecha toys, which also became an instant success, with queues stretching for two blocks.

This completely broke these artists.

Where does this come from! This is unreasonable! It's one thing for paintings to sell for money, but how come things related to paintings can also sell for money? Why don't we have such good fortune?!

Are they jealous?
Hey.

Are they angry?

anger.

Do they want to kill Li Wei?

Of course I want to.

But... they dared not.

Because Li Wei is no ordinary person; he is a famous detective, the Knight of the Thistle, and an Imperial Earl.

What can you do?
By attacking him, you are attacking the imperial nobility!
The art world itself is parasitic on the aristocracy, yet it dares to criticize its masters—this is turning against the heavens!
Moreover, Li Wei's main profession is not painting. He said in an interview that he has work to do, cases to solve, and the Empire is currently at war with Krant. He is very busy. As for "Betty the Dog" and such, he can paint them when he has more free time.

The artists' teeth ached from listening to that.

They rack their brains for a painting, spending months, half a year, or even a year, and in the end, they still might not be able to sell it.

You're so nice! Everyone else is waiting, and you just say, "I'll draw it when I have time"... Why don't you come find me? I have time anytime!

But those were only painters at the top of the art world.

For those in the lower and middle classes, this is a great opportunity to turn their lives around!

In fact, since Betty the Dog became a hit, many struggling artists have imitated this style. However, some of them failed to grasp the essence of comics, while others, although they did, lacked the funds to do something similar—after all, just because Levi could fund his own book printing doesn't mean they could.

Furthermore, the upper echelons of the art world disapproved of this style and severely suppressed these middle and lower-level painters.

If I can't suppress Sir Levi, can't I suppress you?
This left the painters in a state of great distress, unsure of what to do.

Moreover, they didn't dare to complain to Li Wei, since Li Wei himself said that he only painted occasionally and didn't make a living from it. In the eyes of these lower-class painters, he probably didn't care much about it.

Therefore, the news that Li Wei was going to open a studio immediately excited many painters.

In this way, they will have a powerful backer!
Soon, all sorts of letters were sent to Li Wei, and as a result, Eileen had to bring a cartload of letters to Li Wei every day.

Li Wei, of course, didn't bother to look at it. He directly gave the conditions: anyone with a foundation in drawing must create their own painting based on either "Betty the Dog" or "The Steel Legion" and send it to him for review. If they passed, they could become Li Wei's assistant in his studio.

After all, Li Wei's main purpose in opening the studio was to have assistants, not to teach people to paint from scratch. Once these people have learned, they can start their own basic courses.

After all, many cartoonists actually started as assistants and worked their way up.

Unbeknownst to Li Wei, information about his workshop had also been relayed back to Krant by Krant spies. This information was presented as evidence that the Empire wouldn't attack Krant in the near future; after all, if the Empire wanted to attack Krant, Li Wei wouldn't be doing this for no reason. Therefore, in the eyes of the Krant spies, Li Wei's workshop was proof that the Empire had no immediate plans to take action against Krant.

Well, Li Wei hadn't expected to have tricked these spies. But it's true, if it weren't for the Queen's "official mission," he wouldn't want to do anything either. Wouldn't it be much more comfortable to stay home, play with little girls, pet mermaids, and have maids serve him?

Li Wei ultimately selected five artists with a good sense of camera presence and excellent drawing skills to join the studio. The advantage of these artists is that they are already highly capable, but they lack understanding of the comic book format. They are the type who can be taught quickly and become readily available assets.

As for the others... we'll talk about them later.

"Alright, that's enough people."

Li Wei selected five people and handed their letters to Eileen.

"Eileen, go and write a reply, telling them to report to the studio on time."

Li Wei is now extremely glad he had the foresight to buy all the buildings surrounding the tower. The advantage is that it's incredibly convenient to come home; he can go to work as soon as he steps out the door and come home as soon as he goes upstairs, without even needing a car – it's fantastic! His studio will naturally be located in one of these buildings, and after a little renovation, he'll be ready to work.

On the contrary, when Li Wei was in elementary school, the school was right next to his house; he could walk there in no time and never had an excuse to be late. If the teacher wanted to find him, they only had to cross the street; they didn't even need to make a phone call.

That's terrible.

This shows that convenience is truly a matter of personal preference.

Moreover, Li Wei has been very busy lately because he has some things to do. Although it is not troublesome for Li Wei to do these things as an earl and a knight of thistles, it is still annoying.

If it weren't for the prospect of a comfortable, laid-back life in the future, Li Wei would never have bothered with all this trouble.

Now...

Finally, the time came for the studio to start.

And the assistants also came to the studio to report for duty.

(End of this chapter)