The novel serialization went extremely smoothly.
Through Makarov’s connections, the newspaper offered Aito 3,000 Jewels per thousand words.
Aito had no idea whether that was high or low, but apparently it was considered slightly above-average pay.
Each installment was around three thousand words, meaning he earned roughly 10,000 Jewels a day, or about 300,000 a month.
For Fairy Tail’s Mages, that was only the reward from a few jobs.
Looking at it that way, Mages really did have incredible earning power.
Making money as an ordinary person wasn’t easy at all.
Fortunately, this was only the beginning.
Once the novel eventually received its own published volumes, that was when Aito expected to make serious money.
But when it came to Naruto, it really ought to have a manga too.
It was one of the few manga Aito had actually finished in his previous life.
Recreating it here could also serve as a small tribute to the world he could never return to.
With that thought in mind, Aito approached Reedus, the Fairy Tail member who specialized in Pict Magic.
“Reedus, have you read the novel that’s been running in the Fiore Kingdom Daily lately?” Reedus was nineteen this year.
He always dressed neatly, usually in the same suit and hat, and had an exceptionally gentle personality.
That made him completely out of place among the violent apes filling the rest of Fairy Tail.
Reedus normally sat quietly in a corner of the guild drawing.
He was one of the few men Aito actually had to approach himself—the rare introvert inside a guild overflowing with extroverts.
“Oh, little Aito.
A novel in the newspaper?
I haven’t really noticed it.” “Oh, then take a look.” Aito immediately shoved the manuscript into Reedus’s hands.
‘Introverts like him are usually terrible at refusing people.
Just push ahead.’ Reedus scratched his head awkwardly.
He’d originally planned to spend the afternoon drawing, but after hesitating for a moment, he still accepted the manuscript and began reading.
“Hmm?
Aito, have you learned my Smoke Magic yet?” Wakaba, apparently with nothing better to do, wandered over to tease the kid.
He was a young man with long, curled pompadour-style hair and looked rather flashy, but he was surprisingly helpful.
Wakaba had previously spent a day teaching Aito Smoke Magic.
He was also good friends—and constant rivals—with Macao, who specialized in Fire Magic.
“Not yet.
I’ve been busy learning other magic.” Aito brushed him off with a cheerful smile.
In truth, he simply thought Smoke Magic wasn’t particularly useful.
Its destructive power was low, and it felt more flashy than practical.
“Damn it.
Don’t bother with Macao’s Fire Magic!
His flames are useless.
I put them out easily every time!” Just yesterday, Aito had successfully used Fire Magic inside the guild.
Macao had gotten so excited that he immediately started shouting about teaching Aito Purple Flare, then spent half the day showing off in front of Wakaba.
Aito had no idea what these bored adults were even competing over.
“I’m not planning to study more Fire Magic right now.
I’m interested in Reedus’s Pict Magic.” Aito shook his head.
He intended to focus on Script Magic for the foreseeable future, but he still needed to maintain his image as a child fascinated by every kind of magic.
After all, another kind-hearted Mage might someday walk straight up and offer to teach him something new.
“Aito, this novel is really good.” By then, Reedus had finished the manuscript and looked genuinely delighted.
“It’s being serialized in the Fiore Kingdom Daily?
Looks like I’ll have to start buying the paper more often.” “What is it?
Let me see.” Aito handed the manuscript to Wakaba, then looked back at Reedus.
“You liked it?
Would you be interested in turning it into a manga?
We could work together and make a lot of money.” “A manga?
Wait—work together?” Reedus’s eyes widened so much that his glasses nearly slipped off.
“Aito, did you write this novel?” “That’s right.” “…Fine.
I’ll believe you for now.” Reedus adjusted his glasses.
“But what’s a manga supposed to look like?
Something like an illustrated storybook?” “It’s a little different.
Hmm…
Why don’t you teach me Pict Magic first?” Aito smiled.
“So, are you interested in working together and making money?” Reedus scratched his head again, looking troubled.
“I don’t mind making money…
and I really do love drawing.” “But I don’t really want drawing to become a job.” “In principle, I won’t rush you for pages.
I’ll only handle the novel.” Aito nodded.
“I understand not wanting something you love to become purely about money.” “In that case…
all right.
Let me teach you—” “Tch.
Brat, are you sure wasting your talent like this is a good idea?” An unfriendly voice interrupted them.
Aito felt an arm suddenly rest on top of his head.
“I heard you learned Gildarts’s magic.
Not bad.” “But right now, you should be focusing on increasing your Magic Power, not wasting time learning weak magic with no future.” “You understand what I’m saying?” “Oi!
Laxus!
That’s going too far!” Wakaba dropped the manuscript onto the table and snapped at him.
Aito already knew exactly who had arrived.
Laxus.
He was fifteen, Makarov’s grandson, and the strongest Mage among Fairy Tail’s younger generation, wielding extremely powerful Lightning Magic.
He was sensitive underneath all the attitude, loved acting cool, and was another classic tsundere.
His father, Ivan, was an S-Class Mage.
Unfortunately, Ivan was also scheming and unpleasant—one of the relatively few genuinely bad people in Fairy Tail.
Aito had already judged both father and son difficult to approach, so he’d rarely interacted with either of them.
He hadn’t expected Laxus to come looking for him today.
“What?
Did I say anything wrong?” Laxus gave a cocky laugh.
“Their magic really is weak.” He patted Aito on the head again.
“So, brat?
Stop hanging around these losers.
How about I teach you Lightning Magic instead?” ‘See?
Maintaining the right image really is important.’ ‘Another skill just walked straight to my door.’ Aito turned around and pretended not to understand the hostility.
He gave Laxus his sweetest smile.
“Thank you, Big Brother Laxus~ But I’m learning Pict Magic right now.” “Once I’ve learned Reedus’s magic, I’ll come find you, okay?” Laxus: “?” Laxus had clearly been ready to curse at him.
Then he remembered that the person in front of him was only six years old.
His irritation suddenly vanished, leaving him strangely deflated.
“Tch.
Whatever.” After Laxus walked away, Wakaba angrily slapped the table and took another drag from his cigarette.
“That brat Laxus gets more arrogant every day.
Aito, whatever you do, don’t turn out like him.” “Haha.
It’s fine, it’s fine.
No need to fight.” Reedus quickly tried to calm things down.
“If Aito wants to learn Pict Magic, though, he’ll need to learn how to draw first.
That’s something you can only improve at step by step.” “Don’t worry.
Just teach me the magic.” Aito smiled innocently.
“I’ll figure out how to learn it myself.” Reedus: “?” Aito had absolutely no intention of wasting months learning how to draw.
‘Why would I reincarnate with a cheat and then refuse to use it?’ ‘The second Pict Magic appears on my system, I’m dumping points into it!’ “All…
right.” Reedus hesitated before beginning his explanation.
“Pict Magic is actually a combination of Script Magic and Molding Magic.
It’s sometimes called [Script-Molding Magic].” “It’s a type of Molding Magic that gives a drawing the properties depicted within it.” “The difference is that, to materialize an entire drawing, you need to pour Magic Power into every part of the image simultaneously—in a single instant.” “I can’t do that.” “So instead, I draw on my skin and channel Magic Power through my body.
The downside is that I can only materialize fairly small objects.” As Reedus spoke, he picked up his brush and drew a lifelike little pink bird on his palm.
The instant he finished, the bird flew out of his hand and landed on Aito’s finger.
“Chirp, chirp~” Visually, audibly, and even to the touch, it felt exactly like a real bird.
The little bird soon flew over to a sheet of paper.
The magic dispersed, and it returned to being a simple drawing.
Reedus looked at the picture with a gentle smile.
“Amazing, isn’t it?” “That’s why I love this magic.” “Yeah.” Aito nodded sincerely.
“It’s a beautiful kind of magic.” But from the corner of his eye, he was already staring at his System Panel.
[Molding Magic LV0, 333/1000] [Pict Magic LV0, 1/1000] Pict Magic had appeared directly beside Molding Magic on the same line.
Once again, the system had grouped related forms of magic together.
Aito then looked at his reserves.
[Inspiration Points: 5481] ‘Hmm.’ ‘Add points!’ …
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