Last updated: Jan 17, 2026, 11:05 p.m.
View Original Source →AUTHOR'S NOTE
THIS INTERLUDE IS A SAMPLE FROM THE UPCOMING BOOK.
Big news, everyone! KADOKAWA Enterbrain has officially decided to publish this series. Volume 1 hits the shelves on November 5th! You can already head over to Amazon to grab your copy!
I really can’t thank you all enough for the support. You guys are the best.
This interlude is a little teaser for the extra stories I’ve added to the physical release. While the actual book will feature different side stories, this should give you a good idea of the vibe I'm going for.
The light novel includes five new stories in total, covering things like Beta’s first meeting with the protagonist, Rose being protected by Cid (who was totally risking his life, obviously), and even a little something called The Complete Chronicles of Master Shadow. There are two more on top of that, so if you're curious, I’d be honored if you picked up a copy.
I’ll post more details in the activity report, so stick around!
The air smelled of wood.
Sunlight filtered through the trees and into the window. I paused, looking up from the mountain of paperwork I’d been organizing.
I stood up and walked to the window. Outside, a massive tree towered over the street, and beyond its branches, the cityscape of the Royal Capital stretched out toward the horizon.
It was late autumn. The leaves had turned a brilliant, fiery red, and the wind carried that unmistakable woody scent right to me.
Back then, I was always wrapped in that warm aroma.
I closed my eyes, letting the memories wash over me. Those days when we all lived together. That nostalgic, earthy scent…
ALPHA
Back when Shadow Garden was just the two of us—Shadow and me—I lived deep in the forest.
During the day, I was usually alone in the hut he’d built.
The place was always thick with the smell of fresh timber. He had built it from scratch, starting with nothing but a pile of logs. That was when he taught me the "Two-by-four" construction method.
At first, I just stood there watching him work, but eventually, I started helping out. By the time we were finishing the place, I was doing most of the heavy lifting myself.
It was our hut. A memory we built together.
It was simple, and honestly, our craftsmanship was a little rough around the edges, but I loved that place. I loved how it smelled of wood.
He could only visit in the middle of the night, so I spent every day counting down the hours until the sun went down.
While he was gone, I spent my time training my Magic Power and practicing my swordplay, or maybe hunting small game with traps and gathering wild greens.
At night, he’d show up with bread and meat, and I’d cook for us. As we ate, just the two of us, he would tell me all sorts of incredible stories.
"You know, steam actually has enough power to move giant masses of iron," he said one day.
I was busy making stew, and I just stared at the steam rising from the pot for a while. There’s no way this flimsy little vapor hides that kind of strength, I thought.
But everything he’d told me up to that point had turned out to be true, no matter how ridiculous it sounded. Whether it was the fact that the world is a sphere rather than a flat plane, or that the world revolves around the sun instead of the other way around—I’d denied it all at first. I told him it was impossible. But in the end, he was right. He was always right.
So, if he said steam had some secret, massive power, then it definitely did.
"How do you even extract that kind of power from water vapor?" I asked.
He went quiet for a bit, happily eating my stew. He’s always calculating, I realized. He’s deciding exactly how much knowledge I’m ready for.
"When you heat water, it becomes steam. That’s what generates the force. The hints are... let’s see... piston movement and turbines, I think?"
He gave me one of those meaningful, enigmatic smiles.
He never just gave me the answers. He’d drop a few breadcrumbs and leave it to me to figure out the rest.
"I can’t work it out with just that," I complained.
This was way harder than his usual lessons. I had planned to start my steam research the next morning, but with only those two words to go on, it was going to take forever to find the answer.
"If you master the power of steam, you can make giant iron carriages move. You can even make iron ships sail."
He wasn't giving me hints anymore; he was describing the "Steam Engine" and its possibilities.
The idea of a ship made of iron actually floating and moving was insane. But if he said it was possible, it was as good as done.
"So, the Steam Engine is worth that much of my time..."
He just kept smiling that mysterious smile. He was always pushing me to think, always training my intellect and my problem-solving skills. Thanks to him, my abilities were growing at a terrifying rate. I was learning more from him than I ever would have from the "elite education" back in my home country.
Might is a great power, sure. But intellect? Intellect is the real game-changer.
I’d always thought of myself as a smart kid. Back home, nobody could keep up with me.
But him? Even though we were the same age, he was standing on a peak so high I could barely see him.
There’s always a bigger fish, I thought, gazing at his profile. He looked dazzling.
"Hm? Something on my face?"
"Nothing."
We finished our stew, he gave me some pointers on my sword and magic, and then I saw him off before the sun came up.
I stood there waving until he disappeared from sight.
I was happy.
As the seasons changed, our "just the two of us" era came to an end.
A silver-haired girl with a beauty mark under her eye joined us. That was Beta.
She was incredibly shy back then. She was terrified of him and spent most of her time hiding behind my back. I’d known her back in our home country, and she knew me, too. We hadn't really been friends—just acquaintances who’d swapped pleasantries at parties—but since we were in the same boat now, we bonded instantly.
Gamma and Delta joined shortly after that, and our lonely little hut suddenly got very loud.
We used the techniques he taught us to expand the place, eventually turning it into a proper house. It was a warm home, always smelling of wood.
One day, he cut Delta and Gamma’s training short and called a meeting.
Delta was busy looking down her nose at Gamma, while Gamma was glaring back with tears in her eyes. It was the usual routine.
"Delta is the strongest! Facts!"
"I-I’m older than you! And I was here first! Sniff..."
"You’re just Gamma. Know your place."
"Stop it! Let go!"
Delta tackled Gamma and climbed on top of her. Apparently, dogs do that to establish a hierarchy.
"Alright, that’s enough, you two."
I pulled them apart. Delta actually listened to me—she was loyal to the pecking order, for better or worse.
That was exactly why she hated the fact that Gamma, who was weaker, was technically her superior. And Gamma, for her part, couldn't stand "muscle-brains" like Delta. They were like cat and dog. Or, well, dog and... whatever Gamma was.
"Power isn't just about physical force," he told the group. "In the world of men, intellect is what truly rules."
"Boss...?" Delta muttered, looking confused.
"Master Shadow..." Gamma looked up at him like he was her personal savior.
The wind blew, carrying that scent of wood.
"I shall teach you the power of knowledge—how a single Gold Coin can be made to swell many times over. I will show you how to manipulate money and dominate the global economy..."
Then, he laid it all out. He told us about his grand vision for banks and something called "Credit Creation."
"Incredible..."
The word slipped out of my mouth. I felt like a little kid again. The sheer scale of it, the terrifying depth of his wisdom... it made me shiver.
Behind me, Beta was shivering too, though mostly because she was still scared of Shadow.
Delta was shivering because she’d fallen asleep in the cold night air.
But Gamma... Gamma was shivering with pure emotion.
The light came back to her eyes—stronger and brighter than I’d ever seen it.
"Master Shadow... I have found my purpose. I know the path I must take."
He just nodded.
Gamma changed that day. She became obsessed with his knowledge, studying until she forgot to sleep.
I started talking with her more, and Beta joined in too. Together, we began to sketch out what our future organization would look like.
Eventually, Epsilon joined, then Zeta, and finally Eta.
In that house filled with the scent of wood, we were happy.
I’ve been running ever since that day.
I’ve lived so intensely, so recklessly, that I stopped even noticing the smell of the trees.
The sunset stained the room in a beautiful, deep red.
"Alpha-sama, it’s time."
There was a knock, and Gamma walked in.
"Do you remember?" I asked her. "Back when we used to talk in that hut, surrounded by the scent of wood..."
"The scent of wood?"
Gamma stood beside me, looking up at the large tree outside. She took a deep breath of the wind and narrowed her eyes.
"It does bring back memories, doesn't it?"
"The dream we had back then is finally taking shape... but we're still only halfway there."
"I suppose we are."
"We’ll keep running," I said. "We’ll follow the path we believe in, and we won't show mercy to anyone who stands in our way. Shall we?"
"Yes!"
We left the room together.
The scent of wood from those early days is something I’ll carry in my heart forever.
I was able to get this published thanks to all of you! Seriously, thank you!
I’ll put the specifics in the activity report, so go check it out! The book drops November 5th, and pre-orders are live on Amazon!
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