"Hey, hey, have you heard? A new shop just opened on the shopping street, and there's a long line outside!"
"I've heard about it! Apparently, it's some kind of performance called shadow puppetry."
"Oh? Have you seen it already?"
"Of course! I was among the first to watch it. It was super amazing! Turns out our world was created by a primordial god..."
Discussions like this spread throughout Sedona City.
It was now the second day after Lucas had watched the shadow puppet show. After making some minor adjustments, he officially opened the theater for business.
Ticket Pricing:Front three rows: 2 copper coins per seatMiddle three rows: 1 copper coin per seatBack three rows: 5 steel coins per seat
On the morning of opening day, the entrance to the shadow puppet theater was completely packed.
With each 40-minute performance, people crowded outside waiting for their turn.
Of course, most commoners could only afford seats in the back rows. The front and middle rows were considered too expensive, so wealthy merchants quickly claimed them.
Daily Schedule:10 performances per day40 minutes per show20-minute breaks for the performers and venue cleaning4 shows in the morning, 4 in the afternoon, 2 in the evening
In Sedona City, 5 out of 10 people already knew about the shadow puppet show. Those who didn't were probably busy working—but in another two or three days, the whole city would know.
…
Today, Joe had come to watch the shadow puppet show.
After waiting in line for two hours, it was finally his turn to enter.
At the counter, he paid 2 copper coins, received a ticket with the number "5", and walked into the theater.
As he approached the first row…
"Oh? Lord Bryan, you're here to watch the shadow puppetry too?" Joe looked at the man seated in seat number six with surprise.
Bryan paused for a moment upon hearing his name. When he turned and saw Joe, he gave a small nod and said softly, "Ah, Mr. Joe, you've come as well. I heard the shadow puppetry was amazing, so I brought my wife to watch it."
In fact, he and his wife had already watched two consecutive performances. Now, they were about to watch the same show for the third time, yet they were still completely engrossed.
"Yeah, I came because everyone's been talking about it." Joe said as he took his seat, waiting for the show to begin.
"Trust me, you won't be disappointed." Bryan chuckled. Then, he stood up and walked toward the ticket counter—he was buying another ticket.
Lucas had arranged it so that a new episode was added every seven days. During those seven days, the theater would repeat the previous episode, giving everyone plenty of chances to catch up.
For example, "The Stone Monkey Leaves the Mountain" would be performed continuously for seven days.
After that, a new episode—"The Stone Monkey Finds a Master"—would be added.
From then on, the number of performances for each episode would be based on ticket sales, with older episodes gradually making way for new ones.
This cycle would continue, one episode at a time.
Realistically speaking, performing the entire Journey to the West through shadow puppetry would take at least ten years.
But that was fine—a legendary, long-running shadow puppetry was now born.
Of course, new stories would be added in the future.
As someone who had traveled from another world, Lucas wasn't limited to just Journey to the West.
He had an entire library of classic tales at his disposal—"Romance of the Three Kingdoms," "To Kill a Mockingbird," and countless others.
The possibilities were endless.
Of course, before any of these stories could be performed, Lucas had to translate them into the local language, then adapt them for the shadow puppetry format.
That process would take time.
But once they finally made it to the white curtain… it would all be worth the wait.
…
"Dong! Dong! Dong!"
With the sound of drums, the shadow puppetry officially began…
During the performance, the entire room fell silent.
Everyone sat completely still, their eyes fixed on the white curtain, mesmerized by the moving shadows.
Some were staring in awe, while others listened intently to the story, hanging onto every word.
"..."
At this moment, nothing else in the world seemed to matter—only the story unfolding before them.
"To find out what happens next, tune in for the next episode!"
Forty minutes later, the performance ended.
A staff member pulled back the black cloth covering the window, allowing light to flood the room.
The audience sat there, stunned, many of them still caught up in the story.
Some had the urge to shout for another performance, but then they remembered the cashier girl's reminder—"No loud noises inside."
So, with reluctant sighs, they silently got up and exited the theater.
…
Joe remained seated, dazed, his mind still replaying the incredible performance.
His eyes sparkled with excitement as he suddenly rushed to the counter to buy another ticket.
Meanwhile, Bryan and his wife decided three shows were enough for today.
Many of the wealthy merchants were just like him—watching two or three performances in a row.
That evening, in his castle's study, Lucas reviewed the day's earnings.
In just one day, the shadow puppet theater had brought in:
1 silver coinOver 300 copper coins
Considering that the theater wasn't very large and could only seat a limited number of people, Lucas was quite satisfied with the results.
Having a bigger theater wouldn't necessarily be better.
Without amplification equipment, and considering that shadow puppetry relied on light and silhouettes, people sitting too far back wouldn't be able to see clearly.
After all, it wasn't a stage play.
Lucas pondered—should he open two more shadow puppet theaters?
If he had three locations, he could easily earn one gold coin per day.
But after a moment, he shook his head.
"No rush."
The city needed more buildings first, and that wouldn't happen until next year.
Plus, translating and adapting novels was a time-consuming task.
"Young Master? What's wrong?"
Mina's soft voice pulled him from his thoughts.
Seeing him shake his head, she thought something was wrong.
"Nothing." Lucas replied, setting down the report. Then, in a calm voice, he said,
"The day after tomorrow, you're coming with me to Pentos City."
"Understood." Mina nodded seriously.
Even if he hadn't said anything, she would have followed him anyway.
Annie was in the middle of writing when her hand paused, and her eyes flickered with hesitation.
But in the end, she didn't say, 'I want to go too.'
She was now an important member of the castle and understood her responsibilities.
Sedona City needed her skills.
She couldn't act willfully like before.
Instead, she thought of something else and asked,
"Young Master, what items are you planning to take to the auction?"
The quality of auction items was crucial.
The whole point of attending an auction was to make gold coins.
If the items weren't impressive enough, it would be hard to earn a fortune.
As for selling those so-called 'artifacts'…
That would be far too reckless.
"Nicole already took the auction items to the inner vault this morning." Lucas said with a smirk.
Last night, he had returned to Earth and brought back some online purchases for the auction.
"Can I see them?" Annie's eyes widened with curiosity.
"Of course you can." Lucas chuckled.
"Didn't I give you a key to the inner vault a few days ago?"
Currently, only four people had access to the inner vault, Lucas, Nicole, Annie, Mina.
But Annie and Mina never entered unless Lucas specifically instructed them to.
"Uh… where exactly in the inner vault?" Annie asked awkwardly.
The vault was packed with items, with dozens of cabinets and shelves filled with goods.
"Hold on, let me check."
Lucas pulled open a drawer and took out the inventory list that Nicole had given him at noon.
Scanning it, he read aloud,
"It's in Cabinet No. 77."
"I'll go get it." Annie nodded seriously, flipping her long hair as she turned to leave.
"Mina, go help her." Lucas said calmly.
"Yes!" Mina nodded immediately and hurried after Annie.
She was just as curious about what their young master was planning to auction off.
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