I Became A Playwright In Medieval Fantasy

"Phantom..."

Maya muttered the name of the famed writer as her eyes narrowed with sharp focus.

‘I thought he was just some nobody, but I was wrong.’

Drawn by curiosity about the emergence of a new Sword’s Champion candidate, she had ventured into the capital. Naturally, she found herself attending a performance of Farewell My Concubine, which was taking the city by storm.

It was during that performance that Maya realized something critical.

The Pen’s Champion candidate—

You knew too, didn’t you?

The only thing that ensures survival in this world is strength. The overwhelming power to dominate others.

"..."

Maya closed her eyes, focusing intently as she began to meditate.

She was well aware of the craze that Farewell My Concubine had sparked in the capital. Young mages and knights had taken to imitating the martial techniques shown in the play, adapting their mana to mimic the internal energy techniques, resulting in the rise of the new class of “Magic Swordsmen.”

"Fools."

The inner energy displayed by Xiang Yu in the play wasn’t mana.

For days after watching the first part of Farewell My Concubine, Maya had been instinctively practicing. Reflecting on the depiction of qi circulation from the play, she focused her entire mind on her dantian (energy center).

Despite being part elf, Maya was an orphan who had been born and raised in human society. She had no idea if the elves depicted in the play were historically accurate, as the portrayal of elven culture was vastly different from the teachings of her former elven mentor.

"..."

But as a Sword’s Champion candidate who had trained in the way of the sword her entire life, she knew one thing for sure.

The inner energy depicted in Farewell My Concubine—Xiang Yu’s power—wasn’t magic at all. It was more akin to the concentrated writhing of accumulated life force.