I'm Not A Master, I'm A Director
Chapter 422: A Role Suitable for Arturia
For entertainment media with nothing better to do, finally getting a piece of non–Type-Moon-official news related to Shinji Matou was something they naturally focused on heavily.
"In the past, whenever a Shinji Matou film appeared on the IMDb hot rankings, it would inevitably take first place."
"Then one day, Pirates of the Caribbean made a dazzling entrance like a ray of morning light breaking the silence of night. Countless fans finally realized that Shinji Matou was not invincible."
"They began to look elsewhere, paying attention to films beyond Shinji's works. Thus, the gears of fate began to turn."
"The Walt Disney Company had always been a god of the film industry. Yet in recent years, lacking outstanding new works, its congregation had seen little fresh blood."
"Facing this predicament, Disney created a new angel under its banner—Pirates of the Caribbean. It attracted many believers and gathered vast faith. These fervent followers swore to elevate their new god to the top of the world. The era of the old god had ended; the new god would soon be crowned!"
"To defeat the overbearing Shinji Matou and his Garden of Sinners, they tirelessly gave Pirates of the Caribbean 10.0 scores while bombarding Garden of Sinners with 0.1 scores. Naturally, Shinji's followers refused to surrender their god's throne and retaliated with the same method."
As a serious and professional traditional media outlet, the Yomiuri Shimbun's report elevated the online dispute to the level of a struggle for dominance within the entertainment industry.
However, its stance clearly leaned toward Disney and Pirates of the Caribbean.
After all, as traditional media, they were unlikely to praise Shinji. Even though they'd received the information through Type-Moon, their position wouldn't change.
To them, Shinji Matou was a rebellious disruptor who broke Japan's traditional film market—an enemy to be opposed.
Unless Shinji was taken down, Japan's film industry would have no future!
Still, the Yomiuri Shimbun had its reputation to maintain. No matter how biased, they wouldn't fabricate everything outright.
Compared to them, gossip tabloids—slower in obtaining information—were like a group of blind men writing articles together. They simply made things up.
Some described the conflict as a corporate battle between Type-Moon and Disney, claiming it would lead to a series of future clashes.
Others, eager to stir chaos, went even further—saying Shinji intended to acquire Disney, and that Disney, to avoid becoming a Japanese company, was fighting back desperately, even mobilizing the masses.
"They really love exaggerating things. They make us sound like some kind of villains."
Looking at the media reports, Arturia Pendragon complained to Shinji.
"Yesterday, at the set's interview area, paparazzi even asked for my opinion. They wanted to know if I supported Type-Moon swallowing Disney."
"The media needs news hooks. After all, we've been too quiet in the past."
Shinji glanced out the window. Seeing several figures moving outside, he gestured subtly.
"Oh? Quite a few paparazzi out there. Arturia, believe it or not—since you refused interviews, tomorrow some tabloids will definitely claim I have an 'improper relationship' with you."
"Isn't that an old topic already?" Arturia shrugged. "Let them say whatever they want."
Rumors about her and Shinji had never stopped since Fate/Stay Night first premiered.
Honestly, it wasn't a big deal. In fact, an unmarried director not having any rumors with his leading actress would be the unusual case in the entertainment world.
At first, Arturia had formally denied any ambiguous relationship with Shinji, but no one believed their bond was merely that of a pure Master and Servant.
By now, even the King of Knights herself had grown tired of the paparazzi. She'd practically given up—believe whatever you want; I just won't acknowledge it.
"I actually think it's a pity," Shinji said with a smile. "It wouldn't be so bad if we really did have an ambiguous relationship."
"Master, you should say that to Miss Flora, Miss Ryougi, or that French saint. I'll pass."
Arturia Pendragon shot Shinji a cold glance, then set down her teacup and changed the subject.
"By the way, has Pirates of the Caribbean overtaken us in daily box office yet? The atmosphere's been so heated these days, even I'm getting curious."
"Today's numbers aren't out yet."
Shinji pointed downstairs. "Akiha's waiting for them. Ever since the rating war started, she's been paying attention too."
"And you're not concerned?"
Shinji shrugged. "I only need to know the result. I'm definitely not going to lose."
Hearing that, Arturia tapped her temple.
"Is that the confidence of a cheater?"
How could she not know what was happening on IMDb? As long as Shinji didn't allow defeat, even if Garden of Sinners's rating dropped, it would still remain at least 0.1 points above Pirates of the Caribbean.
So Arturia knew very well that no matter how intense the rating war became, the ending was already decided.
Compared to that dull certainty, the real impact lay in the meaningless flame war itself.
Thanks to the "rating battle" between the kimono-clad killer and the drunk pirate, Garden of Sinners had achieved another surge at the box office.
After seeing someone challenge their "god," Shinji's die-hard fans accepted the challenge and began rewatching the movie repeatedly to boost ticket sales.
Their numbers weren't huge, but their presence created the illusion that Garden of Sinners was worth watching multiple times.
Combined with the heated arguments surrounding both films, anyone even slightly interested in movies had heard about it. The name Garden of Sinners stuck in their minds.
Later, when these people went to theaters, they naturally chose between the two most familiar titles.
In a sense, they'd been subconsciously "brainwashed" by repeated exposure.
The truly miserable ones were the other films released in the same period. Under the double pressure of Garden of Sinners and Pirates of the Caribbean, June's box office revenue heavily concentrated on those two. Other movies were lucky if they even got scraps.
Several filmmakers had already publicly lashed out, claiming Shinji and Disney had ruined the market.
Shinji couldn't care less about losers' wails.
And honestly, even if his film hadn't released, audiences wouldn't suddenly go watch theirs.
"By the way, where's that saint?" Arturia asked. "Hasn't she been hovering around you lately? I don't see her today."
"She's at a screen test," Shinji replied, withdrawing his gaze from the window. "After FA, the earliest I can use her again is probably the film after next. To maintain her popularity, she needs roles elsewhere."
"Master's projects, huh…"
Arturia narrowed her eyes and smiled "kindly."
"So when will I get to participate in one of Master's projects again?"
Shinji awkwardly looked away. "Well… depends on the opportunity."
Her gaze sharpened further.
"Opportunity? Aren't all those opportunities going to Alter? Even the new project has her replacing me."
"..."
Shinji had no response.
What could he say? Every recent project simply didn't include the original Arturia.
In the end, this was all Kinoko and Takeuchi's fault—why hadn't they given the original King Arthur a role in Fate/Grand Order's story?
"There will definitely be projects," he insisted.
Under the increasingly intense gaze of the King of Knights, Shinji had no choice but to bring out his trump card.
"Besides the new project Alter is participating in, I'm also planning to launch a comedy-style web series. When the time comes, everyone from the FSN cast will be involved."
From Garden of Sinners to The Case Files of Lord El-Melloi II, and then the upcoming FGO, all of Type-Moon's projects this year leaned toward a more serious tone.
To give fans a change of pace, Shinji decided to bring out Carnival Phantasm.
After all, the cast for FGO's prologue was basically the Fifth Holy Grail War lineup. Filming Carnival Phantasm wouldn't even require reorganizing the crew.
"A comedy… well, fine, I suppose."
Having stayed by Shinji's side for so long, Arturia understood very clearly how he prioritized his projects.
A comedy. And a web series, no less.
This was obviously a project that wasn't being taken very seriously.
But regardless, her Master was finally willing to use her. That alone was far better than being ignored completely.
After all, none of the Knights of the Round Table under her command were idle. The "three idiots" were shining brightly in the idol world, Merlin would play a core role in the upcoming FGO project, and Mordred was even set to star in Case Files.
Compared to them, she—the King of Knights—had nothing to do, spending her days eating and idling away.
While slacking off did feel nice, the ever-disciplined King of Knights simply didn't have the mindset of a capitalist who could relax while their subordinates worked.
Seeing the "kindness" fade from Arturia's gaze, Shinji finally let out a sigh of relief.
But almost immediately, he found himself troubled again.
Arturia's popularity was extremely high. Keeping her shelved like this was such a waste.
Yet among the remaining projects he had on hand that actually suited the original Saber, aside from Carnival Phantasm, there was only FHA.
And once those two were finished… what then?
Sure, in the future there was still Castoria from Lostbelt 6 that could be handed to her—but with even the prologue yet to begin filming, who knew how many years it would take before 2.6 even started production?
"…Looks like the Spirit Origin Transformation system needs to be implemented as soon as possible."
If Arturia could change her Spirit Origin, her screen presence would increase dramatically.
After all, in the FGO plans written by Nasu, there were countless Arturia variants, yet the original King of Knights could only serve as a glorified app mascot.
Just as Shinji was pondering how to upgrade his in-house Holy Grail system with new "DLC," Hinako Akuta appeared at the doorway.
"The latest data is out?"
Shinji glanced up. Dressed like a literary girl, Hinako walked in on high heels at an unhurried pace.
After greeting the two, she took a seat beside Arturia.
"The latest North American daily box office numbers—Pirates of the Caribbean is only $100,000 behind Garden of Sinners…"
The data made Arturia sigh.
"Looks like that whole incident ended up giving that movie quite a boost."
As Shinji's Servant, Arturia naturally stood on Type-Moon's side.
"Filming Pirates of the Caribbean was one of Disney's rare smart decisions in recent years."
Even with its song-and-dance baggage, the sheer fun of Pirates of the Caribbean gave it the potential to become a top-tier IP. Shinji wasn't surprised by its performance at all.
"Now that its reputation is picking up, its box office won't collapse," Hinako added worriedly. "Our Garden of Sinners will definitely be affected. We won't be able to maintain the lead."
"By tomorrow, Pirates of the Caribbean might even surpass Garden of Sinners in daily box office."
She turned to Shinji, her gaze filled with expectation.
"Shinji Matou… do you have any countermeasures?"
If before, Hinako Akuta had merely hoped the movie wouldn't flop, then after the online war, her mindset had completely changed.
Now, she only wanted to win against Disney.
Because at this point, she truly saw herself as part of Type-Moon.
Seeing so many people online rallying behind Garden of Sinners, waving banners in its name—defending it for the sake of Type-Moon's honor, refuting the slander from opposing fans…
There was no way someone as sensitive as her could remain unmoved.
A sense of collective honor might sound abstract, almost illusory—but when people genuinely feel it, they will never compromise for its sake.
Shinji thought for a moment before asking,
"If I remember correctly, there's a dog in Pirates of the Caribbean—the one that carries keys in its mouth? It gets quite a bit of screen time… and seems to have it pretty rough, right?"
"Yeah, why?"
Having been keeping an eye on the competition, Hinako had watched the movie as well. That dog—constantly running around on screen, often ending up covered in soot from explosions—had left quite an impression on her.
Shinji spoke without hesitation.
"Then leak a tip to animal protection organizations. Say that the Disney crew abused animals during filming."
"…Would they even believe that?"
Hinako frowned, clearly doubtful of Shinji's rather underhanded idea. After all, what was shown in a movie and what actually happened on set were completely different things.
That dog might look miserable on screen, but in reality, it was probably treated better than half the minor actors.
"Relax. Those kinds of animal activists won't bother distinguishing the truth," Shinji replied with a mocking tone. "All they care about is whether they can get in front of a camera."
Animal protection groups?
How could someone from the post-2020 era not know what kind of person they actually were?
Sure, there might be some genuinely well-meaning individuals or organizations. But the ones who would jump at the slightest provocation? Those definitely weren't the serious kind.
On that, Shinji was willing to bet the rest of his life's happiness.
"Oh, right. Speaking of animal actors…"
Shinji turned to Arturia.
"Arturia, would you be interested in voicing the mascot for the new project?"
It was thanks to Hinako bringing up the dog that Shinji suddenly remembered a very important supporting character from FGO—Fou.
'I'm such an idiot… Forget Carnival Phantasm, forget Spirit Origin changes—I should've just brought up Fou from the start!'
Shinji inwardly regretted it. How had he not thought of that Beast earlier?
If he had mentioned it sooner, he wouldn't have had to endure the King of Knights' piercing glare for so long.
"Voice acting? That's no problem~"
Arturia nodded lightly.
"But, Master… who's the protagonist of this new film? Have you decided yet?"
At that question, the smile on Shinji's face finally faded.
"…That…"
He paused briefly before answering.
"I haven't decided yet."