Chapter 37: Caught Off Guard
Inside the movie theater, as "Konosuba God's Blessings on This Wonderful World" came to an end and the magic crystal at the top of the hall slowly lit up, laughter still lingered throughout the entire cinema.
Just moments ago, as they watched the protagonist agonize over owing forty million, the audience erupted into remarkable laughter. It could be said that the viewers, who had been laughing from start to finish, reached a certain emotional peak at the final moment, exploding their laughter to the fullest.
"Oh my goodness, that was hilarious! I've never seen such an entertaining story before. The ending felt so rushed, there must be a sequel!"
"Yeah, and why was that girl, who's supposed to be a goddess, so useless? She should have been more useful, shouldn't she?"
"And what's up with that explosion magic that can only be used once a day?! Are there really such bizarre wizards in this world?"
"That masochistic female knight is kind of cute..."
"If I were the protagonist, I'd probably have gone insane by now, haha."
"Compared to them, I almost see the Headless Knight as a positive character. A knight with such spirit, yet defeated by the protagonist using such despicable means..."
Various reflections erupted as the film ended. As the first audience to watch this movie, they clearly had a lot to say to those outside who hadn't seen it yet. While they wanted to stay and savor the moment, they also didn't intend to waste too much time and planned to leave quickly.
However, just as they were about to leave, the screen, which had been displaying credits, suddenly switched again, and a small monster shop appeared on the screen.
On the screen, as various magical creatures in the entire monster shop were presented, some sharp-eyed viewers had already recognized some of the creatures from "Konosuba God's Blessings on This Wonderful World."
Sure enough, with the slightly hurried appearance of the shopkeeper, Lawrence, he paused for a moment, then awkwardly said, "Good news, good news! Lawrence's Monster Shop is now collaborating with the movie 'Konosuba God's Blessings on This Wonderful World.' Want to personally embrace the slimes that appeared in the movie? Want to interact intimately with cute monsters? If you're interested in monsters, feel free to visit Lawrence's Monster Shop for purchase, located at..."
Since Durin wasn't skilled at designing such ad copy, Lawrence's ad sounded quite similar to the slogans of a certain popular website.
Although it lacked the brainwashing allure of modern video website commercials like "If you're a bro, come to XXX," for people in this world who had never encountered advertisements before, even with a simple ad design, they were immediately captivated!
As the image of the monster shop on the screen gradually disappeared, the audience left in the theater suddenly erupted into excitement.
"He just said we can buy those monsters from the movie!!"
"Is it true? Suddenly, I find slimes so cute, I want to buy one to raise!"
"I've been wanting to buy a monster ever since!"
Fueled by the atmosphere, people at the scene became interested in monsters. While some knew of the previous rumors about Lawrence's Monster Shop causing harm, they selectively chose to forget about it and followed the trend.
Soon, as the final scene froze on an advertisement for adventurers at the Southern Frontier Adventurer's Guild, all the audience members left the theater with various emotions.
...
The movie ended, and even most of the audience had left, but Joseph, who remained in his seat, had not snapped out of it for a long time. For Joseph, this hour and a half had completely overturned his worldview!
From the beginning to the end of the film, he felt as though he had followed the adventures of the protagonist, an ordinary yet clever character. Although "Konosuba God's Blessings on This Wonderful World" was absurd and nonsensical, for Joseph, it represented the life he had longed for but never attained!
"Damn, what have I been doing all these years..."
The smile faded from Joseph's face. Although he had laughed heartily along with the others while watching the movie, upon reflecting on the entire film, Joseph suddenly realized that the protagonist before the time-travel and his current self were practically identical.
Clearly, there were things he wanted to do but was unwilling to, things worth looking forward to but afraid to pursue, and every day, he simply followed others' orders to do countless repetitive tasks...
Compared to the protagonist in the story who, despite the pain, continued to live happily after traveling through time, he felt incredibly foolish and pathetic living such a dull life.
"I really want to become an adventurer..."
The words that came out of his mouth were the same ones he had repeated countless times in his childhood. The desire Joseph had harbored after seeing the heroic figure of an adventurer in storybooks slowly faded away over time, but now, after watching "Konosuba God's Blessings on This Wonderful World," it surged back to life once again.
He wanted to end this boring life, make his life more exciting, live a life as chaotic but wonderful as the protagonist's in the story, wanted to... become an adventurer!
Suddenly, as if knowing his inner thoughts, the advertisement for the adventurer's guild appeared on the screen. The slogans "Want to change your life?" "Want to live an exciting and fun life?" "Want to pursue your dreams?" struck Joseph's heart, igniting an irresistible impulse. Remembering the plot of "Konosuba God's Blessings on This Wonderful World," Joseph slowly clenched his fists, then made up his mind and headed towards the exit of the theater.
On that day, the Southern Frontier lost one theater employee but gained an adventurer who lived for adventure and thrived on dreams.
At the same time, standing on the third floor of the theater, Durin, who had been monitoring the premiere to prevent any issues, looked satisfied as he watched the excited audience leaving the theater one by one.
From the start of the movie, Durin had already found his spot and eagerly watched the audience's reactions. As he expected, "Konosuba God's Blessings on This Wonderful World" hit the funny bone of the people in this world, and throughout the entire movie, laughter in the theater hardly ceased.
With such a successful premiere as a starting point, all that remained was to have these audience members who had seen the movie continue spreading the word. Before long, Norsrick, and even the entire Southern Frontier, would be buzzing with discussions about "Konosuba God's Blessings on This Wonderful World" and the movie.