400 chapters: Author's Afterword
Hello, here to write another little afterword. 400 chapters! What a monumental accomplishment for this series to reach. For reference, I officially began publishing this novel around 2019, so we are coming up on 4 years now. In that time, we completed 2.5 books, and around 65% of the way through Arc 1. Do not be misled though, since these books are extremely long compared to traditional books!
Book 1 is 200 pages @ 145k words
Book 2 is 244 pages @ 177k words!
Book 3 Part 1 is 290 pages @ 209k words!!
Book 3 Part 2 (as of 400 chapters) is 60 pages @ 30k words.
I envision Book 3 to be the longest book in Arc 1, so this is why it's extra chunky. I hope to cover and conclude the entirety of the Second Great Kingdom War, as well as tie up any loose ends regarding the Xingyuu Empire. Book 3 also introduces some extremely important concepts, such as that of 'foreign civilizations' like the Featherwind Sect and the Luminous Central Origin. These civilizations will be the focal point of Arc 2, so keep them in mind!
At the same time, the 'power level' of the battles have also risen where the battles in Book 1 were more grounded in classical medieval (with some magic), and Book 3 highlights more powerful individuals capable of dominating the battlefield. I wanted to maintain a consistent power structure for the human world and keep the relative scarcity of these powerful individuals at a minimum. While the Imperial Council used a 'Rank 2 army' in the Battle of Liguang, keep in mind that they are not equal to a true 'Rank 2 army' such as those used by the Luminous Central Origin. Will be explained in further detail at a later chapter. As this story progresses, it is natural for the 'baseline' power level to increase too. This is natural. It wouldn't make sense to keep a roster of low rank characters alongside high rank main characters, and one of the most important concepts I want to focus on is that of progress and evolution. The setting will naturally evolve as certain events take place. This concept will become especially important in Arc 2 and onward.
Another interesting tidbit is the usage of 'medieval' words. For reference, I try not to use any words that sound too modern as a way of maintaining a sense of immersion. In chapter 400, General Petra's plan could be summarized as a carrot and a stick approach, but this term was coined around 1800s, so I talked about a punishment and reward model instead with similar examples seen throughout my story.
One of the greatest challenges in writing these multi-character stories is that there will inevitably be characters that I've missed, or slacked in development. I envision all four of my main characters (Elizabeth, Benedict, Shirley, and Freon) advancing through the Ranks together, but perhaps their rate of advancement is too slow (relative to the story length). If this story was more focused on battles, then they might be a lot higher than they are now! Do I wish the story progressed faster to get to the 'cool bits'? Of course, I do! The problem is accelerating the pacing of my story would be detrimental to the overall structure. My characters are too weak to step on the field that I want, so the choices are either to boost them up ""magically"" or off-screen boost them up. Many problems.
After Book 3, there will be two more books before we finally enter Arc 2. Arc 2 will showcase a dramatic shift in both the stakes, setting, and fully expand on the world in a big way. My characters will also enter a new stage never before seen. This will be incredibly exciting and I'm definitely interested in seeing where Arc 2 will take us. Before that, Book 4 and Book 5 will cover some open-ended plot lines that I have referenced. The main focus of Book 4 will be the Arcellius Family's history, the Celestial Council of Magic, and Freon. It should be a shorter book (around Book 1 or 2 in length). The main focus of Book 5 will be the mystery of New Havens! This may be a dual book (like Book 3) depending on how I write it, but it will definitely be long. After Book 5 is completed, it should transition smoothly into Arc 2. More details about that as we enter Book 5.