One billion. Two billion. Four billion. In the end, Edward's final film stopped at a total box office of five point two billion, a number so staggering that it was almost beyond comprehension. One could even say that, for the entire future history of cinema, it was unlikely anyone would ever reach such a height again.
TN: I'll let this slide since this is the last chapter.
Yet Edward himself remained calm and indifferent. After all, a Grandmaster-level skill brought with it a level of dimensional suppression so overwhelming that the results were inevitable.
At the same time, it also brought Edward an enormous amount of Fear Points. His Fear Points directly surpassed two hundred million. Without hesitation, Edward immediately chose twenty consecutive draws, and ended up pulling a large pile of strange, bizarre items — all of which, however, had incredibly powerful effects.
Edward felt that if he went to challenge a Gym now, he probably wouldn't need to do anything at all. Just by standing there, he could easily earn the final reward and become Champion.
"Brother is way too slippery. He actually retired just like that."
Thinking of his unreliable older brother, Edward let out a helpless sigh. In the end, Steven still retired, handing his title over to Wallace. Still, Wallace, with his outstanding skill, earned the recognition of the Elite Four. Now, everyone is convinced that the new Champion of Hoenn, Wallace, had the skill to back it up.
Steven also set a new record for holding the Champion title for the shortest period in the entire League's history, leaving Edward both amused and exasperated.
"Boss, are you really retiring from the film industry?"
Zoroark stared at the information in her hands, hesitant. From her point of view, her boss's capabilities had only grown more and more astonishing. Completely dominating the entire film industry wasn't even difficult anymore. Yet somehow, the boss wanted to retire.
"Yeah. It's time to step back."
Edward smiled softly. He had already wanted to retire for quite a while. He'd filmed almost all the horror movies he wanted to film , continuing like this held no meaning. It was better to retire early and focus on his own pursuits. That would be more convenient for him.
Would such a choice leave behind regrets?
Edward felt none. His journey as a director was one without regrets. And his achievements had turned everything around for him: five point two billion, a number that suffocated the entire film industry. Countless people fawned over him. Countless people desperately tried to curry favor. Countless actors begged for opportunities to appear in his films. Some women even crazily sent him photos.
All of them were trying to debut.
Although Edward understood that showbiz thrived on worshipping the popular and trampling the forgotten, even he felt that this level was a bit too cold-hearted. No wonder that ever since he became famous, people around him were all smiles. In this era, only success granted such experiences. Regardless of whether people cursed him behind his back, in front of him, they all had to flatter him.
It was no surprise that power and status were so addictive — the feeling truly was enjoyable. But it wasn't what Edward wanted. He still had many things of his own to do.
Being a director was tiring. Edward planned to finally take a proper rest. As for how long he would rest, that was entirely up to fate. If he wanted to rest a year, he would rest a year; if he wanted to rest ten, then ten. As for what would happen after resting?
Edward couldn't be bothered to think about something so troublesome. He suspected he might end up dealing with Devon Corporation affairs for quite a long time… though with Fortune's help, maybe he'd escape sooner.
Seeing his lack of resistance, Zoroark sent out Edward's retirement announcement. And so, right after Edward's final film left theaters, the entire League was once again shaken by the explosive news Edward dropped.
People were stunned. After all, Edward Stone was already standing at the very peak. At this point, even if he farted, someone would praise it as a breathtaking artistic expression.
That was how absurd things had become.
But Edward chose to withdraw at his peak. As for Edward himself, he didn't care. Creators had bottlenecks, even if he didn't but Edward still wanted to retire. To retreat at his highest point meant that his reputation and legacy would forever remain sealed at this height. No one would be able to devalue him. He would be immortalized, made into a legend.
In his previous life, there were many child prodigies who shone brilliantly in youth, only to fall into scandal in their old age.
Edward refused to repeat that kind of tragic arc.
After leaving the film industry, Edward spent time roaming around with his aging father, digging for ore, then followed his older brother to dig more ore. Edward felt that following Joseph and Steven meant that he spent every day doing nothing but mining. It was suffocating.
But because of this, Edward's physique grew noticeably stronger, all thanks to digging. The realization made him both amused and exasperated. Still, he found this kind of life rather interesting. At last, he understood why his father and brother were so obsessed with mining. It really wasn't that different from the hobby of fishing fanatics.
Once these things were handled, Edward mounted the Mega-Evolved Rayquaza and traveled across the entire world, pulling out villains from every League region and successfully eliminating all major criminal organizations.
After that, Edward visited Ash. Ash was still traveling, but under Edward's guidance and support, he reached the rank of Master Trainer in an even shorter time. Ash was immensely grateful, but Edward felt emotional — before Ash became a Master, time really did feel frozen. But now, it was flowing again.
And with time flowing, Edward had even more things to do.
Whenever he was free, Edward visited Zoroark to chat. Ghost Films did not collapse after his retirement — instead, it continued expanding smoothly.
"Whew… it feels great to be this relaxed~"
Edward rubbed Q's little head with satisfaction.
He had his own plans for the future. He sought out Shizuka, started dating her, then spent two years confirming their relationship. Eventually, they held a wedding, finally freeing him from bachelorhood.
During this time, the old man helped manage Devon Corporation. Edward was granted three whole years of honeymoon time. For all three years, he traveled around the world with Shizuka, enjoying a blissful and fulfilling life. Q, Fortune, and Void accompanied them every step of the way.
Zoroark no longer followed Edward. She had her own ambitions. Using the salary and bonuses she accumulated from Edward, she started a gaming company.
First, she created predatory gacha mobile games, tormenting players until they wanted to die. Many cursed her as a shameless merchant. But in Edward's third honeymoon year, Zoroark suddenly released a fully-purchased, single-player masterpiece, instantly reversing her reputation and becoming a new legend in the gaming world.
Edward didn't interfere much with any of this. He only congratulated her with a smile before returning to his own life — because he now had children to think about.
Shizuka was pregnant.
Her pregnancy finally pulled Edward away from his busyness. His father Joseph couldn't stop grinning. Meanwhile, Steven, the unfortunate elder brother, was urged to get married again. To Edward's surprise, Steven actually married Cynthia. No one knew when those two started liking each other, but they truly were a couple now. Edward was shocked, but delighted. He welcomed the development wholeheartedly.
After Shizuka reached full term, she gave birth to a daughter. Edward was overjoyed. The old man laughed until his face cramped from smiling. Steven's expression was gentle as ever. And Cynthia was also pregnant. Edward would soon have a nephew or niece.
"Now then, today's topic is: the legendary director Edward Stone, who retired from filmmaking ten years ago but still left an indelible legacy in film history."
On a TV program, a female host introduced today's subject with enthusiasm.
[Director EdwardStone? Of course I know him! His movies are timeless classics. Honestly, even now I don't dare watch his horror films, especially The Grudge series.]
[Not just those! EdwardStone's The Truman World, Buried, and his many original IPs are all masterpieces.]
[I love the Sherlock Holmes character he created, but Director Edward is always too busy to film epilogues, unforgivable!]
[Are you kidding? Ever since Tom and Jerry ended, my childhood ended too! I even donated a million to beg him for another episode, but he still refused!]
[He's the chairman of Devon Corporation. Why would he care about a measly million? Daddy, donate to me instead. My Tom and Jerry fan comic is ongoing!]
"Now, please welcome our special guest, the Minister of Cultural Affairs and President of the Film Association, Mr. Locke!"
A scholarly-looking man walked onto the stage and waved to the audience.
"So, Mr. Locke, how would you evaluate Director Edward? Now that it's been ten years since his retirement, what are your thoughts on his directorial career?"
The host asked warmly.
"I believe Director Edward is an extraordinarily outstanding and truly great filmmaker. His horror films completely rewrote the entire League horror market. Before him, every horror film lagged far behind in quality, everyone can see that."
Locke spoke confidently.
[It's true! I watched old horror films. Before Edward appeared, they were all laughable — not scary at all!]
[Exactly! Same formula: protagonist travels, encounters danger, gets scared, investigates, finds a Ghost-type Pokémon, battles it, wins, and lives happily ever after.]
[Excuse me, Ghost-type Pokémon deserve respect! We're strong, okay!?]
Though the discussion drifted off-topic, the show continued smoothly.
The host and guest discussed Edward's films and noted that his lowest-rated work still held a score above nine. RULE#1 had the most reviews, many of which could not even be aired, leaving the host slightly embarrassed.
"So, President Locke, if you were to give Director Edward a final evaluation, what would it be?"
At the end of the show, the host asked the final question. Locke fell silent for a long time.
"…If I must define Director Edward's place in film history, then my evaluation is this:
Director Edward Stone is, without a doubt, the single greatest filmmaker in the entire history of the League. There is no second."
Locke spoke with sincere conviction. With a box office of 5.2 billion and over 10 billion after streaming revenue with the numbers still climbing. Edward's final film was so abstract and symbolic that countless people watched it repeatedly. His works spawned endless discussion, endless interpretations, endless derivative creations.
Even now, no one knew what the final movie meant, because Edward never explained it, allowing debates to endure for years, granting the film eternal vitality.
The host agreed wholeheartedly, even applauding. Soon after, with music playing, the episode concluded.
Even though Director Edward was incredible, life still had to go on. The world wouldn't stop spinning because of one person's departure. After a few days of lively discussion, people moved on — that was the way of the world.
[Not going to lie, Director Edward really was incredible. It felt like he was just fooling around the whole time, until at the end he finally revealed his true power.]
[I watched his last film countless times. Every time, I asked myself — when I fall asleep, am I living another life somewhere else?]
[Stop. Sometimes I think sleeping is like being a reader watching a novel unfold — and that novel is our life.]
Although the program ended, discussion continued everywhere else.
[Snow-Woman-Sama Please No More: I have to admit, Director Edward was terrifyingly strong.]
[It's Bad Luck Not Good Luck: Seriously. Without his films, life is way less fun.]
[Are You All Weird: Same here. His movies scare me, but that feeling afterwards is exhilarating.]
[For the World I Will Watch Horror Films: Missing Edward, day 10,086.]
[Snorlax Fanboy: Missing Edward, day 10,087.]
The thread was completely off-track.
"Dear, what are you looking at?"
Shizuka's lazy voice sounded beside him. Edward smiled and showed his phone to his wife.
"I'm reading people commemorating me," Edward said proudly, though the choice of wording might not have been ideal.
"Papa, you said it wrong! It's not commemorating, it's remembering!"
A cheerful little girl clung to Edward's hand, correcting him happily.
"Yes yes yes~ My daughter is the smartest~"
Edward grinned. He glanced at Q, who wore an expression of helpless suffering as he dodged the little troublemaker's grabby hands, while Fortune yawned over some documents, and the fully evolved Void stood dazed as always.
That guy spent every day staring blankly, and no one knew what he was thinking.
Edward lifted his daughter high into the air, laughing warmly. Although his days as a film director were over, his new life as the richest man in the world was only just beginning.
(End of Chapter)
TN: Finally, finished. I got duped translating this. I thought it was gonna be like Hollywood novels but just horror only and maybe occasional other genre, and it was like that but the author was an oldie who only likes old movies and hate most American horror movies that I watched. This was a great concept but I hope if something like this was ever written again it will be more modern.
Well, that's all folks. If you guys want me to translate novels about Pokémon or like bringing culture to another please message me, those are my jam.