T/N: Leave your brain here and enjoy! I have edited most of the things for you guys to be sane.
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OP: Nameless Faces went viral, drawing in countless passersby and turning them into fans.
Discussions related to it grew more and more heated across the internet.
Greece. Inside Cinnati's office.
This member of the Arts Committee hadn't been having a good time lately.
First, MiHoYo had snatched away the entirety of Okhema Theater, and even formed an alliance with the local media houses, working together to put heavy pressure on him through the media.
What had once been a promising future now had the pause button slammed on it. This left Cinnati burning with rage.
Right now, the most important thing for him was to quell public anger.
At the very least, he needed to get the public to change their way of thinking, to stop viewing his being forced out of Okhema Theater as such a critical issue.
The best way to do that was to find flaws in MiHoYo's works.
As long as there was even the slightest blemish, he could magnify it and use it to prove that MiHoYo didn't understand Greek culture at all.
That even if Okhema Theater joined MiHoYo, nothing good would come of it.
That way, the pressure on him would be eased.
On the computer screen in front of Cinnati, OP: Nameless Faces was playing.
Stelle stood alone in a vast hall, holding a spark of fire. March 7th was frozen in ice. Herta gazed on in silence....
Until the final frame froze, the screen going dark and reflecting his slightly dazed face.
The office fell into dead silence.
Cinnati leaned back in his chair, his fingers unconsciously tapping on the desk.
He had wanted to find mistakes in it, any historical inaccuracy, any deviation in cultural interpretation, anything that could serve as ammunition for his counterattack.
And yet what he found was only perfection.
A kind of perfection so suffocating it filled him with fury.
"Damn it." Cinnati cursed under his breath, his voice hoarse.
Every single frame of those visuals made it abundantly clear that MiHoYo truly, thoroughly understood classical tragedy.
And then used their one-of-a-kind audiovisual language to recreate it anew.
The architecture. The clothing. The characters. And especially those most striking scenes.
The contrast between Titans and humans. In particular, the scene of Aglaea standing under Kephale.
The intertwining of humanity and divinity under the play of light and shadow was pushed almost to its absolute limit.
That composition could be turned into a painting without any issue at all.
Though he was a very pragmatic person, his position on the Arts Committee was proof enough that he leaned heavily toward realism,
Every single detail of that OP: Nameless Faces struck straight at his heart.
This level of production. This interpretation of Greek aesthetics. It had once been his dream in his youth.
He had fantasized countless times about being able to participate in, even lead, a work of this caliber, becoming a hero of Greek culture.
But in the end, he chose a smarter, more realistic path.
Becoming Hollywood's collaborator.
Even while being a collaborator, he constantly hypnotized himself. Telling himself that all of this was for that dream in his heart.
And so, after watching the entire OP: Nameless Faces, while Cinnati was shaken by it's perfection, an even greater sense of anger surged within him.
The trailer was like a mirror, reflecting back his own ugliness.
"Why...."
"Why is it that a overseas company can so easily accomplish what I couldn't in decades." Cinnati's gaze gradually turned sinister.
"So what if it's done well. Art ultimately has to serve reality. Those who don't know how to compromise, who don't know how to balance interests, will always be castles in the air."
"I can't let others to meddle in my career path!"
He took a deep breath and dialed Heldo's number.
MiHoYo's forceful intervention had made Heldo, this heavyweight, even more cautious.
But thanks to MiHoYo's move, Heldo had finally decided to give him what he wanted most.
Hollywood's resources. That massive film and television industrial system, to be fully utilized.
The price was that he had to tie the entire Greek Arts Committee to his war chariot, making them the vanguard in resisting MiHoYo's intrusion.
MiHoYo used Greek culture as the foundation to create Amphoreus.
And he would do the same. A war had officially begun.
It could be said that present-day Greece had become a proxy battlefield between a company and an entire industry.
On one side stood Hollywood and the Arts Committee. On the other stood MiHoYo.
If MiHoYo won, it would be no exaggeration to say that it would reshape the future directions for entertainment and dramas.
More people would imitate MiHoYo's storytelling model, refusing to continue accepting the ones used till now.
The Greek people affiliated with MiHoYo would rise completely, sweeping the Arts Committee into the trash heap. People like them would become utterly worthless in Greece, perhaps even objects of universal scorn.
If Cinnati won. The right to interpret Greek culture would be completely taken over by Hollywood. Classical epics would be filled with their own values.
Maybe one day, people would even see a 'colorful' Zeus.
But to Cinnati, that didn't matter at all. Because with this achievement, he would become a true power player. In the Greek world, he would wield overwhelming influence.
As for culture and MiHoYo's expanding momentum, they would inevitably be crushed. This setback would also be infinitely magnified.
While Cinnati's thoughts were running wild. The call connected.
Heldo's slightly displeased voice came through: "Cinnati. I hope you're bringing me good news."
Cinnati quickly composed himself and said ingratiatingly, "Of course, Mr. Heldo. I called to tell you that I already have a plan."
"I've prepared a script."
"It's the culmination of my work over all these years, combined with the collective ideas of the entire Arts Committee."
"It uses stories that everyone in the world is intimately familiar with as its foundation."
"The title is Olympus."
"The true Greek orthodoxy, far superior to that so-called Amphoreus."
After Cinnati finished speaking. Heldo's tone improved noticeably. "Olympus? Sounds good. This mythology is something everyone knows well. It truly is orthodoxy among orthodoxies."
"Of course!" Cinnati straightened, excitement surging through him.
It was essentially a complete remake of the Olympian myths, re-shot according to his own understanding.
The Titans. The classic stories. All of it would be brought to the screen with Hollywood's resources.
"Prometheus stealing fire. Heracles' Twelve Labors. The Trojan War, stories everyone knows by heart."
"They're countless times more orthodox than that fabricated world of Amphoreus!"
"This is a myth that has been accumulating for thousands of years!"
After saying this excitedly, Cinnati's mind was already filled with countless grand scenes.
In his imagination, Mount Olympus was a golden divine palace wrapped in white clouds, and the gods were all exquisitely dressed and beautiful.
Zeus was authority, Hera was jealousy, and Ares was violence. He completely failed to consider one thing.
Whether such a story was a bit too classic. So classic that countless people had grown up watching it since childhood.
At this moment, Heldo spoke up: "Sounds good. I also think this is a very good choice. But we also have to keep up with the times and make some changes."
"It has to align with modern values. Zeus can't be too lustful, Hera can't be jealous anymore, we need to emphasize her image as an independent woman. We can't follow the myths where she's obsessed with revenge and punishment."
Hearing this, Cinnati was clearly stunned for a moment, but he quickly nodded.
"I understand."
"It would be best to also add some gods from other pantheons' to reflect our inclusiveness."
"Oh right, sexual orientation needs to be adjusted too. The gods' orientations should be diverse."
A trace of bitterness and emptiness suddenly rose in Cinnati's heart, but when he imagined having Hollywood's backing and being able to do as he pleased in Greece, he clenched his teeth and said firmly: "Everything will be done exactly according to your wishes!"
After that, the two discussed things for a while longer. In the end, the specific direction of the story was decided.
The core was extremely simple and straightforward, very orthodox.
A group of gods, led by Zeus, fight against the invasion of the ancient Titans to defend their homeland.
The overall focus was on unity, courage, and sacrifice, universal themes that resonate everywhere.
Oh, right. If Cinnati hadn't argued so strongly the first time, Zeus's actor might really have been cast as a 'color' man.
Heldo was actually quite satisfied with that idea.
In his view, once the news was released, it would bring massive support from some communities to his faction.
He completely ignored how the Greeks would feel about their king of gods turning into a "color man."
But setting aside these minor details, their overall discussion went quite smoothly.
The more they talked, the more excited they became, as if they could already see Olympus crushing Amphoreus.
In this battle over who could better interpret Greek culture, they were confident of final victory.
And just a few hours later, The entire world heard the news about the Olympus being released at the same time.
[Orthodoxy and Inclusiveness: The Olympus Pantheon Reformed, Creating a New Myth for the Times.]
[Orthodox Counterattack: Greek Arts Committee Joins Forces with Hollywood to Create Olympus, Reforging an Epic Classic!]
[Hollywood's Entire Industrial System Fully Invested in Olympus!]
[A New Peak of Greek Culture: The Powerful Alliance of Mr. Cinnati and Mr. Heldo!]
Anyone with a discerning eye could tell, this was a direct challenge to Amphoreus.
Coupled with the global wave it had already stirred up,
All kinds of confrontation and conflict erupted at once, turning the entire internet into a boiling mess, lively beyond measure.
And the force behind the scenes had completely achieved its goal.
Riding on the popularity of Amphoreus and MiHoYo, Olympus instantly became a global hit series!
Even though it hadn't started filming yet, the hype had already exploded!
Soon after, the second wave of media attacks arrived.
[The Real MiHoYo Killer! Hollywood Makes Its Move!]
[How long can MiHoYo hold out under Hollywood's offensive?]
[Honkai: Star Rail's good days are over!]
…
Inside MiHoYo headquarters.
Aglaea and the others had just finished reviewing the OP: Nameless Faces when they were flooded with news about Olympus.
"I told you, there was no way Cinnati would just sit still."
"Look, this is exactly what they're up to."
Anaxagoras was the first to laugh after seeing the news. Then came a barrage of furious criticism.
"Orthodoxy? Inclusiveness?"
"Minority gods? Sometimes I really wonder, if those ancient Greeks were resurrected and saw their descendants like this, they'd probably stab that idiot Cinnati to death on the spot."
But aside from Anaxagoras, who was always sharp-tongued,
Everyone else looked rather tense.
Tribios felt a wave of dizziness. She leaned back into her chair, massaging her temples.
Ever since joining MiHoYo, She felt like she was encountering situations and opponents she'd never even imagined before.
After all, she had never thought that one day she'd face the combined opposition of the entire Arts Committee and Hollywood.
That was Hollywood. The weight of those three words in the global entertainment industry,
Even a three-year-old child would understand it.
"Let's… see what the boss says first." After thinking for a moment, Aglaea made a quick decision.
This was the greatest benefit of joining MiHoYo.
When problems arose, she was no longer the one standing in front, she could safely relax and hand decision-making over to Xia Wen.
When everyone asked Xia Wen for his opinion,
His answer was strangely subtle.
"I feel like I've seen this scene before."
Aglaea and the others assumed Xia Wen and MiHoYo had been through something similar before, and felt much more at ease.
But in reality, what the boss was thinking of was something from before his transmigration.
MiHoYo killer.
Anti-MiHoYo.
Heh. It actually sounded a bit nostalgic.
Soon after, Xia Wen spoke in a relaxed tone.
"Don't put too much pressure on yourselves."
"Just remember our original intention, to create the stories we truly want to create."
"As for Hollywood and the Arts Committee…"
"To be honest, if they had any way to strangle MiHoYo, they would've done it long ago. Why wait until now?"
"When Star Rail first launched and slaughtered the global charts across all platforms, did you see them stir up any real trouble?"
"Content, content is what matters most."
"And I believe that when it comes to interpreting Greek culture, Amphoreus is a dimensionality reduction strike."
"True ability doesn't lie in copying appearances, but in the ability to tell stories everyone can understand."
"A true epic is something people feel."
"Not something they just say out loud."
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T/N:
A brain-rot moment.[1]
Another one. [2]
[1] Wherever I have said 'colorful' Zeus it was 'black' Zeus.
[2] A group of gender-fluid gods, led by a 'color' Zeus, fight against the invasion of the ancient straight Titans to defend their colorful and free homeland.