"So… Edward, what you're saying is, you want a script that has elements of deduction, but is also humorous, lighthearted, and—no one dies?" In a familiar café, the familiar Grey Crane looked at Edward with surprise after hearing his request.
"Yes. I want to create a script that's witty and comedic, with strong deductive elements—but without any character deaths." Edward nodded. Instead of coffee, he took a sip from a glass of ice water.
He wasn't a big fan of coffee—he actually preferred drinking mineral water or something similar.
"That's… quite the request. Let me think about it." Grey rubbed his temples and sank into thought.
Edward's request was truly unprecedented. Even when Grey had written light-hearted detective stories in the past, the humor was always used to balance the tension. Someone still had to die—otherwise, how could you emphasize the urgency of a mystery?
Especially given that Grey was known for writing cases where once someone died, many more followed. His readers often sent him razor blades in protest. At one point, he even pulled off the controversial move of killing the female lead—only to be forced by overwhelming public pressure to resurrect her.
So, for Grey, crafting a humorous detective story without deaths was an enormous challenge.
But Edward's offer came with very generous compensation. Even without the high pay, Grey wasn't willing to pass on this opportunity. After all, this was a chance to have his work featured in the wildly popular Sherlock Holmes TV series. For a writer, nothing beat fame. Once you gained recognition, royalties would increase, and more commissions would follow.
Grey was already a well-known mystery novelist. Money didn't mean much to him at this point—but fame definitely did. The success of Sherlock Holmes Season 1 hadn't escaped his notice.
If one of his scripts made it into Season 2, he could proudly say, "That episode? I wrote it." That sense of achievement was beyond words.
After all, in this world, most people can't escape the pursuit of fame and fortune. Having both was ideal.
Edward, meanwhile, wasn't in a hurry. He was watching a video—one that Mewtwo had uploaded.
Edward had to admit: Mewtwo was impressively efficient. In just a few short days, it had already released a new video guide on how to earn the Platinum Trophy for a trending game.
"The editing skills have definitely improved," Edward muttered as he watched. Mewtwo's earlier videos felt a bit bloated, but the current one was much more concise and polished.
Paired with Mewtwo's uniquely synthesized voice, the video was very engaging.
Unfortunately, the channel's subscriber count was still pitiful—barely over 5,000.
"These days, it's really tough to grow a channel. Without funding or a distinct personal style, getting any traction is almost impossible," Edward said, smacking his lips.
On PoképokéTV website, competition among creators was brutal. Each major category had just a few dominant content creators, a massive middle tier, and an endless sea of small ones. Even in the gaming section, there were tons of guides on earning Platinum Trophies. Edward felt Mewtwo would have a hard time standing out.
Still, given Mewtwo's upload speed and dedication, it wasn't entirely hopeless.
"But constantly doing guides for popular games…" Edward frowned. Sure, big-name titles had lots of players, but they also had fierce competition. Take Black Myth: Ho-Oh, for instance—strategy videos were everywhere. Breaking through the noise would be difficult for Mewtwo.
Edward figured it might be better for Mewtwo to focus on niche or underrated games. The competition there was weaker, making it easier to get noticed.
With that in mind, he sent Mewtwo a quick message sharing his thoughts, then put his phone away—Grey had finally come to a decision.
"I can write it. But I'll need some time," Grey nodded. He accepted the challenge, despite how far this style was from his comfort zone. He just couldn't miss out on contributing to Sherlock Holmes.
"That's fine," Edward waved casually. The last-minute addition of three actors was a spur-of-the-moment idea anyway. And since he also needed to shoot additional scenes involving Giovanni, he had to plan out Moriarty's introduction—and his eventual departure.
The exit part wasn't hard. In the original works, Holmes and Moriarty fell together into the Reichenbach Falls, their fates uncertain. Originally, author Arthur Conan Doyle had intended for that to be the final chapter of Holmes's story—the world's greatest detective and the most dangerous criminal dying together.
But readers were so outraged that many stormed Conan Doyle's home in protest. With pressure mounting, Doyle reluctantly wrote The Adventure of the Empty House to bring Holmes back.
Still, writing the cat-and-mouse game between Holmes and Moriarty would be tricky. In the original stories, most of their conflict played out through Holmes foiling Moriarty's elaborate crimes, which eventually angered the crime lord enough to confront him personally—thus triggering "The Final Problem."
"Moriarty needs to maintain his high status—he can't look like a low-tier villain," Edward thought aloud while watching Grey sign the contract. Ms. Sara sat calmly nearby.
Edward had opted to sign a contract with Grey since this involved the Sherlock Holmes IP, a major production. It was mostly a formality—Edward wasn't worried about leaks—but in the adult world, formal agreements helped protect both parties' interests.
Writing a battle of wits between two geniuses would be tough. But Edward had ideas based on other detective stories.
Instead of having Moriarty confront Holmes directly, he thought it would be better to first have Holmes deal with various criminals trained by Moriarty. This way, the two could clash from a distance, intellectually.
Then, over time, Holmes would capture each of Moriarty's lieutenants—until the final showdown with Moriarty himself. That approach would both stretch out the series across multiple seasons and preserve Moriarty's high-level mystique.
It also meant Giovanni wouldn't need too many scenes. Edward could simply script a few moments showing Moriarty's underlings getting defeated, and then focus on writing two key scripts and one finale for Moriarty's arc.
(End of Chapter)