Chapter 6: The First Novel Is Completed

Lunch was finished amid an odd atmosphere.

In these times of scarcity, and being an eighteen-year-old lad, Enni naturally devoured almost an entire can of luncheon meat. Yet even after eating, he felt somewhat unsatisfied.

“When I start earning from my writing, I’ll buy steak every day,” a simple thought flashed through Enni’s mind. Instantly, his motivation to write surged.

That morning, he wrote continuously for three hours, producing about 1,200 words. After a brief half-hour rest at noon, Enni sat back at his desk and resumed his work without pause.

The good news was that after the morning’s efforts, Enni had finally got the storyline straightened out. The beginning was solidly laid down, so the pace of his writing naturally quickened.

The afternoon passed in a blur.

Enni stretched his stiff shoulders and glanced at the clock—it was already past four without him noticing. The pages before him were densely covered with his handwriting.

In four hours, he had written another 2,800 words. Adding the morning’s work, the total came to around 4,000 words.

As for the plot, it had reached the point where “the cosmic hazard rangers descended upon Earth and evaporated the equatorial accelerator encircling the planet...”

“Once I get into the groove, I can write about 700 words an hour,” Enni thought.

“If I don’t go out tomorrow morning and stay home to write, I could finish the entire work in just one week at most.”

He calculated the time in his mind but winced at the thought of the strain on his wrists.

It seemed that reaching Hemingway’s level—writing just 500 words a day and being able to buy a yacht—was still a long way off.

Enni began tidying up the sheets and the completed manuscript on his desk.

When everything was put in order, he stashed the papers in the wardrobe.

Since he often tossed his smelly socks in there, Mishi would definitely avoid that spot, making the manuscript quite safe.

Not long after Enni had put everything away, Mishi came home.

She squatted by the radio, listening to a broadcast while sucking on the candies Enni had bought.

“Mishi, go do your homework!” Mary’s voice called from the master bedroom. She’d been busy until half past three, had just taken a short rest, and was now getting up to prepare dinner.

“Let me finish listening to this program first,” Mishi replied.

***

“Tommy is about to go on a mission,” said the program Mishi was listening to. It was called “Truth or Consequences,” a radio show that had started airing early this year.

The main format was for participants to choose between “truth” or “consequence” to answer questions or complete tasks.

In simple terms, it was the predecessor of the modern game “Truth or Dare.”

But in this era, it was quite a novel form of entertainment.

“What, Tommy’s going on a mission?” Mary’s footsteps hurried as she left the bedroom, plucked a lollipop from the candy jar, popped it into her mouth, and joined Mishi in listening.

Enni was silent.

Suddenly, a famous verse came to his mind: “The merchant’s daughter knows not the sorrow of a fallen nation; across the river, she still sings the garden flowers’ tune.”

But it was largely due to the isolationist sentiment prevailing so strongly in America.

Even Mishi’s nightly patriotic homework required students to write about “why America must not enter the war.”

Mishi was smart enough to know that if she said at school that “America and Germany would eventually go to war,” she would be ostracized by teachers and classmates alike.

So her homework always exemplified isolationist ideology, emphasizing “fitting in.”

At home, she had no interest in European battlefields; it was far more entertaining to listen to educational programs.

“Well then, I’ll take care of dinner,” Enni said, seeing his mother and sister engrossed in the broadcast, and volunteered to start cooking.

Though such a “happy family” scene seemed somewhat absurd in these war-ravaged days, he wished for peace and joy to last forever—one could only live in the present.

After dinner, the family split up: chores for some, homework for others.

As for Enni, he began exercising in the living room.

He alternated between push-ups and holding a bucket while doing deep squats in place.

“Enni, why are you suddenly working out?” Mary asked with a hint of annoyance, dragging the mop and complaining he was blocking her.

“Mom, I’m preparing for the war,” Enni answered earnestly.

“Good heavens! What nonsense are you talking about?” Mary snapped, fiercely protective.

“No one is going to turn my son into a war machine to die for Europe’s old grudges. Not even Roosevelt!”

“Mom, calm down. I’m just planning ahead,” Enni replied.

“Even if there’s no war, exercising never hurts,” he added with a smile.

Mary snorted and waved him away, telling him not to block her while mopping.

…It seemed more like she was genuinely trying to stop him from exercising.

Enni sighed softly.

***

The next morning.

As usual, when Enni woke, Mary was already in the kitchen cooking breakfast, and George sat at the table reading The New York Times and listening to Today in Europe.

George looked tired from working ten hours the day before, but his gaze was heavy with concern over the grim situation on the European front.

Enni sipped coffee nearby, also tuned into Today in Europe.

Just past midnight, the Netherlands had fallen almost entirely under German control; the Dutch royal family and government had fled to Britain.

Meanwhile, the Germans had breached Belgium’s central defenses, closing in on Brussels and throwing Belgian forces into chaos, forcing them to retreat toward France.

As for France, German armored units had penetrated about 100 kilometers into French territory, aiming directly at the English Channel and severing the northern Allied forces from mainland France.

Currently, the French defensive line stretching between Sedan and Saint-Quentin was collapsing, and soldier morale was low.

The British Expeditionary Force stationed in Belgium was caught in a dangerous encirclement due to German flanking maneuvers, already forced to contract southward, but their retreat was blocked.

“I didn’t expect your prediction to be right... France is finished,” George said gravely, muttering to Enni.

“Even if Germany conquers Europe, the Atlantic will protect us!” Mary stated firmly, though her eyes flickered with uncertainty.

In reality, with German military technology, a single ocean was hardly a reliable barrier.

…The worsening war situation cast a heavy gloom over the family.

Of course, they were not alone.

That day, all Americans felt a deep heaviness. The shadow of war grew thicker, like a black cloud on the verge of breaking.

Enni could only try to maintain a positive mindset. War was beyond his control; the only thing he could do was focus on writing.

Before long, six more days passed.

On the morning of May 22nd, Enni finally completed all the contents of The Way of Awakening.