Surviving as a Plagiarist in Another World

< Chapter 15: The Little Prince (2) >

Lucia Barton, the illustrator of “The Little Prince,” had recently been going through some difficult times.

“A drawing of a fox spreading its arms for a hug…?”

“Yes, indeed. The client promises a generous reward. Unlimited support for your creative activities if needed.”

Wealthy patrons began requesting deformed animal drawings—specifically, pictures of a talking fox, alongside offers of sponsorship.

They all desired one thing: more drawings of the fox.

She received sponsorship money in amounts she had never seen before.

“But I’m not even a professional painter…”

“Weren’t you the illustrator for the novel ‘The Little Prince’?”

“Well, that was just because I had the chance to participate in a work by an author I respect…”

The issue was that Lucia Barton was not a professional artist to begin with.

She enjoyed reading “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” and entered an illustration contest, which led to her accepting a request to illustrate another of the same author’s works.

“I can’t accept such money… I’m not that great of an artist, really…”

“Please accept it. If creating the artwork is too difficult, you can at least take the sponsorship money.”

When she participated in the illustration work, she thought it would be an interesting experience.

That’s why the current situation, where sponsorships and illustration requests were pouring in, felt incredibly overwhelming.

“I-I’ll ask the author first!”

Lucia fled.

To the place where it all began, Kindersley Publishing.

* * *

Upon visiting the publisher, she heard from President Dorling that the illustrator was having a hard time.

“Is that so?”

“Yes, the illustrator seems to be very troubled.”

Art has always been dominated by the wealthy.

Popes, nobles, royalty, merchants…

And in this world, there was another category of ‘wealthy individuals.’

“The sponsors must be beastmen, right?”

“Though they expressed their intent through an agent… Yes, probably.”

Beastmen.

Also known as half-humans, they were a discriminated class within the Empire.

They couldn’t join the assembly or hold titles.

But because they were discriminated against, they had a strong internal solidarity. Based on this solidarity, they engaged in businesses like usury and mining, earning enormous amounts of money.

They had plenty of money but lacked honor. If they could buy honor with money, they wouldn’t hesitate to spend millions.

That was what beastmen were like.

“Does Ms. Lucia Barton have no intention of continuing her artistic activities?”

“It doesn’t seem that way… It appears she’s just overwhelmed by the excessive sponsorships, as she only drew as a hobby…”

“I see. Hmm. I can understand the beastmen’s feelings too… This is tricky.”

The clumsy hands of the beastmen were not suitable for drawing, and human artists considered it dishonorable to draw for the beastmen for money.

To the beastmen, who were ignored even by those who would starve without their sponsorships,

The novice illustrator of ‘The Little Prince’ must have been an incredibly attractive target. They would want to recruit her even if it cost millions.

After contemplating for a moment, I carefully spoke up.

“Did you say that the illustrator feels burdened by the sponsorship?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“In that case, how about approaching it from a business perspective instead of sponsorship?”

“A business perspective?”

“Let’s try character merchandising.”

“Character merchandising…?”

Character merchandising: the expansion of character IP, which had revolutionized the paradigm of the cultural industry.

“It seems the president will need to do some work. Are you okay with that?”

“I’m not entirely sure what it entails, but of course! If it helps the author, I’ll do anything!”

The magic of transforming art into money.

It might be a bit early, but this step would advance literature further.

…

Various products featuring characters from “The Little Prince” were created.

With the capital from the suspiciously wealthy patrons, the influence of the work “The Little Prince,” the illustrator’s sensibility, and Dorling Kindersley’s business acumen, the character merchandise quickly became available throughout the Empire.

“Mom! Buy me that cup!”

“A cup? Oh, it has The Little Prince on it. How much is this cup?”

“One silver coin!”

“What? That expensive? Hmm, but it would be nice to have as a decoration… I’ll take one.”

“An excellent choice!”

Buying products featuring The Little Prince soon became a trend.

Each product had different illustrations, leading to collectors who gathered the various illustrated merchandise.

However, the most popular item was different.

“Buy bread and receive a stamp illustrated with The Little Prince!”

“What? Is that true?”

“Yes! We have stamps featuring the fox, the prince, the rose, and various other illustrations!”

“Huh, give me a loaf of bread!”

It was the stamps.

Stamp collecting was already a major hobby, with people who collected them professionally.

These stamps were not sold directly. Instead, they came randomly packaged with other products—such as bread and cookies.

“Give me all the bread!”

“Sir, I’m sorry, but the limited edition bread featuring The Little Prince is limited to four per person.”

“What? Why?”

“It’s a measure to prevent food waste. We appreciate your understanding.”

Stamp collectors, resellers, and fans of The Little Prince all flocked to get these stamps, driving their prices sky-high.

Rare stamps featuring unique illustrations sold for gold coins at auctions.

“Already sold out of bread?”

“Please, just let me buy one loaf!”

The Little Prince was dominating the Empire.

* * *

“Author, are you a genius? No, you must be a genius. Of course, you are… I can’t believe I asked such an obvious question…”

“Uh, well. I didn’t expect it to become this popular either.”

With the popularity of The Little Prince merchandise, even the original author earned enormous profits.

It exceeded the sponsorship I had received from His Highness.

Even after dividing the profits among the illustrator, the merchants, and President Dorling, the amount I received was substantial.

“Since meeting you, author, every day has been full of surprises.”

Dorling spoke in a voice mixed with admiration, but I found the situation a bit worrisome. The current craze for character merchandise was undoubtedly a bubble. As soon as the trend cooled, the skyrocketing prices of the stamps would plummet. And during that process, the people who suffered losses would resent even ‘The Little Prince.’

The name of the most beloved fairy tale in history would be tainted by speculation. That was not what I wanted.

“…President.”

“Yes! Author!”

“Let’s do a good deed this time.”

“…What?”

The Little Prince should only be a beloved work.

…

Most of the orphanages in this world were run by priests. Religion played the role of the social safety net in place of the state.

“Wow, Head Priest! What’s all this? Why are there so many types of bread? And from the packaging, they all look like high-quality bread….”

“An anonymous brother donated them.”

The ‘Mission of Love Orphanage’ was one such institution. It was famous for being run with integrity and the Head Priest’s excellent character, even though it operated solely on church support and donations, leading to a tight budget.

And numerous goods and bread were donated to this orphanage.

“In exchange for donating the bread, they asked us to collect the stamps inside the packaging.”

“Oh! This is the ‘Little Prince’ bread that’s so popular in the capital these days, isn’t it?”

“The Little Prince… Thanks to that beautiful fairy tale, we are receiving such help. It’s a joyous occasion.”

“Hehe, indeed! The children will really love it…. Truly… sniff….”

“Sister, why are you crying on such a good day?”

“It’s just… I’m so happy…. I always felt sorry for only giving the children hard black bread…. Sniff….”

“Haha.”

“Could it be… that author Homer… is a saint chosen by the Lord?”

“Well, who knows? It’s possible that the Lord sent someone for this land….”n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Similar events were happening all over the empire.

…

“Author….”

“Yes, President.”

“May I praise you for a moment…?”

“No.”

“You’re a god!”

“That’s blasphemy.”

What I suggested to President Dorling was simple. If someone donated to an orphanage, a poorhouse, or a nursing home—any social welfare facility—we would lift the purchase restrictions on ‘The Little Prince limited edition products.’

It was a simple but effective method. Many wealthy people willingly donated bread to orphanages to collect stamps.

“Not only did they donate bread, but in many cases, they also promised regular support for the orphanages! It’s all thanks to your idea, author!”

There were numerous social welfare facilities run by churches in the empire, and most of them struggled with poverty. In these times, when the influence of faith had weakened, it was hard even to find sponsors.

But The Little Prince had completely changed that atmosphere. So much bread was donated that some children in the orphanages ended up with stomachaches from eating too much.

“Some churches are even talking about beatifying you, author!”

“No, I’m not even a priest; why would they beatify me….”

“It just means that what you’ve done is amazing!”

Dorling’s fuss was still overwhelming, but somehow, it felt good.