< Chapter 34: Sherlock Hols – 5 >
“Even if the editor said that, as a writer, it was sothing you should not have done! It’s all my fault! I sincerely apologize!”
The writer nad Lionel Balzac bowed deeply, his whole body trembling. It seed he had not done this because he had so sort of assurance.
Rather, it seed he had been so desperate that he hadn’t had ti to consider the consequences.
“First, lift your head. It’s uncomfortable to talk while you’re bowing like that.”
“Yes!”
He was very different from the image I had in mind. The shabby-looking man trembling in front of and avoiding my gaze was neither aristocratic like Maurice Leblanc nor did he exhibit any of the rakish charm his na ‘Balzac’ might suggest.
“Alright. You said you needed the manuscript fee?”
“Yes….”
“I won’t ask what circumstances led you to steal soone else’s character just to earn the manuscript fee.”
There was no need to inquire why he needed the money. It wasn’t uncommon for writers to be poor. That’s why nobles sponsored writers, and magazines bought manuscripts at cheap prices to print them. What was important lay elsewhere.
“Do you have a novel you want to write?”
“Excuse ?”
I wanted to know if this person had any intention of writing ‘his own’ novel. If he did, I had no intention of punishing this poor writer. After all, I was a plagiarist who stole literature from my previous life due to my own impoverished heart, and punishing him wouldn’t set any good precedent in the literary world.
And—
“As a writer, don’t you have a story you want to tell? Not a novel that plagiarizes soone else’s character to ignore and belittle them.”
“‥‥‥.”
Though I wasn’t a writer, I knew what kind of creatures writers were.
I had t several in my previous life, and in this life, I had even taken aspiring writers and published books with them.
I had supported academy students when they wanted to publish their own books. In that sense, writers were quite predictable humans.
“I… I want to write a romance novel. Not sothing too obscene like a popular novel, not sothing as tragic as ‘The Sorrows of Young Werther,’ but a story where two people face conflicts, ultimately understand each other, and find happiness.”
“A romance novel, huh….”
Writers always wanted to tell ‘their own stories.’
“Alright.”
“Excuse ?”
“I’ll write you a letter of recomndation for Hor Academy.”
“…Excuse ?”
“Go and learn.”
As a reader, I was more interested in reading this writer’s ‘genuine’ work than the ridiculous counterfeit titled [Haxen the Phantom Thief VS Sherlock Hols]. After all, it was the forced inclusion of ‘Sherlock Hols’ that ruined the story of The Hollow Needle.
This author could have written a better novel. I took out a ‘card’ from my pocket and handed it to him after writing a recomndation with a pen. It was a card made as a character product of ‘Arsène Lupin.’
[I’ll visit again once you have the genuine items ready.]
[-The Gentleman Thief, Arsène Lupin-]
[Please accept the person bringing this card into the ‘Hor Academy.’]
[-Herodotus-]
Lionel stared blankly at the card for a long ti. Then he looked up at .
“Thank you!” he said, bowing deeply once more. This ti, he wasn’t trembling.
* * *
“Are you the editor who was in charge of Mr. Lionel?”
“Ah, well, there seems to be so misunderstanding─, this was entirely Mr. Lionel’s independent action, I bear no─.”
“Mr. Lionel is more suited to romance novels than detective novels.”
“Excuse ?”
The editor who had been in charge of Mr. Lionel was fired after it was revealed that he had made similar suggestions to others besides Mr. Lionel.
The company, Mini and Life, had no intention of making enemies with ‘Half and Half,’ the most popular publisher recently.
As this fact beca known, other editors began to more actively check whether a writer’s work had any potential copyright violations.
While it didn’t matter to the editors if the author got sued, they realized their own jobs could be at risk.
As a result, it beca an opportunity to raise awareness about copyright. Even if writers still plagiarized, editors would now cut out any problematic parts.
And then.
“I’m planning to create a foundation to support writers.”
“A foundation?”
“Yes. I will need so help from President Kindersley.”
“Haha, if it’s sothing like that, just leave it to !”
I poured the imnse wealth I had accumulated into establishing a foundation. It was a foundation to support the publication of writers’ works and to ensure they could maintain a basic livelihood. Support would be provided in various areas such as education, healthcare, and childcare.
“What will you na the foundation?”
“A na….”
For the welfare foundation’s na, I could simply call it [Hor & Herodotus Artists Welfare Foundation], but since I owned the rights to the two most recreated characters in genre fiction history, I wanted to use their nas instead.
[Hols & Lupin Artists Welfare Foundation]
[Founder: Hor, Herodotus]
Thus, the first welfare foundation for artists in the empire was established.
* * *
The two most renowned writers in the empire, Hor and Herodotus, jointly established a ‘welfare foundation.’
Once its existence beca known, requests flooded in from people wanting to sponsor the foundation.
Nobles sought it for honor, rchants for vanity, and readers for their fandom.
Each had their reasons for wanting their na associated with this foundation.
It was perhaps a chance to leave their mark on history.
“Please, accept my money! I want to support the artists too!”
“I don’t care if my na isn’t ntioned! I’ll dedicate my entire fortune, just let be a part of this with the two writers!”
The problem was that too many people wanted to contribute.
The ‘Hols & Lupin Artists Welfare Foundation’ operated entirely on the royalty profits of Hor and Herodotus’s works. Even this alone was a staggering amount of money. But with the additional support from various wealthy patrons, it beca too much to be used solely for supporting artists.
“Let’s split the foundation in two.”
“Excuse ?”
“Aren’t children the future writers? We should take this opportunity to ensure that children receive proper education without being forced into labor.”
[The Little Prince & Alice Children’s Welfare Foundation]
[Founders: Hor, Herodotus]
The foundation, originally established to support artists, was divided into the ‘Artists Welfare Foundation’ and the ‘Children’s Welfare Foundation’ after several procedures. Particularly, the welfare of children required astronomical budgets.
President Kindersley, with the cooperation of the ‘church,’ created a structure that utilized the existing social welfare infrastructure of the church to support the children.
“Is writer Hor truly a saint sent down by the Lord?”
“But what about writer Herodotus…?”
“Maybe Hor is the savior of the new era, and Herodotus is his apostle?”
“What?”
During this process, an irreverent rumor spread that writer Hor was the ‘savior of the new era.’
Universal welfare for children had always been the eternal aspiration of the church. Since the savior descended to this land, the church had been at the forefront of improving children’s rights by operating orphanages and establishing schools.
However, even the church couldn’t perform miracles like writer Hor did.
“We will also sponsor the foundation! Please, accept my money!”
“We want to support the sa cause as the author Hor. Even if it takes all my wealth, please give the opportunity to contribute to the foundation.”
A miracle.
Yes, it was a miracle.
A miracle where countless people volunteered to support children out of their own will, considering it an honor.
Hor had recreated a miracle on this land that no one had achieved since the Savior.
“…This confirms it.”
“Yes, indeed.”
“The Holy See officially approves the beatification of ‘Hor.’ From this mont, the title for the author Hor will be changed to Venerable and will receive the sa respect as the bishops in each region until the official beatification ceremony is held. Cardinal Garnier, please arrange a eting with Venerable Hor to decide the date of the beatification ceremony.”
“Understood.”
anwhile, during the council convened at the Holy See to beatify the author Hor.
The very Hor, who had triggered all these events, was…
“Welco to the Academy, Lionel Balzac.”
“Th-thank you for welcoming , Author Hor.”
“I’ve heard about you from Author Herodotus. He said you’re a very talented writer.”
“R-really?”
…enjoying the thought of nurturing a new writer at the Academy.
* * *
“I heard you want to write romance novels.”
“Ah, yes!”
“Tell in detail what kind of romance novel you want to write.”
“Uh, well… It’s about two people from different social standings who face various conflicts and misunderstandings but eventually overco them and find happiness.”
“Ho, that sounds interesting.”
“Thank you….”
“So, I’ve prepared sothing in advance.”
“Sorry?”
I took out a manuscript from my bag.
A textbook for romance novels whose plot endures even to this day. The direct ancestor of countless contemporary romantic movies and dramas.
[Pride and Prejudice]
Jane Austen’s masterpiece and the eternal classic of romance, Pride and Prejudice. I planned to instill the structure of this ‘romance novel’ into the writer nad Lionel.
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