EP.3

“Baron, this isn’t as easy as it sounds. Even if I manage to create it, I can’t give it exclusively to you.”

I was busy with the project to save our Family’s finances, but lately, other nobles had been coming to request their own versions of Cinderella.

“Listen here, young Rupert! If I return home empty-handed, my daughter might starve to death! I am begging you.”

The Baron grasped my shoulders with a desperate expression.

According to my father, he was quite arrogant and haughty due to his affluent territory.

‘What nonsense! How can someone’s daughter starve? This is just an exaggeration.’

I finally managed to shake off the Baron’s grip and calmed him down.

Thinking I should refuse more sincerely, I began to explain the reasons why this was impossible one by one.

“First of all, creating a book requires more tools than you might expect.”

“I’ll support you with all of those tools!”

“Moreover, it’s going to take quite a lot of time since I need to draw each page by hand.”

“Well, if you have the original book that you drew, can’t you just have it copied at the Magic Tower’s printing house? I’ll personally request it from the Magic Tower!”

What in the world? This man is really desperate.

And is that actually feasible at the Magic Tower?

I knew full well that this was a world filled with magic, but I never imagined there would be magical tools for printing books.

If that’s the case, it would certainly reduce my workload significantly.

The Cinderella I created was meant for Aida, with the protagonist named Cinderella Aida, based on her appearance, so I’d only need to make those adjustments.

However, I didn’t have the luxury of spending time on that right now…

“Of course, I’m not asking you to do it for free. I’ll provide ample compensation!”

“Alright! Let’s give it a shot.”

*

After the Baron left, I received a list of noble families who wanted Cinderella storybooks through my father.

Then, when I requested the names and pictures of the young ladies from the families listed, they seemed quite eager and promptly sent everything I asked for.

Some even sent monetary gifts upfront as a show of sincerity, with amounts varying widely.

The most generous contribution came from the ever-desperate Baron Sleepy, who sent a whopping 5 gold coins.

‘The monthly living expenses for an average household are around 20 silver, and 100 silver equals 1 gold… This is insane. For just one book?’

I couldn’t help but click my tongue in astonishment.

So far, I had determined that our family’s monthly expenses amounted to about 3 gold coins.

Although our income was significantly higher than that, after covering the operational costs for the estate and territory, plus repaying debts from being swindled, we had to manage on the remaining 3 gold for living expenses.

Yet somehow, I was pulling in an amount exceeding a month’s living expenses for just one book.

Other nobles had also sent at least over 1 gold each, meaning just from them alone, I had already surpassed 10 gold coins.

“Now that I’ve received the money, I should begin right away.”

A professional manga artist like me keeps my promises to customers, even in another world.

First, I sat down at my desk and examined the tools that Baron Sleepy had sent along with his monetary gift.

At first glance, I spotted a luxurious feather pen with a delicate metallic tip and a rather viscous black ink.
EP.3

This world uses brushes, not pens, for drawing, so this feather pen isn’t optimized for illustrations.

However, since I was creating a storybook this time, it was sufficient for my needs.

‘I wish I had a fine spoon pen, but I’ll take what I can get.’

Fortunately, while it wasn’t a metal pen, the feather pen could serve a similar purpose.

Unlike Earth’s feather pens, the ones here dispensed ink evenly without overflowing.

This meant that while I couldn’t achieve perfect line variation or smoothness, I could still manage to draw.

I had to paint the colors with brushes and paints, but it was obvious that quality art supplies existed in this world.

In fact, they seemed even better than those on Earth.

“I never expected they’d be so crazy about a storybook.”

Looking at the original Cinderella that had inadvertently become Aida’s number one treasure, memories of the struggles I faced while creating it flooded back.

*

The romance fantasy world of ‘The Youngest Son of the Royal Family’ shared a backdrop quite similar to our medieval times.

Thus, it was natural that novels existed; the notable difference was that there were no storybooks for children.

To be precise, while there were narrative books written solely in text, there were no modern picture books with illustrations.

Here, the only types of books that included illustrations were guidebooks like those for plants, monsters, or weapons, and storybooks were simply compactly filled with text.

‘Aida, you won’t read this; it’s boring.’

I was reminded of this when Aida grew bored and grumbled while I tried to read a storybook to her before.

Young children who don’t enjoy reading books often engage with illustrated storybooks.

Thus, I resolved to create a beautiful storybook with lovely illustrations for Aida.

‘Looks like the day has come to apply what I learned in the book art club back in middle school.’

I had signed up for the popular computer club during my middle school days, but after losing a game of rock-paper-scissors, I was forced to join the under-enrolled book art club, which ended up being helpful.

Recalling the simple book-making experiences in the book art club, I confidently set out to create the book myself.

However, making a book was no easy task.

‘I’ve sold off all the leather in the Young Master’s residence, and this is all I have left…’

When I asked the butler for leather to use as the cover, what I received was an unrecognizable hide with stiff fur still attached.

Later, I learned it was the skin of a monster called ‘Nol,’ which was said to be so useless that it was often discarded.

That was fine; after all, the cover was only visible from the outside. The important part was what was inside—I rationalized this as I requested some paper.

‘We do have paper. However, this one is a bit…’

Goodness, I certainly wasn’t looking for the quality of the modern fine paper used for high-end books or conveniently smooth book paper.

However, I was appalled by the quality of the paper, which was worse than even scrap paper, unfit for use.

At this rate, I was certain drawing on it would cause the pages to tear.

‘But I can’t exactly ask my father for money either…’

At this rate, both the cover and the content would turn into a terrible book.
It would be better not to make something like that at all. After much deliberation, my conclusion was to sell off all the books that were seldom read.

After all, I had long outgrown storybooks, and Aida thought they were boring and had no intention of reading them. Selling those alone would cover the cost of materials.

The storybooks in our home were the ones purchased when our family still had some nobility, so even though they were secondhand, they were luxurious enough to fetch a decent price.

‘With that money, this month’s food expenses…’

As I observed the butler and head maid drooling over the money received from selling the books, I felt a twinge of guilt, but I resolved to use it for Aida.

Every time I saw Aida envy the splendid jewelry or dolls the neighboring young ladies brought when they visited, my heart ached.

While my father and I may have been able to endure the hardships of poverty as adults, Aida, being still a child, shouldn’t have to experience such deprivation, at least not yet.

Afterwards, I purchased leather for the cover and paper for the pages from the merchant, and with great care, I wrote out the story of Cinderella from memory, one letter at a time.

On the opposite page, I drew illustrations to match the content.

There was Cinderella, adorned in a gorgeous dress and wearing glass slippers; the fairy and pumpkin carriage; the grand ballroom of the beautiful palace; and the handsome prince—all were delicately and fantastically rendered.

‘I can’t believe this guy Rupert has such talents, yet only draws portraits of the female lead to present them.’

Having already drawn webtoons, I had a measure of confidence in my artistic skills, but honestly, the art skills of Rupert, the original owner of this body, were impressive.

Upon entering the house, the beautiful portrait of a middle-aged woman hanging in the center of the entrance had the vibrancy and realism, beautiful color tones that one might expect from a renowned Renaissance artist, and it was painted by Rupert himself.

It was said that he painted it in commemoration of Lady Somerset, the Countess of Bradley, who was Rupert and Aida’s mother, after she passed away from illness.

While the novel described him as a good painter, it only mentioned that he drew the female lead’s portrait to present, so I never expected he had talent of this caliber.

It was only after possessing Rupert’s body that I realized how extraordinary a painter he could have become had he pursued it seriously.

However, in this world, being a painter wasn’t a highly esteemed profession.

Magic photography had replaced the role of painters, and the typical life of an artist involved barely making ends meet by painting portraits or murals for the wealthy nobility.

Therefore, I understood why Rupert, despite having this talent, hadn’t pursued a career as a painter.

“Since I’ve possessed this body, I’ll make good use of your talent.”

Fortunately, it seemed that my artistic skills hadn’t diminished with this possession; in fact, they had improved tremendously compared to my past life.

If I were to return to Earth in this state, it wasn’t hard to envision dominating not just the webtoon industry but the entire art world.

Thus, the fairy tale book, “Cinderella Aida,” was born, a beautiful blend of my experiences and Rupert’s talents.