Surviving as a Plagiarist in Another World

< Chapter 2: Don Quixote >

Fed up with dozens of the same novels being churned out, I brought a game-changer—Don Quixote.

But now, the capital was overflowing with works that blatantly plagiarized Don Quixote.

I had underestimated the absurdity of this world.

A world where there isn’t even a proper copyright law, and the Patent Office only oversees publishing rights.

“…Lord. Shall we pursue legal action?”

“It won’t catch on.”

“What?”

“They didn’t print my novel without permission; they plagiarized the content of my novel.”

The range of publishing rights guaranteed by the Patent Office literally covers only ‘publishing’. If an unauthorized publisher were to print Don Quixote, that would be a problem.

However, suing over a plagiarized plot was difficult.

That was the limit of this world’s judiciary. The disaster was due to the complete lack of awareness of ‘copyright’.

“It would be great if this could lead to the proper drafting of copyright laws, but that’s still a long way off.”

“That’s unfortunate…”

Sion, who became my fan after first reading Don Quixote, seemed quite disappointed by this fact.

His reaction was a bit amusing, so I joked.

“Why? Sad about the royalties you’ll miss out on?”

“…Lord, you struggled to write that novel, even giving up your allowance. It angers me that such a novel can’t receive proper compensation.”

In truth, the novel wasn’t that hard to write.

After all, I plagiarized it from ‘the original world’. Of course, I did make some adjustments to fit the history and culture of this world, but having known the basic structure, it wasn’t too difficult.

Still, I nodded, sympathizing with Sion’s reaction.

“Don’t forget that feeling. It starts with the readers having such awareness, and eventually, that’s how copyright takes root.”

Arguing for copyright alone as an author meant nothing.

In the end, to raise the issue effectively, there needs to be a ‘public’ voice.

And the best way to engage the public was by rewarding them with better works.

“In that sense, it’s a bit early, but I’ll show it to you first, Sion.”

“Could it be?”

“Yes.”

I pulled a stack of papers from the drawer and showed them to Sion.

“Don Quixote, Part Two.”

“Woaaaaaah──!!!”

Sion screamed as he took the bundle of papers I had handed him.

His scream was so loud that the chief servant came up to check what was going on. I managed to brush him off and sent him away.

Trembling like someone suffering from withdrawal symptoms, Sion sat down on the floor and began to read.

‘This situation is really interesting.’

In fact, in the original world, the reason Don Quixote Part Two appeared was also due to the overwhelming number of pirated editions.

Indeed, in the prologue and various passages of the second part of “Don Quixote,” there was a sharp tone about the issue of pirated editions. I, too, wrote similar content in respect of the original work and as a warning against the flood of pirated editions in the market.n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

I sat in an armchair, waiting for Sion to finish reading the article.

Due to the substantial length, it was almost dinner time when Sion finished reading.

“…ugh. Do, Don Quixote…”

“Finished reading?”

“This… will definitely sell! No, it will go beyond selling and change the history of this world!”

“That might be too ambitious… If only we could modify the parts related to copyright laws.”

The existence of copyright laws is essential for ensuring the rights of creators and maintaining a healthy creative environment.

Ultimately, my goal remained the same: to read more interesting novels. For that to happen, an environment conducive to the birth of such novels needs to be established first.

“Ha, may I read it once more? I want to reflect on Don Quixote’s journey.”

“That’s fine, but… isn’t it time for dinner?”

“…Oh.”

Only then did Sion realize he had been reading for hours, and he sighed.

Attempting to stand up, he twisted his body as if his leg had cramped, and sat back down.

“Ah… so, sorry.”

“No rush, take your time.”

After groaning for a while, Sion managed to walk just in time as a servant announced that dinner was ready.

Feeling awkward, Sion and I headed to the dining room.

As we took our seats with Sion attending to me, he bowed his head slightly and moved to where the servants were dining.

The other family members were already seated at the table.

My father, the family head, glanced at me and clicked his tongue in annoyance.

“Why are you so late? You must have been reading that knightly literature again, weren’t you?”

“Yes, well…”

Though he spoke gruffly, my father was actually the one who supported me the most behind the scenes.

He just spoke up before my mother could start nagging. I nodded to my father in thanks.

“Such light novels, what’s so interesting about them…”

Muttering, my father suddenly seemed to remember something.

“Ah, speaking of which, there’s been quite a stir about a novel called Don Quixote in the capital, have you read it? I’ve never read knightly literature, so I can’t relate. Those old fools in the capital really don’t act their age…”

“…Don Quixote?”

“Yes, since I haven’t read it, they just talk amongst themselves, and it’s so irritating that I’m thinking about reading it… Can you summarize it for me, Ed?”

“Uh, it’s not that difficult.”

“Not difficult?”

“It’s because I wrote that novel.”

“…What?”

There was a clattering sound as a spoon dropped somewhere.

The gaze of all the family members dining turned to the one who had dropped the spoon. It was my brother and the eldest son of our family, Eric.

Eric stuttered as he asked,

“Do, Don Quixote, you’re saying you’re the author ‘Homer’?!”

“Ah, yes.”

Hearing my pen name in front of everyone felt a bit odd.

Using the name of the greatest epic poet as a pen name seemed too much even for me. I could feel my face heating up.

It was like a singer naming themselves ‘Freddie Mercury’.

“It doesn’t make sense…”

“And you read such books, brother? I thought you didn’t read knightly literature because it was childish.”

“Among the young nobles, Don Quixote is considered a god!”

‘Isn’t that blasphemy…?’

Don Quixote is indeed a significant literary work.

It is known as a classic in literary history, the first modern novel, a favorite among writers, the ‘Bible of Spain,’ and the father of all modern novels. Its influence in literary history is incomparable to any other work.

That’s in the realm of ‘literary history’.

As for its influence outside literature, one could doubt it. Even in modern times, to the general public, Don Quixote is mostly known as the ‘madman who charged at windmills’.

“…Well, it’s a world without much developed cultural industry.”

Though there were spectacles like monster circuses and magic performances, there was hardly anything that could be called ‘content’ in that era.

Thinking like that Eric’s reaction was somewhat more understandable.

Even in a world where the ‘publishing industry’ itself was not particularly well-developed, it had a relatively large scale due to other cultural industries being even more dismal. As a result, the publishing industry wielded more influence than expected.

“Thanks for reading it with interest,” he said.

“My brother being that Homer…” he lamented in disbelief.

While he was still in shock, their mother cautiously started to speak up.

“Is that work called ‘Don Quixote’ really that remarkable?”

Then, he passionately raised his voice.

“Of course! Among the young nobles, if you haven’t read ‘Don Quixote,’ you’d be laughed at. Especially those who are sensitive to trends─”

Eric spent a long time explaining just how influential the work ‘Don Quixote’ was.

In social circles, not knowing ‘Don Quixote’ meant being outdated, and among some nobles, it had even become fashionable to mimic Don Quixote’s attire. As he heard these stories, the term ‘Werther Effect’ from his original world came to mind.

After the craze for ‘The Sorrows of Young Werther’, young men who read the novel began imitating Werther’s clothing and, subsequently, a series of suicides followed.

‘The influence of literature… it’s beyond imagination.’

The power of literature. The energy that literature held. In his previous life in South Korea, bringing up such topics would have only invited ridicule.

In an era like this, who still clings to outdated paper books?

However, this era was different. The publishing industry was just beginning to emerge and, although still immature, it harbored the potential to become ‘universal culture.’

“…I’ll have to be more careful with the next work,” he mumbled to himself unwittingly.

Eric suddenly stopped speaking and looked at him, his eyes sparkling with curiosity.

“The next work?”

“Huh? Yes.”

“Perhaps… ‘Don Quixote Part 2’?”

“For now, yes.”

Eric’s reaction thereafter… let’s just say it was so overwhelming that it turned the dinner into a mess.