NOVEL WEB “Cinderella lost her parents when she was young. She endured mistreatment from her stepmother and stepsister.”
Shabba shabba hai-shabba. How lonely must she have felt?
Shabba shabba hai-shabba. How difficult must it have been for her?
A girl was humming a tune while doing laundry by the riverside.
With winter slowly approaching, the river water was quite cold, leaving her hands numb, but there was no alternative.
“Nobles use a tool called a washing machine for their laundry, or so I’ve heard…”
But there was no way such a thing could exist in her uncle’s house where she, an orphan, was staying. She had to do all the washing for a large family herself.
If she happened to ruin any clothes or left them insufficiently washed, her aunt would surely hit her, so she had to concentrate and wash carefully, albeit thoroughly.
Yet, things were a little less tough these days compared to before.
“Cinderella also lost her parents, and yet she found happiness.”
This thought had come from a fairy tale book she had accidentally seen not long ago.
The fairy tale book, which was all the rage lately, was originally a rare item that even nobles struggled to acquire, but for a while now, merchants had been selling it at affordable prices.
Of course, that price was still expensive for the girl, so she had begged a neighbor’s child to let her see it.
Since she couldn’t read, she had to rely on the neighbor’s child to narrate the stories, but even just looking at the pictures, she could grasp the general tale—it was a wondrous book.
The book, filled with illustrations and stories, depicted a protagonist very much like herself finding happiness.
Cinderella wore glass slippers made by a fairy and married the prince.
Snow White, caught in the wicked queen’s schemes, found herself in a crisis, but the prince on a white horse appeared to save her.
Whenever she imagined that a fairy or a prince on a white horse would show up to punish her wicked uncle and aunt and then marry her, even the most menial household tasks felt bearable.
The girl began humming again as she continued her laundry.
“They say the books nobles read have far more beautiful illustrations.”
Suddenly, the girl thought of the noble’s fairy tale books filled with even prettier pictures and felt that if she could see them, that would be the fulfillment of all her wishes.
“Jenia! Haven’t you finished the laundry yet? You lazy girl! You won’t have any dinner tonight!”
“No! I’m almost done! Aunt.”
The girl, referred to as Jenia with her red hair, hurriedly went back to her laundry.
As if the river itself had come alive, the water surged upwards, rinsing the clothes on its own.
“I thought once I finished this, I’d be too tired to do anything else.”
It was her own secret, one that no one else knew. For some reason, she had a special ability to focus her mind and control elements like wind, water, and fire.
Jenia thought to herself that perhaps she had been chosen by a fairy like Cinderella.
*
With the counterfeit issue resolved, Cinderella and Snow White were both set for additional prints.
Initially, it was assumed there would be no more demands, but that was my mistake.
Due to a scarcity of fairy tale books among the nobles, a counterfeit issue arose, prompting the decision to discuss additional prints with the guild leader. Of course, only in a standard edition.
If limited editions and custom prints were published again, it would yield immediate profits, but…
The current value of our fairy tale books would significantly drop.
“Nothing is more frustrating than a game releasing limited editions only to reissue them later.”
Being blinded by immediate profits and diminishing the value of my creations is the most foolish thing I could do.
Certainly, there were minor grievances from the artisans who would have to create the additional editions, but that could be smoothed over with money.
Moreover, it was a detail I hadn’t fully grasped.
“Young master, may we also purchase the books when they are made?”
The maids and artisans in the manor, who had children, had wanted to gift them fairy tale books, but they had been unable to voice that desire until now.
Thus, when creating the new books, we decided to make enough extra copies so that each of those workers with children in our household could receive one.
Making them generously and distributing them as gifts to those who visit our family would also save on operating expenses, making it a good idea.
“I’m truly seeing the end in sight. If the next project succeeds, perhaps we can resolve the family’s debts.”
I viewed the current situation as a sort of trend. And it was an absurdly fortunate circumstance that allowed only me to take advantage of this trend.
In that case, there was no reason not to exploit this situation to the fullest.
Before the fervor created by [Cinderella] and [Snow White] dissipates, it was wise to release the sequel as soon as possible.
“Indeed, the next work should also be a Disney-style fairy tale.”
I hadn’t been without thoughts regarding sequels, as several candidates had already come to mind.
Fairy tales I knew, like “The Red Shoes,” “Thumbelina,” and “Hansel and Gretel,” all echoed in my mind, but they each felt somewhat lacking.
Unlike Cinderella or Snow White, those tales had elements that could be considered provocative or even disturbing for young children.
The very reason I created the fairy tale books was to show them to my younger sister, Aida, so I excluded any tales with violent scenes.
“Ah… is that really the only option?”
Although the ending was sad, it felt disappointing to leave out that particular work. As long as I adapted the ending carefully enough so that children wouldn’t be shocked, it should be fine, right?
I decided to create [The Little Mermaid] for the next project.
*
I needed to start with the design of The Little Mermaid.
The iconic red hair immediately came to mind.
I wanted to respect the original design, but in this world, it was absolutely necessary to make adjustments.
In this realm, red-haired women symbolized witches.
Of course, not all red-haired individuals were witches, but it was said that many were born with unusually high magical power.
As a result, they naturally became associated with magic, and as the number of examples increased, it was only logical that the number of bad people among them would rise too.
However, this was a truth only someone with a cool, rational modern perspective like mine could comprehend.
To the inhabitants of this world, whenever they caught a criminal using magic, they often found a red-haired woman involved.
Thus, the equation of red-haired women = witches came to be, and they continue to face much discrimination and persecution even now.
Given that situation, there was no reason for me to gamble on the family’s fate by making the character of The Little Mermaid red-haired.
‘While it’s fine to base custom prints on the subject’s likeness, the hardback and standard edition characters need to be firmly established.’
Cinderella had golden blonde hair and blue eyes.
Snow White had black hair and fair skin, which made her easy to illustrate due to her distinctive features.
When excluding the red hair—her defining characteristic—the design of The Little Mermaid turned out to be more difficult than I had anticipated.
If I changed it arbitrarily, it would risk a disastrous outcome, akin to creating a “Black Mermaid,” so the design had to be handled with utmost care.
I wanted to depict a princess of the sea, not a sea predator that would frighten children.
‘The Little Mermaid… mermaid… sea?’
Though merfolk existed in this world, they were a race not seen within the empire, which meant I would have to completely imagine the design from scratch.
Suddenly, Amelia Bluewell came to mind.
With her blue hair and sky-blue eyes,
Those colors perfectly suited a mermaid princess swimming through the ocean as if crafted by divine whimsy.
Based on the inspiration sparked by Amelia Bluewell, I set out to design the character of The Little Mermaid.
The design process for The Little Mermaid unfolded so swiftly that it felt almost surreal—as if the block I had experienced until that point had melted away in an instant.
It was surprisingly outstanding.
“Now that I think about it, unlike the token gift from the royal family, Duke Bluewell provided me with a generous reward.”
Just thinking about that payment from back then still gives me a sense of satisfaction.
Initially, I had wanted to avoid getting involved, pushing them away, but if they were to return, I would gladly smile and welcome them.
“Now I need to determine the witch character as well.”
The witch plays a crucial role in The Little Mermaid.
While Disney depicted witches as malevolent monsters, in the original tale, the witch had not done anything wrong.
On the contrary, she had only done her best to help the Little Mermaid and, aware of the tragic ending, had even tried to dissuade her.
However,
“It’s just that the ingredient needed to create the potion for the Little Mermaid was her tongue—all an unfortunate misunderstanding from the witch’s perspective.”
The witch’s role hardly mirrored that of a simple antagonist. She merely provided options, and it was entirely up to the Little Mermaid to make her own choices in this tale.
Only then would the ending of the fairy tale hold significance.
“I’ve decided you will be the witch!”
Isn’t it typical for witches to have black hair? Among the black-haired women I recall, only one stands out.
She was the malicious reader of my fairy tale, the bloom of the empire, or rather, the empire’s villainess, who sought to manipulate me through power.
This must be why ancient literary figures would produce a flurry of works while in exile.
Facing an unjust fate ignites creativity.
Having completed the character of the witch, the significant tasks were now finished.
“Now, what remains is the prince, perhaps?”
Within The Little Mermaid, the prince is likely a character who will receive quite a bit of criticism.
Thus, he should not be drawn as overly remarkable. He ought to be relatable enough to provide portions for critique. However, he shouldn’t be unlikable either, so his appearance must be decent.
This time, I struggled to think of a model, but I just did my best, letting my thoughts flow onto the paper.
A subtle expression balancing between annoyance and coldness, tinged with blonde hair.
Hmm. Though I drew it myself, the character fits just right.
He feels somewhat familiar, but that’s a trait of cartoonists.
Having seen and drawn so many characters, it occasionally happens that I create something reminiscent of previous works.
Now that I’ve completed the important characters, all that’s left is to pen the story and its narratives.
Gulp.
“Wow, this feels different!”
I just drank a whole vial of the revitalizing potion that Guild Leader Esteban had recently gifted me.
The potions sold at the guild are less taxing on the body, but not particularly potent.
This one, however, developed by the Alchemy Guild, was incredibly effective.
I had previously shared it with the artisans as a test, but they caused quite a ruckus after drinking it, leaving me to enjoy it alone now.
“Honestly, it’s just a bit dizzy and breathless once the effects wear off. Why make such a fuss about it?”
When I was working on my webtoon back in the day, I bought a home infusion machine to connect myself to intravenous fluids just to meet deadlines.
I even ended up in the emergency room once after overindulging on high-caffeine drinks while on infusion.
Compared to that, this feels like a divine gift.
Rejuvenated, I resumed my work with vigor.
—