episode_0107

More than a year has already passed since Rupert was possessed by another world.

And during that brief, if brief, period of time, much had changed in the culture of the empire.

For example, the most popular forms of entertainment in the past were occasional knightly tournaments or performances by troupes that traveled throughout the empire.

And while the above were cultures mainly enjoyed by the nobles, the commoners below mainly enjoyed listening to adventure stories of heroes sung by wandering minstrels in taverns.

But things started to change a little bit after Rupert started making books.

“I confirmed that you rented 3 books. The return deadline is the day after tomorrow. Please note that additional fees will be charged for late returns.”

“I reserved the new book two weeks ago and I can only borrow it now.”

Recently, many places, including Rupert and Uren Top, have been publishing comic books and children’s books.

Because of this, it was difficult for commoners with limited financial resources to purchase and view all of them.

So, the bookstore emerged to fulfill the needs of those who were not wealthy.

Although there were bookstores that sold books in the past, the emergence of bookstores that specialized in selling or renting comics and storybooks was like rain in a drought.

It was very efficient to be able to rent dozens of comic books that I wanted to read but was hesitant to buy because they were expensive, for the price of one.

Not only that,

“This Cinderella is very precious. Are you sure you want to sell it?”

“I know that too, but I can’t help it. No matter how precious it is, it’s less important than the family’s difficult circumstances.”

It also served as a place to sell and trade books that had already been purchased.

Of course, those who had money could continue to buy books, but there were also many people who were in a hurry or who wanted to sell the books they had already read and read new ones.

Since they bought used books from these people and sold them at a cheaper price than new ones, many people, especially commoners, began visiting the bookstore.

Of course, comic books still had some shortcomings when it came to selling as many and as diverse books as traditional bookstores.

So, they bought and sold goods such as figures together.

In particular, the Somerset Goods store always sells figures for a limited time, so those who missed the chance all flocked to the bookstore to try to find what they wanted.

“No, where on earth did you get this?”

“I found it on my way out of the goods shop in Somerset Estate.”

The owner of the largest and most famous bookstore in the capital examined the items again, fiddling with the magnifying glass he uses to appraise them.

“This Pinocchio figure has never been sold in a goods store.”

“I see. My child was playing with it, and the shape and craftsmanship were so exquisite that I wondered if it was possible.”

The man who came to have the item appraised as a customer spoke with regret.

As he was about to leave Somerset Estate, a local boy was holding a Pinocchio doll that looked very realistic and caught his eye.

He thought he was a good buy when it came to goods, but since the child had something he had never seen before, he spent a lot of money on the Pinocchio doll.

‘This? Our captain gave it to me as a gift!’

The child didn’t know where the item came from, but said he received it as a gift from a boy named Daejang, so he went to the capital’s bookstore, which is said to be the most professional when it comes to appraisals of goods.

However, I couldn’t help but be disappointed when I heard that these goods were never sold at the Somerset Goods store.

‘Was this fake too?’

The official goods sold at the Somerset Goods store are all of high quality and very elaborately made, so they are popular and therefore expensive.

So, fake goods and such were secretly sold on the market.

‘In the Empire, if you get caught making something, you could end up with your balls blown off.’

Since it would have been a big deal if it had been caught by the imperial family, it was secretly produced in foreign countries outside the empire’s influence, and then smuggled in small quantities by peddlers, spreading the product.

And in the first place, Rupert and Yuren didn’t really care about such fake products.

‘It doesn’t matter anyway, since our goods are made to be sold at high prices to nobles rather than commoners.’

‘That’s true. Rather, seeing the poor quality will make people want to buy our goods even more.’

From the beginning, they had maintained a policy of selling books cheaply and selling them at high prices to the nobility, and the low-quality goods that had been released recently were mainly purchased by commoners, so they were not considered a big problem.

They knew better than anyone that their main customer base, the aristocrats, would not buy counterfeit goods just because they were cheaper than their own obviously high-quality products.

Rather, sales increased because the quality of the genuine product stood out against the counterfeit goods, creating a contrast effect.

“But, this is strange because it has a unique craftsmanship that is exactly like the real thing, even though it is clearly not an officially released product.”

“What the hell does that mean?”

“There is currently no place to create such fakes.”

The owner of the bookstore continued to look closely at the Pinocchio figure he had brought while answering the man’s questions.

The smooth seams characteristic of genuine goods, as well as the intricate carvings and techniques for interlocking the doll’s body parts, were unique to genuine goods and cannot be found in counterfeit goods.

This sophisticated technique, which countless attempts had been made to imitate elsewhere, but all had failed, was on display in this figure.

“Could this be it too?!”

“Please explain so I can understand.”

The bookstore owner’s hands were shaking, and his voice was also trembling as he answered.

“In addition to the officially released products, Somerset Workshop also has something called a ‘fantasy item.’”

“Fantasy stuff?”

“Limited edition items made for a select few, and very early on, for specific people.”

“Then maybe not?”

The bookstore owner simply nodded to the man’s words.

In his view, this must be one of those fantastic objects.

***

“There seem to be more people gathered at the auction house than usual.”

“Isn’t that the only way? They say that thing is going to be released.”

The Soders Auction House is famous for being the place where all kinds of rare items from all over the empire are gathered.

This place was strictly a membership-based place, and membership was only available to those with assets, regardless of social status.

The items on display here are things that are hard to find elsewhere, such as dwarven weapons, potions containing the elven vision, or ancient relics.

Everyone’s attention was focused on this auction in particular because such special items were put up for auction.

“Because of the last Agora, this kind of thing came out.”

“Until now, no matter how much extra money was given to the wealthy, they didn’t even pretend to listen.”

“What can I do? No one sells something that is sure to increase in value over time.”

The item released this time was put out by a baron.

At the Agora held last time, one of the nobles who had joined the Imperial Parents’ Association had no choice but to put it up for auction in order to raise compensation money.

“The Dwarven Double-Edged Axe has been sold. Now, let me introduce the next item!”

As the auctioneer gestured, the lights in the auction house went out and soon the sound of people moving busily could be heard.

The auction was about clearing away the auctioned items and preparing to put up the next auction item.

“I think a lot of people gathered today to get this item.”

-This is a limited edition first edition of Cinderella, the first fairy tale book created by author Rupert Somerset!

As the host’s explanation ends, a ray of light shines on the stage of the auction house.

In the place where the light shone, a book was carefully placed, with the words “Cinderella” written on the cover.

“This is my first time seeing that in person!”

“I’ve seen it before when another noble brought it and bragged about it at the last banquet, but that was a later fairy tale book.”

“The first limited edition fairy tale book.”

The nobles gasped in admiration at the sight of the book enlarged by magic.

Rupert Somerset’s first work, Cinderella, is currently the most talked about in the empire.

Now, the work is available for purchase at any time, but it has little value.

All they wanted was the 110 volumes of the so-called first edition, a fantasy.

A legendary custom-made edition of 10 copies, each of which Rupert created with unique illustrations for each client, plus a first edition of 100 copies made for sale.

These were already considered fantasy items among collectors.

‘They say the first edition and the later hardcover edition are made of completely different materials.’

First editions of Rupert’s early works were extremely popular among collectors.

Among them, the custom-made and first edition copies of , which were the first to be made, were worth the money.

No, there were people lining up to buy the books if they were told the price was high, but no owner would sell the books.

‘This book is my daughter’s treasure! I dare not look past it.’

All of the book owners were nobles, and most of the books they purchased were for their children, so no one sold them no matter how high the price went.

But when word spread that one of those who had participated in the Agora as Rupert’s enemy had put the first edition of the fantasy up for auction to raise a reward,

All the Empire’s collectors gathered at Soders Auction House.

“Now, let’s start the auction of the first edition of Cinderella!!!”

As the host announced the start of the show, the placards held by the people in the audience quickly began to rise.