Chapter 24

The illustrations for Alice in Wonderland were done by Lucia Barton, who also handled the illustrations for “The Little Prince.” She was just a girl who loved to draw, and now she was making a name for herself as a professional illustrator.

“If it’s a novel by Homer, I absolutely have to take it on! Actually, please let me do it!”

Of course, as soon as she heard that it was a fairy tale I had written, she ran over and drew some absolutely stunning illustrations.

As a result, the plagiarized Alice in Wonderland turned into something close to perfection. Perhaps, among all the novels I had plagiarized, Alice as a ‘plagiarized work’ was the most complete.

[Alice in Wonderland]

And so, Alice in Wonderland was officially published. It was Homer’s second fairy tale. There were some doubts about whether it would match the quality of previous works due to the element of co-writing with a disciple.

“Alice in Wonderland is a masterpiece!”

“Is Homer… really a god?”

Those doubts quickly vanished. Alice in Wonderland was the most fantastical fairy tale out there.

* * *

Alice in Wonderland is a fairy tale themed around dreams. No, it was a dream itself.

Flowing chaotically like a dream, Alice falls, grows, shrinks, travels through spaces, and meets all sorts of strange characters. Everything is chaotic, and only intuition remains. In the dream world, logic goes out the window, while everything flows in a way that’s more natural than any rational explanation.

Like a perfectly crafted wordplay.

If “The Little Prince” was a fairy tale for adults, then Alice in Wonderland was a fairy tale that stumped adults completely.

The world of dreams is, after all, a pure and vibrant—childlike world.

“Wow! Is this… the fairy tale of a great writer…?”

“It’s so much fun… even though it’s a fairy tale…?”

And it was fascinating precisely because it made no sense.

With erratic events controlling the pace, outrageous characters bursting with personality, and wordplay forming ridiculous sentences.

It was a delightful joke all on its own.

Every time you understood a context, you’d tap your forehead in excitement, and every sentence read would make you chuckle uncontrollably.

The most entertaining fairy tale. A story full of cheer and wit.

The ones most moved by this tale were those in the field of ‘art.’ Especially the critics who loved to nitpick other people’s works were the first to shout out.

“Alice in Wonderland is pure art!”

“Homer, who opened a new horizon of fantasy with Don Quixote, completed that fantasy with Alice in Wonderland.”

Critics tend to love works that leave room for interpretation. And Alice in Wonderland was overflowing with interpretative possibilities.

It also helped that the somewhat lacking writing skills were boosted by the genius of ‘Rolls Camel.’

As a result, Alice in Wonderland got rave reviews from critics, placing it right after Don Quixote.

“If I could express the inspiration I received from Alice in Wonderland through music…!”

“It’s like my dreams have been put under a microscope and laid out on a page…”

Artists from various fields—music, painting, and theatrical magic—were captivated by the quirky tale of Alice in Wonderland.

The story itself was a dream, and dreams were the ultimate source of inspiration.

Those working in the cultural and artistic fields couldn’t help but feel immense inspiration from this tale.

Alice in Wonderland soon became a dominating trend in the art world.

Many artists portrayed Alice and her strange land through their own art.

“Oh, nanny. Wearing an apron dress at my age… doesn’t that seem a bit childish?”

“My, what are you saying~? Who looks better in a blue apron dress than you, Miss Riddle? You’re still young, so when else would you wear such clothes?”

In social circles, the blue apron dress symbolizing ‘Alice’ became a trend among young women. Since it didn’t suit those slightly older, this apron dress became essential attire for girls just entering society.

“Homer is truly a god! But who is this Rolls Camel co-author mentioned alongside him?”

“I heard she’s a disciple of Mr. Homer. Most of the sentences and dialogues in Alice in Wonderland were written by this Rolls Camel.”

“She must be an exceptional disciple….”

“Indeed, she’s probably an excellent teacher too!”

And so, Rolls Camel made a perfect debut as both a writer and as ‘Homer’s’ disciple.

Rich patrons were lining up to sponsor the fresh author, Rolls Camel.

Some patrons even started reaching out to other Literary Academy disciples beforehand. This goes to show just how widespread Alice in Wonderland’s influence was across various sectors of society.

“Congratulations on becoming a great writer in advance, Rolls Camel.”

“Am… am I worthy of such high praise? To be honest, the entire story was crafted by Mr. Homer…”

“Instead, it was you, Rolls Camel, who brought that story to life with your splendid sentences. You can be confident about that.”

“Heh, heheh…”

I was planning to fan the flames of this trend.

Alice in Wonderland—this was just the beginning for the Alice series.

“Instead, let’s talk about writing.”

“Y-Yes?!”

“We need to write the next story of Alice.”

“N-Next story…?”

Like last time, I pulled a bundle of manuscripts from my bag.

The front page of the manuscript had a title written elegantly.

[Through the Looking-Glass]

“Let’s write about Alice’s new dream.”

“Y-Yes, y-y-y-yes!”

* * *

Through the Looking-Glass.

The sequel to the Alice series was just as packed with riddles and puzzles as Alice in Wonderland.

The difference is, unlike Alice in Wonderland, which [didn’t care where you went], Through the Looking-Glass has a direction—moving forward.

“Promotion… Is this Harren Kingdom-style chess, isn’t it?”

“Oh, don’t they have such board games in the Empire?”

“Th-There is chess in the Empire, but… Empire’s chess doesn’t have promotion…”

Alice in Wonderland was a world inspired by ‘cards’, while Through the Looking-Glass was a world inspired by ‘chess’.

Alice, stepping through the world beyond the mirror, reaches the end of the chessboard and becomes a queen.

It’s a promotion in chess.

But the chess in this world had slightly different rules. There was no promotion, and there were even more sub-rules.

“Oh, but still, many people do enjoy Harren Kingdom-style chess… and since it’s tough to strictly adhere to board game rules, it should be fine!”

“Is that so?”

“Y-Yes! And the idea of a girl becoming a queen is very nice! Hehe…”

“You can do this like last time, right?”

“O-Of course! It might take a bit more time… but since we’ve done it once, I’ll do it even better this time!”

Rolls Camel stated this and immersed herself back into writing.

It seemed like this time too, she’d need quite a bit of paper and pens.

“Oh, especially, please pay attention to the ‘Jabberwocky.’”

“O-Of course!”

Jabberwocky.

This nonsensical poem by Lewis Carroll was hailed as one of the greatest poems in English literature. Made up entirely of clever wordplay and neologisms, making it nearly impossible to grasp, it also serves as a story that sparks poetic imagination.

Of course, the Jabberwocky I translated into this world’s language isn’t anything extraordinary.

I could only hope that Rolls Camel would turn my silly poem into a magnificent piece.

“I guess I shouldn’t worry too much. The Alice series itself is a great masterpiece. Even if it’s somewhat lacking, literature will continue to thrive just from that alone.”

The Alice series.

“Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” and “Through the Looking-Glass” stand as symbols in their own right.

Symbols of fantasy, dreams, and a certain kind of strangeness.

If psychologist Carl Jung categorized the symbols of dreams, Lewis Carroll created them. All art pursuing dreamlike and fantastical inspiration owes a debt to Lewis Carroll.

And so, the Alice series has been endlessly recreated.

In the most famous film adaptation, “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” and “Through the Looking-Glass” are mixed together into a single work. In many cases of secondary creations, the two are more often than not merged without distinction.

For example, the “Red Queen,” “Jabberwocky,” and “Humpty Dumpty” all appear in “Through the Looking-Glass.”

However, in my prior life, many folks believed they merely appeared in “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.”

“In this world, they’re even more likely to think so. After all, they were published in succession without any time lag….”

And thus.

Shortly after the publication of “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland,”

“Through the Looking-Glass” hit the shelves.

* * *

“Author Homer is definitely from the Harren Kingdom!”

“People who have seen Author Homer say that he has an exotic look. He must be of mixed heritage from the Harren Kingdom.”

“I heard that in the Harren Kingdom, royals who lose their place in the line of succession often abandon their names and assume new identities. Could it be…?”

“Gasp.”

Strange rumors began circulating throughout the Empire.