Surviving as a Plagiarist in Another World

< Chapter 8: Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (3) >

“Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is a novel about the soul,” the narrator began, not referring to the soul in a spiritual sense, but rather to the concrete personality that compels us to balance norms and impulses in our actions.

This aspect of the soul manifests externally through a ‘medicine’.

The appearance of Hyde is one of pure evil—pure yet subservient to a person named Henry Jekyll. Initially, when Henry Jekyll abhorred evil, Hyde appeared small and cowering.

“My evil side of my nature. The body of the villain, transformed by the power of the drug, was weaker and less developed than the body of the good personality that had just been expelled.”

However, the less Henry Jekyll could control the evil,

The more formidable and stronger Hyde became—until, no matter how devoutly Henry Jekyll worshiped God and served among the people, he eventually forced his way out of Jekyll.

Just as Hyde was dependent on Jekyll, Jekyll was also dependent on Hyde.

“Ah! Welcome! I am the alchemist Gallen Rennion! It is an honor that the illustrious author Homeros has visited this place. I worry that my humble laboratory might be an impertinence.”

I had come to meet the creator of a ‘medicine’ inspired by Henry Jekyll’s concoction.

The reason was simple.

“What is this medicine?”

“Haha! You’ve come because you’re curious about that. The creator of the story said so.”

I couldn’t possibly guess what this medicine was.

“What part of my medicine are you curious about?”

* * *

Although the format of the competition was open, I had not anticipated that a ‘recipe of the medicine in the work’ would be submitted—an odd item indeed.

It would be imprudent to just open the bottle and test the medicine.

Maybe it was just a novel with a randomly written recipe concept, and it was impossible to guess how such an occult item would work. If it were to ‘consume’ me like Hyde did in the work, wouldn’t that be problematic?

So, I went to see him.

The alchemist, Gallen Rennion.

“What on earth did you make this medicine for?”

“The work created by the story’s author inspired me like a star, and I followed that inspiration to mix the medicine. If you ask ‘how’ I made it, wouldn’t you be curious how the author could create such a novel? Haha!”

“…No, what exactly is this medicine? Is it like in the work, a medicine that separates evil from the soul and inhabits the body?”

“What exactly is a soul?”

People often talk about the ‘star of the soul’ or a ‘soul-stirring work,’ but these are ultimately just forms of emotional expression or rhetoric.

It’s not that there are actual souls out there that these expressions derive from.

“This drug reveals the form of the soul without reservation. Hmm, it would be faster if you saw it yourself! There is a spare inside, but it would be rude to let it sit for too long, so could you hand that to me? I’ll show you myself!”

The alchemist said this and suddenly snatched the drug I was holding.

He popped open the lid and gulped it down in one go.

“Kaha-. I made it, but it tastes really good. This one.”

“…”

“It’s strawberry flavored.”

Without being asked, the alchemist described the taste of the drug.

Soon, he began to grimace and groan.

“Krhhp, guk, aah─.”

The alchemist’s face contorted. Veins bulged in his eyes as his facial muscles began to twitch uncontrollably.

A scene from ‘Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde’ flashed through my mind—the scene where Hyde drinks a concoction in front of Dr. Rennion.

[The devil himself would be shocked and bewildered by the miracle that will confound your eyes!]

[He seemed to swell. His complexion suddenly turned the color of dirt, and his eyes and nose seemed to melt like wax.]

[The man trembling before me with a pale face was indeed, indeed Henry Jekyll!]

The description fit the alchemist’s current appearance perfectly.

“Ooh, this is quite painful. Honestly, it hurts as much as being beaten up by thugs! Haha. But doesn’t my condition look rather fine?”

His face was as pale as a sheet of paper, and his irises shimmered like oil paint mixed with water.

The whites of his eyes were a bit more translucent, and his fingers had become thin and long, seemingly capable of easily grasping and releasing anything. Overall, he gave off an eccentric vibe.

“This is what my soul looks like. It’s extremely comfortable and, well, I quite like it. It feels more natural and delicate than a polymorph potion, like shedding a layer.”

“…What exactly do you mean by ‘the appearance of the soul’?”

“I don’t know either!”

“What?”

“Just that there’s an ideal, comfortable form that one naturally feels, right? Or maybe it’s a grotesque and blatant form like Hyde’s. If a person wears a mask, the shabby appearance at home might feel the most ‘real.’ That honesty might have turned Dr. Jekyll into Hyde!”

At this point, I realized that trying to understand the ravings of a madman was quite meaningless.

But I had learned something.

“Ah, the effects last about a day. Would you like to try one too, author? I’ll pack several for you!”

The drug was strawberry flavored.

* * *

“Is that the appearance of your ‘soul’, Lord Ed? It’s a bit… exotic.”

Ultimately, unable to contain his curiosity, he had tried the medicine.

After all, its effects would vanish after a day, he reasoned. The result was a bit different from what he had imagined.

“Indeed, it feels comfortable as if wearing clothes that fit perfectly,” he mused. “Alchemy really is fascinating.”

In the mirror, his face blended his past and present lives equally. It was both unfamiliar and oddly comforting.

His voice had undergone a similar transformation. The timbres of his past and present life mingled together.

“But what am I to do with all these…”

In one corner of the room, there was a pile of ‘medicines’ received from Gallen.

What to do indeed.

“Why not offer them as prizes?” he suggested suddenly.

“Eh?”

“I heard that you are organizing a ‘fan art and story competition’ for ‘Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde’. Since these medicines don’t seem to have any side effects like those in the novel, why not give them as prizes to the winners? It would be an opportunity for them to experience what the characters in the novel went through.”

“Ah!”

Certainly, all the participants in the contest would be fans of ‘Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde’. Even if not fans per se, they would be readers who had thoroughly engaged with the work.

They would be thrilled to have a chance to directly experience the protagonist’s adventures.

“That’s a great idea, Sion. You have quite the sense, don’t you?”

“You flatter me, Lord.”

“Alright then. I’ll take them to Ms. Dorling Kindersley. Sion, prepare everything.”

“Yes, Lord.”

* * *

The success of the fan fiction competition notwithstanding, ‘Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde’ as a work had less social influence compared to ‘Don Quixote’, which belonged to the chivalric tradition.

The genre itself was unfamiliar, and the narrative was short.

However, it spread much faster among the public. The dry writing style, the provocative incidents, and the short length perfectly replaced the conventional popular novels.

“Hyde is the true essence of humanity! Jekyll is nothing but a shackle holding Hyde back! If people were free from the scrutiny of others, wouldn’t they all act like Hyde?”

“Honestly, it’s so refreshing. Much better than those suffocating, hypocritical knights.”

The elements of violence and tragedy in the story triggered a sensational response.

The ruthless and cold nature of Hyde resonated with many who were tired of life. It differed from traditional knightly and romantically veiled obscene literature.

In a way, it was similar to the trend of ‘refreshing revenge’ stories in web novels of a previous life.

The demand for blunt violence emerged, and sensitive popular novel writers began producing works to meet this demand. Removing chivalry and romance to portray dry, violent narratives wasn’t so hard.

“Have you seen this ‘Hammett’s Revenge’? It’s incredibly satisfying!”

“What’s it about?”

“Revenge! Just know it’s satisfying!”

“What are they avenging?”

“Well, uh, what was it? Never mind! It’s satisfying, that’s enough!”

The low barrier to entry and high demand led to an indiscriminate production of stimulating works.

“Ah, tsk. Are you making such a fuss over such a work?”

“What about you? What are you watching?”

‘Mad Hammer! A brawny man with a hammer going around smashing everything!”n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

“That… sounds quite entertaining!”

Thus, the ‘hardboiled’ genre was flourishing in this other world.