So even in your extreme case, you don't expect to make even close to a reasonable amount of profit for your efforts.
How would it be so much worse for you to make no profit at all? $50 from the position of a student is a significant amount of money. In all likelihood, that is going to leave each student with a more significant financial impact than the profit you would be missing out on for not charging them: and it is multiplied to each student who buys the book.
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The ultimate dilemma here is not whether or not you should be compensated. It's how. Whether you choose to charge for this book or not, this strategy is untenable.
Most people who are underpaid don’t want their income to fall further. Budgeting becomes challenging when fixed expenses take up too large a percentage. People often have a sense of how much they can personally sacrifice to accomplish something unremunerative.
How would it be so much worse for you to make no profit at all? $50 from the position of a student is a significant amount of money. In all likelihood, that is going to leave each student with a more significant financial impact than the profit you would be missing out on for not charging them: and it is multiplied to each student who buys the book.
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The ultimate dilemma here is not whether or not you should be compensated. It's how. Whether you choose to charge for this book or not, this strategy is untenable.