Big Life Chapter 106-110

Chapter 106. Loud Cheers (1)

Kang Min-Ho’s eyes narrowed at the sunlight peeking through the gap in the curtains in the Bucheon writer’s office. His gaze turned to the clock on the wall

It was currently 8 a.m.

‘I’m slowly waking up late…’

Kang Min-Ho was trying to maintain a daily routine, but it was getting difficult for him to maintain it. As he grew focused on his writing, his bedtime was slowly getting delayed. Kang Min-Ho hopped out of his bed.

He would love to sleep a bit more, but he felt that he would wake up past 9 a.m. tomorrow at this rate.

“Jang Eun-Young! Wake up!” Kang Min-Ho yelled and knocked on the door.

Hearing a groggy response coming from the other side of the door, Kang Min-Ho went to the kitchen and started preparing breakfast. This week was Kang Min-Ho’s turn to prepare meals for everyone.

“Yaaawn, what’s for breakfast today?”

“Fried eggs, bean sprout soup, braised soybeans, and kimchi,” Kang Min-Ho replied.

He turned around and flinched in shock upon seeing Jang Eun-Young’s pajamas.

She was wearing a white sleeveless top that showed off her shoulders and her cleavage, along with a pair of pink hot shorts.

“Why are you looking at me like that? Is there something on my face?”

“Don’t you need to be careful of what you’re wearing around the house?”

“What’s wrong with it?”

“Don’t you think that it’s too revealing?” Kang Min-Ho grumbled as he started portioning rice into the bowls.

Jang Eun-Young chuckled softly and pulled out a chair from the dining table.

“It’s too hot these days, what else can I do?”

“It’s fine if you’re in your own room, but just pay attention to your outfit when you’re out and about.”

“Alright, alright. I’m wearing this because Hyun-Kyung won’t be here until tomorrow.”

“Don’t you think that I’m a person as well?”

“When did you start paying attention to my outfit? It’s not like we just met yesterday.”

Kang Min-Ho clicked his tongue as he placed down the rice bowl and sat across from her. Jang Eun-Young crossed her legs on her seat and started digging into her bowl.

“This is delicious, hyung. Where did you learn to make braised soybeans?”

“You taught me how to make it. Remember when I was still living alone in Jongno?”

“…Hmm, did I?”

Jang Eun-Young’s gaze went blank as she dug deep into her memories.

Kang Min-Ho had to live by himself in Jongno after he was discharged from the military, and he was working part-time back then to sustain himself. Jang Eun-Young had yet to get married back then, so she frequented his place to write their novels, eat and spend time together.

“Ah, that’s why it tasted like mine.”

“Dumbo.”The debut release of this chapter happened at Ñøv€l-B1n.

“Who are you calling dumb? You’re dumb.”

After breakfast, the pair made their own cups of coffee and headed to the terrace.

Jang Eun-Young looked at Kang Min-Ho for a while, then slowly started the conversation. “Hyung, are you going to continue staying here?”

“I’ll try to keep staying here for as long as I can,” Kang Min-Ho answered without hesitation. “Isn’t it a great blessing to live in such a nice place without paying rent? Of course, I’ll have to keep writing if I want to keep staying here. I plan to save a lot of money while I’m here, at least to cover the yearly rent for a studio.”

“What about after that?”

“After that? Mm… I’m not sure…” Kang Min-Ho swept his messy hair before muttering, “Um, perhaps I should meet a nice girl, date her, then get married?”

His casual words made Jang Eun-Young go beyond pallid, but she quickly regained her composure and chuckled softly. “Yeah, that’d be great. You’re thirty-five this year.”

“What’s up with that question? Do you want to leave?” Jang Eun-Young sighed and shook her head. “How could that be? I want to stay here for as long as possible, too. It’s just that—I’m not really sure how long we can stay here.

”I was just worried, so I started wondering about what I would do if either you or I had to leave this place for some reason.”

“I think you need more faith. Otherwise, you wouldn’t be so worried. This is Writer Ha’s office. Don’t overthink it. Just keep up the good work,” said Kang Min-Ho.

The front door was unlocked, and it opened, revealing Ha Jae-Gun with Rika in his arms.

The two were astonished.

“Writer Ha, why are you here?”

“Hello. Rika and I will be clocking in the office daily from today onward.” Ha Jae-Gun put Rika down on the floor and continued. “I want to start a routine with you guys. I think it’s about time I start taking care of my health before I collapse.”

Jang Eun-Young smiled and approached him. “That’s a great decision. I’ve always thought of this whenever I’m watching you work, but I don’t think I’ll be able to live my life to the fullest if I were to follow your rigorous work hours.”

“Haha, yeah…” Ha Jae-Gun laughed awkwardly and avoided Jang Eun-Young’s gaze.

Kang Min-Ho elbowed Jang Eun-Young.

Jang Eun-Young looked at herself before heading to her room to change her clothes.

Ha Jae-Gun took his seat.

“Summer in My 20s will soon premiere in the cinemas,” Kang Min-Ho said. He had yet to see the movie. He didn’t have any ill intentions, but his comment inadvertently made Ha Jae-Gun’s cheeks twitch.

“Yes, that’s right,” Ha Jae-Gun replied calmly and turned on his laptop. He was still shell-shocked from watching the movie preview.

‘It’s all water under the bridge. I just have to do better from now on.’

It was his first day clocking at work as if he were a corporate employee, and it was all in an attempt to take care of his mind and body. He wanted to get off on the right foot by emptying his mind of distractions.

Ha Jae-Gun steeled his resolve and opened Word. He was planning on working on the scenario with the new idea he had obtained in Donghae City.

After Jung So-Mi had completed the illustrations up to volume four of Oscar’s Dungeon, volumes one and two were scheduled to be published at the same time. In other words, Ha Jae-Gun had quite a bit of free time.

‘What should I name this novel…’

The meeting between a gangster who fled to Donghae after committing a crime and a seaside girl yearning for city life.

He needed a decent title for the novel.

However, he still couldn’t come up with a good title throughout the time he had spent drinking his coffee. At this rate, he would probably waste the entire day thinking of a decent title.

Ha Jae-Gun eventually came up with an intuitive title—Gangster’s Sea.

With that, he started working on the scenario.

‘It doesn’t look bad at all.’

Ha Jae-Gun smiled upon seeing that it was already noon. He felt different compared to when he was only typing tirelessly on his keyboard as if someone were chasing him.

The sunlight flowing into the spacious room through the wide terrace felt much more pleasant than his own one-room studio, and the typing noises his fellow writers produced created a cacophony of pleasant noises as well.

Ha Jae-Gun was comfortable with everything here.

“Writer Ha, it’s time for lunch.”

“Yes, what do you think we should order?”

“I’ve prepared lunch for us. I’m on the roster this week.”

“Hahaha, all right. I’m looking forward to it.”

The three gathered around the table and enjoyed their meal together.

Ha Jae-Gun ate quietly while thinking about his plans going forward.

‘I’ll write the scenario while clocking in at the office. I’ll do the lecture first at the library next week, and after that will be with JoyM… Then I can just meet the editor-in-chief after I’m done with the novel.’

He was already fully prepared for the lectures. After he was done mentally planning out his to-do list, he finished his meal with satisfaction.

“Wow, this blogger is really devoted to Writer Ha,” Jang Eun-Young mumbled while staring at her phone.

Ha Jae-Gun heard his name and asked, “Who is it?”

“They specialize in genre novels, and your novels have special treatment. They even created a category for just your novels alone, and they have reviewed every single volume of your novels. Do you want to take a look?”

Ha Jae-Gun took her phone and discovered that Jang Eun-Young hadn’t lied at all. Anyone could tell at a single glance that the blogger was a huge fan of Poongchun-Yoo.

The name of the blog was taken from one of Ha Jae-Gun’s novels—Pezellon. In fact, the background of the website was covered with the book covers of Ha Jae-Gun’s novels.

‘What, they started reading when my first novel was published?’

Ha Jae-Gun looked through the bulletin board and squinted. The blogger had carefully reviewed all of Ha Jae-Gun’s novels, starting from his debut novel, including the failed ones.

Furthermore, the blogger had reviewed them in the same year they were published. They had been following Ha Jae-Gun right from the start of his journey. The blogger was already reading Ha Jae-Gun’s books even before he had gotten popular.

– This is Writer Poongchun-Yoo’s debut novel. I read this during middle school and even failed my exams for it. It’s still a mystery to me why such a masterpiece did not become popular back then.

Ha Jae-Gun was greatly touched reading the compliments. It was heartwarming to learn that there was a reader who had been quietly cheering for him unbeknownst to him.

He was already a bestselling author with over a million copies sold, along with a movie adaptation of one of his novels; his heart still jumped for joy at the blogger’s sincere support.

‘He’s a writer, too?’

Ha Jae-Gun found a link to the fantasy novel that the blogger had written.

The link brought him to Munpiang, and the novel was titled Martial God Management.

“Ah, isn’t this your phone? I’m sorry.”

Ha Jae-Gun returned Jang Eun-Young’s phone and started reading the novel on his own laptop.

The modern-day fantasy novel was about a once-successful taekwondo national athlete who had gone on a roll by chance.

‘This has potential.’

The novel’s performance wasn’t great, but the writing was quite flavorful. Ha Jae-Gun was convinced that this novel’s quality would improve by leaps and bounds if the writer had a mentor.

‘It’d be great for me and President Kwon.’

Ha Jae-Gun finally decided to leave Pezellon a message.

They were his avid fan, so Ha Jae-Gun wanted to give them some sort of repayment.

Ha Jae-Gun had just left the message, but…

Katok!

Pezellon had already replied before Ha Jae-Gun could even digest his lunch.

– Hiiick! A-are you really Writer Poongchun-Yoo?!

– Hello. Yes, this is Poongchun-Yoo. That was a fast reply.

– Waaaah! I can’t belieave this! I’m sorry for the typos my fingetts are trembling. Ah, I almost fainted when I saw your message. I’m a huge fan of yours! I really like your novels! I’ve read every one of them at least ten times! I started writing a fantasy novel myself after reading your novels! Aaaaaahhhh!

Ha Jae-Gun could feel their screams virtually.

Ha Jae-Gun smiled while writing his reply.

– I’ve read all of Martial God Management and discovered a few decent points. You haven’t signed a contract with any company, have you? What do you think of signing your novel with Laugh Books? I have a contract with them as well.

– Ahh;;; Oh no. Actually, I just agreed to sign with Haetae Media. We’re supposed to meet later, and I’m actually about to leave the house.

‘Haetae Media?’

Ha Jae-Gun frowned. He got worried because Haetae Media was infamous for tricking rookie writers with unscrupulous contracts.

Ma Jong-Goo was there as well.

– Do you mind if I ask for your contract terms?

– Of course, you’re Writer Poongchun-Yoo. I don’t mind at all. I’ll be getting six percent royalties for physical books and 5:5 for ebooks. They said these terms are on the better side for a rookie like me.

“…” Ha Jae-Gun let out a scoff.

Haetae Media probably wouldn’t even promote the novel properly, yet they’re asking for half?

They were tricking Pezellon as expected.

– Who contacted you?

– It’s Deputy Park Kyung-Soo.

Ha Jae-Gun froze and fell into deep contemplation.

There was a chance that he could save his fan’s debut novel if he decided to help him. Unfortunately, there was a risk of encountering an issue, which would definitely be bothersome to handle.

However, Ha Jae-Gun still decided to intervene. He decided to help his fan.

***

“You’ve made a good decision, Writer Lee Yeon-Woo.”

Haetae Media’s Deputy Park and rookie writer Lee Yeon-Woo sat across from each other in a small, cozy cafe in the city center. The nervous Lee Yeon-Woo was sporting a buzz cut. It seemed that he had just been discharged from the military.

“You’ve just made your debut, but the terms you’ve received amidst this recession are amongst the best. I’m going to get into trouble for signing you on such great terms,” Park Kyung-Soo smiled.

There was no way he would get into trouble.

In fact, he was doing this under Ma Jong-Goo’s instructions to tempt Lee Yeon-Woo.

“I see… thank you very much. I really appreciate your help. I don’t really know the industry,” Lee Yeon-Woo replied with an awkward smile.

Martial God Management was a novel that he had finally published after polishing many practice novels. It was doubtful that it would have a stellar performance, but it still had a small fanbase, which had kept him going.

Haetae Media soon discovered him and offered him a contract.

There was only one reason why Lee Yeon-Woo had agreed to Haetae Media’s offer without hesitation. Haetae Media was the company that published the Pezellon series of his favorite author—Poongchun-Yoo.

‘Huhuhu, shall we proceed with the contract signing?’

The sneaky motive started wriggling in Park Kyung-Soo. He had undergone a huge change since last year, and he was starting to resemble Department Ma Jong-Goo.

“Shall we sign the contract, then?” Park Kyung-Soo smiled softly and pulled out the contract from his briefcase.

Just then, Lee Yeon-Woo pulled out his phone and asked carefully, “Deputy Park, I actually know a writer.”

“You know a writer?”

“Yes. Before we sign the contract, can you allow me to make a phone call? I don’t really have any experience dealing with contracts.”

Lee Yeon-Woo pressed the dial button on his phone.

The call went through, and Lee Yeon-Woo spoke for quite a while before handing his phone over to Kyung-Soo.

“H-hello? This is Deputy Park Kyung-Soo of Haetae Media.”

— It’s been a while, Deputy Park. How have you been?

The clear voice that pierced Park Kyung-Soo’s ears drained the color from his face.

Chapter 107. Loud Cheers (2)

“Is this Writer… Ha Jae-Gun?”

— Yes, that’s right.

Park Kyung-Soo was transfixed unwittingly on Lee Yeon-Woo.

Lee Yeon-Woo seemed curious about Park Kyung-Soo’s gaze.

Park Kyung-Soo was speechless.

— Hello? Deputy Park?

“Ah, aigoo. Look at me. Hello, Writer Ha.”

Park Kyung-Soo scurried on an empty sofa and replied, “How have you been? I’ve dropped a few calls and messages to ask about your well-being, but you seem to be extremely busy.”

— I see. Yes, I’m too busy working on so many novels at the same time. I haven’t really been able to check my phone. I’m sorry.

“Ahahah, I see… No, it’s fine. I should apologize for calling when you’re busy, you need not apologize to me. Yes, ahaha…!”

Lee Yeon-Woo watched as Park Kyung-Soo spoke in a daze.

Park Kyung-Soo’s confidence seemed to have vanished.

Park Kyung-Soo felt uneasy about what they would end up talking about over the phone, so he signaled Lee Yeon-Woo and excused himself.

“B-but… how did you know… Writer Lee Yeon-Woo?” Park Kyung-Soo asked upon arriving near the washroom.

— Writer Lee Yeon-Woo is a massive fan of mine. We’re close, so he asked me for advice when you approached him with a contract.

“Ahh… I see…”

— I have a question. I’ve heard about the terms you offered Writer Lee, but I find it a bit problematic. What do you think?

Park Kyung-Soo didn’t reply. He gulped with difficulty. There was air conditioning in the cafe, but his forehead and back were drenched in sweat.

— Why are you not answering? Deputy Park?

“Ah. I-I-I’m sorry. The connection got cut off for a moment, and I couldn’t hear you that well earlier,” Park Kyung-Soo gave a ridiculous excuse while wiping the sweat off his forehead.

His mind had gone blank. No words would come to his mind. The other party on the line was none other than Ha Jae-Gun, after all.

It still felt like yesterday when Ha Jae-Gun was still a rookie writer, but now, he had grown into an extremely successful writer. Nothing good would come out of offending him in any way.

“I-I was instructed to proceed with those terms…”

— I know, but please take care of him. I don’t think it’s too much to ask. I hope that you’ll provide him with reasonable treatment, and I hope that you won’t ruin his dream using an unscrupulous contract.

Ha Jae-Gun remained calm while Park Kyung-Soo was nodding profusely as if Ha Jae-Gun were in front of him.

“Yes… Of course, Writer Ha. I will definitely do that.”

— Thank you. I’m hanging up now.

Park Kyung-Soo hurriedly called Ma Jong-Goo.

— Deputy Park? Are you done with the contract signing?

“No, we’re still talking about it.”

— Why are you dragging it out? Wrap it up, then head to Sindangdong to meet Writer Ko. Writer Ko is easily swayed, so he might not sign with us if he gets persuaded by someone else.

“Please listen to me, sir. Writer Ha called me.”

— What?!

“I think he’s close with the author of Martial God Management. He called after hearing the news about how he’s going to sign a contract with us. He told me to treat him well. What should I do?”

— Mmm…!

Ma Jong-Goo didn’t know what to say.

Park Kyung-Soo could see Ma Jong-Goo rubbing his face anxiously.L1tLagoon witnessed the first publication of this chapter on Ñøv€l–B1n.

— No, wait. Did you create those terms for Writer Lee without knowing that he’s close with Writer Ha?!

Ma Jong-Goo finally yelled into the phone.

He was trying to keep his dignity with those nonsensical words.

Park Kyung-Soo trembled in fury. “How would I know every single detail?”

— Deputy Park, it seems like you’re getting better at talking back recently?!

“No, no. I’m sorry.”

— Argh…! This is difficult. It’s tough to sign a contract with him using the usual terms because his performance is still not good enough. Shit, damn, fuck!

“What should we do, Department head?”

— What do you think we should do? Do you really want to burn our bridge to Writer Ha?! We have no choice. Do seven percent royalties and 7:3 on ebooks. Give a guarantee up to the third volume.

“Yes… Understood.”

— And look for something to gift Writer Ha. Use this chance to send him our greetings. Butter him up well so that we’ll get another novel from him. Anyway, I’m hanging up.

Ma Jong-Goo ended the call without waiting for Park Kyung-Soo’s reply.

Park Kyung-Soo calmed himself down with deep breaths before returning to the table.

“How was it?” Lee Yeon-Woo asked. He was holding his phone and was typing something on it.

Park Kyung-Soo was silently boiling with anger. He thought Lee Yeon-Woo was mocking him. “Writer Lee. I think we’ve made a mistake on our end.”

“A mistake?”

“Yes. I just got off the call with our department head. The terms for your novel should be seven percent royalties on physical books and 7:3 on ebooks. Hahaha…”

Unfortunately, even the naive Lee Yeon-Woo could tell Park Kyung-Soo was lying.

Park Kyung-Soo even pulled out a new contract draft.

“Martial God Management’s plot is great, so we decided to offer you guaranteed royalties up to the third volume. We should have done this from the start,” said Park Kyung-Soo to try and patch things up.

Lee Yeon-Woo went agape in disbelief.

‘Just what did they talk about…?!’

Lee Yeon-Woo couldn’t help but wonder about how this outcome was achieved

However, it was hard for Lee Yeon-Woo to make even a wild guess since he had no experience in the industry.

Regardless, Lee Yeon-Woo exclaimed inwardly with pure admiration.

‘You’re so amazing, Writer Poongchun-Yoo…!’

The arrogant editor was trembling in fear after a single call from him.

On top of that, he had returned with better terms for his contract.

The change happened in just a few minutes, but the significant improvement made Lee Yeon-Woo understand Ha Jae-Gun’s power.

“Here, please fill in the details here.” Park Kyung-Soo handed the contract draft and politely passed the pen to Lee Yeon-Woo. He slowly looked down at the contract in a daze as if he were possessed.

“Umm, Writer Lee?”

“I’m sorry.” Lee Yeon-Woo finally snapped out of his thoughts. He finally came to his senses and saw the route that he had to take. “I won’t be signing this contract.”

“…What?!”

“I was too eager to make my debut. I’m sorry for making you come all the way here, but I’m going now.”

“W-Writer Lee Yeon-Woo?!”

Lee Yeon-Woo stood up and saluted like a soldier before turning around and leaving.

Park Kyung-Soo’s pathetic salute could be seen after Lee Yeon-Woo departed the cafe.

***

“Hello, President Kwon. Ah, are you done reading Martial God Management? I’ll be clocking in at the office every day from now on, so I’ll help him with his novel.

”Pardon? Haha, it’s no problem. He’s my fan, so I’m enjoying the process. Of course, yes, I understand. I’ll call you again. Have a good day.” Ha Jae-Gun ended the call and worked on his scenario once more.

He had suggested signing Martial God Management, so Ha Jae-Gun felt great upon hearing that Kwon Tae-Won thought the same as him. Martial God Management indeed had the potential to become a great novel.

‘I should be able to complete a third of this. I should include the remaining story plot and send it to the editor-in-chief soon.’

It had already been a few days since Ha Jae-Gun started clocking in at the writer’s office, and he stayed true to his promise of working at the office daily from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.

It was still exhausting, but it was probably because he was still adjusting to the routine. He wanted to work throughout the night upon being struck by motivation, but he had been trying his best to suppress the urge to work outside work hours.

Unfortunately, the process had been torture for him so far.

‘I don’t have to rush things. I’m already writing a lot.’

Ha Jae-Gun comforted himself before typing away.

Soon, it was 5.40 p.m. There were only twenty minutes left until his shift ended, so he had no time to rest his fingers.

He also had a burning desire to work overtime.

“Writer Ha, you’ll be having dinner before leaving, right?” Jang Eun-Young asked from behind him.

Ha Jae-Gun nodded without looking back and replied, “Yes, of course. I’m only going to have ramyun if I go home without eating here, so shall we eat out? It’s my treat, so feel free to decide on the menu.”

Jang Eun-Young’s eyes sparkled at the words eat out.

“Wow, of course. What would you like to have? Min-Ho hyung, Hyun-Kyung. What do you guys want to eat?”

Just then, a knock came from the front door.

They were not expecting any visitors here unless it was the delivery man, but neither did they call for delivery.

“Who is it?”

“Ah, I’ll go take a look,” Ha Jae-Gun offered, guessing that it could be someone he knew.

As soon as he opened the door, he saw Lee Yeon-Woo standing there scratching his buzz-cut head.

“Hello! I’m Lee Yeon-Woo!” Lee Yeon-Woo greeted with a bright voice and made a salute.

Ha Jae-Gun smiled and invited him into the office.

All the other writers stopped working and stood up from their desks.

“Ahh, you must be the author of Martial God Management.”

“Hmm? Ah~ The blogger named Pezellon? Writer Ha’s huge fan?”

Min-Ho and Jang Eun-Young added while approaching the foyer.

Lee Yeon-Woo smiled and bowed to each of them.

Ha Jae-Gun introduced him to the others. “I actually just met him outside yesterday. He stays in Suwon but has a hard time focusing at home, so I asked him to come here to work instead. Please introduce yourselves. This is Writer Kang Min-Ho, and this is Writer Jang Eun-Young.”

Lee Yeon-Woo’s eyes brightened in excitement. “You’re the authors of Demon Lord Returns and Naughty Roommate, right?!”

“Wow, you know of our novels as well?”

“Of course. After I finished reading The Breath, I enjoyed both of your novels as well! I find all the novels from Laugh Books interesting. It’s really awesome!” Lee Yeon-Woo exclaimed in awe like a little boy with both thumbs raised.

Kang Min-Ho and Jang Eun-Young looked at each other and laughed while feeling shy at the compliments.

Meanwhile, Yang Hyun-Kyung was standing quietly in a corner. It wasn’t strange because he had always been shy. He was a bit wary of the newcomer whose personality he still hadn’t quite grasped.

“Ah, and he’s Writer Yang Hyun-Kyung.”

“Ah, the author of Slater?” Lee Yeon-Woo accurately named Yang Hyun-Kyung’s novel. Yang Hyun-Kyung let down his guard and was about to feel happy at the recognition, but Lee Yeon-Woo asked Yang Hyun-Kyung. “But I haven’t really read it since you returned from your hiatus. Have you completed it?”

“…!” Yang Hyun-Kyung’s eyes twitched.

It seemed that Lee Yeon-Woo was a bit dense, so Jang Eun-Young quickly clapped and changed the subject. “How timely. Since Writer Lee is here with us, why don’t we all have dinner together? Writer Lee, what do you like to eat?”

“I’m fine with anything.”

“That’s great. Shall we head to the arcade first, then? Ah, right. Writer Ha, you haven’t finished writing, right?”

“I can clock out ten minutes earlier today as well. Please wait a moment. Let me quickly send out the manuscript.”

As planned, Ha Jae-Gun sent out a third of the manuscript he had completed along with the overall storyline to Oh Myung-Suk’s email. He even sent Oh Myung-Suk a text message while he was at it.

Jang Eun-Young saw Ha Jae-Gun’s pale face and asked worriedly, “Writer Ha, are you feeling okay?”

“No, but I’m shivering. I don’t think I caught a cold; I think it’s just my body acclimatizing to the sudden change in routine.”

“Aigoo, what logic is that? Since Writer Ha isn’t feeling that well today, let’s have some soup, then.”

Ha Jae-Gun smiled gratefully at Jang Eun-Young, who was acting like a considerate older sister of the group. The team headed out for a welcome dinner to welcome the new member of the office.

***

‘Hmm, he sent a manuscript?’

Oh Myung-Suk was about to clock off, but he sat back down upon seeing Ha Jae-Gun’s email. If it were from another writer, he would have postponed reading it until tomorrow.

However, it was from Ha Jae-Gun, so he was eager to check it out.

Oh Myung-Suk opened his inbox and saw the unread email.

Title: Gangster’s Sea

“…” Oh Myung-Suk massaged his stiff neck. The title wasn’t really that intuitive; it didn’t give any information about what the story would be.

‘Hmm, is it a drama? Perhaps with a mix of a thriller…’

Oh Myung-Suk fixed his glasses and focused on reading the manuscript.

The scenario manuscript had many more dialogues compared to usual novel manuscripts. Oh Myung-Suk automatically constructed the scenes as he read the sentences.

‘Ah, the female protagonist’s name is Ba-Da, and that’s why the title is Gangster’s Sea. Am I right?’

Oh Myung-Suk chuckled.

The hook in the introduction was great, and it was a smooth read. The dialogues of the female characters were somewhat awkward, but it wasn’t that huge of a thorn in his eyes.

Oh Myung-Suk read the entire manuscript in less than twenty minutes. Once he was done, he pulled out his phone. It was time for him to call Ha Jae-Gun and share his thoughts on the manuscript.

“What are you doing? Why are you still working?” interrupted a familiar voice.

“Father, what brings you here?”

Oh Myung-Suk put down his phone and stood up.

His father, Oh Tae-Jin, leisurely walked into the office with his hands behind him.

Chapter 108. Loud Cheers (3)

“You should knock off on time. What are you hooked on this time?”

“Ah, that writer has just sent his scenario manuscript over.”

“Scenario?”

“Yes. It’s Writer Ha Jae-Gun.”

Oh Tae-Jin’s ears twitched at the name.

“He hadn’t shown it during the movie preview for Summer in My 20s, but it seems that he’s quite unhappy with how it turned out. I guess he wanted to write a scenario on his own to feel satisfied.”

“I see…”

“He sent a third of the scenario, and it’s great so far. I like it.”

Oh Tae-Jin only nodded silently.

He was the President of OongSung Publication Group, so he had seen many Hollywood-level writers. Ha Jae-Gun had become a bestselling author who had sold over a million copies, but he was still an ordinary writer in Oh Tae-Jin’s eyes.

If it hadn’t been for the fact that Ha Jae-Gun had used the pen name Seo Gun-Woo, Oh Tae-Jin would have forgotten his existence long ago.

“Oh, and Father. I’m almost done editing Your Tragedy.”

“Already?” Oh Tae-Jin asked in shock.

Your Tragedy was a novel that Oh Tae-Jin had written after a long hiatus.

“Did you do it personally? I told you to let your team do it.”

“It’s your new novel after so many years, so it should definitely go through my hands. I’ll make sure it’s well-printed, so don’t worry about it.”

“I’m sure you’ll do well. Let’s go now.”

“Yes, Father.”

The father and son pair left the office and took the elevator. The employees who recognized Oh Tae-Jin in the lift lobby stepped away from the elevator.

“Let’s take the elevator together, I’m not overweight,” Oh Tae-Jin offered with a soft smile.

The employees nodded appreciatively and joined them in the elevator.

Oh Myung-Suk’s phone vibrated as the elevator went down.

“Hello, Deputy Kim. No, it’s alright. Please speak. Yes, it’s Guro-gu Gung-dong. Ah, but he said he’s been working at the Bucheon office recently, so please send it there. Yes, please. Thank you,” Oh Myung-Suk instructed, then hung up the call.

“Are you sending gifts to a writer?” Oh Tae-Jin asked casually.

“Yes, to Writer Ha Jae-Gun.”

“…?” Oh Tae-Jin’s expression stiffened.

Oh Myung-Suk was staring at the floor number, so he didn’t notice Oh Tae-Jin’s strange expression. “I got him some herbal medicine. He rarely takes care of his own health when he gets engrossed in his writing. I should at least do that much for him.”

“…”

Oh Tae-Jin did not respond to his son. He was lost in his own thoughts. He definitely heard his son mention Guro-gu Gung-Dong over the phone earlier.

The address wasn’t the issue, but if Writer Ha Jae-Gun lived, he could no longer overlook it.

‘The same writer who used the pen name Seo Gun-Woo… he also lives in…’

Was it possible for coincidences to happen twice in a row? Oh Tae-Jin became much more sensitive to repeated coincidences. The impossible would never happen—this phrase had always been his motto in life. Oh Tae-Jin trembled in the narrow elevator.

“Father? Let’s go.”

“Huh? Uh, okay…”

“Are you feeling unwell?”

“No, it’s nothing… Let’s go.” Oh Tae-Jin belatedly regained his composure and quickly walked out of the elevator.

Seeing his father’s faster-than-usual footsteps, Oh Myung-Suk’s expression turned as he asked, “It’s not something bad, right?”

“No. I was just feeling nervous about my novel. It has been a while since I wrote one, after all.”

“Father. Don’t worry about it. Your novel is really good. I’m not saying this as your son but as the Chief Editor of OongSung Publication Group.”

“Hohoho, all right if you say so…”

The father and son pair got in the back passenger seat of their car with the chauffeur in the driver’s seat.

Oh Tae-Jin looked out the window and observed the passing scenery.

He didn’t say even a single word until they got home.

***

“Here’s another problem. He worked so hard to become a Taekwondo national athlete but got suspended for three years, yet he spent his time without exercising even once. How would the readers be able to empathize with the character?”

“Hmm, I get what you mean now. So, what if he had been exercising during that period but was unlucky and lost the opportunity?”

“That’s better. That way, the readers would feel more catharsis when the main character, Park Kwon, gains the opportunity and wins later.”

Ha Jae-Gun and Lee Yeon-Woo were in one of the restaurants at the arcade. The two had ordered a soft tofu stew and grilled fish set meal for lunch while having a heated conversation. However, this wasn’t the first time that it happened.

It also happened yesterday.

“Please start revising your prologue in the office later. If you finish it by 5 p.m., I can help you take a look at it immediately.”

“Ah, thank you so much. Wait a moment, let me finish taking down the notes.” Lee Yeon-Woo finished up his notes and started wolfing down his food.

Ha Jae-Gun smiled wearily and said, “Please eat slower. Otherwise, your stomach will hurt.”

“I have to finish before 1 p.m.”

“We’re not a real company, so there’s no issue being slightly late. Please chew well before swallowing,” Ha Jae-Gun said. He poured Lee Yeon-Woo a glass of water.

Lee Yeon-Woo’s eyes quivered at Ha Jae-Gun’s simple gesture, but he still accepted the glass of water.

“I’m not sure how things would have turned out for me if it hadn’t been for you, Writer Ha Jae-Gun. You took time out of your busy schedule to help me. The quality of my novel has really increased with your help.”

“Well, your foundation is sturdy, so it wasn’t that difficult.”

“Oh, but what do you think about the title?”

“I think it’s fine. Why?”

“I thought it was quite long. I thought that it would be better if it were a title that could catch people’s attention at once.”

“How about Martial God is Coming? Or—ah!” Ha Jae-Gun snapped his fingers and grinned. “What about Big Kwon is Coming?”

“Pardon?” Lee Yeon-Woo stared in disbelief at Ha Jae-Gun.

However, Ha Jae-Gun seemed oblivious to that and explained, “The main character’s name is Park Kwon, but his fist is large and strong as well, so we can add the nickname, Big Kwon, combining the English word Big and Kwon for fist.”

“Is that… okay?”

“Otherwise, we can add explanations like this: He joined a competition when he was young, and the organizer made a typo in his name, and it became Big Kwon, which became his nickname since then. What about it? Wow, it really is a great title now that I’m explaining it to you.”

Ha Jae-Gun was admiring his own wisdom while munching on an egg roll.

Meanwhile, Lee Yeon-Woo looked down at his notepad with his pen in hand. He wrote down the words Big Kwon is Coming on it, but he struck through them while Ha Jae-Gun wasn’t looking at him.

The title didn’t sit well with him.

After finishing their lunch, the two went back to the office and continued working.

Lee Yeon-Woo’s desk was right next to Ha Jae-Gun’s desk.

The other three writers were working away at their desks behind them.

‘Am I really getting the flu…’ Ha Jae-Gun wrapped his forehead and let out a hot breath. He had been feeling under the weather over the last few days. He had been holding out, but the symptoms seemed to have worsened when he woke up earlier.

‘This is bad…’

He could take his time writing Gangster’s Sea, but he was worried about tomorrow’s lecture at the library.

“Everyone, I think I have to leave early today,” said Ha Jae-Gun.

He decided to leave early.

If it hadn’t been for tomorrow’s lecture, Ha Jae-Gun would have held out until 6 p.m. because there were only two hours until then.

Unfortunately, he had to rest early today for tomorrow’s lecture.

“Writer Ha, you’re feeling unwell, right? Don’t go home, you can just sleep here today.”

“I have to go back home. The materials for tomorrow’s lecture are at home. Rika, let’s go back.”

Rika scurried down from the windowsill.

Ha Jae-Gun picked Rika up and carried his bag.

Lee Yeon-Woo suddenly emerged from his thoughts and stood up.

“Let me drive you home, Writer Ha,” he said.

“What?”

“You’re sick, so how are you going to drive properly? I’ll be your chauffeur today. I’m sure you’ll find it hard to take a taxi home because Rika is with you,” he added.

Ha Jae-Gun was grateful for Lee Yeon-Woo’s kindness, but he smiled bitterly and shook his head. “My house is in a remote place, so it’ll be hard for you to go back home.”

“It’s all right, I can just walk. I still have my stamina since I had just gotten discharged not long ago. Let me do it, please. Otherwise, how can I repay your goodwill, Writer Ha?” Lee Yeon-Woo said with resolve and patted his chest proudly.

However, Ha Jae-Gun still rejected his offer.

He didn’t want to get in the way of Lee Yeon-Woo’s work.

“I haven’t had medicine, so I can still drive. Plus, I can still call for a substitute driver, so Writer Lee, please focus on your novel instead. I appreciate your offer, though.”

With that, Ha Jae-Gun left the office with Rika. Upon reaching home, Ha Jae-Gun forced himself to eat, even though he didn’t have an appetite. He took some medicine and lay in bed early.

“Ha… Rika, my breath is too hot.”

“Meow…!”

“Don’t come near me… You might catch it too… I’ll sleep early tonight…”

Ha Jae-Gun eventually drifted to sleep. A high fever soon enveloped him. Rika curled down next to Ha Jae-Gun, and she didn’t leave his side for even a moment.

Bzzt! Bzzt! Bzzt!

Loud vibrations awakened Ha Jae-Gun from his slumber.

The first thing he saw was Rika’s pair of sparkling eyes looking right back at him.

“Ughh… Were you with me the entire night?”

“Meow.” Rika licked the tip of Ha Jae-Gun’s nose.

Ha Jae-Gun looked for the origin of the vibrations under his sheets.

The vibrations stopped when he finally found his phone.

“Oh, it’s Writer Lee Yeon-Woo…”

Ha Jae-Gun looked up and found that it was already well past 10 a.m.

He should slowly get out of bed and prepare to leave for the lecture later.

It was about time he got out of bed, so Ha Jae-Gun struggled to sit up in his bed.

“Hooo, I definitely feel better compared to yesterday, but I still feel light-headed. I should eat before taking medicine,” Ha Jae-Gun mumbled.This chapter made its debut appearance via N0v3lB1n.

He had just placed his feet on the floor when the doorbell rang.

Ha Jae-Gun staggered toward the door.

“Who is it?”

“Writer Ha, it’s me, Lee Yeon-Woo.”

“…?!” Stunned, Ha Jae-Gun quickly opened the door for him.

Lee Yeon-Woo was standing at the door with a smile and a shopping bag in hand.

“You haven’t had breakfast yet, right?”

“Yes, I just woke up. What are you doing here so early?”

“You have a lecture at the library today, don’t you? I can’t help but worry since you’re sick. I got you some abalone porridge, so please eat it while it’s still hot.” Lee Yeon-Woo handed the shopping bag to Ha Jae-Gun.

Ha Jae-Gun accepted it with gratitude. “I’ll wait for you out here in the meantime.”

“Why wait outside? Come on in.”

“What? C-can I really?”

“Of course. I’ve only got coffee at home for you, but please, come on in.”

Lee Yeon-Woo’s eyes sparkled in appreciation as he entered Ha Jae-Gun’s studio.

Rika approached Lee Yeon-Woo and ran in circles around him. Then, she put her front paws on his feet, seemingly showing gratitude for buying her sick owner porridge.

She didn’t even struggle when Lee Yeon-Woo held her in his arms.

“Are you feeling better today?”

“A lot better compared to yesterday.”

“I think I should drive you to the library later.”

“Mm…”

“Please don’t reject my offer. You could also take the chance to look over your lecture materials one last time before your lecture.”

Ha Jae-Gun was truly not in optimal condition, and he also needed time to review the lecture materials. There was no other reason to reject Lee Yeon-Woo’s offer, so he nodded and said, “I’ll be brazen and leave myself in your good hands today, then.”

“Brazen? No way. Don’t worry about it.”

Ha Jae-Gun enjoyed the abalone porridge that Lee Yeon-Woo had bought him.

Perhaps he felt Lee Yeon-Woo’s sincerity, but Ha Jae-Gun emptied the entire bowl and felt even better than before.

“Please go and have a shower, I’ll clean up the dishes.”

“No, I was the one using them…”

“Please.” Lee Yeon-Woo pushed Ha Jae-Gun into the bathroom and started washing the dishes.

Lee Yeon-Woo played with Rika on the floor while patiently waiting for Ha Jae-Gun to get ready.

“Hoo, I’m ready to leave. Sorry for making you wait.”

“Okay, let’s go then.”

Lee Yeon-Woo made Ha Jae-Gun take the back passenger seat instead of the front passenger seat before hopping into the driver’s seat.

Ha Jae-Gun felt burdened by Lee Yeon-Woo’s politeness.

“Uh, Writer Lee. Please treat me casually.”

“Huh? I’m already doing that, though.”

Lee Yeon-Woo turned around and directed a strange gaze at Ha Jae-Gun

Ha Jae-Gun didn’t know what to say in front of Lee Yeon-Woo’s clueless look.

The car engine started, and they were soon on the main road.

Lee Yeon-Woo was a skillful driver.

Ha Jae-Gun put down his lecture materials and said, “You’re really good at driving.”

“Ah, I still haven’t told you, but I’m a driver in the army.”

“Ah, I see… It’s no wonder you’re so much better at driving than me. I still make sudden accelerations and stops while driving.”

“Hahaha, I’m only good at driving,” said Lee Yeon-Woo.

Ha Jae-Gun enjoyed a pleasant ride all the way to the library, thanks to Lee Yeon-Woo’s driving skills.

The lecture would be held in the auditorium on the library’s second floor.

The employees, the director, and even the section chiefs stood at the entrance to the auditorium to welcome Ha Jae-Gun.

“Welcome, Mr. Ha.”

The director bowed politely and greeted Ha Jae-Gun.

Ha Jae-Gun returned the gesture in kind before entering the auditorium.

The auditorium had a long banner that said…

Special Lecture: Living a Beautiful Life Through Creativity with Writer Ha Jae-Gun, the bestselling author of Summer in My 20s, with over 1 million copies sold.

‘It’s too long and complicated…’

The suspicious banner seemed like it was the work of the director, who had never really participated in an event like this before. Ha Jae-Gun thought about it and shrugged. The most important part here was the lecture rather than a banner.

Ha Jae-Gun soon got ready for the lecture.

Chapter 109. Loud Cheers (4)

“Is there anything I can help you with?”

“It’s fine. Please take a seat, Writer Lee.”

Despite Ha Jae-Gun’s words, Lee Yeon-Woo still loitered around him, seemingly wondering if he could be helpful to Ha Jae-Gun in any way.

Once he realized that there was really nothing else for him to do, he took a seat in the middle of the front-row seats.

‘Hoo, a special seat.’

As the time for the lecture drew nearer, the auditorium seats started to get crowded. Lee Yeon-Woo’s heart fluttered in excitement as well, as he was going to listen to the lecture held by the writer he respected the most in the world.

‘Everything that happened to me this summer really feels like a dream.’

Lee Yeon-Woo watched Ha Jae-Gun review his materials on the rostrum as he recalled everything that had happened to him this summer. Ha Jae-Gun was just a mirage for Lee Yeon-Woo—like a celebrity whom he would only see on television.

Lee Yeon-Woo was both happy and satisfied by just loving Ha Jae-Gun’s novels and getting engrossed in the latter’s worlds. Ha Jae-Gun’s novels also provided him with the courage to endure his tough times in the military.

‘Now I’m working in the same officetel as Writer Ha Jae-Gun!’

Lee Yeon-Woo was dumbstruck when he first received the message from Ha Jae-Gun. After that, not only did he receive help from Ha Jae-Gun concerning his contract as a writer, but he even got to work in the same officetel as Ha Jae-Gun, have a meal with him—he even got to drive his car.

Lee Yeon-Woo wouldn’t even dare to imagine that he would one day experience such things back then. Lee Yeon-Woo recalled those events with joy. Seemingly still in disbelief, Lee Yeon-Woo kept rubbing both his eyes.

“Calm down. Don’t cry, shh.”

The voice coming from next to Lee Yeon-Woo pulled him back to reality.

Lee Yeon-Woo was seated next to a young housewife, seemingly in her mid to late twenties. She was comforting her child. Lee Yeon-Woo locked eyes with the child. He puffed up his cheeks, eliciting laughter from the child.

‘Wow, how come there are already so many people here?’

Lee Yeon-Woo’s jaws dropped upon looking around. There were still twenty more minutes before the lecture started, but the seats were already filled. Even Officer Mi-Joon looked both astonished and worried.

“Section Chief, did we ever get such high attendance before?”

“Never. I think all the seats have been filled up. But we can’t send them back, so let’s have them stand along the stairway on both sides and on the back of the hall.”

Mi-Joon and the other officers got to work, guiding the attendees to the respective areas and filling up all the possible empty areas within the hall.

However, there were still people streaming in through the open doors. Most of them were housewives with their children from different age brackets.

‘Wow, damn… I did a great job grabbing my seat in advance.’

Lee Yeon-Woo patted his chest, feeling relieved. If he hadn’t taken his seat earlier, he would have had to sit in the back of the hall. Only God would know if he could hear the lecture from so far away.

Soon, the auditorium was filled to the brim. The people behind the closed doors obviously looked disappointed.

Meanwhile, the spotlight was shining on Ha Jae-Gun standing in front of the rostrum.

“Hello, I am Ha Jae-Gun. I don’t have much experience giving lectures aside from the one at my alumni university. I’m sure you’ll find my lecture lacking in some areas, so I seek all your kind understanding.”

Upon his introduction, silence enveloped the rowdy auditorium. Ha Jae-Gun took in the audience members’ gazes before starting his lecture with a calm and composed tone of voice.

“…The power of creativity is infinite. It doesn’t apply to writing alone. We have a lot of mothers joining us here today. I’m sure most of you already know, but creativity can also be applied to creation, such as clay making and beads-crafting.”

Everyone seemed to have forgotten their parched mouths as they were unwittingly transfixed on Ha Jae-Gun. They were all listening to his lecture intently.

Most of the audience members were female readers who were thoroughly impressed by Summer in My 20s, so there was no way the level of attention would be low.

Even the library director and the officers stood on one side of the hall, listening to Ha Jae-Gun’s lecture.

“The same subject would bring about different results. Even if the result is not what you have been expecting, the happiness born from completing your work will remain. Why? It was because the fun was during the journey. You were already enjoying it.”

Ha Jae-Gun paused for a moment, then moved his gaze to the seats in the front row.

He saw a mother holding her child next to Lee Yeon-Woo. The baby kept reaching out to Ha Jae-Gun with their cute little hands while crying.

‘That’s not good.’

The mother was trying to calm her child down with a flushed face.

Ha Jae-Gun felt unfortunate. Had he not been down with a cold, he would have gone up to calm the child down himself. The mother eventually decided to leave the auditorium, no longer wishing to inconvenience the other attendees.

She hugged her child and picked up her bag.

Just then, Lee Yeon-Woo stepped in.

“Ah goo, goo. Ah goo, goo.”

Lee Yeon-Woo sought consent from the mother using his eyes and took the baby from her arms. Like a miracle, the baby’s cries abruptly stopped.

Lee Yeon-Woo gently rocked himself with the baby in his arms and signaled to Ha Jae-Gun to continue the lecture.

“That man is my colleague. He’s good at looking after kids, even though he’s a writer,[1] so please don’t be worried, madam.”

A wave of chuckles echoed throughout the hall.

The baby’s mother covered her mouth and laughed shyly as well.

The rest of the lecture went on smoothly. It came to an end after an hour and thirty minutes, including a Q&A session and a short break in between.

There was a thunderous round of applause as Ha Jae-Gun walked down the rostrum.

“Wow, you were amazing, Writer Ha! You’re the best!” Lee Yeon-Woo exclaimed as he approached Ha Jae-Gun. “Honestly, I thought it would be a boring lecture. Lectures are mostly boring and dull, but the information you shared didn’t bore me at all. Really, I’m not joking.”

“Don’t compliment me too much. I actually prepared a few jokes as well in case the atmosphere turned bad, but thanks to you, I didn’t have to use them at all.”

“What kind of jokes did you prepare? You’ve got me all curious now.”

“Please don’t ask.”

Their paths were blocked as they were about to leave the auditorium.

The attendees had surrounded them.

“Mr. Ha, please sign on my book.”

“Ah, sure.”

“Me too. And Mr. Ha, my child has to write an essay, but how should he prepare for it?”

“Ah, essays? He will have to read the books a few times…”

“Mr. Ha, what’s the genre of your next novel? Will it be adapted into a movie as well?”

“I don’t think I have the answer to that yet…”

“Mr. Ha, do you have a girlfriend?”

There was no way Ha Jae-Gun could answer the questions the attendees were throwing at him. He tried his best to give out his autograph to those who requested it.

He took photos and answered their questions while heading toward the exit. The auditorium wasn’t that huge, but it took them over thirty minutes to reach the exit.

‘Oh my gosh…!’

Both Ha Jae-Gun and Lee Yeon-Woo freaked out after barely managing to escape the hall. They didn’t freak out because of the travel time from the hall to the exit of the auditorium.

They freaked out because there were twice as many people from the auditorium standing in the hallway outside the auditorium. There were even reporters from the local media outlets with their massive cameras.

“Writer Ha, will we be able to go home today?”

“Ahahaha…”

Ha Jae-Gun ended up spending over an hour at the library before he could finally escape. The tension in him dissipated, and fatigue finally struck him once more.

“You must be exhausted, Writer Ha. Please come in, I’ll drive you back.”

Ha Jae-Gun limped his way over to the car with Lee Yeon-Woo

He opened the car door, but a voice called out to him softly from behind.

“Excuse me, Mr. Ha Jae-Gun?”

Ha Jae-Gun turned around to see the mother seated next to Lee Yeon-Woo during the lecture. She bowed while carrying her baby. “I couldn’t find a chance to thank you earlier. I really enjoyed your lecture today.”

“I’m glad to hear that.”

“I came here because it was your lecture… I barely managed to take a day off to attend. I don’t have anyone else to look after my baby, so I brought him along, but I’m sorry that he made a fuss earlier.” Her eyes turned red, tears welling up in them.

Ha Jae-Gun’s heart softened at the sight.

The mother then turned to Lee Yeon-Woo and bowed to show her gratitude. “Thank you for looking after my baby. I enjoyed the lecture, all thanks to you. Thank you… so much, and I apologize for the inconvenience.”

“Aigoo, it’s alright. I like looking after babies, anyway. You don’t have to apologize at all. Peekaboo, peekaboo. See you again, mm? Woohehehe.”

“Um, Mr. Ha. I brought my copy of Summer in My 20s, could you sign it as well?”

“Of course, I’ll sign it.”

“Ah, but it’s in my bag…”

“I’ll take it out for you. Is it in here?” Lee Yeon-Woo took out the book from her bag and handed it to Ha Jae-Gun.

Ha Jae-Gun signed her book and returned it to the happy mother, who departed soon afterward.

“Actually, I just completed my self-reflection,” Lee Yeon-Woo blurted while staring at the mother’s departing figure.

Ha Jae-Gun made a sidelong glance at him in confusion.

Lee Yeon-Woo explained, “I actually thought that the lecture was lame at first. More specifically, I thought—no way Writer Ha is good enough to give a lecture to a crowd, even if it’s in a library auditorium.”

Lee Yeon-Woo scratched the back of his head and looked down before letting out a sigh.

“I feel quite proud seeing that mother’s reaction. It wasn’t about the scale of the event but rather about how much help Writer Ha had provided to the people attending it. My vocabulary is weak, so I can’t express this in more detail, but that’s how I felt.”

Ha Jae-Gun smiled and nodded. The crude and clumsy boy’s honest words made him feel warm inside.

“You’re a good person, Writer Lee.”

“Pardon?”

“I’m tired. Please drive me back home,” said Ha Jae-Gun before hopping into the back of the car.

Lee Yeon-Woo tilted his head in confusion but nevertheless got into the driver’s seat and started the car engine. Soon, the car exited the quiet library’s parking lot.

***

“Yeah, Soo-Hee. I’ve given two lectures now, so I think I’ve gotten the hang of it. Yeah, I think I can do well in the lecture for JoyM, so don’t worry.

”Okay, seems like we’ll see each other again on the day of the lecture. Have a good day, I’ll call you again.”

Ha Jae-Gun hung up the call and finished up the last line of the scenario before standing up.

The clock on the wall showed noon.

“Everyone, let’s have lunch.” Ha Jae-Gun clapped his hands to catch their attention before saying, “Let’s continue working after eating.”

“Don’t you guys think that we should be the ones who should tell him to eat?”

“Yeah. It seems like he has recovered from his cold as well.”

“I recovered ages ago. Let’s go. Writer Lee, what are you doing?” Ha Jae-Gun asked as he turned to look at Lee Yeon-Woo.

Lee Yeon-Woo’s face was so close to the monitor screen. He was looking at a website instead of his Word document.

“Writer Ha, look at this. Your library lecture has gone on the real-time search rankings. The baby’s mother even wrote a review for you. The retweets on Twitter are going crazy,” Lee Yeon-Woo said.

Ha Jae-Gun chuckled. He wasn’t that surprised by now whenever something related to him managed to get on the real-time search rankings.

“Wow, Writer Ha! She even wrote something about me! She even thanked me for taking care of her baby! Wow, no way! I’m on the Internet! Oh my god!”

“Writer Lee, you’ll faint at this rate.”

Just then, the door opened.

Ha Jae-Gun’s eyes widened in surprise upon seeing Kwon Tae-Won and Jung So-Mi.

“Oh? Why are both of you here without notice?”

“Tadah!”

Kwon Tae-Won smiled and put out his hands.

His left hand was holding the physical copy of Oscar’s Dungeon volume one while the other was holding a copy of The Breath volume one.

“I secured a copy for you before they were sent to the exclusive distributor.”

“Ah, the physical books are out. Wow, they’re beautiful.” Ha Jae-Gun smiled as he stroked the book covers. Ebooks were getting popular these days, but nothing could still beat the feeling that physical books gave.

“The preorders this time were crazy. The preorders for The Breath aren’t that high because people can also read it online, but I’m sure Oscar’s Dungeon will be a hot topic tomorrow since it’s your latest novel.”

“Thank you so much. Ms. So-Mi—no, Deputy Jung, thank you so much for the illustrations that you’ve done. Please keep it up for volumes five, six, and seven.”

“Pffft! Of course.” Jung So-Mi erupted into a chuckle.

She then pulled out the physical copies of Martial God Management volumes one and two from her bag before handing them over to Lee Yeon-Woo.

“Writer Lee, your book has been printed, too. Here you go.”

“Ah, thank you!” Lee Yeon-Woo exclaimed. He was deeply moved as he accepted the books. He gnashed his teeth and quivered ever so slightly while staring at the books.

“Are you that happy?”

“Wow, I had never imagined that my novel would one day be printed from the same factory as Writer Ha’s books. I really think I have to buy a lottery ticket soon. Thank you very much, really.”

Ha Jae-Gun looked around the office before suggesting, “I think we should have a company dinner tonight. What do you all think?”

“Are you asking the obvious? Of course, I’m down.”

“Will we be going for round two? What about the karaoke?”

Everyone burst into laughter.

The smile on Ha Jae-Gun’s face didn’t go away for a long time. Not only was he enjoying his time working at the office with the other writers, but he had also recovered from his cold.

‘I’ll just have to wait until I’m done with the lecture for JoyM. I’ll focus on working on Gangster’s Sea by then.’

Ha Jae-Gun plotted his schedule for the near future beneath the blue skies of summer.

Hours later, the group stepped out for dinner.

***

Tadadadak! Tadak! Tak! Tadak!

Meanwhile, there was a writer fighting desperately by himself all this while.

The writer’s complexion was as blue as the monitor in front of him. The writer had been rewriting his scenario so many times now that he was no longer allowed to revise it any further. It was the final revision that allowed no compromises.

‘This is the end…!’

He put the final period on the manuscript before uploading it to the planning team’s server. He stepped into the pantry and made himself a cup of strong coffee. He was so tired after staying awake for two nights straight that he had no appetite for lunch.

“Ah, here you are.”

He was about to drink, but a voice echoed behind him. He turned around, and his jaw quivered upon seeing the man clad in a luxurious navy suit approaching him.

The man was none other than the director of the planning department—Nam Gyu-Ho.

1. I think the joke here is that a writer has no time to do something else other than writing? Lol. – Veela

Chapter 110. Loud Cheers (5)

“Did I not mention that we’re going to have a meeting this morning about the scenario?” Nam Nam Gyu-Ho asked.

Instead of replying, Oh Myung-Hoon looked down at the cup in his hand.

“Why didn’t you join the meeting?”

“I was busy working on the scenario.”

Actually, Oh Myung-Hoon had been avoiding those meetings due to shame. It was normal for a director to point out mistakes or areas that were lacking, but it was humiliating for Oh Myung-Hoon.

“Ah, is that so? Are you done?”

“I’ve just uploaded it to the server. You may check it out.”

“Well, I don’t think I have to do that. Team Leader Lee will handle it.”

Oh Myung-Hoon glared at the director, triggered by his words. “What do you mean?”

“What? Ah, don’t misunderstand. She’s good at her job, so I trust her judgment.” Nam Gyu-Ho smiled softly and headed to the coffee machine.

Oh Myung-Hoon remained silent, and his glare never left the man.

‘What a bastard!’

From his looks to his personality, Oh Myung-Hoon hated everything about Nam Gyu-Ho. He would always have a scornful smile whenever he spoke to Oh Myung-Hoon. Oh Myung-Hoon truly loved to get up and leave everything behind.

An employee sitting in the corner of the pantry murmured, “Oh Myung-Hoon versus Nam Gyu-Ho… a clash between two golden spoons.”

Another employee sitting across from them shrugged and asked, “Oh Myung-Hoon is a golden spoon?”

“Wait, you have no idea that he’s the President of OongSung Publication Group?”

“What? Really? In that case, wouldn’t that make him a diamond spoon?”

“That’s true.”

“But why is he here writing scenarios and enduring all this shit?”

“I have no idea. Anyway, he has quite the perseverance.”

Oh Myung-Hoon slowly drank his coffee in the pantry without realizing that the employees were talking about him. Nam Gyu-Ho had already left after making his own cup of coffee.

Bzzt!

Oh Myung-Hoon’s phone vibrated in his pocket. He took it out to see a text message from Hye-Mi, of the planning team.

— Did the meeting minutes help? I’ll send you the minutes of the planning team meeting later in the afternoon. We have a meeting at 8 p.m., at Times Square, right?

“Yes, sure.”

Oh Myung-Hoon responded nonchalantly and put his phone back in his pocket.

He looked irritated.

‘That foolish woman just annoys me with her useless words. Does she really think that she’s good enough to date me?’

Oh Myung-Hoon still decided to keep her by his side for the time being, as she was still useful to him. Like the minutes from the meeting this morning. It was his only way to read the director’s thoughts without seeing the man’s revolting side.

‘The scenario should pass after today…’

The edits he had made to the scenario earlier reflected all the changes that Nam Gyu-Ho had mentioned in the meeting minutes. There was no way it would get rejected once again.

Just then, Lee Soo-Hee entered the pantry.

“…”

Lee Soo-Hee only briefly glanced at Oh Myung-Hoon, then headed for the coffee machine. There was no way Lee Soo-Hee would view him favorably, considering how Oh Myung-Hoon hadn’t been attending meetings and was being uncooperative.

‘I just need you, but why…?’ Oh Myung-Hoon asked himself as he watched Lee Soo-Hee leave the pantry after making her cup of coffee. He couldn’t understand why Lee Soo-Hee still hadn’t opened herself to him when he was such a good catch.

***

– Awesome kekekeke Funnily enough, this is the best novel I’ve read so far by Writer Poongchun-Yoo.

-It’s light-hearted and funny, yet moving as well. I enjoyed flipping through the pages.

– Honestly, I’m slightly disappointed by Oscar’s Dungeon. I like his down-to-earth style, but I’ll still read until the end.

– I was worried he would contract some literary disease after winning an award and writing a literary novel, but my worries seemed excessive. It’s so much fun.

– There are still three weeks left until the release of volume three, how can I wait for that long~ T_T Please release two volumes every month. Arrrrgh!

‘Wow, the new novel went viral as well.’

Everyone else was asleep in their own rooms, but Lee Yeon-Woo was wide awake at his workstation, reading the largely positive response to Ha Jae-Gun’s latest novel.

‘10,000 purchases before volume three is released!? If he sold that much for physical books, imagine the number for ebooks!’

The sight of super-popular readers immediately got Lee Yeon-Woo’s attention. The most popular actor, Park Do-Joon, uploaded a photo on his Twitter account.

[Another novel from the author of Summer in My 20s, Ha Jae-Gun. Are fantasy stories like this impossible for movie adaptations? I would bleach my hair right now and audition for Oscar’s role.]

The photo depicted Park Do-Joon smiling while holding up volume one of Oscar’s Dungeon.

Lee Yeon-Woo looked at the picture for a while, then his eyes went green with envy. He reached for his keyboard with an anxious look. He was about to look at reviews for his own novel.

‘What…? Not even a single review?’

There were no search results for Martial God Management on the top two search portals, Navin and Dawoom.

Lee Yeon-Woo accessed Googol with a disappointed look. He scrolled for a while before discovering a web document in the list of search results.

‘It’s the reviews of the rental shop owners.’

– A man in his forties started reading but stopped shortly after.

– Regular in his teens said it was too childish.

– A man in his twenties said it’s boring.

– A man in his thirties said he felt like he was reading a teenage comic book from ten years ago.This chapter made its debut appearance via N0v3lB1n.

– A man in his forties threw a tantrum at me.

– We would like a quick refund.

“…”

Lee Yeon-Woo turned pale. He hadn’t hoped to strike it big with his debut novel, but he didn’t expect to receive the worst reviews possible. The shop owners’ sharp comments stabbed his heart.

‘Ah, I want some drinks…’

Unfortunately, alcohol was prohibited in the office. Lee Yeon-Woo staggered out of the office and went to the nearby convenience store to get himself some soju.

Otherwise, he was sure that he wouldn’t get over the harsh reviews.

***

The following day after the release of Oscar’s Dungeon, Ha Jae-Gun was working diligently in the afternoon, but he couldn’t help but make a sidelong glance at the seemingly daydreaming Lee Yeon-Woo.

The usually energetic Lee Yeon-Woo seemed like a sick chicken all day, he hadn’t been able to write anything since he woke up.

‘Could it be…’

Ha Jae-Gun quietly left the office with a guess in his mind. He headed down the other end of the hallway and called Kwon Tae-Won.

— Hello, Writer Ha.

“Hello, President. Um, I’m calling to ask you about the reviews for Martial God Management. How are the reviews so far?”

Kwon Tae-Won let out an audible sigh.

— It was worse than expected. Honestly, the story itself wasn’t that exciting, and Writer Lee is also not that experienced as a writer.

“That’s true,” Ha Jae-Gun said. In fact, Lee Yeon-Woo’s novel had quite a few issues across the board. The explanations were too long, and the dialogues were boring.

“What is the expected sales performance?”

— I think it’ll be hard to sell even 300 copies. I thought it would be better to release physical books, seeing how long the novel would be, but this is putting me in a pickle. How do you think Writer Lee Yeon-Woo is holding up?

“I think he checked out the reviews himself because he didn’t look so good since I woke up this morning.”

— Aigoo, that’s bad. I hope he stays strong.

Ha Jae-Gun talked on the phone for a while more before hanging up.

While he was contemplating how he should encourage Lee Yeon-Woo, his phone rang once again.

“Hello?”

— Hello, Mr. Ha. I’m Kim Dong-Gil, the real estate agent.

“Ah, yes. Hello.”

— I have just gotten hold of a relatively good detached house up for sale. I’ve just verified the details myself. It’s not that far from your current one-room studio, just ten minutes away. It’s on the pricier side, but I think you’ll love it once you see it for yourself. You can take a look at it today if you like.

“Hmm, I see… I’ll head over later then. I’ll see you in an hour,” Ha Jae-Gun said. He turned to the listless Lee Yeon-Woo in the office. Ha Jae-Gun returned to the office and then lightly tapped Lee Yeon-Woo’s shoulder.

“Yes, Writer Ha?”

“I have somewhere to go right now, would you like to join me for a drive?”

Lee Yeon-Woo stared blankly at Ha Jae-Gun.

The others only turned around briefly, but they didn’t say anything else. They all knew that Ha Jae-Gun’s suggestion was to help Lee Yeon-Woo get some fresh air.

“Let’s go,” Ha Jae-Gun said once more as he picked Rika up.

Lee Yeon-Woo stood up without hesitation and erased the bitter look on his face.

“Where are we going?”

“The real estate office. I asked to look at some suitable houses that were up for sale some time ago, and a house appeared today. Please help me see if there are any defects in the house.”

“I’m not very good at selecting houses, though.”

“It doesn’t matter.”

“Ah, I see. Let me do the driving, and you can enjoy the ride.”

As usual, Lee Yeon-Woo was a step faster than Ha Jae-Gun and took the driver’s seat. Ha Jae-Gun couldn’t help but smile bitterly as he opened the door to the front passenger seat.

“Please enjoy the ride in the back seat.”

“I like the front seat. It gives a better view. The seats are blocking the view from the back seat, and it feels less stuffy here.”

They drove onto the main road after exiting the basement carpark.

Ha Jae-Gun entered the address on the navigator, prompting Lee Yeon-Woo to ask, “Which apartment are we heading to?”

“It’s a detached house.”

“Wow, a detached house? Awesome! How many floors does it have?”

“I’ll only know when we get there.”

They soon arrived at the real estate agent’s office.

Lee Yeon-Woo parked the car outside, and they hopped into the real estate agent’s car.

“Mr. Ha, as I’ve mentioned over the phone earlier, you’ll love the place once you see it later. I can guarantee it. The house is as new as it can be, and the yard is quite spacious as well.”

Throughout the ride, the agent kept talking about the house with a confident look.

Ha Jae-Gun wasn’t expecting that much, so he only smiled faintly at the agent.

‘Hmm…?’ Ha Jae-Gun started squinting his eyes as a detached house with a low hill covered with greenery appeared in his eyes. “Can you see it? It’s that house.”

The agent seemed to have read Ha Jae-Gun’s thoughts and stepped harder on the accelerator. Soon, the entire house appeared in front of them.

“Wow… This house looks great!” Lee Yeon-Woo exclaimed in amazement as he alighted from the car.

The detached house consisted of two floors above ground and a basement. The exterior was made of brick walls painted in a mixture of brown and ivory white.

“Let’s go in and take a look. It’s almost like a new house. It’s a three-year-old detached house, but the owner barely lived in it due to personal reasons.”

The agent opened the main gate that was left unlocked.

The yard was about 5 pyeong[1] wide, and it was overgrown with weeds, as no one had tended to it for a long time. Ha Jae-Gun walked through the garden, thinking that he would have to work on the garden first if he decided to buy this house.

‘Hmm, it really looks good.’

Ha Jae-Gun discovered that the agent wasn’t just boasting earlier.

The first floor consisted of a spacious living room with two other rooms containing en suite bathrooms. He took the stairs down to the empty but spacious basement.

The basement seemed unmodified, which meant that he could freely modify the space to his liking.

However, Ha Jae-Gun was most curious about the second floor.

“A study…?!” Ha Jae-Gun exclaimed unknowingly.

The agent let out a chuckle from behind him.

“See? I told you that you would love this place. This entire floor is a study on its own,” the agent said proudly as he spread his arms out wide.

Ha Jae-Gun couldn’t close his mouth as he looked around. More than half of the second floor was a study, with bookshelves surrounding the desk in the middle like folding screens and a dark red carpet covering the floor.

There was even a fireplace and a rocking chair placed in a corner.

Ha Jae-Gun was at a loss for words at the antique-seque study that was only often seen in movies. This was the very same style of study that he had always been dreaming of owning.

“How much is this?”

“It’s 1.4 billion won.”

“Mm, I see.” Ha Jae-Gun nodded with a serious look. The price wasn’t that much of an issue. He could cover the insufficient funds with a loan. “I’ll take this house.”

Ha Jae-Gun immediately made a decision. He didn’t think that there was any need for him to wait any further. He loved everything about the house. From the exterior to its structure, and especially the study on the second floor.

‘Wow…! He bought it just like that?!’

Lee Yeon-Woo was so astonished to the point that he couldn’t even breathe properly. The idea of how Ha Jae-Gun and himself were on two entirely different levels rushed inundated his mind.

‘I probably won’t reach his level even if I dedicated my entire life to writing…’

Lee Yeon-Woo suddenly felt depressed upon recalling the bad performance of his Martial God Management.

Meanwhile, Ha Jae-Gun approached him after a brief conversation with the agent.

“Writer Lee Yeon-Woo, let’s go now.”

“Ah, yes… sure!”

The group headed back to the agent’s office. They scheduled their next meeting before leaving using Ha Jae-Gun’s car.

Ha Jae-Gun stopped Lee Yeon-Woo from entering the office’s address in the navigation and said, “Let’s have a good army stew for dinner together. Please drive us to Guro station.”

“Okay.”

Silence filled the car throughout the entire drive. When they stopped at a red light, Ha Jae-Gun looked out the window and muttered, “Stay strong, Writer Lee.”

“…?”

“It’s only natural to feel upset or hurt by the bad performance of your story, but please don’t give up on it. If you persevere, your performance will only get better from here. I will also help you to the best of my abilities.”

Lee Yeon-Woo remained silent and kept his eyes ahead on the road. His cheeks were trembling, and tears welled up in his eyes.

“Writer Lee?” Ha Jae-Gun turned upon hearing the sound of stifled sobbing.

Lee Yeon-Woo quickly wiped away the tears and chuckled awkwardly. “Ah, I’m sorry. I-I… I never really had anyone else who looked after me so much, aside from my mother. I’ve never received any consolation from anyone aside from her, either.”

Lee Yeon-Woo sounded anguished as he said, “It’s true that I was listless and exhausted yesterday. I even doubted if I could even write a good novel. I’ll reflect on myself again. I won’t get disheartened over something like this again.”

“Of course. And don’t belittle yourself, don’t say things like that in the future.”

“Thank you, Writer Ha. Ah… I’ve got something to ask of you.”

“What is it?”

Lee Yeon-Woo anxiously examined Ha Jae-Gun’s expression before asking, “Can I call you hyung? I really feel like you’re my blood-related brother.”

“If you don’t find it weird, sure.”

“Wow, really?!” Lee Yeon-Woo raised his voice in excitement, evidently happy at the approval. Lee Yeon-Woo stepped on the accelerator as the traffic light turned green before continuing. “Thank you, really. I’ll call you hyung from now on. Ah, you can speak comfortably with me as well.”

“Sure, no problem.” Ha Jae-Gun chuckled.

He had also been wanting to change their form of address for a while now. Unlike many others with whom he had been maintaining a certain distance from, Lee Yeon-Woo felt like a real younger brother to Ha Jae-Gun as well.

“Huh? Lee Yeon-Woo, aren’t you going too fast? It’s speeding.”

“This is nothing. Didn’t I tell you that I was a driver back in the military?”

The car sped down the road, leaving behind the laughter of the new brothers.