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Chapter 74 - o 9

Chapter 117 – An Author's Confession (3)

Translated by: ShawnSuh

Edited by: SootyOwl

"Hey, it's Juho!"

When Juho looked up, Sun Hwa and Bom locked eyes with him. He was on his way up the stairs while the two were on their way down. Having met in the middle of the stairway, they stopped and greeted one another.

"What brings you here so early?" Juho asked.

"We're on our way to the library."

"We felt like reading your story again."

"That's flattering."

At that moment, Sun Hwa suddenly furrowed her brows.

"Your story was so well-written... Why aren't more people reading it?"

Though she had hesitated having her work on display, she became one of the most actively involved club members since the exhibition. Once she started something, she had to see it to the end.

Remembering the students gathered around the books in the library, Juho said, "There was a good number of people."

"No, no! I want more people!"

"Well, let's give it time. It definitely seems like more and more people are visiting the library."

Bom added to Juho's laid-back response, "Yeah, I'm sure we'll have more people visiting to read our stories. Besides, Seo Kwang's been going around telling everyone in school."

"I can't trust that guy."

Unfortunately, Bom's words fell short in comforting Sun Hwa.

"He was distracted with another book even just a moment ago. He barely scanned through our stories and hardly made any comments on them. Besides, he was mostly focused on Juho's work. I swear, he needs to get off his high horse."

"Seo Kwang does tend to be level-headed when it comes to books, even with his own story," while smiling awkwardly, Bom defended Seo Kwang.

Sun Hwa pouted at that.

Having listened quietly, Juho asked Sun Hwa, "What was the title of the book?"

"Huh?"

"What was Seo Kwang reading?"

"Uh... What was it called?"

While Sun Hwa was busy trying to remember, Bom answered on her behalf, "The Language of God." She sounded rather confident.

"Hey, it's almost time! Gotta go!"

After patting Juho's back lightly, Sun Hwa walked down the stairs with vigor. Juho watched them go for a moment, and then made his way up the stairs.

"Hi," Juho greeted Seo Kwang from behind. Instead of an answer, he waved his hand in response. He had a sophisticated looking book in his hand. 'The Language of God, Volume 1, written by Won Yi Young.' He didn't move a muscle all the way up to the beginning of class.

Recess came after the first period ended.

"What you up to?"

Like he had done earlier, Seo Kwang simply waved his hand. Only that time, he was asking Juho not to bother him. Just like that, the second period started. At that time, Seo Kwang moved in order to hide his book behind the textbook.

Time passed, and lunchtime came.

"Hey, let's go eat."

"..."

"Aren't you going to eat?"

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"No."

"What?"

"I'm not going to eat today. You go ahead."

"Why not?"

"I want to read my book."

Seo Kwang gave him a series of brief answers. He had to be quite fond of the book.

"Well, I'm going now."

"Bye."

On his way to the cafeteria, Juho bought a loaf of bread from the canteen and handed it Seo Kwang. Even as he took the break from his friend, his eyes remained completely fixed on the book. Seo Kwang had always been a serious print addict. Just like that, he remained in his seat, staring at the book for the entire day.

"Hey."

With a book in his hand, he looked in Juho's direction.

"Long time no see," said Juho. "Are you done?"

"No, I just skimmed through it," Seo Kwang said as he shook his head.

"I see."

'I suppose that explains the innocent look on his face," Juho thought.

"This book is just amazing." As usual, he began to share his book experience without anyone asking him to. "This book reeks of success. I can just smell it. It's still the first volume, but I have a good feeling about this series. As long as the author pays attention to the direction of the series, I know this going to be a hit."

"The author, huh."

"Yeah, Won Yi Young," Seo kwang said sadly as he brushed his hand down the book. "I underestimated him because he's a rookie. I almost missed out! Oh, gosh! I don't even want to think about it. Now that I've read the book, I'll never be the same."

"Ah, right."

"I'm serious!" he raised his voice. "I'm in love with his work, especially with those languages. They're created by the author. I almost screamed when I saw the language chart at the end of the book! It's so, so detailed. It's so real!"

Because Juho didn't have much else to say, he listened quietly.

"Look here. The description of the village. It just paints a picture on its own, doesn't it? It's so simple, yet clear. This is the part that sold me. Might I remind you that this author is a rookie?"

"Impressive."

"It's incredible, isn't it!?"

"Yeah, exactly what you said."

Juho smiled. Seo Kwang went on with his exposition for quite some time, then, suddenly, he lowered his voice.

"You know what?"

"What?"

"So, I have a feeling..."

"What feeling?"

"That I saw that style of writing elsewhere. It seems familiar for some reason," Seo Kwang said with excitement and certainty.

"Familiar how?"

"I can't really back it up with anything, and this is strictly my intuition, but I'm still confident in what I'm feeling."

Seo Kwang lowered himself and covered his mouth.

"I think Yun Woo wrote this book," he whispered.

'Of course.' Juho knew that Seo Kwang would catch on. A sense of excitement washed over him.

"As an avid fan of Yun Woo, and someone who owns all three of his books, I predict a new article coming out. 'Won Yi Young – Yun Woo's new alias.'"

It was a rather exaggerated title for an article.

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"I'm telling you, this book couldn't have been written by a rookie! The progression is similar to Yun Woo's, as well as the style that it's written in. I can't really picture Yun Woo writing a fantasy novel, but he's the only viable candidate. No one can mimic his style of writing, yet there are traces of his style throughout the book. I don't think Yun Woo intended on being thorough about hiding himself either."

"Hm."

"You should check it out. The book isn't all that known, but the way I see it, it's only a matter of time. Fans can smell out a good book. Any fantasy novel fan would go crazy over this. I've already made up my mind to write a review on my blog too. I was thinking of including my conjecture of Yun Woo being Won Yi's true identity. What do you think? There would be quite a few visitors. Oh, wait. It's not going to cause any legal issues or anything, will it?"

Juho said to his anxious friend, "No way. If anything, they would thank you. You're essentially advertising him."

"You think so?"

With that, Juho packed his bag and rose from his seat.

"We should get going."

"OK, give me a second."

Wearing a relieved look, Seo Kwang put on his backpack. 'The Language of God' was still in his hand.

As Juho climbed the stairs, footsteps echoed throughout the hallway. They were headed toward the science room at the end of the hall. Walking ahead of Juho, Seo Kwang still held the book in his hand.

He had been quiet for some time now. To be precise, he hadn't said a word since he finished reading the book. Seo Kwang had to have read the epilogue and must've caught onto Juho's phrase.

Seo Kwang was in a troubled state. 'Yun Woo's style and Juho's message. If I were to connect the two... I have to get over this wall of suspicion. Could it be that Juho has been Yun Woo all along? No, no way. That'd be absurd!'

Stairs. That was where Seo Kwang had urged Juho to become a writer.

"Nobody's here," Juho murmured on the empty staircase.

Nobody was around for some reason. Maybe it was because he hadn't left the classroom later than usual, like when he conversed with Seo Kwang. Seo Kwang remained silent. Having walked ahead, he suddenly stopped in his tracks, forcing Juho to stop with him. His movements were rather mechanical.

The air grew heavy with silence, and Juho looked at the window in the hallway. A cold breeze blew in from it.

"Hey," Seo Kwang quietly opened his mouth.

"What?" Juho answered.

"What do you think the chances of other clubs having their own 'sole artist in the club?'"

"Probably, not very high," Juho answered calmly.

"I thought so. It can't be very high. In fact, we're probably the only non-art related club that has an artist as a member."

Juho became curious about the expression on Seo Kwang's face.

"Now, what do you think are the chances of my friend being Yun Woo himself?"

Juho thought momentarily.

"That's probably not very high either."

"Right..."

While still holding his book, Seo Kwang's hand dropped weakly.

"What about me winning a lottery?"

"Not very high, I'd guess."

"I might as well win the lottery if any of those things are not likely to happen."

"Yun Woo would be sad to hear that."

Seo Kwang chuckled for a good while.

"Haha! Hahaha!"

"Hey, calm down."

It wasn't until then that Seo Kwang barely managed to stop chuckling.

"Mr. Woo," the name flowed right out of his slightly parted lips. Seo Kwang turned around and their eyes met.

"Yes."

KH999 - វិបផតថលហ្គេមកាស៊ីណូដ៏ល្បីល្បាញឈានមុខគេនៅ Cambodia

ចំណុចប្រទាក់ខ្មែរប្រពៃណី – ប៉ុន្តែការលេងហ្គេមទំនើបណាស់។

"Are you Yun Woo?"

"Yeah."

"Really? You are?!"

"Yep."

Seo Kwang began to chuckle once again. He seemed happy on one hand, yet dumbfounded on the other. Suddenly, he staggered and leaned against the rail. Juho looked up from the stairs.

"Have you been casting some sort of spell?"

"Nope. No spell."

"Then how..." Seo Kwang moaned. "How are you able to write in a style that's entirely different?"

'It sort of just happened when I came back from the dead,' Juho answered silently.

"There must be another me inside of me."

"Goodness..." Seo Kwang rubbed his face at his friend's half-hearted excuse. "You are seriously the most unique author in existence. There's not one writer in this entire world who is like you."

"That's obvious."

"That was the confession you were talking about!? Whoever said anything about wanting to hear that!?"

"I tried hard to win you over. What did you think?"

"You crazy son of a...Agh!"

He was smiling, yet tears were streaming down his cheeks. He seemed all the more crazy as he shouted at his friend, "Oh, my! Is this for r... Wow! Seriously! I would've never imagined that something like this would happen. My friend is Yun Woo!? This punk!? Yun Woo is crazy!"

"Relax."

"Relax? How do you expect me to do that when you just dropped a bomb on me like that? There are fireworks going off in my head, and you want me to relax!?"

"OK, I get it."

"No, you don't! What do you know about what I'm feeling!?"

"Guess you have a point."

"Aghhh!"

Twisting his body, Seo Kwang cried out like a wounded beast. The stairway echoed with his high pitched cry. Juho fought off the laughter desperately.

"Mr. Woo!"

Overcome with excitement, Seo Kwang charged at Juho, forcing him to hold on to the rail from the impact. Their eyes met.

"You owe me a hundred autographs."

"That's hardly a challenge."

"Expect me to invade your house later today. Is that OK?"

"Sure. If you want, I'll show you the manuscripts too."

"You really are Yun Woo!"

"You're saying that now?"

While they made a ruckus, they heard footsteps approaching their position. Holding each other, they looked up the stairway together and saw Sun Hwa, Bom and Baron. Nobody said a word.

"Yun Woo?" Baron asked.

Seo Kwang contemplated what to do for a brief moment.

"What brings you all here?" he asked.

"You guys were taking your sweet time, so we came looking for you."

"Now, I'm seeing a couple of crazies here looking desperately for Yun Woo."

"What happened?" the three asked taking turns.

"What are you going to do?" Seo Kwang asked Juho.

"I gotta come clean," Juho said and put his hand out to Seo Kwang.

"What?"

"Let me borrow your book for a minute."

With that, he opened the book to the epilogue and handed it to the three. Their jaws dropped slowly as they came to understand the situation. Juho said to the three who were hopelessly at a loss.

"Should we make our way to the science room?"

Chapter 118 – An Author's Confession (4)

Translated by: ShawnSuh

Edited by: SootyOwl

"So, this book is written by Won Yi Young."

"Yes."

"But Won Yi Young is actually Yun Woo."

"Right."

"And you... you are Yun Woo."

"That's right."

"You said you have piles of papers littered throughout your room?"

"If you'd like, I can show them to you."

"Even Yun Woo's manuscripts?"

"Of course."

Sun Hwa approached Juho and poked him on the cheek to see if he was real.

"Now, I get it."

"Huh?"

"I knew they were too good to be written by a student. No wonder you're such a good writer! I mean, 'The Grains of Sand' carried an entirely different feeling from 'The Sound of Wailing,' but wow! You're Yun Woo. Yun Woo himself!" she murmured.

"This doesn't feel real to me. I didn't think I'd ever be able to meet him in person, but I've been seeing him everyday this entire time," Bom said, looking dumbfounded still. Because they weren't as sensitive to writing styles as Seo Kwang, Sun Hwa and Bom accepted that Juho had been Yun Woo all along,

"Can't you write in different styles as long you put your mind to it?"

"Can you change your own fingerprints just because you put your heart to it?" Seo Kwang answered Sun Hwa in a slightly tired voice. It made sense considering how much ruckus he had made. "There's a reason why people compare an author's style to their fingerprints. One can write like a certain author with practice. Yes, we can always hurt our fingers, but that doesn't mean that we can change our fingerprints just because we want to."

"That's true."

"But that's exactly what this punk has been doing."

Feeling Sun Hwa and Bom staring daggers in his direction, Juho looked away and locked eyes with Baron, who hadn't said a word so far.

"Yun Woo."

"Yes?" Juho answered.

Baron too had been an avid fan, as much as Seo Kwang. Shaking, he slowly approached Juho.

"Yun Woo."

"... Yes?"

"Let me see your hands," Baron said as he raised Juho's hand up high as if he were holding it up to the sun. "So, this is the hand you've been writing with."

"No, I'm right-handed."

With that, Baron quietly moved onto the other hand. He was rather serious, and Juho's attempt to lessen the tension with jokes ended in failure.

"I need an autograph."

"Oh, of course."

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"Thanks."

"Not a problem."

"I mean it, thank you."

Juho realized that he wasn't just thanking him for the autograph. He had no clue as to what kind of effect his book had had on Baron. However, he heard the sincerity behind Baron's words.

While he smiled quietly, Bom chimed in, "I would like one too, please."

Her cheeks were glowing bright red. Bom, too, had been an avid fan of Yun Woo. Juho remembered seeing her among the crowd surrounding the imposter for a signature.

"I was here first. I'm supposed to get one hundred autographs."

"What are you going to do with that many autographs? Juho, I only need enough for my family."

"I'll blow my nose with them if I have to."

The club members acted as usual. Whether Juho was Yun Woo or not, they were always the same. He realized that he was the one who needed to be thanking them.

He had been writing with them. He had struck up conversations to get closer to them. He had also shared memories of a first love or invaded a world being sustained by a fragile friendship ridden with insecurity. Every person had revealed a side of themselves apart from their usual behaviors at school.

At that moment, the door slid open as usual, and Mr. Moon walked into the room. After making a brief observation of the situation, he went straight to the point.

"The compilations will be coming out soon."

"Already!?"

"It's almost finished. I've been collecting copies your works. It'll be finished once I include a free-topic composition from each and everyone here. So, I don't care what you write, just bring me something."

"Wow... how time flies."

"What should I write?" Seo Kwang was smiling. "Maybe I should write about Yun Woo."

"Hey! Shh!" Sun Hwa cut him off as she kept her eyes on Mr. Moon. She looked rather obvious.

"What? I just wanted to write about Yun Woo," Seo Kwang said in a flustered voice.

"Oh."

Suddenly, Mr. Moon interjected, "If you're planning on writing about Yun Woo, make sure you have his personal consent."

"Pff. How am I supposed to do that?"

"You can write about me," Juho said. All eyes were on him.

"It's a free topic after all," he added with a nod.

The air grew heavy with silence. With a shaky voice, Bom broke that silence, "Did you know, Mr. Moon?"

He answered with a proud smile, "Of course! A teacher knows all."

'You just found out too, Mr. Moon,' Juho murmured in his mind. Just like that, the science room became rowdy once again.

By the time the club members had come up with an outline for their last works to be included in the compilation, Mr. Moon asked, "The school festival is right around the corner, right?"

"Yes!"

Every class had been busy with preparations for the festival. They decorated the classroom and made food according to their class' theme.

"Are we doing something?" Sun Hwa asked.

"Nope," Mr. Moon answered. Everyone accepted his answer. Considering the size of the club and the nature of its activities, the five club members would be the only people who'd come to the school festival to write.

"If you want, think of your stories in the library exhibition as your own festival. You may roam as freely as you wish on the day of the festival."

"That won't be necessary."

"Suit yourself," Mr. Moon said.

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"What's your class doing for the school festival, Baron?" Sun Hwa asked.

"A restaurant."

"What are you guys selling?"

"I heard toast?"

"What about you? Do we get to see you in an apron?"

"Probably."

"You mean you're going to be working?!"

"I have to. They're making me."

"I thought you wouldn't even bother," Seo Kwang said.

"I'm going to stick around for a little bit and bounce."

"That's still major progress!" Bom said. Everyone agreed that Baron was making a major breakthrough compared to how he had been in the beginning.

"What about you guys?" Seo Kwang asked.

"We're doing a class bazaar," Bom answered.

"That doesn't sound all that interesting."

"You'd be surprised. We're selling food too."

"Seems like you guys are going to be awfully busy."

Sun Hwa and Bom sighed simultaneously at Juho's response. They were expecting the same.

"What about you guys?"

"I heard we're going to have a variety of games, like darts."

"That sounds fun!"

Seo Kwang smiled proudly at Bom's response.

"I'm the genius behind that idea."

"I'm surprised they even let you come up with ideas."

"What are you talking about? I should be the one coming up with ideas like that."

"He's right," Juho agreed. "Seo Kwang's was the only idea."

"Hey, man, nobody needs to know that!" Seo Kwang said in attempt to cover up the truth.

"Really? That's just sad. People don't like to get involved in things in your class, huh?"

"Yeah. Our class seems to be pretty unmotivated in general. It's as if everyone was agreeing to relax and not do anything."

"That is the most comfortable thing to do," Bom said with an awkward smile. Expecting a busy schedule in the near future, she looked at Juho and Seo Kwang with envious eyes.

After spending a significant amount of time discussing the school festival, Baron changed the subject, "I heard that the library's been getting more visitors as of late."

Everyone's face lit up.

"Compared to the past, definitely," Seo Kwang agreed, nodding his head.

There had been significantly less people in the schoolyard because of the cold, and more and more people were visiting the library as the word spread. Though it looked nowhere near as popular as a restaurant, it was more than enough to put a smile on everyone's face. Though small, the fact that they had achieved something with their own hands brought about a great sense of reward.

"I'm realizing how much power there is in marketing. We've been getting significantly more visitors in the library since Baron put up his poster."

With Mr. Moon's help, the poster Baron had willingly created was posted on the bulletin board provided on each floor of the building. It was definitely eye-catching when walking up and down the stairs, and it successfully planted a seed of curiosity in those who saw it. Though Seo Kwang made a timid claim of credit, Sun Hwa swiftly ignored him.

KH999 - ល្បែងប្រជាប្រិយខ្មែរ លេងហើយជក់ចិត្ត

KH999 - វិបផតថលហ្គេមកាស៊ីណូដ៏ល្បីល្បាញឈានមុខគេនៅ Cambodia

"All my friends have visited. They told me they read my story too!"

"Did you hear any feedback?"

"They loved it," Sun Hwa said proudly.

Though simple, it was more than enough to move the heart of the writer, especially for the members of the Literature Club who had never written a book before.

"'Grains of Sand' is the most popular one, right? I checked the library earlier. There was a long line in front of Juho's book."

"Juho's book is like a specialty at a restaurant. People don't hesitate to wait in line to have it. Some even come from far away."

"That's true. We've read it ourselves, so we know how delicious of a dish it really is."

Seo Kwang and Sun Hwa said to each other calmly.

"Anyway, marketing is really important. We should all do everything we can to tell people about our works!"

She had said that in a way that resembled the president of a publishing company, and Juho quietly nodded. Marketing was always crucial, but Rumors were also just as important. He remembered his conversation with Dong Baek over the phone. They had discussed an increase in sales. In the publishing industry, rumors had the potentials to work to the publisher's advantage. It made people want to be part of a success story.

The rumors usually had roots on a publishing company's subtle marketing strategy. They were carefully formulated in order to make the books more visible to people and they often used words like "recommendation" or "critically acclaimed" in order to draw more attention. It was comparable to lighting up a fuse. It took some time until the fuse would completely burn out, but Dong Baek had predicted that they would know the outcome by the end of the winter.

Juho felt a sense of anticipation. How big of a bomb would be at the end of the fuse?

'Bang!'

A sudden explosion sounded off, and everyone in the classroom complained.

"What the... You scared me!"

"Who was that!?"

"Quiet! Everyone, focus!"

Everyone submitted to the class president's orders, and Juho's eyes were met with balloons of various colors resting on the desk.

"This will take ages to finish."

"Are sure this isn't too many?"

"They'll deflate over time. Don't you think it'd be better to blow them the day of?"

Despite the kids' wishes, the class president insisted, "It's better to have them ready today. I know you guys are going to be wandering around on that day, so put those prize tags in and blow. Now."

"Oh, c'mon. We won't do that."

"Hurry up!"

The kids quietly submitted to the strong-willed class president. Those who were more actively involved in the preparation came together as a group and decorated the windows per the class president's instructions.

"A happy gameroom. Catches your ears, right?"

"Yep."

Seo Kwang seemed to be happy that his idea was being actualized.

"If you're that happy, you should go join your classmates."

"You know, I did think about it, but it's not like me to get my hands dirty."

With a balloon in his mouth, Seo Kwang was reading a book that was resting on his knees. The class president glanced at him, but she didn't seem like she intended on scolding him. After all, he had been following her instructions.

Juho brought a balloon up to his mouth, and the taste of rubber filled his mouth. He took a deep breath and blew into the balloon. As it puffed up, the tag inside of it moved about.

"Giveaway prizes are pretty much limited to snacks, right?"

"There are some writing tools too. Nothing special though."

It was a school festival after all. No one could expect a laptop or a refrigerator as prizes. At that point, Juho was blowing on the balloons by reflex.

"I'm getting bored."

Seo Kwang had been quiet. He glanced at his book while blowing on his balloons, closing the openings with a knot as he flipped the pages of his book. He was rather skilled.

Feeling his lips getting tired, Juho picked up yet another balloon.

"Tired?" a voice asked from behind him.

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