Novelist Running Through Time - Chapter 84

TL: KSD

People fear rejection.

It’s because they lack the courage to be disliked by someone. This is why, in organizational life, strong opinions are adopted more often than the right ones.

But Moon In-seop is different.

It’s not because he was deeply impressed by the book “The Courage to Be Disliked.” It’s because kids from the New Light Spring Orphanage grow up strong. Moon In-seop has always shouted, “I hate school violence!” The problem is, it didn’t work.

Anyway, Moon In-seop was a person who could say “No.”

“I don’t want to.”

For Lee Eun-bi, the team leader of Baekhak Publishing’s promotion team, this was unfortunate.

Team leader Lee Eun-bi stiffened her expression. She didn’t want to admit that she was intimidated by a middle schooler. Naturally, her tone became more forceful.

“Author Moon. This is a decision made by the company. It was decided after careful consideration by many people. I’m not saying you have to blindly follow, but outright rejection isn’t polite.”

Then, Moon In-seop declined politely.

“Operating a YouTube channel is an activity aimed at gaining recognition and advertising revenue, but I’m not interested in either. I want to focus on my writing. I’m sorry, but I will have to decline your offer.”

Team leader Lee Eun-bi was silent. Now that it came to this, she didn’t have much else to say.

And then, a belated realization came to her.

‘Could it be…….’

That Baekhak Publishing has no way to control this genius boy?

……Is there none?

Side EP-Princess Maker

Through Lee Eun-bi, the well-connected team leader of Baekhak Publishing, rumors circulated that “this kid is no ordinary kid.”

Surprisingly, the prickly and coolly chic image of the genius boy they encountered through the media was not an exaggeration.

But the history of humanity is a history of challenges and progress.

Civilization could advance because there have always been those who devoted themselves to innovation and research. Every modern person should be thankful to the ancient people who first dared to eat a pufferfish.

Anyway, there have always been people who needed to taste to distinguish between what is crap and what is bean paste, and Baekhak Publishing was no exception.

In an era when literature has become a vulgar joke, the educational department, which continued to sell workbooks refreshingly and became a solid cash cow for Baekhak Publishing, also reached out to Moon In-seop.

“Would you consider being the cover model for this year’s workbook series? You’re the dream of parents nationwide, Author Moon! The photo shoot won’t take long. How about taking just one picture with the older sisters at the studio?”

“I’m a bit reluctant to do modeling activities. I’m sorry.”

“Why, why…?”

“It’s just a bit… yeah…”

The publishing sales department, thinking that bringing Moon In-seop to any business field would magically open doors, also shamelessly approached him with a breezy attitude.

“Ah, this friend is Author Moon? Wow, younger than I thought. Hey, Author Moon. I’m Lee Han-jae, the head of publishing sales. How about going for a drive to Yeouido with me? Do you like sushi? I was thinking of treating you to something really expensive and delicious.”

“Are you trying to involve a minor in a business meeting and have him pour alcohol?”

“No, no, no, no!”

The editorial department, currently benefiting from Moon In-seop’s works at Baekhak Entertainment and wanting to transfer them to Baekhak Publishing’s lineup, also came with a benign impression and contracts.

“Hello, Author! I’m here with news about the reprint of your novel. Ah! Congratulations on becoming a bestseller! So, we’ve prepared a special exhibition featuring only your novels! If you sign here, special displays will be set up in Baekhak Publishing stores nationwide, and we’ll renew your existing novels as well…”

“Discuss business matters with my editor.”

“Eh? But, Department Head Lim is currently on standby…”

“That’s unfortunate.”

Eventually, after every department in Baekhak Publishing, almost all departments, attempted to use Moon In-seop for business and got rejected, they finally understood the true identity of this genius boy.

He’s not a middle school student. He’s something else in the guise of a middle school student.

The Baekhak Publishing employees, facing indescribable fear, ran to the Publishing Management Department to protest, questioning the responsibility of managing Moon In-seop.

“Why is he like that? I mean, the kid… doesn’t act like a kid!”

“Why does he dislike fame? Was there some kind of incident? Or is it just rebellion?”

“He dislikes variety shows, being a cover model, even book promotions, so are you saying we should just let him sit in a corner and write?”

“Exactly! Then what about the variety shows he appeared on until now!”

“Everyone, calm down…”

Swept up by the tsunami of complaints, the employees of the Publishing Management Department tried to calm their bewildered feelings and methodically sort out the complaints.

“So……”

“…….”

“Without any particular reason, he declines variety shows, being a cover model, and shows a remarkable aversion to any activities outside writing……”

“Yes!”

“He’s precociously mature for a child, doesn’t listen to adults, and does only what he wants…”

“Right!”

“Above all, he dislikes making money and fame, wants to just write in seclusion, and doesn’t listen to anything the company asks, staying cooped up in his room…”

“Yeah. That’s right.”

Having organized the complaints up to this point, the Publishing Management Department employees looked at each other with puzzled faces.

…What exactly is the problem here?

“Isn’t this just how he normally is?”

“……?”

“……?”

“……?”

“Just the usual Moon In-seop?”

“……?”

“……?”

“……?”

* * *

Meanwhile, Lim Yang-wook’s phone was buzzing with hundreds of text message notifications.

In reality, it was thousands, but due to system limitations, it only showed hundreds.

Half of these notifications were from Moon In-seop, and the other half were from Baek Seol.

However, since Moon In-seop did not know Lim Yang-wook’s home address and Baek Seol did, Baek Seol was the first to get in touch with him.

“Hello! Is anyone in there?!”

Bang bang. The entrance door shook with the loud knocking, and a familiar voice could be heard. Lim Yang-wook sluggishly got out of his blanket.

Without even thinking of trimming his unkempt beard, Lim Yang-wook was drawn by the voice to the front door.

“…Baek Seol?”

The moment the door opened, Baek Seol took a step back from the burst of alcohol fumes.

The source of the alcohol fumes was, of course, Lim Yang-wook. He was in no state to be seen as a person.

“My goodness… How much did you drink?!”

“How did you know where I live?”

“I went through the HR department’s files.”

“It must be nice being an director.”

Leaving a comment that could either be taken as a compliment or sarcasm, Lim Yang-wook went back inside his house.

“Come on in.”

Baek Seol hesitated before entering Lim Yang-wook’s home.

Her hesitation stemmed from the worry that Lim Yang-wook’s home might resemble a garbage dump, just like Lim Yang-wook’s appearance, but fortunately, Lim Yang-wook’s home was the exact opposite of him.

A neatly organized home welcomed Baek Seol.

It was so clean that it almost seemed like a case of OCD.

However, Baek Seol knew Lim Yang-wook, who had endured two years of humiliation in the underground parking lot, and subconsciously realized that this tidy home was indeed Lim Yang-wook’s last bastion of pride.

Upon a closer look, Lim Yang-wook’s appearance wasn’t that of a hermit. The smell of alcohol was just too strong, but after washing his face in the bathroom, he looked as usual.

Lim Yang-wook was always ready to go to the company.

Realizing this, Baek Seol felt relieved.

So, without further worries, she got straight to the point.

“How did this happen?”

“What do you mean how? The company abandoned me.”

“That doesn’t make sense!”

Baek Seol was about to passionately argue about the significant impact Lim Yang-wook had made in the publishing industry. It was wrong that discovering a star author like Moon In-seop resulted in a disciplinary personnel action like being put on standby.

That’s what she intended to say.

However, Lim Yang-wook preempted her, answering before Baek Seol could speak.

“It must be CEO Kim Sang-guk pulling strings.”

“But still…!”

“What can I do about it? Kim Sang-guk is the CEO of Baekhak Publishing, and the Publishing Management Department is now under Baekhak Publishing. What can I do if the CEO decides to fire his department head?”

And the transfer of the Publishing Management Department from Baekhak Entertainment to Baekhak Publishing was facilitated by some hastily assembled, bizarre department called the Organizational Innovation Department, to which she belonged.

Feeling guilty for inadvertently contributing to Lim Yang-wook’s dismissal, Baek Seol bowed her head.

“I’m… sorry.”

“What are you sorry for? Let’s eat something.”

Lim Yang-wook made fried rice with eggs and ham.

While Baek Seol was dazedly trying to gather her thoughts, she found herself sitting at the dining table, scooping rice.

Eating the steaming fried rice, Baek Seol suddenly muttered.

“It’s… delicious.”

“Right?”

“You cook really well.”

“Well, I live alone.”

The topic of Lim Yang-wook’s family, which he usually avoided with his keen senses, unexpectedly came up from Lim Yang-wook himself.

“I also come from a orphanage. Like In-seop.”

“…!”

“That’s probably why I felt more attached to him.”

Even as he faced being abandoned by the company for the second time, Lim Yang-wook smiled gently. Baek Seol easily guessed that it was because of Moon In-seop.

“To be honest, as an editor, I feel like I’ve done everything I wanted to do.”

“…”

“I’ve shared beautiful writing that must be known to the world. Will there ever come a day when I find a second Moon In-seop? Probably not. He was just… like a destiny that comes once in a lifetime.”

“…”

“At some point, I forgot all about revenge and whatever, and focused on promoting Moon In-seop’s books. I ended up in this situation because I was too complacent… But that’s how much fun it was. Hanging out with that cheeky little kid, teaching Baek-seol this and that…”

“…”

“Now, I feel like. I’ve achieved everything. So, it’s okay. You don’t have to worry too much, Baek Seol.”

Baek Seol, unlike Moon In-seop who came back in time, did not know that Lim Yang-wook was longing for a genius writer and close friend who had died too young in his youth.

But Baek Seol had spent a lot of time with Lim Yang-wook. Now, Baek Seol knows who Lim Yang-wook is. He is not a businessman but an artist.

He is the kind of person who can be satisfied just by sharing beautiful writing with the world, regardless of not making money or being ousted from the company.

What else could you call him if not an artist?

But in the end, Lim Yang-wook was driven out by scoundrels like Kim Sang-guk and Yang Sung-jun. They are the kind who see art not as art but as capital or soft power.

The chairman is no different. Whether it’s the deceased chairman or the current one, they do not regard art as art. The world they have created is too dry and harsh.

Therefore…

It must be protected.

Baek Seol was so engrossed in her thoughts that she was not aware of the realization she was coming to.

It was an untidy, chaotic mess of thoughts, closer to an impulse than a dream.

Yet, this realization would decisively change Baek Seol’s life.

* * *

In the end, Baek Seol couldn’t bring herself to suggest to Lim Yang-wook that they take Moon In-seop and start their own publishing company independently.

She realized how fanciful that idea was.

Baekhak is a massive, meticulous, and cruel corporation.

The moment a sheep escapes the fence, Baekhak would not hesitate to slaughter it.

Not to consume it, but to set an example.

Thus, one must act within that fence.

Here, fortune favored her.

Most people cannot escape the predicament of being a sheep within that fence because they are born as sheep.

However, Baek Seol was born as the granddaughter of the illegitimate child of the Baekhak Group founder.

At the very least, she was qualified to stand at the starting line.

But Baek Seol was not a chaebol.

She was jokingly referred to as of noble blood, and indeed, she ascended the corporate ladder with the power of her lineage, but that was always due to external factors.

Baek Seol’s inner self was not that of a chaebol.

She had never thought of herself as a chaebol.

Baek Seol’s father was not a chaebol either. He was merely a wealthy idler. Content with the rental income from inherited buildings, he loved his family in an ordinary way, passing the time as an idler engaged in various arts and entertainment social activities.

There was only one chaebol that Baek Seol knew.

As the eldest son of the Baekhak Group founder’s illegitimate child, he managed to protect his business entity against all sabotage and led a legal battle over inheritance rights for a whopping seven years…

“Hello, Uncle.”

It was Baek Seol’s uncle, Baek Do-hyun.

Baek Do-hyun’s office was located in the headquarters’ strategic planning office. He was a team leader-level official in the strategic planning office.

And since the lowest rank among the team leader-level officials in the Baekhak Group’s strategic planning office was ‘COO’, Baek Do-hyun’s nameplate read as follows:

Head of Personnel Support Team, Strategic Planning Office, ‘CEO Baek Do-hyun’.

CEO Baek Do-hyun rose from his seat with a warm smile, just like the old times when he used to encourage his niece to study abroad.

“Oh, my daughter. You’re here?”

*****

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