Episode 1: The Chaebol 10th-Circle Swordmaster's Return (4)

To steal someone else's manuscript.

I couldn't have imagined doing something like this in the past.

"Sigh..."

Unable to focus on the manuscript in my current state, I went out to buy soju from the convenience store nearby.

But damn, on my way out, I ran into someone I didn't want to see. It was the landlady, cleaning the hallway with a broom and wearing high-rise pants.

"You haven't paid this month's rent yet. You know that, right?"

"Yes, I'm sorry."

"I'm letting it slide because you seem like a good kid."

Good thing I look harmless.

"Are you doing well with your job search? Are you still writing that novel or whatever?"

To avoid a long conversation, I just nodded and passed by.

"I'll pay you back soon."

I could hear her clicking her tongue behind me.

EunYu's words were right: Misery doesn't need many words. A single sentence like 'The landlady had a word with me today' would be enough to make me cry.

"1600 won, please."

I walked back, gulping down half a bottle of soju.

Luckily, I didn’t run into the landlady again on my way back, and I made it to my room without any issues.

Maybe it was the alcohol, but my room looked different somehow.

A tiny studio apartment without a bathroom or washing machine, barely 3 pyeong in size.

TL/N: One pyeong is equivalent to approximately 3.31 square metres or 35.58 square feet

Clothes for all seasons, not even totaling ten outfits, and a pile of instant noodle containers by the door.

An eight-year-old laptop on the desk... Damn it. Let's stop here. Too much misery.

"Let’s see how well this is written."

I downed the rest of the soju and opened Yu ChanYoung's manuscript.

「A familiar scene, an unremarkable landscape. No doubt, it’s the desert city of Armenia. But how?

Fehilt Rune, looking around, exclaimed in astonishment.

'Where is this? I was sure I died. Could it be?'」

Why do web novels always start like this?

Well, let it pass as a cliché.

I decided to type up the manuscript on a word processor, to get a feel for Yu ChanYoung's style and learn from it.

Page by page, the alcohol made me dizzy, but the pages turned easily.

No blockages, no frustrating parts.

The catharsis was satisfying.

Typical of Yu ChanYoung.

But to say there wasn't something missing would be a lie.

"This is just a story of a returner wreaking havoc."

It wasn't out of jealousy; it was just true.

Of course, it wasn't just about the returner. As a famous writer aware of trends, Yu ChanYoung included everything: other worlds, Demon Lords, Swordmasters, Chaebols, Regressors, Systems, and even Returnees...

Right. That was the problem.

"What's the difference between this and my novel?"

I took a deep breath.

No, this is Yu ChanYoung's writing.

I must be missing something.

Let's start over.

I opened the manuscript again.

Reading and rereading.

About two hours passed.

Finally, a conclusion.

...I really don't get it.

I couldn't figure it out no matter how much I read.

The themes were similar, the sentences and plot structure almost identical. Not even the characters were more charming.

Yet, this one was read by 100,000 people, and mine by 10.

Why?

My throat burned with gulped soju. A hollow laugh escaped me.

Learning from a famous writer?

Sounds good.

But what am I supposed to learn?

There's no difference as far as I can see.

...No, on second thought, there is a big difference between Yu ChanYoung and me. Yu ChanYoung is famous.

And I am not.

Suddenly, everything seemed to fall into place.

Even knowing it was cognitive dissonance, I couldn't suppress my explosive emotions.

Yes, it's ultimately that issue.

Yu ChanYoung becomes famous even if he writes crap, and someone like me won't even make the news even if I die.

If Yu ChanYoung writes about Returners or Swordmasters, he succeeds; if I write...

At that moment, something snapped in my head.

I hit the backspace key. The sentences of Yu ChanYoung I had painstakingly copied were being erased.

"Damn Returners!"

Erasing one sentence.

"Damn Chaebols!"

Erasing another.

"Damn Swordmasters!"

Erasing yet another.

With each sentence erased, a strange satisfaction surged within me, and something deep within me erupted.

Let them all go to hell.

I began to tear apart and rewrite Yu ChanYoung's prologue.

Changing the setting, altering the world as I saw fit.

Even changing the protagonist.

From a Returner who knows the future to Extra A, who is killed by that Returner.

Since it won't be serialized anyway, what does it matter how I change it?

Returners? Hah, hah. Let all Returners die!

I laughed heartily as I read the new prologue I had written.

Look at this, look. This story would drive the readers mad.

And then I fell asleep.

So quietly, I didn’t even know when I had fallen asleep.

But if I had known what would happen next,

I would never have fallen asleep.

Never.

***

At the Dragon Management office, Kim MyungHoon, the team leader, was frustratedly staring at his computer screen. The displayed work was "The Top Swordmaster's Return." The last day of publication was February 17th, and today was February 24th. Looking over at the same screen, editor Cha JiHee chuckled.

"Ha! That writer is on hiatus again?"

"It's been a week already. How did I miss this?"

"It's the tenth time already. This might be a new record."

Exasperated, MyungHoon slumped back into his chair.

"His phone is off, too. Do I have to go to his house again?"

"You should understand, Team Leader. He’s a writer with a mental history."

"Every writer has some kind of mental issue, that's the problem. How many times can they use that as an excuse?"

Then JiHee pointed to her monitor with a bitter smile.

"It's trendy these days."

MyungHoon's face hardened as he looked at her monitor.

"What? 'Somewhere Extraordinary Return' is on hiatus too?"

"Yes, it's been three days without a post. But they did post a hiatus notice: 'Sorry, everyone. I have to visit another world for a bit...' Creative excuse. They could've written another chapter with that effort."

"These guys are just eating money now. It all started after Yu ChanYoung..."

MyungHoon cracked his knuckles.

"That's why you need to discipline them when they're young. If you educate them to be compliant from their rookie days, they wouldn't dare to take a hiatus."

"Any good new writers lately? Oh, isn’t the ‘Hatchling Project’ still ongoing?"

"It is. Hmm, there’s still time before the deadline... Maybe I should make a call. They must be loafing around by now. Time to tighten the screws."

"Wow, you're really devilish, Team Leader."

"A devilish editor is a good editor."

As MyungHoon stood up and walked towards the office printer with his smartphone, his eyes caught a misprinted document in the wastebasket.

"Huh? This is Yu ChanYoung's work. Who printed this?"

Ji EunYu raised her head from the adjacent partition.

"I assigned it to this writer."

"This writer? Lee HakHyun?"

"Yes."

"But I already assigned this work to writer Koo DaeSung."

EunYu's expression hardened.

"When?"

"Last week."

"I didn’t hear anything about that in last week’s meeting."

"Ah, must've slipped my mind. Haha."

Their eyes locked in the air. Both were smiling, but their eyes were cold.

"The order was mine first, EunYu. You’ll concede, right?"

"For your information, I officially filed the request an hour ago."

MyungHoon's expression stiffened as he checked EunYu's monitor. The document had already been approved by the CEO.

"I can cancel it. Give me the mouse."

"No."

"Why are you like this, EunYu? Don’t you know how much I care for writer Koo DaeSung?"

"I also know how to take care of my writer."

A sly smile played on MyungHoon's lips.

"Right. EunYu also has a writer. Who hasn't achieved anything in six months and just wastes the project budget."

"Don't talk recklessly. No one knows the future."

"What's there not to know? Can Lee HakHyun and Koo DaeSung even be compared? Even though Koo DaeSung is a bit sluggish now, he was an A-grade writer in the print book market. Just needs a bit of polishing to shine."

"A-grade? That's your taste, Team Leader. Frankly, his books are boring. That old-fashioned taste might have worked in the print market, but it won’t fly now."

Several employees in the editing department stood up, thinking, 'There they go again.'

"EunYu, there’s an order to things at work."

"There’s also a process to follow, Team Leader Kim."

It wasn't the first time EunYu and MyungHoon had clashed in the editing department, but this issue seemed more serious than usual.

The editor-in-chief was also out at the moment.

As the employees hesitated, pushing responsibility onto each other, newcomer Cha JiHee unexpectedly jumped into the fray.

"Wait! Are you two both editing Yu ChanYoung's manuscript now?"

Their bickering paused as JiHee made her timely entrance.

"This is great! Lee HakHyun is from pure literature, and Koo DaeSung is a traditional genre writer. If both become co-authors, it could turn into an even better work! This is the dream team I’ve been waiting for!"

"..."

"Lee HakHyun and Koo DaeSung! The harmony of pure and genre literature! Let’s all calm down. We’re all trying to do our best. Right, everyone?"

The other employees joined in, seizing the moment.

"That's right, what JiHee said makes sense."

"Team Leader Kim, Deputy Ji. Let’s be positive, positively!"

With public opinion like that, it became awkward to escalate the situation further. The first to back down was MyungHoon.

"Sigh, alright, fine... It hasn’t even started serialization yet."

"Exactly, exactly."

It seemed like the matter was settled. But it wasn’t over yet.

"Still, we can’t appoint two co-authors. There’s no precedent for that, and it’s unnecessary. Only one person can sign the contract."

MyungHoon's calm voice brought silence back to the office. EunYu looked up, and MyungHoon was looking down at her.

"How about a bet, EunYu?"

"What bet?"

"Pure literature vs. genre literature."

"..."

"Lee HakHyun vs. Koo DaeSung. Let’s see them compete."

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