Big Life

It was four days later in the morning. The Haetae Media planning team employees took their own seats while staring at the screen in front of them. They were all reading the same novel shown on the screen.

The room was completely silent. It was so silent that the clicks of a mouse, the tapping on the keyboard, and even a sip of coffee could be heard, breaking the silence occasionally.

'Wow, this is a fun read. Huh? It's ending already?'

Park Kyung-Soo had just finished reading volume two and immediately clicked to open up volume three and was immersed in the novel once more. He had even forgotten that he was reading it as an editor, not as a reader.

Ma Jong-Goo was in the same situation.

'This is awesome! What is he sniffing? That punk’s growth is surprising!'

Ma Jong-Goo’s work was more focused on marketing, so he would usually leave the analysis and review works to Park Kyung-Soo and his other subordinates. However, Ma Jong-Goo was stuck in his seat and was reading the novel for over ten minutes now, which was extremely rare.

It would be 11 am soon. The alarm that he had set earlier soon rang, and he looked up over the partition and saw the other employees staring intently at their screens.

"How did everyone find the novel? We don't have to move to the meeting room. Let's just share our opinions here."

A female employee added, "I was quite worried since we were using the same world settings from the first novel, and the main character is now the son, but it doesn't seem like it’ll affect the readers who hadn’t read the prequel at all."

"I feel the same. A reader of Wizard of Pezellon will find this novel more interesting in some areas, but otherwise, it's still interesting on its own."

The final comment was from Park Kyung-Soo. "The novel is quite dynamic and fast-paced overall. The main character is a sword master, so the fighting scenes are written in a much more refreshing way. I'm not sure about its reprinting, but I think we can easily hit 3,000 copies without any issues."

Ma Jong-Goo grinned and nodded, confirming that everyone on the team was on the same page as him. He then pulled out his phone and called someone.

Bzzt! Bzzt!

Ha Jae-Gun had just stepped out of the shower and found his phone vibrating on the bed. He semi-dried his hair with the towel in his hand and headed toward the phone.

"Is he done reading the manuscript?" Ha Jae-Gun murmured. He was bewildered when he saw the name reflected on the caller ID. It had just been four hours since he had emailed the manuscript of Sword Master of Pezellon.

"Hello, Department Head."

— Writer Ha, hello. Thank you for the manuscript. As usual, your novel was interesting.

"You've already finished reading it?"

— I've read up to volume three, and my team has also read it. The reviews are positive. It felt like the type of novel that would attract people before they even started reading it. Hahahaha

Ha Jae-Gun scratched his nose and smiled. This time, he didn't hate Ma Jong-Goo's talkativeness.

— I think you've put a lot of effort into this novel, Writer Ha. We could feel that you were considerate of the readers who may not have read the prequel.

"It feels good to hear you recognizing my efforts."

— We should be able to schedule the novel for printing soon. I didn’t really spot any typos or other mistakes. You're incredible.

It was a given since Ha Jae-Gun did his revision using Seo Gun-Woo's horn-rimmed glasses to correct any typos or grammatical errors. The editors wouldn’t have to spend a lot of time proofreading his novel.

— Since we hit 6,000 copies in your previous novel, we should be able to sell that much with this novel as well. You've done a great job, Writer Ha. And I could have never expected that you could finish it this fast for us. I almost fell backward from the surprise. You must have pre-written parts of the novel, right?

"Yeah, well…" Ha Jae-Gun responded vaguely. In fact, he hadn't slept properly in the last four days. It was thanks to Seo Gun-Woo's laptop and gray cup that he managed to complete up to five volumes, but he couldn't tell them that.

"Anyway, I’m looking forward to the publication. I like the cover design that you sent over before, so let's go with that as well. I'll try to finish the remaining manuscript as soon as possible and send it over to you as soon as possible."

— There's no rush, Writer Ha. There's more than enough time since you've sent so many volumes over here, so don't rush it, just write it well. I'm looking forward to your remaining manuscript, then. Goodbye.

"All right, have a good day."

After hanging up, Ha Jae-Gun continued drying his hair and drank a cup of coffee from Seo Gun-Woo's cup. He took a five-minute break afterward before heading back to his desk with a refreshed mind.

"Now, it's time to work on the Records series."

The story composition up to volume ten had already been completed—all that was left was to write the events according to the plot in detail. Ha Jae-Gun licked his lips before he could start writing the very first line.

"Rika, I'm slightly worried."

"Meow?"

"I wrote Sword Master of Pezellon in a way that the readers wouldn’t have to read the first book to understand what’s going on in the story. I've also added a brief flashback and explanation of what transpired in the previous book, even though the main character is the son of the previous novel's main character…”

”However, the third part of the Records series is different. I can't guarantee that the results would be as good as the other parts because this third part is the meeting of the two main characters of the two novels."

Rika came down from the cat tower and walked elegantly toward Ha Jae-Gun, who opened his arms, wanting to hug Rika. However, Rika just leaped onto his lap and settled there.

"What, are you saying that I'm too whiny? That I should just do whatever I can because everything has already been decided?"

Instead of crying out in response, Rika strongly pawed his abdomen. Ha Jae-Gun wrapped his hands around Rika's face and stroked her, asking, "You really take good care of me. Should I just marry you instead?"

"Meow…!" Rika pulled her head out with a shrill cry, and her curled-up body seemed to be telling Ha Jae-Gun not to annoy her any longer.

"All right, since it's a done deal, I'll do my best until the end."

Tadadak! Tadak! Tadadadadak!

Ha Jae-Gun finally started writing the story of the Records series’ part three. Similar to in the past few days, his room was soon filled with nothing but the rapid clattering of the keyboard.

***

"What is wrong with you?!"

There was a loud noise as a large fist collided with a desk. The President of Star Books, Park Jae-Gook, was furious. The target of his fury was Kwon Tae-Won seated across from him.

"You couldn't get him to sign the exclusive contract, and what? You allowed him to sign with Haetae Media for his next novel? What were you doing?! Why aren’t you keeping a tight leash on your writers!”

“President, it’s better for the writer if they could follow up the series of a novel with the same publishing company from before and—”

“Do you really think that I don’t know that?! Are you trying to teach me here?!”

“No, sir.”

“You’re driving me crazy. Arghhh!”

Kwon Tae-Won had been getting reprimanded almost every day recently. The day before was about the exclusive writer contract, and today was about Ha Jae-Gun’s follow-up novel published through Haetae Media.

“I don’t want to see you! Get out!”

Kwon Tae-Won left the president’s office silently and returned to his desk.

Jung So-Mi was worried when she saw the depressed-looking Kwon Tae-Won.

‘Did he get scolded again today?’

Haetae Media had already published Ha Jae-Gun’s Sword Master of Pezellon, and the results were as promising as the first novel. On top of the 3,000 copies, it had already gone into reprinting another thousand copies.

After a while, Jung So-Mi carefully approached Kwon Tae-Won because she had something to report.

“Um, Editor-in-chief.”

“Yes, what is the matter?” Despite getting scolded by the president, Kwon Tae-Won still managed to face Jung So-Mi with a gentle smile.

Jung So-Mi’s heart ached upon seeing his smile. Then, she said, “About the five volumes that Writer Ha Jae-Gun has sent over for the third part of the Records series.”

“Mm, yeah. I’ve read up to volume two. What about you?”

“I’ve read up to halfway through volume three.”

“What do you think of it?”

Jung So-Mi hesitated for a while.

Kwon Tae-Won wanted her opinion as an editor, but the office’s atmosphere made it difficult for Jung So-Mi to speak her honest opinion.

“I think… we shouldn’t push over 2,000 copies,” Jung So-Mi muttered.

2,000 copies wasn’t a small number.

The paperback market was in such bad shape that it would already be a decent sale if a novel managed to sell a thousand copies. However, compared to the first two novels, which had sold over 5,000 copies, it was a bad sign.

“The third part requires readers to read and understand what happened in the first two novels. It would be tough for new readers to grasp the story if they directly jumped right into reading the third novel. Patience is also required to get attached to the two main characters.”

Kwon Tae-Won nodded silently; in fact, he had similar thoughts, although the number of copies he had predicted was slightly higher. Perhaps it was due to his faith in Ha Jae-Gun, but he had thought of printing 2,500 copies of the novel.

“Let’s go with 2,000 copies, then,” Kwon Tae-Won said with a sigh. It felt like everything else that was about to come all depended on his decision.

“Upload the schedule onto the server, and please help me keep track of it.”

“Yes… Editor-in-chief.” Jung So-Mi turned around weakly. There was nothing else she could say to him because she knew the difficulties he was going through recently.

Kwon Tae-Won removed his glasses and massaged his eyes and temples. Then, he leaned back into his chair and looked up at the ceiling.

Tick tock, tick tock…

Time was passing. Kwon Tae-Won was waiting with his eyes closed, leaning comfortably in his chair. While he was waiting, his entire career as an editor flashed through his mind like a movie.

Many things happened throughout the years, but how should he describe them?

He didn’t feel like his career so far was particularly rewarding or regrettable.

A while after, his subordinate knocked lightly on the partition, “Editor-in-chief, the President wishes to see you…”

Kwon Tae-Won’s eyes flew open. He stood up immediately, and the force shoved away the old office chair that had been supporting him all these years.

Kwon Tae-Won stopped right at the door to the president’s office. He was still the editor-in-chief of Star Books, but once he opened this door and walked into the room, he knew that he wouldn’t emerge as the editor-in-chief of Star Books.

Despite being fully aware of that fact, Kwon Tae-Won had no choice but to open the door. He drew in a deep breath and slowly reached for the doorknob before decisively turning it to open the door.

“What is this? Why do you think that the third part of the Record series won’t go over 2,000 copies?! The new Pezellon’s whatever from Haetae Media had already gone into reprinting another thousand copies. What atrocity is this?!”

Kwon Tae-Won was immediately inundated with the president’s yelling as soon as he opened the door. He stood at the door and said, “As I’ve said before, if the readers don’t read the first two novels, they would be unable to—”

“Sales! Push! Gather everyone and leave! Why do you keep harping the same words like a mynah?! Did you leave your brain behind at home?!” Park Jae-Gook roared in frustration like a raging bull.

“The book will most likely be returned. You have to look out for the long term, sir. If Writer Ha’s value drops, it would be a loss not only to him but also to the company—”

“Stop with the nonsense!”

Park Jae-Gook’s thunderous roar made Kwon Tae-Won swallow his argument.

“How could you be this incompetent?! Are you finally getting old, senile, and soft-hearted?!” Park Jae-Gook couldn’t hold himself back and hurled personal insults at Kwon Tae-Won.

Kwon Tae-Won closed his eyes unknowingly. Park Jae-Gook’s scoldings weren’t new to him, but it was his first time hearing such words from him.

Kwon Tae-Won didn’t care anymore. Park Jae-Gook’s insults became Kwon Tae-Won’s motivation to make his final decision.

“Sir.”

“What!”

Kwon Tae-Won fixed his slipping glasses. He then looked up to meet the gaze of the extremely annoyed Park Jae-Gook before saying calmly, “I want to resign.”