Novelist Running Through Time

People usually live their lives being called by names they did not choose.

In general, names are given by parents.

But not in my case.

The person who named me was Moon Chung-jae, the director of New Light Spring Orphanage.

A devout Christian, he vowed to take care of the orphans as his own children and, as part of that vow, he passed on his family surname and generational name to the children he could name.

Thus, all the children who entered the New Light Spring Orphanage without a name were surnamed Moon. The boys’ names ended with Seop, and the girls simply had pretty names. This is because, traditionally, generational names are only given to males.

Therefore, the girls at our orphanage, while grumbling about this being an old-fashioned gender discrimination, also teasingly called the boys the ‘Moon Ddaeng-Seop series.’ (TL: Ddaeng = Wrong)

Because their names were all Moon O-Seop, they were called Moon Ddaeng-Seop.

Yeah. That’s all there was to it.

My connection with Director Moon Chung-jae was just that much.

An orphanage director is like a school principal. The principal doesn’t directly teach the children but handles important administrative work that the kids don’t know much about.

Also, since the New Light Spring Orphanage was quite large, Director Moon Chung-jae often spent time outside building relationships with VIP sponsors.

Well. That’s subjective, as some easygoing kids freely went in and out of the director’s office and were close with Director Moon Chung-jae, but that didn’t apply to me, who was closer to books than to people.

No…

Looking back, I think I just hated the orphanage itself.

Perhaps the psychology of hating the fate of being born in an orphanage turned into an attitude of finding the orphanage itself repulsive.

Why am I suddenly thinking about this?

“Really… Is our In-seop a genius?”

“Yes. So, please calm down a bit, teacher.”

“Oh, Lord. Thank you. Thank you…”

While watching Director Moon Chung-jae, who held Lim Yang-wook and burst into tears, I just had this thought.

I didn’t know this person well.

EP 1 – Cause of Death

Obviously, to formally contract with the Publishing Management Task Force Team, I needed the approval of a legal guardian.

And my legal guardian was Director Moon Chung-jae.

Thus, Lim Yang-wook and Baek Seol came to New Light Spring Orphanage fully prepared to persuade Director Moon Chung-jae in case of any contingency.

It’s because if Director Moon Chung-jae made a fuss over the contract, things could get very complicated.

However, the meeting with Director Moon Chung-jae was not long.

At the end of Lim Yang-wook’s explanation, he asked three questions.

-In-seop, is this the path you want to take?

I answered yes.

-Team Leader Lim. Is this child’s talent genuine?

Lim Yang-wook assured it was.

-Miss Baek. Can I trust you both?

Baek Seol nodded resolutely.

Then Moon Chung-jae signed without hesitation, and the meeting was over.

What followed was a prayer time.

-Come, come, everyone join hands. Let’s pray. Our Father in heaven…

Director Moon Chung-jae, as if he himself were a pastor, gathered the hands of me, Lim Yang-wook, and Baek Seol, and prayed for a while, even shedding tears during the prayer.

Since none of the three of us were Christian, it was a deeply moving time only for Director Moon Chung-jae, and a somewhat burdensome 20 minutes for us.

Excessive kindness can cause fatigue to those who are not ready to receive it. Hence, Lim Yang-wook and Baek Seol left the director’s office almost exhausted.

“I don’t know if we made a contract or attended a worship service…”

Baek Seol’s words were picked up by Lim Yang-wook.

“He is a good person, indeed.”

Now, if I concluded with ‘Director Moon Chung-jae has always been deeply religious and a good person,’ the conversation would end.

But being a somewhat twisted guy, this thought crossed my mind.

If Director Moon Chung-jae really thought of me as his own child, would he have so readily stamped the contract without even looking closely at it?

Wouldn’t he have scrutinized every single word of the contract, suspecting the unfamiliar suited individuals, to protect me from any potential danger?

If it had been in my past life, such thoughts would have burst out of my mouth, causing trouble for others, but fortunately, I had learned to hold back my words.

Still, I couldn’t just agree and move on without any concern, so while suppressing the sudden craving for a cigarette, I suggested.

“Why don’t we go for a meal to celebrate the signing of the contract?”

“Oh! A meal sounds good! How about udon? You like udon, right?”

“They don’t give you a corporate card at the company, do they?”

“You’re like a ghost, really. You.”

How did he know!

* * *

“Three servings of udon, please.”

“Alright! Order received!”

There were many people opting for inexpensive udon for lunch. The restaurant was small, so conversations from adjacent tables were quite audible. Put negatively, it was noisy; positively, it was lively.

In the place filled with the smell of udon broth, we sat around a table for four. Lim Yang-wook sat alone, while Baek Seol took a seat next to me. It must have been slightly uncomfortable for a man in his 30s and a woman in her 20s to sit side by side at such a small table.

I stopped observing my surroundings as usual.

I couldn’t write anything with this udon shop scene.

What I was interested in at the moment was the contract.

I felt I could write something with it.

I intently looked at the contract inside a transparent plastic file, specifically at Director Moon Chung-jae’s name.

Moon Chung-jae.

Of course, it’s not that Director Moon Chung-jae doesn’t love me. But he signed the contract too lightly.

That was the weight of his love.

Moon Chung-jae’s love is the love of Christianity. He learned his beliefs from the Bible.

Moon Chung-jae’s love is the love of God. And the love of God has no price. It’s just given away.

That’s why it’s light.

On the other hand, the love of parents, which I craved all my life but couldn’t obtain from the moment I was born –

– has a price.

Parents send their genes to the next generation, hoping for the propagation of their species, wishing their unfulfilled dreams are achieved by their children, and expecting their children to grow up and take care of them, as children are extensions of their parents. Children are their parents’ dreams.

Thus, a parent’s love is heavy.

The love of God and the love of parents.

Light love and heavy love.

How can I turn this into a beautiful story…

“Do you like the contract that much? You’re staring at it as if to burn a hole through it.”

Snapped out of my thoughts, I looked up.

Lim Yang-wook, sitting opposite me, was smiling teasingly.

“This, this, I thought you were an old soul, but you have a cute side too?”

Baek Seol teased Lim Yang-wook.

“Team Leader, calling him an old soul? Aren’t you being too harsh on our Author Moon?”

“Hey! I discovered him! Since when is he ‘our’ Author Moon?”

“Does the order matter? It’s the thought that counts. Author Moon would probably prefer me over an old man calling him an old soul, right? Right, Author Moon?”

Perhaps because the contract was successfully completed, the two adults seemed a bit excited. They were so thrilled that jokes about who was better started to come out.

To escape the awkward topic, I changed the subject.

“You can speak more casually, Editor noona.”

“No, it’s alright. We’ve stamped the contract, haven’t we? From now on, Author Moon is our customer. There are already many skeptical eyes because of my age, so I should be more careful with my words.”

Baek Seol used the English word ‘customer’ with an exceptionally fluent pronunciation.

Caught off guard by this, Lim Yang-wook chuckled and responded.

“Baek Seol speaks English well, right? She’s from Oxford’s English department.”

“Ah, Team Leader! Why would you mention that!”

“Since you’re aspiring to be a translator, if Moon’s hits big and goes for international publication, Baek Seol can translate it, right? Better make a good impression now.”

Oxford!

Suddenly, Baek Seol’s disheveled hair didn’t seem like a result of neglect, but rather like the relaxed demeanor of a highly educated eccentric who didn’t bother much with self-grooming.

The dark circles under her eyes didn’t seem like they were from watching YouTube all night, but rather as if they were from staying up reading academic papers.

I poured water into Baek Seol’s stainless steel cup with both hands in a respectful manner.

“Actually, I think I prefer Editor Baek over Team Leader Lim.”

“It’s already too late for that, you know?”

Baek Seol jokingly responded while subtly smiling and sipping the water I poured for her.

I didn’t bother to ask why such a talent was wasting away in Baekhak Entertainment’s underground parking lot.

It must be a complicated situation.

Anyway, my second life as a writer was off to a tumultuous start. Contracting with a strange editorial department that uses a warehouse-turned-office in an underground parking lot is something I can’t forget.

Still, since Lim Yang-wook becomes an executive at Baekhak Publishing ten years later, things should work out somehow, but my worries about the uncertain future didn’t completely disappear.

“Sigh…”

After taking a bite of the udon that just arrived, I let out a sigh.

Lim Yang-wook flinched preemptively.

“Does the udon not suit your taste? I’m sorry. It’s because I don’t have money… Those jerks didn’t even give me a corporate card.”

“No, it’s just that my mind is a bit complicated right now. After the contract was signed with the director’s stamp, my head just got cluttered.”

“Is that so? Don’t think too hard about it. Just think of it as joining an agency! From now on, you’re our contracted author for the next three years.”

Baek Seol smoothly chimed in with a gentle smile.

“Publishing management might sound complicated, but the job is simpler than you think. We’ll negotiate with publishers on behalf of Author Moon, handle marketing, and take care of everything from book design to distribution. If you happen to go on shows like variety programs, we’ll also handle the negotiations and act as your manager.”

“In other words, it’s like management for authors!”

“Exactly. From now on, Author Moon, you just need to focus on writing. We’ll take care of everything else!”

“Yeah! Trust us and leave it to us! Our necks are on the line for this job, too!”

“Team Leader!”

“What? It’s the truth. If I can’t make him a success, I’m out with my resignation.”

“Sigh… Still, in front of the kid…”

It seemed Baek Seol, while polite in her words, still saw me as a child, and Lim Yang-wook, despite his casual language, treated me as an adult.

Maybe he understands from his own experience that kids from orphanages tend to mature quickly.

Or perhaps he gained some understanding of me from reading my book. Or maybe it’s just his personality…

As I quietly observed Lim Yang-wook and Baek Seol, Lim suddenly noticed my gaze and looked at me.

“Are you looking at my hair?”

“Ah, no, that’s not it…!”

“What’s wrong with it?”

Lim Yang-wook casually smiled and ran his hand over his smooth head.

“I started balding at a young age. Rather than carrying the shame of an M-shaped hairline, I decided to honorably shave it all off.”

“I see…”

That was more information than I needed to know.

After taking a bite of his udon, Lim Yang-wook asked me.

“By the way, do you already have a pen name in mind?”

“A pen name?”

“Yes. Given your age, we probably can’t reveal your identity right away. We’ll initially publish the book anonymously. Once the book gains some popularity, then we can introduce you to the world. How does that sound? Not bad, right?”

“Yes. I just want to be able to publish my book. Or, to be precise, I don’t mind as long as I can write.”

“Good. So, do you have any pen name in mind?”

“Ah…”

A pen name.

There was one name I used to use.

“It’s Mun In문인. ‘Mun’ as in writing, and ‘In’ as in person.”

“Oh! You just removed ‘Seop’ from your name? That’s quite good. The name itself feels a bit innate.”

“I’m thinking of changing my legal name to that when I get older.”

“What? You’re planning to change your name? Why?”

Well…

In college, I didn’t want anyone to find out that I came from an orphanage.

I was sick and tired of being called ‘Seop-seop’ throughout my school days.

I didn’t want to live my life with a name I hadn’t chosen.

And now, there’s one more reason.

Moon In-seop is already dead.

I couldn’t explain all these complex feelings.

So, I said this instead.

“Just… ‘Seop’ feels a bit old-fashioned.”

Hearing this, the two adults showed complicated expressions.

Unable to bear their gaze, I changed the subject.

“Anyway, can you publish the book quickly?”

“Of course! Definitely!”

* * *

“No way.”

Yang Sung-jun, the publishing planning director of Baekhak Publishing, gave a firm answer.

He was a person who planned publications.

Whether it was s, educational materials, cookbooks, history books, all of them.

Publishing houses usually decide everything before publishing a book.

They plan in advance what kind of concept for the book, which author to assign, what design to use, what marketing methods to employ, which printing company to go through, in short, how to publish the book.

This is called “planned publishing,” the most common business model.

Therefore, the director in charge of ‘planning’ held a very powerful position.

Naturally, this position was conventionally a direct route to becoming the head of the ‘Publishing Business Division’, as long as no major issues arose.

Also, naturally, Yang Sung-jun was in the direct line of the current head of the Publishing Business Division and was like his right hand.

At the same time, he was the person who had wrecked Lim Yang-wook’s corporate life.

“Hey, Team Leader Lim. You should bring something reasonable. Just coming in with a manuscript and asking to publish it, how am I supposed to accept that?”

“Why won’t you do it! Isn’t the Publishing Management TF team a subsidiary of Baekhak Publishing?”

“Sigh… Really, this is so tiresome.”

The atmosphere in the publishing planning office was like walking on thin ice. An ex-colleague who had been demoted was causing a scene, so the staff under the director had stopped all their work.

Even setting aside personal feelings, this was a spectacle not to be missed.

“Is that Lim Yang-wook?”

“Seems like it.”

“He’s still with the company? Tough guy, really tough.”

Sensing the mood in the office, Director Yang Sung-jun wore a skewed smile.

“Hey, Team Leader Lim. Let’s be frank here.”

“Go ahead. Why can’t you publish this manuscript?”

“No, not about the book, you, you.”

Director Yang Sung-jun pointed at Lim Yang-wook with his index finger.

“You, who ruined the TF team, are still not writing your resignation. Let’s say that’s fine. Maybe you have your reasons, like those we sometimes see in the news, skimming off your salary. Then you should just be thankful to the company and stay quiet. Why come here to the headquarters and dare to command a director to publish books and such?”

Lim Yang-wook didn’t confront him about whether he and his upper management knew about the scandal involving the main author of the TF, which led to its dissolution.

Nor did he question the legality of Yang Sung-jun unilaterally dismissing the TF team’s proposals, which wasn’t supposed to be possible according to company regulations.

That would have been meaningless.

Instead, he asked this.

“…Then let’s not talk about me, let’s talk about the book. In your opinion, is this manuscript not good enough to be published?”

No. It was good enough to be published. That was Yang Sung-jun’s judgment.

But what does that matter?

Cause of Death? Not bad. It’s professional level.

But what does that mean?

Publishing such a would at best attract a few critics who would read it. They would chat among themselves in their narrow world, saying this part was good, that part was good, and that’s the end of it.

If it had been entered in a major spring literary contest, depending on the preferences of the judges, it might have had a chance at the grand prize. Then it would have made a spectacular debut as a star author, with the help of newspaper companies and literary circles.

But what does that matter?

There are plenty of authors out there besides this one.

Once you reach the professional level, the quality of books is more or less the same. From that point on, each author only has their own unique characteristics and strengths and weaknesses, excluding those at the level of world literature classics.

In this reality, all that remains is the value of a name.

What literary awards have been received, how large a fanbase is gathered, how sharply the work has been critiqued, how much marketing budget has been poured in.

Sales are determined not by the work itself, but by these factors.

That’s the era we live in.

In such times, with so many renowned authors knocking on the doors of Baekhak Publishing, bringing a manuscript from an unknown newcomer and asking to publish it?

Even if it were brought by someone charming, it would be a maybe, but this manuscript was brought by the person he hated the most. Why would he feel like publishing it?

Director Yang Sung-jun had nothing to offer but a sneer.

“In my opinion, this manuscript is garbage.”

Yang Sung-jun flung the manuscript onto the floor.

“Take it and go back. To your office.”

Lim Yang-wook stood silently, his expression shocked.

Then, humiliated, he bent down to pick up the manuscript.

Yang Sung-jun watched him and muttered quietly.

“Yang-wook has lost a lot of his spirit…”

Lim Yang-wook, ignoring Yang Sung-jun’s mocking tone, turned around with a stiff face and left.

Without even a moment to look back at the scene in the publishing planning department, he entered the elevator amidst the murmurs of his former colleagues.

Even alone in the elevator, Lim Yang-wook maintained his stern expression.

Because there were company CCTVs.

He kept that same expression even when he got into his car in the parking lot.

Because of other vehicles’ dashcams.

It was only when his car had completely left the Baekhak Publishing building and was on the road that he finally took out the recorder from his pocket and stopped the recording.

Clear evidence that Director Yang Sung-jun had rejected the manuscript of Moon In-seop, no, Author Moon. That was now in Lim Yang-wook’s hands.

“Definitely, it was you who did this, you bastard…”

Gripping the steering wheel, Lim Yang-wook’s hands tensed.

His face reflected in the rearview mirror was smiling wickedly.

His eyes, bloodshot, glittered with ambition.

“I will definitely return.”

Everything was going according to plan.