The Main Characters That Only I Know

Chapter 25

Choi Jung-mo felt the blood in his body turn cold. 

The messages that filled his surroundings made his dizzy mind even more cornered.

He felt cold sweat on his clenched fists and rolled his eyes.

‘When did it start?’

No, that was the wrong question.

It was from the beginning.

The man in front of him, Kang Yu-hyun, had been acting with this situation in mind from the start.

‘Everything was part of his plan. The way he subtly looked down on me, the way he stepped in for the female collector next to him, the way he showed his emotions when he couldn’t stand my anger.’

Everything was going as he had calculated.

As his thoughts reached that point, Choi Jung-mo felt goosebumps all over his body. 

His hair stood on end and his skin tightened. 

He rubbed his sore buttocks and sorted out the situation.

His biggest mistake was that he didn’t know the real identity of his opponent.

‘I thought he was just a manager who took care of the collector. His actions seemed like he was acting on behalf of the collector to avoid offending her, and he was good at negotiating. He didn’t look like a teller at all.’

Kang Yu-hyun’s first polite appearance erased any suspicion that he was a teller. 

Even if he had revealed himself as a teller, he would have doubted if it was true.

Tellers were arrogant. 

They looked down on humans who acted as intermediaries in the lower world, and they tended to belittle them. 

They thought they were superior and acted haughtily.

That’s how the tellers Choi Jung-mo had seen were.

But Yu-hyun wasn’t like that.

He was not only courteous, but also natural in his actions and speech.

He was too cunning, and that’s why he thought he was one of his kind.

‘How could there be such a teller in the world?’

It was so unfair that he felt like going crazy. 

But that would have been the same reaction for anyone who was in his position. 

Choi Jung-mo had done his best in his situation.

Except for the fact that it became a boomerang and strangled his neck.

‘What should I say to get out of this…’

His head spun.

Should he say it was a misunderstanding? 

No. That would only make him more criticized. 

He was already cornered. 

No matter what he did, he couldn’t turn the tide.

The spirits were watching everything.

Choi Jung-mo had the lower world, or the Korean government or its association behind him, but Yu-hyun had a much higher-dimensional being behind him.

‘Oh, no.’

The transcendent beings with a long history and stories were on Yu-hyun’s side. 

Even the cause of this situation was on their side.

If the association’s image was tarnished by them, and if such rumors spread quickly among the spirits,

It would not only be a problem for Choi Jung-mo, but also for all the collectors affiliated with the association.

In this world where stories became reality, there was nothing more dangerous than bad rumors.

‘I have to find a way… I have to find a way.’

He sweated coldly, but tried to find a way out.

He firmly believed that if he thought hard enough, he would find a way out.

‘Ah.’

But that thought collapsed easily like a sandcastle in front of a wave when he met Yu-hyun’s eyes.

The black eyes that pierced through every corner of his mind.

They told him that they knew everything. 

The look between his curved eyes was like a giant’s hand trying to squeeze out his soul.

Choi Jung-mo felt a loss of strength in his body.

‘There is… no way.’

Choi Jung-mo collapsed on the sofa as if his legs gave out.

When the opponent lost all his will, Yu-hyun smiled victoriously.

“I’m glad you’re smart, Mr. Choi.”

Yu-hyun got up from his seat and approached Choi Jung-mo and gently patted his shoulder.

However, for Choi Jung-mo, Yu-hyun’s touch felt heavy like a giant’s hand.

Choi Jung-mo looked up at Yu-hyun with trembling eyes. 

He couldn’t see Yu-hyun’s expression because of the backlight.

Instead,

He clearly saw his curved eyes.

Gulp.

Choi Jung-mo swallowed saliva unconsciously.

Yu-hyun said it was good that he was smart, but half of it was true and half of it was false.

‘Actually, I hoped he would be more stupid.’

Choi Jung-mo was so smart that he accepted his defeat cleanly. 

He didn’t even make any excuses. 

This was the outcome he wanted, but he couldn’t help feeling a bit regretful.

If there was a more stupid person sitting here, and if he didn’t admit his defeat and tried to cling to it,

‘Then I could have taken more from him.’

Yu-hyun felt that it was time to back off.

If he pushed the other side too hard, he would face a backlash. 

He had to know when to stop and get out.

“What do you think, spirits? I think it’s not bad to let this one go as a gesture of goodwill.”

The spirits responded in real time to Kang Yu-hyun’s words.

[Most of the spirits agree to do so.]

[A few of the spirits protest that it is not enough.]

Of course, some of the spirits were shouting to crush the arrogant association, but that was impossible from the start.

‘Well. It’s lucky that I got the spirits’ approval.’

The spirits who gathered in Yu-hyun’s library were those who wanted heroic tales more than anything.

What was the basic structure of a heroic tale? 

Hardship and adversity, and overcoming them.

But that didn’t mean that the spirits wanted Kang Hye-rim to face hardship. 

They understood that she had to face unavoidable obstacles for her goal, but they hated artificial barriers created by people like this.

The spirits who hated being frustrated liked stimulating stories, and they always wanted them to be smooth and successful. 

Like drinking soda.

Yu-hyun used the tendencies of the spirits to his advantage, making Choi Jung Mo the villain and cornering him.

‘I’m glad that most of them knew how to discern the situation and backed off accordingly.’

Thanks to Yu-hyun’s punch, he was able to quell the spirits’ discontent greatly.

But some extreme spirits were demanding absurd things, like tearing Choi Jung Mo to death or destroying the association.

Yu-hyun ignored the opinions of those minorities. 

Rather, he blocked some of the spirits who were spamming excessive messages.

‘Anyway, I can’t satisfy all the spirits.’

There is no story that pleases everyone.

Even if 99 people liked it, one person could hate it. 

It was a matter of taste after all.

‘But that doesn’t mean I’ll let that one person rant and rave.’

The atmosphere was like that.

If the majority was silent, the minority who shouted would inevitably stand out more.

Of course, their excessive messages could also annoy other spirits, so it was better to cut them off cleanly rather than leaving them alone.

‘This is right for the sake of the future atmosphere of my library.’

It was a bad thing for the spirits who were blocked, but for Yu-hyun, cutting them off was a necessary thing like pruning the branches of a tree.

In order to create his own library that was not swayed by anyone, it was something he had to do. 

It was not for nothing that he rejected the offer of Satan’s library sponsorship.

‘Anyway, things are well wrapped up.’

In fact, the one who got the most reward was Kang Hye-rim.

The reward for clearing the world of thought was only given to collectors, and it was mostly cash or something like that.

But that didn’t mean Yu-hyun didn’t get anything either.

[Many spirits like the negotiation you showed.]

[You received 300TP as a donation.]

[You received 100TP as a donation.]

[You received 100TP as a donation.]

…

‘Showing how to catch a fantasy in the world of thought is not everything in storytelling.’

Going to the association and making a deal with Choi Jung Mo was also a big spectacle for the spirits.

Of course, Yu-hyun made the biggest contribution in this storytelling, but it was an inevitable thing to protect Kang Hye-rim’s character.

Rather, Yu-hyun taking the lead in defending her and cornering Choi Jung Mo appealed to the spirits more.

‘I can’t always leave storytelling to collectors. Tellers have to work hard too.’

Until now, tellers only showed collectors, but they didn’t show any interaction with them. 

That’s why seeing a teller act like this felt new and amazing to the spirits.

Such praise led to point donations.

“Then, please deposit the money into my account by today.”

“…I’ll do that.”

Choi Jung Mo, who had already been broken once, became surprisingly docile. 

He knew that there was no use in making a fuss here.

And that Yu-hyun was much higher than him in rank.

“Oh, by the way.”

Yu-hyun, who was about to leave his seat, said as if he had just remembered something.

Choi Jung Mo flinched involuntarily. 

What else does he want to say?

“It’s not something weird. I just wonder if I can find someone here.”

“…Who are you looking for?”

The association mainly did business related to collectors, but since it was a national institution, it also did some work for city or district offices.

Of course, collectors were the ones who got the most benefits, but there was no harm in listening to Yu-hyun’s request. It wasn’t a difficult request either.

“Do you have a collector named Choi Do Yoon?”

“Choi Do Yoon? I’ve never heard of that name. Is he a collector?”

“He could be a collector or not. I don’t know much either. But his age is… Hmm, he should be around 18 or 19 years old by now. He’s about 184 cm tall, and I don’t want to admit it, but his face is handsome enough to beat celebrities.”

Yu-hyun explained with an expression that seemed reluctant but had no choice but to admit it.

“Anyway, I’d appreciate it if you could look into it. You can send me the information through Genesis Network.”

Yu-hyun exchanged connections with Choi Jung Mo on the spot through [Genesis Network].

Choi Jung Mo looked bewildered but decided to listen to him anyway. 

He had already eaten shit, and he was a teller after all. 

It wouldn’t hurt him to make connections with him in this way.

“Are there any other features?”

“Hmm.”

“I know you’ve given me enough information, but if there’s anything else, it’ll be faster to find him.”

“Other features… Ah!”

Yu-hyun recalled a feature that quickly flashed through his mind.

“He has no manners at all.”

“…Yes?”

***

As soon as we got out of the association, Kang Hye-rim finally breathed a sigh of relief.

“Phew! I was so nervous I thought I was going to die.”

“You seemed to hold up well for that.”

“I thought I couldn’t make any mistakes, so I acted desperately. It was really suffocating. Ugh. It’s hard.”

“You did well. But I can’t reassure you. You’ll have to do that often from now on.”

“‘Whine’. Can’t I just do it as usual?”

“Absolutely not.”

I thought of Kang Hye-rim’s usual self and said sternly.

Showing her usual self to the spirits?

Who knows whose library will be ruined.

“You’ll get used to it as you do it. Besides, didn’t you see it earlier? Everyone was buzzing about you. Your acting worked perfectly. Charismatic, cool, and intelligent woman. How cool is that?”

“Is… that so?”

“Yes. I guarantee it. Maybe everyone is admiring how beautiful and awesome you are behind your back. Do you want to miss this opportunity? You have to push it to the end. Imagine it. Everyone praises you, and you become famous and sit on a money cushion. Isn’t that cool?”

“Money cushion… Hehe.”

Kang Hye-rim, who melted in an instant at my sweet words. 

Really, she was so weak to compliments.

She giggled and suddenly wondered something and asked me.

“By the way, where are we going now? Aren’t we done with our business? Oh! I get it. Are you hungry? Hehe. Okay. I’ll treat you today. I must have made some money, so I’ll pay for it. Whatever. I’m a promising one.”

“Do you want to get slapped? That’s not it. I have something else to do.”

“Something else?”

“I told you I was looking for a management company.”

“Oh…”

She seemed to have forgotten because of what happened at the association.

Well, even if she remembered, it was doubtful whether she could find it or not. 

There were a lot of small-scale management companies near the association.

Just like there were lawyer offices near the court, there were a lot of clans and management companies near the association.

There were dozens of signs on one building, and it looked like modern art.

‘About here.’

I searched for the name that remained in my memory.

As I looked through the various signs, I stopped walking.

As soon as I saw that familiar name, I was sure.

“I found it.”