Chapter 209: What? Dragon Rider? (15)
“h.e.l.lo?”
– Have you had lunch?
“Of course, look at the time. What about you?”
– I also had lunch and even finished my meeting.
Ha Jae-In giggled for no reason during their small talk as they shared their daily lives with each other. She saw the reflection of her happy self in the mirror and said, "Please make sure to eat your meals regularly even if you"re busy. You look so haggard these days. You"ll instantly look better if you eat well."
— I definitely will when it"s an order from you. Ah, come to think of it….
Nam Gyu-Ho suddenly trailed off.
“What’s wrong, Director?”
— No, I thought I wanted to take you somewhere for a nice meal… Then I recalled that you said you had an alumni gathering that day.
“Um, Director. Actually….” Ha Jae-In then gave him a short explanation about the current situation with her alumni gathering.
Nam Gyu-Ho then replied with an I told you tone of voice.
— I did tell you to let me know if you couldn’t find a suitable place. I’ll look into it for you.
“Really?”
— Yes, of course.
“I’m sorry for making you go through the trouble when you’re so busy.”
She was thankful to Nam Gyu-Ho for helping her out, and she let out a long sigh of relief.
— It’ll be done with just a phone call, after all. Ah, and….
Nam Gyu-Ho hesitated for a while, then continued,
— Are you available this evening?
“I was waiting for you to ask. Of course, I’m available.”
Nam Gyu-Ho grinned. Ha Jae-In was also happy that she covered her mouth, suppressing her giggles. She had never been so happy, even when she liked a school senior in her teens. What if it was all an illusion?
Well, she still liked the cold December because it resembled the fresh spring.
***
“They’re going to rework the English version?”
“The decision has been made with Eden from Open House over the phone.”
As usual, Ha Jae-Gun was having ice americano despite the cold weather, accompanied by Chae Yoo-Jin who sat across from him, holding a cup of hot tea in her hands. They met at a cafe somewhere in Ahyeon-dong.
“I listened to their feedback and contemplated for a long time. I’ll be doing major revisions if I were to correct the parts they pointed out, starting from volume one until the end.”
“Oh, no, you’ll become busy soon then.”
“The workload has grown much more once the decision to enter the U.S. market has been made. Well, it’s alright. It’s not like I’m writing a new novel; even if I have to make major revisions, it’s still just revisions.”
“But wouldn’t that take months to complete?”
“It’ll be great if it took only a few months. But it’ll definitely cross the year-end.” Ha Jae-Gun took a sip of his coffee and added, “I’ll also have to take into consideration in case I decide to write a season two while editing.”
“As expected, you were considering writing a second season.”
“I’m still thinking about it. I’ve barely got an idea of the story composition down. It’s thanks to all the fan fiction that the readers in the U.S. wrote that gave me some inspiration.”
“I’ve read some of them too, they’re quite interesting. I’m sure it’ll turn out great. However, you decide to continue it.”
Just then, the bell to the cafe’s entrance rang as it opened. A woman in her thirties walked in with a baby in her arms. A warm smile grew on Chae Yoo-Jin’s face as she watched them.
“Thank you, Ms. Yoo-Jin.”
“…Pardon?” Chae Yoo-Jin withdrew her gaze and looked at Ha Jae-Gun in surprise.
“Whatever for?”
“Thank you for connecting me with such a good company like Open House.”
Chae Yoo-Jin"s brows furrowed slightly. She chuckled softly and shook her head before saying, “Mr. Ha, you were well-prepared, and that’s why you could accept it. If it were some other writer, they would have gotten mad at me, raising their voices and asking why I introduced such a publisher to them.”
“Is that so?”
“…And I should be grateful to you. I will never forget this.”
Ha Jae-Gun lowered his gaze with a complex smile on it. Of course, her grat.i.tude was related to Oh Myung-Suk. However, he still wasn’t sure if he made the right move. If it weren’t for Le Soo-Hee’s advice, he would have closed both eyes and feigned ignorance. Ha Jae-Gun decided to wrap up their conversation with a joke.
“I’m saying it for myself. You have to be in Korea so that I can ask you immediately whenever I have questions and work with ease.”
“Oh, my, so that’s your hidden motive?”
Both of them burst into laughter. After a while, they stood up from their seats and left the cafe. Ha Jae-Gun insisted on driving Chae Yoo-Jin to her next destination, which was her father’s place, even though it was just a few minutes’ walk away.
“Thank you for sending me over, Mr. Ha.”
“Don’t do anything that’s bad for your health, okay?”
“I will never do it. I said that earlier, too.”
“I have to nag at you every time we meet and when we say goodbye. Take care of your body, I’ll call you again.” Ha Jae-Gun waved his hand and drove off after dropping Chae Yoo-Jin.
Ha Jae-Gun’s next destination was the writer’s office. He decided to drop by to work on his novel and read the works of the new writers.
Bzzt!
Ha Jae-Gun’s phone rang as he was driving. He frowned at the screen as he stopped at the red light.
‘Why did he suddenly call?’
It was a call from Lee Jung-Bae, the director of the local library in the neighborhood where he was living. He had exchanged numbers with him back then when Ha Jae-Gun had done a lecture at the library.
This was the first time the director had called him since then.
Ha Jae-Gun answered the call using a Bluetooth connection. “h.e.l.lo, Director?”
— Aigoo, Mr. Ha Jae-Gun. Yes, this is Director Lee Jung-Bae. You still have my number, hohoho!
Lee Jung-Bae’s boisterous laughter rang through the line. Ha Jae-Gun smiled, recalling the older man’s habit of speaking without thinking.
— I’ve tried contacting you a few times but didn’t hear from you, so I thought of calling you instead.
“Ah, I see. I wouldn’t answer if you called from the library’s phone. I’ve been receiving quite a number of weird phone calls, so I don’t really pick up calls from unknown numbers.”
— I see. I was worried since I haven’t seen you around at the library recently.
“I’ve been busy recently. Thanks for your concern.” Despite saying that, Ha Jae-Gun felt strange. Would any library director ever call a resident because of their worries and call them personally to ask?
The library director’s fuss came through again,
— Actually, Mr. Ha, if it weren’t much trouble, could you hold another lecture at our library again?
“Ah…”
Well, from the director’s point of view, Ha Jae-Gun wasn’t just a normal resident. Belatedly realizing that, Ha Jae-Gun began driving again as the traffic light turned green. Knowing that their conversation would not end soon, Ha Jae-Gun pulled up at the shoulder as the director continued.
— The residents in the neighborhood kept on sending in requests, wanting to hear your lecture again. There are also mountains of complaints from people who couldn’t attend back then. I understand that you have a hectic schedule, but I called personally, wondering if you could spare some time during the end of the year or the beginning of next year.
“Mm, I see….”
Ha Jae-Gun recalled that lecture he gave back then while sitting in the stationary car. He remembered the scene of the audience listening to his lecture with innocent eyes, especially the child’s mother, who skipped lunch just to hurry over to listen to his lecture.
— We will do everything within our means to ensure your convenience and comfort. I will also personally look into your lecture fees and other matters to ensure that your reputation does not get hurt.
“No, the lecture fees and….”
— Also, the head of the district office said he will be attending as well, saying that he must attend since it’s an event that Mr. Ha Jae-Gun contributes to the community’s development.
Ha Jae-Gun let out a sigh. He was simply thinking about the readers who would attend the lecture, but the older man was only concerned about the lecture fees and the district office. It felt like the rambling director had just ruined everything for him.
— If the head of the district office attends this time, the scale of the lecture will be much larger than before. Plus, I will make sure to see that your name, which is now globally known, will shine even greater….
“I don’t care about that.” Not wanting to hear any more of his ramblings, Ha Jae-Gun cut the older man off. “I don’t have to accept any lecture fees, and I don’t care who attends the lecture too. If I were to accept this request, it would be because I’m grateful to the readers who like my novels and wish to communicate with me. The things you mentioned earlier are not important to me.”
— Aigoo, Mr. Ha. I didn’t mean that, I just wanted to emphasize that the current location and scale aren’t worthy of your current reputation… I understand. Aigoo. I’m sorry. Yes….
The director apologized profusely.
Feeling apologetic for no reason, Ha Jae-Gun quickly added, “I’m on the way back to my office. I’ll check my schedule and contact you again.”
— Thank you, Mr. Ha. Please be safe, I’ll be waiting for your call.”
Ha Jae-Gun hung up and grabbed the steering wheel. As he drove back to the office, his heart still lingered on the lecture. The organization’s intention of hosting the lecture was irrelevant to him.
***
Tadadadak! Tadak! Tadadak!
‘Wow, I can’t rest at all…!’
Baek Sung-Hyun rubbed his flushed face and stuck his tongue out secretly. As one of the four new writers who had recently joined the writer’s office, he was already feeling intimidated by the atmosphere in the room.
‘How can he keep writing without rest?’ His eyes were directed at Ha Jae-Gun, and they were filled with utter disbelief.
It had been six hours since Ha Jae-Gun had arrived at the office. Ha Jae-Gun had only taken a short ten-minute break to grab a coffee. Aside from that, he had been typing nonstop.
In fact, Baek Sung-Hyun wasn’t the only one surprised by Ha Jae-Gun’s level of concentration. The others didn"t show it on their faces, but Han Jae-Hee, Hw.a.n.g Bo-Hyuk, and Jeon Bong-Yi all felt the same way.
‘I shouldn’t rest as well…!’
‘Yes, let’s finish 20,000 characters before I sleep!’
An invisible spark started in the new writers’ hearts as they were influenced by Ha Jae-Gun. The sound of keyboard typing, resembling raindrops. .h.i.tting the window, rang throughout the office.
“Wow, look at the time,” Ha Jae-Gun mumbled all of a sudden and stood up from his seat. Turning around, he saw that the new writers were all still focused on their work.
“It’s time for dinner, so let’s rest for a bit,” Ha Jae-Gun said, clapping his hands to get their attention.
The writers who had been with Ha Jae-Gun for a long time knew to take care of their own meals, but Ha Jae-Gun was referring to the new writers. Until the time when they could read the room and learn to speak up at the right time, he needed to take their routine into consideration.
“I’ll prepare dinner, Mr. Ha,” the only female writer, Bong-Yi, said.
Ha Jae-Gun smiled wryly and picked up his coat before saying, “Please have a good meal when I’m around. And don’t address me in that way. Get your coats, and let’s head out.”
Ha Jae-Gun led the new writers out of the office and to the restaurant at the arcade nearby. The group then settled down at a conveyor belt sushi restaurant he frequented.
“I’ll be treating, so choose something good. Eat more for the energy and produce good novels.”
“Ah, thank you for the food.”
“Thank you for the food. I haven’t been able to eat at a place like this because it’s so expensive.”
The new writers each took a dish they liked and began eating. Ha Jae-Gun looked at Jeon Bong-Yi, whose expression seemed relatively dark. “Writer Jeon, are you feeling uncomfortable somewhere?”
“Ah, no… It’s nothing.”
“Do you have any worries? Please tell me if it’s related to your work.” Ha Jae-Gun said, not just to Jeon Bong-Yi but to the others as well. The new writers could read Jeon Bong-Yi’s mind.
“Actually….” Bong-Yi finally opened her mouth after a while. “I made my debut when I was 20 years old.”
“So that was five years ago?”
“Yes, but… I was ignorant back then and signed an exclusive contract, thinking that it was something good for me. For three years.”
“An exclusive contract for three years? With which company?”
“Haetae Media.”
Blood pressure only rose in Ha Jae-Gun. He rubbed the nape of his neck and asked calmly, “Please continue. What happened afterward?”
“I only learned later that the conditions weren’t that good. The paid serialization and ebooks were on a 5:5 ratio, and the payment of the published books will only be paid five years after the rights to the last published book is recalled.”
Hearing her explanation, Ha Jae-Gun thought of both Ma Jong-Goo and Park Kyung-Soo. Like the days when he was suffering, Jeon Bong-Yi was also having a hard time like him because of them.
“Anyway, that’s in the past. I thought of it as my mistake for signing the wrong contract. The issue is….”
“The issue?”
Jeon Bong-Yi was all teary-eyed when she looked up. “My debut novel was a paperback publication, and the publication rights were recalled April this year. I was embarra.s.sed reading it again, as it was written badly in many areas. But I found out that they were still selling my novel secretly.”
“They are secretly selling your novel when the publication rights have ended?”
Bong-Yi nodded profusely, with hot, angry tears streaming down her face.
“They shouldn’t be selling it on any platform, right? I have withdrawn the publication rights, and it’s my work. But my friend contacted me, saying that they saw it being sold on Googol Market.”
“What did you do?”
“Of course, I called them to ask about it, and they took it down right away. One or two weeks later, I found another platform selling it again. I called again to ask, which Haetae Media took it down as well. This ridiculous thing has happened over seven to eight times….”
Ha Jae-Gun was utterly speechless. He never thought Haetae Media would be this unethical. How could they take advantage of the writers who were only focused on their own works and did not know the law well enough?
“Please eat first,” Ha Jae-Gun said after a while and picked up his chopsticks. Thinking back, it had been a while since he had contacted them. Ha Jae-Gun recalled how he had lived in the past and instinctively gritted his teeth.
***
“Girl, Jae-In. What happened?”
“Yeah…! How did you… No, how did you book this place when it’s already December? Moreover, you booked the largest room of all!”
Ha Jae-In and her friends were in a Chinese restaurant located somewhere in Yeonhui-dong, Seoul. Ha Jae-In’s cla.s.smates could not keep their mouths together, even Sook-Hee, whose eyes were wide open, resembling a frog’s eyes.
It wasn’t a restaurant that they could walk in any time they wanted. Everyone present who enjoyed watching TV and was interested in cooking would know it. Normal people would have to book a reservation at least three months in advance if they wanted to even have a meal here especially when it was now the end of the year.
Perhaps Ha Jae-In had booked this place in early summer with the alumni gathering in mind. No, it didn’t make sense.
“Hey, what’s the big deal with this place?” Ha Jae-In whispered to her friend sitting beside her, still clueless about all the fuss everyone was making.
Her friend rolled her eyes and said, “You don’t know this restaurant? The chef who appeared on that cooking show, what was his name again? Aish, wait a minute.”
Her friend pulled out her phone.
Just then, there was knocking on the door, and the door opened afterward.