The Great Storyteller

Translated by: ShawnSuh

Edited by: SootyOwl

Juho felt refreshed just from the thought of dipping his hand into the water. Perhaps, he’d gotten used to being thirsty.

Sitting up on the bed, he reached his hand out toward the desk, groping for something. He felt a book on his hand with a torn cover. Stroking the cover, he opened the book. He read, slowly, one sentence after another. However, he closed the book before he had even finished reading the first page. He couldn’t bear to read it anymore. Though it was the result of dozens of revisions and edits, he didn’t even want to touch it.

In order to bring himself out of that uncomfortable place in his head, Juho put the book down and turned on his computer to access the online bookstore. On the side, there was a list ranking bestsellers ‘1. The Sound of Wailing.’ When he clicked it, an even bigger image appeared on the screen along with his name, “Yun Woo.” He thought of the reviews he had read recently.

‘I read it because it’s by Yun Woo.”

‘I ordered it as soon as I saw the name ‘Yun Woo.’”

‘I bought it because it’s written by ‘Yun Woo.’”

Yun Woo.

Juho stared at that word quietly. Of course, there was a part of him that wanted people to read his book as much as possible. His name had always been an advantage, so there wasn’t anything to complain about. On the other hand, he wondered if the results would have been the same if his name hadn’t been displayed. In that case, the name “Yun Woo” would eventually be reduced to nothing more than a bubble. What if it had already? Wouldn’t that mean that nothing had changed after all?

‘I need to stop.’

Those thoughts weren’t helpful, so Juho drove out every single thought that was occupying his mind.

The thoughts were driven out of his head migrated onto his palms. He knew what that signal meant. He was familiar with it, having experienced it several times in the past. Now, there was no choice but to write.

Setting aside his book browsing, Juho picked up a pen that had been rolling around on his desk. He reached for a piece of paper that was within reach. There was no plot or structure to what he wrote. No characters. No background. He was driven only by his desires, filling the emptiness with his pen. There wasn’t anything unhealthy about what he was doing. Because it was meant to be written and read by him and himself alone, there was no guilt.

Aside from a quick piece of toast for lunch, Juho spent hours writing. When his hand started to give out from the pain, he put down the pen and moved on to typing. Having written to his heart’s content, he looked at the time. It was 4:00 a.m.

“My hand hurts.”

Feeling his hand throbbing painfully, he went to sleep

*

Yun Seo was preparing a meal for a special guest. She was cooking twice as much food as usual, and before she knew it, it was almost time for the guest’s arrival.

She called for her two pupils as she walked out of the kitchen, “Joon Soo, Geun Woo?”

“Yes, Mrs. Baek,” Joon Soo answered quickly, neatly dressed.

By contrast, Geun Woo ran out to the living room, “Mrs. Baek, do you think this is good enough?”

“Haha! It’s not like you’re meeting the president you know,” said Yun Seo, smiling.

“Well, it’s just as special! It’s Mr. Lim we’re talking about! I really want to look presentable.”

“You wouldn’t have had to be in such a hurry if you were just a bit more organized.”

“You’re asking too much, Mrs. Baek.”

Having listened to the conversation, Joon Soo said as he looked at the clock, “He should be here any minute now.”

“Yes, any minute now. He’s never late.”

“He’s always on time. I don’t know how he does it. He’s incredible.”

Geun Woo took deep breaths in an attempt to calm his nerves. He had been spending a significant amount of time, since that morning, desperate for a compliment. Though not as apparent as Geun Woo, Joon Soo, too, had been constantly checking himself in the mirror. Yun Seo smiled. The name “Hyun Do Lim” had always had an entertaining effect on the younger authors.

Although he had never called them out on the way they dressed, her pupils always greeted him with excitement and anticipation. They seemed rather nervous about meeting a veteran author who also happened to be among the legends. Yun Seo was proud of her pupils’ for the way they treated her friend and fellow author, Hyun Do.

‘Ding, Dong.’ As the doorbell rang, Joon Soo and Geun Woo quickly tensed up. Light-footed, Yun Seo walked toward the door. A handsome gentleman stepped in. Finally, the face Joon Soo and Geun Woo had been desperately waiting to see.

“Hey, you,” greeted Yun Seo with an innocent smile. The gentleman greeted her as he looked at her with a lukewarm expression.

“Hi.”

It was a clear sounding voice, low and gentle. Behind Yun Seo, Joon Soo was occupied with keeping Geun Woo calm. In order to introduce them, Yun Seo moved aside.

“Welcome! My pupils have been waiting eagerly.”

“I believe I got here on time.”

“Oh, don’t be coy now. You’re not shy, are you?”

“Are you planning on leaving me standing here?”

As they conversed comfortably, Joon Soo and Geun Woo waited anxiously to greet him and barely managed to say, “Hello.” Hyun Do looked at them with calm eyes.

“You look healthy.”

“Yes, sir. I’ve been doing well,” said Joon Soo with stiff shoulders.

With a smile, Hyun Do added, “You can relax.”

“Yes, sir.”

Despite his answer, his shoulders remained rigid. Having been frivolous up to a moment ago, Geun Woo also stood quietly. As his eyes met with Hyun Do’s, Hyun Do took the initiative to greet him, “You look nice. I like it.”

A bright smile spread on Geun Woo’s face. He had been desperately waiting for a compliment from Hyun Do. Yun Seo was impressed by Hyun Do’s ability to identify and say what the other person wanted to hear.

“Thank you!” Geun Woo said, smiling ear to ear.

“You must be hungry! I made your favorite,” said Yun Seo.

“Hmmm,” Hyun Do let out a mysterious moan. It wasn’t apparent whether he was upset or excited. “I’m guessing you made way too much food?”

“Nothing makes you sadder than not having enough to eat.”

“You’re just too generous.”

Hyun do walked quietly toward the kitchen, his black and silver hair completely still. Joon Soo and Geun Woo followed.

There was a plethora of food on the table, but that day, the table was especially more colorful.

As Yun Seo watched the food go into Hyun Do’s mouth, she asked excitedly, “Well? How is it? It’s been a while since you’ve had it, right?” She seemed happy to see her friend again.

“It’s good,” he answered briefly, sitting with his back straight. Sitting with open shoulders gave one a confident appearance. There was a reason her pupils paid so much attention to their postures whenever Hyun Do was over. “This has got to be a lot of work.”

“It’s fun. I wouldn’t be able to do it if it was just work.”

“Don’t over do it. We’re not young anymore.”

“Oh, don’t you worry about me. I still have plenty of strength. Hanging out with the youngins must have helped.”

Hyun Do chuckled. Looking in his direction, Yun Seo finally brought up the subject that she had been looking to mention, “Yun Woo came by the other day.”

His hand stopped in its tracks. Yun Seo smiled innocently and said, “Oh my, could it be that our infamous Mr. Lim made a wrong guess?”

Hyun Do smiled without saying much. Having listened quietly, Joon Soo and Geun Woo wore a confused faces. A few moments later, Geun Woo asked quietly, “Did Juho do something?”

Yun Seo explained willingly, “Our Mr. Lim here had said before that Yun Woo would have some trouble writing his next book.”

“Huh? But he didn’t seem like he was struggling at all when he was here, and his books are selling like…”

His voice grew timid as Joon Soo glanced in his direction. With a still expression, Hyun Do added, “I was shocked. It hasn’t even been a year, and yet…”

“He was an interesting one,” said Yun Seo, studying Hyun Do’s expression. Although he hadn’t said it explicitly, she felt that he had an interest in Yun Woo. “Aren’t you curious?”

“A little bit.”

“Would you like to know more about him?”

“If you want.”

Yun Seo contemplated making Hyun Do more desperate, but instead, she decided to be direct, “He was young, first of all.”

“I know his age,” said Hyun Do, calmly.

“But mature on the other hand,” said Yun Seo, thinking back to the day she first met him. There had been no tension in the way he’d treated her. “Whenever I looked at him, it felt almost like time had moved slower around him. That kid knew how to be peaceful. It was apparent in his smile.”

“Hm.”

“He has a good appetite. Not picky at all.”

“He knew how to read Chinese poems, too,” added Joon Soo.

“Is that so?”

“Yes. We talked about Li Taibo together.”

Geun Woo chimed in, “His ears were open too. You’ve always told us, Mrs. Baek – to be aware of what we hear in our surroundings. If anything, he’s a tad bit too comfortable around adults. Oh, and he wasn’t very good with spicy food.”

Before they knew it, they were offering up information to Hyun Do. Without saying much, he listened quietly.

“He’s also somewhat similar to my husband.”

At Yun Seo’s words, Hyun Do’s eyebrow rose slightly, “Having two of that kind in this world is a disaster.”

“What’s wrong with my husband?”

“He was all over the place. It was contagious, too.”

“I thought it was attractive.”

“You just have terrible taste.” With those words, Hyun Do took a moment to think. “Juho Woo, was it? His real name?”

“Yep. Juho Woo.”

“Do you think you can arrange a meeting?”

Between her two pupils screaming silently, Yun Seo too had a surprised look on her face.

“Oh, my! Really? This is so unlike you. What’s gotten into you?”

“I’ve been meaning to for some time now. I got to read his new book ahead of most people because of a request from the publishing company,” he said. Unlike the others around him, he was calm.

“And then??”

“I became curious.”

“About what?”

He stayed silent for a brief time. With a slight sense of jealousy, Joon Soo and Geun Woo listened intently to the conversation.

Finally, Hyun Do’s lips parted slowly and he said, “About him. I want to know how he’s able to portray such raw emotions.”