The Great Storyteller

Translated by: ShawnSuh

Edited by: SootyOwl

Everyone stopped what they were doing as Kings, whose presence seemed to have the effect of restoring the ceremony to its original state, grand and sophisticated, appeared on stage. While all eyes were on the veteran author, Coin crossed his arms.

“This sure takes me back,” Kings said in a calm tone of voice, adding a brief anecdote about standing on the stage as the presenter, as well as the significance behind the award. Although speaking while looking directly ahead, he didn’t seem to make eye contact with the audience members.

“This year’s ceremony is a special one.”

Kings listed the novels that had been nominated in the full-length category of the award, which included Yun Woo’s and Coin’s.

“What the hell is that guy looking at?” Coin murmured, and Juho replied, “I’m sure he’s looking at the people standing by the door.”

“Nah. He probably has to go to the restroom.”

At Coin’s absurd remark, Juho looked around to make sure that nobody else had heard it. Fortunately, everyone was listening intently to the presenter’s speech.

“Now, I don’t have to remind you all that every single one of these books is a gem. Which is also why that we’re all dying to know who the winner is, right?”

While some breathed slowly, a person in front of Juho took their phone out. The winner was about to be announced. Then, waving the envelope in his hand, Kings said, “Whose name will we find in this envelope?”

The audience groaned and cheered at the same time. Kings seemed to be quite skilled at being a presenter. He neither dragged on for too long nor talked excessively. Juho saw some of the people in his party holding hands while looking desperate. At which point, Juho’s heart also started thumping.

“Let’s take a look, shall we?” the presenter said, untying the ribbon on the envelope and opening it quickly. As Kings took out the card and looked down for the first time, Juho saw Coin clenching his hands into fists from the corner of his eyes.

“The winner of the full-length category is…”

The anticipation kept everyone on their toes. Then, as Juho locked eyes with Kings for a split second, the presenter said, “Yun Woo!”

As the winner was announced, the authors around Juho patted him on the shoulders and/or reached out for a handshake, pushing him up to the stage like a wave.

“Congratulations!”

Before Juho realized it, he found himself on the stage, standing under the bright, scorching spotlight. As Juho blinked, a clear, yet sparkling trophy appeared in front of his eyes. It felt unlike anything he had ever experienced before. The trophy also looked completely different from his previous one. Juho swallowed nervously.

“Incredible,” Kings said, patting the young author on the shoulder.

“Thank you,” Juho said, sounding much calmer than people had expected. There were still cheers and applause coming from the audience. At that moment, Kings came closer and whispered, “Feels good, doesn’t it?”

“It doesn’t feel bad. That’s for sure,” Juho said honestly.

“Isn’t it beautiful?”

“It sure is.”

“It’s not easy being up here at your age, Mr. Woo. Well done.”

Then, upon locking eyes with the presenter, Kings said, “Look,” pointing toward a certain direction. The audience members were sitting in the dark in a much lower place, and it was nearly impossible to see them from where Juho was. The stage felt like a completely different place, separated from the rest of the world.

“Congratulations!”

“…”

Feeling his heart thumping, Juho looked toward the audience, thinking that perhaps he was there to see something that he hadn’t been able to before. ‘What’s in the dark?’ As his eyes adjusted to the dark, Juho heard a voice call for him: “Juho!”

What finally came into view were the familiar faces covering their mouths, throwing their hands into the air, crying. When Juho saw that Coin was still crossing his arms, he couldn’t help but laugh.

“With all due respect, Mr. Kings, I’m not falling for it again.”

“It’s a good look you have there,” Kings said, nodding.

With that, Juho stepped forward, delivered a short speech, and walked down from the stage feeling blissful.

“Please! Get a grip of yourself!”

“Mr. Woo! I… I…” Dong Baek said, wailing, unable to finish his sentence. Seeing the people passing by glance over in the president’s direction, Juho genuinely hoped that he would get a hold of himself. While Jang Mi covered her mouth in disbelief, Nabi had her hands up in the air, still looking ecstatic. At that moment…

“Mr. Woo! Mr. Woo!”

A voice called out to the young author. Wide open doors, quiet conference hall, empty chairs, rowdy hallways. The winners of the awards were coming together for pictures, giving interviews with their trophies in hand, or talking to their acquaintances.

“Could you spare some time for an interview?”

Leaving Dong Baek behind, who was still sniffling, Juho nodded affirmatively.

“Could you pick up your trophy?” a cameraman asked the young author, and Juho picked up his trophy from where he had left it.

“Congratulations, Mr. Woo,” the interviewer said. After giving a short debrief of the situation to the camera, he asked the young author, “How was it going up on that stage for the first time?”

“It was very, very bright.”

“Were you nervous at all?”

“My heart was racing, so that’s probably saying something.”

The reporter seemed quite fond of the author.

“Is there anything you’d like to say to the people who voted for you? For example…” the reporter brought up other authors whom he had interviewed prior to Juho, using their answers as examples.

“I’m always thankful to my readers.”

“I heard the audience went crazy when your name got called. What was it like being on the receiving end of all of those cheers and applause from your colleagues?”

“I felt like I didn’t deserve it. I wished that the light would shine on the audience too. It was hard to see from the stage.”

“Did you talk to Coin after winning?” the reporter asked, his eyes sparkling uncomfortably.

“Yes, I did.”

“What did you two talk about?”

“He congratulated me. Of course, he didn’t forget to badmouth the trophy and complain about the ceremony.”

Although the reporter seemed to want more information, Juho drew the line and spoke no further.

“So, this is about another award that’s essentially a sibling-counterpart to the Nebula. The ceremony for the Hugo Award is coming up soon. Are you confident that you can beat Coin?”

“Seems like you didn’t hear my speech just now,” Juho said, chuckling.

“I’m sorry?”

“I’m pretty sure I said that I don’t believe that I’ve beaten Coin.”

The reporter hesitated briefly. Then, in a confident voice, he explained, “Let me clarify. I meant to point out that you won the award over Coin. You did want that trophy, didn’t you? I presume that’s why you’re here?”

Fiddling with the trophy in his hand, Juho replayed one of the questions Kings had asked him: “You ever thought to yourself that you could let go of your fear of defeat if you could just get that trophy?” Upon receiving the trophy, Juho realized that the award didn’t have the power to invalidate the consensus between him and Coin. With a mischievous smile on his face, Juho replied, “Which is why I’m not planning on attending that ceremony.”

The air sank into silence. Blinking rapidly, the reporter asked, “I’m sorry, did you just say that you’re not attending the Hugo ceremony?”

“That’s right.”

“Are you saying that you’re going to send a representative instead?”

“No. As in, I decline my nomination.”

“…”

From the cameraman to the staff lining people up and those who happened to be passing by, everyone froze in place and stared at the young author. Juho awkwardly scratched his cheek.

“If you don’t mind me asking, why?”

Puffing his chest out, Juho replied, “Coin and I have already reached a consensus.”

—

“No. As in, I decline my nomination.”

David stopped on his way out the door and looked back, his jaw dropping. Yun Woo had just announced that he wouldn’t be attending the Hugo ceremony.

“Does he not know the position he’s in?”

The young author could very well aim for the Double Crown, especially considering that the Hugo Award tended to stress popularity. Although he was bound to win, Yun Woo was refusing to attend the ceremony.

“Who does he think he is?”

David had always thought that there was no other author more interesting than Yun Woo. In a world full of authority, victory, tenacity, and jealousy, Yun Woo tended to stick out like a sore thumb, being so cocky as to refuse to attend the ceremony, insisting that his goal was elsewhere. Yun Woo was clearly looking in a direction most authors weren’t. David massaged the back of his neck. Despite the author’s bizarre tendencies, David found Yun Woo’s character charming.

“Hello? Are you listening?” a voice came from the receiver of his phone.

“Yun Woo’s not gonna be at the Hugo ceremony,” David said into the phone.

“What!?” the voice let out. David knew exactly why the person was astonished into seriousness.

“Do you think somebody spilled the beans?”

“I doubt that.”

“But, how can he decline his nomination in such a timely manner?”

David was a reporter who sought after scandals. The winner of the Hugo Award was decided by voting between members of a certain fandom, whose president held an extremely biased set of values. They also had a history of causing trouble, and it seemed like they were definitely planning to stir the pot at the ceremony that year.

“Poll-results fabrication.”

David put his hands in his pocket. The fandom was a small body of people, and since voting happened multiple times, it was possible to estimate the number of votes for one’s most and least favorite authors. The president had different methods at his disposal to remove the gap between the nominees. There were many standards by which one chose an author over another. Race, gender, nationality, appearance, background, etc. The list went on. Being one of the most internationally-recognized literary awards, the Hugo ceremony tended to be filled with bliss and excitement. However, behind it all was great darkness.

“Knowing how shady they can be at times, it’s hard to say that whoever gets the trophy is the winner,” the voice said on the phone.

“Well, you still can’t beat getting that trophy. The money alone makes it worth it, even when you’re a nominee,” David replied, looking around the golden interior of the hotel.

Then, the voice rebutted the reporter immediately, “Sure, but I doubt Yun Woo doesn’t know that.”

David looked toward the young author in the distance. Yun Woo had to be the youngest person in the entire hotel.

“I’m sure it’s because he’s young and he doesn’t know better. He just hasn’t been tainted yet.”

“No, no. Somebody must have told him. You said you even saw him talking to Kings. Wait, maybe it was Kings?”

“Knowing him, that’s always possible.”

Then, Yun Woo thanked the interviewer with a cheerful look on his face and returned to his party. While the young author remained calm and unfazed, his party seemed anything but, crying and in shock. Was it really his age?

“Maybe it’s just a coincidence,” David said into the phone.

“What?”

“It’s probably just a coincidence.”

A coincidence. With that, David went out the door without hesitation.

—

‘The Fandom within the Hugo Award Remains Silent about Their Poll-Results Fabrication.’

‘”Why even Vote?” The Hugo Ceremony, the Festival of Readers, Tainted by Corruption?’

‘”This Wasn’t the Result We Had in Mind.” Members of the Fandom Complain.’

‘A Former Nominee Deliberately Ruled Out by the Fandom Speaks Up.’

‘Authors and Members Declining Nominations and Refusing to Vote. The True Meaning of the Literary Award?’

‘Why Did Yun Woo Decline His Nomination? The Reality Too Grim for the Young Author.’

‘Yun Woo Declines Nomination for the Hugo Award. Seeking After the True Value of a Book.’

”The Reason Behind Yun Woo Declining His Nomination? The Long-Hidden Truths Come Out.’

‘Yun Woo’s Brave Decision. The Web Roots for the Author.’

‘Yun Woo Gives Up on the Double Crown Voluntarily! His Message Regarding the Reality of the Award.’

‘Nominated Works Selling at Increasing Rates! South Korea Greets A New Hugo-Winning Author.”

—

“I think Yun Woo made a wise decision. I still regret getting angry when I first found out that Yun Woo had declined his nomination for the Hugo Award.”

“Yun Woo does everything for a reason.”

“But did he really turn it down knowingly? Did other authors already know?”

“I’m pretty sure they did. Coin is one of Yun Woo’s closest friends, and he’s the one that sweeps all the major literary awards. I think it’s more than likely that they heard something.”

“Every author has the right to decline their nomination.”

“Now, everything makes sense! He’s boycotting for a reason.”

“Honestly, though, Yun Woo could’ve definitely achieved the Double Crown. The fact that ‘The Glory of Traitor’ brought him an award over Coin proves just how great of a book it is. But, to say that the ‘Language of God’ series isn’t as popular as Coin’s new book? I don’t think that’s very likely.”

“I doubt Yun Woo doesn’t know that.”

“I’m kind of bummed out that he’s not going for the Double Crown, but he’s still amazing.”

“On top of that, it’s an international award. It couldn’t have been an easy decision to give it up.”

“I think the international media thinks that he did the right thing too.”

“Sure, we can say that we support Yun Woo in his decisions, but I think buying his books is THE best way to support him.”