Big Life

Chapter 235. It’s A Declaration (4)

“Oh my gosh, they talked about the Records series?”

“Yes, look at the article. The head of their Central Publicity Department mentioned the Records series. What does that mean, Deputy Lee?” Deputy Ko rolled his eyes with a serious look.

Deputy Lee had the same expression as Deputy Ko. The two were working overtime to edit the novels that had to be submitted for review the next day, and they were surprised by the news that they had read about belatedly.

“What should we do, Deputy Lee?”

“What do you mean?”

“Should we report this to the editor-in-chief?”

“Even if you ask me...” Deputy Lee let out a sigh as he slicked his hair to the back.

Thinking about the editor-in-chief and the CEO’s rascal of a son, Park Kyung-Wook, made his insides flip. He reckoned that the man in question was out somewhere drinking and would probably only show up at work tomorrow near lunchtime.

“We should probably give him a call first, right? Just in case.”

“Okay, I'll give him a call. I should get the scolding instead of you.”

Ever since Jung So-Mi resigned, both Deputy Lee and Deputy Ko had gotten closer. A sort of camaraderie between them had formed while they were working under their troublesome editor-in-chief.

‘He’s quite cute in some ways.’ Deputy Lee chuckled as she watched Deputy Ko pull out his phone with fear.

Despite being timid and weak, Deputy Ko was the type to make sure he pleased his superiors first, but the man had changed quite significantly. Opening up herself to getting to know this man made her see all his humane side, as well as his strengths.

“He’s not answering it.”

“Leave me a message then. We can’t help it if he isn’t answering the phone.”

After sending the message, the two of them stepped out of the office for dinner. Just as they stepped into the elevator, Deputy Ko’s phone rang.

“Ah, hello? Editor-in-chief?”

— What do you mean in your message?

“It is as written, sir. China seems to have shown interest in Writer Ha Jae-Gun’s Records series. I think that there were some discussions about it under the table...”

— You think? Are you serious, Deputy Ko?

Park Kyung-Wook sounded angry, seemingly having drunk quite a bit. Expecting Park Kyung-Wook to be yelling at him soon, Deputy Ko shut his eyes tight.

— Have you tried contacting Ha Jae-Gun before?

“What? Contacting him?”

— Are you turning into a mynah bird, repeating my questions?!

“Oh, I’m sorry. I have been sending messages regularly to say hello, but I have never received a reply. Even when I send a gift, he would return it immediately, too...”

Park Kyung-Wook did not wait for Deputy Ko to go on and yelled.

— You always have an excuse for everything! What else are you doing aside from giving stupid excuses while receiving your monthly salary?! Handling writers is the most basic part of your job!

“Of course, I know that...! But he's not like the other writers, and he's extremely famous now... Gasp—” Deputy Ko realized that he had misspoken and immediately covered his mouth.

Park Kyung-Wook always turned into a viper whenever the name Ha Jae-Gun was mentioned, yet Deputy Ko had inadvertently praised Ha Jae-Gun in his words.

— Who cares about his popularity? Writers are all the same, aren’t they?! Is he not affiliated with Star Books?! He is still contracted to our company, and he's a writer under us!

“Y-yes... That’s right. You’re right, Editor-in-chief.” Deputy Ko replied with his head hanging low as if Park Kyung-Wook was standing before him. Meanwhile, Deputy Lee stood beside him and was staring at him quietly.

— Go meet him and figure out the current situation. The license for the Records series is going to end this year, but we must hold onto it for another three more years.

“But how can I meet Writer Ha in my capacity...”

— Stake out outside his house or something! Deputy Ko, are you an elementary student?! Must I teach you every single thing?

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“I-I understand. I’ll do everything I can.”

Park Kyung-Wook clicked his tongue several times before hanging up.

Deputy Lee patted the man on his shoulder, consoling him. “Only incompetent people would raise their voices when they have nothing to say. Don’t take it to heart.”

“Ahaha...”

“You can choose what’s for dinner tonight.”

“I’ve lost all my appetite now. Go ahead and choose the menu, Deputy Lee.”

Deputy Lee thought of Jung So-Mi as they stepped into a certain restaurant. Maybe they could set up a point of contact with Ha Jae-Gun through Jung So-Mi, but...

‘Forget it, why should I help that scoundrel...’ Deputy Lee shook her head, tossing the idea out of her mind. Her friendship with Jung So-Mi was much more important to her than her company’s future.

***

The next day, Deputy Ko’s eyes were bloodshot. He had been constantly checking the clock and finally called Ha Jae-Gun at 10 a.m. sharp.

‘Please answer, Writer Ha Jae-Gun...!’ He had to at least get on the phone with Ha Jae-Gun so that he would have something to report to Park Kyung-Wook once he clocked in. Deputy Ko gulped as he listened to the ringing.

— Hello?

“I-Is this Writer Ha Jae-Gun?!” Deputy Ko was in disbelief. He didn't expect that he would hear Ha Jae-Gun’s voice so easily.

— Yes, are you Deputy Ko?

“Ahh, yes...! How have you been doing? I have been enjoying your novels!”

— Thank you. Have you been doing well, Deputy Ko?

“Yes, of course. Aigoo, thank you for being concerned for my well-being, Writer Ha.”

Deputy Ko was filled with hope; he had a good premonition this morning that things were going to turn out well today.

“U-um Writer Ha Jae-Gun, I actually called to ask...”

— I actually wanted to contact you as well.

“Pardon?”

— For the Records series that was signed with Star Books, I'm looking to retract their licenses as soon as the contract ends.

Deputy Ko felt the ground beneath him crumble. His mind turned blank, and the sight before him turned into one of darkness.

“W-Writer Ha...?!”

— I'll send you an email now that I've given you a notice through the phone. I'm drafting it up right now. Please check the common Star Books email inbox after this call ends.

“W-wait! Writer Ha Jae-Gun, I understand that you're extremely busy, but is there a possibility for us to meet briefly? You can decide on the time!”

— I'm sorry, I don't think there's anything else I have to say to you even if we met. I'll have to decline. Have a good day.

Ha Jae-Gun hung up the call so quickly that Deputy Ko did not have the chance to say anything else. He stood there staring into space with the phone still next to his ear.

Deputy Lee had been watching him from behind with her arms crossed, and she finally asked, “How did it go? What did Writer Ha Jae-Gun say?”

“He said that... he would retract the publication license for the Records series...” Deputy Ko grabbed the mouse with trembling hands and accessed the said email inbox to find an email from Ha Jae-Gun right at the top.

[This is Writer Ha Jae-Gun. I'd like to retract the license for both publication and ebook services.]

“Arghhh...!” a loud groan came from Deputy Ko.

The email’s content notifying the retraction of the licenses for the Records trilogy: Records of the Murim Master, Records of the Modern Master, and Records of the Other World, sounded like his death sentence.

“What should I do...! It's going to be hell when the editor-in-chief comes into the office later...!” Deputy Ko messed up his hair in frustration.

Just then...

“What is going to be hell?”

“Oh no...”

Park Jae-Gook, the CEO of Star Books, appeared silently behind Deputy Ko.

Park Jae-Gook hadn't been showing up in the office as much due to his declining health condition, which was why his appearance had shocked everyone in the office, including Deputy Ko.

“...!” Park Jae-Wook bent down to see the screen, to which his eyes widened in shock. Subsequently, his gaze shifted to Park Kyung-Wook’s table.

“Where did the editor-in-chief go?”

“N-not yet...”

Park Jae-Gook strode over to Park Kyung-Wook’s desk. Seeing how messy it was, Park Jae-Gook asked in a low voice, “Has he been doing this recently?”

“...”

“Forget it; get back to your work.” Park Jae-Gook pulled out his phone as he left. His son, who had stayed out for the night, did not answer his calls at all.

‘How can we lose such an important title...! No!’

Most fantasy and martial arts novels would only sell well in the beginning after publication, and their sales performance would fall rock bottom overtime.

However, Ha Jae-Gun’s novel was different. The sales performance for the Records series was still doing well. Even dozens of novels from other writers were incomparable to Ha Jae-Gun’s single trilogy.

Writer Ha Jae-Gun’s popularity had increased exponentially in the last three years. After much thinking, Park Jae-Gook turned around. This wasn’t something that could be resolved with just a phone call. Despite knowing that the probability of things turning around was slim, even if he stepped up, he still had to do it.

***

Tadadadak! Tadak! Tadadak!

Lee Yeon-Woo’s fingers kept typing on the keyboard relentlessly. His expression, showing one of utmost seriousness, was completely different from the past. He no longer sighed and racked his brains while writing now.

“Yeon-Woo, let’s have lunch before continuing.”

“Please go ahead without me. I can’t eat until I’ve written ten thousand characters. That’s my aim for today.”

“You will collapse first. Let’s take care of yourself first before writing, hmm?”

“I had a heavy breakfast this morning. I’ll take the chance to go on a diet since my belly has been growing too.” Lee Yeon-Woo replied with a chuckle, his fingers still typing away on the keyboard. He had to be more confident for his father, who was proud of his writer son.

“There’s Jae-Gun hyung, too. Jae-Gun hyung is so focused on his writing, so how could I, as his manager, go ahead for lunch first?”

“Wow, you’re always taking care of Writer Ha. You’re the perfect lover.”

“I’m not his lover but his manager. Of course, I have to do my job and look after him since he’s done so much for me. I have a conscience, too, you know. Hahaha.” Lee Yeon-Woo’s cheerful laughter rang in the office.

Meanwhile, Ha Jae-Gun was smiling bitterly in his room. He had heard everything Yeon-Woo said earlier.

‘Just what exactly did I do...’ Ha Jae-Gun had simply been treating Lee Yeon-Woo with the treatment he deserved, as the latter was a nice person. Ha Jae-Gun believed that he hadn't really done a lot for the people around him, but they had all been expressing their appreciation to him. He hadn’t felt bothered by others before, but it felt different because it was coming from Lee Yeon-Woo.

Tadadadak! Tadak! Tadadak!

Ha Jae-Gun’s fingers were typing away relentlessly as well, but they also had a sense of guilt in them. And the result was him typing out his own malice in the story Human’s Malice, which he had been working on and off recently.

His own unintentional malice of being indifferent to the people he cared about under the pretext of being busy. Ha Jae-Gun detailed the malice in the document.

‘I’ll do my best, Yeon-Woo. There’s no other way for me to repay you except with this.’ The guilt turned into Ha Jae-Gun’s seed of motivation. He worked diligently for Lee Yeon-Woo, who hoped that Poongchun-Yoo would get the Nobel Prize in Literature.

Just then...

Bzzt!

Ha Jae-Gun’s phone rang, and an unknown number showed on the screen. He did not answer it, and moments later, a text message came in.

- Mr. Ha Jae-Gun, I am Park Jae-Gook, the CEO of Star Books. I would like to meet you in person, so please give me a call. I’ll be waiting.

Ha Jae-Gun could feel the desperation in the message.

Ha Jae-Gun didn't contemplate for long and pressed the call button. It would be better to talk in person since the other party was not a regular employee of Star Books.

— Hello! Aigoo, Mr. Ha Jae-Gun!

“Hello, sir.”

— Thank you so much for calling. Ohoho, you must be very busy; I apologize for contacting you out of the blue.

“You’re calling because of the retraction of the Records series license, right?”

— Yes, that is why I’m contacting you. I wanted to get in touch with you earlier to talk about it, but we haven’t been able to get in touch with you for a while. Actually, I’m now on the way to Laugh Books’ office.

“I don’t think you have to, sir.” Ha Jae-Gun spoke firmly. “I will not change my mind regarding this. I’m really sorry, but I’d appreciate it if you could understand me.”

— Mr. Ha, what can I do to change your mind? Why are you trying to retract the license so quickly? If you're unhappy with anything, please feel free to let me know.

Park Jae-Gook’s desperation made Ha Jae-Gun scratch the back of his head. It sounded like the CEO was really unaware of the situation. The older man might faint if he learned that an agreement on the movie adaptation had been made with Teencent Pictures’ CEO and their government.

“I have no ill feelings with Star Books.” Ha Jae-Gun did not elaborate further. Ha Jae-Gun recalled the vulgar editor-in-chief who did not know how to treat his subordinates well and even had a penchant for harassing their female employees.

Of course, Ha Jae-Gun didn't mention that as well.

“Because it’s time for me to move on. I hope you’ll understand.”

— I’ll do everything for you as long as Star Books has the capability to do so. Mr. Ha Jae-Gun, it’s fine even if we just meet for a few minutes. Could you maybe spare me five minutes? Please?

“I’m sorry, sir. I hope Star Books will become more prosperous. I’ll be hanging up now.”

— Aigoo, Mr. Ha...!

Ha Jae-Gun hung up the call without giving the older man any chances. He flipped his phone over and reached out for his keyboard again. The new synopsis for the Records trilogy was about to be complete.

***

“Print 50,000 copies each...!”

Immediately after Park Jae-Gook left the office, Park Kyung-Wook fumed in anger as he gave instructions to his team. His ragged breathing smelled like alcohol.

“Print for the bookstores, not the rental stores. And all in hardcovers! Do you understand?!

“B-but, editor-in-chief...” Deputy Ko swallowed as he stood frozen on the spot.

Park Jae-Gook’s roar from earlier was so loud that everyone in the office had heard it. Park Jae-Gook had clearly instructed Park Kyung-Wook to let go of Ha Jae-Gun.

Deputy Lee stepped up in Deputy Ko’s stead, who was struck with fear.

“Editor-in-chief, the CEO clearly said to return the license for the Records series accordingly. So why are you asking us to print more copies...?”

“Why are you so inflexible, too, Deputy Lee?” Park Kyung-Wook shot an angry look at her. “We need to milk as much as we can before he retracts the license! Start on the cover design and focus on the marketing! Time is not on our side, so put everything else aside and focus on this!”

“But, the CEO...”

“I’ll take responsibility! He’s the CEO, but he’s also my father! I’ll resolve things on my own, so just listen to me and print 50,000 copies of each novel in the trilogy, do you understand?!” Park Kyung-Wook yelled like a madman.

Deputy Lee rested her case and sat back down at her desk. The office turned infinitely cold and silent all because of one person.