The Great Storyteller

Translated by: ShawnSuh

Edited by: SootyOwl

After giving Crow, who was behind him, a glance, Juho went inside. Although appearing to be flabbergasted, the aspiring writer followed the author into the shop. When Juho greeted a young employee, she greeted him back with a friendly smile.

“Mr. Woo! Been a while!”

“I’ve been busy.”

“The usual?”

“Make that two, please.”

“There’s a table further in. Please, help yourselves.”

Walking past the walls of books and through a space that wasn’t visible from the outside, Juho and Crow made their way to the table. They were at a store that had been passed down to Seo Kwang by his parents. As the aspiring writer looked around confused, Juho said, “You can stick around until you finish your tea.”

Sitting across from him, Crow said, “You know, Mr. Woo, you can be kind of…”

“Friendly?” Juho interjected, smiling and sitting down. The colorful couch and pillows gave the space a completely different feel from the rest of the store. Looking around intrigued, the Crow said, “You must be a regular here. It seems like this place has been around for a while.”

“My friend owns it.”

“There are so many books here. It’s almost like a bookstore.”

“He does read quite a bit.”

Nodding haphazardly, Crow pulled out a book at random and skimmed through it. When the tea arrived at their table, the aspiring writer picked up his cup thoughtlessly and drank it, only to discover its horrid taste. Frowning, Crow put the cup down and said, “Good stuff.”

It seemed like he had meant just the opposite.

“Do you come here whenever you go out for a walk?”

“When I feel like it.”

“Like today?”

Lowering his cup, Juho warned the aspiring writer, “If you’re thinking about camping out here and waiting for me to turn up, I’d suggest you think of a different plan. I don’t come here on a regular basis.”

“Yes, sir,” Crow said. As the air sank into silence, Juho opened the book he had picked out from the shelf.

Fumbling with the manuscript in his hands, Crow asked, “Are you gonna write here, Mr. Woo?”

Without taking his eyes off of the book, Juho replied, “Yes.”

“When?”

“After you leave.”

At that, Crow let out a long groan and said, “You can just pretend I’m not here, you know.”

“Guess you have a point,” Juho said nonchalantly, and the aspiring writer dropped his head. However, instead of letting up, Crow started to talk even more. “What have you been working on, Mr. Woo? Is it coming out soon? I loved your book last year. It was almost like drinking that healthy tea you like so much. Bitter, but good for you.”

Chuckling quietly, Juho asked, “Which one of my books do you like the most?”

“‘Trace of a Bird!’” Crow replied without hesitation, which caught Juho off guard. Juho had written a number of books that had been better received than his debut title by that point. Needless to say, Crow’s ravings about the book were less than interesting to the author since he had heard those same compliments countless times over the years.

Studying the aspiring writer, Juho asked himself, ‘What are the odds of somebody nicknamed ‘crow’ coming to me and asking to be my student? Is this a coincidence?’

At that moment…

“Huh! What do you know?! It’s Yun Woo!”

… A head peeked in through the bookshelf.

“Mr. Ahn!?” Crow let out, startled by Seo Joong’s presence in a way that made him seem like a crow flapping its wings.

Staring at the aspiring author, who was blinking awkwardly, unable to think of a way to introduce himself, Seo Joong asked Juho, “Who’s this?”

“Just some aspiring writer who followed me here while begging me to teach him,” Juho said nonchalantly.

“You? Teach? You’ve got guts, young man,” Seo Joon said, smiling. Then, looking back, he called out to someone who seemed to have come with him.

“Mr. Uhm!?” Crow murmured.

Darting back and forth between Seo Joong and Dong Gil, Juho asked, “What brings you two here?”

“Why, we’re out for some tea, of course. We’ve been coming here pretty often as of late. Seems like Seo Kwang isn’t around today?”

“He’s busy with work from what I’ve heard.”

“Ah, right. Wait a minute… You don’t think he’s getting ahead of you in life, do you?”

“I think he is.”

While Juho and Seo Joong were chatting, Dong Gil glared at Juho piercingly and asked, “So, you’re taking in a pupil?”

Juho shook his head; Dong Gil smacked his lips; and Seo Joong nodded and said, “So what if he’s taking in a pupil? Can’t hurt to try.”

“It’s easier said than done.”

Sitting at Juho’s table without hesitation, Seo Joong said, “There isn’t much to it. You just have to make sure that you don’t burden yourself with it.”

“That’s why you need to grow up,” Dong Gil said.

“But you don’t take pupils either. You say it’s a hassle,” Juho said, and Seo Joong crossed his legs. There were what seemed like clumps of mud on the hems of his pants.

“It’s true, though. There’s no bigger hassle than teaching someone.”

“Are you for it or against it? Pick one,” Dong Gil told Seo Joong irritably, shaking his head. After all those years, the two hadn’t changed one bit. Meanwhile, Juho looked toward the aspiring writer, who was enthralled by the presence of the two authors.

“I’m guessing you read their books a lot too?” Juho asked.

“Yes, I do. I look up to them both,” Crow said unhesitantly, which was just the answer Juho had been looking for.

“Then, why don’t you try asking one of them to be your teacher? I don’t know about Seo Joong here, but Dong Gil has a lot of teaching experience from the lectures he gave when he was younger. I’m sure he’s a much better teacher than I am,” Juho said.

However, Crow scoffed and said, “I’m not as fickle as I seem, Mr. Woo.”

“Think about where we first met.”

“I won’t repeat myself,” the aspiring writer said emphatically, oblivious to the look on Seo Joong’s and Dong Gil’s faces.

“Did we just get rejected?” Seo Joong asked.

“I… didn’t think this through,” Crow said awkwardly. However, Juho drank his tea, paying no attention to him.

“Just so you know, Yun Woo HATES your type,” Seo Joong said bitterly. Then, putting his arms on the table, he placed his chin on his hands, blocking Juho’s view. “You see, opposites attract, but as far as I can tell, you’re a little too fickle. It’s a bit much, really. You’re young and full of vigor. Something tells me that you’re gonna do something big. Do you know what Yun Woo was like when he was young? He was just the opposite of you,” Seo Joong said.

“Quit yapping and sit up,” Dong Gil said. However, Seo Joong didn’t let up.

“The way I see it, I don’t think you have what it takes,” he said. At which point, Crow became pouty-lipped, his emotions blatantly showing on his face. Seeing that, Seo Joong puffed up his chest confidently.

Just as the aspiring writer was about to retort, Dong Gil said, “He gets worse the more you react. Just brush it off.”

“Oh, c’mon! Where’s the fun in that?”

Then, Dong Gil looked toward Juho in a way as if asking: ‘Are you really not interested?’

“Well, how’ve you two been?” Juho asked.

“Same ol’.”

From the sound of it, the two friends seemed well. When Juho asked them about their current projects, Seo Joong said, “You know, young authors these days really know how to write. They have so much vigor and energy. It’s nice.”

There was a sense of pride in his voice, as if he wasn’t about to let the young bloods in the literary world surpass him. Dong Gil remained silent in that regard.

“That reminds me, you took some time away from writing, right, Dong Gil? I remember Seo Joong writing all these really strong books at the time.”

“Ah. Good times,” Dong Gil said. He preferred to infuse his personal experience into his writing. Because of that, he tended to emphasize how tangible an experience was and how much of it he was getting. During his eight-year hiatus, Dong Gil had traveled to various countries. At that time, Seo Joong had taken the opportunity to write stories that were vivid and full of life on a regular basis.

“I really showed those people who used to say my ups and downs were too drastic.”

Seo Joong was well aware of his reputation. At one point, his clubmates had even placed bets on how consistent the author’s book releases would be. As Seo Joong thought back to the amount of money he had made during that time, Dong Gil said quietly, “Dae Soo wanted to know when you were free.”

“Is she thinking about publishing another magazine?” Juho asked.

“It’s about that time, don’t you think? The last issue was five years ago.”

“I can’t believe it’s still going. I remember asking myself how long that would last.”

“Eh… I’m sure it’ll stop when one of us drops dead,” Seo Joong said vigorously.

“I don’t know… I have a deadline to meet. I’ll do my best to make time, though,” Juho said, rubbing the back of his neck.

“Everyone else is busy too, so I understand if you can’t. In any case, I’m sure we’ll be able to release it by the end of this year. There’s still time.”

“We need to go out for a meal one of these days,” Juho said.

“You’re right.”

At that moment…

“That must be nice.”

… Crow interjected, and everyone fixed their eyes on the aspiring writer, which caught him by surprise.

“Well, I was just thinking that I wanted to be there too.”

“What makes you so special?” Seo Joong asked.

However, Crow didn’t let up, saying, “I’m sure I’ll be able to one of these days, once I become Mr. Woo’s pupil.”

“I told you, you don’t have what it takes!”

At that, Crow tightened his lips. Locking eyes with him, Juho said calmly, “I just don’t understand you,” and put his cup down forcefully. While the two other authors remained silent, Crow was flabbergasted.

“I’m sorry?”

“I don’t understand why you’re so desperate to learn from me, which is why I can’t think of a reason why I should take you in, let alone have a desire to do so.”

“If I were to tell you why, would you accept me as your pupil?”

“Try me.”

Then, Crow gave him an answer as to why he was still around, “Because you’re a genius.”

Unfortunately, it was less than convincing.

“How can I not cling to a genius and ask him to teach me when I see one sitting right in front of my eyes? I read your books growing up, Mr. Woo, and your books always resonated with my heart. They changed me. I wanna be just like you, Mr. Woo. I’m serious.”

“… A genius, huh? Haven’t heard that in a while.”

“I doubt that’s true. There’s no one like you, even among geniuses.”

At that, Juho chuckled, and Crow chuckled along with him. However…

“You know, I still don’t think I’ll take you in.”

“But why!?” Crow asked in a hurry, realizing that he had blown his chance. “Was it something I said or did?”

“I don’t know,” Juho replied nonchalantly.

“What did I say?”

“Why are you asking me?”

After glancing over at Seo Joong to ask, Crow redirected his attention to Juho, who was already getting ready to leave.

“Please, Mr. Woo. Tell me,” Crow said desperately, rising from his seat.

“Tell you what?”

“Why you’re not taking me in and why you can’t understand me. Tell me what I must do. I know for a fact that you’re not completely uninterested. I’m not stupid,” Crow said, glaring fiercely at Juho.

“I have no interest in teaching whatsoever,” Juho said calmly.

“No. I know for certain that you do.”

“Do you know why people die?” Juho asked, looking out the window and up at the cloudy sky. It seemed like it would rain at any moment.

“Because…”

“There is no reason. They just do.”

“… No, there has to be an answer somewhere…”

Without even bothering to wait for Crow to finish his sentence, Juho said, “Personally, I don’t think it’s a bad thing that there is no reason for our death. If there were, then it’d make us wanna think, like death row inmates do: Is my death right or wrong?”

Ignoring the aspiring writer, Juho said goodbye to the two authors, “I’ll be going now.”

“Be safe.”

The two waved at Juho calmly as he left the store. After that, the place became silent again. Going back the way he came, Juho felt something well up from within him, and his palm started to itch.

“Am I upset?” Juho murmured as if sighing. ‘I wanna show that Crow what I’m really capable of. I wanna bring that bird to its knees and make it admit that I’m great. A genius? You’re gonna have to do better than that. What you should’ve called me was the Great Storyteller.’

Juho clenched his teeth, making a grinding sound. At that moment, a single drop of water fell from the sky.

“Sir!”

“I thought I told you not to call me that,” Juho said calmly, but coldly. Realizing that, Crow clung on to the author even more. Looking at him, Juho said, “I have some writing to do.”

“… Very well, then,” Crow said.

Then, just as he was about to walk away, Juho turned around and asked, “You said you wanted to see me write, right?”

When Juho looked at the aspiring writer, it was clear to him that Crow had been caught off guard by the author’s question, which made him look even more like a rookie, something that Juho couldn’t stand the sight of.

“Yes. I’m confident that I’ll learn something from it,” Crow said confidently.

“Is that so?”

“Of course.”

Unfortunately, there was nothing obvious in this world.

“Why don’t we make a bet? I bet that you won’t learn a thing.”

“… And if I win?”

At that moment, Juho rubbed his nose. Another drop of water had fallen and landed on it.

“If I win, you give up writing,” Juho said, ignoring Crow’s question.