Chapter 43

Chapter 43

TL: KSD

It was my first time attending a company dinner party somewhere. I was never a company employee, neither in the past nor now. However, I knew roughly what a company dinner was like. I had seen it in dramas.

Cheers with a shout of For us! followed by the superiors throwing risky jokes at their subordinates, and the villains openly badmouthing the ostracized female protagonist until the second-generation chaebol male lead arrives in his Mercedes to take the female protagonist away. Isnt that a frequent occurrence at these gatherings?

I may not know much, but I understood that it wasnt normal for a company dinner to have the atmosphere of a funeral home.

And the person who had turned the publishing management departments dinner into a funeral home atmosphere was sitting right in front of me.

Staring at me expressionlessly.

.

.

Film director So Tae-woong.

The winner of the Golden Bear award at the Berlin International Film Festival.

After a long silence, he suddenly bowed his head.

Hello, I am Director So Tae-woong.

An awkward greeting and business cards were exchanged.

Im Moon In-seop. I write under the pen name Mun-In.

Oh, yes, Im Lim Yang-wook, the head of the publishing management department.

Hello! Im Baek Seol, the deputy head!

The employees at the other tables were silently listening to our conversation.

Since it was a table for four, Baek Seol naturally reached for the tongs and scissors.

I added, just in case.

Ah, she is the daughter of the late Chairmans nephew.Updated from novelb(i)n.c(o)m

Hmm.

So Tae-woong silently picked up the tongs and scissors.

His movements were quick.

EP 4-Red Hunter

Watching the beef sizzle on the grill, I was filled with various thoughts.

The first thing that came to mind was why I had disliked beef all this time.

Reflecting on it, it seems I didnt dislike the food beef but the social meaning behind the word.

Expensive food

With only enough allowance from the orphanage to barely buy manuscript paper, how could I afford to eat beef?

I was the fox, and the beef was the grapes hanging from the high tree.

Those who cannot obtain something unreachable convince themselves of their dismal reality. They brainwash themselves into thinking, I hated it from the beginning.

But because of that, the fox longs for the grapes

Yum

I put the beef in front of me into my mouth. My young body doesnt know the taste of beef. Its tough, bland, and greasy. Its the body of an age that would prefer chicken skewers and pork ribs.

However, the reason I find beef delicious is surely in the mind.

The taste of the grapes I finally obtained was very sweet.

Addictively so.

How is it?

Its really delicious.

But I am not a fox who has successfully climbed the grapevine but a fox that has merely placed its mouth on a grapevine that fell on its own.

I have returned through time, but all this success and fame were not entirely achieved through my own effort.

Thus, getting addicted to the taste of these grapes would only turn me into a plump fox swollen with fat.

I would like to adapt Red Hunter into a movie.

Therefore, the most important factor in accepting this offer was not its commercial potential but its artistic value.

So instead of a Yes! as Lim Yang-wook might have wanted, a Why? came out of my mouth.

Red Hunter. (TL: Red in novel name and other places is referring to communists)

One of the 16 novels I published along with Cause of Death. And it was the longest one.

Naturally, its content is about hunting commies, that is, hunting socialists.

And the protagonist is an independence activist.

In other words, Red Hunter is a historical novel, and naturally, Director So Tae-woongs next project was going to be a historical drama.

Its a painful history. The ideological struggles among the independence activists Despite their sacrifices for our nation, there were not a few among them who turned against each other due to ideological differences. What were your thoughts on unfolding such history through your writing?

.

Theres no reason to write a novel.

You just write.

Not to mention, its not just movie buffs who arbitrarily dubbed it the top three film festivals; its officially recognized by the International Federation of Film Producers Associations as one of the top three film festivals in the world.

So what happened after winning there?

Director So Tae-woong became a K-movie director.

There was about a week when his name was all over the broadcasts. So, even I came to know his name.

And now, such a person is interested in adapting my novel into a movie

Im very aware its an incredible opportunity.

Then why did you refuse!

I didnt refuse. I just asked for some time to think

Are you playing hard to get in front of So Tae-woong? Have you lost your mind? Go and cling to his ankles and beg him to adapt it! And mention theres a good actress named Kim Byul, see what he thinks!

Finally revealing your wicked intentions

Setting aside Kim Byuls terrifying and wicked plans, there was a bit of hesitation in handing over Red Hunter to Director So Tae-woong.

The problem wasnt with the director, but with the novel itself.

Red Hunter.

A dark, sticky, bloody noir novel about the ideological struggles among independence activists

Its one of the heaviest topics Ive dealt with in my novels.

The problem is, I wrote this novel with a very light heart.

Everyone has desires. The desire to be different from others, to be special.

Sometimes, this desire twists, effortlessly stepping over what others consider sacred.

Here are some examples:

-Love songs are boring! Listen to my rock spirit!

-Hip-hop the only drug allowed by the country

-Do you find Pine bud Drink bitter? I find it sweet (TL: Pine bud Drink () is a korean drink. )

Usually, this terrifying desire visits around the second year of middle school, and I wasnt exempt from that curse.

Yes.

The literary attempt to ruthlessly destroy the sanctity of the independence movement, to shed light on the individual circumstances of independence activists, and to depict the desperate struggle of individuals against a society

Ridiculously, it wasnt my work.

It was a piece written by Moon In-seop of the Shadows, who found out his parents were alive while being bullied.

* * *

If I had known it would come to this, I would have buried that novel forever in the annals of time, but I was swept up by Lim Yang-wooks momentum and brought it back to the present, a decision I bitterly regret.

I blame Director So Tae-woong.

Why did he have to fixate on that novel of all things?

Is it okay to handle heavy history with such a light heart? And what would the public reaction be?

But time mercilessly ticked away, and I was thrown into the gaps of my schedule without a moment to ponder.

Ah! Author Moon has arrived!

Hello, PD-nim.

A BMB variety show PD, whose face I had grown familiar with after a few meetings, greeted me with a bright smile.

Today is the first meeting day for the new variety show Im joining. Its a show where intelligent people come together for a trip. If it feels like youve seen something like this before, youre not mistaken. After all, when one variety show format succeeds, its common for others to follow suit.

Lim Yang-wook decided that proving my level of knowledge through broadcasts repeatedly would be advantageous for gaining popularity, and as a result, he placed me in a variety show where I could flaunt my intellect.

And there was another advantage.

Author Moon! Welcome.

Hello, author-nim.

Ha-ha! Its nice to see everyone here, welcome.

Gu Hak-jun was a regular member of this variety show.

He warmly welcomed me, placing his hand on my shoulder and introducing me to the other members. The first meeting occurred in a respectful atmosphere, as all the members were of considerable age.

Of course, this scene was also being filmed.

Just as the initial greetings were concluding.

The PD gave us some additional announcements.

Ah, everyone. Along with Moon In-seop, we have invited another guest for this shoot.

The PD, beaming with a smile, announced that they had managed to secure another participant for the show at the last minute, introducing the new addition.

Let me introduce you! The winner of the Golden Bear Award at the Berlin International Film Festival, a representative director of Korea!

Ah.

Please, no.

*****

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