So today is the best day ever for our 'Team Lee Sang.'
Geumhong successfully obtained a Level 2 barista certification,
Jihoon debuted as a critic,
I moved to a better house.
We drank a lot of melon wine.
Jihoon was momentarily stunned by the sudden debut.
Soon, he was laughing and acting playfully as usual.
I thought I would at least shed a tear after all the hardships I've been through.
Geumhong played well and returned home around ten o'clock.
As I was slowly tidying up, Jihoon said.
"Hyung." "Would you like another drink?"
With a completely different, serious expression than a moment ago.
"Good."
"Since melon is precious, let's drink beer."
"I'll stop drinking alcohol." "Is it okay if I drink some water?"
"How cruel." Okay, then.
Jihoon opened a can of beer by himself.
Maybe because I was in such a good mood, I didn't feel drunk even though I had quite a bit to drink.
"Is Song Ji-hoon a critic now?" I need to study a lot.
"Critic..."
Jihoon muttered.
"Hyung." I'm saying this because I'm drunk, but... I really think meeting you was a stroke of luck.
"That's all I needed to know."
"It's not just talk." Having you around made it possible for me to endure the miserable graduate school life, and it was you who encouraged me to publish the critique. Moreover, your novel... aren't you really, really a genius? How can you change my life?
Jihoon leaned his body towards me and asked.
"Uh." I'm really, really a genius.
"... I like that you don't know how to be humble."
"You hate people who are different on the outside and inside, right?"
"Anyway,"
Jihoon gulped down the beer.
"Ugh... I look forward to working with you, brother." I'll trust and follow you, brother.
"What are you talking about?" What if a critic believes a novelist? If you're a critic, you have to nitpick and nag at the novelist.
"I won't make such a criticism!"
"Then?"
"I will give a critique that makes novelists want to write novels." Ah, of course, please take good care of me as my manager too-”
Jihoon thumped his forehead against the table with a bang.
Drunk, this guy.
But since we're on the topic, I should mention this.
"I'm going to start my own business soon." At that time, wrote a formal contract and was my manager. Of course, I will continue my critical activities as well.
Jihoon suddenly looked up.
"Really?"
"Okay." There are managements that take care of pure literature writers, but... I think it's better to trust you than to get entangled with them. I waited until you made your debut. I'm worried that I might give up on literature, which I was doing well in, because of me.
The business owner may not be urgently needed right now, but...
It is a decision made for the future.
Also, in terms of tax processing, this side is better.
"I got two jobs today." Critic and manager. It's the best, right? Is it my birthday?
Got it. Let's talk about the details later, stop it and get up. Go and grow.
Then Jihoon shook his head vigorously.
"I'm not drunk." I still have to post something on SNS.
"Aren't you tired?" Do it tomorrow.
"Hyung." In the world of social media, there is no tomorrow. Do you ignore the influxes that come in the early morning? It's the perfect time to look at people's phones, we absolutely can't miss it.
...Well, he's funny but reliable.
Jihoon really turned on the chirper.
And then, while leaving some comments, I hesitated.
"...Hyung."
"Why?"
"... I guess we really are going to become something."
"What are you talking about?"
Jihoon looked at me with wide eyes.
"Hiruki tagged your account, bro."
"... Hiruki?"
"Murakami Hiruki!"
"... 'that' Haruki Murakami?"
"Th-this, look at this."
Jihoon showed me his phone.
On Jihoon's phone screen, which was logged into my account, there was a post from Hiruki.
"By the way... what did you write here?" I don't know anything except for the word "이상."
"...That's it, he's the real deal."
"...Gasp."
Jihoon covered his mouth.
"...Hiruki wrote it down."
Please provide the text you would like to have translated.
‘That's it, he's the real deal’
Hiruki's feed caused quite a stir for me.
The first to react, as expected, was the newspaper.
Reporters from all the newspapers' culture sections called me.
The point was one thing.
What do you think about -Hiruki's tag and the phrase "Strange, he's real"?
What do you think? I appreciate it.
I was truly experiencing the power of Haruki Murakami.
The harsh criticism from the literary community completely disappeared within a day.
The number of payments on the Japanese page has increased several times.
However, I couldn't even get a single interview.
It's because I've been incredibly busy.
The flood of script meetings and the detailed revisions that follow.
The drama was a task that required a lot of effort in various ways.
Also, the article came out well even without an interview.
Articles like "Hiruki Recognizes Newcomer Writer Lee Sang" were pouring out several times a day.
But... there was one message I couldn't avoid either.
-Author Lee Sang, this is reporter Seo In-hee. It's been a while. Could we have a short interview about this time's Hiruki's Twitter feed? Just a phone call is fine.
I can't refuse Seok-jo's request.
Hasn't she consistently written good articles about me since I debuted?
Since it's come to this, let's do an exclusive interview as a way of repaying the favor.
I talked to her on the phone in the taxi on the way to Amplix.
-Author Lee Sang! How have you been? At the last Emflix Awards, I had an assignment, so I sent a junior. That day too, you shared a lot of wonderful words.
So that's why we couldn't meet. I saw the Y Daily article. Thank you for writing positively.
-I'm more grateful. You must be very busy, but thank you for accepting this interview...
"Of course, we should do the interview with Reporter Seo." There's loyalty.
-Hahaha... It's an honor. Then I'll proceed quickly. Haruki Murakami left a piece saying, "Strange, he is real." What did you think when you first saw that post?
"Um... I was surprised." I was thinking, "You've been reading my posts all this time..." "Actually, I still can't quite grasp it."
What aspect of the author Lee Sang made the author Hiruki use the term 'real'?
Well... Isn't it because there are points of connection as fellow writers? The important thing is that these kinds of meetings are a benefit of Internet culture that didn't exist in the past. This part seems to be extremely important.
-You mean the homepage, right?
Yes. If it weren't for the website, the chances of author Hiruki reading my writing would be close to zero.
-I see. Then, do you have any words to leave for author Hiruki?
"...It is a true honor." And I look forward to your new work.
- Is it over?
"It's over."
-It's simple.
"Please write the article well." I don't want to come across as arrogant. I'm a bit cautious about it.
-Please take care of it. Then, I'll send you the draft of the article once it's ready.
Yes. Please.
As expected, reporter Seo's article spread like wildfire.
On social media, it immediately caused a stir.
Isn't he famous for being a writer who doesn't follow Hiroki? That great author tagged Lee Sang first?
Look at the number of views on the homepage. I never had much interest in Japanese people. Hiruki is probably one of them too.
-I'm a remaining pure literature enthusiast, and I'm sincerely hoping for a meeting between Lee Sang and Hiruki.
-Does it turn into a literary Korea-Japan match when we meet? I'm a fan of Hiruki, so does that make me a traitor?
-I really hope the two of them meet. Like Beethoven and Mozart meeting!
-Beethoven and Mozart met once and didn't get along, so they never saw each other again... right?
The situation in the Zainichi Korean community was similar.
However, the Japanese community is like, "Suddenly, a Korean author?"They're testing the waters with that kind of atmosphere.
By the way, a meeting with Hiruki?
That was... a strange feeling.
As a writer of 'Joseon' who lived during the Japanese colonial period,
My feelings towards Japan are not simple.
October 1936.
In my time, it was just 2 years ago.
I came to Japan to expand my literary world, but I was falsely accused of being a thought criminal and endured severe hardships.
At that time, the worsening tuberculosis eventually led me to my death.
Of course, just because my past is like this, I don't have any ill feelings towards Japan now.
Whether they are Korean, Japanese, or American, they are equally precious readers to me.
I'm just grateful that you take the time to read my writing.
However, the case of the 'Japanese author' is different.
When writers like me from Joseon were dying like that,
Japanese writers have solidified the level of Japanese literature through their stable writing.
And their descendant is none other than Haruki Murakami.
I know it rationally too.
He didn't do anything wrong.
That forming a friendship with him is absolutely beneficial for me.
But this is a matter beyond understanding the pros and cons.
It is a matter of the 'wound' that remains in my heart.
It is also an unavoidable 'sense of competition' with Japanese authors.
...The human heart is so difficult.
Please provide the text you would like to have translated.
The impact of Haruki Murakami was not over yet.
It was the day of the special lecture at Korea University.
It was a large underground auditorium that was usually filled with people, but,
Today, the students filled even the stairs.
Teaching assistant Han Seung spoke as if he was worried.
"It seems like a lot of students are attending the class because of Hiruki's tweets."
"I can't let the students who came in go, so I'll try to proceed well."
As I stepped onto the podium, curious eyes were fixed on me.
The atmosphere in the lecture was strangely chaotic.
Instead of greeting, I said this.
"Today, there seem to be quite a few audit students."
A low laugh was heard.
It wasn't the usual pretentious atmosphere of the 'Advanced Creative Writing' class.
There must be students here just out of curiosity.
There is only one way.
Making them focus on the lecture.
"Why does a writer write?"
I asked.
At the sudden question, silence fell.
The answer is one. I write for the readers.