The Great Storyteller

Translated by: ShawnSuh

Edited by: SootyOwl

Sitting in the backmost seat of a moving bus, Seo Kwang was preoccupied with talking on the phone. Although his phone was starting to get quite hot, he didn’t mind it one bit.

“And then…”

“Hey.”

“What was that? You wanna read it too?”

Then, Seo Kwang stopped talking all of a sudden as a loud sigh came from the receiver.

“You’re really pushing it.”

It was Sun Hwa, who seemed to have gotten home late from her part-time job. Her voice was starting to grow more and more tired and irritable. Initially, Seo Kwang had called her to beg her to listen to him, saying that it was OK even if she were to fall asleep. However, upon reaching the one-hour mark, she found herself at her limit.

“What do you mean?” Seo Kwang asked, playing coy.

“I said call Bom!”

“I mean… of course, I’ve tried that! She shut me down by saying that she was in the middle of writing. She was probably inspired by me,” Seo Kwang said. However, before he had time to continue, Sun Hwa cut him off mid-sentence and said, “Then, try Baron.”

“He’s busy with a contest as well.”

“Then, Bo Suk.”

“She had too many questions.”

“What about the twins?”

“Eh, I don’t know about that. I should be an example to them, especially before an interview.”

“So, you do have some self-respect.”

Unable to think of an answer, Seo Kwang chuckled.

“Don’t you have any friends?”

“You’re the only one, friend.”

“I’m hanging up,” Sun Hwa said, hanging up after giving some haphazard encouragement. With the warm phone in his hand, Seo Kwang looked out the window at the scenery rushing past. As the bus drew near to his destination, Seo Kwang pressed the stop button and placed his hand on his chest, murmuring, “It’s OK. You got this. It’s just an interview. All you gotta do is prove yourself. I can answer any question they throw at me. All the books I’ve read all these years have to count for something. Besides, we used to do this all the time back in the Literature Club with our self-introductions.”

Standing in front of Zelkova’s building, Seo Kwang took a deep breath, remembering how ecstatic he had been when he had passed the first round while being reminded of how intimidating the second round was. Should he get eliminated, there would be no second chance.

“Well, I might as well enjoy myself while I’m here. Let’s not get too nervous. I’m confident that I have what it takes as a translator. Though, this is an interview… Eh, how different could it be from the college admissions interview? All interviews are the same.”

At that moment, Seo Kwang realized that he was talking a lot more than usual. At which point, he remembered what Juho had told him: “You become more talkative when you’re nervous, don’t you?” Unfortunately, Juho had been right. Seo Kwang was clearly nervous.

“Are you here for the interview?” an employee asked. At which point, Seo Kwang stopped talking to himself and replied, “Yes, I am.”

The employee pointed toward a stairway, adding that he’d find map printouts on the wall showing him where to go. At the end of a long hallway, was the waiting room, and there was a restroom nearby. Going into the restroom, Seo Kwang washed his hands for no apparent reason before entering the waiting room. When he opened the door cautiously, he saw that there were a few people who had arrived before him. Nobody said anything to each other. Then, as Seo Kwang sat down, he heard somebody talking behind him. Two people seemed to know each other.

“I’ve never competed in a contest before.”

“It’s pretty fun, actually.”

Judging from their conversation, one of them seemed to have experience competing. Trying to keep his legs from shaking, Seo Kwang took out his phone. Although he didn’t necessarily have anything to do or look at, he felt the need to help himself get through the uncomfortable silence. On the other hand, there were some contestants who seemed to be doing some research prior to the interview. While Seo Kwang was moving his fingers idly, somebody sat next to him and greeted him.

“Hello.”

Appearing to be around thirty, he smelled of cigarettes. After observing the man briefly, Seo Kwang gave him a nod and said, “Hello.”

“So, you made it through the first round, huh?”

“That’s right.”

“If you don’t mind me asking, how old are you?”

“I’m twenty-four.”

“Wow, you’re young!”

Seo Kwang chuckled quietly. There was no use trying to appear and sound ambitious at that moment.

“Do you like Yun Woo?” the man asked. He seemed to be quite bored. He had to have found Seo Kwang while looking for someone to talk to. In response, Seo Kwang decided to welcome the situation to stave off his anxiety.

“I better, right? I mean, I might be translating for him,” Seo Kwang said.

“That’s a good answer.”

“Well, what about you?”

“Not as good of a question, though.”

At the man’s seemingly provocative remark, Seo Kwang suppressed his urge to not act on his emotions. After a brief pause, the man replied, “No comment. Let’s leave it at that.”

“I thought you said it wasn’t as good a question?”

“Sure, but we gotta consider our surroundings too.”

Seo Kwang couldn’t make sense of what the man had meant. After thinking for some time, Seo Kwang said, “Are you, by any chance…”

“What was that?”

“… Nevermind.”

‘There’s no way that he wouldn’t like Yun Woo when he’s made it through the first round,’ Seo Kwang thought to himself, shaking his head.

“You must have done a pretty good job translating that sample.” the man said.

“I suppose that’s why I’m here,” Seo Kwang replied.

“Then, do you think you could tell me this one thing?”

“What is it?”

“Why would a fish have no gills?”

The man was asking for an interpretation, which was Seo Kwang’s specialty. However, just as Seo Kwang opened his mouth to speak, the man raised his hand and interjected, “That’s because it’s ambivalent,” answering his own question.

“It’s an analogy for describing a person who can’t fit in anywhere. A fish without gills is bound to die sooner or later, and frankly, humans aren’t all that different when they’re alone. You see, Yun Woo tends to use characters like that a lot.”

“Sure.”

“Whenever I read a scene that reflects that though, I find myself becoming curious.”

Giving the man a disgruntled look, Seo Kwang asked, “About?”

“Where Yun Woo thinks he belongs. A young, anonymous genius author. A celebrity loved by the media. The Great Storyteller with a massively successful career. Oh, let’s not forget translator. Now, he’s an adult. Yun Woo. Won Yi Young. Juho Woo. What do you think?” the man asked, waiting for Seo Kwang’s answer that time.

Looking into the distance, Seo Kwang replied, “I don’t know what he sees.”

“He seems like he’s looking at himself, but at the same time, something tells me that he’s not,” he added.

“That’s a boring answer,” the man replied.

However, Seo Kwang paid no attention to his reply and kept on, “What dawned on me while I was translating was that Yun Woo didn’t make the sample for the sake of testing purposes. Everyone knows that Yun Woo excels when it comes to the subject of death. The way I see, I’m sure that he wrote that story about the fish with complete honesty.”

“So?”

“So, maybe…” Seo Kwang blurted out the first thought that occurred to him, “… He’s actually died once.”

The man snorted at Seo Kwang’s response.

“C’mon, now. What sense does that make?”

“Right?” Seo Kwang said, playing along reluctantly and looking away. Before he realized it, the waiting room had already gotten half-full. When he checked the time, there were about thirty minutes left until the interview.

“Have you ever met Yun Woo?” the man asked when Seo Kwang came back to his seat with a cup of green tea. Although he wasn’t really thirsty, Seo Kwang needed something in his hands.

“Why do you ask?”

“Just curious. I haven’t.”

“I have.”

“Huh. Where?”

“… At the signing event.”

Of course, Seo Kwang wasn’t referring to the official signing event the author had held at the bookstore. Rather, Seo Kwang was referring to the time when he had gotten the young author’s autograph while they had still been in high school. At Seo Kwang’s reply, the corner of the man’s mouth twitched.

“You really like Yun Woo, don’t you?”

“I believe that’s the first step to being a translator: loving the author.”

Clicking his tongue, the man said, “You mean their work.”

“So, you do like Yun Woo’s work.”

“I sure do. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be here,” the man replied. After staring intently at him, Seo Kwang nodded.

At that moment…

“Wait, isn’t that Yun Woo?”

… The two people who had been conversing behind Seo Kwang were lingering around the waiting room door.

“Isn’t that the president?”

Everyone listened intently from their places, cautious not to make any sudden movements. Meanwhile, Seo Kwang walked toward the author and the president and looked out the door.

“It is him!”

There were about five to six people standing on the stairway, obviously the higher-ups of the company. Among them, was Juho, who was interacting with people much older than him while wearing his usual look: calm and serene. Seo Kwang stared long and hard at his friend. At that moment…

“What is this? A zoo?” the man murmured, and Seo Kwang looked up.

Though everyone stared at the man, that was about the extent of their reactions. Seo Kwang slowly made his way back to his seat. Seeing his author friend at a publishing company felt quite strange. It felt like there was a distance between them. Nevertheless, Seo Kwang wasn’t put off by it. If anything, he felt determined.

‘One day, I’m gonna be part of that group. You just wait, Yun Woo.’

“They’re coming this way!”

“Eh?!”

As the footsteps started to grow louder, everyone in the waiting room started straightening their clothes. Seo Kwang, on the other hand, was in a daze, his mouth agape. Eventually, the door opened and somebody came into the room.

“Hello,” Yun Woo greeted the contestants with the same look he had used to interact with the higher-ups just a moment ago. Nobody dared to answer. After looking around the room, Juho asked, “This is the waiting room for the interview, right?”

“Yes, it is,” the man replied in a natural tone of voice… at least for somebody as critical as him.

“What brings you here?” the man asked. Although it sounded calm, there was something about his voice that also felt edgy. Although Seo Kwang and Juho locked eyes with each other, Juho replied as though he hadn’t seen his friend.

“I just had a feeling that we saw each other in the hallway. I was just gonna mosey past the room at first though… I’m not interrupting anybody, am I?” Juho asked, pulling down his hat.

‘You’ll have to do better than a hat if you wanna cover your face,’ Seo Kwang murmured internally.

“Not at all! I’ve been wanting to meet you!”

At that, Yun Woo took a step back, ready to leave at any given minute. Seo Kwang felt his heart thumping. Then, before he knew it…

“Hello.”

… He greeted the author. At which point, Yun Woo stopped in his tracks.

“Yes, hello,” Yun Woo said, greeting Seo Kwang back politely.

“Are you going to be at the interview, Mr. Woo? To spectate, perhaps?” Seo Kwang asked, blurting out whatever words that came to mind.

“No. I’m actually here on work-related business. I won’t be at the interview.”

“Ah, I see.”

“Well, that’s a real bummer,” the man sitting next to Seo Kwang said, interjecting. Seo Kwang stared at him.

“Why?” Juho asked.

“I was hoping to hear your thoughts on my translation.”

Juho chuckled quietly.

“That definitely sounds doable.”

“What does that mean?” the man asked as the corner of his mouth twitched.

“I’ve read everyone’s first-round submissions. I gotta say, they were all rather impressive,” Juho said, adding a few more compliments to the contestants.

“You don’t say,” the man said, looking dissatisfied. He had to be thinking that the author was putting on a show. However, Seo Kwang thought differently. He was well aware that Juho had genuine respect for every contestant in the room.

“I’ve also read your Coin translation, Mr. Woo,” the man said, his eyes glaring intensely. Unfazed, Juho locked eyes with him.

“I really hope that we can work together,” the man said, reaching for a handshake. With a gentle smile, Juho grabbed his hand and said, “Right.”

At the author’s brief answer, Seo Kwang shoved his hands into his pockets.

“Mr. Woo! There you are.”

The new editor-in-chief, who was also the editor in charge of Yun Woo, said while sticking his head into the waiting room. Turning around, Juho said, “Take care, now.”

Just like when he came in, everyone remained silent that time as well. Yun Woo left the room as quickly as he had appeared. When the author left the room, the contestants in the room broke out into a brief commotion, only to return to silence shortly after. Seo Kwang let out a deep sigh. When he left, Yun Woo stirred up a strange sense of excitement, competitive spirit and joy within the contestants. Glancing over to the man sitting next to him, Seo Kwang asked, “How was it meeting Yun Woo in person?”

At that, the man responded as if forcing the words out of his mouth, “He’s all right.”

Chuckling quietly, Seo Kwang closed his eyes. Soon, an employee came into the room and notified them that the interview would be starting soon.