Novelist Running Through Time

TL: KSD

The current Chairman of Baekhak Group was the “second son” who usurped the throne while his elder brother was imprisoned due to political issues.

The media likened this situation to the royal family’s historical precedent, calling it the “Prince’s Revolt” or the “Brother’s War”, and within that context, the Chairman was naturally referred to as the “second son”.

Moon In-seop was also familiar with the term “second son”.

The second son.

But the “second son” he met in person looked incredibly old.

“Nice to meet you. You must be Moon In.”

“Hello, Chairman~nim.”

An old man who looked as if he could collapse at any moment, a man who wore a seemingly benevolent smile, yet was the same man who had driven his elder brother into a fate worse than death, greeted Moon In-seop.

“The founder… started the business with a bookstore.”

It took a long and arduous process for Moon In-seop to meet the Chairman. Authority is born from ceremony, after all.

People in black suits visited Baek Seol and Lim Yang-wook, informing them of the schedule. They fussed over Moon In-seop, preparing him for the occasion.

Moon In-seop, dressed in new clothes and freshly instructed in proper etiquette, was once again handed over to the people in black suits. They escorted him by limousine to a high-end Korean restaurant in Seoul.

The staff from the Chairman’s office inspected Moon In-seop to ensure he wasn’t carrying any weapons, leaving him with an uneasy feeling as he was guided to the deepest part of a grand Hanok restaurant.

There, he met the old man.

Not middle-aged, but old. The man commonly referred to as the “second son” was clearly someone who would more fittingly be called “grandfather.”

This grandfather began talking about his own grandfather.

“My grandfather cherished books very much.”

The Chairman didn’t bother mentioning that the founder’s fondness for books stemmed from his inferiority complex as an uneducated man.

Nor did he reveal that as the founder’s second grandson, he had always strived to surpass his elder brother and had studied literature desperately, pretending to know more than he did, just to please his grandfather.

The boy in front of him wasn’t important enough to share such stories with.

So the Chairman simply polished the story.

“Thanks to that, I also developed a deep interest in literature. After all, how could a company dealing in culture neglect books?”

In reality, they were neglecting them.

The publishing business had already failed.

Baekhak Group’s next-generation industries were construction and finance. The younger generation, who didn’t place importance on tradition, had this outlook.

The most innovative and intelligent young minds at Baekhak Group decided that their future lay in abandoning innovation and focusing on exactly the kinds of businesses a privileged conglomerate would typically pursue.

That was their idea of innovation.

And the Chairman probably wouldn’t live to see that innovation.

That innovation would only begin once he was buried in the ground.

The “second son” had invested so much time and life into dethroning his elder brother that by the time he finally achieved his life’s goal, only a handful of time remained for him as an old man.

Now, the only task left for the old man was to firmly secure the position he would pass down to the next generation and to continue his hobby of reading, which had become a habit.

That was why the Chairman had called for Moon In-seop.

He had recently read an interesting novel and simply wanted to meet its author.

It was, in a way, an extension of his hobby.

“So, I have one question for you.”

Of course, he had heard that Baek Do-hyun, who would likely be the first to lose his head once the generation changed, was desperately trying to secure allies by placing his nephew as the head of Baekhak Publishing. The Chairman also wanted to confirm whether Moon In-seop was a “fake idol” fabricated from the beginning for this purpose,.

It wasn’t a complicated matter.

If Moon In-seop turned out to be a nobody, then Baek Do-hyun’s head would be the one to roll.

This question carried that weight.

“How on earth did you write such a novel?”

The Chairman personally poured green tea into Moon In-seop’s porcelain cup as he asked.

Anyone associated with Baekhak Group—or anyone at all—would likely be tense in such a situation.

“Hmm…”

But Moon In-seop wasn’t nervous.

Moon In-seop’s scale was different from others.

Thanks to the different timeline of his life.

So he blurted out the thoughts he had while having his morning coffee.

“Life was suffering.”

“Hmm.”

It was a heavy statement to hear from a middle schooler.

Though he didn’t show it, the Chairman was slightly surprised.

“I was contemplating what kind of novel to write, and a friend suggested that I write about the world. So, when I thought about the world as I saw it, it seemed full of suffering.”

Moon In-seop took a sip of green tea.

The Chairman began to wonder if this kid was just spouting the typical angsty sentiments of adolescence or if he really possessed a profound literary worldview.

And gradually, his confusion leaned toward the latter.

“So, I wondered why the world was so full of suffering, and the answer was obvious. It’s because people torment one another.”

“……”

“I used to think I was bullied because I was an orphan without parents, but after observing how the world operates, I realized it wasn’t necessarily that. People torment others for the most trivial reasons. There’s no distinction between oneself and others in this. People bully and are bullied. It’s as if the roles of perpetrator and victim are internalized within us…”

The Chairman, who had been quietly smiling, seemingly pleased either by the scent of the green tea or by Moon In-seop’s answer, asked:

“This novel could have easily been titled Theory of Evil, couldn’t it?”

“Ah, that’s right. The original title was Theory of Evil.”

“Really? Then why did the title change to Dark Adaptation?”

Unintentionally, the Chairman had guessed the correct answer, and he felt a subtle joy, as if he had gently and naturally revealed his own literary insight.

But it was a lie. The title had always been Dark Adaptation. The mention of Theory of Evil was just Moon In-seop flattering the old man to keep him in good spirits.

Anyway, Moon In-seop was at fault for not having shed the habit of buttering up Gu Hak-jun.

In any case, Moon In-seop explained why the novel’s title was Dark Adaptation and not Theory of Evil.

“The title Theory of Evil merely describes the phenomenon that humans are born evil.”

“That’s true.”

“I thought a little further. How should one live in a world so full of suffering?”

The Chairman found himself waiting for every word that came out of Moon In-seop’s mouth.

It wasn’t a bad feeling.

The words of the young genius continued.

“One must adapt.”

“Hmm.”

The Chairman’s smile deepened.

“One must become accustomed to tormenting others and being tormented. Instead of delving too deeply into sin and darkness, one must become used to living within it…”

Moon In-seop sipped his green tea with a self-mocking smile.

For some reason, the Chairman felt like he understood the reason behind that smile.

“Since those thoughts were included in the novel, it is Dark Adaptation, not Theory of Evil.”

“I see.”

By the end of this interview with the author, the Chairman felt as if he had finally completed his review of the book.

“This is a novel that affirms twisted people, isn’t it?”

“That could be one interpretation.”

“And it’s also a novel that sympathizes with twisted people.”

“That could be another interpretation.”

“Yes. I see.”

It wasn’t exactly the right thing to say in front of the author, but the Chairman felt that this was a novel that only twisted people would appreciate.

Perhaps that was why he was drawn to it—so the Chairman thought.

Yes, he even thought – betraying his brother was something he had to do to survive.

At any rate, the second son felt that, for an author who acknowledged this twisted and ugly human nature, he could at least treat him to a meal.

“Well, the food is here. Enjoy your meal.”

“Thank you. I will.”

Not long after that,

The CEO of Baekhak Publishing changed.

* * *

「I couldn’t accept it.

Because she was no longer the woman who wore a knitted hat and mittens.

She was a woman who liked to gift knitted hats to others.

She was a woman who, every time I used the word ‘mittens’, would promptly correct me to say ‘hand warmer gloves.’

She, the daughter of Jonathan, a pitiful woman who lost two relatives by my hand, was also not on good terms with her father.

Jonathan became a different person after losing his wealth and fortune, and he abused her. In the end, she fled from him.

And at the end of her wandering, she learned that there was money that should not have been given to this wretched murderer, and she came to find me.

But she was someone who knew how to treat people like human beings, so every time I tried to escape into death, she stopped me.

She was my warden, my counselor, the shackle that kept me from escaping this hellish world, and my only reason.

She told me that it was okay to live. I was forgiven by her. I was absolved of the sin of stoning her two relatives to death.

Of course, I know that sin and judgment are illusions. I know she doesn’t have the right to forgive me. But that was the salvation that came to me.

She was the third bluebird that came to me like a miracle.

—No, that woman is a fraud.

—Shut up.

—I have no daughter. You fool. Even after all this…

The pain of white, more cruel than red, visited me again, but I can no longer let the world take the bluebird away from me.

I realized that hoping for light is a form of greed. So I just wish to continue living, even in this darkness.

Even if she is a fraud who deceived me for money, even if the salvation and forgiveness she granted me were all lies.

To survive, I need even such things.

So I stoned Jonathan to death.

Now, the truth is forever shrouded in darkness. His words could have been true, or they could have been lies.

But I intend to submit to that darkness and surrender myself to it.

To escape from this cycle of torment, I must blind myself as if nothing ever happened.

To live, I must accept the darkness. I must become accustomed to tormenting others and being tormented.

Like a fish in a tank that eats its own kind, like a child who crushed a bluebird, and like this wretched beast that stoned three siblings to death…”

“Hmm.”

The handwritten note ended there.

I looked up at the woman who had hanged herself.

A special kind of trash I had to dispose of.

But to someone, it would mean something slightly different.

Is this woman the man’s third bluebird? It seems she couldn’t overcome her guilt after reading this note.

If that’s the case, then the man failed to protect even his last bluebird and ended up killing her with his own hands—what a pitiful outcome.

The man accepted the darkness, but it seems the woman could not. She couldn’t adapt to the darkness.

But as I see it, this so-called darkness is truly insignificant. Could there be anyone in this world who is less shameless?

Compassion is a limited emotion. In this vast world, one cannot care for the circumstances of every other person.

So, if everyone would just live according to their own circumstances, why does this note complicate such a simple truth in such an intricate and bizarre way?

Besides, there’s no guarantee that this diary is even true. Perhaps this woman was an unfortunate novelist who hanged herself in frustration while writing a depressing novel.

Like the man who killed three bluebirds and three siblings, I decided to lightly toss the truth into the darkness.

You shouldn’t look too closely into the darkness. Because when your eyes become accustomed to the darkness, you finally see what’s inside it.

Recalling that simple truth, I decided to close my eyes and move on.

Then, I carefully lowered the special trash hanging from the rope and began cleaning up.

Just like sweeping dust under a carpet where no one can see it, I neatly erased this uncomfortable and foul-smelling existence from the world.

Some might call me a cold-hearted person, but there are always people far more pitiable than this.

It’s something you frequently encounter in this line of work.

I guess I’m more of a crow than a bluebird.」

*****

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