Chapter 24
Chapter 24
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 24
Chapter Title: A Blind Date, Maybe... (1)
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I showered diligently and dressed in some reasonably clean clothes before heading out.
Even if I wasn't someone who usually paid much attention to my outfits, I didn't want to look shabby in Gangnam.
“Ugh… Why are there so many damn people?”
As expected, Gangnam Station on a weekend was so packed with people there was hardly room to breathe.
Like most developers, I was a homebody at heart.
That damn Yoon Byeongjong… What on earth has gotten into him?
I wasn't used to such bustling places, and just as expected, a headache was already setting in.
As I climbed the stairs of Exit 11, I called Byeongjong.
<<Hello?>>
“Hey, where do I go? I’m coming up from Exit 11 now.”
<<Ah, I’ll send you a location on Kotok right now, so come straight here.>>
“Huh? Where is…”
Click-
The call ended before I could even finish my sentence.
What’s with this guy?
If we were setting a meeting spot, I was usually the one to pick it. He wasn't the type to just tell me where to go…
I opened Kotok and checked the location Byeongjong had sent.
“An Italian restaurant… ‘Bium’? He went here?”
The strange sense of unease I’d been feeling since earlier grew stronger.
Yoon Byeongjong was a die-hard fan of Korean food, through and through.
Gukbap, jokbal, ppyeohaejangguk, kongnamulguk…
-"Hey, for that price, you could get a piping hot bowl of gukbap with rice! Who needs pasta?!"-
He was the spitting image of one of those "gukbap purists" that had recently become a meme.
No matter how much money he made, he’d always say that food from other countries just didn't suit his palate…
For a guy like that to be at an Italian restaurant meant he was definitely up to something.
Haa… I hope it’s nothing serious.
Feeling a strange weight settle on my shoulders, I headed toward the location marked on the map.
'Yoon Byeongjong came to a trendy place like this to see me? Pigs must be flying.'
The Italian restaurant had clearly put a lot of effort into its sign, right from the entrance.
To make matters worse, when I stepped inside, I was greeted by a modern interior and decor reminiscent of a Gyeongseong-era coffee house.
Sorry to say it about my friend, but this place didn't suit Yoon Byeongjong one bit.
“Oh, hey, Jo Hyunsoo! Over here.”
“Ah… huh?”
I saw Yoon Byeongjong waving from a distance, his familiar voice calling out.
Neatly slicked-back pomade hair, a casual suit, and a well-complexioned face from a layer of CC cream.
He looked so polished that I wondered if he was the same Yoon Byeongjong I knew.
And sitting across from him were two women, watching me with faint smiles on their faces.
'Ah... so that's what this is, huh?'
Roughly guessing the situation, I bowed my head to the two women in greeting.
Byeongjong then pointed at me and introduced me.
“This is my friend I was telling you about, Jo Hyunsoo. Hyunsoo, these are authors who publish on the same platform as me. This is Author Kim Yeon, who writes ‘Blow, Wind’…”
Honey was practically dripping from Yoon Byeongjong's eyes as he gazed at the woman named Author Kim Yeon.
After being friends for decades, you just know.
Yoon Byeongjong was completely smitten with this author, Kim Yeon.
He’d somehow arranged this meeting, and feeling uncomfortable with a one-on-one, he must have dragged me along.
This… was painfully obvious.
Ah… Byeongjong, you may be lonely, but did you have to drag my weekend into your love life?
I’m definitely using this as an excuse to make him buy me some expensive drinks next time.
“And this is Author Seol Rokhui, who previously wrote ‘Fairy Tale Within a Fairy Tale’ and is now preparing her next work.”
“Hello. I’ve heard a lot about you! I’m a fan of Forgotten Andersen's Story.”
A woman with a pale face, a short haircut, and the haughty impression of a cat smiled lightly and greeted me.
That bastard Yoon Byeongjong… I remember him texting me the other day, asking if he could tell someone I was the developer of 'Forgotten Andersen's Story.' It seems he used it for this.
It was absurd, but I also felt a bit of pity, thinking how desperate he must have been.
Oh, my friend…
“Ah, so you’ve played my game. Thank you.”
In any case, there was no reason for me to be rude to a fan of my game, so I replied politely.
Just then, something poked me in the side.
Glancing over, I saw Yoon Byeongjong mouthing words silently.
From his lip movements, I could roughly make out, "Do your best…"
Oh, for crying out loud…
“We’ll have one Margherita pizza, a pollack roe pasta, a diabolo risotto, and a green cheese salad…”
We each ordered a dish and added a pizza to share.
Watching Yoon Byeongjong skillfully place the order with the waiter, I was struck by the incredible power of loneliness.
Normally, he’d be spouting off things like "I hate pasta" or "I don't get why people eat Western food," sounding like some 19th-century isolationist.
“Author Byeongjong, what have you been up to lately?”
“Ah, I’m working on my manuscript as fast as I can to wrap up the current season. Author Kim Yeon, your story is also approaching its climax, isn’t it?”
“Oh, you’ve been reading my work.”
“Of course, I follow every paid chapter of ‘Blow, Wind’ as soon as it’s out. I really like the character Seokjin-hyeong, his gaze! That charisma!”
The author, Kim Yeon, didn't seem uninterested in Byeongjong either, as the two of them bantered back and forth effortlessly.
The woman across from me, her name was… Seol Rokhui, was it?
In any case, the two of us couldn't find a natural opening to join the conversation.
Hey… if you two are the reason we’re all here, don't just exclude us…
It was awkward, so I had to say something.
“Haha, Author-nim, what are you preparing for your new work?”
I casually tossed out a topic.
Just as I agonized over new projects, I figured it would be similar for webtoons, since it’s also in the realm of content creation.
“Ah… I’m still thinking about it. I guess you could say I’ve run out of stories to tell. I want to plan something, but a theme that makes me think, ‘This is it!’ just hasn't come to me, so I’m in a bit of a slump.”
“Oh, really? I had a similar experience not too long ago, so I was quite worried myself.”
It seemed people were the same everywhere, as Ms. Rokhui was facing a similar dilemma.
The phenomenon of running out of things to say after finishing a long project.
Since I had also experienced this until recently, I was able to continue the conversation naturally.
“So I was talking with my parents about dreams, and suddenly a new theme popped into my head. It made me want to tell a story about parents and dreams, so I’ve settled on that theme and have been developing it ever since.”
“Wow, I’m looking forward to it. Forgotten Andersen's Story had such lyrical emotional lines and direction, and it really knew how to tug at people's heartstrings. To think of that being applied to the theme of parents, I feel my heartstrings being tugged already.”
Perhaps because we were both in the business of creating stories, albeit in different fields.
I felt that despite it being our first meeting, the conversation with Author Seol Rokhui was flowing quite well.
The conversation was so enjoyable that it made me forgive Yoon Byeongjong's blunder today to some extent.
“I remember the emotional lines in your work, ‘Fairy Tale Within a Fairy Tale,’ being excellent as well. The scene where the world of the fairy tale and reality blend together while watching the morning sunrise was truly impressive.”
“Oh? Mr. Hyunsoo, you’ve read my work too?”
“Yes, yes. Since it used a similar theme of fairy tales, I looked into many different works. I’m sure it influenced me to some degree.”
“Wow… that’s amazing, to think that my work might have had even a small influence on Forgotten Andersen's Story…”
Moreover, her previous work, 'Fairy Tale Within a Fairy Tale,' was something I had read parts of—though not the entire webtoon—for reference when making Forgotten Andersen's Story, so it wasn't hard to find things to talk about.
Fairy tales, story creators, content producers, similar age group, and so on…
Excluding the people I had met at work, this was the first time I had met someone with whom I had so much in common.
“Your Margherita pizza is here first.”
As we talked, the food began to arrive one by one.
The food was delicious, the conversation was enjoyable, and the restaurant's atmosphere was pleasant.
Feeling like I was finally having a proper weekend for the first time in a while, my spirits lifted slightly, and I decided to enjoy it to the fullest.
“Author-nim, excuse me, I need to use the restroom for a moment.”
“Ah, yes, of course.”
“I’ll go with you, Jo Hyunsoo.”
A moment later, as I stood up to go to the restroom, Yoon Byeongjong got up to follow.
As I was standing at the urinal taking care of important business, Byeongjong stood right next to me, staring intently as he spoke.
“Hey, Jo Hyunsoo, you seem to be getting along well with Author Seol Rokhui. You should give it a shot. I think you two are a perfect match.”
“What do you mean, ‘give it a shot’? We just met today. And didn't you set this whole thing up because you wanted to hit it off with the lady sitting across from you?”
“You little punk, you catch on quick. I thought she’d feel burdened if it was just one-on-one, so I used you as an excuse to set this up. Hyunsoo, help your big bro out with his love life today, will ya?”
“Fine… I guess I have to. In return, you’re buying drinks next time. Something expensive.”
We each finished our business and washed our hands.
Yoon Byeongjong smoothed his hair and spoke.
“Why, you don’t like Author Seol Rokhui? Not your type?”
“It’s not that…”
“Then what do you think of her?”
To be honest, Author Seol Rokhui was a beauty, no questions asked.
She didn't have a flashy vibe, but the mysterious feeling her face gave off was charming.
Moreover, she seemed like a sophisticated person who knew how to dress and do her makeup in a way that suited her.
“I’m not the kind of guy to judge your colleague’s appearance after meeting her for the first time, am I?”
“Well, I’ll take that as you’re interested.”
“Even if I am interested, and she is too, would we even have time for anything, being so busy?”
“Hey, that’s why you can be understanding of each other’s work. Why are you getting scared before you even start? Just get her number, start as friends, and take it slow. Sheesh, I ask if you’re interested and you look like you’re ready to sprint to the wedding hall.”
At that moment, I fell into thought.
Dating… I had been so madly focused on making games for the past few years that I hadn't seriously considered it.
I had thought of it as a cumbersome and unnecessary distraction from achieving my dream.
But now, something I couldn't quite define—different thoughts and emotions—was slowly stirring within me.
“Hey, let’s go.”
After we returned, the pleasant conversation continued.
The separate 2-on-2 conversations began to merge into one, and to an outsider, it probably looked like two couples on a double date.
The food slowly disappeared from the plates, and conversation began to take a bit more effort.
Yoon Byeongjong, sensing the mood, was the first to speak.
“Where should we go for the second round? Let’s decide before we leave.”
A difficult question.
A place suitable for four people, a man and a woman each, that wouldn't break the current mood and would allow it to continue.
Screen baseball? Pool? A bar? Bowling?
Vague ideas came to mind, but none of them felt quite right.
My romance cells had died off long ago, so there was no way I could give a clear answer to such a question.
Just then, Seol Rokhui’s lips curved into a slight smile as she spoke.
“How about an escape room cafe? I know a good place near here.”