Chapter 165

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Translator: penny

Chapter: 165

Chapter Title: Convincing Han Aebom

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With my mouth clamped shut tight, I bolted for the bathroom.

「Thud, splash!」

The moment I slammed the door, I splashed water on my face and checked the mirror.

Crazy... My eyes were bloodshot red, screaming to anyone who looked that I'd been crying.

"Ha, this is driving me nuts."

I didn't even need to pee or anything, but ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠I couldn't bring myself to leave the bathroom. I felt like dying of embarrassment, seriously.

Me, crying while writing a novel? A web novel, no less?

"Argh, fuck..."

In the cramped, musty bathroom, I cupped my face in both hands and paced back and forth. My heart pounded from the sheer shame.

"Whew."

After a few deep breaths, the excitement finally started to settle.

I muttered to my reflection in the mirror.

"It was fun, though."

If I hadn't shown that embarrassing side at the end—or if I'd just written it alone at home—it would've been downright satisfying.

Just 5,500 characters.

But writing them stirred up so many real emotions. The gloom from back then, the regret and pity for my pathetic self. How flustered and heart-pounding it was when Oh Hana showed up unannounced at the studio apartment.

And finally, I realized anew just how much I'd been saved—and how grateful I felt—by Oh Hana and all the women living with me now.

"......"

It was embarrassing, but shedding those tears left me feeling refreshed.

"Writing really is something else."

They were vague feelings I'd only sensed faintly before. But putting them into words sharpened their outlines bit by bit, until they welled up from deep inside without me even realizing.

That's why I hadn't noticed I was crying until Song Ayoung asked. My eyes had just felt a little warm.

"Whew, anyway, let's put that aside for now."

Just thinking about facing Song Ayoung back in the classroom made my head throb.

I shook my head, forcing my thoughts in a different direction.

Web novels are pretty amazing too.

Until today—until I experienced it firsthand—I'd had this preconception, I guess.

Web novels just didn't seem quite on the level of pure literature. Couldn't be helped. What I'd learned in school growing up never included "web novels."

People think in terms of what they've been taught, right? What can you do?

Truth is, I still wasn't fully convinced.

"Web novels, web novels..."

They're definitely impressive.

With all the news articles and buzz lately, they're no longer some niche thing for a tiny crowd. Still, boldly telling Han Aebom to pivot to web novels left a lingering unease.

What if it fails?

That was the biggest hurdle. Not just for me—probably for everyone.

Fear of failure.

Han Aebom trusted me enough to switch directions, and after pouring in all that time and effort, if it ended up as nothing but jerk-off material for memories?

With her personality, she wouldn't blame me. Which made it even worse.

"In the end, it was my choice, so there's no need for you to feel guilty or sorry, Hyunwoo. I'd actually hate that more."

She'd say something like that. I could see it coming without even looking.

But how could I not feel sorry? How could I not feel guilty!

I wasn't the type who could ruin someone's life and shrug it off with, "It wasn't my life, so you should've handled it better."

"Tsk, whew."

Still, I knew I couldn't just run away forever. I wasn't a kid anymore.

No choice in this world comes without risk, big or small. Unless someone handed me the perfect answer, that was just how it was.

Or so I'd thought...

Guess my case was a little different.

*

All the thoughts and emotions cluttering my head vanished in an instant.

Dopamine flooded in to fill the void—way more than I could handle. Like a gambler who'd lost all day, only to hit the motherlode jackpot at the end. Must feel something like this.

Fireworks exploding in my brain, so thrilling and exciting my eyes stung for no reason.

Once you get a taste of this, you can never escape.

Something like that was written on a blog by a guy who'd gambled for over 15 years.

I get it completely.

I'd already ditched the mindset of "don't get swept up in this." Experiences proved it was impossible. I'd been hoping for this moment ever since signing up for the academy.

And now, it had arrived—totally unexpectedly.

The moment that message popped up, all my agonizing dilemmas melted away like snow. Felt like a perfect bowel movement.

Whew, this is insane.

I get why so many rulers keep top problem-solvers close. Stress is the root of all evil, they say. When problems resolve this cleanly, the stress melts away in reverse.

Forget everything else. At least the choice to have Han Aebom write web novels is right.

I wasn't entirely without doubts that the quest could be wrong. But the odds were high it was spot on. Its track record was all the trust I needed.

If I failed following this quest, it wouldn't rattle me as much as my solo freakout earlier. I'd have the quest as an excuse if needed.

That's why people need some wiggle room for excuses.

The weight's different, the weight.

That's why suffocating someone completely—like Oh Hanam trying to do—is so cruel. Though in my case, Han Se-ryong probably kept that from happening...

I shook my head. No way I was letting that creepy bastard ruin my mood now.

Besides, a quest had appeared. But I hadn't completed it yet.

A "convince her" quest means Han Aebom isn't keen on web novels either.

Thinking it over, she was probably even more resistant than me—if not more.

I saw her in a good light because I liked her. Strip that away, and Han Aebom was pretty rigid and stubborn. Not easy to sway...

"Hm."

Just picturing breaking her stubbornness brought a faint groan, but it beat flailing directionless.

「Creeeak!」

I stepped out of the bathroom with a lighter heart. And the moment I headed back to the classroom, I was confronted with the memory I'd forgotten.

"Waaah, Hyunwoo! It's okay to cry! I was so shocked—I thought you'd gone home for good over that!"

Ah. Shit...

Right, I'd fled to the bathroom crying over the web novel. The quest hype had made me forget. As fresh shame surged, I went to rub my face, but Song Ayoung grabbed both my hands and yelled.

"From what I saw, you've got real talent for web novels! No, forget talent—even as a hobby, it'll definitely be useful! Say you land a job at a company, and on downtime, you write it as a side gig? The income's guaranteed to be solid..."

"Teacher."

I said confidently,

"I'm done with writing web novels. I've got the direction locked in now."

"...Pardon?"

Song Ayoung's eyes went wide at my 180 after a quick bathroom break. Then she ventured carefully,

"You must've been really embarrassed."

Not quite.

*

With the quest shaking off my hesitation, my actions had no brakes.

"Teacher, can I stick around the academy longer if I want?"

"Of course! Other classes, maybe not, but ahem! Since you're the only one in the weekend web novel class, you can stay till night! And with you here, I can boldly hang in the classroom too."

"Got it. Then, could you help me out a bit?"

"Huh? If a student asks, as a teacher—or instructor—I can't say no. Help with what? Not writing a novel, right?"

"I'll explain step by step, so sit at the computer next to me first."

Click. This time, I turned on Song Ayoung's computer and pulled out her chair.

"O-okay..."

Like teacher and student roles had flipped, Song Ayoung hesitantly settled into the chair.

I neatly pasted web novel-related articles into a PowerPoint as I spoke.

"Could you search for oppa novels that really tug at the heartstrings? Bonus if they make you cry reading them."

"Like how you cried earlier?"

"...Yeah, sure. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠That'd be perfect."

Caught off guard, I answered awkwardly, and Song Ayoung giggled happily.

"Heehee, sorry. Your reactions are just so cute, Hyunwoo... Oh, do guys hate being called cute? I like it, though."

"...?"

What reaction was she fishing for?

I stared at her, genuinely puzzled, and she peeked at my expression before thumping her full C-cup breasts proudly.

"Ahem! Just trust me. Oppa novels are usually romance or romance fantasy. And I'm an expert there. Touching stories like that? Rare these days. But as a romance fantasy pro, I can find 'em!"

"Ah, okay..."

"That's why I can! Because it's me!"

"Wow, impressive."

I gave a casual reaction and refocused on my work, but suddenly Song Ayoung was clinging to my arm, cheeks puffed out.

What now? With another ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠woman, I'd wonder if she had a crush and was flirting via skinship. But Song Ayoung wasn't that type, from what I'd seen.

"Put some real feeling into your reaction!"

"Woooow!"

I clapped and cheered enthusiastically, and only then did she flash ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a satisfied smile, diving into novel lists.

She's the type who lives for reactions, huh.

I kinda got why Song Ayoung had been a novelist. At the same time, someone who loved reactions that much—why quit writing to teach here? The outline started forming.

Even if I was right, though, nothing I could really do about it.

The most I could offer was cheerleading.

"Alright, let's do this! Go team! Fight!"

"Yeah! Let's go! Fighting!"

Song Ayoung, with you? You can conquer anything.

Hang in there.

「Tap tap, clack!」

I poured into the presentation materials, cheering her on inwardly one more time. From everything I'd seen so far, she was a good person, no doubt.

If I had any spare bandwidth, I might've pried a bit.

Sorry. I'm desperate here too—no room to look elsewhere.

It wasn't until Sunday night that the file was done.

I held my breath staring at the finished product. Scouring my whole life, I'd never put this much care into a presentation with zero weak spots. Yet the tension and fear wouldn't budge.

Couldn't be helped—the audience was who she was.

Monday afternoon.

As if it were routine, I spoke up while Han Aebom sat at her computer.

"Aebom, let's talk."