14
ch 14### Letters and Messages (2)
MoonStory was the oldest web novel platform in Korea.
Because of that, it had countless readers who had been reading web novels since they were still called internet novels.
Its readers were known for being extremely critical.
The platform had always operated on a free-to-paid serialization system, making readers even pickier.
More than any other platform, MoonStory chased trends.
Average novels barely received a glance.
On the other hand...
If a truly outstanding novel appeared, readers reacted explosively.
That was why people often said,
"If a novel becomes popular on MoonStory, its quality is guaranteed."
The saying had become common knowledge across novel communities.
"If it succeeds on MoonStory, it'll probably succeed everywhere else."
Other platforms and web novel management companies constantly monitored MoonStory, hoping to recruit promising works.
However...
When Only 10 Seconds as a Genius Idol first debuted, almost nobody cared.
Maybe things would've been different elsewhere.
But idol novels weren't particularly welcomed on MoonStory.
Occasionally one would ride the trend to success.
This wasn't one of those times.
In fact...
Even after eight chapters had been uploaded...
The numbers were disappointing.
Calling it "indifference" would have been more accurate.
"An idol novel? Pass."
"I'm already too busy reading established authors. Why would I read some rookie?"
Even considering it had just launched...
The performance was underwhelming, especially for a novel that had received an advance payment.
Still...
Once something was uploaded, someone was bound to read it.
Only 10 Seconds as a Genius Idol Recommendation — I'm ready to get flamed for this, but this is seriously amazing.
And so...
One reader who genuinely loved the novel decided to recommend it.
That recommendation quickly spread.
"Recommending a novel with fewer than ten chapters? Stop faking it."
"An idol novel on MoonStory? Seriously?"
"If you're going to advertise it, at least make it less obvious."
"Trying to promote an idol novel that's not even trending? Says everything about that company's standards."
The comments were overwhelmingly negative.
First, it hadn't even reached ten chapters.
Second...
It was an idol novel.
But...
Poster: Read it before talking. I don't argue with people who haven't.
"I thought it was fake marketing too, but I read it... It's insanely good."
"I just finished reading it. It's honestly amazing... It hurts seeing people misunderstand this novel."
"Since when did MoonStory users start trashing novels without reading them first? Go read it. It's genuinely good."
Whether because of the novel's own quality...
More and more readers began defending it.
Around the tenth chapter...
Only 10 Seconds as a Genius Idol Recommendation — Just shut up and read it. It's amazing.
Only 10 Seconds as a Genius Idol Recommendation — The only flaw is that there are only ten chapters.
Only 10 Seconds as a Genius Idol Recommendation — I refuse to eat at the same table as anyone who hasn't read this.
There were already more than five recommendation posts.
"How good is this thing for everyone to be making such a fuss?"
"I haven't seen people this excited over one novel in ages."
"If it's not good, I'm reporting every recommendation post."
Every recommendation thread turned into a battlefield.
Ironically...
All the arguments became free publicity.
Curious readers kept pouring in.
Let's see what all the hype is about.
It's probably overrated anyway.
Many entered expecting to criticize it...
Only to end up hooked.
"Holy crap, this is ridiculously good."
"The protagonist's schemes are hilarious."
"They ended the chapter there?!"
Once they started reading...
They couldn't stop.
That was why Only 10 Seconds as a Genius Idol began skyrocketing around chapter ten.
"It's been forever since I read such a fun misunderstanding comedy."
"The ten-second ability is such a brilliant concept."
"The way everyone accidentally worships the protagonist is killing me."
"The pacing is so addictive. I can't stop reading."
"I should've waited until there were more chapters..."
Some readers loved the story itself.
"The protagonist is so innocent he's actually adorable."
"All the group members are hardworking and likable."
"The members' banter is hilarious. They could literally just chat and it'd still be entertaining."
Everyone had different reasons for loving the novel.
But they all wanted the same thing.
"Please release more chapters!"
"I'm dying here. Please upload the next one!"
"Author... We care more about the manuscript than your health."
"If you peacefully release extra chapters, no blood will be spilled."
"Hand over the bonus chapters... or we'll roast you."
"Could you please upload two chapters a day? This is way too good."
All they wanted...
Was the next chapter.
And then...
The long-awaited update arrived.
"...?"
"Is this a bug?"
"Did someone accidentally upload too much?"
Instead of celebrating...
The readers were stunned.
Because...
"Wait... Is this real?"
"What the heck am I looking at?"
"Author, are you serious?"
"HAHAHAHA! This is insane!"
The number of newly uploaded chapters...
Was unbelievable.
---
Some time later.
MoonStory headquarters.
"Hey, PD in charge of Author Shuppa."
Han Gyeongseon had just returned from the restroom.
As he walked past Shin Mijeong's desk, he casually nudged her.
It was partly because she was handling the novel that had completely captivated him.
And partly because teasing his junior was fun.
Normally she would've protested.
"Hey! Don't bother people while they're working!"
Instead...
"Hehe. Yes, Senior."
She was grinning from ear to ear.
"What is with that creepy smile?"
"What?"
"Come on, that's terrifying."
"What happened?"
"Did something good happen?"
"Nothing special."
"I guess... I'm just really satisfied with my job."
"I think I genuinely love this work."
At that moment...
Shin Mijeong looked like the happiest office worker in the world.
At least to Han Gyeongseon.
"Just a few weeks ago you were whining about burnout and saying everything was boring."
"So what's going on?"
"Did Author Shuppa give you some good news?"
"Hehe."
"The author released bonus chapters today."
"Bonus chapters?"
"Already?"
"The novel's still free."
Mass releases meant uploading more than one chapter at once.
Readers loved them.
Authors dreaded them.
Every bonus chapter consumed precious stockpiled content.
During paid serialization, it could boost revenue and maintain readership.
During free serialization...
There was almost no benefit.
Of course, Only 10 Seconds as a Genius Idol already had over 160 completed chapters in reserve.
And based on its numbers...
A paid launch was practically guaranteed.
Wouldn't it have been better to save the mass release until then?
"Still..."
"Think of it as a service before the paid launch."
"So how many chapters?"
"Want to guess?"
"Two?"
"Maybe three?"
"Wrong."
"Then four?"
"Nope."
"...Five?"
"No."
"Then how many?"
Mijeong smiled mischievously.
Then she raised both hands.
One finger.
Two.
Three.
Four.
Five.
Then she kept counting.
Past ten.
Eleven.
Twelve.
Thirteen.
Fourteen.
Finally...
Fifteen.
"...Wait."
"No way."
"Fifteen bonus chapters?!"
---
A little later...
Han Gyeongseon let out a long sigh.
Someone patted him on the shoulder.
"Mijeong..."
He turned around.
"Manager?"
It was Team Manager Kim Sunhye.
"Why do you look so depressed?"
"Shouldn't you be celebrating?"
"Your beloved novel's doing great."
The first thing she mentioned...
Was, of course, Only 10 Seconds as a Genius Idol.
Even she was paying close attention to it.
"It looks like that ten-million-won advance is going to pay off."
"What?"
"Did the author hit a slump?"
Han quickly shook his head.
"No."
"It's because of yesterday's mass release."
"Oh."
"That."
"I was surprised too."
"I never expected fifteen free chapters."
At first glance...
It sounded like the ultimate gift for readers.
But...
Free mass releases were usually a bad idea.
"If it were paid serialization, every chapter would earn money."
"But during free serialization..."
"It can actually hurt the novel."
Readers often thought,
"I'll binge it later."
Then they kept putting it off.
Eventually they forgot altogether.
That was how readers drifted away.
Manager Kim rubbed her chin.
"Then why didn't PD Shin stop him?"
"I asked her."
"She said..."
"The author discussed it with his daughter before deciding."
Both Han Gyeongseon and Shin Mijeong knew.
The driving force behind Yoon Seongjun's writing...
Was his daughter, Yoon Siwoo.
The moment he mentioned his daughter...
There was no changing his mind.
"Even so..."
"A fifteen-chapter free release..."
"Mi-jeong's too soft."
"If I were the editor..."
"This never would've happened."
"'This'?"
Manager Kim blinked.
"Wait."
"You've been sighing because of that?"
"Yes."
"I've been worried."
"Did you even check the novel's page after yesterday?"
"...No."
"I was scared to."
Even someone with Han Gyeongseon's experience had never seen a fifteen-chapter free release before.
He loved the novel.
He couldn't bear the thought of its momentum collapsing.
"Hah."
Manager Kim laughed.
"Go check."
"...What?"
"The statistics."
"Now."
Han nervously opened the novel page.
Then...
"...Huh?"
He rubbed his eyes.
"You've got to be kidding."
"Fifteen bonus chapters..."
"And the retention rate is basically one hundred percent?"
"It almost looks higher than one hundred!"
Almost every reader had read all fifteen chapters.
Not only that...
New readers had flooded in as well.
"And that's not all."
"Compare yesterday's numbers."
He did.
The results were unbelievable.
The first chapter's views had exploded.
Bookmarks had surged.
Recommendations had skyrocketed.
Every major metric had climbed dramatically.
Then someone shouted,
"Manager!"
"Only 10 Seconds as a Genius Idol is number one on MoonStory's trending search!"
It had overtaken every major title.
Even then...
Manager Kim still looked amused.
"That happened yesterday."
"How scared were you?"
"Mi-jeong's been running around celebrating since then."
---
Han Gyeongseon:
Author...
Han Gyeongseon:
I doubted your judgment.
Han Gyeongseon:
Please forgive me.
Han Gyeongseon:
From now on...
Han Gyeongseon:
I'll simply trust you.
Han Gyeongseon:
Loyalty! ^^
"...?"
I wasn't sure why PD Han suddenly sent me such a message.
But...
He seemed happy.
Apparently...
The fifteen-chapter release had gone well.
"I only added five more chapters because I'd already released ten for Siwoo before."
Even PD Shin had opposed the idea initially.
From an industry perspective...
It wasn't considered a wise decision.
But after the fifteen-chapter release...
More readers poured in.
Some even started calling me "Light Shuppa."
Apparently...
I was the light itself.
My Beloved Daughter:
(Comment screenshot)
My Beloved Daughter:
Hehe! Look at all these comments after the mass release!
My Beloved Daughter:
Everyone really loves Dad's novel!
My Beloved Daughter:
I'm so happy! Hehehe!
"I just followed Siwoo's advice."
More than anything...
Seeing Siwoo this happy made me happiest of all.
It had been her idea in the first place.
Everything was thanks to my daughter.
"As expected of Siwoo."
Damn.
I had no choice but to worship her.
The mastermind behind the fifteen-chapter release...
Was Siwoo.
After school, she was heading to Harim's house.
Apparently they planned to spend the whole afternoon talking about Only 10 Seconds as a Genius Idol.
"It still feels strange."
My daughter was discussing my novel with her friends.
Even now...
It felt surreal.
I'd been writing exclusively for Siwoo ever since she was little.
I'd never imagined anyone else reading those stories.
"She used to be so proud that these stories belonged only to her."
Yet...
She had been the first person to share them with someone else.
"Come to think of it..."
"Whenever we talked about novels recently..."
"She looked happy."
"But also lonely."
Whenever Siwoo asked me questions about the story...
I couldn't answer honestly.
Anything I said might become a spoiler.
My idea of what made the story fun might differ from hers.
I wanted to respect her own experience as a reader.
Besides...
Until now...
She had been my only reader.
I had no idea how authors were supposed to answer readers' questions.
But now...
Because of Only 10 Seconds as a Genius Idol...
Siwoo had made a close friend.
I had received an advance payment.
And...
I had readers beyond my daughter.
"Of course."
"I'll always write for Siwoo."
"But..."
"The fact that so many people enjoy a story I wrote while thinking of my daughter..."
"I'm truly grateful."
"I just hope those fifteen extra chapters became a gift for them."
"Then..."
"Time to write another chapter."
Whenever gratitude filled my heart...
My desire to write naturally grew stronger.
After finishing the housework, I headed toward my laptop.
Then...
"Hm?"
My phone rang.
I assumed it was Siwoo or PD Shin.
Instead...
It was an unfamiliar number.
"..."
Right when I was about to start writing.
Normally...
Even unknown numbers could be work-related, so I always answered.
But today...
For some reason...
I hesitated.
"...I've really changed."
I couldn't help smiling at myself.
For the past ten years...
I'd devoted myself entirely to surviving at work.
Following my routines.
Quietly accepting every unexpected task.
Because I had to provide for Siwoo.
But now...
I didn't want that life anymore.
Even at work...
I spent more time thinking about stories than my actual job.
"Did earning ten million won really make me this carefree?"
In the end...
I turned my phone face down.
Something I'd never have done before.
Somehow...
It felt right.
Yes.
This was the uncertain world of stories.
Buzz.
Buzz.
Buzz.
The phone kept vibrating.
Relentlessly.
As though the caller had no intention of giving up.
Finally...
I sighed and answered.
"Ah..."
"You finally picked up!"
The unfamiliar voice sounded genuinely relieved.
"Hello?"
"Hello!"
"Is this Mr. Yoon Seongjun?"
That alone wasn't surprising.
These days...
Even scammers knew your personal information.
Sometimes it felt like my personal data was more widespread than my novel.
"Yes."
Then the caller said,
"Nice to meet you."
"This is Romantic Theater."
"We're calling regarding the play you submitted to our Keyword Project."
"Do you have a moment to talk?"