Leaving the kitchen, Juho walked to the office s.p.a.ce to look around . It was quite s.p.a.cious and it felt more like a rest area than an office, maybe because of the board games . Along with a sofa, lamps, paintings, photos, books and ma.n.u.scripts, there was also a desktop on top of a long desk that was facing the wall . That had to be Dae Soos workstation . Next to it, was a wall covered by curtains, making it seem like there were windows behind it . Whats this? Dae Soo and Sangs eyes followed the tip of Juhos finger . Oh, that . Then, Sangs expression grew darker, and looking at him, Dae Soo started giggling . Its a courtesy for guests . Are you squeamish, at all? Not really . b.u.mmer . Youre just too young . Its not something I can show someone underage, Dae Soo said playfully, but she was also emphatic . She was a.s.suming that what was hidden behind the curtains might have a negative influence on the young author . Then, setting his curiosity aside, Juho stared at the black cloth between him and the mysterious object . Sitting down, he asked Dae Soo, Seems like thats where the inspiration for your book came from, right? Ive said this before, but you really are a sharp one . Along with its bizarre and violent nature, her books were defined by their grotesqueness . At the same time, there was philosophy amid the horror, as well as love and life . Her books were loved by many, and she was often the target of those who criticized her for the violent elements in her books . What kind of photo is it? Its a picture of anguish . The very anguish she had peaked her head into was in the mysterious photo behind the curtains, but Juho didnt insist that she show it to him . He was more interested in Dae Soos att.i.tude toward the photo . Do you just keep the curtains open when guests arent around? Yep . Ive gotten used to it, so I look at it while Im eating, too . At that, Juho remembered her most recent book: The Finger that Rings the Bell . The book showcased Dae Soos distinct writing style, with its gloomy and musty plot that kept its readers on their toes, and its focus was especially provocative . Is there a reason for you to prefer to write about things that are over the top? A reason, huh . With that, she poked the fork thoroughly into a crisp apple slice . Maybe I just have a different idea of what over the top means . What does that mean? I write based on real life events . People always talk about how I have a bizarre imagination, but my imagination is far from realistic . If anything, I start by tr.i.m.m.i.n.g out things that are unconventional, so that it becomes more relatable for the readers . There are those who kill other people for no apparent reason in this world, but that cant happen in novels . Then, she gave Juho an example that would be the easier to understand, and Juho looked intently at the completely peeled apple slice . So, with that out of the way, I probably wont water down my books anytime soon . This world has never been better than at the present time . At that, Juho asked no more . Instead, he imagined the world she might have seen through the photo behind the curtains . Irrational reality and negative emotions . An image of Dae Soo twisting those things in her writing rushed past Juhos mind . After he heard Dae Soos story, Juho grew curious about Sang . How about you, Mr . Choi? Me? he opened his mouth as if he had been waiting for the question . Having a high opinion of himself, he was quite keen on being the center of attention . I wanted to be G.o.d . His goal was just as lofty as his self-esteem . . G.o.d . Yes, G.o.d . Then, I failed . It was an obvious failure, and Dae Soo stared at him as if he was beyond help . Before that, I wanted to be Mozart . It was a much more realistic goal than being G.o.d . However… You failed, didnt you? I sure did . He had a talent for music, but I didnt . It was sad . Seeing how your following goal was to be G.o.d, it seems like you didnt quite learn from the experience . No . Its the opposite . I set that goal out of anger, but I still took it seriously . I read tons of books on religion and mythology and even went to the psychics, but there was no G.o.ds willing to make me one of their kind . And? So, I decided to be a novelist . Mozart, G.o.d, and now, a novelist . After a couple of failures, his dream had finally come true . How did you transition from being G.o.d to a novelist? Not that the transition between Mozart and G.o.d made anymore sense . I heard somebody say that authors do something similar to G.o.d . ha! Authors were compared with G.o.d occasionally, since they created whole new worlds, deciding the fates of the characters living within them and what they will go through in their lives . But it wasnt exactly like the G.o.d I had in mind, Sang said in a serious tone . In what ways? First of all, I needed to put in the work . Im not an all-capable being, so creating an entirely new world within one week is impossible . You have to rest on the seventh day, too . I just dont have what it takes . In the Book of Genesis in the Bible, G.o.d had created the world in one week . Sky and land, light, day and night, etc . Having finished the load of work in six days, G.o.d rested on the seventh day, looking at his creation, the world, and saying, Looks great . And we, authors, have to do revisions as soon as we finish writing . Right . The ma.n.u.scripts are far from perfect before revisions and edits . It takes forever, too, Juho said, chuckling quietly . If we were G.o.d, we wouldnt be able to write anything so human, dont you think? Books filled with anguish and conflict . Well, the sovereign G.o.d might be able to, but I doubt he would do as good of a job as I would have . Juho ate his apple slice while listening to the words filling the void between himself and Sangs arrogance . Though he felt the chunks of apple getting caught in his throat slightly, they were still delicious . Now, Im glad I chose to be a novelist . I can meet just about anyone through writing, so Im satisfied . Speaking of which, there were quite a few references to music and religion in your books . Although, the way they unfolded was quite scientific . So, thats where you got those influences . Thats right, Sang answered proudly . The love in his books was quite unique, and it started to dawn on Juho why the critics were saying that his books were dynamic and realistic . How about you? Sang Choi asked . And Juho blinked awkwardly, asking, What about me? How did you start writing? Oh! Thats a good one . Dae Soo looked at Juho with eyes filled with interest . Although he preferred not to disappoint her, Juho didnt have anything as lofty as Sang, like wanting to be G.o.d or Mozart . He was simply… I was bored . But when did you first start writing, though? You debuted toward the tail end of your middle school years . So, that must mean that youve been writing since you were young . Then, Juho brought up an a.n.a.logy that rose to the surface of his mind, Its like a digestive process . A digestive process? Thats an odd a.n.a.logy . Juho agreed . It was a rather strange a.n.a.logy . Well, it is true that one doesnt become a better writer overnight . You know, I think Im starting to realize how skilled Yun Woo really is . You still have a long way to go, Dae Soo . What? In that case, Yun Woos level of skill isnt something that can be achieved within the span of a few years . At Sangs arrogant remark, Dae Soos eyes narrowed, and she asked, Well then, what do you think? I dont really have an answer . This kid is a mystery, much like Yun Woo and how he came about . I think you have a ways to go yourself, Choi, Dae Soo scolded him and changed the subject . Well, tell us more about what happened with Mideum . She wouldnt even talk to me, saying that shes busy working . Theres not much to it . Then, Juho told them a brief summary of what had happened during her visit, and the two authors listened intently, immersed in his story . Lets see how impressive of a character she comes up with . Remembering Mideums behavior in his room, Juho nodded quietly . He looked forward to how the next volume of her book would turn out . Then, Sang opened his mouth and said, Im telling you, that big mouth of hers will be her downfall . She gets excited so easily and she cant control herself . Shes always blabbering out loud, too . What? Shes cute . Besides, she handled herself fine . Dae Soo, you cant just let her be . Who knows what kind of trouble she might get herself into? Just as Sang had said, Mideum was easily excited and influenced . Looking at Sang, who had talked about Mideum without hesitation, Juho said, You must be close to her . Were part of the same group, after all . Shes one of the few authors that I know remotely well, Sang said, as if confessing his limited social life . Then, Dae Soo chimed in, Its so easy to convince him to do something, that its not even funny . All you gotta do is let him bring his own lunch . His own lunch? Yep . h.e.l.l come out regardless of the distance, as long as I let him bring his own food . Thats why I told him to bring his own food when we were meeting at Madame Songs restaurant . Although it made sense to Juho judging from Sangs behaviors up to that point, it occurred to him that Madame Song might have been unhappy to see a customer bring their own food to her restaurant . Well, I eat there now . Gosh, that was ages ago! Sang added in a hurry . You eat at the restaurant, now? Yes . I can trust Madame Songs cooking . And youre insisting on carrying your own lunch because you dont trust all the other restaurants? I trust em less . Who knows how they cook, or where those hands have been? That goes for the ingredients, too . I cant eat anything like that, he said emphatically . Well, I get free food from time to time, so thats always nice . Its super convenient, especially when Im planning on staying at a hotel . Dae Soo had a habit of staying in hotel rooms when she experienced writers block, and she had probably been asking Sang to pack her meals, which explained why they had been communicating regularly . She seemed fond of Sangs cooking, and Sang himself didnt seem to have an issue with cooking for her . The romance and the grotesque . Even though their books were polar opposites in nature . You seem like you enjoy cooking for other people, Mr . Choi . Its an opportunity to show off my cooking skills . The better the response from those who taste my food, the better I feel, he said proudly . It was a rather simple reason . Then, Dae Soo whispered to Juho, loud enough for Sang to hear, Hes so simple, isnt he? There were all sorts of authors in the world . Hotel rooms, cooking . Thinking of a poet, or regretting repeatedly . There were even authors who lived in the mountains in order to write . Oh, I was just about to tell you, Dae Soo said with a big smile . Its about the outing . Were planning on having everyone come out in celebration of Yun Woo joining us as the new addition to the group . It was an occasion to which Juho had been looking forward as well, and Dae Soo gave him an update, So, including Choi, here, Ive confirmed with most of the members in the group over text . The only person Im still waiting for is San Jung . At that, Sang Choi didnt seem all that surprised . Shes probably in the mountain somewhere, writing . We can barely get a hold of her . Why dont we just meet on our own? No, Dae Soo said emphatically, and while Sang looked dissatisfied, he didnt try to argue any further . Instead, he explained calmly that finalizing the outing would take significantly longer if they were to wait for San Jungs confirmation . Shes the hardest person to convince to come out to group outings . Even if we did manage to get a hold of her, sh.e.l.l come up with all sorts of excuses to stay home . Despite Sangs pessimistic conjecture, Dae Soo was still wearing the same smile, as if she had a hidden card in mind . You seem like you have an idea . That I do . An amazing one, at that . With that, she raised her hand, and at the end of her fingertip, was Juho .