248 Who Is Yun Woo? 1 (2/2)

”Ah, smells like New York,” Seo Kw.a.n.g said, which rewarded Juho with a sense of accomplishment.

”You like it?”

”A lot,” Seo Kw.a.n.g said flipping through the pages quickly. He was proficient enough at that point to be able to translate and interpret sentences written in English.

”I'm gonna savor this and enjoy it for a long time,” Seo Kw.a.n.g said. Then, he asked, ”What was the bookstore like in New York?”

Remembering the environment of the bookstore he had been to, the young author answered, ”It's not all that different from the bookstores here. There were a lot of chairs though. Ones that look like that.”

Juho pointed at the series of bar stools with circular seats, which were lined up by the window. During his recent visit to the States, it stood out to Juho that there were seats ready throughout the store for those customers who wanted to read.

”There were bookstores that sold clothes too.”

”Oh! I heard of that. I've been eying them for some time. So, did you go to one?”

Seo Kw.a.n.g was better versed in the bookstores in New York than the young author who had recently been there. Hearing Seo Kw.a.n.g say that he wanted to visit a used bookstore in the States at some point, Juho was struck by the thought that if they were to go to the States together for a trip, it would quickly turn into a bookstore tour. While Juho was listening quietly, Seo Kw.a.n.g brought up something that occurred to him, ”Oh, did you see this?”

”What is it?”

With an exhilarated look on his face, Seo Kw.a.n.g took his phone out and handed it over to Juho. It had an image of a foreigner holding a picket sign that read: ”Tell us who Yun Woo is!”

Juho read the letters written in red paint on the picket sign. The paint running down the sign gave off an ominous look, almost like it had some sort of curse written on it. Meanwhile, Seo Kw.a.n.g nodded, still chuckling.

”I think he's holding a one-man protest in front of Fernand's building.”

The building behind the man was unmistakably that of Fernand Publis.h.i.+ng.

”Why there of all places?”

”Dude, you said it yourself: he's expressing the burning curiosity of the fans desperate to know who Yun Woo is. This guy's pretty well known in the science fiction community, actually. He runs a blog, too.”

”Does he, now?” Juho asked. He looked closely at the man's face, but he didn't recognize him. On the other hand, Seo Kw.a.n.g seemed to be well acquainted with him.

”His blog is really something. It has this power to make you buy books before you even realize it.”

Considering that he would buy whichever book he felt like with or without some blog's recommendations, Juho didn't find his claim all that convincing. Then, reading Juho's thoughts, Seo Kw.a.n.g added with more emphasis, ”I'm serious! You can just feel his pa.s.sion. Here, he put up some pictures he took at the Denver Worldcon this year.”

There were an array of people and places behind the avid science fiction fan in the pictures, and it certainly was Denver.

”He looks like a cheerful guy,” the young author said. The man was opening his mouth in some pictures while sticking his tongue out in others. It was clear that he was enjoying the convention to his heart's content. Then, Seo Kw.a.n.g lowered his voice and said, ”He's mentioned Yun Woo in his blog too. Several times.”

Seo Kw.a.n.g's statement made the young author wonder what the man thought of him as an author.

”What did he say?”

After organizing his thoughts, Seo Kw.a.n.g answered, ”He didn't have a lot of good things to say at first.”

Yun Woo was a young author, and a piece written by a young author was inevitably less mature. Science fiction or fantasy novels were strictly fictional. At the same time, that very quality served as a delivery mechanism for poignant portrayals of reality, conveying political messages and philosophy. In that case, Yun Woo's age made him laughable at best. How much would a nineteen-year-old know about politics? The world? Reality?

”That was his response when Yun Woo had just started making a name for himself through pure literature, which was also around the time when the rumor that Yun Woo was planning to write a fantasy novel started circulating. This isn't a post in his blog, but it's his response to a comment in one of his posts that said, 'What are your thoughts on the author by the name of Yun Woo?'”

In other words, it had been before the avid fan had read 'Language of G.o.d' himself. Not only did he know nothing about the young author, but he also didn't even bother to know about him. His posts tended to be quite emotional. His bouts excitement and anger were explicit in the way he wrote, just as much as his curiosity and joy. Nevertheless, people found that side of him entertaining.

”Then, after some time, this comes up,” Seo Kw.a.n.g said, showing another post to the young author.

”This is it,” Juho read the first sentence out loud.

An explanation followed saying that it had been the first realization that he had been struck by upon reading 'Language of G.o.d.' It was a post recommending the book. The avid fan was describing his emotional state in great detail of when he tried searching for Yun Woo on the internet. In the end, the only thing he had learned about the young author had been his age. There had been hardly any information on him. In the meantime, Seo Kw.a.n.g showed Juho the most recent post on the avid fan's blog.

”I want to know more about him. When I found out the results for the Hugo Award, I just couldn't take it anymore. I'm going to the publisher, and since there's no way I can meet with the author, I just hope the publishers understand where I'm coming from.”

Then, another post followed, which read, ”Yun Woo, if you're reading this, I sincerely hope that you give some sort of answer. Where are you?”

”Time's running out,” Seo Kw.a.n.g said. When Juho looked up at him, he had a book in his hand. However, instead of the book Juho had given him as a gift, he was holding Yun Seo's book. Meanwhile, Seo Kw.a.n.g's expression indicated that he knew full well why he was holding that book in particular. ”You know where I'm going with this, don't you?”

As the young author remained silent, Seo Kw.a.n.g continued, ”Remember what you promised? People are getting antsy. Their patience is running thin.”

At that, Juho remembered why he had decided to remain an anonymous author from the beginning: He had wanted a comfortable school life.

”We're about to graduate,” Juho said with a smile, but Seo Kw.a.n.g maintained the look on his face.

Then, the young author read one of the sentences in the book, ”There's an end to everything.”