How to Survive the Horror Novel I Wrote
Chapter 15
# Chapter 15
[“I would like to meet with author Mun Seongwon. Is he out at the moment?”
Haejun asked politely.
“What is this regarding…?”
Jian’s reluctant question brought this morning’s emergency meeting back to mind.
During the meeting, the CEO had shared the news he heard last night about Mun Seongwon’s declaration to halt writing, muttering blankly.
‘We’re ruined.’
The CEO’s concern was entirely justified. Though the company had now established itself as a premier house of horror novels and even erected a building in Seoul, before publishing the Night Series, they had been a microscopic publisher renting a ten-year-old studio apartment and funding books through crowdfunding.
Moreover, sales from the Night Series accounted for more than half of the company’s total revenue.
Which meant that if Haejun could secure author Mun Seongwon, not only a promotion, but a salary raise and a generous bonus would well be within reach.
‘They said the goose laying the golden eggs had run away, so I came to catch it.’
Haejun concealed his ambition and answered decorously. That he had come to persuade the author.]
So that was it… He really did come to catch me. He won’t ever give up, will he.
A headache flared up. Habitually, I clutched my temples.
Turns out Oh Haejun was a man burning with raw ambition.
Why would a person like that hide so obediently? Reading on gave me the answer.
[Pushed along by Jian, Haejun had hidden before he knew it, only to regret it a beat too late.
‘Why did I hide? I came here to meet the author!’ No matter how much he thought about it, this made no sense. Just as Haejun took hold of the doorknob to step back out, Jian’s desperate voice echoed in his head.
‘If they find out I’m here with my editor, I’ll be in huge trouble. Please, just save me.’
Haejun couldn’t understand. Why? He was merely a publishing editor, and this was their first meeting.
Besides, he had come to meet the author, so what was the big deal about being seen together by the author?
Then a thought flashed through his mind. The author must be obsessively jealous.
If so, Jian’s hyperreactive response made complete sense. Author Mun Seongwon must lose his mind at the mere sight of his wife with another man.
Could the declaration to halt writing the Night Series also be related to his wife?
Just as Haejun’s speculations branched out, the sound of the front door opening drifted from outside.
Damn it. Too late.
Lamenting inwardly, Haejun backed away from the door.
If he stepped out now, he would inevitably be framed as her secret lover. Then forget the new Night Series installment—his entire career would go up in smoke.]
Oh Haejun’s perspective ended with him being chased out by me.
A hollow laugh escaped me. Mr. Oh Haejun, you certainly live up to your name. Thanks to you, I got to play multiple roles today: my own wife, plus an obsessively jealous husband to boot.
Regardless, it was a massive stroke of luck that Oh Haejun had hidden. If he had burst out looking for author Mun Seongwon…
Three seconds. In just three seconds, Ugeum would have seen through everything. And just as he always did when resolving to kill someone, he would have glared at me with an expressionless face.
‘You deceived me.’
Though I had never actually heard it in reality, it felt as if I could hear the flat, pitchless voice Ugeum used when carrying out an execution. Followed by that massive hand reaching toward my eyes…
Ding-dong.
The sudden ring of the doorbell struck my ears.
“…!”
I nearly jumped out of my skin. My startled heart pounded fiercely, threatening to leap out of my throat.
Hurriedly shutting down the computer, I rushed into the living room and saw Ugeum on the intercom screen.
Grinning, Ugeum shoved a plastic bag packed with ice cream right up to the camera.
This time, I dashed over and opened the front door immediately.
A guilty conscience must feel exactly like this. With so much to hide, my chest fluttered with anxiety.
Ugeum tossed the entire bag of ice cream into the freezer, then turned back to look at me with an expectant face.
I asked back reluctantly,
“What?”
“You have to pay me for the errand.”
Ugeum made the demand with absolute composure.
Payment for an errand? I never imagined the mighty Ju Ugeum would utter such a trivial phrase. He wasn’t a child…
As my tightly coiled nerves unraveled, feeling scared half to death of a man haggling over errand fees struck me as slightly pathetic.
“How much?”
“Not money.”
Ugeum curved his lips into a wolfish smile. The implication behind that smirk sent heat rushing to my cheeks.
Again. This guy kept pushing his physical presence on me like this.
Not happening, though.
I gestured for Ugeum to come lower.
“Lower your head a bit.”
Looking bewildered, Ugeum obediently bent down.
Carefully, I patted Ugeum’s hair. Though stiff from styling wax, his hair smelled wonderfully nice.
“Thank you. Good job. Good boy.”
“…”
Without a word, Ugeum stared intently at me. His gaze felt piercing enough to bore a hole through my face.
Feeling awkward, I hesitated and began pulling my hand back, only for Ugeum to suddenly seize my wrist. Naturally, I gasped in surprise.
Straightening his back, Ugeum looked down at me and chided me gently,
“Ji-an. That’s what you do to kids. To an adult…”
The sudden pull on my wrist dragged my body forward. The next moment, I was swept into Ugeum’s embrace.
When I tilted my head back in shock, Ugeum pressed his lips over mine. His firm tongue parted my lips and pushed deep inside. In an instant, my senses grew faint.
I felt his searing hands wrap around my waist. The hand that had held my wrist was now cupping the nape of my neck.
I always thought this guy’s hands were remarkably quick, and… I couldn’t hold on to another thought.
The sensation of his tongue sweeping against the roof of my mouth, teasing the sensitive flesh, and tangling with mine surged through my entire body like an electric current. One moment felt hazy like drifting through clouds, and the next, dizzying like plummeting off a cliff.
The vertigo was so overwhelming that I unknowingly grabbed onto Ugeum’s back.
Only after a long while did Ugeum pull his lips away. Looking down at me with satisfied eyes, he whispered languidly,
“This is how you do it.”
I stared up at Ugeum blankly.
Was Ju Ugeum always a character so faithful to his desires?
Well, yes. He was faithful to his desire to eliminate evil.
Yet the process had always been meticulous and persistent. Carefully scouting, thoroughly investigating, investing ample time and letting things simmer before finally severing the breath in a single decisive strike.
Just like a snake. His style was to watch his prey for ages, approach soundlessly, and swallow it whole in one bite.
So why was he acting like this toward me? Every time, he barged in like a bulldozer. As if moving straight ahead and charging headfirst were the only things he knew how to do.
In the readers’ minds, Ju Ugeum was a black panther in a suit, but the way he treated me felt more like a wild boar.
Honestly, it was overwhelming. But only when I matched Ugeum’s pace did the manuscript turn into a romance.
As long as I didn’t ruin the mood, this very moment would remain a romance.
…Wait. Would it really?
Couldn’t it turn into pure smut if I wasn’t careful?
A romance is a story of a man and a woman in love. What if Ugeum doesn’t love me?
Then I’d be safe. The only reason Ugeum killed his ex-girlfriend was because he felt betrayed by love.
I wouldn’t need to fret over Ugeum’s every word and move like I do now, nor would I need to force a romance.
Let’s test the waters first.
I placed my hand over Ugeum’s lips as he leaned in for another kiss. Ugeum arched an eyebrow as if asking what was wrong.
“Do you… like me?”
I tried to ask nonchalantly, but my voice trembled. Still, I hoped Ugeum would mistake it for acting cute. Because the real meaning behind it was this:
Could you end up killing me too?
With an agonizingly anxious heart, I waited for Ugeum’s reply.
Looking somewhat surprised, Ugeum gently moved my hand away and asked back, sounding caught off guard,
“What made you ask something like that all of a sudden?”
For a second, I was dumbfounded. Counting the days, we’d only been dating for a single week.
Anyone listening would think we’d been together for years.
“Just because. Do you like me?”
“No.”
Huh?
After a fleeting second of blankness, my tension drained away and relief settled in.
To be honest, it wasn’t the answer I expected. Deep down, I had suspected that Ugeum might actually love me. What a tremendous relief that he didn’t.
Ugeum didn’t like me. Dating me was purely because of the premise I had hastily fabricated.
He won’t kill me.
Just as I let out an internal sigh of relief, Ugeum added quietly,
“Saying I like you isn’t enough.”
What is he talking about?
A thunderous chill raced from the crown of my head down to the tips of my toes in an instant.
When I looked at him in shock, Ugeum confessed with a deep, unwavering gaze,
“I love you, Ji-an.”
And driving the nail in once more,
“I love you.”
The look in Ugeum’s eyes, his expression, his voice, the touch of his hand caressing my cheek—sincerity radiated from every single bit of it.
And I… felt as if a ghost had grabbed me by the hair. Every hair on my body stood on end, and my blood ran cold.
Ju Ugeum loved me. Truly.
Which meant this bastard could kill me at any moment.
The instant I betrayed Ugeum.
Or the moment he found out I didn’t love him back.
I would be murdered by these very hands.
* * *
The next day, lunchtime.
Skipping lunch entirely, I sat alone on the schoolyard bleachers, sipping coffee. My mind was so restless that I didn’t even feel hungry.
It was because of the love confession I heard from Ugeum yesterday. Or rather, should I call it a murder warning?
Right now, being alone was rather a relief. If fellow teachers had seen my complexion and pried about whether something bad had happened, my stress would have doubled.
Sitting alone on the bleachers naturally brought back old memories.
“I used to eat lunch alone on the bleachers every single day…”
During my school days, I was an outcast. Throughout elementary, middle, and high school. My track record as an outcast remained unbroken until I became close with Jung-an during my first year of high school.
It was because my nickname was Gaebul—the dog-poor, pitiful kid.
The other kids didn’t openly bully me, but they never hung out with me either. It was as if they could smell the stench of misfortune radiating from my body. Perhaps they were afraid it might rub off on them.
Still, when I graduated from high school, I thought I had graduated from being an outcast too.
Yet to become an adult, and an actual teacher at that, only to become an outcast all over again was something I never dreamed would happen.
Is my destiny just incompatible with schools? What good am I even hoping to achieve by staying here like this?
Should I resign? Maybe I should take this opportunity to transition into a full-time author.
Oh, right. I can’t write the Night Series anymore…
Just as heavy sighs kept tumbling out of me, a familiar voice called out from behind.
“Oh, it’s Teacher Ji-an.”
I glanced back over my shoulder.
It was a second-year male student I had taught last year.
“Hey, Hojung.”
Hojung grinned and sat down next to me.
“You’re an outcast, right, Teacher?”
It was the question I had heard most from students over the past few days.
What was the intention behind asking when they clearly already knew? Were they checking, or just mocking me? Whatever the reason, I was utterly sick of it.
“No, I’m not. Stop messing around and run along.”
“Come on, you totally are. The English teacher and Japanese teacher were talking smack about you in the backyard.”
The English and Japanese teachers were the women who had dragged me out to the backyard a few days ago.
I asked back with a sour expression,
“What did they say?”
“They said you’re a gold digger.”
“What? Why would I…”
I was so dumbfounded that the words caught in my throat.
Like the insensitive eighteen-year-old boy he was, Hojung replied with an unbothered face,
“They said you only pick rich guys to keep on your hook?”
“Me? Who said that? Those teachers?”
“Those teachers, the other teachers, and the kids too. Everyone’s saying it.”
My mind went completely blank.
So right now… I’m being treated like the school’s notorious gold digger.
The faces of the students who had teased me about being an outcast flashed rapidly through my mind, bringing a wave of chaotic realization.
The intention behind asking when they clearly knew. It was ridicule and mockery. My heart ached and stung as if shredded to pieces. It felt utterly miserable and humiliating.
I could only open and close my mouth like a goldfish. I had no idea what to say.
Watching my reaction, Hojung added,
“The rumor spread all over the school. Guess you didn’t know, Teacher.”
Hearing the full story from Hojung, the origin of the rumor turned out to be Mo Yeyeon after all.
The lie claiming I had begged for a blind date despite having a boyfriend had snowballed, fueled by people’s assumptions and wild imaginations.
‘Why would she do that? To cheat? Did she get tired of her boyfriend? I heard the guy the Principal set up works at a major corporation. She planned it all along. She must be keeping a roster of men for their money.’
While such ridiculous scandals were spreading, not a single person had come to verify the truth with me.
It was because I lacked popularity. Because I had no one at school with whom I could open up.
Even so, I couldn't just sit back and let this false accusation fester.
Without hesitation, I marched off right then and there to confront Mo Yeyeon.
