Chapter 118. Loud Cheers (13)

"Everyone from the server team has to go?"

"Yeah, everyone except Deputy Koo."

The employees from Nextion headquarters moved about busily.

They wrapped up all their work and headed for the elevator.

Their destination was the largest multi-purpose hall in the same building.

Tadadadak! Tak!

Meanwhile, the only person left in the mobile planning team office was Oh Myung-Hoon. He was focused on working on a game scenario. However, he was still under the effects of writer's block, and his hands had long stopped typing on the keyboard.

'Is it today?'

Oh Myung-Hoon's stiff face was reflected on the monitor of his computer.

Today was the day that Ha Jae-Gun would give his lecture.

To accommodate more attendees, the lecture was decided to be held in the largest multi-purpose hall at Nextion's headquarters instead of its subsidiary, JoyM. That alone was enough to make Oh Myung-Hoon upset since the lecture was the reason he hadn't been able to see Lee Soo-Hee around.

'That dumbass is giving a lecture? He probably wouldn't be able to elicit any responses like during the orientation. How much of an interest would the employees of a game company have in a mere writer?'

Oh Myung-Hoon's hatred and obsession had reached the same level. He had watched both of Ha Jae-Gun’s lectures at the orientation and library through the videos uploaded online, and he concluded them to be ridiculous.

“Writer Oh, are you not going to attend the lecture?”

Oh Myung-Hoon erased the mockery on his face and looked up to see the Planning Director Nam Gyu-Ho coming out of his own office and standing in the corridor.

“Writer Ha Jae-Gun is going to give a lecture today.”

“I know, but I’m not exactly interested.”

Nam Gyu-Ho fixed his shirt collar and said indifferently, “You should listen in since it’s not a long lecture, anyway. Who knows, it could be helpful to your writing.”

His words triggered Oh Myung-Hoon, and Oh Myung-Hoon’s face immediately turned red with anger. Nam Gyu-Ho was basically telling Oh Myung-Hoon to learn from Ha Jae-Gun.

“I repeat: I’m not interested in the lecture. Please go ahead, Director.”

Nam Gyu-Ho was taken aback, but he nodded before turning around to leave.

However, he didn’t forget to add a few more words.

“Your scenario has been getting better lately. Please continue producing such quality work. I’ll be leaving, then.”

Oh Myung-Hoon was so angry that he stood up and grabbed his desk.

Nam Gyu-Ho hurried off.

He had no idea that Oh Myung-Hoon was glaring at him from behind.

“Hello, Director.”

“Hello, Director.”

The employees gathered outside the hall greeted Nam Gyu-Ho respectfully. Nam Gyu-Ho nodded lightly in return and entered the hall.

The seats in the large hall were almost full, and the lights were directed on the rostrum as well as the large screen in front of the hall.

The cameramen from a few broadcast companies were given access to the hall, and they flanked the hall. They were currently checking their equipment whilst the accompanying team took seats in the audience.

Lee Soo-Hee was in the front row, and she stood up upon seeing Nam Gyu-Ho.

“Director, please come this way,” she said.

Nam Gyu-Ho sat down next to her in the seat reserved for him.

“I heard that you were classmates?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“He’s become very successful in a span of one year.”

“He had always been diligent in his work, and it was only until recently that he’s finally under the spotlight,” said Lee Soo-Hee with a smile.

Her rare smile made Nam Gyu-Ho shrug.

‘I hope he performs well.’

Lee Soo-Hee twiddled with her fingers that were resting on her lap. She felt nervous for Ha Jae-Gun, as this lecture was different compared to the other two lectures he had given before.

The largest difference was the audience. The audience today wasn’t his juniors who dreamt of becoming writers like him, nor were they people interested in creation and had voluntarily come to listen to his lecture.

The audience present today consisted of the game company’s employees who had come voluntarily, along with those who were forced to attend.

‘Maybe I should have helped him with the lecture script.’

Lee Soo-Hee was filled with belated regret. She hadn’t asked him about the script out of consideration for Ha Jae-Gun’s pride. However, she was now worried about how much the employees would pay attention during the lecture later.

The lights that used to brighten up the hall darkened, and the voice of an emcee boomed through the microphone on the rostrum under the spotlight.

“The lecture on creative content by Writer Ha Jae-Gun will begin shortly. Please give a round of applause.”

The applause from roughly three hundred attendees rang through the hall. Ha Jae-Gun stepped out of the waiting room backstage and walked to the rostrum.

Lee Soo-Hee’s eyes widened as she watched him walk to the rostrum. It was the first time she had seen him today, as she hadn’t been able to meet him before the lecture started.

“Wow, writers these days look cool as well.” Nam Gyu-Ho’s comment seemed to reflect Lee Soo-Hee’s astonishment.

Ha Jae-Gun sported a new wine-colored hairstyle and donned a navy suit that fitted his physique. It was an unprecedented look.

‘What happened to him?’

The Ha Jae-Gun that she knew wasn’t one to care too much about his appearance or clothes. It wasn’t strange that she was confused. After all, she had no idea that popular actor Park Do-Joon had taken part in this change.

Lee Soo-Hee’s sparkling eyes were unwittingly fixated on the rostrum.

‘Phew…!’

Ha Jae-Gun fiddled with the microphone and took a deep breath.

The three hundred pax hall filled his view like a series of waves. His heart started pounding, and he felt dizzy. This felt entirely different from the smaller lectures he had given before.

‘I should have taken an anxiety-calming drink before coming on stage.’

It was his mistake to listen to Park Do-Joon. Park Do-Joon had told him not to rely on such things lest he become dependent on them.

Ha Jae-Gun straightened himself up, trying to relieve the nervousness in him. Just then, his eyes lay on one of the front-row seats in the audience. He had just made eye contact with Lee Soo-Hee, who was smiling brightly back at him.

- Good luck, Ha Jae-Gun!

Lee Soo-Hee’s sparkling eyes were sending messages of encouragement.

Ha Jae-Gun soon smiled. Knowing that Lee Soo-Hee was watching him, Ha Jae-Gun started to calm down, and his irregular breathing gradually stabilized.

‘Hoo…!’

Ha Jae-Gun closed his eyes and went through the faces of everyone he was grateful for in his mind. The moment Lee Soo-Hee’s existence brought about a sense of security in his heart, he opened his eyes and started the lecture.

“I’m sorry I blanked out.”

“...?!” Lee Soo-Hee’s expression stiffened. It wasn’t the usual greeting.

“I blanked out all of a sudden, and I’m not sure if I can continue with a coherent lecture going forward. There are just too many people here today. I panicked and blanked out. Anyway, I’ve recovered, so I’ll make sure to blow everyone’s mind today.”

The audience members laughed.

Ha Jae-Gun continued even before the laughter subsided.

“I hope it’d be the kind of lecture that makes you think—the lecture was funny today, but what was it about again? I hope that this short period will become an enjoyable break time for all of you amidst your busy schedule. I really think that salaried office workers also need times like these.”

Ha Jae-Gun’s voice was loud and clear, and he spoke neither too fast nor too slow.

The audience members grew comfortable and started smiling.

“The keyword for today’s lecture is creative content. Now, I might just be an ink slinger, but all of you are employees of a game company, so I’ll kick off with a story that’s game-related.”

A collage of various game logos appeared on the large screen.

Ha Jae-Gun looked back briefly and said excitedly, “I love playing games, too, especially RPG Games. I’ve tried Dragon Quest, Final Fantasy, and other similar games. I liked RPG games from North America as well, but I prefer Japanese RPG games more. Anyway, it’s all because…”

Ha Jae-Gun gestured, and the slides changed, showing a beautiful, curvy female character.

The audience members burst out into boisterous laughter.

“Yes, it’s all because of these beautiful women. Time and time again, the beautiful women in those games have never failed to make me feel febrile, and I don’t think we’ll have enough time for me to list all of them.

”I’ve written novels using the beautiful women I liked since there’s no other way for me to create content other than through writing. I couldn’t draw comics, and it was ridiculous for me to dabble in game programming at such a young age back then.”

While listening to the lecture, Nam Gyu-Ho whispered, “Didn’t you say he’s not that experienced in giving lectures?”

“Yes, that’s right,” Lee Soo-Hee replied with a smile without looking away from the rostrum.

Meanwhile, Ha Jae-Gun continued. “Now, um… was it called 3D? I think I’m much more attracted to the beautiful women in games as compared to those female celebrities on TV.

”Even when I dream, I don’t dream of the pretty girls in class but of the beautiful women I see in the games. They always distract me that I had virtually no interest in any real—in quotes—females back during my school days.”

At this point, Lee Soo-Hee felt completely at ease. She had been worried that the employees would find the lecture boring and break out in yawns.

“Am I the only weirdo here? Wait, am I even a weirdo?”

At Ha Jae-Gun’s question, the slides changed once more.

“And so, I want to show everyone my family portrait.”

The entire hall broke into roars of laughter at the photo that Ha Jae-Gun had put up.

Lee Soo-Hee also started laughing.

However, Ha Jae-Gun continued seriously. “As you’ve seen, I’m the most normal person in my family. I’m definitely not crazy, either. Yes, I see that everyone’s laughing. I’m laughing as well, so that makes all of us siblings today.”

A thunderous applause sounded.

Ha Jae-Gun waited until the excitement subsided before continuing. “So when I write my novel, I’ll first shape the female characters that appear in my novel. I tend to create beautiful female characters capable of making me feel febrile as compared to real-life women.

”This is especially more so when I’m writing fantasy novels. I’ll change their names, keep the personalities that the public likes, and add a special facial feature that I like so that I’ll enjoy the process of creating them.”

Ha Jae-Gun then reached his hand out toward the audience. The wristwatch that was gifted by the writers sparkled under the spotlight.

“I’m pretty sure there are many of you here who are like me. Those who never dreamt of becoming a writer somehow ended up in a game company. Shall we have a show of hands to see how many of you are here?”

Nearly a third of the audience raised their hands…

Ha Jae-Gun looked at all of them and nodded.

“It’s not just a hobby, but you made it into reality. All of you are great people. You’ve already embarked on your creative life and are making a difference in the world with all your might.”

Lee Soo-Hee turned around to see the audience that had turned silent. All of them seemed to be paying attention to the lecture, which made Lee Soo-Hee feel a great sense of pride.

‘You’re amazing, Jae-Gun…’

Ha Jae-Gun looked much more dazzling than the spotlight that was shining on the rostrum, and the fact that she was the only person closest to him among all of these people made her heart pound even harder.

***

The lecture was so enjoyable that time flew by. Thirty minutes had already passed, but Ha Jae-Gun didn’t feel exhausted. He continued speaking with vigor.

Just then…

Creak—

One side of the double doors slowly opened, and Oh Myung-Hoon quietly made his way into the hall. He was on the way home, but the cheers from the hall had attracted his attention and inadvertently brought him here.

“...I love all sorts of genres, so aside from using my real name, I also go by the pen name Poongchun-Yoo to publish genre novels.

”The characters in those genre novels are shaped to be more intuitive and clear. A three-dimensional character is a human in itself. However, it might affect the reader’s immersion in the story. For example, something like this…”

Ha Jae-Gun wiped the sweat off of his forehead, then snapped his fingers.

“Let’s say that there’s a villain who killed the main character’s family, harmed their friends, and even interfered with the main character’s future. However, we eventually discovered that the villain was actually quite pitiful and that he had a tragic backstory that led him to how he is in the present day. This would make the reader feel stunned for a moment. Ah, what’s this? Who do I vent my anger on or curse at now?!”

Ha Jae-Gun messed up his own hair, making an exaggerated gesture.

The audience empathized with him and clapped their hands, bursting into laughter.

Oh Myung-Hoon stared wide-eyed.

Had Ha Jae-Gun always been such a confident person? The way Ha Jae-Gun led the audience by the nose on stage made Oh Myung-Hoon wonder if he was even the same Ha Jae-Gun he knew.

‘Lee Soo-Hee…?!’

He recognized her right away in the sea of people. He spotted her in the crowd with her long, flowy hair that moved smoothly as she clapped her hands along with the other audience members.

Oh Myung-Hoon reached his hands out inadvertently, but there was no way he could reach her. Lee Soo-Hee seemed to be getting further and further away from him as well.

“Hello? Team Leader?”

Oh Myung-Hoon turned to the voice that came from beside him.

The speaker was a reporter who had a nametag emblazoned with Navin’s logo pinned to his chest.

“I think we can post this up as a special. The reactions are great, and the content is interesting as well. Yes, that’s right. Dawoom said that they’re live-streaming this, but I’ll try to get an interview after the lecture. Yes, yes, I understand.”

Oh Myung-Hoon turned around and gnashed his teeth.

Meanwhile, another thunderous round of applause echoed behind him.