Chapter 4 Part 9

Jeong Tae-ui, who had been mumbling to himself, barely moving his lips, in a voice so low he couldn’t even hear it, nearly jumped out of his skin when Ilay League-row repeated his words as a question.

“Huh? What?” Jeong Tae-ui shrugged, feigning confusion. Ilay League-row gazed at Jeong Tae-ui for a moment, then gave a slight smile.

“Come to think of it, waiting for two or three hours would be boring. —Here, I’ll give it back.”

Ilay League-row closed the book and held it out to Jeong Tae-ui, lightly shaking it as if to say, “Take it.”

“No, it’s fine if you keep reading. I can come back later. It’d feel unfinished if you stopped halfway.”

“I read it a long time ago, so I know the contents. Seeing it again after so long just made me nostalgic. It’s fine, take it.”

He shook the book lightly again as he spoke. His voice was languid and pleasant to listen to. Yet, there was an unsettling feeling about it. It was as if he was being drawn into deep water, feeling hazy and disoriented.

Finding it awkward to keep refusing, Jeong Tae-ui shrugged and approached him. With each step, a subtle tension pricked at his toes. It felt like approaching a hungry wild beast.

“Books by this author are hard to find, aren’t they? Have you read any others?”

The moment Jeong Tae-ui took the book, Ilay League-row asked calmly. Jeong Tae-ui paused and looked at him. Ilay League-row’s languid gaze softened as their eyes met.

“I know a very capable rare book broker. The books he wrote after this one are even more interesting, and although they’re hard to find, he could probably get them for you, even if it takes some time. I can introduce you if you’d like.”

“…The price would be substantial, I suppose?”

“Well, I’d say two or three hundred dollars. Oh, or if you go to Berlin and visit the German National Library, there should be an English version in the foreign books section. I saw it there five or six years ago.”

While thinking that it was by no means a small sum for a single book, but felt incredibly light compared to $3500, Jeong Tae-ui also looked at the man with a rather strange feeling.

Something was different from what he had imagined. Of course, he hadn’t imagined an evil spirit that would kill everyone in sight, but he certainly hadn’t expected a person who could discuss books so casually — or perhaps, maniacally. Moreover, the eerie and spine-chilling feeling from the video was completely gone; he was simply a cheerful, well-groomed young man. His social skills, effortlessly conversing with a stranger, were also excellent.

Looking at him now, he seemed quite ordinary, and if not for any preconceived notions, he could easily be seen as an attractive young man with a rather likable impression.

“Ilay League-row… right?”

Jeong Tae-ui asked, hesitating. Ilay League-row seemed slightly surprised, then gave a chuckle and nodded.

“That’s right, I’m the only one with that name in our branch. It seems you’ve heard some things about me?”

“Yeah, a little.”

“Haha, I wonder what kind of rumors they are.”

“I think you’d know yourself.”

When Jeong Tae-ui said that, Ilay League-row closed his mouth. Then he stared intently at Jeong Tae-ui. His eyes were jet black. Those unfathomable eyes steadily gazed at Jeong Tae-ui, then at some point, he burst into cheerful laughter.

“More or less. But rumors always get exaggerated, don’t they? Don’t you think?”

“Oh, it’s so troubling,” Ilay League-row said, shaking his head and even clicking his tongue in a bitter way. He truly seemed like a pitiful, kind-hearted young man suffering from baseless rumors.

A fair and neat, attractive appearance. An enveloping voice. Smooth eloquence. Nothing was lacking.

“…Well, it wasn’t like that in the video I saw, but I’ll admit rumors can be greatly exaggerated.”

Jeong Tae-ui mumbled unconvincingly and sat down on the empty bed across from him. He didn’t seem entirely insane, and it felt like they could communicate to some extent. Furthermore, the eloquence to lead a conversation pleasantly was not something just anyone possessed. Although he still felt wary, he suppressed his apprehension and sat down, and a smile flickered across Ilay League-row’s fair and neat face.

“Video? Ah, now that you mention it, there was a camera I tore off back then. Yes, the record would have remained. Really, why do people film such things and make others look like strange individuals?”

Watching him mumble to himself as if he understood, Jeong Tae-ui once again realized, ‘Yes, it’s definitely him.’

Looking at him like this, he seemed perfectly normal and easy to talk to, but did his personality change when he was in a fight? Or was he perhaps two-faced? Or maybe he just went wild and crazy for a moment when that video was filmed.

Jeong Tae-ui rested his chin in his hand, gazing intently at him, then sighed.

Either way was fine. As long as it didn’t threaten his comfortable life for the next six months. Besides, maybe he wasn’t as strange as he seemed.

“Ah. And there’s another book with a very different perspective on that. After that book came out, Charles Campbell published his critique six months later, and it caused a huge fight in the academic community at the time.”

Just as Jeong Tae-ui was about to stand up, Ilay League-row pointed at the book and spoke casually. Jeong Tae-ui paused and sat back down.

“Are you perhaps talking about ‘1337, The Beginning of Flanders’?”

“Oh, you’ve seen it already? It must have been hard to find.”

“No, I haven’t seen it. I’ve only heard the title. How is that book?”

“It’s interesting. The book’s content itself isn’t particularly fresh now, but it’s somewhat amusing to see how it constantly picks at Joy Moyers in various places. Still, it’s worth a read. If you want it, I could probably get that one too, though it might take some time.”

Watching Ilay League-row tell him to say whenever he wanted to see it, Jeong Tae-ui couldn’t help but admire him inwardly. Good heavens, he was quite a maniacal literary youth, wasn’t he? Jeong Tae-ui himself had been used to rummaging through books since childhood due to being constantly with Jeong Jae-ui, even if he disliked it — though less so than Jeong Jae-ui — but to be like this while working in this industry was no easy feat.

However, remembering his uncle, Jeong Tae-ui reconsidered, ‘No, there might actually be more people like this than I think.’

Jeong Tae-ui suddenly felt amused. It wasn’t easy to find someone with whom he could have this kind of conversation in a place like this. Perhaps they could even become cheerful friends.