episode_0085

The night sky of this world was beautiful.

Even the sweet melody of the nocturne did not flow as clearly as the milky milky way flowing in the indigo night sky. Paintings depicting starry nights were nothing more than crude imitations of the starlight created by the universe hundreds of millions of years ago.

The night sky that the old bards sang about so much. In the Republic of Korea in the 21st century, it is an old symbol that cannot be found even in the highest mountain or the deepest countryside.

In this world, you could see the most beautiful work of art created by the sky just by raising your head every night.

and.

I am the kind of person who is more attracted to imitations than the real thing.

The type of person who felt more extreme beauty in the lines of text describing the night sky than in the starlight that embroidered the indigo tent on the grassland was a man named Ed Frieden.

“Now you’re finally looking this way.”

“… … .”

Even though I was like that, I couldn’t help but lose my soul to the scenery in front of me.

The image of Isolette wearing thin pajamas, making a calyx with her hands and resting her chin on it. Bright yellow moonlight softly sparkles on her white skin. Her tone of voice.

It’s because seeing her like that brought back old memories.

Unlike me, who loved English literature the most, I liked Japanese literature and Japanese subculture… old lover When my junior looked at me concentrating on a book, he looked at me with his chin resting like that.

So I froze for a moment.

I wonder if I’m still dreaming.

“Ed I know you love literature, but… When having a conversation, isn’t it polite to look at the other person?”

“… Oh sorry. I was rude.”

Fortunately, the confusion did not last long.

Isolette rebuked me in her unique tone of old-fashionedness and freshness.

“Hehe, it’s okay. Because I’ve known for a long time that you’re that kind of person… .”

“It’s not a positive evaluation.”

“Did you hope for a positive evaluation?”

“Um.”

I thought for a moment and then answered.

“No.”

“Hehehe, that aspect is very consistent… .”

Isolette looked at me with a bright smile. I tried to turn my gaze to the book out of habit, but I was finally able to resist my desire and look at the isolette.

If someone cursed at me in front of me, I would just nod my head and agree.

If you are someone who passionately loves something, you tend to become a little more insensitive to things that are not that thing. Because I loved literature more than my life, I was a little indifferent to myself.

– “Senior isn’t even angry?!”

– “Why?”

– “No, originally, the Saturday banner was supposed to contain an advertisement for ‘For Whom the Bell Tolls’ that my senior translated! But now, all of a sudden, they pulled out the promotion they had promised in order to promote the essays of celebrities who had never written before─.”

– “I also like essays, right? Reading stories about celebrities is also fun. As the self-publishing market becomes more active, the diversity of the market also increases.”

– “… Ugh, you really seem like a crazy person.”

– “You too are being rude to your senior─.”

– “It’s not a joke, really. Senior really… Do you know something strange?”

– “… Well, I guess it’s because I’ve been reading books in my room ever since I was young.”

So, he probably died from overwork without even knowing that his health was ruined.

hmm.

If I think about it any more, my taste buds will become bitter, so let’s stop.

“So, what brought you to the balcony at this hour?”

“To see the stars.”

“Star?”

“I think my rose is in one of those many stars.”

“… … .”

I was about to ask myself, ‘For that matter, it seems like they’re only looking at my face and not the stars,’ but I stopped because I felt like I was being overly self-conscious.

Instead, as always, he started talking about books.

“The Little Prince.”

“I guess fairy tales are my favorite. In that respect, the transformation was pretty good.”

“Huh?”

“It’s a fable, right? People become insects… A classic fairy tale that creates absurd situations and simplifies problems. A wolf named world opens its mouth in the darkness of the forest… The main character is just afraid of everything and feels exaggerated guilt… That feeling was really good. I guess I also quite like gory fairy tales.”

“Huh.”

She was the most talented critic I know. That’s probably why she was able to find extreme beauty in The Metamorphosis, a novel that the critic loved.

She can recognize the perspective on the work that I have learned through various background knowledge, papers, and data research with simple insight.

Sometimes I get jealous of such talent.

Because I was a person who loved ‘reading.’ When I saw the brilliant talent of the writers, I just admired and cheered them on, but the insight that allowed me to read their work transparently was something I envied so much that it made my teeth ache.

Isolette did not notice my feelings and continued talking.

“I just couldn’t write a novel like that. Even if you find symbols in the Bible, learn techniques to make sentences believable, and simplify stories… I really didn’t think I could use it. I really love the writer Homer… I was jealous.”

“Hmm. Isolet, I think you are quite a talented writer.”

“I am very happy that the transcendent figure of literature said that… I know my talent.”

“… … .”

Of course I don’t know.

When I read most novels, I just find them fun, and I tend to read them regardless of whether they are commercial novels or participatory literature.

Therefore, Isolet’s evaluation would have been more accurate than my evaluation.

If she uses the power of the transcendent, it may be possible to at least get a glimpse of the ‘possibilities’ her literature will have… That is ultimately a possibility ‘outside the work’. Evaluation, reaction, influence, potential for these things.

“… How was this novel? The old man and the sea.”

“The Old Man and the Sea? Uhm, well. I agree with the critics that too many explicit symbols and quite contrived messages were used, but… I think it’s probably the most effective way to move people’s hearts. Sentences that focus on verbs and nouns that are fast and full of power… Did you take care to make it easier for readers to read? Among the novels Ed Ney has written so far, excluding the commercial novels written under the name of Herodotus, I think ‘The Old Man and the Sea’ is probably the most common literature. Hehehe. Is my guess right?”

“I cried when I first read it.”

“Huh?”

“A tired old man, a bond with a marlin that can be considered an enemy, a message that no person should be an island, and a shark eating a marlin… Well, I was just drawn to the joy and sadness that the work creates. To be honest, I don’t know about symbolism or anything, but there are works that you can feel when you read them. Ah, this novel is moving my heart right now… .”

“… … .”

The purpose of fishing for the giant marlin is as valuable as the old man’s own life.

It is a livelihood that supports the livelihood of the elderly, a powerful destiny that guides the elderly’s life, an enemy that the elderly must fight and overcome, and the pride of the elderly who have devoted their lives to fishing.

I also had a marlin like that. It was a marlin named literature.

My profession was a translator, and I always called myself a ‘translator’ and took pride in that profession. Even though I struggle with tasks that are not easy to solve, translating is so enjoyable that I become endlessly immersed in it. I devoted my life to literature. I risked my life. Since he actually died while translating, I don’t think this expression is an exaggeration.

and.

Just like the marlin that was eaten by sharks.

Literature was also like that.

Korean literature was dying. In Korea, no one searches for and reads ‘good works’ anymore. ‘Works suited to political tendencies’, ‘essays written by favorite celebrities’, ‘self-help books written by famous influencers on social media’—these became the criteria for selecting works.

The purity of literature has been eaten by the shark of politics. The popularity of literature has been eaten by the shark called SNS. The universality of literature has been eaten by the shark of self-improvement.

The bones and head of a marlin.

The kind of pride that an old man who fished all his life can give in exchange for a dime at a drinking party.

That was all that remained.

I barely held on to something like that until I died, so if other people saw me, they might think I was really foolish.

“While reading The Old Man and the Sea… I cried a lot and laughed a lot. No, not just the old man and the sea… I did that while reading Don Quixote, The Sorrows of Young Werther, and The Little Prince… .”

“… … .”

“So I wanted to show it to other people too.”

and.

That kind of humble pride was the reason I chose to become a translator.

It was a penny snack that risked my life and life.

It was an 18-foot marlin that I could brag about for the rest of my life.

It was my life.

[“Maybe I shouldn’t have become a fisherman.”]

[He thought.]

[“But that was the reason I was born in this world.”]

.

.

.

“… The book that moved my heart the most was the fairy tale you wrote to me when I was young.”

“… … .”

“Not because of the beauty of a fairy tale, not because of the love of the Little Mermaid… .”

“… … .”

” Thanks to your kind heart, Ed, who gave me a book that I could enjoy reading even though I was still young… I think it was. What made me like books was… .”

“… … .”

As a translator who only worked with passion, I was unable to reflect on myself and was broken and died.

And, I was born again and did what I used to do.

He read, translated, and publicized literature, and moved people’s hearts with literature.

[“Still, humans were not created to be defeated.”]

[He said.]

[“People are not defeated even if they are destroyed.”]

I am not defeated.