Chapter 20: Money is the Priority for Now, But… (6)

The title on the first page was Iron X. Of course, it wasn’t just the title that shocked him. It was the overwhelming appearance of the robot on the cover. A massive steel sword. A machine that looked absolutely invincible. And above all, a design so sophisticated it felt alien to this era. He had seen countless sci-fi manga, but never a robot like this—one that made his heart pound just by looking at it.

He hurriedly flipped the page. A classic wide shot of the vastness of space, followed by a fleet of starships slowly approaching from the distance. Then, the Earth. A peaceful beach scene. The protagonist, on a school field trip, playing in the waves with friends—a slice-of-life beginning. Suddenly, a typhoon strikes, and the protagonist goes missing. He wakes up in a mysterious cave. There, he encounters an artificial intelligence robot from the future.

The employee was completely immersed in the gripping development, but suddenly he stopped. There were no more pages. The feeling was as if time had skipped forward; the immersion was so intense he felt dazed. The art was incredible, but the narrative suction was even more impressive.

“Is… is there no more?” he asked, looking bewildered. “Yeah. I told you, it’s 30 pages,” Lee Ki-chul replied. “Ah, right. Of course.”

The man still looked like he hadn’t quite returned to reality. Seeing that, Ki-chul let out a small chuckle.

“Well? How is it?” “How is it? This is just…”

The employee started to say something, then caught himself. He turned to the woman (my sister) and spoke cautiously.

“I’m terribly sorry, but could you wait for just a moment?” “Oh? Ah, yes.” My sister nodded, startled.

The employee turned back to Ki-chul. “You wait here, too. Got it?” “I told you I’m busy.” “Just wait, man! Would it kill you to help your brother out once? I’ll buy you a meal later.” “I’m not so broke that I need a handout from you, hyung.” “Geez, kid! Anyway, just wait!”

He called out to a female staff member nearby. “Miss Park! Get these two some tea. The good kind, okay?”

The employee grabbed the manuscript and approached the slumped President Heo. “Sir. You need to see this.” “Why?” Heo replied, sounding annoyed. “Now.” “I’m not in the mood.” “Find your mood later. Come on.”

The employee practically forced President Heo out of his chair and dragged him into a side office.

“What’s wrong with you?!” “Just get in here and look at this.” “Fine! Let go of me first!”

When Lee Ki-chul returned from the publisher later, his face was slightly flushed with excitement.

“The reaction was insane.” “Really?” “Yeah. The president of Ddaeng-cho Books was throwing a fit because he wanted to meet you immediately. I’ve seen him many times, but never like that.”

It seemed the reception was even better than expected. I had a feeling it would be good, but hearing it was that big of a reaction felt a bit burdensome.

“So, what did you tell them?” “Exactly what you said. That it’s difficult right now due to personal circumstances. The president was fidgeting the whole time. He begged me not to take the manuscript anywhere else and gave me 300,000 won as an advance payment on the spot.”

Ki-chul handed me a paper envelope.

“Wait, really? Without even meeting me?”

I opened it. Thirty 10,000-won bills. I was starting to feel a bit dizzy with all this cash suddenly flowing in.

“The head employee there is my older brother. He trusts me. If you take that money and run, I’m the one who’s screwed. My brother would have to pay it back.”

He laughed—the wicked laugh of a brother who had just put his sibling on the line. I realized Ki-chul had this side to him, too.

“I owe you a big one, Ki-chul hyung.” “Yeah. You’d better pay me back later.” “Of course.” “But honestly, your manga was so impressive that they threw that kind of money down without a second thought. There’s no turning back now. Just focus on filling those 100 pages.” “That’s the plan.”

If I worked hard, would it take about ten days? I couldn’t neglect Star Five either, so I couldn’t spend 100% of my time on Iron X.

“By the way, who was that woman you brought along?” “You didn’t ask her?” “No.”

What a frustrating man, I thought. If he was curious, he should have just asked her. The thought made me laugh.

“Don’t laugh.” “She’s my sister.” “Ah. I thought you two looked somewhat alike.”

He just nodded. I was about to tell him not to get any ideas about her, but it seemed he was just genuinely curious.

“Anyway, has Teacher come in yet?” “No. I don’t know what’s going on. Should we visit his house?”

I asked out of concern, but Ki-chul didn’t seem too worried. “It’s only been three days. No need to make a fuss. He’ll be back soon.” “You think so?” “I’m sure of it.”

Ki-chul was right. On the fourth day, Park Chul-min showed up at the studio. Fatigue was etched into his face in layers; the neat, composed man he usually was had vanished.

As soon as he arrived, he called for me. “Yi-chang, let’s talk.” “Yes, sir.”

What is it now?

“Regarding the work with Hapdong Publishing…” “Yes.”

Teacher Park hesitated for a moment before continuing. “We’ve agreed… on ten volumes.” “Pardon? Ten volumes?” “Yes. They insisted on it.”

Ten volumes.

“But we only agreed on three or four…” “I know. That’s why I’m telling you this. It’s not much of an excuse, but…”

He rummaged through his bag and pulled out three thick envelopes.

“What are these?” “Your share of the contract deposit I received from Hapdong.” “A deposit?”

I checked the envelopes. They were stuffed with 10,000-won bills.

“It’s 1.5 million won. I received 5 million in total.” “······.”

1.5 million won. My hands were practically shaking.

“This is just the deposit. We’re scheduled to receive another 5 million won as manuscript fees.”

10 million won… Was I supposed to understand this as a life-changing amount of money?

“So that’s why you moved to Hapdong.” “The money was the biggest factor, obviously. But I agonized over it.”

So that’s why his face looks like a wreck. He had been offered a massive contract by the very company that had once rejected him and practically kicked him out years ago. He struggled with the choice but ultimately broke his promise to Goryeo Books. Honestly, looking at the industry, it wasn’t a “betrayal” in the traditional sense—artists were freelancers, after all. But since the late 60s, the “Hapdong Monopoly” had changed the rules. To me, Goryeo or Hapdong didn’t matter much. However, for him to unilaterally sign for ten volumes after we had a written agreement… that was crossing the line.

“Anyway, that’s the situation.” “Still, ten volumes is too much.” “In exchange, you don’t have to be as meticulous with the storyboard sketches as before.”

So just phone it in to fill ten volumes. That actually hurt my pride.

“And there’s one more thing.” “What is it?” “About what you asked for before—the 25% of any additional revenue.”

I got a bad feeling. “What about it?” “I don’t think that will be possible.”

“I don’t understand, sir.” “The rights to the manga. Hapdong is taking all of them.” “······What?”

What kind of nonsense is this? Selling the rights entirely?

“That means they’ll take every derivative work of Star Five for free. And if they want, they can use other artists to make cheap knock-offs or sequels whenever they feel like it.” “······Perhaps so.” “And you’re still handing it all over?” “Yes. But they promised additional bonuses if it performs well.” “······.”

I was speechless. To be blunt, Star Five was a world I created. And he was handing it over to a publisher lock, stock, and barrel for a bit of deposit and manuscript fees? I couldn’t accept that.

“I’m sorry, sir. I’m quitting this project.”

Teacher Park’s eyes snapped wide. “What?! Why! Because of the rights?” “Yes.” “What’s so great about ‘rights’ anyway? Artists never get more than the manuscript fee. They promised more money if the books sell well, so I don’t see the problem.”

Yes, in this era, that was the common sense. You get paid for what you draw. But it was a trap. How can an artist verify the sales numbers? You just take what the publisher gives you. And from the next project on, you’re at their mercy. If you stop producing hits, you’re discarded.

In this era, the manga artist was purely the prey.

“You just need to take your fee.” “The problem is,” I said, pausing. “That you made this decision unilaterally.” “What?” “Even after signing a memorandum with me, I cannot accept that you made this choice.”

Teacher Park shut his eyes tight. His brow furrowed, and his face turned a deep shade of red. He snapped his bloodshot eyes open and glared at me.

“So? You’re really not going to do it?” “No. Not like this. I could understand extending it to ten volumes, but I will not tolerate handing over all the rights to the publisher.” “Tolerate? You ‘tolerate’ me?” “Yes.” “How ridiculous. Are you in any position to ‘tolerate’ me or not?” “······.” “So you won’t write the story anymore?” “No.”

He began to tremble with rage. He narrowed his eyes and spoke coldly.

“Then you should leave.” “Sir?” “If you won’t work, is there any reason for you to be here?” “······.” “I coddled you because you had a bit of talent for storytelling, and now you’ve become arrogant.”

Wow, this guy. I thought he was a decent person, but now I was seeing his true colors.

“I don’t think this is a matter of arrogance.” “Fine. I don’t want to see your face either. Clear your desk and get out. Now.” “······Understood.”

Because I answered without hesitation, he trembled even more. He bellowed, “Leave the deposit money, too!”

“No.” “What?!” “I consider this my legitimate compensation. It’s not even a fee for future work; it’s money received because of the success of the previous work. To be frank, I have more right to this than you do.” “······.” “Good luck making the sequel on your own, sir. I’m done.”

As I stood up to leave, he roared after me, “Do you think I can’t make it without you?!”

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