After class ends, the brief respite that comes like a blessing in disguise.
It feels extraordinarily short, yet at the same time, there’s no other span of time that feels quite as long.
In those mere ten minutes, students manage to play ball games at the back of the classroom, sit in groups of five or six playing games, argue over the latest idol’s new song, finish all their overdue homework…
And yet, after making such efficient use of their time, the moment the bell rings again, they lament as if the world is ending, saying, “Is break time already over?”
Such is the daily life of ordinary students…
But Baekhak Arts Middle School is different.
Here, there are students who must add ‘sunbae-nim’ to the stage names of idols that others casually mention, and some find themselves paired with child actors they’ve seen on TV as their deskmates.
An autobiography polishes a person’s image. It shapes them into someone impressive, dignified, relatable, respectable, and lovable.
A novel, however, uses a person. It turns a character’s suffering and misery into a tool for the reader’s enjoyment.
And Eisaku Siedehara used himself in exactly that way.
From witnessing his parents’ most humiliating moments to his own awkward and comical first experience with self-gratification,
to far greater pains, moments that shattered his life, moments so humiliating they broke his humanity, he laid it all bare.
He mocked those personal shames to entertain the reader and turned his life’s deepest agonies into “trials” to smooth out the narrative flow.
He did so to present his life, every last bit of it, within the pages of a novel.
And such truthfulness shines through.
Because he captured life’s darkness as it was, the brilliance shines just as brightly.
The smile of a child walking hand-in-hand with their parents down a stone wall path on a rainy day.
The day a buzz-cut boy in a school uniform first held the hand of the girl he loved.
The magical moment when, after four years of dreaming, his wish to debut as an author finally came true.
The countless days of struggle, fighting the crashing waves of life alongside a friend.
And the tiny, wriggling fingers of… the child in his arms.
Eisaku Siedehara succeeded in capturing the brilliance of life in his novel. It was truly a feat befitting the final accomplishment of a great literary master and a compilation worthy of marking the end of the man named Eisaku Siedehara.
And he gave this title to his life.
‘Beautiful in Itself….’
It’s a powerful message.
The authenticity of life becomes the strongest literary weapon of all.
“If we take one step further from here…”
“You’re going to talk about I-novels, right?”
A father who left behind an I-Novel as his final work before committing suicide.
A son, Eisaku Siedehara, who criticized that father and made a name for himself as a writer.
And now, the final novel this man left behind is…
“An I-Novel. How ironic, isn’t it?”
“I don’t think it’s an I-Novel, though.”
Moon In glared at Gu Yu-na.
Gu Yu-na stared back at Moon In in silence.
But compared to Moon In’s glare, which carried aggression, Gu Yu-na’s gaze brimmed with unfiltered intensity, a kind of pure madness.
Moon In was the first to avert his eyes.
Gu Yu-na tilted her head slightly.
“Why do you think it’s an I-Novel?”
“Because it’s a personal story, so it’s an I-Novel.”
“Well, that’s something we can’t be sure about. What if Eisaku Siedehara lied?”
Without hesitation, Gu Yu-na turned the deceased into a liar and proceeded to present her next argument.
“Human memory isn’t perfect. How can anyone think that a memory from decades ago, recalled by an elderly man right before his death, could be close to the truth?”
“And even if it is the truth, what reason do we have to trust it? What proof do we have that the real-life Eisaku Siedehara and the character named Eisaku Siedehara in the novel are the same person? Aside from the name, there’s nothing. In that case, this is pure fiction.”
But in Moon In’s view, it was an I-Novel.
Other prominent literary critics would likely share his opinion.
In situations , Gu Yu-na’s stance would usually be dismissed with comments like, ‘Stop playing word games and just focus on studying’.
But Moon In was different.
“You might have a point.”
Moon In nodded with a faint smile.
Gu Yu-na only revealed her brilliance to those who recognized her for it.
“……Above all, Eisaku Siedehara never once claimed in this book that it was his own story. He was fully focused on reshaping his life into a novel. So instead of dragging the discussion into I-Novel territory outside the text, isn’t it better to just enjoy the story and find happiness, as the author intended? That’s the right way to read it.”
Gu Yu-na hugged the book tightly and spun around, as if to say no counterarguments would be allowed.
Moon In watched her with a pleased smile.
“That’s a very meaningful perspective.”
“…I always say meaningful things.”
“Respecting the author’s intention is important too. I’m sure Siedehara-sensei would’ve been thrilled to hear what you said.”
Gu Yu-na perked up, Moon In smiled, and…
A student sitting in the front row, who had been eavesdropping on their conversation, let out a deep sigh.
He envied how Moon In spoke about Eisaku Siedehara as if he were a personal acquaintance rather than a historical figure.
In moments , he wanted nothing more than to jump into their conversation and bombard them with questions. But Moon In had a subtle way of keeping others at arm’s length, and Gu Yu-na was, well, Gu Yu-na.
These two were as hard to approach as ever—prickly and unyielding geniuses.
But while it might be difficult to become friends with masters, if you listen carefully to their debates and absorb their insights, your own skills are bound to improve naturally.
The student sitting in the front row, lying on their desk, perked up their ears attentively.
Thanks to that, they were able to catch Gu Yu-na’s next words loud and clear.
“It feels nice talking with you after so long.”
Moon In was shocked, the student in the front row was shocked, and even Park Chang-woon, who had just entered through the classroom door, was shocked.
A bombshell of a statement that no one could believe had come out of Gu Yu-na’s mouth!
And the source of this outrageous turn of events was, of course, none other than Min Hyo-min, an idol who had been driven to madness after being banned from dating during her hormonal teenage years.
Her first piece of advice: Tell him you enjoy spending time with him!
For the record, this advice was ripped straight from the lyrics of a love song Min Hyo-min had practiced for 12 hours a day.
This is what happens when you bind a love-starved teenage girl to a contract and force her to rehearse love songs for 12 hours a day—she becomes a monster .
So, if I say that, Moon In will listen to me better, right?
Of course! Trust the words of a professional like me!
Following Min Hyo-min’s advice, Gu Yu-na delivered a carefully crafted opening line designed to make the other person more receptive to requests. And then, she got straight to the point.
Gu Yu-na pulled out a thick stack of manuscript paper from her bag and said,
“So, I’ve been working on a novel lately, and I was wondering if you could help-”
“Well, I need to step out for a moment.”
But Moon In, face turning pale, simply ran away.
Left alone, Gu Yu-na hugged the manuscript bundle and tilted her head with a puzzled expression.
While everyone around stared at her with shocked expressions,
Gu Yu-na naturally tossed the manuscript bundle onto the desk and went to chase after the fleeing Moon In.