Goblin Library - Chapter 126

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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Chapter 126.

Yu Tae-poong asked Pot Goblin cautiously.
“Doesn’t drawing consume a lot of view count?”
Whenever the protagonist in a book writes or draws, it consumes view count.
Since 【Lee Yun-jeong】 featured numerous dishes and ingredients, there would be much to illustrate, and Yu Tae-poong worried that Pot Goblin would end up consuming far too many views.
“It does consume quite a bit. But if Lee Yun-jeong and I share the burden, it’s manageable.”
“Lee Yun-jeong has view count too?”
From what Yu Tae-poong understood, the protagonists in the Goblin Library’s novels didn’t possess much view count. After all, neither visitors nor goblins came to the library to read books anymore.
Pot Goblin smiled at Yu Tae-poong’s bewilderment and explained.
“These days, we’re all so busy with other matters that the library sits rather empty. But long ago, this place bustled with goblins. Back then, whenever goblins had nothing else to do, they’d frequently come to read books. That’s why the old books have accumulated quite a bit of view count.”
“Wouldn’t Lee Yun-jeong dislike being drawn?”
“No protagonist dislikes having their story read by others.”
Pot Goblin answered with absolute certainty and opened the book.
The pages fluttered open.
Then, placing her hand on the blank page, Pot Goblin spoke.
“Yun-jeong, it’s been a while. Shall we talk?”
Lines began to appear on the blank page, and an illustration started to form.
Soon, an elegant elderly woman dressed in traditional Joseon hanbok with white hair emerged.
「It has been long since we last met.」
As text appeared and the grandmother bowed in greeting, Pot Goblin smiled and spoke.
“I preferred your appearance when you were young.”
Pot Goblin waved her hand, and the illustration transformed from the grandmother into an elegant young woman.
Though she had borne three children, by age she was in her early twenties—truly the same as a young maiden of the present day.
The illustration lifted her own hand to examine it, then smiled and composed a new sentence.
「Youth is pleasant, yet aging is also a natural course.」
“Still, I prefer your youthful form. If you dislike it, shall I make you old again?”
「No. I too am pleased to see my former self.」
Observing Lee Yun-jeong, Pot Goblin spoke.
“I called you because I have something to discuss with you.”
「I am also delighted to converse with you after so long. And I am grateful that you bear the view count burden.」
“I was the one who requested this conversation, so it is only proper.”
Yu Tae-poong tilted his head as he listened to the exchange between Pot Goblin and Lee Yun-jeong.
Pot Goblin’s tone and manner of speech had suddenly become far too archaic—like watching a historical drama.
Noticing Yu Tae-poong’s thoughts, the Dung Carrier Goblin spoke.
“Your conversation partner is a figure from the Joseon Dynasty era. So you adjust your speech to match that time. It makes it easier for them to understand.”
“I see.”
“Later, when you read a book set in the Joseon era and converse with its protagonist, speak using the honorifics that would have been used in that age. If you speak carelessly to a Yangban Household member, they might take offense and refuse to continue the conversation.”
“You seem comfortable around Cha Dol?”
“Cha Dol was a slave, after all. So as long as you don’t act completely disrespectful when talking to him, he doesn’t care about minor etiquette or forms of address. But the Yangban are different.”
As a Goblin, I didn’t mind, but if Yu Tae-poong, who came from a later generation and was their descendant, spoke without courtesy, the Yangban Household protagonists would dislike him.
Though the protagonist in the book wasn’t the real person, the personality contained the Goblin’s observations and feelings.
Pot Goblin agreed with the Dung Carrier Goblin’s words and cautioned Yu Tae-poong.
“Good point. You’ll have an easier time conversing if you win their favor. Remember that.”
“Understood.”
At Yu Tae-poong’s reply, Pot Goblin nodded and spoke.
“The person reading the book earlier offered an opinion. They wished there were illustrations in the book.”
「Ah, I sensed a feeling of longing, so that must have been it.」
“So what do you think?”
「We can’t fulfill every reader’s wish, but… drawing illustrations seems like a good idea.」
“Is that so?”
「It could help readers understand better.」
“Is that so?”
「Moreover, the herbs and medicinal plants in my dishes are difficult to distinguish from weeds and poisonous plants without careful examination. Therefore, I believe it’s important to draw them in detail so readers don’t mistake them and consume something harmful.」
“Is that so?”
「….」
Lee Yun-jeong, who had dotted several periods in the margins, lowered her head as if sighing.
「Why do you keep leading my words with ‘Is that so?’ If you have something to say or want to hear something specific, please speak plainly.」
At Lee Yun-jeong’s words, Yu Tae-poong murmured inwardly.
‘She’s the type who speaks her mind, it seems.’
Pot Goblin laughed and spoke.
“I wasn’t leading you—everything you said was right, so I was just agreeing with you.”
Lee Yun-jeong, who had been silent for a moment, nodded.
「However, to illustrate all the dishes and ingredients in the book would require many views.」
“You don’t need to draw everything. Just draw what you think is important and truly delicious.”
「All my dishes are delicious. You should know that, since you frequently stole them to eat.」
Caught off guard by this unexpected remark, Yu Tae-poong’s eyes widened as he looked at Pot Goblin.
“You stole them to eat?”
Pot Goblin shrugged and spoke.
“Who would feed a Goblin? And since the Yangban Household doesn’t sell their food for money, I couldn’t buy it either. So… what can I do? I had to steal and eat.”
At Pot Goblin’s words, Yu Tae-poong nodded, thinking it made sense, then asked.
“But how did you get into that house? You can’t enter without an invitation, can you?”
Pot Goblin answered with a laugh.
“It wasn’t difficult. Back then, when guests arrived, people would generally let them stay the night.”
“They let you stay at their house?”
Letting a stranger stay at their house?
“Not all of them, but Yangban who owned tile-roofed houses would at least feed their guests or let them stay the night when they came. Of course, that was when the guest was also a Yangban.”
“Still, to let a stranger….”
The Dung Carrier Goblin elaborated for Yu Tae-poong, who still seemed confused.
“In modern terms, it’s a network exclusive to the Yangban.”
“A network?”
“Think about it. What reason would someone have to spend a night at a stranger’s house?”
“When visiting for leisure?”
“Exactly. If you visit a house you know, of course you can stay the night. But Pot Goblin just said it was a house she didn’t know. When would you ever stay at a stranger’s house?”
“I suppose…”
Yu Tae-poong crossed his arms and fell into thought, wondering if there were any occasions to sleep at a stranger’s house. Normally, one would stay at an inn or similar lodging facility rather than at an unfamiliar residence.
“You have to consider that the era was the Joseon Dynasty.”
“Then… when traveling to a distant place?”
The Dung Carrier Goblin nodded at Yu Tae-poong’s words.
“Right. In that era, there was almost no reason to travel to distant places. At best, the Yangban would go to take the civil service exam or visit relatives on business.”
“Of course, excluding merchants and traveling performers.”
“Exactly. Merchants and traveling performers roamed all eight provinces of the nation. But there was no reason for Yangban households to put up such people.”
As Yu Tae-poong nodded, the Dung Carrier Goblin continued.
“In any case, only the Yangban would travel alone or with servants, and when they needed a place to sleep, they would seek out a Yangban household with a tiled roof. Then they would be put up for the night.”
“So that’s what you mean by the Yangban Network?”
“That’s right. The Yangban are people who held office, currently hold office, or are expected to hold office in the future. So the Yangban who came to their house asking for a night’s lodging were also people who held office, currently hold office, or are expected to hold office.”
“Ah… so they were from the same profession, so to speak.”
“Exactly. A scholar who stayed one night might later rise to an official position and prosper, so they built connections in advance. And since it was an era without even telephones, let alone the internet, it was a rare opportunity to hear news from other regions. That’s why Yangban of that era never worried about where to sleep when traveling. Ah! Of course, not in Hanyang.”
“That makes sense—there were countless scholars coming to take the civil service exam; they couldn’t possibly put them all up.”
“Right. And there were plenty of lodging establishments in Hanyang.”
Following the Dung Carrier Goblin’s explanation, Pot Goblin spoke.
“Anyway, I heard an invitation to come in that way, so I entered. I was dressed up quite handsomely as a scholar going to take the civil service exam in Hanyang at the time.”
“So you transformed into a man.”
“That’s right.”
Pot Goblin answered with a smile and looked at the book.
“I went in and ate, and the food was so delicious. So I looked around carefully and discovered Yun-jeong. I immediately decided she would be the novel’s protagonist.”
A smile played at the corners of Pot Goblin’s mouth as she recalled that time.
“Especially how well Yun-jeong made tofu dishes.”
“My husband and father had a condition that required avoiding meat, so I prepared many tofu dishes instead.”
“A condition?”
Hearing Yu Tae-poong murmur, Pot Goblin answered for her.
“The old term for diabetes.”
“Ah.”
Yu Tae-poong understood and nodded.
Pot Goblin changed the subject and spoke to Lee Yun-jeong.
“Then let’s go with adding illustrations. We’ll share the view count between you and me.”
“Understood. And…”
Lee Yun-jeong’s writing, which had paused briefly, continued.
“I would like to have a conversation with the person reading me.”
As Pot Goblin glanced subtly at Yu Tae-poong, he nodded and placed his hand on the book.
“Please, go ahead.”
Then Lee Yun-jeong asked a question.
“Is there a reason you want illustrations included?”
“Since it’s about food, I thought illustrations would make it more visually appealing and easier to understand the content. And after thinking about it, I realized that distinguishing between ingredients that shouldn’t be used and those that are beneficial—as you mentioned—seems quite important.”
Yu Tae-poong paused in thought before continuing.
“I believe your novel will be helpful to people.”
“Helpful, you say?”
“While food in the Joseon Dynasty Era and now differs greatly, the fundamentals haven’t changed. I hope that after reading your novel, people will enjoy delicious food more fully and eat it more healthily.”
“Do you really think my writing will be helpful?”
“I’ve only seen the beginning so far, but since Pot Goblin said you’re someone who promotes health through food, I believe it will be helpful.”
After a moment of silence, Lee Yun-jeong wrote again in the margins.
“From now on, I will draw illustrations of the foods and ingredients mentioned in my novel. Don’t look at them now—start looking from tomorrow.”
With that, Lee Yun-jeong’s book closed by itself.
Thud!
Yu Tae-poong, who had been staring at the closed cover for a moment, spoke to Pot Goblin.
“It seems the illustrations aren’t being drawn immediately.”
“The protagonist is drawing them, so it takes time. And once you read the book, you’ll see—there are a lot of foods mentioned in the novel. Of course it’ll take a while to draw all of them.”
Yu Tae-poong nodded and pulled out his phone.
“The YouTube account was ‘Taste for Taste,’ wasn’t it?”
When he searched for Oh Mi-hee’s YouTube account mentioned in the Gluttony Goblin’s novel, the channel appeared immediately.
The channel was small in scale, with only about twenty videos and fewer than a hundred subscribers.
People commonly think that doing YouTube will earn them a lot of money, but just as many people have opened channels on the platform.
That’s why YouTube typically sees channels plateau at a few hundred subscribers unless they become famous and popular.
To stand out among countless channels and catch people’s attention, one needed something that others didn’t have.
If Oh Mi-hee had leveraged her name and face, she could have hit a hundred thousand subscribers in no time—but she had no intention of revealing her identity.
She was content communicating with the few subscribers she had, consistently uploading videos.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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