Goblin Library - Chapter 3

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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 3

Tae-poong, who had been standing in a daze, suddenly asked something that had piqued his curiosity.
“If you pay taxes… do you perhaps have a resident registration number as well?”
After all, only people registered as residents of South Korea paid taxes.
“Of course I do. If I’m not going to live as a mountain spirit in some remote forest, I naturally need to register as a resident.”
“But… you’re a Goblin, aren’t you?”
At Tae-poong’s question, the Goblin shook his head slightly.
“You don’t know much about Goblins.”
Then the Goblin moved his hand.
Suddenly, what appeared to be a conductor’s baton—the kind an orchestra maestro would use—materialized in his hand.
Seeing this, something flashed through Tae-poong’s mind.
“…A Goblin’s magic club?”
“Exactly.”
The Goblin, confirming with a cheerful nod, waved the baton lightly.
Instantly, dozens of books flew from the shelves and stacked themselves neatly atop the counter.
Tap, tap, tap!
Tae-poong watched in bewilderment as the books accumulated effortlessly.
They were all fairy tales—including a story about his ancestor, Old Man with a Hump, and a fairy tale called “The Goblin’s Fan.”
“Though they’re fairy tales, they’re written with considerable realism about Goblins, so read them. You should know the basics about us so you don’t run into trouble while working here.”
With that, he opened the Old Man with a Hump fairy tale and showed it to him.
“I understand, but that Old Man with a Hump was quite the singer.”
The Goblin who spoke smiled.
“That old codger deceived me, which is irritating, but his vocal talent was truly worthy of being called a once-in-a-thousand-years master vocalist.”
“A once-in-a-thousand-years master…”
“It means a vocalist of such caliber that one appears only once every thousand years.”
The Goblin, who had closed his eyes as if reminiscing about Old Man with a Hump and nodded, opened them again and spoke.
“Goblins love entertaining things. Singing, wrestling, gambling, arm-wrestling… we love anything fun.”
“I’ve heard about that.”
Tae-poong already knew that Goblins loved fun things. He’d heard many stories—like the one about a Goblin he’d met in the mountains who challenged him to wrestling and they went at it all night, only for him to discover at dawn that he’d been grappling with a tree the whole time. There were countless tales of Goblins playing pranks on humans.
“That’s why we live among humans rather than in the mountains. There’s simply too much entertainment in the human world.”
At the Goblin’s explanation that he lived among humans for amusement, Tae-poong found it unexpected.
If Goblins truly existed, he’d assumed they’d live in some haunted mansion deep in the mountains—yet here was one so thoroughly integrated into modern society that he even possessed a resident registration card…
‘And on top of that, the Goblin pays taxes?’
Ignoring Tae-poong’s bewildered gaze, the Goblin pointed to the library’s shelves and spoke.
“Anyway, from now on, you’ll be working here.”
“Here? Not at that Bookstore I saw at the entrance?”
As he asked, recalling the Bookstore he’d seen at the entrance, the Goblin shook his head.
“That place isn’t for selling books—I bought them to read myself. You don’t need to worry about it.”
Tae-poong was puzzled by the notion that the Goblin read books.
“You read books?”
The Goblin nodded.
“I suppose you’ve never heard the old tales about goblins.”
“I haven’t.”
“Goblins love entertaining stories. That’s why I buy books.”
The Goblin paused and gestured toward the shelves brimming with volumes.
“And this place is what you might call a collection of goblin tales—a storybook bundle, if you will. Though I’ve modernized it into a library for the times.”
Then he turned to Tae-poong and spoke.
“Your job is to organize and clean the books here.”
“That’s… all I need to do?”
“Other goblins will come to read. When they do, just do what they ask.”
Tae-poong asked in surprise at the Goblin’s words.
“Other goblins will visit?”
“It’s a library—of course they’ll come to read.”
The Goblin spoke while holding a storybook in his hand.
“Anything else you’re curious about?”
“Well… what happens to my hump?”
As Tae-poong spoke, touching his own chin, the Goblin raised his hand.
In his palm lay a hump.
‘Where on earth does that hump keep coming from?’
His hand had been empty moments before, yet the moment he raised it, the hump materialized.
“While you work here, I’ll remove your hump.”
“That means… if I don’t work here…”
The Goblin tapped his own chin with a finger.
“I’ll put it back.”
Then the Goblin continued.
“A grudge is a grudge, a debt is a debt. If you don’t want to work here, I’ll find you employment elsewhere. Of course, you’ll be wearing the hump.”
“The hump…”
Imagining a life spent bearing the hump amid the whispers of people around him, Tae-poong sighed with a darkened expression.
But that lasted only a moment—something occurred to him, and his face suddenly brightened. Seeing this, the Goblin let out a hollow laugh and spoke.
“Don’t even think about trying to remove it at a hospital. A hump given by a goblin… modern medicine can’t remove it.”
Tae-poong’s face hardened again. That was exactly what he’d been planning—to go to a hospital and have it removed.
“Then how long must I work?”
“Until you die.”
“Until I die?”
Tae-poong’s eyes widened in shock, and the Goblin spoke.
“I’ve been searching for Old Man with a Hump for centuries. Did you really think I’d forgive centuries of resentment for just a few years of work?”
At the Goblin’s chilling voice, Tae-poong flinched and lowered his head.
“….”
The Goblin, who had been watching the silent Tae-poong, opened his mouth once more.
“Allowing you to work here is both a reward I’m giving you and a retribution in place of the hump. You have a choice to make. Either live your entire life working here, or live your entire life bearing the hump.”
Tae-poong hesitated for a moment before reaching a conclusion, then exhaled a sigh and spoke.
“I’ll work.”
The Goblin nodded at Tae-poong’s answer.
“Had you not shown me kindness yesterday, you wouldn’t have even been given this choice.”
“…Yes, I understand.”
Tae-poong answered without conviction. It was better than bearing the hump for a lifetime, but in essence, an unexpected calamity had befallen me all the same.
“However, working here won’t be so bad. I’ll pay you at the level of a Large Corporation. You’ll be compensated fairly for the work you do.”
“Large Corporation level?”
In that instant, life returned to Tae-poong’s eyes. The Goblin nodded and replied.
“Goblins always repay kindness. If I were to work you hard for meager wages, that wouldn’t be repaying a debt.”
“Then, what if I hadn’t been a descendant of Old Man with a Hump? What kind of job would you have given me?”
Tae-poong asked out of curiosity, and the Goblin answered.
“I would have placed you in the Large Corporation you wanted to enter.”
“It was just one can of coffee and a sandwich… and you’d place me in a Large Corporation?”
“Whether it’s good or abundant is meaningless. For us goblins, kindness is what matters. Even if you’d given me a single cup of water, I would have repaid you equally.”
The Goblin placed his hands behind his back and continued, gazing at the bookshelves.
“That’s why we sometimes appear to humans as fortune, and sometimes as misfortune.”
At the Goblin’s words, Tae-poong looked at him and nodded slightly. If receiving a can of coffee and a sandwich could fulfill one’s wish to be hired by a Large Corporation, then the Goblin’s repayment was certainly fortune.
But conversely, if I made a verbal mistake or committed even a small wrong against the Goblin… it would return as tremendous misfortune.
Recalling how I’d shouted at the Goblin earlier, Tae-poong felt a chill run down my spine. Observing Tae-poong’s reaction, the Goblin retrieved a wooden box from beneath the counter.
The Goblin examined the antique-looking box for a moment before opening its lid.
Clack! Creeeeak….
The hinges opened with a sharp, rusty sound. The Goblin removed something from inside the box.
Whoosh.
What emerged was a bowler hat. It had a similar design to the one the Goblin was wearing, but it was white in color.
“From now on, wear this whenever you work at the shop.”
With those words, the Goblin placed the bowler hat on Tae-poong’s head.
Then….
Whoooosh!
Tae-poong’s clothes changed. They became the same suit the Goblin was wearing.
No, it wasn’t just the clothes that changed—shoes appeared, and even a watch.
“Huh?”
As Tae-poong looked down at his body in surprise, the Goblin spoke.
“What you’re wearing is a Goblin’s manggeum.”
“A Goblin’s manggeum? Doesn’t a Goblin’s manggeum make you invisible?”
The Goblin’s expression softened slightly, as if impressed.
“You know something about goblins.”
“I have a memory of seeing it in a fairy tale.”
The Goblin spoke in response to Tae-poong’s answer.
“As you mentioned, there is indeed a function that makes us invisible to human eyes, but the primary purpose is transformation.”
“Transformation?”
“When a Goblin wants to appear human or change into something else, we use a Goblin’s magic hat.”
As he spoke, the Goblin ran his finger along the brim of his bowler hat with a smooth gesture.
Instantly, the color and appearance of the suit the Goblin wore shifted.
Tae-poong gasped, his mind momentarily blank.
“Wow….”
The Goblin returned to his original clothes and spoke to the awestruck Tae-poong.
“Well, that’s how it works.”
As Tae-poong gazed at the Goblin’s bowler hat in fascination, a sudden doubt crossed his mind, and he asked.
“But if it’s a magic hat, shouldn’t it look different than this?”
The Goblin’s magic hat that Tae-poong had seen in fairy tales was literally a traditional Korean hat or crown—certainly not a bowler hat like this.
“A Goblin can’t just walk around in nothing but underwear forever, can he?”
The Goblin raised both hands slightly to gesture at his clothes.
“You have to keep up with the times.”
“I see.”
Tae-poong nodded in understanding.
The Goblin shifted the topic back to work.
“There are three things you must be careful about while working: keep the cleaning spotless, and dress in a manner befitting the Goblin Library’s dignity.”
As Tae-poong pondered the Goblin’s words, he asked with a puzzled expression.
“Wait, you said three things.”
The Goblin regarded Tae-poong silently for a moment, then spoke in a low voice.
“Don’t become too friendly with the other Goblins.”
“Become friendly?”
“If you do, you’ll find yourself in considerable trouble.”
While Tae-poong was considering what he meant, the Goblin glanced at his wristwatch and nodded.
“I have to leave for work, so you….”
The Goblin tilted his head toward the direction of the bookshelves.
“Start with the cleaning.”
As the Goblin headed toward the door, Tae-poong quickly asked.
“Excuse me, where are the cleaning supplies?”
The Goblin, without breaking his stride, pointed to a door behind the counter.
Click!
The Goblin opened the door, paused briefly, then spoke.
“If you get bored, try reading some of the books on the nearby shelves.”
With that, the Goblin closed the door and left.
Click!
As the door shut, Tae-poong found himself alone in the vast Goblin Library.
With the Goblin out of sight, my tension eased somewhat. I approached a small chair beside the counter and sat down.
“Phew!”
I gazed around the library while sitting vacantly in the chair, exhaling a long breath.
“A Goblin… the Goblin Library….”
I murmured softly to myself as I removed the fedora—which the Goblin had explained was a Goblin’s headwrap.
“A Goblin’s headwrap… What on earth is happening here?”
Just yesterday, I’d believed that if I could only secure employment, everything would fall into place.
Yet now… I found myself in the position of a protagonist from a fairy tale.
The Goblin Library. It would make a perfect book title.
I exhaled once more and rose to my feet. I intended to start cleaning, just as the Goblin had instructed.
When I opened the door the Goblin had pointed to, I found various cleaning supplies inside.
After retrieving the supplies, I surveyed the vast library with a dazed expression. Given its size, it seemed I wouldn’t finish cleaning until lunchtime at the earliest.
With a slight shake of my head, I retrieved a long mop and made my way to one end, then began slowly pushing it toward the opposite side.
As I mopped along the shelving aisles, I suddenly noticed the books on the shelves.
“Stories the Goblin has collected… I wonder what kind of books these are.”
I murmured quietly, pausing my cleaning to examine the books on the shelf. Each volume was an elegantly bound hardcover.
“He did say I could read the books.”
I pulled one volume from the shelf.

【Cha Im-beom】
Author: Cauldron Goblin

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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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