Goblin Library - Chapter 6

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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 6

The fact that Bamboo Sword Goblin, despite being a Goblin, didn’t skim wages put me somewhat at ease.
In all my years, I’d never encountered anyone more infuriating and rage-inducing than employers who tried to cheat workers out of their pay.
“You certainly handle wages properly.”
At my words, Bamboo Sword Goblin nodded.
“Work was done, so wages are paid. Isn’t that natural?”
“Of course.”
When I smiled and nodded, Bamboo Sword Goblin continued.
“Her descendants have run a food business here for generations. I thought it would be good to sell food from a place I knew, and by coming here often, they came to know about me through the generations.”
“Still, it’s impressive this place never went under and kept operating.”
Even restaurants with excellent food rarely manage to stay open for more than a few years.
“Where a Goblin goes, fortune follows.”
“Is that so?”
“It is.”
Bamboo Sword Goblin gave a brief answer and extended his cup, so I poured makgeolli for him.
“By the way, what did you have for lunch?”
“I ate a bento box from a nearby Convenience Store.”
“From now on, come here for lunch.”
“Here?”
Bamboo Sword Goblin nodded.
“The food here is excellent.”
Then he drained the cup full of makgeolli in one gulp.
Bamboo Sword Goblin wiped his mouth and spoke.
“Today has been quite an eventful day for you.”
“It certainly has.”
I thought without question that today had been the most hectic day of my entire life.
At my response, Bamboo Sword Goblin nodded.
“Don’t complicate things in your head. You got a job, and it just so happens your boss is a Goblin and your customers are Goblins.”
‘That’s precisely the biggest problem.’
As I muttered inwardly, Bamboo Sword Goblin continued.
“Just work hard at what you’re told to do. Then working with Goblins won’t be particularly bad.”
“Understood.”
Just as the conversation seemed to pause, Grandmother emerged with the food.
“Enjoy your meal.”
“Thank you.”
I bowed respectfully.
As Grandmother set the dishes on the table, she asked Bamboo Sword Goblin with a puzzled expression.
“But how did you end up hiring a human employee?”
Bamboo Sword Goblin poured makgeolli into an empty bowl before answering.
“Descendant of Old Man with a Hump.”
“Ah! Old Man with a Hump!”
Upon hearing the name Old Man with a Hump, Grandmother looked at Tae-poong with wide, startled eyes. At her gaze, Tae-poong nodded, smacking his lips slightly.
“Hello. I’m a descendant of Old Man with a Hump.”
It was a story that would sound absurd to most people, but since this grandmother already knew about Goblins, there was no better way to introduce myself.
At my introduction, Grandmother smiled. It was a smile tinged with something like pity.
“The owner spoke of Old Man with a Hump so often. It’s wonderful to finally meet you.”
Then Grandmother turned to look at Bamboo Sword Goblin.
“After searching so hard, you’ve finally fulfilled your wish.”
At Grandmother’s words, Bamboo Sword Goblin nodded, then sighed and shook his head.
“Why the long face?”
“This brat gave me a beverage and a sandwich.”
“Ah….”
Understanding what Bamboo Sword Goblin meant, Grandmother looked at me.
“So you didn’t have a hump after all.”
I sighed and touched my chin with my hand.
“I had one this morning, but he removed it for me.”
At my words, Grandmother smiled with relief, her expression softer than before.
“Thank goodness. Every time the owner read me the Old Man with a Hump fairy tale, he always said he’d give me three humps later.”
“Three?”
Startled, I stopped touching my chin and asked with wide eyes.
“How could you possibly attach three humps to a chin?”
“I asked the same thing when I was little… like this.”
Grandmother laughed, pointing to both sides of her chin, then brought her fist to the center.
“He said he’d attach three humps like this.”
Then she spoke to Bamboo Sword Goblin.
“You waited so long for the day to attach humps, but instead received food. You must feel regretful.”
As if Grandmother’s words had stirred up lingering attachment, Bamboo Sword Goblin looked at me quietly before speaking.
“Should I attach just a small one, nothing too big?”
I quickly covered my chin with my hand.
“Absolutely not.”
Bamboo Sword Goblin sighed and nodded.
“Even if it’s a bother, make sure to prepare lunch for this brat from now on.”
“That’s no trouble at all.”
Grandmother smiled and handed me her business card.
“If you want anything to eat, call around eleven. I’ll make it if I have the ingredients.”
“Thank you so much.”
I bowed and accepted the business card. Just then, new customers entered the shop, and Grandmother said “Enjoy your meal” once more to Bamboo Sword Goblin and me before turning to greet them.
Bamboo Sword Goblin pointed at the dishes laid out on the table and spoke.
“Try it. The food is delicious.”
“Yes.”
I picked up a piece of pumpkin pancake and nodded. The crispy texture combined beautifully with the soft pumpkin, creating a delightful taste.
“Ask if you’re curious about anything.”
At Bamboo Sword Goblin’s words, I asked a question.
“When is payday?”
When I asked about payday rather than something about Goblins, Bamboo Sword Goblin stared at me intently before speaking.
“Practical, aren’t you.”
“For an employee, there’s nothing more important than that.”
At my response, Bamboo Sword Goblin nodded.
“Payday is the 10th of next month—exactly one month from today.”
“The 10th….”
“The deposit will go through at midnight.”
At the precise date and time being specified, a faint smile crossed my face.
“And what about the amount?”
I’d heard it was at a large corporation level, but I didn’t know the exact figure, so I asked to confirm.
“350 after taxes. Before taxes, it comes to just over 5 million annually. It’s based on S Group’s starting salary for new employees, so saying it’s at a large corporation level isn’t wrong.”
Then Bamboo Sword Goblin looked at me. Seeing me smile brightly, it seemed the salary pleased me.
Bamboo Sword Goblin nodded and extended a hand.
Whoosh!
A small shopping bag suddenly appeared in Bamboo Sword Goblin’s hand.
He pushed the shopping bag toward me, and I quietly accepted it.
“What is this?”
“Things an employee needs.”
I looked inside the shopping bag. Then I smiled brightly and pulled out the contents one by one.
Inside were an employee ID for the Goblin Library and a bankbook.
“Your salary will be deposited here.”
At Bamboo Sword Goblin’s words, I opened the bankbook. My name was written there.
“But how did you make a bankbook without….”
I was about to ask how it was created, but I closed my mouth. What’s the problem with a Goblin making a bankbook?
Seeing me like that, Bamboo Sword Goblin pointed to the employee ID.
“It’s an employee ID and also a corporate card. Keep it with you, and whenever you need something for the library, just use it to purchase.”
“A corporate card!”
At the mention of a corporate card, I looked at the employee ID with emotional eyes.
“So this is the corporate card I’ve only heard about….”
Seeing my surprised expression, Bamboo Sword Goblin spoke.
“Modern employees have them, so I prepared one. Use it for meal expenses, late-night snacks, and taxi fares. For larger amounts, attach receipts.”
“Is it fine if I attach receipts?”
“As long as it’s an item you can confidently attach a receipt for.”
At the Bamboo Sword Goblin’s words, Tae-poong smiled and nodded.
“Understood.”
After responding in a bright voice, Tae-poong tilted his head curiously as he looked at his employee ID.
The photo attached to the ID was naturally his own.
The problem was that he had never given the Bamboo Sword Goblin his photo.
‘Well, he’s a Goblin, so my photo is nothing to him.’
With the thought that ‘what’s a photo to a Goblin,’ Tae-poong quickly accepted it, took a sip of makgeolli, and popped a piece of pumpkin pancake into his mouth.
It had been delicious before, but now it tasted even better.
Though I had somehow managed to get hired at the absurd place called the Goblin Library, at least my working conditions were nothing short of excellent.
Though who knew what would happen in the future.

***

After finishing the dinner with the Bamboo Sword Goblin, Tae-poong had come to Mapo with his face flushed red from alcohol.
To be precise, it was the Fire Station in Mapo, and more precisely, it was the Fire Station where Cha Im-beom worked.
Standing quietly and gazing at the Fire Station with its lights on, Tae-poong felt passersby brush past him. Several of them glanced sideways at him.
At first, he didn’t notice. But as similar incidents repeated, only then did Tae-poong tilt his head and look down at his own body.
There was nothing particularly odd about it.
“Do I smell?”
Wondering if the smell of oil from the restaurant had seeped into his clothes, Tae-poong brought his nose to his sleeve and sniffed, then shook his head.
There was a slight smell of oil, but nothing serious.
Curious, he examined his body in various places, but no matter how much he thought about it, he couldn’t find an answer.
But that was because Tae-poong didn’t know much about luxury brands.
Everything Tae-poong was wearing and carrying from head to toe was a luxury brand. Moreover, they were products famous for being very elegant and expensive.
Among the people passing by Tae-poong, those who happened to know such luxury brands glanced at him out of curiosity.
After examining his body for a while, Tae-poong looked back toward the Fire Station. And his eyes sparkled.
A few firefighters had come out and were stretching lightly before bringing paper cups to their lips.
But something strange caught Tae-poong’s eye as he watched them.
Letters floating above the firefighters’ heads.
‘What?’
Curious, Tae-poong stared intently at the letters. The identity of those letters was….

「Cha Im-beom」
「Oh Gyeong-su」
「Jo In-beom」

“It’s a name, isn’t it?”
Moreover, it was the name of a character from a novel I had read.
“What on earth is this?”
As I stared at the names of the people around me in shock, a woman’s voice reached my ears.
“You came?”
Startled, I turned my head toward the direction of the voice.
Standing before me was a young woman with a slightly round face and gently drooping eyes that conveyed kindness and goodness.
However, since I had never seen her face before, bewilderment flickered across my expression.
“Who are you?”
“Me? Oh!”
The woman let out an exclamation as if she had forgotten, then smiled and extended her hand.
“We haven’t met before. I’m Pot Goblin. You’re Tae-poong, right?”
At the mention of Pot Goblin, I looked at her with startled eyes before quickly grasping her hand and shaking it.
“I’m Yu Tae-poong. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
My greeting made Pot Goblin’s smile grow even brighter. A faint smile also appeared on my face as I watched her.
With just her smile, Pot Goblin was truly a woman whose warmth could brighten anyone’s mood.
Of course… she was a Goblin, but still.
Pot Goblin glanced around the Fire Station and asked.
“After reading the book, you wanted to come see this place?”
“Ah… yes.”
I nodded and answered.
“I was curious whether the place I read about in the novel actually existed.”
“It really does.”
Pot Goblin answered with a smile. As I watched her, I suddenly noticed her attire.
Pot Goblin was also wearing a red bowler hat and a formal suit. Though it was a men’s suit, it suited her remarkably well.
“Do all Goblins wear bowler hats?”
At my question, Pot Goblin brushed her bowler hat with her hand and grinned.
“I just chose this bowler hat style because it matches this outfit. If I wore something like a dress, I’d change to a hat that suited that instead.”
As she spoke, Pot Goblin placed her hands lightly on her waist and twirled around.
“What do you think? Does it suit me?”
“It suits you very well.”
“Doesn’t it?”
Pot Goblin laughed at my compliment. Then she pointed to the people in front of the Fire Station and spoke.
“Were you shocked to see names floating above people’s heads?”
“Yes!”
Feeling as though she had read my mind, I answered loudly without thinking and asked.
“What exactly is that?”
Pot Goblin laughed heartily, apparently amused by my reaction, and began to explain.
“What we Goblins use are the stories of living humans. You know that, right?”
“I do.”
In response to Tae-poong’s answer, Pot Goblin glanced at Cha Im-beom and his colleague before speaking.
“That’s why sometimes Goblins who’ve read books come here wanting to see the protagonists and characters directly. To make it easier for those readers to recognize the people from the books, whenever a Goblin finishes reading one of our books, the names of the characters appear above their heads like this.”
Listening to Pot Goblin’s explanation, Tae-poong gazed in wonder at the names floating above Cha Im-beom and his colleagues’ heads once more.
“How fascinating.”
Pleased by Tae-poong’s reaction, Pot Goblin offered further explanation.

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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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