Goblin Library - Chapter 9

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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 9

“My car broke down! Get here now!”
I watched Troublemaker Driver shouting from behind while calling the insurance company, and I glanced at Pot Goblin.
“That car?”
“I asked Dung Carrier Goblin to make sure it won’t start. That’s the only way to make this guy panic.”
I nodded at Pot Goblin’s words before speaking.
“But why does Dung Carrier Goblin like writing novels about someone like that?”
The way he acted was unpleasant to watch—a textbook example of a selfish nuisance. I couldn’t understand what was interesting about such a person that would make them a protagonist in a story.
Usually, protagonists in novels were impressive, accomplished, or at least characters that easily earned people’s sympathy.
“Earlier, didn’t I mention that Goblins enjoy watching the lives of people similar to their own nature?”
Pot Goblin nodded at my question and explained further.
“In my case, my essence is a pot. It’s awkward to say it myself, but I enjoy helping others. And I like warm-hearted people too. That’s why I write about people like that—people like Cha Im-beom.”
“A pot is like that?”
At my question, Pot Goblin gazed at the sky before speaking.
“A pot cooks large quantities of food and boils water all at once. One person uses the pot, but the food and water that come from it are consumed by a family and used by many people.”
As Pot Goblin drew the shape of a large pot with her hands, I nodded.
“I see. So that’s why you said you enjoy helping others.”
“Exactly. And the hearts of the humans who used my true form, the pot—they had that quality. They put things into the pot and cooked food with their hearts full of care for their families, and that sentiment became part of me.”
Then Pot Goblin turned to look at Dung Carrier Goblin.
“So what do you think Dung Carrier is like?”
“Filthy?”
“When you carry waste and filth, you can’t help but get dirty. That’s why humans think it’s filthy, avoid it, and despise it.”
“I suppose so.”
At my response, Pot Goblin watched the distant Dung Carrier Goblin and spoke.
“But what do you think would happen if Dung Carrier didn’t exist?”
“Well… the waste wouldn’t get cleaned up.”
“Right. Humans regard it as filthy and avoid it, but the truly filthy thing is the waste itself, not the Dung Carrier. The Dung Carrier does the work of cleaning up that filth.”
After a moment of silence at Pot Goblin’s words, I spoke.
“So there’s no hierarchy in professions.”
“Exactly. Even if work is difficult, dirty, and unpleasant, someone must do it. And the person doing that work is someone’s parent, sibling, family member.”
Pot Goblin smiled and continued.
“That’s why Dung Carrier Goblin chooses people that others shun and dislike as protagonists, just like the Dung Carrier itself—like that selfish man we just saw. Of course, that doesn’t mean Dung Carrier Goblin is selfish.”
I tilted my head at Pot Goblin’s words.
“I understand writing about humans similar to oneself as protagonists. But still, it seems like such characters wouldn’t make for entertaining novels… You said Dung Carrier Goblin’s works aren’t popular with people or other Goblins, right?”
“Right, not really. Of course, there are occasionally some Goblins with personalities as strange as Dung Carrier’s who read them, but it’s truly rare. From what I hear, they seem to pass the books around among themselves.”
Then Pot Goblin gestured toward the direction where the car Dung Carrier had boarded was now out of sight.
“According to Dung Carrier, even protagonists like that sometimes do good things. And that’s when Dung Carrier feels joy.”
“Well, as you said earlier, that person is also someone’s child, father, and husband.”
Just because someone is known as a troublemaker outside doesn’t mean they’re treated that way by their family.
While thinking such thoughts, I glanced at Pot Goblin.
“But the fire… did it spread significantly?”
At my question, Pot Goblin looked off into the distance for a moment before speaking.
“It’s spreading.”
“Oh no…”
“Fire is manageable if you catch it early, but if you don’t, it keeps spreading and consuming everything around it. That’s why people say every second counts… but there was a delay because of the signal, so it grew in that time.”
At Pot Goblin’s words, I looked ahead with worried eyes. I didn’t know the exact location of the fire, but wherever the fire truck was heading, that’s where the blaze was.

***

Whoooosh! Whoooosh!
The firefighters were spraying water at the Villa, finishing up the fire suppression.
After checking for remaining flames inside the Villa, Cha Im-beom removed his oxygen mask, let out a sigh, then took water into his mouth and spit it out.
Ptooey!
As he gargled and caught his breath for a moment, a man approached.
“Um…”
At the man’s voice addressing him, Cha Im-beom turned his head. Without realizing it, his expression hardened.
It was the Troublemaker Driver who had blocked the fire truck.
At Cha Im-beom’s gaze, the Troublemaker Driver hesitated briefly, then sighed and looked at the Villa.
Seeing the Villa blackened and charred by the fire, the Troublemaker Driver let out a deep sigh and spoke.
“Unit 302…”
“Unit 302…”
Hearing the unit number, Cha Im-beom looked at the third floor of the Villa building and spoke.
“It’s still too dangerous to enter right now.”
“That’s not what I meant… was it completely burned?”
“We’ll need to check on that later.”
The Troublemaker Driver, watching Cha Im-beom give such an imprecise answer, turned his gaze to the third floor of the building.
The outer wall of the third floor was covered in soot created by billowing black smoke.
If the exterior looked like that, I could only imagine what the interior was like. The Troublemaker Driver sighed, looked at Cha Im-beom, hesitated, then opened his mouth.
“What if… I hadn’t blocked the fire truck earlier…”
He didn’t finish his sentence, but he was trying to ask, “Wouldn’t the fire have grown this large?” And sensing the regret in his voice, Cha Im-beom looked at him for a moment before speaking.
“If it had been early in the fire, it might have been extinguished with a fire extinguisher… but if that fire burns for one second, ten fire extinguishers are needed, and if one minute passes, a fire truck becomes necessary.”
Cha Im-beom paused briefly and sighed.
“We don’t sound those loud sirens and ignore traffic signals for nothing.”
Cha Im-beom looked at the burning Villa once, then turned away and began organizing his equipment.

***

Pot Goblin, watching from atop the fire truck, smiled and spoke.
“Watching a fire from across the river might be entertaining, but if sparks fly over, even my house could burn. Still, the story’s compelling and carries a good lesson.”
Pot Goblin laughed, grabbed Typhoon’s hand, and leaped down from the fire truck.
“Gasp!”
The fire truck sat high off the ground. Jumping from such a height caught Typhoon off guard, and he gasped involuntarily.
But before he hit the ground, a gust of wind rose from below, cradling his body.
Whoosh!
As Typhoon landed lightly and looked up at Pot Goblin with a dazed expression, she smiled and spoke.
“Let’s go.”
At her words, Typhoon nodded.
Following her, he glanced back and saw Troublemaker Driver staring blankly at the charred villa.
‘But… is his family alright?’
It was just past nine in the evening. If his family had all been home when the fire started….
Typhoon, watching Troublemaker Driver and the villa in turn with worried eyes, decided to think positively.
If his family had perished, Troublemaker Driver wouldn’t be standing there staring blankly at the house.
Typhoon turned away from Troublemaker Driver and approached Pot Goblin.
“Are there any injured?”
Pot Goblin, who had been writing something in her notebook, glanced at the villa at his question and nodded.
“Four people were injured when they fell while escaping the fire, but they’re all minor injuries.”
“With a fire that large, that’s fortunate.”
“The fire alarm went off quickly. And it wasn’t bedtime yet. Come on, let’s go.”
As Pot Goblin quickened her pace, Typhoon followed behind her.

***

The next morning, I arrived at the Goblin Library and paused for a moment in front of the entrance. Then I glanced sideways at the door frame.
Through the floor-to-ceiling glass beside the door, I could see the interior of a small bookstore perfectly reflected.
After gazing at the bookstore through the glass, I turned my attention back to the door, grasped the handle, and pulled it open.
Click!
The scene that unfolded before my eyes was not a small bookstore, but the vast expanse of the Goblin Library.
At that, I exhaled deeply.
I’d known yesterday’s events were real the moment I woke this morning and saw the goblin headband.
And once I put it on, my clothes had transformed into that luxury suit from yesterday.
But coming to work like this and opening the Goblin Library’s door made it feel genuinely real all over again.
As I surveyed the interior with the bewildering realization that this impossible situation had become my daily life, I heard Bamboo Sword Goblin’s voice.
“You’re here early.”
At Bamboo Sword Goblin’s words, I turned my head.
Bamboo Sword Goblin was looking at a laptop at one of the library tables.
“I woke up early.”
As I answered, I observed Bamboo Sword Goblin’s appearance.
Bamboo Sword Goblin wore comfortable clothing—specifically, what appeared to be pure cotton pajamas—and beside them sat a bottle of soju and some snacks.
“You haven’t slept?”
At my question, Bamboo Sword Goblin took a sip of soju and looked at me.
“Writers work at night.”
“A writer? You write?”
Bamboo Sword Goblin nodded and gathered up the laptop while speaking.
“I usually write at night and wake up around lunchtime.”
Then, as Bamboo Sword Goblin raised a hand, a baton-like goblin club materialized.
As the goblin club was waved lightly, all the items that had been in Bamboo Sword Goblin’s spot vanished.
“Oh.”
As I looked in surprise at where the soju bottle, glass, and snacks had been, Bamboo Sword Goblin spoke.
“Go eat lunch at Jeonjujeon.”
“When you wake up at lunchtime, wouldn’t you like to eat together?”
“I prefer eating alone.”
Then Bamboo Sword Goblin, with a tired expression, picked up the laptop and began to walk away.
Suddenly, they stopped and turned back to me, asking a question.
“You participated in Cha Im-beom’s novel story yesterday?”
“Yes? Oh, yes.”
Puzzled by how they knew, I nodded.
“How was it?”
At Bamboo Sword Goblin’s question, I looked at them, unsure what they meant. Seeing my confusion, Bamboo Sword Goblin asked again.
“I’m asking how it felt to see in person someone you’d only read about in a novel and then participate in their story.”
Understanding what Bamboo Sword Goblin was asking, I spoke.
“It was fascinating to see the protagonist from the book I’d read standing right before my eyes. And….”
As I recounted how Troublemaker Driver had caused trouble yesterday and later felt regret, Bamboo Sword Goblin, having heard the story, nodded and turned away.
Bamboo Sword Goblin turned to Typhoon with that expression.
“Um, I’d like to see Dung Carrier Goblin’s novels. How should I find them?”
At Typhoon’s words, Bamboo Sword Goblin smacked his lips and regarded him with an uncomfortable gaze.
Noticing the meaning behind that look, Typhoon quickly added.
“And you said the boss’s books are right here in front, didn’t you?”
As Typhoon pointed to the shelf row ahead, Bamboo Sword Goblin’s eyes softened slightly.
“Well…. If you’re bored, you can look…. Dung Carrier Goblin’s books are….”
Bamboo Sword Goblin, who had been about to point somewhere with his hand, shook his head and moved toward the counter.
He found a box beneath the counter.
It was the same box he’d retrieved when giving Typhoon the Goblin headband before. Bamboo Sword Goblin opened it and pulled out another item from inside.
‘Glasses?’
Bamboo Sword Goblin held up a pair of spectacles with an antiquated design that looked like something from a museum, studied them for a moment, then extended them toward Typhoon.
“Tiger’s Eyebrow.”

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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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