Goblin Library - Chapter 92

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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 92.

Yu Tae-poong walked over to Lee Gang-hyuk’s table and sat down.
Click! Click!
Bodyguard A and Bodyguard B set down their chopsticks. Watching the two of them, Yu Tae-poong smacked his lips.
‘These two must have names too, yet here they are reduced to A and B… Being a minor character really is tragic.’
In their own lives, they would be the protagonists, yet here they didn’t even have names.
Lee Gang-hyuk glanced at Yu Tae-poong and the Dung Carrier Goblin, then pointed to the sweet and sour pork in front of him.
“Let’s start with this, at least. Could we get some appetizer plates?”
At Lee Gang-hyuk’s request, the Restaurant Owner carefully brought over the appetizer plates.
The Restaurant Owner’s eyes were trembling noticeably. He had witnessed firsthand what happened to the person who had come looking for Lee Gang-hyuk before.
Once the appetizer plates were set down, Yu Tae-poong pulled out two small sauce bowls and added vinegar, soy sauce, and red chili powder to them.
Watching Yu Tae-poong, Lee Gang-hyuk spoke.
“The vinegar ratio is quite high.”
“If you add too much soy sauce, it becomes too salty. I find that just enough soy sauce to feel the flavor, combined with plenty of vinegar, keeps it from being too salty.”
Lee Gang-hyuk poured liquor into a shot glass and placed it in front of Yu Tae-poong.
“Have a drink.”
“Elders first.”
Yu Tae-poong set the shot glass in front of the Dung Carrier Goblin, and Lee Gang-hyuk smiled as he looked at the Restaurant Owner.
The Restaurant Owner, reading the situation, brought over a shot glass and said.
“What about baijiu?”
“Please. We came here to eat sweet and sour pork with baijiu. Oh, and bring the sauce separately.”
“Understood.”
Once the Restaurant Owner brought the baijiu and glasses, Yu Tae-poong spoke.
“Let’s have just the first round with soju, then we’ll switch to baijiu.”
“Very well.”
After lightly drinking the soju, Yu Tae-poong poured the baijiu and looked at Lee Gang-hyuk.
“But isn’t this our first meeting?”
“It is.”
“Then why do you think I know you?”
At Yu Tae-poong’s question, Lee Gang-hyuk studied him quietly before speaking.
“Isn’t this conversation itself the evidence?”
Yu Tae-poong tilted his head, looking puzzled.
“The conversation?”
“Who in this world would come sit at a table with someone they’ve never met before when asked?”
Lee Gang-hyuk picked up the baijiu bottle and offered it forward.
Yu Tae-poong accepted the glass with both hands, and Lee Gang-hyuk poured the baijiu for him.
Glug glug!
“And even if such a person existed, when you sit down like this, the first question would be ‘who are you?’ before anything else….”
Lee Gang-hyuk extended a glass of baijiu to the Dung Carrier Goblin. As the Dung Carrier Goblin took the glass with one hand, Lee Gang-hyuk studied him for a moment.
“You don’t have that kind of hesitation. And strangely enough….”
He poured the baijiu into the glass.
“The way you look at me is the gaze of someone who knows me. The eyes of someone familiar with me, someone who understands me well. Of course, the confusion and surprise you showed when you arrived seemed genuine, so it appears you didn’t expect to meet me here like this.”
“You can discern all that from someone’s eyes?”
“They say the eyes are the windows to the soul. And I’ve observed many people. They generally fall into three categories.”
“Three categories?”
“First, those who don’t know me at all. They’re irrelevant. Second, those who know me despite meeting me for the first time. They usually stiffen slightly when they encounter me, then deliberately act as if nothing is wrong or lower their gaze. And third, those who know me and came here already knowing they would meet me in this place. They approach me while pretending not to know me. I’m cautious because in many cases, they come with the intention of targeting me.”
Lee Gang-hyuk continued, glancing at Yu Tae-poong.
“You seem like the second case… but I can’t be certain. In the prison where I was, the second scenario was likely because people were confined in a limited space, but in society, it’s difficult for such a coincidence to occur.”
“That’s true. Unlike a prison, society is far too vast.”
“You understand. So I’m uncertain whether you’re the second or third type.”
Lee Gang-hyuk shook his head slightly and poured soju into his own glass as he spoke.
“So who are you?”
“Us?”
“You seem to know me, but I don’t know you. Isn’t that unfair?”
Lee Gang-hyuk drank the soju from his glass while observing Yu Tae-poong and the Dung Carrier Goblin.
“I need to know who you both are so I can determine whether I should break your legs or slit your throats.”
At Lee Gang-hyuk’s chilling words, the Dung Carrier Goblin let out a snort of laughter.
“Just tell him I’m someone whose throat needs to be slit.”
In response to the Dung Carrier Goblin’s provocation, Lee Gang-hyuk fixed him with a cold stare.
“You think I can’t do it.”
“Then try if you can.”
The Dung Carrier Goblin stared at Lee Gang-hyuk with narrowed eyes. Even if Lee Gang-hyuk was an important figure in the Bamboo Sword Goblin’s story, the Dung Carrier Goblin was not one to tolerate a human spouting threats about breaking legs and slitting throats.
Observing the Dung Carrier Goblin’s reaction, Lee Gang-hyuk shifted his gaze from him to Yu Tae-poong.
Then he tilted his head slightly.
“The combination of you two is quite unusual.”
“I suppose it would be.”
One was a goblin, the other a human. Of course, Lee Gang-hyuk likely didn’t know that fact when he made his observation.
“As for the young man here….”
Lee Gang-hyuk addressed Yu Tae-poong.
“The clothes you’re wearing are designer and look fine. But there’s an air about you that suggests they’re not yours—like a fresh graduate wearing something that doesn’t suit him.”
‘He reads people well.’
As Yu Tae-poong muttered inwardly, Lee Gang-hyuk turned his attention to the Dung Carrier Goblin.
“As for you, what you’re wearing is ordinary sportswear… but there’s a weight to it that doesn’t match. As if….”
‘Like me.’
Lee Gang-hyuk swallowed the words he was about to say, then spoke after a brief pause.
“But you both exude confidence.”
“Confidence?”
“You know who I am… so you must know what I’m capable of doing. And yet, I feel no tension or fear whatsoever.”
“Because you’re not worth fearing.”
At the Dung Carrier Goblin’s words, Lee Gang-hyuk regarded him with curious eyes.
“Do you really know who I am? If you did, wouldn’t I be somewhat uncomfortable?”
“I know. There’s no one who knows as well as I do. Well, there’s one other person. But I know well enough.”
He added this thought, considering that the Bamboo Sword Goblin, being a writer, would know even better.
“Yet you maintain such an attitude… what gives you such confidence?”
Just as Lee Gang-hyuk posed his question and the Dung Carrier Goblin was about to respond, the seafood noodle soup and black bean noodles arrived.
Watching the Dung Carrier Goblin pause momentarily, Yu Tae-poong spoke instead.
“If I may say one thing… the man beside me could take down a hundred gang members and beat them all senseless.”
“Ha!”
Lee Gang-hyuk let out a hollow laugh as if bewildered, and Yu Tae-poong smiled.
“It sounds like a joke, but it’s the truth… you don’t believe me?”
At Yu Tae-poong’s composed words, Lee Gang-hyuk smiled.
“Have you ever even seen a hundred gang members?”
“I’ve never seen a hundred gang members, but you’ve probably never seen anyone like the man beside me either.”
Yu Tae-poong spoke with a laugh, then stirred the plated black bean noodles as he continued.
“I do know who you are. And what kind of person you are. But that has nothing to do with us.”
“Nothing to do with you?”
“That’s right. It truly has nothing to do with us. Whether you kill someone or do whatever you please—that’s none of our concern. We won’t report you, and we have no intention of punishing your crimes.”
“Then why are you here?”
Yu Tae-poong scooped a generous portion of the plated black bean noodles onto the Dung Carrier Goblin’s plate.
Then he served himself some black bean noodles and spoke.
“We came to eat Chinese food with baijiu.”
“You expect me to believe that?”
“Whether you believe it or not, that’s the truth.”
Yu Tae-poong shook his head and let out a quiet laugh.
“Of course, I understand why it’s hard to believe. As you mentioned earlier, in a confined space like a prison where people gather, I’d overlook it as coincidence… but this is society.”
“You do understand. That’s my dilemma. I’m good at detecting lies, and my instinct tells me you’re speaking the truth. But the probability of coincidence is too low… so the question becomes whether I trust my instinct or trust probability.”
“That’s all I have to say. So… let’s eat.”
Yu Tae-poong smiled, placed sweet and sour pork on his black bean noodles, slurped them down, then poured baijiu and clinked glasses lightly with the Dung Carrier Goblin.
The Dung Carrier Goblin drank his baijiu, then looked at Lee Gang-hyuk and spoke.
“I don’t like it.”
“Pardon?”
“I sat down because I was interested in Lee Gang-hyuk… but I don’t like the way he’s looking at me. I hate this kind of gaze. I’m changing seats.”
With that, the Dung Carrier Goblin stood up.
Clatter!
Whoosh!
Bodyguard A then tried to press down on his shoulder with his hand.
“Sit do—”
But Bodyguard A never finished his sentence, and the hand reaching toward Lee Gang-hyuk’s shoulder was hastily withdrawn.
A piercing shriek tore through the air!
The Dung Carrier Goblin was staring at him. And in those eyes burned a raging inferno of pure fury.
That blazing wrath radiated an oppressive force that dominated the entire space around us.
A strangled gulp escaped Bodyguard A’s throat.
Watching Bodyguard A swallow involuntarily, the Dung Carrier Goblin shifted his gaze toward Lee Gang-hyuk.
Lee Gang-hyuk trembled under the Dung Carrier Goblin’s overwhelming pressure. No matter that Lee Gang-hyuk had subdued every brutal criminal within the prison and become its king—goblins existed beyond the realm of common sense.
“Don’t speak to us. You’ll regret it.”
Lee Gang-hyuk stared blankly at the Dung Carrier Goblin before nodding without thinking.
“Y-yes, I understand.”
“Understand?”
The Dung Carrier Goblin’s eyes narrowed, and Lee Gang-hyuk quickly corrected himself.
“Yes, sir.”
As Lee Gang-hyuk nodded and answered, the Dung Carrier Goblin returned to his seat and spoke.
“Move the food.”
At the Dung Carrier Goblin’s command, the two bodyguards relocated the dishes.
Once they brought over the drinking glasses and the baijiu, the Dung Carrier Goblin settled into his chair.
Then he turned to Yu Tae-poong with a smile and said.
“Now let’s eat comfortably.”
Yu Tae-poong nodded. He would have liked to speak more with Lee Gang-hyuk, but clearly the man believed they had come here for some ulterior purpose, making genuine conversation impossible.
And truthfully, as the boss of an illegal organization, Lee Gang-hyuk would never trust easily. No, it would be more natural for him to suspect that we were killers sent to eliminate him.
“By the way, hyung, you seemed quite angry earlier?”
The Dung Carrier Goblin shot Lee Gang-hyuk a withering glare.
“Of course I’m angry. How dare that arrogant bastard suspect me?”
“Suspect you?”
“He looked at me like I was some kind of freak and doubted me. I hate being disrespected, but I hate being suspected even more.”
“Nobody likes being suspected.”
At Yu Tae-poong’s words, the Dung Carrier Goblin nodded, then added.
“Back in the day, my master was carrying dung when money went missing from that house. The people there suspected my master terribly and even made him undress.”
“They made him undress?”
“No matter how much he insisted he didn’t do it, they wouldn’t believe him. They just ordered him to take off his clothes.”
At the Dung Carrier Goblin’s words, Yu Tae-poong sighed.
“At least they didn’t forcibly strip him.”
“What!”
The Dung Carrier Goblin spoke in anger.
“When you carry a dung basket around, there’s bound to be feces on your clothes, right? So they didn’t want to touch him. That’s why my master, though furious, ended up taking off all his clothes and shaking them out to clear his name.”
The Dung Carrier Goblin shook his head.
“That’s why I hate being suspected. Absolutely despise it.”
Then the Dung Carrier Goblin glared at Lee Gang-hyuk. He was angry because Lee Gang-hyuk had dared to suspect him.
And a goblin’s anger… does not fade easily.

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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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