REAPER SCANS
Legendary Returner’s Survival Guide
[Translator – TinTin ]
[Proofreader – Harley ]
Chapter 33
JH Media.
With over twenty years in the industry, JH Media was a publisher that boasted annual sales of nearly $50 million. This mid-sized company achieved such revenue despite a modest workforce of only twenty employees.
Focused primarily on web novels and webtoons, the company was home to general section chief Kwon Hyeok-jae.
Two decades ago, he founded JH Media with Jeong Jae-hoon, the company's president, nurturing it from a fledgling startup to its current success.
To be frank, JH Media saw explosive growth only in the past decade, and it was largely due to a single stroke of luck. They had obtained ‘a goose that laid golden eggs.’
Honestly, the writing of the ‘goose’ was atrocious. At least, that was how it seemed to Hyeok-jae, an avid reader of pop fiction since elementary school.
To him, Shi-hu's novels were nothing short of garbage. However, when that garbage was combined with the phenomenon known as Jin Song-yi, it created an unbelievable synergy.
How many people, not just in South Korea but worldwide, owed their lives to Song-yi?
During her two years as a gate rescuer, she had single-handedly saved hundreds of thousands of people. Afterward, she established the Salvation Guild, solidifying her position as a global hero by seeking out and clearing dangerous Gates.
And now, the kin of such a revered figure was writing novels? The quality might be subpar, but he was still the younger brother of the great Jin Song-yi. That fact alone was enough to make people buy his books.
His works were published both physically and digitally, and at least a few hundred thousand people would buy and read them.
Every new release was met with criticism, labeled as trash, but there were always those who bought them out of curiosity, fueled by the ‘what if’ factor.
Even when adapted into webtoons, his works barely scraped by with a 2 out of 10-star rating. However, daily revenue averaged $30,000 in Korea alone throughout its run.
Overseas, the numbers were even more astounding. More than half of the company's annual sales came from Shi-hu.
And now, news arrived that their star writer was hospitalized.
A sinking pit of anxiety formed in Hyeok-jae's stomach.
This couldn’t be happening. They couldn’t afford for him to die so young.
Then, out of the blue, a notification popped up, informing him that Shi-hu had registered a novel titled ‘Titan’ on Kakao Stage.
He was surprised by the notification, and at the same time, wondered why the title was Titan.
In a previous conversation, Shi-hu had said, "I want to try writing various novels. A zombie story, a doctor or lawyer story, even a sports story. I do think my next work might be a zombie apocalypse. I'll let you know as soon as I have the story sorted out."
Hyeok-jae had responded positively, assuring him it would do well.
Honestly, it was a no-brainer. The Jin Song-yi effect was that powerful—and perhaps sympathy played a significant role in the consistently high sales of Shi-hu's novels. An untalented younger brother, perpetually overshadowed by his exceptional older sister.
He sent one text message after another. ‘What are you up to?’ ‘Available to talk?’ ‘What's with the sudden shift from zombies to fantasy?’, etc
But the guy ghosted him.
Almost a full day passed before there was any response.
But it wasn't a reply to his text.
Instead, the novel was uploaded.
As a free serialization site, Kakao Stage allowed authors to register their work at any time. They could write and accumulate around four to five volumes worth of content before moving on to a premium serialization site. That was generally how things worked.
However, he wasn't sure if he should even be thinking this, but…
‘Did he… hire a ghostwriter?’ the thought crossed his mind.
No, it was only natural to think that. The quality of the novel was simply too good.
Typically, the first chapter of a web novel was around 2,000 words long. To be more precise, that was the industry standard. It was a length that an average reader could finish in ten minutes tops, while a fast reader could do it in five.
Five chapters of that length just dropped out of nowhere, and he wasn't exaggerating when he said he had lost track of time while reading them.
He read through all five chapters in one go, then went back and read them again.
‘…What is this?’
He was dumbfounded. The immersion was unreal.
How could he even begin to explain this?
The premise was a common isekai fantasy, a story where 200 people crash-land on a strange planet called Titan and struggle to survive.
But how could something so familiar be so captivating?
The whole situation was baffling.
‘…His writing style changed. The transitions between different points of view are so much smoother. His biggest weakness was excessive and unnecessary descriptions, but those are gone. It’s good. Incredibly good.’
It was as if the world around him had gone silent. Kwon Hyeok-jae had become completely engrossed in the story, feeling as though he had stepped into the shoes of ‘Jin Shi-hu’ himself.
Jin Shi-hu was the name of the protagonist of the novel, the same name as the author's pen name and real name.
Hyeok-jae was certain.
‘This time, it’s different.’
This was going to be a super mega hit.
He had read countless pop fiction in his life, and his instincts, honed by years of experience, were screaming at him. A novel like this had never been seen before.
This was beyond immersion. The way the story captivated him, silencing his surroundings and transporting him into the narrative, making him feel like he was living and breathing alongside the characters.
He had never imagined such an experience was possible. Yet here it was, happening right before his very eyes.
A smile crept onto his face.
He immediately reached for his phone to call Shi-hu. Or, he would have, if an unknown number hadn't called him first.
He answered the call, “Hello, this is Kwon Hyeok-jae speaking. I apologize, but I have an urgent matter to attend to. Could you please call back a little later—”
“Hello, my name is Jeong Bin. I am calling on behalf of Mr. Jin Shi-hu as his legal representative, effective today.”
Kwon Hyeok-jae was speechless.
What was this now? A legal representative?
“Have you had a chance to read the novel that was uploaded today?” Bin asked.
“…Yes, I just finished reading it.”
“Excellent. Then we can jump right into business. I'd like to propose adjustments to the profit split.”
Hyeok-jae frowned. Adjust the profit split, out of the blue?
The editor explained, “You don't seem familiar with how things work in this industry. A 15% management fee is extremely generous and almost unheard of. Most companies have a 30% to even 60% management fee. We're already offering him the best treatment we can, so what kind of adjustments could we possibly do…?”
“Come on now. Let's be honest. Who's responsible for the majority of JH Media's revenue? It's our Mr. Shi-hu.”
“......” Hyeok-jae was at a loss for words. He couldn't deny the truth.
“If you've read the new novel, you should understand the situation better than anyone. Things are about to change drastically from before.”
“......”
“We’re not asking for much. I'd like to adjust the split to 95:5. How does that sound?”
Hyeok-jae was stunned. Bin just said he wasn’t asking for much, yet this felt like highway robbery.
Bin continued, “It’s not like we have an exclusive contract with you guys in the first place. Despite this, Mr. Shi-hu is giving JH Media the first offer in deference to our relationship so far. I’m sure you’re aware that Mr. Shi-hu has rejected various excellent offers from different management agencies so far—many of which offered us a 90:10 split.”
“…90:10? Is that true?”
“Of course.”
Bin was actually speaking out of his ass. He didn’t know if Shi-hu had received such offers or not, but that didn’t matter.
What did matter was that there was no exclusivity contract in place.
Until now, the 200th Apostle had remained loyal to JH Media, but there was no reason for the real Shi-hu to honor such relations.
The only reason this negotiation was happening in the first place was that Bin deemed it more convenient to continue working with the same people.
Bin decided to sweeten the pot a little, saying, “In exchange, we can keep the same split as previously for the sale of paperback. However, for all other formats besides paperback, we propose a 95:5 split. What do you say?”
Shi-hu's books, regardless of their actual quality, always sold like hotcakes in paperback, reaching bestseller status with each release.
Hyeok-jae finally let out a sigh.
“This isn't something we should discuss over the phone. Let's meet in person. Have you had lunch, sir?”
“Not yet.”
“I know a great beef barbecue place. Send me your location and I'll pick you up.”
That day, Bin experienced the most lavish treatment he had received in a long time, and as Shi-hu requested, he successfully secured the unbelievable 95:5 contract.
Hyeok-jae, too, had a smile on his face even as he agreed to the adjusted terms.
Both of them, Hyeok-jae who had read the novel and Bin who was adapting it, could feel it in their bones.
This novel, without a doubt, was going to make them a fortune far exceeding any of Shi-hu's previous works.
* * *
Reaper Scans
[Translator – TinTin ]
[Proofreader – Harley ]
Join our discord for updates on releases! https://dsc.gg/reapercomics
* * *
Episode 8
The headquarters of the World Awakener Association was located in Switzerland.
A total of 7 awakeners had gathered there.
It was honestly a coincidence, as these were people who normally didn’t show up just because they were invited.
Song-yi had been taking a short break after clearing all the gates on her schedule when the SSS Rank appeared.
Her curiosity was piqued when she got a summon from Santiago Muñez, the chairman of the World Awakener Association.
To be honest, she didn’t have to respond to his summons. She could simply say something important came up. However, not once had she previously rejected the chairman’s summon.
Summons were only requested in case of emergency, so it was only right that she show up if she was needed, whether or not she was on friendly terms with the chairman.
That was why she went to the meeting.
The Association's headquarters looked like a castle.
Song-yi was aware of the large scale of dark money that had been funneled into this place.
While following the attendant into the meeting room, she noticed the massive round table.
At first, she didn’t connect the dots, but it was now obvious that their motif was Arthur’s round table. She thought it was quite a gaudy display of money.
While that thought was running through her mind, a man with a distinct white mustache quickly walked towards her and asked for a handshake.
“I thought it might be difficult for you to fly out here with everything that’s been going on lately… Thank you so much for coming to the meeting,” the man said.
The mustached man was Santiago Muñez, the chairman of the World Awakener Association.
Song-yi silently looked the man up and down.
This wasn’t their first meeting. They’d met on several occasions prior, but she was looking at him with a newfound icy glare.
Santiago noticed that she was looking at him differently, but he didn’t show it.
Song-yi finally spoke, “No, of course I had to. The Uyuni Salt Flat gate is the world’s first-ever SSS Rank gate. It’d be strange if I didn’t come.”
Santiago smiled softly. It was a smile that was hard to read.
He then turned and gestured for her to follow him, guiding Song-yi to her seat.
She silently followed him and sat down.
Once she sat down, a handsome blonde man in the seat next to her immediately struck up a conversation.
“I heard you solo-cleared a shifting gate in Texas. It was supposedly SSS Rank.”
It was the Unique Awakener of the United States, and a man she had a troubled past with, Jamie Wilson.
Song-yi turned her head towards him.
“Very impressive. As expected of you, Song-yi. But was it really you who cleared it?” he questioned her.
Song-yi smirked at Jamie. “Was that not the result? What exactly is it that you’re doubting?”
“What am I doubting? You solo-clearing a gate with a Gate Value higher than 90 thousand. That doesn’t add up, don’t you think?”
“Why can’t it add up? You’re being quite sharp with your words. Is that envy I’m sensing?”
“Watch your mouth, you bitch. Why would I be envious of you? I’m just taken aback, that’s all. Besides, if you’re here then I guess we didn’t have to show up. You can just solo-clear the SSS Gate in Bolivia the same way you did with the Texas Gate. Am I wrong?”
Jamie was clearly trying to pick a fight.
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