Obscene Innocent Comics

 

Ssuk suk.

 

Eun-sae, who was tracing sketch lines with a tablet pen, paused and glanced up.

 

Below the window, she saw a man drawing swiftly like herself.

 

Eun-sae stared at the man’s face for a moment, as if mesmerized.

 

‘But seriously, how can someone look so good even when they’re not 2D….’

 

Kim Eun-sae. At the age of 26 this year, she worked as an assistant for a famous webtoon.

 

Her employer was Gong Myung, the author of the popular webtoon ‘Murder Soccer’, which immediately claimed the top spot on the webtoon platform upon its launch.

 

‘Murder Soccer’ was a fantasy webtoon that combined soccer and martial arts. With its dimensional female and male characters, it received acclaim regardless of the reader’s gender and became the number one webtoon. It even received praise for writing a new chapter in sports-related content and was confirmed for adaptation into video.

 

Currently, after successfully completing Season 1 and 2 to critical acclaim, Season 3 was sailing smoothly.

 

It was truly a blockbuster webtoon, but compared to its reputation, the studio was desolate.

 

It wasn’t about the facilities.

 

An apartment with a wide view of the Han River. The spacious living room, large enough to serve as a soccer field, had three large desks.

 

One of them was occupied by the author Gong Myung, while the other was taken by Eun-sae.

 

Since Eun-sae started working, several more assistants came in and out a few times. However, they all couldn’t work for long and quit.

 

The reason why assistants couldn’t work for long was clear. It was due to the tremendous workload and, to put it nicely, the demanding nature of author Gong Myung, and to be honest, his lack of manners.

 

Joo Kang-hyun honestly had some aspects that even Eun-sae found to be inhumane.

 

Most webtoon authors tend to work overnight, but not Joo Kang-hyun. He faithfully followed a routine of waking up at 5 a.m. every day without exception.

 

He wakes up at 5 a.m., he exercises first and then returns. He starts work even before the assistants arrive, and this continues until 10 p.m. It was a repetitive cycle.

 

Eun-sae’s work hours were from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Occasionally, she could work overtime if she wanted to. They paid overtime well, but she was promptly sent home at 10 p.m.

 

Most people couldn’t endure it and quit, but Eun-sae had held this position for quite a while.

 

Eun-sae couldn’t understand why people quit. Yes, the work was demanding and tough, but… honestly, it was a dream job for Eun-sae.

 

First of all, the salary was excellent, and they gave bonuses as well. Plus, the food was amazing… Eun-sae’s aunt prepared meals every day, and they were as delicious as her dad’s cooking.

 

Since her aunt did the cleaning every day, the assistants didn’t need to worry about cleaning. They just had to focus on their assigned tasks.

 

Moreover, like this… when there was time, Eun-sae could sneak a glance at Joo Kang-hyun’s face.

 

As Eun-sae secretly watched Joo Kang-hyun, she slowly rose from her seat and glanced at his desk.

 

Then, she went to the kitchen, made a cup of coffee, and headed towards his desk. She took the empty coffee cup and replaced it with a freshly brewed one.

 

He, who had been working for a while, glared at Eun-sae irritably.

 

“I told you not to cross the line, Kim Eun-sae.”

 

“Yes…”

 

After responding with a casual tone, Eun-sae returned to her desk.

 

Joo Kang-hyun was an extremely disciplined person.

 

A webtoon author who woke up at 5 a.m. every day, that sentence could describe everything about him. He lacked human touch. On top of that, he had no manners, and frankly, no character.

 

But Eun-sae liked him.

 

The beginning of this one-sided love could be traced back a long time.

 

During middle school, Eun-sae was just an ordinary student who liked to draw. Scrolling through webtoon sites every day was her daily pleasure, and by chance, she found a work on a challenge comic posting board.

 

It was a romance comic with an ordinary title, but the art style was truly beautiful. From the first episode, the art style was so captivating that the response was overwhelmingly positive. However, as the episodes continued, the comments dwindled significantly.

 

It was because the content… the content was genuinely uninteresting. To readers accustomed to more exciting plots, it was too plain and slow.

 

But Eun-sae really liked that work.

 

How much did she like it? She even sent awkward fan art to the author’s email and wrote long essays about it every day.

 

He replied with thanks to a young student’s fan mail and even sent her some gift certificates. How moved she was…

 

But one day, that webtoon disappeared without any notice, and Eun-sae was deeply disappointed for a while.

 

Of course, at that time, she admired him as a fan without knowing if he was a man or a woman.

 

And so, time passed…

 

On the webtoon platform, when ‘Murder Soccer’ was launched.

 

Eun-sae immediately recognized him. The author of that romance comic from back then was none other than ‘Gong Myung.’

 

Although his pen name had changed, and his art style had evolved, Eun-sae could still recognize it. His unique drawing habits remained, and there were characters who looked similar to those from back then. But no matter how much she searched the comments, it seemed that no one remembered that work. Eun-sae just stared at the comments.

 

After that, ‘Murder Soccer’ achieved tremendous success, and Eun-sae quietly cheered him on. And she, too, worked towards her dream.

 

Eun-sae’s dream was also to become a webtoon author. Since middle school, after seeing the romance comic she drew, Eun-sae had nurtured the same dream.

 

So, one day, while diligently attending her academy…

 

Eun-sae heard that the author Gong Myung was finishing Season 1 and 2 and was looking for a new assistant for Season 3.

 

Eun-sae immediately went for an interview. Her heart was pounding like crazy. The day she would meet the author she had admired since middle school was finally here…

 

And on the day she first saw him during the interview, Eun-sae fell in love.

 

After the launch of “Murder Soccer,” she knew some basic information about the author, including the fact that he was a man. However, honestly, she never imagined he would be this good-looking. His height, almost 190 cm, and physique were significantly different from the average person. At first, she thought he was a substitute doing the interview for the real author.

 

In that moment when she realized he was indeed Gong Myung, she wanted to bring up the stories from the romance comics he used to draw in the past, but she bit her lip.

 

She was worried that showing excessive fandom might lead to rejection during the interview. So, she pretended to be a casual fan of “Murder Soccer.”

 

Since then, while working here, Eun-sae had been nurturing a deep and unrequited love.

 

She looked at the empty desk of another assistant and smiled contentedly.

 

That was the seat of the assistant who had quit not long ago.

 

Thanks to that, the workload had increased, but Eun-sae didn’t mind. She was naturally quick and diligent.

 

Above all, being alone with author Joo Kang-hyun made her incredibly happy.

 

Being able to have exclusive rights to that handsome face, it was pure luck.

 

There were webtoon authors whose looks and private lives were exposed, but Gong Myung had been particularly secretive.

 

Eun-sae had wondered why that was before she became an assistant, but now she understood.

 

As rumored in the comments for a long time, Joo Kang-hyun had previously worked as a UFC athlete. Whether he didn’t want it officially known or not, he was extremely reluctant to expose his appearance. Speculative comments were often deleted by the platform.

 

Eun-sae learned about this when the responsible PD came to the studio for a meeting. The PD accidentally mentioned it and asked Eun-sae not to act like she knew, as Gong Myung wanted to keep it a secret.

 

‘So, that’s why he had a confidentiality agreement for the interview.’

 

She never had any interest in UFC, so she didn’t even know if he was a former fighter. She simply passed it off as him being a popular webtoon author.

 

Eun-sae nodded naturally when the responsible PD assumed she understood, and since that day, she stayed up all night watching his match videos on YouTube.

 

And so, her unrequited love grew stronger.

 

From the time he uploaded romance comics in the challenge corner, he had been living tirelessly. He probably had lived just as fiercely in his unknown past.

 

She liked his diligence. It was admirable how he never once arrived late or took a break during the serialization period. Even his passionate work ethic and the fact that it led to his sensitive personality appealed to her.

 

She liked that besides his regular morning workouts, he had no private life.

 

He only communicated with the responsible PD on the platform, and if possible, meetings were held in the studio. He always rigorously refused public interviews.

 

Thanks to this, Eun-sae was grateful. She didn’t mind fans flocking to him because of his looks.

 

But…

 

Eun-sae felt crestfallen as she recalled what happened not long ago.

 

In truth, she had confessed her feelings to Joo Kang-hyun not long ago. And she was bluntly rejected.

 

Dejected, Eun-sae apologized and said she would quit once a replacement was found.

 

Several months had passed since then.

 

A new assistant had arrived recently, but he was overwhelmed by the enormous workload and quickly quit. So, Eun-sae was still working without quitting.

 

And the fact that the assistant had quit…

 

Eun-sae remembered that day.

 

The new assistant was a chubby, short man. He showed his unreliability by being late from the first day. Moreover, he frequently muttered to himself, complaining about how he couldn’t handle it and how it was too much. He even grumbled that they should double his salary for this.

 

Already, the salary was much higher than elsewhere. Eun-sae, faced with such a man, passed off an overwhelming amount of work under the pretext of handing over the work. It was a tactic to get him to quit quickly.

 

As expected, the man dropped out after only a few days.

 

But there was a decisive incident that led the man to quit.

 

It was a day when the man was late again. From somewhere, a persistent foul odor wafted in.

 

Joo Kang-hyun suffered from obsessive-compulsive disorder. He had never seen trash rolling around on a desk, and especially because of his sensitive sense of smell, his aunt couldn’t cook dishes with strong odors.

 

When Joo Kang-hyun, who realized that the newcomer was the source of the smell, couldn’t stand it any longer, he shouted at Im Bangseok, who was taking off his socks under the desk and touching his toes.

 

“Im Bangseok, are you going around without washing up? The garbage smell is overwhelming. If you’re going to participate in society, at least wash up. Have you no consideration?”

 

The man, whose face turned red as if he were about to explode from baseless criticism, immediately stormed out of the studio.

 

That was the last time they saw the man.

 

As the man left, Eun-sae smiled and said to Joo Kang-hyun, who was nervously opening the window to ventilate the room, “Then, Writer… I’ll just keep working for the time being, hehe…”

 

In response, Joo Kang-hyun frowned deeply.

 

It seemed that the incident of Eun-sae’s confession attack had come to an end.

 

However, after the confession, Joo Kang-hyun became noticeably sensitive. He started deliberately finding fault whenever Eun-sae glanced at him or approached him with an excuse.

 

His words were as sharp as his punches as a former MMA fighter, but they didn’t have much impact on Eun-sae. To her, his prickly remarks were like a kitten playfully pawing at her, given her incredibly sturdy mental fortitude.

 

Furthermore… Eun-sae never really expected him to reciprocate her feelings in the first place.

 

A man who was so handsome, talented, and rich had no reason to like a woman like her, to the point where she wondered why he hadn’t become an actor.

 

Eun-sae felt a little down but quickly focused on her work. (The secret to her steel mental fortitude was the ability to forget bad things in just three seconds.)

 

‘I want to work overtime… I don’t want to leave…’

 

I want to come to work on weekends, work endlessly without leaving, just stay by the Writer’s side…

 

Blinded by her unrequited love, Eun-sae was consumed by madness.

 

Originally, she intentionally worked slowly because she wanted to work overtime, but now even that tactic didn’t work.

 

After the confession attack, Joo Kang-hyun would promptly send Eun-sae home after 6 PM.

 

* * *

 

Again.

 

Joo Kang-hyun turned his head in response to a disapproving gaze that seemed to come from somewhere. He met the gaze of a pair of thick glasses and tiny eyes.

 

It was Kim Eun-sae, his assistant.

 

As their eyes met, Kim Eun-sae shyly giggled, and Joo Kang-hyun let out a deep sigh and turned his gaze away.

 

In his heart, he wished he had let her go long ago.

 

However… However…

 

When he worked on Season 1, he worked alone without an assistant. He almost died doing that.

 

He had confidence in his natural physical stamina. Furthermore, he always exercised to maintain his stamina. But despite that, the relentless workload day after day was unbearable.

 

So, starting from Season 2, he began to hire assistants. Since he was accustomed to working alone and it was more convenient, he initially hired remote working assistants. However, none of them kept their promises.

 

Following the advice of the staff to hire assistants who would come to the studio to work, he began conducting interviews.

 

There were plenty of people who came for interviews, but hardly anyone stayed for long.

 

Finding someone who was good at their job and diligent was like finding a needle in a haystack. Most of those rare individuals were already working as assistants for other authors.

 

He felt like he would end up with misanthropy at this rate.

 

He didn’t even bother with interviews in the latter half of Season 2. He practically worked alone in Season 2. Thanks to having saved many manuscripts in advance, he managed to make it work.

 

But for Season 3, he simply couldn’t do it alone. He needed an assistant without question to maintain the quality and meet the deadlines.

 

So, he started looking for an assistant again. Days filled with misanthropic thoughts continued…

 

He even considered giving up, but that’s when Kim Eun-sae came for an interview.

 

At first, he wasn’t very impressed. Her art skills were decent, but… honestly, she didn’t seem very meticulous.

 

She wore plain, baggy clothes and oversized glasses. Her hair was simply tied back without any adornment.

 

He didn’t want to judge her based on her appearance, but her timid giggle seemed awkward enough to make it inevitable.

 

He thought she might be clumsy… She seemed disheveled. However, despite her unkempt appearance, he reluctantly hired her.

 

He had gained a reputation for being difficult to work with in the industry, and it seemed like that had spread among applicants. So, no one else came for interviews.

 

However, unexpectedly, Kim Eun-sae turned out to be the perfect assistant.

 

In just one week since she had joined, Joo Kang-hyun’s life had changed completely.

 

The time it took to finish his work, in other words, his time to leave work (in other words, his overtime), had shortened, and his body felt lighter when he woke up in the morning. It was a natural result since he could go to bed a bit earlier.

 

He couldn’t believe how quickly he was finishing his work. It was astounding.

 

Kim Eun-sae was incredibly fast at her tasks. She was diligent and meticulous. She handled things without being asked, and if she noticed any mistakes, she fixed them promptly, almost like a ghost.

 

Joo Kang-hyun immediately gave Kim Eun-sae a raise. At that moment, she seemed like a savior to him. Even the glasses that he had found frustrating before now looked professional and impressive.

 

Everything was perfect until she confessed to me.

 

On a rainy day when the rain was pouring, Kim Eun-sae confessed to me before leaving work.

 

Joo Kang-hyun was taken aback and didn’t know what to say.

 

She liked me? There was no sign of that at all… No, was there a sign?

 

There were many instances where our eyes met by chance. Looking back, Kim Eun-sae had been stealing glances at me.

 

It sent shivers down my spine.

 

Joo Kang-hyun promptly rejected her confession. It was a shame to lose a perfect assistant, but he couldn’t accept her confession because of that.

 

Joo Kang-hyun felt anxious day by day as Kim Eun-sae told him that she would work until she found a new assistant. Based on the data so far, there was no guarantee that they would find an assistant as capable as Kim Eun-sae.

 

However, finding a new assistant took longer than expected. And when they finally found one, the new assistant quit before completing the handover.

 

Joo Kang-hyun felt somewhat relieved that Kim Eun-sae could work a bit longer, but… Whenever he felt those disapproving glances, he shivered.

 

To be honest, he was immune to the attention and confessions of others.

 

He had an extraordinary appearance since childhood. He was tall and well-built, and he knew that his face was good-looking.

 

Of course, he had received countless confessions. He had rejected them all without exception.

 

He didn’t have time for love. He had a dream he had to achieve.

 

Being a comic artist was his dream for a long time.

 

Although his first attempt had failed miserably, and he had to go to the military, it was still a happy memory.

 

After his military service, he had started pursuing martial arts due to an offer from a senior. He chose it because it was what he was most confident in, and he needed to make money immediately.

 

Even when he was active as a martial artist, he had always received attention from others. He had never felt any affection in return. He had only one goal, which was to achieve his dream.

 

After reaching 3 wins out of 3 matches, he retired without hesitation and started drawing again. He was cautious because he had almost injured his hand during a match. His true dream was drawing.

 

After several short stories, he finally made his debut with “(Murder Soccer)” .

 

Even after achieving his dream, he never skipped a day of exercise to maintain his physical fitness. That’s how he had maintained his strong physique and appearance.

 

But he was still human.

 

When working all day long, it was inevitable for a person to become exhausted. There were numerous days when I worked with messy hair in training clothes.

 

But even so, I fell for that appearance.

 

Kim Eun-sae, even gazed at that sight with ecstatic eyes.

 

I appreciated her seeing me in a positive light, but for some reason, Kim Eun-sae felt a bit uncomfortable. Was it because of my appearance, or perhaps because of her constant habit of stealing glances at my face?

 

Anyway, Kim Eun-sae was not his type.

 

Joo Kang-hyun had high standards. They were so high that he had never dated a woman properly in his life.

 

He didn’t particularly have an ideal type, and he had no interest in women to begin with. There was simply no time in his life to meet women when he spent all day buried in his drawings.

 

From a young age, he had no interest in the opposite sex.

 

He had even thought at times whether he was abnormal. He would have an erection in the morning, but he had never had one from looking at the opposite sex or watching pornography.

 

At one point, he had thought he might be abnormal and had tried to seek out pornography like everyone else and attempt self-pleasure. It was, of course, a failure. Nothing seemed to shake him.

 

So, Joo Kang-hyun concluded that he was asexual and believed it suited his life as a cartoonist perfectly.

 

Living a life of drawing until he died… He accepted it with resignation, even though it was disappointing.

 

That’s why Kim Eun-sae made him extremely uncomfortable.

 

He wished she would quit her job as soon as possible, but at the same time, he hoped that the perfect assistant wouldn’t quit.

 

Quit it, no, don’t quit, quit it, no, don’t quit…

 

His thoughts went back and forth in his head a dozen times a day.

 

So why… why does she have to like me…!

 

Kim Eun-sae was resentful. If she was going to have a one-sided crush, she should have kept it to herself. Why did she have to confess and make her own heart uncomfortable?

 

Then, their eyes met once again.

 

Those tiny, uncomfortable eyes behind the glasses. It sent shivers down his spine.

 

Joo Kang-hyun bit his lips and trembled before saying, “Ms. Kim Eun-sae, have you finished your work? If you’re done staring, why don’t you go home?”

 

Checking the time, it was already 6 o’clock. Joo Kang-hyun hurriedly shooed her away, fearing she might have to work overtime.

 

“I’ll see you tomorrow, artist.”

 

Kim Eun-sae nodded and left. Alone in his narrow studio, Joo Kang-hyun finally let out a relieved sigh.

 

Support for more