Chapter 92 – Late On
When Kang Min-hyuk raised his hand and spoke confidently, the corners of Rok-hee’s mouth lifted.
“Okay! Kang Min-hyuk is in! Ladies and gentlemen, anyone else? This isn’t an opportunity that comes every day!”
“…….”
‘Ugh… if Kang Min-hyuk is doing it, it feels weird to sit out.’
Oh Seung-heon squeezed his eyes shut, then opened them and raised his hand.
“I-I’ll do it too!”
At that, a hint of dismay crossed Oh Dong-gyo’s face.
“Damn it… now I have no choice.”
He raised his hand as well, declaring his participation.
Now only Han Yu-ra was left.
When everyone’s gazes naturally turned to her, Yu-ra let out a deep sigh, crossed her arms, and asked,
“I… probably can’t do much because of manuscript prep. Is that still okay?”
“Of course it’s okay! Just do it for fun—for fun!”
“Then I’ll join too.”
“Hehet! Perfect! Very perfect. That means everyone’s in!”
Rok-hee flashed her signature marshmallow-like smile, wriggled her fingers, and continued.
“So, shall we decide right here what we’re going to make?”
“Whatever’s convenient.”
“Basically, there are two big categories: secondary creation and original works. Everyone knows what that means, right?”
Everyone nodded.
Secondary creation meant taking existing characters from other comics or anime and reinterpreting them.
Original works were, literally, selling doujinshi or goods made entirely from one’s own creations from start to finish.
Min-hyuk raised his hand slightly and asked,
“Which one do you recommend?”
“Honestly, anything’s fine. If the goal is sales, secondary creation is obviously way more advantageous, but original works—whether doujinshi or goods—can sell well too if you make them right.”
“What about goods? What kinds usually?”
“Acrylic keychains, glasses cloths, character cards. We’re only doing those three main types. I’m opening one secondary creation booth, and I’m asking you guys to fill the other one.”
“What’s the secondary creation work?”
“Reietsu no Headler.”
When Kim Rok-hee answered with full confidence, arms crossed, everyone’s eyes widened, and Min-hyuk nodded slowly.
‘Reietsu no Headler… it’s been a while since I heard that name.’
Reietsu no Headler.
A Japanese hit comic that dominated from 2005 to 2009.
It applied shonen manga grammar to an arcane-punk setting (a genre featuring modern or near-future civilization where magic is commonplace).
Dense linework and hatching gave it a distinctive cruel-fairy-tale atmosphere, and it was packed with visually appealing characters.
Because of how well it brought its characters to life, it received high praise and gained considerable popularity.
Especially famous were…
‘Headler and Firege.’
The hot-blooded ice magician ‘Headler’ with shark-like teeth and blue hair, and his cool-headed red-haired long-haired rival ‘Firege.’
Even people who hadn’t read the work knew the names and existence of these two characters.
In other words…
‘If we make goods with these characters, they’ll probably sell like crazy.’
Right then, Kim Rok-hee smiled and—
Thud!
—pulled out a laptop, placed it on the café table, and said,
“I’ll show you what I’ve made so far.”
Click! Click!
Using the trackball, she pulled up several images.
“Ooooh.”
“Pretty.”
On the screen appeared illustrations for the goods she had just mentioned.
Ten tarot-card-concept character illustration cards.
Glasses cloths and acrylic stands fully capturing the fairy-tale-like feel unique to Reietsu no Headler, and more.
Rok-hee’s signature over-the-top decoration made everything sparkle—anyone could tell at a glance that these were “must-buy” items.
And seeing them, Oh Seung-heon’s face went pale.
‘I can’t… I absolutely can’t do anything like that.’
He must have instinctively felt the overwhelming gap (?) in skill from Kim Rok-hee.
If he tried his hand at secondary creation, he might end up getting cursed out by Headler fans.
With an awkward smile, Seung-heon raised his hand and said,
“Um… can I just do an original doujinshi? I don’t know much else. I was thinking of just drawing gag comics…”
“Okay, Seung-heon, you do that. What about you, Oh Dong-gyo?”
“Ahem… I’ll go with original doujinshi or goods too. Headler doesn’t have any beautiful girls that match my tastes.”
When Dong-gyo adjusted his glasses and answered, Han Yu-ra quickly added,
“I’ll do original illustrations for goods. That seems manageable time-wise, and it looks like it’d be fun.”
“Hmm, then what about you, Kang Min-hyuk?”
The last turn.
When all eyes turned to him, Min-hyuk stroked his chin for a moment.
‘Hmmmm… what should I do?’
He was conflicted.
This was his first time participating in Comic Land.
It was definitely an experience and a form of input, so depending on what he chose to do, he could learn something different.
That’s why it was important to carefully consider what he himself needed right now and thoughtfully select the work he would do here.
A brief silence followed.
The thoughts of the kids watching him were similar.
‘He’ll probably do an original doujinshi.’
‘Maybe just one illustration?’
‘With Kang Min-hyuk’s skill, a one-shot would be perfect.’
Since Min-hyuk had repeatedly shown off his prowess with one-shots, they naturally assumed he would go with an original doujinshi.
At that moment, Min-hyuk lifted his head and answered in a calm voice.
“I want to try making a doujinshi for Reietsu no Headler.”
““Huh?””
Kang Min-hyuk… doing secondary creation?
The moment that answer came out, everyone’s eyes widened in shock.
***
That evening, in his room.
Min-hyuk sat in front of his computer desk and opened one messenger program.
‘How long has it been since I used this?’
A yellow smiley face wearing a headset icon.
The chat messenger ‘Late-On’.
When Min-hyuk launched a program he hadn’t touched in decades…
[‘Kim Rok-hee (loki991)’ has added you as a friend. Accept?]
[‘Oh Dong-gyo (dhehdry112)’ has added you as a friend. Accept?]
……
Kim Rok-hee, Oh Dong-gyo, Oh Seung-heon, and even Han Yu-ra.
Friend requests from all four arrived at the same time.
After accepting them all—
Ding-dong!
—with a loud notification, a group chat room was created.
[Kim Rok-hee: Everyone ã…Ž2ã…Ž2]
[Oh Dong-gyo: Ohayo!]
[Kim Rok-hee: From now on, let’s share and discuss everything related to Comic Land work here.]
[Oh Seung-heon: Got it!]
[Han Yu-ra: Hi.]
While everyone exchanged a word or two,
Rok-hee asked.
[Kim Rok-hee: By the way, none of you use minihomepi? How come no one’s running one?]
[Oh Dong-gyo: Hmm, isn’t that something only normies do?]
[Kim Rok-hee: -- Then what are you if not a normie.]
[Han Yu-ra: Too busy.]
[Oh Seung-heon: I have one, but…]
Min-hyuk, staring at the monitor, scratched his chin.
“Ah right, Late-On… it was linked with minihomepi.”
Only now did the old memories come back clearly.
The reason Late-On had solidified its position as the undisputed number-one messenger during this period was because of its integration with the so-called ‘Byworld’—an early SNS.
Later, Byworld would be overtaken by the rise of smartphones, and Late-On would fade away in its own right…
‘But back then, this was SNS, and the main way to promote.’
The memory was hazy, but it came back.
At the time, the number of ilchon (friends) on Byworld was practically a measure of someone’s popularity.
Min-hyuk clicked on Kim Rok-hee’s icon and went straight to her minihomepi.
And then, his mouth fell open in surprise.
“What the… 1,300 ilchon? 5,000 today views?”
When he scrolled through Kim Rok-hee’s minihomepi, it was filled everywhere with photos and drawings of ball-jointed dolls, comics, and illustrations…
[Kim Sang-ho: Wow, Kim Rok-hee-ssi, your drawings are seriously amazing.]
[Min Ji-eun: Kim Rok-hee-ssi, please accept my ilchon request!]
[Han Si-jin: You’re participating in Comic Land this time, right? Looking forward to it!]
Comments from people stretched on endlessly.
‘Kim Rok-hee… she was a name in this era.’
With this level of fame, her reputation would definitely help a lot at Comic Land.
While Min-hyuk was quietly admiring it, Kim Rok-hee’s chat continued.
[Kim Rok-hee: Take this chance to all make minihomepis and promote there. Upload your own comics too—more people will see them, right?]
[Oh Seung-heon: Like a blog?]
[Kim Rok-hee: Exactly! These days, if you draw, having both a blog and minihomepi is basically mandatory.]
[Han Yu-ra: Too much hassle.]
[Oh Dong-gyo: Same.]
[Kim Rok-hee: Hey!]
Min-hyuk, staring at the monitor, narrowed his eyes.
‘Kim Rok-hee… she really has foresight.’
Thinking about how, in the future, comic artists and illustrators would treat SNS promotion as basic—and some would even serialize directly on SNS platforms—this was an incredibly smart strategy.
[Kim Rok-hee: Anyway, from now on let’s share progress and give feedback here. If anyone needs anything, check right away. If it’s urgent, just call or text.]
[Kang Min-hyuk: OK]
After the group chat was created like that.
“Huuuuh… Alright, time to get started.”
Min-hyuk let out a sigh and leaned back.
Then he shifted his gaze to the right…
There, a large stack of books was piled up.
The Reietsu no Headler volumes and doujinshi he had bought on the way back, specifically for this project.
Why were they here?
- Here, Kang Min-hyuk. Take these with you on the way back.
- What are these?
- Reietsu no Headler doujinshi. The ones I bought at the last Comic Land—use them as reference.
- Ah, thanks.
It was all thanks to Kim Rok-hee, the veteran Comic Land attendee, and her kind guidance (?).
‘First things first… start by reading the Reietsu no Headler volumes.’
Flip, flip flip.
He slowly began reading Headler.
Not so much to analyze it, but from the perspective of a reader…
To feel where the enjoyment came from.
Because to do secondary creation properly, the most important thing was to understand what made the characters appealing.
“Hmmmm.”
A serious look settled over his face as he quickly immersed himself in the comic.
The protagonist, Headler.
In the fire magic tower ‘Fire Tron,’ where fire mages gathered, he was treated like a complete nuisance.
Because he had almost no talent for fire magic, and his abilities were lacking.
Meanwhile, the mage of the same age, ‘Firege,’ rose smoothly through the ranks in the tower and kept advancing.
In the end, Headler…
[You do not belong in our tower. Choose: either live the rest of your life as trash here and tarnish the name of Fire Tron, or leave this place on your own.]
…was practically chased out of the tower.
But after that.
When Headler joined the decaying ice magic tower ‘Isis,’ the story took a sharp turn.
Headler displayed innate talent for the outcast cold magic, to the point where he realized he carried the blood of the founding mage who had originally established the Isis tower.
From then on, Headler grew rapidly as a mage, rebuilt ‘Isis,’ and in the process clashed with the tower that had expelled him—‘Fire Tron’—and his former friend ‘Firege.’
The ice tower and the fire tower.
The conflict and growth between two geniuses belonging to these opposing factions formed the early core of Reietsu no Headler.
Reading it again after so long, he thought…
‘Yeah… it really is well-made.’
The emotional lines were detailed, and the directing supported them solidly.
Not only the protagonist Headler’s situation…
But also the pressure Firege felt as an elite, and even his complex feelings toward Headler—it was all portrayed in a way that felt deeply relatable.
It became clear once more why this comic had been such a hit, and why its characters were still so frequently mentioned.
Scribble scribble!
Min-hyuk jotted down a few impressions in his notebook as he read, then moved on to the next step.
‘Next… the doujinshi.’
This part wasn’t difficult.
What he could glean here was what desires readers had toward which characters, and how they expressed those desires.
As expected, the overwhelming majority centered on the relationship between Headler and Firege.
‘Bromance… no, to be precise, it’s loaded with BL coding.’
Well, it wasn’t particularly Min-hyuk’s taste, nor was it something he was good at…
But he could clearly feel that reader demand in this area was substantial.
There were also a few works incorporating girls’ love codes using the female side characters.
Some coupling those with Headler or Firege, and quite a few popular ones…
Works pairing attractive villain characters with main and supporting cast members.
Overall, he quickly grasped which characters were being consumed for what kinds of needs.
But if there was one small disappointment—
“Hmm… I don’t really want to just copy this as-is.”
Most of the desires depicted in these doujinshi were overly common and predictable.
Simply following them wouldn’t feel like much of an experience.
What Min-hyuk wanted from this secondary creation was…
‘Something that will help my overall growth as an artist for Brave King later on.’
A ‘new’ interpretation of the characters—one that broke away from the commonplace.
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