Kobal has drawn attention as a novel by a writer who is known to live in North Korea, and has been translated in 28 countries to date. Kobal offers an attractive example to examine paratextual transformations in its translations; it has multiple paratextual elements to choose from in translation, particularly in terms of its political ideology; and it has been translated into many languages. According to a previous study of the text’s paratextual transformations, in some translations in the West, anti-North Korea ideology was mitigated; a neutral view between South and North Korea was attempted; and Bandi’s identity was questioned. These versions seem to be translated from the perspective of an outside observer of the situation in North Korea. On the other hand, translations in countries surrounding the Korean Peninsula, directly subject to North Korea’s threat of war, may take a different view. Against this background, this study demonstrates how political ideology is reflected in the paratexts of Kobal’s translations in countries surrounding the Korean Peninsula vis-a-vis some translations in the West as discussed in the previous study. While there are no Chinese or Russian translations, paratexts of Japanese and Taiwanese translations have fully conveyed the source text ideology. The analysis supports the claim that political ideology is a major factor in translation, from determining whether to translate the text to transforming paratextual elements. This paper thus demonstrates a spectrum of ideological reception, through paratexts, in multiple translations with different socio-cultural backgrounds.