Top Management

      TM • 탑 매니지먼트

     Jung Sunwoo was an average man. He had just taken his first job at W&U, a celebrity management company, as a manager. He could finally achieve his dream of being the manager of a world-famous actor or actress. On his way to work, he fell into what appeared to be a lucid dream about his future. As he went on with his day, he realized it may not have simply been a lucid dream.

     Author(s):Long Umbrella, 장우산

      Artist(s):

     Year: 2015

      Country: Korea

     Genres:Drama, Romance, Slice of Life, Supernatural

     Tags:Acting, Adapted to Drama, Beautiful Female Lead, Calm Protagonist, Caring Protagonist, Celebrities, Cheats, Hidden Abilities, Male Protagonist, Management, Mature Protagonist, Modern Day, Music, Precognition, Showbiz, Special Abilities

      Source: Myoniyoni Translations

     ASIANOVEL VERSION: 3.11

     EPUB VERSION: 2.0

      UUID: 48164430-7123-11ea-a904-573d7339088b

      USER: Divadaelight

     DATE CREATED: 2020-03-28

     LANGUAGE: English

     More info and chapters: https://www.asianovel.com/series/top-management

      Chapter 0 - Prologue

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     Thank you, acc0rd, for sponsoring Ch. 108!

     Thank you, YL and acc0rd, for sponsoring Ch. 105!

     Thank you, Anonymous, Ryan, Agnishwar, PR, and YL, for sponsoring Ch. 99!

     Thank you, G.P. and Anonymous, for sponsoring Ch. 90!

     Thank you, G.P., for sponsoring Ch. 70!

     

      Chapter 1

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL by Myoni

     Edited by Myoni & Yoni

     Uhuh… Am I dreaming right now?

     It was the only conclusion I could make as I was sitting in an office I had never seen before.

     It was an incredibly spacious, fine office.

     It was a great sight, but since it felt like I didn’t belong here, I was very nervous. Almost like going into a high-class hotel restaurant with a dress code while wearing stretched out pajamas or a t-shirt that could only be used as a rag and bathroom slippers.

     It was that kind of feeling.

     Must be a dream, right?

     Since there was some sort of hologram-like thing on top of the table, it definitely must be a dream.

     How weird. I didn’t watch a lot of science fiction movies these days, why was I having a dream like this?

     Huh. I could see the clouds outside the window.

     The office was the size of a playground with a window that spanned an entire wall, but there were even clouds floating around outside. It looked like the view you would see from an airplane… Were those really clouds? Or a video? If they were real, how high was this office?

     Nah, if it was a view of the world with ‘overtechnology[1]‘, the office might even be flying.

     Even though I was quite eager to confirm it, I couldn’t.

     There was a reason why I thought this was a dream.

     Currently, as if I was a puppet, my body was moving without my control. My head turned by itself, gazed at the clouds outside once and then looked down at my watch.

     “Hmmm… It’s almost 2 p.m.”

     Even my mouth moved involuntarily and spoke.

     Although I couldn’t control it, the senses definitely worked. Sight, hearing, smell, touch and although I was not completely sure, from the unpleasant taste of my saliva when I gulped, I think I could taste as well.

     It was a bit frightening. I guess this was what they call a lucid dream.

     “It certainly is. If CEO Jung is ready, shall we start the interview?”

     A pleasant tone. My head turned. I looked at the woman who sat in front of me.

     She seemed to be in her mid-forties. Just from her voice, I imagined a gentle face, but it was the opposite. Short blond hair. The sharp edges of her eyeliner above her wrinkles showed her confidence and her distinct ink black lips drew the most attention.

     Hmm? Black lips?

     Her choice of lipstick was quite unique.

     However, have I seen this woman before? I heard that the figures who appear in the dream have similar appearances of people you know in real life.

     “With pleasure.”

     My lips moved again.

     “But, why did Director Park come all the way here?”

     “Of course, I need to come for CEO Jung’s exclusive interview. Then CEO might even spare a bit more time. Is that not right? I could expect that much considering our relationship.”

     “Haha, certainly. Are you going to conduct the interview?”

     “The interview will be conducted by Reporter Song, I will step in from time to time. I know as much as there is to know about CEO Jung, I thought it would be better to get a young person to think outside the box and get some new information.”

     I then realized that there was a young woman sitting next to Director Park. She was a mixed-race beauty as her small face had various ethnic traits. Even her body was gorgeous. However, under Director Park’s strong presence, she didn’t draw much attention.

     “Introduce yourself, Reporter Song.”

     “Yes! Hello, CEO Jung. My name is Song Song.”

     It was a relief I couldn’t control my body. If not, I may have laughed involuntarily.

     “Nice to meet you, Reporter Song.”

     My body held a conversation with the mixed race beauty. As there was nothing I could do, I couldn’t help, but listen in on their conversation. I carefully looked at whatever was in my sight. As it was my first lucid dream, everything was amazing.

     The eyes that were looking at the reporter moved. They briefly passed by something that resembled a computer screen. Even the face that appeared for a second on its shiny black surface. Although it was brief, I saw it.

     It was my face only it looked around twenty years older.

     So that was why I was able to comfortably talk with Director Park.

     My body moved. This time, my eyes look down as I fixed my outfit. A suit that looked like what a British gentleman spy would wear. A necktie. A leather watch that clasped perfectly on my wrist. Even the me who does not know much about brands felt that it was very expensive.

     It seemed like I make quite a bit of money?

     For a reporter in a directorial position to call me “CEO Jung, CEO Jung” to curry favor, seemed like I am quite successful in society.

     Some say a dream was the manifestation of your subconscious… It was lucky that it was my dream, if anyone else knew, they would kick their blankets.

     “Now then…”

     The reporter who looked extremely nervous started the interview.

     “If we want to talk about CEO Jung Sunwoo, we can’t exclude your success story. You started from the bottom, stubbornly struggled your way to the top and now you are the CEO of a global management company. You started out in W&U, do you remember your first day at work?”

     “Of course. Even though it has been a long time. I still clearly remember that day. I was struggling to sleep that night when suddenly I got a call to come in to work by 4 a.m. I was unable to sleep a wink and had my brother give me a ride to work.”

     “How was your first day as a member of society?”

     “Ah, that day was truly dynamic.”

     “In what way?”

     “When I applied to work in the Management Business Department, I was sure I was going to work with actors. I loved movies and dramas and my dream was to raise an international actor with my two hands. I even appealed that point strongly in the interviews…”

     Then?

     “When I finally arrived, I was assigned to a girl idol group who debuted two years ago.”

     What?

     Did I get really stressed because of my first day of work?

     Was that why I am having this dream?

     In reality, I really did have a job interview with W&U, got accepted and was awaiting my first day of work. It was also true that I wanted to be assigned to an actor.

     The reason that I applied at W&U was also because they had a broad array of actors. Among those, there were a few with statuses similar to Hollywood actors with their box-office hits in the Chungmuro Avenue[2], some, although they played a small role, even acted in Hollywood.

     After getting accepted into W&U, I was so excited and worried about what actor I would be assigned to the point where I had trouble sleeping.

     But out of nowhere, a girl group?

     Although I wasn’t sure of the name, I knew that there was a girl group associated with W&U. Since their establishment, they were strictly an actor management company, but a few years ago, they started to expand their lineup with idol groups.

     Although they say the idol industry was like a red ocean[3], as long as you could stay afloat, the revenue was good.

     They first contracted an 11-member boy idol group and as if they had saved a country in their past life, they were a huge success as soon as they released their first album. I had read in a W&U article that they were known as the Monster Rookies and that year they had won every rookie award.

     I couldn’t think of the name of the group, but I did remember their nickname. Since elementary school children were crazy about them, they were nicknamed ‘ChoTongLeong[4]’.

     That year they were able to earn more than their initial investment and were raking in money.

     As W&U was greatly encouraged by their success, they decided to reinvest the revenue earned from the boy idol group and began an in-house system to earnestly raise new recruits. They soon revealed a new idol group.

     That was all I knew. As I didn’t read anything about them in the W&U articles, I guess they flopped. As I wasn’t really interested in them, I never looked them up.

     Since I was going to be assigned to an actor, not a girl group.

     “I guess that was the fateful encounter with Neptune.”

     Neptune?

     Its name reminded me of a once-famous TV animated beautiful female warrior.

     “I guess you were quite flustered at that time.”

     “As soon as I heard it, I thought I was doomed. If you look at the results, it was a failure. I was completely blacklisted on my first day.”

     “What? You were blacklisted?”

     “That time I had just taken my first steps in the ‘real world’ and it definitely must have shown on my face that I wasn’t happy with the arrangements so there was no way my first impression was good. If I think about it now, from that moment, I stepped onto the path of hardship. Although they say I stubbornly struggled my way to the top, if I didn’t get off on the wrong side of the bed on my first day, it wouldn’t have been that bad.”

     “…Woah, Jung Sunwoo!”

     My head was heavy and my chest felt tight. It felt like I was underwater for a long time and finally came up to breathe. As I looked down, I saw a seat belt tightly pressing down on my chest. I undid the seat belt and coughed.

     The person next to me patted my shoulder.

     Who was it?

     Ah, my brother. Thick horn-rimmed glasses and a plain face. It was my brother. As I looked at my surrounding, there were no traces of a large, fabulous office.

     It was the inside of my brother’s car.

     “What?”

     “What do you mean what. We’re here. As a guy on his first day of work, you should get your head in the game. You can’t stare blankly in front of your sunbaes[5]. I am not sure about managers, but in any job, a new recruit needs to be quick on their feet.”

     “I wasn’t staring blankly; I think I just dozed off.”

     “Like hell , ou were dozing off, you were talking to me just ten seconds ago. Your eyes were open as well.”

     What?

     “What are you talking about. I even had a dream.”

     “You’re telling me you fell asleep in ten seconds and even had a dream?”

     Hyung smirked. Even when I thought about it, it was weird.

     However, I definitely had a dream. Not just a regular dream, I had a lucid dream. I could clearly remember the events that unfolded in my dream.

     An enormous office. An older me. Director Park. Reporter Song. Girl Group Neptune, who debuted two years ago.

     But I was talking normally just ten seconds ago? Was it even possible to fall asleep suddenly even if I wasn’t narcoleptic?

     How weird.

     “Maybe I fainted because I was too tired… even the dream was strange.”

     “What kind of dream?”

     “I was the CEO of a management company.”

     “That’s a lucky dream!”

     “No, only that part was good. I was taken back when I was interviewed about my past… on my first day of work, I was assigned to a girl group instead of an actor. And I was blacklisted by a sunbae… Damn it. It was definitely a silly dream.”

     My brother laughed as air escaped from his lungs.

     “Girl group? That’s not bad. I think that will be fun.”

     “Like hell it will be fun.”

     “You’re good at taking care of kids. Wouldn’t it be similar?”

     “Nonsense. And I don’t really want to be a manager of an idol group.”

     It was not that I didn’t like idols. Girl groups were nice. They were pretty, cute and sexy. How great was that. However, I don’t want to be their manager. I felt that raising an idol group would be similar as being a cog in a factory machine. Idols would just be the standardized product from that factory.

     On the other hand, raising an actor felt like a handcrafted product. It didn’t matter if he was respected by the public or not, he would still be a one-of-a-kind work of art.

     Of course, that was only my opinion.

     “As long as you are working for them, I hope you get assigned to an actress that you like. Wish you luck.”

     “Hopefully.”

     I checked my watch and opened the car door.

     “I’m gonna go to work now. Since it’s your first day, you should go early and understand the situation.”

     “Okay. I’ll call you when I’m done. Let’s have a drink tonight?”

     I asked my brother as I made a shot drinking gesture.

     “What time is it now?”

     “Early morning… 3:30?”

     “You’re starting awfully early today and you think you’ll be able to leave on time?”

     My brother and I laughed wholeheartedly.

     It was still dark outside. As if dark clouds covered the stars and the moon, the sky was gloomy. There was still a lot of time before the day brightens up. Although I knew that in this industry there were no regular start and end times, but I never imagined I would go to work this early in the morning.

     “Anyways, I’ll call you when I can. Thanks for the ride, brother.”

     “Sure. Fighting!”

     As I got out of the car, the cold, stale morning air completely woke my mind up.

     After stretching, I made my way through the forest of building in Cheongdam-dong[6].

     [1] Overtechnology seems to be a VR type technology the author made up

     [2] Chungmuro Avenue is known as the street of culture, artists and film in Korea

     [3] Red Ocean is a term to define cutthroat markets, where companies try their best to outperform their competitors

     [4] ChoTongLeong is a word made up from Cho (from Elementary School) TongLeong (from President) meaning President of Elementary Schoolers

     [5] Sunbae mean senior in a professional environment

     [6] Cheongdam-dong is a ward of Gangnam district, a very wealthy area in Korea

     

      Chapter 2

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL by Yoni

     Edited by Yoni & Myoni

     Many of the windows of the building were still lit at this time of day. The streets had quite a bit of traffic and people were walking around.

     Unable to tell if they were going to or leaving from work, people were hastily walking on the streets early in the morning.

     On the bench in front of convenience store, there was a person drinking a can of coffee. A loosely hung necktie, messy hair and beside him, there was a suitcase. It might have been a daily routine for him, but it somehow seemed cool to me.

     I wasn’t sure if I was nervous or excited. Anyhow, it felt good. A student, a soldier, a part-time worker and a job applicant, this wasn’t any of the ‘half-jobs’ I had till now, I had become a real salaryman.

     Going to an office, leaving an office and drinking coffee while talking about issues around the world with colleagues during our break, that kind of salaryman. That sort of a member of society. A working man.

     I’ll buy a car as soon as I save some money.

     The unique appearance of the W&U, in-between similar buildings, caught my eye. In front of a glass door, I double-checked my appearance. I was wearing the suit my brother bought me as my graduation gift, the polka-dotted necktie and dress shoes my mom bought me. The dandy and favorable impression giving off a new employee look was verified by my nephews and my sister-in-law.

     I thought of the brief encounter I had with my older self in a dream. Compared to him, the present me looked sloppy. I looked much more composed and dignified in my dream.

     A CEO of a successful management company. A powerful man.

     My current self was a far cry away from the appearance in my dream. Well, probably because it was obviously a dream.

     Since I was a child, I loved movies and dramas. And I loved the actors that lived in that world. When I was in middle school, I filled my room with card stocks and postcards of Korean and International actors and actresses. In high school and university, I have filled my phone’s photo gallery with them. Even when I was a soldier, my locker was filled with actresses rather than girl groups.

     I loved them and I yearned to be a part of their world.

     In the entertainment world.

     It was an obvious choice when I decided to partake in that world.

     The reason why I chose to become a manager instead of a celebrity was because of my personality. Instead of being in the spotlight, I found it more interesting developing someone who would stand in that spotlight. Even while watching movies and dramas, I found myself more focused on the supporting characters than the main characters themselves. The characters who moved within a story while not getting the attention.

     With my own two hands, I wanted to produce a top star who would be acknowledged not just within Korea, but throughout the world.

     Within the W&U, I could learn and gain experience while working in the management team. And when I get older, I could liberate myself from the company with my actors and actresses and start my own management company, and become the CEO. Becoming the person who I was in my dream.

     That was my ambition.

     Today, I was able to make my first step towards my dream.

     I took a deep breath before opening the door and headed in. No one was there. It was even pitch black. There was only a blinking light in the direction of where I was headed.

     What floor was I supposed to go again?

     As I approached the front of the elevator, I heard the sound of a girl humming somewhere.

     Oh God. I might have gotten a heart attack. Shit, it was my ringtone. It was the soundtrack from a horror movie I was impressed by during the summer. I didn’t think this song was that scary. Who the fuck calls at 3 in the morning?

     As I took out my phone, it was from an unknown number.

     “Hello?”

     – Are you Jung Sunwoo who is supposed to start work today?

     “Yes. Speaking.”

     I bowed my head out of habit.

     – My name is Kim Hyunjo. I’m the chief of Management Team 3, are you on your way?

     “I’ve just arrived, but what floor was I supposed to go to?”

     -I’m on the 2nd floor of the underground parking lot. I’ll meet you there. We need to leave right away.

     “Yes, I understand. I’ll get there right away.”

     I quickly took the elevator. The mirror attached to the door reflected my face. A stiff, nervous face. I needed to make a good impression.

     I tried to force a smile while looking at the mirror. He wouldn’t spit on a smiling face[1].

     As I arrived on the 2nd underground floor, I heard a honk. A man came out of a black van. Some distinct features stood out.

     First, he was thin and short. His slender figure made him look like a student from a far.

     On the other hand, he had a haggard appearance. I wasn’t sure if he just didn’t shave properly or if he just didn’t shave at all, but I was able to see stumbles on his chin. He had dark circles that stretched down to his chin. He seemed like he had went through all sorts of hardships to become an veteran manager…

     I didn’t expect my supervisor to be angel-like, but he didn’t seem like he had a good personality.

     As I took a look at Hyunjo, he glanced at me as if he was scanning me.

     “Are you Jung Sunwoo?”

     “Yes. Feel free to talk to me however you want, chief.”

     “For now, this is more comfortable.”

     He seemed uncomfortable.

     Also, the fact he said, for now, seemed a bit odd.

     “But… You came dressed in a suit? Didn’t someone remind you to dress comfortably as you would be working on the field right away?”

     “…No.”

     I just received a message about when and where to go for my first day of work.

     Since it was my first day of work, I even took my time on deciding what to wear. But, looking at Hyunjo, he was wearing a sports jacket and jeans. He was also wearing a cap. He was dressed the complete opposite of me.

     I quickly removed my tie and shoved it in my bag.

     Hyunjo roughly scratched the back of his head.

     “Suit and dress shoes… If you work with those kids, you need to run around to take care of them all day long and most of the time you even need to wait for them all night long inside the van. But, you won’t be able to work properly with a suit on. Starting tomorrow, dress more comfortably. Ah, even if I said comfortably, I will kill you if you wear stretched out sweatpants and squeaky slippers.”

     I’m doomed. How bad was my first appearance?

     “Comfortable, but not sloppy. Do you get what I mean?”

     “Yes, I underst…”

     “There, that guy dressed properly for the job.”

     Looking behind me, Hyunjo waved his hand. When I turned around, I saw a man who looked similar to my age. He quickly came out of the elevator and walked towards us. A man that seemed to be the kind of person who would kindly answer you when you ask for directions. A face which appeared to be smiling even if it really wasn’t. He even had dimples. Shit, Shit.

     “Nice to meet you. My name is Chae Gunyoung.”

     “I’m Jung Sunwoo. Hello.”

     “So great to meet you.”

     After shaking hands, Hyunjo took a look at both, Gunyoung and me.

     “Between the two of you, I heard one had experience, it’s Gunyoung right?”

     Gunyoung nodded.

     “Feel free to talk to me however you want, chief. It’s embarrassing to say that I have experience. I worked part-time under Blackout manager hyung for 3 months. I only drove the van, did the chores and stopped people from taking photos, but that was all.”

     “That’s still good. Ah, then you should know Hojun hyung. Chief Lee Hojun.”

     “I have met him a few times.”

     Blackout. As I heard it, it came to me. The successful boy group of W&U, the ‘ChoTongLeong’ idol group. They were called Blackout. The company he worked part-time for 3 months was this one.

     Damn it. It seemed as though everything was crooked from the start. The outfit I spent a lot of time on was turned down and the new colleague I was compared to already had 3 months of experience.

     If I’m not careful, he could be recognized as the sharp, fast, sensible, new recruit. And, me as the slow and insensible type of new recruit.

     “First, both of you get in the van. We need to pick them up, get them to the shop[2] and drop them off at the music program rehearsal by 7am. Let’s talk about more specific details on our way there.”

     I was too lost to realize what was odd about what he said.

     Of course, Hyunjo sat in the driver’s seat and Gunyoung sat beside him. I moved quickly as I sat in the backseat. I quickly took off my jacket and shoved it in my bag, loosened my buttons on my shirt and folded the sleeves up right up to my elbow. It was only then my outfit looked a bit more comfortable.

     As the van entered the highway, we started to talk more about the specifics.

     The specifics that shocked my ears.

     “Starting today, Gunyoung and Sunwoo will be in charge of the group called Neptune. They are a 4-member girl group that debuted early last year. Have you heard of them?”

     “Yes. I listened to their single album not so long ago.”

     Gunyoung replied right away.

     “The reactions didn’t seem that bad.”

     “Not bad? The single dropped off the charts right away and disappeared.”

     “Really? Because the group members are all pretty, they were often talked about in an online community I go on.”

     “Is that so? They are really pretty. Since we were originally a company in charge of actors and actresses, when we decided to make a girl group, we decided to pick those with actress like appearance. But, that doesn’t mean that they don’t have the skills. They were mostly trainees for a long time in a different company. We even thought of the oversea market before choosing them so they are capable of speaking other languages. Since they have the basics, if they just make a hit, they will go a long way, but that hit didn’t happen for the last two years. Are they just unlucky, or do we just not have enough experience with planning…”

     I wasn’t able to cut in their conversation. I was completely lost.

     The girl group Neptune which debuted two years ago. I was in charge of a girl group instead of an actor or an actress.

     The things I heard from my dream were becoming true, they were really happening. Can this really happen? Is this what I think it is? A déjà vu?

     “What about you, Sunwoo? Is this the first time you have heard of them?”

     I made eye contact with Hyunjo through the rearview mirror.

     “Ah… Yes.”

     Because of my slow reply, he clicked his tongue.

     “If you look behind you and search through the index file, you will see it contains all of their profiles. Take one. Since it takes about 15 minutes for us to arrive at their lodging, take a good look at it.  Or, search online. You need to at least know their names and their faces before meeting them.”

     “Yes. I understand.”

     As I lifted the index file, there were a couple of thick profiles booklets. I took one booklet out. Even if I was still a bit confused, my hands moved automatically.

     “So Gunyoung, do you have any siblings?”

     “I have an older brother and a younger brother. I’m the second oldest.”

     “Ah, I’m also the second oldest. The second oldest are usually more self-determined and quick-witted. For this job, the qualities you need the most are determination and quick-wits. It’s not easy to constantly be with 4 young girls all day long. Do you have any siblings, Sunwoo?”

     “Yes. I have one older brother.”

     “You’re the youngest? Thought so.”

     Thought so?

     My mind started.

     What was I doing right now? Déjà vu or not, this wasn’t the time to think about my dream. Hyunjo was starting to think of me as a joke. If I don’t straighten up my first impression right now, I’ll have a miserable life ahead.

     I was worried that my life ahead will be full of hardships as I ruined my impression on the very first day.

     [1] Korean proverb meaning you don’t mistreat someone who treats you nicely.

     [2] Shop refers to a makeover salon, where celebrities get their hair and makeup done.

     

      Chapter 3

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL by Myoni

     Edited by Myoni & Yoni

     No, I can’t let it go on like this. I can’t let all my preparations go to waste.

     “My brother is 10 years older than me.”

     Hyunjo sighed as he heard my words.

     “So you’re the youngest by a large age gap. Being the youngest with such a large age difference, you must have gotten pretty spoiled growing up. Then this kind of work would be hard for you…”

     It was a common misconception.

     You must have been well-cared for. Everyone must have spoiled you. I can tell you’re the young master type just by looking at you. You probably don’t have any guts.

     Comments like these. I had heard plenty of them in the army.

     However, I found this unfair.

     “My brother married when I was in middle school.”

     “Pardon?”

     “The following year, when my sister-in-law went to the pregnancy clinic, they found out that she was pregnant with quadruplets. “

     “What…”

     I still remembered the day our lives were flipped upside down. It was hard to tell if my brother, who was always quiet and dull as dried fish, was laughing or crying.

     Mother, father, they said quadruplets. Hahahaha… ha…

     Hyunjo and Gunyoung looked at me with wide eyes.

     “My sister-in-law was planning on quitting her job to focus on the baby, however with four babies, she couldn’t quit. They needed both of their incomes to barely cover the cost of baby formula.”

     “Th-that’s true. With four kids, just the cost of diapers and formulas would be incredible.”

     “So eventually, the babies were left with my mother, but she was unable to take care of them by herself.”

     “Ahhh…”

     “So I ended up helping out. During middle school, I spent my time changing their diapers and soothing them, during high school and university, I was pretty much a constant babysitter. Because my body constantly smelled of baby formula, my nickname was once ‘JungJumma[1]’. Hahaha.”

     “Uh…”

     “So it’s true that I am the youngest, but I didn’t grow up with that sort of treatment.”

     “Yaah… You must have had to endure quite a lot. If you raised four kids, taking care of the members of a girl group must be nothing to you.”

     It was as planned.

     With this, I was able to avoid the bad first impression I had in my dream. In some ways, it was a relief. If I didn’t have that dream, the only thing on my mind right now would have been, ‘girl group? I’m screwed, screwed, so screwed, what do I do?’

     But I really was screwed.

     I was still shocked and dazed by the fact I was assigned to a girl group. However, I couldn’t just quit because I was unhappy.

     W&U was the best out of all the companies I applied to.

     Compared to other companies, the salary was good and there was much to learn from the way they tried to develop themselves in a foreign market while accounting for failure.

     Above all, their system for promotions for road managers was much more systematic and stable. This was the biggest advantage. In those hit-or-miss companies, there were rumors that managers might simply drive for several years without a promotion.

     There was no guarantee that if I quit, I would be able to find a better job and since it was already decided, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to check out the music and entertainment fields beforehand. Many actors would end up appearing on entertainment shows anyways. While assigned to the girl group, I could gain experience and there may be a chance to get assigned to an actor later on.

     Might… damn it.

     I picked up the profiles for Neptune.

     Girl group. The unfamiliar pronunciation rolled off my tongue. The girl groups I knew were the incredibly famous ones or the ones I saw in the army. Besides those, I knew of the few that appeared in various movies or dramas.

     Among those, there were none named Neptune.

     Neptune.

     After the boy group, Blackout, jumped straight to stardom, this was the second idol group W&U put their heart and soul into. A 4-member girl group. They had debuted 2 years ago.

     The members each had the appearance to be responsible for the visual of the group.

     Looking at their profile pictures, they were all beauties who each had their own unique charm. I tried to look to see if I had ever seen any of them before, but it would only tire my eyes. After carefully reading the last page, I shoved the profile into my bag.

     I thought about my dream again.

     Anyhow, could a lucid dream be used so splendidly? It was not like I was possessed by a spirit. Even if we say I somehow got the part about getting assigned to a girl group right, wasn’t it too chilling for me to get their debut year as well as the name right?

     Wait. Could it be?

     While I was searching articles related to W&U. I could have skimmed by a girl group named Neptune and their debut year.

     I might not have remembered it, perhaps it was lodged in my subconscious and manifested in my dream. At least it was more believable than a lucid dream.

     Although looking at the successful future self, it wouldn’t be bad if it was a lucid dream…

     “Mr. Sunwoo, did you finish reading the profile?”

     “Yes, I read it all.”

     After selling out my brother’s quadruplets, Hyunjo’s tone became softer.

     “Our management team 3 is the hardest team in W&U. Physically, mentally and emotionally. If you work someone for a while here, you can tell. That guy is going to last, that other guy is going to quit.”

     As the mood became more serious, I sat up properly.

     “All the new recruits have big dreams of becoming the CEO of a major company, what a load of bull, out of ten, seven or eight will quit within a year. The ones at the top may be like, ‘Kids these days don’t even have the basics’ or ‘Back in my day, it was much harder’… however, it makes sense. These days, almost everyone joins after they have graduated university. Did I study all those years to become a driver for young girls and get them kimbab[2]? Why wouldn’t they think that.”

     “…”

     “You earn a small salary while your health degrades as you aren’t able to properly take care of yourself. On top of that, there is a countless number of people who like to flaunt their position. We’re constantly stuck lowering our heads, politely addressing them as Producer, Writer and Director. You definitely think about quitting a least a few times a day.”

     Gunyoung and I blankly listened to his words.

     Was he implying that it is hard to succeed in this line of work so to just quit now?

     I did apply since I really wanted to work in this industry. It wasn’t like I just recklessly decided to follow my fantasies. There wasn’t anyone who didn’t know that the job of a manager was tough. I also heard that the entertainment industry was a cheap and dirty place to work.

     “Do you know why I am telling you both this?”

     We read each other’s eyes and answered differently.

     “Since you’re our senior, so you wanted to give us advice…”

     “Since we need to know the reality before we face…”

     “If you’re going to quit, quit early.”

     “…Pardon?”

     “What do I become if you quit after I train you both. I need to recruit new employees and train them again. So if you don’t think you can keep up, quit even a day earlier and go your own path. Don’t stay uncertain for 2 weeks or a month and make me more tired.”

     Wow. This was my first day.

     I hope not all new employees have to hear this.

     “If you’re going to stay, do a good job, okay?”

     “I understand.”

     “Yes.”

     I haven’t even started work and I was already exhausted. My chest felt stuffy as if a heavy rock was inside it. We didn’t speak a word while driving for 5 minutes.

     “We’re here, it’s that small apartment.”

     The van stopped in front of the apartment. I thought that there would be something special about an idol’s residence, but there wasn’t much.

     Gunyoung commented while getting out of the van.

     “It’s very different from Blackout’s residence.”

     “You can’t compare them. They have obsessive stalkers. If they were to live in a place like this with a shabby security system, it would be chaotic.”

     “That’s true… Stalkers are quite scary these days.”

     “They give me goosebumps. One time, someone told me that when they came home after work, they found a fan in their closet. There are plenty of psychos.”

     I looked around and asked.

     “I guess Neptune doesn’t have any fans like those?”

     “They don’t. How could they have stalkers when they don’t even have regular ones. However, even after they become popular, girl groups don’t have as much of a hard time as boy groups because of stalkers. There are occasionally some crazy bastards that run over to touch them during a signing event or celebratory events. Perverted bastards.”

     Hyunjo loathingly entered the apartment. Gunyoung and I closely followed behind.

     Our eyes met as I looked to the side. I felt a hint of both awkwardness and comradery. We laughed at the same time. The dimples on Gunyoung’s cheek became more pronounced. I felt the same way the first time we met, but I feel like he has a great personality. I wondered what was his impression of me. I hoped I was at least not a jackass in his eyes.

     I stuck my hand out first.

     “I am 27.”

     “Oh? So am I. ’08 graduate. Should we talk casually since we’re the same age?”

     “Yeah.”

     I would have to get to know him more, but I felt that he wasn’t such a bad guy.

     We took the elevator and went up to the fifth floor. Hyunjo didn’t even knock and entered the passcode on the door[3].

     Click.

     The hallway was still dark. After struggling to take off my shoes, I entered. Maybe it was because it was a girl group’s residence, but I felt like I walked into a whole different world.

     Honestly, I was nervous. It wasn’t just me, Gunyoung, who was behind me, showed clear signs of being nervous.

     As Hyunjo turned on the lights, the hallway instantly brightened.

     It wasn’t very big. It was much better than my one-room, but it seemed like it would be too crowded for four people. A cute, round sofa. The character cushions and dolls spread on top. A cream colored rug. It showed clear traces that only girls lived here.

     “Girls! Wake up and get ready! We have to get to the shop by 5!”

     Bang bang!

     Hyunjo knocked on each door twice.

     The first door to open was the one left of the veranda.

     “Oppa[4], you’re here early.”

     Wow.

     Wow…

     It was like when you watch a movie or a drama where the screen brightens up so the female lead looks incredibly beautiful. It was the secret filter used when the producer really wanted to push the lead or if there were some revisions made…

     That was the scene in front of my eyes.

     

      Chapter 4

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL by Myoni

     Edited by Yoni

     As if the woman, girl, woman or whoever had just gotten out of the shower, her wet hair was covered with a towel.

     It felt as though sexiness and innocence coexisted perfectly. She was pretty, yet had unique features.

     Praise came out naturally. Out of all the people I have seen in real life, she was the prettiest. There was an enormous gap between first and second.

     She should have been an actress, not a singer.

     “Maknae[1] woke up the earliest again. You practiced until late yesterday, aren’t you tired?”

     “I need work even if I’m tired… It’s the first broadcast in a long time.”

     “Lee Songha, you’ve grown.”

     The youngest member of Neptune, Lee Songha.

     On her profile, it said she had just graduated high school this spring. Even in Neptune, where everyone was responsible for the visual, she was superior. Mood breaker, even her blank stares looked as if she was lost in thought.

     It said her position was sub-vocal and sub-dancer, I think I need to study more about these positions. Although I know the positions for soccer and baseball, it was my first time dealing with girl group positions. I didn’t know that the positions were so specifically divided. It was to the point of culture shock.

     “Oppa. When do we leave?”

     “We have to leave at 4:30. 30 minutes left.”

     “Okay.”

     Even her voice was good. Since she was a singer, she was good at projecting her voice and pronunciation. Above all, she had a good rhythm in her speech. It had the addictiveness of getting stuck in the ears of the listeners.

     That’s rare.

     If she was an actress, I would have gathered all her previous works, it was unfortunate.

     Songha rubbed her tired eyes and approached me. Drops of water dripped from her hair, which was simply covered with a towel. My hand flinched as I subconsciously wanted to wipe the drops. She stopped right in front of me.

     Is this the right time to say hello?

     Just as I was thinking that, Songha nodded her head. Before I could even say hello, she tilted her long, white neck and looked over my shoulder.

     “Please move a little.”

     “Yes? Ah, yes.”

     It seemed she had some business with the refrigerator behind me. After I moved aside, Songha opened the freezer and took out a container of ice cream. It had “Lee Songha’s” written in thick permanent marker.

     I thought those kinds of things only happened in families with quadruplets…

     “Everyone get up!”

     Hyunjo shouted again.

     “What are the unnis[2] doing while maknae is already up and ready!”

     That appearance overlapped with my previous self who had to wake up the quadruplets and send them off to daycare before going to school.

     Haaa… It was war. It was an endless battle, if I woke one up, another would slump on the sofa and sleep, if I woke another one, another one would crawl back into her blanket… Damn. Let’s stop thinking about those kids. It didn’t seem like I was a fresh new recruit, but an exhausted working daddy!

     “Good morning…”

     The door with a dinosaur sticker opened. Messy, curly hair. A woman wearing yellow one-piece pajamas came out rubbing her eyes with her head bowed.

     She’s Im Seoyoung.

     She’s 21. Her position is sub-vocal. Lead dancer. On her profile, it said that she had a lovely baby face and a voluptuous body.

     That really was the case. If you didn’t know them, you’d think she was the youngest, not Songha. She looked like a high schooler.

     She was even responsible for entertainment shows. In a program I have never heard of, she momentarily appeared as a guest reporter. In a group that was obscure as Neptune, she was the young breadwinner who was busy attempting to raise their popularity.

     “Oppa…”

     “Yeah. Wake up, quickly.”

     The totteringly walking Seoyoung suddenly opened her eyes.

     “Songha. You’re gonna get fat. Do you know how much calories that is?”

     Songha, who was scooping up ice cream while standing, briefly glanced at Seoyoung before turning her back. She hugged the ice cream container as if she was trying to hide it, but still continued to dig in.

     “You think I can’t see it just because you eat like that?”

     “Then, unni shouldn’t look.”

     “How can I not look at my favorite food!”

     “Then do you want a bite?”

     “Don’t tempt me! I’ll get fat!”

     “Yak yak yak, nagging so early in the morning…”

     “Yak yak yak? To your unni? Wah, oppa, look at the way she talks to me. She doesn’t try to lose, not even once. If you were in a different team, they would insult you every day for your ill-manners, then you’d be crying in a corner and eventually quit. Do you know how many girls there are who have bad personalities? You should know that you are only able to live so luxuriously since you joined our team.”

     The lovely Seoyoung was actually responsible for the nagging of this household. As the nagging continued to go on, Hyunjo pushed Seoyoung towards the bathroom.

     “Hurry up and wash while I wake the others up. Want something light… like an apple?”

     “Yup yup! Thanks, oppa!”

     After finally getting Seoyoung in the bathroom, Hyunjo sighed.

     “Two down, I still have to wake the other two. So can one of you peel an apple?”

     “I’ll do it.”

     I raised my hand. I had confidence in this. I found two large apples in the fruit drawer of the fridge and a fruit knife in the corner of the sink. Soon, a thin paper-like rind was peeled off smoothly.

     Look at it, look. Even when I looked at it, I couldn’t help, but to appreciate the level of skill.

     The spectating Gunyoung applauded.

     “Work of art.”

     “If you summed up all the fruits I’ve peeled; you’ll probably get an orchard.”

     While preparing snacks for the quadruplets, you naturally become a master at peeling… stop already. This is excessive, really.

     After peeling the apples, I placed them on a plate and stuck a fork in a slice. At the same time, the other members of Neptune had woken up. The blond mixed-race main rapper LJ. And the oldest in the group, the main vocal. The charismatic leader, Lee Taehee.

     That’s what it said in the profiles…

     Taehee was scratching her stomach with her hand inside her shirt. While Hyunjo was busy waking everyone up, she nonchalantly sat on the sofa and nodded off. LJ was stretching and eating apples in front of me.

     “This is yummy. It’s sweet.”

     “You have a lot. If it’s not enough, I can peel some more for you.”

     Why does it feel like I became a food demonstrator at a grocery store?

     Well, if a Barbie doll was sampling my food, it would be worth it. If Taehee had the body of a model with long legs, LJ had a perfect hourglass figure. Her voluptuous breasts and the S-line figure that follows through her waist, hips and her legs which seem to extend endlessly from her training shorts made her seem unrealistic.

     Being assigned to a girl group was good. It was very good.

     “Hey, give me my apples!”

     “I don’t want to?”

     As soon as Seoyoung, who had just finished washing herself, urgently yelled, LJ picked up the last slice and teased her. As if their arguments were a common occurrence, Hyunjo didn’t even attempt to stop them and sighed. Eventually, I had to peel more apples.

     While the members washed, changed their clothes and got ready, Gunyoung and I were waiting like bags of barley.

     After seeing the familiar scene of the quadruplets from Neptune members, I became less nervous. However, Gunyoung was still stiff.

     “I really can’t adjust to this.”

     “I know, right? I guess it’s because it’s our first day.”

     Gunyoung covered his mouth and spoke in a quiet voice.

     “I graduated from a male-only middle school, high school and university. I don’t even have a nuna[3] or a younger sister.”

     “If that’s the case, you really will have a hard time adjusting.”

     “Right? But it’s still good.”

     “Really good.”

     We worked hard to cover the tips of our lips from curving upwards.

     As soon as the girls gathered in the living room, Hyunjo clapped his hands.

     “Now that everyone is up, let’s say our greetings. They will be staying with us for a while.”

     “What, you changed the manager oppa again?”

     “What happened to Chulhyoung oppa?”

     “That bastard is in hiding. He even changed his phone number.”

     “Really? That’s too much. He should have let us know before quitting.”

     “Don’t say that bastard’s name. It pisses me off.”

     “But I thought this would happen. He was sullen and always looked at my legs.”

     As Seoyoung complains, LJ skimmed over her legs.

     “Don’t worry about your legs. Look at how many legs there are here, why would he look at yours?”

     “What?”

     When the two who were the same age fought, the leader, Taehee didn’t even try to resolve it. She was the type of leader that let things resolve by themselves. And Songha was carefully nibbling on the apple core for some time.

     “The conversation is going nowhere again. I said to greet each other. We don’t have much time.”

     Hyunjo patted my back. I gulped down my saliva and tried my best to smile.

     “Hello, my name is Jung Sunwoo.”

     “He’s… much older than you and his nickname is Jungjumma.”

     “Chief, that’s an old nickname…”

     Seoyoung raised her hand.

     “Question! Why is your nickname Jungjumma?”

     “He said his brother had quadruplets and he had to be the babysitter.”

     “Wow.”

     It wasn’t my intention, but the story of the quadruplets helped here as well. The members looked up at me. I hope my image was okay.

     “And this is Choi Gunyoung. He worked briefly with Blackout.”

     “Cough, Hello. I am Choi Gunyoung.”

     Neptune members introduced themselves one after the other. I heard that there are some celebrities who swear at their managers to release stress. Luckily, it seemed like they wouldn’t do such a thing.

     Was it because they weren’t popular yet? Would they change once they became popular?

     Since they were younger than us, we decided to speak casually, but I still had to prepare my heart. It was the first time seeing beauties of this level, four of them at that, so close to me. Maybe if they were moderately pretty, but currently I felt pressured since they were too pretty.

     I’ll probably slowly get used to it.

     Wait. If I get used to it, wouldn’t it be a problem if my standards rise?

     “Now that we’ve introduced ourselves, let’s move. Get up.”

     Hyunjo urged as he looked at his watch. All of us lifted our butts and got up.

     “Is it cold out, oppa?”

     “It’s a bit chilly. Wear something on top before you come out.”

     The members covered their slim shoulders with outerwear or a blanket before going out.

     The sky was still dark.

     It would take 30 minutes to get to the shop in Chungdam-dong. 2 hours passed as the artists did their hair and makeup.

     As their managers, we had to wait and keep an eye on their blankets and their bags during that time.

     Hyunjo was sleeping, Gunyoung was dozing off and I was yawning while I looked at my phone. I was gathering information on Neptune. I saved some good pictures and monitored their broadcasts. I downloaded their songs and continuously listened to them.

     In the past 2 years, Neptune released four albums. One was a full album, the other was a mini-album with 4 songs and the rest were digital singles.

     They all failed. There were more than 10 songs and I haven’t heard of even one them.

     I didn’t think their title track was bad though.

     Especially their current single, the hook was very addicting. Looking at their album information, the composer seemed familiar. That meant that the composer was familiar enough to me to be famous.

     Their dance was good enough to stare blankly at it for 3 minutes and their music videos showed that the company had spent quite a lot of money. However, when I looked through all the music charts, I couldn’t find any of their songs.

     Why weren’t they popular?

     Was there something else they needed? Besides good songs and good looks? Was it really bad luck?

     There was a girl group in the past who could lift the whole industry up and down. They were an unknown group for a while, however, a video of them became viral and their songs became the number 1 hit on the charts.

     Their song was that good, they were a group that was going to succeed. The ones who deserved to be successful will eventually become successful, these were words they said but they could only say this since they had already become famous.

     This type of situation wasn’t uncommon. As expected, even if they had the looks or good songs, they still needed luck. That’s really……. It wasn’t like they could just buy it, nor was it something they could gain through hard work. Idol contractors must have a hard time.

     No, if you think about it, this didn’t just apply to idols. There were probably plenty of unsuccessful actors who had good looks and were good at acting. Many of the top actors and actresses who had a slew of box office hits had times when they were unknown… Hmm. I guess I should gather more information about how these people became successful.

     At 7, we went out to buy some food. Since they told me to go to the convenience store and buy whatever there was to eat, I bought plenty of boxed lunches and salads and returned with bulging bags. This was our breakfast. Looking at this, it looked like I wouldn’t be able to proper take care of my meals while working here.

     Once the members were done with their makeup, they were stuffed back into the van. Today’s schedule was a music program on a cable network.

     Kpop Concert. KpopCon for short.

     Since the quadruplets were avid viewers, I ended up watching a few shows as well. A group swarmed out, performed their song and returned, another would swarm out and do their dance and return. To me, they all looked the same, but it was surprising to see the quadruplets name each of them…

     The van drove along the Olympic Highway as we made our way to Sangam-dong. The traffic was congested with cars going to work.

     When I looked out the window to yawn, I realized the sky had turned bright.

     Right, it was morning.

     Although it felt like it was the afternoon, we were just starting our day.

     [1] Maknae means youngest.

     [2] Unni is what a younger woman calls an older woman

     [3] Nuna is what a younger man calls an older woman

     

      Chapter 5

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL by Myoni

     Edited by Myoni & Yoni

     “It’s morning, but there are a lot of people in front of the studio.”

     As soon as they arrived at the studio, Gunyoung stuck his head out the back seat window. Unlike before, I was in the driver’s seat while Gunyoung was at the back. And next to him was LJ, in full makeup, tapping her foot with her legs crossed.

     It was a little unfair.

     “Ah… Most of them are here for BYG. They have a comeback today.”

     “The live broadcast is at night, but they are already waiting?”

     “BYG will have to come for rehearsal as well. They are waiting for them to come so they can take pictures.”

     There were many fans holding camcorders and huge cameras crowding the front of the studio. I thought only kids did these things, but most were adults. There were even women in heels who looked like they were going to work.

     “Those ‘Someone’s work outfit preview’ pictures on Twitter are all uploaded by those Chikduk[1].”

     “Chikduk?”

     What are these work outfit previews and what is this Chikduk?

     “Picture taking Dukhu[2]. Some of them take better quality pictures than those you find on new articles. Some take pictures to share, while others create a photo book to sell to other fans.”

     Our pictures were taken while we were on our way inside after parking the van. I was nervous as I imagined people jumping over the fence to ask for autographs and handshakes, but in reality, it was embarrassingly quiet.

     While they did look at us, no one shouted out our names. On the other hand, Neptune members were happily greeting other group’s fans.

     “Hello everyone, we are Neptune!”

     “We’re Neptune!”

     As the four brightly smiled and waved their hands, the amount of people taking pictures grew. A few even returned their greetings.

     “What are you doing. Smile, both of you.”

     Hyunjo poked the sides of Gunyoung and me. He already had a bright smile on his face.

     “A post on Twitter saying ‘I saw Neptune today and they were pretty good’ is better than most publicity stunts.”

     I kept greeting people, without knowing who they were.

     “Ah, right. Also…”

     As soon as we entered the lobby, Hyunjo advised us.

     “You can’t swear in front of fans who come to watch the broadcast.”

     “Sorry?”

     “There are still some stereotypes that celebrity managers are gangsters, so we have to be careful. Just don’t do anything that turn into controversy. Don’t even touch anyone. ‘Today, the manager of Neptune or whatever pushed me. Just my luck.’ If comments like these are circulated, the image of our kids will worsen.”

     “Ah… okay.”

     “And keep greeting people.”

     “Yes.”

     “Do you know who you have to greet?”

     I was speechless. How would I know that?

     “You don’t know?”

     “Yes, I don’t.”

     “Since you don’t know, just greet everyone you meet. Especially those with photo-badges, when you meet an employee, say these words exactly, ‘Hello, I am (name) from W&U. Currently, I am working with a girl group called Neptune. Please take care of us.’ Easy right? Memorize it.”

     Gunyoung was already muttering the words as he memorized them. I did the same as we made our way to the waiting room. Hello, I am… Hello, I am….

     As if this was funny, Seoyoung laughed behind me.

     “You said you are Jung Sunwoo oppa?”

     Who is Jung Sunwoo oppa? Oh, it’s me.

     “Yeah.”

     “Since you wore a suit, every person you greet is going to think you’re the chief. You look like Hyunjo oppa’s superior.”

     “Ah… Do I? Do I?”[3]

     “You should have worn a necktie.”

     “My necktie’s in my bag.”

     Seoyoung laughed even harder. It felt like something was tickling my ears. Her laugh sounded completely different from how she sounded when she nagged her members. Her cotton candy-like sweet voice, her eyes that closed into half-moon shapes, she was very cute.

     I just wanted to put her in my pock… Cough cough.

     The waiting room for KpopCon was located in the basement. As we got off the elevator, there were tons of people bustling around already. I couldn’t tell who was a manager and who was a staff member just by looking. I couldn’t even tell the difference between back dancers and singers.

     What was certain was that there was no one prettier than the members of Neptune, especially Songha. It wasn’t because I am working with them, really.

     “Where is our dressing room?”

     “Over there. Second last one at the end.”

     Along the narrow hallway, there were doors spread tightly on either side. Neptune’s waiting room was the second last one on the right. A paper with ‘Neptune’ written on it was stuck on the door.

     Curious as to how a studio waiting room might look like, I opened the door with anticipation…

     It was a chicken coop. It was smaller than my one-room.

     Wait. Four members of Neptune, three managers including myself, later, when stylists and makeup artists come to fix their makeup, there wasn’t going to be a place to sit.

     If we were like this, how do those groups with 10 members or those with back dancers deal with this?

     “This is better than sharing a room awkwardly with other groups. And later, if we have a location shoot or an event, we have to eat and sleep in the van. At that time, you will miss this waiting room.”

     Seoyoung pouted at Hyunjo’s words.

     “I don’t have to sleep or eat, I just hope we get a location shoot or an event.

     “Be patient, that day will come. You guys will definitely become popular.”

     “Really?”

     “Really. You guys must be tired, go sleep.”

     “We have to greet our seniors.”

     “I’ll wake you up then, so just sleep.”

     Neptune members covered themselves with their outerwear or blankets and nodded off to sleep on each other’s shoulders. With their full makeup on, they were definitely celebrities, but their sleeping faces looked like a child’s. Well, they are kids. The oldest here is 22.

     “Don’t just stand there, both of you should get comfortable and sleep. We have to stay here until the broadcast is over.”

     Hyunjo grabbed a chair and closed his eyes.

     Looking at my watch, it was only a bit after 8. KpopCon’s live broadcast was at 7p.m. We had around 10 hours left. How should I spend my time in this windowless chicken coop? Should I sleep too? No, if I close my eyes, I don’t think I will be able to get back up… The only thing I could trust was my cellphone. If I knew it was going to be like this, I would have brought my charger or some extra batteries.

     Why did we have to come so early when the broadcast was at 7?

     “Do you know what to do until the broadcast?”

     Gunyoung scratched his chin as he answered.

     “I don’t know… It’s my first time at a music program so I’m not certain.”

     “Blackout didn’t go to any music programs?”

     “When I worked part-time there, they were already done their music activities and were only doing events and autograph signing events. From what I heard, they do a dry rehearsal then wait, camera rehearsal then wait, while other groups were doing their preliminary broadcast, wait. After our turn, we wait until they announce first place… I think it’s something like that?”

     What is that? It’s not like it’s neglect play.

     Gunyoung looked around before lowering his voice.

     “Those at a higher level seem to have other schedules between wait times. We probably won’t. We probably even have to eat in the waiting room.”

     I felt suffocated. Even if it was a live broadcast, we had to wait 10 hours to do a 1-hour broadcast? Wasn’t this too inefficient?

     “After all this, how much do we get paid?”

     “I don’t know.”

     We talked in a small voice, but Hyunjo lifted his head when he heard those words.

     “We get $100.”

     “Sorry?”

     “$100.”

     “…So in total $400?”

     Although it wasn’t on a major broadcasting company, a major cable company was stingier than I had expected. Salon costs would probably be higher.

     “No, in total $100. If we divide it, it would be $25 per person.”

     “…”

     At first, I thought I had heard wrong. With that money, it would only pay for three meals. From 4 in the morning until 8 at night, it was a schedule that took up a whole day and they only give us $25 per person?

     “Honestly, isn’t that too little?”

     “Who here cares about that. And who does music programs for money? You accept the losses to promote yourself. We are lucky that we have a good company and Blackout to lean on, or else the Producer wouldn’t even us cram us into his program. There are countless of groups who aren’t able to appear on music programs when they make a comeback.”

     “Ah…”

     He taught us a few more things with a tired expression. Although there were some differences between music programs, at most we would receive $500. It didn’t matter how many members we had or if we had back dancers, the money would be the same.

     Hair, makeup and the different outfits requested by each studio meant that they would have to spend a few thousand dollars. Unfortunately, new groups had no choice, but to make an appearance on TV and sing their songs to promote themselves.

     “Rest a bit now. We haven’t even started.”

     After thoroughly shocking Gunyoung and me, Hyunjo placed a hat on his face.

     Soon after, Gunyoung closed his eyes. It seemed like only I was truly shocked.

     Looking through some news on the internet, I found that it may be worse than what Hyunjo said, but it definitely wasn’t better.

     While there were top idols who made upwards of $100, 000 per day and big companies with revenues of tens of millions, there were also girl groups who had to make their own outfits since they didn’t have the money and small companies who would take private loans to debut their girl groups.

     There were articles that said that if they flopped this time, they would have to go to Han river[4]… The CEO seemed to have ultimately ended up bankrupt, I wonder what he’s doing now.

     As someone who dreamt of becoming the CEO of a management company, my heart is disturbed. I may not know much, but I will definitely never take out a private loan.

     Closing the article, I once again searched for Neptune. Skipping past the ones I had already read, I looked at the comments on the articles or webpages I haven’t seen yet.

     Those articles were obviously promotional articles made by the company. I checked every single one for comments, but there were none. Not even a negative comment. If you excluded the promotional articles, there were only on lists of groups performing on music programs or of brief appearances on cable entertainment programs.

     After looking through for 30 minutes, I finally found one. On the general forums on a Car Community site, someone started a topic called, ‘They are pretty. Who are they?’ and uploaded a picture of the members.

     -Neptune or Napkin, a completely failed girl group.

     -Their visuals are top among the groups coming out these days? Is it just the photo?

     -I approve if it’s not photoshopped.

     ‘I approve if it’s not photoshopped?’ Like hell, you approve. They look much better in person than in that picture.

     Looking at these comments, I felt a bit sad. Even if they say you need heavenly luck to become successful enough to have the whole nation at their beck and call, they should at least have some popularity.

     Let’s think as if I was the producer of Neptune. How could I promote them?

     Their songs and concept seem to be good and above all, they all seem to have unique traits… Well, those traits weren’t of any use outside of entertainment programs. So this was why they risked their lives to appear on broadcasts.

     “What are you thinking about so seriously?”

     Gunyoung, who kept opening and closing his eyes since a while ago, slowly woke up.

     “I was wondering what Neptune would have to do to become famous.”

     “Hahaha. If there was a way, I’d like to know as well. Luck and timing are determining factors on whether a celebrity becomes a hit or miss. They say that celebrities are like clouds, you don’t know which cloud the rain will fall from. Look at BYG, who knew they were going to be so popular.”

     “I still don’t know why they are so popular. I can’t follow kid’s preferences these days.”

     As we talked quietly not to wake up the girls, someone poked Gunyoung’s side. Turning around, we saw Hyunjo staring at us.

     “Look at these critics. If you’re not tired, stop chatting and go buy some coffee.”

     “Yes? Yes. Coffee?”

     “Buy some snacks as well. Choose sensibly.”

     After receiving the credit card, almost as if we were chased out, we left the waiting room. It seemed like there were a few more arrivals after we arrived as the hallway was packed. As we barely made our way through the crowd, a woman carrying a laptop bag suddenly barred our way.

     “Oh? Chief!”

     Chief?

     “You are the Chief in charge of Blackout, right? I am Reporter Kim Sooyoung from CelebBridge. We met briefly at the autographing event before, do you remember me?”

     The reporter struck a friendly conversation with Gunyoung.

     This guy was even close to reporters. Suddenly, I felt Gunyoung’s 3 months of experience was enormous.

     “Hello, Miss Reporter. Of course, I remember you.”

     “Oh my god.”

     “But I am not a chief, I am just a manager.” “Oh, you were a manager. Anyways, why are you here? Does Blackout have a schedule at Knet today? Radio? Can you spare some time for an interview? It will just take a minute.”

     “I am actually working with Neptune, a girl group from W&U.”

     I asked in vain.

     That was what was written on the reporter’s face. Ah fuck, I asked in vain.

     “Oh, so that’s how it is. Then let’s see each other some other time.”

     “Yes. Goodbye.”

     Gunyoung was still friendly, but the reporter coldly turned and walked away. Soon, she approached another man.

     “… Let’s just go buy some coffee.”

     “Yeah.”

     It seemed like this was the sorrow of being an unknown group’s manager.

     [1] Chikduk – Picture taking Dukhu

     [2] Dukhu – Korean version of Otaku, means the same thing (actually taken from the Japanese language)

     [3] In Korea, we use casual and formal speech depending on who we talk to. In this case, Sunwoo first talked formally, then switched to casual speech. Another thing to note is that Hyunjo speaks formally to Sunwoo and Gunyoung and vice versa.

     [4] Go to Han river is a common phrase meaning commit suicide by drowning in the Han river.

     

      Chapter 6

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL by Myoni

     Edited by Myoni & Yoni

     It was still crowded in front of the studio. It seemed like a very famous idol group had arrived as fans were screaming behind me.

     Who is it? Fighting! Don’t starve and eat something good! I will support you…

     Although there were no jobs without titles, it seemed like the light shining on the entertainment world would cast an especially dark shadow.[1]

     Well, they can do whatever they want. We searched around the studio for a coffee shop.

     The cold air squeezed through my dress shirt. Even when I rubbed my arms, it was to little avail. Damn. With what mind did I decide to wear a suit. Since I dreamt about the future, it could have at least told me not to wear a suit.

     “Brrr… It’s cold. It’s only October, but the weather is cold all of a sudden.”

     “I know, right? Seems like we’ll have to wear winter clothes soon.”

     Gunyoung hunched his shoulders and stuck right next to me. This fellow not only had a kind appearance, but his actions were also affable. I met him just this morning, but I already felt like I knew him for a long time.

     Well, it was better to be friendly than to waste our energy competing against each other. It was a relief he didn’t seem like that guy who would stress me out.

     “Are you going to continue working?”

     Gunyoung asked abruptly.

     “Why?”

     “Since we already started, I want to work for a long time. I think we work well together. When I worked part-time with Blackout, I didn’t get along well with the managers so it was exhausting.”

     Even someone as sociable as him had people he didn’t get along with.

     I hesitated as I couldn’t answer right away. My thoughts were complex. In fact, I was still dazed. However, the members seemed to have good personalities and it didn’t seem bad to work with the sniper[2], Hyunjo and Gunyoung. Although, I’d have to get to know them more. These were my first impressions.

     From what I heard from my working friends, all companies have their psychos. Considering that, this environment didn’t seem bad.

     “I’ll continue to work. But, I actually wanted to be assigned to an actor.”

     “An actor?”

     “Yeah. I wasn’t interested in being a manager for an idol group, nor did I know anything about them… If I get the chance to transfer to the actor team, I will.”

     “Ahh… That’s too bad. Then let’s get along until then.”

     “Sure.”

     “You might even end up enjoying the idol team more.”

     “Haha. I’m a man of principles, you know?”

     “Let’s quickly find a coffee shop, Jungjumma of principles.”

     “Hey! That’s my nickname from middle school.”

     While we were chatting and laughing, we quickly found a coffee shop. Its crowded terrace indicated that it was a famous shop. Besides coffee, they had bread, cookies, sandwiches and other pastries that the girls might like, so we ordered a few of each.

     While waiting for my order, I overheard two men whispering to each other.

     “Did you hear about BYG? I heard they wanted another minute in their title track performance?”

     “What the hell. Didn’t they already set up a special performance with another idol group from their company as a condition for doing their comeback stage with KpopCon first?

     “Sugar Cats?”

     “Yeah, them. But even that wasn’t enough and they asked for another minute?”

     “That’s what I’m saying. That’s why they had to cut a new idol group. They didn’t have enough time.”

     “Really?”

     “The cut idol group. I heard that their manager spent a whole month sending the producer gifticons[3] and begging him to let them on the show.”

     “Wow. These moralless bastards. Let’s see how well they live.”

     “They’ll probably live fine.”

     What was wrong with today. I really picked the day, didn’t I. On my first day of work, I think I thoroughly learned the laws of the entertainment jungle. I felt that there were all sorts of things going on behind an hour long program that only gets a 1-2% viewership rating.

     I wondered what the group, that was filled with expectations, was doing now? If I was their manager… I’d probably had opened a few bottles of soju by now.

     Holding a box full of coffee and bags of snacks, we entered a convenience store. Sausages, salads, puddings and fruits, we didn’t even look at the prices and just grabbed whatever we thought the girls would like. I wondered if this was what they meant by ‘sensibly’…

     When we returned to the waiting room, the Neptune members were already awake. A few were swinging their hands and feet. Were they practicing their dance? Before they were nodding off like pairs of sick chickens, but now they were full of energy.

     “We brought coffee and snacks!”

     Songha was the first to come. She was the one that was holding a container of ice cream in the morning, it seemed like she really enjoyed eating.

     “I smell something good. What snacks did you buy?”

     “Bagels, sandwiches, we grabbed everything in the convenience store.”

     They were happy. Happy. What was this proud feeling I felt? It felt like I was taming them with food.

     Taehee and LJ were sifting through the snacks as they drank warm coffee. However, there were only three. While the three were eating ham and cheese sandwiches and bread stuffed with cream cheese, Seoyoung was only drinking coffee.

     She only had a salad when the other girls were eating their lunches back at the salon, was she not hungry?

     I brought out the snack I bought specifically for Seoyoung.

     “This is low-fat yogurt and zero-calorie pudding; can you eat these?”

     “Zero-calorie?”

     Seoyoung showed some interest. Her face brightened after she examined the calorie count on the yogurt and pudding.

     “This looks good. Is it new?”

     “They said it was a new.”

     “Looks tasty. Thanks, oppa.”

     She devoured the yogurt in her hands. As he looked at her appearance, Gunyoung’s expression showed that he couldn’t understand.

     “I don’t think you need to diet…”

     “I’m the shortest out of the four and I have the largest bust.”

     “Huh?”

     Gunyoung stared at Seoyoung’s chest before he realized his actions and looked away. I was the same. As soon as the topic of Seoyoung’s bust came up, my eyes automatically looked down at her chest.

     This was instinctive. Like a knee-jerk reflex.

     Anyhow, Seoyoung’s words weren’t wrong. LJ had a similar size, but her arms and legs were long while her figure was fit. Seoyoung’s slim and short figure emphasized her chest.

     But, what was wrong with that?

     To the observer, it seemed to be part of her charm, but maybe it was different for the person herself?

     “Because of my bust, if I gain even a bit weight, I look dense on TV. Also, my body is the type that gains weight by just drinking water, so I have to be on a diet.”

     As she said that, she clenched her fists. It was like she wasn’t talking to Gunyoung, but encouraging herself.

     LJ pressed the top of Seoyoung’s head and smirked.

     “It’s true that you’re the shortest out of all of us, but you don’t have the biggest chest. Don’t try to subtly scam everyone.”

     “Hey, you have to take into account that your genetics are different from mine!”

     They were already fighting like cats and dogs. Though it did seem like Seoyoung was feeling a bit better because of LJ.

     “Finish eating so we can go around and greet people. They should all be arriving soon.”

     Hyunjo said while stretching his neck left and right. The members finished up their short snack time and got up. Even I got up while eating a sandwich. I was just starting to eat…

     “Hello, we’re Neptune!”

     ‘Greetings’ were really just greetings.

     The members went to each waiting room and bowed at a ninety-degree angle, greeting everyone. It was the sort of introductions celebrities would make on TV to their viewers.

     If the singers in the waiting room were noisy and outgoing, they would share some polite words. However, it was usually the opposite. Usually, the singers would just tell them to cheer up, then the members would say thank you and that they would try their hardest. That was all.

     Sometimes, as if they had implanted a steel rod in their neck, some people only nodded their heads slightly and there one rotten-mannered guy who would scan them once before ignoring them. I need to write down the name of that guy.

     Even though I could barely hold my anger, the Neptune members didn’t even flinch. Their strong mentality was really incredible.

     It wasn’t like I was following behind the members either. How could I stay still when Hyunjo was going around, handing out business cards.

     I understood why he stretched his neck before starting. He would greet the artists, greet the managers, greet the staff member and greet the reporters. I don’t know how many times I said, ‘Please take care of our Neptune’. My neck was killing me.

     However, greeting was fine. The awkwardness that came afterwards was the real problem. People had a hard time receiving my greetings. It seemed like Seoyoung’s words were right, my suit made it seem like I was a superior.

     When I told them I was a manager, only then would they start to laugh and greet me in a more relaxed state. Among those that laughed, there were some that held a bit of disdain.

     There was one thing good about this situation… I could see celebrities as much as I wanted.

     Men or women, they were all glimmering in full makeup. There were some who looked like they popped out of a manhwa. In the crowd of idols, there were a few times where I was distracted from seeing some famous solo artist.

     In the past, I would sing that hyung’s song a lot… I barely contained the urge to ask for an autograph.

     Even though I thought that the entertainment world was cheap and dirty, whenever a group of girls with fluttering apron skirts passed by, I wondered if this was heaven… Wait, was that a school outfit under that apron?

     Let’s not stare.

     “Hey.”

     Gunyoung tapped my foot.

     “What?”

     He wordlessly gestured with his chin. When I looked over in that direction, I saw a sexy female artist wearing a swimming suit-like stage outfit.

     This was heaven.

     After going back and forth like a lost child, I leaned against the wall. Hyunjo was talking to someone over there and Gunyoung seemed to have gone to talk to someone or to the washroom as I couldn’t see him.

     Since I had already made my rounds, I decided to rest for a bit. My poor waist. It was broken before I could use it properly.

     Someone tapped my shoulders as I was massaging my neck and waist. I turned around thinking it was Gunyoung, but it was Taehee. I was surprised. At first, she looked really easy-going, but she looked completely different with makeup on. Maybe because she had this aura as the leader, but I never got the chance properly talk with her yet. Even though I said leader, she was five years younger than me, however, she still had that aura.

     “What? Did something happen?”

     “Do you see Seoyoung over there?”

     Looking past Taehee’s shoulder, I saw Seoyoung surrounded by three girls in front of a waiting room.

     “I see her.”

     “Can you go and take Seoyoung away from there? I was going to ask Hyunjo oppa, but he was busy with another chief.”

     Was this a bullying scene?

     Surprised, I looked closely, but it didn’t seem like it. The girls were all smiling brightly and the atmosphere was very peaceful.

     Then, what was the problem?

     “They are a group called Sugar Cats and they were trainees together with Seoyoung.”

     Sugar Cats? The ones who were going to do a special performance because they were a group from BYG Entertainment?

     “They hold Seoyoung in disregard since they are gaining popularity while Seoyoung is stuck in the same place for two years. I hope you could act like nothing is wrong and just take her away from there.”

     “If we go, it’ll damage her pride.”

     Even LJ voiced her support.

     “Okay. I’ll bring her.”

     As I made my way there, I closely examined the situation again. Seoyoung and the three girls surrounding her were all laughing and seemed to be happy as they were meeting each other after a long period of time.

     Were my eyes that of a fish? Why couldn’t I see it? Was it something that only girls knew.

     “Umm.. Seoyoung?”

     Seoyoung turned her head as I awkwardly called out to her.

     [1] What this sentence means is that although there are no jobs that aren’t recognized in the world and since the entertainment world is so glamorous, we often don’t think of the number of people working behind the scenes.

     [2] This is used to describe how Hyunjo comes out at specific times to insert his opinion on a certain manner

     [3] Gifticons – Think of them sort of like gift cards? Gift coupons? But online

     

      Chapter 7

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL by Myoni

     Edited by Myoni & Yoni

     Sponsored by Myoni

     “Someone wants your autograph, you free?”

     “An autograph?”

     “Yeah.”

     “Then, of course, I will. Guys, I have to go!”

     Seoyoung immediately waved her hand. I bowed my head, but the girls bowed more politely than me. No matter how I looked at it, in my eyes, they looked like really nice and bright girls.

     However, when I saw that Seoyoung was relieved, I felt that there really was something going on.

     So my eyes were definitely fish eyes.

     “Where is he? Who do I need to give my autograph to?”

     A voice filled with expectations. My conscience hurt a little. I should have used a different excuse.

     I looked around the crowded area and embarrassingly said,

     “…Where did he go?”

     “What the hell.”

     “He was here just a while ago. It was a guy.”

     “What? I wanted to give him my autograph! This oppa is bad! My precious fan!”

     Seoyoung smiled as her eyes formed half-moons.

     “Unni! Taehee unni! Someone wanted my autograph.”

     “Really?”

     “But, do you know what the most important part is?”

     “What?”

     “This oppa lost him!”

     “That’s too bad.”

     Taehee patted Seoyoung’s head and smiled. And briefly at me.

     She was much younger than me, but why do I feel like I need to call her hyung?

     “Who wanted your autograph? Did this oppa see a studio ghost?”

     LJ teased her and the two started fighting again.

     Hyunjo told us to go back without him, so Gunyoung and I took the girls back to the waiting room. I was about to lay my tired body down on the sofa when I heard a knock.

     “Yes?”

     “Hello, seniors! We’re pretty, pretty Pretty Girls.”

     Eight girls with long straight hair entered the room. They were the ones who were wearing a schoolgirl outfit under an apron.

     Their manager who entered with them, looked at Gunyoung and me, before deciding to approach me.

     “Hello. They are a newly debuted group. Their average age is eighteen, so they still don’t know a lot. I look forward to working with you in the future.”

     You probably aren’t looking forward to working with me.

     And what were they thinking dressing eighteen-year-old girls like that? These shameless adults.

     “Yes, hello.”

     “Please accept this.”

     I was curious what he was handing out, it turned out to be a mini album. There were even autographs on the cover. Afterwards, Pretty Girls merrily chatted with the girls before leaving.

     “I thought it was only tough greeting people, but getting greeted isn’t easy either.”

     Seoyoung shook her head at my words.

     “Receiving greetings is much harder.”

     “Really? Why?”

     “We’ve gained seniority after we debuted, but we have nothing to show for it. How uneasy do think we feel when these girls that are younger than us come up and greet us?”

     “Ah…”

     “What if they get more popular before we do? We don’t know how much longer our company will continue to promote us since they wouldn’t keep trying to fill a bottomless pot. We have these thoughts.”

     I only opened and closed my mouth a few times. I didn’t know how to reply to that. Seoyoung shrugged her shoulders and smiled looking at my expression.

     “Just what am I telling this new oppa.”

     The atmosphere quickly brightened. The members were noisily chatting with each other while practicing their choreography. I just silently watched.

     I was honestly surprised.

     Unknown for two years. An unpopular group.

     However, I didn’t feel that it was a serious issue. Those girls were only unlucky. Since they are young, pretty and have good personalities, they will be successful in other things. Those were my initial thoughts.

     They are just products of an idol girl group factory, maybe I felt that way because of this bias. However, now I felt bad for having those thoughts.

     The worries of a twenty-one-year-old girl were definitely no lighter than mine.

     If I had the ability, I wanted to help them get a chance.

     These were my thoughts.

     A day in the waiting room was really just that. Wait after a rehearsal, wait while they recorded interviews with groups that had a comeback stage today. Wait until it was time for the live broadcast.

     I wondered how people survived this without smart phones.

     Neptune was the third group to go up. As the time for the broadcast approached, the members were busy. They changed into their stage outfits their stylists brought for them, fixed their hair and makeup. When they had some free time, they would practice their choreography.

     “I’m going to go to the washroom.”

     Why was it that I felt more nervous than them?

     I dragged my stiff legs out of the waiting room. The hallway was still packed. I was barely able to pass through to the washroom when a man forcefully made his way out.

     “Ah, fuck! This is driving me crazy!”

     His face was red and it seemed like he was extremely angry, as he came out swearing endlessly.

     Let’s avoid him.

     I was about to go around him when I noticed what was on his chest. Employee Go Joontae. It was an employee card. I remembered Hyunjo’s words about greeting everyone who had an employee card. But, that’s a crazy person. Wondering if I should greet him or not, I was just like ‘it’s not like I was going to die’ and stepped in front of the man.

     “Hello, I am Jung Sunwoo from W&U. I am currently working with a girl group called Neptune. Please take care of us.”

     I was smiling diligently. He probably won’t swear at a smiling person.

     Fortunately, the employee calmed down a little after looking at me. Was this a benefit of wearing a suit?

     “W&U entertainment? You guys have girl groups? First time hearing about this, are they new?”

     “They debuted two years ago. There are 4 members.”

     “Is that so. What did you say the group name was?”

     “It is Neptune.”

     “Do you have a business card…”

     I didn’t have a business card yet. Do I have to give him my phone number?

     “I don’t have a business card…”

     “Mr. Producer.”

     Someone hurriedly ran towards us. It was a young man with a big body of an athlete. He blocked the front of the employee and bowed his head, almost reaching his knees.

     “Sorry. I am really sorry. Sorry. I don’t have any other words to say!”

     “Ah, it’s fine.”

     “Really, I should have kept an eye on the girls better…”

     Was he a manager?

     “It’s fine. Don’t raise my blood pressure and leave. I’m busy trying to clean up the pile of shit your company took!”

     “Mr. Producer, Mr. Producer!”

     “Haaa….!”

     “Then, our broadcast…”

     “What do you mean broadcast! A twenty-something-year-old girl group member got a DUI with her boyfriend, how can I let her on the broadcast! There will be articles all over the internet tomorrow! Sigh, talk about ungrateful. You guys just sprayed poo water all over a set meal. I need to start filming this week if I want to have the broadcast out in time, it’s driving me crazy…!”

     “I-if we went with noise marketing, it might even be bene…”

     “This is a crime! Do I have to get bashed on before I even start?!”

     Eventually, the producer left while swearing. The man left behind kicked the washroom door.

     “Damn bitch! Dirty bitch, does she know how hard it was to get this chance!”

     What lovely words. It was because of people like him that managers are stereotyped as gangsters. If I was to make a comparison, Hyunjo was an angel.

     “What are you looking at?! Think it’s a show or something?!”

     The man glared at me. What a surprise.

     “You are blocking the path.”

     “Fuck…”

     I thought that he would vent on me, but he quickly left in a different direction.

     “What kind of person is that.”

     At that moment, my vision darkened.

     Was I dreaming again?

     I was once again in my forties. CEO of a management company. A successful me who used a huge freaking office and wore a high-quality suit. It was the same dream I had in the morning. Director Park and Reporter Song were smiling in front of me.

     It was definitely a dream… but, that wasn’t possible.

     Just a second ago, I was in front of the washroom.

     If not a dream, what was this?

     What was it really.

     “You met CEO Go Joontae on your first day?”

     The name flowing out of Reporter Song’s lips seemed familiar. CEO Go Joontae. The man I met just now. It was the name on the man’s employee card. Although, he wasn’t a CEO.

     “At that time, Knet was about to launch K-Star. It was a competition program with eight new idol groups. Since it was a long time ago, Reporter Song might be too young to know.”

     K-Star?

     “I know it too. Wasn’t it the first season such a big hit that it ended up going on for several more seasons?”

     “That’s right. It was a few days before the first filming… One of the appearing girl groups got in trouble. So, Producer Joontae was in a situation where he had to find a new girl group to replace them. I met him at that time.”

     “My god. You really have great luck. So did you get a spot on that big program on your first day? Neptune appeared on that program.”

     Wait, what? Neptune appeared on that program?

     Although the situation was confusing, I strained my ear to closely listen to the conversation. It felt the right thing to do.

     “Hahaha. Reporter Song, if things went that well, why would I say that the path of hardship opened on my first day?”

     “Then what happened?”

     “At that time, I didn’t know much about Entertainment Producers. Obviously, I didn’t know who Go Joontae was and that he was leading such a huge program. So that’s why I asked a friend I worked with. ‘I met a producer named Go Joontae and it seemed like one of the girl groups appearing on his program has to be replaced. Since they are looking for a different group, maybe we should introduce Neptune to him,’ is what I said.”

     “Ah…”

     “That friend told me that it probably wasn’t possible. The program he’s producing only had new idol groups, so they wouldn’t accept Neptune, who debuted two years ago. Also, if we were going in as a replacement, the company wouldn’t allow it in the first place.”

     “Don’t tell me you believed him?”

     Yeah. You didn’t, right?

     But, why did I feel like I believed him.

     “I believed him.”

     That’s right. Bad premonitions were never wrong.

     “So while I believed him, that friend found Producer Joontae and pushed Neptune. ‘Neptune members are like this, their schedule is free, we can join at any time.’ And that was successful. That friend was nicknamed Lucky Charm for bringing such a big program on his first day and when I confessed it was unfair, I was branded as the foolish guy who couldn’t even take care of himself. It was then when I first realized life was a battle.”

     “Oh no…”

     “Haha. I told you my first day was dynamic.”

     “By any chance, do I know that friend?”

     “This will be off-the-record, right?”

     “Of course.”

     “Choi Gunyoung. It was Choi Gunyoung.”

     “Oh my, that person…”

     “That’s right.”

     “So he was like that even then.”

     “Jung Sunwoo!”

     I saw Gunyoung in front of my eyes. And I was standing in front of the washroom.

     “What are you doing, standing here? It’s almost time. The chief says to come quickly.”

     “…Damn, goosebumps.”

     I unconsciously stepped back.

     “What? Why do you have goosebumps?”

     “Uh….”

     Let’s just say I saw a different side of you. It wasn’t like that happened in real life, but it felt like it would happen for sure.

     “Do you happen to know a producer named Go Joontae?”

     “Yeah. K-Star. It’s hot right now. Why? Did you see him”

     It felt like my hair stood straight up. It was so hair-raising, my hands and feet were all tingly. Maybe this was how people felt when they are struck by lightning during a rainy day.

     Just what was happening to me?

     “Why are you like this?”

     “Something really important just came up.”

     “What?”

     “Tell the chief I am going to solve this first before I go. Tell him I’m sorry.”

     “What?! What happened, the girls are going to go up on the stage in a bit!”

     My head was messy, but it was clear what I had to do.

     I ran in the direction Producer Go Joontae left towards.

     

      Chapter 8

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL by Myoni

     Edited by Yoni & Myoni

     I tried to call Hyunjo multiple times, but it seemed like he was in a loud place as his phone kept going to voicemail.

     Fortunately, Producer Joontae wasn’t far. I hesitated in front of him for a bit.

     Was it okay to ask him before I told Hyunjo? What do I do?

     Damn it! It was obvious what I should do. I don’t know if it was the future or whatever, but in there they said Gunyoung reckless ran to the producer and pushed Neptune. As a result, Neptune was able to appear on the program, while Gunyoung became the company’s Lucky Charm.

     I couldn’t become a retard who couldn’t even take care of himself. Let’s at least give it a try.

     “Mr. Producer!”

     “What now..! Ah, you’re from before…”

     “I am Neptune’s manager, Jung Sunwoo.”

     Producer Joontae’s face slowly calmed down.

     “I felt like I didn’t properly introduce our members.”

     “You said they debuted 2 years ago? I know that Blackout is in W&U, but I never knew they had girl groups. They only managed actors before.”

     If I knew this would happen, I would have carried around my bag. It had their profiles inside.

     Although it was somewhat lacking, I showed the producer the album on my phone. It was a relief I saved a few pictures of the members when I was browsing through the internet.

     “Hmmm… There’s a lounge over there. Let’s move there.”

     After flipping through some pictures, Producer Joontae led me to a small lounge next to the elevator. I pressed my stiff shoulders as I followed along. I don’t know if it was because I was nervous, but my body felt stiff all over.

     I sat down and studied Producer Joontae’s expression and eyes. He was looking through each picture seriously.

     Yeah, that’s it, keep looking. Look closer. The more you look, the prettier they’ll be.

     “They are a group W&U put their heart and soul into. As they were carefully chosen from large companies, they are all skilled, great talkers, have good characters and are very motivated.”

     I felt more pressured than all the speeches, presentations, interviews I had done until now. There was never a time when my mind was in such a mess.

     I tried to make motions and talk with confidence. I didn’t want to look too desperate, so I took notice of that. I also racked my brain to say one more word.

     The leader, Taehee, is an amazing singer with skills in writing songs. LJ gave off the impression ‘I’m the baddest bitch’, but, in reality, she lives to tease her members, especially Seoyoung. Seoyoung was naturally good at entertainment shows, so she has some experience on appearing on entertainment programs and Songha was an irrefutable beauty.

     I didn’t even remember what I said during the conversation. I just didn’t stop talking.

     The profiles I saw in the van, the internet articles I browsed through in the salon and waiting room, I used whatever I could to speak positively about Neptune.

     “Neptune. Neptune, you say… Not bad. Their visuals are actually better than Lemon Girls.”

     Fortunately, the producer’s reaction wasn’t bad. I gulped down my saliva as I wait for his decision.

     “Why weren’t they on the list? Was it because the group would soon be 3 years old? If we were to recruit them into the program, would we be able to have some actors from W&U make brief appearances on the show?”

     “Pardon?”

     “There a lot of expensive actors from W&U that don’t make appearances on entertainment shows. I’m not asking for much, just enough to use gain some attention… How about it?”

     “That is something I cannot decide by myself. I will confirm it with the chief and let you know immediately.”

     “Chief?”

     “I am a new recruit.”

     I forgot to tell him it was my first day.

     It was good that I forgot. As soon as he heard those words, Producer Joontae absent-mindedly laughed. He looked as though he had nothing more to say to a rookie manager.

     “Is that so? I thought… So are you here for the music broadcast?”

     “Yes.”

     “Then you probably came with the girls. Is the chief with you as well?”

     “He should be watching their live broadcast.”

     “Then can we meet after the performance? With all the members. Let’s talk once we’ve seen the members. Here’s my business card, call me later.”

     “I will.”

     As I accepted the business card with both hands, something poked my back.

     “What are you doing here?”

     I turned around to see Seoyoung panting.

     “Hyunjo oppa is talking about whether to kill you or not. ‘It hasn’t been a day, but he already disappeared during a live broadcast. Where the hell did this guy come from?’”

     “What are you doing here? What about the performance?”

     “We’re done already. I came here since the washroom in front of the waiting room was packed. But, I’m not the one with the problem, it’s you, oppa! You have to work to feed the quadruplets, what are you going to do if you get fired on your first day. You lost my fan and even disappeared, you’re getting pretty close.”

     “Wait, why do I have to feed the quadruplets?”

     “Whatever, I’ll cover for you so hurry up and think of an excuse!”

     Why is she like this? Was it because she just came down from her performance? She seemed really excited. Like a person who already had a bottle of alcohol.

     Seoyoung suddenly blinked.

     “But, who is the person behind you?”

     Gasp! There were more important things at hand!

     As I quickly turned around, Producer Joontae was looking at Seoyoung with laser-like eyes. After looking at Joontae, as if she understood, she said,

     “Ah! Were you looking for my fan you lost earlier? You’re kidding me!”

     “No, this person…”

     “Hello! I am Im Seoyoung from Neptune! Would like an autograph now?”

     “He’s a producer.”

     “Gyahh!”

     Seoyoung let out a scream and energetically shoved her head down.

     I thought she was doing a deep bow.

     “What do I do! I am sorry, Mr. Producer!”

     “Hahaha. Your character is fresh and cute. Nice to meet you.”

     Seoyoung had an expression that she made a big mistake and was stamping her feet. Any man who had protective instincts would not be able to stay mad at this sight.

     Even Producer Joontae calmed down and revealed a much more relaxed expression, as he massaged his shoulders. And he made a gesture telling me to call him with his other hand.

     “Then, talk with your superior and call me.”

     “Right away, I will give you a call in 10 minutes.”

     I grabbed the confused Seoyoung and ran. Pushing my way between the flood of people in the hallway, I ran as if I was in a race. Seoyoung, who was following behind me, kept asking me why we were running, but I didn’t have the time to reply.

     Shortly, we arrived at the waiting room. It seemed like the other members were inside as they couldn’t be seen, however, Hyunjo and Gunyoung were guarding the door.

     Hyunjo was the first to see me.

     “Seoyoung, go inside.”

     “Oppa.”

     “Quickly. They’re all changing inside, so you go and get changed.”

     Seoyoung looked at me with a worried expression, but I pushed her back, indicating she should go. The talk with Producer Joontae went well, there was no way he would kill me, right?

     “What did the guy who went to the washroom do all this time to come crawling back after the performance?”

     What do I do. I think he’s going to kill me.

     As soon as Seoyoung went inside, the veins on Hyunjo’s neck bulged.

     “Something important? So, let’s hear what this so-called important something is, shall we?”

     “That is…”

     “Was it more important than the girls’ performance? You asshole, don’t you know that this is a live broadcast? When you are later assigned to them by yourself, are you going to leave them and walk around? What are you going to do if there is an accident? Do you think I can trust you with the girls like this?”

     “I am sorry. I met Producer Go Joontae while I was going to the washroom.”

     The uncontrollably angry voice cut off.

     “What? Who?”

     “The producer of K-Star, Producer Go Joontae. He was looking for a new group to replace a group as one of their members got in a lot of trouble. I was going to tell chief about it, but the signal wouldn’t connect…”

     “Since they were about to begin, I put it on airplane… No, so what happened?”

     “First, I caught up to Producer Joontae and showed him pictures of Neptune while I introduced them.”

     “G-good job. So?”

     “He asked if he could talk directly with the chief and the girls. I received his business card.”

     I handed out the business card in my hand. Hyunjo looked back and forth at the business card and my face. The constantly tired and haggard face he had since the morning was dazed.

     “He can see them. Of course, he can see them.”

     Hyunjo, who was motionless like a lagging computer, suddenly hit my forearm.

     “Mr. Sunwoo, first call the producer and ask him where he is and meet up with him. Block him before he meets up with other groups’ managers. While you do that, I will call the team leader and the director and relay the situation to them. And Mr. Gunyoung, since the girls are going to meet with the producer, tell the girls to come out after they are done wearing their outfits again and fixing their makeup. What are you doing, the both of you! Run!”

     “Yes, yes!”

     To meet up with Producer Joontae again, I ran until my feet were sweaty.

     Afterwards, the situation left my hands.

     The situation was swept up like a river as everything progressed in a hurry. While I clung to Producer Joontae, Hyunjo, who finished talking with the company, and Gunyoung brought Neptune. Although they were still somewhat dazed, they politely bowed at a ninety-degree angle to greet the producer.

     The members had a long conversation with the producer. Although they had to go up when they announced 1st place, they still came back down to continue. Luckily, the mood seemed good and it looked like the producer liked the girls.

     “Don’t say anything to the girls just yet.”

     After sending the members back to the waiting room, Hyunjo grabbed Gunyoung and me and told us.

     “If you unnecessarily raise their expectations, they won’t be able to sleep at night. Until it becomes certain, keep your mouths shut.”

     Afterwards, Hyunjo passionately expressed the good points of Neptune. He was so good, even I felt like I was getting bewitched. From what I saw, it looked like Producer Joontae was also partly bewitched as well.

     “I have to discuss it with the writers, but I like them. Their visuals are good, they look like they have good personalities, however even the girl who got a DUI also had a good outwardly appearance. Kids these days…”

     “Mr. Producer. We are W&U. Have you seen any of our actors cause any problems with their personal lives?”

     “Well, W&U are famous for being good at their job.”

     As the conversation started to mix in some jokes, the mood was more relaxed.

     “Then, Mr. Producer, how…”

     “No matter how much I am in a rush; I can’t make a decision right away. We have to have an internal meeting. We have to get an ‘okay’ from the director and director. It won’t take long. Once the DUI article goes up, we will receive a rain of inquiry calls from reporters, so we don’t have much time. We have to find a solution before the program receives a bad image from this incident.”

     “Is the program’s chief producer Director Choi Sungho?“

     “Right, Sungho hyung.”

     “Since it’s been a while, our CEO asked if Director Choi would like to talk face-to-face tonight if he’s free…”

     “Really? Do they know each other personally?”

     “He said that they met a few times in the past.”

     “Then, just a minute. If this proceeds quickly, it’ll be great for us as well.”

     Producer Joontae, who was talking with the chief producer, gave us an ‘okay’ sign.

     While they were talking, the meeting was set up very swiftly. From W&U, the CEO, the management business director and management team 3 leader and from Knet, the chief producer, who was directing the project, and the main producer, Go Joontae, will attend this meeting.

     

      Chapter 9

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL by Myoni

     Edited by Myoni & Yoni

     After dropping off Neptune members at their residence, we returned to Sangamdong. The meeting place was a hurriedly reserved high-class sushi restaurant. Although we didn’t know if we were going to attend, Hyunjo dragged us there saying it was a good idea to show our faces to the CEO.

     I simply breathed while following behind Hyunjo.

     Honestly, I wasn’t in my right mind since a while ago.

     Hahaha. How could I be in my right mind? Considering the waves crashing down on my life today, it was good enough that I didn’t suffer a heart attack.

     I was relieved thinking my mind wasn’t as weak as I thought.

     “I think they’ve arrived?”

     The first to arrive were from W&U. The management business director was a middle-aged man whose head was starting to bald while the management team 3 leader was a man in his mid-thirties with a pleasant impression.

     And lastly, the man who got out of the Rolls Royce was the CEO, the man who I had only seen in pictures in interviews. He was the role model for me who was dreaming of becoming the CEO of a management company.

     Baek Hansung.

     My mind sobered up as soon as I saw him.

     He looked 10 years younger than his real age of forty-seven and his body revealed that he exercised regularly. He was wearing a high-quality suit under a cashmere coat, but his appearance… He looked like he could be the cover model for a men’s magazine.

     Above all, his actions were filled with confidence and dignity. Of course, he was someone who could be dignified. He had built a huge management company like W&U starting from a 1-man agency. The skilled of the skilled. The business man of business men.

     While greeting them, I made eye contact with CEO Baek Hansung. Very briefly.

     “You guys did well.”

     He turned after lightly patting Gunyoung and my shoulders.

     “Then, let’s go. The people from Knet haven’t arrived yet, right?”

     “Yes. Should we come with you?”

     As soon as Hyunjo asked, CEO Baek Hansung shook his head.

     “Nah. Leave the business to us and you guys wait for the good news.”

     Then CEO Baek Hansung led the director and team 3 leader into the sushi restaurant.

     It has already been 4 hours since we have been waiting for the good news. It was 1 a.m. right now.

     “What kind of sushi are they eating for hours?”

     Nervousness was present in Gunyoung’s voice.

     We were waiting after ordering chicken in a 24-hour bar. Just in case we would have to meet with the CEO or the director, we couldn’t even take a sip of alcohol.

     Hyunjo answered while piercing a piece of cold chicken.

     “Do you think they were eating sushi all this time? They probably moved to the next place.”

     “How do think things are going? I’m so curious I could die.”

     “It’s good that they are taking their time. If the talk wasn’t going well, they would have already ended.”

     The two of them were checking the time while shaking their legs. The only one who was quiet at the table was me. I was in thought. Continuously for 4 hours, continuously thinking.

     What exactly did I see?

     When I first saw it in the morning, I thought it was just a dream, but there was no way that was true. I definitely saw it when I was awake with my eyes open while standing and I woke up in the same state. If it was narcolepsy, then I would have already had my skull split open on the washroom tiles. So it definitely wasn’t a dream.

     Then what was it?

     Supernatural ability? Was it something like foresight?

     I recalled the movies and dramas that had supernatural beings or superheroes. There were a variety of methods of which they would be able to look into the future, from knowing what would happen a minute from the present to drawing the future.

     Did I just get a supernatural ability like that?

     Didn’t those that contracted supernatural powers get them from getting bitten by radioactive insects, a vampire or experience some other special circumstances?

     But, what about me?

     I didn’t have anything happen to me. What was this?!

     Hoooo. Let’s not get excited. Let’s calmly think about it one more time.

     I didn’t know why I was given this ability. I didn’t know how to use my ability. However, if you thought about it, it was something to get excited over. Anyone would have the same thoughts.

     Supernatural ability, it was a supernatural ability!

     Of course, if I was to receive a supernatural ability, I would have preferred teleportation or invisibility, but foresight was good as well. It was cool, even mysterious. If this was a movie, it was an ability that would be of great importance!

     Ehahahahaha! I am a supernatural being! Yay!

     Now, was it time for aliens to appear? Was it?!

     …Damn! I couldn’t calm down!

     “Mr. Sunwoo.”

     “Yes?!”

     I abruptly lifted my head and saw Hyunjo looking at me. My excitement slowly died down.

     “Are you tired?”

     “No. I was just thinking… I’m feeling a bit out of it after experiencing everything today.”

     It seemed like he thought I was nodding off since my head was lowered. I tried to show I wasn’t sleeping by opening my eyes really wide.

     “Now that I think about it, today was your first day. I forgot because of what happened today.”

     Hyunjo pushed aside the cold chicken and handed us a menu.

     “You two can choose whatever you want to eat. Instead of looking like you’re being punished, should we relax and have a beer? Let’s consider it a welcoming party.”

     We ordered barbecue chicken dripping with oil along with freshwater snails, fries and fish cake soup to warm our bellies. The owner who would show a dissatisfied expression whenever he passed us gave us a friendly smile as he got us our beers.

     My heart felt refreshed after drinking the bubbly beer. After I downed a pint in an instant, Hyunjo pressed the bell again.

     “Well, it doesn’t seem like they are going to call for us so drink more. You can drink a lot today.”

     “Yes?”

     “I meant you did a good job. When I first saw a pale guy wearing a suit, I thought where did this guy come from…  But, even without telling you to, you went and introduced the girls to a producer and got them a chance. Do all people with quadruplet nieces and nephews act that way?”

     The sincere compliment made me feel many times better than the beer.

     “My luck was good. The producer and the manager of Lemon Girls were talking about the group dropping out.”

     “Of course, the timing and luck were unbelievably good, but if it wasn’t for you grabbing onto that chance and not letting go, we would have lost it. I heard you were very passionate?”

     I bashfully scratched my cheek. It was hard to control my expression. Compliments from work were very different from the ones from family and school. I felt proud as it felt like my existence as an employee was acknowledged.

     If I didn’t see the future, I probably would have lost this chance.

     I didn’t even know who Producer Go Joontae was or that Knet was launching a program called K-Star. Even if I did, I could have hesitated whether or not I should talk with the producer and eventually turn my back on it.

     If that was the case, things would have proceeded the way my future self said, the Lucky Charm of the company would have been Gunyoung.

     I looked over at Gunyoung while drinking beer. It would have been normal if he was unhappy that I was the only one who got complimented on our first day, but he was actually assisting Hyunjo.

     If I didn’t see the future and told Gunyoung about Producer Joontae, would he really have tricked me?

     I remembered what Reporter Song had said.

     ‘So that person was like that even then.’

     The good person, Choi Gunyoung. The person who I thought I would work well with, Choi Gunyoung. I wondered what kind of person he really was…

     One thing that was certain was he was someone I had to put my guard up against.

     However, I couldn’t openly push him away. We were in a situation where, unless one was assigned to a different team, we would have to work together.

     I would only become the bad guy if I pushed him away for no apparent reason and if I was to tell Gunyoung, ‘I think you will backstab me, so I don’t think I can be friendly with you,’ I would become the crazy person… Sigh.

     I never had to face a more complicated problem in my life. To have to work with the guy who backstabbed, no, who might backstab me… Was this ‘Sleeping with the enemy’?

     On top of that, although I knew that the truth, I might end up unconsciously dropping my guard since he really did look like a good guy.

     I have to be careful. If I were to get backstabbed even while knowing this fact, I would be a loser, a loser.

     To reinforce my guard against him, I decided to call Gunyoung traitor from now on.

     “Mr. Gunyoung did well today as well. Quick witted and sociable, anyone would think you’ve worked here for a few years. It was because of Mr. Gunyoung, the music broadcast was able to go so smoothly.”

     “Thank you, chief.”

     “Let’s have another round. Don’t tell me you guys are drunk after 2 pints?”

     Two became three, then three became four. We drank unceasingly.

     “Mr. Sunwoo, what time is it right now?”

     “4:30. But chief, please speak casually.”

     “I told you I am more comfortable this way.”

     When you were mad, you seemed really comfortable talking casually.

     Well, it was a really long day today. I didn’t imagine my first day to be like this. How was it I was unable to leave even at 4:30 when I started at 3 a.m. yesterday?

     Was there anyone in the world who experienced their first day like me? Besides the traitor.

     There was still no news from the CEO. Just what in the world were these people doing? 3rd, no, they probably moved to the 4th place by now.

     Although it was certain Neptune would appear on the show as I didn’t know the process of when and how they joined, it was really frustrating. No matter how quick things proceeded, it wasn’t like things would be decided just like that, maybe it would take 2-3 days?

     Once we ordered pints of beer, it just ended up being eating and drinking event. We kept ordering more beers and extra sides.

     Then 5 in the morning. The moment we had been waiting for had come, the phone began to ring.

     

      Chapter 10

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL by Myoni

     Edited by Myoni & Yoni

     “Hello?”

     Hyunjo hurriedly answered the call. Even I strained my ears to listen to the small voice.

     -Uh… Hoooo, is this Hyunjo?

     It was the management team 3 leader.

     “Hyung! What did you do all this time? I thought you guys drank too much and were knocked out on the streets!”

     -Hey, hey, it just ended. I think I’m going to die. These not-so-young-anymore men drank like they were trying to fill a bottomless pit. Their liver is better than mine.

     “So? What happened in the meeting?”

     I heard someone gulp their saliva. Was it me?

     -We decided to do it.

     “…Really?!”

     -Tomorrow… Oh, it’s today. Articles will be released soon.

     I clenched a fist on top of my knee. If I didn’t, I might have yelled.

     I wonder how the conversation went for them to agree so easily?

     -The CEO pushed for it really hard. And we were lucky. There was a group that the staff dropped in the end, but they just got an overseas schedule. Their director came over and made a mess and everything. If the timing was even a bit off, we wouldn’t have been able to get it. Who was that guy, the Lucky Charm who got this? That guy really did something big.

     “So it’s really been decided?”

     -We haven’t officially signed yet, but it’s already decided.

     “Hahaha! The girls would love to hear this.”

     -Yeah, they must have had a hard time up until now so quickly tell them the good news. We got the chance, how popular they become all depend on you guys.

     “I know.”

     -Do a good job.

     Hyunjo talked with the management team 3 leader for a long time afterwards before hanging up. Then he used his phone for a bit before handing it to me.

     “Here. Take it.”

     “Pardon?”

     As I accepted the phone without thinking, I saw that it was dialing Lee Taehee.

     Why did he give this to me?

     “Mr. Sunwoo was the one to grab this chance, so you be the one to tell them. Before they release the articles.”

     The ringing stopped and a sleepy voice answered.

     -Did something happen? We don’t have anything scheduled today.

     It was Taehee.

     “Cough, I’m Jung Sunwoo. I have something to say.”

     As I raised my head, I saw Hyunjo and the traitor looking at me expectedly. Hyunjo motioned to quickly tell them.

     “Do you happen to know the new program that’s about to start on Knet?”

     -Yes. I’ve heard of it.

     “Neptune’s going to appear on that.”

     -…Sorry?

     “The program on Knet…”

     -No, I did hear it properly… is it true? I heard that they had already cast everyone and had finished their photo shoots for the poster…

     “It’s true. One of the girl groups had to leave, so Neptune was chosen to replace them. The chief wanted me to tell you guys before they released the articles…”

     It was very noisy at the other end of the phone. It seemed like Taehee woke everyone up to tell them the news. I could hear the ‘Kyah’ ‘Kyah’ screams. It was Seoyoung.

     “Give it here for a second.”

     Hyunjo grabbed the phone and pressed the record button.

     The loud noises of girls chatting. Close to tears, cries of excitement. Various sounds were recorded. It wasn’t even a video call, yet I could imagine what was going on.

     “Why did you record…?”

     “There might a use for it later.”

     To even think of the future at a moment like this, I had to learn this as well.

     Seoyoung, who was close to crying, kept asking if it was real and after constantly confirming that it was, I passed the phone to Hyunjo. He gave them a few words of caution before hanging up.

     “Mr. Sunwoo, how do you feel?”

     How do I feel?

     How should I explain it? When the girls were so happy they were about to cry, at that moment, I felt…

     “I feel proud… And satisfied.”

     “It’s like that when you are taking care of new groups. The feeling of their increasing number of regular programs. The rise in people who recognize them and their fans. The pleasure you feel knowing that you built this up. If you get addicted to it, you will never be able to stop.”

     “Ah…”

     “Should we all get up now? We have to rest to work.”

     We grabbed all our things and got up.

     While Hyunjo was paying the bill, we were waiting outside. I didn’t know if it was the alcohol, but the wind didn’t seem that cold. Ring, I heard the sound of bells ringing and Hyunjo opened the door.

     Suddenly, my vision went dark.

     Again.

     I was in my future office again. As soon as I realized this fact, I concentrated my eyes and ears. The things I see and hear here could change my life. I can’t even ignore the smallest detail.

     “You started with K-Star and now, 20 years later, you became the CEO of a company with a worldwide network.”

     “Haha. I still have more to do.”

     “Your first experience was with Neptune and K-Star; did they influence your actions?”

     Reporter Song asked. My future self pondered for a bit. For a while, I only saw the body below my neck.

     “Yes. Because I got addicted then.”

     “Addicted…?”

     “The pleasure of watching someone grow. That time, even though I only dug my own grave and didn’t contribute much, I still felt that way. Neptune was unknown, but through their appearance on K-Star, their popularity rose quickly. Although they did receive a lot of insults…”

     What?

     “When I look at it now, it seemed like just a passing rain shower.”

     I hoped he would talk more specifically on why Neptune received insults, but the topic quickly changed. Damn.

     “And their next album did really well and they even received first place on a music program. I received a lot of pleasure watching their progress from the sidelines. If I didn’t experience that then, I probably wouldn’t have been the person I am today.”

     Good. Neptune’s next album will be a hit. Although it gets me that they received insults, it seemed the end result was good.

     “I used to listen to the song a lot.”

     The quietly listening Director Park added in.

     “It was Neptune’s first hit song and it is still the first song you think of when you remember Neptune.”

     “It seems to have been a good song?”

     “You haven’t listened to it before? Ah… Right, it’s an old song for Reporter Song. The song was really good. It really matched well with Neptune as well. I miss it.”

     “Then should we listen to the song while we continue? It’s been a while for me too.”

     As my future self spoke, I suddenly heard a clear, vivid song.

     “Mr. Sunwoo, are you drunk?”

     I abruptly awoke from the music.

     “Why are you staring so intently at the floor? Do you feel like you’re going to throw up?”

     Hyunjo patted my back.

     “You seem weak to alcohol.”

     “No, I’m not drunk. I was just thinking of something…”

     I quickly showed him my clear eyes.

     “That’s a relief. From now on, you’ll be drinking more often.”

     “Yes. I’m fine.”

     “Well, both of you did well today.”

     “Chief, thank you for your hard work.”

     “Have a safe trip.”

     The traitor and I grabbed a taxi. Hyunjo said while getting in the taxi first.

     “Since it’s 5 right now, go home and rest well. Eat something good in the morning and be at work by 8.”

     Did I hear it wrong?

     “By what time?”

     “By 8. If we want to write a press release in time, we need to have a meeting with the PR team.”

     “Ah…”

     “Since we got a regular program, we will much busier starting tomorrow. But once you get used to the work, you guys can work together and help each other out, so don’t get too scared. Hahaha.”

     A devil. There’s a devil here.

     “Then see you tomorrow. Don’t disappear on me.”

     Hyunjo left with a smiling face. The traitor and I looked at each other silently. If it wasn’t for the fact that he was a backstabber who was completely different inside from his outward appearance, I might have felt a much deeper comradery.

     “Go home safely.”

     “You too. See you tomorrow.”

     I took an empty taxi after we went our separate ways. I didn’t know if the taxi had a drunk client before me, but the car smelled of vomit. I rolled down the windows, but it suddenly started to rain.

     The taxi quickly arrived at my one-room apartment. I paid the driver and received a receipt. Just in case I could file it under company expenses.

     As the rain dripped down on me, I made my way up to my cramped room. It was somehow already past 6 a.m. I had to get to work by 8. I guess I can sleep for 30 minutes…

     However, after washing then lying on my bed, I couldn’t sleep. My exhausted body was stretched out on my bed, but my mind was as awake as ever.

     Eventually, I got up and turned on my laptop. I paused briefly on the search engine. What should I search… Yeah.

     Movies, dramas and anything related to supernatural abilities appeared on the screen until I found one that was like what I was looking for. A question asked by a person claiming he had a supernatural ability. I read, half in doubt, but found that he was in a similar situation to me.

     It was a concern on whether he should continue to hide his power he received one day in a dream or use it to help others.

     Was this really real?

     I examined the page with expectation, but found that it was under the humor category of the forums. Damn. All the comments were of ridicule and mockery and some even suggested a hospital.

     I gave up after searching a few more times. I felt like I would get a mental disorder.

     I rolled around my cramped one-room. There was only me. No one would know if I did something weird, right?

     Now then…

     What do I have to do to use this power at will?

     There was no user’s manual and there was no one I could ask. If I asked, I would probably be recommended to a mental hospital as well. Finding out for myself was the only way.

     First, I concentrated as I closed my eyes. I tried my best to recall the future I saw. Although I was frowning weirdly and concentrating to a point I was about make a weird noise, there was not even the slightest change.

     I quit after trying for a countless number of times. This meant one of two things.

     Either I was unable to figure out the method to use my power or the power was not something I could use whenever I wanted to and randomly occurred.

     If I found a method to control my power, I was going to check what the next lottery numbers were…

     I opened up a notepad and recorded all the information I heard and saw.

     The distant future me was the CEO of a management company. One that was quite successful. It seemed like I was acquainted with Director Park who came for the interview. From Reporter Song’s words, I seemed to have obtained my position as the CEO of a major management company through my persistent efforts. Recalling how he said how the door of hardship was opened wide, it really seemed like I didn’t succeed easily.

     First, I didn’t get assigned to an actor like I wanted, but to Neptune. Neptune appeared on K-Star and from the initial success, it would be greenlit for more seasons.

     Neptune received insults from appearing on the show, however, in the end, their popularity rose. Their next album was a big hit and they placed first in a music broadcast.

     Remembering how future me said that it was the start of a relationship with Neptune, it seemed like I would continue to have more relations with them…

     And Gunyoung was the bastard who backstabbed me.

     Was there anything else? Ah, one more. I deducted I was single in the future as I didn’t have a ring on my ring finger. It was either I was unmarried even at forty or I was divorced. I couldn’t tell which one was worse.

     This was all the information I collected from seeing the future three times.

     Wait, but…

     I changed the present.  Instead of getting backstabbed by the traitor, I was the one who became the Lucky Charm as the one who connected Producer Joontae with Neptune.

     Perhaps, the future changed?

     When looking at the butterfly effect in movies and dramas, the flutter of a butterfly’s wings caused a giant hurricane. What if my actions yesterday were like the fluttering of wings?

     It wouldn’t stop me from becoming a CEO in the future, right?

     No, after seeing the future the first and second time, I had already changed the present. In the future, they said Hyunjo didn’t have a favourable first impression of me so the door of hardship was opened, however, due to me selling out the quadruplets, I was able to fix that. The Lucky Charm title that the traitor, who backstabbed me, took also belonged to me now. Even though the present changed significantly, I didn’t notice any signs of the butterfly effect in the future the second and third time.

     Then was it… something like a parallel universe?

     The future I saw and the present I am currently in have already split into two.

     I searched parallel universe on the internet. An incredible amount of information popped up. I changed my posture and started to read it.

     However, like a side effect, sleepiness started to overcome me after reading for a short while. I shook my head in an attempt to keep myself awake. I would have to get ready for work soon.

     I couldn’t be the new recruit who was late on his second day of work…

     I couldn’t…

     

      Chapter 11

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL by Myoni

     Edited by Myoni & Yoni

     “Gasp!”

     I woke up with a start when my phone rang.

     As soon as I was clear- headed, the first thought on my mind was that I was in trouble.

     When did I fall asleep? What time was it now?

     The sky outside still looked dark, but since it rained early in the morning, it could just be clouds. I clumsily searched for my watch.

     Fortunately, it was exactly 7 a.m. Although I did fall asleep, it was only for 10 minutes.

     As soon as I relaxed, I was overcome with drowsiness and exhaustion. I rubbed my face with both my hands before answering the phone.

     “Thanks, brother. I had to get to work by 8 and if it wasn’t for you, I might have been late.”

     -When did you get home?

     “Past 6.”

     -What? And you’re going to work again? But you’re probably really tired, what are you going to do?

     “What do mean what am I going to do. I still have to go to work.”

     Now… It was time for me to make an accurate assessment of the situation and quickly decide.

     If I was to get a taxi, I probably didn’t have to get ready this instant. If I wanted to take the subway, I would have to get ready now. Wait. The traffic might be slow. If I grabbed a taxi and I had to get off to ride the subway halfway, it would be the worst situation. I chose the safe route and decided to take the subway.

     I got up and went to my bathroom. I turned on the tap and I was troubled while I was waiting for the water to turn warm.

     Should I wash my hair or not?

     -How was it yesterday?

     “…It was dynamic. But, yesterday, they complimented me, saying I did a good job.”

     Since it was my second day, I decided to wash my hair. I chose not to use conditioner, just shampoo.

     -That’s a relief. Try to end early today so we can go for a drink and talk about our work.

     “I’d like that too. Let’s do that!”

     -And call mother. She’s probably waiting.

     “Yeah, I will.”

     I was about to hang up, but I heard noisy voices on the other end.

     -Dad, dad, is it uncle? Me too! Hand me the phone too! Hand it to me first! (Kids, your dad is talki…) I have something to ask him! Memememe!

     He wasn’t able to hold on for long before the phone fell to the hands of the elementary schoolers. As I brushed my teeth, I waited for the victor of the fight to talk.

     -Uncle! Did you see a lot of celebrities yesterday? Who did you see?

     “I saw all the singers that appeared on KpopCon.”

     -Oh my god! You must have been really happy! Uncle, you’re freaking cool! I’m freaking jealous!”

     “Freaking co… You shouldn’t say…”

     -Can you take me along with you next time?

     “I can’t. Now hang up. Uncle has to go to work.”

     I coolly refused the clinging girl and hung up. It would be disastrous if I lost my authority over my nieces and nephews. Seniority wasn’t only important in the entertainment world. It was important here as well. If my authority crumbled, they would all try to climb over me and I would eventually end up at the bottom.

     That would be horrible…

     I washed my hair incredibly quickly. Yesterday I paid attention to my hair as I wore a suit, but there was no need to today. I just dried it off with a towel. I recalled on my failure yesterday and dressed casually. A hoodie and jeans. Coat.

     Was it too casual? There was a meeting today.

     I troubled over the decision for 10 seconds before changing into slacks and a knit sweater. It took 8 minutes to walk to the subway station from my one-room. I didn’t know if it was because it was too early, but the subway was emptier than usual.

     As I looked around, I saw office workers on their way to work and students on their way to school. Those wearing casual clothes over there were university students.

     I felt weird. I thought there would be a big change once I graduated school and became an employee. I thought I would see a different world like a chick breaking out of its egg or a frog that had left the well…

     But that really wasn’t the case. So this was why my brother laughed so hard when I told him.

     While waiting for the subway train, I called home.

     -Hello?

     “Mom, it’s me. I got off work late yesterday so I couldn’t call you.”

     -Actually, I ended up going to sleep after waiting. Was there a lot of work on your first day?

     My mom’s voice was filled with concern.

     My parents left our home in Seoul to my brother and went to the countryside as soon as I completed my mandatory military service. The cost of living in Seoul was too high and since my father’s health wasn’t very good, they decided to recuperate in the fresh air of the countryside.

     His health has recovered a lot these days and they work on a small field and raise a dog.

     My brother who was already in his forties was living well with his family and the quadruplets were already in their senior year of elementary school so they would grow quickly without constant supervision. I wasn’t sure if it was because of this, but my parents would spend more attention on me nowadays.

     “Nah, I was late because of the welcoming party. Don’t worry. Anything happening at home? How’s father’s health?”

     -We are doing well. How was work? Was it okay? You always said you wanted to do it, but do you really enjoy it?

     “It’s really fun. The people I work with are all good too.”

     Except one.

     -Yesterday, your aunts came and we ate dinner together. When we discussed that you were working with actors, all the kids were in a frenzy. They kept asking for autographs.

     “…Really? But, I wasn’t assigned to an actor, but a singer. A girl group.”

     -A girl group?

     “They’re called Neptune; you probably haven’t heard of them. time I go home; I’ll bring you a picture.”

     -Okay. If you have any troubles at work, tell your brother. Okay?

     He had already been of great help to me this morning. When I was about to tell her my brother’s morning call, the subway train arrived.

     “Okay. The subway’s here. I’ll call you later.”

     I quickly hung up the phone and sat on the subway. It was 7:30 right now… since the company wasn’t far from the subway station, I probably wouldn’t be late. To not fall asleep and miss my stop, I tried to keep my eyes open.

     Should I listen to some songs? As I was looking for my earphones, the two girls wearing school uniforms sitting next to me were making a fuss.

     “Hey hey hey, big news! Lee Yoolam of Lemon Girls got in trouble. She’s the most trending right now.”

     “What is it? What kind of trouble?”

     The two stuck their heads together and looked at the phone screen.

     “It says it’s a DUI. Oh my god. It says she was with her non-celebrity boyfriend. Wasn’t she the one who kept promoting that she never had a boyfriend? Her male fans probably crumbled like cookies.”

     “Yeah, they were really promoting how hard they were preparing for K-Star…”

     “They were dropped out from that. It says that Neptune will replace them?”

     “Never heard of them before. I guess the staff was really in a hurry.”

     I quickly checked the internet. Looking at the community site, I saw that everything related to this issue was trending.

     Lemon Girls Lee Yoolam. Lee Yoolam DUI. Lee Yoolam’s Boyfriend. K-Star was 4th in ranking. I didn’t find Neptune though.

     Celebrity News articles only had provocative headlines.

     As I read starting from the last page, the flow of articles was quite amusing.

     At first, the articles were focused on Yoolam’s charges. There were a bunch of articles that seemed to be copy-pasted that were posted afterwards.

     Cold water has been poured on Lemon Girls’ Lee Yoolam, who was recently rising in popularity in the entertainment scene and was set to appear on this year’s huge public weekend entertainment program. Yesterday afternoon, Lee Yoolam was charged without detention when she was exposed driving under influence with her civilian boyfriend. Her alcohol blood level was 0.107 and her driver’s license was revoked…

     The main article had thousands of comments and a large number of people agreed with the insults and cynical remarks criticizing her. She had already become the focus of public mockery and branded as a wretch.

     Sparks even flew to K-Star.

     Netizens shot comments like ‘Did K-Star promote worldwide popularity by signing this kind of girl,’ ‘I guess we know the standard of cable TV,’ ‘Did you think a criminal like her was going to be a worldwide Korean star?’ at the staff.

     The reporters reacted to these comments of criticism by quickly writing more articles catering to that audience.

     After these articles covered on the front page for a while, articles of Lemon Girls dropping out of the program appeared. Those articles started the same as the previous articles.

     However, the nuance changed in the middle.

     Meanwhile, Knet’s new program, ’ K-Star’, which Lemon Girls dropped out of, is a program that tests 8 new rising idol groups with great potential on various themes, such as songs, dance and entertainment, to find the group who will become the next generation Kpop Star…

     The article began with a provocative story focused on Lee Yoolam, however, it suddenly changed and promoted the program. The PR team of Knet had started to make their move.

     I could tell that their intentions were to quickly pull out of Lemon Girls’ Lee Yoolam’s DUI Scandal and to use the trending topic to promote their program aggressively. At the end, there even was an interview with Producer Go Joontae.

     And I finally found Neptune’s name on there.

     K-Star’s Producer Go Joontae expressed his deep regrets about Lemon Girls dropping out of the program under such scandalous circumstances. He shed new light on the topic by saying, “After holding an emergency meeting with staff last night, we have decided to fill the empty seat with a 4-member group known as Neptune,” and “Neptune was a group that was sadly cut from the final line-up. They have a lot of potential and appeal, so we believe that they are a group that fits well with the objective of K-Star.”

     Also, Producer Go Joontae requested, “We sincerely apologize for the public criticism of the program before its broadcast. To make good out of this unfortunate event, we promise that we will create a program with a high degree of perfection to meet our viewers’ expectations. We hope that you will watch over this with interest.”

     

      Chapter 12

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL by Myoni

     Edited by Myoni & Yoni

     The comment section contained more than two thousand comments. Most the comments were criticizing Lemon Girls and Yoolam, but I found a few about K-Star. Most were saying that it was good that the staff’s reaction was quick.

     Luckily, there weren’t many mean comments aimed at Neptune. Not many gave them any attention.

     Like they were going to wait and see since the producer said they had potential?

     If it was under normal circumstances, there would have been plenty of mean comments on how Neptune pushed out Lemon Girls for the spot, but the trouble Yoolam caused was so big that it seemed that the majority of the mean commenters were focused on her.

     When I searched for Neptune, I saw some articles with Neptune in their headlines.

     When I clicked on the article, it was about their profiles, their failed album and their current activities related to their new single. There were even new pictures of the members. At the bottom, it said it was provided by W&U.

     Looking at the comments, there were quite a few complimenting their appearance. As I was saving each one and reading it, I saw some unbelievable comments.

     -I guess they’re there for their looks. Since it’s a competition program, they’ll probably just leave them at the bottom.

     -Huge advantage for the other teams. Kekekekeke

     There were tens of people agreeing with them. I was speechless.

     I logged on to reply, but a keyboard warrior had already entered the fray. It was under the nickname ‘Neptune Mom’ and when I examined other comments, the person had already replied to a huge number of them, mostly protecting and supporting Neptune. Although the person wasn’t swearing, his fighting strength was at max level and the mean commenters were dropping off one by one.

     Was there already a fan of Neptune?

     While carefully reading these articles and comments, my sleepiness went away. Instead, I was flooded with feelings of excitement and delight. Hyunjo’s words were correct. The feeling of watching a new group grow in popularity and be acknowledged… This really was addicting.

     Well, it wasn’t like I took care of them myself. However, as I contributed to this incident, I definitely had the right to feel satisfied. Of course, of course.

     The subway stopped shortly. It was my stop. As I arrived at the company listening to Neptune’s songs, I got a call. It was Hyunjo. It was 7:53 right now. Safe!

     “Hello?”

     -You on your way?

     This person, why is he constantly going back and forth between formal and casual speech? So inconsistent.

     “I am right at the door. What floor should I go to?”

     -The management team is on the 4th floor. Come to meeting room B. Don’t come empty handed, there’s a coffee shop in front of the company so buy some coffee. Two hot cups of Americano…

     I promptly pressed the record button.

     -One vanilla latte, one café mocha with whipped cream… wait, Gunyoung, what did you want… one cappuccino and get whatever you want.

     “Yes, I will.”

     -Did you remember it all?

     “I recorded it.”

     -Hey, good job.

     I never imagined I would hear a compliment for getting coffee.

     I went back outside. As soon as I crossed the street, I saw a 24-hour coffee shop. I placed the coffees in a box and held it with both hands.

     Although I wasn’t worried about being late, I hurriedly returned to not let the coffees cool down.

     “Ah, crap, what floor was it?”

     I forgot.

     To call again after hearing that I did a good job was a bit… it just so happened there was a man already on the elevator so I quickly went on.

     “Excuse me, what floor is management team 3 on?”

     “On the fourth floor. Would you like me to press it for you?”

     “Thank you!”

     His voice was killer. Was he an employee?

     When I looked to the side, I was surprised. It was the movie star, Sung Dowon.

     He was the top actor representing 20-year-olds. Very tall with wide shoulders of a swimmer, even if he wore rags, he was blessed with a body that would make even the rags look good. His good looks couldn’t even be covered by sunglasses.

     However, Sung Dowon wasn’t an actor known just for his good looks. His acting skills were equally great. He even had an influence on box office sales.

     His drama was a big hit in China and his two recent movies even reached 10 million and 6 million viewers respectively, raising his value in the Chungmuro District daily.

     I remembered reading how W&U lured him in with a huge payment and a chance to move onto Hollywood when he ended his previous contract, but I never thought I would see him so soon.

     Well, since this was fate, I should ask him for a handshake… as soon as I thought that, the scene in front of my eyes faded out.

     Was this the future?

     However, it was a bit different this time.

     Like a screen with a signal that kept dropping, my surroundings were hazy. What was this?

     Also, until now, the futures I had seen took place during an interview with Director Park and Reporter Song, but I was sitting in front of a man in an unfamiliar office. It looked like there were other people around us, but it was too hazy to make them out and I could only just barely make out the face of the man in front of me.

     Huh?

     It was Sung Dowon. It was Sung Dowon smiling without his sunglasses on. He didn’t look any older. It was the same face I saw just a few moments ago.

     Really, what was this?

     While I fell into a state of utter confusion I could hear Dowon’s voice.

     “You’re my savior. If it wasn’t for Mr. Sunwoo, I would have been caught in their trap and my life as an actor could have been over. And because of this…”

     Saviour? Me? What was this trap now?

     “I hope that Mr. Sunwoo could become my manager.”

     …!

     “We’ve arrived at the fourth floor.”

     The same voice overlapped. As I woke up from my previous state, Dowon was pressing the open button on the elevator.

     “Th-thank you.”

     I exited the elevator in a dazed state.

     “I hope you have a great day.”

     “…Hope you have a great day.”

     The elevator went up carrying Dowon. I was dumbly looking at the closed elevator doors.

     What was that just now?

     It was definitely different from the future I saw yesterday. The hazy surroundings and the time I experienced the future was short. Above all, it didn’t seem like a distant future.

     When would this happen? There just weren’t enough hints.

     He said I helped him? So, would there really be an incident in the future? Would there?

     For Sung Dowon to ask me to be his manager… If I could answer, I would have said okay right away.

     Although I did think about Neptune briefly and although I was starting to learn the pleasures and satisfaction of taking care of a new group, as expected, I still wanted to be an actor’s manager. And it was even Sung Dowon.

     “What are you doing over there? Hurry up.”

     A familiar voice brought me back to reality. Facing the elevator was meeting room B. The traitor’s upper body was sticking out of the half-opened door as he gestured with his finger.

     Let’s leave the future that I am uncertain when will happen and focus on the present, the present.

     After checking that the coffees were fine, I hurriedly entered the meeting room.

     “Hello! I brought the coffee.”

     “I’ll give you the money for the coffee later.”

     It seemed like Hyunjo has decided to speak casually. I told you to do it before.

     Besides Hyunjo and Gunyoung, there were two women and a man in the meeting room. As I was greeting everyone, I was startled when I saw Hyunjo’s outfit. Jeans and a loose man-to-man t-shirt. It was the same clothes as yesterday.

     Don’t tell me he didn’t go home after the bar, but to the company?

     “This here is the new recruit, Jung Sunwoo and they are members of the PR team.”

     I matched their faces to their names in my mind. The skinny woman with no makeup in her 30s was Team Leader Park of the PR team. And the pair below her seemed to be the same age as me.

     Although I failed to leave a good first impression yesterday, today I will!

     “I am Jung Sunwoo. Pleased to meet you all.”

     “Coffee!”

     “Let’s talk after drinking some coffee. I think I’m going to die.”

     I lost to coffee.

     I took my share of the coffee and crammed into an empty seat.

     Honestly, I had some expectations for my first meeting. I imagined a scene of men in suits and women in white blouses and H line skirts sitting with their legs crossed seriously discussing matters.

     When they got tired, they would relax with a cup of coffee… Well, although it wasn’t to that point, I did expect something similar.

     Hahaha. Useless expectations.

     This place looked more like PC bang[1] than a meeting room. There were laptops and paper spread all over the table and the people looked like game addicts drinking coffee after just finishing an all-nighter gaming session.

     “You’re Team 3’s Lucky Charm, right?”

     Team Leader Park looked at me and asked abruptly.

     “Pardon?”

     “Aren’t you the Lucky Charm of Management Team 3? The one who grabbed a big fish on his first day. Congrats.”

     “I guess there really is something like beginner’s luck, team leader.”

     “How did he get such a fortunate encounter? Did he save a nation in his past life?”

     “He did what we couldn’t do in 2 years in a day… what a cruel world.”

     The trio of the PR Team took me as an appetizer as they conversed about me.

     The traitor looked uninterested and Hyunjo was busy on his phone. I didn’t know who kept trying to contact him, but his phone was vibrating nonstop.

     Team Leader Park glanced at Hyunjo’s phone.

     “Looking at how busy Chief’s phone is ringing, it seems like Neptune will be busy from now on.”

     “Looks to be that way. It seems like work will finally be enjoyable.”

     “You have to row when the tide comes in. Toss us anything that looks article-worthy about Neptune. Both of you new recruits as well.”

     “Yes.”

     I didn’t know what she was going to do, but I answered anyways. Fortunately, Team Leader Park explained right away.

     “Just record anything that seems like it would get a decent reaction. The girls playing with each other, what they are eating, even them tripping while walking. It doesn’t matter if we end up using them or not, the more we have the better.”

     She explained that if there were decent pictures, they would upload them on Neptune’s official social media accounts and use them for articles and they would keep funny stories of their daily life for talk shows or interviews.

     They said it was better to start gathering them now, than using boring stories that would get edited out or making them up on the fly later on.

     “I heard Seoyoung thought Producer Joontae was a fan and wanted to give him her autograph. Stuff like that.”

     “Oh? How did you know that?”

     The ones who knew that were Seoyoung, Producer Joontae and myself.

     “We’re the PR team.”

     She smiled cunningly.

     

      Chapter 13

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL by Myoni

     Edited by Myoni & Yoni

     “However, team leader.”

     Hyunjo tapped the table with his finger as he pondered.

     “Don’t you think that we’ll get criticized if we release articles too aggressively? Netizens these days are quick-witted and are able to tell if an article was sponsored by their agency or not.”

     “That’s why we have to make sure we’re not too aggressive.”

     “Was it Star Trend? Not long ago, I couldn’t read their one of their articles since it was plastered with words like successful debut, strong impression and rising star.”

     “I will make sure to tell them to refrain from doing that. We all know they flopped so it would have been embarrassing… The reporter’s intern probably wrote it.”

     Listening to the conversation, I started to connect the relationship between the management team, PR team and reporters.

     A manager would hand over article-worthy materials to the PR team and the PR team would send it out or give it to a close reporter to release a more sincerely written article.

     If the celebrity had enough following, that article would be copied exactly by other mass media outlets, in other words, Urakkai articles[1]. If not, it would be buried without any replies.

     Just like Neptune’s articles that could only be found by searching through a search engine.

     “And Chief. The afternoon interview we have scheduled today.”

     “The G-Today one?”

     “Yes. I think it’s best we tell them not to say, ‘it must have been hard’, ‘you guys have endured a lot,’ excessively. We might get reactions like, ‘Just how hard could being a celebrity be?’ and ‘Who in the world hasn’t endured a lot.’”

     “Then I guess we’ll just have to say that we’ll try our best.”

     “That’s probably the best. Since they are going in as a replacement, if they even look a bit bad, then they will probably get criticized.”

     “Then let’s wait for the reactions of the first broadcast before moving forward…”

     I didn’t know when, but the meeting was proceeding more and more like a meeting. Even the male-female pair were tapping on their laptops. They were writing something on Word.

     I didn’t feel right just sitting there so I took out a new notebook and jotted down the words coming out of Team Leader Park and Hyunjo’s mouths.

     “What do you think about asking Blackout to mention them on their Instagram account? If the article headline contained both Blackout and Neptune, I think it will have quite the media following.”

     “Let’s wait on that. When we showed them off last time as Blackout’s younger sister group, the reactions weren’t very good. If something goes wrong, Neptune, who are just starting to get attention, might be branded as unlikeable. Blackout fans are so intense.”

     “If we do that, the company will even receive complaints.”

     “That’s right. Hundred percent right. Hundred percent.”

     Team Leader Park who was scratching her head suddenly asked.

     “But, Chief. The Neptune girls have no personal problems, right?”

     “They don’t.”

     “If there is anything that can’t be revealed to the reporters, we have to know first. What could have been stopped with a short-handled hoe will grow to something that can’t be stopped with a shovel[2].”

     “They really don’t.”

     “No one with a boyfriend? The rapper from Punchline seems to have taken a liking to Songha.”

     Hyunjo was surprised.

     “Who’s the guy, are you sure?”

     “I’m just telling you what I heard from their stylist. You have to say I’m almost sure. Punchline will appear together with Neptune on K-Star. Since they already have a fanbase, it’ll be bad if there’s a scandal. We really can’t.”

     “I know that already. I’ll keep a careful watch.”

     “Both of you should watch them with care as well.”

     Team Leader Park advised as she looked at Gunyoung and me.

     “If a suspicious situation arises, we’ll tell you immediately.”

     “Yes.”

     I noted down some suspicious situations and underlined the words, ‘The guy who raps in Punchline’, a few times. If a nationwide emotional scandal pops up, the female side is usually the one to get harmed. Although it had only been a day since I had met Neptune and Songha, they were the still the first celebrities I was assigned to. It was obvious I wasn’t going to look at the guy who raps in Punchline favorably.

     “And…”

     Rattle.

     As the door opened, a man I had never seen before popped his head in. He had the friendly impression of a hyung next door.

     “Oh my, I’m sorry to bother you while you’re busy. I just had an urgent favor to ask Team Leader Park.”

     “What is it?”

     “Our Chaeyoung is going to a preview tomorrow.”

     Chaeyoung? Did he mean Son Chaeyoung?

     Although she was only in her mid-twenties, she was an actress who started out as a child actress and has more than ten years of acting experience under her belt. Although she didn’t have the fame of Sung Dowon, she was still someone whose name would always appear on the headlines of top articles. Even her filmography was robust.

     I went to see a movie that cast Son Chaeyoung as an innocent university student three times.

     Was this person Chaeyoung’s manager?

     The person who saved a nation in his past life wasn’t me, but this person.

     “She’s going to wear a Balmain one-piece dress and she’s asking if you could write an article that says she wore it better than a model.”

     “Are you talking about that combat uniform-like one-piece dress? Is she going to wear that? Chief Jo, you should have stopped her.”

     “Since there isn’t much time left until her contract renewal, could you please release an article. Team Leader Park has a lot of reporters she has close ties with. Please save me.”

     Team Leader Park sighed at Chief Jo’s exaggerations.

     “It’s not a problem to release an article, but that dress really doesn’t suit her.”

     “I guess we’ll hear lots of insults like ‘her stylist is her anti-fan’ and ‘what’s her agency doing’ again.”

     As the PR employees were mumbling, Chief Jo kept exaggerating his hardship while pleading.

     “Ah, by the way!”

     The person who was about to leave turned back around.

     “Are you two new?”

     Gunyoung and I who were waiting for the right time to greet him both got up at the same time.

     “Hello, I am Jung Sunwoo.”

     “I am Choi Gunyoung.”

     “Yeah. It seems like they change whenever I am about to familiarize with them. Since you guys have good appearances, it looks like you’ll have some stamina. If you start on this team, you’ll adapt quickly to wherever you go next. Let’s talk longer when we have a company get-together.”

     “Yes, I under…”

     “Good luck!”

     Slam!

     We stared at the door for a moment, but it didn’t open again.

     Afterwards, the meeting went on for another hour. During that hour, I filled two pages with notes and admired Team Leader Park and her employees. Even though I had only met them a little while ago, I felt friendly with them like I had worked with them for a few months.

     Incredible people…

     “Take this.”

     Hyunjo tossed the van keys at Gunyoung.

     “I have continuous meetings lined up today. So you guys need to prepare for the G-Today’s interview.”

     “Us?”

     “Gunyoung, you must have done it before. I’ve already called Taehee, so go take the girls to the shop, their stylists will be on their way as well. After putting on their outfits, they just need to go to the newspaper company. A reporter will guide you once you arrive. I’ll get there before the interview starts.”

     He said while staring at his notebook. In the schedule section, his schedule was densely packed with things he had to do today.

     “The girls’ residence and shop address are already on the GPS so you just need to follow that and I’ll send you the stylists’ phone numbers, company address and the reporter’s contact information via text message. Eat lunch at the shop like yesterday. Since the interview is at 2, be there by 1:30 at the latest. If there are any problems, call me. Okay?”

     “Yes.”

     “Right, at night, we have a preliminary meeting/ dinner with the staff of K-Star. It’ll probably take a while. I already told the girls, so just letting you guys know.”

     “Pardon?”

     “Go, quickly!”

     The traitor and I hurriedly packed our bags and went on the elevator.

     Getting off work today was off the table again.

     I sent a Kakao message[3]

     “Since it’s 9:30 already… If we want to get there by 1:30 we don’t have any time to waste.”

     “Why does this place progress so fast on so little time.”

     “When K-Star starts, we might even have to start living at the company.”

     “It looks like the chief already lives here.”

     “Yeah. He said he slept at the company yesterday.”

     It was hard to talk like there was nothing wrong.

     I understood why mind readers in movies and dramas were portrayed as cynical and warped characters. I was already uncomfortable knowing one person who was different on the outside from the inside, imagine how horrible it would be to see what was on everyone’s minds.

     How fortunate I was for not having a mind-reading ability.

     I shook my head as I inwardly sent my support to a mind-reader I didn’t know existed.

     Soon, the elevator arrived at the basement. The van was where we parked it yesterday. We stopped in front of the driver’s seat. There were two people, but only one could be the driver.

     “You good at driving?”

     The traitor asked first.

     I got my license as soon as I graduated high school. After that, I only used my brother’s car a few times. Although I received some training prior to this job, I was honestly a bit scared of driving in the complicated streets of Cheongdam-dong.

     As I cleared my throat, the traitor opened the door of the driver’s seat.

     “I’ll drive.”

     “Sure. I’ll make up for it by shuttling our lunches.”

     I didn’t decline and got on the passenger’s seat. As soon as we operated the GPS, the van started to move smoothly.

     The traitor was even good at driving. Well, he did say he drove when he was working part-time for Blackout.

     On our way to their residence, I searched Sung Dowon on the internet. During the meeting, my concentration almost broke a few times because of sudden thoughts of Dowon. Now, I could leisurely search to my heart’s content.

     Let’s see… Sung Dowon’s recent condition, rumors on his new movie, groundless tabloids. I thoroughly went through information related to Sung Dowon. There weren’t a lot of negative public opinions.

     There was a recent article about Dowon’s worth. $60, 000 per episode of nationwide dramas and in China, he received somewhere of $100, 000 per episode.

     With articles like these, there would usually be some disruptions in public opinion, however, the majority reaction was that he deserved it. He really was an actor with a very good public image.

     Handsome, good acting skills, a lot of charity work and had never caused any controversy in an interview or on social media. There wasn’t even a single wrinkle.

     Just what happened to an actor like him? Just how big was the incident that Sung Dowon himself would say that his life as an actor could have been over? And what did he mean by he almost fell for their trap? And who were ‘they’?

     And why was the future I saw earlier different from the past?

     Ah damn… I so curious I could die!

     [1] 우라까이 (Urakkai) articles are just copy-pasted articles with just slight deviations from the original. It is not seen often in America, but seems to be common enough in Korea for there to be a word for it.

     [2] Korean Idiom, just thought you guys might find it weird. It’s quite self-explanatory. Sort of on the line of ‘Don’t make a mountain out of a molehill’.

     [3] Kakao is a popular Korean messaging platform, sort of like Facebook’s Messenger.

     

      Chapter 14

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL by Myoni

     Edited by Myoni & Yoni

     We arrived at their residence 15 minutes later. It looked dull when I saw it yesterday, but now that I was looking at it under the bright sunshine, it was completely different. Its white walls covered with ivy had a charming appeal to it.

     I pressed the doorbell when we got to the 5th floor. I didn’t know the door passcode yet. Since it looked like they’ve been through a number of managers and since they would have had to change the door passcode every time a manager quit, it seemed like they don’t reveal the passcode easily.

     “Who is it?”

     Seoyoung peeked out as the door opened to the length of the safety chain.

     “It’s us. Chief’s busy so we’re the only ones who came.”

     “Wait a bit!”

     After the door closed, it opened up widely. We carefully entered. Although it was our second time, we still weren’t used to it. The traitor’s arms and legs were already stiff. Was he really nervous or was it just his thing?

     “You guys came?”

     “Yup, good morning.”

     The members huddled around the living room as they greeted us. And they stared up at me, the both of us. I guessed the reason why they looked more energetic than yesterday was because of K-Star.

     A morning greeted by dazzling beauties. Even without sleep, I was energized and felt full without eating.

     If the future I saw really happens, then I guess I would miss this scene.

     “Although we heard from Hyunjo oppa and Team Leader Park over a hundred times on the phone… I still think I have to hear it in person to really feel that it’s happening. Are we really going on K-Star? As a permanent member?”

     Seoyoung asked while fiddling with her fingers. Both her eyes were shining and her lips were sealed shut. It wasn’t just Seoyoung, but Taehee and LJ who were on the sofa and Songha who was laying on the rug were waiting for our reply.

     “That’s right.”

     Both the traitor and I said simultaneously.

     “Kyah!”

     Seoyoung jumped up and down. Her chest underneath her loose t-shirt bounced along with her. She was really cute. I have to take a picture of this. I quickly took out my phone and took a picture. Of course, above her shoulders.

     As soon as they heard the shutter sound, all the girls looked at me.

     “I did it because the PR team leader told me to take a lot of pictures.”

     I confidently gave my reasoning and took more pictures of the girls gathered in the living room. They were indeed celebrities, as soon as the lens faced their direction, their poses and expressions changed. When I checked to see how the pictures turned out, there was nothing to throw out.

     “What do I do, I’m so happy. I kept thinking it was a dream and constantly searched for articles.”

     Seoyoung was still holding her phone in her hand.

     “Don’t look at it too much, stupid.”

     LJ kicked Seoyoung’s leg.

     “There are mean comments as well.”

     “I like the mean comments, though. It’s our first time getting attention, who are we to discriminate?”

     “Let’s see how long you like it.”

     “Stop acting like you’re so calm. I know you called your parents to tell them this morning. You spent two hours on an international call when you’re dirt poor!”

     Seoyoung smirked while provoking her. LJ had a fit and suddenly got up from the sofa.

     “I’m not the one who called. My mom called when she saw the article! And it’s not that I am acting calm, I’m being cautious!”

     From the looks of it, the one who looked really calm was Songha. I didn’t know if she had nerves of steel or if she looked that way because she had a poker face.

     At the moment, she was eating chips while rolling about on the rug. Crumbs fell on the rug. Well, she was better than my brother’s kids as she cleaned it up.

     By picking up each one and emptying in her mouth…

     “I think we need to start getting ready.”

     The traitor gestured towards the clock.

     “We don’t have a lot of time since the interview is at 2.”

     “We’re ready. We can go.”

     Songha was the first one up. The other members went to their rooms and brought things like bags and hats with them. They did well by themselves. I was worried because it was only the traitor and me, but it seemed like everything would progress smoothly even without Hyunjo.

     Though Seoyoung almost fell twice while looking at her phone and it did get quite noisy when LJ stole it.

     We got in the van as we exited the apartment. The traitor took his place in the driver’s seat.

     “The shop address… it’s this one.”

     I set the GPS to the shop address and put on my seat belt. When I looked back to the rear seats, I saw that none of the members put on their seat belts and were preoccupied practicing what they would say in the interview.

     “Everyone should put on their seat belts when they get in a van.”

     As soon as I said that, I did a double take. Did I act like a man with 4 kids again?

     Whenever my habits from taking care of the quadruplets popped out, my friends would humiliate me by calling me Jungjumma, Jung-Parent, Jung-Mom.

     When I glanced back, luckily the members seemed to just go along with it. They lowered their heads and put on their seat belts.

     I felt relieved as I took a picture of that scene as well.

     The boredom of waiting at the shop was endurable today. While the girls were getting their makeup and hair done, the traitor and I sat on the sofa gathering information from articles on K-Star.

     The name of the program was ‘ K-Star’.

     It was the follow-up to the survival audition program that was just finishing its seventh season. It seemed like the program was filling in since it took a long time to prepare for audition programs.

     Although I didn’t know as I was uninterested, there was a lot of interest in K-Star considering it was a new program.

     Did the appearance of idols have a positive effect?

     From the looks of it, it was because their looks were much better than average and although they were all new, there were some boy groups who already had a fandom. If you were to take into account all the buzz on social media and community sites, there were a considerable number of fans promoting K-Star.

     Of course, even the studio was spending a lot on promotions as well. As the viewership of audition programs which brought a boom to the cable industry was steadily declining every season, the studio was probably quite desperate to find another hit program.

     Maybe it was because the studio had already sucked out as much as it could from audition programs that they were now directly pushing a head-to-head competition between idols.

     It was a concept where 4 girl groups and 4 boy groups, 8 teams in total, would compete against each other and one would come out on top to receive the title of K-Star.

     They competed in various themes. In the article, it stated that they would compete in fields like singing, dancing and modeling as well as their performance on entertainment programs.

     After the competition, the winner would be determined by the group who received the highest score from guest judges and the text message votes from viewers. If the staff were successful in just raising the groups’ popularity, there was no way it wouldn’t be a topic of interest.

     The prize for winning was a 7-part reality TV series produced by Knet and the right to attend the esteemed Knet’s Asian Music Awards, where only outstanding Kpop stars could attend. From my eyes, it looked like it would be a considerably good chance for them.

     “Fans are probably going to fight a lot during the viewer voting process.”

     They would probably go crazy trying to make their teams win.

     The traitor nodded in agreement.

     “Well, they put viewer voting in there for that. It raises the show’s popularity. Since the voting process will be in a league of their own.”

     “What?”

     “If girl groups are pitted against boy groups, the girl groups’ fandoms will lose out, so the winner should be from one of the boy groups. Even the audition program never had a female winner for its past 7 seasons.”

     “Really? Then I guess we need to give up on trying to win and focus on gaining popularity.”

     “Producer Go Joontae is a really aggressive editor so if we’re unlucky, we might only receive tons of insults.”

     That’s right. There will always be a sacrificial lamb in a devil’s editing process. Since it said that Neptune received a lot of insults, the girls must have gotten into some sort of trouble. I had to keep my eyes wide open and watch out for whatever it was.

     Slam.

     Someone entered the shop. It wasn’t a big party like us, only two people. I didn’t know the man who was leading the way, but the man wearing the black snapback looked familiar.

     Kim Jonghoon.

     He was a hip-hop artist who debuted a long time ago. Since I listened to his songs back when I was in high school. Although he seems to have switched his job to an entertainer from an artist.

     When I was living with my parents, so when I still had a TV, Kim Jonghoon was a permanent member of an entertainment show I used to watch frequently.

     “Hello, senior!”

     Seoyoung with only half her hair curled instantly got up. The other members followed suit and greeted him. Kim Jonghoon looked like a regular middle-aged man surrounded by girls as he waved his hand smiling broadly.

     “Wah… I think I am going to come here at this time from now on. Girl group?”

     “We are Neptune!”

     The charming Seoyoung who was the best at talking took the lead as she introduced the group and her members. Jonghoon’s face became more and more relaxed. While they were introducing each other, the traitor and I also introduced ourselves. Though our target was the manager.

     “Hello. We are Neptune’s managers.”

     “Yeah, hi. I’m Jonghoon hyung’s manger.”

     He had a shaggy beard and I was unsure if he was drinking until morning, but he emitted a strong smell of alcohol every time he breathed.

     “They are the ones who are going on K-Star, right? There were a lot of articles about that today.”

     “Yes, you’re right. Please take care of us.”

     “There isn’t anything to ask of me. But, it looks like you guys will be really stressed soon.”

     “Pardon?”

     “Aren’t there eight teams?”

     “That’s right.”

     “Then if they all gather in one spot, there will probably be like 50-60 people. It’s not like it’s an idol track meet or anything, fuck. I wouldn’t be able to handle that.”

     50-60 people. I didn’t think of that.

     During the music broadcast yesterday, it seemed like there was an invisible tension among the groups. I guess K-Star would be much worse? Since it wasn’t like we were stuck in our own waiting rooms like during the broadcast, everyone would have to face each other.

     This wasn’t a problem of just the fans, it looked like there really could be a fight amongst the teams.

     “And…”

     Jonghoon’s manager lowered his voice.

     “The girls who dropped out because of the DUI, their manager is that asshole, right? The large bastard with the appearance of a dirty gangster.”

     “Yes.”

     I answered.

     “I am just letting you know just in case, be careful of that bastard.”

     “Be careful?”

     “I saw him a few times, he doesn’t come from a good crowd. If we meet at the studio, he never greets me. Bastard. There are even rumors about him beating the girls he’s in charge of. Rumors of him threatening other managers as well. Anyways, there aren’t just one or two dirty rumors about that bastard.”

     He did look that way. Just looking at the way he called a girl he’s in charge of a damn bitch and rag-like bitch… and without any hesitation even though I was watching him.

     He really did glare at me for a long while. It probably was due to the suit, if I showed any hints of being a new manager, I think the atmosphere would have turned much more brutal.

     “He probably got busted for not taking care of the girls properly, so do you think he’ll look at you who replaced them in a good light? What I’m saying is he could try to let it out on you guys. Just keep that in mind.”

     “Yes, thank you.”

     “What do you mean thanks… if that bastard really does try to do something, call some reporters.”

     “Reporters?”

     Not the security or police?

     “Reporters work best against bastards like him. Since if they are unlucky, their company’s image could fall with a single article. You guys probably have one or two entertainment reporters you’re familiar with, right?”

     “Yes.”

     The traitor answered. Damn it. The person the Lemon Girls’ manager was most likely going to fight with seemed to be me, but why was it that the traitor the one on friendly terms with a reporter.

     …Nothing will happen, right?

     

      Chapter 15

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL by Myoni

     Edited by Myoni & Yoni

     Jonghoon’s manager was a gossiper. His lips wouldn’t stop moving. He had been talking about 7 years’ worth of problems for almost an hour.

     Like how he bowed so much for the first few years that he got a slipped disc and how he used to get drunk after 5 glasses, but now, after drinking with entertainment reporters and producers every night, his limit had increased to 5 bottles. He talked about these things again and again.

     At first, I actively responded, but I was getting exhausted.

     “Really? We also…”

     On the other hand, the traitor was the same as ever, smiling as he agreed with him.

     It was one of two things. It was either he really found these stories fun or he was someone who was incredibly good at socializing. Of course, it was probably the latter. If he was normal, there was no way he would find these stories fun.

     “Sunwoo.”

     “Yeah?”

     The traitor looked at his watch.

     “Looks like we have to get the girls their food soon.”

     “I’ll go and buy it.”

     I quickly got up. The traitor handed me the credit card.

     “I got this from the chief this morning. He said to always get the receipt after we use it.”

     “Okay, I’ll be back.”

     When I got my coat and was about to leave, I got called over.

     “Hey, get us some as well while you’re at it. Here.”

     Jonghoon’s manager handed me a $10 bill. He waved the bill in between his hairy fingers.

     I should just… So this was why they say if you felt that something is unjust, you needed to succeed.

     “…What would you like?”

     “Things like soft drinks and chips. Ah, Jonghoon hyung likes potato chips.”

     Keep it in. Keep it in.

     I buttoned up my coat and exited the shop. Although it was a bit chilly, I felt like I could finally live a little. I thought I was going to die from suffocation.

     I put my hands in my pockets and walked a few steps when the door of the shop opened.

     “I’ll come with you.”

     It was Songha. It seemed like she came out abruptly as she didn’t have any outerwear on.

     “Why? Do you need something from the convenience store?”

     “I want to pick the ones I want to eat myself.”

     “Okay. But how urgent were you to not wear your outerwear?”

     “Ah… do you think it’ll be cold?”

     “Of course, it will be cold. If you go out like this, your bones are going to chill. I’ll wait so go in and wear something on top.”

     Soon after, Songha who was burrowed in a jumper came out.

     We kept a reasonable distance between each other. Though our clothes would occasionally brush against each other as we walked. I’m telling you it was just a natural reflex.

     Maybe it was because they were going to an interview today, she seemed a lot more natural and prettier than yesterday. Her skin looked clean and dewy and her long, straight, black hair fluttered in the wind.

     During the few minutes it took to get to the convenience store, Songha attracted the attention of the passing pedestrians. Male, female, old or young, no matter who it was, those that saw Songha would slow their steps.

     And slowly, as they passed by us very slowly, they would admire Songha. After they passed us, they would look back once more.

     It wasn’t that they recognized Songha, a girl group member. It was that she was just too pretty.

     My face burned up. Although I was granted with foresight, at this moment I could read people’s minds. They were probably curious about the relationship between Songha and me.

     After going through the common choices of friend, sibling and relative, they would think, ‘No way they are dating.’ They would look at how our shoulders wouldn’t meet even as we walked side-by-side and be pleased.

     But, she must be tired of being the center of attention wherever she goes. Was she okay?

     When I looked to the side, Songha was calmly playing with her phone. Was she mentally strong or was she just unaware? I thought she was looking at articles like Seoyoung, but I was wrong.

     Either call history or text or messaging screen… Was she waiting for someone?

     Ring.

     “Welcome!”

     The part-timer greeted courteously as we entered the store.

     To Songha.

     I picked up the yellow basket at the front and made my way through the store. Whenever I placed an item in the basket, Songha would be busy moving around and dumping 2 or 3 items in it. The basket was already getting heavy.

     After placing Seoyoung’s zero calorie pudding in the basket, I was about to make my way to the counter, when my side felt empty. I didn’t see Songha. Just where did she go again… When I looked around, I saw her waiting for me at the counter already. No, she was staring at something next to the counter.

     It was skewered fish cakes with hot steam rising from it. There were all sorts of things in stores these days. It definitely wasn’t here yesterday. She seemed to have good luck when it came to food as well as quite the appetite.

     “Do you want to eat one?”

     “Can I have two?”

     “You can have as many as you want.”

     It wasn’t like it was my money anyways.

     “I would like this skewered fish cake. Do we have to pay before we eat?”

     When I asked the part-timer, he didn’t even give me a glance as he explained to Songha.

     That’s enough, you jerk.

     “You can eat first and pay all at once later.”

     “Okay.”

     “Excuse me… but are you a celebrity?”

     “Yes. I am Lee Songha of Neptune.”

     “Wow, wow, no wonder! Can you take a picture with me later? I will be your fan.”

     “Okay. Thank you.”

     “Maybe two…”

     Hey, she might choke while eating.

     “Can you put these through first?”

     Since he was bothering a girl who was eating, I handed him a heavy basket. The part-timer showed his dissatisfaction as he scanned the barcodes.

     Songha ate 7 skewers where she stood. She ate so pleasantly, I kept glancing at her. So this was why people watched social eating channels… I wondered if it really was that tasty and had three myself. It was just average.

     Anyways, since Songha suggested it, we packed a bowl of fish cakes to go. There was a mountain of food.

     Since he handed me his phone, I took a picture of them. When he checked his phone while making a fuss, his expression stiffened.

     Hey, just what were you expecting. It’s not my fault you turned out like a squid.

     It was the same as before when we made our way back to the shop. People’s gazes gathered on us like magnets. Admiring stares at Songha and stares filled with interest, envy and jealousy for me.

     If there was one thing that was different than before, it was that our shoulders were slightly brushing against each other. Was it because we ate fish cakes together, it felt like the awkward distance between us shortened a bit. Very little. Around half a step?

     While we were walking, Songha checked her phone again. Call history. Text. Talk[1]… I didn’t think much of it before, but I suddenly recalled what the PR team leader told me. To check if they were dating or not.

     Maybe…

     “Are you waiting for someone?”

     “My mom and dad.”

     So it wasn’t like that.

     “Thank you.”

     Songha unexpectedly thanked me.

     “For what?”

     Don’t tell me it was because I bought you fish cakes.

     “I didn’t buy it with my own money.”

     “No, it’s not that… getting us into K-Star. I heard from the chief.”

     Ah, that.

     It wasn’t easy to read, but was she thinking about K-Star all this time?

     “Well, it was only natural. It’s my job.”

     I tried my best to not show joy in my voice and expression, but it seemed like I failed. It’s my job? It’s my job? Was this something a new recruit who only worked for two could say? On top of that, in terms of working in society, she was my superior.

     “Because of oppa, I am able to work.”

     “Hmm?”

     “I really wanted to work this whole time…”

     “You have always been working.”

     “Until now, there were more days off than work days, but from now on, we have a regular schedule. I like that. I hope K-Star doesn’t fail and is successful.”

     “Don’t worry. It’s going to be a huge success.”

     Since it will have an incredible viewership rating and will continue to have more seasons afterwards.

     “Really?”

     “Yeah. I have really good senses.”

     It was actually going to get good to be exact.

     Now that I thought about my foresight ability, I was curious about Songha’s future. Everyone could clearly see she was meant to be a celebrity.

     I wondered what her future would be like 20 years from now? Even if Neptune was popular and continued on for a while, by then they would have retired.

     What were past girl groups doing these days? There were some who became someone’s wife, someone’s mother and would appear on child care shows. Some that have continued on as a musical actor or a solo artist. Others who have switched to acting… Wonder what path Songha would walk?

     Although I was curious, since my ability didn’t help me, there was nothing I could do.

     “Then what place do you think we’ll be?”

     “I heard it would be hard to place in the top since girl groups tend to lack votes… but why do the rankings matter?

     “Aren’t rankings important?”

     “Although it’s good if you place high…”

     For Neptune whose popularity was at rock bottom, it would be considered a success if they could get their name out there. If they were lucky, their buried albums might even be rediscovered.

     It was too greedy to ask for first place on music charts, but it was good if they became a group who were known to sing these kinds of songs.

     And if one of the members became a hit with the viewers and became super popular, it would really be like winning the lottery.

     “Besides that, I think it’s more worrying that you guys have to constantly compete against other team members.”

     “What’s wrong with that?”

     “Wouldn’t it be hard? Psychological warfare and stuff… Seoyoung said it last time. That if you were in another team, you wouldn’t have been able to endure and would have cried and given up.”

     Although, it was hard for me to imagine her of all people crying… Well, there was that incident with Sugar Cats yesterday too. It didn’t seem like something that could be glossed over.

     Ah right, I learned about it late, but Sugar Cats were also appearing on K-Star. I was worried that something might happen on site.

     “Oppa, you said you had four nieces and nephews, right?”

     “Right.”

     “Same with me. Two older sisters and one younger sister, there are four including me and we were all born a year apart.”

     That household’s parents seemed to have gone through a lot as well.

     “I endured in there, so where wouldn’t I endure?”

     That, I agree with. My nieces all had max level fighting power, so they never came home after getting bullied.

     “Four at home and four in the residence. You must have adapted well to your new lifestyle.”

     “Compared to home, it’s heaven.”

     “It’s that bad?”

     “In the residence, no one touches the ice cream I write my name on.”

     My first real conversation with Songha ended with stories about eating.

     

      Chapter 16

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL by Myoni

     Edited by Myoni & Yoni

     As soon as we returned to the shop, it seemed like the girls were really hungry as they welcomed us aggressively. We handed out the warm lunch boxes from the convenience store as well as other snacks and gave some to Kim Jonghoon and his manager as well as the shop employees.

     The traitor and I asked for their understanding.

     “Sorry. If we don’t eat now, we won’t have time to eat later.”

     “It’s fine, don’t worry about us and eat. It’s not like we don’t understand your situation.”

     We still nodded our heads. My neck and lower back weren’t able to rest since yesterday.

     We opened up the lunch boxes at a corner of the shop. Mine was the bulgogi[1] lunch box. As soon as I smelled the food, my stomach rumbled. I could even hear it growling.

     Now that I thought about it, I skipped breakfast. I only had coffee up until now. Being full from looking at the girls’ faces only lasted for a moment.

     My chopsticks moved quickly, as I gobbled up my lunch.

     As expected. Bulgogi never lets me down.

     The girls immediately continued to get their makeup done after putting down their chopsticks. Soon after, they changed into the outfits their stylists brought them and they were ready.

     We quickly got in the van. Our destination was G-Today newspaper company which was located in Jongno-District[2]. In articles, the pictures were normally taken inside a café with a nice interior, but was there a place to take pictures in this gloomy building?

     I worried they weren’t going to be as photogenic when they rushed here without being able to eat properly. If there were embarrassing photos taken due to bad lighting or angles, controversy could pop up saying that they had plastic surgery done.

     While the traitor was parking the van in the basement, I called the number of the reporter Hyunjo gave me. A young woman answered after a long while.

     -Yes, this is G-Today’s Park Woojeong.

     “I am Neptune’s manager. We have just arrived. Where should we go?”

     -Gasp! Y-you’re already here?!

     The appointment was at 2 and it was 1:40 right now. What did she mean by already?

     “Isn’t the interview at 2?”

     -That’s right, it’s at 2. But… Ah, damn it.

     Ah, damn it?

     -Euah, I’m sorry. Can you come to the fourth floor first?

     I could hear her scrambling on the other end.

     Just what was going on?

     First I got off the van. The girls were taking their time fixing their makeup again. There didn’t seem to be anything wrong to me, but the makeup artists were hurriedly applying and touching stuff up.

     Hyunjo called and said he was nearby so the traitor went to pick him up while the girls and I made our way up to the fourth floor. Although it was only for a while, since I was in a situation where I was the only one in charge, my body stiffened with nervousness.

     Well, it was only for a bit. Nothing would happen, right?

     There were a lot of people in the building. I couldn’t tell who was a reporter or not, so I greeted everyone I passed. The words, ‘Hello, I am Neptune’s manager, Jung Sunwoo,’ were now a habit.

     “Hello, we are Neptune!”

     Even the people who didn’t give me a glance when I introduced myself concentrated on Neptune’s bright and energetic voices.

     “Who are they? They’re pretty?”

     “Are they new? It looks like they’ve come for an interview.”

     “I saw them somewhere… Ah, aren’t they them? K-Star.”

     They must have thought they were whispering to each other, but I could hear them clearly.

     While waiting for the female reporter, I took a peek at the world of reporters and it was mayhem. Papers, newspapers and post-its were everywhere and although there were many people on the phone, the surroundings were still noisy as phones were constantly ringing.

     People stricken with complete exhaustion were the same here as W&U.

     “Gasp, gasp! Sorry!”

     A woman ran towards us. A tightly pulled ponytail and a face with no makeup. The woman who wore large glasses seemed to be in her mid-twenties.

     And she seemed oddly familiar.

     It was definitely my first time seeing her. And it wasn’t like she had a common face…

     “You must have waited for a long time!”

     “We had just arrived.”

     “Uhh… what do I do? First, first, please come this way.”

     The confused female reporter led us to a cramped office pantry.

     “Sorry!”

     “…We aren’t conducting an interview in here, are we?”

     “No! We will have the interview in the interview room, but the person in front of you hasn’t finished yet. I checked everywhere, but all the other meeting rooms were full and this was the only place that was empty… I am really sorry.”

     The female reporter brought chairs from different places, but we were still missing some. In the end, the girls who all wearing high heels sat while the reporter and I stood as we talked.

     “If things moved as planned, the person in front of you should have been done by now, but that person wasn’t feeling well so he came a bit late.”

     Once the door of the office pantry closed, the reporter was embarrassed as her face reddened.

     “They say they will be done in 5 minutes, so please wait here until then.”

     “Ah… Yes, I understand.”

     “Sh-should I get you some coffee? We have instant and ground coffee as well as green tea.”

     The reporter made coffee while trying read Neptune’s mood. Her face said that if they want to swear to just get it over and done with, but the girls had no complaints staying in the cramped office pantry. Instead, they were discussing what they should say during the interview and what kind of poses they should make during the photo shoot.

     And Seoyoung got up to help make the coffees.

     “Miss Reporter, will you be interviewing us?”

     “Pardon? Yes, that’s right. I will be doing it.”

     “Please take care of us.”

     “Of course, definitely! I will pull an all-nighter to write Neptune’s article.”

     “Sorry? You look really tired… Don’t work all night.”

     “I haven’t slept for three days so I feel like I’m going to die, but I’m going to die after I write Neptune’s article.”

     The reporter seemed to like Seoyoung’s charming mannerisms.

     “Neptune is going to get their big break this time. Your songs are good and you’re on K-Star as well.”

     “Really? You’ve listened to our songs?”

     “Of course, I listened to the songs of the group I am interviewing. I listened to them continuously on my way to work today.”

     Although we waited a lot longer than the 5 minutes the group ahead of us was supposed to take, the mood was peaceful and pleasant.

     The female reporter seemed captivated by the Neptune members. Especially Seoyoung. She even boasted how well she could write Neptune’s article.

     During that time, Hyunjo and the traitor arrived. Hyunjo was speechless when he looked at the girls gathered in the office pantry, but seemed satisfied after listening to the reporter’s boastings.

     We finally came out of the office pantry after 30 minutes. The reporter led us to the interview room. The interview room was much larger and more comfortable than the office pantry. The girls sat in a line while Hyunjo, the traitor and I took our seats as well.

     “Then, shall we sta…”

     Clank.

     The reporter was talking when a man in his thirties came in.

     “Park Woojeong, you go and keep writing those Lemon Girls’ articles. It doesn’t look like that will drop from first place for a while. Finish 20 articles before you go home today.”

     “Pardon?! But senior, I am conducting an interview right now?”

     “I’ll do this for you. I am going to check tomorrow’s traffic, so don’t slack off.”

     “Senior!”

     “What are you doing, go quickly!”

     Eventually, the female reporter stood up with a depressed face. Her lips were tightly shut as she held herself back. Although this was unfortunate, there wasn’t anything I could do. Even Seoyoung could only half-get up, she wasn’t sure what she could do and she too was unable to keep do anything.

     We weren’t in a position where we could point out a reporter’s actions.

     “Eeyah, how dazzling. You’re Neptune, right? I am Reporter Hwang Junggu.”

     “Yes… Nice to meet you.”

     “You must have waited a long time. The one in front of you was the artist Lazy. It took longer since that friend wasn’t feeling well. I heard you guys were waiting in an office pantry. I should have been the one to lead you, that girl is a probationary employee so she doesn’t know much…”

     The leaving reporter started. Reporter Hwang Junggu was laughing loudly while discussing briefly with Hyunjo when he was surprised to see the traitor.

     “Huh? Weren’t you Blackout’s manager?”

     “That’s right. I was reassigned to this team yesterday.”

     “Wow, you have great timing! Neptune will be a hit soon.”

     “Haha. Thank you.”

     While Reporter Hwang Junggu was talking with the traitor, the female reporter left the room. Reporter Hwang Junggu didn’t care as he spoke.

     “But, chief, you should have let us know about Neptune appearing on K-Star first. There was also the incident with Lemon Girls, there must have been a lot going on yesterday.”

     “That is…”

     The interview commenced. Questions asked by Reporter Hwang Junggu were mostly about K-Star. How they were cast, how they felt when they knew they were cast, their resolution for appearing on a competition program.

     And once in a while, a sensitive question was asked.

     What they thought about Lemon Girls’ DUI incident, if they were confident in doing better than Lemon Girls… As soon as the girls were having difficulty, Hyunjo answered in their stead or they just glossed over it with smiling faces.

     The interview went on. When I saw the traitor return from the washroom, I silently got up. As I walked around with my aching shoulder, I coincidentally met with the female reporter coming out of the women’s washroom.

     She still looked mad.

     “Are you okay?”

     “Yes… How’s the interview? Is it going well?”

     The reporter smiled slightly.

     But why did I feel like I’ve seen her before? It was unsettling.

     “Have we…”

     Before I could ask if we’ve seen each other somewhere, I suddenly remembered.

     Where I had seen her.

     “What’s wrong?”

     “Sorry, but what did you say your name was?”

     “Park Woojeong. Here.”

     The reporter took out her wallet and handed me her business card.

     Park Woojeong.

     If that face aged twenty years and if black lipstick was applied on her lips and her hair was dyed blond and cut short.

     Director Park.

     Who I saw in the future, the one who came to interview me.

     

      Chapter 17

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL by Myoni

     Edited by Myoni & Yoni

     Shivers came down my spine as if I had just watched a horror flick.

     Meeting someone you first met in the future in the present was really a strange feeling. How should I describe it? It was sort of like seeing someone pop out of a TV.

     “Mr. Manager is Jung…”

     “Ah, I’m Jung Sunwoo. My business cards haven’t come out yet, so I don’t have anything I could hand you.”

     “Looks like it hasn’t been long since you’ve started working?”

     “Today’s my second day at work.”

     Park Yoojeong was surprised.

     Compared to the dignified Director Park who seemed to have been through a lot, the twenty-something-year-old Park Yoojeong was a bit clumsy and wasn’t good at controlling her expressions.

     For this woman in her twenties who is in the bottom of the food chain to become a strong director in twenty years.

     You really couldn’t tell how one would change in the future.

     “I’m the same as you. I’m a new recruit as well.”

     “Really?”

     “It hasn’t been long since I’ve started. Though it does feel like I’ve worked here for a long time…”

     Yoojeong’s expression looked complicated and tired. Well, to get dismissed by her senior in front of people, if I was Park Yoojeong, I probably would be in a corner talking to myself ‘I’m going to succeed in this dirty world, fuck, fuck’.

     “I look forward to working with you in the future, Miss Reporter. You’ll be the first person I hand my business card to once they come out.”

     “In the future…”

     Yoojeong hesitated before saying.

     “I’m not going to continue being a reporter.”

     “Sorry?”

     “I want to quit. I can’t deal with it anymore. I don’t think it matches me either.”

     “…Really? To me, it looks like you’ll be successful as a reporter.”

     Really.

     She laughed out loud when she heard my words.

     “Ehahahaha! …Cough, cough. Even if they are empty words, thank you.”

     “They aren’t. I’m serious. If I could, I would even bet on it…”

     “You know.”

     She suddenly came closer.

     “…Since I am going to quit anyways, I’ll let you in on something.”

     Her voice quieted down to a whisper.

     “Senior Hwang, Report Hwang Junggu. He’s complete trash.”

     “Pardon?”

     “He’s the type where if you tell him one thing, he’ll write ten things about it. And Lazy who was interviewed before you wasn’t late because he was sick. It became late because Reporter Hwang Junggu gave him the wrong time. When I told him that we had to do Neptune’s interview, he said that Lazy was more important than some new unknown group and to tell them to leave. I was only able to barely convince him by saying they were appearing on K-Star and that there was a lot to talk about. For him to push his way in even though he didn’t even know who Neptune was just a while ago, it’s obvious. He’s going to involve Lemon Girls and K-Star and write an exclusive article with a bunch of MSG.”

     I blankly stared at her. It looked like she was completely relieved that get that off her chest.

     So… She’s saying Reporter Hwang Junggu is trash?

     “Since W&U is a large company, the PR team will be able to bring the article down as soon it’s up. However, it only takes a moment for Urakkai articles to flood the internet and if that happens, even if your PR team could fly, they wouldn’t be able to handle it. Search Reporter Hwang Junggu and girl group Happy Candy.”

     I took out my phone and looked it up like she said. An article Reporter Hwang Junggu wrote not too long ago popped up. Even the headline made me gasp.

     Happy Candy was a girl group I had never seen before while Seraphic was a well-known top girl group with 10 years of experience. For them to be known as the 2nd Seraphic would have brought criticism, but to feel unhappy… Just what were they thinking saying that?

     As expected, the comment section exploded with insults. When I searched the girl group without Reporter Hwang Junggu’s name, several articles came up with only slight deviations to the original content.

     “Did they really say that during the interview?”

     “No. When he asked them, ‘You must not feel good being constantly compared to top seniors like Seraphic,’ they replied, ‘Yes.’”

     The nuance was completely different!

     “When the article was released, their manager came and pleaded him to change the headline, but he was ignored. Their company was small. And this wasn’t the only time.”

     Just where did this trashy guy come from?

     Was this the incident that made the girls receive a lot of insults?

     Considering the influence of an article, it definitely could be possible… Anyways, the girls should be trying their best in the interview right now without knowing anything, I needed to talk to Hyunjo about this and find a countermeasure.

     Ah, I need to thank Report Yoojeong first.

     “Miss Reporter, thank you for the information.”

     “No problem. I am really sorry about the office pantry.”

     “I told you that it was fine. Then let’s meet again next time. Ah, also, I almost forgot…”

     I thought about it before saying.

     “Would I be able to contact you if anything newsworthy comes up?”

     For example, if that Lemon Girls’ manager held a grudge and came swinging his fists at me?

     “Of course. You can just call m… No, I’m telling you I’m going to quit.”

     She gave me a skeptical glance. I smiled and without any more words, ran towards the interview room.

     Inside the interview room, the interview was still going on. When I entered, Seoyoung was explaining every detail of their album concept.

     “Chief, one moment please.”

     “Hmm?”

     I made the most serious expression I could. Hyunjo stopped the interview momentarily and came out. I closed the door and told him exactly what Yoonjeong said a few steps away from the interview room. Hyunjo’s face instantly distorted.

     “You sure? How did you know?”

     I guess it was best to keep it anonymous?

     “I heard it from an insider. This as well.”

     I showed him the article I searched a while ago. Hyunjo who read the article in an instant glared at the interview room.

     “Ugh, that trash reporting bastard really…!”

     “Although it might not be the case, this time, isn’t it best to be prepared?”

     “Of course. It’s too late if we wait until the article is released. I’m going to call PR team leader Park so you go and talk about nonsense and buy some time.”

     I faithfully followed Hyunjo’s orders. When I went back inside, I talked about how the scent of the soap in the washroom was to my preference for 3 minutes.

     Soon after, Hyunjo returned and the interview resumed. I didn’t know what he talked about with Team Leader Park, but he definitely was more careful with the answers. Every little detail about their current condition was answered by Hyunjo.

     Eventually, Reporter Hwang Junggu concluded the interview.

     “Thank you for your hard work. Now let’s go to the studio to take some pictures.”

     “Mr. Reporter has worked hard as well. Please take good care of the article.”

     “Yes, well…”

     We went to the studio that was inside the building and took individual and group pictures that would go up with the article. Afterwards, the interview had completely ended.

     As Hyunjo explained everything on our way back, the van became rowdy.

     “We really could have been in big trouble! I was wondering why this oppa kept talking about the washroom.”

     Seoyoung frowned as she grumbled.

     “That reporter, his questions did seem a bit strange. Does he have some sort of grudge against us?”

     “It’s nothing like that. He’s just trying to write a more provocative article to get more clicks. He doesn’t care what happens to you.”

     “Scary, really.”

     “But will we really be fine? Won’t the article be all weird?”

     As LJ worried, Hyunjo nodded his head as if telling her to relax.

     “Team Leader Park says she’s on friendly terms with their Entertainment Director. She said not to worry as it will be handled without any hiccups.”

     “Really?”

     “If that trash reporter hands in a strange article, they are going to reject him and tell him to write it all over again. He’s not the director or anything so what can he do when his superiors reject his article?”

     It was like I was seeing an aspect of a huge food chain.

     “We will remember that reporter’s name and keep as far away from him as possible from now on, so don’t worry. But, Sunwoo.”

     I was fixing my tangled seat belt when I turned my head.

     “Yes?”

     “Are you just incredibly lucky or is it something else?”

     Of course, it was something else. Well, of course, this time, I really was lucky as well.

     “You’ve been bringing good stuff since yesterday. How did you meet an insider on your way to the washroom?”

     Seoyoung poked her head out as she seconded.

     “Huh? Didn’t you meet Producer Joontae on your way to the washroom yesterday too?”

     “Oh, that’s true.”

     “Wow, wow! It looks like this oppa has a good aura. Let’s stick closely with this oppa. Oppa, just pack your bags and come live with us!”

     My face was hot.

     I mean, it wasn’t like I was the one who said I wanted to, but why were their stares…

     “Seoyoung, it’s time for your medicine. Stop talking nonsense and just sleep if you’re sick.”

     LJ kicked Seoyoung’s seat.

     “It’s not nonsense, there some truth behind it!”

     “Truth?”

     “My mom went to a skilled shaman not too long ago and asked when we would be successful. The fairy said that we would be very lucky at the end of this year. She said a snake will bring luck and to tightly grab hold of it to not lose it.”

     Although Seoyoung made a fuss, the members had no reaction. Seoyoung quickly became glum and mumbled.

     “It’s true… She said we need to grab the snake…”

     But, I did have an idea about the snake…

     “Aren’t you born on the year of the Snake?”

     The traitor who was driving abruptly asked.

     “I was born then. And since we’re both the same age… Right?”

     “Yeah.”

     Hyunjo laughed in the back.

     “Stop it. Why are you guys joking around so much?”

     “It’s not a joke.”

     “What?! Then you both were really born on the year of the Snake?”

     “Yes. 1989, the year of the Snake.”

     “Oh my god.”

     The back was silent for a few seconds before becoming noisy.

     “Euah, creeeeepy…!”

     I silently rubbed my shoulders as well.

     Perhaps this foresight ability was more common than I thought?

     We met with the staff of K-Star at night.

     Since it was an expensive beef restaurant, I thought the staff had a large budget, but it turned out the first bill would be paid by W&U. I heard it was incredibly high quality, but because of constantly pouring and drinking alcohol, I didn’t get the chance to truly savor it.

     Fortunately, the atmosphere was very good the whole time. It looked like the members left a good impression on the staff. And they seemed to have shown off their unique personalities.

     The meeting that started at the beef restaurant continued on to the second and third place and we finally ended past 3 a.m. After seeing off the completely drunk producers and writers, we once again got on the van.

     The traitor who protected his liver while Hyunjo and I were constantly receiving drinks took the driver’s seat. After we dropped off the yawning girls at their residence, there were three people remaining like yesterday.

     Wow, that was yesterday… It felt like a month.

     Now that the long day was over, all that was left was to rest at home.

     “You guys worked hard today as well. Tired, right?”

     Hyunjo talked with a slur.

     “Quickly go home and sleep and eat something good in the morning.”

     Was this déjà vu?

     “Come to work by 7. We have a lot to do tomorrow.”

     I didn’t make the same stupid mistake of repeating his words. Only…

     “Chief. Could I just sleep at the company?”

     “Me too…”

     “Really? I’m going to sleep there too. Then let’s go together! The sleeping quarters at the company are pretty good.”

     I laughed as I followed Hyunjo.

     Damn, I need to escape from here as soon as possible.

     

      Chapter 18

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL by Myoni

     Edited by Myoni & Yoni

     It felt like someone had grabbed my hair and was dragging me around.

     That was how it felt as each day passed by hectically.

     Outside the company, the photoshoot for K-Star’s poster, teaser video shoot and individual profile video shoots all started at the same time.

     It was the process of getting rid of everything that had Lemon Girls and replacing it with Neptune. The day was so packed that the staff and ourselves felt like we were going to die.

     In the company, it was meeting after meeting after meeting. From the PR team that I had met before to Neptune’s vocal trainer, choreographer and stylists… I think I had meetings with half the employees within a few days. I had already given up on trying to remember all their names.

     During lunch and dinner time, I followed Hyunjo to his external meetings. Once our appearance on K-Star was guaranteed, other places started to bite.

     That was why at lunch we would eat with some cable program’s producer, at dinner eat with an employee of an event agency and drink with reporters…

     I realized the reason why managers would get into accidents by falling asleep while driving. This kind of schedule was something that could not be handled with a human body.

     I couldn’t go home yesterday as well. In the few days since I started working at W&U, I was starting to become a poltergeist in the company. A movie I was really looking forward to was released, but I haven’t had the chance to go see it.

     Did this make sense?

     However, they said that this was only a decent amount of work. They said once Neptune becomes a hit and has nationwide schedules and international ones as well, I would miss these days… That was what Hyunjo told me.

     A man even a grim reaper wouldn’t take. To call that support…

     If you’re going to give me this much work, give me life risk pay! I might actually die!

     “Gasp!”

     I was so agitated; I was about to swallow my toothpaste.

     Did I already get anger management issues…

     I spit out the toothpaste and rinsed my mouth. I was deathly exhausted. My face reflected on the mirror had sunken to about half in a few days.

     I didn’t care who, I just wanted someone to hit me. So I could rest at the hospital.

     I was resting for a bit with my hands on the sink when I heard a noise from the entrance of the washroom.

     “How far are you going to follow me for? Are you going to follow me into the washroom?”

     “Hyung, ah, hyung…!”

     Two men entered the washroom. One had a normal appearance while the other… The man who looked great even the washroom, Sung Dowon.

     The man hesitated before telling Dowon.

     “Just look at the synopsis, hyung.”

     “Sigh… Stop pestering me.”

     “I already read it and the synopsis is really good. Rumors have spread and there are already a bunch of people who want it. If hyung says he’s not going to do it, I bet someone will probably snatch it right away? Hyung, the director said if you agree, he can sign the contract for $7, 000 per episode.”

     “Even so, I am not going to do any more dramas. It’s exhausting on my body and there are too many cases where the story goes astray.”

     “This project is 100% written in advanced. That’s why I am telling hyung to do it. There’s even a Swiss on-site shoot. Hyung, you said you wanted to go on a trip to Switzerland.”

     “Sigh… Okay. I get it so give me the synopsis. I’ll read it once.”

     How envious. I envied that manager the most.

     “Hello.”

     Sung Dowon looked straight at me and greeted me. I clenched the hand that was holding my toothbrush.

     “Yes, hello.”

     “You look so tired. You should take care of your health while you work.”

     “Ah… Thank you.”

     He even had a great personality along with his looks. He has it all. Has it all.

     When I was admiring Sung Dowon, his manager looked at me with an unhappy expression. Eventually, I left as if I was getting kicked out.

     I wanted to see him more… No, it was a good thing. If I was there any longer, I might have grabbed Dowon and asked when he was going to ask me to be his manager.

     He said, ‘I wish Mr. Sunwoo could be my manager.’

     Then did that mean I was going to replace that manager? Or work under him?

     Any way was fine, I just hoped that day would come soon. It must be coming. It was a conversation about how I helped Sung Dowon when he was facing an incident that could end his acting career.

     Although I felt bad for Dowon, since it was going to happen, I wished it would happen soon.

     I will help you with all my strength, so, please.

     I thought that being able to see the future was a cheat skill that gave me the answers to all of my life’s problems, but since I only knew the answer and not the problem-solving process, it was really frustrating.

     However, if it was certain I was going to be Sung Dowon’s manager in the future, I would be able to endure the current trial as though it was a passing typhoon.

     When I entered the office, the traitor was already ready and talking to other employees with a smile.

     “Oh, you came?”

     Don’t smile, you jerk.

     My body was exhausted, but whenever I see the traitor, even my mind felt like it was taking a hit.

     “We’re leaving in 5 minutes. Since it’s our first recording, he said we have to go early and meet with the staff.”

     “Where’s chief?”

     “He said he had someone to call so he went down first.”

     On our way to the elevator, I saw a whiteboard hanging on the wall. It was the various W&U’s celebrities’ schedules. On today’s date, it had ‘Neptune- K-Star Filming’. I was really happy when I wrote that at that time…

     We met up with Hyunjo and drove the van to Neptune’s residence. I was the driver. Since we had to drive multiple times a day, I couldn’t just leave driving all to the traitor. So I eventually built up my courage to drive and when I did, it really wasn’t all that bad.

     “Hello!”

     “Yeah, did you all have good dreams last night?”

     “We practiced all night!”

     Even though it was morning, all the Neptune members were filled with energy. And although they tried to calm themselves down, it was cute to see how their expectations for their first filming were clearly visible.

     We definitely were busy together, but why was it while I was in this condition, the girls’ faces looked even better. They adapted to their schedule and once they learned that the first theme was singing, they even put more effort into their vocal training.

     Just what was their secret? Was this the power of supervision?

     After getting their makeup and hair done at the shop, we made our way to the film studio. I listened to the conversation at the back while driving. Hyunjo grabbed the girls’ attentions and was giving them advice.

     “When you do the interview, think wisely before answering. You don’t need to rush to answer, so pick and choose your words carefully. Have you guys watched all the programs Producer Joontae has directed?”

     “Of course.”

     “They don’t just say it’s the devil’s editing process for no reason. When producers are editing the footage, they don’t care what intentions you had during the interview. They only care about the text. There are even some that ignore the context and just string various words together.”

     “We know. We printed out sample interview questions and practiced with each other.”

     “Good. I’m not worried about Taehee. Seoyoung and LJ, you guys make mistakes when you flustered so be careful and don’t lose your tempers. And… Songha, you’re the one I’m the most worried about.”

     Hyunjo shook his head. When I saw Songha through the rear-view mirror, her blinking eyes showed that she couldn’t accept it. Even I, who was only around for a few days, could understand what Hyunjo was worried about.

     “Why me?”

     “You don’t express yourself a lot and your straightforward words could easily be misinterpreted. Even your words just now, you asked because you were curious, but if it edited with a weird timing, it could make you look bad.”

     “…Me?”

     “What’s the point. Your face will be enough so just stick close to your unnis[1] with your mouth closed. I’m also going to keep a careful watch, but you girls need to be careful as well. And when you girls are doing a group interview, try to make it so that it doesn’t get to Songha.”

     “Okay. Don’t worry too much, oppa.”

     “Sunwoo and Gunyoung. You guys keep an eye out for the girls too.”

     “Yes.”

     I wasn’t the type to watch a lot of entertainment programs so when I went to investigate them I was surprised. The devil’s editing process was much more intense than back when I watched these programs.

     It looked like they would edit aggressively and purposely create controversy. It even looked like they would plan to make one of the cast get insulted to increase the popularity of the program.

     Because of this, there were a few that went on interviews crying while saying that they were the sacrificial lambs of the devil’s editing process and also, some who took to social media to fire shots at the producers.

     I hoped that it wouldn’t happen to Neptune.

     I didn’t know if they received insults due to the aggressive article or if there was something else. I hoped that I could find some hints from the future, but there were no signs of that happening.

     It was like it was teasing me, keeping me hanging.

     Not much time had passed when we arrived at the K-Star studio. In the concert hall-sized studio, the staff were installing all the cameras, light and audio equipment and were busy making sure everything was working.

     Since we came early for a preliminary interview, the other idol groups hadn’t arrived yet.

     We made our rounds of greeting and were led straight to the interview room. Inside the room, two cameras and lights were installed and some staff, as well as Producer Joontae and a writer, were present.

     While the members were putting on their mics, we talked with the producer and the writer. To be exact, Hyunjo was the one talking while Gunyoung and I stood beside him.

     “Please take good care of us, Mr. Producer.”

     “Why does everyone ask me to take care of them when they come for interviews? If you compared my program to others, I’m not that aggressive. It’s pretty much a documentary.”

     Like hell it is.

     And quickly Producer Joontae proved his words were false. He would first set them at ease by asking questions like, ‘What were your thoughts on participating in K-Star,’ ‘are you confident in getting a high score,’ ‘out of the other seven teams, who would you consider your rivals,’ and then he suddenly handed out a piece of paper.

     “What does Neptune think the final ranking would be? From first to last, you just need to write down a rank for each team and why.”

     “Wow… We need to write the reason as well?”

     “Just a simple reason. It’s going to be anonymous so don’t worry.”

     “Is this really anonymous? You’re not going to announce it as Nept— team or —Tune team, right?”

     “Hahaha. We will ensure your anonymity. We are going to exclude the names and only announce the reasons. Just letting you know, five out of the seven chose Neptune as last place.”

     Seoyoung who relaxed the mood with her charming mannerisms stiffened. Although she was able to quickly settle herself down once Taehee nudged her arm, it was probably caught on camera.

     “I’ll read you just a few. ‘Neptune is a group with only looks. Without that, I don’t know,’ ‘They are participating not because of their potential, but because of their company’s influence,’ ‘They look like a group that appeals through looks rather than skills.’ Something like that. How are they?”

     I was worried they might agree, fortunately, they were stronger than I thought.

     This time, Taehee answered with a calm voice instead of Seoyoung.

     “Just like how other groups think, not many viewers will have high expectations for us. In some ways, it’s good. A story is fun when it has a twist. Since we are able to leave a big impression solely through our efforts, I like to believe we received a chance that other teams didn’t.”

     I didn’t know because she didn’t talk much, but she was really good at talking.

     Because she looked confident and cool without trying, she looked trustworthy in the interview. Like a generous type? I understood why Hyunjo wasn’t worried about Taehee.

     But, that’s that. Although they said it was anonymous, their words were harsher than I thought.

     Since they had to consider the images of the idols, I thought they would be easier than the survival audition programs with regular people. If it was like this, it was going to be tough.

     When I looked to the side, Hyunjo’s expression wasn’t good.

     “Jung Sunwoo.”

     “Yes?”

     “Go to the washroom.”

     What in the world was he talking about?

     “Go to the washroom?”

     “Something good happened to you when you went to the washroom. Twice. Just in case, go to the washroom before they start filming.”

     “…Are you serious?”

     “I am grasping at straws right now.”

     I was half-forcefully chased out of the interview room.

     Well, I was going since he told me to, but I was at a loss for words…

     I acted like I was deep in thought and walked around the entrance of the washroom two or three times, but nothing happened. There continued to be nothing from my foresight ability.

     Damn it, let’s give up.

     Since I was at the washroom, I decided to do my business. After washing my hands, I walked towards the interview room.

     “Hey.”

     At first, I didn’t realize that it was meant for me, but I stopped when I heard the next words.

     “Hey, Neptune’s manager!”

     When I turned around the man I saw previously, Lemon Girls’ manager, was swaggering towards me.

     Since it was quite for a few days, I had forgotten about it, but he really did come.

     “I came to see the faces of the terrible girl group that W&U planted in… when I saw someone familiar walking around. You’re that asshole from before, right?”

     To come all the way here to fight with me, did this person have too much time on his hands?

     “You’re that asshole that was watching in front of the washroom. Did you stumble in front of Producer Joontae and push your group? I saw the articles the next day, you must have been really busy that night, huh? Huh? Just where did this fucking bastard with no ethics come from? Did they teach you that in W&U?”

     I was a bit surprised since it had been so long since I had seen someone provoking me so publicly.

     When I looked at my surroundings, the only people present were that man and myself.

     I wasn’t confident in fighting… But that didn’t mean I should obediently turn the other cheek when I was already sworn at.

     “I don’t think that I did anything to get sworn at.”

     “What, you asshole?”

     The Lemon Girls’ manager tapped my chest.

     “Just what did you say to me? Tell me again.”

     “It wasn’t like I bribed Producer Joontae to replace Lemon Girls with Neptune, I only took the chance since it was there… When I think about it again, I don’t think I did anything that deserved getting sworn at.”

     “What, you asshole?”

     I said it again since you asked me to, you asshole.

     “Why are you letting out your frustrations on a stranger?”

     “Fuck, I was already pissed, but you pissed me off, even more, asshole. You want to get hit, do you? Huh? Are you going crazy to get hit?”

     His figure looked even bigger now that I was in danger. With those thick arms and rock-like fists, it would probably hurt if I got hit.

     Maybe… Just maybe, I might be hospitalized…

     “Hit me, then.”

     “What?”

     “Hit me. So I can get hospitalized and get interviewed by a reporter.”

     I’ll need to call Reporter Park Yoojeong.

     “Just where did this crazy asshole come from?”

     

      Chapter 19

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL by Myoni

     Edited by Myoni & Yoni

     Getting hospitalized after fainting from exhaustion or hospitalized after getting hit and breaking some bones, they were the same. Actually, getting hospitalized after getting hit would be better since then I could rest easy and not care about what other people thought. And get compensation.

     “Fuck, do you think you’ll be able to continue to work like this?”

     “Yeah. I think so.”

     That felt good, but those weren’t my words.

     When I turned around, Hyunjo was walking towards us.

     “He’s going to continue to work fine, so you just care about your own future. Why are you here picking a fight with him, when you’re the one who couldn’t do his fucking job? Did he get that girl from Lemon Girls drunk and call the cops on her?”

     “No… Fuck, but still it’s unfair.”

     “What a funny bastard. What’s unfair? There’s a chance right in front of your eyes, would you let it go? Then that bastard’s the idiot. Stop picking a fight with someone’s who doing his job and leave.”

     Whoa… How did all that come from such a small body?

     Hyunjo’s body was exactly half the size of Lemon Girls’ manager. It looked like both his mind and body would break after a hit and he would be carried off on a stretcher. But, it was Lemon Girls’ manager who was pressured by Hyunjo’s spirit.

     Even though Lemon Girls’ manager was panting heavily unable control his anger, he never swung his fists.

     Was the comment about the reporter effective?

     Anyways, we returned to the interview room. Behind us, the manager was still coldly glaring at us. Did we just add fuel to the fire… I didn’t think it would end just like this.

     “I feel like he’s going to wear a hole in the back of my head.”

     “Ignore him.”

     “You don’t think he’ll attack us on our way home, do you?”

     “Don’t worry. You don’t even go home these days.”

     Thaaanks.

     “But are you good at fighting?”

     Hyunjo suddenly asked.

     “Or good at sports? Like boxing?”

     “No. I am not friendly with sports.”

     “Then is your family incredibly rich? If you get hit once, will ten lawyers gather around you?”

     “Sorry? There’s nothing like that.”

     “Then just what were you thinking provoking him like that? His body was like a boar.”

     “I can’t just be put down like that. That would be embarrassing.”

     “You have more guts than I thought. Still, pick your opponents carefully from now on. If you care about getting embarrassed, something really might break.”

     He continued to nag for a while before adding.

     “You can’t be hospitalized. You know we’re busy, right?”

     “Yes… I do.”

     My impression of him was good just a while ago, but he really was the Devil.

     Hyunjo continued after briefly looking behind us.

     “Especially don’t get involved with him. He doesn’t come from a good crowd.”

     “I heard that as well. That rumors about him weren’t good…”

     “It’s not just him, even his superiors are the same. Pure Star Entertainment itself is a company with plenty of dirty rumors. Nothing good will happen if you involve yourself with them, so it’s best to avoid them.”

     I suddenly stopped after nodding.

     “Was that manager just now from Pure Star Entertainment?”

     “Yeah. You didn’t know? Lemon Girls are Pure Star’s group.”

     “The previous company Sung Dowon was in, that Pure Star?”

     “That’s right. Dowon suffered so much from them that he left as soon as his contract ended. At that time, Dowon was pretty much the bread winner of that company so they clung to him for a renewal… That’s why there was some noise when he transferred to our company.”

     What was this?

     I wasn’t expecting this, but the dots were connecting.

     Just when I thought that, my vision went dark.

     Finally!

     If I could move, I would have cheered three times.

     I was in the office I could probably draw with my eyes closed. My office twenty years from now.

     Last time, in the future where I was sitting face to face with Dowon, the surroundings were hazy, but everything was clear this time. The situation was familiar. I was still sitting in the comfy chair and Director Park and Reporter Song were in front of me.

     Wow, Director Park… Now that I saw her again, I was certain she was Reporter Park Yoojeong.

     Although she had aged and her style has changed, her face was the same. But the fascinating thing was her face was definitely Reporter Park Yoojeong, but the feeling she gave off was completely different.

     Was it because of her age? People could even change to this degree.

     “However, CEO originally wanted to be assigned to an actor.”

     Reporter Song opened her mouth.

     The content, of course, as well as the voice and expression, I concentrated on everything I could hear, see and feel.

     “When you were working with Neptune, didn’t you request to move to the actor team?”

     “It wasn’t the right time to ask then. After I was hired, there was a huge incident within the actor team.”

     Just a little, just a little more specifically…

     I was anxiously straining my ears.

     “An incident?”

     “Sung Dowon’s sex scandal.”

     That’s it!

     I was elated as soon as Sung Dowon’s name was mentioned. The reason that his acting career could have been over was because of this sex scandal!

     Wait, but was that something that could end an actor’s career? I could understand if he did drugs or gambled or received a DUI, but sex wasn’t a crime. He would only lose a few of his fans from an incident like that.

     Wasn’t it abnormal for someone with that face, that body and that paycheck to be abstinent?

     Was it not just a regular sex scandal? Did a video circulate?

     “Ah, that really was a mess.”

     Director Park abruptly entered the conversation.

     “A popular actor in his twenties, someone who was free of dating rumors, held a perverted sex party. Among them, there even was a married woman… Since a bomb like that exploded, at that time, it was an enormous scandal.”

     Oh my god.

     “Articles stating that woman was the wife of the president of a company who sponsored Dowon since the beginning or that Sung Dowon was a perverted sex addict started flooding in with a nonchalant attitude towards whether it was true or false. Well, even I wrote a bunch of articles then too.”

     “Then Director Park must have been met with backlash.”

     My future self said with a smirk.

     “Of course. Whew… It was war.”

     Just what was this backlash and what did she mean by war?

     I was so frustrated that my blood was about to flow in reverse when luckily Reporter Song asked.

     “What do you mean by backlash?”

     “About that scandal. An unknown man used a newspaper company and asked W&U and Song Dowon for a fortune. Adultery with a married woman, perverted sex, he said the public would rush to this topic and that if they wanted to quietly cover it up, they would have to pay him.”

     “Ah…”

     “That man had a picture.”

     A picture?

     “A picture?”

     “Photo evidence. So that’s why W&U paid the man to shut his mouth, but eventually an article popped up. The fact that W&U tried to cover it with money and even that there was photo evidence. That’s why Sung Dowon’s image fell to the bottom in an instant.”

     “Well, if that kind of scandal happened twenty years ago, it would have been huge.”

     “It sure was. However, not long after the situation reversed.”

     “Pardon?”

     “The backlash started.”

     “Jung Sunwoo!”

     My mind instantly snapped back.

     Hyunjo who was a few steps ahead of me called.

     What? Was that it? It’s not like it was a shitty drama, did it really end like that?

     Even a shitty drama would tell you when the next episode was, but I didn’t know when I would see this again.

     Are you telling me to die of frustration?!

     “You coming?”

     “Yes. I’ll go in in a sec.”

     “Sure. Come in once you’re okay.”

     I exited the studio with a blank expression.

     I paced in front of the studio for a long while to calm myself.

     Good. Let’s think optimistically.

     If I didn’t have my foresight ability, I wouldn’t have known anything. However, now I knew that Sung Dowon will be caught in the worst sex scandal and that his image would drop to the floor. Also, although I didn’t know why, that the situation would reverse.

     When they said backlash, it would’ve meant that other circumstances came up as well, which meant that there was something that could reverse Sung Dowon’s predicament.

     And the anonymous man W&U made a deal with…

     Why did Pure Star Entertainment make me feel uneasy?

     Dowon definitely said that ‘he would have been caught in their trap.’

     Although it was only a hunch, let’s think through it once.

     Since Sung Dowon was pretty much the bread winner for Pure Star Entertainment, when he refused to renew his contract, they must have been very pissed. During the time they were grinding their teeth at W&U and Sung Dowon, their girl group, Lemon Girls, blew off a big chance after a big incident.

     But, of all people, it was W&U’s Neptune who grabbed that chance, so Pure Star Entertainment must have been more pissed.

     So as a way of saying fuck you, they planned a trap for Sung Dowon…

     Something like that?

     Since Sung Dowon was with Pure Star Entertainment since his debut, there was a high probability that they knew a lot about Sung Dowon’s personal life, even the finer details. Although I didn’t know how much of the sex scandal was true, they could have taken a picture that could be used against him later in secret.

     Did they anonymously approach W&U because they didn’t want to face them head on?

     Or were they scared that Sung Dowon wouldn’t suffer by himself and blab about them?

     They said that even the fact they paid him was revealed to the public. They also knew that these kinds of backdoor deals would stain W&U and Sung Dowon’s image even more and since they kept their anonymity, they could just sit back and enjoy the show.

     Well, it was still only an assumption.

     

      Chapter 20

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL by Myoni

     Edited by Myoni & Yoni

     After calming down my frustration, I started to find this situation interesting.

     Someone was secretly planning a trap for Sung Dowon.

     And W&U and Sung Dowon had no idea.

     Could I say it felt like I was laying on my belly with my hands supporting my chin as a war scene was about to unfold? And with prior knowledge of which way the war would go.

     Of course, the most interesting point was that unlike watching a movie, I could personally take part in this.

     First, let’s quietly wait until it begins. If I was to talk about it now, people would call me delusional.

     Also, the future… I need to see that last scene.

     It would be incredible if I knew all the details of this incident. Perhaps, I could even manipulate the board myself.

     Let’s focus on Neptune in the meantime.

     When I organized my thoughts and returned to the interview room, Hyunjo gave me a happy welcome.

     “How is your dizziness?”

     “It’s fine now.”

     “Let me know immediately if your body feels weak. I’ll feed you stamina foods. You’re not allowed to faint.”

     … I would need to stay alive until then.

     “Now, this is the last question.”

     “Yes!”

     The gloomy girls brightened up at Producer Joontae’s words. They were so energetic even after practicing all night, just how much torment did they go through?

     “When I was interviewing Sugar Cats, I heard that Ms. Seoyoung was originally supposed to debut with them?”

     As if it was an unwelcome topic, Seoyoung bit her lips.

     “Ah… We were trainees in the same company.”

     “Sugar Cats members seemed very sad to see you go to W&U?”

     “Pardon?”

     “Of course, they told me they understood even though they were sad. Although Sugar Cats’ company wasn’t small, compared to W&U, they are a bit… However, don’t you feel jealous that Sugar Cats you left have become more popular than Neptune? Do you ever regret your decision?”

     A girl who betrayed her long-time colleagues to go to a bigger company but was jealous that they became more successful than her. It felt like they were trying to make her into that character. The amount of malicious comment that would immediately follow the broadcast, it was obvious.

     When I looked to the side, I saw Hyunjo nervously shaking his leg.

     Seoyoung tried to stay as calm as she could and said.

     “First, I didn’t leave them.”

     “Hmm?”

     “I didn’t know if it was because of my bad luck, but during my trainee days, my debut was canceled multiple times. I heard rumors that Sugar Cats would be separated without being able to debut, so when I got a call from W&U, I transferred. Even I was surprised when they debuted as Sugar Cats.

     “Ah… Is that so? Then was there a miscommunication with the company?”

     “And I am envious of their popularity and I sincerely feel happy for them. However, I do not regret debuting as Neptune. Taehee unni and LJ, Songha, all the members are really great.”

     Hyunjo gave an ‘OK’ sign with his fingers. And once the interview was over, he grabbed Producer Joontae and carefully asked.

     “Mr. Producer. I ask that you do not distort Seoyoung’s past.”

     “Although I might exaggerate for the viewers; I do not lie. I am not that cheap.”

     You may not lie, but you probably won’t reveal the whole truth either.

     Don’t tell me it was because of Seoyoung that Neptune got insulted…?

     Since I only knew the future in snippets, it felt like I was getting more suspicious.

     Once the preliminary interview was over, the youngest writer I saw at the get-together led us to our waiting room. It seemed like other groups had arrived as I could see a few pretty and handsome young kids in the hallway.

     “This is Neptune’s waiting room.”

     The writer who stopped in front of the door avoided our eyes.

     There were two names on the door. Neptune. And Sugar Cats.

     Were these people joking?

     “Sorry, there weren’t enough waiting rooms… You will only be using it together for today.”

     Were there really not enough waiting rooms or did you want to see Neptune and Sugar Cats fight after pushing them into the same room?

     “Well, if that’s the case, there’s nothing we can do.”

     Hyunjo opened the door with a tired expression.

     “Hello!”

     “Hi, Seoyoung!”

     Hmm?

     The girls I saw during the music broadcast previously jumped up to greet us.

     Just what were those exaggerated reactions?

     Seoyoung looked like she was surprised as well as her greetings came late.

     “Uh… Hi, guys.”

     “We were so happy when we saw that Neptune was going to join. We were thinking about calling you, but decided to endure it since you were probably busy. We’ll see each other often from now on!”

     That girl was the leader of Sugar Cats, I think? Was her name Han Saetbyeol?

     Her cute, round face and she had lots of charm like Seoyoung.

     When I was wondering why they were overreacting, the youngest writer gave me the answer.

     “There are cameras installed in the waiting rooms, so if you need to change please go to the changing rooms.”

     Aha.

     “Since we are just trying to record your natural behavior, you don’t need to care about the cameras.”

     The youngest writer told us something even a child wouldn’t believe and left.

     While many cameras were watching, Sugar Cats and Neptune introduced each other. They only discussed superficial details of what happened recently. After all the teams had arrived, we all went out to the hallway. Since we had to introduce ourselves before we started filming.

     The hallway was already noisy with people introducing themselves. Since there were so many kids, it felt like I was at a student camp. The oldest here was 25. I think the youngest was 17?

     These eight teams were chosen out of the tens that came out every year.

     Put in a good way, they were rising stars, but even then, they were only at the bottom of the music industry food chain. Those who were thirsty for popularity.

     Maybe because of this, there were many kids who didn’t act their age. On their face was a superficial smile, exaggerating how they didn’t have enough time to practice so they were worried about their score, while in secret they were comparing, guarding against, jealous of and ignoring each other.

     Although they were all about the same, there were still differences between them.

     There were people surrounding those who had a bit of popularity, for example, Sugar Cats who were next to us, and those who were ignored like us. Only courtesy greetings went back and forth, no one wanted to stay and talk.

     Since there wasn’t a lot of time, they were gathering to those who would be of help to them, those who would be good contacts.

     Pictures taken with them would result in a hotter topic and if they said they were friends with them, it would raise their standing.

     So, those that looked like they would be successful.

     On top of that, since Neptune joined late, they were treated as those who got a free ride. Even though they were all the same, it looked like they thought there was a difference as their eyes weren’t friendly.

     Well, it wasn’t surprising.

     Those papers with the reasons why Neptune was going to be last that Producer Joontae read to us. Just looking at those, I could tell that most the groups here didn’t think well of Neptune.

     Still, since it was different to personally experience it than hearing about it, the girls, Hyunjo and the traitor’s expressions weren’t good.

     And I kept an expressionless face to not stand out…

     If I was being honest, I found this situation quite funny.

     Since I knew Neptune’s next album would be successful.

     Even if they were to compare everyone’s popularity, it was like measuring acorns[1].

     From my preliminary research, I knew that none of the teams placed even in the top 10 let alone first or runner-up.

     I didn’t know this, but getting first in a music broadcast was definitely not easy.

     However, Neptune was going to take first place with their next album. When that happened, no one would describe them as unknown or a second-hand rookie group.

     Although there were many one-hit wonders who would disappear without a trace since Director Park said ‘Neptune’s first hit song’, there definitely was a second one.

     Anyways, unless they constantly placed first in music broadcasts, Neptune would no longer be similar to them.

     So in my position where I knew all that, I could only see their actions as laughable.

     The more they disregarded and ignored Neptune, I was expectantly waiting to see their reactions when their positions reversed.

     “Huhuhu.”

     “Just what is so funny, oppa? I feel like I just entered the enemy camp.”

     Seoyoung poked my back and whispered.

     “It’s just interesting.”

     “What is?”

     “People’s actions.”

     “…I say this oppa is quite strange sometime.”

     Though there were times when I felt so frustrated I could die, my foresight ability was definitely good.

     Even though it was the first filming, the judges didn’t come. The staff said that this was their first meeting before the first mission and pushed them all onto the stage. Like a battle under the cover of introductions and questions. After that was done, there were more individual interviews with the staff.

     Since we were constantly nervous, the girls and even us managers were getting tired out.

     Then we received our first mission. It was a group singing mission where each team would have to perform one of their songs in front of four judges, a mc who used to be a solo artist, a former girl group leader, a current producer and a current songwriter.

     I thought they would at least play the MR, I mean the instrumentals, but when they said to perform without any music, all the teams panicked. They said something about clearly hearing their sense of rhythm and beats and their singing ability.

     Although the risks were high, it was a mission with a lot to gain. Anyways, it was a chance to properly promote their best song. If the viewers liked the song without the instrumentals, then there were going to be an increase of people who would find and listen to it in stores.

     However, if they failed, that song would forever remain as a dark splotch in their past.

     As soon as their first filming was finished, the girls didn’t head home, but shut themselves in the company’s practice room. Their drive was incredible. They even missed dinner, so I bought them some food.

     And I was on my way to the office once again.

     I met with two people, one with a face I was a bit familiar with and the other with a face I knew very well.

     It was Son Chaeyeong and her manager who I saw a few days ago at the PR team meeting, Chief Jo.

     The two were sitting in the fourth-floor lounge. Chief Jo was talking passionately while holding a stack of A4 papers in each hand and Son Chaeyeong wore sunglasses and looked like she was bored of listening to him.

     It was really Son Chaeyeong. The one who I had only seen on TV and in the theaters, the one who was synonymous with innocence, Son Chaeyeong.

     Should I introduce myself?

     While I was worrying over the decision, Chief Jo suddenly gestured with his hand.

     “Team 3 Lucky Charm!”

     “…Me?”

     “Yeah, you. Come here and talk.”

     Did my face show that I was worrying whether to introduce myself or not?

     When I approached them with a bashful expression, Chief Jo handed me both stacks of A4 papers.

     What was this? It was quite thick.

     When I looked at the cover, there was a title written on each.

     20-part miniseries – Time Slip

     16-part miniseries – Mermaid out of Water

     Don’t tell me these were drama synopses?

     I quickly received them and flipped through a few pages, they were synopses. Unreleased, hot-off-the-press synopses to boot. On the front page, there was the title and the names of the director and writer. A detailed outline, the descriptions of characters and a summary were well organized afterwards.

     I wanted to read them in detail. No, I wanted them.

     But why did he show these to me?

     “One is PBS, Monday-Tuesday, the other is IBC, Wednesday-Thursday. Since the broadcasting periods are the same, we can only choose one out of the two, but both have trustworthy writers and directors and the payments are the same. If we found out later that the one we threw got higher ratings than the one we chose, we’ll go crazy. So it’s a troublesome decision, right?”

     “Yes, I think so.”

     This was why it was important for managers and actors to have a discerning eye and luck. There were some actors who unluckily passed up on hit projects and others who took up roles they weren’t supposed to play and rose to stardom.

     Since there was no way to know which drama would be a hit and which one would flunk, there was no way they wouldn’t be troubled when picking out their projects.

     “I am just asking you as if I was getting my fortune read by a tarot card reader. So don’t feel any pressure and just pick one.”

     “Sorry?”

     “Which one do you think is going to be more successful?”

     

      Chapter 21

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL: Myoni

     Edited: Myoni, Yoni

     I read each synopsis one after the other. My foresight ability won’t happen at this great timing, would it?

     I flipped through a few pages and sure enough, there was nothing. Damn it. It was so sad that I couldn’t use my ability whenever I wanted to.

     But I still held onto hope and asked Chief Jo.

     “Can I tell you after I fully read both of them?”

     “Haha, this guy’s full of confidence. Even if I tell others to choose without worry, they would try to avoid it in case the one they chose failed… Sure, sit here and read. We have a meeting with the CEO in an hour anyways.”

     I immediately sat down and opened the synopses.

     First, ‘Time Slip’.

     It was an action thriller where a profiler returns to the past after getting murdered by the serial killer he was after.

     The female lead was a strong officer. Her role would be similar to that of a sidekick of the male lead. Romance was faint, but the character was a proactive genius, so when I looked at the synopsis, it was a really appealing.

     And ‘Mermaid out of Water’ was a popular romantic comedy webtoon[1].

     A mermaid who came out to search for a fabulous prince falls in love with a sassy 2nd generation jaebeol[2]. It was an obvious story, but would work well.

     On top of that, the female lead that Son Chaeyeong would play was a lovely 3-dimensional character.

     Unlike the mermaid story, written by Hans Anderson, where the mermaid chose to dissolve into foam because she couldn’t bring herself to hurt the prince, the female lead was a reckless and ingenious character who would even resort to stalking to get the male lead.

     When I just looked at the synopses, both were good. They put a lot of effort in the synopses.

     Since they had to bring investments and hire the cast, they probably exaggerated a few places, but the writer and director had several box office hits so I didn’t really worry about it being anticlimactic.

     If we looked at just the synopses, even if they didn’t do well, they would probably rank in the middle.

     The problem was both were good.

     Time Slip was a concept drama targeted at a younger audience, it seemed like it would receive comments about being a well-made drama. Honestly, even if this did worse, if the story was good then it wasn’t something that would be a flaw in one’s filmography.

     Mermaid out of Water was something that could appeal to a broader range of ages, even to people in their thirties and forties. And since it was a romantic comedy drama, the female lead would be the focus. Also, the original webtoon was popular, so it would have quite the following.

     I could understand why Son Chaeyeong and Chief Jo were troubled. They couldn’t do both so they had to choose one, but that decision was really tough.

     Which one would do better?

     “How is it? Is there one that catches your eye?”

     Son Chaeyeong asked, taking off her sunglasses.

     The moment I met her brown eyes, the world shook.

     It was the future!

     No, it was another future to be exact. It was not the clear future with Director Park and Reporter Song, but a faulty future like the hazy one I saw with Sung Dowon.

     The dizzier my vision was, the more I had to concentrate.

     Where was this? Just where was I now?

     My future self was using chopsticks. My mouth and throat were warm. Okay, I am in the middle of eating. It was a bit hazy, I could make out napkins, the kalguksu[3] bowl with a business name on it, side dishes and a glass of water on the table.

     It was a restaurant.

     I was eating kalguksu with the male-female pair sitting in front of me.

     Huh?

     Their faces were familiar… The young PR team employees. Since they were sociable people, we would catch up with each other during meetings, but we haven’t ever eaten together.

     The female employee’s hair was similar to how I remembered it. Was it not the distant future?

     They were both wearing long sleeved shirts and behind them, a not-so-thick coat was hung on the chair. It looked like it was spring or fall.

     Since it was too thin to wear these days, was it spring next year? Or next fall?

     Ah, my eyes felt like they were going to pop out. It felt like I was looking at a Magic Eye image.

     If he was to look at his phone, I would be able to see the date, but my future self was looking at the kalguksu bowl and using his chopsticks. Meanwhile, the kalguksu was delicious.

     “I’m so tired I could die; I can’t even sleep.”

     The female PR team employee said with an irritated voice. I looked up and asked.

     “Why? What happened?”

     “Son Chaeyeong keeps giving me a hard time. She whines, telling us to take down the power blogger who criticized that they screwed up the drama, whines, telling us to take down the article saying that her drama was picked as the worst drama for the first quarter of 2016. Erase this, sue him… Is the PR team god? Were those things we could do just because we wanted to? If I could do all that, why would I be working here? I’d go to the Blue House[4].

     So Son Chaeyeong’s drama flunked!

     If it was the first quarter of 2016, it was the right time. If they signed the contract now and started filming, the drama should finish by the end of the first quarter.

     Just what did she pick that failed? Even if both weren’t successful, it wasn’t to the point of losing everything.

     “How are we supposed to stop people from saying the drama failed when it did.”

     The male employee dropped his chopsticks and added in.

     “That’s my point. We could have at least put it nicely if it failed moderately. How can we do anything with a drama that has the lowest viewership ratings of 3%?”

     What? 3%?

     The viewership ratings of public network dramas did drop significantly now that cable and general cable networks were creating more diverse dramas. These days, 20% was considered a big success while 10% was average.

     However, no matter how much the world has changed, for a public network drama to get 3% was a bit…

     No, so which one was it!

     I was anxious. If it suddenly stopped here, I would really…

     “When we looked at the synopsis, it was quite good. Mr. Sunwoo saw it too, correct?”

     “I also saw the synopsis and thought it would at least be average.”

     Right. I did think that both would at least get average ratings.

     The female employee sighed and said.

     “The script was good in the beginning as well. Up until the 3rd episode, the ratings were going up, but those hardcore fans of the original screwed it up.”

     Original!

     I relaxed. If it was the one with an original, it would be Mermaid out of Water.

     “It’s because those hardcore fans were overusing their power by saying things like ‘you didn’t do the original justice,’ ‘it’s meh,’ everywhere. It was when the production, director and writer decided to apply all those views by rewriting the script three times, things hit the fan. They should have just ignored them and continued, but they were influenced by them.”

     “The writer’s mind turned to powder. She even got threats in the mail.”

     “Sigh… If we knew this was going to happen, we would have chosen the other one.”

     Yeah, I guess I’ll tell them to do Time Slip.

     “Hey. Son Chaeyeong picked between Mermaid out of Water and Time Slip.”

     “Yeah. That’s right.”

     “Why did she bother? When they were both going to fail.”

     What?

     “Time Slip started out good, really… If only the director didn’t cheat on his wife with the writer.”

     What’d you say?

     “Because of that, his wife came to the studio and made a mess, the director and writer were replaced and then they plastered it as a thriller and reduced the episodes to half. That is a failed drama that will last forever.”

     What kind of situation was this?

     They were deciding between the two, but they both failed?

     Could they really be that unlucky? No, was it better for both of them to fail than regretting the decision after Time Slip became a success?

     My future self thirstily drank the Kalguksu soup and said.

     “I guess this is why we can’t choose from just looking at the synopses.”

     “That’s what I’m saying. You have to open up the lid to know. Just look at the success on the cable network that Writer Hong Jumi wrote. Everyone who read her synopsis said it was childish and boring.”

     A successful project?

     My ears tingled. I nailed the words the female employee said into my head.

     Writer Hong Jumi, cable network, everyone said it was childish and boring after reading the synopsis.

     “You really had to read the script for that one. This was why dramas depend on the writer’s performance.”

     “Thanks to her, the cast got lucky. Because it was even a success in China, the lead and supporting actors became stars overnight.”

     “There were even articles stating that they had difficulty finding the cast for the new writer. Even we got contacted about it. We had to give it up because of scheduling issues. Sigh, we had to bite that one…”

     “Did we know that would be such a success? Don’t think about. If you do, you’re only going to regret it even more.”

     “The one we thought would be a hit flunked and the one we thought was bad became a success. I wish someone would tell me that a certain one would be a success. Do I have to get a fortune-teller to pick one…”

     “Excuse me?”

     The hazy surrounding became clear.

     In front of me was Son Chaeyeong looking at me.

     “Was there one that caught your attention? Out of the two.”

     I looked at the synopses in my hands.

     Time Slip and Mermaid out of Water.

     Both failed… 3%…

     How could I say this in a way I would be considered less crazy?

     If I told them both weren’t good, then they’d assume my judgment was bad. Honestly, the synopses were really good. And these people who were more experienced at this knew that.

     If I told them as if I was a prophet that the director of Time Slip cheated on his wife for the writer so it will fail and the writer for Mermaid out of Water was so influenced by the hardcore fans of the original that she rewrote the script three times and failed, it felt like I was digging my own grave so I felt uncomfortable.

     And to let them pick a drama even though I knew both would fail was a waste of my information and as a fan of Son Chaeyeong, it was a bit sad.

     I readied my heart and opened my mouth.

     

      Chapter 22

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL: Myoni

     Edited: Myoni, Yoni

     “Both the synopses are very interesting.”

     Chief Jo nodded his head as if it was obvious.

     “Right? You have a good eye. If there was just one that was really good, we could have just chosen that one, but since both are equally good, it’s troublesome.”

     Well, they both would equally fail.

     “I am a bit cautious to tell you this…”

     I gulped down my saliva.

     If we didn’t consider that I knew the future, I was a new employee that has been around for less than a month and they were long time experts that had lots of experience with dramas and movies. I really needed to explain myself carefully.

     Good. Let’s try my best to convince them.

     “Both have really good synopses, but there are some parts that concern me…”

     “Oppa, just who is this?”

     Son Chaeyeong cut me off and asked Chief Jo.

     “Huh?”

     “He says there’s a part that concerns him. Just what kind of person is he that I have to listen to him pour cold water on my project I haven’t even started? Whose manager is he?”

     “Neptune’s manager.”

     “Neptune?”

     Son Chaeyeong’s expression immediately grew worse.

     “They aren’t actors, but singers. Idols. And I know their manager and this person isn’t him?”

     “… He’s a new recruit that just started.”

     “New recruit?!”

     She crossed her arms and laughed as though she was dumbfounded.

     “What knowledge would a new recruit have for you to bring him here? Are your senses deteriorating? Just listen to what he’s saying.”

     “The truth is…”

     This time, Chief Jo cut me off.

     “He hit the jackpot as soon as he started working and has become Management Team 3’s Lucky Charm. So I wondered if there really was something like beginner’s luck and asked him. All for you…”

     “Tell him to stop pouring cold water on my projects and to screw off. So annoying, really.”

     Ah…

     The person synonymous with innocence turned to dust and scattered.

     I knew that a big part of an actor’s image was made up. But to be told to screw off from an actress who I thought was so good that I went to see her movie three times at the theaters… It was quite shocking.

     “You, go.”

     Before I could recover from the shock, Chief Jo tapped my arm.

     “I asked you to pick one out of the two, but why did you have to overrate yourself and piss her off?”

     “… Then I’ll take my leave.”

     I stopped myself from speaking anymore and got up.

     Just do what you want.

     Mermaid out of Water? I don’t care if that fails or not.

     After being told to screw off and hearing that I was overrating myself, I had no mind or loyalty to convince them any further.

     I didn’t go straight to the office but came back outside. Then I went to the coffee shop, bought some coffee and made my way to the fifth floor.

     Until then I kept pondering.

     Although it was already spilled milk, as long as I had this ability, these incidents would constantly come up.

     Did I say it wrong? Was my method wrong? Then how should I have done it?

     The elevator doors opened to reveal a refined hallway. On each side, the walls were filled with frames. They were the pictures of all the celebrities in W&U.

     Son Chaeyeong with a bright smile, Song Dowon in the water gazing into the distance, among other countless actors that made up W&U.

     There was even a frame with Neptune. An album cover with the now familiar faces clung together smiling. I stopped my steps in front of that frame before once again moving at a quick pace.

     The PR team office was at the end of the hallway.

     When I looked inside, I could see familiar faces between the partitions.

     The two people I ate kalguksu with in the future. The female and male employee were sitting next to each other while typing on their keyboards. And behind them was Team Leader Park whose disheveled hair indicated something wasn’t going smoothly.

     I quietly placed a cup of coffee next to them.

     “Hello. Have some coffee.”

     “Huh?! What is this? Why coffee all of a sudden?”

     “I was just craving for coffee, what luck!”

     Like I expected, their reactions were intense.

     “I brought it here because I had a favor to ask you.”

     Team Leader Park took her coffee and poked my back.

     “I heard that you heard a few words from Son Chaeyeong just now? Is it about that?”

     “How did you… Ah, this was the PR Team.”

     “That’s right.”

     “First, sit here.”

     The male employee brought out a chair and sat me down, then massaged my shoulders as if giving me his support.

     “Was it shocking? Son Chaeyeong was a child actress.”

     As if he was cautious of his surroundings, he lowered his voice.

     “She didn’t really have a time when she was unknown and since she was young, everyone around her spoiled her. That’s why her personality is like that.”

     “She thinks she’s the best in the world and thinks her words are everything.”

     The female employee complained. It seemed like the two had a lot built up. As soon as they started talking, Team Leader Park waved her hand and ended the conversation.

     “Stop chatting, this is a company.”

     She told me as well.

     “Don’t go around talking bad about Son Chaeyeong just because you’re mad. Since she still is our actress.”

     “Yes.”

     I never had that thought. Since she was going to fail her drama soon anyways.

     Besides that, I was more interested in something else.

     “Team Leader Park. Would I be able to get a synopsis?”

     “What? That’s your favor?”

     “Yes.”

     “Which one is it? What’s the title?”

     “I don’t know the title, but it was written by a new writer, Hong Jumi. It’s from a cable network.”

     “Cable?”

     Team Leader Park tilted her head as if she had heard something strange.

     “I heard that you had some concerns about the good synopses Son Chaeyeong had, why are you suddenly looking for a cable synopsis?”

     Since it was a drama that would later become a nationwide hit, even becoming a huge success in China, and all the lead and supporting actors got their lucky break.

     What Son Chaeyeong had was something that only looked good on the outside.

     “Let me ask you first. Just what concerns did you have about the synopses? I read them and found both were good.”

     I wondered what I would say before opening my mouth. Half sighing, half speaking.

     I probably wouldn’t be told to screw off here.

     “The synopses were good… But, I heard some bad rumors about the director and writer. That they had something.”

     “What? What was it? I haven’t heard anything? Is there a tabloid circulating?”

     As soon as Team Leader Park asked with a confused expression, the two employees quickly searched the internet. Writer, director, among other things, but obviously there would be no results.

     That was probably right. Since it said that it exploded during the filming.

     “Who did you hear it from?”

     “It’s hard to say, but it’s reliable information. I was worried that that might badly influence their next project.”

     “Okay. Then what about Mermaid out of Water?”

     “There are so many fans of the original work and they are hardcore, too. I was worried that the drama would be influenced by them and lose its direction. The fans are quite fixed on who they want to be cast. They might ignore Son Chaeyeong’s acting ability and unreservedly insult her by saying that she doesn’t fit well with the character and that she isn’t the one they wanted for the character. Since there have been many cases where that happened. There have even been cases where the fans turned their backs and the cast fell through.”

     I thoroughly explained to make Team Leader Park and the employees understand.

     Of course, I excluded the part about seeing it all in the future to avoid being taken as a mental patient.

     Team Leader Park stared at me and laughed.

     “You’re the type that constantly worries, right?”

     “Me?”

     “Of course, you can be worried. What do I do if there really is something going on with the director and writer of Time Slip and it affects the series? What do I do if the original fans of Mermaid out of Water abandon us? It’s fine to worry about that. But you can’t succeed if you’re afraid of failure. We’ll look into Time Slip. But why are you worrying about Mermaid out of Water? No one knows what will happen in the future.”

     If I die, the cause would be frustration.

     Jung Sunwoo. 27 years old. Died of frustration.

     “The more fans the original has, the greater affect promotions will have and the fans could even be the driving force for the viewership ratings.”

     Was this how the barber felt when he yelled that the emperor’s ears were donkey ears[1]?

     At first, I sighed, but after I cleared my mind and thought about it, I could understand Team Leader Park’s reaction. If I didn’t have a foresight ability, I might have reacted the same way if some said those words to me.

     Why do you worry before you even try? You should be thinking about doing well… Something like that.

     I might be the only person who could see the future. Because of that, I might be limited in what I can do but I still couldn’t act like someone who didn’t know anything.

     Anyways, let’s stop with the worries that no one wants to hear.

     I stopped trying to make Team Leader Park understand and threw a bomb.

     “Honestly, I don’t have a good feeling about Time Slip and Mermaid out of Water. And my senses are very good.”

     Team Leader Park, as well as the two employees, laughed their heads off.

     “Hahaha! Then do you have a good feeling about Writer Hong Jumi?”

     “Yes. A very good feeling. I think that it will be a success.”

     When I nodded my head, these people fell to the floor laughing. Okay, laugh as much as you want. If I could bring you happiness, that was fine.

     That was that.

     “I really want to read her synopsis; would it be possible?”

     “Wow, it’s been a long time since I laughed that hard. I can get you the synopsis. As long as you are careful not to leak it out to the public, there’s no problem in letting you read it. But, you’re Neptune’s manager. There’s no one that acts there so what are you going to do with that synopsis?”

     I was wondering about that as well.

     How could I use it well?

     *

     The W&U CEO’s office.

     CEO Baek Hansung, the Management Team Business Director and the Management Team 2 Leader. As well as Son Chaeyeong and her manager, Chief Jo, were sitting around the two synopses.

     It was the place where they would make the final decision for one of W&U’s poster actress, Son Chaeyeong’s, new series.

     Team 2 Leader rubbed his beard and asked.

     “I think the police officer character of Time Slip is more appealing. What do you think, Chaeyeong?”

     “I like Mermaid out of Water.”

     “Really? Why?”

     “Time Slip is IBC. I heard IBC has a lot of major series coming out next year. Then there will be plenty of outstanding candidates for the best performance award. For Mermaid out of Water, I will be the focus and since PBS’s lineup for next year is weaker than IBC, wouldn’t I be able to expect an award if the viewership ratings are high?”

     CEO Baek Hansung frowned when he heard her words.

     “How could an actress pick her projects for an award? You need to think about it carefully.”

     “I did think about it carefully. I’ve been with W&U for so long yet I haven’t received the best performance award. I need to get it next year.”

     Team 2 Leader laughed and coaxed her.

     “Yeah, you need to get it. It’s time for our Chaeyeong to get the best performance award. This drama will be a definite hit so you just focus on acting and don’t worry about anything.”

     CEO Baek Hansung who was drinking coffee nodded his head.

     If Chaeyeong brought an absurd synopsis he would have resolutely convinced her against it, but the synopsis for Mermaid out of Water was pretty good. It was actually the best along with Time Slip out of the synopses that were currently circulating.

     “Okay. Both the synopses are good and whatever one we pick will have its pros and cons, so choose the one you want to do most. With no regrets.”

     “Yes. Byunghwan oppa, contact Mermaid out of Water and tell them I’ll sign.”

     “Sure. I’ll make sure the conditions match your preference.”

     The director who was only smiling broadly with no interference said.

     “Good. I heard that Team Leader Park from the PR team was saying how there might be something with the director and writer of Time Slip and that they were looking into it. They said Team 3’s Lucky Charm told them. Although we don’t know if it’s true or not, it’s still concerning. However, since we chose to do Mermaid out of Water, we don’t need to worry about anything.”

     Chaeyeong who was happily getting up became serious.

     “Who?”

     “Team 3’s Lucky Charm. He’s Neptune’s manager, why? Do you know him?”

     Chief Jo read Chaeyeong’s mood and replied carefully.

     “We saw him in the lounge a while ago. I asked him which one he thought would do better since it looked like luck followed him.”

     “And?”

     “I don’t know, he looked at both synopses and abruptly said that although the synopses were good, there were some concerns.”

     “I say! He said that in front of you and Chaeyeong? What a nonsensical fellow.”

     “That’s what I said. He definitely has problems.”

     “But what did he say he was concerned about?”

     “Sorry? I-I don’t know. I didn’t ask him…”

     Chief Jo was taken back and his words trailed off.

     “You should have asked him. I’m curious.”

     “Director. Don’t bring that up. I am still uncomfortable about it.”

     Chaeyeong said unhappily. Team 2 Leader read her mood and loudly scolded for everyone to hear.

     “Just because everyone is calling the fledgling, ‘Lucky Charm, Lucky Charm,’ he thinks the company is a pushover. Who’s that bastard’s superior? I think I have a talk with him.”

     “Th…”

     “That’s fine, that’ll do.”

     When Chief Jo was about to answer, the director waved his hand and stopped him.

     “Don’t do anything and just let him be. Since that team is doing well.”

     “That kind of guy usually creates big trouble later on.”

     “If a problem arises, I’ll take care of it then. Now, let’s get up.”

     The director who calmed the situation was the first to get up.

     Just when the director was about to exit the office after Song Chaeyeong, Chief Jo, and the Team 2 Leader, CEO Baek Hansung’s voice stopped the director in his tracks.

     “That rookie. What was his name?”

     “Sorry?”

     “That Team 3’s Lucky Charm rookie.”

     “Just what was his name? Jung… Ah, Jung Sunwoo.”

     “Jung Sunwoo…”

     CEO Baek Hansung mumbled the name a few times.

     

      Chapter 23

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL: Myoni

     Edited: Myoni, Yoni

     Team Leader Park readily agreed to get me Writer Hong Jumi’s synopsis and I vowed to never leak the synopsis to the public.

     Afterwards, thoughts only pertaining to the synopsis floated around in my head.

     Even during a meeting and throughout the time we ate dinner with an event agency employee and were drinking down boilermakers.

     I constantly looked up Writer Hong Jumi on the internet but there wasn’t much information. In her mid-thirties. Married. Released two romance novels under a pen name and was completely new to writing dramas.

     So this person was the one who hit the jackpot with her debuting work?

     Then after this drama ends, her worth would go up tremendously. And this would be the only time she would be troubled with casting actors as a new writer.

     So it was definitely a chance that wouldn’t come twice.

     If I was assigned to an actor, I would have immediately looked up the date of the audition. But, I wasn’t. Even though I knew this would be a huge success, I had no actors to push.

     My actor… when I thought that, I recalled Sung Dowon.

     Should I ask him?

     My eyes shined for 3 seconds before I shook my head. Ridiculous. What did he lack that he would do a new writer’s drama, on a cable network to boot? He was a top actor who people would cling to cast in a public network drama for $70, 000 per episode.

     Was there a new actor in W&U that I could talk to?

     I recalled the frames on the fifth-floor hallway before shaking my head again.

     This wasn’t right.

     I was currently Neptune’s manager. I couldn’t go to a new actor, show him the synopsis and ask him to do it with me. Those people would all have their assigned managers as well.

     It would be a relief if I didn’t get beat for touching someone else’s rice bowl[1]. Even if it was me, I would be frigging pissed.

     So an actor with no assigned manager, did I have to find an aspiring actor outside of W&U? However, since I was part of W&U, I didn’t know if it was possible to approach a different actor and even if it was possible, I didn’t know what to do. Unless my foresight ability kindly gave me new information on an aspiring actor that would pass the audition. Above all, I didn’t have time to push this forward.

     Since I was in a situation where I couldn’t even go home and was sleeping in the company’s sleeping quarters.

     Of course, the traitor who lay above me and Hyunjo who lay on the other side were passed out.

     Buzz.

     My phone lit up as it vibrated.

     Right, I forgot today was the day I was supposed to call my brother.

     -Are you free to chat?

     It seemed like someone had seen the light in that short moment as I heard someone move. I quickly put on my shoes and left the sleeping quarters. Blech… I was still drunk so every time I moved my head would ring.

     I stood in the chilly hallway and called back. After a few rings, he answered.

     -Yeah. Are you still working?

     “I was lying down to sleep. I was going to call you once I finished but I forgot, sorry. Were you still up because of me?”

     It was already passed 1 a.m. It was natural for me to be up at this hour but my brother was the type to sleep right at midnight.

     -It’s fine. I got lost in reading and didn’t notice the time. Are you home?

     “At the company.”

     -You are still in Seoul, right? You haven’t been sold off to a faraway district, right?

     “I am going back and forth from Chungdam-dong and Sangam-dong every day. Right now, I have no time. I’m constantly following behind Neptune but soon, the trai-, no, the person I work with and I are going to split the jobs and then I’ll have some breathing room.”

     -Okay. Come to my house then. The kids are really looking forward to seeing you.

     “It’s been a long time since I’ve seen them. When I would see them once every two days.”

     -Come solidly prepared. It looks like they have a lot of questions for you. When you come, we might even have to set up a press conference.

     I held my phone as I laughed for a long time. So those kids were looking forward to seeing me? I wasn’t sure if they were waiting for me or something else… even if it was a bit embarrassing, I should ask if I could obtain some signed Blackout CDs.

     -I think celebrity managers are at the same level as superheroes and the president.

     My laugh instantly died down. I even awoke from my drunken state.

     With the mention of superheroes, I thought of my supernatural ability.

     -You probably need to rest so let’s hang up. Wear warm clothes. You don’t have anything going on, right?

     Unorganized words I weren’t sure of crept up to my throat before I stopped them. The words that came out of my mouth would be the same as an everyday joke.

     “Lots of things. Every day is dynamic.”

     -Haha. That fits well with you.

     “I am not the same person as I was in the past. It’s been a while since my life’s changed to a fantasy blockbuster.”

     This wasn’t a joke; it was the truth.

     -Hahaha. That seems like fun.

     I could hear my brother’s deep laugh.

     As I was quietly listening, slowly a smile appeared on my lips.

     It had a been a few days since my foresight ability suddenly squeezed into my life. At first I was at a loss, but afterwards, since it helped me, I embraced it. And the fact that no one knew and that I could be the sole person who possessed such an ability excited me as well.

     However, somewhere in my heart, I felt nervous that I was caught in some unrealistic event.

     It wasn’t like I confessed anything but just talking casually like this relaxed my heart. Although I was caught up in something unreal, I was still reassured that I had my life and my family.

     I ended my call with my brother and went to the office. I didn’t know if it was because I awoke from my drunken state but I was thirsty.

     I filled a paper cup to the brim with water, drank it and returned to the sleeping quarters with quick steps. It was too cold outside with only a t-shirt. If it was already like this, I wondered what I would do during the winter. Did I have to buy hot packs in bulk?

     Brr, I needed to quickly slide myself into warm covers and rest my eyes for a bit.

     Just when I was thinking that, my phone vibrated again.

     -Oppa, sorry it’s late. Are you still at the company?

     It was a message from Seoyoung.

     -Yeah. Why?

     -Songha still hasn’t come home. She doesn’t answer her phone. Could you check if she’s in the practice room? I’m so worried I can’t sleep. T^T

     -Okay. I’ll go check.

     -Yes yes. Thank you!

     I got on the elevator and went to the practice room located in the basement. It wasn’t strange for Songha to stay late in the practice room. Since even I had seen her there a few times. At first, when I saw her roaming around with her hair down, my heart felt like it was about to stop.

     Although Neptune did practice a lot, Songha was the one that spent the most time practicing among them.

     As expected, the lights of the practice room were lit today as well.

     Knock, knock.

     I knocked a few times but there was no answer. When I opened the door and entered, I saw Songha coolly moving in front of the dance mirror. She was in the middle of practicing the choreography and the vocals of Neptune’s title track. She practiced for so long that even her back was soaking wet.

     I closed the door and briefly observed Songha.

     Her actions and expression reflected on the mirror.

     I thought this when I first saw her but Songha really wasn’t simply pretty.

     Maybe she was born with it or she was doing it deliberately but she really had a certain charm.

     “Oh, my.”

     It seemed like the song had ended during the time I was blankly staring at her. Songha’s eyes widened and her face stiffened as she turned towards me.

     “When did you come?”

     “Just now. Seoyoung was worried that she couldn’t contact you.”

     “Ah… I didn’t know it was already this late.”

     Songha who was surprised when she saw her phone replied to a text.

     “I will just do another hour. You can go in first.”

     “You have to wake up before the sun rises for your schedule tomorrow. Are you going to be okay?”

     “I’m fine. I eat as much as I use.”

     So there was a reason why she would eat so much every meal.

     “You’re working hard, practicing until morning by yourself.”

     “…Because I’m worried.”

     “About what?”

     “They might lose because of me.”

     “Lose… Ah. The mission for K-Star?”

     “Yes.”

     I could feel the worry in her voice.

     So she was practicing this hard for the team mission.

     The reason why she felt sad was because even if she practiced for an incredible amount of time, she wasn’t as good at singing as Taehee and she wasn’t as good at dancing as Seoyoung. That was why her position was subvocal and subdancer. And rap, well there was nothing to say.

     She knew herself that she was lacking compared to the other members. And that was why she would practice alone.

     Since she thought she was a burden to the team.

     Even though her skills were lacking relative to the others, she had the most parts in the center in their dance. Even in music videos, her face would come up the most often. It definitely was a weight on her shoulders.

     Although Hyunjo said that she had the most exposure since she was the prettiest, my thoughts were different. I couldn’t say it in case they said, “What would you know?”

     From my personal opinion, Songha’s acting was good.

     A short 3-minute 40-second track definitely had a story. Neptune’s title track was about a woman who struggles between a man she loves and a man who loves her. The lyrics expressed the conflicted heart very well.

     Although the girls were good at dancing and singing, outstanding singing abilities and dance skills weren’t able to convey that emotion. It did look like those girls tried hard to convey it but they seemed to come short by 2%.

     However, Songha was able to convey the conflicting emotion in the lyrics as they were. With only her expression and voice. It didn’t even look like she was trying hard either.

     So for the 3 minutes and 40 seconds, no, for the few seconds Songha would sing, I would be completely immersed in it. And of course, the lyrics would pour into my ears.

     I thought that was really impressive.

     It was a bit regrettable that she didn’t think that way and only urged herself to practice areas she lacked.

     No matter how much I thought about it, she really should be an actor…

     I abruptly revealed the thoughts I had while observing her.

     “Songha.”

     “Yes?”

     “Did you ever think about acting?”

     Huh?

     I came to the future at a completed unexpected time.

     I quickly grasped my surroundings. This time was once again the hazy failed connected future. I was sitting on a beige chair looking at a video on a laptop.

     The table seemed very familiar… Ah, this was the meeting room.

     The person in the video was Songha. She looked similar to her current age. Her hairstyle was different. It was the same straight black hair but it was bit longer. If you weren’t sharp-sighted, you wouldn’t notice it but in preparation for situations like this, I meticulously remembered the girls’ appearances.

     How long would it take for her hair to grow that much? No, since she could have cut it when it was longer, I can’t determine the date just from her hair.

     But what was Songha doing?

     I narrowed my eyes and concentrated. In the video, Songha was talking and moving by herself. Because of the static, I couldn’t hear it clearly but it seemed like she was talking in both Korean and English.

     Was she perhaps… acting?

     “Is that all?”

     Someone asked from behind. Who was it?

     My future self didn’t even look at the person behind me and replied.

     “Yes. We just need to send it.”

     “But how did they know about Songha and send her a synopsis?”

     They sent a synopsis?

     Then was she really acting? Was this an audition video?

     “It looks like their casting director coincidentally saw her playing an interpreter and added her on their list.”

     “Aha… She really did play that one well. It was the rediscovering of Songha.”

     As expected!

     I knew it. My thoughts were right.

     That Songha would be good at acting.

     I forcefully calmed down my excitement and shoved the information into my head. Role as an interpreter and a casting director coincidentally saw her acting and added her to their list.

     The person behind me threw his thick arm on my shoulder. And I heard his voice.

     “But do we really not know what this project is?”

     “We really don’t. We don’t know the title and the director. We don’t even know her role. It is a completely closed door audition. I am curious about their identity as well.”

     “Damn…”

     “If Songha goes to the final audition… we’ll probably know then.”

     “Acting?”

     When I regained my senses, I was once again in the practice room.

     In front of me, Songha was staring at me with a sour look.

     At that moment, without my knowledge, without any filters, these words popped out.

     “Yeah. You should act.”

     

      Chapter 24

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL: Myoni

     Edited: Myoni, Yoni

     Shoot! I should have thought it through before saying that.

     While I was motionless as if my brain was lagging, Songha dried off her sweat and said.

     “I can’t act.”

     “What? Why can’t you? What’s there not to do?”

     And W&U would probably be able to push you in that direction if you want.

     “I can’t act.”

     “Huh?”

     “It’s not that I’m not doing it, I can’t.”

     “Why? Why can’t you act?”

     “If you ask me why I can’t… I just can’t.”

     “No, you are go…!”

     I flinched while I was speaking.

     When I saw Songha, she was staring at me as if I was some strange person. Keep it together. I couldn’t confuse the future and the present. Even though in the future, they said Songha was good at acting and that it was the rediscovery of Songha, it might not be true right now.

     Then just what happened?

     What did we have to do for that future to occur?

     Did she start acting because her future as an artist was faint? No. Looking at how she said she couldn’t act, it seemed like she had already tried.

     It seemed like she had bad memories embedded in her. Just the word ‘act’ made her expression stiffen and above all, when she said she couldn’t act, her tone was too resolute.

     Then was it through daily practice that she was able to progress from terrible acting to great?

     Or was she just a late bloomer?

     “Have you learned acting properly? Who said you weren’t good at acting? Could you maybe show…”

     I was rapid firing questions until my last question trailed off. Since a while ago, Songha was looking at me while slowly packing her things. She put on her thick padded coat and her bag. Then she approached me who was blankly staring at her and bowed her head.

     “I am going to go. Good night.”

     “Huh?”

     Then she disappeared like the wind.

     …What the. Did she just escape?

     In the end, I spent the rest of my night worrying.

     Just why did Songha show such a bad reaction when I asked if she wanted to act?

     And the audition video of Songha I saw in the future.

     Honestly, at that time, I glossed over it but no matter how much I thought about it laying on the bed, I found it strange.

     Unknown title, unknown director, unknown role, yet a closed door audition? Did people even audition like that in this country? How secretive was this project? And she wasn’t even auditioning in front of someone but through a video?

     Just why?

     The more I thought about, my suspicions narrowed towards a certain direction.

     Keeping the scenario under a strictly maintained system as if it was a military secret. Songha fluently mixing Korean and English in her acting. The casting director coincidentally saw her acting as an interpreter gave her a chance to audition… if it was like that then maybe Holly…

     No. Get a hold of yourself, you crazy bastard.

     My excitement went too far. It wasn’t like it was the next town over?

     Even veteran actors who had spent ten, twenty years in the country couldn’t easily dream of that place. Even though W&U was knocking on every door, indiscriminately pushing their actors in minor and supporting roles, the reality was that it was like filling a bucket with a hole with water.

     But Songha?

     Let’s stop this silly sleep talking. I couldn’t even sleep a wink.

     I rubbed my hands on my face and got up from the bed. The day had already started.

     Perhaps it was the effect of K-Star but Neptune was appearing on a public network music broadcast. If we wanted to get them all dressed up to look pretty on camera, we had move quickly starting early morning. Well, I was now used to seeing the moon when I leave and the moon when I come back.

     On our way to pick up the girls, I asked Hyunjo the question I had been waiting to ask.

     “Chief. About Songha.”

     “Yeah.”

     “Did she ever get acting lessons?”

     Hyunjo chugged down a hangover relief drink and replied.

     “Just look at her appearance. Is her appearance something that falls behind others?”

     “No.”

     “Then do you think we would have never thought of getting her to act?”

     “Then…”

     “Obviously, she got personal lessons.”

     So she did get them.

     “If she wasn’t to the point of receiving insults, we were looking into getting her in a leading role on a public network weekend drama but it didn’t look like God gave everything to a single person. Apparently, Songha has no talent in acting.”

     “Who?”

     “Who do you think? Her teacher obviously. That person looked at quite a few of our girls. Bora, Suran, and even Chaeyeong received lessons from him. So we sent Songha to him but he apparently said that even though her face was pretty, it couldn’t cover up her poor acting skills. And after getting acting lessons, Songha said she would not act.”

     “That’s unexpected. When you see their music videos, she looks like she would be good at it.”

     “Since music videos have no lines. Even I was a bit regretful and tried to convince her but she wouldn’t budge. It seems like she lost all interest in that field.”

     Well, she did run away as soon as I brought up acting yesterday.

     But in the future, Songha was definitely acting… good even. Then did that mean that there would be something that would change her mind later on?

     Anyways, it looked like I had to investigate further. I needed to finish my other priorities first.

     We picked up the girls at their apartment and went to the shop. From there, we drove for a long time and arrived at the Yeouido studio. Still, the scheduled time was later than Knet so it had been a while since the sky turned bright.

     “Huh? It’s Neptune.”

     “Who?”

     “Neptune. They appearing on K-Star with my bias[1].”

     Due to the fact that they got much more exposure through entertainment articles, more people recognized them than before. Although there weren’t people taking their pictures and no one clung to them for a sign, I was expecting that day would come once they placed first on a music broadcast.

     After they introduced themselves to other groups’ fans for a while, we entered the studio. The waiting room was the same size as the one from Knet. And having nothing to do but wait was the same as well.

     I prepared a lot after the last experience. A fully charged backup smartphone battery. I even brought a phone charger just in case.

     As well as an eye mask. On my first day, I was too excited and nervous to sleep but after a few days of being a manager, I became a master at taking naps. Now, no matter where I was, I could sleep anywhere. I could say I evolved to survive.

     When the time had come for them to greet their seniors, Seoyeong grabbed the back of Songha’s neck. Then she said the words she constantly repeated since they arrived at the shop.

     “Songha. Just because you’re a regular member of an entertainment program now doesn’t mean you can get on your high horse since it could mean trouble, okay? They will immediately gossip about us. Okay?”

     “I know.”

     “Your face looks sullen if you just stay there, so stay conscious of your actions and smile. Okay?”

     “I know… Nagging all day…”

     As soon as Songha lowered her head and mumbled, Seoyoung’s eyes narrowed.

     “Right now, we move together but if we do well in K-Star, we’re going to get our own personal schedules as well. How could I rest easy if I let you go by yourself? If you’re like this in front of others, you’re going to be punished for having no manners and you’re going to cry…”

     I could memorize that repertoire.

     It looked like Songha gave up on escaping Seoyoung’s nagging as she listened with a blank face. And Taehee and LJ stayed far away from them. Only when they entered another singer’s waiting room did Seoyoung’s background music like nagging stop.

     We went to greet each waiting room in turn and smiled when new groups and their managers came to introduce themselves. Now that they had a regular program, they were slightly more composed in front of these new girl groups. Somehow, I felt proud.

     Since I had already experienced this schedule before, time passed by like a stream. Hyunjo who was closely observing the traitor and me was happy saying that next time he could show up late to show his face.

     I rested until 12, then I went to buy their snacks. The traitor was the driver today, so it was my job to buy the snacks. Now that I knew the girls’ preferences, I instantly picked everything out and was about to return to the studio…

     What was that?

     In the corner of the hallway leading to the waiting rooms, Seoyoung and Songha, as well as three Sugar Cats members, were gathered. Now that we had some uncomfortable meetings, every time I saw our members with Sugar Cats, I became anxious. That one day it would explode.

     As the distance between us shortened, I could hear their voices.

     “Songha’s the one usually in the center. Right?”

     “There is a bit more emphasis on Songha but since there’s four of us, it’s quite similar.”

     “Honestly, you’re the best as dancing and Taehee unni is the best at singing. And everyone knows that LJ is skilled at rapping. If you’re going to beat your unnis, Songha, you need to try hard. You bring the team down so what are you going to do if people insult you for getting the center because of your face?”

     Was she sarcastically saying that Songha was the worst at singing, dancing, and rapping in the team and that she got her center position because of her looks?

     I half-sprinted. I thought that they would exchange superficial greetings and go on their ways today. Perhaps it was because there were no cameras or people but there were thorns in their words. Not hidden ones, sharp thorns that stuck out.

     I thought it would be better to act like they were busy and bring them away.

     I almost arrived when Seoyoung smiled as she said.

     “Don’t worry. She practices a ton. I’m worried that she might even quickly catch up to us.”

     “Wow. Your team members are really kind. We weren’t that happy in the past.”

     “What?”

     “When you had the center position, we weren’t that happy.”

     

      Chapter 25

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL: Myoni

     Edited: Myoni, Yoni

     I thought I heard a sound somewhere. The sound of ice breaking.

     Songha didn’t have any reaction when they insulted her but when they changed their target to Seoyoung, she wrinkled her brows. When Songha was about to step forward, Seoyoung grabbed her arm.

     “I guess we were shallow. Then let’s see each other during the K-Star filming!”

     After making the mood into an icy winter, the Sugar Cats members gently waved their hands and disappeared. With the same slightly smiling faces. What was more, they even bowed politely at me.

     Like… if you don’t like them, then just swear!

     Spit! Fight! After a fight, at least you would be refreshed!

     This felt worse because it felt like we were beaten up by a shadow fist.

     When I first saw them, I thought they were bright, kind girls. For their insides to be so black. As expected, my eyes were fish eyes.

     That was that but I had to do something about Seoyoung whose head was lowered. Songha kept wriggling and kept giving signals to do something.

     I didn’t have any experience in comforting a grown woman but since I had a lot of experiences comforting young girls…

     “Seoyoung.”

     “I’m fine.”

     Before I could do anything, Seoyoung raised her head. I was worried she might be crying but her face was fine.

     “It’s not the first time. I don’t pay attention to those words.”

     Seoyoung spent the longest time away from her parents as a trainee and W&U was her third company. I now knew that that wouldn’t have been easy. That was probably why she was strong enough to endure her past colleagues’ sarcastic remarks.

     I put away comforting her and said in a half-joking, half serious manner.

     “Just where do kids like them come from? I should have fought them for you.”

     Seoyoung’s expression slowly relaxed. She patted my back with her small hand.

     “You can’t. We are just now getting popular, we can’t get into trouble because of me. At a time when we can’t be too careful.”

     “ time, I butt in quickly and clear them away. Do they have excess energy? Why do always come to fight you?”

     “It’s best to just ignore them. Oppa, have you ever heard the word, ByungMukGeum[1]?

     I saw it on the internet.

     “…Don’t feed assholes?”

     “Yup, it’s that. I am only going to work hard on the things I need to do. I bet if I succeed, they would probably lie sick in bed due to anger.”

     “Would they? Then after we place first, let’s go visit them at the hospital.”

     I was 100% serious.

     “Ehahahaha! I really wish that happens!”

     The vigorously laughing Seoyoung grabbed Songha’s hand who was following behind us.

     “Don’t worry about them and forget it. Don’t go create a fight. Okay?”

     Songha’s expression was still a bit sour.

     “Why aren’t you answering me? Okay?”

     “Okay.”

     Eventually, Songha wasn’t able to resist any longer and nodded her head.

     We returned to the waiting room and ate our fill to relieve ourselves. When Seoyoung ate a large amount of snacks she usually wouldn’t even touch, the traitor poked my side and asked.

     “Did something happen outside?”

     “Nothing much.”

     Ah. There was one next to me, a fellow with black insides.

     The traitor backed away with a puzzled look. I looked at the traitor’s back differently. Although I kept calling him a traitor, the shock from my first day was slowly starting to fade. Since the traitor I have seen so far was a good natured guy who worked hard at his job.

     Perhaps if I didn’t see the future on my first day, we would be really close?

     Although I was trying my best not to let my guard down, my thoughts were getting more complicated. If Reporter Song didn’t say, ‘so that person was like that before,’ I might have considered it to be the greed of a new recruit and let down my guard already.

     Just how was the traitor living 20 years from now?

     Since Reporter Song, who was an entertainment reporter, knew of him, it seemed like he probably still worked in this industry…

     It was complicated. There was a limit to by brain capacity but there were too many concerning words and people. I needed a day to organize them all before they overload.

     After eating snacks, I left with the girls for their dress rehearsal. With a nametag the size of an A4 paper on their chests.

     When I first saw it, I found it funny but it was a must-have item here. For groups with a lot of members, especially with new groups, it was impossible for the producers to memorize all their names.

     Hyunjo had an external meeting so he was absent and the traitor and I took pictures of the rehearsal with our phones. Since it wasn’t a stage they were comfortable with, we would take pictures at different angles and then they would adjust their expressions and choreography accordingly. To show the audience a more perfect performance.

     And that was how we spent our waiting time as the live broadcasting time approached.

     While we were waiting for Hyunjo after we had finished our preparations, we heard a knock on the door.

     “Come in.”

     I thought it was someone who came to greet us but when I opened the door a camera popped in.

     “We came to film the VCR.”

     “Sorry?”

     “The video to introduce the next group. It’s only 15 seconds so could you all gather here for a second.”

     Before he left, Hyunjo said that they would come film an introduction video, so it was this.

     A female writer or someone handed the girls who were in the middle of practicing a palm-sized script and explained.

     “First introduce your group, the song Neptune is going to introduce is Kim Jongsu’s ‘3 Falls’ and Sky’s ‘Don’t follow me’. You just need to talk in order and…”

     She scanned the four girls’ faces and picked Songha.

     “Ms. Songha, at the end, please act like you’re walking in your spot and quickly turn your head and say the title of the song, ‘Don’t follow me’. Everyone else can act like they are following her and stop. It’ll be cheesy if everyone is too serious, so just have fun with it.”

     “Yes!”

     I saw it a lot when I was monitoring music broadcasts. No matter how they did it or who did it, the introduction video would always be cheesy.

     The girls memorized a one-sentence dialogue and filmed the 15-second introduction video. They started with ‘Hello, we are Neptune!’ and introduce Kim Jongsu’s lovely emotional ballad, ‘3 Falls’.

     Seoyoung sweetly said.

     “And the next song is from the one who returned as a bad girl, Sky’s.”

     Lastly. Songha walked in place and the other girls acted like they were stealthily following her. She suddenly stopped and turned her head.

     Her waving hair gently fell down and…

     “Don’t follow me.”

     They immediately said, ‘okay’. The satisfied camera team left the waiting room and the traitor and the girls high-fived each other saying that they thought it went well.

     I couldn’t join them and blankly stood there.

     Because… I was looking at Songha.

     You’re good at acting!

     After that day, I observed Songha.

     It wasn’t stalking, more like stealthily watching Songha’s every move?

     I watched their music video and the behind the scenes video tens of times. I reduced my already insufficient sleep and the result I came to after my analysis was that Songha was never to the point of being called terrible at acting.

     In fact, in my perspective, it looked like she was really talented.

     Although I wasn’t a professional, there was even a scene where the music video director specifically pointed out Songha and gave her a compliment.

     But why didn’t she get a good assessment during her acting lessons?

     I even found out the name of the teacher who gave Songha acting lessons and investigated his background. Just in case he was a sham… but he really was someone who W&U trusted and used. He even taught a few actors from other companies.

     I once again sneakily brought up acting a few times but I only ended up seeing Songha’s escaping figure.

     A day, two days… a few days went by without any improvements.

     And today.

     I finally got a call from the PR team and was on my way to the fifth floor. I pushed down my excitement and tightly held the coffee box. It was the coffee Team Leader Park said to buy if I wanted to receive what I asked for.

     As soon as I got the call, I almost flew to the coffee shop and bought the largest size. To get the anticipated Writer Hong Jumi’s synopsis in my hands, coffee was nothing.

     “I brought the coffee!”

     I handed out the coffee as soon as I entered the PR team office. The employees and Team Leader Park happily picked theirs.

     I scanned the desks with my eyes but I couldn’t find the synopsis. Where was it?

     “Team Leader Park. Sy…”

     “Aha, here’s what you asked for.”

     As I gulped down my saliva as I waited, Team Leader Park put a small paper bag on top of my hands.

     Huh? It was smaller than I expected.

     The moment I put my trembling hands in the bag, my excitement died down.

     “4 signed Blackout CDs.”

     “Ah…”

     Right. I did. I did ask for these as well.

     A few days ago, when I met Team Leader Park downstairs, I remembered my nieces and nephews and asked if I could get some. Since it wasn’t one or two but four copies, I told her that if it was too much of burden, it didn’t matter if she couldn’t get some and left.

     Since Team Leader Park especially got them for me, I couldn’t show that I was disappointed and quickly changed my expression.

     “Thank you. My nieces and nephews are huge fans. They would probably faint if I gave it to them.”

     “Well, we are co-workers. It’s not like you asked for Blackout member’s phone numbers and getting signed CDs aren’t undoable favors. And…”

     With a sly smile, Team Leader Park placed something on top of the paper bag.

     A clean stack of papers with no creases.

     On the front page, it had the title, 16-part miniseries-Cat Guardian Ghost, and at the very bottom were the names of the director and the screenwriter.

     Writer Hong Jumi.

     “This…!”

     “They say they are doing it on TVL? This is the one you asked for, right?”

     “Yes. It’s this. Thank you!”

     “If you’re thankful, then just buy us coffee next time.”

     When I treated the synopsis like a treasure, the female employee tilted her head.

     “But it looked like Mr. Manager’s senses were wrong? I read it first and I found it a bit childish.”

     “Right. And the whole ‘animal repaying the debt’ theme is a bit worn-out.”

     Harsh reviews came out of the two employees’ mouths.

     “When you just read the synopsis, it didn’t really draw you in, right?”

     “Well, sorta like an ‘it really is a cable drama’ feeling?”

     It was the same in the future I saw. They said that everyone who read the synopsis said it was childish and stale.

     This really was it.

     I said my farewells to the PR team employees and left with a quick pace. And I sat down in the fourth-floor lounge and read the first page.

     Aha. After reading the first few pages, I understood.

     Why the synopsis didn’t get good reviews.

     The synopsis was the same as a preview, they had to write it very interestingly to get investors and actors captivated by it. They would have to word common and stale parts as something special and occasionally put in an overseas location that was never scheduled.

     It was to the point where there would be a writer who would solely work on the synopsis.

     And classic examples of that were Time Slip and Mermaid out of Water.

     But this synopsis was written too honestly. It wasn’t a catalog designed to sell to others but just plainly organized out, like homework for example?

     I didn’t care about the lack of polish and focused on the plot.

     A cold winter. An ordinary female lead picked up a collapsed cat on her way home. Its outward appearance was filthy but it was a cat with pretty blue eyes. The female lead devoted herself to take care of the cat but it died on the next day.

     And then the cat came back as a ghost to repay the female lead who let it die peacefully.

     So that was why the title was Cat Guardian Ghost.

     From then on, the ghost cat would interfere with the female lead’s daily and love life, sometimes being helpful and other times, causing trouble. Well, it was a romantic comedy where in the end she became respected at her work and ended up in a relationship with a handsome superior due the cat.

     Just looking at the synopsis, it really deserved being called childish and stale.

     Ah, but there was an interesting twist in the cat and the female lead’s relationship.

     A twist where the cat came overseas from the US. Due to some circumstances, the cat ended up collapsing in Korea and dying but in any case, because of this, the ghost cat could only speak English. And the female lead would get butterflies in her stomach when she spoke English.

     So the female lead had no choice but to hire an interpreter to talk with the cat guardian ghost…

     Huh?

     Wait.

     What was this?

     I flipped to the character introduction page. The female lead, the male lead, cat… and at the bottom, something I couldn’t believe was written there.

     Interpreter.

     

      Chapter 26

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL: Myoni

     Edited: Myoni, Yoni

     An interpreter role that appeared in the drama, Cat Guardian Ghost.

     And the information about how Songha played an interpreter role in the future.

     Could this be a coincidence?

     If it really was a coincidence, just that would send shivers down my spine. It wasn’t like it was friend 1 and 2 and an interpreter wasn’t a role that was in every drama. No matter how I thought about it, it wasn’t a coincidence.

     But, if I thought that way, it was also strange.

     In the future I saw, Cat Guardian Ghost was already a fish that got away.

     Since the PR team employees were regretting not doing it due to scheduling issues when W&U got contacted about it. If Songha showed off her good acting skills in that role than the PR team employees would have mentioned it.

     Then, it meant that, in that future, there was no relationship between Songha and Cat Guardian Ghost…

     And the future I saw that night, they said that Songha was really good at acting as an interpreter. That it was the rediscovery of Songha. Then that meant that Songha really was cast for the Cat Guardian Ghost drama.

     Then… did the future change?

     Because I asked Songha if she wanted to act?

     Wait. Let’s think about this.

     The first future I saw, the future set twenty years in the future, the one with Director Park and Reporter Song was a fixed future. When I changed the present, that future didn’t change. That was why I thought it was set in a parallel universe.

     But why did the future change this time?

     After carefully thinking about it, there was a definite difference. Everything was clear in the fixed future and although it would cut off in the middle, it was still the continuation of the interview with Director Park and Reporter Song.

     However, the changed futures, the hazy ones with a bad signal, showed a relatively closer future. It wasn’t like they were a continuation of the past ones and the people, time and place were always different.

     Was it because it was a flexible future which could change that everything was hazy?

     “Ah… I think I’m going crazy.”

     Now that I confirmed that my actions would change the future, honestly, I was scared.

     I gulped down my saliva.

     There was a high possibility that twenty years from now, I would be a management company CEO.

     Since he said that I that I struggled my way to the top, I probably went through a lot when I was young. And since he told Reporter Song that there was still much to do, it meant that I wasn’t satisfied and was looking at a higher goal.

     However, to my present self, that future was a successful one.

     If I didn’t change anything, that future would have been mine.

     But… could I?

     When I had the synopsis that would be a hit in my hands right now? Even when I knew that soon Sung Dowon would be caught in a perverted sex scandal trap that someone set up and that there would be a reversal later?

     A chance only given to me, would I be able to live my life ignoring potentially life changing information and only look at the future twenty years from now?

     I wasn’t confident.

     I had already changed the future where I would have been backstabbed by the traitor and didn’t regret it at all. If I only watched the situation unfold even when I knew what would happen, it meant that I would have to watch the traitor getting called Lucky Charm. Then I might have fainted due to anger issues.

     I pondered for a long time before getting up.

     Since it was already like this, let’s do it without fear.

     I didn’t know how long my foresight ability would help me… but let’s see if I could shape a better future with my hands.

     After that day.

     I thought of the best result from the information I knew so far. Since I was unable to obtain any more information about Sung Dowon’s case, the focus was obviously on Neptune.

     After smoothly raising Neptune’s popularity, I would try to help them get first on their next album. Also, I would try to get Songha to play the role of an interpreter for the Cat Guardian Ghost drama.

     This was the best I could think of.

     So I tried to persuade Songha more aggressively.

     Neptune was thoroughly preparing for the K-Star mission and there was nothing I could help them with at this time but Songha was different.

     Of course, if Songha didn’t get the part, she might gloss over it but I felt like I would regret it so much that I wouldn’t be able to bare it.

     I will definitely settle this today.

     I held snacks in both hands as I made my way to the company. There was nothing scheduled today, so the girl would be gathered in the basement practice room practicing. As soon as I opened the door, I could see the girls sweating while they practiced their choreography in front of the mirror.

     But there was only three. Where did Songha go?

     “Oh? Doesn’t oppa have the day off today?”

     The quick-witted Seoyoung was the first spot me.

     “Right. I was passing by when I decided to visit.”

     “Really?”

     Of course, it was a lie. What kind of crazy person would loiter around their company on their day off?

     The reason why I came here on my precious day off was because I was in a hurry. I had to convince Songha before they started the auditions for Cat Guardian Ghost.

     “I bought some snacks, so take a break and eat.”

     I handed out everything I had in my hands. Besides one bag.

     “What’s that?”

     “This is something I bought for Songha. Where is she?”

     “The bathroom. Why? Are you going to ask her about acting again?”

     “Yeah.”

     “Songha’s stubbornness is no joke but oppa is amazing too. Hyunjo oppa tried several times before giving up.”

     If Hyunjo knew what I knew, he would probably chase her around with lunch boxes to persuade her.

     Anyways, to these girls who didn’t know anything, I probably did look persistent in their eyes.

     After stopping their practice, the approaching Taehee sat down on the floor and opened her mouth.

     “I heard that you originally applied to the actor team.”

     “Huh?”

     “I investigated and heard that you said you wanted to join the actor team during your interview.”

     What did you do?

     I was surprised but Seoyoung and LJ looked at me with wide eyes.

     Taehee lowered her head and said.

     “Sorry. There are just so many weird people in the world. I investigated because we had to stay together every day. In the past, there was someone who tried to take a picture of us naked.”

     “What a crazy…”

     “That’s what I’m saying. But… are you trying to convince Songha for that reason? Because you want to be assigned to an actor?”

     What?

     “That’s not it. If Songha really doesn’t want to act, I won’t force her. I won’t bring it up again.”

     Since the most important part was Songha’s thoughts.

     If she really didn’t want to become an actress, a successful drama wasn’t a chance for her.

     “Songha had a hard time when she took acting lessons.”

     Taehee sighed as she said.

     “I didn’t witness it myself but it seemed like she was being harshly punished by the instructor.”

     She was punished?

     LJ and Seoyoung added in.

     “She really was stressed then.”

     “Right. Even when she was scolded tons of times by our vocal and dance instructors, I never saw her discouraged. She was originally a girl who be fine after eating but she looked really pitiable when she was getting acting lessons. It was the first time I had seen her like that.”

     “Since she had to relieve her pent-up stress, she would be depressed while eating 3 servings of food every night and then she eventually quit.”

     “It looked like she was looking forward to acting lessons before she started…”

     Did she get traumatized during her lessons?

     Was that why she would slowly escape whenever I brought it up?

     I met eyes with Taehee who spoke with a heavy tone.

     “Like you said. If Songha really doesn’t want to do it, please don’t force her.”

     “Of course.”

     I immediately nodded my head.

     “But if she thinks she is bad at acting, it really is regrettable. I think Songha will really be good at it.”

     “…What do you think?”

     Taehee looked behind me and asked.

     “Do you want to act again? Or do you not?”

     I hurriedly turned around and saw Songha standing behind the half-opened door.

     It was silent for a moment. As if she had something say, she scratched her head with a complicated expression and sat next to me.

     She had only escaped until now. Was she finally prepared to say something?

     As I was expectedly waiting for an answer, Songha looked at the bag I was holding.

     “What is this smell?”

     “Oh? This? It’s sweet pancakes made with sticky rice and brown sugar filling. Want it?”

     “Please.”

     I handed her the whole bag. And I quietly waited while Songha was eating the pancakes. Though I did give her a wet wipe to wipe off the sugar filling dripping out of the pancake.

     “Wipe it with this.”

     “Ah… Thank you.”

     “Your wrist too.”

     “Yes.”

     “You have some on your chin.”

     “Yes.”

     What was this! I was about to clean it like I did with my nephews and nieces.

     Soon after, Songha’s clean mouth opened.

     “Do you really think I will be good at acting?”

     “I think so.”

     “He said that kids like me should never become actresses.”

     What did you say?

     “Actors who were originally idols had make pain-staking efforts to rid themselves of that tag. If someone like me who wasn’t good at acting and had nothing to show was to become an actress, I would be insulting my seniors… And that I was taking away the chance new actors could have and to not even show myself and quit acting lessons.”

     “… Your acting instructor said that?”

     Songha nodded her head.

     I was speechless. That she should never act, not show her face? If anyone heard those words, of course, they would quit! Wasn’t this person who called himself an instructor completely crushing a young girl’s ambitions? With what thoughts did he say that?

     “Songha. Did he really say that?”

     “What kind of person is that? Why would he say such things?”

     “You frustrating kid! Why did you who is so good at speaking roughly to us just listen to that? Why didn’t you tell us?!”

     The other girls were fuming with anger. Songha looked like she had more to say and was avoiding their eyes.

     I abruptly got up.

     “I’ll be back.”

     I will go up to the office and find the instructor’s phone number, then I will ask him why he said that to Songha.

     I pressed the fourth-floor button but the elevator stopped at the first floor. And someone I had met once or twice in the company got on. With an incredibly serious expression.

     What happened?

     The bearded middle-aged man grilled someone.

     “Why isn’t Sung Dowon coming? Where is he right now?”

     “He was in the middle of a photo shoot…”

     “Is a photo shoot the problem right now?!”

     “They said they stopped everything and are on their way here. They will be here soon.”

     “Did you check with Sung Dowon? How much of it is real?”

     “That is…”

     “Wait.”

     The bearded man glanced at me who was in the corner.

     “Let’s talk when we get up. And tell Sung Dowon to come right away.”

     The elevator arrived at the fourth floor. As soon as I got off, the elevator went up.

     The sixth floor, where the CEO’s office was.

     I instinctively knew.

     It had started.

     

      Chapter 27

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL: emptycube

     -The person you are calling is busy at the moment, please leave a message after the beep…

     Beep.

     I hung up and slouched on the chair.

     It was already the fourth time. For some reason, the acting lesson teacher who swore at Lee Songha was so busy that he wouldn’t answer the phone.

     To be honest, my mind was a tangled mess long before this.

     I blankly stared up at the ceiling.

     Just what kind of conversation were they having up there?

     Did Sung Dowon arrive?

     How was the situation progressing?

     In my head, I wanted to run up immediately, but I knew too much to do that. To be exact, I had a lot of snippets of information, but, because I wasn’t certain, I couldn’t open my mouth.

     “… Let’s try to piece things together as much as I can.”

     First, what I was almost certain about.

     Sung Dowon attended the perverted sex party as did the married woman, and the anonymous man approached W&U through some newspaper company. The newspaper company demanded money if they wanted to quietly cover it up and W&U gave the anonymous man money to shut his mouth.

     But then they said that it eventually came out in the news?

     Vulgar baseless rumors started to spread and the fact that W&U tried to cover it up with money and that there was photo evidence revealing it, dropping Sung Dowon’s public image to the floor.

     And not long after, the situation reversed. This was the critical point.

     I could assume that everything up until now was true. As it had come directly from Director Park’s mouth.

     Secondly, the information I obtained about Sung Dowon from the future with a bad signal.

     The fact that his acting career might have ended after falling for ‘their trick’.

     Let’s put that aside for now. As I haven’t done anything to change this future yet.

     The nuance from their ‘trick’ as well as Director Park’s words about how the situation reversed. Because of this, I was suspicious that this might be a trap set up by Sung Dowon’s previous company, Pure Star Entertainment… But this was only my thought. I wasn’t certain.

     It was this part that was frustrating.

     If I knew who the anonymous person was I could come forward right now.

     I hoped that I would see the future once again just before the incident occurred, but there were no hints of my foresight ability activating after making multiple different attempts.

     What could I say at this time?

     ‘I think this is a trick someone cooked up to mess with Sung Dowon. I know this sounds crazy but don’t believe everything that comes up and be suspicious of the possibility of a mastermind. There’s photo evidence. Right? You have to be suspicious about that.’

     I couldn’t say this. It was simply too crazy.

     Above all, if this was normal, I shouldn’t know anything about this situation. If they ask me how I knew there was a photo, I had nothing to say. Even if I assumed I could get away with it by lying, I had to lie within my bounds. Lies would breed more lies and it would undoubtedly turn into a snowball effect.

     Then let’s change my direction.

     ‘Though it might seem like it’s the worst possible situation, it’ll feel like a sudden shower once it passes. The situation will reverse soon. So there’s no need to be so worried.’

     No! These were words of a crazy person! I felt like I needed to tell them to use talismans!

     I was pulling my hairs, trying to come up with something.

     Should I just say I have a supernatural power? Though I am worried about the consequences, this was the easiest lie.

     It wasn’t a bad card. Although I would be called crazy, if the events go on like I said, I’d be reevaluated.

     The lead shaman manager. Haha.

     “Ahh….”

     “What are you doing?”

     Surprised, I turned around to see Kim Hyunjo standing there with a sunken face.

     “Chief. Hello.”

     “I told you to rest today, why did you come? You don’t know when you’ll have a break after today.”

     “I had something to say to the girls so I came for a moment. But chief, why are you…”

     “I came here for a meeting with other chiefs, but it got pushed back. Quickly go home once you’re done. The company is a bit restless today.”

     I gulped down my saliva.

     “Is it because of Sung Dowon?”

     Showing a surprised face, he came close to me and asked.

     “How do you know that? Don’t tell me there have been articles?”

     “No. I overheard some people talking about it in the elevator. But…”

     That moment.

     The foresight I had been waiting for activated.

     “About that photo evidence.”

     With no time to adjust, I opened my ears wide to listen to Director Park’s words.

     Considering the fact that they opened with the photo, was this a continuation from before?

     “It was photoshopped.”

     photoshopped?

     As expected, they did something to the photo evidence!

     “While it’s true Sung Dowon attended the party, they couldn’t get a good picture. So they skillfully combined the pictures and because it was true that Sung Dowon attended the party, they realized this fact too late. Afterwards, W&U sued the newspaper company for abusing them without proper investigation. Articles were deleted and they released the truth and caused a commotion. Back then, I too received tons of angry phone calls.”

     It was almost complete. Now if only I could learn who was behind all this…!

     “Who was the one who created the photo and did all this?”

     I wanted to kowtow in front of Reporter Song if it was possible.

     “Well, it ended with… a fraudulent paparazzi created the photo and was caught trying rip money off of Sung Dowon and W&U, right?”

     “That was how it ended that time.”

     When my future self agreed, Reporter Song tilted her head.

     “Then, are you saying the truth is… different?”

     “There’s an incredible behind-the-scenes story.”

     “What was it?”

     “The mastermind behind all this was in fact…”

     In fact?

     “Sung Dowon’s previous company.”

     There we go!

     I knew it was like that. I totally knew it!

     I felt a refreshing sensation overcome me knowing that everything fell into place as I expected. It was sort of like guessing the twist of a movie long before it happened?

     Didn’t this mean that even without my foresight ability my senses were quite good?

     “That was Pure Star Entertainment? It’s been so long that I don’t remember too well.”

     Director Park asked my future self.

     It was so long ago that she didn’t remember? Pure Star Entertainment went under?

     “That’s right. Pure Star.”

     “That company had animosity towards Sung Dowon and W&U. So they acted that way to tarnish their image.”

     “Even so, to go as far as to photoshop a photo…”

     “They probably never intended on revealing the photo to the public in the beginning.”

     What?

     “It was enough if Sung Dowon and W&U believed them and followed through with the deal. Sung Dowon had a sex party with a married woman? If it was a tabloid, they could have covered it up, but they even had a secret deal to try to cover it up? That’s bad. If articles came, then suspicions would become the truth and they would spread in an instant. It was quite an effective method. Even if it was revealed that the photo was photoshopped, it would have already tarnished Sung Dowon’s reputation.”

     “Ah… So even if they tried to explain, it must have left an impact on Sung Dowon. Since you said he was a top star, if his popularity continued, I should know of him, but the name is unfamiliar to me. I don’t even think I’ve heard of it before…”

     “Hey.”

     I came to my senses as if a light went on in my head.

     “But what?”

     “That…”

     Yeah, that’s right.

     Everyone’s interests would be peaked if there were articles exposing a celebrity’s personal life, but there wouldn’t be much attention about an article on their explanation. Celebrities with bad rumors would come out to the public to explain, but there would still be people who believe those rumors.

     It required tremendous effort to repair that tarnished image.

     Then, to move this situation toward the best direction, I needed to stop it before an article comes up and before the incident becomes bigger.

     When was an article going to spread?

     A few days later? Or… maybe today?

     “If you’re tired, quickly go home and rest. I have work to do so I’m leaving.”

     “Chief!”

     I hurriedly grabbed Kim Hyunjo.

     “What?”

     “I, about Sung Dowon’s incident.”

     Kim Hyunjo looked around before saying.

     “I don’t know what you’ve heard but act like you know nothing. Don’t get too interested.”

     “There’s something that’s a bit fishy.”

     “Hmm?”

     “The manager of Lemon Girls. Pure Star Entertainment, Sung Dowon’s previous company…”

     “That guy from before? What about him? Did you meet him again?”

     Though I felt sorry about using someone as an excuse… No, I wasn’t sorry. He picked a fight with me on the first shoot for K-Star and kept staring at me whenever I saw him afterwards.

     “When that person was picking a fight, he kept acting like he would get revenge, but it didn’t seem like it was solely directed at Neptune. Do those unethical bastards at W&U teach you to do your job like that? You’ll wake up to your senses once you suffer…”

     “What? He said that?”

     “Now that I think about it, it seemed like he had something up his sleeves.”

     I heard that real scammers mixed 90% truth and 10% lies.

     Well, what could you do if the person who got picked on felt that way? Were they going to open my head and check?

     My heart was beating furiously, but I tried to keep as serious of an expression as I could.

     “I don’t think this is something just the two of us should know. Follow me.”

     Kim Hyunjo secretly clenched a fist once before getting up.

     We got on an elevator and went up. During the short time it took to get to the 6th floor, I organized what I would say. Perhaps it was because of the adrenaline, but my mind was spinning smoothly.

     Swish.

     The elevator doors opened.

     

      Chapter 28

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL: emptycube

     I took a deep breath and exhaled. Perhaps it was because of the incident, but the air up here felt different from the lower floors. A heavy atmosphere took hold of this place, making it seem like I shouldn’t breathe heavily.

     I saw a few familiar faces in front of the CEO’s office. PR Team Leader Park who was holding the doorknob, about to go in, and the balding management business director next to her.

     Sung Dowon’s manager, who I had met last time, had his head down like a sinner.

     Then did this mean Sung Dowon had already arrived?

     “Hey. You…”

     The director let out a big sigh that seemed as if it could collapse the ground.

     “Just how are to managing your actor to get into this kind of trouble?”

     “I-I am sorry. That day, Dowon hyung told me not to follow and go home first…”

     “So you just let him go and you went home by yourself?!”

     “He said it was a private party with a few close acquaintances… I-I really didn’t know it was that kind of party…”

     As if he couldn’t handle this situation, Sung Dowon’s manager’s lips were trembling. His face was already deadly pale.

     “Director. Team Leader Park.”

     “Huh?”

     As we approached, the director became surprised.

     “Why’d you come here? And why is that guy behind you? Are you trying to let everyone know?”

     “That’s not it…”

     When Kim Hyunjo transmitted what I said to the director, his eyes shined.

     “It was a guy from Pure Star Entertainment?”

     “Yes. I thought it would be good if I told you so I brought him here.”

     “Pure Star…”

     The director pondered momentarily before looking at Team Leader Park and asking.

     “Seems a bit suspicious, doesn’t it?”

     “Very. Director should know as well. That company is a bit…”

     “Wait for a bit.”

     The director knocked on the office door and went in. I saw a few faces as the door quickly opened and closed.

     Two men wearing suits, one was the bearded man from the elevator. CEO Baek Hansung sat with an incomprehensible expression.

     And Sung Dowon.

     He always had a bright, gentle smile on his face, but it was currently stiff like a rock.

     “Haa…”

     As soon as the director entered the office, Sung Dowon’s manager fell to the floor, pulling his hair.

     Both sides looked like they were about to collapse.

     “It looks like the legal team is inside… are they going to file a lawsuit?”

     When Kim Hyunjo asked Team Leader Park, she tilted her head.

     “I don’t know.”

     Now that I thought about it, there were no talks about W&U filing a lawsuit against the anonymous man in the future.

     Why?

     Even if Song Dowon was a nationally recognized celebrity, taking a picture without permission, invasion of privacy as well as threatening, weren’t these crimes enough to shut him down? There were plenty of times when Hollywood actors would sue the paparazzi. If they just filed a lawsuit against them before the incident exploded…

     “If we file a lawsuit, there will probably be quite a few who will rush here trying to dig something up. If this story gets out, we have so much to lose.”

     “Then…”

     “If we can stop him by giving him money, this will probably be the best.”

     Ah, so that was how they sunk deeper into the depths of despair.

     A few minutes that felt like hours passed and just then, the office door opened.

     Then the director pointed at me.

     “Jung Sunwoo.”

     “Yes?”

     “The CEO wants to hear your story personally… so come in.”

     The door of the office was opened wide.

     “There’s no need to be nervous. Just tell us what you heard.”

     Kim Hyunjo whispered to me while patting my back.

     The moment I entered through the frame of the door, 50,000 thoughts went through my head. The benefits I would get after everything was settled well, the recognition from the company, a raise, a bonus, from those to the curses and disadvantages I would receive if it failed to go the way I imagined.

     Either way, the door was opened and I entered the office.

     Thud.

     Team Leader Park who followed in behind me closed the door.

     When I lifted my head, everyone inside the room, I really meant everyone, was staring at me. Especially Sung Dowon and the bearded man, they seemed to bore holes in me with their stares.

     “I am Jung Sunwoo of Management Team 3.”

     I cleared my throat before I talked, acting calm. Of course, my mind wasn’t calm at all.

     No matter how courageous one was, if they stood here with my guilty feelings, their hearts would probably freeze.

     What was really fortunate was that I saw the photo on top of the table.

     The photo evidence was both the trigger and the key to solving this incident.

     Figuring out I was looking at the photo, the bearded man flipped it over, but it was already after I had examined it.

     It was because my instantaneous observation skills had improved greatly after I got my foresight ability.

     Sung Dowon and a woman, whose identity was covered by a mosaic, were captured in the photo and the composition and background were enough to put him in a bad light.

     “What did the Pure Star Entertainment manager say?”

     CEO Baek Hansung was amazingly calm even in this situation.

     I tried to answer as calmly as possible.

     “He asked if ‘those unethical bastards at W&U teach you to work that way? You’ll wake up to your senses after being stabbed in the back.’”

     I supplemented what I said to Kim Hyunjo before.

     They say people get better at lying the more they lie, lies were easily flowing from my mouth.

     “You don’t have any more than that?”

     “Yes. Only… now that I think about it, it seemed that they really did have something up their sleeves.”

     CEO Baek Hansung fell into a state of deep thought for a moment while the bearded man told me in a domineering voice.

     “Hey. If there was something fishy, you should have reported to us immediately. Did you not know that our relationship with them isn’t good since Dowon left his contract with them for us?”

     “That manager is known to come from a bad background. There were rumors about him threatening other managers so I just thought that he was trying to make me scared at that time. But if something really happened to Sung Dowon, then I thought I should let you know… I am sorry for telling you so late.”

     “No.”

     The director shook his head.

     “It only seems like this because this incident occurred. It was normal for you to think that way back then.”

     “Anyways…  Pure Star Entertainment are bastards who could do this and even more. There are only pure gangsters over there.”

     “It’s only a belief, we aren’t certain.”

     “That’s that but…”

     “And if they wanted to get back at us, why would they make things so complicated? Since they have photo evidence, they could have just released it to the press… Who are the guys who sent the photo anyways?”

     Team Leader Park shook her head.

     “They are a small internet news company called True Media, but when I searched them up, I could only find abusing articles. They said that they would never reveal the identity of the photographer. To protect their informants.”

     Completely pissed, the bearded man cut in.

     “What informants, those paparazzis. Lawyer Lee. How about we scare them by saying we’ll file a lawsuit?”

     “Then we said we would send them a certification of contents, they just laughed. They are saying that if we file a lawsuit, we’d be the ones who lose. If this breaks out, Dowon’s image will fall and since it’s an issue of ethics, if the marketing companies Dowon is contracted to invoke a cancellation clause, we might even have to pay up billions of won.”

     “On top of that, they aren’t acting as if they are demanding money to shut them up. They act as if they are selling the photo to us and if we don’t buy it, they might sell it to the Chinese press. They are quite familiar with this industry.”

     Huh?

     Didn’t Director Park say that the incident started with the anonymous man demanding money?

     Did… something change?

     Wait. Was it that?

     It could be that the final victor, W&U, had changed the story and revealed it as the truth. As history only remembers the victors. Since it would look more like W&U and Sung Dowon were victims if they said that the anonymous man approached them demanding money from the start.

     My expectations would have to be correct… It would be critical if something changed right now.

     “I am sorry. I must have been crazy.”

     Sung Dowon said with a dark expression.

     “No matter how curious you are; you shouldn’t go to those things…”

     “No, no. At your age, you could be curious about those things.”

     The bearded man consoled him, but his expression didn’t change.

     “It’s not like there was an exchange of money, and it’s not like you did drugs or gambled. It’s possible that a few close friends came together and did it after drinking. There are tons of kids who do that.”

     “…”

     “But why did it have to be a married woman… And for the photo to capture you guys like that…”

     Sung Dowon clenched his fist at those words.

     “The photo only turned out that way, I never touched her.”

     “Yeah. We believe you. We do but…”

     “I don’t even remember her face very well. I didn’t even know she was married. I really…!”

     “What’s important is that the photo turned out like that.”

     CEO Baek Hansung cut him off. Sung Dowon, who was expressing his victimized feelings, bit his lips.

     “’I did go to a sex party, but I didn’t sleep with a married woman.’ Is that what you’re going to say in interviews?”

     “That… Haaa.”

     “I’ll look into whether this incident has anything to do with Pure Star Entertainment, so just make sure that this doesn’t get leaked to the public. If they are a paparazzi with no relations with Pure Star, then we’ll just give them money and end it. If this is related to them…”

     CEO Baek Hansung’s eyes sharpened.

     I took a deep breath.

     To be honest, I wanted to say this earlier, but because I couldn’t guarantee that the photo was 100% photoshopped so my tongue froze at that moment.

     However, if I wanted to butt in, I had to do it before it was too late.

     … Still, let’s not go all in and leave some room to patch things up.

     I looked around and approached Team Leader Park, whom I was most comfortable with.

     “Team Leader.”

     “Yeah?”

     Team Leader looked at me with an expression that read, ‘Oh, right. You were here too’.

     “I saw that photo earlier.”

     “Oh, you saw that? Please be careful… No, let’s talk about this outside.”

     “But that photo, I think it was photoshopped.”

     “What? Photoshopped?”

     Again. Just like when I first came into the office, everyone turned their gazes towards me.

     If I hesitated here, I wouldn’t be able to do anything.

     “… You, this is a serious issue.”

     “So that’s why I kept wondering about it and had come to tell Team Leader.”

     “Did it really look like it was photoshopped?”

     “Yes. Earlier, Sung Dowon said that the photo was taken like that, but when I look at it, it seems like it was put together that way. How about we have a professional look at it before we take action…”

     “What kind of bullshit are you spouting?!”

     The bearded man flipped the photo and stared intensely at it.

     “Aren’t you just saying that? Because we keep complimenting you, now you can’t distinguish when and where you can butt in… Where does it look like it was photoshopped?”

     Honestly, I didn’t know.

     However, Director Park from the future said that they figured out that it was photoshopped later and if it was a photo that could easily be exposed, Pure Star Entertainment wouldn’t have even started this.

     “I don’t see any signs of it being photoshopped? Don’t tell me you’re talking about the mosaic?”

     “You said that Dowon definitely went to the party. Then what was photoshopped?”

     “No matter how I look at it, it looks real to me?”

     Team Leader Park, the director, the lawyers and even Sung Dowon were huddled around the photo and mumbling.

     CEO Baek Hansung silently looked at me.

     “Jung Sunwoo!”

     The director called me again.

     “Did you ever study photography?”

     “I never studied it, but I do have some interest in computer graphics.”

     I was interested in it. Just, I didn’t know anything about it.

     In Hollywood movie-making films, they talked quite a lot about computer graphics. I watched those parts with interest. Because they were interesting.

     The bearded man stared at me once again.

     “You really are talking because you know something, right? This is a huge incident with billions of won on the line. This isn’t something that will be settled with a ‘Sorry, I was mistaken’ later.”

     The director gestured at me with a serious expression.

     “Come here and explain properly. Does it really look photoshopped? Which part?”

     “It’s a feeling so it’s hard for me to explain in words…”

     “What?”

     “When you look at the photo as a whole, doesn’t it look at bit awkward?”

     “It looks awkward?”

     They looked back at the photo with their eyes narrowed as if they were looking at a Magic Eye photo.

     “Hmmm…”

     “I still can’t see it…”

     Taking this opportunity, I drew in a particular person I had thought about beforehand.

     The person who wanted to believe my words the most.

     “Umm… Sung Dowon. Are there any suspicious parts about the photo?”

     

      Chapter 29

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL: emptycube

     “Huh?”

     “That day. I’m asking if there definitely was a situation where your picture could have been taken…”

     I chose my words carefully as I asked Sung Dowon and his eyes bulged.

     “I thought the photo came out like this because there are cases where the photo gets distorted depending on the angle…”

     You thought?

     “It is a bit weird. I don’t remember being so close to this woman.”

     My heart was swept away.

     Due to Sung Dowon’s involvement, I was able to overcome an obstacle.

     And, looking at his reaction, the chances this photo was photoshopped went up.

     “Dowon. Mm… Is it not because you were drunk and can’t remember?”

     “Team Leader. I don’t drink until I black out. Because I’m scared I might make a mistake…”

     Sung Dowon said as he bit his lips.

     “Though I was a bit more drunk than usual that day…  My memory is clear. I know this is an emergency, but can’t we let a professional see like he suggested?”

     Sung Dowon’s words were undoubtedly more influential than mine.

     I couldn’t tell if those people believed in Sung Dowon or not, but either way, they were more seriously discussing the authenticity of the photo.

     “Come, give it here.”

     “Yes.”

     CEO Baek Hansung, who received the photo, rubbed his chin as he mumbled.

     “Photoshopped…”

     Soon after, he placed the photo down and asked the lawyer.

     “How much time do we have?”

     “Not much. The other side is urging us to answer if we are going to buy it or not immediately, if we keep dragging it on, they might pass it over to someone else.”

     Team Leader Park let out a sigh and added in.

     “The national press is a problem, but if this goes over to the Chinese press, there’s nothing we can do. That neighborhood is chaotic enough to slap Hollywood in the face… If the photo is real, we won’t be able to handle what comes after.”

     “Team Leader Park.”

     “Yes, CEO.”

     “Immediately contact a few trustworthy photo experts and request them to check the photo. Since we’re against time, ask them to do it as quickly as possible.”

     Team Leader Park, who received the order, immediately picked up the photo and left the office.

     “And…”

     CEO Baek Hansung was about to say something before he looked at me.

     “Jung Sunwoo?”

     “Yes?”

     “What do you think we should do now? Tell me your thoughts.”

     It felt like getting attacked suddenly while I was relaxed.

     “CEO. He’s just a new recruit, what does he know…”

     “I just want to listen to a young man’s thoughts.”

     CEO Baek Hansung cut the bearded team leader off and nodded at me.

     I gulped down my saliva. It almost felt like I was being interviewed by the CEO.

     I could foresee what sort of turning point this instant would be in my life.

     “My thoughts are… that we should wait until we get the results and try to drag it on.”

     “If we do that, the deal might completely crumble. Even taking that risk?”

     “If this is Pure Star Entertainment’s trick, it might be leaked that we tried to cover this up with money. If that happens, there will be quite a few people who won’t believe the photo is fake even when it’s unveiled. They might think we gave them money because we had something to hide.”

     I used what the future Director Park said as a background and added what I wanted to say on top of that.

     And, to my surprise, it came out much more smoothly than I expected.

     “And what’s more, they might be disgusted that we tried to cover it up and criticize us. I think that if we move hastily now, we might incur a result like that.”

     “What if this photo is real and Pure Star Entertainment had nothing to do with it?”

     Then, that would be huge.

     W&U would be in big trouble and so would Sung Dowon.

     And me… Let’s not think of the worst of the worst case scenarios now.

     “Still, I believe if there is a possibility, we should confirm it. I think that it is better to take the risk now and buy some time to confirm it than getting hit by a storm that we could have easily avoided.”

     I said what I wanted.

     When I glanced at him, CEO Baek Hansung’s expression didn’t seem too bad.

     “Impressive.”

     Was this a compliment?

     “Ah… Thank you.”

     “Okay. You can leave now.”

     “Pardon?”

     The director pointed towards the door.

     With a dazed expression, I bowed and left the office.

     What the?

     Though I did all I could before leaving… What did I have to do now?

     I tried my best to persuade them, but would my words be enough? Don’t tell me they were going to continue with the deal?

     The results of the photo were important. How long would it take before the results came out? Would they come out before articles were published?

     “You, come here!”

     Kim Hyunjo dragged me by the arm and entered the elevator.

     “I was worried so I eavesdropped and I thought my heart was going to collapse. Is there really something wrong with the photo? How certain are you?”

     “I am quite confident.”

     “Can you bet your hand on it?”

     No matter how you put it, betting my hand was a bit…

     When I didn’t reply right away, Kim Hyunjo patted my back.

     “Okay… Don’t be so worried.”

     “Yes.”

     “If you’re fired, I’ll introduce you to another company.”

     Stop it, you’re making me more worried!

     Kim Hyunjo had other things to do so he disappeared, and I returned to the office on the 4th floor and waited for the news. I didn’t think I would be able to rest easy in this state if I went back to my one-room apartment.

     Also, there was another thing I needed to check.

     I tried calling the acting teacher who criticized Lee Songha harshly. I needed to figure out what intentions he had by saying those things.

     My senses told me there was something fishy going on here.

     If the acting teacher had some ulterior motive and tried to break Lee Songha’s acting career by degrading her, then I could use this fact to convince her. Looking at her previous reaction, it didn’t seem like she didn’t like acting itself.

     Then I just needed to show her the synopsis for Cat Guardian Ghost and have to go to the audition…

     -The person you are calling is…

     Damn, just what was this person doing?

     I left a message asking the teacher to call me and then organized Neptune’s next week schedule. I consistently checked sites and searched Sung Dowon’s name. As articles about Sung Dowon could have been published.

     And not long had passed.

     Now, even if they told me to do more, there really wasn’t anything else I could do. When I looked out the window, I saw the moon.

     So my precious break ended like this.

     My throat felt dry so I went out to the lounge.

     I stood in front of the vending machine, wondering what to drink.

     Behind me, I heard female employees whispering to each other.

     “Hey. Isn’t this Sung Dowon?”

     “What?”

     “It’s an article that just got published, ‘Top Star A who kept a clean image… Recently starred in two movies, mobilized 6 million viewers, confirmed ticket selling power’… Read this. No matter how I look at it, it’s Sung Dowon. Does the PR team know this?”

     I left the drink that was dropping down the vending machine and returned to the office.

     I refreshed the screen with celebrity news and didn’t see Sung Dowon’s name in the headlines. Even when I looked at the popular searches, I didn’t see his name up there.

     However, when I searched ‘Top Star A’ like the female employee said, an article popped up immediately.

     {Top Star A who kept a clean image gets thrown into a humongous scandal?}

     When I clicked the headline, it opened an unfamiliar news site, News777.

     There wasn’t even the name of journalist on the ‘Written by’ line. There was only an email to their entertainment department.

     I gulped down my saliva and started to scroll down.

     There have been rumors that National Star A, who is in his twenties and confirmed his ticket selling power by mobilizing 6 million viewers to the theaters in two movies he recently starred in, and a married woman had a sex party and are gathering the attention of interested parties of the entertainment industry.

     We expect that the commotion this will cause when revealed will be as large as how much A has kept a clean, good-mannered image.

     It really was Sung Dowon no matter who looked at it.

     A clean image, explicitly revealing his viewer count, a national star in his twenties.

     There was simply too much information to infer. Those who are interesting in the entertainment world would know immediately…

     One related individual stated carefully that, “A is an actor who excelling in self-management,” and, “The reason why he hasn’t had any scandals until now was because he fully enjoyed himself in secretive places and had never been brought to light”.

     An individual from the company A left rejected the scandal, saying, “No way. This is a baseless story.”

     However, another news company has photo evidence, and specific rumors that they are conducting a deal with A and his current company are spreading, leaving many questioning the authenticity of the photo.

     “… Dear God.”

     For them to move this quickly as well as release the whole situation in one go.

     Even the tabloids were very detailed. Seeing how they included the part about the photo deal, it looked like the person who wrote this knew exactly what was going on.

     On top of that, what was this? A baseless story?

     They had an interview with someone from Pure Star Entertainment?

     Maybe this article was actually written by Pure Star Entertainment?

     When I opened the comment section, there were already tons of comments.

     -The hell? Trapped Sung Dowon.

     -If you’re going to implicitly reveal the identity of the person, then you should reveal who the related individual is.

     -I knew something would explode about Sung Dowon one day. I heard from someone I know that he plays really dirty.

     -I screenshotted you. Be ready to be sued for libel.

     -Sung Dowon lived off his clean image and now he’s fallen. Kekekeke.

     When I searched even further, there was already criticism of Sung Dowon by name. There was another article. This time, it even included his initial by calling him ‘Top Star S’.

     At this rate, it seemed an article with his actual name on it wouldn’t take long to be released.

     It would spread like wildfire on social media and rise up on the ranking of popular real-time searches. If that happened, then Sung Dowon’s image would drop to the floor like they said in the future… Finished.

     I let out a heavy sigh and flopped on the table.

     I was frustrated and dejected.

     I sort of expected my invention would change things but was it going to end this way eventually?

     Once they finished assessing the photo and the fact that it was photoshopped comes to light, W&U would start their counterattack, but what if Reporter Song’s words were correct?

     If this event was going to become a huge obstacle for Sung Dowon’s acting career, then it was already spilled milk even if they tried to counterattack later.

     What would Sung Dowon be doing right now?

     He probably read the articles, right?

     It was a situation where everything he accomplished up until now and his future could be completely destroyed. He was pale before so he should be losing his mind right about now?

     When I thought about Sung Dowon, I felt guilty for not being able to change the future even though I knew it.

     Was my judgment wrong?

     Should I have used another method or asserted myself more aggressively?

     “Haa, if only the photo assessment came out early…”

     That was so regretful.

     If the results came out quickly, then they could have ended this situation.

     Of course the professionals wouldn’t be playing around. They were probably late carefully examining the photo…

     “Oh good. You haven’t left yet.”

     “…!”

     Surprised, I turned around to see Team Leader Park right behind me.

     No, weren’t they in a hurry? Why was this person here?

     Don’t tell me, they didn’t know yet?!

     “Team leader! Right now, there are articles on the internet about Sung Dowon…!”

     “I know, I’m the PR team leader and you think I wouldn’t know this?”

     Then why were you so relaxed?

     “I already finished writing a press release before coming down.”

     “Pardon?”

     “The articles being published now are being threatened by our employees, saying if they don’t want to get sued they need to immediately delete the articles. Our press release will be published by a news company in a few minutes. Then the reporters writing articles right now are going to throw what they have out and write a ‘happening’ article with our press release in mind.”

     I was dazed and confused.

     So… what she was saying was that it wasn’t the end?

     Instead, it was being handled well?

     Team Leader Park softly patted my shoulder.

     “Since we stopped a big accident, I wanted to let you know. I thought I needed to thank you so I came down. You really did a big deed today. If it wasn’t for you, we would have thought the photo was real and made a deal with those guys. Haha, we joked and called you Lucky Charm{1}, but you really are one!”

     Wait! Wait!

     “Then, the results of the photo…”

     “It was photoshopped. We asked 3 professionals and it was unanimous.”

     {1} Bokdongee, I used the Korean version previously.

     

      Chapter 30

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL: emptycube

     {T/N: Bokdongee will be Lucky Charm from now on. Changes to previous chapters have already been made.}

     Ah.

     A sense of relief spread and my stiff body relaxed.

     “I saw the articles just now and thought we were in big trouble.”

     “The results came out not too long ago. The timing was really close. Because articles were published faster than expected, the higher-ups were having a breakdown. Any later and we would have had to fight with reporters on the phone all night.”

     “So is this settled? Completely?”

     “That’s right. How can reporters believe the other side’s words and take their side when it’s already been revealed the photo’s fake?”

     Well, that was true.

     I smiled without realizing it.

     This meant Pure Star Entertainment fell in their own trap.

     If things went as they planned and they released that they had secret dealings with W&U, the public and reporters would be doubtful no matter how much W&U explained the photo was fabricated.

     But now, it was the opposite.

     The deal was nulled and the fact that the photo was photoshopped was exposed.

     Even if Pure Star tried to tell people that Sung Dowon really did attend a sex party and that a married woman was present as well, they would doubt them. And these rumors with no credibility would be covered up like other malicious rumors.

     Just what kind of expressions would those people from Pure Star Entertainment have right now?

     Ah, right.

     “Team leader, what happened with the problem with Pure Star?”

     “The CEO and Dowon were supposed to look into it… No news yet.”

     “Ahh.”

     “Anyways, today’s event would just pass as a brief occurrence. Since it’s true Dowon went to that kind of party, nothing good will come out of it if the topic blows up even more.”

     As I nodded, a thought suddenly popped into my head.

     “Will it be okay to let a reporter I’m familiar with know about this?”

     “Mm?”

     “She might be writing an article about Sung Dowon right now. She’s a probationary employee.”

     Director Park said in the future.

     That she received tons of angry calls from Sung Dowon’s fans after she wrote an article about him.

     Although the incident hadn’t spread widely and there was a high chance she hasn’t written it yet, I still wanted to let her know. She was the greatest contributor to today’s events as things wouldn’t have proceeded so smoothly without her.

     Though, she herself wouldn’t have a clue.

     “Sure. They’ll probably see the news release, but it’s better if you let reporters you know directly. She’s a probationary employee?”

     “Yes.”

     “You’re both young. Make her someone on your side. If you want to continue to do this line of work, you need at least one entertainment reporter who you trust.”

     I saved Park Woojeung’s number the day I got her business card. I thought about saving her under ‘Director Park’, but decided against it in case it resulted in a misunderstanding.

     The phone stopped ringing and I heard a tired voice answer.

     -This is Park Woojeong.

     “Reporter Park Woojeong?

     -Yes, that’s me. Who is this?

     “I’m Jung Sunwoo. The Neptune manager you met last time.”

     -Uhh… Yes! Hello.

     “Did you quit your job as a reporter?”

     I asked because I remembered that she said she was going to quit, but there was no answer.

     As expected, she didn’t quit.

     -Haha, it’ll take me three hours to talk about every single detail, should we start? Or would you like to tell me why you called?

     “Then, I’ll tell you why I called. I called because I was worried you might be writing an article about Sung Dowon.”

     No answer again. Instead, I heard her flustered breathing.

     What the, was she really writing it?

     “Please don’t write it.”

     -Pardon?

     “Sung Dowon’s article. If you already finished writing, please don’t publish it.”

     -I… Ha. I know Sung Dowon is affiliated with W&U, but you should know as well. I’m a probationary employee so I need to write what my superiors tell me to. I don’t want to a speculative article without concrete evidence either…

     “That photo evidence a certain press has. It’s a photoshopped image. And of course, there weren’t any deals either.”

     -What?!

     “We request professionals to check and only now got the results. A press release will be sent as well. All the articles on the internet are going to get pulled. You could also be sued if you put up the wrong article.”

     -You-you said you’ll send a press release?

     “Yes. It might have already been sent.”

     I heard her moving fervently and then her hurried voice.

     -The press release hasn’t arrived yet and when I searched on the internet, there are no articles from W&U’s stance. Would it be okay for me to be the first to release it as an exclusive?

     “An exclusive?”

     -Please, please!

     Would it be okay? Articles from other press companies would be released soon anyways.

     When I looked at Team Leader Park, she nodded as if she heard Reporter Park Woojeong’s voice.

     “Tell her to exclude the specific name and to write that someone from the company told her. That way, I have some leeway to work with. There are reporters who have close ties with our company and if they hear that an exclusive article with an interview came out from somewhere else, they are going to grumble about it.

     I nodded my head and told Reporter Park Woojeong.

     “I can’t have my name released, so please say that an insider told you and could you just end the article as if it was just a passing occurrence. It’s not a good event and I don’t want to blow it even further.”

     -Of course! Thank you so much! I will call you later, drinks are on me!

     Beep. She hung up.

     Probably frantically writing an article?

     After making the call, I started to realize the fact that everything ended well.

     As I leaned against the desk and let out a huge sigh, Team Leader Park grinned.

     “Since I said my thanks, I have to go back up and face the reporters again. There’ll be plenty of calls after sending the press release. Oh, right. Don’t go home yet, wait a bit longer.”

     Team Leader Park pointed upwards.

     “You never know if the higher ups will call for you again. If it wasn’t for you, this incident would have been big trouble. I can only express my thanks, but won’t they have something better? Look forward to it.”

     Team Leader Park left a meaningful smile and went back up.

     Something good…

     My head filled with agitated thoughts before I clicked the refresh button. It seemed the PR team was working hard as I didn’t see any of the articles I saw previously.

     Not long after, an article from G-Today, the place Reporter Park Woojeong worked, appeared.

     It seemed that W&U’s press release was sent to a bunch press companies because a few seconds later, three more articles with ‘Exclusive’ in their titles were published. Then, not long after, the ‘Exclusive’ title dropped from their articles with the exception of Reporter Park Woojeong’s. It really was close.

     As her article was hurriedly written, it was only a few lines, but it contained all the necessary details.

     The fact that a press company almost created a controversy by releasing an article without confirming their facts and that the photo was a fake. The information about how the truth was revealed after W&U sent the photo to three professionals to confirm. Also, that the secret deal with large sums of money was unfounded.

     There was even a sentence about me as the informant.

     What seemed to be the press release which showed W&U’s public stance on this incident was added to the very bottom.

     That they would request the cooperation of an investigative agency and take strong action against those who circulate or reproduce this malicious rumor.

     When I refreshed again, articles about Top Star A had sprung up everywhere. There was more than a page worth of articles. Reactions from social media and entertainment-related communities were being uploaded as well.

     -[Official] The photo that claimed to be evidence of Sung Dowon’s scandal turned out to be fake. Where did the commenter saying that he knew Sung Dowon’s personal life hide now? Please come out.

     -He deleted his comment and booked it.

     -Is there no way to make those guys who enjoyed and increased the controversy eat Gosomi[1]?

     -That’s why we need to hear from both sides in cases like this before we criticize anyone.

     -Poor Sung Dowon… I hope you think that this was just a mishap so next year can be great and forget about. T^T

     -Wow, damn. Photoshopped image. *Shiver* They really have nothing better to do.

     “It’s finally over.”

     It felt as if a great storm passed by.  Though it wasn’t a storm that wreaked havoc in its path, but a thankful storm that brought me benefits.

     I raised my head and looked up at the ceiling.

     Something better… What would that be?

     The first thing that came to mind were the words Sung Dowon said in that hazy future.

     About asking me to be his manager.

     Things went well, but what would happen from here on out? I could consider myself as Sung Dowon’s benefactor, but did that mean that the hazy future I saw would become a reality?

     And I become Sung Dowon’s manager?

     “Hmmm…”

     I ruffled my hair.

     Not long ago, I thought I would have instantly accepted if Sung Dowon asked me to be his manager. He was a top actor that I dreamed of being a manager for and the schedule of girl group managers was too exhausting.

     But now that I thought this could be a possibility, my heart didn’t feel relieved.

     Because of Neptune.

     If I accepted Sung Dowon’s proposal, then would that mean I would have to be separated from Neptune?

     Of course, since we worked in the same company, we could see and talk to each other anytime. But if my assigned group or person changed, that would mean they would leave my hands.

     If that was the case, then everything from them getting first on a music broadcast and gaining popularity, Lee Songha auditioning and getting the part as the interpreter, and even getting her to seriously walk the path of an actress.

     All that would no longer be my responsibility and would fall onto the traitor, Choi Gunyoung.

     That would be… unpleasant.

     Very unpleasant.

     Then what should I do?

     If Team Leader Park’s words were right, then it seemed that the higher ups would give me something. Should I confidently ask them to let me be assigned to both Sung Dowon and Neptune?

     There were many cases where a single manager was assigned to multiple celebrities so it seemed possible. Sung Dowon already had a manager and Neptune had Kim Hyunjo. Well, though I didn’t trust him, they had the traitor too.

     Okay. Let’s do that.

     Since I was going to ask them anyways, let’s resolve Lee Songha’s problem too. There was definitely something up with that lesson teacher. I needed to handle him first.

     Then, once Lee Songha could brush off her trauma and was ready to flip the acting scene on its head, I could ask them to support her a little.

     Ah, though I needed to discuss this with Kim Hyunjo first.

     Since they were having difficulty casting for Cat Guardian Ghost and since they contacted W&U already, it didn’t seem hard getting Lee Songha an audition.

     What was important was what role she would get.

     Vrr.

     As I continued my thoughts, my cellphone vibrated.

     When I checked who it was, it was Kim Hyunjo.

     “Chief?”

     -Are you still on the 4th floor?

     “Yes. I’m in the office.”

     -Then come to the elevator right now!

     What was this?

     When I left, still uncertain, the elevator was on its way up from the basement.

     Was it Kim Hyunjo? Why was he coming from the basement?

     Maybe Neptune was still in the practice room?

     The elevator stopped on the 4th floor and its doors opened. Inside was a slightly excited Kim Hyunjo. Before I could open my mouth, he grabbed my arm and pulled me into the elevator.

     Then, he pressed the button leading to the 6th floor.

     “The CEO is looking for you.”

     “Ah.”

     Kim Hyunjo gave me a strange look before saying.

     “Looking at the articles being published, it looks like the photo was really a fake. You really did believe it, didn’t you? I first thought you were just spouting things with the ambitions of a new recruit and thought you were some crazy person.”

     “I told you I was quite sure.”

     “Hey, then why didn’t you bet your hand on it?”

     No, that was a bit.

     “Right, do you know what happened to Pure Star? If you even get that right, you really have something.”

     “We don’t know about that yet.”

     Although, I am almost 100% certain.

     Slide.

     When we got off the 6th floor, I saw Sung Dowon’s manager pacing back and forth. In the same place he was sitting with his head lowered like a sinner.

     He looked at his cellphone once, then at the closed CEO’s office door. He looked back and forth until he saw us. His expression stiffened when he saw me. An unreadable complex expression passed by in a moment.

     Nod.

     We greeted each other, but the conversation didn’t continue. Sung Dowon’s manager looked back at his cellphone screen. I turned my eyes away from him and grasped the handle of the CEO’s office.

     [1] Gosomi is a snack in Korea, but the comment is a play on words. Goso (고소) is filing a lawsuit in Korean.

     

      Chapter 31

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL: emptycube

     Kim Hyunjo grabbed my shoulder just before I entered the office.

     “For a new recruit, who hasn’t been working for more than a month, to enter the CEO’s office multiple times, you’re going to be successful in the future.”

     When I simply smiled, Kim Hyunjo’s voice became low, almost to a whisper.

     “From what I know, the CEO, Sung Dowon, the director, management team 2 leader and team 3 leader… Younghoon hyung are inside. If there are any problems inside, just ask Younghoon hyung.”

     “Yes. Thank you.”

     I had a few meetings with the management team 3 leader in the past so I knew him a bit.

     He was a refreshing and funny person.

     “Then I’ll be going now.”

     I left Kim Hyunjo and Sung Dowon’s manager behind me and entered the office.

     Like he told me, there were 5 people holding a discussion in the office. CEO Baek Hansung was sitting in the top seat, while Sung Dowon and the bearded management team 2 leader were sitting on the left sofa, and the director and management team 3 leader were on the right.

     Because they had been able to overcome this crisis well, everyone was happy, except for the team 2 leader. He looked at me with unpleasant eyes.

     Just what was wrong with him? I had never seen him before so why did he hate me so much?

     “Oh my, if it isn’t our team 3’s Lucky Charm, come here and sit.”

     Team 3 leader said jokingly as he tapped the seat next to him. I greeted everyone and went towards him. When I comfortably sat down and looked up, I saw Sung Dowon directly in front of me, smiling softly.

     Wait. This layout seemed somewhat familiar.

     I recalled why in a few seconds.

     Last time I came here, I was too busy and the haziness in the office I remembered was too severe to make out… but now that I was sitting directly in front of Sung Dowon, I figured it out.

     This was the office I was in the first time I experienced the faulty future.

     “Your name is Jung Sunwoo, right?”

     CEO Baek Hansung asked me abruptly.

     “That is correct.”

     “Did you hear the results of the photo?”

     “Yes. I heard from Team Leader Park.”

     “I heard our employees call you team 3’s Lucky Charm. I guess we could call you W&U’s Lucky Charm from now on.”

     CEO Baek Hansung, who had been complimenting me, suddenly asked me another question.

     “Do you have a car?”

     “Pardon? No, I don’t have one yet.”

     “You plan to get one though?”

     “Yes.”

     Of course, I planned on buying one. I simply didn’t have the money.

     “Then pick one out. The company will pay for it.”

     “… Excuse me?”

     Give what to me?

     I looked at him thinking I misheard him, but the director added in while laughing.

     “Why are you hesitating? You have to quickly accept when he offers you these things.”

     “Ah, thank you.”

     I was thankful, no, it was so abrupt that I became tongue-tied.

     “But what are you going to do if he picks out a something like a Rolls Royce? Kids are scary these days.”

     “Then I’ll have to give him mine and walk.”

     Light laughter sounded out at his joke.

     Holding onto the photo with Sung Dowon and the married woman, CEO Baek Hansung quietly said.

     “What’s more important than the fact this photo is fabricated, is that Pure Star really did have a hand in this. It’s a relief we knew ahead. How shitty would we feel if we later found out that we had fallen for their tricks?”

     As expected, it was Pure Star Entertainment.

     So that was why he offered me a car… No. Let’s think about that seriously when I have more time.

     Then what would happen to Pure Star now?

     Taking photos without permission, fabrication and threats would be enough to file a lawsuit. Recalling what Director Park said in the future, it didn’t seem as though Pure Star Entertainment had continued to be victorious.

     “Then Pure Star Entertainment…”

     “Sung Dowon and I are going to meet their CEO tonight. That’s a problem we’ll deal with.”

     I was curious what kind of conversation they would have.

     It didn’t seem like they would simply talk to each other.

     “Anyways, that’s my present. Dowon said he also has something to say.”

     CEO Baek Hansung fell back and this time Sung Dowon turned his torso towards me. He slightly bowed his head in greeting before looking directly at my eyes and saying.

     “You are Sunwoo, correct? I am really grateful about today’s incident. You are my benefactor.”

     “Pfft, that’s too much…”

     The team 2 leader grumbled, but Sung Dowon firmly shook his head.

     “He is my benefactor. If it wasn’t for Mr. Sunwoo, I would have fallen for their trap and my acting career might have been over. So that’s why…”

     The moment I heard these words I had continuously thought about to the point of memorizing them.

     The faulty future had become my present.

     “I would like Sunwoo to be my manager.”

     Just when I was making my way through a torrent of complicated emotions.

     The team 3 leader clicked his tongue and said.

     “If it was anyone else, I would have said something about them taking away our good recruit, but I can’t resist our top star.”

     “Sorry, team leader.”

     “Oh well… Nothing I can do.”

     The team 3 leader placed his hand on my shoulder.

     “What do you think? Do you want to work with Dowon?”

     “Ha, how frustrating. Do you really need to ask him?”

     The team 2 leader cut in with a snort.

     “Honestly, can we even compare Neptune and Sung Dowon? Even Jang Seomoon was able to become Dowon’s manager by overcoming multiple candidates. He’s offering someone, who hasn’t even worked for a month, a position like that. Who would be crazy enough to refuse?”

     “Why do you have to say it like that? No one knows what will happen in the future. Who knows whether Neptune will suddenly increase in popularity next year? Neptune’s on a roll.”

     I knew something for certain.

     Even though they were both team leaders, they didn’t have a good relationship with each other.

     Although they hadn’t started thrusting their fingers at each other, the situation was growing more heated. But there was no mediator. CEO Baek Hansung and the director, they were elegantly drinking their coffee as if this was usual.

     “We need to wait and see to know if they’re on a roll or not.”

     The team 2 leader added flames to the fire by mumbling those words. This time, even I felt angry.

     “Huh, what kind of dogshit manner is this? Why are you pouring cold water on someone else?”

     “Who’s the one with dogshit manners? The guy next to you poured cold water on our Chaeyoung’s next project. Chaeyoung is a sensitive girl, but after meeting him, she became even more emotional.”

     Son Chaeyoung’s name was mentioned out of the blue.

     I was wondering why this team 2 leader I had never seen hated me, and now I knew.

     “We’re lucky things went well this time, but I have never seen anyone, who is as meddlesome as him, not mess up. It’s already uneasy leaving him next to Dowon… I’m only letting it pass because we need to find a new manager once Jang Seomoon leaves anyways, and since Dowon likes him.”

     “Wow, this is why your nickname is Mother-in-law.”

     I flinched while listening to their conversation.

     It seemed that Jang Seomoon was Sung dowon’s manager, who was outside. If they said they were going to push him out and place me in his position, didn’t that mean they were going to fire him? Because of this incident?

     To be honest, I thought that this was more of Sung Dowon’s fault than the manager’s… Since it was Sung Dowon who lied and left the manager behind. But the one who was blamed and chased out was the manager.

     Of course, I knew that the relationship between a manager and a celebrity wasn’t as close and familial like in the dramas. Since they were in a relationship tied by business.

     I was well aware that there were many cases where a celebrity would abuse their manager and that the opposite was true as well. I knew that, in the worst cases, they would even end up going to court.

     Though I was well aware of it… This situation felt a little bitter to me.

     Since I felt that I could one day end up like Jang Seomoon.

     “That’s enough. Let’s hear what the person in question has to say. He’s unable to speak because you two team leaders are bickering.”

     The CEO calmed the situation.

     The office quickly became silent. However, I wasn’t able to speak easily. If I accepted, that meant I would be Sung Dowon’s only manager, and if that was the case, it would be impossible to be the manager of both Sung Dowon and Neptune.

     I turned my head to tell the team 3 leader about my worries, but just then, as if he had read my mind, he said.

     “Why? Is it because of Neptune?”

     “Yes. It is an important time for them… Would it be possible to be assigned to both Neptune and Sung Dowon?”

     The team 3 leader showed a complicated expression as he scratched his neck.

     “It’s good that you have a sense of responsibility, but that’s a bit difficult. Dowon has a lot of overseas schedules. He goes to China as if he’s going to lunch and we are planning on going to Hollywood next year. Since he’ll be new there, you’ll have to be next to him on set. You won’t be able to manage Neptune’s schedule with all that.”

     “Ahh.”

     “Maybe if you had the experience of a chief, but you’re currently still learning. This isn’t good for you nor is it good for Neptune and Sung Dowon.”

     The team 2 leader suddenly cut into our conversation.

     “Neptune has another new recruit anyways. You can come after letting him take over. I heard that you wanted to be assigned to an actor. Dowon is the top within our company. You can’t even tell when you’ve hit jackpot…”

     If I looked at it rationally, the team 2 leader’s words were right.

     This wasn’t a choice I needed to think about.

     A top actor who possessed outstanding acting skills and box office performance. Being assigned to an actor like Sung Dowon was something I anticipated and wished for the most when entering W&U. And I had already decided that if I was to change the present, I would choose the better future.

     Neptune was a group who had potential but was only starting to get traction now.

     Sung Dowon was someone who was considered top in the nation and was preparing to go overseas.

     If I asked 10 people, 9 would instantly choose Sung Dowon. And the remaining one would be called crazy.

     Excluding the things that were preventing me from making a decision… When I thought about the connections and experience I would gain overseas, especially in Hollywood, the moment I accepted his offer and how beneficial it would be to my future. This wasn’t a decision worth troubling over.

     But… why wasn’t I able reply right away?

     It felt as if something was clinging to my ankle.

     “Haha.”

     The director laughed as if this was amusing.

     “I never knew you would have so much trouble deciding between Dowon and Neptune. It seemed you’ve gotten quite close to Neptune in such a short time. Should we give you more time to think about it?”

     “Ha, I’m at a loss for words.”

     The team 2 leader hit the table and said.

     “What more do you need to think about? No, we won’t force anyone who doesn’t want to. Do you know how many people would quit their jobs to be Dowon’s manager? There’s no need for more time, decide here.”

     The faces of Neptune, especially Lee Songha who had only today told me her true thoughts, passed by in front of Sung Dowon’s face which was looking at me.

     Then that moment.

     The world flipped over, and the scene in front of me changed.

     “Well… It’s like that.”

     Director Park clicked her tongue and said.

     “Though the relationship between Sung Dowon and Pure Star was originally bad since they both had dirt on each other, they shouldn’t have crossed a certain line… But once Pure Star’s tricks came to light, they had passed a point of no return. That slowly started to worsen until it eventually exploded.”

     What did Director Park say just now?

     Sung Dowon and Pure Star passed a point of no return? It eventually exploded?

     I tried to concentrate harder than ever to decipher Director Park’s words, but then she dropped a bomb.

     “Sung Dowon and Pure Star started to expose each other and had press conferences which eventually led to both a criminal and civil suit in court.”

     “They exposed each other?”

     “Pure Star did a lot of dirty things, but it turned out, they were both peas in a pod.”

     Oh my god.

     

      Chapter 32

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL: emptycube

     “Nothing leaked because Sung Dowon had been carefully managing himself. When Pure Star started to talk, married women weren’t anything special, he really had all sorts of different fetishes.”

     I felt like I was going crazy…

     What was this?

     So Sung Dowon lied? It was a lie that he attended a party like that for the first time out of curiosity. He had just been lucky to not have his photo taken, his claims that he felt dejected and that he never touched that married woman may also have been lies.

     Wow… The back of my head tingled.

     Why did I worry about him?

     If this kept happening, then I might lose my trust in humanity or turn cynical. My soul had just taken a blow.

     Still, how fortunate was I that I took a long time to decide because I kept recalling Neptune. If I accepted his offer to be his manager right away, I might have difficulty breathing right about now.

     Did I have to consider this bad or good luck?

     “So what happened to Sung Dowon afterwards? It didn’t seem like he moved to China either.”

     “He did work on a few projects in China, but they didn’t work out. I’m not too sure myself. Since there were grounds to blame Sung Dowon, W&U had already terminated the contract before the whole thing blew up.”

     “Ha. No one ever thought… Sung Dowon would end up like that.”

     “Is it Dowon or Neptune?”

     The team 2 leader asked right in front of me.

     “I’m sorry.”

     “… What?”

     “I would like to stay where I am now.”

     I didn’t hesitate as I answered and lowered my head.

     When I looked in front of me, the team 2 leader’s eyes had widened as if unable to believe what he had just heard. Everyone was looking at me with surprised expressions.

     In fact, even CEO Baek Hansung revealed a surprised expression.

     “Hey, Luc… No, Sunwoo.”

     The team 3 leader came up close and said in a worried voice.

     “You… Carefully think about it again. I think you might have made a poor choice because this is your first time making such an important decision out in society and because it all happened so suddenly. What’s at risk is too large to decide with loyalty and affection.”

     The director added in.

     “Yeah. Opportunities like this don’t come often. It’s no use if you regret it later.”

     If this really was an opportunity that is.

     When I was about to reply with a decent refusal.

     The team 2 leader snorted.

     “I’m dumbfounded. Dowon asked you personally and you kick him away? You can’t even eat when we spoon-feed you.”

     When you’re giving me something inedible, do you think I’ll open my mouth happily?

     I slowly calmed by breath and replied.

     “While I do know this is a big opportunity, but maybe it’s because Neptune is the first group I’ve been assigned to, I keep thinking of them. They are only now starting to take a step forward… I wouldn’t feel good if I quit now. I am sorry.”

     I did my best to properly tell them my intentions with the appropriate etiquette.

     When I looked back up with my eyes lowered, Sung Dowon was looking at me a strange look.

     “Have you really decided?”

     “Yes. I am sorry.”

     “… I wanted to work with you. How regretful.”

     I was regretful as well.

     I thought that Sung Dowon had the potential to make it in Hollywood. For his outstanding acting skills to be buried by his dirty scandals… I was sad for his talent that had met a bad owner.

     Sung Dowon didn’t say anything else. Since he fell back, no one else suggested me to think about it again. Only the team 3 leader asked me twice more if I was certain. The team 2 leader didn’t even bother to look at me.

     I folded my thoughts on asking about Lee Songha’s acting teacher. Although my senses weren’t incredibly quick, it certainly wasn’t good to bring it up now. It would be better to discuss it with Kim Hyunjo first.

     The awkward moment hung in the air momentarily before I was asked to leave. I got up from my seat.

     The team 3 leader whispered to me with a complicated expression.

     “You worked hard today. First go home and rest. We can talk about this again later.”

     “Yes. Then, I’ll take my leave.”

     I bowed and left the office.

     I closed the door and leaned against it, letting out the sigh I had held back for a while.

     Today was very eventful. I used my head too much that I was exhausted.

     Well, this was how I blew away my chance at becoming the manager of a top star. The notion of becoming a manager of a top star had comforted me when things were tough, but this was how it ended.

     Although I didn’t regret my decision, I still felt a bit dejected.

     “Hey, you crazy bastard.”

     Kim Hyunjo said right in front of me.

     “Aren’t you a real crazy bastard?”

     “Haha…”

     I didn’t know why, but I laughed. Was I really crazy?

     “Can you laugh in a situation like this? What were you thinking when you blew Sung Dowon off….!”

     Kim Hyunjo halted his agitated voice and glanced next to him. Sung Dowon’s manager, Jang Seomoon, was standing there. Kim Hyunjo clicked his tongue and grabbed my arm.

     “Follow me.”

     I followed behind him with swift steps and said.

     “Chief, I have something to say as well. About Songha’s personal acting teacher, Teacher Shim Kyungtaek. It seems Songha heard bad things from her teacher, I think he might be up to something strange…”

     “You’re the strange one right now!”

     “But this is a really important problem.”

     “And is your problem not important? Do you even know what you kicked away just now?”

     We were talking in front of the elevator when we heard a voice behind us.

     “Um, excuse me.”

     When I looked around, Jang Seomoon was walking towards us.

     “Could we… talk for a bit?”

     “Ah, yes.” I nodded my head. The elevator doors opened.

     Kim Hyunjo sighed and got on the elevator by himself.

     “I’ll be in the basement practice room; so come there once you’re done. Okay?”

     “Yes.”

     Jang Seomoon and I went out into the emergency stairwell.

     Underneath the dim yellow light, Jang Seomoon was hesitant for a while.

     I had met this person exactly three times before. All three times weren’t exactly under good circumstances. First was when he came into the washroom with Sung Dowon, he didn’t look at me friendlily. He had turned pale the second time. And I had almost taken this person’s spot not too long ago, so there was no way the mood could be good.

     My mind was complicated.

     Jang Seomoon sighed before saying.

     “Why did you refuse? Being Dowon hyung’s manager?”

     “Ah, because of Neptune.”

     “I heard that… but is that true? I honestly can’t believe it…”

     “It was mainly because of Neptune, but I also have my own reasons for refusing.”

     “Ah…”

     Jang Seomoon wet his lips and continued.

     “Though it probably isn’t the case, but… if you were worried I’d harass you if you accepted, I wanted to tell you that you don’t have to be worried. Since it is a good opportunity for you.”

     “No, I didn’t think…”

     “And even if I don’t get fired, I’m going to quit.”

     If I could, I wanted to tell him.

     That this situation was a blessing in disguise. Although he currently felt like the world was collapsing because he would have to quit being Sung Dowon’s manager, in the near future, he would think he was lucky to be fired now.

     Jang Seomoon roughly tangled his back hair and mumbled.

     “How could I be fired so suddenly after all I did… Haa, fuck.”

     “Honestly, I think Sung Dowon was more at fault…”

     Jang Seomoon stopped momentarily before smiling slightly.

     “You saw my team leader… no, the team 2 leader inside, right? The bearded guy.”

     “Yes.”

     “It might be because he has never been a manager before, but if something good happens, it’s because of the celebrity, and anything bad is because of the manager. He holds grudges so it’s best if you don’t meet him for a while. He probably never thought that you would refuse that offer so his pride must have taken a blow.”

     His last words had a hint of joy.

     “I was already thinking about doing just that.”

     He nodded at my reply and added.

     “And… What you said just now. About Teacher Shim Kyungtaek. That someone who took his lessons was criticized severely by him.”

     “Ah, yes.”

     “I do have something, it’s not certain, though.”

     My eyes widened.

     Since he was someone who had been assigned to an actor until now, he might know something.

     “That’s okay. Please tell me.”

     “I heard this when I had drinks with Chief Jo a long time ago. You know that Son Chaeyoung’s very emotional, right?”

     “Yes.”

     I knew it well.

     But why did Son Chaeyoung suddenly come up again?

     “Chief Jo said that he felt tired to death trying to soothe her since she felt wary and insecure whenever she saw new actors with potential. There are a quite of few actors like her. Since, as long as she does well, her company will promote and treat her better. She doesn’t want to share.”

     “Ahh.”

     “Son Chaeyoung and that acting teacher are close.”

     Now that I thought about it, Kim Hyunjo said it as well. That the teacher taught Son Chaeyoung.

     “Son Chaeyoung really follows him around, calling him, ‘Teacher, teacher’. Well… This is all simply my own speculation from what I’ve heard from others, and I don’t know if there really is something up with them so just take that into account.”

     “Thank you.”

     Because nothing was certain, I would have to check, but it did sound a bit suspicious.

     I would have to talk to Kim Hyunjo and learn more about it.

     “Then take care.”

     “Yes. I hope Neptune does well in the future.”

     We said our farewells, and Jang Seomoon disappeared down the stairs while I took the elevator. I went up to the 4th floor to get my bag, and when I was waiting for the elevator, my phone vibrated.

     “Hello?”

     -Mr. Manager. I am Park Woojeong. Is it okay to talk?

     “It’s fine. I saw the article you published.”

     I could hear her voice that didn’t know what to do because she was so happy from the other side of the call.

     -That was my first exclusive article.

     “Whoa, congratulations.”

     -It’s all thanks to you. Food and drinks will be on me. When are you free?

     “Umm…”

     I thought for a moment before licking my lips.

     “I don’t really have a proper schedule to schedule anything ahead of time.”

     I hadn’t even met with my friends after getting hired.

     -Haha, to be honest, it’s the same for me. Even during breaks, I have to be nervous and wait. If something pops up, I have to cancel all my plans and run over, so it’s a bit hard to set any personal schedules.”

     Ah, break. I suddenly recalled what day today was.

     “… Now that I think about it, today was my break.”

     -Pardon? But what are you doing now? There isn’t much time left.

     “I know, right?”

     We diverted our sympathy for each other with laughter. Hahaha.

     When I hung up after agreeing to set a date when we had time, the elevator arrived at the basement.

     Knock, knock.

     After knocking on the door, I went in and stopped. All four girls of Neptune and Kim Hyunjo. The five of them were looking at me with the same expression.

     Expressions wondering if I was in my right mind.

     “Oppa! Did you really kick away Sung Dowon and come here?”

     Im Seoyoung ran over to me and asked while grabbing both my arms.

     to her, Kim Hyunjo clicked his tongue and said.

     “The girls won’t believe me. Do you understand what sort of unbelievable thing you did?”

     “Is it true?”

     “Yeah.”

     When I nodded my head, Im Seoyoung fell back hesitantly.

     “Really? You really kicked away a top star and came here? After kicking a national star?!”

     “Yeah… Things ended up that way.”

     “Thi-things ended up that way? What the heck! You’re crazy! Crazy!”

     Not only Im Seoyoung, but the other girls were surprised and talking amongst themselves.

     “I told you. He’s crazy. It was already strange he came to work during his break.”

     Kim Hyunjo gestured towards me and said.

     “I was able to sneak a peek, and that Sung Dowon, that top star, requested that he’d like him to be his manager with his head lowered. But then, this guy’s like, ‘I keep thinking of Neptune,’ then didn’t even look back and left!”

     

      Chapter 33

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL: emptycube

     “Oppa, you need to think of your future! The difference between Sung Dowon and us is too large!”

     Im Seoyoung pounded her chest in frustration.

     Lee Taehee showed a rare serious face and said.

     “Don’t worry about us and think about it again. It’s a really big opportunity.”

     “That’s right. Didn’t you say you wanted to be assigned to an actor originally? Then there’s no need to think. Of course, you need to say you are going to be Sung Dowon’s manager.”

     Even LJ, who usually joked around, seriously seconded her words.

     Even Lee Songha, who hadn’t spoken yet, stared at me to the point my face started burning.

     Staying amidst them, my complicated mind started to fade.

     Even if I didn’t see the future, and I chose Neptune over Sung Dowon based fully on my own decision… I might not have regretted this decision.

     I smiled as I answered.

     “I decided after thinking about my life. I didn’t get a good vibe when I thought about being Sung Dowon’s manager. And I think you girls will become bigger successes than Sung Dowon.”

     The reaction to my sincerity was short.

     “Crazy bastard.”

     Kim Hyunjo shook his head.

     “Haa, there’s no use crying over spilled milk.”

     “Really? You can’t change your mind?”

     “The opportunity has passed.”

     Im Seoyoung was the first to flop onto the floor. The other girls and Kim Hyun sat on the ground as well. I continued to hear them say that I threw away my good fortune and came back or that I was a weird person for a while longer.

     Then, after the situation calmed a little.

     “I need to practice harder from now on… I’ll really do my best.”

     The others nodded at Im Seoyoung’s words.

     The girls got up saying they would practice some more, and I told Kim Hyunjo everything I knew about Lee Songha and the acting teacher. I carefully mentioned Son Chaeyoung as well. When the girls joined in with me, Kim Hyunjo showed a serious expression and nodded his head.

     “Okay. Younghoon hyung and I will look into this.”

     He dusted off his seat and sighed when he looked at me.

     “You should go home today and rest, eat something good for breakfast too.”

     Okay, when would I go to work tomorrow?

     “Eat lunch and come to work by 3.”

     “Really?”

     I asked again because I couldn’t believe my ears.

     “Yeah. Since you did something big on your break. I’ll look at your schedule this week and give you another day off.”

     “Thank you!”

     Kim Hyunjo left while waving his hand.

     After saying goodbye and turning around happily, I became startled. Lee Songha was standing right in front of me.

     Ah right, I did have something to say to her.

     “Umm, oppa.”

     “Why? Are you hungry?”

     “Yes. But that’s not it…”

     Lee Songha suddenly bowed her head.

     “Thank you.”

     “Huh?”

     “For paying attention to me. I am sorry for saying this so late. Thank you so much.”

     “… Songha.”

     Just when I was about to answer.

     Huh? This was the second time today.

     My vision changed, and I saw my future twenty years from now.

     With no time to wonder, I heard Reporter Song’s question.

     “It’s a question that I thought of after you said you don’t know how someone is going to end up, but who is the first person who comes to your mind when you think ‘I never thought that person would be this successful’ back when you were a new recruit?”

     I perked my ears because this was a question I was really curious about.

     But while my future self was thinking about the question, Director Park suddenly cut in.

     “Isn’t it Lee Songha?”

     Huh?

     “Who would have thought Lee Songha would suddenly succeed in acting, especially in Hollywood, back when Neptune was only singing and dancing? No matter how many people say you never know which cloud it will rain from in the entertainment world, for Lee Songha, it was more like it started raining in a cloudless sky.”

     This was it.

     A nail.

     A certainty that my thoughts weren’t wrong was nailed into my head.

     My future self bitterly shook his head.

     “That’s the part I’m most regretful of. Songha started acting long after I quit being Neptune’s manager. If I knew that she was talented in acting when she was young, maybe she would be a much more amazing actress now… I always regretted this.”

     “Well, since Lee Songha did start acting in her thirties.”

     “Even though it’s no use saying it now, but to be honest, I thought this when I first saw her.”

     Ah… I could tell what my future self was about to say next.

     Since I thought the same thing when I first saw her.

     “That she should be an actress instead of a singer.”

     The next moment.

     Lee Songha was standing next to me again.

     “Songha.”

     I tried to sound calm as I spoke.

     “To me, it doesn’t look like there’s a problem with you, but a problem with the acting teacher, who taught you. I’ll try to confirm it properly so if you don’t hate acting…”

     I took out the Cat Guardian Ghost synopsis I always carried in my bag.

     “Would you like to read this?”

     Then.

     “Yes.”

     Lee Songha reached out with a smiling face.

     When I woke up the next morning, I felt a stiff happiness in my chest.

     Light shone through the small window in my one-room apartment and tickled my face. My pillow felt soft, and my blanket felt smooth; a smile crept up my face.

     I felt it was worth paying my month rent for a change.

     I stretched and got up. When I looked at the time, it was 1 p.m. Since I slept after 2 a.m. yesterday, I slept a ton. How long had it been? Maybe it was because I hadn’t slept properly in a while, but my head that had been muddled from sleep deprivation cleared and my body felt lighter.

     Yes. This was it. This was how a person should live.

     An employee who leisurely eats brunch before going to work. It felt good.

     I looked at the dusty rice cooker and thought momentarily. It was a pain to cook rice. But I didn’t have enough time to order delivery.

     Eventually, I microwaved some instant rice and set up my meal with the side dishes my sister-in-law brought me. The meal I set up for the first time in a while seemed a little boring so I chopped a few green onions and made steamed eggs. It was a sumptuous feast.

     I ate with my spoon and chopsticks as I opened my laptop and began my daily routine.

     The first thing I did was search Neptune and checked if there were any new articles about them. Well, there wasn’t much today. Only one line in a news article about K-Star?

     I didn’t only check entertainment news but also large community sites many people participated in.

     Luckily, there weren’t any negative comments.

     There should some reaction after the first broadcast.

     , I checked the lineup for winter dramas.

     I may be getting ahead of myself, but I kept collecting information ever since the day I received the Cat Guardian Ghost synopsis, mainly on projects that would compete against it once Lee Songha got the part.

     Time Slip and Mermaid out of Water were picked as the most promising projects out of the three public TV networks, and there were a few projects that caught my eye from cable and comprehensive programming channels[1].

     I was glancing through new articles, and a few headlines in the entertainment section caught my attention.

     Ah, so she ended up choosing this one.

     The article continued to by stating Son Chaeyoung decided to go with ‘Mermaid out of Water’ as her next project, that there were higher expectations and interest due to the popularity of the original and their extravagant casting, and that it was a promising project that might save the continuous line of disastrous rating of public TV miniseries.

     Well, the results of public TV miniseries these days were depressing.

     There were no projects that surpassed a 20% viewership rating in the summer, and it had come to the point where a consistent 12-13% rating was considered a success.

     The stakeholders were all probably hoping for a successful project to come out and break this streak.

     Though, this mermaid drama would go under after hitting a 3% viewership rating.

     Not long ago, I would have been regretted Son Chaeyoung jumping into the sea, but now I was surprised by how much it didn’t concern me. The fact she told me to screw off was secondary, it was more because I felt uncomfortable by my suspicion that she may have played a part against Lee Songha.

     Although I didn’t see it through my foresight, it didn’t feel good. If it was later revealed this wasn’t only a suspicion, then even cursing her to fail wouldn’t be enough.

     I clicked my tongue and opened the comment section. The reactions were explosive due to the popularity of the original. It hadn’t been long since it was published, but there were already hundreds of comments.

     -Whoa, amazing. Son Chaeyoung? January come quickly *shivers*

     -Euaheuah so good T^T I believe in Son Chaeyoung’s Rocco!

     -Is it only me who feels a bit regretful about the matching?

     -It’s just you. Son Chaeyoung is an amazing choice, don’t pour cold water over it.

     -Though there is a bit of a mismatch between their images, I believe Son Chaeyoung’s acting abilities will be able to cover it.

     -It will be a success as long as they follow the original well.

     For now, their reactions were positive and favorable.

     I read other articles before searching Cat Guardian Ghost. There were only a few articles about how strong candidates for the main roles were reviewing it positively before, eventually, turning it down. Compared to the mermaid drama, there were far fewer articles, and comments were hard to find. It definitely lacked in newsworthiness.

     I was looking at them seriously when my phone rang.

     “Hello, mom?”

     -Yeah. Can you talk?

     “Yeah, it’s fine.”

     Now that I thought about it, it had been a while since I called my mom.

     -I packed and sent some side dishes and green onion kimchi. It’ll arrive tomorrow so put them in the fridge when you get home from work. You can’t leave them out for too long.

     “Mom, you should have let dad eat them. Sister-in-law already sends me side dishes.”

     -Even if we eat it at home, we don’t eat much. I made ginger tea by preserving it in honey so put some in hot water and drink it. So you don’t catch a cold.

     “Okay. I’ll do that. And you and father aren’t sick or anything, right?”

     -We’re fine. How’s work? I asked someone whose son works at a broadcasting company, and they said that celebrity managers have it hard.

     “It’s fine, it’s fine. Even yesterday…”

     I recalled something while thinking of something to say to set her at ease.

     I didn’t have the time to think about it because yesterday was so eventful, but didn’t CEO Baek Hansung tell me to pick out a car? And the director brought up the Rolls Royce afterwards… No, let’s forget about that.

     Still, me refusing Sung Dowon’s offer had nothing to do with it, right? Probably?

     “… Mom, I think I’m going to get a car.”

     Though I couldn’t believe it myself.

     -Isn’t it better to lease a place to live once you have the money? And buy a car later.

     “No, I’m not buying it with my own money. The CEO of my company said he’d buy one.”

     -What?!

     Well, this was no surprise since I wasn’t sure even though I heard it personally.

     Her voice was filled with worry and distrust.

     -The company you work for, Double Ent…”

     “W&U”

     -Is it a proper company? It’s not a place with strange scammers, right?

     “It’s a proper company. Mom, it’s quite a big company in this industry. I resolved an incredibly important problem so he said he would buy me one. Don’t worry. I’m not a fool, I wouldn’t accept if something was odd.”

     I tried to explain the best I could, but my mom didn’t seem to buy it at all. There was a 100% chance she would call my brother and sister-in-law for more details. My brother would probably call me later as well.

     I hung up after hearing repeatedly that the world was full of bad people and that I should always be suspicious. By the time I finished my food that had turned cold, it was almost 2.

     Now that I had become accustomed to it, I got ready in an instant and left my one-room apartment.

     Maybe it was because it was a weekday afternoon, but the subway was quiet. I bought some limited edition snacks from the muffin shop in the subway station. I bought some because I was going to work late.

     While waiting for the subway, I went on the group chat that I hadn’t been on for a long time. Maybe it really had been a long time because messages popped up one after another.

     They were from my friends I went to high school with who made me wonder if they were really my friends or enemies sometimes.

     They were guys I met and hung out with constantly, but because I never went out after getting a job, they were all asking me if I was alive or not.

     -I’m not dead. Just think I re-entered military service and forget about me for a while.

     As soon as I sent the message, there were a bunch of replies.

     It seemed like these guys were chatting instead of doing their work.

     -Military? What? It’s that hard?

     -To be honest, you need to buy us food the day you get your first paycheck. I bought beef. I remember exactly how much damn beef you ate that day.

     -Hey, don’t you meet a lot of celebrities as a manager? Get me a date.

     -Me too.

     -Me too.

     These crazy guys.

     I told them to eat well and to stop spouting nonsense.

     It didn’t take long to arrive at work. A big storm passed by yesterday, but things were running today like any other day. When I got off on the fourth floor, a familiar chief-level employee greeted me.

     “Luck Thrower[2], you came?”

     “Yes. Hello… Pardon?”

     [1] Channels that offer all genres of contents. Requires a subscription to cable or satellite.

     [2] So this was the reason why I used Bokdongee instead of Lucky Charm previously. The employee called him Bokdangee, which roughly translates to Luck Tosser/Trasher/Kicker. Let me know what you guys prefer: Bokdongee/Bokdangee or Lucky Charm/Luck Tosser. Edit: I think I might go with Luck Thrower..

     [] []

     

      Chapter 34

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL: emptycube

     I thought the pronunciation was weird just now. {1}

     Did he call me Luck Thrower?

     He wasn’t the only one who called me this.

     “Luck Thrower, you’ve come?”

     “Ahh, he’s that guy? He’s team 3’s Luck Thrower?”

     People I had never talked to before acted as if they knew me as they passed by. There were even people who chattered from a distance.

     What was this?

     It seemed that I wasn’t aware of something. Was it because the news of what happened yesterday spread? Someone tapped my back as I was looking for someone I knew to ask.

     “Luck Thrower, you’re here?”

     It was Kim Hyunjo.

     “Hello, chief. But what are you calling me? What is Luck Thrower?”

     “Rumors that you rejected Sung Dowon spread like wildfire. There are no secrets in this goddamn place. Anyways, your nickname changed from Team 3’s Lucky Charm to Team 3’s Luck Thrower. As the guy who throws away luck.”

     “Ah…”

     “They say the director personally came up with it.”

     My social image, would it be okay like this?

     I was about to think about it more seriously when Kim Hyunjo hurried me.

     “Let’s go down quickly. A film crew will be here soon. Gunyoung went to receive them.”

     “A film crew?”

     “We discussed filming an insert of the girls practicing.”

     There indeed was a schedule for Neptune today. Since the K-Star mission filming would be tomorrow, they said they needed a scene of them practicing to edit in later.

     “But didn’t we schedule it for 5?”

     “They originally planned on filming another team first, but their local shoot is taking longer than expected and the schedule messed up. So they said they’d film us first before going to them. In any case, we’re the easiest to push around.”

     Kim Hyunjo grumbled worryingly on our way down to the basement practice room.

     “Ms. Jieun needs to push them hard. I wonder if she’s going too easy on them in front of the camera.”

     Ms. Jieun was the vocal trainer helping us with the filming today. I saw her in a meeting last time, her face was cute, and she was really short. She had been a faceless singer{2} for a few years before becoming a vocal trainer.

     “Shoots like this are more effective than multiple interviews saying they practice for hours every day or that they try hard. Then viewers will think positively of them as they think, ‘They practiced hard. It’s not easy being a girl group.’”

     I nodded my head as we entered the practice room. I saw the girls dancing and singing without the instrumentals in preparation for the mission. The trainer had her arms crossed as she watched them.

     I quietly entered and watched them practice as well. Admiration unknowingly welled up inside me.

     Although I didn’t have a good ear for music, Lee Taehee especially sounded amazing. It was to the point where it was amazing that such a rich and powerful voice came out of a slim girl who weighed less than 50kg.

     Even as she sang while dancing so lively, there was no hint of her voice wavering as it resounded out. She even sang the high notes so easily that if someone who didn’t know anything saw her, they would think it was easy.

     While I was watching in a happy mood-

     “Lee Songha!”

     Gosh.

     The girls immediately paused at their trainer’s shout. Lee Songha, who had been called out, lowered her head while wiping her sweat.

     “I’m sorry.”

     “If you’re like this with your title track that you’ve practiced for over half a year, how are you going to prepare for the other missions? Are you going to embarrass me? You are going out in front of the whole country, would you like it if people swear at me for debuting unprepared kids?”

     “I’m sorry.”

     “If you’re going to be like that, ask them to play a recording for your part!”

     “I’m sorry. I’m sorry.”

     Fierce remarks that even made me, who was watching, flinch rained down on her. It seemed this hadn’t happened once or twice as Lee Songha vigorously lowered her head and repeatedly said she was sorry. I was worried she might cry, but I didn’t see any hints of that happening. Instead, the other girls glanced at her with sympathetic eyes.

     No, but… I didn’t think she did badly enough to be punished so severely.

     After becoming Neptune’s manager, I started to monitor music broadcasts of other groups, and to be honest, Lee Songha was average. With my biased perspective, she was slightly better than average.

     She wasn’t at the level of ‘she’s really good at singing’, but it wasn’t like she was bad.

     It only sounded like she wasn’t very good compared to Lee Taehee, who was overwhelmingly good at singing, LJ, who didn’t lose to others in rapping, and even Im Seoyoung, who specialized in dancing but was good at singing as well. Songha wasn’t so bad that she would be called incompetent in other teams.

     Also, she practiced so much.

     How wonderful would it be if your skill could increase by how much you practice, but it was simply regretful that it wasn’t so. If even I, who was a spectator, thought this way, how frustrated would she be?

     “Oh, you came?”

     The trainer, who had spotted us now, approached us with an awkward expression.

     “Chief, are we going to start filming now?”

     “The film crew will be here soon.”

     “What should I do during the filming?”

     “Just do what you normally do. Like now.”

     Kim Hyunjo gave a satisfied expression as he nodded.

     A few minutes later, the traitor came in with the K-Star film crew. They were the young producer and writer I saw during our get-together. There were also a film director and other staff who held boom mics and lights. As people came in, the practice room became pack instantly.

     “Please take good care of us. We’ll only shoot for 30 minutes.”

     The producer said as he yawned.

     Then the film crew really filmed for exactly 30 minutes and left. It looked to me that there would be one or two shots of the girls practicing, and the rest would be the trainer pointing out their faults. It especially looked like shots of Lee Songha getting criticized to the point of turning to dust would be broadcasted.

     I sincerely hoped that when viewers watched this, they would think, ‘That’s too much. She didn’t so bad to be criticized so severely.’

     “Sunwoo.”

     Kim Hyunjo came up to me as I was cleaning up.

     “Leave the rest of the girls to Gunyoung, you take Songha to meeting room B. I’ll bring Younghoon hyung there. We need to finish our talk from yesterday.”

     “Ah, yes!”

     I was about to wonder when he would bring that up as well.

     I passed between the completely exhausted girls, who were flopped all over the place whispering that they thought the shoot went well, and found Lee Songha. She was in the corner, lying facedown on the ground like laundry.

     Did she faint?

     “Songha.”

     “Yes.”

     When I called her, she shot back up.

     “Chief and the team leader want to have a talk, are you okay?”

     “Yes, I’m fine.”

     Lee Songha grabbed her bag and left. The girls behind her saw her off.

     “Songha, have a good talk.”

     “Come back soon.”

     “Go tell the team leader exactly what you heard, you dummy!”

     We got on the elevator, and I pressed the fourth-floor button.

     Since we were in a small, contained space, I could hear her panting. When I looked at Lee Songha and her heaving shoulders, she looked like a kid who had come back after a sprint. Sweat dripped from her forehead, chin and even down her long neck.

     Still, she never said that it was hard… I didn’t know whether to say she was praiseworthy or foolish. Or if she was resolute.

     To be honest, it looked like her heart had it tougher than her body.

     “Your vocal teacher was scary.”

     “Pardon?”

     “She might have been more severe because a film crew came today.”

     I said these words in hopes it would make her feel a bit better, but she tilted her head.

     “The teacher was going easy on us because there was a film crew.”

     “… That was going easy?”

     “When we are actually practicing, she’s 10 times scarier. Also, this is nothing.”

     A thought suddenly popped up.

     She was someone who could say that it was nothing after getting punished so severely and even 10 times more severely. But when she was getting acting lessons, she had become stressed and was having a hard time. To the point where she would be depressed while eating 3 servings worth of food at night before eventually quitting.

     Fucking bastard. Just how harsh was he on her?

     Although I hadn’t met him yet, the teacher was becoming a monster in my mind.

     I left Lee Songha in meeting room B and brought the muffins I bought on my way to work. She probably had no energy after practicing, filming, and getting punished, so she should have some snacks.

     “Songha, these are muffins, do you want to ea…”

     “I will.”

     “Okay. I bought it for everyone, so you eat one first.”

     Lee Songha, who had pounced on the muffin box and was about to open it, paused.

     “Just one? Are there different kinds?”

     She asked while giving me a serious look.

     As if she was asking why I was making her make such a difficult decision.

     Nonetheless, I was the uncle of quadruplets.

     “No, they are all the same. There’s no need to choose.”

     “Wow. Thank you.”

     Lee Songha acted as though someone was going to steal it if she hesitated and quickly grabbed one. A fist-sized muffin with walnuts on top disappeared in a blink of an eye. I wasn’t exaggerating, it really disappeared in a blink of an eye.

     What the, did she drink the muffin?

     Lee Songha picked up and ate the crumbs on the table as well, yet she licked her lips as if she was still unsatisfied. She might have some talent as a food fighter. Since her looks were amazing, she could make easy money broadcasting herself eating food{3}.

     “I bought one for myself as well, but you can have it since I don’t really like them.”

     “Really?”

     “Really.”

     “Thank you.”

     She was happy, really happy. It seemed it was tasty.

     She was a girl whose expression didn’t change much, but it was good to see her happy expression when she ate. Although it came with a ridiculous price of 4,000won{4}, and I would never buy one for myself, when I saw her eating happily, it didn’t feel like a waste at all.

     Kim Hyunjo and the team 3 leader didn’t arrive even after Lee Songha had finished off two muffins. I was glancing at the door when Lee Songha looked through her bag, making ruffling noises. She brought out a stack of A4 papers.

     It was the Cat Guardian Ghost synopsis.

     “I read… everything you gave me.”

     “Really? How was it?”

     The synopsis wasn’t much, but I asked just in case.

     “The unnies{5} said it was meh.”

     As expected.

     “I like it.”

     “… Really?”

     “I especially find the story at the end fun.”

     Lee Songha flipped the synopsis and showed me.

     An outline of the beginning plot of Cat Guardian Ghost was attached at the very end. Although there were many synopsises with story-like outlines, maybe it was because Writer Hong Jumi was a romance novel author, but hers felt like a genuine novel. I, too, enjoyed this part the most.

     “Which character do you like the most?”

     Lee Songha flipped the page forward and pointed.

     “This person.”

     I was almost about to shout.

     The interpreter Jung Haewon.

     Lee Songha pointed at her.

     I read the synopsis tens of times when I got it as well. I substituted each female character with Lee Songha and imagined which of them suited her the best.

     And I hoped that if Lee Songha was to do this drama, she would choose the role of Jung Haewon. It wasn’t because of the information I received from the future, but because I truly felt this character was appealing.

     Also, because it suited Lee Songha well.

     {1} Explained last chapter, but I changed it to Lucky Charm/ Luck Thrower (as in a person throwing luck away). This line is referring to how the raws, Bokdongee and Bokdangee, sound similar.

     {2} A singer whose face is not known. Only releases songs.

     {3} Reworded for flow but the author is talking about Eating Show/Social Eating popular in Korea. Twitch has a section for it now.

     {4} ~3.38USD

     {5} What a younger female calls older females.

     [] []

     

      Chapter 35

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL: emptycube

     “Why do you like this role?”

     “I feel sorry for her.”

     She was right. This Jung Haewon character was pitiable and had a lot of thorns.

     She grew up in an unfortunate household, and she studied day and night with the determination that she would succeed with her own power, got accepted to a good university and even used her income from her part-time job to study overseas.

     She was a woman who would make one think that it was about time for the world to reward her for her efforts. However, there was one problem with her. It was that she would occasionally see what others couldn’t, ghosts.

     It would have been best if she simply ignored them, but she was so afraid of ghosts that she would freeze on the spot even if she caught a glimpse of their shadow. She tried her best to overcome this fear, but it was all for naught.

     Because of this problem, she eventually walked out of a large company she worked for on her own and met the main character while working as a freelance interpreter.

     “You like this role because you feel sorry for her?”

     “Even though she tries so hard, it doesn’t work out well and she has a difficult time. But since the drama ends with everyone happy, it must mean she is happy in the end.”

     “Ahh.”

     “I want to see that.”

     She said as she carefully patted the synopsis.

     “Then do you want to try Jung Haewon’s lines in the outline?”

     I said passingly, but Lee Songha flinched.

     It was the same expression she had when I told her to try acting.

     Goddamn trauma. The acting teacher bastard. I won’t let you go, seriously.

     “Songha, I don’t know what kind of words that acting teacher said to you, but you are definitely not bad enough to be called terrible. Do you know how many episodes of dramas I’ve seen and how much money I spent on movie tickets? If I couldn’t tell if someone was terrible at acting or not after all that, then I would have already quit being a manager.”

     “Ah…”

     “Try reading it once without any pressure. I’m the only one here.”

     I tried to persuade her with my gentlest voice.

     Hesitation slowly faded from Lee Songha’s eyes, and her pretty lips moved. While tension and silence hung in the air, I didn’t urge her and stared at the lid of the muffin box.

     Then…

     “I get your circumstances, but I can’t do it.”

     Her voice was so quiet you would have to perk your ears to listen.

     “First, I really dislike cats. Also, I extremely hate ghosts. I’d rather strangle myself than stick next to a cat ghost and interpret for it.”

     My mouth opened without knowing.

     Instead Lee Songha, who had finished off a muffin just now, I heard the tired voice of a woman in her mid-twenties, cold and thorny, yet unable to fully conceal the dejection and resignation in her voice.

     You couldn’t say that she was acting properly.

     In a quiet voice that you couldn’t hear if you were a few steps away, she had simply read a few short lines… But even then, it felt like Jung Haewon was sitting in front of me instead of Lee Songha.

     How could this be possible?

     If an actor acted in front of your eyes, would they all be like this?

     Or was it… that I was witnessing the moment someone was budding her outstanding talent?

     She looked at me as if she felt my gaze.

     I jumped to my senses and said,

     “Songha.”

     “… Yes?”

     “You’re good at acting. Really good. No matter how I look at it, I think that rather than dancing or singing, although you aren’t really bad at them either, your talent leans more towards acting.”

     Ah, I did it again.

     Unfiltered words came out due to my excitement. But it couldn’t be helped because, unless my eyes were shit, really shit, there was no doubt in my words.

     She was great at acting.

     What would Lee Songha’s acting look like once she was properly prepared? Even imagining this heightened my expectations.

     “… I’m good?”

     As if she heard some strange words, her eyes widened as she looked at me.

     “Yeah. Really good. Don’t listen to that crazy acting teacher and listen to m… Well, that will be pretty hard. I will definitely prove it with a different acting teacher.”

     Then I pointed to the synopsis again.

     “Try some more.”

     She had hesitated before, but now she opened her mouth immediately.

     I listened to the script I had almost memorized, her words filled with emotion.

     Even as Lee Songha spoke her lines, she would glance at me as if checking my expression. That was why I maintained my smile to the point where I felt it would cramp. Since it seemed she was reassured by it.

     The more lines she spoke, the louder her voice became, and even her expression became more vibrant.

     Not a lot of time had passed when she finished her last line. It was regretful that the outline didn’t have many lines for Jung Haewon.

     Damn, I wanted to quickly get the script.

     No, I wanted to push Lee Songha in front of the camera.

     And it wasn’t only me, Lee Songha seemed sad it was so short.

     “How is it?… Do you like it?”

     Lee Songha’s lips subtly curled upwards as she held onto the synopsis with both hands and nodded.

     “I enjoyed acting from the start. But…”

     But?

     “The teacher said that it was sad because my members were probably hoping my acting would be good and that I would raise our team’s popularity. To not get so hung up on something I can’t do and to use that time to practice dancing and singing… So I quit.”

     That acting teacher, no, that word was wasted on him. That psycho bastard.

     “Hooo, I am going to grab that man’s collar.”

     “Hold on.”

     Surprised, I turned around and saw Kim Hyunjo and the team 3 leader peering in through the meeting room door which had been opened by 2cm.

     Since when were they there?

     The two opened the door widely and entered.

     “In fact, I went to talk to that teacher this morning.”

     Kim Hyunjo wrinkled his brows.

     “No matter how bad she is at acting, someone who calls himself a teacher shouldn’t criticize his students so severely that they become traumatized. I went and threw a fit, and he eventually admitted that his words were harsh. We decided that he would personally apologize to Lee Songha later. And about him having other motives…”

     Yes, this was more important than a spoken apology.

     “His reaction was a bit suspicious, but since we don’t have proof, there’s nothing we can do right now.”

     Kim Hyunjo clicked his tongue in dissatisfaction.

     “Since he just claims that he personally thought she wasn’t good at acting.”

     “Umm, what about any connection with Son Chaeyoung…”

     “Since that’s a sensitive problem, we can’t bring it up without clear evidence.”

     The team 3 leader replied.

     “This isn’t a matter we can move blindly based on our hunches. The team 2 leader will protest and even Son Chaeyoung will make a fuss. We need some concrete proof. I’m not saying we’re going to end it here; I’m going to look into it further so wait.”

     It would be great if my foresight gave me a hint at a time like this…

     I thought before shaking my head. Because I gained a lot of benefits from it a few times, this thought kept coming up whenever I felt a bit frustrated. If I became addicted and overly dependent on my ability, it would become a huge problem.

     Either way, I needed to look into it myself.

     “First…”

     The team 3 leader jokingly said.

     “Songha, try to get good reviews from the public and show that teacher.”

     “Pardon?”

     “To the point where you can say, ’I am not bad at acting, it’s your eyes that are shit. So if you are going to continue being an acting teacher, first replace your eyes.’ Do your best and get good results.”

     Those words meant…

     “When I was looking from outside, Songha’s acting seemed pretty good. Check if there are any good projects in the winter and spring lineups and start auditioning now.”

     This was it. It was sudden, but I couldn’t miss this opportunity.

     The moment I was about to show them the Cat Guardian Ghost synopsis, the team 3 leader mumbled.

     “I think Mermaid out of Water is the best.”

     “I thought about that first too. Since it is a project one of our actors is the leading role for… But because that person is Son Chaeyoung, it’s a bit.”

     “Did you hear about anything else?”

     “IBC’s Wed/Thurs drama, Time Slip. That wasn’t bad? The writer and director worked together on previous works, and they were successful. They say that it’s a promising project along with Mermaid out of Water. But their reaction might not be good since Son Chaeyoung rejected them. Ah, Sung Dowon also has a drama he’s thinking about. This is a 100% filmed beforehand so it will be release summer next year, but it’s a huge project with a 150-billion-won[1] budget. The competition for this project is the highest.”

     “Really? What do Lee Songha and Luck Thrower think? Do you have one you like out of the three?”

     Put them away.

     Please put all three away.

     “I…”

     I met Lee Songha’s gaze once before pushing the Cat Guardian Ghost synopsis in front of them.

     “Chief, team leader. Please take a look at this project.”

     Kim Hyunjo and the team 3 leader put their heads next to each other and flipped through the synopsis.

     “Isn’t this what Songha read just now? Is this also a new project?”

     “You should have told us that you had already picked something. Where is it from?”

     “It is a project that will be released in January by TVL. They are currently casting leading and supporting roles. The director is TVL’s Producer Shin Taekyun. He possesses a good directing ability, and his previous work, Killing Me, was a mystery romance, and its highest viewership rating hit 5% and ended smoothly.”

     “Ah, I saw a few episodes of that. They were full of suspense.”

     As if he had become more interested, Kim Hyunjo examined the synopsis in more detail.

     The team 3 leader nodded his head.

     “If they hit 5% on a cable network, that’s good.”

     “Writer Hong Jumi seems unfamiliar, what was her previous work?”

     “Ah, is the new project produced in-house by TVL?”

     The two of them rushed their questions.

     I resolved myself firmly before answering.

     I knew that this project would be a hit on cable, so much that it would be distributed in China and make the leading and supporting cast national stars.

     However, this was all simply a future only I knew.

     Dramas were a big business, and this wasn’t something I could force my way through by myself.

     If I wanted to get Lee Songha in this project, I first needed to persuade the person in question, Lee Songha, and the two in front of me, Kim Hyunjo and the team 3 leader.

     Fortunately, Lee Songha, who had built up a wall, seemed to be almost persuaded. I only needed to make these two nod their heads.

     The problem was that this wouldn’t be easy.

     “It’s not produced in-house; it’s a project being produced by Pan Production.”

     “Ah, it’s subcontracted? Many subcontracts are flimsy so you need to pay close attention. There are many cases where they don’t care about legal action and don’t pay the actors once they run out of the budget. What else did they make?”

     “It’s a company founded by CEO Kim Panseok who had become independent after working at TVL. This is their first project.”

     “Uhh… Is that so? So it’s new? Who’s the writer?”

     “She’s Hong Jumi. She wrote two romance novels and received favorable reviews, and this is her first time writing a drama. I read her novels, and her writing skills are great. Her characters were well fleshed out, and she expressed her characters amiably.”

     Although I expected this, Kim Hyunjo and the team 3 leader’s expressions weren’t good.

     [1] Approx. 131.8 Million USD

     [] []

     

      Chapter 36

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL: emptycube

     Kim Hyunjo frowned before saying,

     “The problem isn’t her writing style. Unless they film everything beforehand, it’s certain that they’ll film later episodes during the project’s release, and the problem is whether she’ll be able to endure it or not. They say even writers who have written a few projects start to lose it when they don’t have enough time and start writing 1 or 2-page screenplays.”

     I quickly threw in some additional information.

     “Even if the writer is new, someone like Producer Shin Taekyun has the capability to lead them through it. I looked into it and apparently, TVL looked at the screenplay for a few episodes before green-lighting the project right away. Since the viewership ratings for TVL’s dramas, which had cast top stars, flopped, and many ended early, they probably planned this out carefully. Since they saw the potential, they greenlit this project and assigned Producer Shin Taekyun, who has proven directing abilities and a box office track record, to this project.”

     To find any information that would be of use in persuading them, I had used my spare time, which I didn’t have much of, to research. I even acted as a potential sponsor and asked TVL’s advertising department and the production producer[1] at Pan Production a few questions. It felt like I was filming a spy movie.

     I hope this would help even a little bit.

     I felt my heart thumping as I waited for their reaction when Kim Hyunjo asked,

     “Did you receive something from them?”

     “Pardon?”

     “No, it’s not they asked for a different actor, there’s no way they’d give you something to get Songha. Why are you pushing this project so desperately?”

     The team 3 leader scratched his angled chin.

     “He must have come to really like it while he was researching about it. You know, there are occasionally times like that.”

     “That’s true, but he’s suspicious…”

     I flinched and let out a fake cough while turning away.

     This time, the team 3 leader turned to look at Lee Songha.

     “How about you, Songha? Do you like this project?”

     “Yes. I like it.”

     Whew, I lived.

     I let out a sigh of relief. There was a huge difference in weight between me and Songha, who would be the one taking the audition, pushing this project.

     While there were managers who would ignore their actor’s opinions and bully them into doing whatever the company told them to do, that wasn’t Kim Hyunjo or the team 3 leader’s style.

     “Really? The synopsis should be pretty good then. Then let’s read it once.”

     “Cat Guardian Ghost? The title is like a comic.”

     The two flipped through each page of the synopsis.

     Looking at them, I thought… it felt very similar to that day I showed my mom a flunked test and was waiting for her punishment.

     The team 3 leader and Kim Hyunjo’s expressions turned gloomier as time passed.

     Of course, I understood why. How many people would read that synopsis and think that that it would be a success? If there was someone else besides me who was certain that it would be a success, I would definitely be suspicious that he possessed a foresight ability as well.

     I mean it was a synopsis, the draft of your project, would it kill you to package it better? I even began to resent Pan Production’s CEO, Kim Pansuk, and Writer Hong Jumi.

     Flip.

     They flipped the last page. Kim Hyunjo covered the synopsis and sighed. Then, a suffocating silence hung in the air for a few moments.

     Kim Hyunjo broke the silence and asked,

     “Hyung, what do you think?”

     “What do you mean what do I think. What about you?”

     “Your thoughts are the same as mine.”

     Kim Hyunjo stared at both Lee Songha and myself.

     “I’m asking because I’m really curious, but why do you like this? Did you pick a project that you thought you would have a higher chance at getting cast in because you won’t be cast for other projects? If not, I don’t really understand? Songha, what do you like about this synopsis?”

     Lee Songha stared vacantly at Kim Hyunjo and said,

     “It’s fun.”

     Kim Hyunjo sighed once more.

     “… What I’m saying is, why, how is this fun?”

     “I like the role of Jung Haewon. I’m also curious what will happen next.”

     “If you’re curious, you can just watch it later.”

     “Ah.”

     You can’t be persuaded like that!

     “Still… I want to try it. If I’m going to audition, I like this role, oppa. I like this, team leader.”

     Fortunately, it seemed Lee Songha was determined. She clearly expressed her opinion while looking at the team leader.

     I fully prepared a reply as well. Damn, my heart felt like a rollercoaster for some time now.

     “Luck Thrower, how about…”

     Kim Hyunjo was about to ask before he narrowed his eyes.

     “You. Don’t say anything if you’re going to bring up your senses.”

     “Senses?”

     When the team 3 leader felt something was odd, Kim Hyunjo gestured at me with his chin.

     “Hyung, he rejected Sung Dowon because of bad vibes. I can’t trust his senses anymore.”

     “I was going to bring that up once we were done talking about Songha… bad vibes? You get stranger the more I see you.”

     Should I have not said anything about my senses?

     They talked between each other with me as their topic and soon, Kim Hyunjo asked me again,

     “Yeah, why are you so stubborn about this project?”

     “Because I think this is a good project. And that’s why I showed it to Songha. I watched all the director’s previous works, and he is very good at directing. Although the synopsis is a bit bland, I felt that it was well-written.”

     Though I heard this from the future.

     When I recalled how the PR team’s employee said that ‘the script was everything,’ and ‘the drama was the writer’s playground’, I assumed it was okay to believe that the fact that the script was good was a fact. Also, TVL’s drama department employees wouldn’t have greenlit a low-quality screenplay from a new writer.

     Even I would have hesitated about putting Lee Songha in this project if the drama succeeded due to the actors or another complicated reason.

     Since I may change the future by putting Lee Songha in there.

     However, if it was a drama that became a hit because of its screenplay, I judged that the drama wouldn’t fail because one of its supporting actors was switched out. Unless that actor was so terrible at acting that the quality of the drama fell.

     “Then let’s see the screenplay.”

     The team 3 leader nodded his head and said,

     “Hyunjo, you go get the screenplay. If the screenplay’s good, let’s look into getting an audition. No matter how much you like it, it’s better to audition for a role you would be good at. It will increase your chance at getting cast, and it will be easier to understand the character if you do get cast.”

     “Well… okay. Still, you never know, so Songha, you read other synopses as well.”

     Kim Hyunjo nodded his head then clicked his tongue.

     “But, that CEO of Pan Production is quite frustrating.”

     “Sorry?”

     Frustrating?

     “You said this is his first project after becoming independent from TVL. Then he must be using all his connections for this, but why would he take the risk with a new writer? It would be safer if he used an experienced one.”

     Now that I thought about it, I was curious as well.

     I knew that Writer Hong Jumi was skilled so I wasn’t worried about it flopping, but with what confidence did CEO Kim Pansuk decide to use a new writer for their first project that would decide the future of their production?

     *

     “People are probably saying I’m insane, right?”

     He was the CEO of Pan Production. Kim Pansuk mumbled with his large figure squeezed into a small metal chair. The production producer, Park Sookyung, who was sitting in front of him and looking at his laptop screen, fixed his glasses and glanced at him.

     CEO Kim Pansuk’s eyes were shaking uneasily.

     “No, still, just wait until the first episode is released. When they see it, I know they’ll be like, ‘Ah, so that’s why Kim Pansuk brought a new writer in for this critical time’. I’m not uneasy in the slightest. There’s no reason to be. Since I believe in Writer Hong Jumi’s skills.”

     “CEO, if you’re not uneasy, then please stop shaking your leg. My laptop is shaking.”

     “What?”

     When CEO Kim Pansuk, who possessed a threatening figure, widened his eyes and stared at him. Park Sookyung stealthily avoided his gaze.

     CEO Kim Pansuk groaned as he said.

     “If this fails, I’m screwed. I used all my personal connections on this project. If this fails, I don’t have a second chance. It’ll be good, right? The screenplay is good, and even though Shin Taekyun, that bastard, looks a little flimsy, his skills are certain. Right? It’ll be good, right?”

     “Why are you asking me…”

     “For someone who’s the production producer, you don’t have confidence in your project? Worrying is something I, who pays the salaries, do, and you should be working with the certainty that it’ll be good!”

     “Yes. This project will be really good. It will be a hit.”

     “A hit? We can’t even cast our leading roles!”

     “…”

     That moment, they heard a knock, and two people came in.

     Writer Hong Jumi, who looked to be about half the size of CEO Kim Pansuk, and Director Shin Taekyun, a man with messy hair like a bird’s nest who looked to be in his thirties.

     “Hello, senior[2].”

     “CEO… we’re here.”

     “Ah, Director Shin. Writer Hong. Welcome.”

     CEO Kim Pansuk quickly crossed his legs and said calmly. After saying hello to Park Sookyung, Writer Hong Jumi sat down and wriggled her fingers.

     “Umm… I heard some loud noises from outside, is there a problem?”

     “What? The screenplay is great; what problems would we have? Writer Hong, you don’t need to worry at all, just trust me and follow along. Just write good screenplays from now on. Screenplays. Is the next episode done?”

     “Yes. The first draft is done, and I was revising it together with the director.”

     “While the screenplays are fine; the problem is the cast.”

     Director Shin scratched his head.

     “They are creating a fuss up there, telling me to quickly cast people. If we keep pushing casting back, we might lose the green light.”

     At his words, the expressions of the people gathered in the meeting room grew dark.

     Park Sookyung let out a sigh and said.

     “All because Lim Joowon fell through…”

     “Haa, what can we do when he’s hurt? We were rejected by Kim Yeonsung and Park Hyemin. There are so many actors in Korea, but are there none who will be our lead? We need to quickly find a lead so we can cast our supporting roles as well… Should we lower our standards a little?”

     Director Shin shook his head at CEO Kim Pansuk’s words.

     “The project from GTBN that’s running at the same time as us, they apparently got Kim Yeonsung.”

     “What? That Big Bear Production or something?!”

     “Yes. Because of that, the guys up there are telling us to cast someone at Kim Yeonsung’s level. Even if they leave the projects from the three public TV networks out of the discussion, they said they didn’t want to fall behind GTBN, their competitor.”

     “Kim Yeonsung, that guy, said he wouldn’t do cable dramas, but he went there? How did Big Bear get him?”

     “40 million won[3] per episode. They said they’d pay in advance once he signed the contract.”

     “40 million per episode and it’s a 20-episode project… that’s 800 million won. They spent that right away? They have that much money?”

     “They probably calculated overseas selling rights and other stuff and thought that giving him 800 million in advance was still worth it since he quite well received in China.”

     “Argh…”

     Kim Pansuk was about to grab his forehead when he became conscious of Writer Hong Jumi and simply coughed.

     “It’s okay. Our screenplay is good!”

     “They say the other side’s screenplay is good as well.”

     Park Sookyung mumbled.

     While the atmosphere of the meeting room had turned suffocating and heavy, the door opened, accompanied by a knock.

     “Umm, CEO.”

     The youngest producer of Pan Production’s production department hesitated before coming in.

     “What?”

     “We received a call.”

     “We’re in the middle of a meeting… Haa, where is it from?”

     “W&U.”

     CEO Kim Pansuk paused.

     “W&U?”

     “Yes.”

     “The one with CEO Baek Hansung? That W&U with Sung Dowon, Park Sohyun, and Son Chaeyoung?”

     “Uhh, yes. I think that is the one.”

     CEO Kim Pansuk kicked his chair as he abruptly stood up.

     [1] I read this in a Korean news article, but apparent some larger productions divide producers into planning, organization, production and direction roles, which is probably why Producer Shin Taekyun is the drama’s director.

     [2] I try to use English alternatives when I can. I don’t know if you prefer ‘sunbae’ or ‘senior’.

     [3] ~34892 USD

     [] []

     

      Chapter 37

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL: emptycube

     The weather was unusual.

     I looked at the sky a few times during the ride to our destination. The sky was gloomy without a single ray of sunshine since morning, and now, dark clouds had gathered to cover the sky in a dark gray color.

     “Do you think it will rain today?”

     It didn’t matter if it was any other day, but we had an outdoor schedule today so it mattered very much.

     The traitor, who was in the driver’s seat, shrugged.

     “Don’t know, there wasn’t anything in the morning about it raining today. Check again.”

     I checked the daily forecast app again. It still only showed a cloud icon. The chance of precipitation was low as well, and it indicated that the clouds would disperse and that it would be sunny in an hour.

     Was I too worried?

     When I was about to put away my cellphone, it vibrated.

     “Hello?”

     -I am the youngest writer from the Hope Campaign. When do you think you will arrive?

     “We are entering the parking lot right now.”

     The writer said she would come find us before hanging up.

     The schedule we were going to was a live broadcast for a sharing campaign, and they had asked Neptune to perform a song. We troubled over the decision because it overlapped with K-Star, but we eventually agreed because there weren’t many chances to broadcast their performance on a public TV network.

     “Girls, we’re he…”

     I shut my mouth when I saw the situation behind me. They had nodded their heads sleepily when we were on the highway, but now they were all sleeping like logs, wrapped in blankets with their heads resting on each other’s heads and shoulders.

     Since their makeup artists and stylists were also dozing off, the traitor and I got out first. As soon as I went out, the cold air seemed to scratch my neck as it passed by.

     Brr, it’s cold.

     Soon after, a woman ran towards us. Looking at how she had an official badge and a headset-style wireless intercom, it seemed she was the youngest writer who had called just now.

     “Hello! Are you Neptune?”

     “Yes, that’s right. Hello.”

     “There’s a stage rehearsal in 30 minutes. Neptune will be on second.”

     The traitor cut in and asked,

     “We have a K-Star recording in the afternoon so we need to go immediately. There won’t be any delays or anything like that, right?”

     “Of course not, it’s a live broadcast. It will be over after an hour broadcast.”

     “Okay.”

     “Then I will lead you to the waiting room. The members are…”

     It was too cold outside. If even I, who was dressed warmly, was cold, the girls, who were wearing their stage outfits that exposed their arms and legs, would shiver intensely if they came out.

     As if he thought the same thing, the traitor showed a friendly smile and said,

     “The girls are sleeping right now. Would it be okay if we let them wait inside the van?”

     “Ah, of course! You can do that.”

     The youngest writer readily nodded her head. Something suddenly crossed my mind so I asked,

     “Ms. Writer, the weather looks uneasy; will it be fine? It’s an outdoor performance.”

     “The weather was supposed to be good today, but it’s like this. We contacted the weather center and they said there will be no problems. Don’t worry.”

     Yeah, let’s trust the weather center.

     After we decided to wake the girls in 10 minutes and were about to send Kim Hyunjo a text that we arrived,

     “Why didn’t you go?”

     The traitor asked abruptly.

     “You said it on your first day. That you weren’t interested in being an idol manager and that you honestly wanted to be a manager for an actor. That you would immediately transfer if there was a chance to switch to the actor team.”

     I did say that.

     “But why didn’t you go? When he wasn’t an unknown actor but Sung Dowon?”

     The traitor asked again.

     I took a moment to choose my words. Perhaps it was because I had set up a wall, but my thought would become complicated whenever we talked.

     What was he thinking now, what motives does he have by asking this, maybe he’s trying to do something, maybe, maybe. Thoughts like these continuously entered my mind.

     “I kept thinking of Neptune when I thought about switching. Like you said then, now that I’ve experienced it, it’s not bad being assigned to the idol team. And I also had some personal circumstances.”

     “Circumstances? What, that you didn’t get a good vibe?”

     “What?”

     I looked to my side. The traitor was looking at me.

     “You know.”

     With an undecipherable expression, he opened his mouth.

     “I have something I want to ask you…”

     It was then.

     He stopped what he was about to say and looked up at the sky. I hurriedly looked up as well. The sky was much darker than before. It was completely covered with dark clouds. As if it would rain any second.

     Then -drip- cold water dripped onto my forehead.

     Damn, it’s raining!

     I ran around in the cold rain, looking for the youngest writer. She wouldn’t answer her phone so I wandered for a long time before finding her behind the stage. When I looked closer, she was talking to a man in a raincoat.

     “Producer, should we continue?”

     “Didn’t you hear what the department manager said? Since we don’t have enough time before the broadcast to change the cue sheets, he says to go as planned!”

     “What do we do if it continues to rain once we’re live? What about the singers’ performances?”

     “The studio control booth contacted the weather center, and they say it will pass soon!”

     That damn weather center, didn’t they say there weren’t going to be any problems a little while ago?

     I called after the youngest writer who was about to run off somewhere.

     “Ms. Writer!”

     “Ah, Mr. Manager. I was just about to call you, but the rehearsal might be slightly delayed.”

     “If the rain doesn’t stop, what other alternatives…”

     The youngest writer showed an awkward expression at my words.

     “If it was a recorded broadcast, we can just wait a little before continuing, but since this is a live broadcast, I think it might continue as it is.”

     “Could you put tarps up on the stage?”

     “Ah, please wait, I’ll ask. Producer!”

     The youngest writer ran to the male producer she was talking to previously and asked. Soon after, the producer let out a sigh and walked towards me.

     “Are you the chief… who’s in charge of Neptune?”

     “I’m their manager.”

     “Ah… If we cover the stage, it looks messy on the jib camera{1}. The department manager cares a lot about the picture, so that’s a problem we’ll have to think about in the worst case scenario. Since it’s not that bad now.”

     It’s not that bad now?

     “However, the studio will tell the MCs to comment about how Neptune showed a passionate performance even though it’s raining. If we broadcast something like this, it could become a hot topic so please bear with it.”

     The producer didn’t even bother to wait for my reply as he hurriedly ran off.

     I let out a sigh instead of what was boiling up inside. The youngest writer read my mood and cautiously said,

     “First, we’ll get you some umbrellas and raincoats, and I’ll try to find some towels as well. And let’s refrain from dancing too hard…”

     Eventually, all I was left with were 4 transparent umbrellas and a few raincoats in my hand. When I returned to the parking lot and got into the van with these in hand, the traitor and the girls, who were chatting noisily, turned to look at me at the same time.

     Im Seoyoung’s eyes widened.

     “Oppa! Why would you get wet when you’re holding 4 umbrellas!”

     “I was already wet so it didn’t matter.”

     “Ah, we don’t have any towels… Use this to wipe off.”

     Im Seoyoung handed me the blanket she had covered herself with.

     “Thanks.”

     As I dried my hair that was dripping with water, I asked the traitor,

     “They say they are going to continue even if it rains. Did you contact the chief?”

     “He said we can’t do anything since it’s a live broadcast. He said that they cannot get hurt and to minimize their dancing.”

     Their words were similar. Worried, I looked towards the girls, but they had calm expressions.

     “Of course we need to do it since we’re going on air. It’s not like it’s a typhoon.”

     “We just need to be careful not to fall.”

     “Oppa, there are a lot of times when we perform in the rain.”

     They all nodded their heads as if there was no problem. I concealed my uneasiness and looked out the window. Thick raindrops knocked heavily on the window.

     Only after the scheduled time had long since passed did they begin the rehearsal.

     While the solo artist was rehearsing first, we waited, gathered under a tarp next to the stage. The solo artist had an umbrella and was wearing a raincoat as he rehearsed leisurely. His manager who was watching him looked calm as well.

     Well, since he didn’t have any big actions and could simply sing while standing.

     “They say he’s going to perform with an umbrella, how about we have umbrellas as well”

     I asked, in case umbrellas could be okay even if raincoats weren’t, but Lee Taehee firmly shook her head.

     “It’s more dangerous if we hold an umbrella in one hand and a mic in the other. The umbrella takes up a lot of space so our movements will become tangled, and the moment we slip up, it’ll become a mess. No matter what kind of circumstances we’re in, there are people watching us on TV, and this isn’t professional.”

     “Oppa, we’ll be careful so don’t worry!”

     “It seems like the rain is starting stop anyways.”

     Since the other girls were like this as well, there was nothing I could say.

     Soon after, the solo artist finished his performance, and the youngest writer gave the signal.

     “Neptune, please go up now!”

     “Yes!”

     The girls walked out into the rain.

     Once they got into position on the stage, the MR of their title track flowed out. I gulped down my dry saliva as I observed the stage. Although the rain had died down compared to before, the girls were completely soaked by the time they sang half their song. They danced in risky high heels, energetically moving on the wet stage.

     However, since the people who were wandering around the plaza were hiding from the rain in various places, almost no one was paying attention to them. Only the cameras in front of the stage were working hard to film them.

     The song was almost over. When I relaxed, thinking the rehearsal would end with no problems.

     The rain started to fall crazily.

     Wasn’t this dangerous?

     At this point, it wasn’t a problem of getting wet, but their vision would get hazy. If the rain dripped into their eyes, it would become difficult to see. Just when I was wondering… how they could dance in these conditions.

     “…!”

     Lee Songha, who was spinning on top of the stage, suddenly staggered and fell.

     My heart plummeted. I was about to run up, but Lee Songha stood right back up like a roly-poly toy{2}. Then she continued to dance.

     Was she okay? Was she okay?

     My heart was agitated, but fortunately, the song ended without any additional accidents. I covered the girls coming down from the stage with blankets and led them to the tarp. When we returned, they all surrounded Lee Songha.

     “Songha, are you okay? Did you get hurt?

     “Yeah, it looked like you fell pretty hard.”

     “Don’t you need to go to the hospital?”

     Lee Songha moved both her legs vigorously and shook her head.

     “I’m okay. It’s fine. I can do it.”

     It felt like she would protest if we didn’t let her on stage.

     “You might be too agitated to feel it right now. Sit down, let’s have a look.”

     I sat her down on a chair and checked her ankle. Although I wasn’t an expert, it luckily looked fine on the outside. She didn’t look to be in pain when I grabbed it a bit hard, and there didn’t seem to be any wounds on her leg either.

     “It does seem to be fine… That was close.”

     “I lost my balance when the rain got in my eyes.”

     “Tell me right away if you’re hurt.”

     “Yes.”

     Lee Songha nodded with a blanket wrapped around her.

     The rehearsal started later than expected so there wasn’t much time before the main stage. While they were examining their makeup and hair in the van due to the rain, the traitor, who had gone out to see the situation outside, returned.

     “The rain has almost stopped, it’s to the point where only a few drops are falling.”

     “Ah… That’s a relief.”

     So the weather center wasn’t completely wrong. It really did pass.

     When I looked outside, it was clearly raining sparsely. The ballad singer was on stage, performing without an umbrella. Since they said that they would transfer to the studio after his performance before it was our turn, there really wasn’t much time left.

     Just when I was about to return to the tarp with the girls and wait.

     The youngest writer peeped in.

     “Umm…”

     “Ah, Ms. Writer. It’s fortunate that the rain stopped.”

     She showed an awkward expression at my words before saying,

     “Umm, Mr. Manager. We got a call from the studio control booth…”

     “Yes.”

     “Sorry, but I don’t think Neptune can perform.”

     “Pardon?”

     “It seems they hastily came to this decision after seeing one of Neptune’s members fall. They said that it could be a big problem if any mishaps occur due to safety… I’m sorry. We will pay you more than the pay we discussed previously.”

     I stood blankly, processing her words. Then I suddenly looked back. At the people looking in this direction. And amongst them, I saw Lee Songha first, standing rigidly with widened eyes.

     {1}https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jib_(camera)

     {2}https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roly-poly_toy

     [] []

     

      Chapter 38

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL: emptycube

     “Think of it as getting rid of your bad luck.”[1]

     Im Seoyoung said abruptly on our way back.

     “The floor was really slippery. Imagine if we performed on it again, and someone else fell and broke their bone. What would we do about K-Star then?”

     “Yeah. I was about to fall too.”

     “It would have been worse if we got hurt, and if it affected our schedule.”

     Each of the girls said something.

     I glanced at Lee Songha, who was sitting in the rear seat, through the rear-view mirror. It wasn’t like Lee Songha was showing she felt guilty by crying or anything. However, everyone knew that she wasn’t in a good condition right now.

     When we stopped at a rest stop, we told the girls to pick out their lunches, and Lee Songha bought 3 people’s worth of food. And she was currently in the middle of eating it all.

     They said she used to order night time delivery when she was stressed. She wasn’t showing it, but there was no doubt she was stressed right now.

     If she simply cried, the other girls could comfort her, but since she bottled it all inside and said she was fine, there was nothing they could do right now except go along with her.

     It was the same for me.

     “Songha.”

     At my call, Songha raised her head.

     “Does it taste good?”

     “Yes. Would you like one?”

     “Is there still food left to give to me?”

     She ate so ferociously and yet there was still some left?

     When I looked through the rear-view mirror, Lee Songha was taking her time before holding something out. It was a chicken skewer coated with red sauce.

     “… Do you want it?”

     “No, you can eat it all.”

     How could I take that from her?

     Im Seoyoung stared at Lee Songha before saying,

     “How can you eat so much and not gain weight?”

     “It’s because she burns up as many calories as she eats, dummy. Since you don’t exercise, you gain as much as you eat.”

     At LJ’s teasing words, Im Seoyoung widened her eyes.

     “What, I exercise too!”

     “What a joke. What exercise do you do besides breathing? What? Spoon lifts?”

     “Hey, then what about you…!”

     Im Seoyoung stuttered. She couldn’t say any more. LJ wasn’t a good opponent to ask, ‘How much do you exercise?’ since she boxed as a hobby. Im Seoyoung, wanting to say something, changed her target.

     “What about Taehee unni!? Taehee unni always takes over the sofa and rolls around instead of exercising when we don’t practice, but she still doesn’t gain weight!”

     “That’s unni’s nature, dummy. If you find it unfair, be born again.”

     “Don’t call me a dummy, dummy!”

     Because of the two, the mood didn’t have the opportunity to subside. When I glanced at Lee Songha, she had a faint smile as she watched their childish dispute.

     Noisy shouts could be heard for a while until they gradually died down. Soon, a silence fell in the van. When I looked through the rear-view mirror, they were all sleeping.

     “They fell asleep.”

     “Since they were drenched in rain, let’s just let them sleep until we arrive.”

     The traitor said, who was sitting in the passenger seat, looking at his phone.

     Ah. Now that I thought about it, we still had something left to talk about.

     “Choi Gunyoung.”

     “Yeah?”

     “Didn’t you say you wanted to ask me something before?”

     “Ah. That.”

     As if he now remembered, the traitor showed a strange expression as he looked at me. I was curious what words would pop out of his mouth. Why did he bring up my senses, and what did he mean by he wanted to ask me something for a while?

     Just then, the traitor grinned as he said,

     “Nah, it’s nothing.”

     It’s nothing?

     “Hey, I can’t concentrate on driving because I’m curious. What is it?”

     “It’s nothing. Don’t worry about it.”

     Do you think it won’t bug me?

     “It really isn’t anything.”

     Since he himself said it wasn’t anything, it wasn’t like I could threaten him to open his mouth and spill whatever he was going to say. After complicating my thoughts, he coolly went back to his phone.

     If I didn’t see what kind of person Choi Gunyoung was or what kinds of things he would do later on with my foresight ability, my heart would have been calm. It currently felt like I was walking around with a bomb I had no idea when would explode.

     I didn’t know whether he would explode or if my nerves would break first.

     When we arrived at Knet Studio, Kim Hyunjo was already waiting in the waiting room.

     “Songha, I heard you fell. Are you okay?”

     “Yup. I’m fine. I’m not hurt.”

     Only after Kim Hyunjo confirmed she was alright was he relieved.

     Unlike music broadcasts, the waiting time for K-Star wasn’t long. We used the 30 minutes of free time to give a strong impression to other teams and greet the judges we saw for the first time.

     There was a total of three judges for K-Star. Producer Song Baekjin, who turned out many famous stars who could be recognized by name, Cha Suzy, who was a skilled vocalist of a former girl group, and a star songwriter Simon Lee, who often appeared on variety shows. I could easily tell what motives Knet had by casting these three.

     All three of them were characters with a history of malicious remarks.

     We didn’t have the opportunity to talk with the judges for a long time. There were 8 participating teams, and each team had their members and staff, tens of people were gathered in front of the judges’ waiting room so we were only barely able to greet them, let alone have a conversation.

     A few team loitered around the judges, but we returned to our waiting room without any lingering feelings. We chose to have the girls practice their song once more before their performance instead of getting looked at one more time by the judges.

     Soon after, an FD[2] came to each waiting room and informed everyone,

     “We are recording in 5 minutes! Please standby!”

     The makeup artists and stylists were left to watch through the monitors in the waiting room while the rest of us moved.

     After getting out of the confusion that was the waiting room hallway and sitting in the spectator seat in the open hall, I could see the entire filming site. It was completely different from the simple filming set from before. My mouth opened at the overwhelming scale.

     Rails were installed on the high ceiling, and all sorts of different lights hung down and repeatedly flashed on and off.

     “Please don’t step there! If the camera goes out, it’ll be big trouble!”

     “Reset the judges’ table so that the product placement display nicely!”

     “Put mics on the cast. Did you put them on standby?”

     “Everyone besides Cha Suzy! She said she was changing her outfit!”

     “What?!”

     “She said that her outfit concept was completely different from the other judges so she was going to change her outfit! She said it’s almost here through an express delivery service and that she will be out in 10 minutes!”

     “Ah, damn it…!”

     Below the stage, the staff were busy shouting and running around. Since everywhere I looked was interesting, I looked around at my surroundings before stopping my gaze on Neptune. The girls had been busy looking around last time, but this time, they were focused with earphones in their ears.

     “You both turned off your phones, right?”

     Kim Hyunjo turned to look at the traitor and me and asked.

     “Of course.”

     “It’s very troublesome if you move around down there and block or touch a camera so be careful. Don’t forget if a cameraman asks for an interview to carefully think about each of your answers 2 or 3 times before answering.”

     “Yes.”

     “Since there will be more instances where I leave it to you guys from now on, watch carefully.”

     My ears pricked. Although I clearly knew that I had a lot left to learn, it was definitely exciting to be responsible for everything myself. Even though I would feel a larger sense of responsibility, the sense of achievement at the end of the day would be greater.

     We were nodding our heads when someone said from behind,

     “Watching the girls, teaching new recruits, you have it hard.”

     When I turned around, it was Sugar Cats members and their chief. We passed each other a few times in our last filming, and maybe it was because Sugar Cats looked dishonest every time I saw them, but their manager didn’t give a good impression either.

     The Sugar Cats chief glanced at Neptune and laughed,

     “But Neptune’s working hard. Isn’t today a battle to see who gets the least criticism anyways? The production crew said they were going to go strong in the beginning, and all three judges are the types to say things without a filter.”

     “Well, there’s nothing we can do about the judges coming on strong since the show needs a reaction from the start. Still, those who everyone thinks did well would be pumped up by the judges, so it all depends on how they do.”

     The Sugar Cats chief grinned at Kim Hyunjo’s aloof reply.

     “Do you think a lot of them will be like that? Those judge’s standards are so high. Well, I don’t care whether they come on strong or not, I just hope the ratings are good.”

     It wasn’t only the two of them. There were many people around us who were worried about the ratings. Well, in variety programs like this, there was nothing more important than the ratings. The only person who was involved in K-Star and wasn’t worried about the ratings was me.

     As for me, I already knew that K-Star would get a high rating and would get additional seasons. I wished that the first broadcast was released quickly so I could personally experience Neptune’s rise in popularity. Only then would the girls not experience the illogical events like this morning, and I could increase our area of activity.

     “Seoyoung. Did you practice a lot?”

     The Sugar Cats leader, Han Saetbyeol, suddenly leaned out. Im Seoyoung frowned slightly as she took off her earphones.

     “Yeah. I did as much as I could.”

     “Really? You had a lot of time. So lucky. We had so many other schedules that we didn’t make a lot of time to practice.”

     If someone else had said it, I would have thoughtlessly glossed over it, but after bumping into each other a few times, I always heard her words through a translator. ‘We didn’t have enough time to practice because we had other schedules, but since no one calls for you, you had a lot of time to practice.’

     If someone said I was a narrow-minded person, I had nothing to say, but I really wish they came down after being criticized by the judges to the point where not even ashes were left.

     Just then, LJ, who was next to Im Seoyoung, mumbled,

     “Then you should have practiced instead of staying in front of the judges’ waiting room.”

     “… What?”

     When Han Saetbyeol’s expression distorted, LJ shrugged her shoulders. That moment, both sides became busy, checking to see if there were any cameramen nearby.

     Even as I felt reassured after confirming the cameramen were far away, I inwardly felt refreshed at LJ’s straightforward words. To be honest, it felt like a 10-year indigestion was cleared.

     “Hey!”

     Im Seoyoung pinched LJ’s side.

     “What?! Did I say anything wrong?”

     “What are you going to do if there was a camera?!”

     Fights between children would become fights between parents. Once it seemed the girls were getting in a fight of nerves, the mood between the chiefs became chilly. Kim Hyunjo and the Sugar Cats manager didn’t continue their conversation.

     “Each team member put on your mics and sit at the very front seats! We will be recording soon!”

     The production crew member’s voice resounded loudly.

     The girls took their earphones off and got up. Kim Hyunjo patted each of their shoulders and said,

     “You heard, right? Even if the judges criticize you harshly, just think that they are being harsh because it’s a show and don’t take it to heart.”

     “Don’t worry, oppa. After getting wet in the rain this morning, my mentality has become incredibly strong.”

     Im Seoyoung clenched a fist.

     “I will come back after showing everything I couldn’t show this morning!”

     [1] Koreans say this in a sense that since something bad happened to you, you have prevented any further bad things from happening. This is mainly used as a way to comfort the person. English equivalent is ‘It could have been worse.’

     [2] Floor Director: A director who manages the stage.

     [] []

     

      Chapter 39

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL: emptycube

     They looked like they were about to go to battle. I gave each of them words or encouragement to boost their morale.

     Lee Taehee who was always dependable at times like this, Im Seoyoung who looked a bit nervous, luckily, her condition was good, and LJ who was so focused that I felt bad saying something.

     Lastly, to Lee Songha, who was silently burning up.

     “Songha, just do like you did in practice.”

     “Yes. I will do my best and return.”

     Lee Songha nodded her head and followed behind the other girls who going to the front.

     Just then, the first mission recording of K-Star had begun.

     I realized something considerably while watching the recording scene.

     It wasn’t that the recording process, in which they stopped and resumed with multiple times, was very tiring or that cameramen who went around putting cameras in people’s faces and filming managers and staff members’ reactions were very bothersome either.

     The biggest thing I realized was that you couldn’t thoughtlessly tell people to sing without instrumentals.

     Of course, there were teams or members who did well enough that the spectators shouted in admiration. The ones who the judges clapped for and praised that they could become the next generation K-Star.

     However, the performances of some teams literally made you shout. Even though they were new, it came to a point where you would worry whether it was okay to show a performance like that on a show with the words ‘ K-Star’ in its title.

     The ones who were unrivaled amongst them was precisely the team currently on the stage.

     Sugar Cats.

     “…. Hmmm.”

     Eventually, a sound I couldn’t keep contained escaped. It wasn’t only me, the people next to me were unable to look at the stage directly and avoided their gazes. There wasn’t even a need to look far, Kim Hyunjo even covered his face with the hand that had been supporting his chin.

     He couldn’t help it. Even if they had insufficient time to practice, this was too severe.

     After the shocking 3 minutes and 30 seconds had passed, the Sugar Cats members stood in front of the judges’ table. Although their hearts were probably thumping right now, I was calming my heart as well as we waited for the judges’ evaluation.

     This moment right now was filled with more anticipation than the first episode of a drama and more excitement than its last episode.

     The malicious character who stood out even amongst the three judges, Cha Suzy who had smashed the mentalities of those who performed ahead with her harsh criticisms was first to grab her mic. I didn’t think too well of her since she was the type to give overly strong remarks…

     “You should have called your team Bitter Cats instead of Sugar Cats. Bitter, bitter. It’s my first time scowling while listening to a song.”

     I think I might become her fan.

     The Sugar Cats girls were taken aback as they stammered and tried to pass each other the mic. However, there were still two more judges left. Before the Sugar Cats could say a word, the criticisms poured in.

     “Because you’re singing without instrumentals, your skills are clearly revealed. This means that you were more or less covering your insufficiencies with the instrumentals up until now.”

     “Your key was wavering from the beginning to the end, and you lost the beat so many times I gave up counting.”

     “There’s nothing to compliment about. And you were a team that had good preliminary responses from our viewers…”

     “That’s because they went on a lot of variety shows.”

     My blood seemed to flow with bubbling soda.{1}

     Ah. It felt like my heart had finally found peace at last.

     The Sugar Cats got off the stage while crying. When two cameramen filmed their crying figures on their way back to the seats, they wailed, saying that they made so many mistakes because they were nervous as this was their first mission.

     After their interview, the Sugar Cats returned to their seats behind us.

     The Sugar Cats chief clicked his tongue.

     “The judges said those words to make the first episode stimulating.”

     “Still, that was too much. Honestly, if we had more time to practice…”

     “They said we were Bitter Cats, oppa. Were we that bad?”

     “No. You know Cha Suzy’s style. Because people tell her she’s a tough unni and a girl crush, she said those harsh comments to harden her character. You didn’t do so bad to hear those words. Look at the other teams, the evaluations will be similar.”

     At his final words, Kim Hyunjo flipped his head around. The Sugar Cats chief cleared his throat and avoided his gaze.

     It was because Neptune was up next.

     The girls, who were waiting with other teams in the front row, cheered and got up. Then they calmly walked in front of the judges’ table.

     “Neptune… They have the lowest popularity amongst the participating teams.”

     “Their skills were pretty good when I saw their music video.”

     “If we judged that, then no team would have been criticized.”

     The judges, who had seen Neptune’s preliminary video ahead of time, exchanged some light chatter. Lee Taehee and Im Seoyoung smoothly answered their questions.

     “Good. Then, let’s see your performance.”

     “Yes!”

     I clenched the armrests and watched the stage.

     Breaking the silence, their no-instrumentals performance began with Lee Taehee’s lead.

     A bittersweet voice that contained a deep reverberation roused the open hall. A monitor, placed to one side of the stage, caught the judges fixing their postures. It wasn’t only the judges but the spectators in the seats, and even the staff stopped talking and turned to look at the stage.

     Im Seoyoung’s lively tone added life to the song, and LJ’s rap was so powerful and strong that my shoulders went up and down without me noticing.

     However, the most surprising part was Lee Songha.

     During this time, I had seen Lee Songha practicing a few times, but she was currently better than any of those times. It was to the point where I thought that effort didn’t betray you. Those who weren’t familiar with her may think that this much skill wasn’t worth getting in a fuss, but I knew that this performance was the result of endless effort.

     It wasn’t only Lee Songha, all four of them poured all the time, sweat and effort they had spent practicing since the moment the mission was announced into these 3 minutes and 40 seconds. They didn’t make any mistakes, and their performance made you forget that there weren’t any instrumentals.

     “Good. This is good.”

     Kim Hyunjo, who was in front of me, mumbled in an excited voice. I nodded my head as well.

     “Looks like she really did get rid of her bad luck this morning. I didn’t think she’d do this well.”

     Once their performance ended, the girls waited for the judges’ evaluation as they calmed their breaths. The girls were obviously nervous, but even I, who was watching from afar, was quite nervous as well.

     Cha Suzy raised her mic.

     “It was really good. I’m curious why you weren’t popular until now. Why didn’t you become popular?”

     The expressions of the girls, who were waiting on top of the stage for their evaluation, brightened at the compliment that exceeded their expectations. Even our side was in a festive mood. Kim Hyunjo hit the traitor’s and my shoulders with his excited palms, and I was too excited that it didn’t hurt. I currently didn’t care about the Sugar Cats grumbling behind me in the slightest.

     “Taehee is really too good. No, I’m not saying that you’re too good to be an idol, but it’s just I want to listen to you sing the song for the full 3 minutes and 40 seconds by yourself.

     “Seoyoung balances out the team well. Your tone and even your image. Above all, even though you aren’t very tall, you catch people’s attention as if the camera is zoomed in on you. It’s because you absorb 120% of your choreography. Looking at your record, I want to quickly confirm the entertainment sense you’ve shown in variety programs.”

     “Even if the underground community hasn’t heard of Neptune, they know LJ. So I was inwardly eager to see you, but after I seeing your performance, it was beyond my expectations.”

     Simon Lee and Producer Song Baekjin exchange some generous compliments. After every comment, the girls would express their thanks in proud expressions. It was to the point where the mood on the stage couldn’t get any better. Light expectations brushed over Lee Songha’s flushed cheeks. I gulped down my saliva and perked my ears up as well.

     Cha Suzy raised her mic.

     “Lee Songha.”

     “Yes.”

     “You alone lowered the team’s average. Are you practicing properly?”

     I almost stood up.

     I thought there was nothing I could do about criticisms about skill. I still didn’t know much about music, and these people had at least ten of years of music experience, so, of course, their words were right.

     However, asking whether she practiced properly or not was being too cruel to Lee Songha.

     She was someone who always stayed behind to practice some more after the girls had finished practicing and returned to their residence. To make matters worse, Simon Lee and Song Baekjin also added in,

     “That is a bit regretful.”

     “Your visuals are too good. Since you’re so eye-catching, my vision keeps going to you, but when I look at you, there isn’t anything beyond that. It would make more sense if you had a record in acting or entertainment, but that’s not the case either.”

     “Since she has the basics if she increases her practice time from now on…”

     Lee Songha’s head drooped. A camera caught her expression as it was displayed on a stage monitor. The camera director may have expected to see tears, but she was silently enduring their cold-hearted evaluations.

     “Haa…”

     Kim Hyunjo rubbed his face. Unable to calm my complicated heart, I simply sighed. All of a sudden, I realized that the voices behind me suddenly became brighter. Because we didn’t want to show Lee Songha their deceitful figures, we got up from our seats.

     The girls came down from the stage. Although they ended up with a much higher score than the average team, they weren’t cheerful. A cameraman stubbornly asked Lee Songha questions, but when she showed no signs of crying, he left soon after.

     When Lee Songha came close, Kim Hyunjo patted her slender shoulders.

     “Songha, I said it before, right? The words the judges are saying…”

     “I know. It’s fine, oppa.”

     “Okay. Since this is the beginning, you just need to show that you’re improving.”

     “Yup.”

     Lee Songha smiled faintly as she nodded her head.

     Seeing her face, I suddenly thought.

     How many times had Lee Songha said she was fine today?

     The recording ended well after midnight.

     “There is a week left until the next recording, so don’t practice today and go home and rest.”

     Kim Hyunjo requested. The girls nodded heavily and got in the van. I was thinking about whether to sit in the passenger seat or at the back when Lee Songha slowly approached me from behind and grabbed my clothes.

     “What’s wrong?”

     “One second.”

     When I took a few steps towards in the direction she was pulling, she looked around and mumbled in a small voice,

     “Oppa.”

     “Yeah.”

     “My foot hurts a little.”

     “What?”

     I quickly looked down.

     “It hurts? Since when?”

     “Since I fell.”

     If it was after she fell… Don’t tell me it was back during their rehearsal in the rain? That was so long ago. Didn’t that mean she didn’t say that she was hurt since then?

     “You’re telling….!”

     “I’m sorry. Please don’t tell the unnies.”

     Lee Songha tightly held on my clothes with both her hands and prevented me from moving. Dumbfounded, I looked at her, but she shook her head.

     That moment, I recalled the conversation we had on our way back from the morning schedule. They talked about thinking of it as getting rid of her bad luck and that it would have been more troublesome if she got hurt and it affected their K-Star schedule.

     If the girls somehow found out that Lee Songha was hiding the fact she was hurt, they might blame themselves. That was probably why Lee Songha was so desperately asking me now.

     “I get it. I get it, but I need to tell the chief. We need to go to the hospital. I’ll come back after telling the chief so let go. My clothes will rip.”

     Only then did her white-knuckled fingers loosen up.

     {1} Meaning he felt refreshed like drinking soda.

     [] []

     

      Chapter 40

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL: emptycube

     {TL/N: Cat Guardian Angel - Cat Guardian Ghost, since the cat is a ghost and not an angel (Had been lazy to go to previous chapters and fix it)}

     Almost running, I rushed and grabbed Kim Hyunjo, who was about to get in the passenger seat. When I told him the situation in a small voice so no one else could hear, his expression became serious.

     “She told me we must not tell the girls.”

     “Really, that girl… Then, Sunwoo, you go take her to an emergency room.”

     “I will. Don’t worry.”

     “Call me when you get home.”

     “Yes.”

     Kim Hyunjo skillfully made up a story. That she had to rush to the company due to a problem with her drama audition. Only the traitor gave a slightly doubtful look, the girls got in the van and left without much suspicion.

     Lee Songha and I grabbed a taxi and went the closest emergency room. I was worried that it might be serious, but luckily, it was a minor sprain.

     When we left the hospital after getting treated, it was just past 1 a.m.

     I went out towards the street to look for a taxi, but Lee Songha staggered behind me like a puppy in the rain. Any person looking at her would find their hearts go soft.

     “You want some juice before we go?”

     “Yes.”

     Lee Songha’s footsteps halted.

     I left her on a bench and bought a juice she liked from a nearby vending machine. I handed her the juice and sat beside her.

     I looked up at the sky with complicated thoughts. It had been filled with dark clouds this morning, but as if they had been washed away, the moon in the sky was especially bright.

     After thinking for a moment, I asked,

     “Why didn’t you tell me earlier?”

     A slight shadow cast over her face.

     “Sorry.”

     “What were you going to do if it was serious? Did you not tell us you were hurt in case we wouldn’t let you perform?”

     It seemed that trying not to sound too pressuring paid off as Lee Songha, who had been fiddling with the juice bottle, opened her heavy lips.

     “I messed everything up.”

     “Why is it your fault? It’s the rain’s.”

     It was also the staff’s fault for not setting up tarps because they would look messy.

     That was why they made the girls dance in the rain, making one of them fall, only to cancel their performance in the end?

     I found out the names of the program’s PD and the director. I even resolved myself to reject them outright just in case they tried to cast the girls once they became famous.

     When I recalled the staff again, irritation suddenly surged in me. While I tried to calm down by taking deep breaths, I saw Lee Songha’s legs pull back. Now that I thought about it, even though she was dressed warmly above, her bare legs stretched out from below her skirt.

     I clicked my tongue as I took off my coat and handed it to her. Well, this wasn’t in a good condition either because it had dried after getting completely soaked, but at least it would protect her from the wind.

     “Cover your legs with this.”

     “It’s fi…”

     “Don’t say you’re fine. Was what happened before fine?”

     I spat before regretting it. I felt that I needlessly made her, who had just calmed down, recall bad thoughts again. When I glanced at her, her expression was gloomier than before.

     Damn, what should I do?

     Just as my head was spinning more furiously than any other time, Lee Songha fiddled with my coat covering her knees and mumbled in a quiet voice,

     “I’m a useless person.”

     “… What?”

     “…”

     “What did you say?”

     I thought I heard it wrong, but looking at how she was looking down wordlessly, it seemed I had heard correctly.

     Just what nonsense was she saying now?

     When I was about to open my mouth, Lee Songha blinked her eyes. Then, without any warning, a tear dripped down from her eye.

     My heart dropped.

     I had seen kids cry and had comforted them countless times. However, they were the type to cry as if they were about to die one moment, then come back to life the moment they saw their mom.

     “Umm… Songha.”

     “Yes.”

     Lee Songha rubbed her eye with the back of her hand. It ended with one teardrop. However, even if no more tears fell, her face was gloomy as if tears could fall at any moment.

     I didn’t recall ever seen her so depressed.

     What should I do if I tried to say things to comfort her and it only made things worse? It looked it was my fault this time as well.

     It seemed she didn’t want to let the other girls know, so how should I comfort her…

     “You, uh… Do you want to call your parents? To feel better. Should I leave?”

     I said before regretting it. It was too late at night to call her parents right now.

     Lee Songha’s face instantly darkened.

     “My mom and dad don’t like that I’m a celebrity. They ask why I keep doing this when it’s not working out.”

     “Uhh….”

     “They haven’t called much after our last album flunked.”

     I felt like I was going crazy.

     I opened and closed my mouth a few times before saying exactly what was on my mind.

     “Why are you useless? You did well during the recording. The chief, Gunyoung and I, we were all going crazy about how great you were. Also, even if you might not be as good at dancing or singing, isn’t your talent concentrated in acting?”

     Lee Songha stared at me.

     “Look, even now. You were so great at acting that no one knew your ankle hurt until you told me. Choi Gunyoung, he’s quick-witted, but he still didn’t know.”

     When I said this while mixing in a few jokes, Lee Songha’s eyes shined slightly.

     “Once an episode of your drama airs, you will definitely hear them say things like, ‘The rediscovery of Lee Songha’.”

     Ah. The overcast on her face slowly faded away. A smile peeped out from within.

     “I really wish I am as talented in acting like oppa says.”

     Luckily, she looked better as she instantly gulped down her juice before saying,

     “I want to audition quickly. I am going to try really hard.”

     “Yeah, you just do as you’re doing now.”

     Then, I will try to create an opportunity however I can.

     Looking at the side of her face, I suddenly thought.

     I thought of how I wanted to see Lee Songha’s talent fully bloom. I thought of how I wanted to see her figure, more confident and beautiful than anyone else, standing tall in an unimaginably grand and magnificent place.

     With my strength.

     I wanted… to take her there with my own hands.

     I sent Lee Songha to her residence and returned to my one-room apartment.

     I dragged my heavy legs to the door when I saw a delivery box in front of my door. When I wondered what it was, I remembered how my mom said she sent me a package.

     When I brought it inside and opened it, I saw pakimchi and other dry side dishes uniformly packed in resealable bags as well as a glass bottle with honey-soaked ginger.

     It was too late right now, so I decided to call her before work tomorrow.

     I boiled some water and brewed myself a cup of ginger tea. When I sat down at my desk chair and took a sip, my stiff body slowly relaxed.

     I felt refreshed.

     Now that my stomach was warm, I felt sleepy. Without even taking off my coat, I slouched over my desk. My body felt heavy and sluggish.

     Should I just sleep like this?

     While I was thinking about it, my phone vibrated. When I took it out, it was Kim Hyunjo.

     Ah, he told me to call him.

     “Yes, chief. I just got home.”

     -Okay. How’s Songha?

     “They said it was a minor sprain and that we shouldn’t worry about it too much.”

     -That’s good. Then, there’s no problem with auditioning, right?

     My mind jolted.

     “Auditioning?”

     -I talked with Younghoon hyung, and he said that the CEO of Pan Production had brought over the script this afternoon. Hyung personally met with him and read the script, and he said it was good. Although there needs to be further discussion, it looks like Songha can prepare to audition for this project.

     Finally!

     Unable to contain my excitement, I jumped up.

     I brought the opportunity right in front of my eyes. All that was left was to grab it.

     Lee Songha’s face brushed past my mind. How happy would she be if I told her?

     -Oh, right. I’m thinking about leaving Lee Songha’s personal schedule up to you from now on. What do you think?

     “…!”

     -It’s a project you brought in, and it seems like Lee Songha listens to you as well. And looking at how you’ve been, it seems alright to trust you with this. Well, if you don’t want to, then you don’t have to.

     “Nope! I will!”

     I replied in a voice akin to a scream. I heard laughter from the other side. It seemed my voice was quite loud as my next door neighbor knocked on the wall so I silently clenched my fists and shook them. It was still hard to contain my excitement with just this so I paced back and forth in my small room.

     Just a moment ago, my mind felt tired, and I was only filled with the thoughts of resting, but it felt like I could easily go out to work right now.

     Just then, Kim Hyunjo suddenly added in,

     -Ah, also, this isn’t anything certain. But they say that the leading male actor for this project might be from our company.

     …What?

     -I don’t know the specifics so let’s talk at work.

     He hung up. However, I was unable to move from my spot.

     It felt like cold water had been poured on me.

     In the future I saw. In the future where I heard the news about how Cat Guardian Ghost was a big hit, the male lead wasn’t an actor from W&U.

     Maybe… the drama’s lead actor might change?

     I spent the rest of the night wide awake before going to work.

     Endless thoughts trailed after one another, not letting me sleep.

     Why did a W&U actor come up when discussing the role of the Cat Guardian Ghost lead?

     If it really changed, who would be the new lead?

     Don’t, don’t tell me it’s Sung Dowon? No. That’s going too far. It will definitely not be the case. I am not that unlucky.

     Haa… If something somehow changed, it would inevitably change the future as well.

     The role of the interpreter, which Songha would audition for, was a supporting role, but the male lead would be the poster board of the drama.

     If the male lead was changed in a drama, which was expected to be a hit, would the drama still be a hit as expected?

     Damn. I thought that as long as Lee Songha was cast in the Cat Guardian Ghost, even if it wasn’t an 8-lane highway, I believed that her path would at least be paved with cement.{2} Well, nothing was easy.

     Kim Hyunjo was surprised when I entered the office.

     “Why did you come to work so early? Your dark circles have reached your chin.”

     “I was curious about what happened to Cat Guardian Ghost.”

     “Aha, so that’s why you came in so early? Now that your shoulders feel heavy, you can’t sleep?”

     I simply laughed awkwardly. As if he understood my urgent mind, he folded his arms and said,

     “I told Pan Production your contact information so they’ll contact you. Set an audition date. If any other issues that need to be decided come up, bring them to me first.”

     “Yes. But you said how the male lead might be from our company…”

     “Ah, that?”

     Please tell me negotiations broke down. Please.

     In the worst case scenario, even if the male lead changed, it couldn’t be as bad as Sung Dowon. I couldn’t let Sung Dowon ruin my plans.

     While I was uneasy, Kim Hyunjo asked,

     “Do you know Seo Jijoon?”

     “… Seo Jijoon?”

     Of course, I knew him. He was an actor W&U personally trained and debuted.

     He had a smart, refined image, and because he trained for a long time, he was a good actor who had never created controversy with his acting skills.

     He had been successful in public networks’ weekend dramas and weekday miniseries one after another and fixed himself a spot as a top star. I heard rumors he was carefully looking through scenarios to take to the big screen.

     “It seems the Pan Production CEO coincidentally met Seo Jijoon when he came here. So he gave him the script, and when Seo Jijoon read it, he said he wanted to do it?”

     {1} Kimchi made with green onions

     {2} How her path (to success) would be easier if she was cast in the Cat Guardian Ghost.

     [] []

     

      Chapter 41

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL: emptycube

     Seo Jijoon. Seo Jijoon might become the lead…

     “But, the team 2 leader is opposing it so we don’t know how it will turn out.”

     Since he was someone I didn’t expect, my mind became more complicated.

     “Oh, right. The script. You need to take a look at it too.”

     “Ah.”

     Kim Hyunjo took out a thick envelope from a desk drawer. I gulped down my saliva as I received it. When I opened it, I saw two scripts printed on A4 papers. They were the first and second episodes of Cat Guardian Ghost.

     After many ups and downs, I finally held the script which had become a big hit in my hands.

     I carried the script and shut myself in a meeting room.

     After reading the two 50-page scripts, I let out the sigh I had been holding in.

     It was fun.

     Not one scene was boring. The lead and support, even the extras, all the characters seemed lifelike. It followed the fantasy romantic comedy genre while mixing in a complex, yet strong composition of characters as well as realistic dialogue.

     I had only read the text, yet it felt like the two episodes were playing in front of my eyes.

     The script deserved its praise as doing all the work as it truly was entertaining.

     … Then let’s think about the situation again.

     If I thought with the presumption that the lead would change, Seo Jijoon was definitely not a bad card.

     From what I knew, strong candidates for the male lead were actors, Im Joowon and Park Hyemin. When looking at their levels, Seo Jijoon was the best.

     The problem was that using a successful actor didn’t directly lead to success. Then, wouldn’t every drama that cast top actors become a hit?

     The time when the ‘top actor effect’ worked had passed, now the key was how well they could digest their role.

     How well they brought out the character’s charm.

     They had to have decent acting skills, however, when an actor who could perfectly get into his character and a great script met, it would have an explosive synergistic effect.

     The male lead in Cat Guardian Ghost had the outer appearance of an extreme perfectionist, but he was careful and shy on the inside. Although, in some ways, he may look foolish, that was actually his charm.

     But the Seo Jijoon I knew was an actor who had shown a very consistent image up until now.

     A cold, irritable elitist image.

     Would an actor like that be able to properly digest this character?

     Such a comical role?

     … Damn, what a headache.

     I thought about it by myself for a while before going up to the PR office on the fifth floor. Of course, I carried coffee in both hands.

     “Team leader, have some coffee.”

     “Huh?”

     Familiar faces poked out between the partitions. Team Leader Park grinned as she got up.

     “I’m starting to used to you standing there like that.”

     “I know, right? Although we’re happy since you bring coffee every time you come here.”

     “What’s it today?”

     I asked after drinking a sip of my coffee,

     “Dramas like… Hwarang of Silla{1}, The Beast, The Odd Man, Couple’s Obligation.”

     “Yeah, they were all successful dramas.”

     “If their leading actors had been changed, would they still have been successful?”

     Team Leader Park knit her brows as she thought before opening her mouth,

     “Well, although there would be no end to it if we kept going on and on… in one word, it’s luck.”

     “Luck…”

     “They could have failed or become even greater successes. Or else, why would they say casting is a gamble?”

     “But if we’re talking the projects Sunwoo said, even if the leading actors changed, wouldn’t they still have been decent?”

     The female employee added in while rubbing her chin in a serious manner.

     “I mean, those projects had good scripts as their base. The directing was good too.”

     “That’s true. No matter what we say, the script undoubtedly plays a large role. Unless the changed actor wasn’t terrible at acting or their chemistry with other actors didn’t work out,”

     Added in the male employee.

     Those were my thoughts as well. Just as I was about to open my mouth, Team Leader Park abruptly said,

     “Cat Guardian Ghost. It seems you have a ton of worries about that project. We read the script yesterday, and it was fun. It was the most entertaining out of the projects I’ve read recently.”

     “That’s right. The synopsis wasn’t very good, but I read the script without noticing time pass.”

     “You brought K-Star on your first day, and if this drama’s a hit as well, there really is something up with you, Sunwoo. We’ll need to keep watch.”

     Team Leader Park gave a meaningful smile as she prodded,

     “But, about why you asked if a drama will be okay even if the leading actor had been changed. Is it maybe because Jijoon might go in as the male lead? Because you worry the project will become weird if he joins?”

     “Is that true? Then who did you think will be the male lead? Kim Yeonsung? Im Joowon?”

     “Ey, Jijoon is better than them. If they get can get Jijoon, the production side will be completely ecstatic.”

     I briefly licked my lips before saying,

     “I know that Seo Jijoon is a great actor. However, the male lead has parts throughout where he acts foolishly. And in reality, Seo Jijoon’s image is…”

     “Ah, you haven’t seen Jijoon in person yet, have you?”

     Team Leader Park suddenly laughed out loud. Even the two employees shook their heads.

     “It’s not like Jijoon has no reason for wanting to do this drama.”

     “Pardon?”

     “If I were to say this in the perspective of someone who knows the person known as Seo Jijoon well, if he gets cast, I bet this will be a divine move{2} for the project?”

     … A divine move?

     *

     Management Business Department Team 2.

     A heavy air hung in the office where two people were sitting face to face with each other

     “Jijoon, you weren’t like this before. Why are you suddenly so stubborn?”

     The team 2 leader vigorously scratched his shaggy hair

     “We already decided to film a movie this year. We only need to pick a scenario. Once you film a movie with cinematic quality, the title ‘Movie Star’ will be stuck next to your name, and you will be worth much…”

     “Team leader.”

     Seo Jijoon said in a calm voice filled with certainty,

     “The scenario team leader gave me. The roles you suggested me saying that they fit me. In reality, I don’t really understand. You know I’m dumb. How can I act when I don’t understand the character?”

     “Jijoon, listen to me. That’s…!”

     “But Cat Guardian Ghost. I think I can do well in that project. It’s fun as well.”

     “No, even if you’re going to do a miniseries, why does it have to be on cable of all places? Huh? So many projects from public TV networks wanted you. You should know as well, no matter how well-made a drama is on cable, there are many that end with a viewership rating of 1 percent. Why are you trying to waste your time? Don’t you know how important this time is for you?”

     The team 2 leader, feeling frustrated, thumped his chest as he attempted to persuade him. Seo Jijoon, who had kept his silence until now, suddenly frowned with his sharp eyes before saying,

     “I did all the projects team leader picked out for me until now. I want to do what I want this time.”

     “Jijoon!”

     “I’m sorry.”

     Jijoon deeply lowered his head.

     After a moment had passed, Seo Jijoon opened the office door and left expressionlessly. His long legs walked in long strides before he let out a small sigh and opened the emergency exit door. Lee Bongjoon, his manager, who had been sitting on the stairs, stood up.

     “How did it go? Did you tell it to him straight?”

     After closing the door, Seo Jijoon slumped down.

     “Uhh, I think so. Ah, damn. I thought I was going to die of suffocation!”

     “Still, it’s lucky you weren’t eaten by the team leader.”

     “That’s why I asked you to come with me! How can hyung let your actor go into a snake’s den alone?”

     “Since you’re the actor, you can go in and say it straightforwardly. If I went in there, I’d be fired. Would you like it if I was fired?”

     “No, that’s not it…”

     Mumbled Seo Jijoon as he licked his lips. Lee Bongjoon let out a sigh and said with a relieved expression,

     “Anyways, it’s good that it went well. Even if you’re a bit stubborn, I think it’s good if you do this drama.”

     “Right? You think the same, right?”

     “Of course. I knew it the moment I saw it. This is a script meant for you. As well as a role meant for you. I even thought that the writer wrote it with you in mind, you know?”

     “Ah, really… How is it that hyung and I think so similarly?”

     “Hehe. That’s why I’m your manager.”

     The two crouched down on the cold emergency stairs and laughed for a while. Then, as if he suddenly thought of something, Lee Bongjoon mumbled,

     “If this is the case, I should meet with Team 3’s Lucky Charm. Since we might be filming together.”

     “Lucky what? Who’s that?”

     “Do you know Neptune from our company?”

     “Uh… I think I’ve heard of them before.”

     “He’s their manager. They say he’s the one who brought this project here. He asked the PR team for the synopsis and even requested for the script to put one of Neptune’s members in the drama.”

     “Ah, really? Then, if it wasn’t for him, I wouldn’t have seen this script?”

     “I guess?”

     “Hmm…”

     Seo Jijoon, who thought with narrowed eyes, opened his mouth.

     “Hyung, I want to come with you when you go meet that person.”

     *

     Pan Production. CEO Kim Pansuk didn’t move as he stared holes into his cellphone. Production Producer Park Sookyung placed the bowl of jjajangmyeon{3} he had completely wiped clean down and said,

     “CEO, your jjajangmyeon is going to get mushy. You should hurry up and eat it.”

     “Do you think I can swallow jjajangmyeon right now? In this critical moment when Seo Jijoon is thinking about whether he will do our drama or not?”

     “It’s not like the call will come faster because you’re staring like that?”

     Director Shin Taekyun yawned as he joined in,

     “The people from above are in a frenzy, telling us to quickly bring them Seo Jijoon’s contract. They say they are waiting with articles confirming his casting already written.”

     “Haa… This is so nerve-wracking. So nerve-wracking.”

     “I understand that that guy is good at acting, but will he fit with our project? Senior said you met him briefly yesterday.”

     “I told you, I felt it that moment. If Director Shin and Writer Hong saw him, you’ll know what I mean. So we need to get him…”

     CEO Kim Pansuk held his cellphone as if it was a treasure and slouched over the table.

     Park Sookyung, who had been organizing the dishes, said,

     “But, CEO. Was it Lee Songha? When should we schedule her audition? We promised to contact them so we need to decide fast.”

     “Ah… that girl group? The one who’s acting for the first time?”

     “Yes. For the role of the interpreter, Jung Haewon.”

     Director Shin Taekyun, and even Writer Hong Jumi, who had her face in the bowl of jjamppong{4}, lifted their heads. CEO Kim Pansuk said in an awkward expression,

     “Don’t tell me, if she fails the audition, Seo Jijoon won’t join or anything, right?”

     “No. It’s not like we sent it with Seo Jijoon in mind in the first place. They contacted us because the member known as Lee Songha read the synopsis and wanted to audition for it. They say her manager actively suggested it or something? I don’t even know where he heard about our drama, but they say he was the first one to ask for the synopsis as well.”

     “Then. Contact this grateful manager and ask him if she could audition for an easier role instead of Jung Haewon. Since the role of Jung Haewon will be difficult.”

     “Pardon?”

     “Although Jung Haewon is a supporting role, she is of great importance. And if they don’t have the acting skills, they will definitely not be able to get into character.”

     Writer Hong Jumi, as well as Director Shin Taekyun, nodded their heads.

     CEO Kim Pansuk said it again,

     “If we cast a first-timer and if they can’t act, the actor and the project gets criticized. How can we ruin this great script with a miscast?”

     “Okay. I will call the manager.”

     Park Sookyung picked up his cell phone and got up.

     {1} Hwarang is also known as Flowering Knights. They were an elite group of male youths in Silla.

     {2} Divine Move – A non-obvious, inspired move that turns a losing game into a victory.

     {3} Jjajangmyeon – Noodles in black bean sauce.

     {4} Jjamppong – Korean spicy seafood noodle soup.

     [] []

     

      Chapter 42

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL: emptycube

     {So it turns out the production producer of Pan Production is a guy… The author never indicated this until now.}

     I put aside my worries momentarily and headed towards the Neptune’s residence.

     I wanted to give Lee Songha the script as soon as possible. She needed to prepare for her audition, and I was too curious about what kind of acting would pop out if I gave this script to her since she had already made me anticipate her acting just from the short dialogue in the synopsis.

     When I rang the doorbell after arriving, LJ opened the door with half-opened eyes. It seemed it hadn’t been long since she had woken up as her long, shining blond hair was tangled and sleepiness seemed to drip from her eyebrows which were of the same color.{1}

     “You came?”

     “Yeah. To give Songha the script.”

     “She’s showering right now.”

     LJ stretched her arms and said in a passing tone,

     “The passcode is 828289.”

     “What?”

     When I stopped in my tracks and looked at her, she scratched her neck.

     “ time, just come in by entering the passcode. We were thinking about telling you after a few months, but oppa doesn’t seem like a weird person. A robber, stalker or pervert. You aren’t any of them, right?”

     “Umm. Probably not.”

     “What is ‘probably’! I’m should just change the passcode!”

     When I looked to where the sound was coming from, Im Seoyoung was lying on top of a giant rubber gym ball, belly side down. It was uncertain whether she was exercising or just lying on it.

     Beside her, Lee Taehee was lying on the sofa and pressing the remote.

     I exchanged greetings with them before sitting on the sofa as well. Not long ago, this place was unfamiliar to me like a new world, but now that I came here as often as mice to a food jug{2}, it felt like the sofa was my designated seat.

     “Oppa, oppa, oppa.”

     “Yeah. I heard you the first time.”

     “Eh, there’s no sincerity in it if I say it once.”

     Im Seoyoung fumbled as she pushed the gym ball forward and asked,

     “What happened yesterday with Songha? There was something, wasn’t there?”

     There was. A lot. There weren’t just one or two things that came to mind.

     I concealed my prickling mind and shrugged my shoulders.

     “Nothing much. Why?”

     Im Seoyoung narrowed her eyes in suspicion.

     “I think there was. She came home all smiling yesterday. As if something good had happened.”

     “Really? That’s odd.”

     “That’s what I’m saying. And she had a bandage wrapped around her foot.”

     Ah. We were caught.

     I stealthily avoided Im Seoyoung’s sharp eyes. Lee Taehee turned off the TV and looked at me.

     “She said it wasn’t much. Is she really fine?”

     “They said it’s a slight sprain. As long as she looks after it properly, there should be no problems.”

     It seemed they had been worried as their expressions relaxed a little.

     Not long after, the sound of water coming from the bathroom stopped. The door suddenly opened, and Lee Songha walked out while drying her wet hair with a towel. Just like the day I first met her.

     Then and now, the scene was great.

     “Uh, oppa.”

     Lee Songha came closer with a happy expression.

     “Did you sleep well? Aren’t you tired?”

     “This much is fi… My stamina is good. I even ate before I slept yesterday.”

     Seeing her change her words in the middle, it seemed she remembered me saying not to say she was fine yesterday so I laughed.

     I took out two envelopes from my bag. One for Lee Songha, and the other I copied for myself.

     “This is the script for Cat Guardian Ghost.”

     “Ah…!”

     “Since you need to practice for the audition, let’s read it together.”

     Lee Songha quickly grabbed the envelope and checked its contents. Then, she looked at the other girls before grabbing my arm.

     “Let’s go inside.”

     “What?”

     I was suddenly pulled into her room. From behind, Im Seoyoung snapped saying that she wouldn’t listen since she was being so cheap, but Lee Songha firmly shut her door.

     I awkwardly looked around in the room I entered for the first time.

     Hmmm…. Although I didn’t have any particular delusions of a girl’s room, I didn’t imagine it would be like this. It was very similar to my nieces and nephews’ room{3}. Instead of cute items, there were empty chip bags and crumbs on the floor.

     When I looked at this disaster, Lee Songha acted as if she was cleaning it up before simply shaking the brown rug under her bed. Then, as if in a hurry, she took out the script, almost turning the envelope inside out.

     “Please sit here. I’m going to read the script first.”

     “Uh, okay.”

     For a while, Lee Songha focused on the script, seemingly forgetting I was beside her. Her cheeks gradually flushed. She was surprised then serious and even smiled faintly. Since it was nice looking at the subtle changes in her expression, I waited without getting bored.

     Just then, Lee Songha took in a deep breath as she closed the script.

     “How is it?”

     “It’s fun.”

     I knew it. Looking at her figure which reminded me of a child who received a present from Santa on Christmas, even I was pleased.

     “Then, should we go through it properly once? I will read the stage directions and your counterparts’ dialogue.”

     I flipped to the page where Jung Haewon first appeared and read the stage direction without any trouble.

     “Scene 17. Café. Night. Haewon sits in a corner with a haggard face…”

     When I felt a strange look as I read the stage directions and the employee’s lines, I looked up. Lee Songha was looking at me with a surprised look.

     “What’s wrong?”

     “You’re very good. You seem like a pro.”

     “Huh? Ah… It’s probably because I read a lot of children books.”

     Since each of my four nephews and nieces had their own distinctive tastes, this was a talent I had acquired by going around and reading them children books they each liked. From Snow White to the witch, there wasn’t a single children book character I couldn’t act out, let alone stage directions.

     I never thought that it prove helpful like this.

     “Now then, shall we start again?”

     After finishing our first reading, Lee Songha stretched out, exhausted.

     Her face still contained traces of the figure known as Jung Haewon.

     Even though we had closed the script, I too was still immersed in it. When I regained my senses, my throat tingled. Now that I thought about it, I read all those long stage directions and dialogue without drinking a single sip of water.

     When I went out into the living room massaging my neck, I was met with three people looking at me. Their looks were so intense I felt like I had to go back into the room.

     “Oppa.”

     Im Seoyoung approached me.

     “We heard it from outside. Even though I don’t know much about acting…”

     She glanced at Lee Songha’s room before asking quietly,

     “Songha. Isn’t she quite good at acting?”

     “No.”

     “Sorry?”

     “She’s incredible at it.”

     I could confirm it now.

     Lee Songha was really good at acting. I couldn’t keep count of how many times I was surprised during the reading. Her talents weren’t simply focused in acting, instead, she possessed an incredible talent for acting. If that wasn’t the case, either my eyes were twisted or I was strongly biased.

     I no longer worried or was uneasy about the audition. I wanted to get her to audition quickly. I wanted to show the director and writers, who were producing the drama, Lee Songha’s acting abilities in front of them. I couldn’t wait to see their expressions and hear what kinds of admiration they would say.

     When I was thinking this, my phone vibrated.

     It was a number I was seeing for the first time.

     “Hello?”

     -Are you the person in charge of Neptune?

     “Yes, I am Jung Sunwoo.”

     -I am Pan Production’s Production Producer Park Sookyung.

     His timing was incredible.

     I walked to the sofa with quick steps and took out a notebook and pen from my bag.

     “Hello, producer. I had been waiting for your call.”

     -I called you today about the audition. When would be a good time?

     “Since we just finished recording yesterday, we’re free until the day after.”

     -We can’t do the day after tomorrow, should we set the date for tomorrow? Ah, also…

     From the other side, the producer hesitated for a moment before continuing,

     -And how would you feel about auditioning for another role besides Jung Haewon?

     This wasn’t shocking. Since I was worried when I read the script as well.

     The importance of the role of the Interpreter Jung Haewon was much greater than I anticipated. Unlike other supporting roles which were there to support male and female lead, this character had a clear narrative, and because of this, it required a complex range of emotions.

     There was no production or director who would cast someone who had not even proved her skills, someone who wasn’t even an aspiring actress but a member of an unknown girl group, in such an important role without any concern. If there was, I would be more worried.

     -I don’t know if you’ve read the script, but Jung Haewon is a difficult role.

     “Yes, we’ve read it.”

     -There are a lot of emotional scenes so it will be troublesome if the acting is awkward. Since Lee Songha is young, how about she auditions for easier and safer roles like a part-timer at the female lead’s work…

     If I had received this call before I came here, I may have hesitated.

     However, I wouldn’t now.

     The reason why I focused on this role from the start was because I had learned that Lee Songha had acted in an interpreter role through my foresight. And I had thought that she should get the Jung Haewon role to reach that goal.

     But now, I had better reasons.

     First, the character Jung Haewon was just too good to give up.

     Second, since Lee Songha had started to become attached to this role.

     And, of course, I was confident that Lee Songha would be great for the role.

     “Thank you, producer. However…”

     -Yes?

     “We want to audition for the Jung Haewon role like we decided.”

     *

     The production producer of Pan Production, Park Sookyung, held a duster and stood on a chair.  When he dusted the top shelf of a dusty bookshelf, clumps of dust fell like large snowflakes. Writer Hong Jumi, who had been filling a coffee pot with water below, coughed.

     “It’s not like Seo Jijoon is coming, do we really need to clean?”

     When Park Sookyung grumbled, CEO Kim Pansuk, who had been sitting sternly, clicked his tongue.

     “They are coming from W&U. What are you going to do if they go back and say our office was a shithole? Also, even if that’s not the case, she’s the first celebrity to come audition. Won’t I lose face if our office is in this state? Hurry up, man. They’ll be here soon.”

     “You already said that there was a 99% chance we won’t pick her for the role of Jung Haewon anyways…”

     Two planning producers, who had returned from dealing with external matters, joined in.

     “I also saw Lee Songha’s profile. Her looks were amazing? With those looks, even if she’s a little bad at acting, I don’t think I’ll switch the channel since it will be like watching a photo book or a commercial.”

     CEO Kim Pansuk snorted as he retorted,

     “Everyone and their mother can be a goddess on their profiles. Photographers are so skilled these days.”

     “I saw their music video as well.”

     “You only know when you see them in person. Don’t you know that 9 out of 10 girl group members, whose fans praise as having the best looks, are humiliated once they in a two-shot with an actress?”

     “That’s true. Since they say actresses have their own looks.”

     Park Sookyung nodded his head in agreement. Just then, the youngest producer, who had gone out to buy expensive snacks for the guests coming to audition, ran in.

     “Wow… Did you all see? There’s a celebrity downstairs right now. I think she’s an actress.”

     “Why are you like that? You said you were the assistant director of a movie. It’s not like it’s your first time seeing an actress.”

     The youngest producer gulped down his saliva at Park Sookyung’s scolding.

     “Senior, she’s incredibly pretty. There’s a halo effect from 100 meters away!”

     That moment, the door opened again, accompanied by a thud.

     A man and woman pair entered the office. Everyone in the office instantly realized the person with the halo effect the youngest producer had been talking about was the woman. Also, they understood why he made such a big fuss.

     “Hello, I am Lee Songha.”

     “I am Jung Sunwoo.”

     The two bowed as they greeted them. Park Sookyung threw away the duster and greeted the guests.

     “I am the production producer, Park Sookyung.”

     He glanced at Lee Songha, who was in front of him, as he took out his business card. She brushed her straight hair, which had become ruffled when she bowed her head, with her white hand. A perfect face was revealed from below. Park Sookyung resisted the urge to whistle.

     He had imagined a cheerful, lively person since she was a girl group member in her twenties, but instead, she gave off a calm, thoughtful aura. If he had seen her without knowing her identity, he would have surely assumed she was an actress.

     She would be humiliated if she was in a two-shot with an actress?

     It, instead, had come to a point where, if she was cast in a supporting role, he would have to worry about the female lead. Since it would be difficult to remain in a two-shot with her without decent looks.

     “Please take care of us.”

     Park Sookyung turned his eyes away from Lee Songha with difficulty. The man she had come with was holding out his business card. He was wearing a casual suit and a clean coat. His style wasn’t one that made you think he was a manager at first glance.

     Although he possessed a tall, clean appearance, he looked a bit unfriendly. Only, his voice was gentle.

     The words ‘W&U Management Business Department Team 3. Jung Sunwoo’ were engraved on the high-quality business card.

     After they exchanged light greetings with everyone in the office including Kim Pansuk, Park Sookyung guided them to the meeting room where the audition was held. Three people went in along with them, CEO Kim Pansuk, Director Shin Taekyun, and Writer Hong Jumi.

     As soon as the door closed, the remaining three people prepared coffee and snacks as they whispered endlessly. Of course, the bulk of their conversation was about Lee Songha’s looks.

     Then, the youngest producer suddenly asked,

     “The person who came with her looked young, is he someone high up? What’s his title?”

     “There was only his name on the business card? He didn’t seem like a road manager. He looked too composed.”

     “But, do higher ups normally come and see their rookies’ auditions? It’s not even a small company but from such a big company like W&U… Is she perhaps someone they are properly training and boosting? It looks plausible just looking at her appearance.”

     “Then, she might be better at acting than we thought.”

     They looked towards the meeting room door with curious expressions.

     The audition was just about to start within the firmly shut door.

     {1} She was very sleepy.

     {2} I chose a literal translation. People used to store food (usually grains or plants) in jugs, and mice would frequent these jugs often to eat the food inside.

     {3} I forget the room arrangement for his nephews and nieces so I just put ‘nieces and nephews’ room’. They have yet to appear in the story.

     [] []

     

      Chapter 43

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL: emptycube

     CEO Kim Pansuk let out a cough before asking,

     “Umm, about why you wore formal clothes, did you prepare it to audition for the role of Jung Haewon?”

     “Yes. It said that Jung Haewon always dressed up like a career woman.”

     Lee Songha explained calmly.

     She wore a formal blouse and a coat, as well as pants which outlined out her slender legs. She wore ankle boots and the heels were stunningly tall. She gave off a strong urban vibe. Her clothes, which weren’t ruffled in the slightest, revealed how strict her personality was in terms of managing herself.

     “Your preparation is good.”

     “Thank you.”

     Perhaps it was because she dressed up like this, but there were many parts about her that felt similar to Jung Haewon’s image. Above all, she didn’t look like she was in her twenties. CEO Kim Pansuk, who glanced over Lee Songha, asked the two people on either side of him in a quiet voice,

     “What do you two think?”

     “CEO, look at her script.”

     Whispered Writer Hong Jumi.

     Their gazes focused on the script in Lee Songha’s hand. There were clear signs that she looked through the thick stack of A4 papers multiple times, and it seemed that she analyzed the character thoroughly as they could see densely written notes next to Jung Haewon’s lines.

     Though, they couldn’t figure out what she wrote since her writing was bad.

     “It looks like you’ve prepared quite a bit?”

     “That’s a good attitude.”

     Director Shin Taekyun murmured absentmindedly.

     In any case, it was certain that the gazes of these three people had changed slightly due to Lee Songha’s enthusiastic attitude. If they had previously thought about holding a short audition before ending it by telling her why the role of Jung Haewon wasn’t for her, they were now ready to properly observe her acting.

     CEO Kim Pansuk opened the script and said,

     “I will give you a scene, so just try acting that part.”

     “Yes.”

     “Now, first episode, page 36. Scene 51. Let’s start with this. Since it’s easier to act if someone else reads lines as well… Director Shin, do you want to do it? Or should I?”

     “If it’s fine, could I do it?”

     CEO Kim Pansuk turned his gaze in the direction of the sudden voice. At some point, the man next to Lee Songha, who had introduced himself as Jung Sunwoo, was holding onto his own copy of the script.

     “Since I played the role of her counterparts during practice, I think Songha will be more comfortable this way.”

     Lee Songha’s expression was undoubtedly more relaxed than before. As if she was relieved.

     CEO Kim Pansuk nodded his head.

     “Okay, then. Jung… Uh, are you a chief?”

     “I am a manager.”

     “Then, let’s go with the manager reading.”

     As soon as he gave the signal, the manager began to read the counterpart’s lines.

     CEO Kim Pansuk tilted his head. His reading was skillful and smooth. His skill wasn’t of someone who had only read once or twice. Also, this fact was enough to make him doubt the identity of this man who said he was a manager.

     Although the first thing that came to your mind when you thought of managers were road managers, even if their titles were different, chiefs and team leaders were all basically managers.

     Perhaps he had a youthful appearance and was, in fact, someone who had been raised in this industry?

     Just when his doubts were progressing in a weird direction, Lee Songha began to act.

     “Like others who try hard to live, I will try my very best.”

     CEO Kim Pansuk quickly turned his head.

     Lee Songha was staring into blank space as if she was fed up.

     “But, because of people like you, there isn’t anything left for me. Only me.”

     Although he thought that her vocalization would be decent since she was a singer, she was much better than he expected. Her breathing was good, and her dictation rang so clearly in his ears that there was nothing to criticize. The tone of her voice was great and very charming.

     Above all, she didn’t sound like she was acting. It was smooth without the emphasis or bad habits present in new actors. She didn’t seem like she was acting while paying attention to her breathing and vocalization. She was natural as if she had a talent for this.

     ‘This, she’s much better than I expected?’

     CEO Kim Pansuk mumbled inwardly. However, that thought soon changed.

     His eyes grew wider the more her acting progressed. After a long while, astonished, he thought, ‘She isn’t just good.’

     W&U raised a monster.

     Just when did she start receiving lessons for her to be able to act so unbelievably well at her age?

     Lee Songha’s acting changed the mood in the office. The small space was silent to the point of becoming suffocating. Besides Lee Songha’s voice, not even the sound of gulping saliva could be heard. The people were focusing on Lee Songha’s acting to this degree.

     CEO Kim Pansuk glanced at the seat next to Lee Songha.

     The manager expertly reading the lines of her counterparts. When he didn’t have any lines, he would look at Lee Songha with heartwarming eyes and revealed a satisfied smile as though he felt the current mood was delightful.

     CEO Kim Pansuk had found it strange that he had been so relaxed when they had come for an audition.

     Thinking he definitely had a reason to be, CEO Kim Pansuk looked over to his side. Writer Hong Jumi was only staring at Lee Songha. Her expression revealed the excitement of the creator.

     “How is it, Writer Hong?”

     “…”

     “Writer Hong. Writer Hong! How is it?”

     Writer Hong Jumi, who had heard his whisper late, replied with a dazed voice,

     “Uh… Uh. Pardon?”

     “No, it’s fine. Continue watching.”

     He felt as though he knew the answer without having to ask her. CEO Kim Pansuk, who patted Writer Hong Jumi’s shoulders, looked to his left this time. Only an empty chair remained.

     Director Shin Taekyun was standing in front of the test cameras, that had been set up to capture Lee Songha from the front and the side, his face burrowed in the monitor.

     To be honest, he didn’t want an audition in the beginning. He admired Lee Songha’s looks but that was it.

     He placed more importance on what was inside than an actor’s looks. Maybe they could garner a momentary glance with their looks, but if they were a true actor, they needed an overwhelming charm that could pull those watching towards them.

     He never expected that this girl group member would have that skill.

     But…

     Director Shin Taekyun looked at the monitor capturing Lee Songha.

     His face, which had previously been indifferent and without drive, surged with desire. A desire to film her in a perfect filming site with proper filming equipment instead of in this small space with test cameras.

     Soon, CEO Kim Pansuk said the last scene number,

     “Second episode, page 48, scene 79.”

     This was the most particular scene. A scene where Jung Haewon would be possessed by the ghost cat.

     This was one of the reasons why they wanted to cast a skilled actress for the role of Jung Haewon. Depending on how they acted this scene, it would determine whether this scene would remain impactful or corny, garnering the ridicule of the public.

     Lee Songha, who had been leaning slightly askew on her chair, suddenly opened her eyes.

     Still sitting, without any movement or sound, she slowly moved her eyes. A strange tension tightly constricted the room. Soon, after checking her surroundings, she looked at her body. She raised her hand, clenching and releasing her five fingers, and tensed and relaxed her foot repeatedly before standing up.

     She stumbled slightly on her first step. Her second step straightened her posture.

     By her third step, she completely recovered her balance.

     She straightened her back and vacantly looked down at the floor.

     Her lips curled upwards in a slant.

     “Wait. Wait.”

     CEO Kim Pansuk broke the silence. He abruptly asked informally,

     “Why did you smile like that?”

     “Pardon?”

     Thinking she had made a mistake, Lee Songha showed a surprised expression.

     “There was no expression detailed in the stage directions. It only said to glance down at the floor because the line of sight was of a different height from when it was a cat. Why did you smile?”

     “Ah…”

     It wasn’t only CEO Kim Pansuk, the other two looked at Lee Songha’s mouth as well. She glanced at her manager sitting beside her. Only after her manager nodded his head as if telling her to answer without worry, did she calmly open her mouth.

     “Although this cat is repaying the female lead by helping her, it has a fundamental hate for humans as it had been abandoned by its original owner. It has a lot of pride as well. If I was the cat, I think I would think this when I looked down after possessing someone for the first time.”

     Lee Songha lowered her head and mumbled,

     “The eyes of a human… is lower than I thought.”

     That moment, CEO Kim Pansuk thought.

     That, perhaps today’s audition, which he had no expectations for, might have been a divine move for the project, Cat Guardian Ghost.

     The audition, which flipped their expectations, ended, and CEO Kim Pansuk held Lee Songha and her manager back to leave after drinking a cup of coffee. Writer Hong Jumi and Director Shin Taekyun said they were going to work on the script and quickly disappeared into a workroom, leaving the CEO of Pan Production and three producers to sit around a small table.

     The producers were going back and forth between drinking coffee as they glanced at Lee Songha. Her cheeks were slightly flushed since she had successfully completed the audition just now. Because of this, her looks, which didn’t look human, felt more real.

     “You did well, Songha. Have a cookie.”

     “Thank you.”

     Her manager passed her a cookie that had been brought out as a snack. Lee Songha gave a small smile as she snacked on the cookie. Recalling her age, CEO Kim Pansuk was astonished once more.

     “I would have regretted it if you didn’t audition for the role of Jung Haewon. I never knew you were such a great actress.”

     “Thank you, CEO.”

     “Although we need to hold an internal meeting, I think everyone saw it positively so I think it’s alright if you consider as almost a certainty. We will contact you by today or tomorrow.”

     Lee Songha and her manager exchange glances. Although they didn’t speak, it felt as though a few words were exchanged through their gazes. The two soon bowed their heads. CEO Kim Pansuk waved his hand and asked the question that he wanted to ask for a while.

     “But, why did you choose our project? If it’s W&U, they probably get most the synopses of projects getting produced in the country, and with Lee Songha’s acting skills and looks, I feel as though you could certainly get a good role on a public broadcast network.”

     Production Producer Park Sookyung nodded his head and added in,

     “That’s right. You could have joined the Monday-Tuesday drama from PBS, Mermaid out of Water, since Son Chaeyoung from W&U is the lead role in that.”

     Her manager, who had been drinking coffee, flinched. Park Sookyung continued,

     “Both Mermaid and ours are of the romance genre with fantasy added in. Although they are Monday-Tuesday and we’re Friday-Saturday, we start at around the same time. I’m curious why you decided on our project…”

     When gazes looking for answers focused on her, she looked at her manager.

     Her manager placed his coffee down and rubbed his thumb against his lips as he said,

     “Since I think that this project will do better than that drama.”

     Because he said it as though it was obvious, the people from Pan Production nodded along with him before halting. Then they all showed the same expression.

     ‘Is this person serious?’

     “Umm, thank you. While I am thankful…”

     “No, it’s okay. My job is finding good projects.”

     “You might have found the wrong one…”

     Park Sookyung whispered in a quiet voice so that the person on the other side couldn’t hear him. CEO Kim Pansuk, who overheard him with his ghost-like hearing, widened his eyes.

     “Why do you act like we’ve lost already? We might be better than them!”

     “CEO. Even if our drama becomes an unprecedented hit, that’s a bit… The other side is one of the most promising projects from a public broadcast network for the winter season. The fans of the original will play a large role as well, and people in this business predict that that drama will have over 20% viewership ratings.”

     “… That much?”

     “The amount of investment is enormous, and it looks like it’ll be advertised all over the place before it airs. Also, they say that their script is amazing too. It might be better if we just compete with the project airing on GTBN at the same time…”

     The manager, who had been listening to their conversation, lowered his head a little. He even coughed as if he was choking on the coffee. Just when the youngest producer was looking at him, wondering whether to get him a tissue or not.

     The manager showed an expression that was difficult to decipher.

     However, because that expression disappeared in an instant, the youngest producer simply scratched his head, thinking whether he saw it wrong.

     As soon as their coffee cups was empty, Lee Songha and her manager got up. CEO Kim Pansuk said while shaking hands with the manager,

     “If things become certain, we will start filming immediately after we do a script reading next month. Please adjust your schedule.”

     “Yes. There is a K-Star recording every week, but if you could excuse us for that day, there won’t be any problems.”

     “Of course, we will since that’s a schedule you already have. That’s a new entertainment show on Knet, right? The one with tons of idols.”

     “Yes. That’s right.”

     “I hope that that program does well, and Lee Songha’s popularity shoots up. You never know. It’s not uncommon for things to change overnight in this industry. She might be a star instead of a rookie by the time we have our script reading next month.”

     Of course, this was flattery to make them feel good.

     When dozens of entertainment programs were broadcasted every week, no one was certain that their popularity would rise from appearing on a new show, on a cable network to boot, that didn’t have any guarantee of success.

     Of course, as CEO Kim Pansuk said, although this was an industry where it wasn’t uncommon for some to become a star overnight after appearing on an entertainment program, the ones who enjoyed this fortune were a minority.

     Even though the producers of Pan Production all thought this, they said their farewells with optimistic words.

     “We will definitely watch the broadcast.”

     “Both our drama and K-Star will be a hit.”

     “Both Lee Songha and Neptune are going to be successful from now on.”

     Before he left, the manager had an odd smile as he replied,

     “I think so too.”

     [] []

     

      Chapter 44

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL: emptycube

     The director scratched his half-bald head. His gaze fell on the Cat Guardian Ghost script.

     “This project, you said Luck Tosser brought it in, right?”

     “Yes. I don’t know where he heard that this project was good, but he brought it in all by himself.”

     Said the team 3 leader, smiling brightly.

     “Now, really. He keeps switching back and forth between Lucky Charm and Luck Tosser.”

     “I’m telling you he has an admirable quality to him when he works.”

     Unlike the team 3 leader, whose face was glowing, the team 2 leader, who was sitting on the other side, frowned deeply. He even took deep breaths, as if calming his surging rage, whenever he heard the name ‘Luck Tosser’.

     “Well, that’s that. I received a call from the CEO…”

     Everyone who had gathered in the room, especially Seo Jijoon, looked towards the director, urging him to continue.

     “He said to go on with the contract.”

     Seo Jijoon and his manager Lee Bongjoon high-fived each other under the table.

     The team 2 leader repeatedly opened and closed his mouth, seemingly unable to accept this, but in the end, he simply sighed. Since the actor himself said he wanted to do it and since the CEO decided as well, nothing would change even if he continued to oppose it.

     “Let’s first set the goal to be over 5% viewership ratings. Well. Even if it doesn’t, it won’t be bad for Jijoon’s filmography. You often hear that your acting spectrum is too narrow. Which is why only similar roles are offered to you.”

     “That’s right. I’m bored to death of the same dignified roles.”

     “You will receive different roles after you do this.”

     “That’s when things work out well, if things don’t, then it might only shatter the luxurious image we worked hard to create. Also, if characters become weird because she’s a new writer…”

     When the team 2 leader was mumbling in a half-unsatisfied, half-worrying tone,

     Someone knocked the door, almost smashing it, before entering. It was Son Chaeyoung with fiery eyes. She gave half-hearted greetings to the director and team leaders then immediately went to Seo Jijoon.

     “Is it true you are going to appear on a cable drama in January? In a romantic comedy?”

     “News spread quickly. Where did you hear that?”

     Seo Jijoon replied while crossing his legs in a relaxed manner.

     “Is it true? Are you trying to screw me over? Don’t you know I’m doing a drama then too?”

     “What’s wrong with that? It’s not like they air on the same day at the same time anyways.”

     “Why doesn’t it matter! If you and I appear at the same time, and even on dramas with similar genres, the company will divide its promotion strategy! It’s already not enough to become a hot topic in the beginning when they only focus their efforts on one!”

     “What kind of fresh garbage is this? Are you the only actor in our company?”

     “If you were going to do a winter drama, you should have joined my project instead!”

     “I’d rather go serve mandatory military service than film a romantic comedy with you.”

     When the two actors were growling at each other, Chief Jo, who was Son Chaeyoung’s manager, held her back.

     “Chaeyoung, the director’s here, so end it there and sit down. Huh? Sit and talk.”

     Son Chaeyoung, who had been fuming, flinched as she turned her head. The director, who was sitting in the seat of honor, was enjoying his milk tea as he watched the two quarrel, even snickering as though he found a dispute at this level adorable.

     “Director, I’m serious!”

     At Son Chaeyoung’s protest, the director waved his hand with a ‘Whoops’.

     “The company will promote the two of you the best we can so don’t worry. No, it’s the three of you.”

     He turned towards the team 3 leader.

     “You said Songha is confirmed as well, right?”

     “Yes. It’s confirmed that Songha will join as well. Now that you mention it, I was on a phone call with the CEO of Pan Production before I got here, and he praised her, saying he was surprised at how good her acting was.”

     “Really? Considering that they called a day after her audition, it seems they really got a good impression of her.”

     “Who?”

     Son Chaeyoung frowned.

     “Who’s joining?”

     “Lee Songha from Neptune, we originally wanted her to act, but she quit once.”

     The team 3 leader glanced at Son Chaeyoung and said,

     “That teacher, Shim Jungtaek, is fishy no matter how much I think about it. To say such harsh words to someone who’s good at acting… If it wasn’t for Luck Tosser seeing her potential, persuading her and bringing over a drama, we would have buried her talent without knowing.”

     “Tsk, it looks like we can’t entrust any of our recruits to that man. You keep looking into it.”

     Listening to their conversation, Son Chaeyoung said in a calmer tone than before,

     “Why do you only blame teacher? She might have been bad at acting in front of him.”

     “It’s no use if he grills them so much that they get traumatized.”

     “Teacher probably did it for her sake. How many times must he have seen people mess up their lives by pursuing acting even though they are bad at it? He probably thought that if they are at the level where they should just give up, then they should as early as possible.”

     When he heard Son Chaeyoung continuously take the acting teacher’s side, the team 3 leader raised his eyebrows.

     And, on the other side, the team 2 leader had an uncomfortable expression.

     After the meeting ended, the team 2 leader grabbed Son Chaeyoung, who was about to leave.

     He looked around and carefully asked,

     “Chaeyoung. Don’t tell me you got the teacher to…”

     “No.”

     Son Chaeyoung cut him off. Then she said in a slightly rigid expression,

     “I don’t do that anymore. I only made that mistake once in the past because things weren’t working out and I was so uneasy. Team leader knows as well. That I couldn’t even sleep without sleeping pills that time.”

     “Of course, I know. That was why I covered it up and moved on. But this time…”

     “I really didn’t do it. That was so long ago.”

     “Are you sure?”

     “I swear on it. I haven’t even seen that Lee Songha or whatever’s face.”

     Son Chaeyoung smiled as she shook her head. The team 2 leader finally let out a sigh.

     “Okay. I only asked out of concern.”

     “You don’t have to worry.”

     Son Chaeyoung crossed her arms and changed the topic.

     “But the person who brought that cable drama, is he that person from before? The tall Neptune manager who was such a turn-off?”

     “Yeah. That guy.”

     The team 2 leader nodded his head with a troubled expression.

     “Seo Jijoon got the script because of him… Haa, I don’t know why this guy, who hasn’t even been in the company for long, is constantly being an eyesore.”

     “He’s beginning to be an eyesore to me too.”

     “You’re busy preparing for your drama so don’t worry about useless things. I’m already waiting for a chance to take him down a notch.”

     Son Chaeyoung twisted her red lips.

     “He left pouring cold water on my project, but could only grab a cable drama, from a new writer to boot… Now, really. What insight. I’m curious what viewership ratings that drama will get now.”

     *

     Thud.

     When I told Lee Songha the news confirming she was cast for the role, she dropped the ice cream she was eating. See as she dropped something she was eating, this meant she was extremely surprised. Worried she might pick it back up, I threw out the ice cream and turned around to see Lee Songha still standing there with a blank expression.

     The other girls were creating a fuss in her stead.

     “Really?! When she had her audition yesterday? Are results normally this quick?”

     “It looks like the decision was quick because the production, the writer, and the director really liked her.”

     “Wonderful!”

     So excited that she didn’t know what to do, Im Seoyoung mercilessly patted Lee Songha’s shoulders and back.

     “Lee Songha! They said you’ve been cast for the drama! Oppa, then is she going to be an actress?”

     “I guess?”

     “Oh my god! It’s not some extra, but an actual supporting role! When I stole a glance through the script, there were a lot of lines as well, meaning she must have tons of air time! What if she gets all sorts of product placement offers and stuff?!”

     “Calm down, dummy. If someone saw, they’d think you were the one who was cast.”

     LJ, who scolded her out of habit, poked Lee Songha’s side.

     “Congratulations, Lee Songha. But I knew you’d get in.”

     Lee Taehee stroked Lee Songha’s head and said,

     “How great, Songha. Since you will be the new actress Lee Songha and not Neptune’s Lee Songha over there, don’t feel any pressure and try it out.”

     Not only the girls, but Kim Hyunjo and the team 3 leader took turns congratulating her through the phone. Only afterwards did it seem like Lee Songha was regaining her senses. She came up to me with steady steps and asked,

     “… Did I really get in?”

     I grinned and handed her a new ice cream.

     “I don’t know about the others, but why are you so surprised? You already heard that you were almost confirmed after the audition yesterday.”

     “Still… I didn’t think I would get it so easily.”

     “Easily, my ass. You were already good at acting, but you worked hard as you analyzed the script and even practiced so much by looking up cat videos on the internet. You were just rewarded for your efforts.”

     “Still, up until now…”

     Lee Songha shut her lips mid-mumble.

     Well, since there were probably more things that didn’t work out than did through her efforts up until now.

     While it was certain she wasn’t weak-minded or easily intimidated, her reaction was probably because she had heard that she couldn’t do it, that she wasn’t good at it, or that she fell behind to the point they ringed in her ears.

     However, that would all end now.

     Since she would hear how great she is and how she is exploding with talent more often than that she’s bad or that she’s falling behind.

     “Didn’t I say it? That you will hear ‘Rediscovery of Lee Songha’ after you do one drama. Wait and see.”

     After blinking her eyes twice, her lips formed a bright smile.

     “Thank you. It’s all because of oppa.”

     “Uh…”

     It had been a long time since I’d seen her smile so brightly, no, did I even see it before?

     My mind halted for a moment, but LJ suddenly appeared behind Lee Songha.

     “I know, right?”

     LJ crossed her arms and examined me at different angles.

     “Was that prediction about how there would be a great fortune at the end of the year true? That a snake will bring fortune.”

     She mumbled profoundly before rubbing her hands together in a circular motion.

     “Is this how you do it?”

     “What are you trying to do?”

     “Making a wish just in case. I’m asking to win the lottery.”

     “I! I want to have a permanent spot in an outdoor entertainment show!”

     Im Seoyoung quickly ran next to LJ and joined her.

     “Lee Songha! Taehee unni! Hurry and pray to the Lucky Snake Oppa!”

     Lucky Snake…

     While I was trying to regain my senses after that shock, Lee Songha and Lee Taehee each replied,

     “I hope I can continue to be busy next year.”

     “Hmm… Then I want a Neptune concert.”

     “I take the Neptune concert and raise it to a world concert.”{1}

     LJ added. Lastly, Im Seoyoung suddenly raised her hand.

     “Before that, 1st in a music broadcast!”

     I quickly grabbed Im Seoyoung’s shoulders.

     “Okay. I received your wish.”

     “Yeah! Mine’s been received!”

     Im Seoyoung happily skipped around the living room. It looked like she wasn’t in her right mind after she heard that Lee Songha had been cast. I clicked my tongue and turned around, but LJ looked at me like she was looking at some pitiful guy.

     “What?”

     “I started this as a joke.”

     “I’m serious.”

     “At any rate, oppa has a lot of strange qualities as well.”

     She said as she grinned.

     Im Seoyoung, who had been running about the living room, unable to calm her excitement, suddenly stopped. Then she said with shining eyes,

     “We’re doing K-Star, and Lee Songha’s filming a drama… I get the feeling that we will be completely different next year.”

     A few days later, an article confirming that Seo Jijoon had been cast for TVL’s new project for January, Cat Guardian Ghost, appeared on the front page.

     The fact that Seo Jijoon, who had only done cold, elitist roles until now, was going to appear on a sweet romantic comedy became a hot topic, and the drama’s title was trending on top searches. This was definitely effective in promoting the drama.

     Starting with Seo Jijoon, the female lead and other supporting and minor roles were quickly cast as well.

     The fact that Lee Songha was cast wasn’t widely promoted. Since there would be a lot of negative reactions, saying that she only got in because she was in the same company as Seo Jijoon, we decided to see the public’s reaction of K-Star before determining the scale and direction of promoting her.

     That was how every day passed without any time to rest.

     There were a few more recordings of K-Star, and fortunately, the girls continued to receive compliments from the judges because they worked hard like an untiring runaway engine{2}.

     Of course, we couldn’t relax because we wouldn’t know how it would be shown until we saw the edited version.

     Lee Songha reduced her already insufficient sleep time. She was constantly caught up with practicing for the mission with her members, her own addition training, as well as analyzing and reading the script. Although we found a new acting teacher, she always did her readings with me.

     I was worried she might tire, but it looked like my worries were unfounded. She was absorbed in acting every day, and the more she did, the livelier she seemed to get as if she was a well-watered sprout.

     Mid-November.

     People put away their thin jackets and took out their thick padded coats. The stalls on the streets were filled with scarves and wool hats, piercing wind began to blow between the bare trees on the streets, and the Cat Guardian Ghost’s first reading would be in a few days…

     Then, the day had finally arrived.

     November 20. 10 p.m.

     There was now 1 hour before K-Star aired for the first time.

     {1} Think poker. Call, Raise, etc.

     {2} This is a phenomenon where an engine accelerates due to drawing fuel from an unintended source.

     / /

     

      Chapter 45

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL: emptycube

     The front door opened, and Kim Hyunjo entered, carrying a shopping bag.

     “Hello.”

     “Did you finish the preparations to monitor the broadcast?”

     “Yes. There are three laptops. We also checked the wi-fi.”

     The traitor said as he pointed to the laptops spread out in the living room.

     “How are the girls?”

     “Everyone’s fine except Seoyoung, who’s uneasy.”

     “No! I’m fine too!”

     Im Seoyoung protested fiercely at my words. When I turned around, she was tightly clenching her phone and looking in my direction.

     “If you’re fine, put your phone down. You’ve been refreshing entertainment news for an hour now.”

     “They might put something up. I can’t be at ease if I don’t check!”

     “That’s what you call being uneasy, you dummy.”

     LJ smirked. The other three had set chicken and other snacks on the table in the living room and were sitting, waiting for K-Star to begin.

     Kim Hyunjo placed the shopping bag he brought on the table.

     “Younghoon hyung gave this to me. He said it was precious and to only drink it if we hit a peak of at least 1.5% in viewership ratings.”

     “Precious? What is it? Alcohol?”

     “Wine?”

     When the girls’ gazes gathered on the bag with curious eyes, Kim Hyunjo brought out the object inside the bag. I glanced at it as well. A glass cylindrical bottle, around 40cm tall. It had leaves, whose color had faded white, and thumb-width roots dangling below.

     I felt like I had seen it before.

     “… What is that?”

     “Natural wild ginseng wine. He said he personally dug and fermented them. Younghoon hyung’s hands were trembling when he gave this to me.”

     However, the girls’ faces indicated they weren’t interested. It may be a precious, invigorating alcohol to some, but to girls in their early twenties, it was simply an expensive root-soaked soju{1}. The wild ginseng wine bitterly made its exit off the table.

     Kim Hyunjo glanced at the clock on the wall and said,

     “There are 30 minutes left. Did you all contact your families?”

     “I already did. My mom said that she even had my aunts come over to watch.”

     Im Seoyoung replied, trying hard to calm down. Lee Taehee and LJ nodded their heads in affirmation. The only one who didn’t reply was Lee Songha.

     “Songha, why didn’t you tell your family?”

     “I was scolded a lot in the beginning.”

     Lee Songha said flatly while hugging a bag of chips.

     I suddenly recalled what Lee Songha said before. She had told me her parents opposed her becoming a celebrity, asking her why she continued doing something that wasn’t working out. That she didn’t call them ever since their previous album flunked.

     Considering her situation, I understood why she couldn’t tell her family. Since she was the only one who received the judges’ criticism during the recording of their first mission. Perhaps it was because of this, but the expression she had while waiting for the broadcast seemed more placid than the others.

     Vrrr.

     My phone was vibrating endlessly for a while now. My parents back home and my brother’s family were sitting in front of the TV. My friends said they were at a pub, waiting for the broadcast, and even sent me a photo as proof.

     This time, it was a message from Reporter Park Woojeong.

     -I am waiting after finishing my preparations to write an article! My senior who came back from Knet said that he heard the first broadcast will focus on Neptune. I will publish a great article as repayment for last time!

     “Chief. I received a message from a reporter I know, and she said that she heard the first broadcast of K-Star will focus on Neptune?”

     Kim Hyunjo and the girls quickly turned to look at me.

     “Really?”

     “Is that true? Really? Do you think it’s true, oppa?”

     At Im Seoyoung’s hurried urging, Kim Hyunjo licked his lips and replied,

     “If it’s from a reporter, then it’s not like it doesn’t have any credibility. They say Knet holds a preview screening of edited program broadcasts with around twenty people. Someone among them might have let it slip.”

     The mood inside surged. I thanked Reporter Park Woojeong and sat in front of my assigned laptop. I had even registered on a membership forum bustling with elementary, middle and high schoolers for this day.

     When I glanced through it, there wasn’t much of a reaction yet. Since even I, who knew that K-Star would get great viewership ratings through my foresight, was nervous, there was nothing more to say about the others. With thick wrinkles drawn on their foreheads, the traitor and Kim Hyunjo each moved their own mice.

     Of course, the most serious person was Im Seoyoung.

     “What do I do? Someone posted a comment ‘Anyone waiting for K-Star’s first broadcast?’ on the forum, and it hasn’t had a reply for 11 minutes! Should I leave a reply? I shouldn’t, right?”

     “Gunyoung… No, I feel like you’re going to have it snatch right away.”

     At Kim Hyunjo’s words, the traitor smiled, revealing an awkward expression.

     “Sunwoo. Take her phone from her.”

     “Yes.”

     I snatched Im Seoyoung’s phone from her hands. Im Seoyoung clung on my leg like an addict experiencing withdrawal symptoms.

     “Ah, ah, oppa!”

     “Just watch TV.”

     “I’ll only hold it and not look at it! No, I’ll only check once every minute!”

     “Nope.”

     “You’re heartless!”

     “I have a heart. Now go watch TV.”

     I firmly pointed at the TV.

     While we were chatting to calm our nervousness, the minute hand continued to move without stopping.

     Then, 11:12 p.m.

     “Euah, it’s starting. It’s starting! Ah, I’m so nervous, I can’t watch!”

     “Hey, be quiet. Or I’m going to…”

     The first broadcast of K-Star, which we had been waiting for for a long time, began.

     Neptune was the focus of the broadcast.

     In a bad way.

     From the start, each team quickly made their appearance one after another, then suddenly, when it was finally Neptune’s turn, a video of Lemon Girls appeared.

     The broadcast revealed that they were a team who was originally cast for K-Star, even kindly explaining they were dropped due to public criticism from the DUI incident. Then they filled the screen with headlines and internet comments that appeared the day Neptune was cast.

     {Who is ‘Neptune’ who is replacing Lemon Girls on K-Star?}

     Then the video of the first time they met and the audio from interviews with other teams meshed together.

     ‘No one knew who they were. Everyone was like, ‘Who are they? Do you know them?’ and then, when someone said that they were from W&U, everyone was like, ‘Ahhh…’’

     ‘Did they get preferential treatment because they were from a big company?’

     ‘Didn’t everyone think that? Ah, I don’t think this is right…’

     Neptune’s interview appeared the next moment.

     ‘Five out of the seven teams chose Neptune for last place.’

     A still of Im Seoyoung’s stiffening face as she heard Producer Go Joontae’s words was captured.

     “….”

     A chill blew in the room. It was expected. Since the broadcast was edited with the obvious intention of creating conflict between Neptune and the other teams.

     Even afterwards, the broadcast progressed in an unfavorable direction for Neptune. Reactions from community sites began to show up, but the majority of comments about Neptune were negative.

     It was a relief I took Im Seoyoung’s phone from her.

     When I sighed, the traitor poked my side. Then mouthed, ‘How is it on your end?’. I shook my head in reply. When I asked, ‘How about you?’ he briefly clicked his tongue and shook his head.

     Well, if the tame community sites were like this, then internet and social media comments would be much cruder. I could picture it already. I glanced at Kim Hyunjo, and his expression looking at his screen was dark as well.

     “Ah… I shouldn’t have told my mom… I told her to watch for no reason.”

     Im Seoyoung murmured with a depressed voice before burying her face in her knees. LJ was glancing at the TV while punching a cushion, and Lee Songha’s hand gradually became faster as it went in and out of the chip bag.

     The only one who kept her calm was Lee Taehee… was what I thought, but she wordlessly opened the wild ginseng wine and started to drink it with a beer mug.

     Kim Hyunjo roughly tangled up his hair.

     “Let’s wait a little longer. The mission went well. It might end in a twist after progressing like this.”

     The traitor and I both nodded our heads.

     “It looks like the staff was in a hurry. They dissed themselves while bringing up these comments. If you look at it that way, then there’s a high chance that it’ll end in a twist like chief says.”

     “And dramatic broadcasts usually do well.”

     Still, the mood wouldn’t get better easily. Eventually, we, obviously including the girls, poured the strong wild ginseng wine down our throats without any snacks. In a grim voice and after drinking several glasses consecutively, Kim Hyunjo declared he would kill Producer Go Joontae if the program ended like this.

     Soon, the mission performances began.

     The performances with no instrumentals were followed by the judges’ unbridled compliments and criticisms. In the viewer’s perspective, the broadcast was so exciting that they couldn’t take their eyes off it. The reactions on the internet gradually grew until it exploded when it was Sugar Cats’ turn.

     Then, we saw Neptune get up on the stage.

     Yeah, there will definitely be a twist. Since it was a great performance, no matter who saw it.

     But, what should I do if they only showed a tiny bit of their performance and cut to the criticism about Lee Songha? Don’t tell me that the thing I heard from my foresight that made Neptune receive criticisms is this?

     My throat felt parched.

     Accompanied by a tense BGM, the targeted comments from other teams, which appeared in the beginning, were inserted once more before Neptune’s performance began. Up until then, my shoulders were tense and rigid due to nervousness.

     However, the moment Lee Taehee’s voice flowed out of the speakers.

     My nervousness relaxed like it was never there.

     “Uh…”

     It wasn’t only me. The depressing mood that hung densely in the living room was washed away in an instant. Everyone was dazed at first, then absent-minded before finally looking at the TV with relieved expressions.

     Im Seoyoung broke the silence with a dazed voice.

     “… Aren’t we doing well? Right? It’s not coming out all weird, right?”

     “How many seconds has it been? I think our performance is being shown the longest?”

     “Uhhh, what do we do? We’re getting tons of close-ups as well…”

     The girls’ performance and the cuts to the surprised reactions of the judges and members of other teams who were watching from the seats intensified the exhilarating sense of pleasure felt from the twist.

     Neptune’s performance was shown longer and was more successful than any other team.

     Vrrr!

     My phone, which had been silent throughout the broadcast, vibrated.

     {1} Korean alcohol.

     {2} I don’t believe I explained this before, but devils’ edit/ devil’s editing process is when the staff is purposefully editing a broadcast to put someone in a bad light.

     / /

     

      Chapter 46

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL: emptycube

     When I took out my phone, I was getting messages like crazy. I swept my ruffled hair and let out the sigh I had been holding back for the past hour.

     Then I refreshed the browser.

     It was as Kim Hyunjo said. Reporter Park Woojeong’s words were correct as well.

     K-Star’s first broadcast was, with Neptune as its focus, a drama with a twist.

     The living room became filled with wild excitement and tension.

     The judges’ compliments continued one after another after their performance. The edit was still on Neptune’s side. Cuts of the judges’ admiring reactions, and cuts of them murmuring to each other. Then the broadcast showed the insert they filmed at the company practice room and repeatedly instilled how surprised people were at Neptune’s performance.

     Just as they were called the best team, the background music cut off and the mood changed.

     Criticisms poured out solely on Lee Songha.

     ‘You alone lowered the team’s average. Are you practicing properly?’

     ‘Since you’re so eye-catching, my vision keeps going to you, but when I look at you, there isn’t anything beyond that. It would make more sense if you had a record in acting or entertainment, but that’s not the case either.’

     They caught a close-up of Lee Songha’s reaction. She was unable to fully hide her expectant expression, and her expression fell slightly as she looked at the judges. However, it was only for a moment. With a serene expression, void of any expectation or excitement, she lowered her head.

     The next moment was followed by the interview with Lee Songha after the performance.

     ‘I will try harder from now on.’

     I immediately checked the reactions on the internet.

     Although she was criticized, since they didn’t play any tricks with editing, the overall public opinion of Lee Songha was good.

     “The reactions from the forums are good. How is it on social media?”

     “It’s good here as well. The internet is much tamer than I expected.”

     The traitor took his hands off his keyboard as he replied. to him, Kim Hyunjo was in a trance as he focused on his screen. Seeing as how he was constantly muttering, “Okay, good,” it seemed that it was okay to relax a bit.

     “Oppa, what are people saying? Are we okay?”

     “Are they saying anything about Songha?”

     All the girls were looking in our direction. When I turned to glance at the traitor, our eyes met. Then we smiled simultaneously.

     “Oh, the reactions are good!”

     Im Seoyoung snatched the traitor’s laptop away like an alley cat.

     “Let’s look at it together.”

     LJ immediately sat next to her. Lee Songha, who had been eating the chicken cleanly to its bones, slowly stuck her head out as well. Although Lee Taehee didn’t join them, she was leisurely searching it herself on her phone.

     After 30 seconds, the living room changed into a festive mood.

     “Look at this. This is no joke. There are so many people who know our names!”

     “They know because our names kept showing up in the captions, you dummy. Hurry up and go to the next page.”

     “Someone said he became my fan!”

     “How unfortunate. Hey, I told you to go to the next page.”

     “Euah, what do I do? My name’s on a title, but I don’t think I can click it! Songha, can you do it for me…!”

     “Ah, damn, this is so frustrating! Give it here.”

     “You have your phone!”

     “Ah, I have my phone. Right.”

     Im Seoyoung, who couldn’t keep still, kept going around the living room while holding the laptop, and LJ kept spinning in place as she looked at her phone.

     Since Lee Taehee was lying on the sofa like usual, I thought that she was calm. As expected of the leader. However, when I looked closer, she had one hand on her phone and other on a glass of wild ginseng wine. Just how many glasses did she have so far?

     Lee Songha was sitting in a corner, tapping her phone. My laptop happened to have comments about her so I handed it over to her.

     “Here, Songha.”

     “Ah. Thank you.”

     She readily received it and focused her gaze on the screen, only her eyes moved hurriedly. She blinked a few times as if she was surprised that people were complimenting her singing and dancing.

     “Now, really. Producer Go Joontae, this man…”

     On the other side, Kim Hyunjo put down his laptop and grinned.

     “If it was going to be like this, he should have let us know in advance… I unnecessarily swore a ton at him. Gunyoung, you know all the staff’s numbers, right?”

     “Yes.”

     The traitor, who had been in the middle of stretching, replied right away.

     “Text Producer Go Joontae that today’s broadcast was good and thank him for editing it well. Also, send a gifticon to each staff member. Something like coffee. Also, tell him that we’ll visit the editing room with some snacks some day.”

     “Yes, I’ll pick out some good ones and send them.”

     “Ah, I was so tense that my joints are aching.”

     Kim Hyunjo groaned as he slouched on the sofa.

     I checked the messages on my still-vibrating phone. I received long messages from my brother and his wife, and I also saw some messages from people I hadn’t talked to for a while.

     How did they know when I only told my family and my friends on the group chat about the broadcast?

     When I checked, it seemed that I was caught on camera next to Neptune for some time after they came down from the stage.

     When I opened the group chat with my friends, messages popped up one after another.

     Below that were endless messages asking for a video call and asking for a date so I set my phone to mute without any hesitation.

     As I opened my contacts to call my mom first-

     “Uh? They are talking about us again?”

     Im Seoyoung pointed to the TV. Everyone turned their gazes back towards it.

     The judges’ personal interviews commenced after the mission performances and evaluations.

     Producer Song Baekjin rubbed his patchy chin and said in a regretful tone,

     ‘I said it during the shoot, but if Lee Songha did some acting…’

     ‘That girl actually got cast in a drama two days after our recording.’

     We heard Producer Go Joontae’s voice, and Song Baekjin widened his eyes.

     ‘Oh? Really? Wow, she acts fast. If that’s the case, my evaluation changes. If she shows above average acting skills there, then it’ll be a win-win for her and her team.’

     Then the scene changed. Two days after their first recording. It explained that Lee Songha auditioned and joined TVL’s new miniseries Cat Guardian Ghost, and how she successfully took her first step towards becoming an acting idol.

     “……”

     The mood inside the living room froze.

     There wasn’t a problem with letting others know Lee Songha was cast for the drama if they were simply mentioning it as Knet and TVL were both subsidiaries.

     The problem was the nuance.

     The way they put it made it look as though Lee Songha took her chance at acting without any preparations because she received criticisms that she lacked in both dancing and singing during the recording. Auditioned and cast within two days. On top of that, if people thought about how the male lead, Seo Jijoon, was also from the same company, this was the same as dropping a bomb.

     “No, how could…”

     Kim Hyunjo stuttered as he looked at the TV with a dumbfounded expression.

     “What are we supposed to do if they reveal it like that? Seriously, this man… We were already putting our heads together to figure out the best time to announce it without any misunderstandings… Ah, what a headache. Ah, I’m going crazy.”

     Right then, Kim Hyunjo’s phone rang. Kim Hyunjo picked up his phone with a face that seemed to have aged 10 years in these past few moments before turning his head towards the traitor.

     “Did you send the gifticons?”

     “Not yet.”

     “Don’t send them. Fuck the gifticons… Team Leader Park? We just saw it as well.”

     Kim Hyunjo disappeared into the kitchen to talk with Team Leader Park.

     “Songha, pass me the laptop.”

     I took the laptop away from Lee Songh since the comments wouldn’t be so lenient to her now.

     As if the traitor had the same thoughts, he took back the laptop from Im Seoyoung and requested the other girls stop searching as well.

     I refreshed the forum and glanced through the reactions.

     When I looked up, Lee Songha was looking at me. Although she appeared calm, I now knew enough to know that she wasn’t fine inside. I closed the laptop and, as if it was no big deal, said,

     “It’s fine. Don’t worry.”

     / /

     

      Chapter 47

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL: emptycube

     “Re-really? Is it really fine?”

     Im Seoyoung was more worried than Lee Songha, who was directly involved. No, Lee Taehee and LJ were sending me worried looks as if they hadn’t been in a festive mood just now.

     “Oppa, aren’t you saying this so that we won’t worry?”

     “No. I’m really not worried about it. Controversies like this will all disappear once Lee Songha proves her acting skills. Just think of it as noise marketing. There will be more people interested in Cat Guardian Ghost, and the viewership ratings for the first broadcast will be higher.”

     When I shrugged my shoulders, Im Seoyoung opened and closed her mouth a few times.

     “Th-that’s true…”

     “Aren’t you too optimistic? If…”

     LJ glanced at Lee Songha before dragging off.

     They were probably worried in case Lee Songha’s acting skills weren’t enough to put this controversy to rest. Not just them, anyone would be worried.

     As there were countless idols who took a step into the drama industry with strong ambitions before failing once they showed their terrible acting skills.

     However…

     When I turned around, my eyes met with Lee Songha, who was still looking at me. When I looked at her eyes, which seemed to convey, ‘Is there a big problem?’ I unknowingly smiled.

     We had practiced the script for the past few weeks. We had met with Writer Hong Jumi and Director Shin Taekyun multiple times and shared our thoughts on the character, and the new acting teacher marveled at Lee Songha’s acting skills every time.

     I didn’t see the exact future of this incident.

     So, it was impossible for me to be 100% certain about the way things would unfold.

     However, I couldn’t imagine the viewers getting up in arms because Lee Songha wasn’t good at acting.

     “There’s no need to take words from people who don’t know anything to heart. Don’t worry, Songha. You just need to do as you’ve always been doing.”

     “Yes.”

     Then, Kim Hyunjo came out of the kitchen and said,

     “Pack your things. Team Leader Park is still at the company so let’s go and check how things progress.”

     “Yes.”

     I grabbed my outerwear, laptop and bag and got up. Kim Hyunjo told the girls, who were following us with complicated expressions,

     “Well, this is something we’ve expected since Seo Jijoon was confirmed in the drama Lee Songha was cast in. It will die down soon, so you just think about the good things. We spread Neptune’s name in today’s broadcast. If we continue like this, things are going to get better every day from now on.”

     “What about oppas? Oppas won’t be able to rest.”

     “We are going to talk for a bit at the company before leaving. Taehee, you take care of the girls. Don’t let Seoyoung use the internet.”

     “Okay.”

     She replied, scratching her neck. Then, in a small voice, she added,

     “Call me if things blow up. I won’t be sleeping.”

     Kim Hyunjo clicked his tongue.

     “You…”

     “Call me.”

     “Okay, okay. I’ll call you.”

     We left the residence, feeling the girls’ gazes on our backs.

     Unlike Kim Hyunjo’s prediction that we would leave right away, we met the morning sun inside the meeting room.

     This was the longest, most nauseating night since I joined.

     It took a little longer for the full drunken effect of the wild ginseng wine to set in, the vibrating noises from cell phones scattered around me gave me a headache and attempting to look at my laptop screen with letters the size of sesame seeds for hours made nausea reach my throat.

     Then, I was too uneasy about the public’s opinion of Lee Songha to go home and rest.

     In the end, the three of us left the rest to Team Leader Park and the PR team and went to sleep for a bit. It was 3 a.m. when I said goodnight to Kim Hyunjo and the traitor before coming to the sleeping area on the first floor and closing my eyes. That was the last memory I had.

     When I opened my eyes again, Kim Hyunjo was looking down at me like a grim reaper.

     “Ah!”

     “Are you alive?”

     “I was about to die of heart failure just now.”

     When I looked around with my half-opened eyes, my heart thumped once more. The traitor’s face was floating on the other side of the sleeping area. What a scare. When I calmed my heart and looked again, he was staring at his phone.

     With an enthralled face.

     Why was he like that?

     I stretched my body while tilting my head. I heard cracking sounds from my shoulders and back. Euah, I feel like I’m dying. Today was the day we were going to release the exhaustion that had been piling up by coming to work late.

     Damn. I came to my senses while inwardly cursing Producer Go Joontae.

     “Chief, what about the public opinion? What happened?”

     “Hmm. On one hand, it ended well, on the other, we’re screwed.”

     “Pardon?”

     Kim Hyunjo picked up my phone that was rolling around my pillow and said,

     “Look at the real-time searches. It’s a historic event so prepare yourself.”

     A historic event?

     I tilted my head as I turned my phone on and freaked out.

     I had 48 missed calls.

     When I looked through it, the majority were unknown numbers, and the occasional numbers that were saved on my phone were from reporters I had met at drinking parties. There were some who called multiple times, and there were tons of messages asking me to call them back when I saw their message.

     I thought I had slept for half a day, but that wasn’t it either. When I looked at the time, I only slept for 3 hours. It was 6 a.m. right now, not even the sun was up yet.

     Do these people think managers don’t need sleep? What’s with their rude behavior?

     Wait, don’t tell me the public opinion became worse?

     I quickly checked the ranking of real-time search terms.

     Then, as soon I saw it, I realized what Kim Hyunjo meant. And the reason why the traitor was so captivated as he looked at his phone.

     8th, Neptune.

     6th, K-Star.

     5th, Cat Guardian Ghost.

     And… Lee Songha.

     Her name was first on the real-time search rankings.

     I waited for a day like this.

     A day when the names of Neptune’s members would appear on real-time search rankings. A day where articles about them would be on the main page of entertainment news sites, where countless reporters wrote and published articles about them.

     However, I didn’t wish for things to progress like this…

     The headline on the main page and the headlines from articles beneath all had Neptune and Lee Songha’s name in them.

     First, I checked all the articles that were published after I went to sleep.

     When the fact that TVL’s new drama starting in January cast Seo Jijoon together with Lee Songha was revealed, there are suspicions that this may be an ‘Add-on’.

     The fact that she was cast with one audition and that she has no history in acting, and the fact that she is a rookie with no popularity in the country and overseas are only increasing people’s suspicions.

     On top of that, it has been revealed that Lee Songha auditioned two days after being told that her skills were lacking compared to her other members after their K-Star mission performance. Netizens ask, “Didn’t she jump to acting without any preparations because her singing was criticized?” as they look unfavorably upon this incident…]

     I was about to go crazy.

     I closed the browser within 3 seconds of turning it on. Swears and sarcastic remarks I had never heard before were taking the top spots. I calmed my shocked heart and looked through the articles again.

     I saw some changes in the headlines after the company’s first public explanation.

     In articles referring to the press release, they wrote that Lee Songha was a member who was already receiving acting lessons and that Cat Guardian Ghost was a project they had been discussing internally before the filming of K-Star’s first broadcast.

     They also included that Lee Songha herself asked for an audition after reading the synopsis and that Seo Jijoon joined after Lee Songha auditioned and was already cast.

     They mentioned CEO Kim Pansuk from Pan Production as well.

     Because of this, the situation, where there was overwhelming criticism towards Lee Songha, roughly reached an equilibrium. However, the controversy didn’t seem to want to die down and continued to heat up.

     It wasn’t only on articles, social media and other community sites had pages and pages of comments regarding this incident.

     I clicked my tongue and minimized the browser.

     Some comments felt as though each character was filled with ill intent. To the point where I wanted to ask if they had a grudge against Lee Songha. If this was enough to make me, a third-party, frowned at this, what would Lee Songha think if she saw these comments…

     Although Kim Hyunjo called the girls and told them not to let Lee Songha use the internet, it still concerned me.

     What do we have to do to calm this controversy?

     Although we could only solve a controversy about acting with acting, there was still a month until the drama’s first broadcast.

     Did we have to upload a video of her practicing her lines? Would people believe that she was cast after an audition and not as an add-on then?

     “What’s all this fuss all of a sudden?”

     The team 3 leader entered the meeting room. It looked as though he came straight here as he held his bag in his hand.

     “What do you mean ‘all of a sudden’? It was a mess since early morning,”

     Said Kim Hyunjo with a sunken face. The team 3 leader clicked his tongue when he saw his face,

     “They are constantly in the top rankings? Songha’s first, and Cat Guardian Ghost is fifth.”

     “Ah, Cat Guardian Ghost just went up to fourth,”

     Corrected the traitor who was tapping away on his laptop as if there was a war.

     When I refreshed the browser, I saw that Cat Guardian Ghost was fourth. Lee Songha was still first, and below her was K-Star, Neptune, and even Seo Jijoon. It wouldn’t be a stretch to say that the aftermath of yesterday’s broadcast was dominating the real-time search rankings.

     The team 3 leader went behind the traitor and looked at his screen before mumbling,

     “Now, really. I thought things would pass after we took some criticism, but it looks like things will spread if we make a mistake?”

     “It’s already spread everywhere,”

     Said Team Leader Park, who was unable to take her eyes of her monitor.

     “Team Leader Park, why is your voice so hoarse?”

     “It’s because I had a fight with K-Star’s side on the phone.”

     At those words, the team 3 leader’s eyes became even angrier.

     “Those damn bastards, what are they saying on their end?”

     “They are saying that they are sorry, saying that they only wanted to promote Cat Guardian Ghost since it’s a drama from an affiliate and that they never knew it would become this heated.”

     “As if that makes sense. You should have sworn at them.”

     “I did. But their program became a hit so they aren’t going to fuss about being sworn at by us. They say that their viewership ratings hit around 2% in the middle of the broadcast and stayed there. Since it has become such a hot topic, there will be tons of people who will download it or watch the rerun, and the viewership ratings for the second episode will be higher. They are probably splitting their profits right about now.”

     / /

     

      Chapter 48

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL: emptycube

     {Some title changes: Department head - Director, there may be more changes as I attempt to consolidate the titles of various figures. However, a director in a company setting (ex. Director Park from the future) and a director of a program (ex. Director Shin Taekyun) are different.

     Changes have been made to previous chapters.}

     “Haa…”

     The team 3 leader sighed with a grave expression.

     “How about from Cat Guardian Ghost’s side? Did they know ahead of time?”

     “No.”

     It was me who replied this time.

     “I called them a while ago, and they said they had no clue.”

     I had called CEO Kim Pansuk and Director Shin Taekyun earlier.

     Although we only talked for a bit, they were the same as me. They were surprised by how quickly the controversy was spreading, but they weren’t worried about Lee Songha’s acting skills, which was the center of the controversy, in the slightest.

     Instead, they were more concerned with Lee Songha’s mental state.

     “They really didn’t know?”

     “Yes. Pan Production was hectic because of this. They said there was a lot of talk going around in TVL and that we should talk after both sides organized the situation in internal meetings.”

     The team 3 leader nodded and changed the conversation.

     “What are Lee Songha’s ‘charges’ so far? Is there anything else besides getting the role as an ‘add-on’?”

     “Just people getting offended.”

     Kim Hyunjo ruffled his hair and let out a sigh.

     “There are a lot of people who think she went into the drama industry in an attempt to get popular through her looks since she isn’t as good at singing. The fans of other actors who debuted as idols are creating more of a fuss, saying that she’ll tarnish their reputation they worked hard to build up.”

     “We need to end this sort of controversy early on…”

     The team 3 leader suddenly took out his phone in mid-sentence. After checking the screen, he immediately answered the phone.

     “Director. Ah, you’ve arrived? Then we’ll go up right now.”

     He gestured to Team Leader Park and Kim Hyunjo as he talked.

     Then, he suddenly looked at me.

     “Yes, he’s here. Just a moment.”

     “Pardon?”

     “The director is asking for you. Answer the phone, quickly.”

     Before I knew it, I answered the phone,

     “This is Jung Sunwoo.”

     -Okay, there is something I want to ask you.

     …. Uh.

     I thought I would definitely hear the director’s easygoing voice, but it was a bit different.

     Lower and smoother.

     Just when I thought that I had definitely heard it before, I remembered.

     It was CEO Baek Hansung’s voice.

     A few things crossed my mind in this short moment. Sung Dowon’s face, my first car still waiting to be delivered…

     -I heard you’re in charge of Lee Songha.

     “Ah, yes. That’s correct.”

     -What do you think of her acting?

     It was good. So good that there wasn’t anything more to say.

     I chose my words carefully to make it sound believable, but then, I heard the voice again.

     -What I’m concerned about is this. Can Lee Songha put this controversy to rest with her acting skills or not?

     “Ah.”

     -The way the company reacts may depend on that.

     I swallowed my saliva and replied,

     “The new acting teacher said he had nothing to teach Lee Songha. That if she really has only learned acting for a few months, then she has a latent talent for it. He said he was worried he might push her in the wrong direction by teaching her, so he doesn’t give a lot of advice these days. Also, from Cat Guardian Ghost’s side…”

     -No.

     CEO Baek Hansung suddenly laughed in a low voice.

     -I’m asking about your thoughts. Like before.

     My thoughts?

     What are my thoughts?

     “I believe that she definitely…”

     -Definitely?

     “If it’s Songha’s acting, I believe that she can definitely put this controversy to rest.”

     My voice was filled with certainty that it even surprised me.

     When I looked in front of me as I licked my dry lips, I saw everyone giving me a strange look.

     -Okay, got it.

     “Ah, yes.”

     -Tell the others to come to 6th floor first and obtain the audition tape from the director of Cat Guardian Ghost. They did a camera test during the audition, right?

     “Yes, they did.”

     -Get the tape and come up.

     He hung up afterwards.

     *

     The meeting room of TVL’s Drama Department.

     General Manager Song, who has been assigned as the Chief Producer of Cat Guardian Ghost, crumpled an empty paper cup.

     “Those cheap bastards. They shit on others so that they can live well? I should go over to Knet and flip a table or something…”

     General Manager Song, who was mumbling gloomily, looked at Director Shin Taekyun, who was on the other side. Uncertain whether he was sleepy or thinking, he was sitting there with an uninterested expression.

     “Taekyun. Director Shin. Lee Songha’s acting is really good, right? We can’t just drop her since we might lose Seo Jijoon as well… What do we do if we uncover the veil, and her acting’s terrible? Then, not only is there a problem with the quality of the drama, but we’ll be disgracing our name as well.”

     “…”

     “You did cast her after auditioning her properly, right? Don’t tell me you just included her when Seo Jijoon came over…”

     “If you’re going to keep saying this, I’m leaving.”

     Director Shin Taekyun stood up. As if dumbfounded, the general manager smacked the table.

     “Hey, how can you be so uninterested in these matters? Aren’t you worried at all?”

     “I’m not worried. So, you should stop calling me over for pointless things.”

     “Pointless things?! Do you go around with your ears plugged? There’s a mess because of this!”

     “I don’t care. What are we doing when we haven’t even started to film…”

     “Hey! The director is worried!”

     Director Shin Taekyun halted in the middle of zipping up his jumper. Then he scratched his crow’s nest of hair, making it even shaggier, and let out a small sigh.

     “Did you ever see me film people who aren’t good at acting? If you can’t believe me, there’s a tape of the camera testing taken on the day of the audition. Take a look at it. I’m going now.”

     After speaking calmly, he left the meeting room.

     But, before he could further than a few steps, an assistant director approached him this time.

     “Um, senior.”

     “What is it now? Let me have a smoke before we…”

     “What do we do? The marketing team is constantly asking for an interview.”

     Director Shin Taekyun frowned.

     “An interview?”

     “No, I told them that senior has never done a separate interview and that you don’t really like those things so you only speak a few words during the production presentation, but they keep contacting me… In the marketing team’s perspective, they look at it as an opportunity to promote the drama without paying a dime.”

     Director Shin Taekyun opened his mouth, but his phone rang.

     He checked the caller and answered the phone.

     “Mr. Sunwoo?”

     After listening to what the other person had to say for a while, Director Shin Taekyun hung up. Then he ordered the assistant director,

     “The video of Lee Songha’s camera test. Send that to W&U.”

     “Pardon? Okay.”

     “And as for the interview…”

     He paused. Reading his expression, the assistant direction spoke first,

     “Should I tell them that it’ll never happen?”

     “No, that… Hmm. Tell them to wait for now.”

     The assistant director widened his eyes at his unexpected words.

     At the same time, the office of Knet’s K-Star’s production team.

     The producers and writers chattered amongst themselves with excited faces, and Producer Go Joontae walked in. With a greasy hair pressed down with a hat and a scratchy beard on his chin, he looked like he had slept on the streets for a few days, but his eyes glittered with excitement.

     As gazes gathered on him, Producer Go Joontae handed over the paper he was holding to an assistant director.

     “Although everyone should know by now, read it officially.”

     “Yes. November 20, K-Star viewership rating. 2.4% in the capital regions, and 2.5% nationwide.”

     Everyone clapped their hands or thumped on the desks in cheers.

     Afterwards, Producer Go Joontae handed the assistant director another stack of papers.

     “This as well.”

     “Yes. This is the minute-by-minute ratings! The highest rating is… Huh?”

     The assistant director, who turned the page over to check the ratings, widened his eyes when he saw the highlighted one.

     “Why? What is it?”

     The assistant director gulped down his saliva and said,

     “The highest rating by minute is 3.1%.”

     That moment, incredible cheers erupted throughout the room.

     Even if cable programs have been gaining popularity, only the minority could reach the viewership ratings of public broadcast programs. In reality, the majority of them hovered at around 1%.

     In that situation, to hit 3.1% during the first broadcast of a newly launched program, anyone would be cheering.

     While they were noisy, Producer Go Joontae called over another producer.

     “We have a few good scenes of Neptune that we cut out due to time constraints, right? Hand that over to the marketing team so they can turn them into clips to post on our official site and social media.”

     “Yes.”

     “Make another preview. Showing a huge close-up of Lee Songha’s face…”

     Just then, someone knocked on the glass door of the office.

     It was a middle-aged man whose well-kept hair and luxurious muffler caught people’s attention. He was General Manager Choi, the chief producer of K-Star. Producer Go Joontae left a few more orders before he came out of the office.

     “Hyung, did you see the rating?”

     “Of course, I did. You did well. The director is happy as well. And we’re getting constant inquiries about commercials and product placements.”

     “The next episode will probably have higher ratings.”

     Producer Go Joontae curled his lips upwards.

     General Manager Choi nodded his head while revealing an uneasy expression.

     “The ratings are good, but the problem is how to manage it from now on. Looking at the public’s opinion, if that girl, Lee Songha, sucks at acting, then it won’t just be a problem for her, but even TVL might be bashed as well.”

     “What do we care? We only need to get good ratings. When we asked TVL to get an actor to appear as a guest, did they? No. Also, we already got sworn at by W&U’s PR team this morning. That woman’s temper is no joke. In the end, we promoted Neptune, yet they are pissy about one of the four is getting criticized… A company needs to look at the big picture.”

     Producer Go Joontae clicked his tongue and said in a low voice,

     “Still, I have something ask hyung for because of that problem.”

     “What?”

     “Can’t hyung talk with the director and eat with the CEO of W&U once? Smooth things out a little. Looking at the reactions, it looks like there will be a lot to gain from Neptune, and we need to calm them down so they appear until the final episode.”

     Producer Go Joontae lightly poked General Manager Choi’s sides. General Manager Choi frowned.

     “You throw the bomb, and you want me to clean it up?”

     “We got good ratings. Doesn’t the director only need to get good ratings?”

     When he said this while shrugging his shoulders, General Manager Choi eventually sighed.

     “You’re bullying me with ratings. Haa, Baek Hansung, if that guy is unsatisfied, it’s hard to manage him…”

     “Why? When I saw him last time, he looked like he was gentle and had a good personality?”

     “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

     General Manager Choi smirked and said,

     “Do you think someone with only a good personality can build a massive agency starting from a single person agency in 10 years? He’s not normal, that man.”

     *

     I raised my head as I turned my tense shoulders.

     Everyone, including CEO Baek Hansung, was observing the laptop on top of the table. Even though the video had long since ended, and the screen was dyed black.

     The mood in the CEO’s office was similar to that day.

     The day Lee Songha had her audition in Pan Production’s small meeting room. Like then, a strange silence hung in the air. When the video was playing, there some exclamations, but it was so quiet now that you could hear a pin drop.

     It looked like everyone had a lot to say, but they were holding it in because of CEO Baek Hansung.

     CEO Baek Hansung was thinking with his legs crossed for a while now. With an expression I couldn’t read.

     What is his reaction?

     Don’t tell me he isn’t happy with Lee Songha’s acting?

     There was no way. Like everyone else, his eyes shined as he watched the video.

     CEO Baek Hansung tapped his long finger on the sofa’s armrest. The consistent thumping continued for a while longer before it stopped.

     That moment, he opened his mouth.

     “I think… it’s best if we raise the stakes.”

     / /

     

      Chapter 49

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL: emptycube

     Sponsor: Beefcake

     “What do you mean…”

     Although it was the director who asked, everyone had the same expression.

     An expression asking, ‘What nonsense are you saying?’

     CEO Baek Hansung leaned against the sofa and leisurely clasped his hands together.

     “Team Leader Park, you said the public’s opinion is currently divided, right?”

     “Ah, yes. Although there are still more who are criticizing us, luckily, Neptune gained the image of a skilled idol group, and because Songha is so pretty, the number of people protecting

     her is steadily increasing.”

     After she answered, the team 3 leader added in with dry lips,

     “There are a lot of people who are being quiet, saying that they’ll talk after seeing her act. Fortunately, if there was only bad public criticism, then she may have had to quit the drama. Since TVL wouldn’t keep Songha in that situation.”

     “That’s that, but since both the criticizing side and protecting side are quite equal, there’s no hint the

     controversy will die down soon. Since both sides are taking turns adding fuel to the fire,”

     Added Kim Hyunjo. CEO Baek Hansung asked again,

     “The first broadcast is in January, and the script reading is?”

     “In four days, on the 24th.”

     I answered this time. Since it was a day I was impatiently waiting for since I wrote it in my schedule, the answer came out immediately.

     CEO Baek Hansung’s gaze momentarily fell on me before turning away.

     “Good. Then let’s raise the stakes. Let’s see how high they go.”

     “Pardon?”

     “Get in contact with TVL and ask them about making a behind-the-scenes team… A team that keeps the

     behind-the-scenes camera rolling during the script reading, poster photo shoot, the actual filming, then creates and releases teasers one after another… No, I’ll make a personal visit to TVL.”

     The director cut in with a sour expression.

     “A behind-the-scenes or teaser, at most, they’ll be 30-60 seconds. You probably won’t be able to tell if she’s good at acting with that? We won’t be able to put the controversy to rest like that…”

     “People will continue to watch if they can’t tell. Since they are curious.”

     CEO Baek Hansung’s eyes narrowed.

     “Controversy is interest, and if we can drag this interest properly until January… I think the ratings for the first broadcast won’t lose to public networks. Also, if the project is good, then it’ll ride the flow from

     there.”

     I looked at CEO Baek Hansung with unblinking eyes.

     I thought the same thing as well.

     Yesterday, when Lee Songha’s name first started to rise in the rankings.

     Cable channels were less accessible compared to public networks. Unlike public network dramas that are guaranteed at least 3% viewership ratings with no promotions, it was considered a success if cable dramas hit 3% viewership ratings after constantly promoting the drama a month before.

     Dramas, that failed to become a hot topic but were good quality, hovered at around 1% and would only be acknowledged by those who watched them.

     However, the situation would change if it could become a hot topic.

     Since, as long as it became a hot topic and the content possessed sufficient mass appeal and quality, people would watch it regardless of whether it was on cable or not. As proof of this, there were dramas that surpassed 10%, which was considered to be a limit of cable channels, after becoming a craze on the internet and heated topics in forums and community sites.

     That was why, since there already was a controversy, I thought that if we looked at this positively, this controversy, this hot topic, could become the driving force in making people anticipate and wait for Cat Guardian Ghost.

     However, I didn’t tell others, who were worried, my thoughts.

     It was because there were two reasons that made me think this.

     One was that I continuously confirmed Lee Songha’s remarkable acting skills and concentration while we read the script together for the past few weeks. The other reason was that I knew

     that there was a very, very high chance that the project, Cat Guardian Ghost,

     would become a hit.

     That was why I thought that if I told people, who weren’t aware of this, my thoughts, they would say I was optimistic like LJ did.

     How was it that this person could make decisions like this just by looking at her audition tape?

     “If we do that and things go bad, the backlash will be quite big.”

     Yeah, that is a normal reaction.

     When the director began to talk, even Team Leader Park said with a worried face,

     “Isn’t the risk… too high? Of course, if we can continue to drag this controversy like you say, the

     viewership rating for the first broadcast may outdo the ones from public networks, but everyone will be watching with the intention of dissecting Lee Songha’s acting.”

     The director, team 3 leader, and Kim Hyunjo all nodded their heads in agreement.

     Team Leader Park continued,

     “On top of that, people who were swearing at her will be prepared in front of their TVs to look for any faults in her acting with the attitude of ‘Let’s see how good you really are’. If Songha makes even a small mistake, they’ll create a fuss and claim, ‘I knew it!’”

     The team 3 leader joined in immediately,

     “This will be a huge pressure on Songha as well. Although she’s better than I thought, there are times when even veterans can’t display their full abilities under pressure. Moreover, this is

     her first project. If she makes the slightest mistake…”

     “That’s why we need to do well. And the actress needs to act well.”

     CEO Baek Hansung looked at me again and said,

     “And the manager needs to take proper care.”

     The meeting continued for some time.

     Other people, including the director, once again voiced their concerns, but in the end, it was decided that CEO Baek Hansung would be personally going to TVL and meeting with CEO Kim Pansuk, Director Shin Taekyun, and their director.

     Team Leader Park rubbed her face with her hands.

     “Maintain the balance of the controversy while dragging it until January… My shoulders are heavy. It’ll be a delicate situation until the drama’s first broadcast.”

     “If it looks like it’ll die down, let me know.”

     CEO Baek Hansung laughed in a low

     voice and said,

     “I’ll do an interview.”

     “You will?”

     “’If she was someone who wasn’t good at acting, I wouldn’t have even gotten her to audition.’ Or ‘If I

     were to add her to a drama, do you think TVL’s my limit?’ How do they sound? I think it will heat things up if I throw it out there.”

     Everyone listened to him with frightened expressions before realizing it was a joke at the end.

     Team Leader Park relaxed her shoulders and grinned,

     “Things will heat up for sure. The company will be burned black. I’ll do what I can so you don’t have to do an interview.”

     “Okay, then work hard, everyone.”

     Since it looked like the meeting was wrapping up, I picked up my laptop that was lying on the table. Then I got up to follow Kim Hyunjo out.

     “If you’re not busy, I’d like to talk to you for a bit,”

     CEO Baek Hansung said suddenly.

     When I looked around, unsure whether he was talking to me, I saw that everyone was staring at me.

     Even the CEO.

     Me?

     “I have one more thing I want to ask you.”

     “Ah… Yes.”

     I replied first before sitting back down. Everyone left one after another with an expression that looked like they were so curious they could die. Finally, Kim Hyunjo pointed his thumb downwards as if gesturing me to meet him downstairs before leaving.

     The only ones remaining in the CEO’s office was CEO Baek Hansung and me. A silence hung in the air.

     What is this?

     What does he want to ask me?

     Is it about the drama? Or about Lee Songha?

     Just when I was thinking of various situations in order to give a perfect reply no matter the question, a question I didn’t think of was asked.

     “How did you know about Sung Dowon?”

     “…. Pardon?”

     “Didn’t you refuse because you knew?”

     My mind blanked momentarily before turning at full speed.

     I knew that Sung Dowon only looked normal on the outside, but was very problematic inside. Well, it had already been a while since that day. I did think that W&U already knew about it since they said that W&U dropped him before Pure Star and Sung Dowon started to accuse one another in the future I saw.

     “I’m not sure what you mean.”

     I feigned ignorance and lied.

     If I acted like I knew, then it would become a headache if he started to ask me how I knew.

     When I looked at him as casually as I could, CEO Baek Hansung revealed a subtle expression.

     “A coincidence, huh…”

     He tapped his long finger on the sofa’s armrest again.

     It wasn’t like I was being interrogated, but I felt suffocated.

     Fortunately, I was able to keep a calm expression like now because my first month at work was so spectacular, and above all, my mentality grew multiple times stronger after getting my foresight ability.

     “Okay.”

     CEO Baek Hansung broke the silence as he nodded his head.

     “I heard that you were the one who brought this drama.”

     “I thought it was a good drama and requested Team Leader Park for it.”

     “What should I give you if this really is a success… If there’s something you need, let me know then. I need to keep those with good luck next to me.”

     He grinned as he said,

     “Then, go own your way.”

     “Yes. I’ll take my leave.”

     While I was picking up my laptop again, I heard CEO Baek Hansung’s voice again,

     “Ah. Also, about Lee Songha. Continue to stay by her.”

     Stay by her?

     “It’s rare for actors and actresses to endure the pressure, stress, and responsibility from acting like it’s nothing. So the majority try to depend on something. It can be drugs or alcohol… or even people.”

     My expression stiffened without realizing.

     CEO Baek Hansung said in serious expression,

     “Make her depend on you. So she doesn’t turn to something else.”

     The moment I left the CEO’s office, I called Lee Songha.

     I felt like I could only ease the strange churning in my stomach by calling her.

     -Yes, this is Lee Songha’s phone! Please wait a mom-

     “It’s me.”

     When we told them to prevent Lee Songha from using the internet, it seemed they took her phone away as well.

     When I cut Im Seoyoung’s familiar voice off, the other side of the phone became quiet.

     “Hello? Can you hear me?”

     -Ah, I can hear you… Is this Sunwoo oppa? Did you call on your cell phone?

     “Seoyoung, it’s been more than a month since we’ve met, but you still don’t know my voice?”

     -No, I know. I do… The contact is…

     “Don’t tell me my phone number isn’t saved on Songha’s phone?”

     I felt that would be a different type of shock.

     -No, it’s saved… Anyways, I’ll pass the phone to her!

     What was that?

     Her reaction was strange, but before I could get curious, I heard Lee Songha’s voice.

     -Oppa. Are you at work?

     Her voice sounded normal.

     “Yeah. What are you doing?”

     -Eating.

     “You’re eating breakfast now?”

     -No. I had breakfast a while ago…

     “Ah, then lunch?”

     -No. We are planning on ordering pizza for lunch later.

     “… Did you perhaps read articles on the internet?”

     -No. Unni took away my phone. I just got it back now.

     That was a relief. So she wasn’t eating due to stress.

     I sighed silently so she couldn’t hear and said,

     “Once we hang up, give it back. Your mood will spoil if you read what they are saying on the internet.”

     -I’m fin- I don’t care. You told me not to care.

     The moment I heard her unhesitant reply, my lips curved upwards without realizing.

     Her pleasant voice continued, accompanied by a crunching sound,

     -I felt strange because I was cast so easily, but I finally feel that it’s real. I wish time will pass quickly so we can start filming. But…

     Lee Songha paused for a moment before asking,

     -Are we going to read the script today?

     “We will. I’ll go as soon as I’m done here.”

     Like usual, I replied with a smile.

     / /

     

      Chapter 50

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL: emptycube

     Lee Songha’s name dropped out of the real-time rankings after two full days.

     It wasn’t that the controversy had died down. The reason why there were fewer people searching for her name was because everyone who wanted to know already knew about this incident.

     When you searched Lee Songha’s name, you would be met with countless similar articles trying to inflate their views, and whenever a comment about her came up on a forum, there would be an argument spanning hundreds of comments beneath it.

     So Lee Songha practiced her script in her residence for the past two days.

     Meaning, this was her first outing since the incident.

     “Taehee unni came back from the convenience store, and she said a lot of people recognized her.”

     “Really?”

     “Yes. So she said she took a lot of pictures with them and gave them her autograph.”

     When I looked through the rear-view mirror, Lee Songha’s chin was propped up on the windowsill as she looked outside. Her long, lush hair fluttered in the wind. When I looked at her eyes underneath her hair, it was difficult to tell what she was thinking about.

     Other people relaxed a bit since she was so calm and since it didn’t look like she was mentally shaken, but I was constantly worried.

     Since it wasn’t that she was fine but that she didn’t show it.

     “Seoyoung unni came back after going home, and she said her family and relatives created a fuss. They told her they had to give gifts to people they knew so she left 50 autographs there.”

     Her voice subsided slightly.

     Lee Songha moved away from the window and leaned forward before asking,

     “Oppa. There will be a time when I sign autographs soon too, right?”

     When I glanced at her, I saw her downcast face. She seemed quite serious. This was her first time making that face since the incident blew up.

     Since it seemed she was very unhappy, I replied immediately,

     “Of course. There will be tons of opportunities.”

     “Ah, there’s a big problem,’

     She mumbled,

     “I forgot what my autograph was…”

     Her shoulders drooped. It was hard to make head or tails with her.

     “You just forgot your autograph?”

     “The company said my signature looked like scribbles so they made me one when we debuted, but since there was no need for it during the past two years, I forgot how to write it. What do I do? I need to practice it overnight.”

     “Don’t stay up all night for that. The script reading is tomorrow so you need to rest up.”

     I said exasperatedly as we arrived at the company. When I tried to enter the parking lot like always, around ten people were gathered together. The majority of them were young women wearing thick padded coats. No, there were even young girls there as well.

     When I perked my ears, I heard a mix of both Korean and Chinese.

     What’s this?

     Maybe it was because I was driving with Lee Songha, but I was more aware of other people’s gazes as there were many people who were protecting her and tons who were cursing her as well. I was worried there were people who swore at Lee Songha out in public and not only on the internet.

     We just entered the parking lot when two girls cautiously approached us. Perhaps they thought I couldn’t hear them, but their conversation was worth listening to.

     “Hey, you ask him. Quickly.”

     “No, he looks mean. I think he’s going to swear at me. You ask him.”

     “Ah, damn it… Excuse me, mister.”

     I frowned at the shocking title they called me and was only barely able to accept it looking at their school uniforms.

     Yeah, to them, even those in mandatory military service are misters.

     “Are Blackout oppas coming to the company today?”

     Although I sort of guessed it considering they were all women, but as expected, they were Blackout fans. The 11-member boy group I hadn’t seen yet even though I had come to work for over a month. The ‘ChoTongLeong{1}’ of the idol world.

     In the news, I heard they had just finished their Asia tour and were arriving in Korea today. It seemed that they were waiting in front of the company to see them.

     “Can’t you tell us whether they are coming or not? Please? We are going to go after we check that the oppas are healthy, really. We won’t be annoying and look at them from afar.”

     “We didn’t get to see their faces properly at the airport because there were just too many people. Someone even pushed me, and my elbow got scrapped.”

     Although that was unfortunate, they were talking to the wrong guy.

     “I’m sorry, but I don’t know their schedu…”

     I was answering them politely, but they weren’t looking at me. They were both blankly staring to my side.

     To be precise, they were looking through the open window and at Lee Songha.

     When I was about to hastily roll up the window, a girl mumbled,

     “Oh my god. She’s freak…{2}”

     Freak?

     “Freaking pretty.”

     Lee Songha looked at me once before sticking her head out the window and greeting them,

     “Hello.”

     “Wow, unni, you’re Lee Songha, right?”

     “Yes, I am.”

     “Holy cow. Unni, you’re so pretty! You don’t look human!”

     A short-haired girl continued to admire in an agitated voice. The girl next to here kept tapping her phone, perhaps taking pictures. Since the two were creating a fuss, even the group of people muttered amongst themselves as they looked this way.

     “Who? Who is it?”

     “The girl from Neptune. The one who’s doing a drama with Seo Jijoon. There’s a big fuss about her right now.”

     “Amazing. Her face fits on my palm. How can she look like that? It’s like she’s from a different world.”

     Fortunately, there was nothing to worry about. Of course, there were some who gave her critical looks. However, those people stood far away and simply chatted amongst themselves. The ones who were talking to her up close were all smiling brightly.

     I let out a sigh of relief. I was already worried since we would have to go around in public starting tomorrow due to her schedule. If it was only this much, I could handle it.

     “Unni, cheer up! I’ll watch your drama for sure!”

     “Can I please get a picture with you?”

     “I saw Son Chaeyoung going in a while ago, but unni is so much prettier!”

     I had been watching happily until I flinched at the last phrase.

     Why did Son Chaeyoung come here?

     Before I could think about it, the girls began to hand me their phones and begged me to take pictures. Well, my superiors did tell me to allow autographs and pictures if possible.

     When I nodded my head, Lee Songha got out of the van and posed for the pictures with them. She took pictures with girls in their school uniforms as well as with girls holding luggage, who seemed to be Chinese tourists.

     Of course, I was the one who took the pictures.

     “Ah, mister… I became a squid{3}. Was this the best you could do?”

     “It was the best I could do.”

     “Wow, how blunt.”

     I really did my best to take that picture. Although the result was regretful.

     Since the girls seemed so torn up about the two-shots with Lee Songha, Lee Songha gave them autographs as well. She focused extremely hard as if she was creating a work of art, but it really was a serious problem. I thought that I could do better with my eyes closed and my left hand.

     The Chinese tourists were even filming her like this. They kept saying something, but I couldn’t understand any of it. Looking at how they kept sticking their thumbs up, it seemed like they were saying she was pretty.

     After doing all she could, we finally went into the parking lot. I parked the van and undid my seatbelt, when I suddenly heard faint laughter behind me. When I turned around, Lee Songha was staring at me while laughing.

     Although, strictly speaking, they weren’t her fans, but maybe she was happy nevertheless?

     “You’re that happy?”

     “They said oppa looked mean.”

     “Huh?”

     It was an unexpected reply. Now that I thought about it, they did say that.

     I was about to say I heard that a lot when she got out of the van first.

     Leaving one word behind.

     “You’re not.”

     The reason why we came to the company today was because of Team Leader Park.

     Because CEO Baek Hansung finished talking with TVL in the morning, a behind-the-scenes team would stick next to the Cat Guardian Ghost production process from now on.

     This meant the script reading tomorrow would be the first ‘bait’.

     Since it was both Lee Songha and my first script reading, we heard a few words of advice. We needed to leave a favorable impression as it would be a place where the main and supporting actors, as well as other related parties of the drama, would be present.

     After our chat, I got up as Team Leader Park said she needed to talk with Lee Songha separately, but I suddenly heard an unfriendly name.

     “Ah, right. Son Chaeyoung is probably still in the company. Silently avoid her if you see her. She’s a ticking bomb right now.”

     “Why?”

     “An article about Mermaid out of Water’s script reading came out. But she whined for an hour about how it was buried under Lee Songha’s incident and didn’t get first in the real-time search rankings. I’ve seen many unusual celebrities, but she’s unusual even among them.”

     Team Leader Park shook her head, displaying a tired expression. I nodded and went down to the lounge.

     It seemed everyone was busy with work as there were plenty of empty tables. I bought a can of coffee from the vending machine for myself and was in the middle of choosing a sweet drink for Lee Songha.

     Suddenly feeling a chill down my spine, I turned around. Damn it.

     Speak of the devil, Son Chaeyoung was glaring at me.

     I was the one who was told to screw off when we first met, but why was she glaring at me? Since I felt something was fishy about the acting teacher, it was uncomfortable looking at her face.

     However, I wasn’t sure, and this person was a prominent actress in our company.

     I hid my inner thoughts and casually greeted her,

     “Hello.”

     The tapping sounds of her high heels came closer. Son Chaeyoung glared at me with unfriendly eyes before passing by. She didn’t go far. She sat at the table directly behind me and opened the script for Mermaid out of Water.

     I was dumbfounded.

     With her temper, what mermaid? She should be a witch.

     Since I had already heard Team Leader Park’s advice and knew that my mood would spoil if I stayed any longer, I was about to leave when I heard a voice mixed with laughter.

     “An ‘Add-on’ controversy? So embarrassing. Was her name Songha? How’s her mentality? Tell her to do well so that the image of other actors in W&U don’t fall. But, with all this fuss right from the start, will the drama even be good?”

     My boiling insides, in the end, calmed as if doused with cold water.

     Instead, I wanted to feel how the hairdresser felt when he shouted, ‘The king has donkey ears!’{4}

     Maybe I should go up to the roof and shout,

     ‘Before you worry about us, you should worry about your own drama that will only get 3% viewership ratings!’

     But when I suddenly thought about it… I was lucky.

     I first met Son Chaeyoung in this lounge. Back then, Son Chaeyoung and Chief Jo showed me two synopses and asked me which one I thought would do better.

     If Son Chaeyoung took my words to heart and didn’t choose her current project.

     And if I had suggested Cat Guardian Ghost to her.

     If that happened, how different would this current situation be?

     I might not have asked Lee Songha if she would try acting, I might not have seen a future about Lee Songha, and I might not have followed her around, trying to persuade her. If that was the case, Lee Songha wouldn’t have begun acting either.

     That was a close call.

     I was so lucky to be told to screw off back then.

     “Our drama will be good.”

     When I intentionally replied with a smiling face, Son Chaeyoung frowned.

     Then the elevator stopped on the fourth floor.

     When the doors slid open, Lee Songha looked around. When she discovered me, she hurriedly ran towards me.

     “I made you wait.”

     “No…”

     That moment I found out that Son Chaeyoung’s expression was strangely distorted when she looked at Lee Songha. When Lee Songha followed my gaze and discovered Son Chaeyoung, she halted in her tracks.

     Their gazes met each other in mid-air.

     And, for the first time, I saw loathing in Lee Songha’s eyes

     {1} It’s been a long time since it’s been mentioned. ‘ChoTongLeong’ is a made-up word that means ‘President of Elementary Schoolers’. Let me know if you guys prefer the English version?

     {2} So this is a bit strange in English. Some people say 더럽게, which means filthy, dirty, etc, to emphasize a certain trait. A better example in English would be something like ‘She’s filthy rich.’

     {3} ‘Became a squid’ – When someone is so pretty/handsome/good-looking, they make the other person look ugly.

     {4} Not sure how many people know the story ‘The King with Donkey Ears’. Basically, a king had ears shaped like a donkey’s. He told his hairdresser never to tell anyone. Unable to keep the secret, the hairdresser dug himself a hole and shouted, “The king has donkey ears!” He felt better… (Google the full story if you’re interested.)

     / /

     

      Chapter 51

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL: emptycube

     Sponsor: C. C.

     The first one to act was Lee Songha. She bowed to Son Chaeyoung before immediately turning her gaze away as if she wouldn’t look at her any longer.

     In Son Chaeyoung’s case, her expression changed as soon as she received Lee Songha’s greeting. Her agitation disappeared without a trace and her lips curved upwards.

     “Hey, you-“

     Lee Songha quickly walked up to me.

     Meaning, she ignored Son Chaeyoung.

     “Oppa, we have to hurry.”

     Grabbing the coat I was holding, Lee Songha pulled me in her direction.

     “Okay, let’s go.”

     I nodded first and got in an elevator with Lee Songha. During the few seconds it took for the elevator doors to close, I felt as though I would be suffocated by their gazes. In front of me, Son Chayoung, who had been ignored, was glaring at me.

     It was like a scene from a horror film. No, a scene in a horror film would at least pass quickly. This was like a horror film with lag.

     Just then, the elevator started to move.

     Lee Songha, who was still holding onto my coat, mumbled,

     “Witch.”

     How did she have the same thoughts as me?

     Besides that, Son Chaeyoung definitely said, “Was her name Songha?” as if she didn’t remember her name properly.

     “Songha, do you know Son Chaeyoung outside from work?”

     “I hate that woman.”

     Lee Songha said while looking at the corner of the elevator. I felt hostility beyond the loathing from before. It was a voice I hadn’t heard outside of when she acted as Jung Haewon.

     “How do you know her?”

     “… I saw her a few times when I was getting acting lessons.”

     Acting lessons.

     It was as if the thing I felt was fishy had taken shape and crawled out.

     Although Lee Songha didn’t say anything and kept her mouth shut, she said she hated her with her calm personality.

     If they saw each other when she was receiving acting lessons, there was no way they met under friendly terms. The suspicion that the acting teacher and Son Chaeyoung might have taken some action against Lee Songha solidified.

     The elevator soon stopped. I was on my way to the van while thinking about how I could get the truth out when my side was felt empty. When I turned around, Lee Songha stood still in the elevator, not getting out.

     Just when I thought she was worrying about something, she asked,

     “Will something bad happen to oppa because I ignored that woman?”

     “What?”

     “If that’s the case, I’m going to go up and say goodbye again.”

     I stared at Lee Songha with absentminded eyes before grinning.

     Did my expression look that serious? Was that why she was thinking that?

     To be honest, it wasn’t like I wasn’t anxious at all.

     It wasn’t that I was worried that I would be sworn at but because of Lee Songha.

     Although this was my first time properly functioning in society, I had learned a few things from mandatory military service and part-time jobs. No matter how crazy your superiors were, if you blindly butt heads with them, you would be the only one worn out at the end of the day.

     Especially Lee Songha, she was a celebrity who was always put on the spot. We were fortunate that we were at work and there weren’t any watching eyes. If not, it might have become a problem.

     If it was any other situation, I might have said this to Lee Songha, however,

     “No.”

     Son Chaeyoung was an exception. If Son Chaeyoung made a fuss to my superiors and I had to pay the price, then hell, I’d pay it.

     “Let’s go. Before the witch chases after us.”

     “Yes.”

     When I mixed a joke into my words, Lee Songha’s expression relaxed. Then, with light steps, quickly came next to me.

     I let Lee Songha in the van first before calling Kim Hyunjo.

     Even if I were to pay the price, I couldn’t be the only one.

     After a quick greeting, I went straight to the point.

     “Chief. Did you find anything about Songha’s acting teacher and Son Chaeyoung?”

     -Not yet. But Son Chaeyoung tried really hard to protect that teacher last time. As if she had a guilty conscience. I found it a bit suspicious so I’ve been looking around, checking whether this happened to other rookies as well…

     I rubbed my thumb against my lips a few times before saying,

     “That Shim Kyungtaek teacher. Could I meet with him once?”

     -Hey, if you try to corner that man without any evidence, you’re going to be hit with backlash. If Son Chaeyoung makes a fuss, then the company will be a mess. Do you have the confidence to get Teacher Shim to admit, ‘Yeah, I purposely fucked with her’?

     “There’s… a method I want to try once.”

     My face burned as did my back. To be honest, my entire body tingled so much I felt like I became a human dartboard.

     It wasn’t even lunch time yet, but more and more people started to gather in the TVL lobby. While they were definitely looking at us, perhaps it was because we were at a broadcasting company as they simply talked amongst themselves, no one came up and asked for an autograph or a picture.

     Fortunately, there wasn’t anyone who was speaking ill of us either.

     When I looked around me, I glanced at the person in front of me. Lee Songha seemed like a person oblivious of the people’s gazes around her as her eyes were fixed on the script. Seeing that her lips moved subtly, it seemed she was reading the script on her own.

     Although it was a script I read countless times, perhaps it was because it was almost time for the group reading session, but the mood felt completely different. I felt that she was more absorbed in it than any other time. I didn’t want to disturb her so I quietly watched her.

     When around 5 minutes had passed, our surroundings suddenly became noisier. I even heard a high-pitched scream. When I turned my head, as expected, like an ocean splitting, two people moved through the crowd.

     It was Seo Jijoon and his manager, Chief Lee Bongjoon.

     I suddenly recalled the time I first met Seo Jijoon.

     It was shocking.

     My worry about whether Seo Jijoon would be able to act foolishly was thrown out the window 30 seconds after meeting him. I completely understood what Team Leader Park said about how Seo Jijoon might be a divine move for the drama.

     “Hello.”

     I stood and greeted them. Lee Songha, who had been focused on reading the script, followed my lead and greeted them with a blank expression. After Seo Jijoon and Chief Lee said hello to Lee Songha, they both looked at me with the same look.

     “You look a bit… excessive today.”

     I bashfully scratched my neck at Chief Lee’s words.

     Because it felt weird to wear a suit to a script reading session, I took out all my clothes and seriously thought about what to wear. Then I picked a turtleneck sweater, slacks, and a classy wool coat.

     I thought it wasn’t bad up until then. The problem was what came after.

     When the hairdresser[1] I saw more often than my family asked, ‘Mr. Sunwoo, should I style your hair a little?’ I shouldn’t have said okay and sat in the chair.

     I really thought she would only style it a little.

     “This sort of happened.”

     “No, no. It’s not bad. You look good.”

     Chief Lee said while waving his hand.

     “It looks like I need to use formal speech when talking to you. It’s good. When you meet with the staff, don’t tell them you’re a manager. Say that you’re a team leader, no, tell them you’re a director at W&U.”

     Then he held his stomach as he laughed while slapping my shoulders with his frying-pan-sized hands. He kept laughing the whole time we were making our way to the script reading room on the 6th floor. When I said that it wasn’t so bad that he had to laugh so much, he laughed even harder.

     Eventually, Seo Jijoon clicked his tongue and said,

     “You shouldn’t laugh like that. Hyung, you should dress like him too.”

     “What?”

     “Let me feel what it’s like to be cared for by a director.”

     No, instead of trying to stop him, he laughed along with him.

     “Hey, you. Clothes like that don’t suit me.”

     “It’s not that they don’t suit you, they probably won’t fit.”

     When Seo Jijoon said this while staring at Chief Lee’s round belly, Chief Lee snorted,

     “You just don’t know since you’re so young. In your thirties, your belly is your character.”

     “If your belly is your character, then hyung should be Gandhi already.”

     Then they both started laughing again. They were quite the unusual pair.

     Around the time their laughter died down, I glanced behind me. It seemed Lee Songha was still thinking about the script as her head was lowered while she followed us. I grabbed Chief Lee and said in a quiet voice,

     “Chief, please take care of us today.”

     “No, director. It is I who should ask you to take care of me.”

     This man.

     “It’s a joke. Don’t look at me like that, it’s scary.”

     Chief Lee coughed and scratched his head before saying in a serious voice,

     “The higher ups already told me to pay attention. And even if they didn’t, Jijoon and I would have done so anyways. It’s not like we’re not at fault for this mess either since the things grew out of hand because we joined the project you had already chosen.”

     He said as he clicked his tongue. Even Seo Jijoon, who was in the lead, nodded his head. I received a call from them about how they were sorry after the incident broke out, but it seemed they continued to bear it in mind.

     I shook my head. Seo Jijoon simply chose a good project. The one who should be cursed from this incident was Producer Go Joontae.

     Chief Lee continued,

     “Also, don’t worry so much. Nothing will happen. Did you get the lineup of who was cast for the drama?”

     “Yes.”

     “The director chose a great cast. Everyone’s good at acting, and from what I know, they are all good people. While doing this project, I don’t think we’ll be stressed because of people in the project?”

     “Really?”

     I knew that they were good at acting. The majority of actors were people I was impressed with after seeing the dramas and movies they appeared in.

     However, I was concerned with how they were in real life. Although their images were good, an actor’s outer image was precisely just that, an image. I clearly learned this after meeting Sung Dowon, Son Chaeyoung, and Seo Jijoon during the past month.

     Chief Lee rubbed his nose and continued,

     “Also, our situation is a bit unique. If it’s so noisy outside, then there are many cases where people on the inside become more tightly knit. So don’t worry.”

     Relieved, I nodded.

     Not long after, we arrived at the script reading place on the 6th floor. Seo Jijoon and Chief Lee Bongjoon nonchalantly entered the room.

     There were quite a few people inside already when I stole a glance through the open door. There were staff members setting up the cameras and lights as well as familiar actors I had seen on TV.

     I stopped in front of the door and took deep breaths.

     While being Neptune’s manager for over a month, I had personally experienced the entertainment world. I experienced music broadcasts, entertainment program filming, events, magazine interviews, and photo shoots. I had countless experiences.

     So I thought that I had become used to this glamorous yet also dark world.

     But, for some reason… my heart was pounding right now like my first day at work.

     When I turned around, Lee Songha still had her head lowered. Her hair, which fell naturally, created a shadow over her face, and I couldn’t clearly see her expression.

     “Songha.”

     There was no reply even when I called out to her.

     Was she nervous?

     “Songha, are you okay?”

     When I called out to her again, Lee Songha slowly raised her head. That moment, I was at loss for words.

     Her prickly mood made it difficult for people to approach, and her gloomy eyes seemed to be suppressing something. It wasn’t the look of Lee Songha but of Jung Haewon, who I had met many times over the past few weeks of script reading.

     No, it was similar yet different.

     Although there was never I time I didn’t admire when seeing her like this, even among them, right now was-

     “Ah.”

     As if she was actually possessed by Jung Haewon, her expression completely changed.

     Lee Songha blinked her eyes twice and said,

     “Sorry. I was confused for a second.”

     [1] The hairdresser is probably Neptune’s hairdresser.

     / /

     

      Chapter 52

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL: emptycube

     Sponsor: acc0rd

     The meeting room where the Cat Guardian Ghost script reading session would be held was already noisy.

     The behind-the-scenes team was busy setting up the cameras and lights, and the cast and related parties arrived one after another, ate the snacks on the table and began to chat.

     The mood was peaceful as there were many people who were acquainted with one another from other projects.

     “Hey, why are there three cameras when we are only reading the script? You’re making me feel pressured. I guess I need to try really hard.”

     “They say that our project is the hottest topic in the first quarter.”

     “It’s not a promising project but a hot topic?”

     “Why does it matter? It’s important that people are interested. I’m happy with the script, and I chose it because I thought that the drama wouldn’t fail with Seo Jijoon as the lead, so this much hype is great.”

     “But…”

     The actress playing the role of the female lead’s friend lowered her voice, aware of the cameras,

     “Do you think Lee Songha will be good at acting?”

     “How tiresome. Do I even have to listen to that question here?”

     An actress in her thirties shook her head as if tired of this.

     “People around me kept asking me this question when I told them I was cast in this drama. I even got multiple calls from reporters, asking for comments about Lee Songha’s acting after the script reading session. Haa, stop pestering the young girl.”

     “But we are curious.”

     “She probably has the basics down at least since there haven’t been any talks about her resigning after the controversy. Don’t you think there’s a reason W&U is promoting her?”

     “That’s right. Also, if she really was terrible, I bet Director Shin wouldn’t have even cast her.”

     While all sorts of speculation were being made, an actor playing the role of the subordinate of Seo Jijoon cut in,

     “Now that things are already like this, I hope Lee Songha is really good at acting.”

     When gazes gathered on him, he shrugged,

     “Currently the public is equally divided between she’s terrible at acting and that she’ll be good.”

     “I guess?”

     “So if she was criticized about her acting this much, but in reality, she’s unbelievably good at acting, then… Won’t there be a huge fuss when the drama airs? I bet the internet will explode after the first episode.”

     Other actors smirked when they heard his increasingly excited voice.

     “Eh, that’s going too far.”

     “Yeah. Looking at the script, it’s not an easy role either.”

     “Don’t put pressure on her by saying words like that. How do you think she feels right now?”

     “I only…”

     The actor resigned and licked his lips,

     “Hope that it was the case.”

     Just then, they heard noises outside the door. Thinking someone else had arrived, the actors all turned their gazes towards the door.

     Swish. The door opened.

     When Lee Songha first entered the room, a few actors thought that if the drama ended well, she would be rolling in commercials.

     The haters who said that her looks were due to the lighting, makeup, and camera were all full of nonsense. They couldn’t help but admire her looks the instant they saw her.

     Her looks were classy yet elegant, and the proportions of her eyes, nose, mouth, and ears coexisting on her face were flawless. No, there wasn’t even a need for flowery words.

     Just her standing there created a picture.

     The advertisers wouldn’t be able to keep their eyes off her. If she could put her acting controversy to rest and her image became better and if the drama did well enough that it and her character could boost her career as well, then there was an overwhelming possibility that she would instantly take a spot as a visual star.

     That was why a few actors thought,

     ‘Her acting must be so-so.’

     Their thoughts contained a bit of bias. That she was from an idol group, still young, and above all, too pretty.

     They might have been expectant of her acting skills if she wasn’t so pretty, however, with those looks, it was possible for W&U to promote her even if her acting was a little poor as her looks could definitely overcome her faults when it came to acting.

     Like how top class beautiful stars, who would be swept up in controversy about their acting skills whenever they took up a project, could still star in commercials and continuously receive casting calls from broadcasting companies.

     That was why the cast of the Cat Guardian Ghost completely put away their expectations for her.

     They only wished that she at least had the basics down and that she would perform well enough that she wouldn’t hinder the quality of the drama.

     So, when the script reading began, the actors all thought with stunned expressions,

     ‘What the?’

     ‘This is the acting of a twenty-something-year-old girl? Someone who has received a lifetime’s worth of criticism because of her acting controversy?’

     “… Oh my god.”

     “I know right…”

     Would there ever be a script reading session where the actors were this immersed in acting?

     Including Seo Jijoon, all the cast members acted as though they were on the actual film set when reading their lines. Then, once they were done, their gazes would naturally turn towards one place.

     To Lee Songha. No, to Jung Haewon.

     After the reading began, there was only Jung Haewon in her seat. A temperamental woman in her late twenties who was already tired of life, Jung Haewon. They could see her in every breath or gesture she took.

     The mood wasn’t like this right from the start.

     Everyone cheered when Lee Songha’s acting skills smashed their expectations. They cheered because she could flip the current controversy on its head and the project could maintain both quality and success with her acting skills.

     Then they whispered amongst each other.

     “It looks like Lee Songha’s personality is similar to Jung Haewon.”

     “Right? It’s pure raw acting, yet it looks like she’s actually possessed by Jung Haewon.”

     “It suits her so well. It looks like Director Shin saw this when casting her.”

     However, this didn’t last long either.

     The role of Jung Haewon didn’t continue following one style. When she interpreted the cat ghost’s ridiculous words, she had to grasp the black comedic tones, and when she was possessed by the cat ghost, she had to be noble and elegant.

     Eventually, astonished, someone mumbled,

     “Holy cow. She’s just… born with it.”

     “You said she’s only in her twenties. Then, of course, she was born with it. Kids like her are geniuses.”

     “Life is so unfair. Her life must be easy.”

     Jang Yoonok, who was playing the role of the mother of the male lead, Kim Seungwoon, frowned when she heard this.

     Although most of the whispers were of admiration, some couldn’t hide their envy. Especially a few young actors, who weren’t that different in age from Lee Songha, even possessed jealousy.

     When she looked in front of her, Lee Songha was still immersed in her acting.

     In attempt to not disturb the reading session, Jang Yoonok said in a quiet voice,

     “If that’s all you see, then stay quiet.”

     “Pardon?”

     “Ma’am, what do you mean…”

     The actors next to her showed flustered expressions and read the mood. This was obvious as they became an eyesore to the person who was the oldest actor present and was called ‘Ma’am’ wherever she went.

     “Of course, she’s a natural. If not that, it’s ridiculous for her to act like that at her age.”

     However, Jang Yoonok was more attracted to something else besides Lee Songha’s talent.

     “She’s not someone who just jumps in recklessly believing in her talent. Look at her acting. She almost never looks at the script when she reads her lines.”

     “…!”

     The young actors’ eyes widened.

     When they examined more closely, there was something strange about her acting. Although her script was open, her eyes didn’t move following the script. Instead, her gaze momentarily hovered on the table, floor and walls.

     As if there was something there.

     Even though she wasn’t reading the script, her lines were perfect. This was something that was impossible unless they had thoroughly memorized it. The young actors’ gazes fell on her script.

     Someone sighed.

     The edges of her script were worn, and there were tons of tiny scribbles wherever there were Jung Haewon’s lines.

     The actors who voiced their jealously placed their hands on their script, covering it in embarrassment.

     Jang Yoonok looked back at Lee Songha.

     As if she didn’t notice the heated gazes aimed at her, she continued her amazing acting. When it was Lee Songha’s line, even Director Shin, who was known to be detailed with directing, kept his mouth closed.

     It wasn’t only Director Shin, but even CEO Kim Pansuk and Writer Hong Jumi, who were from the production company Pan Production, showed pleased expressions.

     As she prepared for her lines, Jang Yoonok thought that a splendid actress would come out from this project.

     It wasn’t only the actors who were surprised.

     The related parties who sat behind the actors were busy chatting amongst themselves whenever it was Lee Songha’s turn while checking on their respective actors.

     This was obvious since there was no one who expected Lee Songha to be this good at acting. It wasn’t only them, everyone who knew about the controversy thought this way.

     That was why the surprise was multiple times greater.

     Since the script reading session hadn’t ended yet, they were calming their agitation as they whispered to each other, but if they met reporters after the session, they could spend over two hours talking about Lee Songha’s acting skills.

     A chief who came with the best supporting actor from his company mumbled,

     “Where did W&U find a gem like her? This industry is transparent, yet how did someone like her pop out of nowhere?”

     “No wonder… As expected. That’s why their director came with her,”

     Said the team leader on his right.

     “Director? What director?”

     The chief asked the team leader in a quiet voice. As their assigned actors appeared in the same project before, they were quite close.

     The team leader gestured at the man sitting left of the chief with his eyes.

     “That person. They say he’s the director of W&U.”

     “What?”

     The chief turned his head with widened eyes. From beginning to the end, the man on his left was sitting leisurely as he watched Lee Songha read her script. He occasionally admired in surprise or smiled in delight.

     Also, for some strange reason, he was recording Lee Songha on his phone.

     He had said his name was Jung Sunwoo.

     Because his outer appearance seemed extraordinary, it was a bit awkward when they first exchanged greetings, but he had definitely said he was her manager.

     “Eh, what do you mean he’s a director? He looks younger than me.”

     “Age is what you quibble about in school. Well, maybe he had a few strings pulled.”

     “He said he was a manager when we introduced each other. Are you sure?”

     “He is someone I’m seeing for the first time today, but you know that Chief Lee Bongjoon who’s assigned to Seo Jijoon? Chief Lee called him director before.”

     “Uhhh… That’s not right. Wasn’t the director of W&U a balding man?”

     “Maybe the position changed? Either way, I clearly heard him call him director.”

     The chief wet his quickly drying lips as he turned around. Now that he knew his position, he seemed even more extraordinary.

     Since he never knew if he would ever change his employment to W&U…

     Once he thought this, the chief cleared his throat and asked Jung Sunwoo in a friendly tone,

     “Excuse me. Why are you recording? Is it to monitor her later?”

     “Ah, this?”

     Jung Sunwoo paused for a moment. The chief wasn’t sure what he was thinking about as he looked down at his phone in his hand.

     The pleased smile on his face had disappeared without a trace. When he was smiling, he looked like a well-behaved person, but when his smile disappeared, he clearly wasn’t the easily approachable type.

     He replied slowly,

     “I need it for something important.”

     The chief gulped his saliva.

     It was certainly a gentle voice, yet why did he hear it as ‘Because there’s someone I need to kill.’

     /  /

     

      Chapter 53

     Source: Myoniyoni Translations

      Report

     TL: emptycube

     After the script reading session, the actors each said a word of encouragement and admiration to Lee Songha. Lee Songha’s expression still seemed to be of Jung Haewon, but she bowed out of habit and returned their greetings.

     This merry, pleasant scene was captured on the behind-the-scenes cameras.

     The actors stood in front of the cameras with faces full of excitement and expectations for the drama. Although the interviews were slightly different depending on their roles, the last question was asked to everyone.

     “Lastly, please give a short comment about the project.”

     A man in his forties looked in a certain direction. It was towards Lee Songha and Seo Jijoon as well as the two men who seemed to be from W&U. The four of them were together and were receiving glances from other people. Although they couldn’t tell what they were talking about, Lee Songha perked her ears at what the young man was saying and diligently nodded her head.

     Taking his eyes off them, the male actor cleared his throat and continued the interview.

     “This, I said this more than a dozen times during the script reading session, but if there’s a good vibe from the reading session, then the project will always be good. But the vibe from this reading session is just too good. Especially everyone’s acting… Haa, if it’s like this, then it might really-”

     “Don’t say it,”

     Jang Yoonok suddenly cut in.

     “Pardon?”

     “It might bring bad luck. If the project becomes unlucky, are you going to take responsibility?”

     The male actor quickly made a gesture, zipping his lips.

     A similar scene occurred with other actors getting interviewed in front of other cameras.

     “I’m a bit excited since we haven’t started yet, but this project will be a hi-“

     “Hey, hey. Ma’am told us not to say it, saying that it might bring bad luck.”

     “Ah, a short comment. I think this will really b-“

     “Shush!”

     While everyone was unable to speak, the exterior of the script reading room became noisy.

     The chief producer, General Manager Song, who had been looking in through the door, quietly left.

     Although he checked Lee Songha’s audition tape and he agreed to CEO Baek Hansung’s suggestion of using this controversy to promote the project, he still had a few traces of unease left in his heart.

     That was why he watched the script reading session while acting like he was just passing by.

     He couldn’t infect other actors with his unease when he was the chief producer.

     Once he watched to his satisfaction, he made his way upstairs with light steps. When he, who had been temperamental until morning, was passing by while humming, the drama department’s producers tilted their heads.

     “What the? Why is the general manager so happy?”

     “I don’t know. His mood keeps swinging back and forth. Maybe something like male menopause?”

     “Isn’t the Cat Guardian Ghost script reading session going on downstairs? Was he so shocked by Lee Songha’s acting?”

     General Manager Song was on his way to the director’s office. After knocking, he entered the room before he got the okay to enter and said to the director,

     “Director, about Cat Guardian Ghost. Should we get another timeslot? Instead only releasing short teasers, let’s make a 50-minute behind-the-scenes-“

     “Are you okay?”

     “The project from GTBN that got over 8% viewership ratings last time. They sent the cast and staff on a vacation to Cebu and released press releases bragging about it. We should send our cast and staff to somewhere better.”

     “Why are you like this all of a sudden?”

     The director, who had been going through files with a tired face, looked up.

     General Manager Song closed the director’s office and said with a quiet voice,

     “I’m a bit cautious since it might bring bad luck but…”

     “What?”

     “Cat Guardian Ghost, I think it’s going to be a huge hit.”

     Noon the next day.

     The first behind-the-scenes video created by the behind-the-scenes team and TVL’s Content Planning Department employees was released.

     That video received hundreds of thousands of views in a few hours, was displayed on the main page of large sites, and once again broke into the real-time search rankings.

     Also, it quickly spread through forums and social media.

     {First look! Scene of TVL’s Cat Guardian Ghost’s first script reading session!}

     -I thought I would only notice the two leads, but the supporting actors are all unbelievable.

     -Are you ignoring God Joonok{1}? Just looking at the fact God Joonok is appearing on cable shows that they put a lot of effort with the cast. Besides Lee Songha, there are no holes in this cast.

     -Taken aback by the above comment ;; Am I the only one who was surprised by Lee Songha’s acting?

     -I was freaking surprised as well ; I started watching without any expectations but ended up getting immersed by it. It was completely unexpected.

     -I’m constantly replaying Lee Songha’s part. I keep getting sucked in *shiver*

     -Her looks could topple nations ; And she’s really good at acting. Why are people swearing at her?

     -What do you mean she’s great at acting lol You guys are trying your best with this 1-minute video haha

     -They probably picked out whatever was best from the few hours of script reading. Since TVL needs to try to put the controversy to rest.

     -Wow. At this point, it looks like you’re bashing her for the sake of bashing her. So mean.

     -I’m not a fan or hater of Lee Songha, but looking only at the video, it looks like she’s good?

     -Even considering that it has been edited, I don’t think she’s terrible. Let’s all agree with that.

     -Please just do that well after practicing a ton. Then the controversy will completely disappear.

     -Since everyone was making such a fuss about it, I came to check it out, and this looks like it’ll be fun?

     “Was I the only one who was surprised by Lee Songha’s acting?”

     I tried to read the comments while maintaining their tone.

     “I’m constantly replaying Lee Songha’s part. I keep getting sucked in *shiver*”

     “Hey, Lee Songha! He says he’s getting sucked in! Wow, that guy’s overreacting!”

     Im Seoyoung was creating a fuss. The makeup artist, who was zealously adjusting Im Seoyoung’s makeup for the recording, couldn’t take it anymore and shouted,

     “Seoyoung, stay put! Your eyeliner stuck out again!”

     “Ah, sorry, unni.”

     “Why are you making such a fuss when the person involved is listening to it so calmly?”

     Said LJ as she smirked next to her.

     Like she said, Lee Songha was quietly sitting down and getting her makeup corrected. From the outside, it looked like she was calm, but every time I read a comment, her lips would slightly curve upwards.

     She also looked at me as if she had something to say. Like now.

     Im Seoyoung urged with a bright smile,

     “Oppa, oppa. Read another one. Aren’t there anymore?”

     “I found some too. I’ll read you some!”

     The stylist who had been diligently searching the internet at the back raised her hand.

     Every time she read a comment, laughter could be heard from inside the van. The traitor, who was driving, Kim Hyunjo at the back, Im Seoyoung, LJ, Lee Taehee and me as well as the makeup artists. There was no one who wasn’t smiling.

     How long had it been since the mood was this good?

     It almost the first time since the controversy broke out since the mood did brighten up when Im Seoyoung and LJ squabbled with each other, even though the mood would quickly drop back down.

     However, it was different today.

     After the first behind-the-scenes video of the Cat Guardian Ghost was released today, Lee Songha’s acting was once again heating up portal sites, social media outlets, and forums.

     This time, the scales were slightly tipped to Lee Songha’s favor. Although there were still a lot of people criticizing her, those who had simply been watching this from afar had moved to protect Lee Songha because of this video.

     “The timing was just right. I was already worried because today was an outdoor recording.”

     The traitor beside me was relieved.

     I nodded my head as well and looked out the window. I saw the outdoor stage set and a group of people talking with each other.

     The recording of K-Star today wasn’t held at an open hell but in the middle of Hongdae{2}. Today’s mission was to hold a guerilla concert{3} on an unfamiliar, confined stage for many, unknown people without a rehearsal.

     Even though I didn’t think it would happen, I had been worried that a water bottle or something would be thrown at the stage during their performance. We were lucky that the public opinion was good.

     “Jung Sunwoo.”

     Kim Hyunjo leaned towards the passenger seat I was seated on. He then glanced at the girls who were cheerfully talking with each other and said with a quiet voice,

     “About what you said yesterday.”

     “Ah, yes.”

     There was only one thing I said to Kim Hyunjo yesterday.

     Lee Songha’s damn acting teacher Shim Kyungtaek and Son Chaeyoung.

     “I talked with Younghoon hyung, and we thought it wasn’t a bad idea. If things don’t work out as you planned, we just need to take some scolding. It also seems like Younghoon hyung and I can cover the rest as well…”

     I gulped down my saliva as I waited for his next words.

     Just then, Kim Hyunjo nodded his head.

     “Meet him tomorrow, that Shim Kyungtaek teacher.”

     *

     “At this rate, it looks like it will stay on the real-time search rankings until night?”

     Team Leader Park from the PR team looked at her monitor and smiled in satisfaction.

     The female employee poured drip coffee into three mugs as she nodded.

     “This drama… Isn’t its trendiness the best? Was there ever a cable drama that became such a big topic before it even started?”

     “Besides those in a series, there wasn’t.”

     “I heard the mood during the script reading session was really good. That Songha’s acting was great.”

     “If it’s like this… Then won’t it overtake public broadcasts’ viewership ratings on its first broadcast?”

     At the male employee’s words, the female employee waved her hand.

     “Eh, you dream too big. That’s difficult. The lineup of public broadcast programs in the same timeslot is too good. There’s Time Slip and Mermaid out of Water.”

     While nodding, Team Leader Park added in,

     “Yeah, the quality of the Mermaid out of Water script is good. We might be able to expect a 20% viewership rating for that one.”

     “The reaction from China is really good too. Although it was pushed aside because of Cat Guardian Ghost in Korea, the day an article about their reading session was released, it even reached top 3 in the overseas drama issues chart in China.”

     This was possible because the female lead, Son Chaeyoung, and the male lead were quite popular in China. The publication rights for Mermaid out of Water had already been sold to the biggest Chinese online platform before its first broadcast.

     The female lead said in an expectant voice,

     “If things go well, Mermaid out of Water and Cat Guardian Ghost could be the top two dramas for the beginning of the year.”

     “Yeah. It’ll get busier,”

     Agreed Team Leader Park, but the male lead licked his lips with unease,

     “Team leader. But, why do I keep… thinking about that?”

     “That?”

     “About what Sunwoo said last time. That he had a bad vibe about Mermaid out of Water…”

     “Don’t worry about that. That was a joke. Why are you taking that joke so seriously?”

     “But his next words were that he got a good vibe from Cat Guardian Ghost and that he thought it would do well.”

     The laughter immediately stopped. Three pairs of eyes wordlessly rolled around.

     All three of them had read the synopsis of Cat Guardian Ghost. However, none of them ever thought that the project would become such a hot topic.

     Instead, they even remembered telling Jung Sunwoo, who held onto the synopsis like it was a treasure, that, while his passion was fit for a new recruit, he still needed to develop his discerning eye.

     While scratching her cheek, Team Leader Park patted the male employee’s shoulder.

     “Yeah, if Cat Guardian Ghost is a success, then Sunwoo’s eye for projects is amazing. Anyone will admit that. But I don’t know about Mermaid out of Water having a bad vibe…”

     “That’s right. No matter how bad it does, it’ll at least be somewhat of a success. It’s a project that can’t fail even if it wants to. Unless the director or writer lose their mind and messes it up somehow.”

     Just when the female employee added that in, the PR team’s office door suddenly burst open.

     Then the one known to be innocence itself, Son Chaeyoung, walked in with a vicious expression.

     “Why is she here again?”

     “She probably came to whine about how Cat Guardian Ghost got the top spot in real-time search rankings.”