âSighâŠâ
Maybe it was because it was midwinter. As I got out of the car without wearing a chicken costume, white breaths came out of my mouth.
Before entering the lobby of the headquarters, I took a deep breath and felt the cold air with the smell of winter seeping into my lungs.
The floss sign on the front of the building that said [Have a warm and happy year-end with the WePlanet Family!] was very contradictory.
âWhoâs causing all this trouble right now?â
I calmly adjusted my breathing and approached the info desk.
âHello, can I see Mr. Park, the executive director of the planning department, for a moment?â
I didnât make an appointment, so the chances were slim.
If I couldnât meet the top boss, then the next one, and if not the next one, then the next one in line. I was determined to meet someone who was relatively high up and had time.
âOh, hello! Did you make an appointment?â
âNo, I just wanted to ask if you could see me right now.â
âOkay, Iâll check for you.â
The info desk staff picked up the intercom and dialed somewhere.
After the dial rang about five times, someone answered the phone.
âHello, Mr. Park. This is the info desk. Mr. Cheon Ise is here to see you. Is it a good time for you? Oh, okay. Iâll guide him right away.â
The staff listened for a while with the receiver in his hand, then nodded and hung up.
âYou can go up to the planning department office right now. Do you need me to tell you which floor it is?â
âNo, Iâm fine.â
I had already checked it out when I was in and out of the building because of the label separation issue.
âOkay, then let me know if you need any other help.â
âThank you.â fÉŸÄewebnÏveâ.com
I nodded lightly and headed to the office. Mr. Park, the executive director, was sitting on the sofa in the reception room with a rather calm expression.
âHello, director.â
But he was only pretending to be calm. His fingertips were restless and fidgeting.
âOh, Ise. Long time no see. How have you been?â
Long time no see? We greeted each other last week because of work. I smiled a sales smile and answered.
âIâm doing well, thanks to your concern.â
What he did was more like a curse than a concern.
There was a tense electricity between me and Mr. Park.
I braced myself to play the role of âthe annoying lord who says everything with a smile and doesnât reveal his true intentionsâ.
âI see. You must be busy with the label work these days. What brings you here?â
In other words, he meant to hurry up and get out of here.
âWell, I just received a sudden notice of broadcast suspension from the program that our group is appearing on.â
âOh, that one where the boy idol groups compete?â
The director acted as if he didnât know, with his lips dry.
He must have been having a headache over this until now. How could he say that without changing his face? I cursed the director inwardly and opened my mouth.
âYes. They said they would contact us in order, but I guess weâre being pushed back in priority because weâre a new company. I came to ask if you have any information that you received first.â
Of course, that wasnât the only reason I came. The dissolution of Floss was a matter of time. I also wanted to find out how they were going to operate afterwards.
The first priority for the future direction of activities was the artist himself, but that was just a polite way of saying it. The company had a different direction they wanted to push for.
âDidnât they call you yet? Director Kwon, you didnât care about this, but how can people be like that?â
Donât talk nonsense and tell me what you heard. Tsk. I answered with a tongue click in my mind.
âYes, not yet. This is the first time that the appearance contract has been unilaterally terminated, so I came to ask for your opinion as well. Haha, itâs hard. Management, that is.â
Since they wouldnât say a word if I pushed them, I decided to fold and go in.
Anyway, this side was the one who was sorry.
âLook at that. Itâs not as fun as you think, is it?â
The director asked me as if he was trying to cheer someone up, but I didnât answer and just glared at him.
Whose fault is that? If they hadnât made such a mess behind the scenes of Floss, which they run with their great âmanagementâ, I wouldnât have had such a headache.
âWell, you know, a lot of things are like that when you live. So how did you hear the explanation?â
Donât talk nonsense and give me the explanation. I smiled, pulling up the corners of my mouth that were sinking to the floor by 5mm.
âOh, that? Wouldnât it be better to hear it directly later? Anyway, thereâs a lot to do even if thatâs canceled. The reaction to season 1 of that show was good, so we can just prepare for season 2. Itâs time to start a regular album, too. Wouldnât you say itâs a good thing, actually?â
What a nonsense. The work was piled up like a mountain, and the schedule that was caught was canceled, not a good thing, but a phone call.
âNo, Iâd appreciate it if you could refrain from saying anything else, as Iâm sure youâre busy, too.â
Thereâs a limit to how much you can match the pace. I wiped away the smile that had been hanging on my lips and darkened my face.
âDirector, I didnât come here to joke today. Iâm asking for your cooperation now because I want to respond quickly to the recent issue that could cause a big loss. You know that. Although they say theyâre separated, WePlanet and Composition are still the same root.â
I didnât have time to waste on a pointless argument.
âIf itâs hard for you to tell me, Iâll get up now. I have a dinner appointment with the chairman soon.â
I didnât want to use this method. Iâm going to see my dad later, so you better think about it⊠I added a threat that wasnât a threat, and sweat ran down the directorâs thin face.
âHey, whatâs the hurry. Youâre right, Ise. Thatâs our situation, too. Itâs a bit complicated⊠Itâs related to the personal circumstances of the artists, so itâs a bit hard to talk smoothly. Come to think of it, youâre not just an ordinary artist, are you? Youâre like our management, and I was wrong.â
He seemed to realize his mistake as his tongue grew longer. I didnât want to pressure him with the power of my family, but
It was a sad thing that he only understood me when I did this.
âWhen we signed the appearance contract with NBS Entertainment, one of the clauses we agreed on was a bit wrong⊠You know, Ise. Itâs been noisy because of the Floss pre-contract. The higher-ups at NBS must have flipped over. Theyâre already in trouble with the national audit in the fall, and theyâre telling us to cut it off right away.â
What did they do? Did they promise to manipulate the rankings? It wasnât a level of manipulation that would result in not only the cast leaving, but also the cancellation of the broadcast.
âWhat clause did you violate?â
I asked, frowning, and the director wrinkled his forehead and answered.
âWell⊠you know the feeling, right? The Floss contract ends in February next year, so this year is the last year-end. We had to finish with good results this year as well as last year, so that it would help us with the re-contract and activities afterwardsâŠâ
The director closed his mouth as if there was no need to say more. Whatâs the year-end? What did they do after last yearâŠ?
I realized it suddenly as I chewed on the directorâs words.
âDonât tell meâŠâ
âWhatâs the big deal? Itâs a win-win situation for both of us. We get good results, and they get a fair exchange. If anyone is going to get the prize anyway, itâs better to go to the one who can use it best, right?â
ââŠâŠâ
This was not a problem that could be solved by just disbanding Floss. It was lucky that it was only a near miss.
If it had been carried out, it would have been a scandal that would have turned a whole broadcasting station into a mess.
My head throbbed with pain. I had a vague idea that the entertainment industry was a structure where people who knew each other took care of everything.
But I didnât expect it to be so close to me. The love, passion, and support that people sent to Floss were sincere.
Was the unprecedented success story that Floss achieved in K-POP history all real?
Once I started to doubt, there was no end.
After witnessing the shooting, I felt ridiculous that I had admired how they could stage the performance to take away the audienceâs souls.
âMr. Ise, do you understand what I mean?â
I didnât want to understand. But even if I didnât understand, I had to pretend that I did.
âI understandâŠâ
Boys Be Ambitious was a stage where the winner was already decided, no matter how hard we worked and how good we did.
I felt betrayed. I felt like the ground beneath my feet had collapsed.
***
âHaahâŠâ
As soon as I finished the conversation in the office and got back in the car, I felt drained. Floss had traded two things for their appearance on Boys Be Ambitious.
The grand prize at the year-end music finale, and the guarantee of the final first place in the competition.
I wondered if that was enough bait to lure out a group that had more losses than gains. I also felt sorry that they had made such a deal when they could have done it on their own.
âBut what they feel and what others see are different.â
They had sacrificed the rest of their groupâs fate for the illusion of a two-time win. I couldnât believe such a disgrace.
I had a lot of questions about the pre-contract within Floss, but they didnât tell me anything about it, maybe thinking it was their privilege.
âI guess Iâll have to rely on the system to find out.â
They were both sensitive about it, so I didnât think they would tell me anything.
I had to know what was behind it to think about what to do next.
For now, I left it at that, implying that both Hwijin and Naru could come to our label if they had nowhere else to go.
What the hell was Kang Yu-geon doing, not showing his face yet? I thought Iâd have to replay the service several times today.
âSystem.â
As I sat up straight on the driverâs seat and called the system, a translucent window popped up in front of me.
[Do you want to purchase the replay service?]
[Yes/No]
As I was about to press the [Yes] button without hesitation, a new window suddenly covered the screen.
ââŠâŠ?â
I read the words on the new window with curiosity.
[>Do you want to start the special event âYour Pick My Idolâ?]
[Achievement Rewards]
[Relationship> Hwijin Lee, Naru Shim acquired]
[Special Items> âListen When People Talkâ, âWhat People Want to Believeâ acquired]
What kind of quest was this, giving me two special items?
I was doubtful. I was careful not to touch the [Yes] button, and I read the quest window down.