ALL NOVEL Chapter 80
Chapter 80. Bomb! (2)
Kang Hajin’s former boss in his previous life, and the current main PD of
She had arrived alone at the Miro building due to Ji Suho’s sudden call.
‘What’s going on all of a sudden? Ugh… I’m already busy as it is.’
Her mind was cluttered. Recently, she hadn’t been able to sleep due to stress, and even her stomach was upset. Just now, she had flipped the president’s office upside down.
‘I hated company politics, so I became a freelancer, but somehow the number of my bosses increased.’
Myungeun quickly began to speculate on why Suho had called her today.
The official reason was ‘to establish future plans and for emergency content replenishment,’ but no matter how she thought about it, the atmosphere didn’t match that.
‘If that was the case, why would he ask me to come alone? Why leave out Writer Go?’
He was probably trying to sound out the issue with the first episode, which had been delayed repeatedly. There was no way Suho didn’t know that CP Yoon was making unreasonable edits.
‘From what I hear, Kang Hajin is in Ji Suho’s line, so it’s probably related to that.’
Recalling Miro’s direction, which was completely at odds with CP Yoon’s revision plan, Myungeun made up her mind. The president seemed inclined to listen to CP Yoon, but she thought differently.
‘Kang Hajin, that guy will definitely debut. The broadcast will survive if we push him.’
No matter how much CP Yoon insisted, if Miro decided to make a fuss, there would be no choice.
While Myungeun was thinking that, the conference room door opened, and Ji Suho came in. He was alone as well.
“Ah, PD Kwon, hello.”
“Hello, Team Leader.”
“I’m sorry you’re so busy these days. It’s just that—”
Suho placed the tablet PC he had brought on the desk and sat down opposite Myungeun.
Or at least, he tried to.
“Team Leader. I know everything.”
“…Pardon?”
“You must be frustrated, right? It’s ridiculous and unbelievable. We never imagined things would get this dragged out either.”
“Uh, well—”
“We are really, really sorry!!”
Myungeun bowed so deeply that her forehead almost touched the desk, apologizing fervently. Suho, who was caught in an awkward position, couldn’t sit down or stand up properly, just mouthing silently.
As Suho remained silent, Myungeun raised her head with a pitiful expression, sincerity added 200%, and clasped her hands together.
“But we’re really dying here too….”
Watching Myungeun, who scrunched her eyebrows together, making a pitiful face, Suho thought.
‘…It’s like looking at Hajin’s former boss.’
They acted the same. It made him suspect that maybe half of Hajin’s skills in handling situations had been learned from her.
“For now, please sit down. Let’s talk, PD.”
“Ahem, shall we?”
Suho chuckled as Myungeun, adjusting her glasses with her fingertips, quickly composed herself and tidied her (recently washed after several days) hair with a single gesture.
“Well, it’s fortunate anyway.”
“…Fortunate?”
“You seem ready to wield a sword.”
“A sword, you say?”
Startled by the peaceful voice using such a fierce term, Myungeun swallowed nervously.
* * *
Several hours later, even after Myungeun had left, Suho remained alone in the conference room.
“…….”
Lost in deep thought, Suho removed his glasses and rubbed his face. Sighing softly, he soon called someone.
-Hello.
After a slightly longer ring, Hajin’s voice came from the other end of the call.
Knowing that Suho was meeting with Myungeun today, Hajin asked in a calm voice.
-How did it go?
Suho pressed his dry eyes with the back of his hand, answering.
“She agreed.”
-I expected that.
After hearing everything from Suho, Myungeun had accepted the proposal more easily than expected.
“As you said, once she calculated the situation, she agreed right away.”
-That senior is like that. She’s consistently worldly but takes immense pride in her work.
“But there’s one problem.”
Suho’s voice dropped low. It was a problem he discovered while making detailed plans with Myungeun.
“You’re also involved in the vote manipulation.”
It wasn’t just Sungwoo’s votes that CP Yoon had manipulated.
“It wasn’t just Sungwoo’s votes; they moved your votes to him. So, your current vote count isn’t accurate.”
If they followed Hajin’s plan and removed Sungwoo before the first broadcast and edited out his parts, all the votes Sungwoo received would be nullified. It was possible because it wasn’t a paid vote.
“The problem is, we don’t know exactly how many of your votes were transferred to Sungwoo. To cover up the manipulation, your lost votes have to stay hidden.”
If they had dealt with it a bit earlier.
If they had stopped the vote as soon as the manipulation was discovered.
Suho regretted what couldn’t be undone.
But even if they had, he couldn’t guarantee it would have been better than now. From the company’s perspective, this was the best option.
‘Without a manipulation image, the broadcast company owes us, and we’ve drawn investment for future content.’
If the Director had been in charge, he would have sacrificed Hajin without hesitation.
But Suho was too conscientious to make such a choice and cherished Hajin.
-Team Leader.
And as if knowing all of Suho’s worries and regrets, Hajin responded cheerfully from the other end of the phone.
As if all those concerns were nothing.
-Do you think I would step on a landmine without calculating it first?
“You, then…!”
-Didn’t you say you would be on my side no matter what?
“……”
-Tell PD Kwon that she has a big knife now, so she should wield it well. And just do the editing properly.
Ah, I need to start practice now. Goodbye.
Before Suho could say more, Hajin hung up. Even after hearing the disconnection tone, Suho couldn’t lower the phone from his ear for a while.
‘So, he knew from the start that he would suffer a loss….’
The number of votes Sungwoo stole from Hajin was significant. Yet, Hajin seemed completely unfazed by it.
‘What on earth… what is he planning?’
Suho rubbed his throbbing temples, trying to suppress his anger.
After taking a deep breath to calm down, Suho picked up the phone again, this time calling Myungeun.
-Yes, this is Kwon Myungeun.
“PD, this is Team Leader Ji Suho. Proceed as we discussed.”
-…Okay. I’ll contact you soon.
“And there’s one more thing I need to propose. No, it’s not a proposal, it’s a condition.”
Given the situation, he couldn’t just sit and watch.
* * *
Han Sungwoo had a bad day from the start.
He got caught in a shower without an umbrella,
Bought an umbrella in a hurry, only for it to break in less than 10 minutes.
Then he stepped in a puddle and ruined the new shoes he had bought just yesterday.
‘Nothing’s going right!’
Sungwoo irritably shook his wet hair as he entered the company building.
There was a shared shower room for trainees, so he planned to wash up and change into the clothes he had brought for practice. Although it was a shame about the shoes, he could just buy another pair.
‘Ugh, this is so uncomfortable.’
From the shoes that squeaked with water every time he walked, to the hair he had meticulously styled that morning.
As Sungwoo was fuming about the dirty rainwater soaking into him unpleasantly, a familiar voice called out.
“Oh, hyung.”
It was the voice he had least wanted to hear recently, calling him with the usual insincere title.
“You’re soaked. What a shame.”
“Get lost. I’m not in the mood to deal with you today.”
“Oh, scary. Eek.”
Hajin’s voice remained annoyingly steady as he enunciated even the silly ‘eek’ like he was reading from a textbook.
At the blatantly mocking tone, Sungwoo’s fists clenched for a moment, but he soon took a deep breath to calm himself. Right now, a shower was more urgent, and he knew Hajin’s attitude wouldn’t last long.
‘Once the first episode airs… and the vote results are revealed, that bastard’s arrogance will be over.’
The next recording, which would reveal the rankings, was not far off.
Just thinking about that self-satisfied face turning to one of defeat improved his mood a bit.
So Sungwoo decided to ignore Hajin and move past him. But then, Hajin, clasping his hands behind his head, spoke in an irritatingly cheerful voice.
“Going in? If I were you, I’d turn off my phone and go home now.”
‘What’s he talking about, this crazy bastard.’
Deciding it was best not to engage with him, Sungwoo hurried to the practice room. Unaware of what was about to happen.
Sungwoo entered the trainees’ lounge to grab his change of clothes from his locker. The trainees who had arrived earlier were either packing their things or chatting.
Sungwoo approached them naturally and greeted the trainee who usually matched his mood the best.
“Oh, Kyungho. Hi, you’re early today.”
“…….”
“……? Kyungho?”
But something strange happened. Kyungho glanced at Sungwoo, then left the
lounge without responding.
‘What’s this?’
Feeling uneasy, Sungwoo looked around. The trainees who had been treating him like a star yesterday were now glancing at him and ignoring him.
Sungwoo, who had never experienced such a situation before, was a bit taken aback.
‘Did those bastards eat something bad? Or is it a prank?’
Flustered, Sungwoo grabbed his towel and change of clothes but hesitated to enter the shower room. He was certain something was wrong.
Trying to find out what was happening, he rushed out of the lounge to the practice room. But the other trainees he met along the way just whispered to each other and didn’t greet him.
‘What, what the hell. What the hell is going on!’
As anxiety quickened his pace, someone called out to him from the end of the hallway.
“Sungwoo.”
“……!”
“Can I see you for a moment?”
The guardian of Miro, whom everyone at the company believed would fill the vacant Director position once
Ji Suho was standing at the end of the hallway, calling him with a stern face devoid of any humor.
Sensing instinctively that something was wrong, Sungwoo clutched his clothes and towel tightly and took a step back.
“Uh, Team, Team Leader… If it’s not urgent, can I meet you after I’ve washed up? As you can see, I got a bit wet in the rain—”
“No. I want you in my office right now.”
“…….”
At that moment, a warning bell went off in Sungwoo’s head, and a voice echoed.
-Going in? If I were you, I’d turn off my phone and go home now.
He recalled Hajin’s cocky voice as if he knew everything.
The rainwater, which he hadn’t completely wiped off, dripped from the tips of his hair.
The water continued to soak Sungwoo, eventually forming a small puddle at his feet.
‘What the hell is going on!’