Chapter 103
Chapter 103
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 103
Chapter Title: Livelihood Idol II
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Na Gang-in said,
"No gun, so no need for a mercy kill. Someone else will handle that wild boar."
The two pipes he'd handled gently were already mangled and twisted into scrap metal.
He tossed them to the ground and walked over to Choi Ji-hye, the youngest who had been the target of the boar's charge.
"You okay?"
Choi Ji-hye's eyes sparkled as she shouted,
"Yes! I'm super okay!"
"She's at that age."
Na Gang-in said to the idols,
"Alright, leave that guy to the event staff. Let's go get some jjajangmyeon."
Na Gang-in took them to a Chinese restaurant recommended by his AI, Jeon Ji-in. It was famous for its jjambbong, but the jjajangmyeon and tangsuyuk were well-reviewed too.
The eight idols, right at the age where they could eat like crazy, devoured the food.
"This is so good!"
Choi Ji-hye said, her mouth smeared with jjambbong broth.
"I was fine back there, but on the way here in the car, getting chased by that wild boar, I started thinking—do I keep going with this or give up?"
This time, she beamed while eating tangsuyuk.
"But eating this delicious stuff fills me right back up! After all this hardship, I can't quit now!"
The other three Puff Girls shouted too.
"Right! Our event video went up on the internet today too!"
"It might spread everywhere!"
"In that spirit, Teacher! Can we get some steamed rice? To mix with the jjambbong."
Na Gang-in asked,
"One bowl of steamed rice enough?"
All eight raised their hands at once.
"Me too!"
Na Gang-in had fought alongside these eight and now shared a meal with them. Naturally, he'd dropped the formal speech.
He asked them sincerely,
"Hey, girls. Does your company starve you or something?"
While they were busy stuffing their faces, a video popped up online.
The short clip showed the eight idols startled by the wild boar's charge, Choi Ji-hye getting attacked, and Na Gang-in beating it down.
Filmed from afar with a smartphone, the quality wasn't great, but it was clear what had happened.
The video ended with others crowding in to tie the unconscious boar's legs with rope.
It hit the internet community boards too, with a title carrying the same vibe as before.
Videos of the boar takedown were posted alone sometimes, but often alongside footage of the idols' performance that day.
Posts comparing their debut stage footage started appearing too.
Angel Warrior Squad's performance footage was posted for comparison.
SAH Entertainment's PR team constantly monitored reactions to their artists online.
Unknown idols like Puff Girls and Angel Warrior Squad weren't usually on the radar.
Today, PR wasn't planning to check them. But a staffer searching reactions to other singers' big events stumbled on the video.
"Huh? That's our kids?"
The PR team leader asked,
"What?"
"Puff Girls and Angel Warrior Squad."
"Them? They finally had an event after ages. Ji-hye bragged to me earlier... Gasp!"
The team leader shot up.
"What? Accident? Car crash? Hurt? How bad!"
"No, not a car crash..."
"Phew, scared me. Kids like them wouldn't trend without drama... Huh?"
The seated team leader stood again.
"Someone pick a fight? They went without a manager! Fight? Did they hit back? Win? Wait, winning's trouble too."
"No. A 300kg super-sized wild boar charged at Ji-hye..."
The team leader screamed,
"Aaaah! Ji-hye's dead!"
"No, not dead..."
"Critical condition! Where's the boss!"
The team leader bolted to the president's office without listening.
The staffer chased frantically.
"Team leader! It's not that!"
SAH Entertainment President Seo Jae-hyun jumped up at the PR team leader's sudden intrusion.
"Which hospital!"
The trailing staffer yelled,
"No one's hurt! They're fine!"
"Who cares if no one's hurt! Who's injured matters!"
"No one!"
Seo Jae-hyun paused.
"Huh? For real?"
"Yes. Before Ji-hye got hurt, someone beat the boar—video's all over the net!"
Seo Jae-hyun loosened his tie and flopped into his chair.
"Phew, that was close. Hey, Team Leader Park. You can't do this."
The team leader averted his eyes.
"Sorry. Thought Ji-hye got gored..."
"So what happened?"
The team leader turned to the staffer.
"What really went down?"
The staffer's smartphone had the link. He played it and cast it to the office's big TV.
"This."
The video showed the boar appearing, charging Choi Ji-hye, and Na Gang-in smashing it.
Smartphone footage from afar made Na Gang-in's face hard to discern, but his skill level was obvious.
Seo Jae-hyun said while watching,
"Call the girls. Check their status."
The team leader dialed Puff Girls' leader, So Ji-young.
After questions and answers, he reported to Seo Jae-hyun.
"They're right now..."
"Pretty shaken, huh?"
"Eating jjambbong, jjajangmyeon, and tangsuyuk..."
"Huh?"
"Seem to be eating a ton, but they insist they need to on days like this..."
Seo Jae-hyun was flustered.
"W-well, yeah. Gotta eat after a scare. Ha, haha. Who took down the boar? Know him?"
"Yes. Na Gang-in, apparently?"
"What? Who!"
"Heard Ji-hye's voice too. Said he bought the meal, super nice guy..."
Seo Jae-hyun looked back at the monitor. A man beating a massive boar with two pipes.
"R-right? Only Na Gang-in fights flying like that, huh? But why was he there?"
"Said they ran into him by chance. Ji-hye recognized him from the cafeteria before and greeted him."
Seo Jae-hyun sighed.
"Phew. Heaven helped the kids."
"Not heaven, Na Gang-in..."
The video of Na Gang-in protecting Choi Ji-hye and taking down the boar spread online.
Doubts arose.
Replies followed fast.
The original skeptic posted again.
An SAH Enter staffer anonymously slipped in.
The skeptic wasn't done.
The skeptic surrendered.
SAH Enter staffer said,
"Team leader, slipped in the 'Walking Again Today' bit like you asked."
The PR team leader praised,
"Good job. Natural."
"Will this promote the song?"
"Celebs already hyped it. CF deal tomorrow's basically done. Toss this issue on the fire."
The team leader checked the music chart. 'Walking Again Today' had hit top 10.
"Might snag a music show slot."
Na Gang-in declared no performances or TV. Hard for the song to hit music shows without him.
But the show the team leader meant had a segment picking the top 3 weekly songs, then crowning #1. Selected tracks air even without artist appearance if they rank high.
"Got an MV? Anything? Nope, so hitch a music show ride this way."
Shin Eun-ha saw the video during a broadcast interview break.
She knew Na Gang-in met Puff Girls today, so she instantly pegged him as the boar slayer.
"From whatever to hunting now. Hunter. Total hunter."
She dug for more related videos.
And saw the Puff Girls and Angel Warrior Squad makeup comparisons.
"Huh?"
Even to her, the makeup was no joke.
"Who did that? Our company doesn't support the kids like this."
She called Na Gang-in.
"Still with the kids?"
"Good. They need to eat well. But the boar?"
"Simplest explanation ever?"
"Tell me details when you're up. Over pork and soju."
"But the makeup—who? Local pro?"
"Pardon?"
Shin Eun-ha paused, flustered, then hit video call.
"Show me the kids."
Na Gang-in turned his phone.
Piles of food bowls in front of Puff Girls and Angel Warrior Squad.
"Hi. No booze, right?"
"Uh... Eat up. Stuff yourselves. Earned it today—eat and drink a bit."
"But really—Gang-in oppa did your makeup?"
The eight idols chimed in eagerly.
"Eight of you. How'd Gang-in oppa do it alone? Impossible."
"Huh?"
Shin Eun-ha double-checked their faces on video call.
"Five minutes? That possible?"