The Interview

I had no idea why I kept coming down to Busan so often when I had zero connections here.

But I hadn't come to see Minju.

It was because of Minju that I'd come down, sure—but that was all.

"Tell me about it."

"So basically, Minju went with hyung and Serin to America..."

"Not that."

"Huh?? Then what?"

I'd come down to Busan today to meet Lee Chan because of Minju, but not because I was curious about how things stood right now.

"You're seeing Minju, right? So you should know plenty."

"I-It's not seeing...!"

"Does that even matter?"

"....What exactly are you curious about, then..."

"Why a kid who studied her ass off until sophomore year of high school suddenly wants to become an idol. And why she even got kicked out of the house over it."

"Ah... well..."

According to Lee Chan, Minju had been a truly diligent model student. Competition might have been lighter than in Seoul, but she'd been a prodigy who always fought for first place in the whole school. The point when her grades started dropping into the top-twenty range was her third year of middle school—right after the middle school festival she'd shown me, and Lee J as well.

"She always liked dancing and singing and rapping... but after she prepared that festival performance with Serin and a few friends, she got completely hooked on that side of things... Once her grades started slipping, Minju's parents wouldn't even let her listen to music... the surveillance got worse... they piled on more pressure about her grades... and that just made her want to be an idol even more, I think."

"So there's a bit of rebellion mixed into why Minju wants to be an idol?"

"I-I don't know for sure! Just from watching her next to her... it kind of seems like there might be some of that..."

"Hmm... what do Minju's parents do?"

"They're both doctors. They work at the biggest hospital in Busan."

"Ah...."

So that was why they hated it even more. Their daughter who'd been good at studying—the one they'd hoped would become a doctor just like them—suddenly drowning in songs and dance and, in their eyes, throwing her life away. From a parent's perspective, that was completely understandable.

"Thanks for telling me."

"That's it?? You're just leaving??"

"Yeah."

"W-Wait a second! Didn't you come to see Minju??"

"No."

"Why not?? To make her give up, or to help persuade her parents together—isn't that why you came??"

"I said no."

"Then why did you come all the way down here? You could've just asked this over the phone!"

He was being unnecessarily sharp. If there'd been room for me to step in, I'd planned to. I'd even thought about persuading Minju to go back home if I could. But this wasn't something I should get involved in.

Minju, raised in a wealthy household, was now staying at poor Yoo Serin's place after getting kicked out. A high schooler who'd lost everything she'd enjoyed in an instant. If she was serious, she'd keep chasing the dream. If simple rebellion had just inflated that dream, she'd apologize and go back home. So time would sort this out. If Minju never gave up to the end, it wouldn't be too late to meet her again then.

I really should've just asked over the phone. What a pain in the ass this was.

"Ahh..."

I let out a deep sigh and drove back up to Seoul.

Kim Ijun, thirty-two. Until he was twenty-four, he'd been the leader of an unpopular idol group. After retiring, he'd built experience to produce idols himself. He'd started working in the A&R team of the mid-sized agency where he'd been an idol, and now he worked in the A&R team of one of the Big Four agencies. A man building a successful career. Moreover, a talent recognized for his skills in the industry. Which meant we couldn't bring him over with similar conditions.

"We're offering Mr. Kim Ijun the position of team leader for the A&R headquarters."

"Team leader..?"

"Yes. We'll match the salary to the average for team leaders at the Big Four agencies."

Team leader at thirty-two. This was an exceptional offer. And the staff who'd work hand-in-hand with him would be put together young so his age wouldn't be a stumbling block. Though I planned to balance old and new. The Head of Department who would lead the A&R headquarters would be recruited as someone with career, ability, and name recognition in the industry. Of course, since we were just starting out, persuading them to switch jobs wouldn't be easy, but if not, we'd find someone who could at least take on short-term projects. No—I'd already commissioned a headhunting firm to find employees matching the conditions I wanted.

"Then we'll contact you soon!"

"Yes. I'll be waiting."

The moment Kim Ijun left, I shared my impressions with President Hong Mincheol.

"Good thing we inquired with the headhunting firm after all. I never thought someone like Kim Ijun would consider switching jobs."

"This industry tends to treat people poorly even when they have skill and recognition. Promotions are hard, and especially at big companies, most work is done by the book."

"You said you didn't know much about the idol side, but you sound like a real expert."

"Thanks to you, Representative, I've been studying hard even in my old age."

"Hahaha~ Then a few more years...."

"Oh dear. I have a schedule, so I'll be taking my leave."

"President!! Aww..! Slipping away like an eel..!"

Once again, President Hong Mincheol vanished quickly before any talk of contract extension could come up. But why was Shin Yena glaring at me from over there again?

"Ahem..!"

"......"

I cleared my throat and stepped out into the hallway from the conference room, and Shin Yena quickly followed.

"What is it? What's your complaint?"

"Why aren't you acquiring them??"

"Is that your complaint?"

"Not a complaint... I just thought it might ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠be the last chance for our oppas... so I'm a little disappointed...."

Origin, the boy group at Meteor Entertainment. By coincidence, the visual center and leader of the members shared the same name as the male protagonist in K-Sler. But acquiring Meteor Entertainment just for that group would cost way too much. So if I brought them over, I'd do it some other way, but...

"Are you working at the company just to fanboy?"

"Th-That's not it...!"

"Don't waste energy on useless stuff and just work hard. And even if we brought Origin to our company, Miss Yena wouldn't have any chance to meet them."

"Why not?!"

"Because Miss Yena is in the actor division. No points of contact, none."

"That's so mean!!"

"......"

"Ah, no... I just thought it might be nice if we ran into each other by chance....."

"Still not trained enough, I see. Looking at you fretting over other men besides me."

"Huh..?"

"Take off your panties."

"H-Here??"

"Take them off. Want me to take them off for you?"

"W-Wait a second..! Hup!!"

I shoved my hand up under her skirt and pulled her panties down to her knees. Then I squatted on the floor and dragged them down to her ankles, and Shin Yena helpfully lifted each foot in turn so I could pull them free.

"Your skirt seems especially short today. Better be careful. If you let your guard down, someone might see."

"Representative...!"

"Come find me when you clock out."

"Y-You're so mean..!!"

I stuffed Shin Yena's panties into my pocket and headed back into the office. Meanwhile, Shin Yena, who'd followed in after me with her face bright red, returned to her seat using such tiny steps it was hard to tell if her legs were even spread. She'd probably pounce the second the employees clocked out. All worked up. This was one of the episodes from the webtoon, after all.

"By the way, there are way too many..?"

Countless resumes were piled up in my email. When I'd inquired with the headhunting firm, I'd also asked them to look for U-I staff as well. Of course, I wasn't looking for investment experts right now since we weren't in a position ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to invest elsewhere. Staff who could manage and grasp what U-I had invested in, and handle the related administrative work. A kind of secretary-slash-communications person was what I needed.

"Hmm... for this side I'd prefer someone with lots of experience.. and for this side someone younger than me... let's see...."

After deep deliberation, I selected the resumes I liked and sent replies. Contact came right away.

I waited for the applicants at the U-INVESTMENT office. Right around quitting time, the applicants I'd personally selected after reviewing the resumes arrived, and I could filter out most of them without even talking. They couldn't hide their disappointment at the empty office. Some even wore irritated expressions.

"First, I'll give each of you an interview fee of 100,000 won. Here, take one each and listen up. As you can see, there are no other investment experts besides me. I'm not an investment expert myself, either. Those of you who still want to work here, stay. The rest of you can leave."

The moment I finished speaking, most of them turned around, opened the door, and left. Three applicants remained. One desperate-looking man, a pregnant woman with a slight belly, and a young woman standing there looking extremely nervous. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Now it was my turn to ask questions.

"It looks like a scam company at a glance. Are you sure you're okay with that?"

"Yes! I want to work at U-INVESTMENT!"

"Same here!"

"M-Me too!"

"Why?"

"Because U-INVESTMENT is not a scam company!"

"How can you be so sure?"

"They invested in the drama Hidden that's in production prep! And they ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠have enough capital to acquire an animation work that Metflix invested in for over 130 billion won!"

At the rather loud-voiced male applicant's words, the eyes of the two applicants beside him went wide. Which was why I didn't like it. The articles hadn't been huge, but a few small ones had come out, so finding this info wasn't hard. Which meant those two hadn't even done basic searches before coming to the interview.

"What about the other two?"

"I'll be honest. I was advised to resign because of my pregnancy, so I'm preparing to switch jobs."

"I see. And the last one?"

"I-I.... well....."

"If it's hard to say, you don't have to."

"N-No! I reported my superior for workplace sexual harassment, so I can't work at that company anymore! I wasn't the one who did wrong... he was.. sob.. that's the right thing, isn't it! It's a crime! I just reported it... sob.. I don't know why I'm being ostracized at the company... why people are cursing me... uwaah..."

The man had done his research, the pregnant woman was making a necessary choice, and the young woman had been driven to a desperate situation that brought her here. I had to drop one of them, but... But why was she crying so pitifully? It was hard just watching.

"Here. Wipe your tears first."

"Yes, thank y...."

"......"

"Ah....."

"Uh....?"

The atmosphere froze in an instant. Because what I held out to the crying young woman wasn't a handkerchief, but something else.

"What... is this right now...."

"Twee-ssi!!!!!"

I didn't know a sound like that could come out of my mouth. Too shocked, I just blurted whatever came out and flung Shin Yena's panties far away. Then I stuck my hand in another pocket and pulled out a handkerchief.

"I'm wondering myself why something like that was in my pocket. Here. Wipe your tears."

"....I'm fine."

"......"

The young woman, tears gone in a flash, firmly rejected my kindness, and I awkwardly withdrew the hand holding out the handkerchief as I sent the applicants away. Looks like I'd better look into other people.