Chapter 21: The Most Effective Way to Defuse a Bomb (6)
21. The Most Effective Way to Defuse a Bomb (6)
"You can debut."
"......"
"If you just do well."
"Who the hell are you kidding?"
As I patted his shoulder, Seo Taehyun's eyes instantly narrowed into triangles. Despite his gentle appearance, there was a sharpness to his gaze. The intensity in his glare showed potential—this guy was definitely camera-friendly.
"Haven't you heard my nickname around the company? I'm Miro's Zhuge Liang."
"Lucky you, having Zhuge Liang as a nickname."
"Zhuge Liang Hajin-hyung is better than you at everything."
When I joked with a benevolent smile, I saw Taehyun's expression soften slightly. But this level of reaction wasn't enough to recruit him as a comrade. The System window remained unchanged.
In situations like this, you hit them with something big first.
"Taehyun. Want me to show you something?"
"...What?"
From the depths of my bag, I pulled out a tightly bundled stack of documents and a USB drive I'd hidden since coming down to Gangwon Province. Despite my efforts to keep them pristine, time had worn the edges. Taehyun recognized them instantly.
"How... how did you get these?"
"Weren't you planning to send these to the headquarters director? Years ago."
"Did you get them from Cha Minseok? That bastard had these all along? Seriously?"
[System Alert: 'Seo Taehyun' is reacting to you. (Reaction Rate: -23%)]
Damn, look at that reaction.
"Knowing too much will get you hurt, kid. Trade secrets."
He stopped biting his lip, but his shoulders trembled slightly as he clenched his fists. Taehyun cautiously checked the envelope, his breathing uneven, pupils visibly shaking.
'If he's already like this, we're in trouble.'
I hadn't even started my prepared speech yet.
"Whether Cha Minseok is a bastard or whatever, we'll talk about that later. Taehyun."
"......"
"I'm about to say something brutal."
"......"
"I hate that this is reality too, but since it is, hear me out without misunderstanding."
I firmly grasped Taehyun's fist, which was clutching the worn documents, and spoke resolutely.
"You can never expose this. Not back then, and not now."
I pulled out another stack of papers from my bag and dropped them in front of Taehyun.
"Think about it. Do you really think you're the only one who's ever tried to take down the headquarters director?"
From the moment I first heard the stories from Joo Eunchan and Dan Haru to my meeting with Ji Sooho, the first thing I did was investigate the whereabouts of trainees who had left in the past 2-3 years. The number of those who quit or were fired because of the headquarters director was staggering.
—But... this is really pointless. I even sought legal advice multiple times, but nothing worked.
—Please, don't drag me into this. Just thinking about what that bastard did to me makes my blood boil.
None of them were favored by the headquarters director before getting axed.
"Inside Miro, he's just a washed-up old man, but outside? He's a mid-tier executive treated like a director."
"......"
"PDs, reporters, media outlets—they've shared meals and drinks with him a hundred times over. Who do you think they'll side with? A nobody like you who never debuted?"
"So what? You're telling me to shut up and take it? You came all the way to Gangwon to say that?"
I watched Taehyun seethe with helpless rage.
Honestly, until recently, I couldn't care less whether he debuted or not. In all my past lives, Seo Taehyun either never debuted, failed before he could, or flopped and disappeared.
"Taehyun."
But now, things were different.
"Will you trust me just this once?"
Looks like I'll have to make you debut after all.
"You can debut. For real."
Taehyun still looked at me with skepticism.
To someone who'd spent years failing to debut and was about to quit, this must sound like empty words. But I'm not the type to spout nonsense without a plan.
With absolute confidence, I added:
"If you just do well."
"Are you messing with me right now?"
"I couldn't be more serious."
"It's hard to believe even if I wanted to."
"Tch, you little— Listen up, kid."
I'm being dead serious here, you brat.
"There's going to be a male idol survival show."
I pulled out the upcoming survival show proposal I'd brought specifically to convince Taehyun.
Right before coming here, I'd learned through Ji Sooho that this proposal had been submitted to upper management and that preliminary discussions with production companies and broadcasters were underway.
By now, the headquarters director must have caught wind of it too.
"Sure, many survival shows have pre-selected winners, but this time, Team Leader Ji Sooho and Senior Seo Taeil are directly involved in the planning to prevent that."
It was Sooho's idea to bring in Seo Taeil from Yufia. Given Taeil's standing as an in-house director and his recent interest in rookie development, his involvement would make things smoother.
...Though the thought of facing his deranged-level directing again was terrifying.
"Since it's a survival show, judge evaluations matter, but viewer reactions and votes can't be ignored either."
"......"
"This time, you can really debut. If you just do well."
Truthfully, the only advantage of being the "Boyhood Under Heaven Cherry Boy" was an early rush of popularity.
Once other trainees were revealed, they'd gain fans too. Fresh faces might even overshadow Taehyun, whose image had already been consumed.
But this was that Seo Taehyun.
The guy who grabbed noona fans by the collar with just his bright, cherry-boy charm and made it to the finals.
[Today's highest-rated Boyhood Under Heaven moment.gif (feat. Cherry Boy)]
[The youngest Boyhood contestant who changes expressions 17 times in 5 seconds]
[Seo Taehyun's viral Boyhood stage clip hits 30K RTs]
This guy, who disappeared from screen time like an editing demon and still trended despite only appearing for 3 seconds eating dumplings, wasn't about to get overshadowed in a survival show.
'I'd be better off worrying about myself than him.'
"Most importantly, the headquarters director won't be able to interfere this time. I'll make sure of it."
With that final nail, hope finally began to sprout on Taehyun's face. After reading through the proposal, he looked up at me and asked:
"Do you really think so? That I can debut?"
[System Alert: 'Seo Taehyun' is reacting to you. Future dialogue will determine whether 'Seo Taehyun' can be recruited based on his 'Reaction Rate'.]
[Recruitment Progress: 1/??]
"Why go this far for me? Honestly... we weren't even that close."
This was a crucial moment. My next words would change Taehyun's fate in this life.
And that felt heavier than when I'd vaguely hinted at my intentions to Ji Sooho.
After a brief silence, I answered.
"I voted for you."
"......"
"You're good. I envied you a lot, watching you."
Memories of Taehyun's final performance from my first life surfaced—the way he shone so brightly. Even now, I vividly remembered studying his expressions and gestures while watching his stages in the practice room.
Hell, if someone like me can live four lives and still be a trainee, maybe this guy, who's lived harder than me, can change something too.
"Let's go together, Seo Taehyun."
"......"
"You love the stage, don't you?"
[System Alert: 'Seo Taehyun' is reacting to you. (Reaction Rate: 89.7%)
Recruitment of 'Seo Taehyun' is now possible.]
[Recruit? (Y/N)]
Taehyun's head dropped. I waited silently as the proposal in his hands grew damp with tears.
"At least eat before you go."
"We're running late. We'll eat in Seoul. Thanks."
"Taehyun, call your mom on the way."
"...Yeah. I will, Uncle."
I would've loved to accept Taehyun's uncle's offer to eat, but tomorrow was a weekday.
If Taehyun wanted to avoid getting kicked out for attitude issues before the survival show, we had no choice but to endure our hunger and board the bus back to Seoul.
"......"
"......"
The ride was quiet.
I was exhausted, and he was probably embarrassed from crying earlier. Neither of us had the energy to argue, so it worked out.
"Hyung."
"I'm sleeping."
"If you're gonna fake sleep, at least close your eyes."
"I sleep with my eyes open."
I tried brushing it off, but Taehyun's glare—what the hell is this guy—forced me to sit up properly.
"What? Got something to say?"
"...What would you have done if I said I wasn't going to Seoul?"
"You were planning not to go?"
"I could've said I was sick of survival shows."
Out of nowhere. His expression was dead serious.
The problem was, between hunger and exhaustion, I couldn't be bothered to handle his delicate emotions.
"Cha Minseok is debuting in June. Want to be called his junior, or do you want to secure your image as a second-time survival show contestant and at least have peers to rely on?"
"......"
"...was what I was gonna say."
"Hyung, are you the devil?"
"Hyung goes to church."
Taehyun was speechless. What? Why?
"Taehyun."
"......"
"Whatever. Hand over those evidence documents I gave you earlier. I need to think about how to use them on the way back."
"You said we can't expose them."
"You can't."
"Then you can?"
"I'll think about it. Hurry up."
Under my nagging, Taehyun fished out the evidence bundle. He stared at it blankly for a moment, hesitating like a sparrow checking its surroundings.
"What? Hand it over."
"Um... it's kinda wet..."
"Yeah, I know. I'll make good use of your tear-stained evidence. Just give it."
"But the ink's smeared... Will it still hold up legally...?"
For someone so soft-looking, he was surprisingly meticulous. And this guy had the nerve to bawl all over crucial evidence?
'If I say that out loud, I'll become the living embodiment of the tongue that brings fortune can also bring ruin.'
I forced a polite smile and spoke gently.
"Of course, these are just copies. Did you really think I'd bring the originals? What if I left them on the train or something?"
"Oh."
"Just let me skim them on the way. Stop worrying and hand them over."
Taehyun awkwardly let go. The dried paper crackled.
'Contracts, miscellaneous documents... at least he collected them thoroughly.'
"But seriously, how are we gonna do this? You said earlier there's no way."
"You can't."
"Then you can?"
"I can't either. What, am I special?"
"...Huh? Then what's the plan?"
At my cryptic words, Taehyun sounded utterly lost. I gathered the documents and tucked them deep into my bag before looking at him.
"You know what's important when hunting something way bigger than you?"
"Ugh, what are you on about now?"
"The first strike and numbers."
"......"
"You can't do it alone. I can't either. But if we can, the situation changes completely."
The thought of bringing down the headquarters director made me grin. Taehyun's already large eyes widened further as he belatedly understood.
As the train to Seoul finally departed, I gazed out the window with a refreshed mind.
'Alright. Now, how should we wreck this bastard?'