The Stubborn Producer's Salvation
I need to save him. The name was Baek Hagyeong, AR Team Leader.
“I only joined when there were two separate AR teams, so I don’t know much about Red Blossom. Another team leader was in charge of them back then.”
After their second album flopped and two members left the company, the AR teams naturally merged into one. The previous AR team leader had left the company around the same time.
“Team Leader Baek’s only standard is commercial viability. He only cares about how well something will sell in the market. Since the second album bombed and two members wanted to quit, there was no reason for him to pay any attention. There are three groups that actually sell—why would Red Blossom catch his eye?”
If I could bring this genius that the head of the department had practically begged to join over to our side, it would be a huge advantage. A quick search showed he’d earned a reputation as a hit-song factory before expanding into producing, successfully launching multiple idol groups. He’d even run his own studio under his name, but after it didn’t go well, he joined Pine Entertainment a year ago.
“Is he someone who communicates well?”
“Not really. His skills are solid, but he’s incredibly stubborn. If something pisses him off, he’ll charge straight at the department head or even the chairman.”
“I actually like that. He doesn’t play corporate politics. If he thinks something will sell, he pushes it hard.”
“His mouth is pretty foul, though. Still, he’s not a bad person, so don’t take it too personally.”
He was the type who only cared about work, so he had almost no interaction with other teams. He adored the wife he’d met during his indie band days. They had one daughter, born late in life. That was about all the information I could gather on Team Leader Baek Hagyeong.
‘Is there a Grace that can persuade stubborn people?’
The Graces respond to the situation and the sincerity of the Master. They aren't tools you can just pull out whenever you want.
So I’d have to clash with him directly to find out.
*****
You have to be careful until you make a choice, but once you’ve chosen, you can’t hesitate. After deciding I knew enough about Baek Hagyeong, I headed up to the AR Team.
“I’m here to see Team Leader Baek Hagyeong.”
“Where are you from?”
A tired-looking employee looked up as he spoke.
“I’m the manager for Red Blossom. Group Five.”
The moment I mentioned Group Five, he frowned. It was the expression of someone wondering why I’d have any reason to come here. I frowned right back. Maybe it was the synergy with my massive build, but he flinched and quickly pointed me in the right direction. Looks like this body has its uses after all.
A moment later, an even more exhausted-looking man walked over. Early forties, with hair so thin it looked like he’d be bald soon. If every strand was precious, why had he dyed it in a way that was so bad for his scalp?
“You’re the manager for Group Five?”
“Yes. My name is Shin Juwon.”
“Wait… aren’t you the one who… saved Soyeon…?”
So the rumor had spread this far.
“Yes, that’s correct.”
He looked me up and down, then nodded. I must look like I could block a knife pretty well.
“So what brings you here? Group Five shouldn’t have any reason to see me.”
He didn’t even try to hide his annoyed expression. I decided to be direct too.
“I want Red Blossom to make a comeback, and I was hoping you could help. Not right away, but when we fill out the member lineup, I came to ask if you could put in a good word with the department head and the chairman.”
Even if I kept sending signals to the higher-ups that we could succeed, we’d only get a comeback opportunity if the people actually doing the work gave a positive response. The most influential person on the ground who could give that answer was Baek Hagyeong.
“Red Blossom?”
“Yes.”
“They haven’t disbanded yet?”
Wow. A manager walks in and he just says that straight to my face. This wasn’t just having a foul mouth—this was something else.
“They have not disbanded yet.”
I held back my irritation and continued.
“We’ve made internal plans to recruit new members, and we recently shot a video that…”
“Get lost.”
“Excuse me?”
“I said get lost. How bored do you have to be to come here and spout this bullshit? Can’t you see these people’s faces are rotting from pulling all-nighters? If you say that kind of crap one more time…”
His phone rang. After checking the screen, Baek Hagyeong hurriedly answered.
“Yeah, okay. Take Minji and go ahead first. I’ll be a little late. Got it, I’ll definitely come.”
His face was still set in a scowl, but his tone was far gentler than when he’d been talking to me. From the conversation, it sounded like a call from home. After hanging up, he looked at me. The moment he seemed about to say something, everything around us froze.
The holographic screen that should have displayed the future did not appear.
‘Why isn’t the screen showing up?’
God upgraded it because watching through a screen reduced the sense of reality. Please wait just a moment.
Even customer service like this? While I was thinking that, the entire surrounding scenery completely changed.
‘Whoa, this feels incredibly real.’
I was standing in the middle of an intersection. A car in front of me was crumpled beyond recognition. Ominous tire marks were scorched across the road in several places. Firefighters were prying open a mangled door and pulling people out. It was a blood-soaked woman and a child. Both were unconscious.
The scenery changed again. This time it was an intensive care unit in a hospital. In front of the door, Baek Hagyeong was clutching a doctor and sobbing. I could hear every word they exchanged clearly. It was a truly hopeless situation.
The background shifted to an office, and time began flowing again.
“You… I told you to get lost…”
His expression changed, and he took a step back.
‘Why is Team Leader Baek acting like that?’
He felt your Grace. To ordinary people, God’s Grace feels like ‘awe and terror.’ He’s afraid of you right now.
‘I had something to say, but this worked out well.’
“Team Leader.”
“Uh, um… y-yes?”
His attitude toward me had completely changed.
“This afternoon, it would be better if your wife didn’t drive.”
“What?”
His face said how could you possibly know that? He looked like he wanted to say more but closed his mouth. He must still be suppressed by my Grace.
“If it can’t be helped… please don’t stay at the hospital the whole time. Contact me immediately. I want to help you.”
I handed him my business card and left the office.
‘I can’t prevent this accident?’
How did you know?
‘Time started flowing again before I could even speak. If you don’t tell me, I won’t know when or where the accident will happen. There was no need to say anything, so that’s why time flowed so quickly, right?’
You’ve gotten quite sharp after experiencing it a few times. That’s correct. To save that man, the accident is necessary.
‘Save him?’
That man is trapped in arrogance and self-righteousness. He may cherish his family terribly, but it’s nothing more than one-sided possessiveness. God wants humans to live in harmony, but he believes harmony is something to be trampled. That stubbornness will destroy his life.
I didn’t understand. Didn’t capable people who hated losing achieve more results? It was exactly the kind of talent the company loved.
His shell may be hard, but inside he is incredibly fragile. If the thorn of frustration pierces him even a few times, he won’t be able to endure it. The better future would be becoming a wreck. Or suicide.
‘That bad?’
Yes. I can see his future if you do not intervene. And suicide does not end it. God does not forgive humans who choose death for themselves.
So there would be no rest even after death.
‘So I just need to break that man’s stubbornness?’
Yes. But you won’t need to make any special effort. The accident will bring him to his knees before you. Arrogance and self-righteousness are weak to submission. That man can only be saved by submitting to you, Master.
It sounded like I was becoming some cult leader, but I had to save the person first.
*****
Baek Hagyeong sat down and stared at the business card the Group Five manager had given him.
‘That feeling was a first. Just who the hell is that bastard?’
His life had been one of absolute supremacy. He had always been the best and had never believed he could lose to anyone. If he didn’t like something, he would charge at anyone regardless of rank. Crushing those without talent had always felt completely natural.
‘This isn’t the time. I need to crush that visual director.’
Thinking about the guy he’d catch at the next meeting, he stared at his monitor. Once he focused on work, the Group Five manager completely vanished from his memory.
*
His phone rang violently in the middle of a meeting. The screen showed an unknown number. Normally he wouldn’t have answered, but for some reason he felt uneasy. In the end, Baek Hagyeong picked up.
“Hello.”
“Are you the guardian of Seo Yuri?”
“Yes, she’s my wife. What is this regarding…?”
“This is from Ohsung Hospital…”
He collapsed on the spot, still holding the phone. A truck had crossed the center line and collided head-on. The injuries were severe. He didn’t think he could drive, so he took a taxi. The trip from the company to Ohsung Hospital took about an hour. To Baek Hagyeong, it felt longer than eternity.
Ohsung Hospital—the surgery that lasted over ten hours felt like it was draining Baek Hagyeong’s blood dry. Past midnight, the doctor who emerged from the operating room wore an expression so dark there was no need to ask. As the doctor delivered the results in a sorrowful voice, Baek Hagyeong collapsed once again.
His wife was declared brain-dead. His daughter was paralyzed from the waist down. The hospital said they would do their best for her rehabilitation, but to Baek Hagyeong it was nothing but a white lie.
For three days he refused to eat or drink, staying by his wife and child’s side, but nothing changed. Calming the child who cried for her mother had become pure hell.
‘Why did this have to happen to me…?’
He resented a god he didn’t even believe in. He had only worked hard—what sin had he committed to deserve this trial? As he agonized, the face he had seen three days ago suddenly came to mind.
‘…please don’t stay at the hospital the whole time. Contact me immediately. I want to help you.’
He had seen the man for the first time that day, yet he had known he would be at the hospital. Could this really be a coincidence?
He took out his phone and called a team member. He asked them to find the business card on his desk and tell him the number. After a few rings, the Group Five manager answered.
“Hello.”
“You… how did you know?”