A Fortunate Day
The reason I ended up tying a thread to Ho-cheol Choi, the total producer of SBC Show! Music, was an absurdly minor event.
Two years ago, back when I was handling Star Road, the flagship male idol group of Baekhak Entertainment, the girl group HiTeen—scheduled after us—blew off their live broadcast slot.
It wasn’t a rehearsal. It was a live show, and they’d simply failed to show, which turned the whole venue upside down.
So Star Road and I stepped in and filled the gap.
The reason was nothing special.
We did it for the simple thought that we might get to stand on a later slot.
But to Ho-cheol Choi, it must have looked different.
Ever since that day, PD Choi had affectionately called me Kwon Star.
Star Road’s manager, Kwon Star.
Time passed, but even now, that hadn’t changed.
"How long has it been? Two years? Kwon Star?"
"I’m sorry for dropping by after so long, PD-nim."
"Look at you, saying something you don’t mean. Didn’t you come because you were happy not to see my face?"
Our dear PD Choi was as sharp-tongued as ever.
Instead of answering, I quietly held out the mint-chocolate latte and macarons I’d brought.
PD Choi’s eyes widened.
"Well, what’s all this?"
"I couldn’t come empty-handed when I was seeing PD Choi."
"Oh? How’d you know I like mint chocolate?"
"Even after all this time, I still remember your favorite drink, PD-nim."
PD Choi burst out laughing.
"Heh... still slick with your tongue, I see. Wait here a minute! I’m just checking the stage setup, then I’ll be back."
PD Choi disappeared somewhere, sipping at the mint chocolate as he went.
I was standing around awkwardly when I turned my head and saw a row of road managers standing at attention, their faces blank with disbelief.
"...Whoa, what the hell?"
"I’ve never seen that demon PD smile before."
"Isn’t he some high-ranking guy? That’s the only way that devil of a PD would act like this, right??"
None of the faces were familiar, so they were probably mostly rookie road managers.
Or managers assigned to rookie idols.
Either way, they were clearly lacking in street smarts.
Normally I would’ve just ignored them, but...
For some reason, I was in a good mood today, and that made me want to stick my nose where it didn’t belong.
After a moment’s thought, I offered some advice that wasn’t quite advice.
"PD Choi gets the most sensitive around lunch when there’s a live broadcast."
"?"
"Whatever you’re asking him for, you probably won’t get it now."
At my words, the rookie managers all startled and bowed their heads.
"Oh... thank you."
I bowed back too.
The rookie managers exchanged looks among themselves, then quietly slipped away.
"Hey, hey, he looks like team-leader level, doesn’t he? That aura is no joke."
"Hoo! But still, how the hell do we persuade PD Choi?"
"No idea. Should we bring our team leader too?"
While I let their whispering go in one ear and out the other, the missing PD Choi came back.
"Huh? What, Kwon Star’s all alone?"
"I got rid of them so I could talk comfortably with PD Choi."
PD Choi laughed out loud.
"What on earth do you want that our Kwon Star is working his tongue so hard?"
As befit a music-show PD, he was devilishly quick on the uptake.
There was no point beating around the bush. I’d only end up losing what little advantage I had.
So I came straight out with it.
"I’ve been assigned a girl group this time."
"Huh? Baekhak has a girl group?"
"They’re rookies, set to showcase next month."
PD Choi’s mouth curled upward.
"Oh? So you came here with a purpose?"
"You know how I feel, right?"
"Good grief, what a fate I have. Everyone who comes looking for me is always like this."
Shaking his head, PD Choi bit into a macaron and answered, "Slot twelve."
"!"
"I’ll give you a solo waiting room too. We’ll adjust the detailed schedule after the showcase."
My eyes went wide as dinner plates.
The singers on Show Music were usually around fifteen to twenty teams.
And slot twelve meant...
That was fairly late in the lineup.
At this point, you’d almost call it a second-tier idol slot.
I knew I had some history with PD Choi, but I hadn’t expected him to push this hard, so my expression turned a little sour before I could stop it.
"You look practically overjoyed. Absolutely glowing with joy."
At PD Choi’s dry remark, I came back to myself and answered, "That’s because you’re being too good to me, PD-nim."
"Cut the mushy talk and go on now. Rehearsal’s about to start."
"Roger. I love you, PD Choi."
Instead of answering, PD Choi simply waved me off.
As I walked out of the set with light steps, I thought, ...What is this? Is something special happening today?
My luck was almost suspiciously good.
Everything was going so smoothly that my already elevated mood felt ready to punch through the sky.
Riding that momentum, I decided to stop by the variety department.
The people I know over there at SBC Variety... Kim PD, Park PD?
If I was going to move To.Any’s schedule around, these were people I’d eventually need to meet anyway, so I figured I might as well start laying the groundwork now.
I went back into the café, took the carrier full of Americanos in both hands, and headed for the variety department.
Still, it’s the variety department. I can’t help being a little tense.
Those were PDs famous for having iron wills.
If I made even one wrong move, I might end up paying them off with coffee and getting nothing in return.
I exhaled lightly, took a deep breath, and sharpened my focus.
That was how I ended up visiting the variety department with a moderate amount of tension.
"No way! Is that really you!?"
Contrary to my expectations, the reception was far too warm.
When I tilted my head at that, Park PD, someone I knew well, grinned brightly and said, "The Queen of Joseon is blowing up completely, isn’t it? This year is going suspiciously well for you, Kwon Siljang?"
Ah.
So that was why.
It didn’t take long to understand the situation.
So I smiled as though I knew nothing.
There was no need to show my hand too early.
"Have you been well, Park PD?"
"You’ve been doing well lately too, Kwon Siljang, haven’t you?"
"Same as always, really. Shall we sit and talk?"
"Yes, yes! Let’s sit and talk."
Park PD led me toward an empty conference room.
Once we sat down, a few PDs who had been watching this side since earlier slowly poked their heads in.
"Knock, knock, knock...?"
"Could we maybe join the conversation too?"
"My, what an honored guest we have here!"
Park PD glared at them.
"What do you think you’re doing? Kwon Siljang is my guest!"
"Oh, come on, Park PD. Why so stingy? If he’s your guest, he’s our guest too."
Park PD nearly jumped out of his skin and tried to block the conference-room entrance, but variety department PDs weren’t the type to back down politely.
The PDs who forced their way in grinned at me.
"This is our first time meeting you properly, right, Kwon Siljang?"
"You know me already, don’t you, Kwon Siljang? We had drinks together last time!"
"The Queen of Joseon has been so fun lately. How’s actress Lee Ha-eun doing?"
Wow...
Were these really the same SBC variety department PDs rumored to be so haughty?
It was a little burdensome, but I didn’t let it show.
I wasn’t an amateur.
Keeping a pleasant smile, I handed out my cards.
"Some of you are people I’m meeting for the first time, and Kim PD looks even sharper than the last time I saw you."
Playing along brightened their expressions immediately.
Ha ha...
Ho ho...
With everyone hiding their true thoughts, we traded pleasantries endlessly.
"The Queen of Joseon was really something, huh~"
"Lee Ha-eun’s been busy lately, hasn’t she?"
"Still, it’s an SBC drama. It’s a shame she hasn’t appeared on variety even once~"
Back when I was a rookie road manager, situations like this used to make my skin crawl...
But now I’d been worn down too.
In the end, this was a business relationship, and wearing masks made things easier for both sides.
Inside that act, I ran the numbers.
, which defied everyone’s expectations and became a hit.
Thanks to that, public interest in the cast had reached its peak.
Among them, interest in Lee Ha-eun was especially intense.
If I could get her to appear, she’d be a guaranteed ratings magnet.
So it wasn’t really strange that the variety PDs were bending over backward for me.
I thought I was the one at a disadvantage... but now I’m the one with leverage.
But I couldn’t act like a fool and start throwing my weight around.
The moment you become the one with power, you can lose it just as fast.
After deciding on my course of action in my head, I started to work them.
"...Truthfully, I’ve stepped away from handling Lee Ha-eun for a while now."
The faces of the variety PDs stiffened all at once.
"R-really?"
"Oh... the person in charge changed?"
"But if you’re the siljang, wouldn’t you still manage things?"
I nodded with a smile.
"I do manage things, of course. After all, Lee Ha-eun’s dedicated road manager, Jeon Hyeong-u, is in the same Team 5."
"...Right? Right! With your experience, Kwon Siljang, it makes sense you’d start stepping back from the field now!"
Then I cast the bait.
"Ah, didn’t you know?"
"...Huh? Know what?"
"I’m still working on the ground."
"Uh... really?"
"Yes. I’ve been assigned the girl group Baekhak is launching this time. They’re called To.Any, and they’re entering showcase early next month."
"!"
The variety PDs’ eyes widened.
The look on their faces was like...
They’d just realized they’d stepped into a trap.
But the initiative was already mine.
I pressed forward without letting the momentum die.
"Actually, the reason I came to SBC today was because of To.Any. I wanted to ask you to please take good care of them after their debut."
"..."
"But after hearing you all talk, I’m thinking maybe I should’ve come with Hyeong-u, the one handling Lee Ha-eun. Seems like I came alone for nothing."
"!"
Now then. The bait had been cast.
Who would bite first?
I leaned back with my arms folded and waited for the PDs’ calculations to finish, when Park PD, who knew me well, slowly raised his hand.
"...Hmm. Their debut is early next month, you said?"
There it was.
It looked like Park PD couldn’t hold out any longer and had taken the bait whole.
I nodded at once.
"To be exact, they’re going into showcase on the tenth."
"...Mm. Our Star Observation! does have a bit of a gap in next month’s schedule."
"That sounds great to me. If Star Observation! goes out right when the debut drops and interest is heating up?"
Park PD shrugged.
"Let’s take a little more time and look at the timing, Kwon Siljang."
He was slickly stepping back by a single pace.
Park PD wasn’t called one of SBC Variety’s old hands for nothing.
"It wouldn’t do to lock in the schedule for a rookie who hasn’t even done showcase yet. Let’s go slowly, slowly."
Just as I had cast bait, Park PD had cast some back at me.
After thinking it over, I nodded.
Not bad.
Like Park PD said, getting a verbal promise for a rookie girl group that hadn’t even done showcase yet was absurd in itself.
At this point, it was fair to say my purpose in visiting the variety department had been achieved.
That was why, when the corners of my mouth unconsciously lifted, my smartphone rang.
- Geok-doo hyung: Chan, I found the script.
A message arrived like a period at the end of an otherwise tedious conversation.
After promising Park PD a future meeting, I left SBC and headed back to Baekhak headquarters.
Seeing the unusually clear roads today, I muttered to myself without thinking, "What on earth is going on today?"
The roads weren’t clogged.
I’d gotten a later music-show slot.
I’d even secured a verbal promise for a promising variety appearance.
Even by my own standards, today’s luck was suspiciously good.
"But isn’t a fortunate day usually a bad ending?"
Could it be that I was headed for one of those too?
Worrying about something pointless like that, I went into the office.
Seok-doo hyung must have been out on business, because he wasn’t there, and five scripts were sitting alone on my desk.
"After scraping together everything we could, this is all we got..."
Well, that made sense.
It would be stranger if there were a lot of occult-themed scripts lying around.
After sitting down, I opened the scripts.
If one of these was releasing this year, there should be a 5-million-visitor occult script in here...
Just how good would a script have to be to pull that kind of audience with an occult film?
I didn’t bother hiding my rising anticipation and read on.
A little later.
After carefully reading all five scripts, I muttered, "No, this isn’t it."
I looked through them again, more carefully this time.
And yet...
No matter how I looked at them, they still weren’t right.
"Five-million-audience occult script... this?"
For a script supposedly capable of drawing five million viewers, the quality was far too low.
Story, character, mise-en-scene.
Even the occult element, the most important part of the genre, was off from what the public would expect.
At this point, calling them amateur scripts would be more accurate than calling them professional ones.
Still, just in case, I searched for the screenwriters’ names.
"Three of them don’t even show up on Google... and the other two are short-film writers."
My heart sank even lower.
In occult, experience matters more than raw talent.
It was the kind of genre where one misstep was enough to get you labeled a nobody, so these scripts in front of me were unlikely to be the 5-million-audience occult project I’d been looking for.
I clicked my tongue before I realized it.
"Tsk... are we really going to end up like a true, true fortunate day after all?"
That was a little disappointing.
Rubbing my chin slowly, I muttered, In that case, should I start asking around for a script?
But if an occult script that never even reached Baekhak couldn’t be found here, would I be able to dig one up just by asking around?
I crossed my arms and thought it over.
Damn, this is hard.
Seeing it that way made it clear that Future Text Messages weren’t omnipotent.
Making opportunities out of fragmentary facts was a much harder job than it sounded.
If I only knew the date the article came out, I could narrow the investigation and make it work somehow.
Right.
If I only knew the date the article came out... huh?
My eyes snapped wide open.
"Don’t article titles usually show the time and date underneath them?"
I hurriedly turned on my smartphone and clicked on any old article.
My breathing turned a little rough.
The time and date are shown underneath the title.
Then what about Future Text Messages?
With trembling hands, I clicked open the message archive.
I saw the four carefully stored future messages.
Out of them, I clicked the third one.
Without meaning to, the corners of my mouth twitched.
"Ha. No wonder I missed it if the text was that small."
The future-message articles had dates too!
The affair is two weeks from now, and the occult film... no wonder it wasn’t on the market.
The 5-million-audience occult film was a work releasing only next year.
Baekhak got almost every script that was worth having, but if the release was next year, it made sense that the script wouldn’t be in circulation yet.
I barely managed to suppress the excitement building in my chest and muttered, "If that’s the case... maybe the affair angle has an answer too."
Romance Prince Seo Tae-jun.
Choi Su-hyeon, the rising new star of Chungmuro.
The corner of my mouth lifted as I thought of the two of them.
"A rising new star of Chungmuro was the cheating bastard?"
The identity of the bomb had finally been exposed.