Weight Class
I arrived in Busan on the KTX. The familiar smell of home felt good after so long, but I couldn’t really enjoy it.
My mind, body, every last nerve was fixed on the future text message that had arrived two days earlier.
“So Kwon Hyeon-bin and I are attending the Baeksang Arts Awards?”
If it was Kwon Hyeon-bin...
Then it had to be that Kwon Hyeon-bin.
The Hallyu star Kwon Hyeon-bin.
A top-tier actor with two films that had each drawn more than ten million viewers and no fewer than three dramas that had cleared a 20 percent rating.
Unlike the actress scene, where the rankings had already been sorted out, the male actor pool didn’t really have anyone who could be called a true “top.” Kwon Hyeon-bin was the Hallyu star who came closest to that summit.
If this future is real, does that mean Kwon Hyeon-bin becomes my artist?
That seemed to be the situation.
My head tilted slowly.
“But isn’t Kwon Hyeon-bin famous for going solo?”
The Korean entertainment agencies that had once been run on guesswork had ridden the Hallyu boom and transformed into real companies. Among those formidable agencies, Kwon Hyeon-bin was one of the few celebrities who had kept a one-man agency.
Apparently every big agency put in offers trying to sign him, and he turned them all down.
So if I was standing on the photo line with him...
Did that mean Baekhak had succeeded in signing Kwon Hyeon-bin?
“From the way things line up, that seems right.”
The Kwon Hyeon-bin who had been signed must have become my artist.
Before I knew it, I muttered, “But is it right to hand Kwon Hyeon-bin over to me?”
Honestly, the celebrities I was managing now were already a much bigger deal than what a one-year manager could normally handle.
Top actress Lee Ha-eun and the Romance Prince Seo Tae-jun.
And on top of that, the only girl group in Baekhak, To.Any.
And now they wanted to give me Hallyu star Kwon Hyeon-bin too?
“If the other team leaders and managers find out, they’re not going to sit still.”
Yeah, there would definitely be chaos.
I could bet my wrist on it.
“They’re already keeping an eye on me. If I take Kwon Hyeon-bin too, it’ll explode for sure.”
Thinking that far, I slowly scratched my chin.
Well, I’m already being watched anyway. It’s too late to worry about that now.
What mattered was why Kwon Hyeon-bin and I would be standing on the Baeksang Arts Awards photo line.
They wouldn’t just take a picture for no reason. There has to be some kind of trigger.
What exactly was that trigger?
For a plain manager to stand on the photo line with a top actor, it couldn’t be something ordinary.
When I finished thinking it through, the corners of my mouth lifted slightly.
“This is interesting.”
The idea of a new figure named Kwon Hyeon-bin was intriguing.
Then Kim Jun-su’s shout reached my ears.
When I looked up, I saw Director Kim Jun-su barking at staff who looked like university juniors of his.
“Set up the camera over there, and the sound team’s fine, right?”
“This side is okay. But what era are we living in? You’re still using reflectors?”
“Jun-su, spend some money on this kind of thing! If you’re doing digital work, light boards are the best, and didn’t you get a decent production budget too?”
“Is it your money? Huh? Quit talking and get ready to shoot!”
My eyes widened a little.
Director Kim Jun-su is kind of different once he’s on set, isn’t he?
When he was with me, he stuttered; when he dealt with the staff, he wasn’t timid at all. He was barking orders and showing real charisma.
Is that his real personality?
It looked that way. My expression soured slightly.
“...Why does he only stutter in front of me?”
Could it really be because of my face?
I do hear that I look scary sometimes.
But I didn’t think I looked scary enough to make a perfectly normal person stammer like that.
That’s unfair, honestly. Maybe I should clear that up someday.
While I was making that pointless little judgment, Choi Go-eun appeared.
A short bob cut, and her features standing out vividly against skin darkened by makeup.
And the fresh, school-uniform innocence that only a girl her age could carry.
The version of Choi Go-eun in front of me looked completely different from before, and my eyes widened.
“Choi Go-eun, the uniform suits you.”
Well, her speech was more mature than most girls her age, but she was still eighteen. It was the kind of age when a school uniform would suit her naturally.
I folded my arms and took in the sight of Choi Go-eun in costume.
She’s not the kind of girl who grabs attention purely with visuals, like Lee Ha-eun.
But...
There was definitely a presence about her that drew people in.
Was this what they called aura?
People who commanded attention just by existing.
The bigger the star actor, the more that aura stood out.
And Choi Go-eun too... had the faintest trace of that aura already.
With that acting talent, that atmosphere, and if she grows into her looks properly, what kind of actress will she become?
Was she really going to end up as a second Lee Ha-eun, just as I’d expected?
At that moment, Director Kim Jun-su walked up to Choi Go-eun with a slightly flushed face.
“...Actor Choi, are you ready?”
“Yes, Director.”
“We’ve finished our prep too, so we’re thinking of doing one rehearsal. Would that be all right?”
Instead of answering, Choi Go-eun glanced at me.
I gave a silent nod, and her mouth curved up slightly.
“Yes, that’s fine.”
“Ah! Then let’s start with Scene #2, the one-take from Choi Ji-seon’s monologue on the way home from school.”
Choi Go-eun took her script and walked out onto set.
The confidence in her stride made me let out a small laugh.
It’s the first shoot, but she doesn’t seem nervous at all.
Then again, with that sharp-tongued personality of hers, being nervous would almost be stranger.
I was watching her back with a quiet, satisfied smile when I heard unfamiliar murmuring nearby.
“Man, I thought Director Kim was making such a fuss because he’d brought in some child actress like Kim Soo-jung or something.”
I turned my head slightly.
It was a group of staff who looked like Kim Jun-su’s university juniors.
“Isn’t her face kind of plain for an actress?”
“I looked up her filmography too. She’s basically a total rookie. I don’t think she’s the kind of actress worth bragging about.”
“No way, Director Kim. You didn’t actually bring in a real high school girl because the role is a high school student, did you?”
“Hey, hey, if it’s Director Kim’s personality, that’s not impossible.”
I listened to them tossing out one comment after another about Choi Go-eun, then said lightly, “Shouldn’t you at least watch her act first?”
The staff’s eyes went wide.
“Huh?”
“Judging an actor without even seeing the acting first is basically disrespecting the director, isn’t it?”
The staff looked flustered and started sneaking glances at me.
“Uh... who are you?”
“Oh, I arrived late, so I didn’t get to introduce myself.”
Smiling brightly, I lifted the corners of my mouth.
“I’m Kwon Chan, Chief Manager of Team 5 at Baekhak. You’re Director Kim Jun-su’s university juniors, right?”
“!”
“I should’ve greeted you first, but I was a little distracted and couldn’t. Here’s my card.”
The staff took my business card, stamped clearly with the Baekhak logo, and their expressions hardened at once.
One of them, a sharp-faced guy, hurriedly bowed his head.
“S-sorry! We absolutely didn’t mean it in a bad way...!”
“It’s fine. You’re staff, so you can have opinions about actors.”
“...”
“But like I said earlier, shouldn’t you judge after watching the acting? Not for my sake, or for Choi Go-eun’s...”
I let the sentence trail off and pointed toward Director Kim Jun-su.
“Even for the sake of your senior, Director Kim Jun-su.”
The staff clamped their mouths shut. I watched them for a moment, then smiled again.
“Haha, I guess I butted in with something pointless right after meeting you. Sorry. Go on and do your work.”
I turned back to the set. I could feel the staff’s eyes pricking at the back of my head.
But how many years had I spent in this industry? There was no way a little thing like that could shake me.
I wasn’t pretending to be calm. I really was calm as I watched the set.
Then Director Kim Jun-su shouted.
It looked like filming for Multicultural was finally starting.
“Let’s go with the one-take! Three... two... one... action!”
At Director Kim Jun-su’s shout, Choi Go-eun was possessed by Choi Ji-seon.
“Fuck, did I really want to be born like this?”
The emotional voice cut through the set and pierced straight into my ears.
The gaze that had been drilling into the back of my head vanished in that instant.
I watched Choi Go-eun’s performance with a faint lift at the corner of my mouth.
“Is having different skin a crime? Is being fair-skinned some kind of privilege? Who do they think they are... who do they think they are... to judge me however they want?”
Emotion, expression, gestures.
It was acting made not from effort alone, but from born talent.
It pulled the eyes of everyone on set and held them in place.
Feeling a faint thrill rise in me, I murmured, Yeah, that’s the stuff.
What did it matter if she didn’t have the “right” face for an actress? The right kind of visuals?
So what?
An actor just had to act well.
A smile slipped through my thoughts as I turned my head.
“...”
The staff who had just been criticizing Choi Go-eun were staring in stunned silence. Not even on the first scene, just during a light rehearsal.
Snorting a laugh, I crossed my legs with ease.
Nice start.
Choi Go-eun’s acting had flipped the staff’s opinions upside down.
TAN Variety Division.
Inside the meeting room plastered with all kinds of variety-show posters, Park CP, the overall head of the division, set the documents in his hand down with a light tap and said, “The concept and planning have gotten a lot tighter?”
Next to him, PD Hwang Deok-gu quickly chimed in.
“We’ve been preparing for six months. It should be good, CP.”
“You haven’t started casting yet, right? It’s a competition variety show in name, so you need at least fifty people.”
“We’re definitely filling it. That’s why I spent three months going to every single music show I could. I even went all the way down to Namhae just to see singers, CP.”
Park CP nodded leisurely, but his inner thoughts were rotting despite his calm face.
Damn it... I shouldn’t have let Team Leader Ma buy me drinks that day!
Goddamn it.
Because of those drinks, he now had to go begging to PD Hwang.
But this guy Hwang PD really is a stubborn one, isn’t he?
If something didn’t fit his standards, he would ignore even the variety division chief’s words. Would someone like that really listen just because a CP asked him to?
After thinking it over, Park CP decided to test the waters first.
“...But, Hwang PD?”
“Yes, CP?”
“A competition variety show has a high risk, so people usually don’t want to appear in it. Are you sure the casting will go smoothly?”
“Of course! I’ve already taken all that into account. That’s why I made a candidate list, didn’t I?”
At that answer, Park CP casually made a suggestion.
“Really? Then there’s a girl group I’ve been watching lately. How about putting them on the candidate list too?”
Hwang PD’s eyebrows twitched.
“You’ve been watching a girl group?”
“More accurately, it’s a girl group rookie, but that girl is really good.”
Hwang PD’s eyes sharpened.
“CP, who bought you drinks this time?”
“W-what? What are you talking about all of a sudden, Hwang PD?”
“Whenever you bring up things like this, it’s because some industry contact bought you drinks first.”
“...”
Caught right in the weak spot, Park CP hurriedly defended himself.
“H-hey! That’s a dangerous thing to say so casually, Hwang PD. It’s not like that. She’s really good!”
“...Sigh. So who is it?”
“To.Any, you know? Youth Travel To.Any. She’s the group leader.”
Hwang PD’s eyes widened.
“To.Any... you mean the leader, Park Ga-eul?”
“Yeah, that Park Ga-eul! She’s someone Baekhak is pushing, so I’d been keeping an eye on her.”
Hwang PD’s expression turned strange.
Watching that expression, Park CP kept checking his face before trying again.
“Anyway, if you can’t fill the lineup, it doesn’t hurt to add one rookie, right? And if Baekhak is backing her, then she’s definitely—”
Hwang PD answered first.
“That’s enough, Park CP.”
“...Ahem. Hwang PD, you should let people finish.”
“Park Ga-eul is our first choice.”
Park CP’s eyes went wide.
“Huh? What?”
“Leader Park Ga-eul of To.Any is our first choice.”
The corners of Hwang PD’s mouth lifted.
“After seeing her last stage, I knew she was the real deal. So I’m going to cast her no matter what. To.Any’s leader, Park Ga-eul.”
Park CP blinked like an idiot.
The Busan shoot for Multicultural was scheduled to last a full week.
But my schedule didn’t let me stay in Busan that long.
I still had to keep an eye on Black Bride, which was about to move into full production, and there was a lot I needed to learn about To.Any too.
I also need to handle Seol Chae-i’s commercial deal and Ga-eul’s competition variety show.
Times like this made me wish I had two bodies... but there was nothing to be done.
I had to accept it as a burst of work luck, in the spirit of the Wonyoung mindset Choi Go-eun had told me about.
Fortunately, the Multicultural set doesn’t seem to have any problems. It’s Choi Go-eun I’m worried about.
I was a little concerned about leaving that sharp-tongued kid alone.
But now that I looked at it, it seemed like I’d been worrying for nothing.
“Wow, Actor Choi... you really taught yourself to act?”
“My God... how is this even possible without attending an acting academy?”
“Our Actor Choi, maybe she’s an acting genius?”
“I got chills just watching the rehearsal. Shouldn’t I get an autograph in advance or something?”
The staff’s reaction changed the moment they saw Choi Go-eun act.
Unlike before the shoot, they showered her with nonstop praise and attention, and Choi Go-eun was answering them with a smug little face.
“Th-yes, it really is self-taught. I never learned acting from anyone. As for autographs... not yet!”
Before I knew it, the corners of my mouth lifted.
“She knows how to handle herself.”
Relieved, I booked my train ticket and thought about it.
If I left now, I’d arrive at Busan Station with plenty of time, right?
There was no need to rush out under pressure.
I got up and began packing my things to head back to Seoul.
Just then, Choi Go-eun, who had been surrounded by the staff, suddenly appeared in front of me.
“Chief Manager.”
“...Yeah? What is it?”
“Are you really leaving?”
“Of course I’m really leaving. Why, are you disappointed?”
“...It’s not that. Is it really okay for a manager to just leave an artist like this?”
At her sulking, I shrugged.
“I’ll finish my work and come back fast. Maybe two days?”
“...If I ask you not to leave, that’d be a pain, right?”
“You know me well.”
“I won’t ask you not to. Just come back quickly.”
Choi Go-eun looked at me with eyes full of reluctance.
So she had this side too, huh?
I let the teasing drop, bent slightly, and met her gaze.
“I’ll be back soon, so don’t start any trouble and do your shoot properly.”
“...Tch. Do I look like a kid? Like I’d go around causing trouble?”
“The fact that you answered like that is proof enough that you’re a kid.”
“Well, if I’m a kid, shouldn’t I have a guardian? My guardian is the Chief Manager.”
At her endless whining, I finally laughed.
“What’s with you today? Acting like a kid for real?”
Instead of answering, Choi Go-eun just stared at me for a moment, then muttered, “Yeah. Why am I like this today? I think I’m nervous because it’s the first shoot.”
“Then relax. You’re doing well.”
“Really?”
“Yes. So until I get back, work hard on the shoot.”
Choi Go-eun nodded slowly.
“I’ll do well.”
After calming Choi Go-eun like that, I headed back to Seoul.
And the next day, when I got to Baekhak headquarters, Seok-du hyung hit me with some surprising news.
“Hey, Chan. TAN’s Park CP called yesterday?”
“!”
“The To.Any singer-songwriter competition program? Looks like they’re going to cast them?”
My eyes widened.
“Really, hyung?”
“So they say. Man, hearing all that made me wonder if I’d wasted a ton of money buying Park CP expensive drinks for nothing.”
What kind of nonsense was that?
Then Seok-du hyung shrugged and said, “Turns out To.Any was first in line for casting from the start.”
“!”
“That... what was his name again? PD Hwang Deok-gu? I heard that guy was seriously hooked on To.Any’s leader, Park Ga-eul. Apparently we didn’t even need to step in; they were going to cast her anyway.”
At Seok-du hyung’s explanation, my mouth fell slightly open.
Look at that.
PD Hwang Deok-gu was seriously hooked on Park Ga-eul? So he had already liked To.Any’s stage that much?
...This is too good.
In a competition variety show, devil’s editing was practically unavoidable. Since the PD’s power was enormous, Ga-eul had captured Hwang Deok-gu’s heart with her own skill, without me needing to interfere.
Doesn’t that mean we’ll get some favor in the editing too?
The thought brought a faint lift of excitement.
Which manager wouldn’t be happy when one of their artists grabs an opportunity with pure talent?
At the same time, I could feel it.
The situations that had been stagnant for a while were suddenly picking up speed.
Just as that pleasant current was lifting the corners of my mouth, the door to the rooftop smoking area opened and Team 4’s road manager came running out, shouting, “Huff... I’m dying here, hey! Team Leader Ma, Chief Manager Kwon!”
The Team Leader Ma standing beside me widened his eyes.
“What, why are you panting like that, Park?”
“T-the... the head of department is looking for you for a team leader meeting!”
Seok-du hyung asked in surprise, “Huh? Isn’t the team leader meeting next week? Why are we having one today?”
“Yes, yes, but...”
The 4-team road manager trailed off, his throat bobbing.
“He said Chief Manager Kwon has to attend the team leader meeting too.”
“!”
Seok-du hyung flinched and looked at me. I was startled too, and asked back at the road manager, “You’re saying I was told to attend the team leader meeting?”
“Yes... I don’t know the details, but you need to head over quickly.”
At that, Seok-du hyung and I rushed down from the rooftop smoking area. While we waited for the elevator and caught our breath, Seok-du hyung called my name in a low voice.
“...Chief Manager Kwon?”
“...”
“What did you do this time? Why would the head of department suddenly call you to a team leader meeting?”
My expression soured.
Did I even do anything?
Well, I had done something.
The Black Bride drug case.
But is that really a reason to drag me into a team leader meeting?
I thought it over, but I couldn’t figure out why the head of department would call me in.
A cold tension crept up my spine on its own.
I’d been in and out of the head of department’s office and the CEO’s office several times lately, but being called in when you know the reason and being called in when you don’t were very different things.
Still, it was only tension.
I hadn’t done anything wrong, so why should I be scared?
Thinking that, I opened the head of department’s office door with Seok-du hyung.
Inside were the management team leaders who had already arrived and waited, along with Ho Chief Manager, who was serving as the temporary team leader in place of the vacant Team 1 leader.
The moment I met their quietly watching eyes, the tension vanished.
What replaced it was a strange, rising thrill.
“Chief Manager Kwon, you’re here?”
Men who had spent ten years more than me in this business, if you judged by experience alone.
Those old hands of the industry were now watching me with guarded, chilly smiles.
I bit back the laugh that nearly escaped and murmured, Look at this.
When had my weight class gotten this big?