A Matter of Chemistry
As Tae-hyun pondered how to make use of it, a sudden thought struck him. But wouldn't a normally high-performing item be better than one that requires so much brainpower just to use? It was a perfectly natural question. Tae-hyun was the kind of person who, even when handed absolute garbage classes or items, would think, I can definitely find a way to use this. If a glass was half-filled with spoiled milk, an ordinary person would say, "Ugh, the milk went bad," but Tae-hyun would think, Hmm, I wonder if I can feed this to someone? Having lived with that mindset, he had accepted things as they were until now, but thinking about it again made him feel strangely wronged. The items associated with the famous churches of the Central Continent were all normally, highly effective. Why were the gods associated with Tae-hyun always so bizarre in their performance?
"Tae-hyun."
"Yeah?"
Lee Da-bi spoke to the brooding Tae-hyun. As he turned around, she took a step back.
"Wait. That spear is a bit..."
"I'm not going to stab you, I'm not going to stab you. Why would I?"
"...Then what about me, you jerk?" Cain, who had fallen to the ground, grumbled, but Tae-hyun ignored him.
"You wanted to raid the Orcs' treasure warehouse, right?"
"I did."
"Karag went wild and probably smashed everything, but unlike equipment items, gems and ores don't break easily. If we search the ruins of the warehouse, wouldn't we find something?"
"Ah, that's true."
True to her merchant class, Lee Da-bi didn't miss a single loophole.
"But isn't Karag currently occupying that spot?"
Karag, who had lost his mind after consuming the demon blood, had remained in the ruined innermost fortress and made it his lair. In other words, to excavate the items from the warehouse... they would have to break through Karag and his crazed Orc buddies!
A shiver ran down their spines. Cain and Ed-an quickly scrambled to their feet and took a step back. Both of them had sensed what was coming.
"Don't worry, I'm not going to make you do it."
"Really? For real?!"
"I knew I could trust you, Tae-hyun!"
Cain and Ed-an reacted dramatically. Tae-hyun nodded and said, "Even so, going there just to grab a few more items is too dangerous. He's not an opponent we can take lightly..."
There wasn't anything in that warehouse worth risking their lives for, so there was no need to do it.
"That's true."
"Exactly. If we were to do it, we'd probably put Cain in front as bait, then send Ed-an in to rummage through the rubble, but..."
"..."
"..."
It was a strangely specific plan!
"Y-you said you weren't going to make us do it!"
"No, I'm just talking about how we would do it if we did, you know?"
...I need to get out of the Uruk Region as fast as possible! Cain resolved. He would never, ever return to the Uruk Region!
"Huh? Where are you going?"
"..."
Watching Cain roll around on the floor, Tae-hyun wore a sour expression. He felt exactly like a parent looking at an unemployed son!
"I'm going to a shoot."
"What? A shoot? Bring back something delicious! But what kind of shoot?"
"A commercial. I'm shooting it with Lee Se-yeon."
"Whoa, I'm so jealous! Why do you get all the good stuff... Argh! Gack! Why, why?!"
Unable to read the room, Cain kept babbling until Tae-hyun grabbed him by the collar and shook him back and forth.
"Hey, get in the capsule. It's much more convenient to beat you up inside the game."
"It's scary because you sound completely serious!"
"I am serious."
While Tae-hyun was tormenting Cain, Choi Sang-yun walked out from inside, yawning.
"What's up? Did Cain pull a Cain again?"
A slang term that had spread through the team house in a short time!
"I'm heading out for the shoot, so you two play nicely by yourselves."
"Oh. Are you bringing home a sponsor?"
"What?! A sponsor?! Seriously?!"
A sponsor! That was the ultimate symbol of a successful gaming team!
...Or at least, that was the limit of Cain's imagination. Cain sprang up. Tae-hyun clicked his tongue and said, "Don't count your chickens before they hatch. Nothing's been decided yet."
"But still, that's huge! Oh, right, the PD called the other day... Argh! Why?! Why?!"
Once again, Cain was grabbed by the collar and shaken back and forth.
"You look tired. Are you okay?"
"I'm not tired. I was just thinking about how to manage Ca... no, the guys in the gaming team."
"True. In your case, you don't have a director or a coach, so you have to design and run the training curriculum yourselves. It must be several times harder."
Lee Se-yeon nodded understandingly. Tae-hyun suddenly blinked. Wait, were they supposed to be training?
W-wait. Was I supposed to make them train separately?
Come to think of it, other gaming teams were probably preparing for various tournaments with fire in their eyes, while Team KL was being far too complacent, weren't they?
"I was a bit surprised when you created a brand-new gaming team instead of joining an existing one... but it looks like you're doing just fine on your own."
"O-of course."
"...?"
Se-yeon tilted her head. Tae-hyun's voice had cracked slightly just now.
"Just now..."
"Why don't you make a gaming team too?"
Tae-hyun quickly changed the subject! Se-yeon let it slide without suspicion.
"It's impossible for me. My schedule is already packed as it is."
"Ah, yes. Of course it is. Playing games, broadcasting~ Wait, let's not resort to violence."
Se-yeon, who had raised her hand to poke Tae-hyun in the ribs, lowered it.
"Come to think of it, have you ever modeled for this brand before?"
"...Don't people usually look things up before they show up? Yes, I have."
The Prosdas brand ran a lot of Pan-On-related events. A famous ranker and popular broadcaster like Lee Se-yeon was someone they could never leave out.
"How is it?"
"Overall? It's pretty decent. The atmosphere on set is fun, and the person in charge is entertaining. It wouldn't hurt for you to stay on good terms with them either. I don't have an exclusive contract, but I've been doing seasonal shoots consistently."
Se-yeon's words carried the sincere advice of a senior celebrity. Of course, Tae-hyun wasn't the type to say, "Thank you, senior!" in response.
"It wasn't an exclusive contract?"
"No."
"Because you weren't quite cut out for an exclusive?"
"...Because I'm too good for them to lock down exclusively! Honestly, I give you advice out of the goodness of my heart, and this is what I get?!"
"Oof."
Se-yeon's jab landed squarely in his ribs, but thanks to his physical conditioning, Tae-hyun didn't budge. I was asking if they were the ones lacking, though...
Kim Team Leader of Prosdas, who welcomed the two, strongly reminded Tae-hyun of CEO Lee Dong-pal. In short, he had the vibe of a greasy handsome man!
"Is the CEO doing well?"
"Of course."
"I've been meaning to meet up with him, but we've both been so busy... Ah."
They aren't brothers, are they? Tae-hyun had a rude thought. At that moment, Kim Team Leader turned his head and quickly scanned Tae-hyun from head to toe. Ah. Did he catch on?
"Ohhh..."
"...?"
"I thought you looked good in photos, but you look even better in person. Do you work out?"
"Ah, yes."
"Your face is great too... I don't understand why someone with a face like this didn't get famous sooner."
"Well, that's because of makeup—"
"Uh-uh. Let's not touch each other's secrets."
Kim Team Leader laughed as he listened to Tae-hyun and Se-yeon's banter.
"You two are closer than I thought. That's great. We brought you in because of the buzz and because you're under the same agency, but if the chemistry is off, it's exhausting for us too. If you have good chemistry, we're more than grateful."
"Excuse me? With whom?"
"Our chemistry is terrible, though?"
"Right, right."
Kim Team Leader looked at them with warm, knowing eyes. Tae-hyun suddenly felt a chill run down his spine. Where had he seen that look recently? Ah, it was the exact same look Kim Tae-san had given him right after the broadcast with Lee Se-yeon aired, asking, "Hey, are you two dating?"
"Anyway, let's do a great job together. It's not really my place to say, but there are few sets that models love as much as ours. The atmosphere is warm, the staff is highly efficient, and above all, the clothes the designer puts out are fantastic. The great pay is just a bonus."
"The designer?"
"Me."
"...Ah, I see."
Tae-hyun showed the kindness of not pointing out the obvious.
"Now, this is the set we'll be shooting on today. Over there is the dressing room, those two areas over there are the waiting rooms, and..."
"Where is the restroom?"
"...Right behind there. Are you going to use it now?"
"No, I was just curious."
The set was bustling with staff members moving various equipment around to prepare. Unfazed by Tae-hyun's pace, Kim Team Leader handed him a catalog.
"Here, take a look at this. Though, I'm sure you've already read through it before coming, right?"
"...Right?" Se-yeon looked at Tae-hyun. Tae-hyun nodded.
"I skimmed through it."
"Really?!"
"Why are you so surprised?"
"Put yourself in my shoes..."
"I told you, I read it before coming. It looked surprisingly normal."
Tae-hyun had only heard that Prosdas was releasing a new line of Pan-On-themed apparel, so he had expected weird, bizarre outfits. Like cosplay armor or something! However, the clothes in the catalog were so well-made that they wouldn't look out of place no matter when or where they were worn. They featured sophisticated designs, outstanding functionality, and subtle details that only Pan-On players would recognize. As expected of a successful brand, there's a reason they do so well. No wonder they're popular when they put out stuff like this! he realized.
"...You have no idea, do you?"
"Huh?"
"Nothing. If you didn't look it up, it's your own fault."
"No, I told you, I looked at the catalog."
"Not that. You should have looked at the pictorials I shot in the past."
At Se-yeon's mischievous words, Tae-hyun flinched. He was definitely missing something. Tap, tap. Tae-hyun immediately pulled out his phone and tried to search. However, Se-yeon quickly blocked his hand.
"We're starting the shoot! You two, please come over here!"
When the photographer called them, Tae-hyun had no choice but to put his phone away, much to his disappointment.
The photographer smiled warmly. He could feel the freshness and tension of a first-time model in Tae-hyun's movements. Come to think of it, it was only natural. Since they brought in someone who wasn't a professional model for the pictorial, this level of awkwardness was expected. All the staff members here were prepared to accommodate that.
It's refreshing to see someone like this after shooting only professionals lately... Huh?
The first, second, and third poses. Once those were out of the way, Tae-hyun began to move smoothly according to the directions, as if he had already figured everything out.
"????"
There wasn't a trace of tension. He looked so comfortable that anyone would have mistaken him for a veteran model who had spent years on sets!
W-where did the tension and freshness go?
With his handsome face, tall stature, and incredible proportions, anyone would truly believe he was a professional model.
"Should I fall to the side?"
"Ah, n-no. You don't have to go that far..."
Kim Team Leader quietly approached the photographer.
"Wow, he really looks like a model."
"Right?"
"To be honest, when I saw his photos, I wondered if he would look good next to Lee Se-yeon... but they look more than compatible."
When bringing in people like pro gamers as models, the company didn't expect outstanding looks. Demanding that on top of everything else would be too greedy! All they wanted was the buzz. However, Tae-hyun and Se-yeon were not only generating massive buzz, but their looks were also top-tier. They were the very definition of a stunning couple!
I'm starting to want to lock them down with exclusive contracts, even if we have to adjust the terms...
Once the final results came out, other companies would surely start drooling over them.
"We'll move on to the couple shoot now!"
"...?"
"Why are you looking at me like that?"
When Tae-hyun stared at her with a look of pure confusion, Se-yeon actually felt a bit embarrassed. It was only natural to take photos together during this kind of shoot, so why was he giving her that "Why us?" look?
"A couple shoot... The only time I can remember us being photographed together is when I was swinging a hammer at you in Pan-On 1."
"You're so consistent, it's almost comforting."
"Huh?"
"Nothing. Come on, walk forward!"
"Showing my back to you is a bit scary... Hey, don't hit me! Why is a Necromancer using physical attacks?"
"Reality is outside the game, Mr. Kim Tae-hyun."