A Dangerous House and Rising Fame
Ever since that day, Yoo Saebom felt a suffocating weight press down on her chest the moment she stepped inside her home. Every little sound set her nerves on edge. She felt like her mind would shatter if she stayed there any longer. Driven by urgency, she had scrambled to find a new place.
The apartment she found was reasonably close to the subway station, clean, and pleasant. Even the landlord spoke softly and took meticulous care of everything. This time, it really seemed like a good place. Believing that, Saebom had paid the security deposit just yesterday.
And tonight, Saebom tuned into the Perpetual Job Seeker stream. She wanted to express her gratitude properly. Considering he had saved her life, donating a thousand water droplets as Bokchae didn't feel like a waste at all. Yet, out of nowhere, she was selected for a free shamanic reading.
Dazed, Saebom joined the Discord voice channel.
"H-hello," she stammered.
Park Jihun got straight to the point. "You signed a contract for a new place, didn't you?"
"Yes. I just put down the deposit yesterday."
Jihun didn't hesitate. "Don't move into that house."
Saebom's face froze. "What? But then I'll lose my deposit..."
"You'll lose something far greater than money if you go there."
The chat immediately began to stir.
Saebom asked blankly, "Why on earth?"
"The landlord," Jihun replied flatly.
"Pardon?"
"He's the problem."
Saebom blinked. "What do you mean by that?"
"He won't leave a woman living alone in peace."
The Discord channel fell dead silent for a moment.
"He'll make up excuses about repairs to slip in and out of your place. He'll invent problems just to knock on your door."
"..."
"He'll memorize everything—when you open and close your door, when you get off work, and exactly when you're home alone."
Saebom's face drained of color instantly. "What... what is that even..."
"That isn't a house for you to live in," Jihun said. "It's a house you'll have to run away from."
The chat scrolled up at an uncontrollable speed.
Saebom bit her lower lip hard. She recalled how the landlord had asked her so many questions on the day she signed the contract. Do you live alone? Do you get off work late? Do your parents visit often? He had even added that he had a daughter of a similar age living alone in the countryside.
At the time, she had simply thought he was an exceptionally attentive and kind landlord. But now that she knew the truth, those words sounded entirely different. He hadn't been looking out for her; he had been sizing her up.
"Ha..." A hollow sigh escaped her lips. "Why is my luck always like this?"
"Cancel that house," Jihun advised.
"...Yes, I must." Saebom let out a weak chuckle. "I think I'll just move back in with my parents. If I keep trying to be stubborn and live on my own, I'll probably end up in real trouble."
"That's the right choice."
"Thank you once again."
The Discord connection cut off.
The chat was still buzzing with activity.
Park Jihun scanned the chat before moving his mouse. "Quiet down. Moving on to the next one."
The roulette wheel began to spin once more.
Around the time Jihun was conducting his readings, the Levinael comeback team was buzzing with a long-lost energy. It had all started after the title track was changed to Harin's self-composed song.
At first, everyone had been skeptical. A good song was one thing, but whether it would succeed in the market was an entirely different matter. Besides, they had to restructure almost their entire pre-planned schedule from scratch. However, once they began working on the new track, the atmosphere gradually shifted.
In the dance studio, final adjustments were being made to the choreography's key point. The choreographer, reviewing the practice video in front of a monitor, spoke up. "This version looks better."
"Why?"
"The movements flow naturally. Instead of making it overly complex, this feels much easier for people to follow."
Another choreographer standing nearby nodded in agreement. "I agree. It's better to keep it relaxed and effortless."
The speaker unconsciously hummed the melody under her breath, then suddenly froze. "...Oh?"
"What's wrong?"
"Ah, I hummed it again."
A brief silence fell over the room. Then, the other choreographer chuckled. "You too?"
"You too, Unni?"
"I've been doing it constantly for a while now."
Meanwhile, in the conference room, the video production, planning, and hair, makeup, and styling teams were gathered, flipping through their materials.
"Let's not overcomplicate the music video."
"I agree. The song itself needs to take center stage."
"Keep the colors vibrant, but let's not make the scenes too busy."
"There are so many great individual shots that would stand out even if cut short. It'll be perfect for short-form content."
One of the staff members scrolling through a laptop screen unconsciously hummed the melody. The employee sitting next to her immediately looked up. "Did you just hum that song?"
"Huh? Ah, I didn't even realize."
"I did the exact same thing earlier."
A strange, subtle tension filled the conference room. No one had openly declared that the song would be a massive hit yet. And yet, everyone was naturally discussing the next steps with absolute confidence.
"I think releasing the full music video will have a much bigger impact than a teaser."
"Once the reactions start rolling in, we can immediately push the short-form content."
"Honestly, it wouldn't surprise me if we get a huge response from overseas first."
At those words, several people looked up simultaneously. Rabin watched them in silence. When the title track had first been overturned in the CEO's office, it hadn't felt entirely real. But now, things were different. It wasn't just empty praise. As they synchronized the choreography, edited the cuts, and aligned the visuals, every single person was showing the exact same reaction.
This is actually going to work.
After the meeting concluded, everyone gathered their materials and stood up one by one. As a video team member walked out into the hallway, he hummed the melody very softly. Another employee walking behind him unconsciously picked up the tune and hummed the next part. Rabin paused in her tracks.
Just then, the choreographer chuckled. "We're in trouble."
"Tell me about it."
"This song has been stuck in my head all day."
At noon the next day, Park Jihun was walking toward his destination with his hat pulled down low. The wind was biting. Even though he was wearing a thick padded coat, the chill seeped straight to his bones. More than the cold, though, he felt an odd sensation. Every time he walked down the street, he felt as if eyes were constantly drawing toward him.
It had to be his imagination. Sure, his short-form video views had skyrocketed over the past few days, community forums were buzzing, and his live viewership had surged, but that was strictly within the realm of internet broadcasting.
Online and offline are two completely different worlds.
Perhaps he was just being overly sensitive.
"I'm letting the strangest things get to me," Jihun muttered to himself, quickening his pace.
The meeting spot was the cafe he frequently visited with Usik. Kim Usik, who was already seated by the window, waved his hand the moment he spotted him. "Hey, over here!"
Jihun slumped into the chair opposite him.
"Why are you so late?" Usik asked.
"Late? I'm right on time."
"You're a minute late. That means you're buying the coffee."
"Why should I?"
"Because you make way more money than me now. Hurry up."
"Ugh, what a cheapskate," Jihun grumbled, but he stood up anyway. He walked over to the counter, ordered two iced Americanos, and returned to the table.
Usik rested his chin on his hand and asked, "Hey, honestly, it doesn't feel real yet, does it?"
"A little."
"Just a little?"
"Okay, a lot."
Usik cackled at his response. "I knew it."
"I don't know, it's hard to tell."
"What is?"
"It just feels like all the noise is confined to the internet."
Usik gave Jihun a strange look. "You think you're only famous online?"
"Yeah."
"Well, I wouldn't be so sure about that."
"Here we go again," Jihun said, sounding exasperated, but Usik merely shrugged.
"Speaking of which, have you gotten any offers to appear on other shows or anything?" Usik asked.
"Why would I get those? Though, I did receive some emails about sponsorships and advertisements."
"Really? What kind?"
"Just various things."
"They're already lining up like that?"
"Just because they offer doesn't mean I should accept them all. I have to be selective."
Usik let out a dry laugh. "I guess even advertisers have to get in line for you."
"If you accept everything just because it pays, you won't last long."
"Wow, look at you. Your stream gets a little popular, and suddenly you sound like a seasoned pro."
"What? Would you just accept any random ad?"
"Well, no, of course not. But still, your growth is insanely fast. It took me a whole year after starting my stream to get my first offer." Usik shook his head in disbelief.
Right then, the cafe door opened, and two young women walked in. As they scanned the room for an empty table, their eyes flicked toward Jihun. They kept looking back and forth between their phone screens and Jihun, then leaned in close to whisper to each other. Usik didn't miss a beat.
"Hey. I think those girls who just walked in recognized you."
"Stop talking nonsense."
"No, seriously."
"Shut up," Jihun snapped coldly.
But just as he said that...
Click. Clack.
The sound of heels drew closer and closer.
"Excuse me..." a female college student spoke up hesitantly.
Usik was the first to look up. "Yes? How can we help you?"
She glanced down at her phone, then looked at Jihun, her lips parting. "Are you... by any chance, Perpetual Job Seeker-nim?"
Jihun turned his head. The student was standing right beside their table. Displayed on her phone screen was a clip from the Perpetual Job Seeker stream. Jihun shot a glance at Usik, who was blatantly trying to hold back his laughter.
"No, I'm not," Jihun replied.
But she didn't back down. Instead, her face lit up even more. "You are him!"
"I told you, I'm not."
"What do you mean you're not? Your voice is exactly the same." She held out her phone. Jihun's voice was quietly playing from a viral short. As Jihun covered his face with his hands, she spoke with absolute certainty. "I watch your stream all the time."
"..."
"I even forgot you were taking a break the day before yesterday and opened Ocean out of habit."
Usik finally burst out laughing. "Wow, look at you, a total celebrity now. Why don't you give her an autograph?"
"Shut it," Jihun grumbled, but Usik was too busy laughing to care.
The student continued, "I watched the broadcast with Saebom-nim yesterday too. It was so intense I could barely breathe."
"Ah, yes."
"How do you pinpoint those exact moments so perfectly?"
Jihun looked slightly embarrassed for a moment. Seizing the opportunity, she took a breath and carefully got to her main point. "Um, by any chance... do you do offline shamanic readings?"
"..."
"Oh, I can pay the Bokchae right now!" She pulled a fifty-thousand-won bill from her wallet.
Jihun looked up at her and opened his mouth. "I don't do readings when my stream is off."
She hesitated.
Jihun added, "And... you have to get in line."
Her face flushed bright red. "I'm so sorry. I'll definitely get in line when you go live next time!"
Embarrassed, she hurriedly retreated, and her friend followed with an equally awkward expression.
Meanwhile, the atmosphere inside the cafe shifted subtly. Whispers began to echo from various corners of the room.
"I think it really is him."
"Right? It's Perpetual Job Seeker, isn't it?"
"Who's that?"
"There's this guy who's super popular on shorts lately. Look."
A high school girl sitting by the window shoved her phone screen in front of her friend's face. An office worker at the opposite table pretended to take a sip from his cup while stealing glances at Jihun. A customer waiting at the counter played a short-form video. Jihun's voice leaked out softly, blending into the ambient noise of the cafe. Hearing it, a customer at the adjacent table looked up. Now, without anyone prompting them, everyone's eyes naturally drifted toward Jihun's table.
Jihun pulled his hat down even lower. Watching this, Usik's lips curled into a smirk.
"Hey. I don't think that girl is going to be the last one."