Chapter 89
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 89
Chapter Title: Please Be a Substitute
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Perhaps it was because the performance had come so out of the blue.
Or maybe the music they'd just heard had been too shocking.
Either way, the customers, staff, and even the Bluebird in the restaurant sat there with dazed expressions long after the song ended, blinking blankly.
"So, what'd you think, partner?"
There were two exceptions.
Yujin, who finished the song with a grin.
And Rimon, who set down his guitar as if his head hurt and rubbed his temples.
"...Aren't you asking too much, making me do something that reckless on the spot?"
"But you pulled it off, didn't you?"
"Over half of that was luck."
"Either way, your dilemma's solved now, right?"
Rimon shut his mouth.
He gave Yujin, who was beaming at him, a troubled look before letting out a sigh.
"Fine. Thanks to you, I did get a little insight."
"OK! So does that settle one debt? Meaning you'll perform for me next time I want?"
"Not even close."
"Huh?"
Rimon pointed at the empty plates on the table with a deadpan tone, even as Yujin smiled radiantly, clearly thrilled about something.
"If we're talking debt priorities, shouldn't you settle this bill first?"
"Wait, wasn't partner covering this?"
"I never said it was free."
Rimon snorted softly.
He could treat a friend to a meal, but he wasn't about to play the sucker.
Sure, Yujin had helped him find a lead on the vicious beasts, but that didn't mean he'd let her mooch off him without a fight.
[Whoa, petty much.]
'Should I put your meal on the tab too and make you pay it back with compound interest?'
[...You're right. Money matters between friends need to be crystal clear! It's different from a boss treating a subordinate, obviously.]
Perhaps realizing her hearty meal had just turned into debt, Yujin glanced at the mountain of empty plates on the table and said with an innocent smile,
"Partner, I'm on the run from debt collectors right now, so scraping together cash is tough... So..."
Rimon smiled just as innocently.
"You'll pay me back when you have some spare change?"
"How'd you know????"
"That's what people say when they borrow money and plan to ghost you."
"Partner, it hurts that you don't trust me."
"Who's gonna treat a friend with no means to pay it back?"
That was when it started.
Their bickering match kicked off.
Yujin made no secret of her intent to saddle him with debt and turn him into her personal performance shuttle.
Rimon countered shamelessly that this and that were separate issues—she needed to pay the bill first.
The two turned the restaurant rowdy in an entirely different way from before. Amid it all, Yunakyung covered her face with her wings.
[Why is the embarrassment always my burden?]
As the pair went at it full tilt,
A random voice cut in.
"Sorry to interrupt, but could I have a quick word?"
"Busy. Scram."
"We're in the middle of something, partner."
Rimon and Yujin brushed him off cleanly.
But the man who'd spoken didn't seem offended in the slightest.
With a smile like he'd met his savior in hell—a perfect 120 out of 100—he added,
"If you give me a moment, I'll cover your entire bill here."
"OK! Take a seat!"
As if she'd never ignored him.
Yujin cheerfully made room.
'...Damn it all.'
On the flip side, Rimon—who'd just lost his leverage over the bill—scowled.
He eyed the man suspiciously and blurted,
"Who the hell are you? You're not here to complain about the noise, are you?"
"Oh, right—I haven't introduced myself."
Even after getting blunt banmal from Rimon, who looked younger than him, the man didn't bat an eye.
If anything, he seemed grateful for the reminder and handed over two business cards.
The moment they checked them,
The man smiled at Rimon and Yujin, whose expressions flipped completely, and introduced himself.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Kim Seungjun, a PD at KTB."
"KT-what now? KTV?"
"...It's B, not V. KTB."
"Ah, got it. Sorry. I don't watch much cable."
"No surprise there. Even I'd admit our cable channel isn't exactly popular."
Kim Seungjun gave a wry smile.
These days, some cable channels rivaled broadcast ratings, but those were the hits.
Others lagged behind even the national anthem broadcast in average viewership—and unfortunately, KTB was one of them.
Perpetual deficits.
Short on funds and staff.
Outdated equipment and name recognition.
It was a miracle they hadn't folded yet; they were practically rolling in the grave.
"So, what were you prepping at that failing station? Music... something?"
"Music Challenge. It's a show where we give singers and musicians tough challenges, and successful ones get rewards."
"Sounds like a game quest. Give 'em tasks, hand out prizes?"
"The sponsor's actually a game company. If it hits, we're planning a tie-in app game."
"...Aren't you drinking the kimchi soup a bit too salty?"
"As I said, our station's in dire straits."
A modest scale for most places.
But for KTB, this was a massive gamble that could make or break them.
Rumors swirled that failure meant a sale or merger.
"And to ensure success, our ace in the hole was booking Claire."
"Claire... That kid popping up on TV lately?"
"Yes. With her singing alone, we'd pull at least ten million viewers."
Over ten million domestically at minimum.
Billions worldwide with her fandom.
Claire—a top idol at her peak, also a duke-level player—practically guaranteed success in the Korean entertainment scene.
"The game company invested big because her guild, WIM, locked in the booking. But..."
"That promise went poof."
"...My mistake. No matter what that bastard Team Leader Mun spouts, I should've gotten the contract signed!"
Kim Seungjun gnashed his teeth.
He should've seen it when Team Leader Mun kept dodging the contract under excuses, angling for freebies.
Assuming the infamous sleaze was just squeezing perks had been his error.
"Eh, high-level players being trash isn't news."
"Claire's a good person. The problem's her guild WIM and that thug Team Leader pulling power trips."
"You sure about that?"
"Pardon?"
"Guild this, team leader that—ultimately, it's the person's own will that matters."
Rimon continued flatly, clearly unconvinced.
"I don't know showbiz, but could a guild arbitrarily reshuffle a duke-level player's schedule over level 80 without her say-so?"
In this Iron Age, level 60+ made you a one-person corporation.
Level 80+ dukes wielded corporate-scale income, influence, and power—peaks in their fields.
A guild overriding that? Absurd.
"...WIM might."
Rimon blinked at Kim Seungjun's hesitant reply.
"Not even a top-10 guild, and they can pull that?"
"Influence like that doesn't require top-10 status."
"Hmm?"
Rimon stroked his chin.
And asked mentally,
'Hey, Na-kyung. WIM's guild master related to the Monarch-in-Law or something?'
[How should I know? Entertainment wasn't my team's beat at PAB.]
'Still, you'd have heard rumors.'
[Well... I know WIM's big in that industry, but beyond that...]
Rimon and Yunakyung tilted their heads.
As ex-PAB agents, they knew major Korean guilds inside out.
Even as the top entertainment guild, WIM was just a agency—hard to buy that level of pull.
"So?"
A grumpy voice snapped them back—a stark change from Yujin's earlier glee at the free-meal offer.
"Why spill all this?"
Kim Seungjun answered without hesitation.
"To be direct: I want to book you two."
"Hmm. Basically, Claire bailed, so plug us in as pinch hitters?"
"Pretty much."
Rimon scratched his cheek after a moment's odd expression.
"Got a ton of questions, but one first."
"Shoot."
"What's your angle?"
"Pardon?"
"Claire's this mega-famous singer, right? So why ask total unknowns like us to sub?"
A cool, logical point.
Claire had tens of millions of fans. Even top musicians couldn't fill her shoes.
Yet here was this guy pitching unknowns—ones he'd just met—to replace her.
Even Rimon, clueless on entertainment, had to cock his head.
Kim Seungjun's response was straightforward.
"Yeah, it's weird."
"...You're agreeing way too quick."
"It's the truth. An hour ago, if someone suggested you two for Claire? I'd have called them insane."
Perfectly reasonable—if not for the man making the insane pitch.
"What changed between then and now?"
"Before and after hearing your song and playing."
Kim Seungjun replied without a shred of doubt to Rimon's half-baffled, half-curious look.
"I'm a rookie PD, green as they come. But I can tell good music from mediocre."
"So ours is the good stuff?"
"No."
He denied it firmly.
Staring straight at Rimon and Yujin with utter sincerity, he said,
"It's music that's destined to succeed."