110. SJ Entertainment
110. SJ Entertainment
***
Yoo Eunha.
[I'm bored. Serin.]
11:13 AM
I checked the message and let out an involuntary laugh.
"Eunha really is... mentally tough, I guess you'd say."
When I first found out about the article, it gave me chills, but Eunha's message was so ordinary that somehow the whole thing didn't feel as serious anymore.
After sending Sua a message thanking her for filling me in on everything, I continued messaging Eunha.
Me.
[Eunha, do you know about the article?]
Yoo Eunha.
[If you mean the article, the front desk contacted me this morning]
Me.
[So do articles about your personal life come out often? I was just so shocked that my day with you yesterday became news]
Yoo Eunha.
[If I had to say, they come out fairly often. I checked this one too. The photos had already been taken down, and even the copies circulating online had you properly mosaicked, so I was relieved. I've dealt with articles like this plenty of times by now, so I mostly just shrug them off]
...She brushed it off so casually that I was a little surprised.
"Does she just not care?"
I muttered blankly, wondering what to send Eunha.
Actually, in the middle of all that, I could see her consideration for me in her message, but she seemed completely unbothered even though an article with her own face captured so clearly had come out.
Maybe this was the composure of a star, or something like that.
Yoo Eunha.
[Hey, Serin, did you go straight to sleep when you got home yesterday? I messaged you but didn't get a reply...]
Me.
[Yes, that's right. I actually showered yesterday and fell asleep right away. I'm sorry I couldn't answer your message right away. I tend to fall asleep quickly]
As I made that half-hearted explanation, I moved my arms and legs around for a moment.
The difference was slight, but compared to my first day in this world, my body had improved at least a little.
Yoo Eunha.
[Oh, I see. I was worried I might have been bothering you, so I'll message you mainly in the morning or afternoon!]
Me.
[You can message me in the evening too. Oh, but I probably won't be able to answer properly while I'm streaming]
Yoo Eunha.
[I won't message you during your stream times!]
"Judging by her messages, Eunha seems... fine."
Unlike what I'd expected, she talked as if the article wasn't even worth paying attention to, so I wondered if I was the only one making a big deal out of it.
After exchanging a few light messages with small emoticons, I headed to the bathroom.
The time was approaching noon.
Since I'd gone to bed early yesterday, I'd woken up earlier than usual, but I wanted to deal with my greasy hair first.
Hsssssh.
Along with the sound of water from the shower hose, Serin let herself sink into the warm water.
—BaTalk!
Yoo Eunha.
[Serin. Donations during your stream are okay, right?]
***
The nation's top entertainment company. SJ Entertainment.
It owned TSJ, the domestic pro team for Another World, currently the most popular game, and had expanded into countless other areas—actors, singers, even idols—to the point that it was harder to find a corner of entertainment SJ hadn't entered. It had an overwhelming presence across entertainment and variety programming.
Even in the broadcasting industry, its influence was so strong that no matter what variety program you turned on, there was bound to be at least one SJ-affiliated celebrity in it.
And right now, Seong Jinwoo—a deputy director in the esports division and head coach of the team TSJ—was feeling a small surge of irritation.
Thwack!
A file of approval documents slammed hard against the desk with a sharp sound.
Setting the file down, Jinwoo clutched his forehead and muttered irritably.
"Seriously, these advertisers... why are they so uninterested in the other kids, damn it! I've told them over and over that the others would do well too if they just got some backing."
Jinwoo, who had been reviewing various documents for TSJ, let out a sigh that sounded more like a grumble.
Advertisers, every last one of them, were only looking for Eunha.
Their attention was so concentrated on her that there were even several brands saying they wouldn't sign any future advertising contracts unless it was with Eunha.
If a major brand advertising contract fell through, Jinwoo didn't need to see it to know exactly how the team's future support would be affected.
"It's really something how pro players can't get popular just by being good at the game."
Their league standing was still firmly first place.
Even with Eunha, their core player, absent, the other kids were performing incredibly well.
No, actually, because Eunha was absent, many of the players seemed to be trying even harder.
Despite the massive gap left by the absence of their starter and core player, the players were working more than twice as hard as usual, as if this was the moment they had to prove their worth.
The players tried not to show it, but it was obvious anyway. Jinwoo felt sorry for them, while the whole situation was also a huge source of stress.
Realistically, even when various advertising or team-related opportunities came up, he wanted to distribute incentives and benefits to the other kids instead of Eunha, but it was hard to do so.
"Hoo."
Jinwoo leaned back in his office chair, stared at the ceiling, and closed his eyes for a moment to clear his head.
He was reminded just how big a hole Eunha's absence left, and at the same time had no idea how to correct the imbalance.
To put it bluntly, if Eunha were to say she wouldn't re-sign with the team next year, TSJ—a team with enormous popularity and influence—would obviously go through a massive crisis.
Eunha's recent comments about wanting to rest and feeling tired also kept weighing heavily on his mind.
"Eunha... actually needs her ads and external events reduced."
He knew Eunha didn't particularly like external events or advertisements. She did them quietly when she had to, but her reluctance showed through without her realizing it.
But since the very foundation of TSJ as a team was an entertainment company, there were naturally a huge number of ads and external events coming in for its players.
No, to be precise, there were too many things involving 'Eunha.'
Since they'd tied the players to the team with amounts that were overwhelming compared to other teams, there were too many schedules outside of practice designed to squeeze even more value out of them.
At first, he'd thought the schedules might be too much, but since the players actually handled them well, the demands from above kept increasing.
Then this morning's article about Eunha suddenly came to mind, and Jinwoo's voice sharpened.
"Those paparazzi bastards, seriously... they all need to drop dead, fucking scumbags."
Even on break, Eunha's days were eventful.
Even when she did nothing and sat out matches, all sorts of talk came out in the community every single day, and if she so much as showed her face outside, articles went up about it every single day.
"...I'm the same."
He'd said he needed to pay attention to the other kids besides Eunha, yet the moment he got lost in thought, he was thinking about Eunha again.
She was truly an ideal player, almost to the point of perfection.
For the entire three years since her pro debut, she'd always performed well, so the expectations placed on her only kept growing.
And she was a player who didn't just meet those high expectations—she always exceeded them.
Yoo Eunha. Before anyone knew it, she had become the core of TSJ, its very foundation, and had come to command a market value on a completely different level from the other players.
So much so that offers had come in from overseas, not to sponsor TSJ as a team, but to sign sponsorship deals with Eunha personally.
The launch of the Another World league had been delayed in other countries, but the ACK League had already reached several countries long ago, so Eunha's popularity overseas was beyond imagination.
Her looks were outstanding enough to rival the company's own celebrities, and her performance as a pro player was overwhelming too.
She was a player blessed with every talent, as if loved by a god.
When that kid suddenly said she wanted a break and abruptly cleared her schedule, Jinwoo belatedly realized he'd pushed things too far.
He'd kept demanding more just because she silently accepted every condition without complaint, and it had finally blown up. Because Eunha had always handled everything so well, the blow to the team was even greater.
Setting aside results, the mere fact that the player responsible for the team's image had shown such behavior meant that, in terms of brand damage, a considerable amount of money had quietly vanished.
"Man. I'm going to get chewed out for this."
Thinking about all the criticism he'd receive over player management, Jinwoo's head was already aching.
***
At exactly 4 PM, the stream turned on, glowing green.
Eunha sat in front of her desktop, having prepared various desserts and drinks, and stared at it.
—The Wednesday, August 11 stream has started.
Soon, a voice that was both familiar and strangely fascinating reached her ears.
The voice coming through the microphone today had a different charm from the one she'd heard in person yesterday.
'...How can even her voice be this nice?'
While tossing and turning in bed last night, Eunha had found herself nodding along as she wondered whether this was what having a real 'friend' felt like. Yesterday's memories were still vivid, and they had become unforgettable to her.
However, when there was no reply after she sent her message, she'd felt quite down—but today she'd heard from Serin that she'd fallen asleep and couldn't reply.
It was such a small explanation, yet her gloomy mood melted away instantly, like cotton candy dissolving in water.
—Since I took a day off yesterday, I'll stream a bit longer for the next three days instead.
At the mention of streaming longer for three days, Eunha smiled at the thought of being able to watch her longer.
'Could it be... because of me?'
Then, out of nowhere, that thought crossed Eunha's mind.
Yesterday, she'd said she had three days left before returning to the team.
Maybe Serin had said that out of consideration for her.
She nibbled on the small desserts and fruit she'd prepared while waiting for the right moment in the stream.
No matter how well others treated her or how much attention they gave her, Eunha had never really developed an interest in other people.
So even the joy that came from human relationships was practically something she'd experienced for the first time yesterday. And it was beyond anything she'd imagined: interacting with someone and finding joy in it.
It was so different from dealing with people out of obligation every day that she'd lost sleep over it.
That was why the amount she'd loaded up today was a bit larger than usual.
— Donation account balance: 5,000,000 won.
She planned to keep donating here and there, and she wanted to make her presence felt to Serin during the stream before returning to the team dorm.
Once she returned to the dorm, there would be fewer days when she could watch streams this leisurely.
Yoo Eunha was determined to make sure Serin remembered her.
—Ding-ding-ding-ding!!!!
Then, at the sudden loud donation sound, Eunha stared at her own hands in surprise.
She definitely hadn't pressed the donate button yet.
'I haven't donated yet.'
When she turned her gaze, she saw a donation message filling the screen.
『Kang Hyeok donated 1,000,000 won!!』
《Didn't you say you were cheering for me while watching the G1 match last time?》