Chapter 41
Chapter 41
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Translator: TrueDetective
Chapter: 41
Chapter Title: 13. A Brief Commercial Break (2)
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"Long time no see, everyone."
After a short wait in the meeting room, the CEO entered with a bright smile.
"Our Assistant Manager Dang will be working as an assistant manager this time... but since you all already know him, I guess we can skip the introductions?"
Jaha looked like he had a ton to say, but he couldn't bring himself to question the CEO, so he just clamped his mouth shut.
Jaha's gotten a lot more patient.
"Please take good care of me, sunbaes."
Assistant Manager Dang smiled widely as he placed a coffee cup in front of each member, but no one reached for theirs right away.
"Coffee's best when it's instant mix."
Heavenly Demon was the only one who casually brought his cup to his lips without a care.
The CEO pushed his coffee cup aside with his hand and continued.
"First things first... we need to talk about the leak of Heavenly Demon-nim's personal conversation."
"Right, what the hell was that?"
Jaha's eyes went wide as he scooted right up to the table and asked.
"We couldn't check our phones during the jungle shoot, so I saw it on the flight back. I meant to ask as soon as we met, but I totally forgot because of Assistant Manager Dang. That was faked, right?"
"Faked? Why bring up faked all of a sudden?"
He's an internet master but doesn't know the 'jujak' meme?
"Manipulated, manipulated. No, Ssabuni's a foreigner who doesn't know this stuff, and they're just making up stories about his nationality. That's too much. He can't even go back to his hometown because it's so far away."
Heavenly Demon, who'd been listening to Jaha, tilted his head.
"Where do you think this Lord's hometown is?"
"You're from the savanna, right, hyung? It's a culture where the strong are on top and the weak are below, isn't it, Ilgeom-hyung?"
I could see Alliance Leader next to Jaha desperately holding back a laugh.
Eighty percent of the reason Jaha gets called an idiot is because of Alliance Leader's pranks.
But even so, thinking of the savanna as a country name is a bit...
Heavenly Demon didn't seem to understand Jaha's words at all, but he replied indifferently.
"I went to Saudi last time."
"Not sauna, savanna."
"Are you talking about the Saha World?"
"What's Saha World? I know about the Tartarus Demon Realm, though."
"Demon Realm's delicious."
"Uh, listening to this conversation is starting to make my head spin."
"Yeah..."
The CEO, looking dazed, clapped once to get everyone's attention and spoke.
"Anyway, rest assured, there's no truth to the fans' worries that Heavenly Demon-nim is quitting being an idol. Right?"
"Correct. Unfair hate."
"You don't know 'jujak' but you know 'eokka'?"
"By the way, that leaked clip still hasn't been taken down. Is that okay?"
When Alliance Leader asked worriedly, the CEO smiled reassuringly.
"The post will be handled soon. We've hired the distributor."
"Ah... What? Hired? Not sued?"
At the word "sued," Assistant Manager Dang flinched noticeably.
"Isn't a lawsuit a bit much?"
I think a lawsuit is overkill too, but it's ridiculous hearing that from that bastard Assistant Manager Dang.
Jaha, unaware that the distributor was Assistant Manager Dang, wagged his finger side to side.
"You don't get it. Our company has a zero-tolerance policy for rumors."
"So you zap them with a stun gun."
"No, we don't go that far, no matter what."
"?"
I averted my gaze from Assistant Manager Dang.
The discussion soon moved to the next item.
The CEO flipped through the documents in front of him and said.
"Next... the Jungle Training Camp Chaos is scheduled to wrap filming after episode 10."
Ten episodes... They've finished editing up to episode 8, so two more to go?
It was originally planned as a six-parter.
The shoot ended up running longer than expected.
In two weeks, we'll be free from the dorm cameras.
That's when Jaha raised his hand and asked.
"Does that mean our group dorm life is over too?"
"Season 2 might get made, but if you want, you can end the dorm living."
"Then where will Ssabuni... no, Heavenly Demon-hyung stay?"
Come to think of it, Heavenly Demon still doesn't have a place of his own.
He always complained the dorm was too cramped, so he's probably not staying there.
By year-end, Heavenly Demon will get his settlement too.
He wrote the lyrics and composed for the Murim Merits song, so the payout won't be small.
But does Heavenly Demon even have a bank account?
...He can receive the settlement, right?
He doesn't have an account, but we forged his passport, so a bank account should be...
"You can keep living in the dorm like now."
The CEO added with a grin.
"Or you can stay at my place until you decide on somewhere to live."
"At the CEO's house?!"
Jaha wasn't the only one shocked by the CEO's sudden remark.
I was too, and Alliance Leader and Taegeuk looked pretty surprised as well.
We've visited a few times for music video shoots.
The CEO's home is huge, and we've only been in the areas open for filming, so we don't know exactly what's inside.
The person who knows the CEO's home best is probably Sin Tae-eul, who broke in to rob it.
'If Heavenly Demon stays at the CEO's place, he might get to see those secret books.'
The massive amount of Heavenly Demon-related materials that Sin Tae-eul saw.
If he could see those, we might get a hint about what the CEO is planning.
The CEO must know Heavenly Demon would snoop around, yet he's inviting him to stay.
What's he thinking?
"What do you say?"
The CEO asked Heavenly Demon with an enigmatic expression I couldn't read.
Heavenly Demon, who'd been tilting his head, gave a short reply.
"I'll think about it."
"Do you have somewhere else to stay?"
"There's the administrator's place."
"Mine's a one-room."
"What's a one-room?"
"You know my room in the dorm?"
"Yeah."
"Mine's like two of those stuck together."
"......"
Is childless Heavenly Demon looking at me pitifully right now?
"Take your time thinking about the dorm... Next up is the announcement for Heavenly Demon-nim's ad shoot schedule."
Ad shoot?
They said they were looking for an ad that suits Heavenly Demon, and they've finally found one.
Heavenly Demon looked indifferent even at the ad talk, but Jaha was thrilled like it was his own business.
"Finally, Ssabuni's doing an ad shoot too! What ad is it?"
Excluding Namgung Jun, all Gu Pa Il Bang members had exclusive modeling gigs.
Jaha was a muse for an overseas luxury clothing brand.
Taegeuk did outdoor gear, Baek Na-han vegan cosmetics.
The exclusive model for Heavenly Demon's favorite instant coffee mix was Alliance Leader.
Wonder what ad would suit Heavenly Demon.
"Feels like it'd be cup ramen."
"If it's cup ramen, this Lord approves."
"Ssabuni, that was killer rhyme just now."
Cup ramen ad, huh. Sounds plausible.
It wouldn't look weird with an idol model, and he's been hyping up cup ramen everywhere.
But the CEO laughed as if that was unlikely and continued.
"The ad Heavenly Demon-nim will star in is 'Lion.'"
"Lion?!"
Jaha jumped up from his seat in shock.
"Lion uses idol models too?! I use Lion!"
Lion is a smartphone brand.
Heavenly Demon's beloved AI, Cherry.
The smartphone loaded with Cherry is Lion.
"Whoa, insane. First ad is Lion? This is huge, Ssabuni!"
Just as Jaha said, a rookie like Heavenly Demon landing a Lion ad is massive.
Lion holds the world's number one market share.
It means they don't need hype ads with idols.
Yet they specifically chose Heavenly Demon, so they're probably planning an ad that perfectly fits his image.
Gu Pa Il Bang is as famous as Lion, but Heavenly Demon's still just a hot rookie domestically.
Becoming Lion's ad model would boost his recognition worldwide.
"What's Lion?"
"The smartphone you're using is Lion."
"Let's be precise. It's the item you confiscated and won't return, that's Lion."
"We can't return the phone to Heavenly Demon-nim until he stops using words like 'ttuldak' or 'eokka.'"
"I'll make sure not to use them from now on."
He gave in so easily.
Gu Pa Il Bang members made promises like that about not drinking in the dorm early in debut too.
Never kept a single one.
I tested Heavenly Demon.
"What's the term for those thirteen and under?"
Heavenly Demon pondered briefly before cautiously answering.
"...Jammin?"
"Yes, you can pick up your phone in one week."
"Should've said 'gyeupsik.'"
"Two weeks extension."
"What?!"
Heavenly Demon looked like he'd lost everything, and Jaha, feeling sorry, glanced around and said.
"Can't you let it slide once? They say you learn swears first when picking up a foreign language."
"This Lord has never sworn once?"
"Jaha, you haven't seen Heavenly Demon-nim's posts yet."
"I'll correct his speech right next to him."
"You're the one who taught him 'kingppa.'"
Caught by my point, Jaha's face flushed a bit.
But Jaha didn't back down and retorted.
"Wh-who doesn't use that these days! And how inconvenient is it without a phone!"
"If you need anything, I'll handle it right beside you, so it's fine."
"No, Ssabuni's a grown adult, he can manage! Confiscating his phone like that?"
"That's why I confiscated it—because he can't manage."
"So why solve it that way!"
"Why's your voice getting louder?"
Assistant Manager Dang, standing nearby, placed a hand on Jaha's shoulder as if to intervene.
"Mom, Dad... don't fight..."
"...If making it more 'kingppa' was meant to calm things down, it worked."
Now it looks like I was scolding Heavenly Demon in front of the others.
The members except Heavenly Demon were looking at us anxiously.
Heavenly Demon didn't seem to care at all.
Well... since he's doing the Lion ad anyway, it makes sense to give the phone back.
It'd look weird if the model doesn't carry Lion.
I pulled the phone from my inner pocket and handed it to Heavenly Demon.
"Jaha has a point. And you need it for the Lion ad, so here."
"You'll be blessed."
I'd put kid lock on it ages ago anyway.
"By the way, what image is Lion going for with Heavenly Demon-nim?"
"They like the timeless feel."
"Timeless feel?"
"Heavenly Demon-nim always wears wuxia robes, and his speech and mannerisms scream 'from the past.' They want to capture him listening to music on Lion, dancing, working out, traveling the modern world, interacting with the AI. They could use an actor, but they want something natural."
Heavenly Demon using modern gadgets really does have that captivating ad-worthy vibe.
His unique cynical aura matches Lion's image too.
Heavenly Demon, who'd been listening quietly, spoke up.
"Is this ad thing just me filming alone?"
"Lion only requested Heavenly Demon-nim as the model."
"Oh ho. They're calling me solo, eh."
Heavenly Demon seemed to think for a moment, then one corner of his mouth quirked up.
"This Lord doesn't fall for such traps."
"...Pardon? What trap?"
"I've studied idols in the meantime."
Heavenly Demon studied idols?
With a sly smile, Heavenly Demon said.
"Deciding to do an event like this solo drops fandom favorability by a whopping twenty percent."
"...Favorability?"
"The Green Forest bastards' agency makes good games. Realistic too."
"You mean an idol nurturing simulation game? From another agency?"
"Indeed. For reference, this Lord full-comped the Uchi bastard."
No wonder push notifications came every hour on Heavenly Demon's phone. Game alerts.
"Who installed it?"
"Sorry."
Alliance Leader grinned sheepishly and admitted it.
"There was a character you get from friend invites."
"You play that game too??"
"Hyung, try it. It's really well-made."
He's already a top idol, why play an idol nurturing game?
"Anyway, CEO. In cases like this, the answer's set."
Heavenly Demon crossed his arms arrogantly and declared.
"If it's not all six of us together, I refuse."
"......"
The CEO tilted his head in confusion, then spoke slowly.
"It's admirable as a rep, but... Lion sent over a storyboard almost fully done with just Heavenly Demon-nim. If we want the whole Gu Pa Il Bang, we'll need to counter with a better proposal."
"No need to worry. This Lord is an idol master. A genius producer of no less than 101 talents."
As Heavenly Demon spouted nonsense with a meaningful smile,
"I've got a plan."