The New Host is Too Good
Kim Namhu arrived at Jang Sun-young’s bar first.
Jang Sun-young was enjoying a lively round of drinks with her long-time regulars as always that day.
Is it selling alcohol or just drinking together?
It was a bar where the very idea of making money through alcohol felt utterly absent.
Kim Namhu received a warm greeting from Jang Sun-young.
“Oh my. What’s the matter?”
“Since you’ve helped my sales a lot, I should buy you a drink in return.”
They both knew this exchange was ridiculous.
Jang Sun-young had once been a top-ten-pro ace and a wealthy bar owner who had retired on her earnings. Kim Namhu was still nothing more than a fresh-faced newcomer climbing the ranks in the host industry.
They understood the playful banter for what it was and laughed as they prepared to drink.
Jang Sun-young was simply happy that Kim Namhu had shown his face out of a desire to manage his regulars.
Kim Namhu and Jang Sun-young shared a drink with light snacks and continued their conversation.
“Isn’t today a work day?”
“If you weren’t coming, I’d be running pointless choice rounds until dawn. Drinking cheap stuff at those places is far worse than enjoying good alcohol with you, Sun-young.”
“Any news at The Queen lately?”
“Nothing major, but there are a few interesting developments.”
“What is it?”
“It seems the Main is taking the good sales numbers very seriously. Aces get ten million won in bonuses for the month, and even the best rookie earns five hundred thousand.”
“It sounds like fun.”
As expected, Jang Sun-young had a very different sense of spending power.
Whether it was hosts, ten-pro rooms, or seducing someone, the core act was the same: earning money. But the social standing of the clients made all the difference.
Who held real money and power in Korea? Men. Ten-pro rooms earned far more.
“You’re not interested?”
“I don’t have many regulars yet. I have no natural talent for choice. I’ll just work steadily and hard the way I’ve always done. Building a solid foundation step by step is far more important than hoping for sudden success through luck.”
Kim Namhu never showed weakness.
He never pretended to be helpless in order to ask for help, nor did he display any servile behavior.
He never complained about his situation.
He simply presented the perfect picture of a promising newcomer destined for success in this industry.
Jang Sun-young smiled at Kim Namhu’s attitude.
After an hour of light conversation, Kim Namhu paid the bill and returned to The Queen.
Even if it was free work, spending more than an hour goofing off during working hours was hardly professional.
The next day.
Kim Namhu took a similar approach with Han Ki-ju, the client who had designated him.
He casually mentioned how interesting the events at The Queen were and said he had no interest in them.
He stressed that building real skill steadily was more important than joining the crowd.
Han Ki-ju looked at him with the same eyes Jang Sun-young had shown earlier.
Kim Namhu casually sowed a few seeds and went about his work as usual.
He showed no particular results in choice, but he introduced himself enthusiastically and sang with real passion every time he sat at a table.
Every table charge mattered in the end.
While Kim Namhu worked tirelessly, the hosts at The Queen gathered during breaks to discuss the current situation.
This time the discussion included the Main, Lee Sang-soo, who had a rare moment of free time.
In Lee Sang-soo’s private office, the two sat drinking coffee.
“How’s the atmosphere been lately?”
As a Main, the answer was ambiguous.
Sometimes it was necessary to act as the villain and push everyone to work harder, and sometimes one had to play the fox and be more cunning.
And because he was the boss, he rarely showed his true colors to even long-time hosts.
That was why Lee Sang-soo preferred to ask Jang Hyo-woon what the mood in the host waiting room was like.
“It’s fine. Everyone’s buzzing with energy. We’re still early in the month, so as long as they keep working hard they should be able to hit ace status at least once.”
“That’s good to hear.”
“But don’t get too excited. The kids have been fixated on money lately and are pressuring clients to order more expensive drinks.”
“I’ve been out of that for a long time myself.”
If a host begged too hard for expensive drinks, the pressure usually came back on the client.
Lee Sang-soo knew that well.
“What about the new ones?”
“They’re making bets among themselves and causing chaos. They’re determined to boost sales no matter what.”
“No unreasonable requests toward regulars?”
“I’ve already given advice. They seem to have caught on.”
If someone had a brain, they wouldn’t try to squeeze money out of regulars.
It would be the same as deciding to only work here for a month and then quit.
“What about Namhu?”
Lee Sang-soo saved his most important question for last.
A large smile spread across his face.
He knew that betting on money only helped in the short term.
Yet there was only one reason he had done it.
He was simply curious about how far Kim Namhu, the newcomer, could go.
Could he really obtain a high-quality regular so soon?
While it might be luck to get even one good regular within a few months, taming the true rival of The Queen, Geomma, was never luck.
And making it to first place among new hosts with just two regulars would not be easy.
Lee Sang-soo wanted to know exactly how far Kim Namhu would grow.
“Namhu will do well on his own. He was seen leaving for a bit to meet regulars, but now he’s just working hard inside the bar. Honestly, his pick-up rate isn’t great, but once he sits at a table he fills the time perfectly and orders drinks with perfect taste.”
“No conflicts?”
“Oh, come on. Why would you ask that, hyung?”
Jang Hyo-woon saw right through his boss’s hidden concern.
Lee Sang-soo wasn’t just worried about Namhu’s future.
Having a rising rookie would naturally spoil the waiting room atmosphere.
Hosts who had been active longer had to watch each other’s moves.
One of two reactions would follow: ignore the newcomer and lose motivation, or start arguments and pick fights.
This was a headache for the Main as well.
Yet he couldn’t tell a well-growing newcomer to stop working hard.
So the hyung went all out betting on the newbies.
The fastest way to resolve this was simple.
Ultimately, skill mattered more than age or experience in this industry.
When a newcomer demonstrated overwhelming skill and became untouchable, the others would simply leave him alone.
Most aces never go through this process. It’s rare for a Main to set the board this openly.
Jang Hyo-woon laughed.
It pleased him that his trusted hyung had not yet become a fully toothless tiger.
Lee Sang-soo had once been a promising talent, an ace, and a veteran who had seen every kind of trouble this world could offer.
“But hyung, do you have the luxury of caring about the maknae?”
Jang Hyo-woon expressed his worry for his boss.
From the outside, The Queen’s box looked to be cruising smoothly.
The atmosphere was good and sales were strong.
But if you looked inside, things were far from ideal for Lee Sang-soo.
The biggest problem was that the single box needed to function as one was divided into factions.
Honoring people by skill was how the host industry worked, yet factions dividing the box meant anyone could leave whenever they wanted without anyone thinking it strange.
And if an entire faction left, Lee Sang-soo’s box would become nothing more than a hollow shell.
In such a situation, the bets Lee Sang-soo had made had helped fan the flames of factional conflict.
“Why? Are you worried about Choi Moon-ho?”
Oh Chang-won was a loner who moved independently.
As long as he was treated well, he had no reason to leave and would drag no one else with him.
Choi Moon-ho was different.
Right now he was satisfied with his treatment and the bar’s facilities, so he kept showing up.
But if anything went wrong, he would never look back and take his entire faction with him.
“I am concerned. But I can’t order him to stay either.”
“Don’t worry. I’ve been drinking with Moon-ho for a while. He has cold corners, but he’s not a complete robot.”
“How can you trust someone?”
Jang Hyo-woon grumbled.
He had worked in this industry with Lee Sang-soo for years and had met countless swindlers.
His conclusion was simple: there was no one trustworthy in the world, and those who looked trustworthy were the least trustworthy of all.
“That’s why I’m going to work hard too this time.”
“You?”
“I’m after all your direct line, hyung. Choi Moon-ho is too proud; if you bend, he’ll try to eat you alive. It’s better to show strength now so he won’t leave out of embarrassment.”
Lee Sang-soo smiled widely.
If he knew Choi Moon-ho’s personality as well as he did, this was likely the outcome.
“Hey. Everyone under me. Everyone’s my line.”
“That’s what they say. Words.”