Chapter 61
Chapter 61
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: uly
Chapter: 61
Chapter Title: Chapter 21: Knowledge is Power (1)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
The world's greatest MC!
That was Kang Han-do's new goal.
Back in his unknown days, he wouldn't have dared to even dream of something like that. He was too busy just looking straight ahead and walking.
But now, Kang Han-do decided to lift his head. He resolved to aim for something farther away.
He still had a long way to go. Beyond his goal of becoming a superstar, he couldn't ignore the lives of people around the world hanging from both his shoulders.
He would create a world where not just him, but everyone was happy.
A world filled with laughter. And Kang Han-do would stand at its center.
Yoon Chae-won noticed the spark in Kang Han-do's eyes.
He knew it well.
The craving celebrities had for popularity.
Among all the celebrities—and even aspiring ones—he'd met so far, no one had shown such intense longing for superstardom as Kang Han-do.
She had a feeling that Kang Han-do just might pull it off.
With one of their agency's talents showing such drive, there was only one thing for her, as CEO, to do.
"LC Entertainment will fully support you until the day you become a superstar, Han-do ssi."
"Thank you, CEO."
The two men shook hands.
Now that he'd declared his ambition...
It was time to move forward.
* * *
On a day off from broadcasting, Kang Han-do headed to the home where Oh Sin-hoon lived.
Kang Han-do looked tense as he swallowed hard.
This was his first time visiting the home of Oh Sin-hoon, the MC hailed as Korea's number one. It hadn't happened even in his previous life before regression.
'I'm nervous.'
He'd considered wearing a suit but decided that would be overkill.
When he pressed the doorbell, the front door opened right away.
"Come on in. Took you a while?"
"No, not at all. The subway was super quick—just seven stops, there and gone in a blink."
"Oh? No car?"
"I'm thinking about getting a new one soon."
"Better get one. You finish shoots late a lot. If the subway or bus stops running, you're stuck paying for an expensive taxi. And crashing near the set isn't ideal either. Want me to get you one? I could swing something cheap."
"No, no, it's fine, sunbae-nim."
That would be way too generous.
Kang Han-do refused immediately. But it gave him a sense of how much Oh Sin-hoon thought of him—and how much attention he paid.
Oh Sin-hoon's house wasn't as big as he'd imagined. For a top celebrity, it felt a bit... modest?
It was incredibly down-to-earth.
'He must make a ton of money.'
Oh Sin-hoon was known as a celebrity who lived frugally compared to his earnings.
The car he drove was a domestic model under 30 million won. The house looked about 25 pyeong.
His clothes, the watch on his wrist—none of it featured any luxury brands.
"You live pretty simply, sunbae-nim."
"It's not so much simplicity as me just not being greedy. When other celebrity colleagues get fancy cars or watches, I just think, 'Oh, nice,' and that's it. No envy or anything."
Like Kang Han-do, Oh Sin-hoon had endured a long unknown period. Nearly ten years as a nobody. 'I figured someone with that kind of past would cling to spending, but not everyone's the same.'
Personal taste, he supposed. He let it go.
Once they settled in the living room, Oh Sin-hoon's wife brought over apples and chilled iced coffee.
"Take your time chatting."
"Thank you, hyungsu-nim."
Kang Han-do expressed his gratitude to her.
Oh Sin-hoon's wife had once been a stewardess for an airline. Now she'd quit to focus on supporting him.
Even with a son starting elementary school, she retained her youthful beauty. Was Oh Sin-hoon picky? Or did he just happen to fall for someone this stunning? Kang Han-do wondered quietly.
But he had bigger curiosities.
What made a host? What made an MC?
How could he make a program more fun as an MC? Kang Han-do hadn't figured that out yet.
He'd honed skills for making people laugh on comedy shows or gag stages. But leading a program and drawing laughs that way? He'd never done it.
He needed know-how for variety entertainment.
That's why he'd come to Oh Sin-hoon for advice.
Savoring his coffee, Oh Sin-hoon carefully set down his cup.
"You like coffee?"
"Yes, I do."
"What do you usually drink?"
"Iced Americano."
"You know there's a way to enjoy coffee even more deliciously?"
"Order a tastier one?"
"Sure, that's one way. But I've got a method to make it taste better myself—something you can do without changing a thing."
Oh Sin-hoon stood up.
He went into a room and came back with a stack of books in hand.
"What's this?"
"Coffee-related books. From instant coffee and capsules to detailed stuff on bean varieties."
"Is coffee a hobby of yours, sunbae-nim?"
"Nah, one day while drinking, I got curious and started buying books here and there. They just piled up."
Setting the books down, Oh Sin-hoon got into what he really wanted to share.
"The more you know about coffee, the richer the flavors you taste. Regular folks divide it into sweet or bitter, but experts can tell the nuances even in bitterness. Get a sense of that?"
"Yeah, I think so."
"It's the same with being an MC. You can't step up and try to be the star. Your job is to lift the guests who came for the program, make them shine as supporting role. Why? Because they're the stars that episode. To make guests shine brighter, there's one thing an MC must do. Know it?"
"Research."
"Exactly."
Oh Sin-hoon had his broadcasting philosophy.
Know the guests better than anyone.
"The more you know about a guest, the more usable variety fodder you can pull out. Of course, avoid sensitive private stuff. Scout out bits beforehand that might work on air like, 'This could be fun.' It helps a ton. And some guests are weak at variety—you gotta lead the convo for them nonstop. That's why MCs exist."
Years of experience distilled into Oh Sin-hoon's unique tips.
For a moment, Kang Han-do wanted to ask permission.
"Sunbae-nim, sorry, mind if I pull out my notebook real quick?"
"Huh? Notebook all of a sudden?"
"To take notes."
Oh Sin-hoon couldn't help but smile at Kang Han-do's cute earnestness.
As a teacher, seeing a student so eager for the lesson feels great.
That's exactly how Oh Sin-hoon felt right then.
* * *
Meeting Oh Sin-hoon turned out to be hugely meaningful for Kang Han-do.
He'd filled up a whole notebook before he knew it.
No regrets, though.
'This notebook will be the foundation for my growth as an MC.'
A solid cornerstone that won't crumble no matter what.
Clutching the notebook, Kang Han-do headed straight home.
In the taxi, he organized his thoughts.
'Who was the next guest on Star House again?'
Just the other day, the broadcast writer had tipped him off early.
One of Korea's top hip-hop singers.
'D-Pay, right? Yeah, now I remember.'
Like Kang Han-do and Oh Sin-hoon, D-Pay had a long unknown phase. Then from the year before last, his potential exploded, and by late last year, his fifth album's title track "Under a Conscienceless Sky" swept all the music charts.
After ten years since debut, D-Pay had silently walked the hip-hop path and finally joined the ranks of successful singers.
'Gotta cover his success story. Any other fun bits for variety?'
Oh Sin-hoon's words on prior research sparked in Kang Han-do's mind.
Think. And act.
To learn who D-Pay really was, Kang Han-do scoured his activities on his smartphone en route.
Something caught his eye.
A single photo. Seemed taken in front of some event venue.
But not your average event.
'A cosplay event?'
The women in the photo with him wore outfits replicating comic characters perfectly. Next to them, D-Pay grinned wide, flashing a V-sign pose.
He'd searched tons of D-Pay photos so far, but this was the happiest he'd looked.
'Maybe use that?'
Lately, Kang Han-do had exciting news.
The viewer function for happiness levels had updated.
Originally, the happiness viewer only worked when seeing someone in person. But now, post-update, he could check via photos too—not just real life.
However, for photos or videos, it showed the happiness at the time of shooting. Just past levels, basically. No telling current ones from pics. For now, meeting in person was faster and more accurate.
'Viewer on.'
A number appeared above D-Pay's head in the photo.
[Happy Figure: 450/500]
'Amazing.'
Assuming ideal average is 300, 450 was sky-high.
High enough to say he owned the world.
He checked other photos.
Cosplay, comic, animation event shots averaged over 400. Next highest: performances. The rest were so-so.
'Now I get it.'
Kang Han-do had nailed down who D-Pay was—and what he truly loved.
'This guy's an otaku!'
Analysis complete.
A thick smile crept across Kang Han-do's lips.