Chapter 67
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Translator: Wjin
Chapter: 67
Chapter Title: Harsh Rejection
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"What's the matter?"
Go Ye-jin turned and asked. Nam Joo-yeon shot back with fury rising to the top of her head.
"Why did I get cut?"
"I have no obligation to explain the reasons."
"I deserve to know! I dedicated my life to this!"
"Dedicated your life..."
Go Ye-jin let out a deep sigh and approached Nam Joo-yeon. Then she spoke.
"For someone who claims that, weren't your other activities a bit too much?"
"...What are you talking about?"
"You know better than anyone."
She glanced to the side. Hwang Geon and Lee Se-ho were standing there awkwardly.
"This academy is an institution. You'll be the face of the academy, and your words and actions will determine its reputation. Consider your evaluation as part of that."
"Ha, are you saying there's something wrong with my character?"
As Nam Joo-yeon spoke in disbelief, Go Ye-jin shrugged.
"If you don't know, it's our academy's job to teach you. But we can't take risks on things that won't change no matter how much we teach."
Lee Myung-han stood by with his arms crossed, nodding. He was ready to intervene if these guys lunged at Executive Director Go Ye-jin.
'Writers in this industry betray people like it's breakfast, so it's right to weed out the rotten ones from the start.'
There might not be a need for generalizations, but writers, living in their own worlds, often had untamable personalities.
He'd learned that over the past month using the creative studio. Sure, social skills were lacking, but many thought in completely different ways from others.
Go Ye-jin drove the point home with a slight smile.
"That boiling rage, sense of loss, betrayal, and emptiness you're feeling right now—if you channel it into your writing, you can create something great without our academy's help."
Then she turned away.
"I'll take my leave now, as I'm busy."
"...Ha...! Hey! I wasn't done talking!"
Nam Joo-yeon shouted as if to end it all, but Go Ye-jin wasn't one to back down easily.
"Do I have any obligation to hear you out to the end?"
Nam Joo-yeon fumed, unable to grab the retreating woman any longer.
"Joo-yeon..."
Hwang Geon approached to calm her down.
"It must be some mistake. Your novel was so good. Cool off and let's look into it again."
"Argh, this is frustrating! Did they even read my novel?"
Lee Myung-han sighed. They still didn't seem to grasp the problem.
Lee Se-ho joined them.
"What do we do now? The academy certificate would help with job hunting. Bro, that publishing house you introduced me to—will it be okay without it?"
"Argh, damn it. How should I know?"
"Why are you snapping at me?"
Hwang Geon, who had yelled, turned back to Nam Joo-yeon with an awkward smile.
"Joo-yeon, let's try again. It doesn't make sense for you to be cut. Okay?"
Even in this situation, his face showed desperation not to lose her.
"You... damn it!"
Nam Joo-yeon spun around and stormed off. Hwang Geon hurried after her, leaving Lee Se-ho standing there dazed. Lee Myung-han gave a wry smile.
'Should've behaved better.'
Did they think leaks from inside wouldn't spread outside? The academy had eyes everywhere, and rumors spread fast. Who did what, which student said what—it was impossible they hadn't heard.
'Never see them again.'
As he turned and headed back into the building, his phone rang.
"Ah! Yes! Of course!"
It was a PD's proposal.
* * *
Ye-jin had updated him on the academy. They'd done a purge and kept only the real talents, so debut teams would form soon.
It was different from idol trainees in many ways, but debuting was a huge deal for anyone.
'I need to help them.'
A tiny tweak in a web novel could change everything dramatically.
Ten years ago, he was just an average writer, but his sentence structure and grammar hadn't changed much.
The key was grasping what readers wanted, blending it into your work, and preemptively cutting what they hated.
Just having someone watch from the side made it improve—that was something he could do.
'To do that, I need more time.'
He wasn't idle now. He held multiple demanding positions, all under pressure to succeed.
But being on his second life made it strangely easier.
After sorting his thoughts and sleeping about six hours, he woke up.
Morning brought Ye-jin's energy.
"Huh."
"I'll wait at the restaurant!"
"Got it."
It was 9 a.m.
"What's up? Did you sleep?"
He briefly mistook her for yesterday because she looked the same.
"Of course."
He sat across from her. Ye-jin showed him her phone.
"This! Right here!"
"Huh? What's... Whoa, whoa? What?"
This time, even he was shocked.
One, ten, hundred, thousand, ten thousand, hundred thousand, million?
"What was the kids' music show ranking last week?"
"9th place!"
He'd figured it would take three years to shine. But one D.M. performance video had hit a million views.
'Already?'
Over half the views were from overseas, and since YouTube wasn't fully global yet, this was a big reaction.
"Isn't it amazing?"
Ye-jin looked thrilled, like it was her first time seeing this. But the era ahead would revolve around YouTube. It had more reach than TV, and raw content would thrive.
So, why not push harder?
"Hire experts to add English subtitles to all the kids' videos."
"Subtitles?"
"Yeah. Not just lyrics—edit subtitles for everything and put them at the bottom."
The world would soon appreciate subtitles' convenience. Reading with ears made readability multiply and immersion deepen.
"Tell Team Leader Min too. From now on, upload videos only after subtitle editing. Korean and English together if possible."
D.M. had to succeed. They were the ones betting their lives on him, which made him attached.
"Is that necessary? It'll cost a lot."
"It'll pay back more."
Ye-jin hadn't felt YouTube's power yet, but content generations would shift in just a few years.
"Rumors spread faster than words, right?"
"True."
A special tip for Ye-jin.
"SNS will outpace rumors. YouTube will be at its center. Use it right, and you've got the world's easiest marketing."
Web novel writers were one-person companies. They planned, invested, and reaped alone.
Marketing was key, starting with the title.
No-name writers failed to grab eyes with titles—the basics.
He'd fought long over this, finally accepting works as products before nailing titles.
"Let's help our kids claim that spot."
"Got it."
Ye-jin switched screens.
"And this."
"More?"
He scanned it. It was a post from his fan cafe.
「The Evolution of Comics: Webtoons Taking Over?」
It cited an expert's analysis, quite plausible.
"You haven't seen it, right?"
"Nope."
"Figured. What do you think?"
"My opinion?"
Ye-jin bit her lip, nodding curiously.
"Same as yours. Invest freely."
"Knew it."
She oversaw the company's webtoons, so these articles must make her nervous.
But the webtoon market would grow over 100 times in the next decade, domestically and abroad.
'Speed it up a bit?'
Watching D.M.'s YouTube earlier sparked the idea.
"While subtitling the videos, make English-subbed versions of our webtoons too. Upload trailers to YouTube."
"Like trailer videos?"
"Exactly. It'll draw overseas interest. Best if it funnels to the talent platform, but even awareness of webtoons is a win."
Looking back, seemingly trivial things were someone's choice and effort.
With his foresight, he could dominate the content era sooner.
After morning with Ye-jin, PD Kim called in the afternoon.
They'd named the girl idol open audition show.
"Sounds good."
-Want to see the script?
"If I'm qualified."
-Haha! More than qualified! Sending the file later.
'The Queen' was open to all women, but instant debut demanded high caliber.
-One issue in discussions: existing idols? Many from disbanded groups or bankrupt agencies, floating around.
"Accept them all for now."
-What about indie band girls?
"No reason to block."
-Great. Call you back.
With the audition show solidifying, his prep ramped up. Time till final winner, but secure songs and choreography early.
He racked his brain.
'What songs blew up?'
D.M. had clear role models, but girl groups were outside his wheelhouse.
'Focus on meme-worthy hits.'
Pop culture couldn't be too fast or too shocking—balance mattered.
'Consult Team Leader Min.'
D.M. ditched mystique for approachability, targeting global fans via YouTube.
Girl groups differed. Like web novels, possession and idolization were distinct—SNS fandom needed untouchable allure.
'Female vs. male fans.'
Target core audience precisely for wins. Meticulous work.
That evening.
Team Leader Min returned from D.M.'s provincial trip. They met—just him, Ye-jin, and Min.
The company's entertainment decisions hinged here.
"What about inserting this girl group audition into Greatest Idol episodes?"
Ye-jin voiced concern.
"That'd need 10 more volumes ahead. Okay with delaying?"
True. Unsure of the show's path, couldn't prewrite for the novel. Delay completion then.
But he could fix it simply.
"End season 1, lead into season 2. Time it with the drama."
"Ah...? That's a way!"
No one needed it now, but he could.
Team Leader Min smiled.
"I'm all for it. Promo gold. Even bit parts in the drama."
He turned to Jeong Hyun-woo.
"Group name decided?"
Hmm, a few words popped up.
New...? Black...?