Chapter 77
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Translator: Wjin
Chapter: 77
Chapter Title: Visions Over Drinks
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"Is something wrong?"
Everyone I'd run into lately had the same reaction, so it was clear the problem lay with me.
"Haha! It's nothing."
I forced a bright smile and brushed it off. Sara was sitting beside me, while Director Kim and Actor Ma—who were handling City of Crime—sat across from us. There were a few more people at the next table, but that wasn't my territory.
"Thanks again for the bold investment, President."
Director Kim poured Sara a drink as he spoke. She smiled and glanced at me.
"I didn't do much. President Jeong personally selected the project and took responsibility for part of the investment, so I trusted his judgment and went along with it."
The ball was in my court now, so I chimed in.
"The script was just that good. It's an honor to be involved in a project like this."
To secure a 5 billion won investment, you had to offer ironclad assurances. But we'd greenlit it based on the script alone, which made us virtual benefactors in the director's eyes.
It would've succeeded even without us.
Knowing the outcome made it seem trivial, but for those fiddling with the first button, there were endless worries. Director Kim felt that way, and so did Actor Ma.
This time, Actor Ma picked up the beer bottle. He offered it not to Sara, but to me. I raised my glass, met his eyes, and he said,
"I hear you're a businessman and an author."
"I dabble in a bit of everything."
"Impressive!"
"Oh, come on. I'm just scrambling to make a living."
"What drew you to our film?"
"Hmm."
Saying I'd seen it coming would sound too boastful, right?
"It reminds me a lot of the webnovels I work with. The protagonist is ridiculously overpowered, you know? Crime stories usually have you on edge, worrying the hero might slip up. But this one? No such tension—just pure, refreshing fun."
In our industry, we call protagonists like that "munchkins," but in the Anglo sphere, they'd be "heroes."
"Spot on. That's what we focused on most!"
"Glad to hear it. Great minds think alike—should make for an excellent film."
With a 1 billion investment, even tenfold returns meant 10 billion. Stick that into coins?
In six years, it'd be at least 10 trillion won. Seed money to rocket straight into Korea's rich list.
I asked,
"Planning a sequel already?"
"Huh?"
Actor Ma looked startled.
"You could tell just from the script?"
"Just a hunch."
"We'll decide once this one's box office scores come in."
"Sounds good. We can talk sequel funding after."
Director Kim, who'd been listening, exclaimed in greater shock,
"You're already thinking sequels?"
Only I could say that. The second film would top 10 million viewers. I might even invest more than Sara by then.
"I'm game anytime."
Sara stuck out her tongue at my words.
"Another bullseye from our president? I can't just sit back then."
Director Kim and Actor Ma perked up curiously at her comment, so Sara laughed and filled them in.
"The Queen blind auditions start recording tomorrow, and he nailed every standout from prelims—before we'd even seen them!"
"Hah! Studied physiognomy or something?"
We laughed, drank, and chatted away, time slipping by effortlessly. These past few days had dragged interminably, so coming out was the right call.
Actor Ma joked,
"What's my face say?"
I played along.
"Hollywood bound soon."
"Haha! That good? Just thinking about it feels great!"
Was it something I wanted to ignore? Or the alcohol? Normally I wouldn't have, but tonight I spilled more on the film world.
"Hollywood's king now, but in ten years, everything changes. And our films will be at the center."
Director Kim raised his glass with a wry smile.
"Sounds like a dream."
For decades, Chungmuro gatherings of directors and actors had spun similar tales. But my intel was on another level.
"That dream becomes reality soon. Prep for mid-form content."
Sensing I wasn't joking, Director Kim grew serious.
"Mid-form?"
"Longer than movies, shorter than dramas. Key is runtime you binge in one go—no waiting."
"Something you devour in a day?"
"Exactly."
Unfortunately, no platforms served that format yet.
So my words would sound like pie in the sky.
No rush. They'll know soon enough.
No point pushing it at a booze-up like this.
Bzzz.
My phone rang. It was Ye-jin.
"Excuse me a moment."
I stepped out and endured her nagging.
-You know about tomorrow's shoot, right? No overnight again!
Sara made me uneasy, and with this buzz, round two could've spelled trouble. I planned to hold back anyway.
Call ended, but the cool night air felt good outside. I lingered.
Days fly by out here.
Clouds hid the stars, but gazing at the vast sky uplifted me sometimes.
Time to head in? Just then, Sara emerged.
"Seat uncomfortable?"
"Nah. Having fun."
Always novels, webtoons, idols—film folks were a fresh change.
Her eyes sparkled at me.
"What was that earlier? Mid-form films? Got insider info?"
Sharp as ever.
"Too soon to say for sure. I'll fill you in when the time's right."
Could invest in Getflix or prop another OTT, but I'd rather digest it via Talent Market.
Needed capital for that. Didn't want resentment from dragging outsiders in. This wasn't in the original timeline.
"Come on, spill a little. For us?"
"Then no chicken feet and soju tonight."
"Ugh, sneaky!"
"Recording tomorrow. Gotta manage my condition."
"Fine, deal!"
Her quick surrender to skipping round two meant she was dying to know.
"Webnovels become webtoons, webtoons become dramas, right?"
"Yep."
"Put it all in one place? Super convenient for users. But the real hook: anytime, anywhere access."
I held up my phone.
"This."
"Ah......"
Anyone could think that far.
"Per-episode billing's pricey. Gotta scale subscribers with subs. Volume sales."
"But that means—"
"Yeah, tons of content. Needs massive upfront capital."
"You'd thought that far?"
"Always pondering stuff. Just deciding what to act on."
I stood at the pivot of upheaval, knowing hits from flops.
"Hah! Definitely author vibes."
Smart cookie—she'd get it without hand-holding.
"Smartphones reshape the world soon. All content consumed here. Shorts dominate, but hits? Fans crave more seasons."
"Ah, so mid-form over shorts?"
"Not enough—keep chaining seasons. Our content can rule the world."
"What gives you that confidence?"
Her gaze shifted to 'investor' mode.
"Koreans learn fast. Input yields output. Content? We climb to the top for sure."
No oil? Plenty ways to build power. No cars, but everyone's packing smartphones. Money starts in those palms.
"That'd be amazing."
For a drunk young guy ranting outside a restaurant at night, it was a colossal project. But goods thrive by making what everyone uses.
Build smartphones? Fight giants. Original content? Only one seller needed.
"I'll tell you when it's time."
That's how Sara and I parted.
Back at the goshiwon, I showered to sweat out the booze.
I'm an author. Regular ones pour fantasies into works and call it a day. Me? I could reshape the world.
Secure originals like octopus games and a few webtoon-adapted films, and scaling Talent Market to Getflix size isn't impossible.
If it was just about cash, dump it all in coins, chill, and wait.
But financial freedom bred new thoughts.
If we're doing this, make it the best—ours.
No need to shun proven blockbusters, though.
Might as well while it's fresh?
Excluding stocks and coins, novels and comics yielded max returns on min budgets.
I dressed and summoned Ye-jin. She hit the rooftop, surprised.
"Wrapped up early?"
"Coffee?"
"Water's fine."
As she sat, I asked,
"Webtoons going well?"
"Great. More buildup this year, and next? Way more readers."
Not yet millions daily. Prime for growth.
"Can we swing Japan?"
"Huh? Suddenly? Why?"
"Scout investment authors."
I had specifics in mind, but couldn't name unborn titles to her.
"Would Japanese creators join us?"
I grinned with the cliché answer.
"Money talks."
"Failure'd waste cash. Their system's worlds from our webtoons... Your next work as a quick webtoon might have better odds."
I got her worries, but I was betting on surefire 'people'.
"A comic that slays both markets? Talent Market explodes. Sell anime to both sides too."
Platforms need killer apps.
Slurp.
I sipped coffee, watching the dark surface ripple in the cup. My mind drifted—to future, or past point.
We always crammed Team Leader's forced 'inputs' like rote memorization.
Lucky it was fun; unlucky, it stole writing time. At least this wasn't a 100-volume slog.
'Blade of Mutual Destruction.'