“Documentary? You like documentaries, huh. What kind of documentary is it? The kind that reveals a celebrity’s private life?”

“We can reveal it if you’d like, and if you don’t, we won’t do it. It’s fine either way because it’s a documentary that follows the will of its subject. If Woo-Jin wants to stay in his room all day and sleep, we’ll shoot him doing that.”

G&C Entertainment’s cable network, GCTV, was preparing for their variety TV program, which would be in the format of a docuseries called Life Depicted. It was a show where its cast was allowed to portray their lives the way they wanted, without intervention from the director and writer. Even if it was uninteresting, they planned to follow the cast’s wishes through and through. There was an assumption that even if the cast chose to sit around all day long doing nothing, there would be no interference on the producers’ part.

The show's concept was to break free from the imperative idea that variety shows had to be funny and interesting and simply portray something that was not scripted or forced. However, that was a nice way of saying they wanted to do a boring TV program. Ultimately, the only driving force of the show was the popularity of the cast.

“Things are going to get chaotic from now on.”

“Exactly!”

“Which is why we have to establish a positive image. Frankly, Woo-Jin is getting too little exposure for his fame level. We’re in an era where being mysterious doesn’t cut it. These days, being good at acting alone is not enough. For the people who only knew Chae Woo-Jin through his movies and shows, he may be a perfect actor to them, but they have no trust in him as a human being. The public wants to know what kind of person he is, and now is the best time to show them the real him.”

Even though he had cleared his name, it was only the beginning. Chae Woo-Jin’s academic achievements, family background, along with his family history, etc., should not define who he is as a person. Jang Soo-Hwan agreed with that notion as well. Chae Woo-Jin needed a new opportunity, and there was no guarantee that acting alone was the answer to that.

“However, it’s not even going to be on a broadcast channel….”

Choi Won-Hee knew Jang Soo-Hwan very well; a slight smile appeared on her face. All she needed to do was entice him by telling him what he wanted to hear.

“There’s more buzz about our shows. Our shows have also topped the charts on several occasions, beating the shows from other channels that aired during the same time slot.”

“Instead, if it becomes a flop, you won’t be able to recover any of your capital. At least broadcast channels get to recoup a small amount from the basic charges.”

“If it becomes a flop, it would mean Chae Woo-Jin has reached his limit.”

Even though Jang Soo-Hwan was being critical and nitpicked on cable networks, GCTV had produced a couple of exceptional dramas and variety TV shows. Additionally, they had several popular TV programs that had received high ratings, beating most of the TV programs from broadcast channels by a mile. This was enough to make Choi Won-Hee feel confident. With the best production team and system, Choi Won-Hee was confident she could accommodate Chae Woo-Jin and give him everything he needed. Nevertheless, if the ratings were low, it would mean the issue was with the cast itself. Due to the nature of the show, the viewers would watch it solely because of Chae Woo-Jin himself.

“Is that the attitude of a person who came here to ask for a favor?”

“That’s why I personally made a trip here to ask you politely and respectfully.”

“You didn’t have a choice because it’s hard to cast him.”

It was a variety TV program following the format of a documentary. Because of that, the show’s success relied heavily on the cast’s competency due to the lack of script and exciting elements. Even if Choi Won-Hee bragged about having the best production team, the only things guaranteed were the best equipment and editing skills.

As she mentioned earlier, the show’s failure depended solely on the cast, and they would’ve reached their limit if the show were to become a flop. It was difficult even for veteran entertainers. On the other hand, it was rather despicable of Choi Won-Hee to use the popularity of the shows on her network as a selling point, as it was clear she only intended to depend solely on the popularity of the celebrities cast in the upcoming show. Jang Soo-Hwan was mad because she had the audacity of casting Woo-Jin in a TV program that might become a flop.

“What do you mean! We have already cast two out of the three people we have in mind for the show. Woo-Jin is the last one.”

Life Depicted would have a total of nine episodes, in which the three celebrities would each shoot separately and appear in alternate episodes. They ran into a few casting difficulties, but they managed to successfully cast the other two members not too long ago. As of now, all that was left was to cast Woo-Jin.

“For some reason, it seems like your casting process is rather apparent.”

“Putting popularity aside, in terms of name and prestige, Chae Woo-Jin is at the bottom out of the three. It wouldn’t be a bad idea for Woo-Jin to be in the same TV program as them and have his name mentioned alongside theirs.”

Just like Woo-Jin, the two people who had been chosen were known for not showing themselves much to the public. Regardless of the casting process, those two people had accepted the offer because of their desire to break away from their mysterious image; they wanted to communicate with the public.

There weren’t any TV programs these days that showed the trivial everyday life of celebrities, without the burden of having to be funny or exciting, like a documentary. It was a safe and easy first step toward approaching the public. However, there was a high risk of failure, so the drawback was that not anybody could give it a go.

“Who are the other two people?”

“Yoon Seong-Hwan and Park Mi-Hyun.”

“Oh, not bad.”

“Of course, they’re not bad.”

Yoon Seong-Hwan and Park Mi-Hyun were the best actors within their age groups — the fifties and thirties respectively. Yoon Seong-Hwan was known for his clear outlook and beliefs as an actor and his self-assertiveness. He had only appeared in movies thus far, so his appearance in a TV show would definitely become a hot topic. He used to be with DS at one point, but he was one of the artistes who left the agency because they refused to be overprotected by Jang Soo-Hwan.

As for Park Mi-Hyun, she was an actress in her late thirties known for being a homebody. She was introverted and shy and hardly ever left the house unless it was for work. She was a celebrity who rarely appeared on TV, as she hated being in interviews or variety TV programs, apart from the productions she was a part of.

Compared to them, Woo-Jin was considered rather active in the industry. As of now, he might be much more popular than the other two actors, but he paled in comparison in terms of acting experience and name. Even though they wouldn’t be shooting together, it was definitely a good opportunity for Woo-Jin to appear in the same TV program as them. It would do him good to accept this offer.

“You worked really hard, huh?”

“Was there anything I failed to do even when I personally attended to it?” In other words, it meant that Choi Won-Hee had personally visited the other two celebrities’ agencies to cast Yoon Seong-Hwan and Park Mi-Hyun, just like she did today.

“You went there personally? Why?”

Regardless of the concept, it was still a variety TV program. Jang Soo-Hwan didn’t understand why Choi Won-Hee would personally make a trip to their agencies to cast the actors in a variety TV program. Even if she had casually dropped by DS’ office because Jang Soo-Hwan was her friend, he couldn’t imagine The Supreme Witch personally making the trip to cast the actors.

“Don’t tell me this TV program is your cup of tea?”

“No.”

“Then, why?”

“Because the three actors are my cup of tea.”

If it were a TV program in line with Choi Won-Hee’s taste, Jang Soo-Hwan would never let Woo-Jin take up her offer. However, her response made Jang Soo-Hwan feel even more disturbed.

“So basically, you want to gather your favorite actors and take a peek into their everyday lives….”

Choi Won-Hee glared at Jang Soo-Hwan; as soon as they made eye contact, Jang Soo-Hwan quickly shut his mouth. Oftentimes it was necessary to remain silent. For instance, this very moment.

“Yoon Seong-Hwan and Park Mi-Hyun chose to be a part of this program. It wouldn’t do Woo-Jin any harm either. As the CEO of his agency, I hope you’ll make a wise choice.”

“You said you were asking for a favor! But, judging from your attitude, it seems more like a threat, no?”

“G&C Entertainment will give Chae Woo-Jin the same treatment as Yoon Seong-Hwan and Park Mi-Hyun from now on. For your information, our company categorizes those two actors under S++ tier. You know what this means, right?”

Production companies, agencies, and other advertising companies had divided celebrities into different tiers and given them different treatments and fees according to their respective tiers. Presently, Chae Woo-Jin’s tier differed from company to company, but he mainly sat between S and S+. It was a very high rating for an actor in the second year of his debut. However, things would be different when huge agencies, such as G&C Entertainment, classified Chae Woo-Jin under S++ tier. Not only was it unprecedented, but it was also the best treatment he could ever get.

For Jang Soo-Hwan, this was a condition he couldn’t resist. Going up the tiers wasn’t just about an increase in appearance fees; depending on the tier, the treatment and acknowledgment he received from the industry would be different.

It was evident that he would benefit greatly from appearing in the TV program. Looking back, G&C Entertainment was the first to promote Woo-Jin to the S tier. That was what he had gotten for appearing on Glooming Day, and the other companies back then immediately followed suit and promoted Woo-Jin to a higher tier.

“What’s there to be worried about? At times like these, you just have to agree to it.” Choi Won-Hee presented him with a clear-cut answer when Jang Soo-Hwan hesitated for a bit.

“Still, I should get Woo-Jin’s opinion on this.”

“Do whatever you want. G&C Entertainment is a beautiful company that is centered around culture and people. I can wait.” The Supreme Witch smiled brightly; she had a magnanimous attitude. She always repaid favors with fairness and generosity. However, she acted very arrogantly and dignified when asking others for favors, so it left a bad taste in their mouth.

“Annoying,” Jang Soo-Hwan inadvertently said what he was thinking, but he didn’t bother correcting himself.

“You’re small-minded. And you should lose some weight. Your tummy is showing.” The Supreme Witch retorted immediately. She was more aggressive and had taken it further. It was a moderately violent attack on someone who had started dieting a month ago using facts.

***

The press conference was just the beginning — not the end. After Chae Woo-Jin’s press conference had ended, TM officially refuted his claims. They claimed that the voice recording he had played during the press conference had been recorded during Chae Woo-Jin’s acting practice session with CEO Kim Seok-Hyung.

The circumstances changed within a day; CEO Kim used the excuse Chae Woo-Jin’s fans came up with the previous day. Since it wasn’t an excuse meant for TM to use, Chae Woo-Jin’s fans felt it was utterly absurd. On the other hand, he apologized for not responding to the article immediately after it was published because of his greed. He also admitted telling Chae Woo-Jin to come back to TM over the phone.

However, he completely denied the other facts and drew the line there. TM didn’t file any lawsuit against Chae Woo-Jin for defamation either. They merely published a series of articles to refute the accusations but provided no evidence to substantiate their claims.

Regardless of TM's stance, Chae Woo-Jin proceeded with the legal process in an orderly manner. The person who tipped off Journalist Kang Il-Ro was a member of TM's PR team. At first, he claimed he had found the voice recording and Chae Woo-Jin’s phone from CEO Kim Seok-Hyung’s desk by chance and reported it in the spirit of righteousness.

However, his attitude changed as soon as he heard about the companies and the compensation lawsuit he was up against. As everyone expected, he shifted the blame to CEO Kim Seok-Hyung and revealed Kim Seok-Hyung was the one behind everything. And then, it turned into a fight between the informant and CEO Kim Seok-Hyung.

This incident wouldn’t be resolved in just a month or two, so Woo-Jin decided to take it easy and see how the situation would develop. In truth, there was nothing else he could do from this point onwards. Besides, his mind was somewhere else, so he didn’t have the luxury of time to think about this incident. And finally, it was the day when the article about the corruption investigation got published. Woo-Jin smiled and hummed.

“Are you that happy?”

Woo-Jin was drinking warm pear juice to soothe his throat. He saw Woo-Hee looking at him with sunken eyes and took a step back in shock.

“Are you actually humming in a house with a high school senior studying for the CSAT…?”

“Come to think of it, you have about a month left before the college entrance exams. Time flies.”

“Pfft~! People normally feel time passes faster when it comes to other people’s affairs.”

“My dear sister, I’m also an exam candidate.”

Woo-Jin was preparing for the interview stage of his bar exam, which would be held in early November. He reminded his sister that he was also exhausted and that they were in the same boat as exam candidates.

“Hmph. I’ll acknowledge that if the entire country pushes back the working hours on the day of the interview stage.”[1]

The haggard high school senior thought that all the exams in the world were not as important as the CSAT. And Woo-Jin knew why Woo-Hee was so worn out, so he didn’t retort back and tried to be considerate towards her. He poured warm pear juice into a glass and put it in front of his younger sister.

“Regardless of what happens, I’ll definitely get a perfect score for CSAT this year!” Woo-Hee took the glass of pear juice and blew on it; she uttered her firm resolution.

If motivation could boost one’s ability, Woo-Hee’s skill gauge was now full. Woo-Hee was acting like this because of the competitive spirit within her, rather than being motivated as a student taking an exam. And the person who brought out Woo-Hee’s competitive spirit and increased her fighting power was none other than Chae Woo-Ra.

1. On the day of CSAT, workers at government offices and public firms are allowed to arrive at work an hour later to reduce traffic congestion and ensure that all students arrive at the exam place on time. ☜