Chapter 47
Team 5 Leader, Lee Eun-sang. Age 39 this year. He was born in the same zodiac year as Yoo Hyun-jae. Right now, he thought he was the only sane person in this company.
Isn’t that right? Is this situation normal? Team Leader 1 Kang Woo-min, Team Leader 2 Park Ji-seok—what are these two? Over forty, JM executives, nodding along as a 27-year-old rookie talks nonsense. And the head of headquarters—sitting there clapping like it’s some great honor?
Pathetic. Surely none of the people in this room have less experience than Yoo Hyun-jae.
“JM is doomed.”
Everyone seemed to have lost their minds. Eun-sang had already been calculating his exit from JM ever since Lee Jong-mook announced investments in chalk and spears.
But anyone who’s about to leave a company naturally sees it as garbage. Sometimes, just the decision to leave forces them to view it that way. Who among the leavers doesn’t think, “How could this company treat me like this?”
People see what they want to see. How often does the thought, “I’m the only sane one among all these people,” actually hold true? Yet many think it.
Anyway, Eun-sang felt wronged. After working hard for so long, the company focused on a young, lucky rookie instead of rewarding those who had served diligently. And with all the Yoo Hyun-jae-related issues, it seemed the company was taking advantage of them.
The company betrayed Eun-sang first. He was being oppressed. So wasn’t it only natural for him to find his own way out?
He thought so… until.
“And you’ve also been colluding with Valhalla Studio.”
The moment Yoo Hyun-jae said that, Eun-sang’s heart sank.
“How did he know?”
It had only been a few days since he had contact with Valhalla. He thought it was a good opportunity. Valhalla was not a small-time company; top market cap. They recognized his talent and offered to recruit him. Valhalla, as expected.
Of course, it wasn’t just a simple recruitment offer. There were some proposals that could seem somewhat inappropriate.
First: Offer the entertainers under Team 5 a move to Valhalla.
Second: Somehow bring An Yeon-hong, who was under Yoo Hyun-jae’s spell, over to Valhalla as well.
But from Eun-sang’s perspective, the offer felt like normalizing the abnormal. He thought he was doing a good thing—rescuing the entertainers under Team 5 from a company losing its sanity, and bringing the rising top rock singer An Yeon-hong back to reason. Good deeds, all of them.
“What are you talking about? Team Leader Yoo, aren’t you being too arrogant? Now, if I oppose you, you accuse me of being a spy for another company?”
Eun-sang had to win this argument. Yeon-hong needed to be disappointed in Yoo Hyun-jae. After all, Yeon-hong had joined JM because of Yoo Hyun-jae.
But Yoo Hyun-jae showed no sign of fluster or intimidation.
“Collusion? On what grounds are you saying that?”
There was no way. The times he contacted Valhalla, he did so on the emergency stairs, just outside the rooftop door, after checking that no one was on the lower floors.
Moreover, Team 5’s office was quite far from Team 3’s. Yoo Hyun-jae couldn’t have overheard the calls. So he could push hard—Yoo Hyun-jae would just get embarrassed, and that’s it.
…Or so he thought.
A creeping sense of unease began to rise. Eun-sang’s belief—that he was right, that no one could uncover his collusion—stemmed from thinking Yoo Hyun-jae’s abilities were overhyped.
But now, seeing Yoo Hyun-jae suddenly talk about collusion in front of everyone, he started thinking, “Could it be…?”
“You must have contacted him this morning as well.”
“Team Leader Yoo, weren’t you absent from the company this morning?”
About 200 people in the conference room were paying attention to Eun-sang and Yoo Hyun-jae—including Yeon-hong.
“This team leader, just show the call logs, isn’t that enough?”
Team Leader 1 Kang Woo-min said. Ridiculous.
“So after over eight years working together, this rookie who’s only been here three months might be right?”
“Hah! Fine. You’ll see. How narrow-minded the people here are in putting me on the stage.”
Eun-sang pulled out his phone, opened the call log screen, and held it out to Yoo Hyun-jae.
“Look. What’s there?”
If he didn’t present evidence immediately, Yoo Hyun-jae’s claim would lose credibility. If he demanded the call logs be restored? All the better. Eun-sang had nothing to fear.
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031-xxxx-xxxx
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010-xxxx-xxxx
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Eun-byul
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Mother
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Father
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Manager Kim
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Jahwa Real Estate
…
“Which of these—”
At that moment, Yoo Hyun-jae suddenly pressed the call button. To his mother…
“Uh…”
The call connected.
[Yes, Team Leader Lee Eun-sang.]
The voice echoed in the conference room. Yoo Hyun-jae had put it on speakerphone.
“…….”
For a moment, time seemed to stop. What was that? Coincidence? He dialed the number saved as ‘Mother.’ Did he really know? How did he even know that? Yoo Hyun-jae didn’t even know Eun-sang that well.
“Hello, this is Lee Sung-woo, Director. Yoo Hyun-jae from JM Entertainment.”
Eun-sang swallowed hard. Goosebumps. How did he know it was Director Lee Sung-woo?
[Ah… yes, hello, Team Leader Yoo Hyun-jae…?]
“You seem to be making a lot of recruitment calls these days.”
[……. ]
“Even if you’re in a hurry, it’s best to keep certain principles, isn’t it?”
[…Understood.]
Click.
“Done?”
Yoo Hyun-jae hung up. Eun-sang’s back was drenched in cold sweat.
He didn’t say another word to Eun-sang. He turned, went up to the podium, and began speaking.
“In cases like this, things are relatively clear. The content Team 5 Leader mentioned—‘Yoo Hyun-jae, are you some kind of clairvoyant?’—is valid. But why mention it today? There were plenty of previous opportunities for valid objections. Here, you can examine logical consistency. Not done before, but now there’s a reason…”
It was as if Eun-sang didn’t even exist. The criticisms Eun-sang had made, the claim of collusion with Valhalla—it all seemed trivial to him. Eun-sang was just an example for his explanation.
Why hadn’t Yoo Hyun-jae made these valid points before, but did so today? Because Valhalla made an offer. Before, Eun-sang didn’t dare confront Yoo Hyun-jae while he was still under Lee Jong-mook’s influence…
Accurate reasoning. Yoo Hyun-jae wasn’t a lucky rookie at all. But…
“How did he know what I saved Director Lee as?”
Even when called to the HQ after the workshop, Eun-sang kept thinking about that.
“What did I just see?”
“This isn’t just someone who’s good at their job.”
During the break, the conference room buzzed with excitement. Until now, everyone had thought Yoo Hyun-jae was just ‘someone impressive,’ maybe even ‘unreasonably lucky.’
But now, everyone realized he was a completely different caliber.
“Did you see how he carried on the workshop without paying attention?”
“He didn’t even glance at Team Leader Lee. Like it was the most trivial thing.”
“Exactly. Seeing this, no one would want to move to Valhalla even if Team 5 got poached. One side is rising, the other falling.”
“People really think about so much in such short moments. I was spacing out, but Yoo Hyun-jae made decisions instantly.”
“I should stay loyal to this company. Competing with someone like Yoo Hyun-jae? Impossible.”
Yeon-hong listened quietly, nodding. Every word Yoo Hyun-jae said resonated. The sudden incident was almost amusing. Like watching Sherlock—reading everything instantly.
But now that he felt Yoo Hyun-jae’s true nature, fear crept in. How could it not?
“What will he say to me?”
Imagine a mirror that reveals every truth inside you. How many would dare to look?
Yeon-hong, 34 this year, reflected on his past. He had been stubborn. His singing talent was undeniable. People always acknowledged it:
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“Ask a popular composer to write a song. Your skill is wasted.”
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“Look at the market. No one sings like you. Only after surviving can you pursue art.”
He had let go of his stubbornness early last year. He needed money to marry his girlfriend and started doing cover songs. The world noticed. A hidden genius emerged. Legend, legend!
Now, everyone knew Yeon-hong. College events, wherever—he was sought after. But they all asked him to do cover songs. Complaining would be ungrateful.
Yet he couldn’t help thinking:
“Was I wrong until 32?”
Had he been arrogant? Conceited? Dishonest?
By the time the workshop ended, Yeon-hong approached Yoo Hyun-jae.
“Team Leader Yoo, may I talk to you for a moment? Five minutes, that’s all.”
Yoo Hyun-jae stopped.
“Yes, what is it?”
“Team Leader Yoo, what do you think of my songs… my original songs, not covers? Honestly…”
He was out of breath despite minimal exertion. Heart pounding.
The upcoming concert in the 6,000-seat arena—he’d perform songs from his second album, plus one cover. Yeon-hong felt nervous. Were people waiting for the cover?
If his stubbornness had been pointless until now, he needed to stop. Ask Yoo Hyun-jae—if he says it’s fine, hire a composer. That was his plan.
Then Yoo Hyun-jae said:
“I liked all of them.”
“You can be honest.”
“I’m honest. I liked them all.”
He calmed slightly, but still couldn’t fully believe him. Perhaps politeness?
“Didn’t it feel insincere? Logical consistency? If it was good, why did the public only recognize me now?”
Suddenly, he realized he sounded clingy. Too deep for a hallway conversation. But Yoo Hyun-jae remained calm.
“‘Good’ comes in many forms. Some are sweet immediately, some reveal depth only when chewed thoroughly. Some trend and fade; others are sought repeatedly.”
“You think my songs have that kind of goodness? Really?”
“Yes.”
“…Which song do you like best?”
“‘Quetapin.’”
Quetapin?
It was his bleakest song.
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I pretended not to be me, hated being humiliated. Took pills from a drawer. The world ends daily; laughter outside points fingers. How can someone like you speak of love?
“Why that one?”
“Melody and concept are good… but most of all, you feel the will in it.”
“The will? What will?”
“The will to avoid self-pity.”
“…….”
“You can’t call a song bad just because it’s not trendy. Many listen to it steadily. YouTube views keep rising.”
Yeon-hong swallowed.
Ah, this person. He really knew everything.
The memory of making Quetapin returned. It was the name of his psychiatric medication. He had attempted suicide, hospitalized, and taken this medicine after discharge.
He had felt sorry for himself, but found that feeling disgusting.
What’s pathetic? You didn’t fight a war for independence; you just ran from the market. Not pathetic at all.
He wrote Quetapin with that self-reproach. His bandmates said:
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“Wow, the mood’s perfect. That’s how it’s done.”
Fans reacted similarly. Non-fans called it depressing.
This was the first time anyone said the will to avoid self-pity could be felt in the song.
He felt exposed, yet relieved. Yoo Hyun-jae said it was fine—then it really was.
“…Thank you. I’ll trust only you, Team Leader Yoo.”
“No, you should trust your own skills. The world will watch you.”
“The world? Really…”
Yet Yoo Hyun-jae’s “world” didn’t sound like flattery or exaggeration. It sounded factual.
Earlier fear about the concert vanished. His heart swelled.
Yeon-hong impulsively said:
“Team Leader Yoo, can we be friends? Maybe have a drink?”
The moment An Yeon-hong held me and spoke, a black flower bloomed on the onion ring.
[An Yeon-hong of Jamankyeong wows the world at NKR desk concert!]
[High-pitched tool? NO! The world notices An Yeon-hong’s subtlety!]
This guy… he won’t just be popular in Korea. World-class.
Then, pink and purple flowers bloomed, entwining with the black flower. All three shone brighter together.
This… this sensation…
I spoke to Yeon-hong:
“By the way, are you interested in movie OST work?”
“OST? Haven’t thought about it… but if you suggest it, I’ll consider. Whose song?”
“I’d like you to compose, write, and perform.”
“Me…?”
At that moment, the flowers of the ring released a strong fragrance.
Done.
