"Are you listening to me?"
"Yes. Thank you for the compliment."
"And you don't need to worry about the cost of the damaged lens."
"Yes."
"Is that all?"
"......?"
"Aren't you grateful?"
"The lens was damaged because of a mistake by an actor under the agency, so I believe the company should be responsible."
Park Geon-ho's brazen response annoyed Division Director Kang Young-jin as well.
"I heard you weren't there, Manager Park Geon-ho?"
"I was late because I attended the meeting with Writer Woo Yeon-hee in someone else's place. There was another manager on set as well."
"So, you did nothing wrong, Manager Park Geon-ho?"
"I believe my contribution far outweighed my fault."
Division Director Kang Young-jin set down his coffee cup and looked Park Geon-ho straight in the eye.
Deputy Team Leader Ahn Hye-ju had called early that morning and showered Park Geon-ho with praise, so Kang Young-jin had summoned him merely to see what he looked like.
He had not expected the man to be this audacious.
But Park Geon-ho had a resignation letter tucked away in his heart, so nothing held him back.
"By the time I arrived, the accident had already happened. The staff showed me video evidence, and I couldn't pretend I hadn't seen it."
"As I said earlier, you handled it well. But it would have been even better if you had prevented the accident, Manager Park Geon-ho."
"If I'd been on set at that moment, there would've been a problem with Actress Jo So-hee's project. We might've prevented the damage to the lens, but the company would've suffered a greater loss."
"The company would've suffered a greater loss?"
"Actress Jo's anti-fans were holding a reunion on the articles about Actress Kim Hye-rin's casting. If the casting had fallen through, both Actress Jo and Wooju Entertainment would've taken a hit to their image. It would've looked like we'd worked hard on media spin only to lose the lead role."
If it had simply been a meeting where the two sides were feeling each other out(?), it would not have mattered if the casting fell through.
But Wooju Entertainment had announced early on that Jo So-hee would appear in <First Skin>.
Blue Media, the production company, had played along by saying Jo So-hee was the leading candidate for the starring role.
What if the casting had suddenly fallen through under those circumstances?
The negative image of Jo So-hee that her outstanding acting had kept buried would have come to the forefront.
At the same time, Jo So-hee's position, after she had only just risen to the level of a miniseries lead, would have been shaken.
"If Actress Jo's image takes a hit, the company loses money. And it would also put you in a foul mood, Division Director."
"You even took my mood into consideration?"
"You personally brought Actress Jo into the company, Division Director. If only for the sake of the Division Director I've always respected, I wanted to stop the casting from falling through."
"Hmm......."
Division Director Kang Young-jin picked up his coffee cup again.
When Deputy Team Leader Ahn Hye-ju first told him about Park Geon-ho, he assumed she had seasoned the story a little out of gratitude.
If Park Geon-ho were that remarkable, there was no way he would not have caught Kang Young-jin's eye.
The Park Geon-ho described in his personnel file was mediocrity itself.
He had graduated from high school, completed his military service, and joined Wooju Entertainment immediately afterward.
He spoke no foreign languages, and his only certifications were a taekwondo rank certificate and a driver's license.
First-year road manager work-attitude score: B.
Second-year road manager work-attitude score: B.
He had barely cleared the cutoff for full-time employment.
Kang Young-jin had judged him not quite good enough for a major role, yet a little too valuable to let another company have.
He had assumed yesterday's events were beginner's luck, and Park Geon-ho had simply gotten lucky enough to change Writer Woo Yeon-hee's mind.
But listening to him talk, Kang Young-jin began to think he was no ordinary man.
"Let me ask you one thing."
"Yes. Go ahead."
"Why did you suggest the supporting female lead?"
"Because Actress Jo So-hee liked the role."
"Not because you wanted to satisfy everyone involved?"
"It worked out well in the end, but I never would've recommended it if Actress Jo hadn't liked the role of Lee Seo-woo."
"The actor's wishes come first?"
"Because the actor is the one who ultimately has to film the project."
Division Director Kang Young-jin soon nodded.
It was not a perfectly clear-cut answer.
But it did not sound like sophistry either.
How should he put it? The third-year manager who was supposed to do whatever he was told seemed to have developed a sense of self a little early.
It made Kang Young-jin want to put him through his paces properly.
"Good. Then let's do this."
"......?"
"Deputy Team Leader Ahn Hye-ju says it'll be difficult for her to take care of Ms. Jo So-hee for a while. So......."
"No."
"......?"
Division Director Kang Young-jin had not even finished speaking yet.
But Park Geon-ho firmly shook his head.
He had gotten into an accident while fleeing his lifetime contract with Jo So-hee.
Now he was being told to take charge of Jo So-hee as soon as he regressed.
Out of the question.
However, Division Director Kang Young-jin had not asked for Park Geon-ho's opinion.
"Other managers are desperate to take charge of her. Why are you refusing?"
"If there's a manager who wants to take charge of Actress Jo So-hee, I'd like to yield the position to that person."
"Deputy Team Leader Ahn Hye-ju recommended you, Manager Park Geon-ho."
"I think yesterday's events made her view me too favorably."
"Favorably....... Are you trying to say you lack the ability to take charge of Actress Jo So-hee right now?"
"Yes. I'm a rookie manager who only just joined the company."
Park Geon-ho emphasized that he was a rookie, but Division Director Kang Young-jin snorted.
After greedily declaring that he would work hard if made a team leader, bringing up his rookie status now was no different from saying he intended to work only when it suited him.
"Manager Park Geon-ho. Pick one."
"......?"
"Are you a rookie who's capable and quick on the uptake? Or are you a rookie who only does what he's told?"
"I......."
"For the record, my decision won't change no matter which one you choose."
'......Fuck.'
Park Geon-ho cursed inwardly.
If he claimed he was capable, Kang Young-jin would tell him to prove it by handling Jo So-hee.
If he hid behind the excuse that he was a rookie, Kang Young-jin would probably dump her on him as a work order.
If he had to take charge of Jo So-hee either way, there was only one choice.
"I'll choose the former."
"Good choice."
"However, I don't believe it's possible for me to replace Deputy Team Leader Ahn Hye-ju perfectly under the present circumstances. After all, I'm still a rookie manager."
Deputy Team Leader Ahn Hye-ju held the second-highest rank on Actor Team 5.
By contrast, he had only just joined the company as a rookie manager.
He was dead last in the hierarchy among the seven managers on Actor Team 5.
If someone like him suddenly took charge of Jo So-hee, the biggest star on Team 5, his life at the company could only become uncomfortable.
"You don't truly want the team leader position, do you?"
"You said that was impossible under company regulations."
"That doesn't make it entirely impossible. If you show me work like yesterday's ten times? or so, I'll promote you to senior manager next year. How about it?"
Division Director Kang Young-jin dangled a carrot before him.
Senior manager was a rank granted to managers with at least three years of experience.
It was only one rank above an ordinary manager, but the industry's perception of the two differed by 180 degrees.
'Once you become a senior manager, they treat you like a working professional. And a senior manager from Wooju Entertainment carries even more weight.'
The offer to make him a senior manager in one year—a rank that took three years to earn with good performance, or five years simply by putting in the time—was quite tempting. But Park Geon-ho was not swayed.
It was only natural for a good manager to earn an early promotion.
More importantly, he needed the authority to manage Jo So-hee legitimately(?).
"Until a moment ago, I was under suspension. Rumors that a rookie had caused a major accident have spread all through the company. If someone like me takes charge of Actress Jo So-hee, everyone will think it's strange."
"You don't seem like the type to care about what people around you think. Did I misjudge you?"
"If an incompetent manager follows Actress Jo around, it'll hurt her."
"Enough talking around the point. So, what do you want?"
"I'd like yesterday's accomplishments to be recognized officially."
Division Director Kang Young-jin let out a disbelieving laugh.
In other words, Park Geon-ho wanted everything from securing Jo So-hee's casting to resolving the accident on set credited to him.
A tiny agency run by three or four managers could have done that without difficulty.
But Wooju Entertainment was one of the five largest talent agencies in South Korea.
Officially commend a manager who had only just joined a large company governed by clear systems and procedures?
It was neither easy nor common.
"If the disciplinary action is the problem, I'll praise you once at the general meeting. How about that?"
Division Director Kang Young-jin offered a compromise.
That seemed as if it would quiet the negative rumors about Park Geon-ho to some degree.
However, Park Geon-ho firmly shook his head.
"That won't be enough to convince everyone. There will definitely be complaints behind my back."
"If I do as you ask, Manager Park, the deputy division director will lose face."
"If the deputy division director disciplined me over something that even you, Division Director, acknowledged I handled well, shouldn't he bear the consequences?"
Taking charge of Jo So-hee three years ahead of schedule?
If he had to do it, he could certainly manage.
The problem was everyone around them.
To be honest, the senior employees who hazed him because they had joined a year or two earlier were almost cute.
He could also laugh off the jealousy of team-leader-level managers who regarded Jo So-hee as more trouble than she was worth.
But Deputy Division Director Jo Yeong-chan was different.
He was not the sort of person who would calmly accept that someone he had personally disciplined was now taking charge of Jo So-hee on the division director's orders.
He would undoubtedly interfere and find fault at every turn, trying by any means to prove that his own decision had been right.
'Jo So-hee alone is exhausting enough. I can't deal with Jo Yeong-chan too.'
Park Geon-ho passed the ball back to Division Director Kang Young-jin.
Division Director Kang Young-jin fell into deep thought.
'He's certainly audacious.'
Deputy Team Leader Ahn Hye-ju had requested support due to personal circumstances for about six months.
So Kang Young-jin had planned to place Park Geon-ho beside Jo So-hee for the time being and test him.
If the test went well, he would assign Park Geon-ho as Jo So-hee's dedicated manager.
If it went poorly, he could simply return Park Geon-ho to his original position when Deputy Team Leader Ahn Hye-ju came back.
But Park Geon-ho was saying not only that he would pass the test, but that he could replace Deputy Team Leader Ahn Hye-ju perfectly.
'Is that possible?'
People commonly mistook Deputy Team Leader Ahn Hye-ju for a parachute hire.
But Deputy Team Leader Ahn Hye-ju had been specially recruited for her experience.
She had not lucked into becoming deputy team leader thanks to Jo So-hee. She had been hired at that rank because the company recognized the ability she had shown caring for Jo So-hee since her child-actor days.
Replacing Team Leader Ahn Hye-ju would require someone of at least principal-manager rank.
'Is Park Geon-ho at that level?'
Honestly, it was difficult to tell.
But Deputy Team Leader Ahn Hye-ju herself held Park Geon-ho's ability in high regard.
"Park Geon-ho as her backup? Can that guy handle So-hee?"
-So-hee said so herself. She said she thought it might be fun. And if it hadn't been for Mr. Geon-ho yesterday, securing the casting would've been difficult.
"If it had fallen through, I would've stepped in myself."
-What if So-hee said no? You struggle with her too, Division Director.
"Struggle? She's adorable."
-Then would you like to take care of her instead of me, like you used to, Division Director?
"Ahem. More importantly, how much do you know about Park Geon-ho, Deputy Team Leader Ahn?"
-Not much. Yesterday was the first time I properly introduced myself to him.
"And you're recommending him? Isn't that decision too hasty?"
-Production Director So I-hyeon asked me something. Whether he was really in his third year. Whether he'd concealed some of his career history.
"Production Director So I-hyeon did?"
-You know, don't you? Production Director So I-hyeon rarely pays empty compliments. She said she wasn't joking—it felt like she was dealing with someone at team-leader level.
"Hmm....... Is that so?"
-Writer Woo Yeon-hee said something when we parted too. She told me to bring Mr. Geon-ho along next time.
"What? Just what happened yesterday?"
-I don't know the exact details either. But I think it's better for So-hee to be cared for by a manager who's friendly with the writer and has the production director's approval. I can't follow So-hee around forever either.
Division Director Kang Young-jin organized his thoughts.
The urgent matter was deciding on a manager for Jo So-hee.
Jo So-hee was one of Wooju Entertainment's key artists.
Her future value was far greater than her present value.
However, Jo So-hee was rather difficult to manage.
Before Deputy Team Leader Ahn Hye-ju took charge of her, Jo So-hee had gone through no fewer than 10 managers.
Even Team 1 Leader Yoo Hye-eun, who had spent years catering to the demanding whims of top stars, shuddered at the thought of Jo So-hee.
'Yeah. There's no choice. So-hee is...... too much even for me.'