Chapter 16

I returned home, dragging my tired body.

"Brother, you're here?"

"Uh-huh."

I really have a great little sister.

It's been two weeks since I last saw her, yet she greets me as if she saw me yesterday.

"Is that all?"

"What do you mean?"

"Your theater group... never mind."

"Huh?"

I had almost called out the names of today's audition participants but gave up.

It wasn't like they were doing well anyway.

"Ah, people came looking for us while you were gone."

"Who?"

"Tempest Entertainment and Rainbow Entertainment..."

If it's Rainbow Entertainment...

"Se-mi? Or President Jang?"

I just now remembered they rushed over from Jeju Island.

I had been planning to contact them later.

Ding—

At that moment, Director Sung Ki-hoon sent me a message.

[Let's drop by JTBS. We need to have a meeting.]

It's probably about the production budget.

The broadcasting station invests as much, if not more, than the production companies.

We need the broadcasting station to cover almost half of the production costs.

The director might not be happy about it.

At that moment, Hee-jung spoke up from beside me.

"Brother, your drama has been confirmed for the schedule. There's a news article about 'Pure Macho Heir' now."

"What?"

[JTBS's new drama 'Pure Macho Heir': Courage or Folly?]

The headline is insane.

If you don't like it, just say so.

"Brother, are you really shooting a drama with Se-mi?"

"Yeah, it turned out that way."

"But isn't casting a rookie actor as the male lead too much of a gamble?"

"No, it's not."

"Most of the drama viewers are women. The male lead is the most important."

".... Jang Sung-ho is in it."

"I'll watch it."

Honestly, to others, it might look like a gamble.

A rookie writer, a rookie actor, and competing against major productions.

There's no reason to invest a lot of money in such a drama.

The news article predicted a viewing rate of 0.5%, at most 1%.

Even so, JTBS has a significant influence in cable TV.

Moreover, Director Sung has a track record of hits in terrestrial TV.

And what about me?

'Ah, I'm in a life-or-death situation.'

No, I have the King System.

"Brother, you really have bad luck. Why did you have to go up against 'Shooting the Sun'?"

"Yeah... At first, I just wanted to get a slot."

"Don't be too discouraged. Director Sung is famous, after all."

With Director Sung's skills, he can almost shoot the drama exactly as I see it in the system.

"Cheer up. You'll definitely get praise for a well-made drama."

"That's a given, and it should be a hit."

"Most cable dramas are downloaded or watched as reruns anyway."

"That's true, but..."

"Videos of the drama on YouTube will also help boost its popularity."

Hee-jung, who usually isn't like this, kept comforting me.

It seems even she thinks there's no chance of success.

"At least we don't need a lot of capital."

"Yeah, with two rookie actors."

"So, we just need to secure one suitable company."

Still, the production costs for 'Pure Macho' are extremely low.

The combined per-episode guarantee for the lead actors doesn't exceed 40 million won, the lowest possible.

However, this is now more of a weakness than an advantage.

No one will invest in a drama with a rookie actor and a girl group member as the leads.

Indeed, the biggest problem is investment and sponsorship.

We need money for over a hundred staff members to work for three months.

"Hee-jung, I'll be back in a bit."

"Uh-huh. Are you staying at home tonight?"

"Probably."

I immediately headed to JTBS.

On the way, I sent a message to Director Sung.

[I'm on my way to meet you.]

* * *

The residence of the vice chairman of Cheon Sung Group.

About twenty family members were gathered for a meal.

The vice chairman's direct family, grandchildren, younger brother and his family, and even the hired staff made for a considerable gathering.

"Saerom, why don't you show your face more often?"

"Yeah, seeing the youngest is like picking stars from the sky."

Her brother and sister, pretending to be close in front of their father.

Saerom, scoffing at the pretense of her half-siblings, replied.

"Do you know my contact information?"

"..."

At that moment, the vice chairman's 'current wife' spoke to Saerom.

"You're showing your lack of manners."

Vice Chairman Jung Tae-chul looked at the two with displeasure.

On the contrary, it was his younger brother and sister-in-law who were fidgeting.

"I'm taking good care of Saerom, so don't worry..."

"About Tempest Entertainment."

The vice chairman interrupted his brother and spoke.

"Are you making a living by raising entertainers?"

His words to his long-absent daughter were quite aggressive.

However, Saerom met his gaze head-on and responded.

"Father, you also make a living by exploiting the people. Is it enough to live on?"

"Hey, hey!"

"What kind of talk is that?"

Saerom, ignoring the reactions around her, spoke bluntly.

Food, electronics, mobile, petrochemicals, and automobiles.

Given the nature of Cheon Sung Group, these were industries that couldn't ignore consumer sentiment.

Her words could also be interpreted as a jab at her father, who had recently withdrawn from the heavy industry sector.

However, the vice chairman spoke to his youngest daughter as if it didn't bother him.

"Finish up with the entertainment business now."

"On what grounds do you say that?"

"I'm your father. Is that not enough?"

Usually, Saerom would have cut him off coldly.

But she paused for a moment before continuing.

"... How about an investment?"

"What? I thought Tempest Entertainment was doing well without any investment."

"No, invest in the drama, Father."

"Heh heh..."

The vice chairman burst out laughing at the sudden proposal.

"You tell me to finish up, and then you suggest an investment?"

"The investment for the drama I'm working on isn't coming together. How about an investment?"

Saerom, who usually ignored her father's words, was acting differently.

The vice chairman, intrigued by her unusual response, asked with a gleam in his eye.

"Are you serious?"

"Does it sound like a joke?"

Saerom was the only one who would suggest that Cheon Sung Group invest in a drama.

"What if you can't recover the investment?"

"I'll pay it back next time."

"No, don't pay it back. Resign and I'll create a vice president position for you in the electronics division."

Saerom seemed to ponder for a moment before speaking.

"Six months after the drama ends. If I can't pay it back by then, I'll do as you say."

"No, just one month. And any money earned from other works is invalid."

"... Alright."

Jung Saerom seemed to have a purpose from the start.

Jung Gi-tae, the CEO of Tempest, stared at his niece with his mouth agape.

'What's gotten into her today?'

Losing Jung as a manager would be a significant loss for the company.

It would be better to just give up on one drama.

However, the CEO could only inwardly groan.

* * *

At JTBS.

The broadcasting station's director, Bang, who had kept Director Sung waiting for two hours, finally appeared but started yelling.

"Director Sung, how many times did you call during the board meeting?"

"Director! How could you do this to me!"

"Is it my fault that your drama got scheduled?"

"Then whose fault is it?"

Bang sighed, seeing the fiery look in Director Sung's eyes.

"The drama that was scheduled before yours is a disaster. It might need major surgery."

"... Why should we bear the responsibility for that?"

"Tsk, Director Sung, I didn't think you'd be so harsh. People are getting hurt."

Despite the director's attack, he continued.

"Even so, how can you shoot a drama in just two months?"

"In the old days, everyone shot with scripts written on the spot."

"To say that now...!"

At that moment, a new person appeared and greeted Director Bang.

"Hello, Director. I'm Kim Jin-woo."

"Ah, you're the writer... Director Bang."

"Yes, I've met you before. When I was working as an assistant to writer Min-ju."

"Ah... I see. Heh heh."

Kim Jin-woo smiled slightly and continued.

"Director, to be honest, I don't mind starting shooting in two months."

"Kim Writer!"

Director Sung called out loudly, but Jin-woo kept his eyes on the director.

"If we finish writing all 16 episodes before starting, there won't be any wasted shooting schedules."

"What, what did you say?"

"My script doesn't need any revisions. You'll see."

"It's only been a month since you wrote the first two episodes. What are you talking about...?"

"I'll finish the entire script in the next month."

"Really? Is that possible?"

"Of course. But there's a condition."

Director Bang and Director Sung swallowed hard, listening to Jin-woo.

"I heard you're supporting the production costs up to episode 6."

"That's already been discussed with Manager Jung..."

"Push it. 100 million won per episode."

Knowing that the lead actors' combined per-episode fee is only 40 million won, Jin-woo boldly asked for 100 million won.

"Really, do you think I'm a fool?"

"Other dramas also receive that level of production support, don't they?"

"Are you planning to eat lobster every day?"

"Not that, but... we need a more luxurious supporting cast."

"Using a rookie as the lead actor, and what!"

Jin-woo's bold request made Director Bang frown.

"Come on, Director, you don't want shooting delays, do you?"

"... 80 million won per episode."

"90 million, deal?"

"Are you kidding? This isn't a flea market...!"

"It's not easy for me to negotiate on behalf of the production company as the main writer."

"You... What will you do if this fails?"

"I'll think about it when it happens."

Jin-woo maintained the attitude of a writer who has succeeded multiple times.

Even one success doesn't guarantee the title of a popular writer.

He was pushing the director as if he only lived for today.

On the surface, it might look like the confidence of a bold rookie, but in reality...

'Shit. I'm so nervous.'

If I get on Director Bang's bad side, I'll never work on JTBS dramas again.

SBC is where writer Min-ju is based, so how many other broadcasting stations are left?

"90 million won per episode. I sincerely hope this drama succeeds."

In the end, Director Bang sighed and wished for its success, sounding like a capitalist's blessing.

Creak—

Director Bang got up from his chair, clearly uncomfortable.

"Mr. Kim, will you be alright?"

Director Sung asked Jin-woo cautiously.

At least as a director, he was looking out for the writer.

"Yes, we have to make it succeed."

"Hmm?"

"Director Bang will be happy if the drama succeeds."

"No, that's not what I meant..."

"Really?"

"I was asking if you can really finish the script in a month."

Is he a sociopath?

* * *

That evening,

Director Sung hastily arranged a meeting with the lead actors.

He must have wanted to save even a single day.

Jae-joon, who had passed the audition, received the news immediately after.

I greeted Jae-joon with a bitter smile, who looked like he had just attended a funeral.

"Jae-joon, are you signing a contract with Tempest Entertainment?"

"Yes. I auditioned there..."

What kind of reason is that to sign a contract?

"Mr. Kim is also with Tempest. Ha ha."

"Um, I'm not exclusively contracted."

"Huh? No, that's not..."

He's surprisingly naive.

"Still, good job. Tempest treats rookies well."

"Ah, yes."

I might be working exclusively with Tempest for a while.

A little later,

other people arrived one by one.

I smiled in response to Se-mi's nod.

Manager Jung Saerom stepped between Se-mi and me.

"Mr. Kim, did you really confirm the production budget directly?"

"Yes, it's a verbal agreement, but..."

Saerom looked at me with surprise.

"Director Bang really allocated the production budget? He's not the type to do that..."

"Well, it just happened that way."

"That's good. With the investors and production budget secured."

"Really? Investors? Who...?"

"I'll tell you later."

"Ah, yes."

Saerom, with her cold demeanor, probably doesn't know the reason.

She's usually not warm, but today she's especially cold.

Soon, Director Sung Ki-hoon spoke, confirming everyone was present.

"As you all know, the first episode will air in two months."

The room fell silent, all eyes on him.

"We'll complete the supporting cast and production team setup within a month and start shooting immediately."

This includes schedules that must be completed before the first shoot.

In this suffocatingly busy schedule, the most crucial person is...

"Mr. Kim Jin-woo, can you finish the script within a month?"

Director Sung fixed his gaze on me.

"Hmm, I'm not sure...?"

"No, you just said..."

"Three weeks will do."

People looked at me with mixed expressions of doubt.

It's understandable to be surprised by such an unconventional writing speed.

"Since we're all here, let's start with the supporting cast casting?"

I said, trying to ease the awkward atmosphere, but it was probably a mistake.