CNC Ch 2

“Great, you’re doing well. I wish you could look a little more friendly. How about some physical contact between you? Yeah, like that! Oh, perfect! Expressions, expressions… be more fresh! I am a fruit! I am a lemon, and I am an orange!”

At the profile photoshoot of an idol group about to debut.

Five boys posed in front of a large white screen, while a photographer hovered around them, pressing the shutter without stopping.

The stylist team, the agency’s employees, and the photographer’s staff. The small studio was crowded with about 10 people standing around the screen watching the filming.

Among them, Lim Sang-jin, the CEO of the agency, and Yong-jae, the team leader-level manager, were talking with serious expressions on the wall far away.

“Didn’t you train them in posing and expressions? They act all playful when taking selfies among themselves, but why do they look like that now when it’s an official shoot?”

CEO Lim said dissatisfied.

“This is their first formal photoshoot in a studio, it’s natural for them to be nervous. Still, compared to the early days of ‘TiTan,’ they are at a professional level, aren’t they?”

“Well, that’s true, but…”

Although the manager’s words slightly eased Lim Sang-jin’s expression, there was still a hint of uneasiness in his eyes.

After the disappointing disbandment of ‘TiTan,’ which had only begun to gain some recognition at the end of their long unknown period, this boy group was the first one to be presented by ENA Entertainment. As a result, Lim Sang-jin has been going through some sensitive days lately.

“Look at Sang-yeon and Jun-woo. Even though they don’t get along, they stick to each other in front of the camera. I didn’t even ask them to do that. People will think they are dating.”

“People who set foot in this industry should have that level of tenacity. Those who can’t smile like angels in front of the people they want to kill won’t last long anyway.”

CEO Lim loosened his arms and picked up the coffee that had been placed on top of the material box as he spoke firmly. Holding a cup that seemed too small for his size, he drank a sip of coffee through a straw while keeping his eyes fixed on the shooting site, and said with relief.

“With this level of professionalism, they won’t end up like ‘TiTan.’ So, I don’t need to worry about that.”

The photoshoot paused for a moment. As the photographer changed the camera, the styling team busily adjusted the members’ appearances.

Lim Sang-jin crossed his arms again after placing the coffee back on the material box. He leaned in close to the manager, as if attempting to share a heavy secret.

“Yong-jae, it’s about Hye-an…”

As if struggling to find the right words, he let out a deep sigh.

“That… It’s just… I don’t know how much longer we can keep him like this.”

“How much longer?” the manager asked.

“That kid, he has no family… He’s been unconscious for four months now, and unless a miracle happens, it doesn’t seem like he’s going to wake up anytime soon.”

“But he’s still breathing… What can we do?”

“That’s true… It is.”

Lim Sang-jin exhaled a sigh of resignation and grabbed the cup again, taking a sip through the straw.

Contrary to the impression given by his stern face and huge size, he did not have a harsh personality. However, that didn’t make him a saint who could continue to support a talent under the agency who might never wake up from unconsciousness.

“How much money does Hye-an have left?”

“It’s not much now. The bank account is almost empty… At best, there’s enough for the deposit on the apartment.”

“Let’s sell that place. Even if we have to pay monthly rent, it will at least help cover some of the hospital expenses. There’s no other way now.”

“But… if Hye-an wakes up, he’ll be furious.”

As if Hye-an would really wake up and chase after him, Yong-jae shrugged his thick and broad shoulders and looked at CEO Lim.

“It’s not like we have to keep paying the hospital bills until that kid wakes up. I’ll wait until Yoon Hye-an runs out of money. It might not sit well with my conscience, but I’m not a philanthropist either. I can’t keep piling up debts while paying for the medical expenses of someone we don’t know when will wake up. Let’s sell the officetel, do it today or tomorrow.”

“Yes…”

If it was confirmed that Yun Hye-an has no family, the hospital’s ethics committee will decide whether to continue the patient’s treatment. In other words, Yoon Hye-an’s life would be subject to the hospital’s decision.

For that reason, CEO Lim first registered himself as a guardian, and had been paying hospital bills from Yoon Hye-an’s bank account. However, he had no intention of continuing to support him with his own money. To Lim Sang-jin, it felt like pouring water into a leaking bucket. If Yoon Hye-an didn’t wake up and start working to repay the money, it would become money that couldn’t be recovered.

Yong-jae, who had taken out his phone to check the apartment’s market price, turned to Lim Sang-jin as if he remembered something.

“I did some research… I guess the number of people who wake up from unconsciousness is not as rare as I thought.”

“You were the one who suffered the most because of that temperament. Do you still want him to wake up?”

“It was tough, but… It’s still a person’s life. We’ll have to see how it goes.”

“Because you’re so soft, that’s why Hye-an gave you a harder time.”

“Still, if he wakes up, I don’t want to be his manager again.”

“I also wanted to let you go, damn it. But what can we do? There’s no other manager who can handle that punk in the company. The other kids can’t bear him for even a month and quit, so there has to be a solution.”

After a brief reorganization, the shooting was about to resume. The photographer changed the atmosphere by choosing a powerful rock song as the background music. With the tension seemingly eased, the members’ poses became more natural, and the studio became livelier.

Lim Sang-jin sipped his coffee and observed the shooting progress smoothly, while Yong-jae looked down at his phone.

“Sir.”

“Why.”

“Waa… what is this… Sir.”

Yong-jae tapped and called, but CEO Lim responded dryly, not even looking at the end of the straw.

“Why. Speak up.”

“Lee Seo-kyung died in Thailand.”

“What?”

Only then did CEO Lim’s eyes turn to Yong-jae. He snatched the cell phone from Yong-jae’s hand.

“What nonsense is this?”

“He was shot dead a few hours ago.”

The breaking news that CEO Lim personally confirmed was exactly what Yong-jae said.

Lee Seo-kyung, the third-generation chaebol and the vice president of Nox Hotel, who had caused a nationwide sensation with numerous charges, including violations of the Special Act on the Punishment of Sexual Violence Crimes, prostitution, and embezzlement, had been assassinated.

Before entering the appeals process after receiving a guilty verdict in the first trial, he was ordered to cooperate with investigations related to bribery in Thailand and Malaysia. It was a highly unusual case, and foreign media had also covered it extensively.

The article stated that Lee Seo-kyung was shot dead as soon as he arrived in Thailand, even before he could set foot in the prosecutor’s office.

“Lee Seo-kyung is the grandson of the founder of the Hanseo Group. Even such influential people die like this.”

Yong-jae muttered in a shocked voice, but Lim Sang-jin quickly lost interest. He handed the phone back to Yong-jae and sipped his coffee again.

“There’s a sequence to where you go, you know? Having money and power doesn’t make you a phoenix. There are some people who think they’re phoenixes, but they aren’t.”

Leaning on the material box at an angle, CEO Lim added with an indifferent tone.

“Maybe he got shot by someone worse than him or equally bad as him.”