CRT Ch 30

Before the meeting, people took a short break with the coffee Cha Yilhyun brought. The room vibrated with the rich aroma of coffee.

“Seeing President Cha personally introduce him makes me feel like I need to make a good impression.”

Cha Yilhyun led Yejun around the conference room, introducing him to each employee individually. Director Kim’s gaze towards Yejun was completely different from when Manager Byeon introduced him. Director Kim, with a serious expression, held Cha Yilhyun back to talk. The JYS Advertising Agency employees, who arrived late, were busy preparing for the meeting.

Yejun bounced over to Seok Ryu, escaping the introductions.

“After the meeting, will you have dinner with the president and me? I came all the way here, so you should at least extend that much courtesy. It’ll increase my loyalty points, right? And I’ll get your phone number while I’m at it.”

“I will make a reservation at a nearby restaurant.”

“Why are you in such a hurry? You don’t even know what the president likes.”

As Seok Ryu took out his phone to search, Yejun stopped him. Before the meeting, Team Leader Seo brought an advertising agency employee over to introduce to Yejun. The neat-looking man handed Yejun his business card.

“I’m Team Leader Ahn from JYS Advertising. I’ll brief you in detail during the meeting, but if you look at this storyboard… Ah, I’d like Lee Taeon to listen in as well.”

“I’ll explain it to him separately, so please continue.”

At Team Leader Seo’s words, Team Leader Ahn wore a knowing expression. He continued his explanation.

“The background is set in the distant future, and Park Yejun will play the role of a humanoid. Since Park Yejun’s arm is still recovering, we’ll only film his face, and a professional actor will do the motion capture acting.”

“Can’t I just do it myself? I’ve always wanted to try motion capture acting.”

“We’re fine with it, but Park Yejun’s arm…”

“It’s okay. I can do it!”

Yejun had been brimming with enthusiasm for everything since his cast came off. Team Leader Ahn gave a businesslike smile.

“Then, we’ll proceed with Park Yejun acting, as long as it doesn’t put too much strain on him. All filming will be done with a phone. Oh, President Cha Yilhyun will be doing the drone filming, right?”

“Well, I’m not sure if he’ll have time, he’s been incredibly busy lately.”

As Team Leader Seo looked troubled, Yejun intervened.

“I’ll ask him.”

Team Leader Ahn continued to explain the overall concept in detail.

Seok Ryu waited in the corner of the conference room so he could run to Yejun whenever he was called. Because of the ritual Yejun performed on the day of the Biryu preliminary auditions, he couldn’t lean against the wall. Jinguk, hovering around Yejun, almost tripped over a power cord and knocked over an expensive piece of equipment. As the Songhyul employees’ atmosphere turned grim, he was kicked out of the conference room.

Cha Yilhyun was perched on a nearby table, listening to Director Kim’s story. Despite the new toys scattered around him, he didn’t even glance at them. He fumbled on the table and brought a coffee cup to his lips. He frowned deeply, as if there wasn’t enough syrup. Seok Ryu quickly averted his gaze.

It wasn’t just the memories of bones breaking and flesh tearing that shook his daily life. It was the layered, trivial memories: a robot movie playing on TV by chance, discovering a toy store while walking down the street, sitting on sun-drenched stairs… These moments stopped time and robbed him of sleep. He wished he could develop calluses on his emotions. Then, he could cut away the useless feelings without pain.

A blonde employee walked past Seok Ryu. She was one of Yejun’s few remaining non-followers at Songhyul. Since she was planning to quit the company soon and emigrate with her fiancé, Seok Ryu had excluded her from the follower candidate list. Seok Ryu bit his lip and then called out to the employee. This much should be alright…

“Where is the sugar?”

“It’s in the break room. Should I get it for you?”

Seok Ryu pointed to the table where Cha Yilhyun was sitting.

“Then, could you please put it on that table over there?”

The blonde employee went out, leaving a friendly smile. When she reappeared, she carried a basket of sugar cubes and placed it on the table Seok Ryu had indicated. Cha Yilhyun, upon seeing the sugar cubes, immediately grabbed a handful and tossed them into his coffee. He didn’t forget to give the blonde employee a look of praise.

Seok Ryu decided not to worry about it anymore and took out his phone. He took pictures of Yejun to post on social media for promotional purposes.

“If someone sends a text, there should be a reply.”

At the raspy voice, Seok Ryu raised his head. Lee Taeon was standing there with his hair slicked back with pomade and a sleek suit. He usually dressed like a bank robber, so it was a sight Seok Ryu wasn’t used to. He had thought Lee Taeon would skip this kind of meeting because he found them bothersome, so his presence was unexpected. Either the company had handled things well, or the stationery store incident was still quiet.

Lee Taeon had played a significant role in provoking Yejun’s anger and hastening his punishment, so Seok Ryu found him somewhat irritating. Seok Ryu replied coldly,

“What text are you talking about?”

“I sent you two scripts this morning.”

“Ah…”

Since he didn’t know Lee Taeon’s phone number, he had no way of knowing that the texts were from Lee Taeon, or that they were scripts.

“I deleted them immediately, thinking they were spam.”

Lee Taeon frowned and pulled his phone out of his pants pocket.

“I’ll send them again. Choose one.”

“Why should I choose?”

“Then who will choose?”

“You can send it to Lee Taeon’s manager. Oh, right, you’ve been boycotted by the managers’ association for months now and have been going around alone.”

Lee Taeon crossed his arms and stared intently at Seok Ryu.

“Are you playing dumb? Or do you really not know?”

“What are you talking about?”

“He hasn’t told you yet…”

Lee Taeon glanced at Cha Yilhyun with a displeased look. He soon sent the texts with his characteristic bored and arrogant expression. As soon as the texts arrived on Seok Ryu’s phone, Lee Taeon spoke.

“The first one is the role of a devoted husband to a terminally ill wife, the second is a mystery deep-sea exploration. I’m sick of action thrillers, so I want to stop doing them for a while, but Director Kwak is against the first one.”

“I’m against it too.”

“I don’t particularly like either of them.”

After a short silence, Lee Taeon abruptly asked,

“But why are you against it?”

“Lee Taeon as a devoted husband? Wouldn’t the genre change?”

“What are you talking about?”

“It would change into a thriller or a comedy.”

The thought of someone who threw insults at anyone regardless of age or gender doing a romance was chilling. At Seok Ryu’s answer, Lee Taeon scoffed.

“What is this? This is pissing me off. What do you know about me?”

He suddenly lifted his chin as if to strike down on the top of Seok Ryu’s head.

‘Lee Taeon, that bastard, get him on his knees at my feet right now.’

For several days, Lee Taeon hadn’t appeared at the officetel, so Seok Ryu hadn’t had a chance to dope him. It was quite a feat that Lee Taeon managed to go from Yejun’s most admired actor to his sworn enemy at the audition. The reason Seok Ryu hadn’t made Lee Taeon a follower wasn’t solely because of Yejun’s request. Lee Taeon was of little use as a devotee.

That type of person, once they decide something is for their master, wouldn’t hesitate to act independently. Sometimes, they would even disregard and insult their master, causing hurt. Even if their actions led to the worst possible outcome, they rationalized their choices as correct. They didn’t even bother with self-reflection.

However, it was better to turn potential enemies into allies as quickly as possible. More than anything, he had to succeed because this was the first person Yejun had pointed out. For Seok Ryu’s sake, as well.

He was a formidable opponent in a different way than Cha Yilhyun, so Seok Ryu felt a little tense. He took a small breath and met Lee Taeon’s eyes. Lee Taeon slowly uncrossed his arms and looked back into Seok Ryu’s eyes. Focusing on his sharply defined pupils, Seok Ryu tried to penetrate into the deeper consciousness beyond. Lee Taeon’s eyes loosened, and his lips tightened into a straight line.

That was when it happened. Seok Ryu felt a gaze piercing deeply into his cheek from somewhere. It felt like a sharp needle entering his skin and slowly withdrawing. For a moment, the sensation distracted him. Seok Ryu looked around in all directions, trying to locate its source.

Yejun was still talking with Team Leader Seo, and the others were busy preparing for the meeting. His nerves were on edge; it seemed like a temporary spasm. Seok Ryu released his held breath and focused on Lee Taeon again.

But perhaps because his concentration had been broken, the doping failed. Yejun would be looking forward to the day he could make Lee Taeon his slave and trample all over him, and now Seok Ryu’s future seemed bleak.

“You stare at people like that, and you’ll get punched.”

Unaware of this, Lee Taeon threw the motion-sensing glove hanging on the machine at Seok Ryu’s chest.

“Put it on.”

Seok Ryu furrowed his brow.

“What’s this all of a sudden?”

“We’re going to make a bet, so just put it on.”

“What kind of bet?”

“The loser becomes the winner’s slave.”

“Why should I do something like that?”

“Judging by the way things are going, it’ll take a while for it to reach your ears, so I’m doing it myself.”

“Stop talking nonsense and prepare for the meeting.”

He couldn’t even laugh at the incomprehensible words, the childish and random demand. Lee Taeon suddenly took a step closer. He bent at the waist, leveling his eyes with Seok Ryu. A childish defiance burned in his eyes.

“Should I blow up the meeting today?”

The atmosphere among the advertising agency employees turned chilly. It didn’t sound like an empty threat, and Lee Taeon probably knew he had enough influence to pull it off. This was all Seok Ryu’s fault for being born with half-baked abilities. They lived in the same officetel anyway, so there would be plenty of opportunities to try again.

Seok Ryu put the sensor-equipped gloves on both hands, muttering to himself.

“Some people risk their lives to make a single slave, while others have it so easy.”

At Seok Ryu’s words, Lee Taeon raised his eyebrows. He wasn’t confident in making precise hand movements after his hand had been crushed recently. Things had taken an unexpected turn, but it wasn’t bad to have an insurance policy in case the doping failed.

A moment later, various hand shapes appeared on the large monitor. Seok Ryu chose an old, bony hand. He chose a rifle as his weapon. When Seok Ryu unconsciously moved his gloved hand, the old hand on the screen followed suit.

Seeing Seok Ryu flinch in surprise, Lee Taeon interlocked his fingers and warmed up. He chose a hairy hand and a bazooka. Before Seok Ryu could prepare himself mentally, he pressed the start button.

“Wai…!”

As a horde of zombies rushed towards them with terrifying momentum, Lee Taeon skillfully fired his weapon. Seok Ryu also aimed his gun at the zombies.

He had learned to shoot briefly when he served a retired soldier as his master in the past. He never thought the day would come when he would put that practice to use. When Seok Ryu easily won the first round, Lee Taeon’s expression hardened. After Seok Ryu had graciously let him win, Lee Taeon complained.

“Let’s do it again.”

“Where do you get off changing your words like that?”

“If you don’t like it, then win.”

The employees gathered around to watch, drawn by the sound of their bickering. Some even placed bets on who would win. In the end, after being consecutively defeated, Lee Taeon swung his gloved hands, showing his poor sportsmanship.

Perhaps because he had moved his hands a lot, a slight numbness set in. Seok Ryu kneaded his stiff hands. It had been a childish game, but he was able to escape his distracting thoughts for a while.

“Shooting is fun.”

“Is there someone you want to shoot?”

Seok Ryu smiled faintly and placed his hand on his glove. He couldn’t easily take it off. He felt like the suppressed sense of helplessness would rush in all at once if he left the game.

Just then, Yejun appeared and slung an arm around Seok Ryu’s shoulders. Yejun’s arm around his shoulders tightened, almost choking him. Yejun wore a smile, but his eyes were cold.

“What’s so fun that it’s this noisy?”

“We were just playing a game.”

“Sounds fun. I want to play too!”

Seok Ryu hurriedly took off his gloves and handed them to Yejun. Lee Taeon’s gaze towards Yejun turned harsh.

“Give them back while you still can.”

“Seok Ryu gave them to me.”

“Don’t be ridiculous.”

When Lee Taeon scoffed, Yejun’s eyes narrowed. Lee Taeon snatched the gloves from Yejun and forcefully put them back on Seok Ryu’s hands.

“Don’t take them off. We’re going to play one more time.”

“It’s fine. It’s almost time for the meeting.”

“Your face says you want to play more.”

“Not at all.”

Seok Ryu frowned. Lee Taeon carelessly ruffled Seok Ryu’s hair.

“Put them on before you get hit.”

“P, President! Are you alright?!”

At that moment, someone shouted. When Seok Ryu looked towards the source of the sound, Secretary Yang was crouched down, wiping the floor. Cha Yilhyun held one arm up, brushing coffee off his knuckles. His gray suit was also stained with coffee. The plastic cup on the table was crumpled and torn, leaking coffee.

Preoccupied with Seok Ryu and Lee Taeon’s game, it seemed the others hadn’t seen what had happened. The flustered employees helped Secretary Yang clean the floor. Startled, Yejun also ran to Cha Yilhyun and examined his hand. Cha Yilhyun looked at them crawling at his feet with indifference, then suddenly twisted his lips into a smile. Cha Yilhyun’s gaze slowly shifted to Yejun.

“The coffee was bitter.”

Yejun breathed a sigh of relief, then glared at Cha Yilhyun, who had startled him. As the small commotion subsided, everyone returned to their seats and prepared for the meeting. Yejun approached Seok Ryu and snatched the gloves he was wearing.

“Shall we play a game too? Let’s make a bet.”

Cha Yilhyun was still wiping the coffee off his hand.

“Shall we? What should the bet be?”

“The winner gets to make a wish!”

Yejun replied in a bold voice.

“A wish?”

Cha Yilhyun wiped each of his knuckles with a wet wipe as if savoring the word. Suddenly, a glassy glint flashed in his eyes.

“You have to be prepared for the consequences.”

Fear flickered in Yejun’s eyes. He stammered, turning pale, just like that day.

“You’re scaring me when you say it like that. Cancel! I cancel! Let’s just say the loser buys dinner.”

At the lukewarm provocation, Cha Yilhyun wrinkled his nose, as if deflated. However, he readily accepted Yejun’s change of heart. The once inexperienced Yejun was learning how to handle his admirers skillfully.

People’s attention turned to Cha Yilhyun and Yejun. Only then did a spark of life return to Yejun’s eyes. Seok Ryu finally realized Yejun’s intentions. His master had been constantly sending signals, and Seok Ryu had been too insensitive. The one who should be in the spotlight now was Yejun. Seok Ryu retreated behind the onlookers.

Yejun was soundly defeated in the first game. Sighs of regret and boisterous laughter filled the conference room. Although Yejun lost, his face was filled with the smile of a victor.

At that moment, the glass door burst open, and a cheerful voice interrupted.

“It’s quite lively here today!”

A middle-aged man and woman entered through the glass door. They had dirt on their hiking boots, as if they had come from hiking in the mountains. The advertising agency employees were bewildered by the sudden appearance of the couple. Director Kim rushed over and greeted them respectfully.

“What brings you here?”

“We stopped by to see President Cha on our way!”

The man took off his hiking hat and fanned himself, while the woman removed her sunglasses and greeted the employees with a nod. The moment Seok Ryu saw their faces, his limbs went numb. Why hadn’t he realized that the name JYS Advertising was taken from Jo Youngseop? He had heard it countless times and seen his picture endlessly, so there was no way he couldn’t recognize him.

Shinbi’s former master.