“Culture Drawer,” one of the top three author agencies in Korea, was a massive management company. Already home to countless big names, “Culture Drawer” was broadly centered around three divisions: the Production and Content Team, the Management Team, and the PR and Marketing Team.
Among them, the Management Team was naturally the one that met the affiliated writers, directors, and others the most.
As large as “Culture Drawer” was, its Management Team was divided into three teams in total, and Ryu Jeonghwa, the head of Management Team 1, had come to handle the contract with Kang Rojun.
“The CEO really wanted to meet you as well, Writer, but he couldn’t come because he had a meeting already scheduled.”
“By CEO, do you mean Writer Han Seoryeong?”
“No, you’ve probably already met CEO Han Seoryeong. There’s one more CEO, Heo Gitae. He’s big-hearted and very straightforward. You’ll have a chance to meet him later.”
Team Leader Ryu Jeonghwa, whom Rojun would likely be seeing often from now on, gave off a feeling that was somehow a mix of warmth and coolheadedness. She seemed like she would be sharp as a knife when it came to work, but once the topic moved away from work—
“You have no idea how excited I was when I heard about you from CEO Han Seoryeong at the company. My daughter and I are really enjoying ‘Geubaekpeu.’”
“Thank you.”
“If—if it’s all right with you, could we take a photo together a little later? My daughter really, really, really likes you. Her room is full of your posters too.”
“Yes, of course.”
She had the cozy air of someone one might meet anywhere. Thanks to that, Kang Rojun, who was moments away from signing the first contract of his life, relaxed.
‘I thought a contract would mean everyone getting all stiff and formal, but the atmosphere’s more comfortable than I expected. What a relief.’
Meanwhile, the three team members who had come with Team Leader Ryu Jeonghwa were endlessly marveling as they watched Kang Rojun talk with their team leader.
“······Even seeing him right in front of me, his face looks like it’s CG.”
“I know, right? The moment he walked in, I rubbed my eyes because I thought I’d seen wrong. All I can do is gasp.”
“His face is the size of my fist, but his eyes, nose, and mouth are perfectly placed in that tiny space.”
Rojun, noticing the whispers, glanced at the team members behind Team Leader Ryu Jeonghwa. The team members immediately cut off their admiration and put on business smiles, and Team Leader Ryu Jeonghwa turned to introduce them.
“You’ll mostly be communicating with me, Writer, but you’ll meet the team members from time to time as well.”
Brief greetings were exchanged once again.
A few minutes later, Rojun was sitting across from the “Culture Drawer” team at the meeting room table. The team members quickly placed the clear files they had brought onto the table. In the meantime, Team Leader Ryu Jeonghwa—
‘Writer Rojun.’
—looked at Kang Rojun across from her and organized her thoughts.
‘Seeing him in person, his visuals really are absurd. Even at my age, I keep finding my eyes drawn to him, so how much worse must it be for younger kids?’
Team Leader Ryu Jeonghwa was, if one were to call her that, a veteran who had built up a solid career in the industry. Even for her, this kind of situation was unfamiliar.
‘His main job is being an idol. And in that idol field, he hasn’t even made his official debut yet. He debuted first as a writer, which is supposed to be his side job. But with his debut work, he achieved a triple crown as an actor and with an OST on top of that. Not to mention “Rental Lover” is scheduled to launch on Netflix Japan too. The process itself is like some kind of fantasy, and from his very first debut work, he has this much impact and even an overseas expansion.’
It was a story she had never seen before in her life. As far as she knew, rookie writers had a fixed route. They started at the bottom, and it took at least five years to establish themselves to some degree. Of course, there were plenty of writers who took even longer than that, and the market was overflowing with those who disappeared without a sound.
But Kang Rojun had hit a home run from his debut.
‘“Rental Lover” hasn’t aired yet, but even if “Rental Lover” completely flops once the lid is opened, it doesn’t matter. Writer Rojun has already shown his presence properly, and his very existence is unique. The scarier thing is that this is only his starting point.’
While Team Leader Ryu Jeonghwa was awed by Kang Rojun, who was truly an invasive species disrupting the ecosystem, she also felt a slight sense of regret.
‘If his main job were writing instead of being an idol, he would have been able to write even more freely and spread his wings. Mm··· then again, if he weren’t an idol, maybe he wouldn’t have reached this scale? In any case, the more he rises as an idol, the more likely it is that his writing efficiency will gradually drop.’
If he became so busy as an idol that he had no time to breathe, it would be only natural for him to neglect his work as a writer.
‘Maybe that’s already the case.’
Even so, if a single work with the destructive power of “Rental Lover” came out within the contract period—
‘For us, that’s more than enough profit.’
It was “Culture Drawer’s” job to support Rojun and draw out that profit.
“Writer.”
At last, having finished organizing her thoughts, Team Leader Ryu Jeonghwa pushed a clear file toward Rojun.
“This is the contract. Please look it over, especially the special clauses.”
“Yes. Whew—somehow, I’m nervous. A contract, huh.”
“Are you? Your expression looks calm. It reminded me of your villain character in ‘Geubaekpeu.’”
“No. This is just the face I make when I don’t know what expression I’m supposed to have.”
“How honest.”
“I’ll read it.”
Kang Rojun opened the contract that had been handed to him. In truth, he had received a copy for review a few days earlier, so he had already checked it. Still, he had to make sure of the important special clauses.
‘Whoa—why are there so many words?’
Whether she had read Rojun’s mind or not—
—Srrrk.
Team Leader Ryu Jeonghwa, wearing a smile, began briefing him on the contract. It was a long explanation, but the gist was this: the contract period was three years, and any works that had been in progress before the contract would be handled by “Culture Drawer” as a service without applying the revenue distribution ratio.
The rest followed the standard terms.
“In addition, if you look at the distribution ratio, it’s listed as eight to two. Normally, we usually do seven to three, but CEO Han Seoryeong personally and strongly requested it, so that part was revised.”
“Writer Han Seoryeong did?”
“Yes. She said that since the initial effort required to launch a writer had already been skipped, the ratio should be adjusted accordingly.”
Kang Rojun couldn’t clearly determine what that meant, but in his heart, he gave Writer Han Seoryeong a thumbs-up.
‘Nice one, Writer.’
The conditions were quite good. Everything Rojun wanted was included, and “Culture Drawer” would also secure Kang Rojun, making it a win-win contract for both sides.
“Yes, I think we can proceed with the contract as it is.”
With a warm smile, Team Leader Ryu Jeonghwa handed Kang Rojun her own pen.
“I look forward to working with you, Writer.”
“······”
Rojun let out a small breath and signed the contract.
‘My newly made signature’s first debut is on a contract.’
With this, Kang Rojun and “Culture Drawer” were connected. It wasn’t on the idol side, but now that he had his first agent as a writer, Kang Rojun felt a strange emotion.
‘A management team that supports me. Not bad. It feels like I’ve got people on my side.’
Soon, Team Leader Ryu Jeonghwa put the contract away and greeted him again.
“Once again, I look forward to working with you, Writer. Even if it’s not about writing, please feel free to contact me anytime.”
Now that they were on the same team, she asked casually.
“Mm—this is regarding the special clauses. Aside from ‘Rental Lover,’ are there any other works in progress?”
Honestly, Team Leader Ryu Jeonghwa didn’t have high expectations.
‘It’s already impressive that he handled “Rental Lover” while being swamped with “Geubaekpeu.” He probably included this special clause because he had some casual discussions with PD Jeong Suryeong about his next work.’
But Kang Rojun’s answer flustered the “Culture Drawer” side.
“Yes. ‘Rental Lover’ and—one drama, one movie.”
“······Pardon?”
Team Leader Ryu Jeonghwa asked back with difficulty, her face aghast.
“S-so··· aside from ‘Rental Lover,’ you were running as many as two more works?”
And the drama side wasn’t even Korea.
“Yes. Ah, the drama is on the Japan side.”
After that.
Team Leader Ryu Jeonghwa and the team members of “Culture Drawer,” who had now become Kang Rojun’s dedicated managers, soon had their jaws hanging open.
“For the drama. Ah, the title is ‘Like a Kaleidoscope,’ you see? I had a meeting with Netflix Japan about that when I went to Japan. Also—the movie side was helped along by PD Jeong Suryeong. Was it ‘BG Pictures’? She said she talked to them and handed over the scenario.”
Because a snowball far beyond their expectations had already been rolling.
“N-Netflix Japan, and······ ‘BG Pictures’?!”
To think that in the midst of all that busyness, he had been progressing not only “Rental Lover,” but an additional drama and movie. And it extended not only domestically, but overseas as well. Team Leader Ryu Jeonghwa and the team members were overwhelmed with shock, but Kang Rojun calmly continued his explanation. The contents of his meeting with Netflix Japan, and so on.
Team Leader Ryu Jeonghwa, who had been silently listening to the story, suddenly shot one hand into the air.
“W-wait a moment, Writer! Don’t tell me······ did you write additional scripts and scenarios while carrying out your ‘Geubaekpeu’ activities?”
“Ah—the script was something I wrote a while ago. The same goes for the other scripts PD Jeong Suryeong has. The movie scenario is something I wrote newly.”
“You wrote a scenario in the midst of all that? You can do movies as well?”
“Yes.”
“······There are cases where writers who write dramas write film scenarios too, but—for a rookie, that should be almost impossible.”
Team Leader Ryu Jeonghwa muttered as if possessed. Meanwhile, Kang Rojun, who was slowly scratching his chin, lightly shrugged.
“I’m not sure. It just worked for me.”
“If you wrote the scenario during your ‘Geubaekpeu’ schedule··· how long did it take you? Until the scenario was complete?”
“A little over a month.”
“??!!”
The faces of Team Leader Ryu Jeonghwa and the team members twisted.
“A-a little over a month?”
“Yes.”
“You produced a scenario in one month?”
“Yes.”
Hearing it and still unable to understand what in the world that meant, Team Leader Ryu Jeonghwa suddenly remembered something Rojun had said.
“Huh—ah!! Wait a minute, did you say PD Jeong has other scripts too?”
“Yes. Those haven’t proceeded yet. I heard PD Jeong checked the scripts.”
“······”
To summarize, a rookie writer who had only just debuted had one project at Netflix Japan, one at a major domestic film company, BG Pictures, and one with PD Jeong Suryeong. Before his debut work had even aired, he was running three projects. Leaving aside the contents of the works themselves, Team Leader Ryu Jeonghwa nearly dislocated her jaw.
‘Just looking at the companies and the scale, he’s way beyond star writers?!!!’
Meanwhile, the nine participants other than Kang Rojun were—
“This is insane!! They lined up the charts in Japan too!!”
“Wow······ this actually happened?”
“Lining up the Korean and Japanese music charts at the same time—ugh, I’ve got goosebumps.”
They had gathered in the middle of practice and were going wild. Of course they were. Not only had the “Geubaekpeu” theme songs devoured the domestic charts, they had swept Japan as well.
-[リアルタイム TOP100(Real-Time TOP100)]
[1/ Survival 100(Acoustic ver.)]
[2/ Survival 100]
[3/ 青と冬]
[4/ Survival 100(Kor ver.)]
[5/ 風神の花唄]
·
·
·
Roughly three or four major music platforms were mentioned on the Japanese side, and the results were almost identical. From first to fifth place, different versions of “Survival 100” were monopolizing the chart.
《Geubaekpeu Sweeps the Charts on Japan’s Major Music Platforms, Setting a Record for the Fastest Chart Line-Up!》
Then came the announced viewership ratings for episode 14 of “Geubaekpeu.”
《Geubaekpeu, Setting Legendary Records in Korea and Japan Simultaneously, Records 33.4% Viewership for Episode 14》
It demonstrated its monstrous power by breaking through yet another viewership high. With the situation as it was, not only Korea but even Japan was surging with “Geubaekpeu.” On top of that, the contents of episode 14, which had ended yesterday, had also been quite provocative.
《Geubaekpeu Finally Enters the Final Evaluation, What Choices Will the 10 Surviving Participants Make?》
The entertainment industry, the press, and public opinion were madly craving the next episode of “Geubaekpeu.”
Thus, Saturday and Sunday were filled with “Geubaekpeu” as always, and by the time Monday came around again, the issue on the Japanese side had grown even bigger. Episode 14 of “Geubaekpeu” had been uploaded to Netflix Japan.
Around then, inside an editing room that seemed cut off from the world, PD Jeong Suryeong was—
“Lay the OST over that part again.”
“Yes.”
She was continuing the edit with an extremely haggard face. On the several monitors fixed in front of her was Kang Rojun’s face. As if praising those insane visuals, the OST “Lovers,” carrying Rojun’s voice, played over the scene.
-♬♪
Regardless of what was happening in the world, PD Jeong Suryeong was absorbed in editing “Rental Lover,” and time vanished accordingly. Then, on that same Monday night. Around nine o’clock.
“Whew······”
With a long sigh, Jeong Suryeong sank back deeply into her chair.
“This should do. Everyone worked hard.”
“Augh—finally.”
“···This is my first time editing a one-act drama so close to death.”
“We’re handing it over to Japan too, so we couldn’t do it half-heartedly. Still, the visuals came out like art. Anyway, editing’s done! Let’s get some sleep first.”
The editing of “Rental Lover” was finished.