Producer U Hanseok’s expression turned strange at the unexpected information.
‘Rojun can speak Japanese?? Now that’s a development I never saw coming.’
Jeong Suryeong, having read something in his expression, asked back.
“Ah—did you not know?”
U Hanseok nodded.
“No, I didn’t.”
“Hmm. I suppose that makes sense. Writer Gang may look plain and straightforward at first glance, but he’s such an unpredictable character. You know what I mean, right? The type to overturn the whole board with a calm face. It happened a few times on P100 too. On top of that, he gives off this vibe like he’s got secrets plastered all over him.”
“I know. That’s why he keeps startling people. If you call that part of his charm, then it’s not a bad thing. It made for good television, too.”
“I only found out yesterday while talking to him on the phone, so I asked about it… but it seems no one knew.”
Soon, recalling Gang Rojun, Producer Jeong Suryeong crossed her arms. A question settled over her face.
“These days, when male idol and female idol trainees come in, the first thing they learn is the language of whatever country they’re aiming for. Why would he hide that? If he’s thinking about being an idol, having language skills is always a plus, isn’t it?”
After thinking for a moment, U Hanseok pushed up the glasses he was wearing.
“To be blunt, No. 1 wasn’t exactly dreaming of becoming an idol or anything. If anything, when we started, he didn’t seem particularly interested. I persuaded him and only barely got him to join P100.”
“Uh—really? I didn’t know that.”
“How should I put it? Despite having those absurd looks and that physique, it felt like he’d never even thought about going into entertainment.”
At that, Producer Jeong Suryeong was slightly surprised. She hadn’t known the story behind Gang Rojun joining P100.
‘He didn’t even join because he wanted to??’
U Hanseok, who had been thinking back to when he first saw Rojun, gave a soft laugh.
“Even when he joined, all he said was, ‘I’ll give it a try.’”
“That does sound like Writer Gang. So bland.”
“Anyway, it’s probably not that he hid it. Considering his personality, he likely just didn’t mention it. He’s absolutely not the type to brag about what he has. Or—like what Producer Jeong heard, it may be because he only knows the basics of Japanese.”
“Mm, Writer Gang did say he could speak a little Japanese. Then maybe he really is only at the level of basic fundamentals, not actually good at it.”
“Probably. Well, I’ll ask him myself too.”
After answering, Producer U Hanseok calculated the date in his head.
‘Today is Monday. With voting and everything else, it’s chaos, so I’ll probably only be able to get to the campus on Wednesday. As soon as I get there that day, I’ll have to look for Rojun first.’
Even so, inwardly, he was delighted.
‘With P100 looking at advancing into Japan and overseas, it’s not a bad thing that Rojun, the face of the program, can speak Japanese.’
Even if he could only speak the basics, there was a big difference between knowing a foreign language and not knowing it at all. Producer U Hanseok knew that among the contestants, No. 58 could speak Japanese.
He had heard it during the first evaluation.
And among the dozens of contestants, there was also a Japanese contestant who had come to Korea dreaming of becoming an idol. His number was 66. Both of them had chosen “vocal” in the second evaluation, and Producer U Hanseok had deliberately put No. 58 and No. 66 against each other.
The result was No. 58’s victory.
Therefore, when advancing into Japan, he had planned to use No. 58 often. Promotional greetings to be aimed at Japan, and so on. But if Gang Rojun could speak even basic Japanese…
‘Of course I should use the two of them together.’
Naturally, Rojun had to be placed at the vanguard.
‘By the way, what really is Rojun? Seeing abilities pop out of him right on cue—doesn’t it feel like P100 was created because of him?’
Soon, Producer U Hanseok changed the subject.
“For now, let’s both confirm the Japanese matter separately. What’s the situation with Rental Lover? Around when will it air?”
“We’re in pre-production right now, and the broadcast—probably late September or early October at the earliest? That could change depending on filming and editing too.”
“Mm. There’s a possibility we’ll have more episodes than we planned as well, since as you know, the response right now is too good. For now, I’ll guarantee as much as possible regarding No. 1’s movements related to Rental Lover. Of course, if there’s P100 filming or another schedule, it’ll be difficult.”
“I understand. If you could just keep in mind the script meetings and meetings, and when Writer Gang films his role, that’ll be enough.”
U Hanseok reacted to the word “role.”
“Acting… Has No. 1 ever acted before?”
“No, not at all. This will probably be his first time. So we’re trying to minimize the lines for the role itself and focus mainly on the visuals.”
“But what’s the reason for adding a foreign language to that role?”
“Writer Gang’s role is a newly created character, and in terms of the setup, he needs a flaw. I thought if we added a foreign language to that flaw, the picture might become richer.”
“I see. Understood for now. Once we have a rough outline on both sides, I’m thinking of gradually adding cuts of No. 1 writing into P100’s broadcast. Like bait. What do you think?”
“That sounds good. That would be enough to stir up viewers’ curiosity and draw attention.”
“And then I’m also thinking of hinting at Rental Lover in the latter half of P100.”
The two, as veterans, quickly exchanged ideas. Then Producer Jeong Suryeong took the baton.
“Around then, the reporters will probably catch on and start throwing out all kinds of articles. Naturally, it’ll snowball among the viewers too. Our Rental Lover will probably air after P100 ends, so when our promotions and marketing begin in earnest, we’re thinking of tying Writer Gang and P100 together.”
“Yes, when that time comes, we’ll lend our support as well. Even after the domestic broadcast ends, there’s still overseas, and we have quite a few things we can do like special episodes and other extended-match-type content.”
“It’s hard for us to say right now too, but besides Writer Gang, we have a few bombs of our own. To a degree that’s unprecedented for a one-act drama.”
“Hahaha, in a little while, the board will really heat up.”
U Hanseok and Jeong Suryeong aligned their stories for nearly an hour, and once the conversation seemed more or less settled, Producer Jeong Suryeong stood first.
She recited what had to be confirmed one last time.
“Oh, and what we discussed today.”
Of course, Producer U Hanseok had already realized it.
“Yes. Until things begin in earnest, only the three of us should know, including No. 1.”
After that.
Like a volcano erupting, P100 exploded everywhere. It had surpassed 17% in viewership ratings, but that was only part of it.
《P100 Surpasses 17% Viewership as Popularity Explodes Upward—What Are the Factors Behind Its Success?》
The viewers’ first vote, the core content of P100, drew an enormous amount of attention. On social media and in online communities, wherever one looked, photos of the twenty members of P100’s choreography team were surging everywhere.
[Who did you vote for in P100 this time??]
-You’re supposed to pick 10 people, but I was too lazy so I only picked No. 1
-I picked No. 1 too lololol and No. 21!
-Other than No. 1, I just picked the rest roughly based on their faces
-No one picked No. 10??ㅠㅠ
-Honestly… No. 1 is way too untouchable to pick No. 10…
No matter where one went, they were the topic of conversation.
Monday passed, and bright Tuesday was the same. Especially since voting only lasted until midnight on Tuesday, the situation was several times hotter. In the meantime, the P100 production team uploaded a flood of edited videos related to Episode 3 that they had prepared.
There were many videos, but the ones drawing the most attention were, of course, the vocal team’s stage videos.
Among them—
-♨Hot Clip♨ Thought He Was the Villain, but He Dropped a Nuclear Bomb on Stage! No. 1’s “brake”｜Produce the 100!
It was Gang Rojun’s “brake” stage.
It was so hot that the official music video for “brake” climbed back up the charts on YouTube, and dance cover videos by other idols were being produced en masse.
Thus, after Tuesday midnight passed and Wednesday morning arrived, P100’s first vote had ended.
Producer U Hanseok and the writers, who had spent several days practically pulling all-nighters, said,
“Producer, the voting results have been organized.”
“Okay. Organize them separately for the announcement and for the broadcast.”
“Ha—this really took forever. Starting with the voting page crashing, there were so many incidents… I thought I was really going to die.”
“More than that—the number of votes was seriously insane. It was more than three times what we expected.”
They prepared the voting results table.
Then Producer U Hanseok, after telling the writers they had worked hard, recited the next schedule.
“The voting results will be announced tomorrow, Thursday, and we’ll film the consolation match, so let’s sleep for a few hours and enter the campus around lunchtime.”
Of course, those few hours of sweet sleep felt like five seconds.
Wednesday around lunchtime, the campus in Paju.
Though several days had passed since Episode 3 aired, the dozens of contestants on the P100 campus were still in an atmosphere where excitement and anxiety coexisted. The twenty contestants of the “choreography team,” whose votes had been held this time, were especially sensitive.
Because it would soon be decided whether they stayed on this campus or left.
Thanks to that, the contestants who had been on the “choreography team” had drastically fewer words. No. 10, with his blazing red hair, even skipped lunch. Only Gang Rojun alone was full of energy. The envy and jealousy of the contestants watching him rose to another level.
“Only No. 1 has a face without a single worry.”
“I would too if I were him. He tore up the stage, and the producer really gave him proper direction at the end. There are quite a few complaints from the other choreography team contestants.”
“…Even though No. 1 barely had any screen time in Episode 3, the flow still isn’t changing.”
“If you drop a bomb like that at the end, whether he had screen time or not doesn’t matter.”
“Does it make sense to have those crazy visuals, vocals, and even insane choreography?? Ha—I’m so damn jealous.”
“He keeps getting results even when he acts like a villain, so his popularity only rises. How are we supposed to beat that monster?”
Regardless of them, Rojun, carrying a laptop under his arm, was busy searching the internet for himself, which had spread everywhere, even while walking down the hallway.
‘Oh—there are a ton of videos of me on YouTube now too??’
His power as a hot issue was gradually growing enormous.
Meanwhile, perhaps because it was after lunch, there were quite a lot of contestants in the lounge. There were easily more than twenty. Most of those with relatively relaxed expressions were from the next broadcasts, the “vocal team” and the “rap team.”
Among them, sitting alone, was No. 58 with a baby perm, who shared Room 105 with Gang Rojun.
“……”
Wordlessly, giving off a slightly gloomy atmosphere, he was writing something in a notebook. Looking closer, No. 58 was using his spare time to study Japanese. At that moment, a few contestants at another table looked at No. 58, whispered among themselves, or snickered. Then, a contestant with short hair and a face that carried a somewhat delinquent air approached No. 58.
He spoke in slightly awkward Korean.
“No. 58, studying Japanese again?”
The reason his Korean was strange was simple. He was a contestant from Japan. His number was 66. For reference, the two of them had faced each other in the second evaluation’s “vocal team,” and No. 66 had lost. That No. 66 picked up No. 58’s notebook as though snatching it away.
No. 58 was flustered.
“Ah—”
On the other hand, No. 66 gave a small laugh as he looked at the notebook densely filled with traces of study. He spoke again in awkward Korean.
“You really worked hard. Should I help you a little?”
Then he began speaking fluently in his native Japanese.
“You’ll improve faster if you actually speak it instead of doing it like this. Try answering me. I’ll evaluate your level.”
“……”
No. 58, clearly flustered, didn’t know what to do, then with difficulty answered in Japanese. Of course, he was in a state sorely lacking confidence.
“…I’m not good yet. I’m not at the level where you can evaluate me.”
“Haha, not bad.”
“……”
The eyes in the lounge were all focused on them. No. 58 could not open his mouth and lowered his gaze. No. 66 smiled faintly. Since Japanese was being exchanged, the surrounding contestants did not know exactly what kind of conversation it was. Returning the notebook he was holding, No. 66 asked No. 58 again in Japanese.
“But were you always that gloomy, No. 58? Watching you, you kind of feel like a hikikomori.”
This time too, No. 58 with the baby perm did not answer.
“……”
He merely pulled the notebook toward himself. No. 66 shrugged.
“You have to answer. If you lack confidence that much, your language skills won’t improve, you know?”
At that moment, a low-toned Japanese voice rang out from the entrance of the lounge.
“Whether he’s gloomy or eerie, I don’t think that’s any of your business.”
It was considerably fluent. At that, the gazes of everyone in the lounge, including the startled No. 58 and No. 66, all shifted. It was only natural, since a sudden burst of native-level Japanese had been heard.
At the entrance stood Gang Rojun, his face shining, a laptop tucked under his arm.
Swoosh.
He stood in front of No. 66 and spoke in Japanese with an indifferent expression.
“You should win with skill, not by mocking people behind their backs.”
“Ah, no. I was just—”
“If you’re upset that you lost, then you should practice more. Didn’t you come to Korea because you wanted to become an idol?”
“…No. 1. I think there’s a bit of a misunderstanding.”
“A misunderstanding? Is calling him gloomy and a hikikomori a misunderstanding? Then—”
Rojun, who had been speaking Japanese, suddenly switched to Korean.
“Can you speak Korean? From what I’ve seen a few times, you sound a little awkward. Try it. I’ll evaluate your level.”
“……”
At the atmosphere growing strange, the expressions of the other contestants stiffened. No. 58 looked restless. On the other hand, the calm Gang Rojun stared steadily at the silent No. 66, then spoke again. This time, it was in Japanese.
“If you don’t have the skills, then at least take care of your looks and crush people with your face. What is this, mocking someone behind their back? It’s ugly.”
For an instant, No. 66 flinched. He felt disgustingly annoyed, but the one standing before him was none other than No. 1, a monster in both visuals and skill.
‘Damn it, why did this bastard suddenly show up?? And why is he good at Japanese??!’
Any sort of counterattack was difficult. To No. 66, who was left speechless, Rojun brought his face a little closer and opened his mouth. It was also in Japanese.
“You have to answer. If you lack confidence that much, your facial skills won’t improve, you know?”