The first time Kang Rojun was shown writing in episode 5 of P100. The screen showed No. 1 sitting alone in an empty lounge from quite a few different angles. Since he had passed on training, No. 1’s screen time had shrunk a lot lately, and now that he had suddenly appeared, it was in a shot of him writing.
-What’s he writing so hard for lolololol
It was only natural for the viewers to wonder. Soon, they began offering guesses of their own.
-Seems like he’s making a song or doing something similar
-I don’t think so. Do you really need to keep typing on a laptop like that to make a song...?
-I’m telling you, he’s writing in his diary lolololol
-One vote for him replying to comments on articles about himself!
-Someone earlier said he was a writer, and he does have that writer vibe
-No, he’s preparing to be an idol and you’re calling him a writer lololololololol
-Writer is too much. It’s probably seriously something like a diary ㅇㅇ Or organizing his schedule
-What is it!! Give us the answer, P100!!!
But P100 did not reveal why No. 1 was suddenly writing. The angle quickly switched to another contestant in practice.
At this point, the people in Room 105 watching the broadcast also grew curious.
It began with the scrawny No. 19.
“But No. 1, what were you really writing back then?? They said you often write in the lounge. I heard you were spotted a few times by other contestants.”
The only person on campus who knew Kang Rojun was a writer was PD Woo Hanseok. It was an obvious question, and that curiosity spread to No. 37 and No. 58 as well. With everyone looking at him, Kang Rojun scratched his chin and vaguely glossed over it.
“Ah—well, just. I wrote whatever came to mind.”
“...Whatever?”
“Yes.”
That was better than calling it trash-posting or typographical garbage. At Kang Rojun’s strange answer, the Room 105 members looked at one another, then.
-Sliding.
They turned their eyes back to P100 on the tablet. Since No. 1 was such a villain and an oddball, it felt like they had given up on understanding him. Then the screen once again showed the daily lives of various contestants. The practice sessions of those who had chosen vocal, dance, and rap training, scenes in their rooms after the day’s schedule ended, conversations during meals, and so on.
Scenes of No. 58 composing and studying Japanese also aired.
“Oh, No. 58—you’re getting quite a bit of screen time?”
No. 58 smiled, looking embarrassed.
After more than thirty minutes focusing on the contestants’ characters like that, the angle once again caught the lounge. Nearly twenty contestants were gathered there. No. 58, sitting alone, could be seen as well. He was studying Japanese.
No. 66 glanced at him.
For reference, No. 66, with his delinquent-looking face, was a Japanese contestant and was quite popular.
-[“No. 58 is studying Japanese again.”]
No. 66 snatched No. 58’s notebook. The screen showed No. 58’s flustered face.
-???What is No. 66 doing?
-He’s lost it
-Don’t bully our No. 58!
-No. 66 lost to No. 58 in the second evaluation, so he’s acting up lolololol
Seeing the notebook packed full of Japanese, No. 66 gave a snort of laughter. A slightly mocking line about how he would help. The viewers grew even more agitated.
-Ah, I freaking hate No. 66
Here, No. 66 spoke in his native Japanese. Of course, translated subtitles appeared.
-[“You’ll improve faster if you actually speak it and all. Try answering me. I’ll evaluate your level.”]
No. 58 was silently flustered, and the viewers got angry in his place.
-Evaluate his level lolololololololol Is he insane?
-Ugh, I want to smack him in the back of the head
-No. 58ㅠㅠㅜㅠㅜㅠ
-No. 66... you got owned by No. 58.....
The Room 105 members had heard about it, but this was their first time seeing the exact situation.
“Whoa—he was really harsh.”
“You put up with that? If it were me, I think I would’ve snapped right away.”
Soon, No. 66 on the screen asked No. 58.
-[“But No. 58, were you always that gloomy? Watching you, you kind of give off a hikikomori vibe.”]
The viewers went several times more berserk. Whether they did or not, No. 66 was on a rampage.
-[“You should answer. If you have that little confidence, your language skills won’t improve, you know?”]
At that moment, Japanese in a low tone was heard. It wasn’t No. 66.
-[“Whether he’s gloomy or sinister, I don’t think that’s any of your business.”]
No. 66 and No. 58 were startled. Of course, so were the enraged viewers. In the angle appeared No. 1, or Kang Rojun, standing near the entrance.
-What?? Was that Japanese just now from No. 1???
-No way lolololol But the voice does sound like No. 1
-?_?
No. 1 moved indifferently and stood in front of No. 66, then murmured in perfectly fluent Japanese.
-[“You should win with skill. Not by mocking someone behind their back.”]
-[“N-no. I was just.”]
Toward the flustered No. 66, Rojun spat Japanese like a bomber plane, and the real-time open chat saw several times more messages than before.
-Wowwwwwww No. 1 is so satisfying!!!
-No, but why is No. 1 good at Japanese????
-Seriously.... so freaking cool.....
-He just blew open my chest that was clogged with frustration lolololololololol
-With that insane visual... and Japanese too... I am honored
But Kang Rojun’s crushing defeat of No. 66 was not over.
-[“If you can’t win with skill, then at least groom your looks and beat them with your face. What is this, behind someone’s back? It’s ugly.”]
No. 1 boldly threw a line only he could say at No. 66.
-[“You should answer. If you have that little confidence, your face skills won’t improve, you know?”]
Then the viewers went wild and flipped out.
-Crazy... seriously, that was a line only No. 1 could say...
-Your face skills won’t improve lolololololol so funny
-Even if No. 66 practices to death, he can neeeever compare to No. 1’s face lolololol agreed agreed
-That line is seriously fresh, but because it’s No. 1, it makes sense
They praised No. 1.
After that.
Episode 5 of P100 had heated up with Kang Rojun’s satisfying cut, and next, the voting result clips for the “Vocal Team” and “Rap Team” aired. The method was the same as the “Dance Team.” Dozens of contestants gathered in a huge hall, and PD Woo Hanseok with a solemn face.
Soon, PD Woo Hanseok calmly recited who had survived and who had been eliminated.
-That’s right!! No. 58 survives!! Goodbye No. 66!!!
-No. 66’s expression is hilarious lolololol bye
This time, since there were two teams, many contestants were eliminated.
-Hullllll No. 88 is eliminated too
-No. 88 is the first one eliminated from the Room 105 fam.... What a shame
-But No. 88 was kind of vague, both in character and skill
In any case, the eliminated contestants had to pack their things right away, and PD Woo Hanseok announced Groups 1, 2, and 3, letting them know that only 38 people remained now. Starting with No. 1 Kang Rojun, photos of the 38 survivors assigned to Groups 1, 2, and 3 quickly appeared.
Then the screen cut immediately.
The sight of Group 1 gathered in a studio. Naturally, Kang Rojun could be seen among them. Then came the voice of writer Kim Sehui.
-[“From now on, we’ll play the completed P100 theme song for you!”]
The theme song “Produce” rang out.
-♬♪
When the song ended.
-[“Everyone in Group 1, you will be practicing the choreography for this theme song!”]
Writer Kim Sehui shouted again to Group 1.
-[“After practicing, the thirteen members of Group 1 will go on a surprise performance in Korea, and that performance will be the third evaluation!”]
At this point, a black screen appeared, and the title rose in the center.
-“Produce the 100!”
It meant episode 5 was over.
As soon as P100 ended, the real-time open chat, where more than 300,000 people had gathered, went into chaos. It was because of words like “third evaluation,” “theme song,” and “surprise performance.” Those gathered in the open chat soon spread out to various places, busily moving their fingers.
SNS, communities, and so on.
Thanks to that, from night until dawn, P100’s firepower was tremendous. By Saturday morning, P100 had covered everything.
《The third evaluation method revealed in episode 5 of P100... A sudden “surprise performance”?》
《[Issue Talk] “What can’t No. 1 do?” P100’s No. 1 is also highly skilled in Japanese》
《P100, which began with 100 people, has already shrunk to 38》
In addition, because it appeared on the Instagrams of several celebrities, P100 burned even hotter. Among the public, there was a lot of talk about the contestants, and naturally, topics about Kang Rojun, who had shown a short but powerful presence in episode 5, overflowed.
Then came the ratings announcement.
《[Official] The ever-popular P100 episode 5 breaks its own record again with a 22.4% viewer rating!》
P100 had surpassed 22%.
Monday morning, the 17th.
The location was a rented meeting room near the terrestrial broadcasting station SBC. It was quite spacious, with a U-shaped table placed in the center. Several people were busily moving around in this meeting room.
“We don’t have enough chairs here!”
“Yes! I’ll bring some!!”
“Where did they say the PD is??”
“I was told she’s almost here!”
It was the Rental Lover team. Since it was a one-act, there were fewer staff than on a large-scale drama, but their movements as they set things up looked extremely busy.
A few minutes later.
People were added to the empty meeting room. The key staff of Rental Lover. They took seats on the folding chairs arranged around the U-shaped table. Then the actors arrived one after another.
“Hello—”
“Oh! Long time no see!”
“Haha, have you been well??”
The actors who arrived greeted the key staff or chatted briefly among themselves. Their number gradually increased. Quite a few actors treated as B-list in the market could be seen. The kind whose faces the public recognized, but whose names they didn’t know.
Actors commonly referred to as “supporting cast.”
Of course, male actors of a higher tier than that soon arrived as well.
“Good morning!”
“Oh, Junseong, you’re here??”
They were A-list actors fairly loved by the public. They were not top stars, so it was difficult for them to lead a solo project, but they were actors capable of main roles. They were connected to PD Jeong Suryeong and were scheduled to play the lover roles in Rental Lover.
The reason so many people were gathering was simple.
A preliminary meeting for the entire cast of Rental Lover was scheduled here today. Before the full-scale script reading, it was a place for unfamiliar actors to learn one another’s faces and refine the atmosphere. For reference, the script reading that was just around the corner would also be held here.
Before long, the meeting room grew crowded.
From leads to supporting roles, there were over a dozen actors, and including the key staff, there were more than twenty people. Just then.
-Slide.
A woman with long straight hair, wearing a hat, entered; the beauty mark beside her nose stood out. It was top actress Choe Rina. Wearing loose jeans, she bowed to everyone.
“Why did you all come so early?? Hello—”
The atmosphere focused on her in an instant. All the more so because she was a top actress rarely seen in a one-act like this. After greeting people in a brief flurry, Choe Rina thought,
‘Is this my seat?’
She checked the cast list placed on the seat at the very front. After she sat down, she saw the cast label across from her.
-“4th Lover”
“4th Lover,” whose actor had yet to be revealed. Soon, the male actor seated immediately to Choe Rina’s right spoke to her. He was the actor playing the role of “1st Lover.”
“Sunbae, have you heard who the actor for ‘4th Lover’ is?”
“No. Not yet.”
“What is this? By the feel of it, I think it’ll be a rookie—but because they’re hiding it, I’m even more curious.”
Choe Rina felt the same way. Of course, no one here knew the actor playing “4th Lover.” Thanks to that, the question mark only grew larger, and a few dozen minutes later, in the conversations of the people seated in their assigned spots, for some reason, P100 was quite a hot topic.
“Ah! You watch P100?”
“Of course. Who in the entertainment industry doesn’t watch P100 these days?”
“Did you see episode 5? Episode 5? That No. 1 totally killed it.”
“The satisfying scene with No. 66! I thought I was watching some drama. I didn’t expect to feel catharsis from an audition variety show.”
“Is everyone a fan of No. 1??”
“Come on—he’s kind of an OP character, so he’s an exception. I think No. 58 is cute.”
In the midst of it, Choe Rina, who did not deliberately join the conversation, reacted only inwardly.
‘Still, it’s No. 1, of course!’
Whether she did or not, the actors and key staff all chattered away like experts.
“Every time I see No. 1, I envy his visuals.”
“Haha, as an actor, honestly, I’m pretty jealous.”
“Don’t you think we’ll see him in this field soon?”
One actor asked Choe Rina.
“Sunbae, don’t you watch P100?”
Choe Rina smiled faintly.
“I’m not particularly interested in idols. I don’t have time, either.”
It was a lie. These days, one of Choe Rina’s greatest interests was P100. But for the sake of her image, she had no choice. At that, the actors nodded as if they understood.
“Well, I guess you wouldn’t even have time to watch TV, sunbae.”
Maintaining an awkward smile, Choe Rina quickly changed the subject. Her gaze went toward the key staff.
“By the way, has anyone seen our Rental Lover writer’s face?”
Right at that moment.
“Whew—everyone’s here? I’m a little late. The road out front was completely blocked.”
At the entrance to the meeting room, PD Jeong Suryeong appeared, waving a hand, her frizzy hair tied back. With the arrival of Rental Lover’s director, the seated actors and staff stood up and greeted her. Choe Rina did the same.
“What is this, PD-nim? Ten minutes late!”
“Sorry, sorry.”
The interesting thing was that a strange man was standing behind PD Jeong Suryeong. He wore a hat and mask. The actors who spotted him tilted their heads.
“But who is the person behind you?”
Choe Rina knew who he was.
‘It’s the writer. What, is he going with the mysterious concept again today? He said he wouldn’t.’
PD Jeong Suryeong, who had been smirking, took one step while closing the meeting room door. Then she pointed to the man beside her and opened her mouth.
“This is writer Kang Cheolsu, who wrote Rental Lover.”
Reactions like “Ooooh” rang out. At the same time, a nearby actor asked,
“Ah—but why is the writer all covered up?”
When PD Jeong Suryeong looked at him, the man introduced as writer Kang Cheolsu took off his hat. Black hair appeared. Next, he even removed his mask. Having revealed his face, writer Kang Cheolsu brushed back his black hair as if tidying it and greeted them. His tone was plain.
“Hello. I’m writer Kang Cheolsu.”
What was unusual was that even though writer Kang Cheolsu had greeted them, in the meeting room—
“......”
“......”
Silence spread. On top of that, the actors and key staff all had widened eyes or furrowed brows, with expressions that said they could not understand. In particular, top actress Choe Rina’s face was the most worth seeing.
It was as if her soul had left her body.
She was the first to break the silence. Because, looking at writer Kang Cheolsu, she murmured without realizing it.
“......N-No. 1?”