After listening to PD Woo Hanseok's briefing, the ten survivors, Gang Rojun among them, found their heads spinning. Because numerous agenda items had poured out all at once. Starting with the fact that this week's *Geubaekpeu* would be replaced with a special episode, and episode 12 would air the week after next.
Rojun had his own guess.
*'The PD said he'd give us time to catch our breath, but from where I'm standing, it feels like he's trying to make us impatient.'*
It was roughly the correct answer. In episode 11, which aired two days ago, there had been plenty of stimulating, mouth-watering bait for the viewers. The names of the *Geubaekpeu* participants, who had been called by numbers until now, had been revealed, the ten survivors had been selected, and in the final scene, there was even talk of a theme song related to Rojun and 58 Sihu.
It was obvious that the viewers would be waiting eagerly for episode 12.
Changing a week to a special episode at this timing was PD Woo Hanseok's scheme or design. Something like push-and-pull to make them fall for *Geubaekpeu* even harder. He might catch some flak for it, but the effect was certain. That was the proof of PD Woo Hanseok's experience having produced numerous audition programs.
Next was *Survival 100*, selected as the new theme song.
*Survival 100* would be a gift to the viewers, and according to PD Woo Hanseok's explanation, it was truly no different from those of pro idols. They would divide the vocal parts, and the choreography formations would likely be the same.
While the nine participants were murmuring quietly, Gang Rojun recalled the idols he had seen on TV.
The more members there were, the fewer the vocal parts seemed to be. Of course, the main vocalist was a different story since they basically had to pull off the hook and high notes. The choreography changed from moment to moment according to the timing, and at the climax, they performed a group dance.
*Are we finally imitating idols?*
It had become that time. Now there were only ten survivors left, and not much remained until the finals. Whatever the case, Rojun was someone whose excitement was several times greater than his fear. He recalled the thrilling sensation he had felt during the group dance for *Produce*.
Finally, a small-scale concert with a fan-meeting feel.
Even.
*Going to Japan??*
Gang Rojun and the nine remaining participants were all confirmed to advance into Japan. Of course, unlike active idols, it would be an amateur foray, but the participants' tension levels spiked.
They could somehow manage domestically, but Japan?
Although PD Woo Hanseok had hinted at this matter in the past, now that it was right before their eyes, the participants were showing how heavily the pressure of an unfamiliar foreign country weighed on them. Rojun was not without some worry either. However, he was on the more relaxed side compared to the other participants.
*Aside from the different language, it'll be the same. Let's think of it that way.*
Gang Rojun was also perfect at Japanese. That lessened the burden.
PD Woo Hanseok, whose eyes had been scanning the participants, continued speaking.
"It will be *Geubaekpeu*'s and your first advance into Japan, and the schedule then will be jointly with Netflix Japan. The format is the same as the small-scale concert with a fan-meeting feel that you'll be doing domestically."
The first question was asked by the expressionless 26 Dogyeong.
"Will thousands of people come to the small-scale concert in Japan too?"
Woo Hanseok PD nodded simply.
"That's right. We'll match the scale to be identical to the domestic one as well."
In other words, the ten survivors of *Geubaekpeu* would have to hold two small-scale concerts in both Korea and Japan, where thousands would gather. The participants wore expressions of various kinds, and PD Woo Hanseok wrapped things up.
"To cut to the chase. First, you need to prepare your passports and then devote yourselves to practice for the domestic and Japan small-scale concerts. What you'll see first is the domestic concert. The schedule is very tight, but you've already experienced this through *Produce*, so you'll be able to do it."
After reciting the schedules related to the domestic and Japan small-scale concerts, PD Woo Hanseok changed the subject.
"Then, let me play you the guide track for *Survival 100*, which has finished recording."
As he sent a look to the staff in the back, *Survival 100* began to play through the entire hall. A fast-tempo guitar sound. Drums cutting in simultaneously with the acceleration. And even a familiar vocal.
—♬♪
The moment they heard the guide, the participants had similar thoughts.
*This is totally good?? Shihu hyung composed this?*
*What's with the song quality. It's insane.*
*Yeah, it's good. But—the vocals on the guide sound kind of familiar...*
Within seconds, everyone fixed their gazes on Gang Rojun. Because they knew who the owner of the vocals was. PD Woo Hanseok, noticing their eyes, nodded.
"Yes, Rojun-nim handled the guide track."
At the same time, 26 Dogyeong whispered to Gang Rojun.
"Hyung. It's a guide track, but the hurdle is too high—"
From then on.
As soon as the briefing ended, the *Survival 100* guide track was released, and the participants who received the guide track began adapting to the song in their own ways. They listened and listened and listened again. While Gang Rojun and 58 Sihu would likely find it relatively less unfamiliar, they had to show the same tension due to PD Woo Hanseok's request.
In the midst of this, the internet was filled with *Geubaekpeu*.
[The communities are currently filled with the names of the *Geubaekpeu* survivors / Photo]
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say the weekend started and ended with *Geubaekpeu*.
[Rojun-Shihu's created *Geubaekpeu* new theme song gathers great interest from entertainment companies too]
This terrifying boom that had swept through Korea landed in Japan on Monday the 28th, a day later. Episode 11 had been uploaded to Netflix Japan. The Japanese public had already deeply immersed themselves in *Geubaekpeu*, and the baits that PD Woo Hanseok had manufactured this time exploded in Japan as well.
What made one feel the power of the typhoon was:
[It exploded in Japan too! The 10 *Geubaekpeu* survivors dominate famous Japanese SNS rankings]
The keyword rankings on Japan's famous SNS were all eaten up by *Geubaekpeu*-related topics. There were especially many of the participants' names. First place was taken by 'Rojun'.
At this moment, Gang Rojun was outside, not at the campus.
With his face hidden by a hat or mask, he was heading somewhere, his worries deepening.
*Passport... will I be able to get it reissued?*
It might even be a crisis. Gang Rojun was someone whose face, and indeed his entire life, had changed due to the AI Simulation. Therefore, reissuing an already existing passport was nearly impossible.
*If I go, I feel like it'll definitely be a no.*
Could he possibly be arrested? Various thoughts crossed Gang Rojun's mind. Still, with the thought of just going for it, he pressed forward.
The interesting thing was.
"Huh?? This works?"
There had been no problem whatsoever with the reissue. Moreover, the process was simple too. Contrary to his deep worries, Rojun, who had received his passport in an instant, reached one conclusion.
*As expected, it can only be the AI Simulation.*
The AI Simulation had done something. He didn't know exactly what it was, but there was no way to explain it other than the AI Simulation. Gang Rojun recalled a single line of text that had appeared when he first turned on the AI Simulation.
—[The character is automatically generated through user analysis.]
Character automatic generation.
*Perhaps... the moment I obtained the AI Simulation, the AI automation might have operated on its own.*
Rojun, who had been quite serious, quickly returned to a 'So what?' mindset.
*I got my passport, so that's that.*
If another problem arose, he'd deal with it then. Rather than worrying about a future that hadn't even arrived yet.
*Enjoying the present is a hundred times more beneficial.*
Smiling, he turned his steps back toward the campus.
Late morning on Tuesday, September 29th.
The location was a hall on the 5th floor of a large hotel in the Samseong-dong area. Even at a glance, it was a hall of considerable scale.
At the front was a podium, and on it were about eight chairs. What caught the eye was an extra-large poster attached to the wall behind the chairs. An emaciated Choi Rina sitting in a messy room. She wore a strange expression and held several photos in both hands.
Photos with the faces of the rented lovers printed on them. Four in total.
Anyone could tell it was a *Rental Lover* poster. The large title at the bottom of the poster was proof of that.
—Rental Lover.
It was only natural. This was the venue for the *Rental Lover* production press conference.
The seats for the reporters looking at the poster were set up to easily accommodate over a hundred people. There were four rows of tables in total. However, the central aisle between the two sets of two rows was spaced wide enough for two people to walk through. Although there were still about 40 minutes left until the press conference event, over 50 journalists had already filled the seats.
On the desks were all laptops and cameras.
"I've ended up attending a one-act drama press conference while working as an entertainment reporter."
"It is unusual. It's my first one-act press conference too. But *Rental Lover* can't be considered ordinary, right?"
"That's right. If we're just talking about the issue, it's on a higher level than a miniseries packed with top stars."
"The female lead is Choi Rina, and that Number One is the writer. No, we should call him Rojun now. I bet a lot of reporters came to see Rojun today? Honestly, even I came because of Rojun rather than Choi Rina."
"Me too. It's Rojun's first external activity excluding *Geubaekpeu*, right? I couldn't miss this."
Dozens of reporters were busy chatting in their respective seats. Gang Rojun frequently appeared in their conversations.
"An idol as a writer—was there ever such a guy?"
"Never. That guy Rojun's career path itself is a freak, a freak."
"I've really never heard of or seen an idol debut as a writer first while being a trainee."
"Strictly speaking, he's not even a trainee yet. But he's more popular than all those famous idols right now."
"To begin with, it's nonsensical that a one-act drama is holding a production press conference, that Jeong Suryeong is directing, or that Choi Rina is attached as the female lead."
Then, some reporters looked at the live broadcast teams positioned in the back and sides.
"The real-time broadcast team is large too."
"I heard that originally over 300 reporters were supposed to swarm here today, but they reduced it to about 100."
"Why?"
"It smells like they're focusing more on the livestream than the reporters. They've promoted it heavily, so viewers watching the livestream will all flock to it."
"Well, if public opinion surges, the press will naturally follow. 'Writer Rojun' took care of both the issue and the promotion."
Around this time, talk about the role of 'Lover No. 4' came up among the reporters who were looking at the proposal provided by the *Rental Lover* side.
"But why is the actor's name missing only for the role of 'Lover No. 4'?"
"Dunno. Isn't it an error?"
"They'd distribute a proposal with errors mixed in to reporters attending the press conference? No way."
"Hmm—it is strange. Looking at it, the role of 'Lover No. 4' seems to be at least a supporting or semi-supporting role. Or maybe the actors coming today are lead-level, and semi-supporting actors won't come, so they just roughly excluded the name."
"No, the list of roles attending today includes the role of 'Lover No. 4'."
"Really?? What the heck."
Slowly, the number of reporters increased like that. What had been 50 became over a hundred within several tens of minutes. The gender ratio was roughly half and half. And the real-time live teams that would relay the scene on YouTube and such were also on standby.
—[LIVE] *Rental Lover* Production Press Conference! Real-time Live Broadcast!!
—8,745 viewers watching
Even before the official opening, nearly ten thousand viewers were waiting. Once the live broadcast properly began, tens of thousands, perhaps even hundreds of thousands, of viewers would likely flock in.
Soon, a female reporter with glasses sitting in a seat close to the front podium clicked her tongue as she listened to the conversations of the reporters around her.
"The interest in Writer Rojun is definitely huge."
At that, her colleague who had come with her shrugged her shoulders.
"It's understandable. He's the most rising and hot these days. I'm really looking forward to seeing Rojun in person today. The review posts from people who went to the live broadcast said he was really unbelievable."
"Sure, I admit he's handsome. But you know? When you place idols who are said to be good-looking next to top actors, there's something—they fall behind in terms of aura. They look handsome on their own, but next to an actor, they look like ordinary people."
"That happens."
"I'm specialized in the idol scene, so I see it often; idols definitely can't compare to actors. That's why they say an actor is an actor."
Just then, a man holding a handheld microphone entered near the front podium. Hwang Seokgu, a famous comedian in charge of hosting today's press conference.
"The *Rental Lover* production press conference will begin shortly. Please be seated, everyone."
After the host Hwang Seokgu repeated the same lines a couple of times, all roughly 100 reporters focused, and five minutes later, as the real-time live broadcast began, Hwang Seokgu raised his voice.
"Then! Let's begin the *Rental Lover* production press conference!! First, let's welcome the main guests!"
What Hwang Seokgu pointed to was the back of the central aisle where the reporters were seated, and all hundred-plus reporters turned around, cameras in hand.
The first to show herself from the back door was.
"Hello—"
PD Jeong Suryeong with her long hair tied back. She greeted the reporters brightly as she crossed the central aisle between the reporter seats. An unavoidable choice due to this hall's structure.
—Click-click-click!
Flashes erupted with shutter sounds toward PD Jeong Suryeong.
Behind her.
"Choi Rina! Rina-sshi!!"
"Hello, Rina-sshi!!"
Choi Rina with her long straight hair entered next. Dressed stylishly in a beige one-piece. As expected of a top actress, Choi Rina showed a relaxed demeanor. Amid the intensifying barrage of flashes, the male actors playing Lover No. 1 through Lover No. 3 appeared.
They crossed between the hundred-plus reporters.
At this moment.
—Thud, thud.
The black-haired man who entered the hall last.
"...Huh-"
"Wow, he's here."
"He's that—"
His hair was slicked back in a pomade style, and his outfit was a navy blazer, pants, and dress shoes. Gang Rojun made his entrance in something similar to a suit but with the heaviness toned down.
Rojun's expression was calm.
"..."
A composed attitude. Flashes blinding enough to hurt the eyes. Regardless, Gang Rojun walked calmly down the central aisle surrounded by reporters.
Before long.
—Swish.
It was Rojun who had reached the front row of the reporter seats, and he cast his gaze toward a female reporter. An accidental meeting of eyes. The female reporter with glasses who had earlier said she was an idol scene specialist.
"...??"
She didn't realize that she was currently feeling intimidated. She merely floundered, caught in Rojun's gaze. At that moment, in her ears.
*...Wh-what is it? What do I keep hearing?*
A classical song was playing. Something like a magnificent cello. Of course, it wasn't real. Furthermore, Gang Rojun's movements looked like they were in slow motion.
Fantastic. The word came to mind automatically. Or rather, a human being who embodied the word fantastic.
Just as the female reporter's soul was gradually slipping away, Gang Rojun sent her a faint smile, though whether it was intentional or not was unclear. The female reporter whose heart lurched blurted out words as if bewitched.
"Fantastic...?"
"No. Maybe it's just an illusion."