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Wisu Entertainment.
It was not unreasonable to view them as a group of scammers who caught minors or inexperienced young adults new to society, signed them to exclusive contracts, and then swindled money by either taking away their contract fees or disguising it as investment funds.
The CEO of Wisu Entertainment took quite some pride in his organization.
It’s a great world for exploitation.
That’s what he thought.
Especially this time, he had a good feeling.
Jeong Dajun, although he had set a trap by having an exclusive contract, he never expected the guy to make it big.
He waited for the perfect timing when Dajun’s career wasn’t too successful, nor was it worth giving up on, then threatened him with a double-exclusive contract.
The CEO was happily wondering how much penalty fee to demand when a paparazzo he knew casually mentioned something while having a drink.
In summary, it was this: These days, Seo Hoyun of The Dawn was having a lot of conflicts with Daepaseong Entertainment and was looking for another agency.
“Lucky me.”
His efforts in networking paid off.
He got the scoop from the valuable paparazzo first.
Not wanting to miss such a good opportunity, he subtly threw bait to Seo Hoyun and got a prompt response.
But I should be careful.
The CEO pledged to himself while wiping sweat off his forehead.
Although he couldn’t help but grin at the thought of ripping off a huge sum of money from Seo Hoyun and Jeong Dajun, he reminded himself to prepare for every possible situation.
After all, Hoyun appeared to be a calm and knowledgeable person on broadcasts.
“Yup, hello~.”
However, when the CEO actually met Seo Hoyun, his long-held sense of caution was shattered.
“…Hello?”
“Wow~, this office really sucks. How does work get done here?”
Chewing gum noisily and swaggering like a delinquent, Seo Hoyun barely nodded before sitting on a sofa.
His hair was neatly combed forward, and his whole body was wrapped in a well-coordinated luxury brand, a typical look of a snobbish delinquent.
…What’s with this delinquent?
“CEO, I’m thirsty.”
“…Do you, uh, want some water?”
He stuttered slightly, taken aback by the unexpected gap.
Seo Hoyun buried himself deeply into the sofa and crossed his legs on the table.
He then leaned his head back and yawned loudly, complaining that the water was taking too long.
However, when the CEO handed him a bottle of water from the fridge, Hoyun frowned deeply and didn’t even bother to take it.
“What? Don’t you know that I don’t drink domestic water?”
“…This is all I have.”
“Ha, really…this place suuucks.”
Stretching out the last syllable, Hoyun opened the cap and sniffed the water.
He even shook it like wine to smell it better.
“Not that great.”
…What?
The dumbfounded CEO stared at the seagulls painted on the ceiling to calm his mind.
Because of this, he missed Hoyun adding a white powder to the water.
Hoyun closed the cap again, clearly not liking it, and handed it back to the CEO.
“You drink it, CEO. I’m good.”
Fuck…what’s with this punk?
“Hahaha! Hoyun, you’re so funny. The gap between your broadcast persona and… I was a bit taken aback.”
“Gap?”
Seo Hoyun tilted his head.
Seeing his innocent look, the CEO thoughtlessly answered.
“Uh, yeah. You were so hardworking and smart on the broadcast.”
He regretted his words immediately.
It implied that Hoyun’s current behavior was not smart.
However, instead of getting upset, Hoyun burst into loud laughter.
“Oh, that?”
That?
“That’s all just a concept. The company had me manage my image so much~. They even told me to stick to the script or not to open my mouth if it’s not in the script.”
“You even solved college entrance exam questions well…?”
“That’s all edited. I had a hard time pretending to solve them after memorizing the answers. I just need to be good at singing and dancing, right? Do I have to be smart, too? I told them that was too much~. They insisted anyway.”
So, that’s how it was?
The CEO’s tension eased.
Hoyun’s speech revealed an undeniable lightness and stupidity that he could not hide.
Seo Hoyun smirked at him instead.
“You really believed that CEO? You have a more naive side than you appear to have.”
“…Hahaha!”
Although slightly annoyed, such an attitude would only be detrimental to oneself.
The CEO of Wisu Entertainment managed to suppress his anger with a friendly smile.
After all, it would be that jerk who would be deceived.
“Thank you for coming today, Seo Hoyun. It must have been a big decision for you.”
“What, did I come to sign a contract? I just came for a consultation. There are many other places too. Of course, this is my first choice.”
“Oh, why is this the first choice?”
There was a slight catch.
If Seo Hoyun knew about Jeong Dajun’s situation, and if he had heard how Jeong Dajun had been wronged, even a fool wouldn’t have come this far.
Wisu Entertainment was originally a scam specialist, not an idol training expert.
“Our CEO is going fucking crazy right now.”
“The CEO?”
“Yes. But I fucking hate the CEO. Since I’m going to sign with another company anyway, I came to Wisu just to see that jerk get screwed.”
“What does that mean…?”
“Think about it, sir.”
Seo Hoyun laughed playfully.
“Two people betraying him and going to the same agency would be horrible, right?”
Wow, this guy really doesn’t think.
The CEO admired him.
Well, if that were the reason, he seemed to have no intention of signing the contract yet but appeared to be trying to provoke Daepaseong’s side gently.
Now was the time for his smooth-talking skills to shine. If handled well, he would eventually stamp the contract.
The CEO briefly worried as he walked to the mahogany desk that he had purchased with great reluctance to prepare the contract.
It was advantageous for him to leave as little evidence as possible, so he didn’t install any CCTV.
However, he thought that recording might be useful for later editing and wondered if it would be helpful.
But looking at Seo Hoyun, who was chewing gum and blowing bubbles while glancing around, it didn’t seem necessary to go that far.
Once the contract was signed, the rest would be smooth sailing, so the CEO decided to relax and just prepare the contract.
“Please read it first, Seo Hoyun. We usually don’t do this, but we’ve set exceptional conditions.”
“Hmm….”
The CEO pushed the contract towards Seo Hoyun, who flipped through it casually and asked,
“What is this ‘cultural arts service’?”
“Oh, that refers to services related to entertainment in the culture and art industry…”
“So, what is a service?”
“…”
He couldn’t answer for a moment.
He thought Seo Hoyun was teasing him, but it seemed sincere as he frowned and examined the words closely.
“Well, it’s like… providing the necessary labor during the production or work process…”
“What do you mean?”
Damn it…
Yes, a person might not know the word “service.”
Yes, a person might not understand what others say.
The CEO tried his best to hold back his cursing and kindly explained, but Seo Hoyun kept making a confused face and continued to torment him with similar simple questions.
This guy has really crafted his image well…
For a moment, the CEO sympathized with the employees of Daepaseong Entertainment.
He couldn’t understand how they managed to create an intelligent concept with such a stupid idol.
When the questioning was repeated about ten times, the CEO drank the water Seo Hoyun had refused, his throat burning.
“Ha, now do you understand?”
A glint of mischief flashed in Seo Hoyun’s eyes, but the CEO didn’t notice.
“Well, it seems like I get it…”
Seo Hoyun still stupidly scratched his head.
“The ratio is good, and the contract period is fine. Honestly, the conditions are quite groundbreaking.”
It’s because it’s a scam, you jerk.
“If you pull a carrot, you might as well chop it, right? I’ll sign it.”
It was a fresh interpretation of the saying, “If you pull a knife, you must cut something.”
The CEO, now completely relaxed, nodded his head repeatedly.
“Here, a pen!”
“Thank you.”
Seo Hoyun fumbled with the pen and filled his personal information in the blank spaces.
Ah, finally, he could get rid of this stupid kid, the CEO thought, feeling good about himself for somehow managing to pull it off.
Then, Seo Hoyun, quietly filling out the contract, spoke again.
“But did Jeong Dajun get better conditions than me?”
“Dajun? Nah, his conditions are worse than yours, Hoyun. He signed when he was a trainee.”
Seo Hoyun seemed satisfied that he received better conditions than Jeong Dajun.
“Hmm… really? Did he read and sign it? He wouldn’t have understood this stuff.”
Is he saying that as if he understood it?
The CEO tried his best to maintain a smile, though the veins on his forehead were bulging.
“No, Jeong Dajun didn’t understand either. But he just signed it anyway. I guess he thought it was a good opportunity.”
“Didn’t his parents try to stop him?”
“His parents couldn’t read the contract at the time. They said they were busy with their jobs or something… They only had a consultation.”
“So, they didn’t get their consent for the contract?”
“Right, Jeong Dajun just stamped it himself without his parents’ consent.”
“That’s weird. My CEO said that you sent a recording of their consent.”
“Ah, about that.”
Huh?
Oddly enough, the words flowed smoothly.
He even revealed details that he would never have mentioned usually.
As if he was heavily drunk, he honestly recounted the events of that day.
“We edited the consultation content. We couldn’t get the parent’s consent, but they believed it anyway. After all, the call and the contract date were the same, so they couldn’t doubt it.”
“Really?”
Seo Hoyun chuckled. Only then did the CEO sense a slight unease.
“May I summarize everything?”
The tone of voice that had been pressed flat against the floor just moments ago had suddenly become clear and piercingly cold to the ear.
“The CEO of Wisu Entertainment manipulated the situation to forge the consent of a legal representative and signed an exclusive contract with underage Jeong Dajun.”
Suddenly, the surrounding temperature seemed to drop.
With a chilly gaze, the person asked the CEO again with a smooth voice.
“Is that correct?”
“Yes… it is.”
Wisu’s CEO couldn’t believe the words that he had just uttered.
When he opened his eyes wide, Seo Hoyun shook his head and took his legs off the table.
Then, as if by magic, the previous thug was gone, leaving only a cold man behind.
Snap.
Seo Hoyun took out his smartphone from his pocket, stopped the recording, and shoved it back in.
He had been recording.
The whole conversation, every bit of it.
“Thank you.”
Seo Hoyun spoke with a slightly annoyed tone, yet clearly enunciated.
“If we have to go to court, I’ll use this recording well.”
“You…!”
The CEO excitedly stood up. He tried to snatch the phone, but strangely, his body wouldn’t move after that.
Seo Hoyun just looked up and stared intently at him.
“Why, why is this…!”
“Oh.”
He snickered and kicked away the table.
Screech!
With the sound of the table scraping the floor, the CEO, standing on the opposite side, was pushed back into the space between the table and the sofa.
Seo Hoyun met his eyes and showed an innocent and naive-looking smile (also known as a “harmless” smile).
“I’m amazed by this too.”
“…!!”
“Let’s not make a big deal out of this. Even if you delete the recording on this phone, it’s all backed up on the cloud.”
“You, what are you doing…! This is an illegal recording, you know?!”
“It’s refreshing to hear that from a CEO who sent the recording file himself…”
“Hey!”
“As you know, if the conversation participant records it directly, it’s not illegal and has evidential value.”
Although sorry for the CEO, Seo Hoyun had always recorded conversations as casually as eating meals.
While working on an investigative program, the first thing he learned was these backdoor tactics, so in a way, this was easier for him than breathing.
“Ha~ you scamming bastard. You were quite prepared, weren’t you?”
Seo Hoyun waved the contract he had picked up and put down earlier.
The personal information section read “Hong Gil-Dong,” the address was “East-West-North-South,” and the age was “Ah, this is a bit confusing.”
Additionally, instead of his signature, the contract had “Aigooㅋㅋ” written in big letters.
In other words, he had done nothing.
“What, what…!”
Riiip!
In front of the dumbfounded CEO, Seo Hoyun tore the contract into long pieces. The fluttering paper fell at the CEO’s feet.
“You… you bastard! Hey! Do you think you’ll be safe after doing this?!”
“Oh! Are you recording or filming CCTV footage?”
“No, I’m not… Ah! No, that’s not it!”
“Hmm, what’s the safe’s passcode?”
“487194… No, no!”
“Thank you.”
He wanted to stop him, but strangely, he couldn’t muster the strength to do it.
There must have been something in that water.
There was, but…
“You know, when you get that tested, it’ll show up as a drug, right?!”
“You have quite the imagination.”
“I’ll send you to the police station like those Today guys! I’ll put you in jail!”
“Go ahead and try.”
There’s nothing in it.
Would there be a tea leaf in this world that would make someone answer honestly while searching everywhere?
In the meantime, Seo Hoyun diligently entered the passcode and opened the safe.
In addition to Jeong Dajun’s exclusive contract termination agreement, which was neatly placed on top, a few other contracts were visible.
“Hey, put that away! I’m not going to stand still for this?!!”
With Jeong Dajun’s contract carefully tucked into his side, Seo Hoyun ripped the rest and stuffed them into his pocket.
He then strutted past Wisu’s CEO. At the door, he turned his head with an “ah.”
“I’m genuinely curious about this.”
“Just go and leave!”
“Is the name Wisu because it’s ‘We Sue’?”
We Sue = We prosecute.
In short, he asked if they had named it after a group specializing in lawsuits.
CEO Kim Wisu (48, scammer) grabbed the back of his neck even though his body wasn’t moving properly.
He couldn’t answer.
Seo Hoyun shrugged his shoulders as if to say he already knew and then nodded his head with a strangely satisfied expression.
“Hmm… I thought so.”
“Hey!”
The CEO shouted angrily. However, Seo Hoyun left the office without any lingering feelings.
[Double-Exclusive Contract quest completed!
You have resolved Jeong Dajun’s double-exclusive contract issue!
Using an item designed to make friends as a tool to threaten someone is…
10,000 points have been awarded.]