Starting from the front door to the refrigerator, sticky notes were lined up on the floor. The colorful sticky notes pointed to the refrigerator like airport runway lights. Each sticky note had writing in different handwriting. "This has to be Miso's idea." Only Miso would come up with something . Yoo-Jin would have agreed to whatever Miso suggested, and Sae-Ri would have cheered. Of course, the thrilled Cherry Blossom members must have joined in. Thinking about how happy everyone must have been, I chuckled softly. I took off my shoes and began peeling off the sticky notes one by one to read them. The first one was from Miso. [Miso: Uncle Yoon-Ho. Happy Valentine's Day. Follow the sticky notes for our gift. ❤❤] I let out a small laugh. Then I peeled off Miso's sticky notes and stuck it to my left hand. Next came a sticky note from Yoo-Jin. [Yoo-Jin: Oppa. Take care of yourself while working. I put some chocolates and snacks in there, so please eat well~] Even in that short note, Yoo-Jin's concern came through. I added her sticky notes to my left hand and took another step. This time, it was from Sae-Ri, who ranked first today. [Sae-Ri: Yoon-Ho oppa. Mr. Cha Tae-Hee said it was all thanks to you that I got first place today~ Thanks for always looking out for us. So, I decided to forgive you for being late. Oh, my chocolates are in the fridge.] I didn't even need to check to know what kind of chocolate Sae-Ri brought. 'It must be mint chocolate.' Still, thanks to her, I've eaten it enough that I can handle a little now. I continued forward, step by step, reading notes from the rest—Cherry Blossom, Do Ran-Hee, Kang Ha-Na, and everyone else. It looked like they had all gathered at my place to celebrate Sae-Ri's win today. They must be asleep by now, so I decided to send them a thank-you message on Kk Talk tomorrow. I stood in front of the fridge and opened it without much thought. At that moment, I couldn't help but be shocked. Instead of the usual side dishes, the fridge was packed with vegetable and fruit juices and other health drinks. And in the freshness compartment, there were truffle chocolates. Yoo-Jin had told me to take care of my health, but I hadn't expected this much. I stood there, stunned for a moment, then opened the freezer as if hypnotized. Everything that had been in the freezer was cleared out, and it was filled to the brim with chocolates. It was enough to last a year. Then, the biggest chocolate caught my eye. I carefully pulled it out, worried it might break, and felt its hefty weight. The moment I saw the chocolate, I burst into laughter. Miso had created a Powertuff Girl character herself with double thumbs-up wearing a sash with a cheer message. [The universe's strongest talent agent, Jung Yoon-Ho! You got this!] 'My sweet Miso. She must've worked so hard making this.' Smiling with pride, I imagined the moment Miso put all this together. Then I turned on my phone's camera, held the chocolate next to my face, and snapped a big smile for a selfie. After that, I snapped off a small accessory from Miso's chocolate and popped it into my mouth. As the dark chocolate slowly melted, a sweet, bitter, and savory flavor filled my mouth. Today was the happiest Valentine's Day of my life. The next day, I woke up early and barely exchanged greetings with the half-asleep Yoo-Jin and Miso before heading to work. I had to attend the Seoul regional preliminaries for Project I.O.A again today. After arriving at the company and parking in the underground lot, I checked the entertainment news. Just as expected, there were only a few short lines about Park Eun-Bin's comeback. Instead, the entertainment pages were filled with articles celebrating Sae-Ri's first win. [KBC's Music Stage 1st Place. Kim Sae-Ri's 'Firefly Bridge'] [Kim Sae-Ri takes 1st place with 'Firefly Bridge'!] [Kim Sae-Ri throws a fan event at LT Amusement Park!] [Hwaranjeon original soundtracks, 'Hwayeonga' and 'Firefly Bridge' lead to consecutive successes. A winning streak from drama to original soundtrack.] [Project I.O.A Seoul preliminaries – blazing excitement.] "Let's keep it rolling, keep it going." With a smile on my face, I slipped my phone into my pocket and took the elevator up. Upon arriving on the fourth floor and entering the meeting room, the talent agents from Singer Division 2 and Division Jung's singer team were gathered for a regional preliminary meeting on Project I.O.A. As I sat down, Lee Dong-Min waved and asked, "Yesterday must've been tough, huh?" "Sigh~ It feels like you're doing everything by yourself. Makes me feel ashamed as your sunbae." "Oh, come on. Please don't say that." Feeling a bit shy, I subtly changed the subject. "What happened with Project I.O.A yesterday? I had to leave midway, so I didn't catch the results." "Oh, that? It went fine. Besides Go Eun-Seo and Sung Na-Ra, there were a few promising ones. Here, take a look." Lee Dong-Min sent me the profiles of those who passed via Kk Talk. They were Choi Sang-Mi, Jeon Mi-Yeon, Seo Woo-Kyung, and so on. All names I recognized from before the regression. I nodded. "They all seem solid." "Yeah. Some used to be in debut teams at other companies but left due to various issues. Some are coming to us after seeing Cherry Blossom's success. Our company's grown a lot lately." Cherry Blossom's success was enough to make Hoop Entertainment well-known among teens and people in their twenties. Thanks to that, Hoop Entertainment was now known as the most desired entertainment company among younger demographics. "By the way, nothing happened after I left, right?" I asked, worried Han So-Ye, Go Eun-Seo's mom, might have come back. Lee Dong-Min's brows furrowed. "Ah, well..." "I saw Reporter Park Yeon-Soo at the venue." Reporter Park Yeon-Soo from Entertainment All Times was the hyena type who wrote messy and scandalous articles. On top of that, she had ties to Han So-Ye. "Did Reporter Park Yeon-Soo meet with Han So-Ye?" I asked. Lee Dong-Min shook his head. "If she had, she'd have written an article. And after all that chaos, would Han So-Ye have given an easy interview?" "True... That makes sense." "Yeah. I'll let you know if anything comes up, so don't worry too much." After that, we continued talking not just about Project I.O.A, but also about Sae-Ri. Since she hit number one, a flood of advertising offers had come in. While we were in the middle of the discussion, a Kk Talk message popped up from Yetterang. [Director Ahn Myung-Hoon from Yetterang: Mr. Jung, congratulations to Sae-Ri for the 1st place win. So, about that...We're thinking of launching a brand with Sae-Ri as the exclusive model. What do you think? The brand name is ★SERI★.] I immediately shared the news with everyone in the room. "Yetterang wants to launch a solo cosmetics brand using Sae-Ri's name. What should we do?" Everyone shouted at once. "If it's a solo brand launch, we absolutely have to do it!" "Yetterang is top-tier these days!" "Aren't they preparing to go public now too?" "I heard that too. They're gathering funds right now." "Not just an exclusive ad, but an entire exclusive brand? Our Sae-Ri really made it big." Launching a brand and advertising it, instead of just doing a single product ad for a cosmetics company, was a massive leap. Sae-Ri had officially become a top star. "Okay! Then I'll go and make sure we get a generous deal." "We believe in you, Chief Jung!" Amid the cheers, I replied via Kk Talk. [Jung Yoon-Ho: We'll do it!] [Director Ahn Myung-Hoon from Yetterang: Thank you. In that case, please come to our office. My hyung-nim, no, our president, would very much like to meet you.] [Jung Yoon-Ho: Understood. I'll adjust my schedule as soon as I can.] As the good news kept coming, everyone's lips curled into smiles. That's when a Kk Talk message came from Kang Ji-Yung. [Director Kang Ji-Yung: We have a team lead-level general meeting. See you in the 6th floor meeting room.] Lee Dong-Min saw the message and stood up. "Alright, everyone. While we're gone, sort out the ad proposals and get ready to head to the audition site. We'll be back within thirty minutes." Lee Dong-Min and the other team leads stood up and headed for the meeting room. Today's team lead-level meeting was chaired by Kang Ji-Yung, as Kang Gam-Chan and Kim Gwan-Woo were both absent. Once Lee Dong-Min, the team leads from Singer Division 2, and I took our seats, the meeting began right away. Kang Ji-Yung spoke. "Yesterday, Director Ma Dong-Pal from TK Entertainment got caught lobbying CP Ha Jo-Eun of KBC right in front of her president. They're now under police investigation." The room began to stir with low murmurs as everyone considered the potential fallout. Then, Kim Jang-Bi asked, "What does that mean for our relationship with KBC?" "A directive has come down that PDs and CPs at KBC should avoid any private meetings with entertainment company talent agents for the time being." "A directive? From where?" "From Mr. Oh Han-Guk. So, for now, please refrain from meeting broadcast PDs or CPs. Things might get uncomfortable for everyone." "Is this only for KBC?" "No. SBC and MBS are in the same boat. The incident spread quickly, and now all three major networks have issued a red alert on talent agents." Everyone's face turned grim. They had no idea how they were going to promote their works or PR their actors and singers. That's when Chief Yoon Dong-Gu of Singer Division 4 raised his voice. "Then what are we supposed to do with BerrySix? Their launch is right around the corner. If we can't meet PDs privately, how are we supposed to do PR or promotion?" Yoon Dong-Gu was working hard to unveil his girl group Berry Six before I.O.A. If their debut got pushed back, they could be completely overshadowed and suffocated by the buzz surrounding the audition show for I.O.A. Such was the reason Yoon Dong-Gu had already scheduled music show appearances and a music video shoot for next month and was about to kick off promotions. "I understand the situation. But since this isn't the best time for PR, let's wait for about a week and proceed once the networks give the green light. When the time comes, we'll support you fully," Kang Ji-Yung explained. "Oh, come on! Isn't this too much? I heard you approved eighty million won for Sae-Ri's fan event just yesterday! But you're tying Berry Six's hands while throwing money at them? What kind of favoritism is this?" Yoon Dong-Gu was taking advantage of Kang Gam-Chan and Kim Gwan-Woo's absence to act out. As a star composer, he was well aware that the songs he wrote were one of the company's key cash cows. However, Kang Ji-Yung replied, clearly unimpressed by his attitude. "Chief Jung handled everything so well that we ended up only spending thirty million won. That's not favoritism—that's just him managing it all on his own!" Caught off guard by the fact that I had saved a huge sum, Yoon Dong-Gu looked flustered. Still, he tried to brush it off and said, "Even if we set aside the cost difference... Ms. Kang, it's clear you're favoring that side." "What did you just say, Mr. Yoon? I'm favoring them?" "Yes. It's called favoritism. And this situation is clearly unfair to the members of Berry Six who are just waiting for their launch." "Look, Mr. Yoon. Did I tell the girls of Berry Six not to do any PR? All I said is we should wait just one week and then go ahead!" Kang Ji-Yung held back her rising anger and tried to reason with him until the end. Yet, Yoon Dong-Gu decided to cross the line. "That's just a recommendation, isn't it? And you think other companies aren't secretly meeting with PDs? They're all doing it behind the scenes. We'll fall behind if we don't, and I'm not going to sit back and watch that happen. Either give me permission to move, or you move yourself. Do something. Oh right, aren't you supposed to be close with the higher-ups at the networks? Then go flirt or pour drinks or whatever it takes." At that moment, the Hoop Entertainment talent agents all shot up in protest. "Chief Yoon! Are you out of your mind?" "Hey! Take that back right now!" Gu Seong-Cheol, who was seated next to me, looked ready to fold Yoon Dong-Gu in half as he started to stand. I was furious too, but I held it in and grabbed Gu Seong-Cheol's arm to stop him. After all, the Kang Ji-Yung I knew wasn't someone who would take that lying down. Sure enough, Kang Ji-Yung exploded. "Hey. Yoon Dong-Gu. What did you just say?" Kang Ji-Yung slammed the table, and the sound echoed loudly through the room. Everyone immediately fell silent. 'As expected of Kang Ji-Yung.' She was someone who could go head-to-head with the presidents of the big three networks over drinks and wasn't going to let this slide. Just as I thought, she was finally letting out all the anger she had held back after the merger. The sudden informal speech startled Yoon Dong-Gu and the other talent agents from Gwanwoo Entertainment. They had never seen this tough side of Kang Ji-Yung before. Kang Ji-Yung stood up and shouted at Yoon Dong-Gu. "Flirt? Pour drinks? Are you out of your damn mind? Say that again!" Yoon Dong-Gu's confidence wavered slightly as he said, "No, I didn't mean it like that... I wasn't actually asking you to do that..." "What do you mean you didn't? You just told me to pour drinks! What the hell? You're asking a director to do something I wouldn't even ask our celebrities to do? You've lost your damn fucking mind!" Kang Ji-Yung's sharp voice echoed loud enough to cause ringing in the ears. Yoon Dong-Gu tried to respond but couldn't string a proper sentence together. "I've been patient and kept quiet since the merger, but it seems like you've actually lost your mind, huh? What kind of chief talks to a director like that?" She continued. Kang Ji-Yung was going ballistic. The only one who might have stopped her was Gu Seong-Cheol beside me, but after trying once, he stayed out of it. Instead, he covered his mouth to hide his laughter. The charismatic Kang Ji-Yung we hadn't seen in a while was finally back. A moment later, Kang Ji-Yung took a few heavy breaths and then calmed herself, returning to formal speech. "Mr. Yoon Dong-Gu. I'll be convening a disciplinary committee. Please be aware of that." Flustered, Yoon Dong-Gu lowered his tone. "M-Ms. Kang, that's not what I meant..." "Didn't I say shut it and get ready for the disciplinary review? What is it? You don't want to? Then quit! Why should I keep a chief who doesn't listen to a director?" Fresh chapters posted on novęlfire.net Yoon Dong-Gu had always been treated like the company's backbone since the Gwanwoo entertainment days. Because he had never been treated , he didn't know how to respond. In the end, he trembled and stormed out of the meeting room. The door slammed shut behind him. Talent agents from Hoop Entertainment all clucked their tongues, while those from Gwanwoo Entertainment went pale as Yoon Dong-Gu had left without even apologizing. Then Kim Jang-Bi spoke in a hurried voice. He knew telling a female director to pour drinks was enough to warrant dismissal. "Kang Ji-" Kang Ji-Yung turned sharply. "What did you just say?" Her intense glare made Kim Jang-Bi quickly change his tone. "N-Nothing, Ms. Kang." Since he used formal speech, so did Kang Ji-Yung. "Yes? What is it, Mr. Kim?" "It's just... Chief Yoon has been under a lot of pressure lately. That's all." "N-no, I mean... It was just a slip of the tongue. He's been under immense pressure to successfully launch Berry Six. Please, I beg you, forgive him." Kim Jang-Bi tried to apologize on his behalf, but Kang Ji-Yung didn't accept it. "Chief Yoon already gave me grief over the Berry Six promo budget. I've let a lot slide. But not anymore. The disciplinary committee will be convened." Kim Jang-Bi bowed and pleaded. "I'll order him to hold out for a week, or even two if needed. Just this once, please overlook his mistake. If he's punished for this and leaves the company, the damage will be enormous. Ms. Kang, please." Just as he said, if Yoon Dong-Gu left now, the company would suffer greatly. But at this moment, the decision rested solely with Kang Ji-Yung. Everyone in the room focused their attention on her, waiting to see what she would decide. Then, under the weight of all their gazes, Kang Ji-Yung spoke with her usual charismatic fire. "Forgive Chief Yoon, huh... Fine. But there's a condition." Kim Jang-Bi swallowed hard and asked, "What's the condition?" And at that moment, Kang Ji-Yung began to state a condition that shocked everyone.