After a small commotion, the meeting with the head of the Management Department was arranged immediately.
There were several attempts to press me about why I specifically wanted to meet the department head, but surprisingly, I was able to fend them off with the vague answer, “There’s something important I need to discuss.”
‘Guess TeSTAR really does make them a lot of money.’
Since we were resources with emotions, their attitude plainly said they wanted to keep us placated whenever possible.
I’d gone to the trouble of preparing specific excuses for nothing.
And I had a feeling the Management Department itself was probably somewhat nervous.
A member of a group that had never made many strong demands outside of album or activity planning—and who wasn’t even the leader—had suddenly requested a meeting with the department head.
They were probably racking their brains trying to figure out what this unexpected action was about.
But they wouldn’t have long to do that.
“Then I’ll come see you tomorrow.”
—Ah… Yes!
Because I set the meeting for the very next day.
It just happened to be the only day that week when I had no daytime schedule, so they probably had no choice.
I ended the call and shrugged.
‘Hmm… Wonder what they’re guessing.’
It didn’t particularly matter, but given the circumstances, I was curious.
And I learned exactly what the company had concluded about my behavior within five minutes of walking into my meeting with the department head at ten the next morning.
“Hmm… Moondae, is there anything about the group’s activities that you’re dissatisfied with?”
“…….”
“You’re very capable, so I understand you might feel frustrated. But for stability, it would be best to maintain the current direction for about another year.”
That was the main point he brought up after our greetings and a little small talk.
‘Ah.’
And from his tone, I understood.
‘He thinks I want solo activities.’
It was an easy and quick conclusion to reach.
First place on a survival show, recent positive responses to individual variety appearances, counseling due to mental instability during group activities.
‘It wouldn’t be strange background for someone coming here to ask about solo work.’
And I realized one more thing.
‘This guy hasn’t had many conversations like this.’
If I had actually been interested in going solo and had come here to complain about how group-centered our activities were, he absolutely shouldn’t have handled it like that.
Before I could even bring up what I wanted, he had practically told me, We’re doing this for one more year.
As if a celebrity in the phase of having an inflated ego would readily accept that.
‘You should’ve had the celebrity talk first, then pretended to seriously consider what they said.’
Normally, someone who had climbed all the way to department head at an entertainment agency should have been thoroughly experienced with this kind of thing.
Meaning this guy wasn’t.
‘He really is a parachute hire.’
Other departments—the AR side, producing, production marketing, for example—naturally required specialists, so they were staffed with experienced people who had been recruited from elsewhere.
But apparently, some stakeholders had decided management was a field where anyone could scrape by and inserted a few parachute hires to give them positions.
Even though this side required expertise too.
‘Makes this much easier for me, though.’
I stared at the young department head, then deliberately nodded with a serious expression.
“Stability is good.”
“Right~?”
“But I’m worried something serious might happen if things continue like this.”
“What?”
I shrugged and dropped the bomb.
“Someone employed by another agency seems to be working a second job here. Is that okay?”
“…!!”
The department head was speechless for a moment.
Then he barely managed an awkward laugh.
“Ah, Moondae, our company doesn’t allow that~ Maybe they only transferred recently and their profile still hasn’t been taken down by the old company.”
Apparently, he thought some ignorant young celebrity had misunderstood something.
The more he thought that, the better.
I obediently nodded.
“Really? Then I guess I misunderstood. They just seem to keep arranging schedules together with Golden Age.”
“What??”
“When I said I was filming The Past Is Calling, I heard them on the phone talking about Golden Age.”
“…! W-Who?”
“Um… Who was it again? One moment.”
I lifted my smartphone and pretended to search my contacts, then answered as if I had remembered.
“Ah, right. Assistant Manager Oh Seohyeong from the Operations Team.”
“……!”
Remember him?
When Lee Sejin and Bae Sejin fought, he was the guy who put them on the same team and told me, when I called to complain, that yes, it had been their mistake, but we shouldn’t be so sensitive.
Did I really hear that phone call?
‘Of course not.’
Unless he’d been shot in the head, why would he make that kind of call somewhere an artist he managed could easily overhear?
But the suspect was certain.
‘It can only be him.’
For starters, the other departments had no reason to do it.
As I said before, they were staffed with recruited specialists.
Meaning they wouldn’t have trouble changing jobs even without resorting to industrial espionage.
They had no need to chase some unrealistic dream, so there was no bait.
But the Operations Team was different.
T1 had underestimated the professionalism required in entertainment management and filled the team not with recruited veterans, but with parachute hires, cheap mediocre experienced workers already floating around the market, and clueless new hires used to fill out the headcount.
In short, they were the least competent group in the company.
There was a high chance they were dissatisfied, and a similarly high chance they didn’t feel any particular attachment to the work.
‘Which means they’d be much more susceptible to whatever crumbs someone dangled in front of them.’
Then the next step was simple.
‘Check whether anyone overlaps.’
Golden Age’s agency wouldn’t have randomly approached someone they barely knew.
They must have tempted someone they already had at least some familiarity with and had worked with before.
So I checked the employment history of Golden Age’s agency, Traveler.
Usually, if a company was this competent, there was a good chance its people had previously worked at another major agency.
Sure enough, the testimony I wanted was already all over SNS.
—Apparently the CEO used to work at Wonder Hall, then went independent with Iljoon and a few others. No wonder the trainees gave off Wonder Hall vibesㅠㅠ
Wonder Hall.
A famous agency known for producing successful major boy groups.
‘Hmm. Obvious.’
Then it was basically over.
All I had to do was find someone in our company whose employment period at Wonder Hall overlapped with the CEO and those employees.
‘T1 based its internal network structure on their parent company’s system.’
All I could do was be grateful for their complacency in carelessly giving their artists high-level document access privileges.
Anyway, when I checked, only one person in the Management Department had an overlapping history.
[2019. 06. 01. – 2021. 01. 04. | Wonder Hall ENT | On-site work assistance and administrative duties]
Assistant Manager Oh Seohyeong of the Operations Team.
That made every piece of circumstantial evidence line up.
‘It also explains why he’s been half-assing his work over here.’
His heart had already left the company, so he had only been doing enough to maintain appearances.
That was why every assignment he handled came with some kind of problem.
“Maybe the assistant manager thought sharing good variety opportunities was efficient, but I still think it would be better if he focused on one place.”
The important part here was that I absolutely could not make this look like a celebrity throwing a tantrum.
In other words, I wouldn’t give them a chance to rationalize the problem as, Oh~ The celebrity must’ve overreacted.
This guy needed to develop the suspicion himself and realize how serious it was.
I was just the clueless celebrity saying what I had noticed.
“Come to think of it, a lot of things keep overlapping with Golden Age. It also kind of seems like he might be doing the job cheaply by recycling the same work.”
“The schedules overlap?”
“Yes. They do. And there are a lot of articles and online posts where we keep appearing together… I wondered if he was just doing combined work because it was easier, and it bothered me a little.”
“…….”
If you still can’t understand the seriousness behind what I’m saying after all this, you’re not a fucking parachute hire.
You’re an idiot.
Fortunately, the department head’s face flushed red, went pale, then returned to normal.
Meaning realization and rage had both passed through him internally.
“I see… Hmm. Right. I’ll speak properly with that assistant manager about this. I understand what you’re saying, Moondae.”
“Yes. Thank you.”
Of course, I wasn’t actually expecting him to snap to his senses and deal with everything neatly.
Watch.
“Moondae. Still, this could cause trouble later, so until everything is resolved, I think it would be better if you didn’t mention this anywhere else.”
I knew it.
This bastard was scared his own reputation would take a hit.
Understandably so.
The second this leaked outside the company, it was serious enough to have TeSTAR fans sending protest trucks.
I obediently nodded.
“Of course.”
For reference, that was naturally a lie too.
“Good thinking.”
Apparently, the department head didn’t even have enough mental room left to ask or think any further about why I had requested the meeting in the first place.
He simply saw me out.
‘He’s completely rattled.’
Clicking my tongue inwardly, I headed toward a recording studio I had booked under the excuse of, Since I’m already at the company, I might as well take care of some recording too.
An AR Team employee who had been asked to adjust the audio equipment had just finished chatting briefly with our second manager, who had arrived early.
The manager spoke to me first.
“Moondae, you’re here~ Did the talk go well?”
“Yes. It was fine.”
“What did you talk about?”
“Hmm… He told me to keep it secret.”
“Huh?”
I wouldn’t have been surprised if the ears of the AR Team employee fiddling with the equipment beside us had doubled in size.
‘You’re curious, aren’t you.’
Apparently, the second manager was too.
He needlessly lowered his voice and asked me,
“Why, why? Did they say they’d let you go solo?”
“Ah, it wasn’t about that…….”
“Then what was it??”
“Hmm… Hyung, you’re in the Management Department, so maybe it’s something you could hear about.”
“What is it, what is it??”
There.
I had successfully dropped the hint that it involved the Management Department.
The AR Team employee must have picked it up too.
I deliberately hesitated for a while before simply shaking my head.
“I don’t know. He said to stay quiet until they manage to resolve it somehow.”
“Ah~ Now I’m seriously curious!”
“Sorry. I don’t think I’m allowed to say.”
“Fine, fine!”
There.
I had also conveyed the implication that something fairly serious had happened.
It was obvious what the AR Team employee would say after this schedule ended and they went back.
‘Looks like something big happened in the Management Department!’
Wasn’t that wonderfully juicy gossip to spice up boring office life?
Now, as soon as the Management Department showed even the slightest sign of trying to handle the situation, people would start paying attention and digging into what had happened.
It wouldn’t take long for the rumor to spread throughout the company.
‘I’ll bet a thousand won it reaches the division head within this week.’
And that was exactly what happened.
Three days later, I heard that the division head was roaring with fury while digging up additional people involved and gathering more evidence.
Read only on MUGEX
“Moondae-Moondae, did you hear?”
“Hear what?”
“Apparently someone on the Operations Team was selling our information to another agency! Oh my God~ So scary.”
Big Sejin, perched on the living-room sofa, made an exaggerated fuss.
Despite the way he said it, he was probably thrilled that they’d caught the bastard.
I gave a short laugh.
“Yeah. Did they catch him?”
“Yep. But… apparently one of our members figured it out and reported it.”
“……Really?”
“Yeah. Just saying.”
Big Sejin grinned.
“And this is also just something I’m saying, but good work, Moondae~”
Big Sejin gave my back a light pat and went into his room.
‘Did he figure it out?’
It was convenient that he didn’t bother interrogating me.
On the other hand, there were also people who came over specifically to tell me every tiny detail.
“Wow~ The atmosphere at the company is insane!”
The second manager.
During an individual schedule, he had excitedly told me every last bit of company gossip while asking whether this was what I had almost told him about before.
“How bad is it?”
“The division head is personally contacting that agency! Oh, Assistant Manager Oh already got called in!”
Understandably so.
The approval bot had probably planned to quietly serve out his time and leave, only for a huge problem like this to explode under the surface.
Of course he’d be furious.
And once something like this had become a rumor, there was only one way to reassert control over the atmosphere.
Someone who had worked at T1 before should understand that perfectly well.
A public execution.
‘Although naturally, it’ll be limited to inside the company.’
So for now, they would mark the industrial spy while pressuring Golden Age’s agency over whether they should sue the spy and make the matter public.
Of course, the most likely result was unconditional surrender.
‘They were finished the moment they got caught.’
It might have been different if Golden Age had already grown into a top-tier group.
But right now, this wasn’t a contest in size or in public opinion.
A direct power struggle between the subsidiary of a major corporation backed by a broadcasting network and a small entertainment agency—and the small agency was the one at fault, so the corporation even had justification?
‘Now that they’ve secured evidence, there’s no way out.’
No matter how clever and competent Golden Age’s agency was, if they wanted to keep doing business, they would have no choice but to bow down and tread carefully.
‘They’ll be muzzled for a while.’
They would have to quietly drop the media play and viral marketing that tied them to TeSTAR.
And what did that mean?
When The Past Is Calling aired, Golden Age’s side would also have to keep its mouth shut about the public response.
‘That makes things much easier.’
I leaned back against the sofa.
All the advance preparation was finished.
The weekend when the program would air was right around the corner.