Chapter 79: The Ultimate Idol Who Came to End the War (6)
The final song ended, and a wave of encore chants burst out from the crowd.
And among singers, there were always those who sang a lot of encore songs at concerts—
Jung Se-yeon was definitely one of them.
As expected, she performed five encore songs, and only then did the concert finally end.
When the audience dispersed, the Jamsil Olympic Stadium suddenly felt empty—
As if there had never been tens of thousands of people filling it moments ago.
Kim Si-woo stood there, still dazed, staring at the spot on stage where Se-yeon had sung while looking directly at him.
“Oppa!”
Hong Soo-yeon ran over to the absent-minded Si-woo to snap him out of it.
“O-Oh. Yeah.”
“Oppa, are you going to the after-party? Everyone said they’re heading there now and told you to hurry.”
“Ah… yeah. I guess I should.”
There was no skipping the after-party—not for the cast, crew, or even cameo actors.
Anyone involved in the movie Idol had a place there.
A huge number of people moved to the large restaurant that had been booked out.
And the moment Si-woo imagined how much everyone would be drinking tonight, he already felt exhausted.
“Finally, it’s over.”
Feeling relieved at the thought that filming was truly finished, Si-woo entered the restaurant.
Those who arrived early greeted him warmly.
“Writer-nim! Thank you for your hard work!”
“You all worked much harder than I did.”
Si-woo waved off the praise and instead bowed his head gratefully.
“Thank you all once again for turning my script into such an amazing film. Tonight, the bill is on me. Eat and drink as much as you want.”
The moment Si-woo said that, the restaurant erupted with cheers.
“Kim Si-woo!”
“Kim Si-woo!”
“Kim Si-woo!!”
People shouted his name and immediately began placing orders.
As Si-woo moved deeper inside and sat down, people swarmed him.
“Writer-nim, have a drink!”
“Huh? But the food hasn’t even come out yet—”
“It’ll be here soon. Aunty! Bring the appetizers here first! Quickly! Here, writer-nim, drink.”
“Uh… okay…”
People lined up and poured him glass after glass.
“W–Wait a second…”
One glass.
Two glasses.
Three glasses…
It was a celebratory night—the end of filming—so rejecting drinks was impossible.
As Si-woo continued drinking, Hong Soo-yeon, seated beside him, watched with growing concern.
“Oppa… are you okay?”
“Nope. I think I’m gonna pass out today.”
“What do we do…”
Soo-yeon wanted desperately to drink in his place, but she was still a rookie actor—
It wasn’t her place to interfere in such a crowd.
Just as Si-woo passed his tenth drink, they appeared.
Shim Ji-young and Jung Se-yeon.
The two approached with sharp, intimidating eyes—
And the staff lined up to pour Si-woo drinks immediately scattered.
As if pouring him another drink in front of them would start a war.
“What? You were gonna drink here too?”
A staff member who had been seconds away from pouring Si-woo another shot froze at the sight of Shim Ji-young…
Then lifted the bottle upright again in fear.
“Hahaha… I’ll, uh… come back later…”
Within moments, all the staff disappeared—
And the seats around Si-woo became filled with three actresses and top actors like Park Jun-ho and Ha Seung-woo.
“Ugh… my stomach burns…”
Having taken so many shots in a row, Si-woo grimaced—
And instantly, three hands shot toward him.
“Here! Eat this wrap.”
“Take this meat.”
“Are you okay? Eat some stew.”
Shim Ji-young, Jung Se-yeon, and Hong Soo-yeon all offered food or hangover cures simultaneously.
“Uh… th-thanks…”
Flustered, Si-woo accepted all of it and started eating.
“It’s good… haha…”
Park Jun-ho and Ha Seung-woo watched pitifully from the side.
“Jun-ho, you’re lucky. Seems like the writer-nim likes you quite a bit.”
“Aigoo, senior, you’re close with Writer Kim too… Anyway, I just want to survive tonight.”
“Why? Something happen?”
“Last time… I had a bad memory.”
Ever since being brutally defeated by Park Woong-deok during a previous drinking session, Park Jun-ho had made a vow:
If alcohol and Park Woong-deok are in the same room, escape at all costs.
And just then—
From the restaurant entrance—
The man himself appeared.
Broad shoulders. Heavy footsteps. A terrifying presence.
Park Woong-deok strode inside.
“That body… it’s definitely a walking liquor barrel.”
“What are you talking about?”
Ha Seung-woo looked baffled by Park Jun-ho’s muttering.
Then Park Woong-deok began walking in their direction.
“Uh… why… is he coming… this way…?”
The closer Park Woong-deok got, the more frozen Jun-ho’s face became.
When Park Woong-deok finally reached them, he glanced at the empty soju bottles piled around Kim Si-woo and spoke, sounding faintly excited.
“What’s this? Writer Kim already started drinking?”
“Go away, Director. Not today. Please.”
“Tsk… looks like I’m a step too late.”
He tried sitting next to Si-woo, but the piercing gazes of the actresses forced him to turn his attention elsewhere.
“Well, then… I guess I’ll sit next to Park—”
“AAGH! My stomach!!”
Park Jun-ho suddenly clutched his stomach and shot up from his seat.
“I—I need to use the restroom!”
Pouring every ounce of acting talent he had into it, he escaped the table at full speed.
“Hmph… then I guess I’ll drink with Ha Seung-woo. You drink much?”
“Huh? Oh, of course! Drinking? That’s practically my middle name.”
“Is that so? Excellent. Looks like I’ve found myself a drinking buddy. Here, have a glass.”
Just like that, today’s sacrifice was chosen:
Ha Seung-woo.
While Ha Seung-woo battled for his life against Park Woong-deok on one side, Si-woo shoved food into his mouth to soothe his burning stomach.
“So, did you hear about Choi Do-hyun’s side? Looks like they’re preparing pretty seriously too.”
“I saw some articles, roughly.”
“What do you think will happen this time?”
“I’ll win. Obviously.”
“Oh? Quite confident, aren’t we?”
“I felt it while filming this time.”
“Even more than when we filmed together?”
Shim Ji-young gave him a pointed look. Si-woo quickly changed the subject and poured her a drink.
“I plead the fifth. Anyway, here—everyone take a drink. Soo-yeon, don’t drink too much.”
“Okay!”
Si-woo made sure to keep Hong Soo-yeon from drinking too heavily, worried her grandmother might fret if she got sick.
But instead of being disappointed—Soo-yeon actually looked happy.
The drinking continued, and various people who wanted to get close to Si-woo came over to chat.
Among them was a junior idol singer and acquaintance of Jung Se-yeon.
“Hello, Writer-nim! I’m Shin Ye-ji.”
“Ah! Hello.”
With some alcohol in him, Si-woo greeted her warmly.
But that was all they could do—just say hello.
Because not a single woman beside him planned to give up her seat.
“Haha. Ye-ji, nice to meet you. But we were in the middle of an important conversation—maybe come back later?”
“O-Oh, yes. I understand.”
No matter who approached, their iron wall never broke.
Until the after-party ended, no one else managed to sit beside Si-woo.
***
The next morning, Si-woo woke up holding his pounding head.
“Filming’s done, but now I’m busy with other stuff…”
The biggest part—the movie filming—was finished.
But plenty of work remained:
Movie promotions
Hiring Hong Soo-yeon’s manager
Fortunately, with Oh Soo-ji’s help, the stylist issue was handled by temporarily hiring staff from Su-ji’s salon whenever needed.
“For today… I’m just going to rest…”
And he meant it.
He didn’t write, didn’t move, didn’t do anything—just rested the whole day.
The next morning, he headed to the Si-woo Film office.
“Hmm…”
“Writer-nim… did we do something wrong…?”
“No. I was just thinking it’s about time some of you debuted—even in supporting roles.”
He lined up all the actors belonging to Si-woo Film and examined them carefully.
Hearing the words “debut as supporting roles,” everyone tensed up.
When the room fell silent, Si-woo finally spoke:
“If you want to debut as supporting actors in a drama, raise your hand.”
Shff!
Everyone except one person raised their hands.
That one person was Hong Soo-yeon.
She thought it would be fair to give the others the chance since her movie had just finished filming.
“Ah… I phrased it poorly. What I meant was: you’re all ready for it, right?”
“Yes!”
Si-woo’s actors shouted with energy.
“If you mess this up, it’ll make me look bad. We’ll pick one guy and one girl through an audition, so prepare well.”
He handed out scripts, and the actors’ faces lit up with excitement.
After that, Kim Si-woo brought Hong Soo-yeon into his office.
“You know you have the manager interviews this afternoon, right?”
“Yes.”
“It’d be nice if we could get someone with experience, but the most important thing is whether they match you, the person they’ll be with all the time. So if you have any questions you personally want to ask, make a list.”
“Yes, Writer-nim.”
Si-woo found it amusing that she kept switching how she addressed him—
First “ajusshi,” then “oppa,” and now suddenly “Writer-nim.”
“So this time it’s ‘Writer-nim,’ huh?”
“Ah… I’m going to call you Writer-nim while we’re at the office.”
“Sure. Anyway, show up on time for the interviews.”
“Yes.”
Once Soo-yeon stepped out, Lee Yoo-jin entered, holding a stack of files.
“What’s all that?”
“Siwoo Film staff and actor applications, plus TV appearance requests addressed to you.”
“Ha… the work never ends.”
“Well, there aren’t many companies in this industry that treat people this well.”
“We’ll have to restructure things soon. Let’s sort everything out once this project wraps.”
“Yes, Writer-nim.”
“More importantly—how was this shoot? Did it help you? You looked like the busiest one here.”
Yoo-jin bowed repeatedly, saying she learned an incredible amount thanks to him.
While she explained, Si-woo glanced through the TV appearance requests and quickly selected two.
“These two are fine. Decline the rest.”
“Yes, Writer-nim.”
“And as for the job applications—once the movie starts screening, we’ll run separate interviews and hire then.”
“Understood. I’ll update you once the schedule is organized.”
“Thanks.”
After Yoo-jin left, Si-woo slumped over his desk, exhausted.
“If it weren’t for that bastard, I wouldn’t have rushed into making this movie like this…”
Si-woo’s irritation toward Choi Do-hyun, the root of all this chaos, only continued to grow.
***
Afternoon — Manager Interviews
When afternoon arrived, interviews to hire Hong Soo-yeon’s manager began.
Applicants ranged widely:
Freshly discharged soldiers
Former military officers
Managers from big entertainment companies
Ordinary job seekers
Even former actors
But the moment they spoke, it was obvious:
Most of them had ulterior motives toward Soo-yeon.
A few didn’t—but those were clearly aiming to use Si-woo for roles in his work.
One even asked:
— “If I work as her manager… could I eventually debut in one of your movies?”
It was absurd.
In the end, the interviews produced nothing useful, and Si-woo looked to Soo-yeon.
“Ha… they all have ulterior motives. Sure, they’d probably take good care of you, but I’d be worried they’d cause trouble later. How about you? Anyone you liked?”
“No… I think I’d be uncomfortable.”
Si-woo still hadn’t found anyone acceptable, but he couldn’t just assign her a random person.
He knew how crucial a manager was for an actor.
Seeing him troubled, Soo-yeon reassured him gently.
“I’ll just go with whoever you choose for me, Oppa.”
“…Alright. I’ll try to find someone within two weeks.”
***
A Few Days Later — Broadcasting Station
Si-woo headed to a TV station for promotional activities.
And as always, Kim Jin-man had come to greet him at the entrance.
Si-woo sighed.
“Why do you keep coming out to meet me…?”
He got out of the car and looked at the senior PD as if telling him to stop, but it had no effect.
“PD-nim—no, CP-nim—I think it’s time to stop greeting me like this. Just send someone else.”
“How can I? Who knows what kind of mistake the juniors might make.”
“Haa… fine. Anyway, do you have time tonight? I want to talk about the new drama script.”
“Script? Of course. Even if it’s at dawn!”
The moment Si-woo mentioned “script,” Jin-man’s already respectful attitude became even more reverent.
“Come. The PD for today’s program is also my junior.”
“That’s good to hear.”
And just like that—
The opening move of Si-woo’s counterattack against Choi Do-hyun began.
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