Episode 153: Q Four of a Kind & A Full House (1)
“Yujin-ssi. You’re smiling like that again.”
The moment the elevator doors closed, Seo Yoon-je said it straight out.
My eyes naturally turned to the mirror on the elevator wall.
It wasn’t that I was so out of it that I only realized I was smiling after seeing my reflection.
I had simply checked how I was smiling to try to gauge what he meant by “like that.”
The conclusion I reached was something along the lines of “a face addicted to dopamine.”
‘Well, I don’t think that’s what he meant to say.’
There was no point in pondering this alone.
The right thing to do was to ask the person who said it directly.
“What kind of smile is this?”
“You know what? The way you cast people isn’t exactly my preferred style.”
The problem was that the answer that came back was a completely different story.
He was speaking with a smile, but the content was something I couldn’t easily respond to. While I stayed silent, Seo Yoon-je raised the corners of his mouth even higher and continued.
“That’s because there’s no basis for judgment. How can you judge without even hearing them sing? The way you cast, Yujin-ssi, is the typical method of people who think ‘singing can be taught.’ From my perspective, someone who wants talent beyond what can be taught, it’s not very welcome.”
Once again, I could only keep my mouth shut.
In other words, the casting I did was the “idol casting” method.
In short, judging based on external charm rather than singing ability.
‘Of course, I can deny that it’s like that from my own perspective.’
Because I knew exactly what kind of choices I had made.
But for that very reason, I couldn’t immediately deny it here.
Without a clear explanation, it would be the same as having no grounds at all.
“Pfft.”
Seeing my expression, Seo Yoon-je let out a small laugh and lightly patted my shoulder.
“You don’t need to look so dark. I’m not trying to criticize you. I’m just saying your method is similar to those people’s. I do understand that you move with your own reasons. It’s just that I can’t understand those reasons. Ah, let’s talk while we walk.”
The elevator arrived right on time and the doors opened. I quietly followed Seo Yoon-je, who stepped out first, and waited for him to continue.
“You asked earlier how your smile looked, right? From my perspective, I can describe it like this.”
“……”
“It’s the kind of smile that makes me sit down at the gambling table.”
“The gambling table?”
“Yes. The kind of place where once you sit down, you can’t help but place at least a minimum bet.”
After saying that, Seo Yoon-je stopped walking and slightly lifted his head.
“The most recent was when you brought Chae-kyung. Before that, it was when you brought Soyoung. It was the same when we talked about Jooyul, and when you brought Composer Gong Ji-woo. It was also like that when you took on Hylliy’s album, and when you half-threatened that you wouldn’t give the song unless we used Tae-oh as the main vocal for the new boy group.”
Wait, calling that a threat is a bit…
“Originally, Chae-kyung and Soyoung didn’t have the skills to even enter MyWay. Pulling other companies into MyWay’s fence was also something that should never have happened. With Composer Gong Ji-woo, I would have said to watch and wait. For Tae-oh’s transition to idol, I would have at least tried to persuade. Handing Hylliy’s work over to someone else? That was truly something that could never happen.”
While I was left speechless again, feeling a little wronged, Seo Yoon-je continued listing my past actions as if talking to himself, then finally looked at me.
“Things that would never have happened with the original me. You suggest doing those things while smiling exactly like that. As if this is a game you’re guaranteed to win. To me, most people who say things like that are scammers. That was common sense.”
Well, that was true.
Anyone who talks about a game you’re guaranteed to win is 100% a scammer.
Unless they can see the future.
“But you, Yujin-ssi, break that common sense and produce results. Chae-kyung and Soyoung are now singing songs that fit perfectly into my heart, and the same goes for the E-GIS kids. Composer Gong Ji-woo? That friend is now clinging to Ailee like a doll she hugs while sleeping. Orion, which I didn’t even touch, is a strong candidate for Rookie of the Year. And Hylliy achieved their long-cherished wish too.”
“Well, that’s…”
“Above all… the first time I saw that smile, the hand I was dealt was a royal straight flush.”
“Royal straight flush?”
“Last spring. The recording studio for a certain OST. You understand with this much, right?”
At this point, even I couldn’t stop my face from turning bright red.
How could I not understand?
The title of that OST was definitely ‘You, For a Moment.’
“When the person who made the royal flush signals you to sit down, you have to sit. And you have to go all-in. Anyone who doesn’t do that is an idiot, right?”
While I couldn’t say anything and could only scratch the back of my head, Seo Yoon-je started walking again with the same bright expression.
“I’ll quietly wait through one slip-up, or even two. Yu-won, was it? Do whatever your heart tells you with that kid. However, my standards are extremely high. They were already high, but thanks to you they’ve gotten even higher. It’s hard to be satisfied with just a full house, you know?”
Leaving those words behind, he walked away. Only then did I feel the stiffness in my face finally loosen a little.
‘A full house…’
There was no way Yu-won was only a full house.
Seo Yoon-je’s gamble was guaranteed to win this time too.
***
“Aigoo, our producer-nim caused another accident the moment he arrived?”
“You already heard about it?”
“Of course I heard. The rumor has already spread everywhere. They’re calling it the third incident.”
The moment he saw my face, Jeon Seon-woo started teasing me with a voice full of mischief.
Seeing how fast the rumor spread, it really proved that MyWay was still a place where people lived.
For reference, the first incident was Soyoung, and the second was Chae-kyung.
“No, I’m used to Yujin-ssi’s wild behavior by now… but even so, how can you just hand out business cards like that?”
The person who followed up with a slightly more serious scolding was Ailee, who was sitting in the judge’s seat along with Jeon Seon-woo.
Yu-won didn’t seem like the type to spread it around, but arguing with facts in this situation would only make things worse, so I quietly kept my mouth shut.
Fortunately, Ailee’s arrows weren’t aimed only at me.
“CEO-nim, you too. How could you do that there as well?”
“But… how could I hold back when it was Yujin-ssi’s pick?”
“Ah… headache…”
While Ailee clutched her temples at Seo Yoon-je’s shameless reply, our eyes met for a moment. Jeon Seon-woo, who had been watching, burst out laughing again.
As a bonus, Ailee’s sharp glare turned toward him as well.
Of course, even so, I didn’t regret giving Yu-won my business card.
The moment our eyes met in the lobby, one single thought had flashed through my mind.
‘Does this actually work?’
Among the three dream encounters I had hoped for with extremely slim chances, the second case—“the center of the new pillar group that filled Moon Esther’s empty spot and supported Sunshine”—was exactly Yu-won.
If it was said that Yu-won’s existence was the biggest driving force that allowed Sunshine to maintain the pride of being one of the three major agencies while Overwhelm staggered from M2K’s repeated failures and JWY stumbled after failing to complete a proper generational change of producers, one could roughly guess how skilled the kid was.
‘He was already amazing during his Chloe days… but Yu-won’s true value came out during his solo activities.’
After his main group Chloe got on track, Yu-won started solo activities and received the evaluation that, among the many people called “post-AZ,” he was the closest to Lee Ahjeong in singing, visuals, acting, professionalism, and every other aspect.
‘He even danced better than Ahjeong sunbae.’
I myself had placed Yu-won among the top three artists I wanted to work with someday.
It was a shame we never became close—Yu-won was an incredibly outstanding artist.
‘And that Yu-won is only a full house?’
He was easily at least a four of a kind, or even a Q four of a kind.
Of course, since this was a story set in the 2030s, it was hard to imagine from the teary-eyed, sniffling kid I saw in the lobby earlier.
‘Still, that visual was the same as ever.’
I’m not sure if “the same as ever” is the right expression when time is flowing in reverse.
Even among the huge crowd, Yu-won’s presence stood out so clearly that I could spot him immediately. He was the very definition of a pearl in the mud.
No wonder the moment I realized there was no number tag on his chest, I charged straight at him like a wild boar.
If Seo Yoon-je hadn’t made the bold move of letting Yu-won participate in the audition, hyenas trying to hand him business cards would probably be swarming him by now.
‘Come to think of it, maybe destiny really does exist.’
What was funny was that Yu-won getting cast into Sunshine had happened in a very similar situation.
He had simply tagged along with a friend who was auditioning for Sunshine and got cast on the spot—a pretty common story in the entertainment industry.
I heard that the friend who brought Yu-won actually failed the audition and later debuted in the virtual idol side…
‘Ah, so that was her? Her name was… right. With-I, Heidi!’
I thought her voice sounded familiar but couldn’t quite remember. Now it finally clicked.
She had apparently gone through a lot of hardship at a rather nasty company and was about to completely quit the industry, but Yu-won persuaded her in the end. She ended up hiding her face and continuing her activities.
The virtual idol market had already passed its early stages and entered a stable period, even if the era was different.
Especially With-I, one of the leading names in the second generation of virtual idols, was so solid in skill and fandom that they performed not only on internet broadcasts but even on terrestrial year-end music festivals. They were comparable to any regular idol group.
If we’re talking about something that fits Seo Yoon-je’s “full house,” that would probably be about right.
Of course, he said it was hard to be satisfied with that, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t be satisfied at all.
Even if it wasn’t a Q four of a kind, an A full house would still have more than enough competitiveness.
‘Yu-won and Heidi.’
In Heidi’s case, her visuals were a little lacking,
‘That’s probably why she failed the Sunshine audition.’
But this was MyWay. Compared to other agencies, they placed relatively less value on visuals, so it wasn’t really a problem.
Strictly speaking, it was only slightly below idol standards, but she was still plenty charming.
‘Whatever’s lacking can be fixed with procedures.’
It was already old news that procedures had become basic knowledge for idols.
I wasn’t sure if that was common sense at MyWay too… but since the CEO said to do as I pleased, it should be fine.
‘This is getting fun…?’
The meetings I had burned my hope circuit dreaming about, plus an encounter I hadn’t expected at all, started flooding me with dopamine.
‘At this level, even if I give up on everything else, if I can just bring in Yu-won and Heidi… Wait, hold on.’
What the hell am I saying?
As long as the quality doesn’t drop, the more talent the better—Hong Hong Ik Seon (the more the better, the more the merrier).
Clap!
“Yujin-ssi?”
“No, you don’t have to be that self-deprecating…”
“The producer is going this far, so ease up a little, Ailee.”
“No, what did I even… Ha, headache…”
I was just lightly relaxing to clear my head, but what were they even saying?
Unfortunately, I didn’t have the time to clear up the misunderstanding directed at Ailee.
“Audition applicants, please enter!”
The 2025 MyWay Public Recruitment Audition had already begun.
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