#1

Prologue

“Hey, Goo Won. Want to try this?”

Everything began with that one sentence.

***

“Hey, Goo Won. Want to try this?”

“What is it?”

I blinked slowly as I looked at the game CD my twin sister was holding out to me. The pink case, decorated with five handsome men, was enough to make me instinctively recoil.

“Idol Misery Simulation 2.”

“Idol…… what?”

“‘Idol Misery Simulation 2’. It’s kind of like a training game.”

“A raising game? That name seems a little off for a raising game, don’t you think?”

Using only my thumb and index finger, I carefully picked up the game case as if it were something hazardous. My sister, unfazed by my reaction, simply shrugged nonchalantly.

“No, it’s the perfect name. The whole point of the game is to make the characters as miserable as possible.”

“……What? Are you serious? What kind of messed-up game is that? And why did you even get something like this?”

“I didn’t buy it. A friend gave it to me. As a Christmas present.”

“They gave you this as a present?”

My sister was into games, but she never really liked raising sims. Her friend should have known that.

“We did a useless gift exchange for Christmas.”

“Ah, that makes sense.”

That explanation was reasonable enough. I nodded instinctively.

“But why are you giving it to me? You know I don’t play games much.”

“I wouldn’t play it anyway, so if you want to, go ahead.”

My sister spoke with a nonchalant expression, and I frowned slightly.

Unlike my game-loving sister, my hobby was reading. As a bookworm who devoured anything I could get my hands on, regardless of genre, I couldn’t exactly say I had any real connection to gaming. Of course, my sister knew that very well. Yet, she was giving this to me? I stared at the pink case in my hands with suspicion.

Noticing my doubtful gaze, my sister raised an eyebrow.

“If you don’t want it, just say so.”

“That’s not it.”

I quickly raised my hand to dodge my sister’s lightning-fast attempt to snatch the game back. She looked displeased, but she didn’t try to take it again.

“So, are you going to play it?”

“Yeah. Since I got it, I might as well try it.”

“Good. That’s the right decision. Stop moping around the house all day and play a game for once. There’s a premium package coupon inside, so register it and use it.”

She casually dropped that remark before disappearing into her room with quick steps. Watching her vanish like the wind, I let out a small laugh.

After finishing my novel’s serialization a while back, I had been stuck at home, feeling both relieved and aimless. It seemed my sweet little sister had been worried about that.

Since she was thinking about me this much, I should at least give it a shot.

With that thought, I inserted the game CD into the console in the living room. While the game loaded, I pulled out the instruction manual tucked inside the case and started flipping through it.

“Oh…… they’re handsome. Well, of course, they’re idols.”

I quietly admired the illustrations of the game’s characters. It was inevitable—they really were good-looking. As I read the brief character profiles and the game’s description next to the vibrant illustrations, I tilted my head in curiosity.

“It continues from the hidden ending of ‘Idol Misery Simulation 1’?”

What was the hidden ending in the previous game?

Frowning slightly, I grabbed my smartphone and started searching.

─ Cheon.

─ ?

─ Do you happen to know what the hidden ending of the first game is?

─ No. I don’t.

Ah…… So she doesn’t know. Feeling slightly awkward at the blunt reply, I scratched my cheek before lifting my head to look at the now fully loaded game screen. On the screen, the characters from the instruction booklet, with their dazzlingly handsome faces, were smiling brightly.

“……Well, it’s just a game. It doesn’t really matter if I don’t know.”

Thinking lightly of it, I picked up the game controller. Then, I firmly pressed the ‘Start Game’ button. A cheerful sound effect played, and a screen appeared prompting me to set my player name.

After a brief moment of thought, I decided to simply use my real name, ‘Goo Won’. After confirming my choice, another screen appeared, this time asking me to name my company.

Hmm…… A company name, huh? As I pondered what might be a good choice, I suddenly lost interest in thinking too hard about it. It’s just a game anyway—there’s no need to stress over a good name. With that in mind, I entered my own name once again for the company.

Goo Won Entertainment.

It felt a little too lazily chosen, but…… well, no one’s going to see it anyway. Not thinking too much of it, I pressed the confirmation button. Once again, a cheerful sound effect played, and the screen switched to a loading screen with a steadily filling loading bar.

I stared blankly at the bar as it slowly inched forward.

19%, 34%, 56%…… The closer it got to 100%, the heavier my eyelids became. Why am I suddenly so sleepy? I was perfectly fine just a moment ago.

I tried my best to fight off the drowsiness by rubbing my eyes and even pinching my cheek. But no matter what I did, the sleepiness continued to engulf me as if mocking my efforts.

“I…… can’t fall asleep……”

Blink. Blink.

As time passed, my blinking grew slower and slower. Eventually, my closed eyelids refused to open again.

And then, complete darkness took over.

Intro

“Sir.”

A voice I had never heard before reached my ears. What? Did Cheon turn on the TV or something?

“Sir, we’ve arrived.”

But the voice was too clear to be coming from the TV—it felt like someone was speaking right next to me. As soon as that thought crossed my mind, I snapped my eyes open. A tall man sitting in the driver’s seat came into view.

What the—? Who is he? I stared at the man in shock.

“Sir, we’ve arrived.”

As soon as our eyes met, the man repeated himself in a calm voice—the exact same words I had heard before I opened my eyes.

“……Arrived?”

“Yes. We’re at Lee Yong Entertainment.”

Lee Yong Entertainment? What’s that? And where the hell am I? Just moments ago, I was in the living room playing a game.

Unable to hide my confusion, I glanced around. The interior of the car was clearly high-end, exuding luxury at every turn.

“The appointment time is approaching. Will you be stepping out now?”

I had been absentmindedly running my fingers over the soft leather seat when the man’s level voice snapped me back to reality. Slowly, I nodded. I had no idea where I was or who this man was, but something told me it would be wise to just go along with things for now. His respectful tone and the way he kept asking for my opinion made it seem unlikely that he meant me any harm.

The moment I nodded, the man got out of the driver’s seat. He then walked over to the backseat, where I was sitting, and opened the door for me.

It had been years since someone had opened a car door for me. The unexpected gesture left me momentarily flustered, but I quickly regained my composure and stepped out.

The polished leather shoes I was wearing—just as expensive-looking as the car—hit the ground. As I straightened up, the cool, musty air of an underground parking lot filled my senses. My eyes swept across the dimly lit space, taking it all in.

While I was busy examining my surroundings, the man closed the car door and stepped beside me.

“This way, sir.”

Still maintaining his calm demeanor, the man started walking ahead. I followed after him, trying to act as natural as possible.

As we walked, I discreetly pinched the back of my hand. It hurt like hell.

Okay…… so this definitely isn’t a dream.

Rubbing my sore hand, I stole a glance at the man walking in front of me. He was incredibly handsome, but his expression was cold and distant. If I had to describe him, I’d say he looked extremely logical—almost to the point of seeming heartless. Of course, judging someone based purely on their looks wasn’t exactly fair, but still…… there was no way I’d forget a face like his if I had met him before.

“……Which means I definitely don’t know him.”

“Pardon?”

“……Nothing. Just talking to myself. You don’t need to pay it any mind.”

Debating whether I should respond casually or politely, I ultimately opted for formality. Then, I discreetly observed his reaction.

“Yes, sir. Understood.”

Thankfully, he didn’t seem to find it strange that I was speaking formally.

As I let out a quiet sigh of relief, I realized we had already arrived at an elevator at the far end of the parking garage.