#43

“Oh, but you shouldn’t eat instant food too often. It’s not good for your health. Everything in moderation, okay? You know that, right?”

“……I know. I’ll eat it in moderation. So you don’t have to worry, sir……”

The redness that had started at Yoo Euiseo’s neck spread all the way to his face as he murmured his response, stretching his lips into a thin line. Watching his softly lowered, trembling eyelashes, I let out another small laugh. Then, slowly, I reached out and gently patted his head.

His brightly bleached hair, rough to the touch, brushed against my fingers. Seeing Yoo Euiseo quietly accepting my touch, his face still flushed red, I couldn’t help but feel that, at last, we had both taken a step toward each other.

***

After graduating from university, I immediately pursued writing as my profession.

I primarily wrote in the fusion fantasy genre, and whenever I was serializing a work, I was always racing against deadlines, leaving me no time to watch TV or browse the internet. During my breaks, I was too focused on planning my next work to pay attention to anything else.

……Yeah. To be honest, I was completely ignorant when it came to idols, celebrities, and the entertainment industry. I had never taken an interest in them, so it was only natural.

So it was inevitable that I found the scene unfolding before my eyes to be so unfamiliar.

“It has to be sexy, decadent, and restrained! We can’t just throw away the image we’ve been pushing all this time!”

“But it’s been the same concept since debut. Isn’t it time to show a different side?”

“I agree, but this is the first album since moving to a new agency. It’s not the right time to make a drastic image change. So how about we stick to the existing concept for now, make a comeback with a mini-album or a single, and then show a different side with the next full-length album?”

I sat in my chair in the conference room, staring blankly at the team leaders engaged in a heated debate. This meeting had been arranged to decide Tartarus’ comeback album concept. For the record, this was the fifth meeting. And I had attended every single one.

“Are you tired?”

Hearing a voice nearby, I turned my head to see Secretary Sung Yoojun looking at me with concern.

“No, I’m not tired, but it’s fascinating. I figured that making an album wasn’t something you could just whip up in a few days, but I didn’t expect it to be this intense. There’s so much material to go through, too.”

Saying that, I glanced at the screen mounted on the wall. Displayed on it were PowerPoint presentations that the team leaders had prepared to push their preferred concepts. Meanwhile, on the table, thick stacks of printed documents piled up like a mountain.

“A comeback in April means a dark concept wouldn’t be suitable. It wouldn’t match the season at all.”

“Couldn’t we adjust it so it’s not too dark? If we keep the current vibe but slightly increase the energy, it might make the transition to a different concept in the next album smoother.”

“No, no. That’s too cautious. When making a change, it’s more impactful to do it suddenly when no one expects it.”

Creating an album was far more complicated than I had imagined. This was only the initial phase—deciding the concept—and I could already feel it keenly.

There were countless factors to consider when releasing a song. Trends, the timing of the album’s release, plagiarism issues, and even the current social climate had to be taken into account. My previous assumption—that you just made a song, choreographed a dance, practiced, and then released it—was embarrassingly naive compared to the reality of this exhausting process.

After sitting through hours of discussion, I felt a heavy fatigue settling onto my shoulders. If just listening was this tiring, I couldn’t even begin to imagine how exhausting it must be for those directly involved.

“If only we had a title track already, this wouldn’t be so difficult.”

“Would having a title track make things easier?”

Hearing Manager Ahn Siwon mutter that, I asked curiously. Ahn Siwon nodded emphatically.

“If we had a title track, we could build the concept around it. It would be much faster than deciding everything from scratch like we are now.”

I see…… I quickly committed this new piece of knowledge to memory. Then, a question suddenly came to mind, and I voiced it out loud.

“Then can’t we just decide on the title track first?”

My innocent question made Ahn Siwon pull a slightly troubled expression. He hesitated, rolling his eyes as if weighing something in his mind. Then, after a moment, he leaned toward me and whispered softly.

“President, would you mind stepping outside with me for a moment?”

Was this something difficult to talk about here?

I glanced at the employees still engaged in an intense discussion before getting up from my seat.

Ahn Siwon, who had stepped out of the conference room ahead of me, led the way to a nearby break room. Once I followed him inside, he carefully made sure to secure the door, ensuring no one else could come in.

“……Is this a serious matter?”

“No, no, nothing like that. It’s just better if the other employees don’t hear about it.”

Saying this, Ahn Siwon gave a sheepish smile. He hesitated for a moment as if trying to find the right words before finally speaking slowly.

“The title track you mentioned…… If we had brought it up before the concept meetings started, maybe it would have been possible, but now? It’s probably impossible.”

Wait, why? Weren’t we just saying that having a title track would make choosing a concept easier? Then why now—?

My head filled with question marks as I tried to process his words, and Ahn Siwon scratched the back of his head at my bewildered expression.

“You assigned Secretary Sung to oversee this album while deciding you would only receive the final reports, right?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“Well…… I don’t know how to put this, but that decision got slightly twisted as the rumor spread among the employees.”

Twisted? A rumor?

Hearing something I hadn’t expected at all, I frowned slightly.

“What kind of rumor? And why am I just hearing about this now?”

“Well…… It’s not a bad thing, and it felt too trivial to bother you with, so I debated whether to bring it up or not. I’m sorry.”

His answer reassured me—it wasn’t something negative. I let out a relieved sigh.

“So, what exactly is this rumor?”

Now that I knew it wasn’t a serious issue, my tone softened as I asked. Ahn Siwon awkwardly scratched his cheek with his index finger before carefully speaking.

“……Actually, some employees think this whole thing is a test from you.”

……What? A test?

I stared at Ahn Siwon, wondering if I had heard him wrong. Seeing my expression, he nodded slowly, confirming that I had understood correctly.

“This is the first major project since the company was founded, and it’s also a collaboration with the famous Tartarus. From the start, the employees have had a strong sense of determination. Then, when you announced that you wouldn’t be involved in the process and would only receive the final report, people started speculating that this was actually a test to evaluate their capabilities.”

“That’s completely untrue.”

“Right? I knew that. Secretary Sung, Team Leader Seohee, and a few others know the truth, too. But the rest of the employees…… don’t.”

“Have you tried correcting the rumor?”

At my question, Ahn Siwon let out a weary sigh and nodded again.

“Of course. From the moment I first heard it, I told them it was a misunderstanding. But everyone just saw me as some clueless guy who doesn’t understand his boss’s true intentions……”

Oh dear……

The way his voice trailed off told me just how much stress he had endured over this.

“Well, I figured it wasn’t exactly a bad thing. They’re motivated and working hard, so I left it alone. Besides, trying to correct it would probably just make people treat me even weirder. To be honest, I just didn’t want to get caught up in the madness of people desperate for your approval.”

“You made the right call. You’ve done well.”

I carefully patted Ahn Siwon’s slumped shoulders. He then looked at me with teary eyes.

“They’re all crazy. They’re absolutely desperate to produce good results. They’re wracking their brains, trying to come up with better ideas for the concept. There’s this manic energy in their eyes. But what’s even more terrifying is that, despite their desperation, they’re still logical, still making rational decisions about what works and what doesn’t. It’s honestly scary. How are they even capable of that?”