Are you teasing right now?
【IGNES's Seo Eun-tae and J-Gun habitual drug use? Is their 'divine' acting and composing not talent but a result of substance abuse? With the drug scandal involving its most anticipated artists, LifeStar Entertainnt, a KQ Group subsidiary, is expected to suffer significant losses...】
【Release of the WebFlix drama 〈East Las Vegas〉, ambitiously invested in by WISE&WIRE Entertainnt, on hold? The matter hinges on how they resolve the Seo Eun-tae drug incident... and it has been confird that W&W Entertainnt also invested in the music competition show 〈Hell Hip Singer Season 3〉, in which J-Gun had been slated to appear as a ntor...】
. . .
In-hyuk sat in his office, reviewing the barrage of articles that had been the talk of the town for several days.
This, too, was unfolding as it had in the original future.
Of course, this wasn't the end.
Several other small- to mid-sized celebrities acquired by LifeStar Entertainnt would soon have incidents break out—school violence, mber bullying, abuse of power, and so on.
But in this version of the future, there were no celebrities to serve as a buffer for LifeStar Entertainnt.
Currently, those celebrities had stayed with their original agencies due to In-hyuk's managent, waiting for the ticking ti bombs to explode under investnts from Taeshin Asset Managent.
"Considering the size of KQ Group as the parent company, the impact won't be catastrophic, but Kang Do-young, who is responsible for this crisis, won't get away unscathed."
This was because Kang Do-young, the successor of KQ Group, had led the LifeStar Entertainnt project.
"As a bonus, W&W Group will take a hit as well."
That hadn't been part of the original calculation.
Of course, Baek Ji-woong himself would not be directly damaged.
His wife, Kwon So-jeong, the only daughter of forr W&W Group chairman Kwon Sang-chun, was managing W&W Entertainnt, after all.
Bzzz bzzz—
Just then, an internal call notification rang, followed by his secretary Baek Si-hwan's voice.
[Division director, it's ti for the interview.]
"... I'll head out right away."
In-hyuk stood with a troubled expression, grabbing his jacket. Up until now, Baek Si-hwan had not shown any unusual movents.
Of course, he took no chances.
Even though Baek Si-hwan was his personal secretary, In-hyuk kept him busy processing docunts so he couldn't leave the office.
As In-hyuk stepped out, Baek Si-hwan, who'd been sitting at the desk right outside, instinctively tried to stand.
"You don't need to follow . I'll be fine."
Caught off guard, Baek Si-hwan had no choice but to sit back down.
In-hyuk took the elevator down to the 4th floor, where the interviews were being held.
Today's interviews were for the recently-created role of security processor and additional hiring for experienced professionals in the M&A/PEF division.
So, the second round was to be conducted by the actual heads for each area: division director Oh Min-jeong for managent, team leader Jang Seo-won for system managent, and division director In-hyuk himself for M&A/PEF.
They greeted In-hyuk with polite nods as he entered the interview room.
As there had been few chances to speak face-to-face with the one who stirred up a storm at Taeshin Asset Managent this year, things felt a bit awkward.
"Let's begin."
In-hyuk stated calmly as he sat down.
"Alright. Tell the next batch of candidates to co in one at a ti."
A male employee who had been waiting outside nodded at Oh Min-jeong's words and left.
The recruitnt process involved a first round of docunt screening, a second round of interviews with relevant team leads, then interviews with executives and the CEO.
The interviewers would see two or three candidates at a ti in the second round.
In-hyuk threw out various questions and filled out evaluation sheets based on their answers.
But as his hand flipped over to the spreadsheet of the fourth candidate, he stopped for a mont.
"This one...."
He was so startled the words slipped out.
Just then, three applicants entered as the door opened.
In-hyuk spotted Go Mi-ah among them, distinguished by her sharp black two-piece suit, white blouse, and striking red hair.
"What's wrong? Do you know this candidate?"
Beside him, division director Oh Min-jeong had picked up on his muttering.
"Oh, no. It's just that her hair color is quite unusual."
"It is, isn't it? But her self-introduction says it's natural."
"I see..."
In-hyuk exchanged a subtle glance with Go Mi-ah. Simultaneously, she t his eyes with a face that said, "So what do you expect to do?"
'Is she out of her mind? I told her to find a different place, so why is she here?'
The interview started.
Surprisingly, division director Oh Min-jeong and team leader Jang Seo-won conducted the interview without prejudice.
Go Mi-ah, too, acted like any other applicant, giving unremarkable answers and not standing out.
Then it was In-hyuk's turn to ask her a question.
"I see here that you completed your third year at KAIST and are currently on leave. Why apply for a professional position without graduating?"
For the experienced hires, especially in security processor roles, applicants had to submit portfolios to prove their programming and coding capabilities.
In fact, Go Mi-ah had passed the first round because she demonstrated more than enough skills.
Still, In-hyuk pressed, since involving her directly in his current plans could be dangerous.
"A diploma would have been nice, but my personal situation made getting a job more important than schooling. I heard that if I could prove my abilities, they'd recognize as an experienced hire, so that was even better."
Oh Min-jeong jumped in then.
"What kind of personal situation?"
"As it says on my résumé, both my parents passed away in a car accident. While scholarships can cover tuition, living expenses are a different story, and the field I'm in requires expensive equipnt. So, I took a leave of absence."
"Oh..."
Oh Min-jeong and Jang Seo-won responded empathetically to her touching explanation.
In-hyuk also felt a slight twinge (just slightly) about the parents part.
But when it ca to money, he felt annoyed.
'With several tens of billions already accumulated in offshore accounts, she talks about needing money? Is she actually this good an actress? Well, even back when we first t in the Philippines, she tried to pull a fast one by pretending to sell information.'
The mory surfaced faintly. He couldn't figure out her intentions for showing up at this interview.
"Division Director Kang, do you have any more questions?"
"... No."
"Let's move on, then. Thank you for your ti."
Go Mi-ah and the other candidates stood and headed for the exit.
But as Oh Min-jeong and Jang Seo-won turned their attention to the next résumé, Go Mi-ah snuck a playful scrunch of her face toward In-hyuk, as if teasing him.
'This woman, seriously...'
Bzzz bzzz――
As those thoughts circled in his mind, In-hyuk's phone buzzed inside his jacket.
A ssage had co via Ghost Link—from Go Mi-ah.
【Red Witch: I look forward to working with you, director Kang In-hyuk!】
Sighing, In-hyuk tucked his phone away and refocused on the interviews.
* * *
A bit past 9 p.m.
Taeshin Asset Managent's CEO, Tae Ju-ha, was still at her desk, apparently not finished with her work.
Then ca a knock at the door, and Heo Yu-rim entered, setting down a stack of docunts on her desk.
"CEO, the list of candidates who passed today's professional hiring interviews is ready."
"So, only the final interview remains? When was it scheduled again?"
"In two days, at 10 am."
"Alright. I'll check the list inside."
Tae Ju-ha replied calmly as she turned her attention back to the paperwork she had been reviewing.
Sensing her hesitation, Heo Yu-rim reopened her mouth.
"Would you like to check it now?"
"Hmm? The list? Is sothing wrong?"
"Well..."
The atmosphere turned serious. Picking up on the tension, Tae Ju-ha began to go through the applicants' files.
It didn't take long before her hand paused on a résumé about halfway through.
"Director Heo... this woman...?"
It was the face of a woman she'd t twice already: once at ho, and once at the hospital where In-hyuk was hospitalized after his car accident.
"It appears to be the sa woman from before."
Tae Ju-ha checked the details on the résumé. Na, address, everything...
"Back then, director Kang said she was an informant for stock information, right?"
"That's how I rember it too."
Heo Yu-rim had also been present during the encounter at ho and rembered.
"But she's a KAIST student on leave. Her portfolio received a high score—27 out of 30. And her hair isn't dyed?"
"She said it was due to a congenital lack of lanin."
"Her second-round interview scores... Oh Min-jeong and Jang Seo-won scored her generously, but Director Kang's mark is low."
"I heard he gave her so hard questions."
While discussing, Tae Ju-ha sensed sothing odd.
"How do you know so much, director Heo? Did you sit in on the interviews?"
Of course, she hadn't.
"After I saw Go Mi-ah on the list of passing résumés, I thought the CEO would be curious, so I looked into it."
"Why would I be curious?"
"But you kept asking about her."
"...."
Tae Ju-ha fell silent for a mont, then closed Go Mi-ah's résumé.
Seeing this, Heo Yu-rim quickly turned her head as if suppressing a laugh, but her expression suggested sothing almost "burst" out.
"Ahem! Should I find out more about Ms. Go Mi-ah?"
"No. That won't be necessary."
"... Really?"
"Really. I still have work left anyway—if you're done, you can head ho."
"You're not coming with ?"
After she almost ran into harm at Chairman Kang Cheon-gyu's residence before, a security guard had started accompanying her, thanks to Chairman Tae Gun-seung's attention to his granddaughter's safety.
Heo Yu-rim had been returning ho with her each ti.
"It's fine. Nothing dangerous has happened lately and the security guards are here."
"Still, you should be careful. I don't really have anything urgent, so I'll stay."
Tae Ju-ha sighed at her insistence, but also smiled.
"I'll just go ho tonight."
"From you? The workaholic—is it really alright?"
Her words were half in jest, half in earnest.
"You've already had a tough ti in New York, and I can't make you go through the sa here. I should rest when I have the chance to postpone work."
"That's a good decision."
The two headed for the underground parking lot and got into the car.
A security guard from TSS took the wheel, driving toward Tae Ju-ha's officetel.
Enroute, Heo Yu-rim asked playfully,
"You're sure you don't want to look into Go Mi-ah further?"
Tae Ju-ha was startled again.
"I said it's fine."
"What if she's here because of Director Kang?"
"What? I told you, director Kang and her only t because of work."
Heo Yu-rim fanned the flas mischievously.
"Even if it was just work for Director Kang, it might not be just that for the other side. People aren't so simple."
"So you're saying... this Go Mi-ah might have other feelings for Director Kang?"
"I'm just saying there's always a chance."
"Are you teasing right now?"
"You're just now catching on?"
At her playful retort, Tae Ju-ha didn't get upset; she just burst out laughing.
Thanks to the previous year they'd spent slogging together in New York before returning to headquarters.
"... Huh?"
At that mont, a black van suddenly surged out from behind and cut directly in front of their car.
The security guard driving was forced to veer sharply toward the shoulder and stop.
Screeeeech!
---
User Comments
0 comments from readers