The Crazy Mercenary Commander Goes to Work in the Entertainment Industry

When Kang Jae-ha said he was going to meet ’Kisera’, CEO Han Tae-sung called for the General Manager who served as his secretary. He gave the order to summon ’Kisera’, who would be on standby, to Leon. It wouldn’t be long before the ’Kisera’ girls came scrambling over. Soon the General Manager gave a quick bow and left the CEO’s office, and CEO Han Tae-sung asked Kang Jae-ha:

”An Ji-hee looks like she’s coming along fine. And Yoon Da-yeon.”

”Which would you be asking about?”

”Yoon Da-yeon’s contract renewal.”

He was asking because the end of Yoon Da-yeon’s contract period was near. CEO Han Tae-sung had previously offered Yoon Da-yeon a contract extension, but naturally, Yoon Da-yeon still hadn’t given him any real answer.

Well, Leon Entertainment was big. And CEO Han Tae-sung was the head of that Leon.

With so many artists signed to the company, CEO Han Tae-sung couldn’t afford to fuss over Yoon Da-yeon alone, and Kang Jae-ha already had a read on his personality. So Jae-ha answered CEO Han Tae-sung:

”Well, I’ve brought it up a few times, but she hasn’t really given me an answer.”

”I see.”

CEO Han Tae-sung nodded slowly. Kang Jae-ha tried to gauge what he was thinking. By this point, even CEO Han Tae-sung had probably gotten the feeling that Yoon Da-yeon wasn’t going to renew. So how exactly would he deal with Yoon Da-yeon?

If he couldn’t have her, would he break her down further? Or would he stop caring and just leave her be?

’Leaving her alone is better for your own health.’

Of course, if CEO Han Tae-sung laid a hand on Yoon Da-yeon as she made her escape, Kang Jae-ha had no intention of just standing by. It would be sooner than his plan called for, but he’d have no choice but to remove CEO Han Tae-sung.

That said, Jae-ha figured the more likely outcome was that CEO Han Tae-sung would simply leave Yoon Da-yeon alone.

’CEO Han Tae-sung’s got decades of experience in this industry. Stuff like this has happened to him countless times.’

Well, he wasn’t certain. Either way, for now, he’d just watch.

About then, CEO Han Tae-sung crossed his arms and changed the subject.

”That composer, ’Rina’, where’d you find her?”

”I happened to come across one of her songs.”

”A complete unknown, and not signed anywhere, either.”

”I just thought the song suited ’Seriel’.”

”So she’s not a composer you already knew?”

”Correct.”

CEO Han Tae-sung quietly studied Jae-ha’s dry, expressionless face and let out a low hum.

”Hm, ask her if she’s got other songs, too.”

”I was already looking into it.”

”That composer ’Rina’, the songs she’s written have a nice feel to them. Good instincts, too.”

”It wouldn’t be a bad idea to pair her with ’Kisera’, either. If she’s got good songs.”

”My thoughts exactly.”

Kang Jae-ha thought of Choi Ri-na. If he was going to rebuild ’Kisera’ anyway, he might as well plaster on every advantage he could squeeze out of it. CEO Han Tae-sung asked two more questions or so, then nodded.

”All right, you can go.”

”Yes.”

Kang Jae-ha rose from the sofa and slipped out of the CEO’s office. Left alone, CEO Han Tae-sung gazed toward the door and stroked his chin.

”Every time I see him, it’s like a beast hiding its fangs.”

A faint smile came with it.

”There’s something satisfying about watching him.”

He was talking about Kang Jae-ha, of course.

At the same time, Tokyo, Japan.

Ogawa Sayaka, who had wrapped up her meeting in Korea with Kang Jae-ha and An Ji-hee over ’Spring at the Borderline’, returned to the production company. The moment the bespectacled Sayaka sat down, the production staff packed into the conference room immediately peppered her with questions.

”How did it go?”

”You met with An Ji-hee, right?”

”What did you two talk about?”

The questions came pouring in all at once. They must have been awfully curious. Even as she pushed her glasses up, Sayaka recalled the meeting in Korea. The conditions Kang Jae-ha had laid out, to be precise.

’We’d like the Korean dialogue roughly doubled from what it is now, and we’re thinking twenty percent above the performance fee you proposed.’

On top of that, there was also the condition that An Ji-hee’s name had to feature prominently in the PR and marketing within Japan, as a matter of course. Compared to the demands an A-lister or a top-tier star would make, it was nothing much, but for a newcomer, it was a fair amount.

Anyway, Sayaka relayed the conditions she’d heard to the executives around her.

”They presented their conditions. For one, they want the Korean dialogue roughly doubled.”

”Doubling the Korean dialogue??”

”Yes. I believe the aim is to bring out more of the character in the role, and this is a condition I agree with myself.”

”Hm.”

After Sayaka rattled off the rest of the conditions, she went on to bring up Kang Jae-ha as well.

”The one who laid out these conditions wasn’t An Ji-hee herself, but that capable manager of hers.”

”Ah... the one named Kang Jae-ha?”

”That’s right.”

The executives who heard how the meeting had gone responded a little lukewarmly. Of course they wouldn’t be thrilled.

”Hm, for a newcomer, some of these conditions are a bit much.”

”Right? Why don’t we drop a few of the conditions and meet with them again? Just give them the extra Korean dialogue and leave it at that.”

Watching the conversation drift along, Sayaka pushed her glasses up once more. Her expression was rather hard.

”For what it’s worth, An Ji-hee’s side wasn’t desperate in the slightest.”

”Not desperate?”

”Other projects were already being locked in, and taking ours would actually mean stretching themselves. Manager Kang Jae-ha made that clear himself.”

”......”

”If we push back even a little, they’ll turn us down without a second thought, An Ji-hee’s side will. Which means this isn’t a situation where we get to feel them out. If we delay the contract now, we lose An Ji-hee, one hundred percent. This isn’t about testing the waters. We have to decide whether we’re going to grab her or let her go.”

A murmur in Japanese spread among the executives. The atmosphere was palpably shifting, and Sayaka didn’t let the chance slip by. Because she truly wanted to land An Ji-hee.

”An Ji-hee, having seen her in person, this is just my opinion, but she looks like she’ll climb to the top tier in no time. And with a manager that capable attached to her, no less... these conditions now might actually turn out to be a bargain.”

Meaning she’d cost more if they came after her later,

For reference, the Japanese drama they were preparing, ’Spring at the Borderline’, was set to launch not on a broadcast network but on ’Amazon Frame Video’, Japan’s overwhelming number-one OTT platform. At present, in Japan, ’Amapre (Amazon Frame Video)’ was first and Netblex was second.

Did that mean Japan’s Netblex was insignificant? No, not quite.

Netblex Japan held a formidable number of subscribers as well, but ’Amapre’ was far more dominant.

’Spring at the Borderline’ was a drama that had been planned after an offer came in from ’Amapre’, and as a result, the production could be far freer than a Japanese network drama. Casting Korean roles and Korean actors was thanks to that as well.

The one handling production was the company here, ’Shiori Production’.

Ogawa Sayaka, the bespectacled woman who had met with Kang Jae-ha, was roughly the equivalent of a production General Manager at this ’Shiori Production’.

In any case, once Sayaka pushed, the executives of ’Shiori Production’ talked it over and reached a decision.

”All right.”

After all, they didn’t have all that much time, either.

”Let’s go ahead and meet all of An Ji-hee’s conditions.”

It was a decision to finalize An Ji-hee’s casting.

That same afternoon, Korea. Leon Entertainment.

One of the larger of Leon Entertainment’s many practice rooms. Five women stood in a row in the practice room, its walls lined with mirrors on every side. They were the members of the rookie girl group ’Kisera’.

The leader, with long blonde hair, stood at center, the other members lined up on either side of her.

Soon, one of the members quietly asked the leader:

”Why’d they suddenly call us in??”

”...I don’t know.”

The mood among ’Kisera’ was, naturally, far from good. Part of it was that their debut had flopped disastrously, but a rumor had also been going around among the members that Leon was about to throw them away.

”A-are they going to announce it? That we’re being released?”

”......”

The ’Kisera’ members grew abruptly gloomy. The same went for the leader, who had been holding up reasonably well. Meanwhile, the two members, the Japanese one and the Chinese one, were more unbothered than the rest. Or rather, they wore the look of people who simply didn’t care.

It was at that moment.

-Swish.

Several people entered the practice room. The first to show his face was Team Leader Jang Hyung-su, looking like he hadn’t slept in days. The team leader of Management Team 4, the so-called graveyard of Leon. The ’Kisera’ members knew his face, too, so their eyes went wide.

’Th-that person! The Team 4 Team Leader?!’

Because their feeling that they’d be cast aside hardened into certainty. The ’Kisera’ members were reasonably aware of Team 4’s notoriety as well. Next, two more staff members came in behind Team Leader Jang Hyung-su, and last of all came a man with an indifferent face.

It was Kang Jae-ha.

Jae-ha was unfamiliar to the ’Kisera’ members.

’Who’s that??’

Well, it wasn’t strange that this was their first real look at Kang Jae-ha. Even if they’d crossed paths with him a few times in the past, the Kang Jae-ha of back then wouldn’t have left much of an impression. At any rate, Team Leader Jang Hyung-su, Kang Jae-ha, and the others took seats on the folding chairs. The first to look at ’Kisera’ and speak up was Team Leader Jang Hyung-su.

”Sorry for calling you in so suddenly.”

His voice carrying its trademark air of can’t-be-bothered, he glanced at Kang Jae-ha seated beside him, then made a request of ’Kisera’.

”First off... I’d like to see you perform.”

”A-a performance??”

”Yes.”

He was telling them to run through the debut single they’d put out.

”Make it just like a real performance, a music show or what have you, as much as you can. Give it your best, please.”

The long-haired blonde leader included, the ’Kisera’ members exchanged wary glances, reading one another, until the leader gave a firm nod.

”Yes! Understood!”

Looking at Team Leader Jang Hyung-su, they had sensed something.

’Ah! So he’s the one who makes the decisions!’

Kang Jae-ha, on the other hand, stayed quiet the whole time.

”......”

Before long, Kisera’s debut single filled the entire practice room.

-♬♪

A rhythmic, upbeat dance track. The ’Kisera’ members rolled out the vocals, choreography, and rap they’d drilled into their bodies. Kang Jae-ha watched them carefully, studying each one closely, member by member.

The vocals and the choreography, the formations, the expressions, the look in their eyes, down to every small movement of the hands.

Then Jae-ha murmured inwardly.

’The skill’s fine. Well, they’re kids who fought their way into the debut team out of Leon’s trainees, so that’s a given. That leader, especially, stands out the most.’

Next, he moved on to assessing the song. Unlike with the ’Kisera’ members, Kang Jae-ha’s verdict on the song was severely harsh.

’The song’s garbage, just like I figured.’

Simply put, it didn’t suit ’Kisera’. The song was nothing but noise, and the hook, the part that was supposed to melt the public’s ears, wasn’t doing its job.

’More than that... the girls don’t quite click.’

Jae-ha’s gaze fixed on two of them. The Japanese and Chinese members.

’Those two. They’re the troublemakers, they’re ruining ’Kisera’.

Soon, Team Leader Jang Hyung-su whispered to Kang Jae-ha.

”Well, what do you think?”

Normally, Team Leader Jang Hyung-su would have been the one to decide, but on this ’Kisera Rebuilding Project’ team, Kang Jae-ha was both the person in charge and the decision-maker.

After watching ’Kisera’ for a few more seconds, Kang Jae-ha murmured in a low voice.

”They’re not bad.”

”And?”

”The Japanese and Chinese members, we’d be better off cutting them.”

”Those two?”

”Yes.”

”And after we release the two of them?”

Kang Jae-ha answered as if it were nothing and laid out his thinking. The start of Jae-ha’s ’Kisera’ rebuilding was:

”We’d do better to fill the empty spots with Korean members.”

It began with swapping out members.

September 1st, morning. The CEO’s office of a major entertainment agency.

Several people sat at an eight-person table inside the CEO’s office, which was lined with quite a few art pieces. The man seated at the head of the table stood out the most. Because his belly bulged out something fierce.

Just from the air the pot-bellied man gave off, he looked like the CEO of this major agency.

Around the pot-bellied CEO sat roughly six people, and the CEO at the head of the table rubbed his belly and let out a low hum.

”Hmm...”

At that moment, he was looking at someone’s profile. Not a celebrity’s. Reading slowly through the profile, he tapped the attached photo a couple of times with his index finger.

”His face is awfully dull, isn’t it? This is the guy, right? You didn’t mix him up and bring me someone else’s by mistake, did you?”

The man right beside him quickly shook his head.

”No, sir. It’s definitely him.”

”Yeah?”

The CEO scratched his belly and looked again at the photo in the profile. Studying the utterly indifferent face of the man in the picture, the CEO opened his mouth once more.

”Okay, bring this guy over to our side.”

The man beside him, and the others around the table, opened their eyes pretty wide.

”Sir?”

As if to say what was there to even ask, the pot-bellied CEO furrowed his brow.

”I said scout him. If he’s got conditions he wants, give him just about anything within reason.”

Having finished speaking, the CEO, for some reason, thought of Leon’s CEO Han Tae-sung, and once more fixed his eyes on the photo attached to the profile.

”This guy’s really that good, huh?”

The face in the photo was Kang Jae-ha.

*****

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