The Crazy Mercenary Commander Goes to Work in the Entertainment Industry

Kamijo Yuu, who was currently not in Japan but in Korea, staying in the lodgings Kang Jae-ha had arranged for her, had practiced her acting until late into the night. Because of that, she opened her eyes a little later than usual.

The moment she opened her eyes, she glanced at her phone and flinched.

”...Huh??!”

It was because of the countless messages piled up on her phone. Most were from Japanese actor acquaintances, and the content was all about ’Matsuda Hideo’ or ’Mirai Stage’.

Kamijo Yuu checked the articles right away.

Japan was already in a state where ’Matsuda Hideo’s moron antics had been laid bare before the whole world, and it was in a serious uproar. Whether she went to social media, to the various communities, or to YouTube, it was the same everywhere.

”My god.”

Kamijo Yuu’s eyes had gone so wide they practically popped out. Because the one who had engineered this whole situation, the one who had just flipped Japan on its head, was without a doubt one hundred percent the doing of the Commander, Kang Jae-ha. It had been only a few days since she’d been led over to Korea by Jae-ha’s hand.

”H-How is something like this even possible in that little time??”

Of course, she trusted Jae-ha and the Mercenary Corps comrades she had recently met. But this fast...

On top of that.

”......Male trainee sexual exploitation??”

Even she, a member of ’Mirai Stage’, hadn’t known ’Matsuda Hideo’s weakness. Sure, there had been plenty of ugly rumors about him for a long time. But this was the first time she’d heard of something as serious as trainee sexual exploitation, and the first time she’d seen it dragged this far into the open.

The way she saw it.

”To crumble this easily.”

’Matsuda Hideo’, who had reigned for decades, looked as though he had collapsed in a mere few days the instant Kang Jae-ha laid a hand on him. No, that was the fact, that was the reality. Was even a figure this large, one who had ruled the Japanese entertainment world, nothing at all before the Commander? Kamijo Yuu felt utterly reassured and, at the same time, afraid.

It was an emotion she had felt several times, not in this world but in the Other World.

Commander Kang Jae-ha was incredible, but he was a monster.

Just then, a call came from that very Jae-ha. Kang Jae-ha’s voice was endlessly plain and level.

”Kamijo Yuu, you can go ahead and terminate your contract with ’Mirai Stage’ now.”

That plain instruction meant freedom to Yuu.

”......Thank you, Commander-nim.”

The hellish stretch of time, over half a year of torment that had even driven her to a desperate choice, flashed through her mind. But now not even a situation remotely like that would ever come again.

’Because I have the Commander-nim now.’

That was because Kamijo Yuu was under the protection of Kang Jae-ha, of ’MEG’. Then, from the other end of the phone, Jae-ha spoke again.

”Moving right away would be bad timing, so watch how things play out this week, then head over to Japan.”

”Yes... Commander-nim. I feel like I can finally breathe properly again.”

”’Spring at the Borderline’, are you practicing for it?”

”And Ogawa Sayaka got in touch, you said?””Ah! Yes, yes!”

In fact, a message had arrived for Yuu from Ogawa Sayaka of Shiori Production, the one who owed Kang Jae-ha a debt over an affair. Even then, Kamijo Yuu had been taken aback. She’d heard from Kang Jae-ha that a spot would open up in ’Spring at the Borderline’, but she hadn’t expected a bite to come this quickly.

”She said she wanted a meeting, so I set the appointment for October 16th, this Friday.”

”Then head over to Japan, terminate the contract first, and then meet Ogawa Sayaka.”

”Yes, exactly. Thank you once again, Commander-nim.”

”Enough of that. You just recover at your own pace and do your job well. In the end, landing the role in ’Spring at the Borderline’ will come down to your own ability.”

”...That may be so, but making that opportunity happen is the hard part. I know that very well.”

She had a point. Kamijo Yuu had been able to live because she’d met Kang Jae-ha, and her opportunities, too, had hit the fast lane thanks to Jae-ha. Then Kang Jae-ha’s voice came through the phone once more.

”And Kamijo Yuu, about that ’Ability’ of yours.”

”Yes??”

Kamijo Yuu’s ’Ability’ was blatantly aggressive. Whenever she wished, to whomever she wished, if she fed them any form of dish she had personally cooked, she could destroy their mind.

”Just in case, whip something up and carry it around. For defense. Something easy to keep on you. Bread, candy, chocolate, whatever.”

”Ah.”

”Those all count as food too, don’t they?”

In a sense, it was no different from telling her to manufacture mind-shattering grenades.

”I’m saying carry a few around and use them as the situation calls for it, if you’re ever in a pinch.”

She was startled at first, but reminding herself that she, too, was a member of ’MEG’, Kamijo Yuu answered with plenty of fighting spirit.

”Yes! Commander-nim! I’ll start mass-producing them right away!”

Afterward.

’Matsuda Hideo’s moron antics sent quite a large shockwave through Korea’s entertainment industry as well. Through the various broadcasting stations and agencies, naturally.

”You know Matsuda Hideo, right??”

”Of course. You can’t work in directing and not know the man.”

”But you don’t know he’s caught up in a mega-scandal? It’s total chaos right now.”

”Huh? Why?? I pulled an all-nighter and just woke up, so I’ve got no idea, what’s going on??”

”Japan’s flipped upside down. Word is Matsuda Hideo got caught in the act sexually exploiting a male trainee!”

”Whaaat??!”

”They say the male trainee was a minor, isn’t that goddamn revolting??”

”Ha, old as he is, what kind of insane shit is that?”

”That’s what I’m saying!!”

Through the various production companies, and so on. And naturally, Leon Entertainment, where Kang Jae-ha was, was no exception.

”Whoa, male trainee sexual exploitation......that’s shocking.”

”Matsuda Hideo’s rumors were nasty, sure, but I never figured he was pulling stuff like this. And everyone kept sucking up to him, calling him a legend of Japanese show business.”

”So nasty, just nasty. Even the way the scandal broke, there’s something sordid about it, you know?”

”He got caught in the act, and I guarantee there are more male trainees who got preyed on by that bastard Matsuda Hideo.”

Articles were breaking in a flood, too.

《Japanese Entertainment Mogul Matsuda Hideo, Trainee Sexual Exploitation Scandal/ Photo》

《[World News] Refuse and Your Debut Goes Up in Smoke... ’King of J-Pop’ Matsuda Hideo Has Been Sexually Exploiting Boy Trainees》

The one who fired the first shot was Ha Yeon-ji. But now the various domestic news outlets were snooping around the Japanese side and each fleshing the story out on their own.

《A Japanese J-pop Mogul’s Filthy Hobby, and Japan Is Flipped Upside Down!》

Perhaps because Korea was called the homeland of idols, the sexual exploitation of a male trainee was intensely provocative.

-Male trainee sexual exploitation is so goddamn gross ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

-Fuck, gonna hurl

-Gramps... did you eat your years through your asshole...

-Who’s Matsuda Hideo, you weebs

-↑He’s the CEO of a famous agency in Japan yeah

-Matsuda Hideo’s rumors have been fucking filthy for ages ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ but male trainee sexual exploitation really does cross a line

-The male trainee who got exploited was a minor ㅋㅋㅋㅋ just execute him, that’s the answer

-Ugh........so gross.........bleh

If it was like this in Korea, imagine what it must have been like over in Japan.

-I live in Japan and it’s absolute bedlam here right now ㅋㅋㅋㅋ the news does nothing but talk about Matsuda Hideo all day, and articles update every other second ㅋㅋㅋㅋ

-Their social media’s all Matsuda Hideo too, huh?

It was beyond a mere shockwave; it was on the level of nuclear bombs going off without pause.

A day later, on the 13th, it was even worse.

And around this point, just as Kang Jae-ha had anticipated, the victims in Japan who had been preyed upon by ’Matsuda Hideo’ in the past began to open their mouths.

-[”When I was young I was a trainee at ’Mirai Stage’, and I suffered sexual harassment and sexual exploitation at the hands of the CEO, Matsuda Hideo.”]

-[”He lured me in by suggesting we bathe together, touched my body......and gradually demanded more and more.”]

-[”I suspect there are many victims besides me, so please, everyone, speak out.”]

Whether on social media or YouTube or anywhere else, victims began coming forward one after another.

-[”I was subjected to so much by Matsuda Hideo, the CEO of ’Mirai Stage’, and the wounds from that time still remain.”]

-[”Even now. Even now Matsuda Hideo’s voice, his face, come back to me like a nightmare.”]

Having confirmed this, Kang Jae-ha gave instructions to Ha Yeon-ji, Cha Chung-hyeon, and the others.

”Once more victims come out, break the tax evasion, the slush fund, and the rest tied to ’Mirai Stage’. And tip off the foreign press immediately.”

It was to blow the scandal up to an international scale.

The morning of the 14th, Leon Entertainment.

In Korea, things were in an uproar over the LN Entertainment gate and ’Matsuda Hideo’, and in Japan, amid the flood of victims preyed upon by ’Matsuda Hideo’, Kang Jae-ha was calm.

Well, even if the world was in chaos, there was no need for him to go acting rashly.

Whether it was LN Entertainment or ’Matsuda Hideo’, they were all simply being eliminated and torn down exactly according to Kang Jae-ha’s design. In any case, up on one of Leon’s higher floors, the director-level executives had gathered in the performance  booth.

Leon had a tradition. One set by CEO Han Tae-sung, of course.

Before the idols Leon had raised made their proper debut or comeback, they would put on a performance in front of the director-level executives. They didn’t have to do it exactly like a real music show performance, but since it was an occasion for the executives to check them, they did need to do it properly in their own way.

The stars up on the performance booth now were the top-tier girl group ’Seriel’. Their November comeback was right around the corner, after all. Their outfits had a casual, hoodie sort of feel. But as befitted a top-tier girl group, their looks weren’t the least bit dimmed.

That was especially true of the visual center, Ra Yoon.

With cheat-level proportions and barely a trace of makeup, her beauty still shone.

For reference, ’Seriel’ had already finished everything down to the music video shoot. Now all that remained was the media play and final checks for the November comeback.

At the head of those watching the girls was, of course, CEO Han Tae-sung, neatly dressed in a suit. Around him, Leon’s director-level executives were seated in a row.

But for some reason, the director-level executives’ expressions had hardened. The long-jawed Director Kim Chul-joong’s face in particular had gone rotten.

’What the fuck, why the hell is that bastard here.’

The reason the directors’ faces were so foul was simple.

’Kang Jae-ha... why is that guy in this seat??’

’It’s weird enough that Kang Jae-ha’s here out of nowhere, but why is that guy sitting right next to the CEO-nim.’

Because Kang Jae-ha, with his deadpan face, was sitting right beside CEO Han Tae-sung.

”......”

This was the first time in Leon’s history such a thing had happened. This was a place only director-level executives could occupy. And yet Kang Jae-ha, who wasn’t even a general manager or anything, had sat down. Right next to CEO Han Tae-sung, no less. It made no sense, but the directors only cursed inwardly and couldn’t exactly raise a flag of revolt.

By now Kang Jae-ha had, of course, picked up on the mood.

’It stings, it stings, you lot. Firing off those glares like crazy. What a pain.’

CEO Han Tae-sung, who had quietly crossed his legs, murmured softly to Jae-ha.

”Right, Kang Jae-ha, just as you asked, this is a song you gave us, so you ought to check it yourself. It’ll help with the ’Kisera’ rebuilding, too.”

That’s right, the reason Jae-ha was in this seat was that Kang Jae-ha had personally requested it of CEO Han Tae-sung.

’Naturally, I’ve got to see what kind of form ’Seriel’ is in.’

Two songs composed by Choi Ri-na had already been handed over to ’Seriel’, and timing-wise, it would be ’Seriel’ who introduced Choi Ri-na’s music to the world first. So naturally Kang Jae-ha had to see for himself how the girls handled the songs.

That said, there was yet another person who, just like the directors, was thoroughly displeased and uncomfortable that Kang Jae-ha was there.

It was Ra Yoon, ’Seriel’s visual center and leader, who had just taken the stage.

’No way!! Ugh, damn, why is that man here??! He’s just a manager, so why is he in a seat meant for directors only!! What the hell, seriously!!’

Regardless, the song began to play throughout the entire performance booth. It was ’Nyxtra’, ’Seriel’s first comeback track, composed by Choi Ri-na.

-♬♪

Every member of ’Seriel’, Ra Yoon included, unfurled their vocals and choreography. The directors nodded along. In about three minutes Seriel’s first performance came to an end, and CEO Han Tae-sung watched the slightly panting ’Seriel’ members with his chin propped on his hand. He calmly asked Kang Jae-ha, seated beside him.

”Well?”

Kang Jae-ha, his dry gaze fixed on Ra Yoon, gave an answer that was short and clipped. And harsh in its assessment.

”Looks half-assed to me.”

For a moment, Ra Yoon bit her lower lip.

*****

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