Chapter 78: < Protect – Episode 77 – Open Audition [1] >

“He really committed suicide?”

Seo Joo Kyung, who he hadn’t seen in a while, looked wasted away. She couldn’t believe that Hwang Min Wook killed himself. That was because she knew how cruel he really was. But all the newspapers said he killed himself because he wouldn’t stand the power-hungry producers and directors.

“There were multiple witnesses. Since he jumped in front of people, the police ruled it as a suicide. So you don’t have to hide anymore.”

Because of this, the director of variety entertainment of the broadcasting station was devastated. The public started to get worked up once they heard rumors that the broadcasting station that operated on licensing fees often used lobbied and provided extravagant treatment. The other broadcasting companies were worried that they would get dragged into it too, and the ripple extended as far as the drama and news departments.

“I know what Hwang Min Wook was like though…I can’t believe it.”

Seo Joo Kyung shook her head out of disbelief and then looked at Ahn Soo Ho.

“Did you…”

“Me? What?”

“Nothing.”

She took back her suspicion. That was right. That was a ridiculous thought. No matter how powerful he was, there were a lot of obstacles to overcome before making Hwang Min Wook looked like he committed suicide.

“It’s time to get back to work.”

“Is it really okay for me to come back?”

“Then are you just going to laze around?”

“No, Sir! I’ll return immediately.”

Seo Joo Kyung caused the company a lot of trouble with her sex tape. If the media weren’t busy with other things, they would have ripped Hosoo Entertainment to shreds. What was funny was that it was the total opposite of when an entertainment issue was used to cover up a political conspiracy.

As soon as Seo Joo Kyung left, Oh Joo Kyung came in.

“Is Director Seo coming back?”

“Yeah. Try to avoid exposing it to the media.”

“I don’t know if it’ll be possible, but I’ll try. Oh, JT Entertainment went into legal management.”

JT Entertainment and other entertainment agencies that were suspected of being involved with sexual favors dropped in stock value.

“The police found that there was stock price manipulation, internal dealings, and embezzlement of money.”

“They turned from victims to con artists.”

“Yes. Evil deeds are starting to turn up one by one.”

The public opinion that sympathized with Hwang Min Wook completely flipped over. As soon as the rumors about how he made sex tapes to manipulate new celebrities, those who rose to fame thanks to Hwang Min Wook ran into a lot of trouble. They were also being suspected of having sex tapes.

“They didn’t all film a sex tape, did they?”

“Probably not. I think he only targeted those who were uncertain and desperate for their debut.”

“What a piece of trash.”

“There are more where he came from.”

He couldn’t brag that he was the one who got rid of that trash.

“How about we take over JT?”

“Pardon?”

“We’ll have to weed some of them out, but we need more men anyway.”

Even if they hired new employees, it still took a long time for them to get good at their job, so they still needed talented and experienced individuals.

“Request for a delisting with the condition that we’ll take on all their liabilities.”

“There are probably many hidden issues…never mind.”

Oh Joo Kyung, who was going to mention how much it would cost, stopped herself midway. She kept forgetting that Hosoo Entertainment Group was just as financially capable as Daesan Group. An entertainment company was surprisingly competitive with a major corporation that represented Korea.

“Tell Director Seo to go ahead with it. Since she used to work there, she’ll know their internal circumstances.”

“Yes, Sir.”

He was going to boost Seo Joo Kyung’s determination, save her face, and cause another controversy. If it became known that Hosoo Entertainment was going to save JT Entertainment, the reporters were going to make up all sorts of stories.

“Then Director Seo won’t be able to avoid the media finding out. Hm. Is there a way to package this nicely?”

“I’ll talk to her.”

“Okay. Anything else?”

Ahn Soo Ho gestured to ask if she had anything else to report. Oh Joo Kyung turned around without a word. Ahn Soo Ho was left alone when his phone rang just in time.

“Father?”

“I made plans with the in-laws.”

“Oh, okay.”

Ahn Soo Ho answered awkwardly.

His father, who enjoyed drinking, meeting women, and fooling around, suddenly matured. Was it Jang Seol Hyun’s influence? His father wanted to be respected as her father-in-law, and when he saw the Do brothers from the city, he came to some realization.

“Buy me a house in Seoul.”

“Okay. I’ll look into it.”

“I’m hanging up now.”

He had never asked him to buy him anything besides alcohol. He must have felt awkward too, because he hung up immediately after. Others would 100% insult Ahn Dae Man for living an idle life, and he had a love hate relationship with him as well. But for some reason, it was hard to hate him completely.

Knock, knock-

He heard a knock.

“Come in.”

The person that came in was just as unexpected as his father’s call.

“Kumiko?”

“Hello, Soo Ho.”

Even though uniforms weren’t required at Hosoo Entertainment, each department provided uniforms depending on the job. The information desk in the Star Tower lobby wore clean blue uniforms.

Kumiko appeared wearing that uniform.

“I got a job.”

“Not at my company though, right?”

“At your company.”

Ahn Soo Ho grabbed his forehead with his hand.

“So you’re going to cause a mess and expect me to clean it up?”

“It’s all good as I don’t get caught.”

“Don’t you think you’re underestimating your country?”

Japan did a lot of crazy things, but they were once a very strong company that was a threat to the States. They were always growling at China, but they were still one of the strongest in Asia.

“That’s okay.”

“Hey!”

He wondered if he should sell her off. But no. He couldn’t imagine what she would do with that temper of hers. Killing her was the easiest way, but he had a very deep history with Kumiko that no one else knew about.

Ahn Soo Ho sighed.

“Okay, fine. But who hired you?”

“Why do you ask?”

“You know.”

He scanned Kumiko from top to bottom. She still looked like a kid on the outside. She was a lady in her forties, but to most people, she appeared to look like an under-aged girl. As someone who stopped growing by the time she hit puberty, the uniform she was wearing was too big for her.

As soon as it got noisy outside, Logan broke into the room. He looked at Ahn Soo Ho with a stiffed face and then reached for his waist as soon as he saw Kumiko. She didn’t stay still either. She took a small gun and pointed it at Logan.

“That’s enough! Step back, Logan.”

“Soo Ho?”

“Logan!”

Logan glared at Kumiko and then left the room.

“Phew! That old man is still scary.”

“He’s younger than you.”

“Oh my! It’s so hard to guess white people’s age. I like that they have big dicks though.”

She snickered.

He was used to seeing her make crude jokes while looking like a teenager. As a result of the pain she received from people, she didn’t trust men even though she was continuously exploring all sorts of them. She must have had some kind of superfluous charm because she had a different boyfriend with her every time they met.

“Did the fan meeting wrap up nicely?”

“I told you to just spread rumors. Who told you to get involved?”

“Do you mean that, Soo Ho? Since J-Law and Issac went into war, you knew this would happen. Once the major corporations start mobilizing their mercenaries, the world will turn into a battlefield.”

“You didn’t hand the file over to a company, did you?”

Kumiko shrugged her shoulders.

“Hey, don’t worry. The file wasn’t intact. And I didn’t give it away for free either.”

“You crazy bitch!”

“In order to give the Dresden File’s power, they have to know that it’s true.”

She was right.

Once they confirmed that the secret document containing fatal information really exists, they wouldn’t be able to act rashly. But Japan, which was Kumiko’s motherland that recruited her, knew this truth way back in the past. If Kumiko was just an ordinary analyst, she would have gotten kidnapped and tortured to death a long time ago.

“The G7 is a good opportunity, Soo Ho. The power vacuum that you left behind will lead to a new paradigm. But that also means the system failed. The belief that the system purifies the society, what do you think would happen to a believer who loses that belief?”

“Anarchism?”

“It’s not just Anarchism. They will resist all that’s in power.”

Even while talking about a difficult topic, she pulled out clothes from her backpack and got changed. She exposed her body to Ahn Soo Ho, but he didn’t feel embarrassed or awkward. They had no sexual feelings for each other or whatsoever. They were like siblings.

He smirked.

Did she take off her uniform just to change into a school uniform? What was more absurd was that it suited her. Kumiko had the transformative power that all spies were envious of. How many people could suspect that this girl in a student’s uniform was actually a spy?

Beep-

As soon as the intercom rang, he pressed the button.

“CEO Ahn, Director Kim Woo Jung is here.”

“Hm. Tell him to come back in an hour.”

“Um…he said he wants to talk to you about Ahn Da Sol.”

“Who?”

“Ahn Da Sol.”

Ahn Soo Ho, who thought about who Ahn Da Sol was, looked at Kumiko who was pointing at herself and blinked.

“You? When you said you got a job…”

“Why? You thought I got a job as an information girl?”

Since she came in in an information desk uniform, he assumed she got an office job. After getting permission, Kim Woo Jung came into the office, saw Kumiko, and smiled brightly.

“Haha! Here you are! So you are close with CEO Ahn.”

“What’s going on?”

When Ahn Soo Ho asked that question, Kim Woo Jung spoke with a confident expression.

“Trust Ahn Da Sol with me, CEO Ahn! She has a great talent! I’ll take responsibility for her and make her into a top star!”

The absurd situation didn’t end there. The door opened to someone entering with a troubled look on their face. It was Kim Yoo Seon, who was in charge of the singers.

“CEO Ahn! Ahn Da Sol has the talent to become a top idol! If you leave her to me, I’ll make her into Asia’s number one idol!”

“No way! Da Sol is a genius actor! She must go into acting!”

“No way, Director Kim! Da Sol is a born singer and dancer!”

Wow, these crazy bastards! They probably wouldn’t even dream of her as a woman in her forties. Ahn Soo Ho was astonished by Kumiko’s perfect transformation. Women were capable of changing completely just from getting some work done and putting on makeup. But tricking people into thinking their an innocent child was a whole different level.

“Hey, you liar…”

“Oh my! Uncle!”

Kumiko linked arms with Ahn Soo Ho and jabbed him on his side. She gave him an evil look while Kim Woo Jung and Kim Yoo Seon weren’t looking.

She whispered to him, “I’ll kill you.”

“My uncle loves me so much that he said I can do all of it. I want to act, sing, and dance.”

Ahn Soo Ho looked serious, but to others, it just seemed like he was overly worried about his beloved niece.

“Haha!”

“Haha!”

In contrast to their laughter, Ahn Soo Ho wiped his face.

‘Whatever! Even if she looks like a teenager, once she starts singing and dancing, her true identity will come out!’

A 40-year-old idol? That was unacceptable. But a few days later, Ahn Da Sol was said to make all the trainers of Hosoo Entertainment Academy surrender, which made Ahn Soo Ho groan.

‘A charismatic trainee? But then again, the power struggle between kids is no match for a real crazy woman.’

Kumiko used to study the best methods for killing someone. So the way she acted, sang, and danced among a bunch of lively teenagers and receiving great marks as well was suspicious.

‘Are you…?’

An alpha organism?

< Protect – Episode 77 – Open Audition [1] > The end.

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