Siblings Working in Business (222)
“This kind of ‘care’ is essential, and—”
Chang-seok had seen enough of his artists struggling at TaKa Entertainment.
How much should a ‘public figure’ have to endure?
They were human too; they got hurt.
Some even took their own lives, their pain festering unnoticed.
While companies prioritized protecting their artists’ images and the company’s ‘value,’ hushing up any scandals… he was free now.
He had to be the first to speak out, to create positive change.
Only then would smaller companies, and even larger companies like TaKa Entertainment, with their conflicting interests, feel empowered to do the same.
Chang-seok believed that.
So he spoke.
He had been silent for long enough.
To protect his employees and artists, who trusted and followed him, he had to speak up for NRY, the company he built, initially to bring Toxin in, but now truly filled with ‘family.’
“I believe the purpose of NRY Entertainment is to help our artists shine comfortably. And I believe it’s my role to protect them from these ‘trivial’ matters.”
Trivial matters.
‘We have to be efficient.’
If they dwelled on these things, they would lose focus on what truly mattered: their ‘work.’
They had to deal with these issues efficiently, without making a big fuss.
That was his responsibility as CEO.
“It might seem excessive, but for the sake of our ‘family,’ NRY will not drop lawsuits against those who spread malicious rumors simply out of pity.”
As he finished his statement, a blinding barrage of camera flashes erupted.
The reporters’ shouted questions overlapped, creating a cacophony.
“Due to time constraints, we’ll answer any further questions through NRY Entertainment. Thank you.”
After the press conference, NRY Entertainment was flooded with calls.
Following Eun-ho’s suggestion about repairing their image, Chang-seok strategically revealed their previously hidden donations.
He hadn’t realized how much it was, but the amount was surprisingly large.
「Lee Eun-ji and Lee Eun-ho’s secret donations to the School Violence Victim Support Center and local orphanages reach ‘hundreds of millions’ of won!」
News of their donations spread like wildfire, overshadowing the malicious articles and capturing the public’s attention.
DI Music’s subtle support for the collaboration played a significant role in this.
Meanwhile, as positive articles about E-UNG and NRY Entertainment piled up, things became increasingly difficult for a certain group.
Those who disliked E-UNG and NRY Entertainment.
Especially Jo Kwang-soo and his accomplices, whose actions during their school days were brought to light along with Eun-ho and Eun-ji’s past.
Jo Kwang-soo, as always, tried to shift the blame to Eun-ho.
Even in court.
But the law was stricter than he expected, and even with evidence…
Jo Kwang-soo, unprepared, was easily refuted by Eun-ho’s meticulously prepared evidence.
A rock in front of him, thorns behind…
Trapped, with no way out, Jo Kwang-soo finally retracted his initial testimony about it being a ‘mistake.’
He admitted that everything had been intentional.
As a result…
Jo Kwang-soo was sentenced to a fine of 20 million won or two years in prison, and his accomplices were each fined 3 to 5 million won.
Jo Kwang-soo was hit particularly hard due to the public nature of his actions and the spread of false information online.
“His parents abandoned him after middle school, so he had to take care of everything himself.”
Eun-ho, after hearing the news, fell into thought.
Countless articles about Jo Kwang-soo stemming from the fake news incident, which started with a nightmare…
The effects of this noise marketing campaign were overwhelmingly positive.
Although they had promoted ‘E-UNG’ a lot, many people still didn’t recognize their name until they heard their music, reacting with, ‘Ah, it was them?’
But after this incident, although they were now labeled as ‘the idols who sued their fans,’ the name ‘E-UNG’ itself became known.
And that kind of notoriety…
…was nothing compared to being labeled as ‘the one who killed his own sister for money,’ which he had experienced before the regression.
Unable to afford the fine, Jo Kwang-soo chose to serve his prison sentence.
And surprisingly, perhaps out of pride, he didn’t even apologize.
Eun-ho had briefly considered a settlement out of pity, seeing the benefits they gained…
But if he wanted to face the consequences of his actions…
Eun-ho was fine with that.
‘I hope this is the end of the nightmares.’
Unforgotten
After the trial ended, in the NRY Entertainment costume production room…
The so-called “production room” was just a corner of the office filled with a sewing machine, various outfits, and fabrics.
Seul-gi was sitting there, hand-sewing red ostrich feathers onto the shoulders of a long black dress and the collar of a black suit jacket.
But seemingly dissatisfied, she pulled off the feathers and sighed deeply.
“Is there nothing that would suit this song better…?”
Nothing seemed right.
“Maybe if we changed their hair color…”
While other idols often changed their hair color or style to showcase a new image with each album…
Eun-ho and Eun-ji, for some reason, always wanted to keep their hair the same.
「“Don’t you want to try dyeing your hair? It would change your look completely.”」
Even Eun-ji, who loved fashion, gave a surprisingly ambiguous “…Not really,” when Seul-gi, curious, asked.
And Eun-ho added jokingly,
「“I’m scared of going bald like CEO Park.”」
But that didn’t seem like the real reason, as Eun-ho’s tone was tinged with a subtle sadness.
Seul-gi wanted to ask more, but Eun-ji quickly changed the subject.
Seul-gi went to CEO Park.
She had to report on the outfits for their next album anyway, so she decided to ask him about it.
“They seem to dislike changing their hair color or style drastically.”
“Still? They caused a scene when they first went to the hair salon…”
Their first time at the hair salon…
The story of Eun-ho and Eun-ji’s past, which became a hot topic after the Jo Kwang-soo lawsuit…
She knew CEO Park’s story was from around that time, even without him saying so.
“It’s better to hear it directly from them.”
“Is there a reason they don’t like it?”
When Seul-gi asked worriedly, CEO Park smiled and shook his head.
“Not really. It’s just that they’re not ready to let go yet.”
Let go?
CEO Park’s expression as he answered reminded Seul-gi of Eun-ho trying to brush off her question with a joke.
“Seul-gi, why don’t you ask them directly? Why they don’t like it.”
“Ah…”
“If you keep that in mind while styling them, they’ll be very happy.”
CEO Park handed back the report Seul-gi had given him.
Seul-gi looked at the report, then up at CEO Park.
“Why did you give it back…?”
“Why do you think?”
CEO Park replied with a kind smile to Seul-gi’s bewildered question.
“Redo it.”
“…”
With the music video and photoshoot coming up soon, and with only one outfit finalized, Seul-gi didn’t have time to dwell on Eun-ho and Eun-ji’s past.
While Seul-gi’s expression darkened…
CEO Park thought for a moment, then pointed to one of the outfits in Seul-gi’s report.
“This feather outfit. Bring me the actual piece. The purple one here looks tacky, so that’s out. Judging by the material, it’s ostrich feathers, right? I’ll order some in different colors from a contact. He should be able to send them by tomorrow.”
“…You want me to make it?”
CEO Park smiled as if it were obvious.
He hadn’t been in charge of their styling during E-UNG’s debut for nothing.
Seul-gi’s inner thoughts were a scream, like Edvard Munch’s ‘The Scream.’
But she couldn’t show that expression in front of CEO Park, so she put on a professional smile and replied,
“Yes.”
She secretly hoped he would change his mind about the feather outfit…
But he didn’t.
Back to the present…
Seul-gi was working on the design she had presented to CEO Park.
She glanced at the clock. 11:00 AM.
‘They’ll be here soon.’
It was time for Eun-ho and Eun-ji to return for lunch with CEO Park after their all-nighter.
“I wonder what they fought about today…”
Since Eun-ho and Eun-ji fought almost as often as they worked, Seul-gi and Hyun-woo had categorized their fights to understand the situation.
Meaningless fights that started with teasing or bickering were ‘sibling squabbles.’
Fights about their creative direction during work were ‘musical disagreements.’
And a new type of fight had emerged recently…
Eun-ho had been teaching Eun-ji about composing, and Eun-ji had been teaching Eun-ho about lyric writing.
They often fought while teaching each other…
And Eun-ji would often say, “This is pissing me off.”
So, they called these new fights ‘annoying disagreements.’
Among the three types, Hyun-woo and Seul-gi found ‘musical disagreements’ and ‘annoying disagreements’ the most difficult to deal with.
The reason…
“No, it’s ‘Ta-dan ddan! Ddan-ddan!’”
“What are you talking about? I’m saying ‘Ta-dan ddan-ddan-ddan’.”
“No, Lee Eun-ho, you’re so frustrating. If it goes ta-dan ddan ddan in the beginning, it’s better to go ta-dan ddan! Ddan-ddan. And then ta-ddan ddan ta-ddan!”
What were they even talking about?
Seul-gi, holding black dyed ostrich feathers, stared blankly at the familiar silhouettes through the frosted window.
It seemed like it was either an ‘annoying disagreement’ or a ‘musical disagreement’ today.
These two types were tricky because, as you could see, they spoke in their own language, beyond her professional expertise, making it difficult to intervene or mediate.
So Seul-gi prayed,
‘Please don’t ask me about this. Please…’
But her prayers went unanswered.
The door burst open, and Eun-ji’s first words were, “Seul-gi Unnie!”
“Unnie! Which is better, ‘Ta-dan ddan ddan ddan ta-dan ddan! Ddan ddan ta-ddan ddan ta-ddan!’ or ‘Ta-dan ddan ddan ddan ta-dan ddan-ddan-ddan ddan ta-ddan ddan ta-ddan’?”
Seul-gi, with the serene smile of an enlightened monk, replied,
“I don’t know about either, and I think I hate the word ‘ddan’ now.”
Eun-ji tilted her head, confused by Seul-gi’s vacant response.