[No, seriously, where does he even get this kind of confidence LOOOOOOLLLL]
[Ah this is killing me, an actor suddenly shouting out idol choreography]
Seo Hoyun, with his left leg crossed, upper body leaning slightly forward, and eyes narrowing in a graceful curve, looked absolutely brimming with self-confidence.
“No, Seo Hoyun-ssi. Why are you so full of confidence like this?”
“Because I worked hard.”
The reporter, rather than Seo Hoyun himself, looked even more flustered at his calm response.
Seo Hoyun stood up without hesitation.
If you’re an idol—no, if you’re a celebrity—you never back down.
If they tell you to do it, you do it.
That was the newly added creed of Seo Hoyun.
“No, why are you suddenly standing up??”
Even though no one had asked him to perform, Seo Hoyun stepped forward first, already preparing, and the reporter’s bursting laughter got zoomed in while the staff’s chuckles layered in the background.
[LMAOOOOOO No but Seo Hoyun-ssi LOOOOOLLLLLLL Is this even okay HAHAHAHAHAHA]
[This actor is completely unpredictable, I’m going crazy]
Seo Hoyun, imitating the red-haired rapper he’d often seen, made hand gestures and spoke low.
“Drop the beat. Let’s Get It.”
[LMAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Is he insane?]
[Recording mode: on]
[Seo Hoyun-ssi, thank you in advance, we’re going to immortalize this black history clip forever]
From the production crew’s perspective, there was no reason to refuse an actor volunteering to give them content. They quickly connected a portable speaker to a phone, held up a mic, and played the track.
【I want to play a lot with you
I want to love this feeling!】
The first song was one Seo Hoyun had danced to during The Dawn’s live broadcast when they did the girl idol relay dance.
A faint smirk tugged at Seo Hoyun’s lips.
Right before coming into “the unknown actor Tycoon” world, Jung Dajun had been shaking to that dance nonstop in the dorm or waiting room, so for Seo Hoyun, who never forgot once he saw something even once or twice, this choreography was easier than eating porridge.
Of course, he knew perfectly well what people were expecting of him....
[...??]
【I can't take my eyes off you
I want to love you fully La La!】
Seo Hoyun came in right on beat with the chorus.
From fingertips to gaze direction, down to the tiniest details.
[???? What is happening..?]
Everyone was astonished at Seo Hoyun, who danced so perfectly it was as if he had been possessed by the original idol.
【Why... is he good at this?】
He looked so natural that it wouldn’t be strange to call him an idol, and subtitles popped up on the screen.
[He dances better than my bias]
[No but actually he’s better than most current idols LOOOOOOLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL]
“Hm? Is that all you’ve got?”
Provoked by Seo Hoyun, the staff pulled out their hidden card.
【Say it after me You can‘t get over me
You didn’t say no I know what you want】
Black Call’s Get Over.
A song infamous for its brutal difficulty, one that even established idols feared and often failed at miserably.
[No, this one’s LOOOOLLLLLL]
[Even Joo Woosung grumbled that their debut song was too hard hahaha]
But this was also a song Seo Hoyun could never forget, having once been forced to practice it endlessly with Kim Sunghyun as a unit for <Fluttering Heart Matching Survival!>, The Dawn’s self-produced content.
【You already know I can’t get over you
Be honest You know what I want】
[?????????? Excuse me????]
[No excuse me what???]
Chasing the rising beat, Seo Hoyun delivered godlike control of intensity and flow.
Even Get Over, notorious as a song people ruined when they tried to cover it, was flawlessly digested. A reporter covering her mouth with wide eyes and Min Jiheon staring with a dumbfounded expression were captured on screen.
[Jiheon’s face! LOOOLLLLL Look at his face! LMAOOOOOOO We can see every thought he’s having]
[My colleague actor was actually a born-to-be idol...?]
Seo Hoyun even copied Joo Woosung’s signature ending pose down to the last detail.
[tlqkf even nailed the ending pose LMAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO]
[Kim Wooho turning into the ending fairy himself is just too funny I’m crying T_T]
The reporter, not exaggerating but truly astonished, asked Seo Hoyun as he sat back down.
“Seo Hoyun-ssi, seriously what are you?!”
“Ahaha.”
“Were you an idol trainee before acting?!”
“Why the hell is he so good?”
Min Jiheon’s bewildered voice slipped out from the side.
“Ah, this is...”
As if waiting for this kind of reaction, Seo Hoyun shrugged lightly and curved his lips.
“Let’s just call it natural talent?”
[LMAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO]
[This bastard’s shoulders went straight up!
└LMAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Exactly!!!]
It was one of Joo Woosung’s oft-used lines, the kind that pissed people off yet also tempted them to try it themselves.
If he’d said something like that back in The Dawn days, he would’ve been mocked for being a stiff beginner, but here, no one remembered Seo Hoyun as someone who couldn’t dance.
[But seriously he dances crazy well;;;;]
[Some idols dance worse than this actor, they should reflect ;;]
[So you’re saying he really wasn’t a trainee???]
After a flood of compliments, the reporter moved on to Dead after Hope, asking about the chemistry between Min Hanjun and Kim Wooho.
“It really felt like the bond of trust between Min Hanjun and Kim Wooho came through so vividly on screen! So, in that sense, we’ve prepared a speed quiz to see how well Seo Hoyun-ssi and Min Jiheon-ssi know each other in real life! ...Wait, Seo Hoyun-ssi, why are you standing up again?”
“Shall we give it a try?”
“No but why are you just agreeing to everything?!”
[Seo Hoyun’s personality looks amazing hahahahaha]
[Yeah I thought he’d be prickly but he sets the mood so well and has great sense]
[And Jiheon even looks after him here and thereㅠ What is this man, where’s he been hiding]
At the reporter’s joking remark, Seo Hoyun only laughed easily.
He already had information from investigating through Kim Jaeyeon in the past, and besides, if Min Jiheon ever did anything, Jung Dajun would spend the entire day screaming about it, so it was impossible not to know.
“What’s the title of the first movie Min Jiheon filmed?”
To My Beloved.
“Three commercials Min Jiheon has filmed!”
“H Automobile, K Coffee, S Finance.”
Sure enough, the answers popped out of Seo Hoyun’s mouth one after another without a moment’s hesitation.
Min Jiheon, who had been sulking suspiciously, gradually began showing surprise and admiration as they passed nine questions, until—
“What’s Min Jiheon’s favorite food?!”
“......”
A still silence fell over the scene.
“...Ah.”
For the first time, Seo Hoyun didn’t answer immediately.
Everyone’s eyes were on him, and Seo Hoyun suddenly remembered this had happened once before.
Back during the “Eat and Play, Become Unemployed” phone mission—the final question:
What’s Joo Woosung’s favorite food?
“Seo Hoyun-ssi, your answer?”
It was kimchi fried rice....
“Ev....”
“Excuse me?”
“Min Jiheon-ssi... eats everything.”
[LMAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO]
Seo Hoyun’s face practically said, “If you handed Jiheon lye, he’d probably drink it. Is there really a need to differentiate what he likes?”
“The correct answer was gamjatang! Ah~~, that was so close, Hoyun-ssi.”
Tilting his head slightly, Seo Hoyun looked at Min Jiheon.
“Gamjatang? You like that?”
“...Yep, Jiheon’s favorite is gamjatang.”
“Huh...”
[Holy shit he called him ‘you’]
[No but Hoyun, you’re younger than Jiheon LOOOOOOOLLLLLLLLLL Why are you speaking in third-person honorifics instead, what the hell hahahahahahaha]
[These two are just literally Kim Wooho and Min Hanjun LOOOOLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL]
“...Ah, it’s just, on set, Min Jiheon-ssi always eats anything without picking....”
“Wow, really? That’s a new side of Min Jiheon-ssi!”
Seo Hoyun didn’t particularly feel regret since he figured they had already gotten enough broadcast content.
“But honestly, do I really need to know that? He’s going to chew up everything except bricks anyway...”
Especially since the person in question was Min Jiheon, who had been on his nerves plenty.
[LMAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO]
[They did say Jiheon eats a lot with no filter but ah LOOOOOOOOLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL this combo is killing me]
“Right, I can’t eat bricks either.”
[Jiheon, why are you nodding beside him like you agree LOOOOOOOOLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL]
Up until now, whenever Min Jiheon participated in interviews for promotions, fellow actors would always heap praise on him with flashy words. Pressured by his agency, he had no choice but to maintain his mystique concept, so at most, a small smile was his only reaction.
“And Min Jiheon-ssi is the actor with the most appearances in 10-million-viewer films!”
“Oh~....... Right.”
“Wow, you really don’t care, huh.”
“Of course! Min Jiheon-ssi is the actor of actors, the role model of actors, you know?”
“Heh~....... Congratulations, I guess?”
“Yeeah, thank youuu~.”
But today was different.
[Looks like Seo Hoyun’s ‘corporate soul possession’ from earlier slipped out for a moment]
[LOOOOOLLL Zero sincerity hahahahahaha]
[The point is Jiheon isn’t even expecting any reaction from Seo Hoyun in the first place LOOOLLLLLL]
Seo Hoyun was clearly diligent during filming and drew good reactions from Min Jiheon, but he didn’t flatter him. On the contrary, whenever the questions were about Min Jiheon, he looked oddly indifferent.
[On live, Seo Hoyun was super sweet so I thought maybe he was really affectionate, but nope he’s just Kim Wooho
The fact that he was just faking it is driving me insane]
[So the reason his acting suddenly got so good was because it was just daily life acting... but then what about the acting when he was looking for his brother, that still makes no sense]
“Ah! I saw that, Hoyun-ssi. Fans put up an ad for you at Gangnam Station!”
“Ah, I already went. Took some pictures too, it looked pretty. I’m really grateful to the fans. But... to be honest, I’m actually a little worried.”
“Huh? Why?”
“Those subway ads must have been expensive. I worry they might be eating poorly because of it....”
The moment talk of fans came up, Seo Hoyun’s attitude immediately softened.
Back when he was in The Dawn, he had to hold back, only saying words of thanks for fear of sparking a “fan support” controversy, but now there was no need to restrain himself.
“Ah, Seo Hoyun-ssi, you’re a really funny person.”
The reporter chuckled like she had just heard something amusing, then looked ahead at a staff member holding up a sketchbook that read “Time’s up” and moved into the closing lines.
“Then Min Jiheon-ssi, Seo Hoyun-ssi. Please each give one last message to the viewers!!”
“Huh? A message?”
“Of course! To all the new fans who love Dead after Hope these days.”
Seo Hoyun blinked slowly.
He looked like someone realizing something that felt both familiar and strange.
“...New fans.”
He muttered it under his breath, then stole a glance at Min Jiheon.
The man was staring blankly, waiting for his answer, without a single thought in his head.
“...Please keep supporting Dead after Hope... uh, no, actually, don’t give it too much attention......”
“What?”
“It’s just....”
Stumbling over his words, unusually flustered, his eyes darted around as if searching for an answer.
“...You mustn’t like me too much.”
By the time he realized how utterly messed up it sounded, it was already too late to fix.
“......Thank you for the «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» great support. Please continue to watch a lot.”
At last, Min Jiheon delivered his usual signature closing line, and the entertainment news program moved on to the next story.
[Wait—“don’t like me too much”?
Is this a Dead after Hope death flag??]
[Emergency, Seo Hoyun just dropped Dead after Hope foreshadowing
└Kim Wooho’s gonna die???
└No fuck no, Kim Wooho can’t die]
[I mean, some characters only reach perfection through death,
But in dramas they’re supposed to survive miraculously!!
└Typical otaku: no one asked but they keep rambling...]
In truth, it wasn’t foreshadowing for Dead after Hope, but rather for the actor “Seo Hoyun.”
***
On my rare day off, I lounged around on the sofa, checking the interview reactions.
“...Unbelievable.”
I’d always thought the dorm was too noisy, too hectic, but now that there wasn’t a single loud member around, it felt unbearably boring.
Left alone, intrusive thoughts started swirling, so I grabbed a blank sheet of paper and a pen, deciding to organize the situation.
Ratings.
Points.
After finishing the quest that told me to complete the first shoot safely, a new mission popped up: update the viewership rating every episode I appeared in.
The higher the ratings, the more points I got, which was quite profitable.
So far, all the quest points had been high, and honestly it felt like investing in a triple-leverage ETF during a bull market. I wanted to just lie down and hold on for as long as I could.
But there were too many suspicious things....
Ding!
[Why do you look so serious?]
I was tapping the paper with my pen tip when the system window flickered blue and appeared.
“Not your business.”
Too annoyed to deal with it, I waved my hand to shoo it away. But then it shrank down to a tiny size and popped up right in front of my eyes, impossible to ignore.
[Most of the errors are almost fixed. It’s still a bit away, but soon you’ll be able to return to ‘Unknown Idol Tycoon.’]
“...Efficient, huh.”
And that was the weird part.
This system that used to spew errors like greetings and only handed out pathetic rewards—suddenly it had fixed glitches this quickly?
I sat up, trying to put some distance between me and the system window.
“Wow, suddenly competent, are we?”
[...Please don’t say that. It’s scary.]
I scribbled another word under the line marked “Points.”
The Dawn, Joo Woosung, Min Jiheon, Jeong Cheongyeon.
Just like Seo Hojin in “Unknown Idol Tycoon,” I wondered if there were people here who remembered me. But The Dawn had vanished without a trace, and Joo Woosung or Min Jiheon seemed totally clueless.
And then there was Jeong Cheongyeon, who suddenly appeared in front of me....
“Is there no Jeong Cheongyeon among WH Entertainment trainees?”
“No, none. Never heard that name before... Is it someone you know, Seo Hoyun-ssi?”
Whenever my schedule had gaps, I visited WH Entertainment’s practice room multiple times.
But I couldn’t find Jeong Cheongyeon. The manager didn’t know her either.
I recalled the lines the system had spit out the moment I first landed here.
[It’s the beginning quest, so it won’t be that hard!]
[...The points you collect here can be used even after you return.]
[Please just cooperate a little. Honestly, it’s not such a bad deal.]
Quests practically spoon-fed to me, points usable even after returning.
The more I compared it to my idol days, when nothing came easily, the more suspicious it seemed.
Hypothesis, verification.
A way to test my theory using Min Jiheon and the system.
Once the flow in my head seemed clear enough, I tossed down the pen and sprawled back out on the sofa.
[...What exactly did you just do?]
“Nothing you need to worry about.”
I rubbed at my dry eyes, ready to sleep, when my phone buzzed.
“Yes, this is Seo Hoyun.”
[Hoyun-ah!]
My manager’s voice quivered with excitement on the other end.
[Don’t take this the wrong way, just listen. Don’t go online for a while. There’s talk that you and Lee Kangseok got into a fight—...! Rumors...— it’s spreading on the internet——.]
Seo Hoyun and Lee Kangseok. Power struggle. Junior’s rude words. No manners. Rumors spreading across the net. All details only the people present or those who overheard could have known.
[—The company will handle it cleanly without fuss, so don’t worry, don’t stress.]
Hearing how deadly serious my manager was, I couldn’t help but chuckle.
“Alright, sure.”
To me, it wasn’t anything major anyway.
“Thank you for worrying about me.”
[Huh? Uh, yeah.]
I already had a good idea who the source of the rumor was.
Ignoring the manager trying to add more, I hung up and calmly pulled the blanket over myself, closing my eyes.
Ding!
[...Seriously, who on earth would dare pull something like this against Seo Hoyun-ssi?]
“Exactly.”
I chuckled softly.
“How bold of you, our Kangseok.”
Couldn’t even hold himself back before picking a fight.
Without realizing all his cards were already laid bare.
