—

“Your daughter’s home!”

“Did you eat dinner?”

“They gave us meal money, of course I ate before coming home.”

Yeo Hana, who was sharing a celebratory end-of-work hug with her mother, noticed a drama she hadn’t seen before.

“What drama is this? Mom, you don’t usually watch these.”

“It started last week, and it’s actually pretty good. Come watch it with me.”

“If I shower first, will I miss it?”

“Nope, it just started. Want me to bring some snacks?”

“I’d love that.”

Hana hurried to wash up. She also grabbed two cans of beer—her mother’s long-time friend—from the fridge. When she returned to the living room, a large bowl was filled with amhaengeosabap, the mother-daughter duo’s favorite snack.

The two sat side-by-side on the sofa in their most comfortable pajamas and began watching the drama.

“What’s the plot?”

“This guy’s dad and that girl’s dad died in an accident, so they’re looking for the cause. I’ve only seen bits and pieces, so I don’t know all the details.”

What do they call this kind of drama? A romantic mystery? She’d heard of ‘Rom-Com,’ but she hadn’t heard much of ‘Ro-My’ before.

Hana, who didn’t usually have a hobby of watching dramas, couldn’t deduce the entire narrative compressed into the first two episodes. Nevertheless, the actors’ captivating performances slowed her hand as she reached for snacks.

“Wait, who is Cheonju Group?”

“That boy over there is claiming that the chairman of Cheonju Group is the one who killed his father.”

“That’s scary.”

Hana responded with an expression that wasn’t scared at all. To her, the work messenger app still pinging at this hour was scarier than the Cheonju Group she had just learned about.

‘Ping me all you want. I’m not replying.’

Today, Hana had worked herself to the bone, even pulling a weekend shift. Now that the urgent tasks were done, she felt she had fulfilled her duty.

If she got into the habit of working even after clocking out, it would set a bad precedent. Better for her to take the blame herself and think, ‘Yeah, sure, enjoy your eternal life,’ than have seniors complain that juniors were getting lax.

“Huh?”

As she put her phone face down and looked back at the screen, a familiar face appeared.

“He’s quite handsome. He must be a rookie. He’s a good actor, too.”

Her mother commented on the actor who had started appearing since the previous episode.

It was a visual Hana knew well—the protagonist of the wallpaper on her junior colleague’s phone home screen, the one the junior had vowed to protect.

『Chief, wasn’t your mother’s birthday coming up?』

『Yes, that is correct.』

『Why don’t you take a bottle of wine? I heard some good ones just came in.』

‘Wait, isn’t that Kim Iwol?’

The figure presumed to be the ultimate bias of her favorite junior, Won Chaehee, had appeared on screen.

There was a reason she said ‘presumed.’ Hana’s brain wasn’t well-trained to perfectly match faces she’d skimmed through in photo albums with faces moving on video.

Hana picked up her phone, which had finally stopped buzzing. She typed the drama title into a portal site and clicked on the information tab, revealing the character list.

Role of Cheon Yoonsung

Kim Iwol

Surprisingly, Hana’s deduction was correct. Considering her lifelong history of not even being able to name five idol groups back in school, this was a historic event.

“He’s an idol. I think he only started acting recently.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. My junior at work likes him.”

“Chaehee?”

The name came out instantly. Her mother remembered everyone in her daughter’s circle.

『Send her my regards.』

Kim Iwol handed the recommended bottle of wine to the manager.

『Thank you, sir.』

The manager bowed deeply and opened the door to the back seat. Kim Iwol looked incredibly natural being waited on. As Hana followed him with her eyes, the episode ended in an instant.

“Mom, does this air on Sundays too?”

“Yeah. Why? Should we watch together tomorrow too?”

“I’d love to.”

Watching the two make plans for the next day, Hana’s father looked surprised.

“Hana is watching a drama?”

“It seems it suits her taste. You join us tomorrow, too.”

“I guess I should.”

“The way you guys are talking, people would think I live under a rock!”

Hana burst out laughing.

“I’m just watching because someone I know is in it. It’s cool.”

She said that as an excuse, then followed her mom to the kitchen to throw away the empty cans and snack bowl.

≫ I told you last week Yoonsung felt suspicious! 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

I told you his face screamed ‘villain’! (ꐦ°᷄д°᷅)ᕗ

└ I think I saw your postㅋㅋㅋㅋ Didn’t you say there’s no way Yoonsung is the second male lead?

└ So you were the one shouting ‘that bastard is the culprit’ while everyone else was screaming for the chaebol sub-lead.

≫ But it’s still ambiguous.

There are so many cases where they keep you guessing whether he’s a mastermind or a helper and then—ta-da!—he was actually a good guy all along.

└ Trueㅋㅋ And he’s nice to Chief Ko

└ A man who takes care of his subordinate’s mother’s birthday? Not trash.

≫ So Saeyoung is really So Saeyoung...

She’s been acting forever, so how does the female lead role still suit her so well?

But it’s not just a typical drama female lead vibe; she acts so much like a real reporter that it’s amazing.

└ I heard that after being cast, she went to the reporter who broke her dating scandal in the past to interview them. Her professional spirit is insane.

└ Huh? Where can I see that??

└ ‘I went to find the reporter who broke my dating rumor years ago. I wanted to learn the reporter’s cycle. I told them let’s exchange our private lives fairly’ ← This is part of an excerpt! If you look at the press conference articles, it’s there!

≫ I feel like all three leads in Exclusive Report have crazy tenacity.

Finding the reporter who leaked her ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ scandal to learn ‘reporter life.’

Making a body that fits the firefighter physical exam standards because he’s playing a firefighter

Watching 100 real-life references to learn the attitude

└ Isn’t Exclusive Report a two-top lead drama? Who’s the third?

└ It’s Cheon Yoonsung.

└ Cheon Yoonsung is insane... I love that it’s not just some shallow chaebol acting where they lift their chin to look arrogant and have tacky pronunciation.

└└ Your description is very specific.

└└└ Whose acting did you hate that much lol?

└└└└ GJH

└└└└└ Ah, acknowledged.

└└└└└└ ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ accepting that instantlyㅠㅠㅠ

≫ Am I the only one shipping Yoonsung and Yiseo...?

Since their initials are YS and IS, I thought it was destiny...

I even named them the ‘Yoon Seo’ couple...

└ You’re way ahead of yourselfㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

└ You probably already looked up English kindergartens for their kids tooㅋㅋㅋ큐ㅠㅠ

Peak weekend hours. Big-name actors and a solid story. Coupled with the peak interest generated by the personal scandal of the idol cast member, the three factors combined to send Exclusive Report’s ratings soaring.

Reactions poured in. There was no need to deliberately enter communities or search. It trended in real time during broadcast hours, and before and after the show, the drama pages of entertainment news were filled entirely with talk of Exclusive Report.

Of course, as in all human affairs, it wasn’t all good news.

≫ He appears as the perfect man in the drama... but the reality of that actor that no one knew #ExclusiveReport #KimIwol

≫ Who is the actor whose parents started saying ‘threatening them was a daily occurrence’? #Unfilial #Actor #ExclusiveReport**

≫ ‘I knew it would blow up!’ The predicted fall of a rising star #ExclusiveReport #Iwol

Popular dramas were keywords that guaranteed clicks. Naturally, videos linking all my issues to Exclusive Report flooded in.

└ The person himself walking around shamelessly is one thing... but the production team not dropping him is also in on it. I knew the entertainment industry was ugly, but this is shocking.

└ They aren’t in on it and ‘shielding him’; they’re just not dealing with it because it’s a ridiculous rumor. You’ll probably be getting a summons from UA soon too~

└ Idol fans are always talking about suing or taking PDFs, but everyone knows it’s mostly just empty threats, right? If suing were that easy, no one would trash celebrities onlineㅋㅋㅋ

The flow didn’t cool down despite the agency’s notice of lawsuits. For trolls, tightrope-walking on the risk of being sued was nothing more than a sport.

『Young Master.』

『I am told the Chairman has passed away.』

“What?”

I was just thinking that the title ‘Tearful accusation against a shameless actor... did you think you could thrive after abandoning your parents?’ was a bit much when people around me were gasping. It was the highlight of Episode 4.

“Grandpa died?!”

Lee Cheonghyeon shouted.

“I thought Grandpa was the mastermind!”

His face was bright red from how immersed he was.

“What was that line Cheon Yoonsung said about being inevitably entwined with the Chairman then?!”

“Quiet down for a second.”

Kang Giyeon said, knitting his brows. When I gestured for him to smooth his brow, the wrinkles vanished instantly.

『Grandfather...』

The scene transitioned to Cheon Yoonsung walking into the funeral hall. His steady steps and calm voice drew the eyes of the mourners.

The sound of shutters firing and silent gazes followed him from the entrance. Even at the funeral, Cheon Yoonsung drew attention like a star.

Who would be the heir to Chairman Cheon?

In that place where the list of people attending the funeral for so-called ‘lining up’ became gossip one by one...

『Grandfather...』

Cheon Yoonsung knelt and cried. He, who had plastered the media with a gentle smile, now sobbed with trembling shoulders. The camera shutters, which had been so quick to abandon respect for the dead in favor of scoops, gradually died down.

‘The post-processing is amazing.’

A blue tint was layered over the ordinary funeral hall, maximizing the grief radiating from Cheon Yoonsung. The tears flowing down my blue-tinted face became even clearer due to the blue-gray shadows. My red lips contrasted with the space of the dead, making the screen look much more artistic.

“...”

Looking at the seats beside me, which had suddenly become silent, everyone was focused on the TV. Park Juu was practically clinging to my arm.

Unable to overcome his grief, Cheon Yoonsung, showing an uncharacteristically disheveled appearance, got into a car with Chief Ko’s help. Belatedly, reporters captured the rear view of the car leaving the funeral hall.

Cheon Yoonsung stared out the window, looking composed... or so it seemed.

However, Cheon Yoonsung’s gaze was fixed on the side mirror. Since no cars were following, the mirror only reflected the empty road.

Chief Ko glanced at Cheon Yoonsung through the rearview mirror and spoke.

『The one on top is a wet towel; the one on the bottom is a dry towel.』

The camera caught a black bag placed in the back seat. Inside the open bag, white towels wrapped in transparent plastic were visible.

Cheon Yoonsung, with a shadowed expression, pulled out the wet towel. He buried his face in the towel and slowly rubbed it clean.

When he removed the towel, there wasn’t a single trace of the sorrow he had shown for losing his grandfather.

『As expected of the Chief. That was my first time for an event like that.』

『You flatter me, sir.』

『Did my father say anything?』

『He asked to see you briefly before the board meeting.』

『I see.』

Having finished the conversation, Cheon Yoonsung pulled out the dry towel. Then, he covered his damp face with the towel and pressed down firmly. As Chief Ko turned on the radio, news of Chairman Cheon’s passing flowed out as a breaking report.