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≫ Who wants to talk about the latest episode of Exclusive Report with me?

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What is the deal with Cheon Yoonsung...

Calling him ‘Chairman’ every day, then for the first time calling him ‘Grandfather’ and bawling his eyes out → just acting. Up to that point, I thought, ‘Wow, I knew he was a bad guy, but he’s a real piece of work’

Just acting > The dry towel. At that part, I was like, ‘Wait......? Are you...... sad right now......? Tears...... are you wiping tears?’

└ It was actingㅋㅋㅋㅋ But I’m seriously curious. Was Yoonsung not sad at all?

└ If he didn’t have any feelings of sadness, there would be no reason for the dry towel to appear.

└ Wet handkerchief → to wipe his face dirtied from acting in front of people

Dry handkerchief → to wipe away tears shed where no one could see

That’s how I read it!

└└ Agreed.

└ On the other hand, Cheon Kanghyuk was terrifying because he didn’t seem to care about family at all... I wonder if Cheon Yoonsung will become like him later

└ I saw an analysis on MeTube saying that as you go higher up in that group, you get further away from humanity

└ The group’s name is Cheonju (Owner of the Heavens), after all. They’re getting further and further away from the ground people walk on.

≫ The male idol whose acting is being called insane today.

(Data Warning)

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It’s Kim Iwol from Exclusive Report*

Crying acting + Cold-blooded acting + Acting like he’s suppressing longing. We got a triple set of emotional acting, and all three clips hit the real-time trending videos.

The comment reactions are great, too!!

└ In My Office was amazing, but Exclusive Report is just... I can’t say anything except that he’s insane. Take away the fresh filter of a rom-com and put on a suspense filter, and it’s so scary.

└ I think this episode had the most intense emotions among his filmography, and I was shocked by how well he did. Honestly, I thought he wouldn’t be able to do anything except average acting.

└ Sparklers who wanted to make Kim Iwol cry are now apologizing profusely...... our boy cried so pitifully......

└ Drama stans really suck up to anyone as long as they have a pretty faceㅋ After seeing the articles about his verbal abuse, I lost interest in the drama just by looking at his faceㅋㅋ

└└ Reported

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‘So everyone posts like this after watching a drama?’

Yeo Hana read the posts while waiting for her group to finish getting ready. These were the first posts that came up when she searched for Exclusive Report.

She heard the drama was only up to episode 4, but it already had its own category. Hundreds of posts had already piled up in the ‘Exclusive Report’ category.

The TV in the restaurant where they went for lunch was playing a rerun. From one side came shouts of ‘The soup is ready’, and from the other, the line ‘The chairman has passed away’.

『Even if you were going to leave, you should have at least seen my face before you went...』

In the following funeral scene, Kim Iwol’s face, the one that had made her mother tear up last night, filled the monitor. A sigh escaped from the kitchen.

“Is everyone watching that? Exclusive Report!”

“Is that a new drama?”

“It’s a weekend drama, and it’s incredibly popular. Everyone’s a great actor.”

“True. That’s an actor I’ve never seen before, but he’s good.”

“Isn’t that actor that guy? The public service ad model?”

“I saw him on my way to work today, too. He’s always on the subway.”

Hana’s colleagues began to chat. Everyone knew Kim Iwol.

‘Chaehee would have been so proud if she heard this.’

Thinking of her junior, whose ultimate bias was Kim Iwol, Hana was about to add seasoning to her soup when someone spoke up.

“But he’s in the middle of a controversy.”

“What controversy?”

“There seems to be a problem with his family. His mother’s handwritten letter was released, and wow, that mom is something else.”

“Wasn’t there something else before? About him having a bad personality.”

“Weren’t those just rumors?”

The focus of the conversation shifted entirely to Kim Iwol. Her colleague had dug up article after article, concluding that the character controversy was baseless and that he was in a dispute with his family.

“People are awful. If you issue corrections like this, how’s anyone supposed to know what’s real?”

“Exactly. This culture of only being excited to talk about bad news needs to be fixed.”

“They say you won’t know unless you look it up on purpose. I guess that’s why they say you should look things up if you’re curious.”

Kim Iwol’s eventful career was mentioned in detail. She knew idols had many incidents, but the fact that it was to this extent surprised Hana.

“The way that mother is talking doesn’t add up at all. If the kid had that many problems, there’s no way his school records would be clean. Didn’t someone say his records were leaked before?”

“My point exactly. If anything had been covered up, it would’ve come out back then.”

“But also, if what he said is true, it’s heartbreaking. Imagine if this actually happened.”

Hearing about the fierce conflict between the parents and the child made her think of her own mother and father. Her family, who still called her ‘Our Hana’ even though she was thirty, who filled the fridge with things she liked to eat, and for whom going on trips with their daughter was the most important schedule in the world.

“Yeah.”

What would it feel like to have no family to lean on?

Saying it’d feel like being dropped into the open sea somehow didn’t quite cover it.

Hana thought for a moment as she ate her steaming soup.

A life where there’s no one you think of when you eat something delicious, where you come home late to a pitch-dark house because no one left the light on for you, where no one recommends you a good song so you just listen to the same old ones every day—that would be unbearably lonely.

At the end of episode 4, President Cheon naturally ascended to the position of Chairman. Cheon Yoonsung also gained a new title.

The episodes for this week ended with a preview for episode 5, which hinted that Cheonju Group might be split in two as the spark-flying battle of nerves between the two men, now holding even greater power, intensified, and Cheon Yoonsung’s hidden intentions were revealed...

“Why won’t you let us watch it live?”

“It’s not good for a teenager’s emotional state.”

...My attempt to ban them met with fierce resistance.

“It’s rated 15 and up. I know you dote on me and Kang Giyeon like we’re preschoolers, but we’re nineteen. We’re adults next year. Okay?”

“Just because it turns January 1st doesn’t mean teenagers suddenly mature mentally. Some teens can handle Exclusive Report, and some can’t.”

“Are you saying I am emotionally immature?”

Lee Cheonghyeon placed both hands on his hips and argued back point-by-point.

“Cheonghyeon, you’re already busy just working. I thought it’d be better to catch your breath and watch later, why can’t you understand that?”

“Don’t make excuses. You told Seongbin hyung and Joowoo hyung not to watch too.”

“So it’s fine if only Seongbin and Joowoo watch it and you don’t?”

“Isn’t that obvious? That’s the only way the ratings will go up!”

Somehow, I knew these guys were turning on the TV and their laptops at the same time when watching episodes 3 and 4. I was pretty sure I’d explained how ratings work before, did I need to go over it again...?

“And you won’t let Jeho hyung watch either! Since when did you worry about Jeho hyung’s physical and mental well-being?!”

Lee Cheonghyeon’s protest grew even stronger. Seeing as he even brought up Choi Jeho, the ratings were just an excuse; his real intention was likely just to stubbornly win permission to watch.

But it couldn’t be helped. Episode 5 contained the past where Cheon Yoonsung and the others were torn apart. Seeing Cheon Yoonsung bleeding after being hit with a golf club by Cheon Kanghyuk—how could they not be reminded of my childhood? I didn’t want them to see that.

“You watch the members’ fancams right in front of the person themselves! Hypocrite! Double standards!”

“Joowoo, did you teach him the word ‘double standards’? Feels like inappropriate vocabulary is being passed down generations in our dorm.”

“Joowoo hyung is innocent! Do you think I’m some greenhouse flower who only learns words like ‘double standards’ from my hyungs?”

Kang Giyeon, who appeared late, shoved an energy bar into Lee Cheonghyeon’s chirping mouth. Perhaps he was hungry because he was still growing; he chewed the energy bar vigorously while still huffing.

“Stop pretending you’re doing this because you’re worried about the ratings. You just want to see the next episode by yourself.”

Kang Giyeon hit the nail on the head with a heavy blow. Then, he stuffed a vegetable stick (which had been rolling around the practice room because it tasted terrible) into Cheonghyeon’s mouth as it was about to open again.

“Hyung, if you’re doing this because you’re embarrassed of us seeing you act, we could gather in a room by ourselves...”

“I appreciate the consideration, Seongbin, but that would be even more embarrassing.”

The five of them gathering around a single tablet to watch my drama? I’d rather do a bungee jump without a cord than see that.

“Anyway, starting this weekend, Exclusive Report is banned...”

As I tried to end the conversation, my phone vibrated. It was a call from the lawyer.

“Yes, this is Kim Iwol.”

— I’m contacting you because there’s something I need to share urgently. Do you have a moment?

The news the lawyer brought was indeed urgent.

— The defendant’s side just started a press conference. Would you like to watch this yourself, or should I watch it and we can verify the facts together later?

My solar plexus stung as if pricked by a needle. Stress-related illness, obviously. But since there was no time to leisurely soothe an aching stomach, I replied that I would watch it myself and hung up.

The rented conference room where the press conference began was cramped and dark. A hideous banner hung on the wall behind the podium.

Judging by the camera views that occasionally showed the whole room, there weren’t even any major media outlets present. On the other hand, cameras with gossip rag logos were frequently seen. 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

‘There are even MeTubers.’

The audience was diverse, from people who set up their phones on tripods ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) and started a live stream to those who had laptops running broadcast software on stands.

Shouldn’t society that showed interest in such absurd stories also be treated for that illness? Could something this low-grade really be called a press conference? I sighed inwardly.

『I would like to express my gratitude to everyone who attended today. I sincerely hope this press conference will be a noble occasion to reveal the truth...』

“Why don’t you stop watching if it gives you a headache?”

Choi Jeho suggested.

He was also undergoing the punishment of watching this hellish livestream with me because he didn’t know when his own father might appear.

“It’s not that bad.”

My head did ache when I looked at the comment section. The comments written by people watching such a live stream in the middle of the day were lacking in many things. Watching them was a considerably draining task.

However, headaches were already out of style for me. Stomachaches would be the trendsetter for the second half of the year. If you’re a true center, I wish you’d read the trends a bit faster.

The statement continued endlessly, starting with a re-reading of the handwritten letter.

『He frequently disappeared without leaving contact information, then caused incidents and sought help through others.』

『He received demerit points for deviant behavior, but he went on a rampage at school, such as pouring verbal abuse and threats on his teacher, and fabricated his school records, which are official public documents...』

“I know everything else is bullshit, but what’s this about demerit points?”

Choi Jeho asked, seemingly listening seriously.

He’d somehow connected ‘disappearing and only contacting people after causing trouble’ to when I’d contacted them for my head surgery.

I kindly explained that it was because I wore my spring-autumn uniform even after the mixed-uniform period ended because the bruises from being beaten wouldn’t go away.

“My teacher cleared the demerit points after seeing my reflection letter. It’s something I already told the lawyer in advance. I even handed over the reflection letter.”

“If they hadn’t erased them, they wouldn’t be human.”

“I told you they did erase them. Watch your mouth.”

My mother’s accusations didn’t end. I jotted notes in my memo app, thinking of evidence to respond with.

『When we visited the agency to check on our son’s safety, we were assaulted by him and forcibly removed. We request that UA release the CCTV footage.』

And finally, the issue I had been worried about surfaced.