Descent of the Demon Master-Chapter 1396. Making A Deal (1)

[What was that? Who the hell do you think you are to block me when I’m here to meet my boyfriend?! You have a problem with that?! Ah?!]

“...!” Kang Eun-Yeong’s jaw fell all the way to the floor while watching the news broadcast on TV. “Heol?! Did Yeon-Ha unnie lose her mind or something?!”

Weird stories showing up on social media could be dealt with somehow. After all, social media was just that, social media. There was still some breathing space between mere online chatter and that chatter evolving into a news story that reached the ears of the general public.

However, what Choi Yeon-Ha did was destroy that breathing space!

“Holy cow! How will she walk that one back now?”

Kang Eun-Yeong dazedly muttered while watching the image of Choi Yeon-Ha shoving aside the wall of reporters to enter the prison. The image then changed to a panel of so-called experts in the studio who began exchanging meaningless points of view between themselves.

Of course, none of their yammering entered Kang Eun-Yeong’s hearing. They were talking the usual nonsense, anyway.

Kang Eun-Yeong turned the TV off and accessed her favorite social media app through her phone. But the comments scrolled up at such a dizzying speed in real time that she couldn’t even tell where to start reading.

Talk about an explosive reaction, though!

It made sense, considering that Choi Yeon-Ha was still one of the biggest stars currently.

Even in this country’s entertainment industry, where countless stars rose and fell all the time, only an insane few would dare deny Choi Yeon-Ha’s position as the brightest star shining from the highest place imaginable.

As such, even a simple rumor of her dating someone could cause a huge uproar. Yet here she was, confirming the status of her love life publicly! Not only that, but even admitting that her boyfriend was currently incarcerated, too!

Had there ever been an incident more impactful in scope than this one in the history of South Korea’s entertainment industry?

Only an incident on the level of a top-tier celebrity getting busted for drug-related offenses could exceed the cultural impact of what Choi Yeon-Ha had done.

It was at the point where even the netizens had begun wondering if the politicians were trying to bury an unsavory story about them with a series of bombshells.

After getting her fill of social media madness, Kang Eun-Yeong phoned Choi Yeon-Ha.

Thankfully, the call went through. Since this number was Choi Yeon-Ha’s private number known only to those in her close-knit group of acquaintances, it must’ve been spared from the journalists and their greedy onslaught.

Otherwise, the line would’ve been too busy for Kang Eun-Yeong to get through after what had happened.

Choi Yeon-Ha immediately answered the call, but her reply was...

—What?!

“...Unnie, are you okay?”

—About what?

“It’s a total madhouse out there, you know?”

—Sure, I guess so.

Choi Yeon-Ha sounded very indifferent on the phone. Was it because she didn’t care about anything anymore? But it didn’t sound as if she had given up in despair or something like that.

Kang Eun-Yeong subtly bit her lip. “Unnie, I think this is not the right approach. We gotta try to fix this somehow.”

—Fix what?

“How about going with you got too angry and blurted that out in the heat of the moment? Since what you said was too absurd, I’m sure the public will believe your excuse. You know how people believe what they want to believe rather than what they are supposed to believe, right?”

—I’m not gonna do that.

“But, unnie! What about all the things you’ve built up until now?! This thing won’t go away even if my oppa clears his name, you know! Once the public has this negative image of you...!”

—Listen, Se-Ah.

“Yes, unnie?”

—Have I said something wrong? Or did something bad?

“...No, you haven’t.”

Kang Eun-Yeong chewed her lips.

—I haven’t done anything wrong, so why lie about it? Besides, I was getting really fed up with this nonsense, okay? Now I feel so much better.

“...”

Kang Eun-Yeong sighed softly under her breath.

She knew that Choi Yeon-Ha could be a hothead, but to think she was this much of a hot-headed person! The impression given off when Kang Eun-Yeong didn’t know her personally was this haughty, unapproachable senior in the entertainment industry, but now that they were friends...

Who could have guessed that Choi Yeon-Ha was an utter moron?!

Kang Eun-Yeong would’ve never done something like this even if she was in the same situation. As proof, wasn’t she worried about unscrupulous journalists swarming around her after Kang Jin-Ho got thrown behind bars?

But here was Choi Yeon-Ha, busy revealing information that didn’t have to be public knowledge, then shouldering the storm her actions had kicked up all on her own!

—I’ll take care of my own business, so don’t worry about me. It’s nothing but a storm in a teacup, anyway.

“No, it’s worse than that, unnie!”

—I’m telling you, don’t worry about it. Mister Jin-Ho will provide for me if my career is finished after this. After everything I’ve done, he won’t even think about straying, anyway!

“He’s not the type to do that, so yeah, I guess you’ve got nothing to worry about in that department. And I’ll make sure he never even thinks about doing that.”

—That’s great to hear. What about you, though? Make sure you don’t stress out your own parents and behave yourself, okay? Your oppa will be released pretty soon, so don’t wear yourself out with worries in the meantime.

“Got it, unnie. You get some rest, too.”

—I will. Later.

The line went dead. Kang Eun-Yeong put the phone down and sighed deeply.

That was when Baek Hyeon-Jeong emerged from the bedroom. “Was that Miss Choi?”

“Ng.”

Baek Hyeon-Jeong took up an empty spot on the couch and sighed weakly. “I saw the news, too.”

“You have?”

“How can I miss it when it’s causing so much ruckus?”

“Mom, listen. Yeon-Ha unnie was...”

Baek Hyeon-Jeong faintly smiled. “I was grateful.”

“Eh?”

Kang Eun-Yeong stared at her mother with slightly wider eyes.

It wasn’t as if Baek Hyeon-Jeong had been vocally against her son dating Choi Yeon-Ha. At times, she even hinted at her approval, too.

However, Kang Eun-Yeong could see through her mother’s ruse. As a devoted daughter, it was easy enough for her to see that Baek Hyeon-Jeong didn’t hold the highest opinion of Choi Yeon-Ha.

But now, someone like that actually expressed her gratitude toward a person she didn’t exactly approve of?

“Even the people we’ve known for years would have acted like strangers in this situation, but she went out of her way to...”

Baek Hyeon-Jeong stopped talking and clamped her mouth shut. Judging from her expression, it seemed she got too emotional to continue.

Kang Eun-Yeong nodded, having understood her mother’s sentiments.

Right. I agree Yeon-Ha unnie is an amazing person.

Even individuals deeply in love would think twice before speaking up in public. That included not only the celebrities but also regular folks off the street.

“Eun-Yeong? When you speak to Miss Choi next time, invite her to our home.”

Kang Eun-Yeong nodded. “Got it, mom.”

Baek Hyeon-Jeong sighed deeply. “I hope Jin-Ho clears his name quickly. So that we can repay her somehow.”

“I’m sure that will be soon, mom,” said Kang Eun-Yeong.

However, she squeezed her eyes shut just then. Because she had a hunch that, despite her positive-sounding opinion, things wouldn’t be that easy.

***

Choi Yeon-Ha groaned. “This... is basically a prison, no?”

Han Eun-Sol tutted. “Why did you blurt that out back then?”

“Come on! Get off my case, okay!”

Han Eun-Sol could only sigh helplessly at the fuming Choi Yeon-Ha. He looked away, but irritation got the better of him, and he unhappily got up.

“Dammit, those stinking bastards!”

He could see the sunlight reflecting from a telephoto camera lens through the corner of the curtain that hadn’t been closed properly. He stomped his way toward the window and yanked the curtain close.

“Don’t they understand it’s against etiquette to crowd around someone’s home?! I thought things had gotten better lately, but one incident was enough to turn those bastards into hyena cosplayers!”

Even among the paparazzo, it was seen as unacceptable to take pictures of someone’s home from outside. Maybe because of the scale of this incident, however, the number of bastards completely disregarding that societal norm and trying to invade Choi Yeon-Ha’s privacy had suddenly shot up.

At this rate, Han Eun-Sol should start worrying about their phones getting bugged, too!

He glanced at Choi Yeon-Ha. “Noona, three advertisers canceled on us just now.”

Choi Yeon-Ha looked back at him. “Who were they?”

“They were all local. We haven’t heard from the Chinese yet, but... they might cancel, too.”

“Really? Oh, well. Can’t be helped, then.”

Han Eun-Sol’s expression crumpled. “How could you say that?”

“What! What’s wrong?! Actors can’t even date someone? Is that it? I want to be an actor, but I’ve never said anything about being single for the rest of my life, okay! It’s those people who are the weirdos for throwing a massive fuss about someone dating a guy!”

“You know that’s not the issue! No, the person you’re dating, that’s the problem!”

“What is the problem with Mister Jin-Ho, then!?”

“I... I’m not saying he’s the problem, per se, but...”

Han Eun-Sol oh-so wanted to shout, It’s not the person, but the situation that’s the problem here, you obstinate auntie!

He wisely chose to bottle that one up and roughly scratched his head instead.

“Look, noona. You didn’t have to say that out loud back then, you know? You could’ve made some random excuses and gotten out of that situation, and then gone public when the coast was clear.”

“Listen here!”

“...What is it?”

“As your senior in life, let me give you a piece of advice. Think of it as your life’s new golden rule, a motto you will abide by for the rest of your life.”

Han Eun-Sol cocked his brow. “And what are you going to tell me this time?”

“There are times when a person must not take the easy way out,” said Choi Yeon-Ha while leaning against the couch. “No, it’s the opposite. I would also have tried to be vague about it had the situation not been like this. So that people wouldn’t have said I was lying. But not this time. In times like this, one must not lie!”

“And why not?”

Choi Yeon-Ha furrowed her brow slightly. “Imagine being locked up in jail. How would you feel if you read an article about your girlfriend publicly saying she has nothing to do with you?”

“I would have been understanding of her decision.”

“Sure, you might understand. But how would you feel?”

“Well, uh... I’d feel like sh*t.”

“There you go.” Choi Yeon-Ha sighed deeply again. “Even if I go out there and complain about intrusive reporters making my life difficult, and how I’m losing my fans... Do you think my situation is worse than someone stuck in jail for a crime he didn’t commit? But now, you want me to heap even more stress on top of the mountain he’s already dealing with? Nope, I can’t do that.”

Now it was Han Eun-Sol’s turn to sigh deeply. “What if Mister Jin-Ho fails to clear his name and rots in prison for the rest of his life? What will you do, then?”

“What do you mean, what? I’ll be single till the day I die.”

Choi Yeon-Ha sagged on the couch as if she had finally given up.

“I mean, I’ve already confessed to the entire country about my boyfriend, so who’s gonna try their luck with me now?”

“I’m sure they will still queue up like crazy, noona,” said Han Eun-Sol sarcastically.

“Well, I’m still not interested!” Choi Yeon-Ha chuckled helplessly. “Yeah, even I’m having second thoughts, okay? Honestly, it feels like I shouldn’t have said anything. But I don’t want to drown myself in regret. This had to be done. Even if I go back to that moment, I’ll still do and say the same thing.”

“...Maybe you could have toned down your attitude a liiiittle bit back then, though.”

“That... Yeah, that’s my bad. Sorry.”

Choi Yeon-Ha groaned softly. Even she had to admit she got carried away back then.

It’d be a lie to say she didn’t get angry at the tsunami of reporters treating her like some kind of criminal. But her combative attitude back then wasn’t because of the reporters. No, she had gotten furious at herself for thinking about how to weasel out of that predicament. Even if that thought had lasted only for a second, it was still enough to set her off.

Her boyfriend, who rushed to her side whenever she needed help, was accused of something he didn’t do, so how dare she even think about making excuses about her relationship!?

She had never been so disgusted by herself like that in her life.

“You know, I feel so much better now. I guess our dates can become a little less stressful from now on,” said Choi Yeon-Ha.

Han Eun-Sol tutted. “A prison date, eh? How romantic.”

“You keep asking for it, don’t you!”

Choi Yeon-Ha grabbed the nearest cushion and threw it at her manager.

Han Eun-Sol caught it before groaning deeply.

“It’s because I’m frustrated, okay?” He put the cushion down on the couch and muttered powerlessly. “It’d be great if everything works out. Mister Jin-Ho goes free, and people stop talking about you as a girlfriend of a North Korean spy. Things won’t go back to how it was, but it might get pretty close. However, what if Mister Jin-Ho doesn’t prove his innocence?”

“...”

“You’ll lose your popularity, lose your roles, and must sit on your butt doing nothing. And all those talents who trusted you and signed with our agency will get impacted, too. Who knows how long Mister Jin-Ho’s gonna be in there?”

“That’s... That’s not gonna happen. I won’t let that happen, okay?”

Han Eun-Sol subtly chewed on his lips. He didn’t want to correct her on that last statement. Not this time. Obviously, Choi Yeon-Ha also knew she didn’t have the power to change anything. But it seemed too heartless to remind her about that.

Dammit, Mister Jin-Ho! Please do something!

It felt as if everyone was falling into the pits of hell here. Absolutely everyone!

Choi Yeon-Ha glanced at the clock. “Isn’t it almost the visiting hours?”

“Wha? Are you going today, too? Even though the reporters are camping outside?”

“Of course.”

“Noona, how about skipping...”

“What are you so scared of when it’s public knowledge now? Besides...” Choi Yeon-Ha chewed on her lips. “I know there isn’t much I can do other than this, okay? Mister Jin-Ho’s been helping me so much until now, so I gotta repay him somehow!”

Han Eun-Sol frowned wryly and nodded after noticing the hint of moisture near her eyes. “Got it. I’ll try to open up a path for you.”

“Thanks. And sorry, Eun-Sol.”

“Don’t say that. Apologies aren’t necessary between us, okay? You should get ready, though. Put on some makeup or something. Since things have come to this... Let’s use your looks to our advantage.”

“Really? Have you lost your mind, too?”

“Of course I have. Go get ready already.”

Han Eun-Sol watched Choi Yeon-Ha enter her bedroom, then sighed deeply.

I wish... I wish this was all a nightmare. All of this.