I Became a Raid Boss-Chapter 236: A glass of comma (1)

Once, there was a travel entertainment boom in South Korea.

Escaping the monotonous and repetitive daily life, people were greeted with new landscapes, and the events unfolding in unfamiliar cultures were captured by the cameras just as they were, in a kind of entertainment.

Although it’s lost much of its popularity for various reasons now, the aftereffects have not completely disappeared.

One of the programs that fell into that category was A Cup of Pause, which Da-eun appeared on.

The calm sentiment conveyed by its name flowed seamlessly into the program itself, and until it aired, the program was expected to be rather boring. However, when the first episode of A Cup of Pause aired, the audience’s reactions were all positive.

Those reactions, which seemed to tell the truth without any exaggeration, caused the viewership to steadily increase, and by the last episode, it had achieved viewership numbers comparable to large corporations.

In truth, A Cup of Pause wasn’t a high-budget show.

It was a variety show with an outdated concept, a director without any major hit shows under his belt, and an MC who had a name but wasn’t a celebrity.

There was nothing about the show that could be looked upon favorably by the higher-ups, so there was no reason to expect a large budget allocation.

Yet, despite this, the show surpassed the break-even point by a significant margin, so it was no surprise that the PD let out a joyful scream.

Before the last episode even aired, the PD had received approval to start planning for the next season and immediately signed a contract with Da-eun for her to appear.

“Is there really a need to use the same person? I heard the leader of some idol group is really popular lately. Hmm!”

“Haha...”

The higher-ups weren’t pleased by that.

They understood the popularity, but they felt that using a popular celebrity would boost viewership even more.

However, the PD didn’t agree with that.

“Each program has its ideal MC.”

For the program he had planned, A Cup of Pause, Da-eun’s lively yet calm persona suited it much more than any ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) flashy idol.

The success of the show was largely because of that.

So, the PD firmly rejected the higher-ups’ suggestion to hire a secondary MC, stating that making drastic changes would likely alienate viewers who enjoyed the original format.

The ideal direction was to keep the original format intact but make slight changes to keep viewers from getting bored.

“...That was the plan.”

Why had it all turned out like this?

The PD swallowed a headache pill with water.

When the strange phenomenon occurred in the skies above Seoul, he had no particular thoughts about it.

“Those smart people will figure it out.”

After all, how many mysterious phenomena on Earth could he understand?

In the past, lightning was considered the wrath of God, but the principles of it had been clarified long ago.

Now, people talk about manipulation and signs of doom, but in the future, they might just consider it a normal phenomenon.

That was what he thought, but the situation seemed oddly suspicious.

The rumor was spreading that a young girl had slayed monsters, and it was even claimed she was an NPC from the game.

Then, Da-eun, the MC of the show he had created, appeared on her broadcast and acknowledged that the rumors were true.

And now, even Demonins had confirmed that what she said was indeed the truth.

As a result, Da-eun’s value, living with Kana, skyrocketed, and even the PD who had recruited her was receiving endless calls.

The situation might have been understandable up to that point.

“I'm really sorry, but... I don’t think I can do the recording starting next week.”

When he received that message from Da-eun, the PD couldn’t help but sigh.

Finding replacement staff wasn’t that hard.

But whether the program would be enjoyable with a replacement was...

“That’s not gonna happen.”

There’s a reason there’s such a thing as proper casting.

Even though he understood why Da-eun said that, he still couldn’t bring himself to say yes right away.

“...You still have time, so think it over a little more.”

While it was true that there was still time before the first recording, it was already tight to find and contract a replacement MC.

Especially since it wasn’t just about any random person, but finding someone suitable for the role.

So, his suggestion was essentially just hoping for Da-eun to retract her decision.

“If my friend saw this, he’d probably laugh at me for being a PD and letting myself be swayed by a guest.”

The PD, who had been nervously shaking his legs, suddenly chuckled to himself.

“No, if it were this time, even my friend would have probably acted like me.”

After all, Da-eun was at the center of all the buzz.

If someone like her were hosting the program, viewership would practically be guaranteed, so they would want to bring her in no matter what.

“Ha...”

Lost in trivial thoughts, he sighed as a brief escape from reality.

“Why is making a living so hard?”

Would smoking calm his restless mind?

As he debated whether to smoke a cigarette, something unexpected happened.

Bang!

“PD-nim!”

The writer who worked with him burst into the room.

“You’ve got a call!”

It was the news he had been hoping for so much.

“...A Cup of Pause?”

The PD mumbled the name Da-eun had mentioned.

Quite a romantic title, indeed.

Th𝗲 most uptodate novels are published on ƒгeewёbnovel.com.

“Yeah. It’s a program traveling across Korea.”

“Just by hearing the name, I’m not sure what it’s about. I get the vibe, but what’s the feel of it?”

“Hahaha! Just as I thought!”

Da-eun laughed cheerfully.

“If it’s a travel show, why not travel by yourself? Isn’t that how it’s always done?”

“Normally, yeah. But this show’s a little different.”

“Different how?”

“Seeing is believing. You’ll understand once you see the people on it.”

Da-eun played the video herself and handed it to me.

I’m not really into slow-paced stuff, but...

If it’s Da-eun in it, then fine.

“But didn’t you say last time that you were embarrassed to watch old videos?”

“This one’s recent, so it’s fine! And didn’t you say I shouldn’t feel embarrassed?”

Since she said that, I didn’t feel the need to refuse.

In fact, I hadn’t even considered refusing.

I ate the popcorn Da-eun handed me while watching the video.

Just as I expected from the title, the video moved slowly throughout.

Considering Da-eun’s occasional ramblings, though...

The first destination was a rural house in a village with not many people.

Da-eun spent the day helping an elderly woman who seemed to have just entered her senior years, chatting and working around the house.

The next stop was the house of a man who had retired and moved to the countryside for a leisurely life.

Like the first, Da-eun spent the day helping him with small tasks and chatting.

Next, Da-eun went to a house in the middle of a deserted mountain.

The man there had distanced himself from society and slowly started opening up as time went on, which was quite impressive.

And so on, each destination had some differences, but the atmosphere remained similar.

Having watched the entire video for quite a while, I turned off the screen and nodded.

“I see why Da-eun said that.”

“Right?”

The reason the program was called A Cup of Pause was because it was about finding people who paused in their busy lives to take a break.

If it had been filmed in Da-eun’s usual style, this wouldn’t have been easy to shoot.

Both the safety and the difficulty in recruiting guests were not easy.

“So, how was it? Did you enjoy it?”

“Well, it wasn’t bad.”

“Ohh. The way Kana’s saying that, it must have been pretty fun.”

“Why does it always end up like that?”

“Well, Kana’s usually too shy to admit it when he enjoys something.”

“...”

“Some would call it tsundere.”

As she said that, Da-eun subtly tried to pat my head, but I shook it off.

Anyway...

The program really brought out Da-eun’s character well.

Her playful nature mixed with the seriousness she displayed when needed, and her ability to quickly bond with strangers.

Without those two things, the guests probably wouldn’t have opened up as easily.

I thought about the elderly woman who had appeared in the first video.

At first, she had been cold, but by the end, she was holding Da-eun’s hand, asking if she was leaving already.

The sadness that could be felt through the screen wasn’t just felt by me; it was constantly mentioned in the comments too.

“Very Da-eun-like program.”

“Oh, that rhyme was nice! Da-eun, down... Kana, are you the strongest at rhymes?!”

“...Sigh.”

If only she toned it down a bit...

Not wanting to bother, I let Da-eun stay close.

“So, next week’s recording starts, right?”

“Yeah. This time, we’re going to be shooting continuously, so I might be away from home for a while.”

“...Away from home?”

That unexpected statement left me dumbfounded, as if I’d been hit with a hammer.

“...Oh, right.”

It dawned on Da-eun too, and she looked confused.

“A Cup of Pause” was about staying in other people’s homes, and since they were visiting six places...

“12 days...”

At least 12 days, and with travel time, it could even take longer.

“...”

The realization hit me hard.

That meant Da-eun wouldn’t be coming back for at least 12 days.

I’d be left alone at home.

...Alone, here?

“...Should I retract my decision?”

Da-eun looked at me cautiously, asking.

“Do you think that’s possible...”

I sighed and answered.