Oska stormed inside the office of Mr. Kim, the CEO of Daebak Entertainment.
On his way there, the employees had already heard the news.
“Is it really true?”
“Waah, this is insane. How could Dreamy Entertainment beat Daebak?”
“The production is going to have a hard time.”
“Oska is going to have a tantrum.”
“He’s already having one.”
As soon as the elevator doors opened to the highest floor, Oska wasted no time in entering Mr. Kim’s office. However, Assistant Byun stopped him before he could do so.
“Sir Oska,” he said.
“Move,” Oska said, not even looking at him.
Assistant Byun didn’t move. “Mr. Kim is on an important call. Whatever it is that you have to say to him, just tell it to me, and I will relay it.”
Oska’s annoyance went through the roof. He wasn’t being taken seriously!
“You told me that Mr. Kim talked to Daeshim PD. Was that a lie, huh?” he asked loudly.
Assistant Byun kept his cool. “No, it wasn’t. He really did talk to him. It seems that they chose Zeno Han to become Prince Hajin despite the conversation.”
That made Oska snap. He raised his fist and was about to punch Assistant Byun in the face. The stoic guy seemed to be used to such tantrums. He didn’t even close his eyes as he braced for the impact.
However, just before he could land a punch, the doors to Mr. Kim’s office opened, and he pulled Assistant Byun away from Oska.
“What is this?” he asked with furrowed brows. “I had to cut my call short because of your loud voice.”
Oska turned to Mr. Kim right away and was about to hold onto his collar. However, again, Assistant Byun stepped in front of him.
Oska scoffed as he looked at the two of them. “Are you two lovers or something?” he asked.
The two didn’t answer, with Mr. Kim merely smiling. “What do you want, my dear cousin?”
Oska brought out his phone and showed the news article regarding the cast of ‘The Forsaken Prince.’
“What is this?” Oska exclaimed. “How can I be Prince Seon and not Hajin Yi?”
Mr. Kim narrowed his eyes on his phone. Then, his eyebrows raised in surprise.
“Zeno Han… as Hajin Yi?” he muttered. “Where have I heard that name again?”
Assistant Byun cleared his throat. “He was one of our prospects last month, sir.”
“Oh,” Mr. Kim chimed. “I rejected the idea of bringing him in, right?”
Assistant Byun nodded.
“Hmm,” he hummed.
Oska was still annoyed. “Did you lie to me?” he exclaimed. “You didn’t really talk to Daeshim PD, did you? You think you’re too high now that you own this company, huh?”
Mr. Kim merely chuckled. “Oh, but I did. I talked to him—in person, even. We met at the awards show. I knew about the production since then, and I put in a good word for you.”
Oska was confused. “So, what is this?”
Mr. Kim grabbed his phone and inspected the article. It seemed it wasn’t the only one, but the SK channel still hadn’t released an official statement.
“Well, maybe he beat you in the acting department,” he muttered. “You only became good after a million’s worth of lessons.”
Oska clenched his fists by his side.
“But alright,” he said, giving the phone back to Oska. “I think there might be some kind of mistake.”
Oska finally sighed in relief. “So, I can become the main character, right?”
“Hmm,” Mr. Kim hummed. “But, of course, it wouldn’t come without a price.”
Oska froze while Assistant Byun snapped his gaze toward Mr. Kim.
“You already know what I want.”
***
“There’s no mistake,” Daeshim PD said to the CEO of the SK Entertainment Channel.
“Hmm,” the CEO hummed, tapping his pen against the table.
“So, you decided to leak the cast list before we even confirmed it?”
Daeshim PD pursed his lips. He thought it was a good idea to give the public a heads-up about the casting, at least, that would give him some leverage.
If it was already released, then the higher ups would feel an obligation to follow through with it, right?
“Do you know what this means?” the CEO asked.
Daeshim nodded, aware of his actions.
“The Forsaken Prince is probably our biggest project of the year,” he continued. “I even moved it to a prime time slot when I saw how successful the novel was and how the hype around it had drastically increased as soon as a drama adaptation was hinted.”
“Zeno Han is an unknown, new actor.”
“He’s nearly at a million followers,” Daeshim interrupted.
“And that’s not nearly enough for a role as big as Hajin Yi,” the CEO smiled. “I know you already know why I am against this, Daeshim.”
Daeshim pursed his lips.
“As someone who’s also in the same field, you must know that we have to take other things into consideration.”
Daeshim nodded silently.
“Tell me, then. Why is it that you chose this young man to become the main character?”
Daeshim thought about it for a while. It seemed ridiculous to him, too.
He had no intention of casting him as Hajin during the first audition. In fact, he was determined to make him into Prince Yiku. However, after the second audition and their conversation in the restroom, his perspective changed.
If he had chosen Oska Baek, the popular A-list actor who was in the Regency Class—it would have been a safe choice.
Daeshim liked taking the safe route. It was stable and predictable.
Yet, for some reason, Zeno Han made him want to take the risk.
So, with that, he finally answered.
“There’s no other reason for it than that he is perfect for the role.”
***
Zeno was in Dreamy Entertainment’s small office when he was suddenly bombarded with notifications from his system.
[+2 Public Perception. Hot topic.]
[+2 Job and Income. The new mainstream project secured.]
[Fame Meter: 15%]
Just then, Bobby stood from his seat and looked at everyone in the room with wide eyes.
“You got it,” he merely said.
They all snapped their gazes toward him.
“Huh?” Jace asked.
“Zeno has a role in ‘The Forsaken Prince!'”
As soon as he said those words, the room turned into a frenzy.
“What?” Moby exclaimed.
Jace, too, stood from the couch, momentarily forgetting about his game. “The one airing on SK Channel?”
Bobby nodded enthusiastically. “I can’t believe it,” he muttered.
Then, he looked Zeno in the eyes.
“You’re Hajin Yi!”
Zeno paused for a moment as they began to celebrate. Moby, Bobby, and Jace had formed a circle and started jumping around the room.
Meanwhile, Zeno, of course, was delighted with the announcement. However, he still felt an unease. He knew he would triumph above his competitors with his acting, especially from what he saw in the second audition.
But, he had a feeling it wouldn’t be as easy as this.
… why was it that his penalty quest of obtaining the main role still not accomplished?
It could only mean one thing.
Nothing was final yet.