Assistant Manager Kim Hates Idols
SS Chapter 28: Ah, I Shall Repay the Leader's Grace
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TL: FoodieMonster007
Jeong Seongbin’s horrified expression made for excellent variety show entertainment. I wasn't sure if it was good for his idol image, but he was already ruined by all sorts of memes. What difference would one more make? He should have listened when I told him to protect his face. Did he think everything was fine just because his voice was back to normal?
Jeong Seongbin probably thought he could escape the hell of luxurious treatment once he entered the meeting room. That must be why he tried to get to work even a little earlier.
However, above a running man, there is a flying man. It was useless no matter what strange things Jeong Seongbin tried. A guy with an upright nature couldn't break through his limits.
But I could. I had thrown away my dignity long ago. As the world’s reckless Fortune-Telling Octopus, I had no image left to lose, no matter what I did.
So, I prepared an ultra-luxurious meeting room for our young and capable lord. We changed UtopiA's small, characterless conference room beyond recognition.
A stately vase and objets d'art sat on the gleaming gold table, giving it a classic beauty. The chairs were covered in burgundy velvet for a touch of luxury. Since old masterpieces always featured luscious fruits, I also placed a basket filled with grapes and cherries.
"Welcome, my lord."
Kang Kiyeon, who waited inside the meeting room, greeted Jeong Seongbin with a business smile. Beside him, Choi Jeho filled the attendees' glasses with water, his movements clean and efficient.
Flawless.
The day before the shoot, we snuck in and out of the meeting room behind Jeong Seongbin's back, transforming the bland room. It wasn't easy. We had to pay close attention to the details, since clumsy decorations can easily look tacky.
So we made up for the lack of time with overtime. The dance line perfectly executed the interior design project I requested. It was worth making the romance-fantasy expert and the muscle come to work at the crack of dawn.
The practice from our T-shirt crafting also helped. Lee Cheonghyeon, now a glue gun master, attached plenty of gold tassels to the tablecloth’s edge, further increasing the level of completion.
Of course, we filmed all the preparation scenes separately without Jeong Seongbin's knowledge. We even showed our meticulousness by handling the entire process ourselves, all to entertain the fans. It was scheduled for upload as a behind-the-scenes video after our self-produced content teasing Jeong Seongbin was released.
"……"
Jeong Seongbin couldn't say a word, just opening and closing his mouth like a fish. We had taken thorough measures to make everything easy to restore, but that part didn't seem very important to him.
"Please sit, my lord."
At the archaic formal speech, the staff members bit their lips to hold back laughter. Jeong Seongbin's face turned bright red. To play the role of a competent secretary, I smoothly and silently pulled out the chair for the lord. A brilliant light shone from the musical-prop emperor's throne we had rented.
Jeong Seongbin sent a look that asked, Is this really okay?
Of course it was. We had asked for everyone's understanding and received their consent to appear after showing all the meeting participants the mock-ups for the mosaic blurring. Choi Jeho's personal drawings of young ladies and gentlemen were scheduled to be placed over the staff members' faces. Since they were cooperating to make our content successful, we gave each of them two restaurant vouchers for two as a small token of our gratitude.
"Well then, we'll be on our way…"
The lord's servants exited at an appropriate time, since the staff had work to do, and so, Jeong Seongbin was left alone to check his solo album's progress while sitting on a giant golden throne.
While we cut the filming to protect confidential information, we checked each other's outfits in the practice room.
I showered praise on Kang Kiyeon's hairstyle, which was slicked back neatly without a single stray hair.
"Isn't Jeong Seongbin going to cry?"
Choi Jeho asked as he undid his top button. I could feel his genuine concern, which was surprising.
"Is Seongbin the type of kid to cry over something like this?"
"I'd cry if this happened to me."
"Really? Next time, Kiyeon, I'll make you a count."
"Yes. Let's see where this goes, until one of us becomes the villainess."
Kang Kiyeon fiercely spat his venom. I wondered which one of them, Choi Jeho, Park Joowoo, or Lee Cheonghyeon, would be the villainess. Whoever it was, it wouldn't be ordinary.
If I were to answer Choi Jeho's question of why I was being so serious, I would say there were circumstances. If it were just a normal skit, I wouldn't have gone this far either. I'm not some endorphin-crazed person, so what reason would I have to go looking for trouble?
It's because we have to do the absolute most we can to support our team member.
A solo activity's success doesn't simply equal one-nth of the group's success. It usually falls short of that. This means it's harder to mobilize as many fans as a full group.
There was another reason. The marketing budget an individual can use is much smaller compared to the group. This wasn't because the company was neglecting him, but a problem that arose from sharing limited resources.
And yet, the hardship was still hardship. With Jeong Seongbin at the forefront, everyone worked day and night to produce the best possible work. As long as the song was good and the singer was prepared, the probability of a bad result was very low. In that case, shouldn't we do whatever it takes to promote this well-prepared feast?
Light fans don't look up detailed schedules. However, they do keep up with easily accessible, regularly uploaded self-produced content or famous videos. This means that plastering 'Seongbin's solo is coming out!' all over a video is the best way to let them know. It also makes it easier for fans to create short-form content with titles like 'The people of spArk attending to the lord making his solo debut'.
Besides, it's perfect for stopping him from having any stray thoughts.
This was based on experience. Once you get treated like a young master, you can't keep a grip on your sanity until you leave that world. When bizarre things keep happening right in front of you, your focus blurs no matter how hard you try.
Recently, Jeong Seongbin was about to cross the line from working hard to overworking. If it were group work, we could have divided the workload, but there were many things Jeong Seongbin had to review and handle on his own.
However, it was also difficult to put the brakes on him. This album was a project released under Jeong Seongbin's name, and he alone would receive the evaluation. It wouldn't resonate with the person being tested if someone who wasn't in the same position casually said, 'Take it easy! It's not like you'll fail!'
This is why I had no choice but to force him to rest.
While I had been cracking the whip, telling all the members to work diligently, I didn't want to force them to work until their bodies broke. You have to be physically healthy to finish the race without collapsing midway, right?
So I cut off any room for him to get involved in spArk's every move and made him focus only on his own work.
Food? We set the table for him in advance so he wouldn't have to bother deciding on a menu.
Checking on the members? No need. Everyone but you has already been assigned their role.
Reviewing the daily schedule? Everyone knows it but you. Feel the terror of not knowing what kind of lullaby will play tonight.
Like this, I blocked off all the minor areas Jeong Seongbin had been paying attention to. The only thing the lord could do was trudge into the meeting room, and then go to the dorm according to his secretary's guidance after the meeting ended.
On the way back, I played the natural sound of violently swaying grass and trees for his peace of mind, instead of the sound of wood rolling over gravel. I also played a reference video for our bored monarch. At the sight of me and Park Joowoo recording wind sounds at the Han River in the middle of the night, Jeong Seongbin couldn't take his tormented eyes off the small screen.
Attending to the lord continued after sunset and deep into the night. While Choi Jeho and Park Joowoo massaged Jeong Seongbin's well-maintained legs side-by-side, Lee Cheonghyeon manually played classical music with mind-stabilizing effects and acted as a docent. I thought it was a 'frequency that makes you rich', but I heard it was a song actually used in research. Kang Kiyeon went outside the castle walls with the lord's permission to collect taxes, which meant running his fixed schedule.
I busily moved around the dorm, fetching necessary supplies. If the lord's back looked cold, I brought him a blanket. If his arm looked sore, I propped it up with a cushion. I also brewed and offered warm tea to the master who had recently suffered from a bad throat. I even showed mercy to the employees challenging themselves with a third job as masseurs and brewed them each a cup.
Jeong Seongbin was extremely flustered. Of course, I didn't let him off the hook. This was also part of my revenge.
Outrageously, after I ran away from home, Jeong Seongbin had openly declared his distrust in my loyalty. So, I attended to him without rest, determined to see if he could still confidently say, "I've decided not to trust you, hyung!" in front of such an overtly devoted subordinate.
As expected, Jeong Seongbin was restless and kept looking at the clock. The tea looked plain, so I floated an edible flower in it. "Oh my, to think I served only tea to the lord. What an amateurish mistake…" The guy was startled, but then he hurriedly drank the lemongrass tea. He had accepted the grand rule.
"How was your day, my lord?"
While the hardworking massage therapists drank their tea, I asked Jeong Seongbin as I massaged his shoulders with great care.
"My fatigue is melting away."
"This secretary is not fooled by such lies."
"I really am tired…"
Park Joowoo chuckled. Jeong Seongbin glared at his friend resentfully. He was a guy who rarely looked at others with such an expression, especially not his good friend. The steam rising from the teacup vaguely obscured Park Joowoo's face, leaving only his crescent-moon-shaped eyes visible. Even from my perspective, that looked more annoying.
"I'm tired… It's time for bed, so I should go lie down."
"It's 10 o'clock, my lord?"
"10 o'clock is more than late enough for bed!"
Jeong Seongbin confidently posted false information. Because half the members were nocturnal, the spArk dorm was famous for being as bright as a lighthouse even at 10 PM. I heard Choi Jeho mutter quietly, "Who's gonna fall for that."
That 100% got picked up by the audio.
Regardless of whether the territory's people were bewildered, the new lord, Jeong Seongbin, declared he had to sleep and confidently entered his room.
And yet, like the celebrity he was, he didn't close the door. The kid's admirable. I won't torment him even after he steps down from his position as lord.