Chapter 30

Chapter 30

Raise Three Idols Well And They’ll Launch a Confession Attack.

Episode 30: I Won’t Let You Pay A Single Cent.

Seo Soo-yeon began a long speech about tax reduction.

Even when forced to take on a task, she did her best.

Indeed, it was a soft-heartedness worthy of Cheon Aram, a proclaimed humanist.

I trusted her and started the conversation.

“Miss Gaeul, could you come over for a moment?”

Gaeul was flustered, darting her eyes around as she found herself caught in the clash between Cheon Aram and me.

Even in the midst of that, she quickly ran over when I called her.

I asked Gaeul.

“Miss Gaeul, you want money so that your brother can grow up receiving the art education he wants, right?”

“…Yes, that’s right.”

“Then, it doesn’t have to be cash, does it?”

“Cash?”

Gaeul tilted her head and asked.

“I said cash, but I didn’t mean just cash. The point is that we don’t need to put the money directly into the account.”

I took out a tablet and showed the prepared materials to Cheon Aram and Gaeul.

“There are various welfare and scholarship programs applicable to Gaeul’s brother. Let me tell you about the ones that can be definitively applied without competition. Special scholarship programs of the art high school, national base schools, happy classes for young artists, and…”

These would also provide considerable help.

But the main one was different.

“SS’s subsidiary welfare foundation SEED’s cultural and artistic support system.”

Sixty percent of the amount I was thinking of would come from this.

“If the following welfare foundations and support systems are combined, we can significantly reduce the amount Gaeul needs.”

I showed a chart that systematically organized the detailed costs and possible reductions and supports for studying art, including food, tuition, academy fees, material costs, living expenses, application fees, exams, and hiring models.

At the end of the chart, it indicated that nearly 46 percent of the 100 million won Gaeul requested could be saved.

“…The information doesn’t seem false. It looks quite feasible.”

Cheon Aram said as she grabbed the tablet and checked the contents herself.

“Team Leader Seon. It’s all good, but why do you think we can get support from SS’s SEED foundation?”

She spoke as if genuinely curious.

“SEED’s welfare system primarily benefits related employees. No matter how pitiful Gaeul’s brother’s situation is, they won’t support him… Don’t think it’s heartless. We’re TwoBear Entertainment, not SS. It’s only natural.”

And Cheon Aram added, as if drawing a clear line.

“Oh, if you think I might have a connection because I’m from SS, let me tell you in advance that it’s an excessive expectation.”

I felt rather puzzled by her words.

“President Cheon, you’re not just anyone from SS, are you?”

“Being Cheon Seonsu’s daughter? Well, it’s a big deal, but that doesn’t mean I can control the foundation at will.”

She spoke as if it were only natural.

“SS is the domain ruled by Cheon Seonsu, my father. It’s also the land where my grandfather is the owner. I’m still far from that.”

It was then that I understood Cheon Aram’s intention.

Aha, she doesn’t want to say it.

It seemed a bit funny to hide it from someone who already knew.

I couldn’t hide my feelings and chuckled as I spoke.

“SS belongs to Cheon Seonsu, but the SEED foundation is not his anymore.”

“Oh? Then, whose is it?”

Cheon Aram asked back, as if she had heard something absurd. It was quite an act.

I shattered that mask head-on.

“President Cheon, you’re the heir to the SEED foundation, aren’t you?”

“….”

President, I know everything, so let’s stop.

“…Why do you think that?”

What do you mean, why? The death of Cheon Seonsu was so widely reported before my regression, so of course I knew.

Of course, I didn’t plan to tell the unbelievable truth.

“I know that inheritance isn’t something hidden in a will and revealed suddenly overnight.”

I spoke as if stating the obvious.

“That’s why I analyzed the movements and saw that President Cheon Aram, the heir to the SEED foundation, has enough of her people there.”

Cheon Aram spoke as if it were absurd.

“How do you know who among SS’s numerous employees are my people?”

“It’s difficult to identify President Cheon’s secret agents, but recognizing Cheon Jonghoon, the second, Cheon Sechan, and Cheon Seonsu’s people isn’t that hard. The rest is just elimination.”

“Team Leader Seon… You say it so easily. It’s not like people walk around with name tags saying Cheon Jonghoon or Cheon Seonsu. How can an outsider distinguish all these people? This isn’t something that can be brushed off with the word ‘deduction.’”

“It worked.”

What does it matter if it makes sense or not?

I already knew the answer.

“For these reasons, I believe President Cheon can place Gaeul’s brother in the foundation.”

“…”

Cheon Aram mumbled softly as she looked at me, confident.

“Ha… I can see why Jonghoon oppa was jealous.”

Her voice was drowned out by Seo Soo-yeon’s diversion.

I dared to ask her to repeat what she said.

“Excuse me, but could you say that again…?”

Cheon Aram easily ignored my request and said.

“Alright. I admit that what you said is possible. But did you get Gaeul’s consent?”

Cheon Aram and I turned our gazes to Yoo Gaeul.

“Let’s be honest. This is a lower quality compensation than originally promised, right?”

Gaeul was restless, as if she couldn’t follow the situation.

She seemed to be in deep thought.

I took a deep breath, then slightly lowered my head to meet Gaeul’s eyes and said.

“Even if you use the welfare foundation, your brother won’t receive low-quality education or use cheap tools.”

Places that provide mediocre supplies had already been excluded.

Gaeul would not be dissatisfied with the ‘quality.’

“But if your brother is ever treated poorly, I’ll personally make sure to elevate his situation.”

Gaeul’s mouth opened and closed.

Her muttering, which couldn’t form words, floated in the air several times.

But one small word came through clearly.

“…Why?”

I tilted my head and asked.

“Why?”

Gaeul looked at me with trembling eyes and asked.

“Why are you going so far?”

The answer was obvious.

“Because I want to be with you, Miss Gaeul.”

I want to enjoy the benefits of your S-grade talent and also get rewarded.

I want you to grab success by the throat as a vocalist and serve it to me on a platter.

“Will you please allow it?”

Yoo Gaeul nodded with a dazed look, as if she were possessed by a ghost.

“…I’m not much, but please take care of me.”

Her response was a bit strange, but it seemed I had her consent anyway.

Cheon Aram, looking at Gaeul and me with a meaningful gaze, asked me.

“Is this all the cards Team Leader Seon has prepared?”

“I still have one card left, but I don’t want to use it. It’s my trump card.”

“…Good, then let’s see it.”

Damn it. I should have said I didn’t have one.

She took the mic from Seo Soo-yeon, who was putting on a spectacle with practical knowledge about tax reduction, and said.

“Team Leader Seon of our TwoBear Entertainment has significantly reduced the 100 million won contract fee by about 50 percent.”

The people cheered. They probably thought Gaeul would now be accepted as a trainee.

But Cheon Aram betrayed those expectations.

“It’s definitely impressive. But my opinion hasn’t changed. I still think that money is an overinvestment.”

People booed at the tiresome development. I silently cheered them on.

Those who cursed our President with an absurd number of demands were my true allies.

“Team Leader Seon, how do you plan to persuade me?”

…Can’t I just quit without persuading her? I think I’ve done enough.

Honestly, I felt a harsh sentiment that she should let it go by now.

However, if she wanted this messy drama to become even more dramatic, I would have to play along as she wished.

That was what I, who had brazenly used the President despite knowing she disliked crowded places, had to do.

I took the mic from Cheon Aram and said.

“I have saved up about 40 million won.”

The screen I turned on showed a clear figure of slightly over 42 million won.

It was money accumulated from my military salary, years of part-time wages, and the money my grandfather gave me.

“I will invest all this money.”

It was different from the promise I made in front of Cheon Aram to bet a year’s salary.

A promise made by putting in cash carried a completely different weight than an empty promise that could collapse at any time.

At that time, didn’t she say that having debt would change the relationship? Then I’d push it in with cash.

Of course, this money alone was still a few hundred short of what Yoo Gaeul asked for.

That’s the point. The missing few hundred would have to be invested by Cheon Aram.

The quest required Cheon Aram to pay the money instead of me. Not ‘all’ of it, but rather.

Therefore, the quest would also be accomplished simultaneously.

With this one busking, I caught not just two, but three rabbits.

“…I didn’t expect this.”

But Cheon Aram’s reaction was somehow strange.

Seeing the figure on the smartphone and sighing deeply, Cheon Aram asked as if she couldn’t understand.

“It’s not my place to say, but I have to ask… Team Leader Seon. Why are you going so far?”

It was the same question Yoo Gaeul asked.

Probably, Cheon Aram and Yoo Gaeul thought I was suffering a great loss.

But investing about 40 million won was never a loss.

If it were a listed company, I would have bought subsidiary stocks with my salary.

This was money I originally intended to invest in TwoBear, just under a different name.

But if I conveyed my honest feelings, our humanist president wouldn’t like it much. So I spoke as if it were only natural.

“That’s because Miss Gaeul will undoubtedly become the best singer.”

Cheon Aram smiled like a snake that found a toy and said.

“Still, it’s about 8 million short.”

Ah, how dirty and petty.

“Please overlook that amount… It’s your company after all.”

Cheon Aram burst into laughter at my whining. Then, after catching her breath, she said.

“Alright. It’s Team Leader Seon’s victory.”

Cheon Aram’s face, announcing her defeat, was smiling more purely than ever.

“Miss Yoo Gaeul, right?”

Cheon Aram extended her hand to Yoo Gaeul as if to shake hands and said.

“I’d like to make a contract under the conditions we just discussed. Is that okay?”

Yoo Gaeul hesitated, glancing at me.

Why was she looking at me?

I found it hard to understand, but Cheon Aram chuckled as if she knew what it meant and said.

“Of course, the money will all come from TwoBear, so don’t worry. I don’t intend to empty Team Leader Seon’s pockets.”

“….”

“Even the additional costs if the foundation’s welfare isn’t satisfactory. Anyway, I won’t let Team Leader Seon pay a single cent, so rest assured.”

Only then did Yoo Gaeul nod and shake her hand.

Seeing Gaeul already worrying about my pocket, I couldn’t find the words to say.