Kang Woojin's Alter Ego
Seo Guseop's eyes were so bloodshot that the veins looked ready to burst at any moment. His face was twisted and creased as if it had been wrung out, the deep lines making him look like a bulldog.
And the color of it?
It was as if all the blood in his body had rushed straight to his face, leaving it burning red. Slumped on the sofa and flailing his arms and legs, Seo Guseop had long since lost his reason. At this point, there was nothing left in him but instinct and rage.
"Damn it!! What the hell is this?!"
The logical way he usually thought had completely fallen apart. Why had something this horrific happened? Who did it? When? Why? Gritting his teeth, he stared at the article on the tablet screen as if trying to bore a hole through it.
But the article did not disappear.
『[Exclusive] "I was called to a karaoke room at dawn"… The story of an actress who spoke out about GGO Entertainment's Seo Guseop, "It wasn't just me" – Part 1 of 5』 / Power Patch
Power Patch was famous for its exclusives. Whenever something major broke in the entertainment industry, it was always counted among the top three outlets. Which meant the connection between Power Patch and CEO Seo Guseop should have been obvious.
'Have these bastards lost their minds? No matter how filthy the press can be, how do they pull something like this without even a warning beforehand?'
In the entertainment industry, the relationship between media outlets and agencies was nothing more than a performance. A mask built on mutual interests. They smiled together in public, but behind the scenes, each was always ready to stab the other in the back.
Even so, this was completely unexpected.
Right then—
After finally forcing down his anger, Seo Guseop let out a heated breath and spoke to the executives in a cold voice.
"Are you idiots just going to stand there?"
The two executives standing beside him, who had been staring blankly at the tablet screen, flinched in surprise. Seo Guseop, usually cold and sharp like a bulldog, had lowered his voice and given an order.
"Call those fucking Power Patch bastards."
The two men hurriedly pulled out their phones.
"We're sorry, sir! We'll handle it right away!"
"Yes, yes, of course!"
They started dialing in a rush. Interestingly enough, while the two executives held their phones to their ears and pretended to make calls, Seo Guseop watched them.
Then—
They quietly slipped out of the CEO's office.
It looked as if they were stepping outside to talk more comfortably, but that was not what it was. It was escape. Who would be stupid enough to stand still in front of an erupting volcano? Loyalty to a master only lasted as long as that master still held power.
The moment they stepped out of the office, the two executives looked at each other and immediately started whispering.
"Doesn't this feel like we've been cornered?"
"What else would it be? That's why he should've shown some restraint."
"So what do we do now?"
"What can we do? We find a way to survive."
The two of them understood each other perfectly. It was betrayal.
They turned their backs in an instant. Instead of making the calls they were supposed to, they hurried away from the area.
Meanwhile, back in the CEO's office, Seo Guseop sat alone.
"..."
With bloodshot eyes, he kept reading the article Power Patch had released. It was only the first installment in a five-part series. In other words, there were still four more articles left to come.
The contents were every bit as provocative as the headline suggested.
-[Power Patch = Reporters Gu Taeyoon, Kim Jingi, Hwang Soyeon]
Before the interview began, actress A, who had gathered the courage to speak out, let out a long sigh. But in the end, she opened her mouth and began recalling the past.
"It happened quite a while ago. Late at night, after I finished filming, I got a call from CEO Seo Guseop."
Actress A showed the text message Seo Guseop had sent her, her voice trembling.
'Done with filming? Come to the Cheongdam karaoke room right now!'
Even though she clearly refused, CEO Seo Guseop began threatening her.
'Do you want to disappear in this industry? Everything here was arranged for your sake. Get over here. If you don't, I'll start canceling your schedule one by one starting tomorrow.'
Back then, just as now, the influence Seo Guseop wielded in the entertainment industry was immense, and actress A had no way to overcome it. When she arrived, the place was packed with Seo Guseop, his acquaintances, PDs from the industry, and various other insiders.
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The first part of the explosive five-part investigative series dealt with the entertainment industry itself. It covered practices such as bringing actresses in as hostesses, creating what were essentially sponsor arrangements, and using celebrities as bait. The article was meticulous and detailed, and it felt firmly backed by evidence.
What was more, there were not just one or two victims.
But CEO Seo Guseop had no way of identifying them from the article. Frustrated, he hurled the tablet to the floor.
"Damn it! Damn it!! You sons of bitches!!!"
He could not pinpoint a single person. The reason was simple. The incidents mentioned in the article were only the tip of the iceberg.
There had been far too many similar cases. If even the smaller incidents were counted, there were too many to keep track of. It did not matter whether the victim had been male or female. The fact that the article had perfectly anonymized them made it impossible.
Soon, Seo Guseop began pacing the room in fury.
Then—
With trembling hands, he pulled out a cigarette and awkwardly brought it to his lips, forcing himself to calm down. After barely managing to light it, he turned toward the door.
"Did they make phones just so nobody would answer them?! Hey!!"
He tried calling the executives who had already fled, but not one of them answered.
"..."
That silence began eating away at Seo Guseop, a man who had always projected absolute resolve. It felt as if a noose of despair were tightening around his neck, cutting off his breath.
But the bulldog-like man only swallowed a curse and let out a rough breath.
Then—
Bzzzz.
The phone on the table in front of the sofa vibrated briefly.
The problem was that it did not stop at once.
Bzzzz.
Bzzzz.
Bzzzz.
The phone poured out notifications one after another as if it were malfunctioning. There was no doubt that everyone on the other end had already seen the article.
Eventually—
Bzzzzzz.
The ringtone finally began to blare.
Only then did CEO Seo Guseop truly begin to grasp the situation he was in.
"Damn it… I'm finished."
Later.
On the morning of the 22nd, the entertainment industry took a heavy hit from Power Patch's attack, and the news was more than enough to draw in the hyenas.
『[Breaking News] GGO Entertainment CEO Seo Guseop accused of using actresses under his agency as hostesses』
『[Main Issue] Numerous victims, even audio files… the real face of CEO Seo Guseop revealed』
From lunchtime into the afternoon, what had begun as a single article multiplied into hundreds, enough to flood the news pages entirely.
『"Come to the karaoke room" — CEO Seo Guseop's life in entertainment』
If he had been an ordinary figure, a few more articles might have surfaced and that would have been the end of it. But Seo Guseop, the CEO of GGO Entertainment, was no ordinary person.
Given GGO Entertainment's reputation and the number of top stars under its banner, he was one of the heavyweight figures among agency heads.
Because of that, media outlets everywhere jumped into the chase with their eyes lit up.
"Hey, hey! Reporter Kim!! Did you call GGO Entertainment yet?!"
"Yeah! But I can't get through!"
"Damn it, then just tweak the phrasing and headline and keep pushing it out!"
"Got it! But won't Seo Guseop completely lose it later?!"
"Who cares!! Look at how fast these articles are dropping! He can't stop this anymore! Just sell everything and grab as much as you can!"
Meanwhile, Power Patch, the outlet that had launched the first strike, remained strangely quiet, as if conserving its energy for the next blow. Even so, articles kept pouring out in bulk.
『GGO Entertainment CEO Seo Guseop scandal… and there are still 4 more rounds left?』
By late afternoon, Seo Guseop's name had completely taken over entertainment news. At that point, it was not just the press moving. Internal circles had started shifting too.
That evening, Seo Guseop's name appeared on the nightly news.
"Breaking news. Allegations have surfaced that Seo Guseop, CEO of major entertainment agency GGO Entertainment, used actresses as hostesses. Reporter Gong Changhyeon has the story."
Countless videos were uploaded to platforms like YouTube.
[Online reactions]
[IssueManTV: [Exclusive] Voice message of GGO Entertainment CEO Seo Guseop's abusive language… "Damn it, you're not even listening to me properly"]
[LakaMan Reporter: In-depth analysis of the voice messages containing Seo Guseop's voice!!!]
Public opinion was ice-cold.
[Online reactions]
[User1: What a disgusting bastard.]
[User2: A guy who ruins the lives of people young enough to be his daughter and still lives that shamelessly belongs in prison.]
[User3: Wow… Seo Guseop… but there were rumors about this guy a long time ago.]
[User4: I feel so bad for the actors who signed with someone like that.]
[User5: LOL another exposé??? Reality is way harsher than dramasㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ]
[User6: Seo Guseop is basically just a gangsterㅋㅋㅋ everybody already knew, didn't they???]
[User7: Just the hosting and sponsorship stuff alone should be enough to slap cuffs on himㅋㅋㅋ and Power Patch still has 4 more leftㅋㅋㅋ bye.]
[User8: Perverted trash!!! Ugh, disgusting!!]
[User9: Boycott GGO Ent.]
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But this was only the beginning.
The very next day, on the 23rd, Power Patch fired its second bullet.
『[Exclusive] "Three years interest-free after debut"… GGO Entertainment CEO Seo Guseop's lavish lifestyle was built on money swindled from rookie actors – Part 2 of 5』 / Power Patch
The situation was spiraling completely out of control, yet neither GGO Entertainment nor CEO Seo Guseop issued any response. Then, around noon on the 24th, Power Patch dropped its third bomb.
『[Exclusive] Former GGO manager reveals, "I was assaulted three times in one year while working there"… CEO Seo Guseop wielded not only power but his fists – Part 3 of 5』 / Power Patch
At last, the prosecution and the police began to move.
It was late morning on the 26th, two days later. The person who had first set this whole thing in motion was currently on the phone with Power Patch.
"Hmm, I saw it. The timing's not bad."
It was Choi Sunggeon, in Buyeo.
Even with the world in an uproar over CEO Seo Guseop, filming for Island of the Missing continued. Standing a little away from the set, Choi Sunggeon held his phone to his ear and spoke in a calm voice.
"Let's proceed with the rest as we discussed."
A familiar male voice came through from the other side. It belonged to an editor Choi had met before.
"Don't worry about that. Can you send the rest of the materials now?"
"Come on, don't say it like that. I'll send them once I see our agreement being honored. Like I said, anonymity and timing are very important."
"Alright, alright. Just don't hand it over to anyone else."
Choi Sunggeon answered with a light smile.
"Let's not waste time saying things professionals already know."
Friday, November 27.
While Seo Guseop was riding the express train to hell, Kang Woojin's daily life did not change much, even as the entertainment industry was being shaken to its roots. He stayed focused on filming Island of the Missing and worked through his punishing schedule without pause.
Naturally, he had heard the news about Seo Guseop, but he did not care much.
He saw no reason to.
Hatred was something you discussed when there was at least some kind of relationship. To Kang Woojin, Seo Guseop was just another lunatic.
What did it matter whether he was the CEO of some major entertainment agency or not?
Even Director Ahn Gabok felt like nothing more than an old man next door to him, and he had no idea that the man who had engineered this entire situation from behind the scenes, Choi Sunggeon, had been watching it all unfold.
In any case—
Woojin had just finished showering and stepped out of the bathroom. He was in a resort hotel room in Buyeo. After drying his wet hair, he changed into comfortable clothes and checked the time.
"Hm, eight o'clock."
It was 8:10 in the evening.
Having wrapped up another day of filming for Island of the Missing, Woojin was finally waiting for a moment to rest. After drying his hair, he picked up the script for the drama Good Deeds, which PD Song Manwoo had given him.
Then—
Flop!
He threw himself onto the bed.
"Ah, this is heaven."
He rolled around on the bed for a while, then suddenly, as if something occurred to him, grabbed his phone instead of the script. The page he opened was his own YouTube channel.
[Channel Name: Kang Woojin's Alter Ego]
[Subscribers: 6.61 million]
[Videos: 23]
The channel was charging straight toward 7 million subscribers.
And just a few hours earlier, a new video had been uploaded. But unlike usual, it was not another song cover.
-[Second Content Reveal on Kang Woojin's Alter Ego Channel!!]('Avatar Cooking' Teaser) | Kang Woojin's Alter Ego
-Views: 3.3 million / 2020.11.27
It was a teaser for the channel's second content category: cooking.
Because it was such a different topic from his usual uploads, it had already surpassed 3 million views within just a few hours. The teaser itself was simple. It combined an interview about what kind of cooking content Woojin would be showing in the future with footage from the Avatar Cooking shoot he had done earlier with Hanyejeong.
After checking the teaser, Woojin looked down at the comments section.
The comments were pouring in.
[Online reactions]
[User1: No way!!!! Cooking??!! Cooking???!!]
[User2: Waaah this is seriously insane? Oppa, oppa, oppa, I eat really well]
[User3: LOL what? Kang Woojin can cook too???]
[User4: Oh my godㅋㅋㅋㅋ I never saw this coming? If oppa can cook too then I'm really grateful!]
[User5: Lee Sangman's aura is seriously crazy]
[User6: Isn't Kang Woojin in Our Dining Table also part of the kitchen team?]
[User7: Wow!! Oppa's cooking teaser is seriously… so cool… especially the part at 1:24!]
Of course, the comments were mixed naturally with Japanese and English as well.
Woojin smiled, looking pleased.
"Good response."
If official celebrity guests other than Hwarin joined later, it would probably explode even more. Naturally, Kang Woojin's Alter Ego would keep growing right along with it.
Right then—
Knock knock.
Someone knocked at the door.
It was a sudden visit, but Woojin calmly got up and walked over. Even as he did, he smothered his smile and focused on his concept. As though he already knew who it was, he opened the door to find Choi Sunggeon and the broad-built Jang Suhwan standing there with shopping bags in both hands.
"You came a little early."
"Hyung! We bought some stuff, and if you're still hungry, we can get more!"
Woojin shook his head and let them into the room.
"Come in."
Soon, Choi Sunggeon and Jang Suhwan placed the bags on the table. Inside were beer, drinks, snacks, and other odds and ends. Out of those, Choi Sunggeon handed Woojin a can of non-alcoholic beer.
"This one's yours. No alcohol."
"Thank you."
"You didn't turn on the TV?"
"No. I was checking my YouTube channel."
Choi Sunggeon broke into a wide grin.
"The reaction to the teaser that just went up was explosive, wasn't it?"
Jang Suhwan eagerly chimed in.
"It really blew up!! I saw how insane the comments were!"
Wearing a loose T-shirt, Choi Sunggeon turned on the television and kept talking.
"I think the interest exploded because people found out Woojin is the main member of the kitchen team on Our Dining Table. You leave for the U.S. shoot on December 5, right? If we release the official video around then, interest on both sides will probably go through the roof. It's good for everyone."
December 5.
Since today was the 27th, that meant Kang Woojin had exactly one week left before leaving for the U.S. shoot for Our Dining Table.
Had it already come to this?
For a moment, Woojin felt his heart pounding.
'Wow, I'm actually nervous about going to America.'
The three of them had spent the last several dozen minutes talking about Kang Woojin's Alter Ego and Our Dining Table when Jang Suhwan checked the time and turned on the TV.
"It's time now!"
"Ah, right."
The channel he switched to was KBC, and an ad was running just before the start of a new drama. At that moment, Choi Sunggeon crossed his legs and lifted his can of beer.
"Drug Dealer was such a huge hit that once viewers watch The Mysterious Man Next Door, they're going to be seriously shocked."
Jang Suhwan gave a thumbs-up.
"Of course! Drug Dealer passed 7.5 million viewers, everybody praised Lee Sangman, and everyone fell for Woojin hyung! And now he's showing a completely different character, a full 180-degree transformation, and even sign language!"
Woojin felt slightly awkward.
'Do they really have to go that far? Hm, that's kind of embarrassing.'
He kept his mouth shut and focused on the television.
Right then—
"Ah, it's starting."
The TV finished the ad break and began the opening of the new drama. A bright, lively animation featuring the lead actors appeared on-screen along with an upbeat OST led by violin melodies.
The actors' names appeared beneath the screen.
-♬♪
When the OST ended, the title of the drama appeared clearly in the center of a soft lavender screen.
-[Frozen love]
-[Episode 1]