Andrew had rushed over to prevent an accident, but he was already too late.
Crunch.
The fountain pen lay scattered on the floor, smashed after hitting the wall.
Sarah stood there, trampling over the remains, while Joshua looked on, stunned by the sight.
“I’m asking you, if you care for Unice, don’t do anything and just watch.”
“What? Watch what, exactly?”
“Watch what kind of massive splash the new CEO makes and how he transforms Unice.”
Sarah’s mouth was like a sports car racing without restraint.
“Just shut your mouth and watch.”
It was as if a brake pedal had never existed in the first place.
“Good grief….”
Watching the scene from outside the door, Andrew sighed, pressing a hand to his forehead.
He should have stopped her sooner. He should have intervened the moment Sarah’s eyes changed.
I didn’t think it would be this extreme.
Sarah, who never got along well with those around her, only truly opened up to Austin and Andrew.
And… Joshua was the only other one.
Above all else, it was Joshua who had directed Sarah’s debut album.
And just as Joshua had achieved great success by directing Sarah, the two had become quite close by helping each other.
And yet she was angry enough to destroy that relationship in a single heartbeat?
Just what kind of person is Min Hyunseung to her…?
Just as Andrew was about to step forward to settle the situation.
“If you block his path, I will use every means at my disposal to block yours.”
Sarah issued the threat like a beast baring its teeth fiercely, then turned and walked past him.
“Sarah…”
Andrew couldn’t bring himself to stop her. It was because she looked like someone who feared nothing in this world, someone who saw only one thing.
Yes.
When it came to matters involving Min Hyunseung, she seemed to lose all fear and could see nothing else around her.
“Sigh…”
Simultaneously, both Joshua and Andrew let out heavy sighs.
“Were the dating rumors true?”
Joshua stopped staring down at his ruined fountain pen and asked Andrew, who was standing there in a daze.
He didn’t specify a subject, but it was clear who he meant.
Yes, Sarah and HS.
In other words, the new CEO, Min Hyunseung. Their dating rumors had surfaced multiple times before.
It was a fact so widely known that anyone who knew how to use the internet was aware of it.
However, aside from the fact that neither side had confirmed it, those who knew Sarah personally assumed they were simply in a ‘composer and singer’ relationship.
Knowing Sarah’s personality, they thought there was no way it could be anything else.
But that was only what people who knew Sarah superficially would say.
“I wonder.”
Andrew shrugged and picked up the broken fountain pen.
“I wouldn’t know.”
Joshua furrowed his brows deeply, clearly dissatisfied with the ambiguous answer.
Soon, he waved his hand through the air as if dismissing the topic.
“Andrew, contact the distribution team right now.”
“Excuse me?”
“Tell them to stop the distribution of the track the new CEO submitted.”
“Why is that?”
“Why? Because it’s not even a proper song.”
At those words, Andrew pushed up his glasses and replied immediately.
“However, the engineering room has already given the okay, and the reaction from the distribution team was positive.”
It was a rebuttal, but it was delivered with polite decorum.
Andrew was someone who didn’t let emotions color his work; he only considered what would benefit the company most and had no intention of childishly taking sides.
“Did you listen to it?”
“Yes, of course.”
Joshua also knew Andrew well enough to be aware of his tendencies.
“Then you should be stopping it even more urgently.”
He dug into that point.
“If people hear that our Unice distributed something that sounds like club music, our high reputation will go down the drain.”
Joshua clicked his tongue in disapproval and added, as if hounding Andrew further.
“Sarah is still young and immature, so she might blindly take her boyfriend’s side, but you should have considered the company’s position and stopped it.”
Andrew replied instantly without a change in expression.
“I have fully considered the company’s position.”
Indeed, he wasn’t taking HS’s side, nor was he taking Sarah’s.
“You’re saying you fully considered the company’s position and yet just watched such a track get handed over to the distribution team?”
“It isn’t club music…”
It really wasn’t, so why did the words Sarah had spoken earlier keep coming to mind?
“What’s wrong with High-End Fusion EDM!”
He absolutely shouldn’t have let that out of his mouth….
“It is High-End Fusion EDM.”
But he did.
“What…?”
“Ahem, hmmm!”
He let out a dry cough to cover the sudden wave of embarrassment.
“At any rate, I handed it over because I judged the song would bring sufficient profit to the company.”
Regaining his composure, he added firmly.
“Even if it were club music, there is no regulation stating such songs cannot be distributed.”
“Well, that’s true, but….”
“Furthermore, with the name HS attached, there won’t be a loss, so what exactly is the problem?”
Actually, it wasn’t just an explanation; it was a pointed question.
He was asking why Joshua was trying to trip up the new CEO’s very first step.
“The reputation and prestige of Unice…!”
Just as Joshua was about to shout in an emotional tone.
“Director, may I venture to add one more opinion?”
Andrew cut him off. However, it wasn’t a request for permission.
“Please do not act on emotion. In this industry, if you move based on emotion, it is easy to disappear.”
He handed over the retrieved fountain pen, gave a slight nod of his head, and left the room.
“Phew….”
Andrew let out a held breath as soon as he stepped out, perhaps bothered that he had responded with his own emotions momentarily.
However, because of a certain person’s earnest request, he couldn’t just turn a blind eye.
“I’m sorry to ask such a favor of someone like you….”
Yes.
“It’s a lonely position as it is. Could you please look after him so he doesn’t have to endure it alone like I did?”
Austin’s face as he said those words had been filled with the bitterness of his past life.
Therefore, the same malice must not be repeated.
That would be his final mission.
Hyunseung got into his car after work.
“Sigh…”
A wave of exhaustion hit him so hard it was difficult to even start the ignition.
Even when he stayed up for several nights working on music, it hadn’t felt quite like this.
It was likely because he had spent the entire day with his nerves on edge, engaged in a battle of wills. From now on, days like this would repeat.
Just as Killian had told him.
“It will be exhausting from here on out. They will aim their blades at you from all sides. It has always been that way, and it won’t change easily.”
Keeping the newly appointed CEO in check had been a recurring tradition at Unice.
“The reason a corporation like Unice could become so solid is thanks to Austin, who endured even in such circumstances.”
Austin had also endured through that malice.
“Do not give them an opening to dig into. Grow your presence until no one can say a word against you.”
Those were the words telling him that he must do the same.
“And, hang on with everything you’ve got.”
He had to fiercely endure within the silence.
Yes, to do that….
He wouldn’t be able to live only doing the music work he wanted to do.
He had to keep his senses sharp to avoid giving them anything to nitpick.
He had to protect himself from those trying to tear him apart.
Because here….
There was no ‘Mom Kim’ or ‘Dad Park.’
Because behind him….
The fate of VINCIS rested on his shoulders.
“Ugh….”
When his thoughts reached that point, a groan escaped his lips. However, it was too late to back out now.
Vroom.
Hyunseung stepped on the pedal and hurried home.
Because today….
He wanted to fall asleep without thinking about anything.
Eventually, when Hyunseung arrived home and opened the front door, the sound of the TV and his sister’s laughter greeted him.
“Pwahaha!”
Walking down the long hallway toward the living room, he saw his father and sister sitting side by side on the sofa.
“Oh, you’re home, Oppa?”
The two of them brightened up and greeted him the moment they spotted him.
“Hey, at least cover your mouth when you laugh.”
Hyunseung retorted bluntly as he walked toward the sofa.
“Why are you picking a fight the moment you get back?”
“No, it’s just that you really look hideous.”
“You’re so annoying, Min Hyunseung.”
“Don’t just get annoyed, go look in a mirror.”
Hyuna threw a fit and then snuggled into her father’s arms.
“Appaaa….”
Their father patted Hyuna’s back as if he were used to this.
However, his face didn’t look like he truly felt sorry for his daughter.
It was just a habit.
Clatter.
Suddenly, Hyuna made a loud noise and ran into the bathroom.
“I don’t look hideous at all!”
She soon ran back out to the living room and shouted.
Seeing that, Hyunseung locked eyes with his father, and both of them burst into a snicker at the same time.
His father couldn’t hear the conversation, so he probably didn’t know exactly what was happening.
But he surely found his daughter adorable.
“You actually went to check?”
It was the same for Hyunseung.
“Puhahahaha!”
Hyunseung, who had been laughing with his shoulders shaking, suddenly burst into a loud guffaw, revealing his even white teeth.
He laughed so hard and for so long that he wondered when the last time he had laughed like this was.
“Oppa…?”
—Son?
The two looked at him, seemingly surprised by Hyunseung’s unfamiliar behavior.
“Ah, seriously, it’s too funny….”
Only then did Hyunseung wipe the tears from the corners of his eyes and let out the last of his chuckles. Then, he thought:
Ah.
I traveled back in time to make this choice.
So it might be lonely and brutal, but I will endure fiercely.
Even if only to protect the sight of these people right now.
And for the sake of those who are still messaging me out of worry.
[ Mom Kim: Does the coffee there suit your taste? Do they have Venti sizes? ]
[ Dad Park: Exercise is a habit. Everything is a battle of physical strength. So never, ever neglect your workouts. ]
[ The Elder: First. Day. Of. Work. Quite. A. Fluttering. Word.. I. Wish. To. Hear. How. Your. First. Day. Was. Over. A. Game. Of. Baduk. ^^ ]
[ Vincent: I just found out… why aren’t you letting me do a feature? ]
I will gladly throw myself into the fray.
“Should we go out to eat? It’s been a while.”
“I’m in!”
“But aren’t you on a diet?”
“Do you want to die?!”
It was the moment Hyunseung made a firm resolve deep within his heart.
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