"Whoa, daebak[1]! What is this? Why is there chicken—?"
Hyuna exclaimed, startled by the box of chicken in Hyunseung's hands.
"I bought it."
Immediately, Hyuna gasped, "Heol[2]," then hurriedly signed to their father.
"Dad! Daebak! Oppa bought chicken!"
Their father also widened his eyes and signed back.
"Hyunseung-ah, where did you get the money to buy chicken?"
To that, Hyunseung responded in sign language.
"Do you think I only bought chicken? I also got you each a gift."
As he finished speaking, Hyunseung placed the brand-new laptop he'd been holding onto the table.
"Here, I'm giving it to you so you can study hard."
"A MacBook?!"
"Yeah, it's the best model, so use it for a long time."
After saying that, Hyunseung couldn't help but remind her once more.
"Don't break it by being careless."
Then, he immediately handed a shopping bag to their father.
"This is a sweater I bought as a gift for you."
"A jumper? It looks expensive…."
"I thought you didn't really have a proper one."
It was a product from a premium brand, purchased after much deliberation.
"It is expensive, but please don't hesitate to wear it comfortably."
However, the two of them reacted differently from what Hyunseung had expected.
"Oppa, where did you get the money to buy all this?"
Their father showed a similar reaction.
"Hyunseung-ah, you're not… doing something bad, right?"
Even after receiving the gifts, instead of being delighted, they both looked utterly horrified.
'As if asking, where the heck did this come from?'
They even looked genuinely worried.
"Why? You think I stole it or something?"
"Where did you get that kind of money…?"
"It's nothing special - I won the lottery."
"Oppa! Don't joke…."
Hyunseung let out a sigh and responded.
"I'll explain, so calm down first."
It seemed like explaining the situation came first.
'The chicken's going to get cold.'
In fact, Hyunseung's explanation continued until the chicken he'd brought was completely cold.
...
"You're telling me you made a song and sold it to a major agency?"
"That's right."
"You made a song in just a day, just like that, and sold it for how much?"
"Three million won."
Hyuna sighed, "Heol," then asked again.
"You expect me to believe that?"
"Of course, you should."
Hyunseung showed the deposit statement as he added.
"It's the truth, what if you don't believe me?"
"What the… it really says LS Entertainment…."
"If you still don't believe me, should I show you the contract?"
At that moment, their father, unable to hide his surprise, frantically signed.
"Hyunseung-ah, is that really true?"
Hyunseung sighed and replied.
"Just wait a second."
Then, he immediately went to his room and brought out the contract he'd received by mail from LS Entertainment.
"Here, both of you, take a look."
It was the contract, detailing the specifics of the buyout deal.
Rustle, rustle.
The sound of pages turning filled the room briefly.
"See?"
Hyunseung asked triumphantly as he began opening the now completely cold box of chicken, continuing in an utterly nonchalant tone.
"Contrary to your concerns, I actually have an innate, genius-level talent for composing music. Thanks to that, it's only a matter of time before the three of us are sitting on piles of money. From now on, we'll live worrying not about making money but about how to spend it, that's what I hereby declare."
Then, he picked up a chicken drumstick and handed it to their father.
"Anyone care to object?"
Hyuna gasped in admiration.
"Wow… Oppa, does this mean you're going to get hired as a composer at LS now?"
To that, Hyunseung handed the other drumstick to Hyuna.
"For now, I just sold them a song. I don't know yet if I'll sign an exclusive contract."
"Wow… what even is this…."
"If there's a place that pays well, I'll sign with them."
Although having to explain everything in such detail wasn't exactly pleasant, thinking from their perspective, even he wouldn't have believed it.
'A clueless guy who only ever played games at home suddenly came into a lot of money, of course they'd be scared out of their minds.'
Then, picking up a piece of chicken, Hyunseung quietly added.
"Minhyun-ah, from now on, just focus on your studies."
Then, after taking a bite and putting the chicken piece back down, he signed to their father.
"Dad, you don't need to worry about money anymore."
"But…."
"I already took care of all the overdue bills."
"Hyunseung-ah…!"
Hyunseung grinned and added in sign language once more.
"For now, just enjoy the chicken."
Then he grumbled for no real reason.
"Ugh, it's all cold now."
...
A man in a suit stood in front of the elevator, frowning as he gently rubbed his chest.
"Ha… my stomach's killing me…"
The man, living a life riddled with hangovers, was Kim Woohyun, the department head of LS Entertainment.
Since joining the company, he had personally scouted and elevated over a dozen singers and actors to stardom.
His outstanding abilities had earned him the title of the youngest siljang [3]in the company's history.
'Perhaps it was the excessive drinking from the night before?'
Having drunk with a broadcasting station PD until dawn, his head throbbed and his stomach churned.
It was then, while he was dazedly waiting for the elevator doors to open, that it happened.
"Manager-nim, good morning!"
Two engineers from the A&R team approached him, sipping coffee.
"Ah… yeah."
One of them tilted his head slightly and asked.
"Manager-nim, are you feeling okay? You don't look so good…"
At that, Kim Woohyun waved his hand dismissively.
"No, it's just a hangover."
Just then, the elevator doors opened…
"Phew—."
Letting out a long breath, Kim Woohyun straightened his tie and stepped into the elevator.
"Hey, did you listen to that demo track from the composer yesterday?"
"Yeah, I did."
"No matter how I think about it, it's a total hit, isn't it?"
Kim Woohyun instinctively started eavesdropping on their conversation.
'Composer? Demo track?'
It seemed that a highly skilled composer had appeared out of nowhere.
"I mean, how did they manage to create such a song using only free sources?"
"Do you think they're deliberately using just free sources?"
"Probably, right? From what I can tell, they're just a music pervert."
One of the engineers slurped his coffee and added.
"A composer that talented, there's no way they can't afford paid sources."
"Exactly."
"They're probably just showing off that they can make something this good using only free sources."
Then, Kim Woohyun turned to them and asked.
"Did we sign a new composer or something?"
One of the engineers replied.
"Ah, you haven't heard yet? The entire A&R team was freaking out yesterday because of that composer…"
"Freaking out?"
"Yeah, this composer using an alias suddenly sent in some demo tracks, saying they wanted to sell them."
It was certainly an intriguing story.
"There were three tracks, all made using only the free sources that come standard with the program, but honestly, they were way better than most tracks that other composers pour their hearts into."
"And?"
"Well, they initially offered to sell the tracks outright for 3 million won each. I heard the team leader contacted them immediately and moved forward with the contract."
LS Entertainment's A&R team was, by any industry standard, top-tier.
So, if even those with such discerning ears and diverse tastes were unanimously praising the composer…
'Their skills must be legit…'
Narrowing his eyes, Kim Woohyun muttered.
"Feels like they're an active composer…"
One of the engineers nodded, agreeing.
"Probably, yeah? Our team leader suspects the same, that they're already under an exclusive contract with another company, but they urgently need money, so they're using an alias and selling tracks outright."
That was exactly what Kim Woohyun thought.
'Who could it be…'
If it was a composer with such formidable skills, chances were high that he was already familiar with them.
Lost in thought, Kim Woohyun mentally ran through the list of composers currently under exclusive contracts with other companies…
The animal instinct that had once earned him the title of the youngest siljang in the company whispered several possibilities in his ear.
'First, they're probably an active composer…'
Kim Woohyun was certain that the composer who had suddenly sent the email was still active in the industry.
Otherwise, they wouldn't have been able to produce work that even LS's A&R engineers were satisfied with.
'Maybe they're having issues settling accounts with their current company…'
Otherwise, there'd be no reason for them to sell songs outright to LS instead of to their contracted company.
After all, selling songs in a one-time buyout contract, where the composer gives up future royalties after selling the track at a set price, was the type of deal composers typically avoided the most.
'They might be planning to terminate their contract…'
If that were the case, they could be hoping to get out of their current arrangement…
'If I play this right… we might be able to bring them over.'
From a management standpoint, a talented composer was like a goose that lays golden eggs.
If LS helped with any legal disputes during their contract termination…
Or offered better conditions than their current deal…
Then recruiting them to LS could be a real possibility.
"What was the composer's name again?"
In response to Kim Woohyun's question, the engineer replied.
"I think it was 'HS.'"
Kim Woohyun repeated that name to himself several times.
To him, that name felt like a "result" that would be reflected on his next performance evaluation.
Ding!
Just then, the elevator stopped on the 4th floor, where the A&R team office was located.
"Should I drop by the A&R team for the first time in a while?"
Kim Woohyun got off with the engineers and walked down the long corridor for a bit.
"Sir?"
The A&R team leader, Han Ingyu, spotted Kim Woohyun and asked, eyes wide open.
"What brings such an esteemed person to the humble abode of us engineers…?"
Kim Woohyun simply shrugged and replied.
"I heard an interesting story."
Then he immediately asked,
"Didn't you buy three songs yesterday on a full buyout basis?"
Han Ingyu responded with a surprised look.
"That rumor's already reached your ears, sir?"
"Yeah, even my uncle living in Jeju Island knows."
At his reply, Han Ingyu let out a small chuckle and explained.
"As you've probably heard, some composer sent us three songs under a pseudonym. And get this, he wanted to sell each as a full buyout for only 3 million won, and only sent 30-second samples."
Kim Woohyun slowly nodded.
"At first, I thought he was just another composer in this industry, full of himself and a bit unhinged, but I figured, 'Why not give it a shot?' So we listened to the samples… and they were absolute gems."
As soon as he finished speaking, Kim Woohyun asked right back.
"Then why not go beyond just buying the songs and offer him an exclusive contract?"
"Well… it does seem like he might already be under an exclusive contract with another management company…"
Han Ingyu crossed his arms and spoke with a serious tone.
"So I thought I'd take a bit more time to observe. Maybe his current contract still has a long duration left, and suddenly offering an exclusive deal might come off as too forward…"
He then added,
"Most importantly, there's no guarantee he can consistently produce songs of this quality. That's why I wanted to approach the exclusive offer more cautiously."
A cautious approach, typical of Team Leader Han, but it didn't align with the way Kim Woohyun preferred to handle things.
"Then I'll just meet him myself."
"Sorry? What?"
"If we talk in person, I'll figure it out."
Kim Woohyun replied as if it were no big deal.
"Is there really a need to sit back and wait?"
He immediately asked Han Ingyu,
"Send me the composer's contact details and personal info."
After briefly replying, "Ah, yes. One moment," Han Ingyu fiddled with his smartphone…
"I've sent you the contact details by text."
"What's his name? You only know the pseudonym?"
"Well, the account holder's name was Min Hyunseung…"
Han Ingyu shook his head as he answered.
"But I'm not sure if that's actually him."
At that, Kim Woohyun nodded.
"Min Hyunseung, Min Hyunseung, Min Hyunseung…"
Muttering the unfamiliar name, he smiled faintly, harboring the expectation that this name might soon contribute to an upcoming personnel evaluation.
"Sir, are you going to contact him right away?"
At Han Ingyu's question, Kim Woohyun replied, "Yeah, why not," and promptly started making the call…
Beep… beep…
As the dialing tone rang out, everyone in the room couldn't hide their tension and stared at Kim Woohyun for a moment.
– "The person you are trying to reach is unable to answer the phone at the moment…"
A call rejection message played immediately.
"What the? Is he busy?"
Without hesitation, Kim Woohyun sent a text message.
[ Hello, composer-nim. This is Kim Woohyun, Director of the Management Team at LS Entertainment. I was very impressed by your songs and would like to make a proposal that could be beneficial for both of us… ]
How much time passed after that?
Ding!
A reply came in right away.
"Sir, what did he say?"
Han Ingyu swallowed dryly, visibly tense.
"What the…?"
Kim Woohyun muttered under his breath, prompting Han
Ingyu to ask again.
"Why? What did he say?"
Then, without hesitation, he peered over at the smartphone screen in Kim Woohyun's hand.
"Radish…?"
Han Ingyu immediately double-checked the message he just saw several times over.
[ I'm very sad. All the radishes I worked so hard to farm overnight were stolen. I'll call you later. ]
He got his radishes stolen, out of nowhere?
'What the heck? Does he farm as a hobby or something?'
Everyone in the room was consumed by a massive wave of confusion.
[1] (in Korean contexts) very good or pleasing; excellent.
[2] In Korean, "헐" (heol) is a slang word used to express surprise, disbelief, or being impressed, similar to "OMG" or "oh my god" in English.
[3] In Korean, "실장" (siljang) translates to department head or chief of the section. It's a title used for individuals who lead a department or section within a company, particularly in situations where departments are further divided into sections