Chapter 134: < Protect – Episode 133 – Talk Show [1] >

“Are you in your right mind?”

The next day, Ahn Soo Ho was greeted with his mother’s scolding for the first time in a while. Had it been over 20 years? He hadn’t been scolded like this since he stole money to go to the arcade back when he was in elementary school.

“Oh my goodness. What’s this?”

Mrs. Park Ok Nam was taken aback by her son’s sudden hug. She wasn’t actually mad, but she just wanted the best for her child. But she gave up on scolding him. As soon as Lee So Hye joined in on the love giving, everything turned around.

“Wow! Me too!”

As soon as she b.u.t.ted in, Ahn Ye Sol, Emily, and Rachel who were staying with them also joined in and made everything weird.

“Stop!”

If a paparazzi took a picture of Mrs. Park hugging four students in uniforms, it was bound to end up on the front page of the newspapers. Ahn Soo Ho, who was eating the Pollack soup that his mother made, and looked at an unfamiliar face sitting at the dinner table.

“Who’s that?”

“Oh yeah! This is Bobby c.o.x, Emily’s father.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Ahn.”

“I should have greeted you first. I apologize.”

Greeting someone for the first time while sitting at a dinner table was a strange thing.

If it was just men at the table, it would have been really awkward, but thanks to the four noisy girls, they were able to get over it quickly. Ahn Soo Ho knew that foreigners didn’t like soybean paste or hot pepper paste so he thought it was too much that Mrs. Park Ok Nam took out the spicy stir-fried pork along with soybean stew, but what was funnier was the foreigners’ response.

“It’s delicious!”

Emily and Rachel used their chopsticks quite well and Bobby c.o.x even put his rice in the stew and showed off high-level skills. ‘Isn’t he just a Korean that had a different eye color?’ He was a natural. Bobby sensed Ahn Soo Ho’s shocked gaze and smirked in response.

“I like Korean food. I ate a lot because of my older brother.”

“Brother? Are you talking about Chul… I mean, David?”

“Yes.”

Lee Chul, who was the husband of princess Lee Mi Hyun and left Emily and Rachel under the care of Ahn Soo Ho, had a real name which was Davis c.o.x, and he had blood ties with Bobby c.o.x. Before going out for some air after breakfast, he saw off the girls in their school uniforms. He contemplated whether he should drop them off or not but getting photos taken together by the paparazzi was another promotional method.

As soon as the girls in uniforms left, Mrs. Park also left. The women of the house were all busy. Ahn Soo Ho bought some coffee and sat across Bobby.

“Thank you.”

His first impression was quite different from that of Lee Chul.

‘He’s a thoughtful man.’

He heard that he was quite a successful lawyer back in Australia. Being a lawyer was quite a big deal in Korea, but back in Australia, just about anyone could earn the t.i.tle if they really wanted. There were lots of lawyers, but there weren’t that many good ones. Even in the States where they bragged about the best law system in the world, skilled lawyers were hard to come by.

“What do you think?”

Bobby nodded to Ahn Soo Ho’s question, which contained many meanings.

“I was a little perplexed because our country has a different concept of the entertainment business… but I liked it. It was to my satisfaction.”

“Is Australia also like Hollywood?”

“All English-speaking countries are similar. England is probably similar to us as well.”

In Hollywood, each actor and singer tried to do things on their own rather than going with agencies like Korea. In the West, they liked geniuses who were outstanding in skill and talent. No matter how hard one worked and practiced, pa.s.sion alone wasn’t enough to become the star in the night sky.

“Emily and Rachel have the potential to become stars.”

“Their managers and trainers said the same thing. However, stars don’t succeed from effort alone.”

“Is it like that for lawyers as well?”

“Isn’t it the same all over the world? Only the ones born to succeed end up succeeding.”

Ahn Soo Ho admired him in his head. Bobby had a similar way of looking at success.

“Do you know about Emily’s biological mother, Mr. Ahn?”

“I’ve heard. I’m sorry about that.”

“It’s all in the past now.”

Emily’s biological mother pa.s.sed away in a car accident when she was little. So her current mother was her step-mother, but that didn’t mean she was an evil step-mom like in Cinderella.

“Lily wanted to come, too, but she wasn’t in the right condition to do so. She’s…”

Bobby trailed off. Ahn Soo Ho was unable to say anything as his blue eyes were on the verge of tears. Love made people stupid. No successful lawyer was capable of curing an incurable disease. It was true that Emily dreamt of becoming an idol since she was little. And the person who taught her how to sing and dance was none other than her step-mother, Lily.

‘I want to stand on stage for Lily who’s sick!’

This almost sounded like a youth comic from back in the 80s, but Emily’s fierce pa.s.sion came from her step-mother. She wanted to be remembered as a successful daughter in Lily’s last moments. She wanted to make the dream that her step-mother had to give up on to come true. Bobby was proud of her daughter for that, and he also felt angry that he couldn’t do anything to help her.

“I’m sorry.”

Bobby apologized for being modest.

“Emily will stand on the stage soon.”

“If you’re saying that out of sympathy, I’ll decline, Mr. Ahn.”

“No!”

Ahn Soo Ho strongly denied it.

“Emily is talented. And the synergy between her and her group is outstanding.”

He felt anxious because one of them was actually a granny, but it was a miracle that all four of them were together.

“You and your wife should be proud of her.”

Because they were going to swallow the whole world soon enough.

But instead of swallowing the world, Ahn Da Sol, Lee So Hye, Emily, and Rachel were swallowing burgers on their way to school. In response to the eating fest that went against their diet, even the security guards gave up.

‘They always fight when it comes to food.’

The paparazzi liked to photograph them in the beginning, but they later got tired of it. At this rate, they should debut as food fighters instead of idols. But what was more fascinating was that they didn’t gain any weight no matter how much they ate. One of the online discussion boards got into a heated argument over it.

Is that the upside of being white? Such gorgeous figures!

If they eat that much and don’t gain weight, they must exercise a lot!

I hate people who can’t tell one thing apart from another!

Ha! What are you saying?

So when are they going to debut? This year? Next year?

Gasp! I’m ready to wors.h.i.+p them!

Rumors about Ahn Da Sol, Lee So Hye, Emily, and Rachel debuting as a group started to circulate. Lee So Hye had a large influence over bringing Ahn Da Sol into the group when she was set to debut as a solo artist, and she was also the only one who could keep the rest under control. Was that why? Similarly to her older brother, she was often called the mediator of girl trainees and girl groups.

The hamburgers mustn’t have been enough for these girls, because they went to a pizza place for more food before heading to the academy. Hosoo Entertainment upgraded to not only accommodate idols but other artists as well. They didn’t hold back on investing in various curriculums in the buildings that once belonged to s.h.i.+nhwa Entertainment and FNB Entertainment.

“Why are you so late?”

Lee Sun Mi started being treated like a director.

She was still a team leader, but it was as if she got promoted. She wasn’t dissatisfied with it one bit. There weren’t many agencies where female employees could climb up and produce their own content with their name. That was how narrow the female position was.

“I apologize, Team Leader Lee.”

“Sorry, Sun Mi.”

Being able to call the team leader by her name might have been a special benefit that only foreigners got. They normally just greeted each other and practiced. But today, they were all called to the meeting room.

“You’re going to have to film a commercial.”

“Pardon? Didn’t you say you normally reject interviews and advertis.e.m.e.nts before debut?”

“Yeah… But we can’t turn this one down.”

“Where is it from? Daesan?”

Daesan Group was the only place that came to mind.

“No, Quantum Series.”

“Quantum? Are you talking about Quantum Bluesky?”

“Yeah.”

“Wow!”

Emily and Rachel were surprised while Lee So Hye just blinked cluelessly, and Ahn Da Sol knitted her brows.

“What’s that?”

“Don’t you know Quantum Bluesky? Oh, do you guys only use Daesan’s icon, So Hye?”

“The phone?”

Daesan Electronics Icon Series took up 50% of the market in Korea. That meant that among the 40 million smartphone users in Korea, 20 million people used Daesan’s phone.

Ahn Da Sol tilted her head.

“Aren’t the people at the top saying anything?”

“There’s some controversy… But it’s not like we’re affiliated with Daesan Group. So we decided to do it.”

Hosoo Entertainment and Daesan Group were famous for having a close relations.h.i.+p. It was more often Daesan who sent out love calls, but if they filmed a commercial for a compet.i.tor, things could get uncomfortable in many ways.

“Does CEO Ahn know?”

“CEO Ahn? I’m not sure. But a report did go to him. Why?”

“Never mind.”

Ahn Da Sol just dismissed her question in response to Lee Sun Mi’s answer. The meeting ended quickly. Even if they decided to do it, there was a negotiation process to go through, so they couldn’t set the filming date just yet. Ahn Da Sol excused herself to a place with fewer people. In order to avoid negative comments, the agency prevented the female idols from using their phones, but of course, the F4 girls were an exception once again.

Ahn Da Sol took out her phone.

She punched in the number and waited for an answer. She normally wouldn’t have wanted to contact them first. The last time she called, he was absorbed in a conspiracy that would shake the world upside down. He was a real psychopath who didn’t see humans as human beings. He was so cold-hearted that he was capable of even abandoning his own family if there was an objective.

“Angelica?”

She heard a voice over the speaker phone.

“I thought I saw the number wrong. Long time no talk, Angelica.”

“I don’t use that name anymore.”

“Really? What should I call you then? k.u.miko? Or Ahn Da Sol?”

Ahn Da Sol got s.h.i.+vers from his small laugh as he called her name. She tried to hide it, but he knew.

“Or should I call you Jung Mi Ja?”

The name that Ahn Soo Ho would have despised also came out.

“I didn’t think you would have hidden the original black box in the countryside of Asia. You gave it to me good.”

“Are you going to stress the importance of possession, Michel?”

“No, no! I have no intention of turning an alpha into an enemy. Also, I’m Michael. Just like how you’re not Angelica, I’m not Michel anymore either. I’d say it’s pretty much the same name but with a totally different vibe. Isn’t this world interesting?”

Whether he was Michael or Michel, the vice president of Genesis Quantum snickered to himself as if something was funny.

“I know why you called… But the commercial is just a coincidence.”

“Who the h.e.l.l would believe that?”

Ahn Da Sol wasn’t going to believe anything that would come out of his mouth.

“Whether you believe me or not, the world is focused on him right now. Anyone who wants change will try to drag Ahn Soo Ho into the center of attention.”

“Does everyone want to die? You might be better off committing suicide.”

“Haha! If a collapse is what this generation wants…we have no choice but to make that our duty.”

“Crazy b.a.s.t.a.r.d.”

“Don’t worry. I have no interest in dying any time soon. We’re old and tired, but that doesn’t mean we’re stupid. Human beings don’t like to acknowledge change. Change is perceived negatively, so they’ll try to fight it. There will come a time when the world will push him away.”

He was just waiting for the day for the power balance to establish itself naturally.

“What choice will he make?”

He was waiting for that day.

< Protect – Episode 133 – Talk Show [1] > The end.