The Crazy Mercenary Commander Goes to Work in the Entertainment Industry

Translator: Dreamscribe

Sato Shota's eyes went wide. It was because of what the man on the other end of the phone had said.

"You're in Korea right now."

Sato Shota couldn't answer right away, his brow furrowing slightly.

'How does he know?? Is he fishing?'

For now, he deflected.

"...Me, in Korea? Don't make me laugh."

Soon the man's voice came through the phone again.

"Going to keep denying it? Whatever, doesn't matter. So are we meeting or not?"

The man's tone was full of certainty. Sato Shota stayed silent, stalling for time.

"......"

Because Sato Shota really was in Korea right now. In any case, he thought back over the words the man had thrown out just before.

'Sato Shota, that thing where you protect Kamijo Yuu. How about doing it officially instead of off the books.'

A proposal to stop guarding Kamijo Yuu in secret and do it out in the open. It was strange, and it made him angry. Wasn't the man talking as if he owned Kamijo Yuu?

Shota judged, as he'd suspected, that this man was seriously dangerous.

Whether he belonged to the same Mercenary Corps was unclear, but he was definitely someone who had come over from the Other World, and the 'Ability' didn't work on him either. On top of that, there was the gaze that seemed to coil around a person, the tone that suggested he had measured and understood everything, that dry-seeming but far from ordinary air, like he might tear out a throat at any moment.

And a bastard like that was right beside Kamijo Yuu. Sato Shota grew more restless still.

'I meant to watch a while longer, but that won't work. Even if I have to show myself to Kamijo Yuu, better to pull them apart.'

A figure who gave off an aura like the man on the phone came to Sato Shota's mind. The Commander who had led the Mercenary Corps he'd belonged to.

'No, they just smell alike. That man is dozens of times more of a monster.'

Even a monster dozens of times more dangerous would have been preferable if it were that Commander. At least that monster was merciless to enemies but generous to his own.

'Damn it. Of all people, the one from that world I was most wary of is the one who's latched onto Kamijo Yuu.'

Sato Shota clicked his tongue and decided to stop denying it. The man on the phone knew he was in Korea, and the 'Ability' didn't work on him. Meeting had to be the right answer here.

"Fine. Name the time and place."

"I'll send it by message, so come tomorrow, and don't be late."

"......If you've done anything to Kamijo Yuu,"

"What would I do to her? Quit talking nonsense and just show up."

-Click.

The call cut off at once. Sato Shota slowly lowered the phone and let out a small breath.

"Probably, there are more Mercenary Corps comrades besides this bastard."

He already knew there were comrades besides himself who had crossed over to this world, at first it was only a guess, but the moment he came back and confirmed Kamijo Yuu, he was certain. He didn't know how many had crossed over, but there were definitely other comrades in this world.

"Hoo-"

Sato Shota let out a short breath. About a year ago, seeing Kamijo Yuu, who had crossed over along with him, had flooded him with relief. She hadn't died; she'd come over to this world just like him. But he never showed himself to her. Soon he grew uneasy.

Because there was a strong chance the comrades who had crossed over would make contact with Kamijo Yuu.

Sato Shota thought back to the first time he saw Kamijo Yuu in the Mercenary Corps.

'Seriously, I nearly fainted on the spot.'

It was an Other World he'd been dropped into out of nowhere. Who could have imagined running into an actress from back home in a place like that? And not just any actress. Sato Shota knew her fairly well. No, was 'quite' the better word?

Still, Sato Shota never let on to Kamijo Yuu that he knew her.

'Because I figured it would make her uncomfortable.'

Whatever the process, whatever the reason, they were already in the Other World. She had to adapt too. So Shota treated Kamijo Yuu as nothing more than a fellow member of the Mercenary Corps. That attitude hardened over the years, and when she died, a rage he'd never felt before erupted out of him.

'......Though the Commander blew up and went around cutting down everything in sight, so it got a bit overshadowed.'

The reason Sato Shota hid himself after seeing Kamijo Yuu again in this world was simple. So that she could forget the Mercenary Corps and the Other World and pick up the acting life she'd been so good at here.

Because to Kamijo Yuu, Sato Shota was nothing but a remnant of the Mercenary Corps.

So Shota only watched Kamijo Yuu's activities from behind. At first he stuck close, in case some Mercenary Corps comrade latched onto her, but as the months passed he gradually loosened up. Just a few times a week, watching her come home from outside her place. It had settled into a simple weekly routine, more or less.

Maybe he'd grown comfortable, or careless.

No, he wanted to believe it. That no other comrade would come for her again.

But the worst case had happened anyway.

Because a Mercenary Corps comrade whose face he didn't even know, one the 'Ability' didn't work on, had attached himself to Kamijo Yuu. Recalling that man, Sato Shota murmured quietly.

"Should I use my 'Ability'? On Kamijo Yuu."

He had avoided using the 'Ability' on Kamijo Yuu whenever possible. He'd used it a few times early on, but gradually cut down the frequency. It was to keep himself from getting addicted. His main duty in the Mercenary Corps had been Interrogator.

'Kicking the addiction after coming back nearly killed me.'

The smell of blood, the noise of flesh splitting, the screams of the one being tortured; an addiction lodged deep in his head and his body. Sato Shota devoted himself to cutting them out. He even tied his own hands.

Fortunately he'd managed to suppress the instinct, though even now it wasn't perfect.

But the current situation was quite urgent.

"......"

Still, in the end, Shota did not use the 'Ability' on Kamijo Yuu.

'If I tell him I'll do anything in Kamijo Yuu's place... first, let's meet the bastard.'

The next morning. A production company's conference room.

As proof, these words were posted on the conference room's glass door.

The title of Oh Jong-man's work, the one that could be called the centerpiece of the six in the 'One-Act Drama Project'. The reason was simple.

The opening shot of the readings was Oh Jong-man's 'Murder Is a Qualification Too'. One-acts or not, six works had to be read, so two a day, roughly three days. Today's first half was 'Murder Is a Qualification Too', and the remaining half 'The Noble Man and Woman', in which Yoon Da-yeon had been cast.

So Yoon Da-yeon was due to appear at the reading venue sometime in the afternoon.

"We're short on chairs, chairs!"

"Yes! I'll go get them now!"

"Shouldn't we put out more water and snacks??"

"The water's over here."

Cast Lists went up on the U-shaped table while staff bustled around it. On the Cast List, the names of An Ji-hee, the Female Lead of 'Murder Is a Qualification Too', and Oh Jong-man stood out. Oh Jong-man in particular was both the writer of the piece and an actor in it.

Before long, people began filing into the venue.

The Key Staff first.

Around the time they took the folding chairs arranged around the U-shaped table, the first actor arrived.

"Hello!!"

It was An Ji-hee, radiating that classic Eastern beauty. The Key Staff and the rest welcomed the arrival of the Female Lead of 'Murder Is a Qualification Too' with smiles.

"Haha, welcome, Ji-hee-ssi."

"You're here early??"

True to a newcomer, An Ji-hee was busy greeting everyone without pause.

"Looking forward to working with you today!!"

She'd been confirmed for quite a few projects by now.

Short film or one-act, this was her second time as Female Lead, but her face still brimmed with nerves. Then the Key Staff stole glances at a lifeless-faced man among the people who'd come with An Ji-hee's team.

'So that's the, uh, Kang Jae-ha, the manager who made An Ji-hee and Yoon Da-yeon.'

'That's the manager, the one everyone says is good.'

It was Kang Jae-ha. Thanks to the rumors that had followed him since BIFF, Jae-ha was fairly famous among industry people. Kang Jae-ha, on the other hand, who'd come today without a mask and with his own face, paid the stares no mind.

'Are we number one among the actors? Not bad.'

An Ji-hee's frantic greetings went on a few minutes more before she finally managed to sit down. The first seat, right beside the director. Seated in the Female Lead's chair, she glanced at the Cast List in front of her, then took a quick look around.

And then.

-Swish.

She pulled out her phone and snapped away at her Cast List. She grinned at the results.

"Heh heh, nice."

She twisted around to show off the phone to Kang Jae-ha, seated in a folding chair behind her. But Jae-ha was looking at a different Cast List.

-Murderer role.

The role of Oh Jong-man, writer and actor.

Then the actors began arriving one after another. Each time, An Ji-hee sprang to her feet, and the venue soon grew noisy. Kang Jae-ha propped his chin on his hand, looking a little bored, and watched the room.

'Looks like she weighed name value and acting ability for the Lead Roles, and only acting ability for the Supporting Roles. Very much like Director Baek Jeong-ha.'

That was when Director Baek Jeong-ha appeared, her skin drier and rougher than ever. Beside her was Netflix's bald Executive Director Heo Seong-jin, and on the right stood a man with a menacing face.

Oh Jong-man.

His face was threatening, but he was only blank because he was so nervous. And he had every actor's eyes on him.

"Huh? S-Sunbaenim??"

"That's Oh Jong-man sunbaenim, right?"

"......It is. But Oh Jong-man sunbaenim's in this too??"

"No idea, never heard that."

Oh Jong-man, doing his best to ignore the stares, met eyes with Kang Jae-ha.

"Ah."

Jae-ha gave Oh Jong-man a faint smile, subtle enough that no one noticed. It said, been a while. About then, Director Baek Jeong-ha, standing at the head of the U-shaped table, addressed the actors.

"Hello, I'm Baek Jeong-ha, handling the Directing on the 'One-Act Drama Project'."

The first thing she did was introduce Oh Jong-man, the focus of everyone's attention.

"This is Writer-nim Oh Jong-man, who wrote 'Murder Is a Qualification Too' and will be playing the 'Murderer'."

Murmur, murmur. Everyone but the Key Staff was flustered or startled. Understandably. Oh Jong-man's involvement had been top secret to the actors. Even on the writing side, Oh Jong-man had gone by the Stage Name 'Writer Jong-man'.

Confidentiality was in the contracts, sure, but Director Baek Jeong-ha had handled the matter of Oh Jong-man many times more carefully than that.

"Writer-nim Oh Jong-man, say hello."

Under all those actors' eyes, Oh Jong-man opened his mouth, his face turning even harsher.

"I-I'm Oh Jong-man. Good to work with you."

'Ugh, why am I this nervous? I've got years on all of them!'

Well aware of it, Director Baek Jeong-ha went on with her explanation.

"Writer-nim Oh Jong-man carries a great deal of our 'One-Act Drama Project'."

She briefly laid out why Oh Jong-man's involvement had been kept secret, how he'd been selected as a writer and come to take a role as well, how the 'One-Act Drama Project' would run and how his presence would be used, and so on.

"So as you all understand, none of this can get out before the works are released. Be careful, and then be more careful still, so we don't end up in an awkward situation."

It was a warning and something close to a threat. Watch your mouths. The actors looked at Oh Jong-man and whispered among themselves.

"Wow, what a twist. Oh Jong-man sunbaenim wrote this? Insane."

"......Never heard of an actor turning writer before."

"Crazy. This is going to blow up when it drops??"

"If Oh Jong-man sunbaenim is the writer and he's acting in it too, it'll go way past blowing up."

The actors sensed it instantly.

"Right, this is very Buzz-Generating."

That controversy or not, the 'One-Act Drama Project' would catch fire the instant it went live. Around then, Kang Jae-ha, chin still propped, ran his eyes slowly over the whispering actors and smiled faintly.

'That's exactly how the public will react when they see the 'One-Act Drama Project'. Confusion, bewilderment, or shock. I can already see the headlines flying.'

The heavyweight Director Baek Jeong-ha's eyes were fixed not on the actors but on Kang Jae-ha.

'So that's the... the manager Kang Jae-ha the rumors say is killer at his job. He does have an unusual air about him, something strange to it. Lifeless, but sharp, maybe?'

Of course, Director Baek Jeong-ha had no idea that the man she was looking at was the real power behind 'MEG', the company she'd met with several times.

At that hour, an article about a Master director's New Work went up in the film press.

《[Exclusive] Master Director Yu Gil-tae's New Work 'Mask of Murder' Proceeding With Unprecedented Sole Investment, Which Investment Firm Landed It?》

It was about 'MEG'.

*****

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