LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 58
Choi Kwang-su, the variety show PD of GMN, couldn’t believe his ears when he received a call in the morning.
Well, it’s understandable because the show he was managing was practically on its last legs.
It had been ages since a guest graced their set, and recently, they had been relying solely on the existing members.
Surely, it had to be that way.
“Excuse me? A guest for our show?”
He thought he misheard.
Well, sure, there can be guests.
But the problem was who that guest was.
Joo Seo-yeon.
The actress who had recently become a hot topic on the variety show Looking Back at the Past.
Not to mention she had been performing theater in Daehangno, with tickets selling out every day, or the rumors of her contract being terminated with RY Entertainment.
She was a hot potato in the news.
Considering her fame, there was absolutely no reason for her to participate in this cable variety show.
“But I don’t even know what that actress looks like.”
At that moment, Hwang Joon-ho, a cast member of If It’s on, It’s a King who just happened to be having a casual meeting with Choi Kwang-su, took a bite of galbi and chimed in.
Hearing that, PD Choi couldn’t help but chuckle.
They had been working together for ten years, so they were practically best buddies, but hearing such a thing from Joon-ho was just absurd.
“Ah, have you been meditating in the mountains for the past, what, 10 years?”
“Ten years is a stretch.”
“No, I mean, Joo Seo-yeon became a hot topic starting 10 years ago. Don’t you know The Moon That Hid the Sun?”
“I know of it, just haven’t watched it. I was a senior in high school, so I couldn’t watch dramas back then.”
Sure, if he was a senior in high school, that made sense.
Wait, hold on a second.
If he was a senior, he probably shouldn’t have even participated in If It’s on, It’s a King, right?
“I distinctly remember you being over twenty back then, what are you talking about?”
“Oh come on, you’ve got a good memory.”
But it was understandable that he didn’t know Joo Seo-yeon.
He might have seen her in commercials, but the only thing that stood out in his memory was The Moon That Hid the Sun.
Plus, her shocking appearance on Looking Back at the Past.
At that time, Park Jung-woo’s reaction and her dramatic entrance were literally replayed on cable TV daily.
After that, Looking Back at the Past changed its format to ensure they always had at least one guest, and shockingly, their ratings started climbing.
They literally saved the show.
“We could do the same, right?”
“Hmm. Yeah? Ah, you’re right.”
Chewing on the galbi bone, Hwang Joon-ho became curious.
Who in the world was this actress that made this guy so excited?
“Show me a picture. I need to see her face.”
“Not joking, you really don’t know her? Here, look.”
“Let’s see……”
PD Choi’s phone screen displayed a recent photo of Joo Seo-yeon.
In a lovely costume as the princess at Yeonhwa High School.
The moment Hwang Joon-ho saw her appearance, he literally dropped his galbi bone.
“She’s a high school student?”
“Yeah.”
“Wow, I don’t usually think actresses are pretty when I see their pictures, but she’s something else.”
“Right?”
“I see why she’s popular.”
“Absolutely.”
“So why is she coming on our show?”
“That, I have no idea.”
The two looked at each other in disbelief.
Based solely on her looks, she was leagues away from the gaming world.
The “it girl” of the moment.
That’s what you’d expect from the aura that stars have, right?
“Well, we’ll find out when we meet her.”
“Since she’s willing to come, we have no reason to refuse.”
“A smile hasn’t left your face since suddenly, huh?”
“Cough.”
Really, who wouldn’t be happy with a pretty actress coming on the show?
Anyway, PD Choi gazed again at Seo-yeon’s photo.
‘She isn’t going to have ridiculous demands, is she?’
I have no money, you know.
But anyway, there was no harm in having a chat.
PD Choi sent his reply, thinking so.
*
Meanwhile, while such talks were happening in If It’s on, It’s a King,
Seo-yeon was successfully wrapping up a performance of Closing Eyes and was giving her curtain call.
The first performance in a play is usually avoided by people, but the last performance is often preferred.
The reason being, at the last show, known as “Makgong,” various special perks are usually granted.
Ad-libs in theater or curtain calls.
And the actors often leave their thoughts about the performance.
Those who are somewhat familiar with performances might have seen one before but come one more time for the last show.
“Thanks to Miss Joo Seo-yeon, we had a hit this time. Wow, it’s the first time I’ve had a completely sold-out show while doing theater! I’ll strive to get on stage like this again in the future!”
The actor who played multiple roles in Closing Eyes shouted loudly and bowed.
Next up was Sim Cheong-seok, who played the character Baesung-hak.
“At first, to be honest, I thought it might be hard, but it truly was a fantastic stage.”
Saying this, he briefly glanced at Seo-yeon.
“I’d really like to act with you again next time.”
Upon hearing that, Seo-yeon made a slight grimace, saying “uh-huh.”
“Well, it might not be on stage next time, but I look forward to it.”
After a rather straightforward curtain call from Sim Cheong-seok, it was Seo-yeon’s turn.
Until now, it was a normal curtain call, but the atmosphere changed as Seo-yeon stepped forward.
Cheers erupted from the audience.
Though she wasn’t the lead, the one who had attracted the most attention in this play was undoubtedly Joo Seo-yeon as Hong Jeong-hee.
“……Thank you. I could only perform well thanks to all the audience members here.”
Seo-yeon bowed deeply as she spoke.
And the people patiently waited for what else she would say.
But Seo-yeon was fidgeting.
Should I say more? That seemed to be the vibe.
“Ah, Seo-yeon, I heard you have another project lined up next?”
“Excuse me?”
Quick to jump in and ask was Sim Cheong-seok, who had been collaborating with her all this time.
He picked up on her demeanor that said ‘I’ve said all I needed to say.’
Though he spoke with a smile, Sim Cheong-seok’s sharp gaze was on Seo-yeon.
At this point, Seo-yeon realized her greeting had been too brief and hurriedly added, “Ah, yes. I think I can greet you in a movie next time. They say the release is planned for the end of this year.”
Cheers erupted from the audience at the mention of a movie.
There were brief conversations regarding what role she would play and what the film would be about.
Thanks to Sim Cheong-seok, who inadvertently became the MC of the evening.
“Oh! And I’ve also just confirmed an appearance on a variety show!”
“A variety show? Already?”
Sim Cheong-seok was genuinely surprised.
Though she had gained popularity from theater, for her to already confirm a variety show appearance was quite the surprise.
‘Is this what they call skimming the spotlight?’
Sim Cheong-seok thought to himself while clicking his tongue.
During this play, his mindset changed somewhat.
Previously, he’d have been satisfied just to perform on small theater stages, but now it was different.
Seeing Seo-yeon made him want to play in bigger ponds.
He wanted to show his acting to more people.
“What variety show?”
A show suitable for a female actress.
And considering Seo-yeon’s recent popularity, he assumed it was a variety show to promote the film.
As names of famous variety shows came up from the audience,
“If It’s on, It’s a King.”
“?”
That was a variety show nobody expected to hear.
The once-cheering audience quieted down—it certainly wasn’t just a figment of their imagination.
And the following day at school.
“What were you saying during that curtain call?”
Lee Ji-yeon said while looking at the screen of her phone.
“The hot topic Yeonhwa Princess, ‘If It’s on, It’s a King’ appears??”
“What’s the reason for participating in ‘If It’s on, It’s a King’, just before it wraps up?”
There weren’t many articles, but they were solidly posted on Naver’s main page.
Seeing that, Seo-yeon felt unfair.
She thought mentioning it for promotion would be nice.
Other actors did this much.
And what’s so bad about If It’s on, It’s a King?
It’s entertaining.
It’s been about seven years since she last watched it, though.
“Anyway, you’ve definitely caught some attention. It’s more buzzing in communities than the articles.”
“Really?”
“Well, it’s better than not being noticed at all.”
As Ji-yeon said, there were indeed some discussions happening in various communities.
Just skimming through the comments, you could see:
– “Another fashion gamer, right?”
– “So, did the show go totally downhill?? Is the agency in shambles??”
– “So, can she even play games?”
– “Since she’s a high school student, seems like they’re pushing the friendly concept?”
– “Probably going to make the show awkward by not picking up the vibe, lol.”
After reading those comments, Seo-yeon felt one emotion swell up inside her.
‘I need to learn boxing.’
I’ll just hit them once each time we meet.
That thought filled her mind.
‘They’re asking if I can play games, huh?’
Of course, she was confident in her gaming skills.
After all, didn’t the million TS squad prove that?
When you think of TS, you think of gaming—it’s common sense.
If you don’t know, memorize it.
So Seo-yeon believed without a doubt that she would be the same.
Truly.
*
A few days later.
On the day of If It’s on, It’s a King filming.
The cast, who were getting ready for the broadcast with the same familiar faces and the same usual stance, was secretly excited.
It was the first guest in a long time.
And the guys were feeling lighter seeing the face of Seo-yeon they’d seen in pictures.
Even though there were two female cast members, they were also secretly looking forward to it.
“Better sit at a distance.”
“Her face is really small. Gotta avoid sitting too close.”
If It’s on, It’s a King didn’t even have a proper set.
Lately, they had been filming at PD Choi Kwang-su or Hwang Joon-ho’s homes.
However, it had genuinely been years since they had filmed at GMN.
“Seems like they’re quite excited after watching Looking Back at the Past.”
“Well, still, it can’t be compared to terrestrial broadcasts…”
While it’s true that Looking Back at the Past had ratings around 3 to 5 percent, it was still incomparable to cable variety shows.
Well, anyway, for the cast, it was all good news.
A comfortable shooting environment was welcomed.
As they were preparing in GMN’s newly created beautiful filming space,
“She’s here.”
“Really? She’s coming now? So the cameras can start rolling?”
“The cameras have been rolling for ten minutes already.”
Oh, really?
Hwang Joon-ho nodded at his co-star Gong Tae-kyun’s words.
“Cough. Alright, then! Today, we have a guest with us! I’m sure everyone has heard by now!”
After some vague responses of “Wow, really?” exchanged,
Hwang Joon-ho, after receiving the PD Choi’s signal, spoke loudly.
“Today’s guest, the return of the Yeonhwa Princess after ten years, Joo Seo-yeon!”
At Hwang Joon-ho’s announcement, the eyes of about six cast members all turned toward the entrance of the set.
Though they had seen many celebrities, every time they saw a new actress or idol, it felt fresh and exciting.
With a soft footstep, Seo-yeon made her appearance on the set.
“Uh, school uniform?”
It was well known that Seo-yeon was an active high school student.
But nobody could have imagined she’d show up in a school uniform for filming.
“Hello.”
Bowing like recalling her younger days as the Yeonhwa Princess.
“Ah! Yes! Hello!!”
The other cast members jumped up and bowed in unison.
Thanks to that, Seo-yeon, who hadn’t anticipated this kind of greeting, could barely handle the surprise.
“Uh… why the school uniform?”
Did she come right after school?
That thought popped into Hwang Joon-ho’s mind as Seo-yeon blinked her big eyes and smiled.
“I got a sponsorship.”
“Oh, really?”
Ah, so the school uniform was sponsored?
Since she was an active high school student and the target audience was primarily young gamers, it seemed the uniform brand quickly sent a sponsorship.
But wait, wouldn’t school uniform brands typically steer clear of game broadcasts due to their image?
That was on his mind, but that wasn’t really something Hwang Joon-ho needed to stress about.
‘But wait…’
Hwang Joon-ho swallowed hard.
He had seen various actresses before, but Seo-yeon’s looks were particularly striking.
He couldn’t help but be entranced.
In fact, the other cast members were just gaping with their mouths hanging open.
‘…Is this okay?’
Weren’t the cameras rolling right now??
As those thoughts crossed his mind, the filming of If It’s on, It’s a King finally kicked off.