The Third-Gen Chaebol Becomes a Genius Actor

Yoo Yeon Seo is crazy.

That’s what I always thought when I was his 12th manager.

‘I have to be as understanding as the ocean to deal with that lunatic, or else I won’t survive.’

I was his 12th manager for about three months, which was the longest record among all the managers who had worked with him.

Anyway, during those three months, I had to endure his terrible personality countless times.

[Hey, did you bring this as coffee?]

[Can’t you do your job properly?]

That was fine. 

There were many celebrities who treated their managers like emotional trash cans and had no manners, not just Yoo Yeon Seo.

But Yoo Yeon Seo was a master of annoying people, without even swearing at them. And he was not only like that to his manager, but to everyone. He was equally rude to everyone.

[Can’t you cover that up? Are you a manager or not?]

[How are you still alive when you can’t do anything right? How do you live?]

[Can’t you get lost?]

If I get lost, who will be your manager?

He would be quiet sometimes, but then he would suddenly flare up like a fit. I couldn’t figure out how to deal with him. He was so fickle and moody, it made me irritated too.

[You broke the light, do you know how expensive that is? It’s hard to get a replacement…]

[Just ask me. Hey, take this money. And what? Are you my friend? Can’t you speak properly?]

But I lasted the longest because I was simple. I would get stressed when he treated me badly, but I would forget it when I turned around. It was thanks to my personality.

‘That bastard will get killed someday if he keeps acting like that.’

But that didn’t mean I forgot everything that happened.

[Long time no see?]

But after the accident, Yoo Yeon Seo was not crazy anymore, but weird.

He stopped acting out and getting angry all of a sudden.

He still had a way of speaking that rubbed people the wrong way, but he seemed more harmless than before. Thanks to that, working as his manager was much easier.

[Why do you act, anyway?]

[Why, am I bad at acting?]

[No, but why do you need to be a celebrity when you have a lot of money and you’re… pretty good-looking?]

You could live well with just the dividends from your stocks. I muttered, and Yoo Yeon Seo looked at the pile of scripts in front of him and said.

[It’s fun.]

[What?]

[When I act, I can be anything I want, not just a chaebol’s third son.]

He said that with a sparkle in his eyes as he picked a script. He didn’t have much sparkle in his eyes before. He was barely decent when the camera was rolling.

[Really?]

I thought unconsciously as I looked at him. He seemed to have found some passion for life.

I was lost in thought and just moved my lips, when I decided to look at Chairman Yoo’s eyes.

“I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that.”

“What?”

Chairman Yoo leaned forward from his seat.

“I have a lot of grudges against him too, and I wouldn’t feel any guilt if I did what you asked me to do…”

“…”

“But I keep thinking that this is wrong. I’m sorry.”

Chairman Yoo’s eyes changed. I wondered if I was thinking right.

I could just close my eyes and accept Chairman Yoo’s offer, and I would make more money at once than working as Yoo Yeon Seo’s manager.

‘When will I ever get such an offer… But it feels wrong.’

But I kept feeling that this was not the right thing to do.

Yoo Yeon Seo’s acting was not bad, no, it was quite good these days. He definitely had talent, and more importantly, he seemed happier doing his job as an actor than running his company.

‘Why do I care about his happiness…?’

I sighed softly, feeling weird. Anyway, wrong is wrong.

“If you’re curious, you should just ask him directly. I can’t do it.”

“Really? Hmm…”

Chairman Yoo’s expression twisted. He looked like he was trying to hold back a laugh, but it looked different to me.

“Then I can’t help it.”

“Yes, then I’ll go to the bathroom…”

I wanted to escape from this awkward situation. I got up from my seat and headed for the door where Yoo Yeon Seo had gone out.

“Is the test over?”

And then, Yu Eunho and Im Seunghyun, who had gone out, came in. Chairman Yoo picked up his spoon with a satisfied face.

I ran out of the place like I was fleeing, and I almost bumped into Yoo Yeon Seo, who came out of the bathroom.

“Ouch, you scared me!”

“I was more surprised. What’s up?”

Yoo Yeon Seo’s bangs were wet from washing his face, and water dripped from them.

“What, there’s no towel inside? Dry yourself properly. What’s wrong?”

He looked pale. I squinted my eyes, and Yoo Yeon Seo turned his head away and wiped his face roughly with his sleeve.

“Nothing.”

Yoo Yeon Seo was confused in his own way. 

He didn’t do any memory synchronization or automatic behavior mode today, but he felt strange and his heart was pounding. And he coughed up blood again, which he didn’t have to do.

‘Beta, what’s wrong with my body?’

<We haven’t identified the cause yet. Keep synchronizing.>

‘This is bullshit…’

<The current synchronization rate is 25.36%.>

Beta was useless. Was this the best technology in 2207?

“Hey, can’t you go later? Your grandfather…”

“Are you scared?”

Yoo Yeon Seo’s laugh sounded like he was mocking me, and I scratched the back of my head roughly.

“Are your family having some kind of fight over shares or something?”

“No, we’re not.”

“Really?”

“Why, do you have something going on?”

“…Nothing.”

Yoo Yeon Seo kept asking, but I shut my mouth. I was too embarrassed to tell him.

“Don’t call me out of the blue like this from now on.”

Yoo Yeon Seo grumbled as he stood in front of the entrance after finishing his meal. Chairman Yoo had a smile on his lips.

‘What, he’s so happy to have a meal with his grandson.’

He would split his mouth if he ate with him a few more times. Yoo Yeon Seo thought he should visit him sometimes if he wanted something.

“I’m going.”

“Come often and do some more!”

“When I have time.”

Yoo Yeon Seo turned around without hesitation.

I watched from the large window in the living room as Yoo Yeon Seo and his group disappeared around the corner in their car. Yoo Eunho, who had been watching with me, casually asked.

“So, are you satisfied?”

Chairman Yoo smiled faintly without answering.

“Don’t be like that. Yeon Seo is not a fool. He knows how to read people.”

“Yeah, if you do more, he’ll complain that you’re interfering.”

Chairman Yoo was satisfied anyway. Im Seunghyun was a proven talent, but he wanted to test Lee Taegyeom himself, since he had a dubious record.

“Then I’ll be going too.”

“Already?”

“I still have a lot of work to do.”

Yoo Eunho bowed his head slightly to Chairman Yoo.

“You don’t look good.”

“It’s nothing. I’m just a bit tired.”

“You said you haven’t had a day off from working late lately, right? Take it easy. Who would say anything to my grandson?”

Yoo Eunho relaxed his expression and smiled faintly. Who would say anything to Chairman Yoo’s grandson? Everyone treated him well. There were some employees who flattered him excessively, but he didn’t mind that much.

“I can’t do that.”

“Really? Hehe!”

Chairman Yoo laughed heartily, feeling good. He had outstanding abilities and was diligent, so there was nothing to dislike about him.

‘Yeon Seo, it seems like he’s changed his mind too…’

He could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

“I’ll come again.”

“Okay.”

Yoo Eunho got into the car after receiving Chairman Yoo’s farewell. He still had the conversation with Im Seunghyun in his ears.

[First, I want to hear why you’re asking that…]

[The manager who’s in there now said that, no matter how much his personality changes, his innate nature won’t change.]

[Innate nature…]

That made sense. Yoo Eunho thought he should contact Yoo Yeon Seo’s doctor.

[I think I know what you mean.]

[So, how was it?]

[His original personality is… the same as you know. There’s nothing different…]

Yoo Eunho stopped talking. His innate nature.

He had a good memory, as befitting someone who had been called a genius. He remembered a lot of things from his childhood, not exactly, but vaguely.

His brother who suddenly changed after witnessing Lee Heeseo’s accident. He had forgotten for a while, thinking that anything was fine as long as he didn’t have a seizure. His brother before he was seven…

[…He was kind when he was young. The opposite of the personality you know.]

[Then there must be a reason why his personality got worse.]

[Well…]

He had a clue, but he couldn’t tell anyone else easily.

Yoo Eunho fiddled with his phone for a while and then called someone.

“Hey, it’s me…”

***

Yoo Yeon Seo headed straight to the president’s office after taking Park Hyunjung’s acting class. 

It was rare for a celebrity to visit the company office in person. He could just wait for Lee Taegyeom to bring the script, but he went out of his way to find Han President and Park Manager.

“What are you going to do about the ‘White Tiger’ promotion schedule?”

“What do you mean? I have to do it.”

Park Manager looked at Yoo Yeon Seo incredulously, wondering if he had heard correctly.

“Really?”

“Why, didn’t I do it before?”

“No, you didn’t.”

The original had lost the lead role, and the promotion schedule without the lead actor was… a nuisance to say the least.

“Are you really going to do it?”

“I have to.”

“Wow… good thinking.”

Memory loss was good for something. Park Manager hummed a tune. Yoo Yeon Seo spun the president’s chair he was sitting on.

“Don’t put me in any weird places for promotion. I don’t like that.”

“I know. I’ll adjust it well.”

Han President, who had naturally lost his seat, opened his mouth with a serious expression.

“Hey, Yeon Seo.”

Yoo Yeon Seo felt a chill on his arm. Why was Han President calling his name so affectionately without using honorifics?

“Do you want to do a variety show?”

“A variety show?”

He stopped the chair and looked at Han President.

“Didn’t I not do variety shows before?”

“Oh, right. You remember that.”

That was easy to find out. There were well-organized documents on the internet. There were filmographies of dramas and movies, but nothing about variety show activities.

“You were famous for never going out for promotion or variety shows.”

“Then why are you suddenly asking me to do a variety show?”

“Well… you don’t need to manage your image anymore, and it wouldn’t hurt to go out once in a while, right? You could eat up everyone if you go on a variety show…”

Han President’s expression was strange as he rambled on. Yoo Yeon Seo narrowed his eyes.

“What, do you know the PD or something?”

“No, no, it’s not that…”

That’s right. Yoo Yeon Seo let out a deflated sound.

“What kind of variety show is it?”

Should I give it a try? Yoo Yeon Seo changed his posture, and Han President spoke excitedly.

“It’s a variety show where you run a guest house in a foreign country. You know, you serve food to the guests and stuff like that.”

“Do people watch that kind of variety show? There are a lot of them these days.”

“Yeah, there are. But the ratings depend on who the guests are.”

These days, travel and observation variety shows were popular. They could be boring, but the situation changed if the top stars came out.

“From what I heard, the cast is pretty flashy. You don’t even need to mention it.”

“Hmm…”

“They’re leaving in December, so you can go right after you finish school, right?”

He didn’t seem to be pushing too hard… Yoo Yeon Seo said nonchalantly.

“Where are you going?”

“It’s not decided yet, but they said it’s an island. A resort.”

“An island, then, the sea?”

“I guess so.”

The sea… the sea. Yoo Yeon Seo couldn’t forget the place in his memory synchronization.

‘I could use a vacation anyway…’

Han President noticed the change in his expression and cheered inwardly. He did it! He did it!