Grab the Regressor by the Collar and Debut!

Chapter 307. Phantom Pain (6)

Parachute.

‘What a discomforting word.’

In this competitive society of South Korea, where people are ranked from birth, is there any word more irritating than that?

‘And on top of that, a golden spoon? How obnoxious.’

The public is much more likely to sympathize with someone they can pity.

The suspicion that a tall, handsome, young boy might have deceived many dream-filled youngsters by using his wealthy family’s influence and the backing of a broadcasting company to rise to the newly noble status of an idol was overwhelmingly detrimental to us.

‘That must be why Han Sung-woo tried to saddle Joo Eunchan with the parachute image early on, to avoid these side effects.’

However, I planned to use even that disadvantage to my advantage.

Sometimes, a disadvantage can become a weapon in itself.

“Hello? …Hajin? Is the youngest awake?”

The first thing I did was make a call to Joo Eunseok.

And I said just one thing.

“Hyung-nim.”

“……?”

“Are you just going to sit still?”

At that one sentence, which clearly revealed my displeasure without any attempt to hide it, Joo Eunseok was silent for a moment. But I didn’t say anything more and waited for his response. He must have understood what my words implied.

The reply came about a minute later.

“…Haha.”

With a laugh that seemed to express how absurd he found it, Joo Eunseok responded.

“No way.”

And the next day.

News articles were published confirming that Joo Eunchan was indeed the youngest son of JDZ’s CEO and the younger brother of Director Joo Eunseok. Along with the official statement from JDZ’s legal team, Miro also released an official announcement, including news about Joo Eunchan’s accident.

<[Miro Ent] Health Status and Future Activities of Kairos’ Eun-chan>

<[Miro Ent] Legal Action and Warning Regarding Protection of K:ROS (Kairos)>

The expressions varied, but overall, both Miro and JDZ expressed deep regret over the recent “incident” and declared that they would now respond to all defamation and rumor-spreading as corporations rather than as individuals.

After the official statement was released, we contacted some media outlets not involved in the accident and provided them with all the information and updates on the incident. Simply by not tailing Joo Eunchan, we granted them the exclusive rights to report the scoop.

<[Breaking News] Kairos’ ‘Joo Eunchan’ in a Coma After Car Accident>

<[Ha Youngseo’s Media View] Blinded by the Scoop, Broken Brakes! Senior, This Is Embarrassing!>

The public was shocked by the news of a popular idol’s car accident and subsequent coma.

In reality, Joo Eunchan wasn’t in a coma; he was simply in a deep sleep due to the sedatives administered after the severe shock. But Miro didn’t bother to correct the misinformation.

News of an accident tends to gain more attention when the victim is severely injured.

– Did the reporter cause the accident on purpose???? Is he seriously insane???????

– I hope those trash reporters get sued and end up eating prison food for this.

– I heard from a friend involved in the situation that it’s not just one or two media outlets that are implicated. Reporters caused the accident while tailing him, and the manager involved is in really bad shape too. Rumor has it that even the other company is sharpening their knives for this.

└ Wow, the insider gossip is everywhere like a ghost.

– I knew the reporters were harsh, but this crosses the line… Just post an apology and close down your company.

– I occasionally saw Eun-chan on my timeline, and he was so cute and charming. I really hope he recovers without any lasting effects ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅜㅜㅠ

The public, outraged by this absurd incident, soon shifted their stance to favor us after hearing the news.

– Why would the son of a rich family pour money into an agency and join a survival show? It’s not like it was a job scam, right? How can people be dumb enough to believe that?

└ Apparently, many reporters believed it and ended up tailing him, leading to this disaster. The standard of journalism in our country is a joke.

– JDZ isn’t going to let this slide; they have to fight this to protect their stock prices. They should round up all the gossipers and crush them, or the company will go under.

– Reporters have been getting bolder lately, and now they’ve gone and messed with a direct line of descent.

└ For real, they messed with a ridiculously precious heir.

└ JDZ is doing well internationally, and this is a critical time for them. They won’t let this go easily.

– This is going to be entertaining; I hope they destroy those reporters.

People started to find the whole situation ‘satisfying.’

At this point, we were already halfway to victory.

‘In a battle of public opinion, it’s all about controlling the narrative.’

The moment we slightly intertwined this accident with the existing narrative of ‘gold spoon versus dirt spoon,’ the golden spoons that Joo Eunchan and Joo Eunseok had turned into alloyed weapons used to beat down the ‘villains’ instead of being seen as mere silverware for someone else’s dining table.

Heroes are better when they’re strong, and it’s more satisfying to defeat an enemy when they aren’t weak.

The public was already thoroughly fed up with the atrocities of the “trash reporters,” and thus, for this moment, JDZ and Miro became more reliable allies than Batman.

The public, with a high probability, wants to be on the side they can look up to.

[This is ridiculousㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ You think K:ROS’s family is so powerful that they can manipulate broadcasters, production companies, and agencies? If they were that amazing, why would they have even bothered with a survival show? They would’ve just handpicked their favorites and debuted them easilyㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ]

Seriously, are the people who believe this brain-dead? At one point, they claimed that Seo EH-hyun debuted thanks to a broadcasting connectionㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

Haha, seriously, Seo-chel’s parents just run a pension in Gangwon-do. Unless they’re selling a few pensions to fund his ads, how could they possibly have connections to a broadcasting company, you idiots;;;;;;;;;

– Leave it; they don’t use logicㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

– That’s what I’m saying!!!!! Listening to them, you’d think they believe broadcasting companies and agencies can be controlled like a neighborhood grocery store~~!

– People who believe in conspiracy theories are hopeless; it’s scarier because they genuinely think it’s real.

– I don’t know about Joo Eunchan, but the theory about Seo Taehyun’s So-cheon being rigged is just ridiculousㅋㄱㅋㄱㅋㄲㄱ Everyone in Korea knows the main PD went all out to cut him out in the later stagesㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

Honestly, this wasn’t so much me manipulating public opinion as it was normal people with normal thinking finally gaining a voice. As they said, even a little bit of deep thought would reveal just how nonsensical the rumors about Seo Taehyun and Joo Eunchan being parachutes were.

All I did was create an atmosphere where that baseless conspiracy theory could be suppressed. At this rate, it wouldn’t be long before the rumors about the two would be dismissed as typical bait for trolls and fade into history.

And of course, I still had no intention of stopping here.

“…Hello?”

“PD-nim, hello. This is Kang Hajin from Kairos. How have you been?”

“Hajin-ssi! Oh, of course. I just heard the news. Is Eun-chan and the Director okay? We were so shocked….”

“Well… It’s not as bad as what was reported. Thank you for your concern.”

The next call I made after Joo Eunseok was to PD Kwon Myungeun, the main PD of *Miro Maze* and currently leading Kairos’ content *Today’s Kairos*.

In my previous timeline, she was my boss. As expected, she seemed to already know the reason I was calling.

“Um… You’re calling because of that controversy, right? About Taehyun-ssi and Eun-chan-ssi….”

“…….”

“Honestly, we were aware of those rumors, of course. But since it wasn’t true, we thought responding might only make it a bigger issue, so we decided to wait and see. Plus, with the Director who usually communicated with us being in an accident, it’s been harder to take action….”

“…….”

“I understand that you’re feeling frustrated right now, Hajin-ssi, but this industry is like this. Sometimes you have to wait and see how things play out, which is tricky.”

Honestly, I thought that once things got tangled like this, there would come a day when PD Kwon and I would have to engage in a mind game, revealing our true intentions. And I was confident I would win when that time came.

Right now, PD Kwon didn’t know me, but I knew exactly what kind of person she was.

‘But now is too soon.’

To someone like PD Kwon, who had survived among sly broadcasters for years, I was just a rookie who had only debuted two years ago, no matter how much credit I was given.

With

Ji Suho still unconscious, my best move to sway PD Kwon wasn’t to engage in a clumsy battle of wits but to lay all my cards on the table and encourage her to join the game voluntarily.

“PD-nim.”

“Yes, go ahead.”

“There was manipulation on our side.”

“…What?”

The card I threw at PD Kwon was me.

The “real” corruption of the past that I had overlooked.

“My votes. You turned a blind eye when they were transferred to Han Sung-woo. In return, you used that as evidence to get CP Yoon ousted and to secure more work from Ntv.”

“…….”

“Are you really okay with me speaking out first?”

Didn’t I say it before?

A disadvantage can sometimes become a weapon.

I planned to use the corruption of that day, which had put me at a disadvantage, as a weapon to threaten… no, persuade PD Kwon.

“Hajin-ssi, are you threatening me right now…?”

“Is that how it sounds?”

“Then what else could it be? It’s quite unsettling, you know? Are you doing this because you never plan to see me again?”

“Then you’ve misunderstood.”

“…….”

“I’m actually pleading with you to help me right now, PD-nim.”

“…….”

“Please help us, PD-nim.”

Please help us.

At that last sincere plea, PD Kwon was silent for a long time. I hung up the phone without waiting for her answer.

Because I already knew what decision she would make.

<“Miro Maze Manipulation? That’s Just Absurd.” Studio A, the Production Company of *Miro Maze*, Refutes the Allegation>

<*Miro Maze* PD Kwon Myungeun: “Manipulation? I Wish I Could Show You the Voting Scores Down to Nine Decimal Places”>

As expected from a smart person, PD Kwon smoothly shifted the focus of the manipulation rumors, presenting them as “baseless rumors aimed at holding back the successful Kairos.” In the process, the controversy surrounding my previous agency also resurfaced, sparking criticism against speculative and sensationalist reporting.

Moreover, as all the current controversies we were facing were now seen as part of a “rising star takedown,” the narrative subtly reinforced the image that Kairos was the most prominent and talked-about group among the new idols.

“…Ah. What a scary person.”

This is why I didn’t want to get involved with her in this timeline.

Still, I silently thanked PD Kwon for ultimately siding with me, as I took a refreshing sip of the dandelion tea on the conference table. Soon, I saw Hyung Wook, who had stepped out, re-enter the conference room after finishing his call.

“Did I keep you waiting? PD-nim is on her way up now.”

“No, it’s fine. We did barge in unexpectedly.”

It had already been two days since the accident.

Since I expanded the scale of the situation with Hyung Wook’s help, all public opinion and media were now entirely in favor of Kairos.

And today, I was in the Ntv entertainment division’s office, having barged in unannounced to meet the person who would reveal my last card.

“…Ah, I’m sorry. Have you been waiting long? I just finished the preview and came up….”

The conference room door opened again, and a man with a familiar and now almost endearing warm expression entered. Looking like a giant teddy bear, he seemed unusually exhausted, as if he’d been through a lot of stress over the past few days.

Of course, I just smiled and extended my hand for a handshake, paying no attention to his condition.

“Hello, PD Choi. How have you been?”

“…I haven’t been great, but seeing you, Hajin-ssi, gives me some strength.”

The former *A Countdown* PD and current *Boy’s World 2* producer, PD Choi, who would reveal the truth behind the suspicions surrounding Seo Taehyun’s *Boy’s World*, shook my hand with a bitter smile.