Superstar From Age 0

Chapter 249

“Oh my god…”

The sales team was shocked by Lee Seo-jun’s appearance as a juror, but only for a moment. 

They felt relieved that it was not the horrible scene they had imagined and sent messages to each other.

Lee Seo-jun is on the jury show!!

Wow. Doesn’t that mean our book will be buried?

I know. This is just a graduation performance.

What about all the preparations we’ve done?

Well, at least our book will be on YouTube… Maybe it’s not so bad?

…Do you think it won’t be on Plus?

Oh no. We’re doomed.

They received calls from everywhere to come up with a new marketing plan as Mirror might be overshadowed.

They all seemed to have come to work on the weekend. 

The last message made the employee get up and get ready for work.

It wasn’t the worst I had imagined, but it seemed to be close to it.

As I finished getting ready and was about to leave the house, my phone rang.

I thought it was the publisher and looked at the phone screen. 

There were messages and banana talk messages pouring in between the calls.

“What’s going on now?”

I swallowed my saliva and went online.

[The novel ‘Mirror’ chosen by actor Lee Seo-jun]

“Wow.”

I started to get confused whether this was the best or the worst.

***

“Life doesn’t go as planned, but it’s not easy to change this much in a few minutes, right?”

“Maybe because he’s an actor, his changes and reactions are blockbuster-level.”

“Can we… talk without unplugging the phone lines?”

Hero Publishing House conference room.

The president nodded at the ringing phone sound that seemed to pierce through the wall. 

With his permission, the employees who were sitting near the door ran out and unplugged the phone lines.

Everyone sighed with relief as the publishing house became quiet.

“I expected this to happen, but it seems worse than I expected.”

The president rubbed his temples as if he could still hear the bell sound.

“So what’s our plan?”

“That’s right. I thought it would leak out from the school side, but it’s faster than I expected.”

“Let’s start with the meeting first.”

“We can continue with the plan to put a QR code on the book cover and link it to the YouTube video. We have Yeoul Yejung’s consent and we plan to show a screen that says ‘in preparation’ until the video is uploaded.”

Whether they read the novel first and watch the play, or watch the play first and read the novel, QR code would make it easier for people to access it.

“We have to release the book now, right?”

“Yes. We tried to stock up as much as possible, but… It’s earlier than planned, but I think this is a good time since there’s already an article.”

The president nodded with a regretful face.

It was a plan to stock up as much as possible and release them all at once when Lee Seo-jun’s play news came out, and put them on the bestseller list. But it was a little early.

“It would have been enough if it was October.”

“That’s right.”

It was still mid-September.

It was only a two-week difference, but the employees also looked regretful. 

They knew how hard it was to make one bestseller.

“It’s already happened, so we can’t help it. Now we have to discuss how to supply books for the increased demand… No,”

The president laughed bitterly and changed his word.

“For the explosive demand.”

***

Choi Ki, a culture reporter, shook his legs and called again.

The recipient was Kim Hyung-won, the person in charge of Mirror.

He was one of the people he knew who could make this situation a bigger issue.

“I wish he would just give me an interview… He must be getting a lot of calls from everywhere.”

He had been holding his phone for an hour, but he couldn’t get through. 

He decided to call until Kim Hyung-won answered his phone and held his breath at the breaking connection sound.

-Hello?

Kim Hyung-won’s voice came from across the phone.

“Finally got through!”

-Hello, Mr. Choi. Thank you for your article on Book Concert.”

“Thank you very much. The article is getting a lot of views right now.”

It was an article he posted two months ago, but people somehow found it and read it.

“But how did you get in touch with actor Lee Seo-jun? Can you tell me a little bit?”

-Haha. You should know, Mr. Choi.

“…Yes?”

Choi Ki tilted his head at Kim Hyung-won’s words.

He had already decided to make an article on Book Concert after the meeting, so Kim Hyung-won could answer comfortably.

-Do you remember the student who asked a lot of questions? The male student with a black hat.

“Um. I remember.”

Choi Ki, who was holding his phone, glanced at the ‘Mirror’ he had read while calling Kim Hyung-won. 

The trace of Book Concert with Choi Da-ye’s signature. 

He felt a thrill that he had already got the book that others were looking for.

“He was impressive because he asked a lot of questions when no one else did. I became interested in Mirror because of the conversation between the author and the student. I couldn’t see his face well, but he should be in the picture I posted on the article.”

Come to think of it, he recorded it to deliver the Book Concert vividly. 

He wrote the Q&A between Choi Da-ye and the student by listening to the recording.

‘Where did I put that recording…’

He thought it would get a lot of views if he organized it and made it into an article.

‘I have a picture too… Where did I save it?’

As he was looking for this file and that file with his mouse, he heard Kim Hyung-won’s excited voice.

-That student is.

He had just opened the file [(July)Mirror/Choi Da-ye/Book Concert Data] and clicked on one of the pictures at the front. Choi Ki’s mouth opened wide.

“…What?!”

He looked at the side profile of the student with a black hat that appeared on the monitor screen and his eyes shook.

***

[Meeting with Choi Da-ye, the author of Mirror.]

<The novel Mirror by Choi Da-ye is an attractive novel with three episodes and three stories that run through one story…(omitted)>

(Book Concert photo)

(Photo of getting a signature after Book Concert)

(Writer and reader, summary of Q&A)

-Wow, I’m reading this because there are no books.

-They had a book concert two months ago.

-But the readers ask good questions. It seems like it would be fun to just read the questions and the writer’s answers.

=222 The readers must have read the book diligently.

-I want to read the book, but there are no books!

People who were looking for information about the novel ‘Mirror’ that Seo-jun chose saw an article about a book concert. It was a short article with two pictures, but the Q&A between the writer and the reader strangely stimulated people’s curiosity.

Wow, the publisher doesn’t seem to want to sell books. There are no books in the bookstore.

There are only articles about the book concert.

That too, copy+paste of the first article. There is no other information.

Park Sung-won chuckled and sent a banana talk to his friends.

<(A picture of the cover of Mirror with writer Choi Da-ye’s signature)

<I went to the book concert

You? A book concert?

Where did you get the edited picture

<It’s true

<There were not many people, so I thought about leaving in the middle, but I’m glad I stayed until the end.

…Did you only have five people?

People left in the middle.

“Hmm?”

Park Sung-won recalled his memory.

Five out of ten people left in the middle and five remained in their seats.

A man who looked like a reporter holding a camera, two women who seemed to be friends. A male student in a black hat who asked questions diligently. And himself.

< 5 people + writer + host

<One of them seemed like a reporter.

Wow. Wow…

Did the male student in the black hat keep asking questions?

He spoke well and confidently?

Did he have any aura?

<I don’t know about aura… but the kid in the black hat was smart.

<If it wasn’t for him, I would have left in the middle.

<But how did you know?

Wow… this is crazy.

Look at this. (link)

[(Exclusive) The day when writer Choi Da-ye of Mirror met actor Lee Seo-jun!]

<A small space, seven readers and three reporters, and one writer met.

At first, only the host and the writer talked to introduce ‘Mirror’.

Three readers and two reporters left their seats as if they were bored. (This reporter stayed until the end!)

(A picture of ten people sitting)

(A picture of five people sitting)

The space where half of the ten people left was filled with awkward air. The other readers also wondered if this was how the book concert would end, but! A student in a black hat raised his hand with a snap! (Unfortunately, there is no picture.)

His voice was loud enough to be heard in this small space, but unfortunately, he didn’t notice it at that time.

(Recording file)

Writer Choi Da-ye kindly answered the passionate reader’s questions with a trembling voice. 

The conversation between the writer and the reader was so interesting that even this reporter became interested in the book.

(Omitted)

A few minutes ago, we received a surprising news from Youngwoong Publishing House.

The student in the black hat who seemed like an ordinary student who liked books was ‘actor Lee Seo-jun’!

No matter how many times we asked, we got the same answer. (It was really actor Lee Seo-jun right next to me!)

(Omitted)

It was a person he never expected to meet here, so even writer Choi Da-ye and the publisher staff were surprised at that time. We will reveal more details in an interview with writer Choi Da-ye.

(A picture of getting a signature after the book concert)

(B-cut picture of student in black hat 1)

(B-cut picture of student in black hat 2)

(B-cut picture of student in black hat 3)

-No way. Why did Seo-jun pop out here?

-Wow… The reader who kept asking questions was Lee Seo-jun?

-I’ve been looking for Seo-jun from start to finish… The male student was Seo-jun…

=22 I was wondering when Seo-jun would come out.

=333 I wondered why there were only stories about the book concert…

-But the reporter’s inner thoughts are too funny He wrote his experience instead of an article

=I like it because it’s like behind-the-scenes

-Calm-excitement-shock-sudden calmness

-Wow. I just went to a book concert and found out that Lee Seo-jun was there.

-There are recordings and pictures. This seems to be the only material this reporter has.

=22 It’s like a treasure that no one else has.

=Even if he releases one picture a day, the views are guaranteed.

-The number of views is no joke. Everyone seems to be looking at this.

-I like this side of Seo-jun. It’s like his real life.

=22 He was ‘actor’ Lee Seo-jun until now, but this feels like ‘student’ Lee Seo-jun

-The two reporters who left first are in trouble.

=That’s right. They missed the scoop right in front of them.

-Wow. I was there.

=Tell us more!!

=I went with my friend, but everyone left, so I was going to leave too. But someone asked a question, so I thought I’d listen for a bit. The conversation with the writer was interesting, so I watched until the end.

=But who would have thought that Lee Seo-jun was there. My friend and I are freaking out I wanted to get a signature

=Is this a success or a failure

=That’s right. He was right next to me and I heard his voice, but I didn’t recognize him

-I have to see the writer’s interview.

=22 I’m curious how Lee Seo-jun came to the book concert.

“Wow…”

Park Sung-won, one of the participants of the book concert, couldn’t finish his sentence.

***

Monday.

Unlike other schools that were buzzing about Seo-jun’s graduation performance, Yeoul Arts Middle School focused on Seo-jun’s audition that would last all week.

After all the classes were over, Seo-jun sat alone in a classroom he borrowed from the teacher.

He planned to hold auditions in this classroom all week long.

Today was background & props. Tomorrow was music. 

From Wednesday to Friday, it was actors.

As expected by his competent manager, Ahn Da-ho, there were a lot of applications for the audition, so Seo-jun had to set the actor audition for three days.

Seo-jun looked through the applications of the students who applied for background & props on the desk. 

Most of them were art students, but there were also some acting students.

When it was time to start the audition, Ju-hee, who went to the next classroom as a waiting room, opened the door and asked. 

Thankfully, his friends agreed to help with the audition.

“Seo-jun, shall we start?”

“Yeah.”

Seo-jun nodded and Ju-hee went to the next classroom and called out to the first child in line for the audition.

“Number one, right?”

“Yes!”

“You can go now.”

“Thank you!”

At Ju-hee’s call, the child jumped up.

The first-year art student who had never seen Seo-jun up close before had a more nervous heart than when he took the entrance exam and entered the classroom.

“Hi, I’m Jung Min-hyung from class 1-5 of art department!”

Seo-jun smiled brightly at his cheerful voice.