Chapter 60:
"Are you not going to class?"
Hojun, with a bewildered face, points to himself.
"Are you talking to me?"
"? Who else is here besides you?"
Hojun follows his unfamiliar roommate out of the room.
Even after that, he wanders around the school, following other students with a dazed expression.
What's going on?'
The school operates as if nothing had happened.
Hojun, who had been going to and from the classroom without understanding why, suddenly freezes.
Choi Yein.
He saw her, too bright and mingling with friends.
!
However, Yein does not recognize Hojun.
Then Hojun notices the large calendar hanging in the classroom.
The date printed on the calendar is 199X.
!
The close-up of the calendar and Hojun's surprised face is shown alternately, and Hojun realizes.
He is in the past.
Specifically, the past when Yein was still alive.
Confused, Hojun decides to follow Yein to get some clues.
Choi Yein~ Let's go!
30 years ago, Yein had a best friend, a student who looked younger than her peers, with a small stature and big eyes.
Hojun overhears their conversation in the schoolyard.
Yein, just imagine, if if you're pregnant now, what will you do?
What? What kind of question is that, Hong Semi!
Semi looks at Yein with anxious eyes.
Just imagine.
Yein speaks nonchalantly.
Ugh, what pregnancy? That's horrifying. If it were me, I'd just die.
Hojun sees Semi's face turn pale. But Yein doesn't notice.
She just thinks Semi is not feeling well today.
And that night, Semi throws herself off the rooftop.
The kid was pregnant.
Oh my
She died without telling anyone, that young girl.
A funeral hall filled with students in uniforms.
Yein's face is empty.
Just like Hojun's face before he fell from the rooftop.
After returning from the funeral, Yein goes to the art room and stares at her own sculpture.
It was a sculpture she had made in her own image. The X marks she and Semi had drawn on their eyes were still there.
Aaah!
Yein starts to destroy the sculpture.
And in the rarely visited basement, she begins her final work.
Yein's last masterpiece was herself.
She steps into a huge container and encases herself in plaster.
Didn't anyone see? Where did this student go?
How can a student just disappear from school
After that day, no one ever found Yein.
It can't be
Hojun looks at the plaster container Yein entered with a shocked face.
At that moment, the calendar in the classroom starts to flutter in the wind.
Feeling something odd, Hojun tries to leave the basement, but his legs won't move.
Cracks begin to appear in the plaster Yein was encased in.
Clang!
Hojun, unable to move, watches the scene.
Eventually, Yein emerges from the broken plaster.
Her skin, as pale as the plaster, shines in the darkness.
Thump-
Yein slowly adjusts her neck.
Click-clack.
A chilling sound echoes through the basement.
Yein's gaze slowly turns.
Thump-
Yein, with pitch-black eyes, looks at Hojun.
Thump-
It's you.
The moment Yein's chilling smile is close-upped, the screen goes black.
[60 seconds until The Missing Case of Saetbyeol High Episode 8' Part 2 airs.]
Gasp'
Lee Hyejin's breath is caught.
Thanks to the commercial break, she can breathe a sigh of relief; otherwise, she would have had to spend the rest of the time with her mouth dry.
Wow, this is crazy
Shivers
Knew Yein was crazy, but this is beyond what I expected.
My heart almost stopped when our eyes met
Seriously, watched it holding my breath.
The amount of content in the final episode is insane.
Lee Hyejin, after gulping down water and checking the live reactions, sat back down.
She did it to catch the real ending of <The Missing Case of Saetbyeol High>.
* * *
Hojun gasps for air as he opens his eyes again.
But this time, it's not the past.
!
He finds himself hanging from the rooftop, held up by someone's hand.
The owner of the hand is none other than Seunghyun.
Hyung hang in there a little more!
Despite being covered in wounds, Seunghyun pulls Hojun up with all his strength.
The precarious situation of the two makes one's hands sweat.
Please!'
Lee Hyejin clasps her hands together and focuses on the screen.
After what feels like 30 minutes but is actually 30 seconds of struggle, Hojun is finally pulled up safely to the rooftop.
I found it.
What?
The basement.
Seunghyun hears that Yein is in the basement, and he and Hojun decide to destroy the problematic plaster there.
The two enter the basement and start hammering the plaster containing Yein.
Despite getting cuts from the sharp plaster on his hands and face, Hojun doesn't care. He continues to smash the plaster, carelessly wiping the blood on his clothes.
Yein, who had been consumed by the memories of the past, belatedly regains her senses and rushes toward them.
No!
But as Yein approaches them, a figure appears before her.
It's none other than Semi.
Yein freezes in place upon seeing the apparition of Semi.
For the first time, Yein's flustered face is shown.
Semi just calmly faces Yein.
Trembling, Yein watches as Semi takes a step toward her.
I haven't forgiven you.
Semi reaches out a hand towards Yein.
But I know how lonely you've been.
At those words, Yein breaks down.
Yein's continual enchantment of the people at school and her attempts to turn the students into ghosts were all due to her loneliness.
As the plaster turns entirely to dust and flames start to appear,
Yein vanishes.
Accompanied by a lonely tune, the backs of Hojun and Seunghyun standing in the empty playground are shown.
And then the epilogue.
For a while, the news about Saetbyeol High makes noise nationwide. But as time passes, people's interest fades.
The students also shift their focus from ghost stories to entrance exams.
Hojun appears different than before. With his hair cut short and a healthy complexion, he enters the classroom.
However, the scars from that day still remain on Hojun's hand.
The X-shaped scar, red.
In the drizzling rain of the morning,
The drama ends with Hojun tenderly touching his painful scar.
* * *
Ah! Hojun Seunghyun'
Lee Hyejin grips her phone. She feels like she has to write something, or she won't be able to bear it.
Of course, BlueChat is overflowing with people feeling the same way.
That's how Lee Hyejin spends her fiery Sunday, long forgetting that she has to go to her part-time job the next Monday.
* * *
<The Missing Case of Saetbyeol High>'s finale achieves a viewership rating of 15.4%, marking a successful end.
The response was as expected, favorable.
The Missing Case of Saetbyeol High' Han Yooil-Kim Suna-Park Younghyun, insane acting battle
Ambitious TN The Missing Case of Saetbyeol High', surpassing the highest viewership ratings overcoming the controversy with The Smiling Magician'
Director Yoo Jaeho's confident "I'll show something" was justified
The praise for the direction and the actors' performances was expected, and the reaction to the drama's content was equally hot.
The production team, including Director Yoo, was still deeply immersed in the afterglow of the drama.
That was evident just from the daily chat room updates. Yooil, seeing his Mitalk flooded with congratulatory emoticons, put down his phone.
Kim Suna rarely appeared in the group chat.
We're colleagues.
Yooil's answer to Kim Suna's question, Why are you helping?'
That wasn't the truth.
But Yooil knew that revealing his recollection of his own childhood in relation to Kim Suna wouldn't be pleasing to her.
* * *
Even before the final shooting, Yooil had been paying attention to WW Entertainment.
It started with a seemingly unrelated scandal.
Male Actor in a Love Affair with Married Woman K?
Suspicions of a Secret Meeting with an Older Woman The Fall of the Wannabe Boyfriend'
Joo Sihyun Finally Speaks Dismisses Affair Scandal as Groundless'
Various articles popped up on the main page of the portal site.
Yooil frowned as he read the articles on his phone after a long time. Sensational headlines but flimsy content. Articles like baseless rumors.
Reading the malicious articles pretending to be neutral and the excessive comments, Yooil sighed.
This was too suspicious.
Come to think of it, isn't Joo Sihyun also with WW Ent?'
Correct. Currently, Joo Sihyun is about to renew his contract with WW Entertainment.
Could it be?'
Yooil had heard stories of unscrupulous agencies triggering scandals to lower the value of their artists for re-signing.
Correct. It appears to be a scandal fabricated to lower the value of the affiliated artist.
This was a warning to Kim Suna.
A warning not to even think about leaving.
Even more unscrupulous than expected.
Brion responded as if answering Yooil's thoughts.
WW Entertainment is currently pursuing a merger and acquisition with Kedu Media. It appears that Kedu Media has been considering the acquisition of WW Entertainment since last year. They seem to want to finalize the actors' re-signing before the merger.
Ah. Now the puzzle pieces fit.
Kedu Media is a subsidiary of Kedu Group, right?'
Correct.
Yooil sighed softly.
Can I do it?'
He was honestly feeling overwhelmed.
Until Brion spoke again.
Yooil.
What?'
You should see this.
A semi-transparent window popped up immediately.
- Exposing the Corruption of K Group
[I am a former employee of Kedu Construction, having worked alongside the current president of K Group. The current president of K Group used Kedu Construction's stocks as collateral for loans to cover personal debts from gambling, and recently has been demanding collateral even from subsidiaries to pay for the acquired golf course and resort]
Brion showed him an article detailing the corruption within Kedu Group.
This post was uploaded a month ago. It was deleted from a personal blog within 10 minutes of posting, and is now unsearchable. The view count at the time was confirmed to be 5.
How could you even show me this?
Brion replied cheerfully.
Once data is uploaded to the internet, it remains in some form. AI Nano Dictionary, Brion V.15, can access most existing data.
Yooil's jaw tensed.
I never thought I'd say this.'
"Brion. Can we use this?"
Yes. If the whistleblower's story is publicized and discussed, it cannot escape investigation.
'
He knew it, but the AI's capabilities were frightening anew.
Regardless, the information Brion provided was immensely helpful at the moment.
The basis for Yooil's decision to help Kim Suna was precisely this information.
Senior Kim Suna: Are you ready?
Yooil immediately picked up his phone after reading the message.
He contacted the person best equipped to handle such a situation.
* * *
It was a sweet Sunday, but CEO Jang was in the office. He had received a call he couldn't ignore.
Jang Jaehyun looked at the young man sitting in front of him.
He had a characteristically polite smile.
"Yooil."
Jang Jaehyun sighed his name. It was impossible to gauge what he was thinking anymore.
"Everything I told you on the phone is true. The details will become clearer with an investigation."
"How on earth did you"
Yooil slowly opened his mouth. He had prepared an answer for such questions.
"Actually, he's a close friend's cousin."
The whistleblower, the author of the blog post, was initially skeptical of Yooil's contact, then amazed, and finally grateful. So a little lie like this he would overlook.
Jang Jaehyun was speechless before he could finish.
You always surprise me.
Jang Jaehyun looked at the documents Yooil had provided and then spoke.
"Well, we need to get to work."
Yooil nodded. It seemed like he had indeed found the right person for the job.
Jang Jaehyun's eyes, as he stroked his chin, fixed on Yooil.
"But, may I ask how you got involved in this?"
"There's someone I agreed to help."
Yooil then took another bundle of documents out of his bag.
"?"
They were all materials received from Kim Suna.
The documents she had provided were substantial.
Embezzlement, slush funds, and records of various forms of threats and blackmail.
It would have been impossible to gather such documents if she hadn't been collecting them over time.
Though she had said there was no hope, in a corner of her heart, she must have been gathering these pieces of evidence for a moment like this.
[Thank you.]
Yooil slipped the note with Kim Suna's neat handwriting into his pocket.
"I've heard quite a few stories about WW Entertainment too."
The entertainment industry is small, and rumors travel fast. Jang Jaehyun had also heard various infamies about WW Entertainment.
A company that receives investments in all kinds of dirty ways and clings to actors. While at the same time, they cover their tracks cleanly.'
And yet, such a clean counterpunch.
"From what you're saying, you're not planning to blow this up immediately."
"Yes. It seems better to detonate it after the merger with Kedu Media in a few days."
At Yooil's words, CEO Jang looked as if he had been hit by a bomb.
"Haha."
Han Yooil planned to bury WW Entertainment by linking it with the corruption of Kedu Group.
To make sure they never set foot in this field again.
"Yooil."
"Yes, CEO."
"Have you ever thought about going into politics?"
"What?"
As Han Yooil looked at him with a wry face, Jang Jaehyun just chuckled.
"Just kidding."
* * *
"CEO~ I tried to make the office atmosphere more elegant, what do you think~?"
Lee Seokwoo nodded in satisfaction at the manager's words.
His long-awaited desire had come true. With the company's acquisition by Kedu Media, the company he had nurtured was listed on the stock market under a new name.
A perfect deal, maintaining the position of the actual CEO and gaining a strong supporter.
A subtle smile played on Lee Seokwoo's thin lips.
"Ha, on such a good day, why is Suna not coming again~"
"Leave her alone, Manager Kim. She just finished filming the day before yesterday."
"Aww CEO, you're too soft on her~"
To him, she was a butterfly drenched in water.
I did well to break her spirit from a young age.'
Still, she was quite useful. Pretty face and decent acting skills, she was often called here and there.
This drama went quite well too.'
Although he wasn't really keen on it.
If it hadn't been for that young head of Kedu Media, he wouldn't have asked for it.
Suna, she should try other roles to play in bigger waters. How long will she keep doing teenage roles? She can't just take on supporting roles as she gets older, right? Isn't that right, CEO Lee?
The young man's tone was irritating, but in the end, it turned out well.
"Things are going smoothly, very smoothly. As soon as Joo Sihyun's contract renewal is finalized, Manager Kim, I'll give you a generous incentive, so take a trip to Southeast Asia or somewhere."
However, Lee Seokwoo was unaware.
He did not know that instead of a path of roses, a real thorny road was waiting for him.
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