I Became the CEO of an Idol Company in a Game Chapter 108

<Episode 108>

 

That night, Florence’s video spread rapidly across SNS and online communities.

 

↳ Honestly, they seem sincere. Wow. It must have been hard for them to even get their heads straight because of this controversy, so it’s surprising that kids who haven’t even debuted yet uploaded something like this.

↳ Their expressions look real. I don’t think they’re lying.

↳ They look like they’re about to cry…. Seriously, the way they’re holding back tears makes my heart ache so much. Ha…. They’re still young. One of them just turned twenty, and the rest are minors. And if the conflict rumors were actually true, I don’t think they would have debuted them in the first place.

↳ Rather, the way they stay composed even in this kind of crisis is so admirable.

↳ The people who wrote those articles must be ashamed. But seriously, why do reporters write articles without even properly checking the facts? Ramos Entertainment even released an official statement. They said Florence is a team they formed themselves, not something the company put together.

 ↳↳ Come to think of it, there’s not even a single piece of evidence… just “someone said so” type of articles. Feels like they were determined to ruin a girl group.

  ↳↳↳ That sounds about right. Conflict between members is a risk that can’t be hidden, so debating them despite that? There’s no way CEO Jeon Ryedo would be that stupid.

 

The video’s views skyrocketed, and in just one day, the keyword “conflict rumors” was replaced with “Florence sincerity.”

 

***

 

A video suddenly arrived from Yoo Jeongyeon.

When I checked it, it was a video Florence had filmed themselves. The moment I saw it, I thought it was a great piece of content to break through the current situation, so I uploaded it as-is without any editing on purpose.

And then I used an item.

[It makes your celebrity look their brightest.

Price: 5 million won.]

The same item I had tested with Spade Joker’s video.

Originally, I planned to use it for Florence’s official teaser video. But the moment I saw this video, I quickly changed the plan.

Because I thought increasing this video’s impact would be far better.

Thanks to that, the view count was rising quickly.

‘To think they’d film something like this on their own.’

A smile naturally formed on my lips.

This video would break through the final trap set by Joo Youngjun with overwhelming force.

‘Now there won’t be any more articles about Florence’s conflict rumors.’

And this kind of image would become fixed.

Victims who suffered from a leaked debut song and conflict rumors before even debuting.

And yet, idols endured it firmly.

‘This image will become a great strength for Florence.’

It was only natural.

Sympathy.

It’s one of the best materials to draw public attention and an emotion that plays a huge role in forming empathy.

‘Spade Joker also received more support because they had a similar narrative.’

For idols, narrative is important. You could say it’s part of fandom culture.

By now, Joo Youngjun was probably pounding his desk with his fists, swallowing his anger.

‘If we succeed in tracking the IP now, we can wrap this up for good.’

The thought that we could soon bring Joo Youngjun down lifted my mood.

‘He came at us sharply, but it looks like we can overcome it somehow. And get rid of that thorn in our side, Joo Youngjun, in the process.’

I casually took a sip of coffee. The bitter coffee somehow tasted incredibly sweet.

 

***

 

Amid Clover’s worries, the day of Spade Joker’s fan meeting dawned.

To meet their fans, they woke up early in the morning, got their hair and makeup done, and arrived at the venue.

“What about the fans?”

Leejoo asked Kim Jawook.

“They’re entering right now.”

Leejoo nodded at that.

“Are our gifts being handed out when they enter?”

“Yeah. The fans who’ve entered should have received them.”

Leejoo smiled at the thought of talking about the Polaroids they had personally taken when meeting the fans shortly.

“I hope Clover enjoys it as much as we prepared.”

Cain said, his shoulders bouncing with excitement.

“They will.”

Kim Jawook replied with a gentle smile.

Even with the emergency caused by Florence’s situation, Spade Joker’s fan meeting had been perfectly prepared.

From planning for the fans, to gifts, to stage effects…

Nothing was lacking.

The rehearsal also went smoothly.

Once the fan meeting started, the fans’ worries would melt away like snow.

At that, the Spade Joker members gathered their hands together.

“Alright then, let’s do this. Fighting.”

“Let’s go.”

 

***

 

At the same time, fans were entering the venue.

“This is a gift from Spade Joker.”

The Clover who received a small pouch wanted to check inside immediately, but since she hadn’t taken her seat yet, she held herself back.

After sitting down, she examined the pouch. It was a black pouch with a clover pattern engraved on it.

‘Wow. It’s simple but pretty.’

For some reason, the clover engraving made her feel like it would bring good luck, lifting her mood.

Smiling, she opened the zipper. Inside was a Polaroid photo.

With trembling hands, she picked it up.

‘What is this?’

At the bottom of the Polaroid were the members’ signatures.

When she flipped it over, she saw writing as well.

‘Wow. This is insane.’

Seeing the densely written message, she puckered her lips, trying to hold back the tears welling up.

‘Our boys really set out to make me cry.’

[Clover, thank you for coming all the way here today! I hope you have a great time at the fan meeting. Thank you always for supporting us, we love you.]

Next to the text was a roughly drawn clover doodle.

At that moment, she felt the gaze of another Clover sitting next to her, glancing at her Polaroid.

“E-excuse me.”

“Yes?”

Startled by the sudden voice, she flinched and turned toward them.

“Um… it seems like all the photos we got as gifts are different. Would it be okay if we checked?”

At those words, she compared her Polaroid with the one held by the Clover next to her.

The outfits and hair were clearly the same, but the poses were different.

“Wait a second….”

She was so shocked that she lost her words for a moment.

“…Is this even possible?”

They checked the Polaroids of other Clovers sitting nearby as well.

“They took different photos for all these people?”

Their voices were filled with awe and admiration.

No matter how much they cherished and loved their fans, this felt physically impossible.

Considering the number of Clovers filling the venue, it couldn’t be helped.

“Are the letters different too?”

In a hurry, she flipped over the Polaroids to compare the messages as well.

[Clover, hello! How do you feel about coming to the fan meeting today? We’re so excited. We prepared really hard because we’re looking forward to having a fun time with Clover. Let’s make it an unforgettable time.]

“…Then does that mean they wrote each letter individually? No… did their wrists even survive that?”

“Exactly.”

“Wow, I think I’m going to cry.”

“Me too… They’re making us cry before the fan meeting even starts.”

The Clovers nodded in agreement with each other.

At that moment, a QR code appeared on the concert hall screen.

[The game with Spade Joker will begin shortly. Clovers who wish to participate, please access via the QR code.]

The Clovers looked slightly surprised by the sudden notice, but soon took out their phones and accessed the QR code.

It connected them to a game that a Clover had created some time ago. Compared to before, the graphics had become more refined.

‘What is this?’

Because of the Florence situation, the Clovers had assumed the company wouldn’t have had the capacity to focus on the fan meeting.

But that wasn’t the case.

It hadn’t even properly started yet, but the Clovers were already unable to contain their excitement for this fan meeting.

At that moment, a notification popped up on the game screen.

[Spade Joker will be entering shortly. Clovers, please choose one of the following:

1. Spade Joker enters normally.
2. Spade Joker enters in a special way.]

It was a choice designed to let Clovers participate in the stage production.

But of course, the answer was number 2.

The company likely knew that and designed the question this way.

‘Still, I’m kind of curious about option 1.’

She couldn’t completely shake off her curiosity about how it would play out if option 1 were chosen.

But her finger pressed 2.

[The results will be tallied and shown on the screen shortly. Please check.]

She raised her head and looked at the screen.

The display moved busily before gradually slowing down and revealing the numbers.

[Result Announcement

1. 32%
2. 68%]

The proportion of Clovers who chose option 1 was higher than expected. It seemed many couldn’t overcome their curiosity, unlike her.

[Spade Joker will be entering ‘in a special way’ shortly.]

The moment the message appeared, all the indoor lights went out.

Soon, the Spade Joker members appeared descending on lifts from above.

A soft white light gently illuminated them.

They were wearing white sweatshirts, denim overalls, and fluffy white angora fashion items.

In the background, the intro of their song [I] began to play softly.

“Waaaaaaaah!”

The Clovers screamed at the top of their lungs.

In the hands of the Spade Joker members were white handheld microphones.

[When you look around, it’s nothing but darkness

I can’t see anything]

It was the true beginning of the fan meeting.