I Became the CEO of an Idol Company in a Game Chapter 109

<Episode 109>

 

Spade Joker’s fan meeting opening was a complete success.

With my arms crossed, I nodded.

It was an expression of satisfaction.

The stage lights wrapped around the members, and the fans burst into cheers.

The texture of the cheers was consistent. Familiar.

I briefly closed my eyes, comforted by that familiarity.

“This is how it should be. Yeah, this is how it has to be.”

Han Suseok, who had just entered, spoke with a smile.

“CEO, it seems the teaser for Florence is getting a good response… an advertising offer has come in.”

“Already?”

“Yes.”

Han Suseok handed me a tablet.

On the screen was an advertising proposal.

At the top, written in bold letters:

[Florence × Beauty Brand Collaboration Proposal]

It was a neat document.

I stared at the screen for a moment, then slowly scrolled down with my finger.

On each page, phrases like “positive response,” “rapid growth,” and “brand image enhancement effect” were repeated.

“When did this come in?”

“Less than a day after the teaser was released.”

At his words, I slowly set the tablet down.

“Cosmetics, huh. That’s perfect.”

There was a reason we had shown off Florence’s visuals so extravagantly in that three-minute teaser.

The fact that an ad offer came in before they had even held their debut showcase was a positive sign.

“I looked into the company, and they haven’t had any controversies. The concept they proposed isn’t bad either. Their motto is pursuing natural beauty, and it seems to match Florence’s image well.”

“Natural beauty? That’s spot on.”

Han Suseok added,

“And CEO, on SNS, hashtags are blowing up. Fans have started pushing ‘#Waiting_for_Florence_Debut.’”

I handed the tablet back to him and let out a deep breath.

That breath carried all the tension I had been holding in for days.

“All that hard work paid off.”

“Indeed.”

Han Suseok replied with a smile.

“At this rate, I almost feel like I should thank Joo Youngjun.”

It was a self-deprecating joke.

At that, Han Suseok looked slightly surprised.

“Well, it’s true. Noise marketing… we’ve basically succeeded.”

The fan meeting stage for Spade Joker was still ongoing. Perhaps because of that, the fans’ cheers could be heard all the way here, beyond the walls.

Listening to that sound, I smiled.

For the first time, I felt like I might really be able to escape this damn regression loop.

 

***

 

Inside a room with the curtains drawn.

In the darkness, only the glow of a monitor illuminated one person’s face. Beneath that light, the person stared at the screen.

It was Joo Youngjun.

On the monitor, newly posted articles were lined up.

[Ramos Entertainment, Brilliant Reversal After Leak Incident]

[Florence, Hard to Believe They’re Rookies – Impressive Quality]

[John Raid Lombardi’s Comeback Project, Industry Re-evaluation Begins]

His lips twisted.

It was a smile… or maybe not.

He slowly rose from his chair.

On one wall, newspaper articles were lined up.

[Spade Joker First Full Concert]

[New Record Achieved]

[Fan Meeting Sold Out]

‘…The situation has completely turned around.’

As that thought reached him, Joo Youngjun could no longer hold himself back.

He pressed the call button and summoned his secretary.

“You called for me, sir?”

Because of Joo Youngjun, the secretary looked worn out after just a few days.

“What is Spade doing right now?”

“They’re practicing.”

“Call them here immediately.”

“Yes, sir.”

It seemed his misplaced anger was about to be directed at Spade.

Inside, the secretary clicked his tongue briefly.

‘I want to quit.’

Back when A-Pen was still here, it hadn’t been this bad.

But the moment A-Pen left without renewing their contract, the company’s structure completely collapsed.

Even their girl group, Cherish, seemed reluctant to renew their contracts.

They were barely holding on by sending them overseas, but even that wouldn’t last forever.

Cherish didn’t have much recognition domestically, but they had built some overseas presence and still got invited to perform.

Still, that alone wasn’t enough to resolve the current situation.

Because of that, the company’s very survival was in crisis.

‘So just focus on company work. What is all this chaos?’

The secretary hurried toward the practice room.

He knew that if he was even a little late, that anger would be directed at him instead.

He opened the door to the practice room.

Spade, who had been sweating and continuing their practice, looked at him with a puzzled expression.

“The CEO is calling you.”

“…Yes.”

Spade stopped practicing and followed the secretary to the CEO’s office.

Dark shadows hung over their faces, far too heavy for their young age.

The secretary lightly knocked and immediately opened the door.

“You’re here?”

Joo Youngjun coldly scanned Spade from head to toe.

It was the gaze of someone evaluating whether a product had value or not.

Perhaps because of that, the air in the office felt cold.

“What is this?”

Thud.

What he threw was a tablet displaying Florence’s teaser video.

On the screen, close-up shots of the members kept repeating.

Clean, refined “new faces” that the public would like.

“It should’ve been you, Spade, getting this kind of attention.”

His voice trembled as he suppressed his anger.

No one could answer.

There was nothing they could say in this situation.

“From now on, change everything. Style, concept… everything. If you’re worse than them on the next stage, the name ‘Spade’ will no longer exist in this company.”

The members’ shoulders trembled faintly.

“…Understood.”

Spade’s leader answered with difficulty.

“Get out.”

Joo Youngjun’s irritated voice filled the room.

Spade quickly bowed and left the office.

Even as the door closed, Florence’s teaser music continued to play inside the room.

That melody burrowed into Joo Youngjun’s mind.

As if mocking him.

He closed his eyes.

And muttered in a very low voice,

“Ha. Even luck… how can someone be this lucky?”

Joo Youngjun still dismissed John Raid Lombardi’s success as nothing more than “luck.”

 

***

 

After the opening stage ended, the Spade Joker members and Clover continued a communication game using their phones.

[Clovers, please vote for what you want the most.

1. Spade Joker random song dance.
2. Dance to a song that suits Spade Joker the least.]

The moment Clover checked the list, she pressed 2.

She was curious about 1 too, but she felt like she’d get another chance to see it.

But not 2.

If she missed it today, there was no telling when she’d see it again.

The results were immediately tallied on the screen.

‘Seriously, all hail CEO John Raid Lombardi. Using a game made by a Clover as a communication tool… this is insane.’

Clover admired it over and over in her mind.

Not only could fans communicate without shouting, but one of the options would definitely be carried out by Spade Joker.

This was a guaranteed hit.

On the screen, the number “Option 2: 83%” flashed brightly.

The members sitting on stage all grabbed their heads at the same time.

In contrast, Clover let out a joyful cheer.

Green lightsticks waved wildly.

“Ah… this is bad.”

“Are we going to get scolded by our choreographer?”

Laughter erupted from the audience.

The atmosphere in the fan meeting hall softened.

It became filled with excitement rather than tension, laughter rather than pressure.

[We’ll proceed in order of age.]

At the MC’s words, Cain, the oldest and the leader, stepped forward.

“Please give me something easy!”

He shouted toward the concert staff, making the Clovers laugh.

He was just too cute.

Soon, the music started playing.

It was a sentimental historical drama song.

“Ah…?”

Since it was a song with no choreography to begin with, Cain’s eyes widened.

He stood there for a moment, flustered, then began waving his arms around… moving as if imitating a traditional mask dance he had seen somewhere.

Both the Clovers and the other members burst into laughter.

Even as his face turned red, Cain didn’t stop moving until the song ended.

“Wow… that was the longest time of my life.”

He said, wiping his forehead with the back of his hand.

“I can’t be the only one who suffers. Let’s move on to the next.”

This time, the main dancer, Juseok, stepped forward. He stood there with a slightly nervous expression.

Then, a cheerful children’s song began to play.

“Wait, are they all going to be like this?”

Juseok placed his hands on his hips and bent and straightened his knees, expressing the lyrics in a straightforward way.

[Butterfly.]

He didn’t stop there, even forming a butterfly shape with his hands while trying to suppress his laughter.

“Wow, this isn’t a punishment time, right?”

As the song ended, Juseok shook his head and stepped back.

When it was Zen’s turn, a yodel song played, and he waved his arms while spinning in place.

Heeseo pretended to wear a dress and danced to a song sung by a princess from a famous animation.

Lastly, when rock band music played, Leejoo passionately mimicked playing the guitar.

Watching all of this, Clover laughed so hard her stomach hurt.

‘Ah, seriously. The company really knows exactly what we want to see and prepared it perfectly.’