CHAPTER 48: MEDIA PLAY

THE NOTICE for Yeon Soobin and Jang Semi’s press conference was sent a mere three hours before the event.

But reporters from all the major news sites and broadcasting stations filled the room.

It was rare for Yeon Soobin to come out of his Hidden Workshop, let alone appear in a press conference.

On the other hand, Jang Semi was often interviewed both as the God Alchemist and the owner of a huge conglomerate. However, it was the first time Jang Semi did a press conference with another person.

And that person was THE Yeon Soobin.

Of course, no reporter or journalist would miss this chance to interview two of the people who helped Korea survive for the past nine years since the Outbreak.

And the reason THE Yeon Soobin and the God Alchemist were together...

"Hunter Soobin, Hunter Semi, is it true that Actress Wonhee is your little sister?"

Yes, the reason was Chu Wonhee.

"It is true– Chu Wonhee is our baby sister," Jang Semi said proudly. "I believe you already know how it happened. Years after Soobin’s mother divorced his father, and after my father divorced my mother, the two of them got together. Soobin’s mother and my father married each other and had Chu Wonhee."

"There were private issues in the past that we cannot disclose, but it was the reason why our Wonhee was adopted by the late actress Chu Sara even though Wonhee has both me and Semi Noona. Rest assured, it was in our Wonhee’s best interest at the time to be adopted by my mother’s best friend rather than either mine or Semi Noona’s family," Yeon Soobin added. "I know it’s not right to say this with my own mouth, but even though our Wonhee was adopted by my mother’s dear friend, Semi Noona and I adore her."

Another journalist raised his hand and asked a question. "If that was true, then why didn’t we find out until now about your connection with Miss Chu?"

"Our Wonhee doesn’t like the spotlight when she’s not working, and she’s also too shy to receive our affection openly. That’s why Soobin and I decided to show off our love for our baby sister in a subtle way. At least, ’subtle’ to the public," Jang Semi said, then she pointed a finger at Yeon Soobin. "This child founded an entertainment company so that our Wonhee can start acting again as soon as our country stabilized a bit."

Yeon Soobin laughed as if he was embarrassed, but he nodded in confirmation.

The reporters and the journalists went wild again, as expected. Everyone asked the same questions, though.

"Are you talking about Golden Era Entertainment– Miss Chu’s agency?"

"Isn’t Golden Era Entertainment the first entertainment agency that was built after the entertainment industry practically shut down because of the Outbreak?"

"And is that why Golden Era Entertainment is the only entertainment company who signs exclusive contracts with Civilians in this day and age where Awakened People are more in demand than normal celebrities?"

"Did Actress Chu ask you to build an entertainment agency for her?"

When Yeon Soobin raised his hand, everyone in the room stopped talking.

Only the camera shutters were heard.

That was how commanding the Blacksmith God’s presence was– and that was normal because this person was responsible for all the high-grade weapons produced in all of Korea.

It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that Korea would collapse without Yeon Soobin.

"First of all, our Wonhee never asked anything grand from me and Semi Noona," Yeon Soobin said. "I decided to open an entertainment agency for our Wonhee because when she told me that during dark times, people need some sort of entertainment to distract them a bit from the cold reality, I agreed with her. Of course, I wanted to see my baby sister act again because she shines the best when she’s doing the thing she loves most– which is acting. But I also used the Golden Era Entertainment as a symbol of Korea’s resilience. I wanted to show the world that our country had finally taken back a bit of normalcy that the Outbreak had taken away from us."

Everyone who heard Yeon Soobin’s speech nodded in agreement, not just the reporters and the journalists.

People watching the press conference from home, their smartphones, and the LCD displays all over the country where the interview was being played strongly agreed with the Blacksmith God.

To be honest, in the beginning, the world pointed fingers at Korea when the country’s entertainment industry opened its door once again while the rest of the world was still recovering from the Outbreak’s irreparable damages.

People all over the world accused Koreans of being "crazy celebrity worshippers."

But thanks to the distraction and escape from reality that the entertainment industry provided back then, the citizens got inspired and became more productive. Everyone had become more determined to reclaim what little of normalcy they could get back into their lives.

That was how the entertainment industry helped with people’s mental health during the dark times.

And the world stopped laughing at Korea.

"But all I did was start the entertainment company with my money," Yeon Soobin continued with his speech. "I left the management of the company to people who can do a better job than me since I was busy with my Workshop back then. And, I’m telling you now before a misunderstanding occurs– I have nothing to do with Wonhee’s achievements and success as an actress. I never helped her land roles for a job or a brand deal. It was all her. In fact, only the CEO of the agency knows that she’s my sister. I doubt people from the entertainment industry or the companies that hired our Wonhee as their endorser knew who she really is."

Jang Semi nodded in agreement. "In fact, if you take time to check the brands that our Wonhee endorses, you’ll see that she doesn’t endorse any of the products made by my company. She even turned down roles in films and TV shows that my company produced. Our Wonhee acknowledges her privilege, but she doesn’t wish to abuse it."

A few reporters turned Jang Semi’s words negatively, though.

"It sounds like Hunter Soobin and Hunter Semi are trying so hard to paint Miss Chu as a hardworking and generous chaebol."

"You described our Wonhee well," Yeon Soobin said to the reporter while nodding. "Do you remember the controversy that happened a few years ago when Semi Noona launched her first clothing line as the God Alchemist and not as a company owner?"

The reporters answered and shared their opinions one by one.

"Hunter Soobin must be talking about the HEE Line... oh, is it named after Miss Chu?"

"Isn’t it the clothing line where the clothes are made of silk and cotton made from plants that only grow in S-Grade dungeons?"

"The materials make clothes that are light yet as sturdy as bulletproof vests. But since the materials are hard to procure, the clothes made from them are on the expensive side..."

"Ah! Now I remember. The controversy was about the price of the school uniforms made by Hunter Semi’s clothing line. When schools began to open after our country stabilized, the government asked Hunter Semi to supply uniforms for them."

"As the APA Vice President, I asked Semi Noona to make the school uniforms to protect the children if ever a Crack suddenly burst open near the schools," Yeon Soobin said. "But Semi Noona was so busy with her Laboratory back then that she left the project to her company. Unfortunately, it wasn’t handled very well."

"As a result, the price of school uniforms that were required by each school for the students to wear had skyrocketed without my consent," Jang Semi continued. "There was a middle school student who was humiliated for not being able to afford the school uniform, and our Wonhee got mad at me for the first time because of that."

***

AT THE same time as Yeon Soobin and Jang Semi’s press conference was happening, the live broadcast of a famous online celebrity also went viral.

It was because of the guest.

"Hi, everyone. My name is Lee Seojin and, as many of you already know, I’m Hunter Seodam’s younger brother."

While Lee Seodam was famous for being a good Hunter and the other half of the SeoDa Ship, Lee Seojin was famous for his handsome face and cold personality. His schoolmates dubbed him the ’Lone Wolf’ because of his aloof attitude.

But even though Lee Seojin was rude most of the time, people were still fond of him because he was handsome.

And, apparently, Lee Seojin bullied the bullies to protect his schoolmates.

Just like an "anti-hero."

Lee Seojin hated attention, but there was only one reason why he agreed to appear on his famous friend’s channel.

"Jin-ah, it seems like people were asking why you suddenly showed up at my channel today after turning down my requests so many times before," Lee Seojin’s friend, known as ’Dice’ to his fans and followers, said teasingly. "We’re here to tell you how we became friends~"

"Doh–"

"Dice."

"Yes, Dice stood up for me when we were in middle school," Lee Seojin started with his story. "Back then, I got humiliated at school for not being able to afford the uniform that they sell to students. I wore a set of "imitation" clothes, aka clothes not released by Hunter Semi’s company, because my family couldn’t afford it at the time."

"It was ridiculous," Dice said firmly. "I understand that the school uniforms that the government and Hunter Semi’s company sent to schools will keep us safe in case of emergencies. But does it make sense for a few sets of clothes to cost a small fortune? The school obviously just wanted to profit–"

Lee Seojin covered Dice’s mouth in a hurry. "Anyway, when the teacher found out I was wearing a normal uniform, he humiliated me in front of the class and told me not to return to school until I got the "correct" uniform." Lee Seojin removed his hand from Dice’s mouth. "Then Doh–"

"Dice."

"– Dice got mad on behalf of me. He was the only one who stood up for me back then."

"I just couldn’t stand it. It was unfair. Not everyone was in the same position after the Outbreak. Some families quickly got back on their feet, but most couldn’t."

"During that time, my brother had just awakened as a Hunter," Lee Seojin said. "So, the money that we used to buy my expensive uniform came from the three part-time jobs that he used to have before awakening. Life was that hard back then, so I couldn’t stand the teacher who looked down on me back then."

"Tell them what happened after that."

"I complained to Wonhee Noona."

"And this Wonhee Noona is...?"

"My older brother’s girlfriend at the time," Lee Seojin explained. "I told her what happened at school, then she got so mad on my behalf. Noona told me she’d take care of it, but I only understood what she meant by that a few days after."

"Was that when a philanthropist named Miss H suddenly donated complete sets of uniforms, including summer and PE uniforms, to each and every student in our school?"

"Yep," Lee Seojin said, nodding. "At that time, the fact that there was corruption happening in Hunter Semi’s company was exposed. The corrupt executives in the company connived with the corrupt officials of the Ministry of Education– they caused the price of the school uniforms to increase, filling their pockets."

"Then tell them what you found out after that."

"At the time, the students sent letters to ’Miss H’ to thank her for her donations... and I found those letters in Wonhee Noona’s penthouse."

"So, are you implying that Actress Wonhee is Miss H– the philanthropist?"

"That’s right," Lee Seojin said, nodding. "Wonhee Noona, thank you so much for helping me– us– back then."

"Wonhee Noona, thank you!" Dice added, giving a thumbs up. "You’re the best!"

***

A VIDEO posted in a famous celebrity news portal was also trending at the same time.

It was a video of Chu Wonhee and Choi Sumin’s confrontation.

["Chu Wonhee, I overheard your conversation with the CEO. Is it true that you’re Yeon Soobin’s younger sister? Does it mean you’re a chaebol?"]

["Sumin-ah..."]

["If you want me to keep this a secret, then give up the lead role that you just got. I also auditioned for that role. If you quit, they will definitely get me to replace you."]

["Sumin-ah, I worked hard for this role. I auditioned and got the role fair and square. You can’t ask me to give it up."]

["Chu Wonhee, you won’t die even if you stopped acting. But I will die if I do. This is my last chance to save my career. Don’t you have a conscience? You’re living well while the others are suffering– worse, dying. So, don’t be selfish."]

Below the video was the post of the uploader.

["Hi. I’m a former staff at Golden Era Entertainment, the agency that manages Actress Wonhee and Actress Sumin. I caught Actress Sumin confronting Actress Wonhee. It’s an open secret in the industry that Actress Sumin picks on Actress Wonhee all the time. So, I decided to take this video as proof of Actress Sumin’s bad personality. I was supposed to post this a few years ago. But Actress Wonhee politely asked me not to do it. Aside from the fact that Actress Wonhee doesn’t want people to find out about her background, she also wants to protect Actress Sumin’s career.

I decided to post it today after Actress Wonhee’s family background was finally revealed. Plus, Actress Sumin almost ruined Actress Wonhee’s life because of her false accusation. That’s not something that I can let slide.

Actress Wonhee, fighting! You’re the kindest and the most genuine celebrity I’ve met in my life. I am and will always be on your side."]

The comments below the video were getting crazy.

"heol!!! so choi sumin is the reason chu wonhee went on a hiatus!"

"You can hate Chu Wonhee all you want, but you can’t deny that she’s a brilliant actress. The fact that she’s good at acting has nothing to do with her background– it’s pure talent. She’s better than Choi Sumin, and way, way better than the current Awakened celebrities who only have their pretty faces going for them~"

"Choi Sumin’s fans who cursed Chu Wonhee for leaving the drama and causing inconvenience to the director and staff while praising Choi Sumin for "saving" the show, come out and apologize to Chu Wonhee!"

***

HAAAH.

Wonhee didn’t expect that even the fact that she had been supporting several organizations, charities, and orphanages would get exposed...

That she built a whole animal shelter for abandoned animals...

Even that one time she paid for the hospital bills of her manager unnie’s mother...

All her good deeds were exposed at the same time.

It was a part of their plan, yes.

But she felt like her older siblings had gone overboard when all they had to do was to make the public forget about her drug scandal.

"Wow," Yejun, who was sitting next to her as they watched the press conference on the TV, commented. "Wonhee-ya, are your siblings trying to nominate you to become a saintess or something?"

[I know, right?]

Wonhee covered her face with her hands, embarrassed. "They’re putting me in an uncomfortable position," she complained lightly. "If they praised me too much, then people would immediately drag me to hell the moment I make a single mistake."

***

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