The Sacred Manager Life - Chapter 82

I went to the Future Capital building to meet Venom Snake.

It was the same building where Haram had gone to rescue his hyung and turned it into a sea of fire.

Future Capital, Future Investment… I don’t know why a guy with no future is so obsessed with names like these.

"Hyung-nim, you’re here!"

As I opened the office door, Venom Snake’s subordinates all stood up and bowed in unison.

Venom Snake rushed over, making a fuss, and stood beside me.

Anyone watching would’ve thought I was a real mob boss.

"Please have a seat, Hyung-nim."

As I sat on the sofa, Venom Snake obediently took a seat across from me.

"If you have any questions, ask me anything."

"Why is Yang Seok-dae so fixated on taking over Mirinae Entertainment?"

"You know Kai recently transferred there, right?"

"Yeah."

"That bastard got on Executive Director Kim Tae-sang’s bad side. Seems like he’s targeting the company to harass Kai on Seok-dae hyung-nim’s orders. If they take over, they can crush him without anyone noticing."

"If he left the company, why not just let it go? Why hold such a grudge?"

"That’s just Director Kim’s specialty. Plenty of people have suffered under him—unless they leave the industry, they don’t dare cross him. Kai’s just tough."

What a petty bastard.

He looked like a rat, so I guess physiognomy really is a science.

"But while Director Kim’s like that, Seok-dae hyung-nim seems interested in someone else."

"Explain in detail."

"You know that girl group Honey Pop, right? He asked me what they were like before."

This is it.

"Seok-dae hyung-nim doesn’t care about women, so I wondered why he’d ask about a girl group."

"What did you tell him?"

"I said I didn’t know. I’m not into girl groups either."

I asked just in case, but the answer was obvious.

If I piece together what I saw in the Gift of Prophecy, it’s about a congressman’s sponsorship.

Some four-term congressman must be trying to sponsor Seo Yu-na.

"Why are you interested in Mirinae Entertainment, Hyung-nim?"

"Not me—the company is. They’re planning to acquire it."

"Fine Entertainment?"

"Yeah."

His expression said he was already crunching the numbers.

"Guess I’ll pull my money out. If it becomes a Fine Entertainment subsidiary, there’s no point investing. Can’t exactly mess with a company under you, Hyung-nim."

"You can. This time, I’ll break all ten fingers."

"Ugh, you know what I mean."

Venom Snake shuddered.

"I’ll give you a tip—use it wisely. If you mess up, you could take a loss."

The word "loss" made his eyes widen.

This guy really is sensitive about money.

‘Is he also touched by Mammon’s nature?’

[He’s greedy for money, but no. Mammon devours everything with insatiable greed, but this guy knows how to use it. He’s someone who truly understands money.]

"What is it, Hyung-nim?"

"Look into Yoon Tae-hyung, the finance manager at Mirinae Entertainment. Not all of your investment money might’ve made it to the company."

Mammon’s nature is the greed to hoard wealth.

Someone like that managing funds? Embezzlement is inevitable.

"Keugh, so this bastard skimmed my money?"

A vicious smile spread across Venom Snake’s face.

"If he really stole from me, can I handle him myself?"

"Only when I say so. I have a use for him."

After meeting CEO Lee Dae-hwan, I could tell he genuinely cared for Honey Pop.

A man like that wouldn’t force the girls into entertaining clients.

‘A mob boss wouldn’t deal with managers or assistants…’

Eliminating the possibilities leaves only Manager Yoon Tae-hyung.

He’s in the perfect position to secretly call the girls to client meetings behind the CEO’s back.

For the company’s sake, for their success, because of financial issues… Excuses are endless.

And since they’re still young, they might’ve been gaslit into it.

‘No matter how I think about it, it’s that bastard manager.’

I’ll have to keep him alive until the sponsorship issue is resolved.

I could avoid it, but that perverted congressman would just target another girl instead of Seo Yu-na.

I can’t sacrifice someone else just to solve my own problem.

[Good thinking. The God doesn’t want you to avoid problems. If you’re going to act, you should eliminate the root cause.]

‘I know. You’ve always said that.’

"By the way, Director Kim and Seok-dae hyung-nim are in deep shit. They’ve tangled with you, Hyung-nim."

"What do you mean?"

"If they mess with Kai or Honey Pop, you won’t just sit back, right? They picked the wrong opponent."

"Director Kim is one thing, but you’re about to clash with your own boss. Aren’t you worried?"

"I’m only under him because it’s convenient for business in Gangnam. I don’t care about the organization. Loyalty to Seok-dae hyung-nim gets me nothing—just weird errands."

"Then take it all for yourself. I’ll deal with Yang Seok-dae soon."

If I eliminate the congressman receiving the favors and Yang Seok-dae providing them, the sponsorship issue is solved.

Might as well break Kim Tae-sang’s influence while I’m at it.

"Can’t. There’s a No. 2. In some ways, he’s even more troublesome than Seok-dae hyung-nim."

"No. 2?"

"Yeah, Yong-ho. He’s in Japan right now."

Apparently, he’s involved in some business with the yakuza and travels back and forth.

"If Seok-dae hyung-nim disappears, that bastard will take over. But I don’t care about the organization. I just need you, Hyung-nim."

I got chills.

This guy chose this path because he thought violence would make him money faster.

He keeps subordinates for utility, but the organization is just a front for his international dealings—hence the attitude.

"I can take out that manager bastard anytime, just say the word."

He said he’d find the embezzlement evidence himself.

Since I sent Choi Ho-seok creatively, I don’t need to worry about Yoon Tae-hyung.

Red Blossom was won over with food.

Lina brought snacks every time we met at the practice room, Yeoreum filled the fridge with ingredients, and Sera didn’t eat much, so she didn’t count.

I planned to use the same strategy to get close to Honey Pop.

Only by getting close could I learn about their situation.

"Why did you buy so much? You’ll make them gain weight."

"Their manager said they have snack time, so I bought some for our girls too."

"How’d you know what they like?"

"Girls all like similar things, right?"

Since I couldn’t meet them directly, I started sending snacks through their CEO or manager.

I studied Honey Pop’s vlogs and SNS to figure out their preferences.

Having done it for Red Blossom made it easy.

It felt awkward just dropping off snacks, so I ended up having dinner and drinks with Lee Dae-hwan each time. Within a week, we were like brothers.

After a week of this, Honey Pop finally responded.

"The CEO told us. Thank you for thinking of us."

"Hehe, I gained 1kg and got scolded by the manager, but it was so good."

"Manager oppa, can I touch your arm? It looks super hard."

"No snacks today?"

I received their thanks in Honey Pop’s practice room on the floor below the office.

Once the leader, Seo Yu-na, dropped her guard, the others quickly followed.

The three seemed to rely heavily on her.

Seo Yu-na talked a lot about Red Blossom.

"Yeoreum unnie dances so well. I wish I could see her in person."

"Did she really cook all that at the housewarming? How’d she do it in nine minutes?"

"Lina lives in LA, right? My aunt lives there too."

"Sera unnie eats that little?"

She said she hoped they’d meet on music shows.

Honey Pop was releasing a digital single around the same time.

After meeting Seo Yu-na often, I noticed something interesting.

I could roughly gauge her emotions through a yellow light.

It brightened when she was happy and dimmed when she was troubled.

‘So Cha So-yeon and Yeoreum read my emotions like this.’

When something she liked came near, it rippled like a wagging tail.

It rippled when I brought strawberry cream cake and lemon macarons,

…and lately, it swayed like waves whenever we talked.

[She’s drawn to your light, Master. Given time, it’ll turn into affection… Fourth one, isn’t it?]

‘Don’t just increase the count!’

"Red Blossom is lucky. Having a manager like you means they can whine when things get tough."

It took two weeks to earn the "oppa" title.

I worried they might be as reserved as Sera, but they were somewhere between Lina and Yeoreum, so it didn’t take long to get close.

"Our manager oppa works hard, but since this is his first job, he panics when we complain."

"Red Blossom doesn’t dump everything on me either. Personal stuff or girl talk is awkward with me."

I’d started speaking casually with them too.

"But you can talk about group or company stuff, right?"

"That’s fine. Is the company giving you trouble lately? The CEO didn’t show it."

Lately, the yellow light had dimmed, tinged with murkiness—a sign of distress.

"The CEO never shows stress to the staff. I’m really grateful for that."

She said she was worried the company was struggling.

Most idols don’t worry about this, so it’s admirable.

They must not be making much compared to what’s being invested.

"Fine Entertainment doesn’t have that problem. We love performing, but since we’re not hitting it big, the company must be struggling."

In this regard, Red Blossom is much better off.

Even if Amura flops, being under Fine Entertainment means they’re with a major agency.

"The manager also complains to me in private… says we need to do more…"

She trailed off.

When Yoon Tae-hyung came up, my nerves sharpened.

What the hell is this bastard telling them?