*** Dawn Entertainment’s CEO, Yun Yena’s POV ***

About 20 minutes before work hour was over.

Director Jung arrived at Dawn Entertainment.

However, something was off about his appearance.

Gone was the usual swagger in his step, the confident gleam in his eyes that said he owned whatever space he occupied. Today, his shoulders slumped under an invisible weight, and even from a distance one could see how fatigue had etched itself into the lines of his face.

As he crossed the lobby, familiar employees offered smiles and greetings, but he barely acknowledged them, lost in turbulent thoughts. More than one colleague did a double-take at the uncharacteristically despondent figure of the director.

'I wonder what happened?'

I couldn't help but feel concerned and called out to him.

"Director Jung, you're back?"

"Ah, CEO Yun. Good work for today."

"Good work to you too, Director.”

I paused for a moment, thinking how to ask him.

"Did something happen?"

My words came out quiet, as if speaking too loudly might add to whatever trouble he was facing.

"Yes, well…”

He let out a long breath, as if summoning the will to speak a death sentence.

“There's a situation at the contest."

"What situation?"

I straightened my back, expecting to hear bad news about our company to come out from Director Jung's mouth.

Whatever this situation was, if it was something related to our small company, then I knew instinctively that it could spell disaster for our company's future and success.

"Hm? Oh, it's probably not what the CEO is thinking at all. Everyone treated me nicely, and I don't think I offended anyone either."

It seems like I was worried for nothing after all.

Tension left my body as I heaved a sigh in relief.

"Is that so? Then I'm glad."

At the very least, I'm thankful that this bad situation has not affected Dawn Entertainment's well-being in the slightest.

"Haha, yes, CEO. Relationships and trust are important in this industry after all. So I tried to pay special attention to that."

"That's true."

In the first place, the reason I allowed Director Jung to go there was to build a relationship and find a good writer.

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

It would be like putting the cart before the horse if the reverse happened and he made enemies instead.

"So, what happened, exactly? You have that look like something's troubling you."

"Really? Well…”

Director Jung sighed.

"It's the contest results that have me worried.”

“What do you mean?”

“The thing is. I found a very good writer. The writer was head and shoulders above the rest. Their work had us all in awe, to the point that every judge except one nominate them as the winner.”

"Yes? Isn't that a good thing?"

So why does he look so troubled as he said that?

“It’s just… There was this one judge, an established author, who took an instant disliking to them. She vehemently refused to even consider nominating them."

“Just because of one judge? Wasn’t it supposed to use a voting system anyway? So isn’t it fine to just let the voting begin and ignore that one judge?”

“The problem is the identity of that one judge. She was someone that no one can just ignore.”

“Who was it?”

"Gu Gyuri."

“Gu Gyuri… The best writer in Korea? That Gu Gyuri?”

He nods.

I think to myself, weighing the implications. A single biased judge threatened to obscure real talent

“What’s the reason?”

"We don’t understand it too. Why did she disagree so vehemently? But as everyone continued to praise the work, she threw a fit and threatened she would never work with anyone who approved of this writer ever again. Including the production company who support this writer."

"Hm…"

A childish reaction. Then again, it's a very unusual reaction considering the person's reputation.

"Gu Gyuri did that?"

"I know right? I was surprised too. It's the first time I ever saw her throw a fit."

"Yes, who would have thought…"

She was called the best writer in Korea, very well-known for regularly giving away her wealth for charity and being praised as a saint.

No one, not even the staff who have worked with her together in the past, ever talked ill behind her back, which is unusual in this industry where word of mouth spreads like wildfire.

"I wonder if she's simply having a bad day."

"Well…"

"You seemed to think otherwise, Director."

"If you saw what I saw, I think you would doubt her a bit more too. I mean, would a truly good person threaten others like that? So, rather than the clean image she showed in public, isn't this closer to her true nature?"

A shocking remark.

"... It's not impossible."

However, no matter how shocking it is for Gu Gyuri to behave like that, at this point, what we are saying is nothing more than wild guesses.

I should change the topic.

"So what happened to that writer?"

"They're disqualified."

"Yes? Isn't that too harsh?"

"No one wants to risk losing Gu Gyuri's favor over an unknown writer. Even more so since her work has consistently brought success to the people she worked with."

"Ah…"

I think I can understand why Director Jung looked so regretful.

To think that they would disqualify him just for that.

"It seems like that writer had something to do with Gu Gyuri."

"..."

A bad relationship. Or maybe something even worse than that.

"Haa… What a shame, really. To think that such brilliant talent would lose their chance at success before they could even take flight."

Director Jung heaved a sigh.

'It doesn't feel very pleasant for me, either. But it's not like I don't understand everyone's position. '

The judges consist of Directors and writers. They're not even CEOs, so how could they make a decision that might harm the company they worked so hard for?

'However, I'm different.'

Because I am a CEO, the top decision-maker for the company.

So maybe, just maybe, I can take a stance that no one else could.

"Director Jung."

"Yes?"

"About that writer… Do you think we could recruit them to the company?"