Chapter 79: < Protect – Episode 78 – Open Audition [2] >

“Yo!”

“What are you saying?”

Kumiko visited the CEO’s office again by using her family relations as an excuse. For the last few days, she was so busy as if she was working with ten bodies. However, she showed so much talent that people stopped talking about how she got in through her connections. Ahn Soo Ho was taken aback. He thought Kim Woo Jung and Kim Yoo Seon were exaggerating, but there was a reason for that. On one hand, he was certain about one thing. Kumiko was an alpha organism.

“A disease that prevents you from aging…I’m a little suspicious of that, tsk!”

They commonly call it the highlander syndrome, but it wasn’t a formally registered disease. It was rare to see a person aging slowly, but it wasn’t completely unheard of.

“Is reproduction your skill?”

“To be more exact, it’s cell activation. You could see it as reproduction, but there’s a bit of a difference.”

Kumiko admitted it doubtlessly.

“So it’s not completely external.”

“Then I’d have a hard time avoiding the lab as a lab rat.”

She was dangerous just by being able to slow down her aging process. The obsession people had with staying young was never going to die down.

In the end, everything that happened was just an excuse for her. The Dresden File, the G7 Summit, and the company mercenaries were all just excuses to Kumiko.

Ahn Soo Ho tilted his head.

“Are you really only forty?”

“Oh my! You can’t just ask a woman her age.”

He was suspicious by the way she tried to pass the subject. It was possible that she had lived for a very long time. It was not eternal youth, but she had surpassed the average lifespan of a human being.

“What a monster.”

“Who are you calling a monster? You’re not human either, Soo Ho.”

Kumiko looked at Ahn Soo Ho in an absurd way.

“It’s not like I can dodge bullets.”

That was true. She was able to delay aging, but she could still die.

“So why are you hanging around with me, Kumiko?”

“Because it’s the safest place to be right now, and…”

“And?”

“I was suspicious.”

“Of what?”

She stuck her tongue out.

“I didn’t believe that you actually retired. I suspected that you were devising something in secret.”

She couldn’t believe that he gave up the throne so easily. It was difficult for those who obtained great powers to give it up easily. It was just as addicting as sex and drugs.

“I’ve been observing you for the last few days…but you really retired. Who’d believe that the great Ahn Soo Ho gave up everything just to manage this small business? But it was true.”

It was hard to believe, but it was true. The Ahn Soo Ho she saw was truly enjoying his retirement.

“But why? All you had left to do was build an empire through all that you’ve acquired. Why did you just leave? I thought I knew you…but I guess I didn’t, Soo Ho.”

“Yeah, you’re right. I once loved power.”

The reason why he entered this world was because he knew that he needed great power in order to get revenge against those in power.

“I started from the bottom and conquered the huge mountain that was power. World unification? It’s not impossible as long as there’s enough time.”

“Then why?”

It wasn’t just Kumino that was curious. It was everyone. Ahn Soo Ho looked as if he was either smiling or frowning.

“When was it? Three years or four years ago? I visited France because of work. They were booming because of a film festival. If I think about it, after I conquered the acquisition of power, I just got bored of my repetitive life. I didn’t run into much trouble and everything went smoothly.”

People might think he was just spoiled, but Ahn Soo Ho felt a big emptiness at the time. He didn’t know the difference between living and dying.

“After a long time of just wandering about, I ended up in a small theatre.”

During the film festival, there were many theatres clustered together that were playing movies from all over the world.

“I didn’t enjoy the movie. I didn’t even understand what they were saying.”

Artistic movies were a genre that was difficult for him since he didn’t have an eye for that sort of thing. However, when the ending cut rolled around, he shed a tear which startled him. The person who pulled him out after that was an unknown person who was sitting beside him.

“That friendly French man was a professor who was teaching French literature at the time. When I asked why he was being so kind to me, he said seeing someone cry to a movie left a deep impression.”

The movie definitely wasn’t so touching that people would cry at it. Then why did Ahn Soo Ho cried? That was what was fascinating.

“So we talked. We talked about all sorts of things other than movies. And then when we parted, he said this. Modern civilization including movies is indebted to humanities…I would have scoffed if this happened back in the day.”

Ahn Soo Ho thought humanities was useless.

What was feeding the people of today was science, and he knew that scientists changed the world, but he wasn’t so sure of those people who worked in humanities. What was the use of spreading art and culture in countries suffering from AIDS? He couldn’t agree that pens were more powerful than knives.

The professor of the class he was required to take in the Naval Academy also said this. That mankind was indebted to humanities. He scoffed at it at the time. Discussing art on a cruel battlefield full of gunshots? How pathetic was that?

“I used to hate those who talked and did nothing else.”

He hated great scholars. He despised how they participated in discussions that only raised their self-worth in a language that only they could speak. It was comical that they talked as if they were important when a single gunshot could end their lives.

“Did you change your mind?”

“No.”

Ahn Soo Ho shook his head.

He still hated those who only just talk. But he stopped looking down on humanities. He didn’t know if mankind was indebted to humanities, but he did realize that literature, history, and art was the basis of human civilization. That was when he realized why he shed those tears.

“That’s when I was able to face my past. The lacking me, the foolish me, the powerless me.”

The synopsis of the movie he was watching was simple. A man who lost his memory in a car crash went through a process to regain his lost memories. In that story, there was no dramatic obstacle or a great message that the director was trying to convey. The main character’s process of regaining his memory was pretty dull.

‘Just like me back then.’

The countless memories, sadness, happiness, misery, and joy that was sent into the oblivion always resulted in regret. What if it was like this? What if it was like that? There was no changing the past, but the thinking of today could change what happens tomorrow.

“You’re a philosopher now, Soo Ho.”

“I don’t know. I feel like I’m an even worse of a person now.”

“Why?”

“I don’t think affectation is hypocritical anymore.”

He just did what he felt was right. Kumiko stared at Ahn Soo Ho without a word. She had a lot to say, but she couldn’t open her mouth to do so. It was fascinating that he was restraining himself while having godly powers. She would have done much more to this world if she had powers like his.

She looked at the clock on the wall and then got up.

“Sadly, my break is over.”

“Are you going to keep training as a trainee?”

“Is that weird?”

“Someone might recognize you.”

“It doesn’t matter. I’ll completely be Ahn Da Sol in just a few weeks.”

She didn’t need to be a trainee if she was planning to stay by Ahn Soo Ho’s side. Kumiko smirked.

“I didn’t know either that I had such talents.”

She was half trying to irritate Ahn Soo Ho. But when she tried it out, she was well-suited for it. Acting? It wasn’t hard for Kumiko to yield passionate responses from people. Singing and dancing? Due to her cell activation, she had great physical capabilities and sang so high people couldn’t believe it.

As soon as she showed off her talents, she received endless praise.

It was a new feeling for her since she had lived in darkness until then. She didn’t mind the young kids being friendly with her either. There were times when other trainees pulled pranks on her, but they were nothing compared to the life-threatening booby traps she had to deal with before.

‘It’s not bad.’

She was enjoying every day.

“I’ll be watching over you, Soo Ho.”

Kumiko turned around in a prim manner. Ahn Soo Ho was left alone with a serious look on his face.

‘I feel like she has been alive for a long time before we met…’

Then how old was she?

Ahn Soo Ho didn’t think it was that important, but the fact that Kumiko got chosen as a trainee as Ahn Da Sol elicited big responses from everyone. The fan café that raved about the trainees that hadn’t debuted yet went crazy over Ahn Da Sol.

• Wow! Ahn Da Sol is so pretty! #workDaSol #TraineeQueen #charisma
• She’s already in the debut class even though she entered less than a month ago! What is this?
• It probably helps that she’s related to the CEO!
• Hosoo Entertainment isn’t like that! Didn’t you see the test film? Her singing and dancing were amazing! She’s like Beyonce!
• You’re exaggerating! Maybe Shakira!
• No way!
• How can she be so pretty without makeup? This is cheating!
• Wow! She’s really curvy for a teenager!
• There are 5 goddesses at Hosoo Entertainment! Seul Hyun, Mi Na, Ye Seul, Joo Ri, and Dae Sol! You can refute if you want!
• I agree with Seol Hyun, Mi Na, and Da Sol, but not Ye Seul and Joo Ri!
• What’s wrong with Ye Seul? Are you looking down on Baby Angel and Angel Voice? Do you want to fight?
• Mi Na isn’t that pretty either. And Da Sol needs to debut and get some work done first. So Seul Hyun is on top!
• There are 3 goddesses at Hosoo Entertainment! Seol Hyun, Mina, and Joo Kyung!
• Who’s Joo Kyung?
• Don’t you know the pretty director? Director Oh Joo Kyung of Hosoo Entertainment!
• The one in her 20s? Is she an heir, too?
• Ahn Da Sol’s test film is up on YouTube! It’s crazy!
• No way! How can she do all of that live?
• She’s good enough to go solo! If she debuts with a group, the group will die!
• Wow! Hannah Richardson posted a link to the video via Twitter!
• Who’s that?
• Don’t you know her? She’s a top country singer in the States!
• She’s the godmother of the country genre who sells over 5 billion albums in a year!
• That’s because she’s American! That’s not much considering their population!

Trainees of famous agencies received so much attention before debuting that they even have fan clubs. At first, Ahn Da Sol received attention for being related to Ahn Soo Ho, but later on, it was her incredible skills that were talked about. At this point, Hosoo Entertainment decided to announce an open audition and made another impact.

It wasn’t an open audition for office workers such as managers and stylists, but for aspiring stars. The amount that they invested in it was phenomenal. However, Ahn Soo Ho went around looking into special inspectors instead.

“It’s nice to meet you.”

There weren’t any that accepted Ahn Soo Ho’s greeting. Today was the first day that the 30 inspector generals gathered in one place. But the reason why it wasn’t that awkward was because they were all well-known people of their own fields.

Compared to them, Ahn Soo Ho was just like a new student who didn’t know anyone. He felt the discomfort of others around him. Since they were all pompous and well-educated individuals, it was expected that they would avoid him. But they didn’t make it obvious if they had a connection to Korea National Association or Comradery Association.

“Since everyone is here, I’ll introduce the topic of today’s meeting.”

Special inspectors worked hard at their jobs, but prosecutors and judges who were dispatched to the team-minded others and postponed the prosecution. They worked hard at their investigations due to the public’s anger, but it was the prosecution that had to confirm the charge. If they lose a lawsuit due to insufficient evidence, they had to take responsibility for the fall. They had no choice but to be passive and conservative.

“The bribery charge that Inspector Yoo Won Young proposed is being suspected for being unreasonable and aimed toward a political advantage.”

“It’s serious to make such accusations without sufficient evidence. I think the inspector should explain themselves.”

“That’s not right. If there’s any suspicion, shouldn’t it be investigated?”

“Korea is a law-governed country. No matter how much people hate a person, they can’t be charged for a crime that they didn’t commit.”

“You keep talking about evidence, but Lee Bum Hak is a relative of Ham Young Chul. Do you really believe there’s no relation?”

“Then the evidence should be put forward. Once the evidence is provided, the prosecution will do with it what they will.”

“In order to find evidence, an opportunity needs to be given. Why try to put a leash on from the very beginning?”

“What are you implying?”

“Don’t play dumb. You went to the same university as Lee Bum Hak.”

“Hey!”

Once a group of pompous individuals got together, a ruckus would definitely break out. Ahn Soo Ho quietly lifted his hand. No one decided on who would lead the discussion, so the former foreign minister, Kim Hyung Il lead it.

“CEO Ahn?”

Ahn Soo Ho just laughed at the attention he suddenly received.

“Is evidence all that’s needed?”

“Ye…yes. For now…”

Someone was taken aback and stuttered as a result.

“Okay, then.”

“Pardon?”

“As you already know, I spent a lot of money to obtain substantial information. I even confirmed them. And I’ll hand the documents over to the special inspector team.”

He forgot to say that he would do that soon. Ahn Soo Ho pulled out a bunch of papers from his bag. It was as thick as two law books. What particularly drew their attention was the silver letters that were written on the front cover.

Death Note,

Those who didn’t know Ahn Soo Ho was displeased and those who knew him turned pale.

Swish-

He went through the alphabetically organized names and found Lee Bum Hak. He then crossed out his name in red.

“Okay! Who’s next?”

< Protect – Episode 78 – Open Audition [2] > The end.