Chapter 87
***
It all began with Kang Noah.
A once-in-a-generation fortune-teller.
A prophet whose predictions never missed.
He first rose to fame through online broadcasts, then predicted a gun-related incident in the United States.
Not only that, he found the missing family of a prominent Chinese politician.
On top of that, he accurately pinpointed the whereabouts of people's missing family members and even criminals who needed to be caught.
As a result, interest in shamanism, fortune-tellers, and the occult had recently grown in Korea.
YouTube even featured young shamans and fortune-tellers demonstrating fortune-telling.
Of course, no one explained things as clearly and accurately as Kang Noah.
That was fortune-telling for you, after all.
In a positive light, it used the Barnum effect to put people's minds at ease.
In a negative light, wasn't it simply leading people astray with plausible-sounding words?
But to a ratings-hungry network, it was a useful concept.
Oh Hyeon-tae, a variety-show producer in TBM's entertainment department, had no intention of missing this big wave.
Even before Kang Noah appeared, he'd been planning a program like this, so he gathered his team and brought up the idea he'd been considering for a long time.
But the response wasn't very positive.
"Gather them all and have them figure out who's genuine and who has real spiritual power...? Will that really work?"
"It will. Just look at YouTube or the internet—these days, plenty of shamans go around bragging about how great they are, don't they?"
"Hmm..."
His subordinates looked unconvinced.
But Oh Hyeon-tae wasn't the sort of person to back down easily from his convictions.
"Well, if that's what you think, Producer, and you're determined to push ahead, we'll do it... But the problem is whether they're the real deal."
That was true.
Where could they find someone who could read the past and future as clearly as Kang Noah?
Go Ina, an employee who usually enjoyed fortune-telling, timidly raised her hand.
"Most of the fortune-tellers I've met would refuse if you asked them to come on TV and tell fortunes. Do you think they'll really agree?"
"Wouldn't they if we paid them a lot?"
"Who knows... I've heard that people who are truly renowned for their spiritual powers make an enormous amount of money..."
Would people like that be satisfied with a mere appearance fee and come on TV?
After hearing that, Oh Hyeon-tae looked unconvinced too.
It didn't look as though things would go as easily as he'd expected.
"Hmm... Could it be too difficult...?"
"That's what we think."
No matter how exceptional they were, they would ultimately fall short of Kang Noah.
But would viewers really go out of their way to watch just because those people appeared?
After mulling it over, Oh Hyeon-tae let out a sigh.
It might not be a bad idea to ask a fellow producer who had recently filmed a highly rated drama.
***
I looked at the man sitting across from me: Oh Hyeon-tae, a TBM entertainment producer who didn't know what to do with himself.
When I looked into Jang U-gyeong's future, I saw myself comforting Oh Hyeon-tae after he'd completely tanked this program and grown dejected.
So I'd told him to come see me, and he'd arrived quite quickly.
"Ha, haha. It's an honor to meet you, Mr. Kang Noah. My name is Oh Hyeon-tae."
He immediately held out his business card to me.
TBM Entertainment Department Producer.
Though he held a fairly high position, he couldn't have been more deferential toward me.
"Mr. Kang. Our station is preparing a new variety show..."
"Please turn this over first."
I held out a card to him, and he carefully turned it over.
"I told Producer Jang U-gyeong this as well, but it's going to flop."
"...Excuse me? But why?"
"Because everyone appearing on it will be a fraud."
"....."
"And there will be fights during the process, with profanities flying everywhere. The filming itself won't be particularly smooth, either."
Just looking at Oh Hyeon-tae made it even clearer.
The shamans he'd brought on would give different readings.
They'd grab each other by the collar and fight. Even for a cable network, they couldn't air footage like that, could they?
Was that all?
One shaman would blather about having seen a cast member's past, revealing that the cast member's mother had cheated on the cast member's father.
What a crazy bitch.
To go after someone's parents when she had nothing better to do...
In any case, the cast member would blow up over it, delaying the shoot yet again.
Numerous other problems would arise, and the ratings would be abysmal to boot.
Why make a show that was guaranteed to lose money?
I told him all of this exactly as it would happen, and Oh Hyeon-tae grew dejected.
"Th-then what if we changed it to a scene where Mr. Kang Noah comes on and tears those fake fortune-tellers and shamans apart..."
To be honest, appearing on television wasn't particularly burdensome.
If it had been, I wouldn't have done internet broadcasts either.
The problem was that if I agreed to appear, everyone who had already promised to be on the show would back out.
How could they film it then?
"...Th-then what if we gathered the cast members and had you look into their pasts and futures..."
"The cast members won't like that. Who would want their past exposed?"
"...I see."
"I'm telling you all this because you're a good person, Producer Oh."
TV producers generally had an inherent tendency to throw their weight around.
But Oh Hyeon-tae was far from being like that.
He was ambitious about his program, but he treated even unknown talents courteously and focused on cooperation rather than throwing his weight around.
He was also a family man who loved his family, was strict with his children, and cherished them.
And there was one more thing I couldn't leave out.
Producer Oh Hyeon-tae was also a Dunsa player.
He wasn't on the same server as me, but he had an excellent hobby all the same, so of course I had to help him.
"Sigh. Then I'm not sure what we should make the new program about."
"Try filming a variety show exploring an abandoned hospital. Something along the lines of a survival show."
I could see him achieving high ratings with it in his future.
Of course, it would be several years later.
The moment he heard my words, the future changed, and I saw a future in which it would achieve a 13 percent viewership rating.
"Exploring an abandoned hospital... Survival..."
As I watched him ponder the keywords I'd given him, I ate my second helping of chicken.
Regardless of whether he kept pondering it, the chicken was delicious all the same.
.
.
.
The next day.
As usual, I got up in the morning, went to the gym, and worked the hell out of my back.
After offering my morning Dunsa in gratitude, I headed to the café.
"Welcome, Mr. Kang. What do you say to sandwiches for lunch?"
"Oh. You made sandwiches?"
"Yes. My daughter said she wanted a sandwich today."
The manager's daughter standing nearby gave a wide grin.
It wasn't normally on the menu.
But since I was hardly just an ordinary customer, I was invited to eat it as staff food.
Not bad.
"It's a ham, cheese, and egg sandwich."
"Oh..."
This looks tasty.
As soon as I bit into the sandwich, generously filled with ham, cheese, and egg, I thought it was delicious.
"Mr. Cheolhon, you should have some too."
"Thank you."
We were making an early lunch of the sandwiches and coffee we'd set on the table when
the café door opened.
"Mr. Kang!"
"Oh. Mr. Ibin. It's been a while. Have you been well?"
Ever since last time, he'd often come to the café to enjoy an espresso before leaving.
Ibin came over smiling and, after asking permission, sat down across from me.
"Are you having lunch?"
"Yes. If you haven't eaten, join us."
"Haha. Thank you."
We had plenty of sandwiches, after all.
As the three men ate sandwiches and sipped coffee, customers began coming in.
Most of them were startled to see Ibin, but they didn't approach him for autographs.
They were respecting his time off.
"How are things these days?"
"Haha. I've been cast in a new movie. We're in the middle of filming it."
"I don't really pay much attention to entertainment news."
When I used the internet, it was mostly to look up Dunsa information.
Otherwise, it was just links posted by viewers and current-events news.
"By the way, Mr. Kang. Would you be interested in a cameo appearance?"
"A cameo?"
"Yes. There's a scene in the movie with a fortune-teller."
I was already beginning to make a name for myself not only in Korea but around the world.
The director had apparently said that even a brief appearance by me as a fortune-teller would be a huge help to the movie.
"And of course, the appearance fee won't be small, either. I told our director that I had a connection with you, however slight, so he asked me to bring it up if I ever met you. Naturally, if you don't want to do it, you can refuse."
"It certainly sounds like it could be fun."
I'd visited a drama set before, but I'd never been to a movie set.
It might be nice to go and look around.
The scene wouldn't be very long, so there wouldn't be many lines to worry about, either.
"But I don't know if I can act well."
"Judging from the way you speak, I think you'll do well... But if you're really worried, I can run lines with you."
"Let's do that."
"Then if you're free this afternoon, let's go together."
"Sounds good."
I nodded with a smile.
That afternoon, I arrived at the filming location in Ibin's car.
When I got out of Ibin's car, most of the staff were startled to see me.
"Good heavens..."
"It's Kang Noah...!!"
"Brother Noah...!!'"
Looks like I have viewers here too.
As they exclaimed, one man caught my eye.
He didn't look happy.
"That guy, Kim Hyeon-woo, is the lead. He'll be your scene partner."
"I see. But he doesn't look well."
"It seems he's been having some trouble lately. It looks like that's affected his acting, too..."
Ibin seemed quite worried.
No, not just him; everyone on set was worried.
Everyone looked as though they were wondering how filming could possibly proceed with the lead in that state.
"He has to act with me, but in that state, I don't think he'll be able to do it properly. Could I speak with him for a moment?"
"Of course."
Ibin approached him, and a short while later,
he came over to me, where I was standing in a secluded corner.
"Uh... Hello, Mr. Kang Noah. I've heard a great deal about your reputation."
"Nice to meet you, Mr. Kim Hyeon-woo. I enjoyed your drama."
"Hahaha... Thank you."
As Kim Hyeon-woo laughed awkwardly, I held out a card to him.
He carefully turned it over, and
I looked straight at Kim Hyeon-woo and said,
"Mr. Kim Hyeon-woo."
"Yes, sir."
"You've found out that the president of your agency has been taking your money."
In the end, he squeezed his eyes shut and said,
"Don't worry. He'll be arrested soon."