Chapter 276
After moving to an empty conference room.
Director Joo Yeoleum, seated at the head of the table, asked,
"Are you really bothered by people's reactions?"
"No, it's not that…."
I carefully chose my words before speaking calmly.
"I just don’t want them to think they got the best of me over something so trivial."
Joo Yeoleum looked at me with an expression that seemed to say, ‘Would you look at this one?’
[Joo Yeoleum likes your guts. Joo Yeoleum Affection +1. Current Affection: +38]
"I thought you were feeling down these past few days."
Joo Yeoleum spoke bluntly.
"Feeling down? Not even close."
Just thinking about that Zero bastard smirking somewhere after stealing the letter that kid gave me made my blood pressure spike.
"Yeah. It’s good to stay energized when there's this much to do."
Joo Yeoleum chuckled and asked,
"I’m curious about what’s on your mind. Why don’t we start with that?"
---
"…So, I felt the need to make a change to my image at least once."
After reviewing the staff's summary of the public response, I explained my understanding of the current situation to Director Joo Yeoleum.
I hadn’t yet mentioned the solution I had come up with.
"I see where you're coming from."
Joo Yeoleum stopped tapping his fingers on the desk.
"Up until now, there was no real need to adjust your image."
"But isn't image management extremely important for celebrities?"
"It is. But calling it ‘management’ sounds a bit excessive for someone your age, Raon. You’re still young, and that natural side of you has been considered the most appealing and charming."
He added that the same applied to the other members.
"But it feels like my natural image is being overshadowed by things that should have already been resolved."
"So, you think just staying still won’t be enough?"
"Yes. And actually, Muk Hyesung sunbae said something to me."
At the sudden mention of Muk Hyesung’s name, Joo Yeoleum looked at me with curiosity.
"He said I have the ability to make people believe whatever I show them without doubt."
"Oh, he’s got a good eye. Must be the experience. But?"
"I’m not doubting his words, but if that’s true, then why don’t people believe what I show them?"
Up until now, I had consistently presented the version of myself I wanted to show—the "natural" image that Joo Yeoleum described.
Yet, how could anyone call it trust when they changed their perception of me in an instant just because of a single medical document and some thoughtless comments from people who didn’t even know me?
"Ah. That’s because…"
Luckily, Joo Yeoleum seemed to know the answer.
"Gaining people’s trust is harder and takes longer than you think. You’ve only really started getting widely recognized for about a year now, right?"
"Yes." I nodded.
"A year isn’t exactly a short time, but during that period, you haven’t actively been in broadcasts as an individual apart from Orca. That means you haven't ‘spent’ your image much. And on top of that, a year is still too short to firmly establish a particular image in the public’s mind."
"Ah…."
Knowing me well was a completely different issue from merely knowing my name.
I had thought that, in terms of public recognition, I ranked among the top-tier celebrities of my age group.
‘I was overconfident.’
Joo Yeoleum must have noticed my expression darken because he offered a plain yet reassuring remark.
"And naturalness is often the opposite of being attention-grabbing. You’ve done nothing wrong, so keep your spirits up."
[However, your face is extremely attention-grabbing. Joo Yeoleum is in awe of your beauty. Joo Yeoleum Affection +1. Charm +1.]
[Charm has reached its limit. Excess charm points will be stored as backup.]
I bit my lip hard to keep myself from laughing. The fact that he was thinking such things with that tiger-like face was kind of amusing.
Once I regained my composure and looked up, Joo Yeoleum continued.
"Anyway, if you want to break free from the current image people have of you, you’ll need something with at least a bit of impact."
"Yes."
"For now, this is what I have in mind."
Joo Yeoleum took out a piece of paper and started scribbling something on it with a pencil.
"?"
He then turned the paper toward me so I could see it clearly.
There were three words written on it.
Mysterious, Handsome, Genius
"……."
I didn’t entirely agree with those keywords, but one thing was certain—the word ‘genius’ had a very specific implication.
Joo Yeoleum knew.
"…You knew?"
That I was the composer behind Again.
If there was any reason for such an extravagant word like genius to be attached to me, it would be for one of three things—my face, my dancing, or my composing.
Since handsome was already written beside it, and my dancing hadn’t yet returned to the level of the old On Raon, it was most likely referring to my composition work, which had recently gained recognition through Again.
At my question, Joo Yeoleum nodded lightly.
"I didn’t deliberately try to find out, but I happened to see it while using our CEO’s laptop. I only checked with Ga-eul unnie to confirm it was you. I haven’t told anyone else, so relax your expression."
"…Why were you using the CEO’s laptop?"
"Filling in for her… Anyway, that’s not really important."
Joo Yeoleum’s eyes gleamed.
"You get the general idea now, right? What do you think?"
Rather than simply gleaming, his gaze carried an almost sharp intensity.
"Well…."
I carefully voiced my opinion.
"It seems a bit excessive."
At my response, Joo Yeoleum smiled broadly, as if telling me to reconsider, and scooted his chair a little closer.
"You must not know because you’re still young, but there’s a reason classics remain successful. These are all tried-and-true, foolproof keywords. Most people can’t even embody one of these, but you can pull off all three."
"Ah, I see…."
"I’m serious. I’m Joo Yeoleum, you know?"
…Sorry, but it seems like you’re more passionate about fulfilling your own fantasy than actually helping me improve my image.
I tried not to think that way, but seriously, this guy…
"What a hardcore concept-lover."
As if reading my mind, Joo Yeoleum spoke in a firm tone to persuade me.
"Come on, think about it carefully. A person with talent, beauty, and a compelling story that’s hard to ignore—those kinds of figures have always been popular throughout history, no matter the time or place."
"Is that so?"
"It is."
I put aside my personal feelings and gave it some serious thought.
Now that I looked at it, combining all of these elements made failure seem almost impossible.
‘It does feel like a messy stew with way too much MSG, though.’
"Why… does 'compelling story' need to be included?"
Wouldn’t that only highlight the negative aspects even more?
"To put it bluntly, no matter how much you try to cover it up with a positive image, the fact that those things happened to you won’t just disappear."
Joo Yeoleum explained in a cold yet gentle manner.
"That doesn’t mean what you went through was bad, either. You get what I mean, right?"
"Yes, I do."
"Good. The antis are going to use that against you, twisting it however they can to attack you. Instead of letting them do that, wouldn’t it be wiser to refine the narrative and take control of it yourself?"
His logical reasoning aligned with my own judgment, so I had no choice but to nod.
"Honestly, it’s not like I haven’t considered this myself."
Having somewhat accepted Joo Yeoleum’s suggestion, I pointed at the word genius written on the paper.
I had also thought about using my composing as a way to shift the narrative.
Of course, I hadn’t gone as far as connecting it to such an absurdly exaggerated keyword like genius, but still.
What was holding me back was—
"I already promised my members that we’d reveal I composed Again during our first concert."
"Ah."
At that, Joo Yeoleum chuckled as if he found it cute.
"A promise is important."
"Yeah…."
Why did saying that to an adult make me feel like a little kid who just pinky-swore with my friends?
"Alright, talk it over with your members and let me know later. If we’re going to go in this direction, timing and preparation are key. The sooner you decide, the better."
"Understood. Thank you."
As soon as our discussion wrapped up, Joo Yeoleum, seemingly busy with other matters, began tidying up his things. Then, as if suddenly remembering something, he spoke.
"Oh, and about the blacklist notice we talked about before—it’ll be posted today. Let the others know too."
Now that was good news.
"Got it!"
---
As Joo Yeoleum had said, that afternoon, an official notice regarding the blacklist system was posted on ORCA’s official account.
The notice reiterated ORCA’s policies on members’ privacy and announced that any individuals who repeatedly violated these regulations would be permanently banned from all official events, including fan signings and music show audience recordings.
Fans wholeheartedly welcomed Seed Entertainment’s action.
- Seed is actually doing its job.
- FINALLY ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ
- This is so satisfying~~~
- Just make sure you actually enforce it.
- Permanent bans are the way to go.
On top of that, since names had already been added to the blacklist on day one, reactions were even stronger.
> - Han Young/××××/86××/Unauthorized entry into ORCA’s dorm and members’ residences, invasion of privacy, and theft of personal belongings / Permanent ban from all online and offline fan activities / 180828
(And more…)
- The notice went up along with the list, and now I see why. Holy crap.
- Stealing, seriously?? What the hell, how are the members supposed to deal with this? ㅠㅠㅠㅠ
- Wow, this is insane… This isn’t even the early 2000s; what do they think they are, sasaeng hommas? Hard pass.
┗ Probably not a fansite admin, just a full-blown sasaeng.
┗ Not all sasaengs are fansite admins, you know.
- Doesn’t ORCA still not have an official fan club? And they don’t take support projects either, so how did they even track down these sasaengs?
┗ At this level, they probably just gathered at the police station.
┗ For real, this is straight-up police station meetup material.
- Breaking into members’ homes and stealing personal belongings… isn’t this about the medical record incident?
┗ Oh, you’re right…
┗ But wait, isn’t On Raon still technically American? Would he even have a home in Korea?
┗ Yeah, he mentioned at a fansign that he had a separate place before moving into the ORCA dorm.
- These lunatics ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ
- Stalking them outside their dorm and following them around at private schedules might be harder to track, but breaking into their homes and stealing? Yeah, they dug their own graves. Enjoy your permanent ban.
- No way that’s the only thing they did. They probably left out all the smaller incidents… Being an idol is seriously a high-risk job.
- At this point, Seed probably got fed up and decided to go all out.
┗ I mean, who wouldn’t?
And amidst all this, ORCA’s first fansign event after their comeback was about to take place.