Chapter 32: Becoming a CEO (4)

“When does the next applicant come?”

“They’ll be here soon.”

After Ara-ssi left, Cha-in and I were waiting for the next person.

“But why did you choose a woman? There must have been a lot more male applicants.”

“Well, they were all pretty similar, among the people I could have chosen. And I didn’t want to hear any talk about boyfriends or anything if I hired a man.”

“Would you care if the editor or illustrator is a man or a woman? I think it would have been okay to just pick someone randomly.”

“What are you talking about.”

I realized that the perspective of someone who broadcasts is different from that of the general public.

How can you question something so obvious?

“Depending on the situation, I might have them appear on the broadcast as a panelist, whether it’s with their voice or on screen.”

“What, you’re going to make them work on the broadcast too, not just editing?”

“If I’m going to hire someone, I have to get my money’s worth.”

It’s not like I’m digging up the ground to do business.

“But I won’t force them to do it~ If they say they don’t want to, I shouldn’t make them, of course.”

“How can they say they don’t want to when the boss tells them to? Isn’t that completely trashy?”

“Hey, not in this day and age. Especially if someone who broadcasts does that, they’ll get bombarded for power abuse. I’ll tell them that enough, so they can choose comfortably.”

“…It sounds good, but it’s still hard to say…”

“But they’ll probably say they want to do it first?”

Cha-in looked at me with a what-the-hell-are-you-talking-about expression after hearing my words.

“Since the editing contract I have with them is a contract that receives compensation per case, they have to make a video to get paid, right?”

“But if there’s no material to edit, they can’t make a video.”

Cha-in’s face as she looked at me smiling slyly was becoming a face that was looking at something disgusting, but I continued to speak without paying attention.

“If they want to make money but there’s no material, what are they going to do? They have to create the material themselves.”

“That’s really trashy.”

“Why me? If there’s material, there’s no need to call them out anyway, and I won’t call them if they don’t want to.”

I’m embarrassed, really.

I’m giving them a way to take care of their own livelihood, but I have to hear that I’m trash?

And if the broadcast goes well and material keeps coming out, there won’t be any problems.

I’m just saying that I’ll provide a way to make a living even in the worst-case scenario.

“Huh? Wait a minute.”

Suddenly, Cha-in asked as if something came to mind.

“Then are you going to call me on the broadcast too?”

“Are you crazy?”

I wondered what she was talking about, but she said something crazier than I thought.

“A civil servant on a broadcast? You’re crazy.”

“Right? That’s a relief.”

Actually, it’s not like I haven’t thought about it.

Cha-in has a great spec on the outside, and she has excellent specs in terms of her career, so she might be quite a topic of conversation.

But my broadcast would be eaten up as it is?

After appearing once, there was a high possibility that viewers would pester me, asking when that person would appear again.

I can adjust to some extent with the editor or illustrator because they are my employees, but Cha-in is a different story.

In the first place, appearing itself is quite risky, and she’s not in a position to appear regularly.

If a card that cannot be used continuously has the potential to continuously affect the broadcast, it is better not to use it.

It’s like selling the future for the present.

【~♪】

The sound of the cafe door chime made me and Cha-in look at the entrance at the same time.

A handsome girl with a dyed yellow down tail was looking around to find someone.

“Is that her?”

“Probably? Over here~”

When I waved my hand and called out, the girl turned around.

She looked back and forth between my face and the phone in her hand a few times, then put the phone in her pocket and came towards us.

“…Hiro-nim?”

“Yes~ You’re Aime-nim, right?”

“Yes.”

“Would you like to choose a drink first?”

“Then I’ll have an iced Americano… please.”

The girl who uses the nickname Aime on the internet only gave short answers, probably because she was awkward.

I thought it would be better to have a calm conversation between the two of us first, so I took out my card and handed it to Cha-in.

“Hey, I’ll give you my card, so go get it.”

“Can I buy my own too?”

“Two iced Americanos and one of yours, and something appropriate for dessert.”

“Okay.”

I entrusted Cha-in with the card and looked at Aime, who was sitting in the front seat.

Her expression was calm, but she was fidgeting with her hands clasped together, so she seemed quite nervous, unlike what she looked like.

“Is this your first time in a place like this, Aime-ssi?”

“…Yes.”

“Are you embarrassed to be called by your nickname? If you tell me your name, I’ll call you by your name.”

At my words, Aime nodded slightly and said.

“Hwangbo, Yeon I.”

“Hwangbo Yeon… Then can I call you Yeon-ssi?”

“No.”

Aime corrected my words with a small sigh.

“Not Yeon, Yeon. Hwangbo-ssi.”

“Ah, I’m sorry. I was rude.”

“…It’s okay, I’m used to it.”

She seemed a little resigned, as if she had been mistaken more than once or twice.

“Then can I call you Yeon-i-ssi?”

“…How old are you, Hiro-nim?”

“I’m twenty-six, and I’ll be twenty-seven soon.”

“I’m twenty-two… Feel free to speak informally.”

“Hey, it’s still an interview for now? I’ll call you comfortably after the interview.”

I wanted to change equipment in the first place, so I was looking for college students who were short on money, so I thought she would be in her early twenties, but I didn’t need to show that I knew.

Yeon still had her hands clasped together, probably because she was awkward hearing honorifics.

“You heard the conditions in advance, right?”

“Yes, you said you’d buy a tablet without any conditions…”

“And I’ll give you 50,000 won per thumbnail.”

Yeon’s expression was subtle.

She was probably worried about whether this was real or if she was being scammed.

“You can start working on the thumbnails after you receive the tablet.”

“…Is that really okay?”

Yeon asked me as if she didn’t understand.

“I’ve never done anything like this before… Are you okay with that?”

I guess she’s wondering.

She hasn’t even done thumbnails, let alone commissions, and she doesn’t have any acquaintances who can introduce her, but she suddenly came here.

But that’s why it’s valuable.

People who have done a lot of commissions or have a lot of drawing people around them are very likely to explode like landmines.

A surprisingly large number of people who do commissions have the mindset that I will kindly draw a picture for you, so give me your money and go.

This is a phenomenon that occurs because I hear people say that I’m a good artist every day, and these people don’t meet deadlines, cancel schedules without saying anything, and go out to play, or the work has to be completed by tomorrow, but the work is put on the back burner and they upload fan art of their favorite genre on SNS and collect likes, retweets, hearts, etc. with more enthusiasm.

Of course, not everyone is like that, and the majority of people meet deadlines on time, but I don’t need to find a safe zone in a minefield, do I?

“It’s okay~ It’s all for me?”

I’m looking for someone who hasn’t been tainted by commissions or socializing yet.

“Yeon-ssi has talent.”

While filling the unmet desire for recognition,

“The tablet is just me making an investment so that the person I’ll be working with can draw better pictures.”

At the same time, I put the burden on their minds.

If I do that, I can open the hearts of these people who are not yet known and have not been recognized by those around them, and who do not actively interact with others because they are timid.

“Um… I don’t think I’m really good enough to receive this, but…”

“I’ll still work hard.”

Like this.

Of course, there are a lot of cases where they run away because they are too burdened to receive it, but fortunately, this time it worked out well.

As the story progressed to some extent, Cha-in came back with good timing.

“Is sliced cake okay?”

“I like it, is cake okay with you?”

“I’ll have chocolate…”

“Chocolate and iced Americano… here you go~ What are you going to eat?”

“I’ll have a cheesecake.”

“Then I’ll take the strawberry cake.”

Cha-in handed out the desserts and coffee she brought and sat back down.

“Okay, then let’s discuss more detailed conditions. We also need to talk about which tablet to use.”

“…Yes!”

“Then is the interview over now?”

“Yeah, there were two people to interview today, and both of them agreed well, so unless something happens, I think we’ll be working with the two people we saw today.”

Song Cha-in stretched, as if her body was stiff.

Hiro was still typing something on the laptop she brought, as if she still had something to organize.

“But isn’t it a bit too much to buy a tablet? It’s not like it’s cheap.”

“It’s quite expensive, but I think it’s okay because she agreed to draw the thumbnails relatively cheaply.”

“Even so, is it cheaper by… 10,000 won? You’d have to draw hundreds of pictures to make up for the cost of the tablet.”

Hiro smiled and answered Song Cha-in’s words.

“That’s a good thing.”

“What is?”

“Drawing hundreds of pictures to make up for the cost of the tablet.”

Song Cha-in stared at Hiro, wondering what she was talking about.

Then Hiro pressed the save button on the document and opened her mouth.

“Actually, what’s more important than the amount is whether it’s supplied stably and on time.”

Hiro explained that it was more important to increase her priority than to lower the unit price, and that it was her top priority to ensure that YouTube videos were uploaded continuously without interruption.

‘No, this guy, who couldn’t even get over 1,000 subscribers until last month and couldn’t even generate revenue, is acting like an expert.’

But the content that Hiro said sounded plausible.

“It still seems a bit too much.”

“It is too much. That’s why about 2 people ran away, saying it was too much.”

Hiro said calmly.

Hwangbo Yeon was the third person she tried to recruit.

“I think Yeon-ssi probably felt it was too much too?”

“Won’t she be too burdened?”

“But she still received it.”

Hiro closed the laptop and lay down on the table.

“If she didn’t receive it, I wouldn’t know, but if she received it, she’d be too conscientious to make my work her top priority.”

“Isn’t that too optimistic of a thought?”

“That’s right, but Yeon hasn’t done any commissions and hasn’t been actively active on SNS.”

Hiro, who had already stopped using honorifics when talking about Hwangbo Yeon, added.

“Basically, she’s a timid person. She’s thinking, can I really do this for money? SNS starts with talking to someone and appealing about yourself, but she can’t do any of that.”

“If such a person receives something too big, they’ll keep worrying about it because of the guilt.”

“Isn’t it not timid to receive something like that in the first place?”

“Greed won over timidity.”

Hiro stood up again.

After putting the laptop in her bag, she told Cha-in that it was time to get up.

“What time is it?”

“It’s a little after 4.”

After cleaning up the drinks and desserts they had eaten, the two people left the cafe.

“Are you going home to rest now?”

“Rest? I have to go home and broadcast.”

“…Why don’t you just rest for a day?”

Hiro shook her head at Song Cha-in’s words.

As if that was not possible.

“It’s different if today is a weekday, but it’s the weekend, so I can’t.”

“Weekend broadcasts are important, but you’re going to collapse.”

“If I don’t do this, I won’t have the hospital bills to pay when I collapse.”

Song Cha-in walked next to Hiro, thinking that she was saying something crazy again.

Although she had been with Hiro for quite a long time, there were many times when Song Cha-in had a hard time understanding Hiro’s thoughts.

Her logic was firm, and it seemed to make sense when you listened to it, but it was very anxious to see from the side.

In the end, she always manages to produce results, so I can’t say anything.

‘I don’t know, I’m sure she’ll do well on her own.’

Song Cha-in thought so and

“Go in.”

“Okay, you go in too.”

She saw Hiro off as she went down to the subway station.

A friend who is hard to understand, but still cheering her on.

Character settings of the 4 main characters (bikini version for size comparison)