WFBCAD 8

Chapter 8

Joseph was, in fact, extremely worried about Kim Ju-hyun’s first day at work.

Kim Ju-hyun had said he could persuade them with his music, but well.

‘If it were anyone else, it’d be fine, but that guy is bound to cause trouble until the very end.’

The person he was worried about was Andrew Taylor.

Usually, producers are evaluated by their years of experience rather than their job titles.

Because it’s an industry with a lot of job hopping.

And Andrew was a veteran who had been with MBLY for over 8 years as of this year.

‘Eight years is an extremely long time.’

For instance, Joseph, the team leader right now, had worked at MBLY for about 10 years.

At any rate, because Andrew had worked for a long time, his internal influence was solid, and there were many people who followed him.

His personality was refreshing, his tone was bold, and he treated newcomers well, too.

That was the problem.

To be precise, that personality of his.

‘Taylor is from the South.’

And not just anywhere, deep in Texas, near Rankin.

Literally the middle of nowhere among all the remote countrysides.

The problem was that Southerners basically had racism set as their default.

Even a bold personality is only bold toward white people; a Black person or an Asian?

Forget being bold; it turns into a total piece-of-shit attitude.

‘Of course, Taylor is on the better side for a southerner, but…….’

The problem was the timing.

The company atmosphere was terrible due to the repeated scandals of stars.

Furthermore, Kim Ju-hyun’s predecessor, the Executive Producer, had completely ruined the business and run away.

‘In a situation like this, an Asian with a name and musical skills nobody knows just drops out of nowhere?’

Kim Ju-hyun had said that showing them his song would change people’s minds, but……

‘There’s no way that’ll happen.’

Gaining Andrew’s heart right away would be impossible.

Even if the song was good, he would have to slowly earn trust over at least several months.

Only from then on could they coordinate as a team.

‘How on earth do you capture people’s hearts with a sample made in just 3 days?’

That would only be possible if you brought in Mozart, who is called a musical genius.

However.

‘Th-This is music made in just 3 days?’

The moment he heard Kim Ju-hyun’s song, his body reacted first.

His heart gave a huge thud, and his breath caught in his throat.

-Thump thump thump.

Drums beating wildly against the heart.

Sharp guitar sounds.

It was this exact feeling when he first heard Gangnam Style.

He had reacted precisely like this back then, too.

‘Shit, what on earth is this crazy song?’

Joseph unconsciously turned the volume up a little higher.

Just in case it was a mistake.

Wondering if, out of sheer exhaustion, he had unknowingly imagined an ideal song.

But it wasn’t.

This song genuinely existed, and Joseph himself was listening to it clearly.

‘How on earth can a song like this come out?’

It wasn’t simply a well-made level.

Every single note, every single beat, contained the composer’s intent.

‘Are there any composers nowadays who can make a song like this?’

They could probably make it.

If a musical genius locked themselves away in a basement for several years, a quality to this extent might come out.

The problem was that Kim Ju-hyun made this in a mere 3 days.

As his thoughts reached that point, Joseph felt as though goosebumps were breaking out all over his body.

‘Come to think of it, this…… you said it was a sample?’

A sample song.

Literally a prototype.

Music meant to show the concept, to explain the direction.

That’s why people usually take it easy and just throw out ideas.

The structure rough, the sound unrefined.

Especially since there were only 3 days, it should have been even more so.

‘Yet it’s at this level?’

Intro.

Build-up.

Chorus.

Bridge.

Not a single section was awkward or showed signs of being made hastily.

Rather.

‘It’s at a level where it could be released just like this?’

Joseph spoke as if he couldn’t believe it.

“Kim. This is a sample song, right?”

“Yes, I made it roughly.”

“Ha.”

And he calls this rough.

A song that could become more than just a completion—a masterpiece of a lifetime—to other composers was merely a simple sample to this person.

‘Just how much of a genius do you have to be for this to be possible?’

He wasn’t the only one feeling this emotion.

The other composers, too, wore identical faces of astonishment after listening to Kim Ju-hyun’s song.

Except for one person.

“…….”

Andrew was still staring at Kim Ju-hyun with cold eyes.

At that gaze of his, the company’s atmosphere sank once again.

Right at that moment.

-Tramp.

Andrew moved his steps.

Right toward none other than Kim Ju-hyun.

With bold, stride-by-stride, unhesitating footsteps, his colleagues shouted.

“OH, no!”

“Andrew, hold it in!”

However, their expectations were completely missed.

A southerner.

A macho among machos who had beaten up his father for telling him to drop music and tend to the farm instead.

Andrew Taylor stuck his hand right out.

And then.

“Andrew. Andrew Taylor. Please take good care of our company from now on, Executive Producer-nim.”

“!!!!!!!!!!!!”

The other composers’ eyes widened.

That Andrew.

Acknowledged Kim Ju-hyun in a single stroke.

To top it off, he even requested a handshake first.

The reality was like this.

‘What is this guy?’

At first, the moment Kim Ju-hyun appeared.

The emotion Andrew felt was, naturally, hostility.

It wasn’t a matter of race.

An unknown Asian out of nowhere showed up and claimed to be his superior; it was absurd.

Furthermore.

‘You want me to entrust our kids to a guy whose face I don’t even know?’

Career is extremely important to a producer.

Putting out songs one by one was an opportunity to evaluate one’s value in the market and a death count.

‘I can’t entrust them to a clueless guy.’

One year ago.

He vividly remembered how the guy who had come as Executive Producer completely ruined the team.

Thanks to that guy pushing an absurd concept, Angelina fell into a slump, and several team members left out of exhaustion.

He didn’t want to see that sight again.

However.

‘To think he was a skilled person like this.’

The moment he heard his song, his heart throbbed.

His father, with whom he had severed ties in days past, used to cry sometimes.

In front of a newborn horse, bawling his eyes out.

He had said that whenever a new horse is born, his heart breaks.

That it was so wondrous and ecstatic it drove him crazy.

Andrew hadn’t understood that emotion.

But not anymore.

‘Listening to this song, I think I know.’

What that wonderment is.

Why his heart was trembling.

‘To be able to make a song like this…….’

Asian?

Things like that didn’t matter at all.

It was rather pathetic.

Guys who discriminate based merely on skin color.

What he looked at was strictly skill.

The reason he was cold to Kim Ju-hyun at first was because he couldn’t trust his skill.

But now, having listened to a song like this, it was different.

He could state with absolute certainty.

‘Than any producer I’ve seen so far.’

The man in front of him was superior.

That was enough.

-Grab!

Kim Ju-hyun grasped his hand and spoke.

“Please take good care of me, too.”

“Likewise.”

That was the end of it.

Taylor, who had the highest years of service among the composers excluding Joseph.

He acknowledged Kim Ju-hyun.

The other composers, too, began approaching Kim Ju-hyun one by one.

Before long, the awkward atmosphere completely vanished.

“I’m Anthony.”

“I’m Mary. Please treat me well.”

“I really enjoyed the song. I sincerely welcome you to your new position.”

Employees reaching out their hands one after another.

With just a single song, Kim Ju-hyun succeeded in subduing an American company notorious for its harsh territorial behavior.

Not only that.

He even won their acknowledgment and trust.

It was his first day at work.

Meanwhile, at that time.

Inside a building in Gangnam, Han Seo-yeon hurriedly moved her steps.

A man welcomed her.

“Hello. I’m lawyer Kim Joong-chan.”

He was the senior lawyer belonging to Himchan Law Firm, known as South Korea’s top law firm.

Displaying a relaxed smile, he spoke.

“I heard you were…… sued?”

“Yes. That baste—no, my ex-husband filed a lawsuit for divorce.”

“Hmm…… For now, let’s head upstairs and look at it together.”

At his words, Han Seo-yeon bit her lip.

Her heart was burning with anxiety, but since the lawyer remained laid-back, she was on pins and needles.

Seeing Han Seo-yeon’s face like that, Kim Joong-chan chuckled softly and said.

“There’s no need to worry too much. We are the number one in South Korea, the 4th-ranked law firm globally. Even a losing case, we’ll flip it over for you, so set your mind at ease. In the first place, you won’t find a lawyer better than us in Korea.”

“……I suppose so, right?”

“Yes.”

Han Seo-yeon’s expression noticeably relaxed at the lawyer’s words.

‘Right, how much money does that bastard even have to hire a lawyer like this?’

She began to rationalize to herself.

‘In the first place, what did I do wrong?’

An affair?

The fact that Kim Ju-hyun stayed at work for overtime and didn’t come home.

That was plenty of grounds for divorce.

‘When I searched the internet, everyone does that.’

With that, Han Seo-yeon entered the office on the top floor of the building with the lawyer.

-Clatter.

Han Seo-yeon closed the door and sat in a chair.

She spoke in a low voice.

“To be honest with you, I don’t want to make a fuss about this.”

“Yes, usually people don’t. Especially since you’re a star.”

“You can end it…… quietly, right?”

At her words, the lawyer nodded his head.

“Yes, it shouldn’t be difficult. In the first place, there are many judges in the family court who have deep ties with our side.”

“Then, can we win the lawsuit?”

“Um…… still, you did commit an affair.”

At those words, Han Seo-yeon burst out angrily.

“That’s not an affair, it’s love. The one who did wrong is that human being.”

“Yes, that’s right. We’ll appeal to that part as much as possible. Of course, we’ll work behind the scenes, too.”

The reason Himchan Law Firm had an abnormally high win rate.

It was precisely their various connections with judges.

“We’ve handled cases like this really often, so it’ll be fine.”

At those words, Han Seo-yeon inwardly let out a sigh of relief.

Because this situation was something entirely unexpected to her.

‘That loser bastard filed a lawsuit against me?’

Kim Ju-hyun was never a human like that.

To put it nicely, he was kind; to put it badly, he was a pushover of a man.

She had thought he would just let it slide this time, too.

But no.

‘Daringly…… filing a lawsuit against me?’

She would definitely make him regret it.

She would make him pay dearly for the crime of defying her.

Han Seo-yeon clenched her fists.

Right at that moment.

“First…… let’s take a look at the lawsuit details. Could you tell me your name and resident registration number?”

At the lawyer’s words, Han Seo-yeon handed out her resident registration card.

Searching based on that, Kim Joong-chan knitted his brows.

“Found it. But…… something’s a bit strange?”

-Scroll.

He rolled the mouse wheel.

Soon, his eyes widened.

“What is this? Several billion won in alimony?”

“Pardon?”

Han Seo-yeon asked back in surprise at those words.

“That guy…… claimed several billion won in alimony from me?”

“It seems so. But the amount is…… wait a moment. The grounds are also quite solid.”

“What does that mean?”

Alimony amounting to several billion won.

And the grounds are solid, too.

Han Seo-yeon couldn’t understand what the lawyer was saying.

Consequently, anger surged up.

She was certain something was wrong, but because he wouldn’t explain it clearly, she felt like a fool.

“Hey. Speak up, will you? Do you not know who I am?”

“W-Wait a minute.”

Despite Han Seo-yeon’s scolding, the lawyer paid no heed and kept his eyes fixed on the monitor.

Soon, he muttered as if he couldn’t believe it.

“Kirkland & Ellis…….”

“……What is that? Is it a snack or something?”

At Han Seo-yeon’s question, instead of answering, the lawyer stood up abruptly from his seat.

“We won’t be able to take on this case.”

“Pardon? What does that mean. You said we could definitely win.”

“I apologize, but that’s how it turned out. Please leave now.”

-Clatter.

The lawyer opening the door.

At that, Han Seo-yeon let out an absurd breath of disbelief.

“What kind of behavior is this? Where in the world does a lawyer give up defense? Are you confident about this? A single word from me and this place closes down!”

“Ha…… Han Seo-yeon-ssi. Do you know who your husband’s lawyer is? It’s Kirkland & Ellis. Kirkland & Ellis.”

“What is that…….”

“It’s the world’s number one law firm.”

At those words, Han Seo-yeon’s eyes rounded.

“World’s number one……? No, that human shouldn’t have the financial power for that? What is this.”

“Anyway, that’s how it is, so please leave now.”

“Then what about my case? What am I supposed to do!”

“Look for another lawyer for that. If you make a disturbance here, I will sue you for obstruction of business.”

“I can just leave, then……!”

Han Seo-yeon was chased out of the office like that.

“Fucking bastards…… Where in the world does this happen?”

-Tap tap.

Han Seo-yeon straightened her clothes.

She muttered as if she couldn’t believe it.

‘Kim Ju-hyun…… that guy hired the world’s number one law firm?’

They said he even left the company not long ago.

And he suddenly filed a lawsuit, to boot.

“Aaaaaah!!! What on earth is going on here?!!!”

Han Seo-yeon’s scream echoed through the hallway.