Chapter 154

“Everyone, you’ve all worked hard.”

“It would be nice if the results matched our efforts.”

When a big project wraps up, it’s customary to celebrate with a team dinner. This was no different for Raywill Games, a company that could be considered a fairly large development studio.

Of course, since they still had live service responsibilities ahead, it wasn’t as if the project was truly finished. This was merely the beginning.

“I hope the results align neatly, so we can all save up our bonuses effectively—it would be great.”

“Yeah, that’d be wonderful.”

They conversed in a friendly manner, but everyone involved knew that wasn’t likely. After all, in game companies, it generally came down to money-making games.

Most of their original dreams that they brought with them when they joined had fizzled out, often replaced by the need to develop mobile games or games centered around microtransactions.

Even this upcoming game, on the cusp of its release, was another title with heavy emphasis on microtransactions. It was merely a remastered version of a game that was once popular.

So, everyone already had a pretty good estimate of how it would perform. With this level of graphics and gameplay, a rough approximation of revenue could already be predicted.

“Uh, where’s the team leader?”

“He’s taking a half-day leave and resting at home today.”

“Ah, really? He’s been taking leave quite often lately.”

“Well, since the project ended, of course. Plus, he’s someone with a lot of responsibility—he hasn’t really rested all this while, you know.”

Amidst the conversation, the name of Joo Young-bin, head of the planning and development team, who was absent for this occasion, came up.

It seemed that very few people in the room hadn’t at some point received help from Young-bin. Not only was he pleasant by nature, but professionally skilled as well. His programming knowledge was impressive, and he was the one who effectively held the reins of the team in various capacities.

“It’s amazing, though, right? I’ve never heard of a project failing under the team leader’s oversight.”

“Yes, that’s why he was quickly assigned to *Unchained*. We just about made the deadline in the end—man, it’s nerve-wracking.”

“It’s probably thanks to Mrs. Sooyeon helping out as well.”

“But still, it’s impressive, right? Someone who’s never had a project under their supervision fail.”

“It’s not for nothing that there’s already talk of a director’s position for him.”

Young-bin’s wife, Sooyeon, usually took on programming projects as a contractor. During crunch times like this, she worked directly within the office. She was especially skilled in UI design and level design, which is why this game that had just been released was more polished in these aspects than usual, despite being mass-produced.

Even though she wasn’t technically an employee but a contractor, her involvement was due to her skill—combined with her being the boss’s wife, ensuring strict confidentiality.

Still, whether the game they’d worked on could be fully utilized effectively remained debatable.

“Well, it would be nice if things went well.”

Everyone expressed this sentiment, but no one felt compelled to say much more. They merely picked up their drinks, raising their glasses.

Honestly, all they wanted was for things to go as expected. No one dared to dream of a massive success.

“Ah, isn’t that *Golden Duckling*?”

At that moment, someone pointed toward the TV in the restaurant. It seemed to be today’s broadcast. Introductions for the cast and guests were just starting.

“Why? Do you think it’s interesting?”

“Not really—I haven’t watched it much to know.”

“Then why do you act like you know?”

The team members chuckled and laughed softly among themselves. However, the reason for pointing at the show wasn’t quite what they expected.

“Didn’t Seoyeon appear today?”

“Seoyeon? Oh, the team leader’s daughter?”

“Yeah, that’s right. I guess she’s appearing on *Golden Duckling* today.”

Joo Young-bin’s daughter, Sooyeon Joo, was already somewhat well-known within the company. Naturally, being the daughter of a promising team lead and also a rising star in the acting world made her widely recognized.

“The *Chaser* was really interesting.”

“Back then, the team leader was bragging so much that he seemed almost larger than life.”

“Yeah, absolutely. Every place he went, he boasted about it.”

While *Dream Future* didn’t attract many viewers due to its lack of appeal, *The Chaser* proved different. Once a movie passes the ten-million mark, it naturally becomes harder for those who haven’t seen it to join in on the conversation.

Moreover, it was a movie featuring the boss’s daughter. Naturally, it was impossible not to watch it.

Who would want to risk any trouble in the office?

Thus, all the team members here had made sure to catch every episode of *The Chaser*.

“It must be great for the team leader, huh? Having such an impressive daughter.”

“Seoyeon has wonderful manners, too.”

“Wait, isn’t this *Golden Duckling* an observation variety show?”

As the conversation was flowing naturally, someone piped up with the following.

“Oh, is it an observation variety show? …Observation variety show?”

While perhaps they weren’t fans of variety shows, everyone vaguely grasped the concept. They turned their heads toward the TV all at once.

Just then, the scene showed the day’s guest walking into the frame.

“Huh?”

Someone murmured under their breath, bewildered. Likely, everyone thought it was their own voice speaking those words, for they all held the same reaction.

“Wait, why is the boss’s wife there?”

“Ah, it’s an observation variety show, you know. Young entertainers appear, and their parents join as casts.”

“She really is beautiful, isn’t she? Is it true she’s turning forty next year?”

“Forty? Wow, wait. She’s a decade older than me?”

“Kim Assistant probably looks a decade younger than her.”

“Ah, that’s excessive. Really.”

All the employees let out small gasps, and the chatter began. With a little alcohol in their systems, it was hard to stop the flow of words. But no one seemed to care about the comments—they were all glued to the screen. Sua was stunning, beyond the realm of being forty in their minds.

However, everyone in the room was more eager to see what would follow Sua.

“Observation variety, right?”

“Hold on, could it possibly be…?”

They watched with a sense of disbelief.

Surely, not.

Just as everyone watched with this uncertainty, the screen transitioned.

Then, Seoyeon’s house appeared.

Seoyeon studying diligently alone and Sua bringing out some fruit were shown. Then it continued…

“The dad is here!”

Yong-bin entered by suddenly flinging the door open.

Judging by the time, it seemed this was a day he had taken as a half-day leave.

The interesting part wasn’t Yong-bin’s entrance but his ensuing behavior. It appeared as if dopamine had surged at his early departure, as he happily shuffled around the living room.

“Damn, you’ve lost it! Damn, fried chicken today? Damn, it’s insane! Everything’s messed up!”

Yong-bin checked out what was in the kitchen, then grinned mischievously.

“Ah, so that’s how he acts at home.”

“Yeah, in the office, he seemed more formal.”

That’s how the employees reacted internally upon watching this.

Additionally, the text above Yong-bin’s head read:

[Unaware that filming is going on]

It was true—Yong-bin didn’t realize he was being filmed at the moment.

He looked around for something, then put on some sort of attire before shouting with excitement.

“What’s my wife, the dinosaur mom, and what are you doing?”

This introduced the start of the variety show.

***

*Golden Duckling* had recently fallen into a rut. At the start, it was refreshingly novel, but now the ratings were gradually sliding.

Why, one might ask? It’s like, “Why would we care if celebrities live a good life?” It’s a common feeling that has dwindled the interest of the audience.

This was the inevitable result of a plethora of observation variety shows flooding our screens across numerous channels lately. While *Golden Duckling* managed to hold its ground to some extent, it still faced a gradual decline in ratings, like other observation shows.

– Here comes another actor.

– Is the PD lacking sense?

– I feel sleepy whenever actors appear.

Child actors or even young actors were no strangers to *Golden Duckling*. The response was predictable:

– Too boring.

– Actors don’t know how to be funny.

– We came here to watch a variety show, not for image management.

– Actors shouldn’t appear at all.

Seoyeon, however, didn’t receive entirely negative feedback. It appears that PD Jeon Ha-young, the director of *Golden Duckling*, anticipated this to some degree.

Hence the sense of anticipation among viewers before the episode even aired—clearly, a more successful casting choice.

“It’s starting now.”

In the broadcast department, employees waited with quiet anticipation for today’s *Golden Duckling*. Some hoped for a last-minute savior, monitoring the ratings, social media reactions, and community comments.

‘5 percent at the start.’

As soon as the broadcast began, the first checked rating reflected that. It wasn’t bad. In fact, it was surprisingly good, matching the numbers from the highest-rated broadcast so far.

PD Jeon Ha-young let out a sigh of relief.

‘this is just the beginning.’

She smiled confidently. She was sure of today’s *Golden Duckling*. Truly.

With that conviction, she tuned in to the currently airing *Golden Duckling*. The scene was just about to show Sua’s first appearance.

It was at this moment that the ratings began to rise sharply.

***

– Do we really need a guest mom on *Golden Duckling*?

– Honestly, most of them just say nonsense anyway.

– They’re old and boring 90% of the time.

The point of controversy for *Golden Duckling*, as well as its dividing factor, was when a mother guest appeared.

Naturally, the mood was already mixed when it was announced that Seoyeon would be appearing.

– Is Seoyeon’s mom also funny like Seoyeon herself?

– Still, being Seoyeon’s mom, she probably looks good.

– Isn’t Seoyeon popular these days? Is she really that funny?

Even with Seoyeon around, reactions were divided.

– Seoyeon might be funny, but even her mom might be entertaining.

– She must be pretty if she’s Seoyeon’s mom.

– Oh, but she must be close to forty-five or fifty…

– Oh, probably the peak of mid-life conservatism…

At that point, MC Gong Hyung-man was talking to the guests, setting the stage for the arrival of this episode’s featured mother guest.

Seoyeon’s mom, Sua, walked in.

– ??????

– Mom?!!??

– Whoa, what?!

– Hold on, this is insane, lol.

– WHAT IS THAT? THREE HEADS???

– Where did Seoyeon get her genes? Her mom looks nothing alike.

– But Seoyeon’s grown up, too.

Social media posts, which were previously sporadic, began flooding as this episode aired. Comments across various Korean entertainment community boards surged.

Previously indifferent viewers suddenly became glued to their screens—there was no denying it.

– Laughed out loud!

– For real, lol, this is unexpectedly hilarious.

– I’m laughing non-stop!

– Seoyeon’s mom is a comedic star! Mind-blowing.

– Grabbing the video clip.

– What is this? Is she moving way too fast?

– It’s absolutely worth it, lol.

At this point, even those who didn’t regularly watch *Golden Duckling*, including those who had lost interest in observation variety shows or had never watched them, began to take notice.

– Is it really that funny?

– Why aren’t you watching?

– Why should I watch it?

– If you don’t watch this, you might as well leave.

People couldn’t help but ask, “What’s so funny that people are reacting like this?”

Curiosity piqued, they tuned in.

“Oh, this is why people are watching.”

Everyone settled into their seats, fixed on the show. To explain why: Could this really be a woman nearing forty?

That was the question in everyone’s mind.

Not only that, a lot more was happening.

Naturally, the time it took for Sua’s entrance or those quick clips to spread across various communities was negligible. It was instantaneous.

And the explosion of attention that followed was massive.

“Isn’t that the Unchained team leader? Isn’t this the same guy?”

[At the Unchained Press Conference: “With deep regret over failing to uphold our promises to users, we will expediently update the game. All of us at Raywill Games respect our user community and will ensure their feedback is fully reflected…”]

The man who joyfully entered Seoyeon’s home, his face immediately associated with the video that surfaced.

This was the same male figure from the press conference for *Unchained*, a game’s development team leader, captured on video bowing deeply in all seriousness.

– It’s him, right??

– Isn’t Joo Seoyeon’s dad the game director??

– No, he’s the development team leader.

– Damn, this is hilarious. Man, fried chicken really does smell good.

Given the deep connection of internet community users to gaming, it wasn’t surprising that many remembered seeing the viral clips from recent game press conferences, where Young-bin made a brief appearance.

“The dinosaur mom at my house, what are you doing?!”

As Young-bin shouted upon entering Seoyeon’s room,

– Dinosaur mom! Haha!

– Joo Seoyeon is a real dinosaur mom, lol.

– Isn’t Joo Seoyeon bad at games??

– If you don’t know, just watch and be in awe, she has no sense whatsoever.

Some people also saved the hilarious expression of shock on Seoyeon’s face when she saw her father enter, as it was rare to see such an expression from her.

But not for long. Seoyeon, seemingly made of sterner stuff, soon began playing a game.

Naturally, those who had been enjoying the show were surprised again.

– What, a game now?

– Isn’t she taking advantage of gamer cred?

– Actors always seem drawn to consoles and games.

– She’s trying to show off a regular Joe image, but that’s all she’s got.

– Isn’t Joo Seoyeon originally into gaming?

The moment people grew discontent with Seoyeon playing games,

“Wow, she’s straight into it from the get-go. Definitely our daughter, showing off incredible gameplay.”

Had Young-bin not been yammering constantly on the sideline, things might have been different. Once again, the text on his head illuminated:

[Unaware that filming is happening].

“Is someone on a voice-chat? Seems like they’re having a deep talk with their daughter, wild. Shall I take over? She’ll likely come looking for dad anyway.”

“The friend seems genuinely competitive, don’t you think you should help them out?”

“He’s not qualified to win, right? Or something like that?”

“Regardless of grades or games, our daughter truly stands out in creativity.”

Seoyeon’s trembling arms were caught as Young-bin incessantly goaded. Initially, Young-bin teased Seoyeon while watching her reactions closely.

– Hmm? Why isn’t she reacting today??

– LoL, so true.

– Isn’t this how it usually goes???

– Damn, this is hilarious. Why is her dad egging her on while she’s on live TV? Haha.

– Is this really allowed on TV?? Haha, although it’s funny.

As Seoyeon, who was being filmed, remained silent, Young-bin’s teasing grew more rapid.

And finally, Seoyeon snapped.

“Dad.”

“Huh?”

“Do you know what a Gyro Drop is?”

Seoyeon’s voice had darkened.

– What is she talking about, Seoyeon?

– Hold on.

– Why is she suddenly grabbing the chair?

– ?????

And at that moment, it happened.

As Young-bin’s entire chair was lifted by Seoyeon, and the chair dramatically swung up and down, Young-bin let out a pitiful scream.

– Seoyeon style piggyback ride! Crazy!

– Damn, what is happening—she’s insane!

– Seoyeon is strong, yeah.

– No, this is beyond her just being strong…

– What does “beyond” even mean? Go challenge her to a sparring match!

– No, that’s not what I meant…

It was no surprise the community exploded with reactions.

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