Chapter 165

“You must become friends, our son.”

Lee Hyuk-soo, a professor in the Hematology-Oncology Department at Hankuk Baekyeon University Hospital.

His wife, Gil Soo-jin, gently stroked their son’s head with a tender voice and said,

“It’s all for your own good. See what you can gain simply by being friends with her.”

She showed her son, Lee Min-hyeok, a photo of Lee Yoo-joo.

“The daughter of a fallen college entrance coordinator. But inside her head is her brother’s entire portfolio. She knows how to study and how to secure the top position at Baekyeon University’s medical school.”

“Mom, I…”

“I know, our son. That you don’t really like her. Min-seo told me. You fought today, didn’t you? Go and apologize tomorrow.”

“Mom!!”

Lee Min-hyeok finally couldn’t hold back and shouted.

But the mother, Gil Soo-jin, only quietly looked at her shouting son.

In that calm atmosphere, Lee Min-hyeok’s voice, which had been raising, gradually quieted down.

“Then, couldn’t you do just a little better, like that?”

The hand caressing his head slowly descended and tightly gripped Min-hyeok’s shoulder.

“To the extent that I don’t have to do this, or interfere like this, wouldn’t it have been better if you had worked harder much earlier? You should be ashamed. She has never lost her number one position, I heard. Someone like that. Do you think our son can win against someone like that?”

Incidentally, the middle school Yoo-joo attended is within the so-called “Sky Garden,” the system for students who progress from kindergarten to university.

Approximately on par with Baekyeon Middle School.

A place where someone who hasn’t dropped even once from the top.

“Even the representative of the incoming students was Yoo-joo, wasn’t it?”

In other words, complete defeat in the realm of grades.

With those words of her mother, Min-hyeok felt as if his breath was cut off.

“You must become a doctor, my son.”

To such words from her, Min-hyeok’s head moved very slowly.

Very slowly, with a small nod.

“That’s right. Be a good boy. Apologize tomorrow. I’ll inform Min-seo, okay.”

Saying that, Gil Soo-jin turned her back. Leaving behind her son who was staring at the floor.

“Just be like Min-seo, alright?”

Though her grades are slightly behind his, the younger sister has a good personality.

Min-seo was already firmly attached to the side of Lee Yoo-joo.

‘Bal-less woman.’

Min-hyeok quietly muttered these words to himself, then turned around.

And the next day,

Min-hyeok went to Yoo-joo’s classroom, where they met on the first day.

Seeing his twin sister, Min-seo, already attached to Yoo-joo’s side, he snorted quietly as he confidently approached and spoke.

“I’m sorry.”

At the sound of this, Yoo-joo’s gaze shifted.

First, it was one of surprise,

Then her eyes curved as she caught on to the reason,

And a sneer appeared at the corner of her lips.

“What for?”

“Yesterday, when I told you that you don’t fit here. I didn’t know you were the incoming representative.”

Lee Yoo-joo was foreign matter within this Baekyeon high school.

The so-called “Sky Garden” refers to a place where people ascend from kindergarten to university through an escalator system.

The chosen ones.

The top 0.1% of South Korea.

People who have all kinds of money, reputation, and power live here.

And amidst this, the newcomer student from the outside.

Of course, it was natural that most people wouldn’t look at her kindly.

In a world where there are no classes,

She was looked at as if there were lower classes, like the commoners.

Nevertheless, there were those who approached her.

Like Min-seo.

There was no need to explain the reason for that.

“I won’t tell you.”

Standing up slowly, Yoo-joo pressed Min-hyeok’s chest with her index finger and stated,

“My brother’s portfolio.”

Upon these words, Min-hyeok’s eyes widened in surprise. Standing nearby, Min-seo covered her mouth as she stole glances.

“That’s why you’re apologizing to me, isn’t it?”

While saying this, Yoo-joo removed her finger from Min-hyeok’s chest and smiled faintly.

“Therefore, I won’t tell you.”

“You!!”

“But, hear me out.”

Glancing at the ones watching her, Yoo-joo continued.

“I won’t keep it entirely secret from you.”

All the people gathered there were competitors.

Everyone carrying the expectations of their parents, studying for the sake of their family.

Of course, there might be some average ones among them.

But at least the purpose of those observing her so strongly was obvious.

“I’m rather whimsical.”

From Yoo-joo’s words, Min-hyeok saw an overlap with his mother, Gil Soo-jin. Because of that, he could somewhat predict what she was going to say next.

“We must go to university, right? Your desired Baekyeon University. As a top student of the department.”

“Nonsense. ……At most, you only know a bit.”

“A bit?”

Yoo-joo chuckled at his retort. Then suddenly stopped laughing to say,

“I took last year’s college entrance exam. Do you know how many points I scored?”

Min-hyeok didn’t answer. As her face moved closer to his, she smiled.

“I scored full marks.”

Then slowly stepping away from him, she extended just her index finger while clenching the rest of her hand into a fist.

“I was number one in the nation.”

Amid an unusual tension, Min-hyeok gritted his teeth. In a trembling voice, he denied her statement.

Number one in the nation.

How could he believe such an exaggerated claim?

After all, anyone could make wild claims without showing a thing.

“That could be a lie, you know.”

“Whether you believe it or not is none of my concern. You’ll see it all anyway.”

At the end of the day, there’s something called a practice test in high school.

If her grades were as good as she claimed, the school would never let her be unnoticed.

Because even if she tried to hide, the teachers would surely reveal her capabilities one way or another.

“It’s not just about grades, managing your GPA matters too. Volunteer work and all that, isn’t it?”

It was almost as if that statement was appealing her worth to those present.

It seemed like she was telling them what they could gain by befriending her.

Min-hyeok realized.

We were trying to extract her academic knowledge.

She had a purpose for being here as well.

And that purpose aligned with her father’s will.

Just like he did.

“Then let’s…”

Yoo-joo smiled lightly and addressed everyone,

“Be friends.”

With those words, Min-hyeok could not respond.

But one thing was clear.

At the very least, for these next three years,

She would be the queen of Baekyeon High School.

Like that,

The first episode of “Sky Garden” ended.

***

– So, what exactly is this about?

– Why do rich people care about grades?? They probably don’t understand the true nature of the super-rich, huh, lol.

– But even rich people can obsess over their kids’ grades, right?

– College entrance counselors? lol. Let’s be realistic.

After the first episode aired, various noises resonated.

The overall setting was criticized for being exaggerated.

Many opinions deemed it unrealistic, saying the development was too over-the-top.

– Still, it’s kind of watchable.

– Lee Yoo-joo seems so unbearably annoying.

– She’s such a great actress, which is why she’s so annoying! lol.

Such were some of the opinions seen on the community sites.

– So who is the male lead here anyway???

– Lee Min-hyeok; surely he’s not the male lead, right?

– Honestly, this doesn’t really feel like a public broadcasting drama. It’s more like something for kids to watch.

– But it does keep you hooked, no matter what.

Among the significant social media audience, reviews were also split.

Some found it entertaining, while others found it too juvenile or didn’t like the male lead.

Naturally, when this feedback was seen, the atmosphere at KMB’s Drama Department was considerably gloomy.

“Ah, 6 percent, huh.”

Director Kim Il-soo already felt migraines forming. Especially because it was a day of shooting planned with Sooyeon.

‘This might be quite a shock for actress Sooyeon.’

So far, Sooyeon hadn’t experienced failure.

Many young actresses, hearing their first harsh criticisms, often suffer psychological breakdowns.

“Hyun-seok, pull yourself together. Are we not going to shoot, then?”

“But… haah.”

Just watching the other young actors who had come for today’s shoot, one could tell. They had already seen the online reactions before even hearing the ratings, and their mentality had visibly collapsed.

‘If only I had adjusted the shooting date knowing this would happen.’

Director Kim Il-soo let out a sigh.

First episode, 6 percent viewership.

Certainly, that’s not an alarming number.

At least it’s slightly better than average.

The problem is that with a viewership like this, the chances of falling outweigh rising.

Word of mouth only spreads when people watch, after all.

6 percent is exactly on that boundary line.

“If only the drama “Grand Game” wasn’t doing so well.”

“Yeah, it’s impossible not to make comparisons with that.”

Although not particularly bad, it’s not exactly good either.

PD Baek Tae-soo’s “Grand Game” holds twice that number at an impressive 12 percent!!

If there were no competing productions, the chances for a rebound would be higher. But with a big hit just beside us?

Attention was bound to be drawn that way instead.

‘Really, nothing but bad news.’

Seeing Writer Min Se-hee who had faintly collapsed halfway, Kim Il-soo thought.

She had come to hear today’s ratings and collapsed the moment she heard them. Despite saying she didn’t expect much, it appears she couldn’t handle the disappointing ratings—further undermining her already fragile confidence.

“How about this… there’s a YouTuber I’ve been following. They said the potential of the last part is worth looking forward to. So it’s not over yet. It’s not!!”

One of the staff was trying hard to encourage Min Se-hee.

Of course, that’s somewhat humorous given the basis is just one YouTuber.

“It’s not just a YouTuber; it’s a YouTuber with 1.4 million subscribers!”

“1.4 million seems quite a lot?”

“Yeah, yeah. This YouTuber has always been a fan of Sooyeon Joo, consistently reviewing all of her works. Besides, they almost always accurately predict Joo’s ratings and audience numbers like a fortune teller…”

What, like a shaman?

Everything Joo has done so far has been clearly destined for success.

The results are easily predictable at first glance.

So calling them a shaman for correctly predicting these seems a bit…

‘Still, it’d be nice if they were accurate this time.’

Glancing casually at ‘Bongsik,’ the YouTube channel which, this quarter—no, this year—proclaimed that this drama would dominate the landscape, was salivating with enthusiasm in their explanation. About how it’s utterly incomprehensible that the internet is criticizing it so harshly.

– Oh dear, Bongsik

– Seriously, how can Sky Garden outdo Grand Game? lol

– hahaha, I can’t stop laughing

The chat reactions weren’t all that good either. Some even pointed out that excessive fanaticism can be harmful.

Of course, Bongsik was adamant in saying it wasn’t so, arguing their perspective, but the sentiment wasn’t resonating.

“At least we have one passionate fan.”

“That’s true.”

Even having a 1.4 million YouTuber on your side is somewhat reassuring.

“I met Director Baek PD on my way here.”

“Huh! Did he mock … or something?”

“No, in fact, he didn’t seem in good spirits. Is something not going well?”

“No way. As far as I know, they were in a festival-like atmosphere there…”

Baek PD not being in good spirits?

That’s unexpected news.

“Ah, Artist Joo Sooyeon has arrived.”

The sound of Sooyeon arriving at the shooting set came. Naturally, the staff on the set waited tensely.

And then, Sooyeon appeared at the set.

“Hello, everyone!!”

“?”

For some reason, she looked extraordinarily cheerful.

Whereas she usually would greet people calmly, today’s greeting felt unusually buoyant.

‘Oh?’

‘She’s perfectly fine?’

‘If anything, she seems overly cheerful??’

The baffling situation left Kim Il-soo dumbfounded.

Did she not know the ratings yet?

Or is she denying the low ratings?

“Artist Joo Sooyeon. Did you perhaps hear about the ratings?”

“Ah, yeah, I heard. It was 6 percent, right?”

Apparently, she did hear and is reacting like this?

“If it’s my script, wouldn’t 6 percent be more than anticipated?”

Until then, Min Se-hee, who had been slumped, chimed in with that comment.

Is it so?

No, could it really be?

To participate in the production of a script thought to be so destined for failure?

‘No, that can’t be.’

There’s no doubt Sooyeon was sincere about this drama.

It seemed like she had particular goals with this drama in mind.

This was a major turning point for Sooyeon.

There’s absolutely no way she’d waste her first leading role.

‘What exactly is going on?’

Questions overwhelmed everyone’s thoughts.

Nevertheless, Sooyeon appeared so cheerful that it almost made them perceive their concerns so far as trivial.

“Perhaps you think this level of ratings can be turned around?”

“Eh? Come on. With the “Grand Game” there now.”

“To overturn that would be divine.”

The difference would be too vast for a single actor to overturn it.

It would require the script to step up and help.

Yet the failed script after the critically important first episode?

All heads turned to Min Se-hee.

Under that gaze, Min Se-hee faltered again, fainting once more.

‘If the first episode gets 6 percent, then how many will the second episode get?’

Meanwhile, Sooyeon, completely unaware of everyone else’s thoughts, was in a great mood.

To the extent that she had practiced autograph signing all night yesterday.

‘The original script for the second episode was expected to hit just 4 percent.’

However, with the current 6% ratings, it was unclear just how many they’d achieve this time.

And the following day, upon airing the second episode,

[The Resilience Shown by “Sky Garden” Boosts Ratings to a 10 Percent Increase!]

[On the heels of “Grand Game’s” strong ratings, successfully rebounding?]

What was originally supposed to begin in the fourth episode in terms of rising viewership,

Seeing the second episode’s ratings, Sooyeon realized that

This time, her “Sky Garden” would not experience a simple comeback, but rather a meteoric rise.

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