Damn Hunter Life Chapter 60
Woo Sae-geon remained silent. I guess he thought I responded somewhat unexpectedly.
Though I lost something, I succeeded in notifying him that I wouldn’t be under surveillance from you, Woo Sae-geon, anyway.
Even after ending the communication, I was lost in thought for a while.
I had awakened and succeeded in being accepted by people as a member of the successors. But this wasn’t the end of everything.
What I needed next was.
“Making the real power of the Twelve Zodiac convinced of me.”
==
*I don’t think there’s any hope in terms of character.*
==
Since I hadn’t been talking to myself lately, the status window had been keeping its mouth shut too.
Hearing the status window’s comment after a long time cured my low blood pressure a bit.
The communication had already ended, but suddenly a chat came from Woo Sae-geon.
==
Ox Successor > Me: Prepare for broadcasting.
Ox Successor > Me: The association will send an official document soon, but you’ll be appearing on More Hero episode 9 too.
==
I was going to appear on a successor talk show for the first time.
* * *
Woo Sae-geon, who had sent the chat, lowered his arms from the conference room table.
Until then, he looked back at another person who had been nailed to the chair on the opposite side of the table.
“You’re not going?”
Unlike Woo Sae-geon who had his hair in a topknot, Ja Hyeong-woo was wearing hwarang clothes but hadn’t tied his hair. It could be seen as a somewhat relaxed appearance.
Though he absolutely never went when asked, Ja Hyeong-woo immediately jumped up from his seat as soon as those words fell. Without saying he was going, the conference room door slammed shut.
This was after hearing that Gang-hyeon wasn’t coming.
Left alone, Woo Sae-geon leaned back against his chair.
Among the successors, the person with the biggest difference between public image and actual appearance was definitely Myo Cho-hui.
But Woo Sae-geon thinks Ja Hyeong-woo isn’t far behind either.
‘A hero devoted to the nation, my ass. A bastard who’s been obsessed with just one guy from start to finish.’
Ja Hyeong-woo’s retreating figure leaving the doorway. Gang-hyeon who had just finished communication.
I can see that this side’s weakness is that side.
‘Does it work in reverse too?’
He’d wanted to experiment with that sometime.
* * *
The day of the talk show filming dawned. I stepped foot into the filming studio in the Hunter School building. It was my first time entering this place.
Like talk shows commonly seen on TV programs, it seemed to be structured so that successors would sit one by one at each table in a row.
Normally, a host would sit in the middle position, and PDs would be swarming behind the cameras…
But this was a special space where only hunters could be.
This broadcast was one where all broadcast producers including the host had to work remotely. They succeeded in expanding camera angles somehow with the system’s help. Something about extending screen functions.
‘If even PDs can’t be beside us, naturally there are no coordinators or makeup professionals either.’
Anyway, outfits are fixed as hunter uniforms, and since we’re not celebrities where faces matter, makeup isn’t necessary either.
But some people do it themselves.
Jin Seol-woon was walking around carrying a box that was his personal item. He caught every successor who entered and held up makeup tools. He also did something lightly on his own face.
Then Yang Pyo entered. As soon as Jin Seol-woon saw his face, he started scolding.
“I told you to sleep a lot the night before. Is this the skin of someone who slept enough?”
“I’m sorry…”
“Come closer.”
Yang Pyo approached Jin Seol-woon, who was gesturing, hesitantly. Sigh. I quietly sent Yang Pyo a text.
[That’s why I told you not to show off]
[When you can’t sleep, call me and sleep next to me]
[Stupid bastard]
A reply came shortly after.
[ㅠㅠ But my insomnia is really getting better… These days I don’t wear the mask skill more often, so this is improvement, which is why I didn’t get scolded much by Jin Seol-woon hyung just now]
[Well, that’s fortunate]
Jin Seol-woon, with focused eyes, patted Yang Pyo’s face with a cushion. Rather than being generous-hearted, I thought he was doing this because these were members who would appear on the same screen as him. Perfectionism hoping for propriety even if not as much as the Innate group, something like that.
Jin Seol-woon briefly held onto Ja Hyeong-woo who said it wasn’t necessary, then came to me too.
“It’s an honor to have Esi do my makeup.”
“Close your eyes.”
But even after waiting quite a while, nothing touched my face.
When I opened my eyes, black pupils were too close. As soon as our eyes met, Jin Seol-woon immediately pulled his upper body back.
“Ah. I was checking closely. You don’t need makeup. You have no color in your face, so I’ll just cover that.”
Besides that, Jin Seol-woon taught me various things since I was going on a talk show for the first time.
Which point of the screen camera to look at for natural eye contact in the video. How to leisurely buy time when answering the host’s questions. When the question topic wasn’t about you, in other words when you’re out of focus, what angle to use for side activities so you look good even when occasionally caught on camera. And so on.
Practical tips from a current idol poured out. The virtue of successors is fighting, not variety shows. Isn’t this too much? Jin Seol-woon’s occupational disease was unavoidable.
“But I feel like Gang-hyeon-ssi would instinctively do well even without experience. I get that feeling.”
“What are you talking about?”
“That reporter interview. Gang-hyeon-ssi got a lot of criticism but did you know your face went around as memes like crazy? By the way, this is ongoing.”
His expression was calm but only his eyes sparkled. He seemed to enjoy bringing this up to me. Is he teasing me?
“I don’t know about that stuff.”
I guess it’s going around as gag memes. I don’t intend to monitor internet public opinion enough to look up such things, so I quickly passed it by.
The exact time for the broadcast start was almost upon us. But the camera had already been rolling from 10 minutes ago.
It seemed like they wanted to include scenes of the successors waiting freely. I figured as much and rested with my feet up on the footrest.
‘The time when successors were conscious of cameras passed ages ago. We’re under CCTV surveillance even going to and from training grounds.’
Meanwhile, our leader who hates talk shows came in last, at a precarious time.
[“Successor Woo Sae-geon!”]
The large screen suddenly lit up brightly. Beyond the screen, a talk show host had appeared. He seemed used to Woo Sae-geon’s uncooperative attitude, making a fuss within reasonable limits.
[“I thought you weren’t coming!”]
“I wanted to do that.”
[“Glad you came!”]
Woo Sae-geon naturally plopped down in the very last seat among the panels. Jin Seol-woon approached with makeup tools just in case, but Woo Sae-geon brushed him away with his hand.
Certainly, Woo Sae-geon would be the only person who wouldn’t cause controversy for swatting away Esi with the back of his hand.
[“Successor Gang-hyeon! Nice to meet you. I’m Bae Eun-soo, hosting the show.”]
I was blankly watching when suddenly the host’s handsome face looked at me. What a polite person.
“Well, hello.”
Bae Eun-soo was a former singer who, in his young thirties, frequently hosted various music variety shows as an MC.
If he were someone significant, he would have been covered in the original work, but not knowing him means he’s someone who doesn’t cause any particular problems.
[“It’s your first time but don’t be nervous. It’s enough for the successors to show yourselves as you are. Talk portions and entertainment are what the dirty broadcasting bastards take care of, so Successor Gang-hyeon can just be comfortable and leave!”]
The phrase “as you are” felt strangely heavy, but maybe it’s just me.
Among the 10 seats divided into two groups of 5 with the center empty, there were no fixed seats. You could just find a seat you wanted before recording.
‘Should I sit at the very end opposite Woo Sae-geon? Since I have a delinquent image, a corner spot would be better.’
But Ja Hyeong-woo had already claimed it.
After having the seat I was going to take stolen, where to sit became somewhat ambiguous.
‘If I want a corner spot, it’d be right next to either Woo Sae-geon or Ja Hyeong-woo.’
I absolutely hate both options.
But from the third seat onward, it gets too close to the center—why is my seat luck like this?
“Gang-hyeon, sit next to Seol-woon!”
At that moment, a playfully giggling voice filled my eardrums.
Jin Seol-woon was sitting in seat 1, directly to the left of the empty center. Sa Ye-ho designated a seat for me, then placed his belongings on the seat next to Woo Sae-geon. Woo Sae-geon opened his eyes to look, then closed them again.
I sat down since he told me to, but I was curious about the reason.
Won’t it hurt Jin Seol-woon’s image if I’m next to him? Or will I get cursed at by Esi fans?
“Why am I sitting here?”
“Well, your face can handle being next to Seol-woon.”
Sa Ye-ho, giggling, approached from behind the chair and wrapped his arms around my shoulders as if pouncing.
Given that cameras were rolling and filming us even before recording started, and that Sa Ye-ho knew this while still doing skinship as usual, I didn’t shake him off and grabbed Sa Ye-ho’s arm draped over my shoulder.
Snake Successor, former internet broadcast streamer. Sa Ye-ho’s talent lies in his ability to liven up talk shows like this almost as much as the host.
‘So here, everyone should follow Sa Ye-ho.’
Woo Sae-geon was already leaning back against his chair with his eyes closed, as if this nonsense had nothing to do with him.
It wouldn’t be surprising if he just meditated throughout the entire recording. There had actually been broadcast episodes where he did exactly that.
As I was looking to the side wondering what pattern hanbok Sa Ye-ho was wearing today, I made eye contact with Ja Hyeong-woo who was staring from afar.
What are you looking at? I quickly averted my gaze.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
