JTBS Master Control Room.
The employees of the broadcasting station's technical team swallowed as they checked the graph.
"T-team leader-nim... this is..."
The head of the technical team, Lee Piljun, stared with wide eyes at the viewership trend.
"The Chaebol Heir is a Pure-hearted Macho" had started smoothly with a 1% rating.
However, the rating didn't drop for a single moment and soared steeply.
"2 percent...! The rating just passed 2 percent!"
"My goodness, in just 10 minutes...?"
Had there been any recent JTBS dramas that started with such numbers?
It was the best start since the hit drama from six months ago.
But back then, the stage had been set with a star writer and a top actor.
Just then, someone burst into the control room.
"Director Sung Kihoon!"
"I just checked the ratings on my smartphone."
"Ah, we just hit 2 percen... no, 3... per... cent?"
It was insane. The only word that came to mind was simply "insane."
Technical team leader Lee Piljun looked at Director Sung Kihoon with an expression of wonder.
To have achieved such a result with a rookie writer and rookie actors.
"Wow... Director Sung, you are truly amazing."
"Does this look like a result that I created?"
"Pardon?"
Director Sung pointed to a specific point where the graph had bent and said.
"The banter scene between the male and female leads at the 7-minute mark. The female protagonist's monologue scene at the 11-minute mark."
Director Sung Kihoon, pinpointing the exact moments the ratings had pumped up.
A subtle crack appeared on his expressionless face, and then a smile formed on his lips.
"It's the power coming from the dialogue, not the directing."
"Ah... come to think of it."
"Yes. There are no sections where the ratings drop."
The pattern was different from other dramas, which fluctuated like stocks.
It was a strange indicator that did not allow any viewers to leave.
"Wow, this... it looks like we might have a fighting chance against MBS."
"They're probably having a headache right about now. Since they start with child actors in the early part."
"Hahaha. They must be wondering if they should scrap the child actor parts."
"We'd be grateful if they did."
If they made such an irrational move, the work would collapse in an instant.
Bzzzzt—
A call from Director Bang.
Director Sung let out a smirk and answered the phone.
"Hello."
-Hey, come see me for a moment, Director Sung.
"Yes. I'll be right up."
A sense of urgency could be felt in Director Bang's voice.
Not even half of the drama's first part had aired yet.
If viewers continued to tune in without leaving, and the influx continued to increase like this.
"4 percent... maybe."
No, perhaps it might even hit 5 percent.
If, like a lie, the minute-by-minute rating didn't drop for a single moment.
"Our maknae, since when did you get so good at acting?"
"Hey, our Semi was always good."
"KYAAAA, this is so much fun."
The dorm of the Purple Girls members.
The five members were gathered cozily, watching the drama.
'I wanted to watch the first broadcast with the writer...'
She had heard that the production staff were all watching together at the broadcasting station.
But since Jinwoo had immediately refused, Semi had also reluctantly turned back.
He was probably watching with the people from Tempest Entertainment.
And of course, among them would be a certain rookie actress.
'Kim Hyunji... was it?'
She had forgotten for a while, but thinking of her brought back that moment again.
The image of Kim Jinwoo on the first day of filming, discussing a new project with actress Kim Hyunji.
It seemed he was thinking of her as the female lead for his next work.
Just like he had chosen Im Jaejun and herself as the protagonists of "Pure-hearted Macho."
"...Should I ask him?"
The unnis next to her, squealing as they watched the drama.
Among them, Yuna unni shouted and boasted.
"My, my song! My song is playing!!!"
"Hey, I'm the one who made that song."
"I sang it, so it's my song!"
Reimi, who had composed her first-ever OST, bickered with Yuna.
Soon after, Reimi picked up her smartphone and exchanged messages with someone.
"I asked whose song it is."
"Who did you ask?"
"Who else? Writer Kim."
"..."
Semi felt a little dazed.
She worried hundreds of times whether it was okay to send even a single message.
"Unni... are you close enough with the writer to ask such questions?"
"Huh? This is the first time I've messaged him today."
"Ah, ah..."
For the first time, she was envious of Reimi's bulldozer-like personality.
"Oh, it looks like Writer Kim Jinwoo is watching with his family."
"Really!?"
Hearing the news about Jinwoo, Semi's expression suddenly brightened.
Because she had thought he was watching with the Tempest people, but he wasn't.
Meanwhile, the drama was still ongoing.
The group's best acting-idol, Jae-eun, suddenly brought up a topic.
"Hey, but... what are the ratings like?"
The words Jae-eun uttered instantly chilled the atmosphere.
The report card that no one wanted to pay attention to, but had to be checked nonetheless.
The leader, Miryung, stepped up as the representative and checked her smartphone.
"Unni?"
"Hurry up and tell us."
"What's wrong?"
Miryung, who couldn't speak for a while, slowly opened her mouth.
"It's... over 4 percent."
"Is the people meter broken?"
The lead actors' performances were as natural as flowing water.
Director Sung's directing skills were also as excellent as the drama I had seen in the system.
The fruit of those efforts was neatly defined by a single word.
"Insane."
"Pure-hearted Macho," which started with a mere 1%.
The drama's minute-by-minute viewership graph shot up vertically.
In particular, during the scene where Semi shed tears, it was knocking on the door of 5%.
"Oppa! It's 4.8 percent right now."
"Is this real?"
"This... is a total hit, isn't it!"
"A super hit."
In the group chat as well, people were in an uproar, congratulating each other.
［OMG we tore it up lolololol］ ［Looks like we're about to break 5 percent ㄷㄷ］ ［Congratulations, Writer-nim ㅎㅎ］ ［This is now the 6th highest first-episode rating in JTBS history;;;］ ［Everyone who bet under 3 percent, get on your knees lolol］ ［Mijin, let's not cross the line ^^］ ［I'm sorry, sunbaenim ㅠㅠ］
Soon after, "Pure-hearted Macho" surpassed the 4% range and reached the 5% range.
In the end, it recorded 5.1%, and the first broadcast concluded successfully.
Countless messages poured into my smartphone.
Starting with a PD from some broadcasting station, who somehow got my number.
To an investment company, a production company, a radio casting offer, and even the writers' association.
I was swamped with the flood of contacts at this late hour.
"Oppa, I'm going to start using formal language with you from now on."
"?"
"To think I didn't recognize such a great person until now."
"Did you eat something weird?"
"You fuc— No, I mean, Writer-nim... is there anything you'd like to eat?"
"Chicken. BBZ, half-and-half with lots of radish."
"Yes, sir! I'll order it right away."
"Okay. With your money."
"...Yes, sir."
I let out a chuckle at my sister's flattery and handed her my card.
"Ooh...!"
"You buy the chicken with your money."
"Huh...?"
"You wanted to go to that famous acting academy in Gangnam, right? Pay for it with this."
"Oh my god. Allegiance, allegiance!"
I felt a little embarrassed under my parents' fond gazes.
'5.1 percent...'
Seeing the unbelievable number, it didn't feel real.
It was hard to believe even seeing it with my own eyes, so I checked the minute-by-minute ratings chart once more.
To be honest, the first episode's ratings are often determined by the actors.
But the most important thing was that the rating didn't drop for a single minute.
It meant that almost no viewers had changed the channel.
At least for this week, there was no strong competing channel like MBS.
If there was no big change in tomorrow's ratings, it would maintain a high number like today.
Meanwhile, the person who bet on 5% in the first episode ratings bet.
"Semi-ssi won the bet."
Isn't this the realization of justice?
The next day, at the JTBS Variety Department Head's office.
"We've already finished filming, how can we do that!"
"That's why you have to edit it well."
The producer of JTBS's flagship variety show, "Knowing Neighborhood Hyungnim."
PD Jin Jaehoon spoke in an agitated tone in front of Director Han Youngok.
"How am I supposed to turn one episode into two in three days! Am I some kind of magician?"
"Director Jin... your words are a little rough."
"Ah, no. Director-nim... it's not that."
He had already finished editing and was looking for the next guest, but a bomb suddenly dropped.
Of course, it's a good thing if the drama ratings are high.
Thanks to that, this week's variety show ratings would also be guaranteed.
"I know it's hard, Director Jin. But what can we do? I also received orders from above."
"Hah... I understand."
PD Jin shook his head as he left the director's office.
"Sigh, they should have told me before filming then. The broadcast is this Saturday, by what means..."
At that moment, PD Jung Chansu, who had approached from the side, spoke.
"Then you'll have to pull an all-nighter."
A travel variety show that took celebrities around the world.
He was a figure who had risen to the ranks of a star PD with 'Penniless Travel.'
"Ah, sunbaenim."
"Do you know when the last time one of our station's shows got a 5 percent start was?"
How could he not?It was the first time since the super hit project from two years ago.
"You have to think of Director Han too. Of course, she's going to get pressure from above."
"Yes. I understand."
Jung Chansu grabbed the shoulder of the trudging PD Jin.
"Should I give you a tip on how to increase the footage?"
"What? Yes!"
"Then give me writer Kim Jinwoo's number. I'm thinking of casting him later."
"What? On 'Penniless Travel'?"
"Well, not for this season. I'm thinking of him as a joker card for around the next season."
"Ah..."
In truth, the tip he gave was nothing special.
If it's difficult to increase the footage from what was filmed, you can just do additional filming.
Should I say it was cunning of him to tell me something everyone knows as if it were a big favor?
"As PD Jung said... I should start by getting a phone or video interview."
Focusing on the people closest to the lead actors.
And among them, writer Kim Jinwoo must be included, of course.
Honestly, this was all for "Pure-hearted Macho," but it felt like the power dynamic had been reversed.
Shouldn't they be welcoming it with open arms if I'm editing it into a two-part special?
PD Jin sent a message with a mindset of not being pushed around at all.
［Writer Kim Jinwoo, would you be available for a brief interview? If you're uncomfortable, just your voice would be... pleaaase...］
"Pure-hearted Macho" comfortably settled into the 5% viewership range for two consecutive days.
For a cable drama, it had started with a rare result for the year.
"The Sensation of 'The Chaebol Heir is a Pure-hearted Macho'. The Records They Broke in Just Two Days."
In truth, 5% is a cute number compared to successful dramas on public broadcast.
But the reporters made a fuss over the good performance of a cable drama after a long time.
"Our actors have already blown up."
Various clips and memes were circulating like a trend on YouTube and social media.
Even if the "Pure-hearted Macho" ship sank, the fans would passionately support the actors.
In particular, the appearance of the new face, Im Jaejun, was a hot topic in various communities day after day.
The "Pure-hearted Macho" gallery was already taken over by drama fans, posting once every second.
『Come see how handsome Jaejun oppa is ㅎㅎ』 『Where has an actor like this been hiding all this time ㅠㅠ』 『Looks+Acting+Height, all perfect ㄷㄷ』 『When it comes to acting, Semi is a total method actor ㅋ』
I clicked on the featured post with the most recommendations.
『Turns out there's a web drama that Semi and Im Jaejun appeared in together lololol』
A YouTube link was attached to the first comment of the post.
I had also found Im Jaejun through a web drama.
"I was wondering when this would come up."
Below it, a line of troll comments were attached.
-Pure-hearted Macho is scheduled to get utterly destroyed by MBS soon, right? ^^ -ㄴNope -ㄴNope22 -The great Choi Manho came out for two scenes and tore it up ㅎㅎ -ㄴDidn't you watch the drama? I could only see Semi -ㄴSeongho oppa was the real amazing one ㅡㅡ -ㄴFangirl arrested
Proportional to its popularity, the gallery became active, and interesting posts kept coming up.
These days, watching the reactions of the fans who watch my drama has become a small happiness.
Bzzzzt—
At that moment, a call came from someone.
"It's Manager Jung."
To be honest, I had recently developed a habit of not answering unknown numbers.
Since most of the recent calls were from people trying to get something out of me.
"Hello."
-Writer-nim, congratulations.
"Thank you."
Manager Jung Saerom immediately got to the point.
-Would you be able to stop by the company today? I'd like to talk about your next project.
"Ah, I'm scheduled to stop by the broadcasting station first today."
-You can come slowly.
"Okay. Then."
Click.
"My contract fee is going to go up this time."
Perhaps I might even end up signing the contract today.
If possible, I wanted to confirm the male protagonist before talking about the next project.
"It can't be helped."
First, it seems I have to go and film the interview that the variety show PD was crying and begging for.
"Then shall I get ready to go out?"
Stopping by the JTBS drama department first was the best choice.
Surprisingly, I had gotten a lead on the male protagonist for my next project at the broadcasting station.
I truly felt the saying, "Heaven helps those who help themselves."