Perfect Agent [EN]: Chapter 263

Promise and Faith (2)

I thought it would be simple—just finding the original source of the article—but in almost every case, the source was vague, like, ‘according to a certain official.’

The upload times were also very close, with almost no difference.

My staff and I called each media outlet that published the article, one by one.

“Hello, reporter, you recently wrote an article about us. Could you tell me where you got your information?”

“I have a duty to protect my sources, so I can’t reveal that.”

Of course, they couldn’t openly admit they didn’t have a source.

“Ah, well…”

Most of them trailed off, avoiding a direct answer.

“Beep, beep…”

Some hung up before I could even finish speaking.

Even after an hour of work by the entire staff, we couldn’t find an answer.

Frustrated, I asked Lee Soo-min for help.

In the meantime, articles with unclear sources continued to be uploaded by other media outlets.

└Koh Ji-hoon made a lot of money signing a FA [Free Agent] contract and was planning to hit the jackpot with Oh Seok-hoon and Park Seong-joo. Kang Hyun-woo is finished now, too.

└They were pretending to care about the players by holding tryouts because they had something shady going on behind the scenes.

└It’s really creepy. Does that mean everything they said in interviews was planned, even this?

└But honestly, isn’t the source missing? YJ Agency didn’t announce it directly.

└The circumstantial evidence alone is enough. What more do you need when everything fits perfectly?

└YJ Agency is also a victim, so it’s difficult for them to actively step forward.

└Has Dream Agency grown so much that YJ Agency is trembling? They gathered famous players and grew so quickly.

└What happens to the players’ contracts then? Can they go back to YJ Agency?

└It needs to be settled before Oh Seok-hoon and Park Seong-joo become free agents. The agency fees alone would be enormous.

I immediately called the media outlet that had just uploaded an article.

“Hello, Dream Agency…”

“Beep, beep…”

As expected, they hung up as soon as they heard ‘Dream Agency.’

“Hoo-”

I leaned back in my chair and slumped down.

In the midst of this, one of the staff members holding the phone shouted, “CEO, it’s Lee Soo-min, a reporter from Jeil Newspaper.”

As soon as I heard Lee Soo-min’s name, I grabbed the phone.

“Yes, Soo-min.”

“CEO Kang, I found something. This is probably the source. I’ll email it to you now, please check it.”

“Thank you, Soo-min.”

I hung up and immediately checked the email Lee Soo-min had sent.

I clicked the link to the article.

The main page was crude and poorly designed.

Scrolling down, I found a video SNS [Social Networking Service] channel they were running.

I clicked on it and saw only a few recently uploaded videos, probably because it was new.

Unsurprisingly, there were few subscribers.

The most recently uploaded video targeted me and Dream Agency.

“Fishing TV? What is this place?”

“I’ve never heard of it either,” Jung In-gyu said, tilting his head.

“Is it new?”

“I don’t know, but the name itself feels ominous.”

“It seems like they’re trying to catch a big fish,” Jung In-gyu mused.

No matter how much I searched online, there wasn’t much information.

Fortunately, there was a business address at the bottom of the homepage.

I had no choice but to go and meet them in person.

“I’ll be back shortly.”

I immediately got in the car and left.

* * *

I went to the business address and found an old building.

I couldn’t find the company’s sign anywhere outside.

I stepped inside.

There was no elevator.

I had to walk up the stairs to the 5th floor.

After a tiring climb, I finally saw the company sign on the door.

Fishing TV.

The name was even more unpleasant in person.

I opened the door and entered.

I looked around the office.

It wasn’t large, and there were only five employees.

One of them noticed me and approached with a bothered expression.

“How can I help you?”

“Can I meet with reporter Kim Cheol-min?”

“Ah, reporter Kim?”

Before the employee could finish, a man staring intently at a monitor looked up.

“You’re looking for me… Oh?”

He recognized me immediately; it was Kim Cheol-min.

It was the face from the SNS video.

I strode up to him and shook his hand.

“Nice to meet you. I’m Kang Hyun-woo from Dream Agency.”

“Ah… Yes.”

He couldn’t hide his embarrassment as he shook my hand.

“Can we talk for a moment?”

“S-sure.”

I moved with him to a small space that looked like a conference room.

As we walked, I checked the information window that appeared to him [referring to a game mechanic or ability the protagonist has].

-I feel very good because I made the article I created this time the center of attention and increased traffic.

-Busy creating new articles that can attract attention.

He created the article.

It was no surprise that the content was different from the truth.

As soon as I sat down facing Kim Cheol-min, I asked directly, “You were the first to upload the Dream Agency article, right?”

“That’s right.”

“How did this come about?”

“Does a reporter need a special method to write an article? I’m just working hard.”

Kim Cheol-min raised the corners of his mouth in an obnoxious smile.

I suppressed my emotions and asked again, “If you’re covering an article of this magnitude, you must have done enough fact-checking, right?”

“Of course.”

Kim Cheol-min answered without hesitation.

It wasn’t easy to suppress the anger that surged up at his brazenness.

“Where is the source of the article?”

“I can’t tell you that. We have internal regulations.”

Looking at the company, it didn’t seem like the kind of place with those regulations.

“Is there even a source?”

“Of course. Otherwise, how could I write an article?”

Was this brazenness innate?

“Then you’re definitely basing it on facts, right?”

“That’s what I’m saying. How long are you going to keep asking the obvious?”

I could feel annoyance from Kim Cheol-min.

“But do reporters usually work in the office like this?”

The people who seemed to be reporters were all sitting at their desks working.

“I have to work in the office. Where else would I work?”

“The reporters I know are so busy running around covering stories that they don’t seem to have time to sit in the office.”

“The atmosphere may be different for each company. We work in our company’s way.”

“How do you cover stories if you’re in the office?”

“Do I have to tell you even that?”

“How long has this company been established?”

I turned my head and looked around the conference room, asking.

“Why are you suddenly curious about that again?”

“I can’t find much detailed information about this company, even when I search the internet.”

“You’ll find out in the future. It’s gradually getting people’s attention.”

Kim Cheol-min answered, slightly raising one corner of his mouth.

“You seem to be covering various fields besides sports, but is that possible with this number of people?”

“Just say what you want to say directly. Don’t beat around the bush.”

“Shall I?”

I clasped my hands together and continued, “Shouldn’t you base your articles on accurate facts? Writing novels with whatever comes to mind isn’t what a reporter should be doing.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. It has nothing to do with me.”

“What you wrote this time, is that a novel or an article? There were no problems with our players’ contracts. It’s a completely unfounded lie.”

“I will not answer that.”

“You know that you will be punished for writing false articles, right?”

“Punishment?”

“You have seriously damaged the reputation of me and our company with false articles that have no basis at all. Present the evidence, or take down the article and upload an apology right now.”

I glared at Kim Cheol-min.

Then he opened his mouth with a bitter smile.

“Do you think we’re a new company, so we can be easily handled with a little intimidation?”

“Intimidation? What intimidation did I do?”

“What else is it when the CEO of the best agency in the country comes directly to talk like this?”

“This isn’t intimidation, but a formal suggestion regarding the part where you posted incorrect information as if it were true.”

“We’ll take care of that. The public will judge the rest.”

Kim Cheol-min cut me off.

“So you’re not going to take down the article and apologize?”

“I don’t see any reason why we should.”

Looking at Kim Cheol-min’s obnoxious expression, it was clear there was no point in talking further.

“Then I have no choice. I’ll have to fight it legally.”

I jumped up from my seat, left those words, and came out of the conference room.

I slammed the office door shut with all my might and left.

* * *

While I was meeting Kim Cheol-min and returning to the agency’s dorm, another article was uploaded.

I confirmed it through a message from Jung In-gyu.

└Now Kang Hyun-woo is even threatening reporters. Is he now an untouchable figure in the baseball world?

└He went directly to the reporter to argue, so that says it all. He wouldn’t have done that if he didn’t feel guilty.

└He tried to cover it up by giving them some money, but it didn’t work out.

└I have to release the neutral gear [give up defending him]. Sorry, but this is unshieldable.

└Hyun-woo, apologize to YJ Agency and fix it now, even if it’s late. If you’re human, you should act like one.

The video of me talking to Kim Cheol-min earlier was uploaded along with the article.

When did they film this?

Because there was even supporting footage, it had a huge number of views, and comments were constantly being posted in real time.

As soon as I read the message, I had to pull over.

Hoo…

A sigh escaped.

It felt like I was sinking deeper into a swamp.

Is there really no other way but to reveal what happened with YJ Agency?

But in this atmosphere, it didn’t seem like people would believe me even if I told the truth.

I had to have a meeting with my agency colleagues first.

I struggled to grab the steering wheel again.

I finally arrived at the agency’s dorm.

There were more than ten people gathered in front of the gate.

It was difficult to identify them because it was dark.

“What’s going on?”

It was the first time I had seen so many people loitering in front of the agency.

I carefully got out of the car and walked towards the gate.