I had quite a few hobbies.
Like drinking coffee while reading the newspaper in the morning...
Or building a lavish private mansion, or acquiring a film company.
But to be honest, if you look deeper, most of those “hobbies” were really just a kind of work. Sure, I enjoyed them, but they also brought profit.
‘If I had to na a real hobby, it’d probably be gaming and... exposure, I guess?’
It sounded a little off, but it wasn’t exactly wrong.
To put it bluntly—I really enjoyed being the center of attention.
Recognition, curiosity, desire from others... Things like that made my life richer. And to achieve that, I actively revealed myself to the people around .
That wasn’t supposed to be the case.
Not even counting security concerns.
As I told Seo Ji-yeon, there should always be a certain distance between those above and those below. It’s hard to hold respect for soone you see as an object of lust.
Sa goes for gas. If a well-known company’s owner turns out to be a hardcore gar, it might seem relatable—but it also lessens their gravitas.
If I were so young Silicon Valley entrepreneur, it might be different. But I’m a chaebol, soone who has to maintain a certain weight.
Still, what can I do? I’ll take the risk.
Because I want it.
—
“Oh, young lady, you're here?”
Pigmalion Soft.
It had been a while. Myrian waved ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) her hand.
“Yeah. Hi.”
My tone was a little subdued. She scratched her head awkwardly.
She had suddenly announced her graduation just as she was supposed to start the third year of middle school.
“Well..., I didn’t have much of a choice. I found sothing I really wanted to do.”
Figures. I hadn’t expected much anyway. It’s already been, what, five years since we t? That’s a long run.
“Phew. So you’re going straight to college after graduating?”
“Not straight away... After I finish third year. I an, I’m the right age. Honestly, it’s kind of weird I’m still in middle school...”
Myrian was originally two years older than . And I also took a year off while waiting for Daehwa Middle School to open.
So if everything had followed a normal path, Myrian wouldn’t be in third year—she’d be a senior in high school by now. And since she was a genius to begin with, it wasn’t strange that she’d skip high school entirely and head straight to university via equivalency exams.
“Alright, alright. So your precious rocket matters more than , huh?”
“Yup.”
Nod, nod.
Myrian nodded without hesitation.
“...What?”
“Oh, no—I didn’t an it like I hate you or anything. It’s just... you don’t co to school that much anyway, right? We’re more likely to bump into each other here at the office...”
“....”
I was sulking.
***
In the end, Myrian begged for forgiveness, hands pressed together.
– Tap.
“Yeah, treat this young lady right.”
“...Thanks. But you didn’t have to give this much money... Ten billion won? Isn’t that a bit excessive?”
“Hmph. Just take it. You’ve done a lot of work for the company—it’s only fair.”
I’d provided her more than enough startup capital.
Later, when she graduates from university, I’ll give her a hundred billion if I have to. But dumping too much money on her right from the start would only make her suspicious.
“If you finish this ga well, I’ll forgive everything. So focus on programming, okay?”
The ga we were developing in the club was nearly complete. I hadn’t been able to put in much ti, so Myrian had to carry most of the load.
“Ah, that ga. It’s mostly done, but... the specs are kind of a problem. It barely runs on most current computers. Are you sure it’s okay?”
“...Didn’t President Song tell you?”
“What? I’m not really close with him, you know.”
Hmm, is that so.
Weirdly satisfying. I an, I do have a pretty extensive network in my own way.
Of course Yoo Ha-yeon is popular.
‘Obviously. Who could possibly dislike ?’
I smiled at the mirror. That confident, proud face was just beautiful.
“...Young lady. So what’s the plan?”
“Optimization’s fine. A new OS is coming from MS.”
I folded my arms and smiled.
“Cheap, efficient, and very user-friendly.”
Its na? Windows 95.
Sure, Microsoft is already a huge company, but before and after Windows 95, their stock value was on a different level. They led the dot-com boom from the front, expanding relentlessly. The value of that software is beyond imagination.
In a way, it’s just a software upgrade—but it’s directly tied to computer performance.
To keep up with the software, consurs will start favoring newer machines.
‘I know this drill.’
As a gar in my past life, I was intimately familiar with it. How many tis did I have to swap out graphics cards, RAM... upgrade hardware just to run a single ga?
Back then I used to sigh and regret my lack of money, but thankfully, in this life I don’t have to worry about that.
“Oh, you an that rumor that’s been going around? If it’s you saying it, I’ll believe it.”
“Obviously. You should.”
“...Hmm. Alright then. I was thinking of cutting down the file size, but I guess I don’t have to anymore. Stick with the original plan?”
After hearing my words, Myrian, who had been fiddling with the computer, showed the latest demo of the ga.
– Dding!
Pixel graphics with neat fonts and even a piano-like BGM.
“Oh, that’s pretty solid.”
I didn’t hold back the praise. It had the feel of a classic ga—sothing you could genuinely enjoy.
Ah, this is life.
Myrian responded casually.
“Still needs testing, so there are things to fix. By the way, where’s Seo Ji-yeon? Haven’t seen her around the clubroom lately—did she join the film club or sothing?”
“Oh, not there. I’ve been dragging her around for stock stuff. If she joins the film club....”
My words trailed off. I didn’t really want to answer.
“Around what?”
‘Clueless idiot.’
I clicked my tongue once and replied.
“I just don’t want her to see act. I’m playing the main role, and if Ji-yeon shows up, my position gets shaky...”
“Oh, so you suck at acting. Got it. So I should just not watch?”
“...Yeah.”
Not wrong, but still offensive.
Hmph.
***
– Click.
As I opened the clubroom door and stepped inside, all eyes turned to .
“...Ah. You’re here, young lady.”
A senior in a high school uniform waved to .
“Long ti no see, Seohye-sunbae. How’s Daehwa High?”
Fortunately, the forr vice-head of the film club—still a small girl (technically a few months younger than , so I’m the unni)—nodded slightly.
“Thanks to your help, it’s been great. Way~ better than I imagined. I didn’t think I’d ever find a school better than Daehwa Middle... You must’ve spent a ton of money.... Ahaha! I an that in a good way. You get it, right?”
I smiled faintly in response.
“Sure. So that director you were always trailing after... is Sun-woo-sunbae doing okay?”
She blushed and nodded.
“...Yeah. He’s doing fine. He’s coming in about an hour.”
How sappy.
I shook my head and sat on the desk. Seohye-sunbae looked up at and asked:
“By the way, you were originally just the director, right? What made you suddenly decide to act?”
“Well, it’s obvious.... Not being on cara would be a huge waste. So I decided to act too. Besides, once Sun-woo-sunbae arrives, we’d be sharing directing duties anyway.”
“Oh, that makes sense. And with your bloodline, you’re probably good at it.”
“....”
I swallowed my words.
To be honest, I was already kind of regretting it. Acting wasn’t as easy as I’d thought.
‘Damn it, why didn’t my TS co with any buffs for this...’
It was unfair.
It’s not like I got so superhuman strength to rip people apart, or had huge boobs like Lee Si-hyun. And yet I didn’t get any talents for arts or sports?
I didn’t even get basic reflexes. So unless I’m going up against complete beginners like Seo Ji-yeon, my win rate in gas is nothing special.
Overall, my body’s specs just boil down to “won’t get sick” and “won’t die of natural causes.” If I had to fight a typical middle school boy seriously, I’d probably lose.
‘Though I guess I could just barely handle middle schoolers...’
Anyway, if I hadn’t been born into a chaebol family, but into an ordinary 21st-century ho, I’d be screwed.
“Um, Seohye-sunbae, if you want the role, just say so. I’ll step aside.”
I smiled awkwardly and offered generously. Fortunately, since she had already graduated, she hadn’t seen my “practice,” so I could still say that.
– “Wow, young lady, that’s shaless...”
“Hey, could you stop whispering and maybe clean the place instead?”
I glared at the group, and only then did the room go quiet.
“Eh, it’s fine. I’m super curious what soone as pretty as you would look like on cara! You’re good at acting, right?”
Her eyes sparkled as she rejected my offer.
“Th...uh... y-yeah. I’m good.”
I sighed inwardly.
‘What do I do.’
I thought I’d be fine since I always wear a mask in daily life—but I was wrong. If I were just a supporting role, maybe. But now that I’m playing the female lead, I need to show emotional depth. And I couldn’t do that.
“Who’s the male lead? Is it soone I know? Hmm, that’s a bit concerning. Without Sun-woo, I don’t think we have any other good-looking guys...”
I didn’t agree with that deluded opinion, but I agreed with one thing:
Even if I could seduce soone...
I absolutely couldn’t act like I was in love.
.
.
.
A mont later.
Seohye-sunbae looked at , her face stiff.
“Young lady, were you serious about that? I an... it’s not that you’re acting like you can’t act, right?”
“...No.”
“Then it’s going to turn into a horror movie... Ugh. Though, maybe that’s not so bad. Or should we just make you a red herring and cast another lead...”
“That’s not happening.”
“Why not? You’re super popular anyway. Audiences tend to like stuff like that more.”
“No ans no. Unless we change the genre entirely, if it’s a romance, I have to end up with the male lead.”
I always have to be the best.
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