WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: LilGuyBlastoise
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ Mistaken for an S-Class Employee ◈
Chapter 25: Core Values
──────
Choi Ji-hu looked flustered.
“Ho ho, you’re in a hurry, Assistant Manager Go.”
Manager Chu stepped in with a laugh.
“I appreciate your enthusiasm, but you’ve only just met. Why don’t you introduce yourselves properly?”
“We did that a moment ago.”
“Oh, come on. That was just a greeting.”
Manager Chu seemed to have something in mind, so I quietly watched what she would do.
“Let’s just call <The Reinstated Employee with a Scalpel> <Scalpel Returnee> for short among ourselves.”
Manager Chu patted Choi Ji-hu on the shoulder and spoke to me.
“Mr. Choi Ji-hu has been working as a writer at Studio Tiger for a long time. He’s written a variety of works, including <Another Miss Oh>, <Yumi’s Cells>, and <The King of Pigs>.”
They seemed like fairly well-known dramas, but they had one thing in common.
“They’re all dramas adapted from webtoons?”
“Ho ho, you really know your content. You noticed right away.”
Manager Chu smiled.
“That’s right. Writer Choi’s strength is adaptation. He’ll make good use of your ideas and turn them into an excellent work.”
“If you don’t mind, there’s something I’d like to ask.”
I carefully addressed Choi Ji-hu.
“Yes, go ahead.”
“Were you the head writer for the works Manager Chu mentioned?”
He looked far too young for that. No, more accurately, he looked young.
“No. I worked as an assistant writer.”
Manager Chu smiled.
“This project will be Writer Choi Ji-hu’s debut as a head writer.”
“Ah... I see.”
Since he was the writer who would turn the idea into a script, I hadn’t expected a veteran writer to come.
Manager Chu glanced at me and added, “He worked as an assistant writer for over five years. He also did writing himself while assisting head writers. More than anything, he’s worked on many successful projects, so he knows how to tell what will succeed and what won’t.”
He had never led a writing project, but he had worked on many hits.
After hearing her explanation, I thought he must at least know the formula for success.
“You said you have experience with successful works, so I’d like to ask you something.”
He looked young, but this was our first meeting, so I treated him respectfully.
“In your opinion, does <Scalpel Returnee> seem like a work that will succeed?”
Choi Ji-hu answered readily.
“If it seemed hopeless, I wouldn’t have come here.”
After answering my question, he asked Manager Chu, “How should I address him?”
Manager Chu smiled.
“It’s a task force team, and Assistant Manager Go will be serving as a manager alongside me. You can call him PM, Project Manager.”
Come to think of it, I wasn’t meeting an employee from a partner company. It would be strange to be called Assistant Manager.
“Understood. PM, I look forward to working with you.”
“Yes, I look forward to working with you as well.”
Choi Ji-hu stared at me.
“I had a few questions after reading the written opinion. May I ask them?”
* * *
“Of course. That’s why I came. Please, go ahead.”
Since he had decided to do this, Min-hyeok straightened his posture and resolved to give it his all.
Choi Ji-hu looked at Manager Chu.
“Will you be staying too, Manager?”
“It’s the first day, so I’ll stay for a little while before leaving. I thought there might be something I could help with. Still, you two are both quite impatient. Ho ho.”
Without responding to that, Choi Ji-hu asked Min-hyeok, “The thing I was most curious about was why the protagonist has to be a reinstated employee.”
“It’s simple. To create dramatic cathartic payoff, it helps to show a character’s transformation. Um... to put it more clearly.”
Min-hyeok’s whole demeanor changed, and his eyes sparkled.
“Usually, a reinstated employee would be more intimidated or even downgraded. But imagine that person returning as a superhero. Wouldn’t it be interesting no matter what kind of workplace situation you put that character in?”
“...”
“And I thought you might ask why the reinstated employee begins in a position with so much authority, so I’ll explain that in advance.”
Min-hyeok’s face was full of confidence.
“The initial setup needs to be as short as possible. A provocative start that people can’t look away from. I think that’s the foundation of every creative work. Think of animations we watched as kids, like Dragon Ball or One-Punch Man. Their first episodes are incredibly attention-grabbing. They seize the audience’s attention, then sweep them along at a breathless pace...”
This was Min-hyeok’s area of expertise, so he spoke without pause.
Choi Ji-hu became absorbed in his explanation.
‘He doesn’t seem like a beginner.’
When he first received this offer, Choi Ji-hu had thought Manager Chu was crazy.
But after discussing the work with Min-hyeok, he realized Min-hyeok was no ordinary person.
‘If even ordinary people are like this, how are people like me supposed to make a living?’
The more captivated Choi Ji-hu became by Min-hyeok’s words, the more uncomfortable he felt.
“PM, while reading the synopsis, I wondered if the plausibility was a little weak.”
Choi Ji-hu spoke gently.
“A company would have plenty of talented people. Would it really give consulting authority to an employee returning from leave?”
“...”
“And a company is ultimately a story about people living together. I think it needs a certain degree of realism. Just because they gain some authority, they start firing problematic bosses left and right? I worry whether viewers will really relate to that.”
Choi Ji-hu continued voicing his concerns for some time, and they were logical points.
After listening to everything he had to say, Min-hyeok asked, “We’re here to exchange opinions, so I can speak freely, right?”
“Of course.”
Min-hyeok spoke without hesitation.
“Plausibility and verisimilitude... of course they’re important, but I don’t think they should be the first things we consider.”
Manager Chu’s lips twitched upward, and Min-hyeok continued.
“You said you adapted <Yumi’s Cells>, right? Did that really have verisimilitude?”
<Yumi’s Cells> was a drama in which the cells inside the protagonist’s body gave timely advice.
Choi Ji-hu looked flustered.
“That’s a romance, while this is an office drama. The approach has to be different. I think <Scalpel Returnee> needs to be more realistic.”
“No. It needs to be more unrealistic.”
“...”
“I’ve written office fiction until I was sick of it... no, read enough of it to be sick of it, so I know. Unrealistic stories wearing the clothes of reality are what work.”
Min-hyeok spoke confidently.
“I think people watch dramas because they’re entertaining. That’s the core value. It’s important to pursue that to the extreme, as long as it doesn’t become a problem.”
“...”
“To compare it to selling food, as long as you don’t add poison, what’s the big deal about adding a little sugar and salt to make it taste good?”
Manager Chu nodded vigorously, while Choi Ji-hu could not respond, his face stiff.
‘What is this guy? Is he really an office worker?’
A pro recognizes another pro.
Choi Ji-hu sensed Min-hyeok’s depth of experience and was completely overwhelmed by his first impression.
* * *
This was frustrating.
I could understand if he were an ordinary person.
But I couldn’t understand why someone who had been a writer for such a long time would say that.
“I understand what you mean.”
At least Choi Ji-hu grasped what I was saying right away and didn’t seem overly stubborn.
“Then we should begin by showing the process of the protagonist returning to work?”
“No. I think it would be better to begin after they have returned.”
The opening needed to move at an almost excessive pace.
That was something I had learned painfully after flopping three works before <The Office Worker from the Apocalypse>.
“But the protagonist will barely have any backstory.”
“We can show enough of their backstory through the conversations of those around them. And if that isn’t enough, we can use flashbacks.”
Choi Ji-hu nodded.
“Understood. Then I’ll write the first episode and ask you to review it.”
“Wouldn’t it be better for you to handle it on your own from here? It’s not as if I know how to evaluate a script. I think we should leave it at this.”
“The first episode is important, isn’t it? You created the original idea. I think it would be best to confirm that we’re headed in the right direction.”
Reading one script wasn’t difficult. I reluctantly replied, “All right. Then.”
When I checked the clock, two hours had already passed, so I stood up.
“I have work to do, so let’s stop here for today. Contact me when the script is ready.”
“Aren’t you going to give me your business card?”
Choi Ji-hu held out his hand, and without much thought, I took out a business card and gave it to him.
“Here you go.”
Choi Ji-hu spoke hesitantly.
“If there’s anything I need to discuss while writing, I’ll contact you.”
* * *
“I’m back!”
I greeted everyone energetically as I entered the office.
“Part Leader, the meeting went well.”
I thought Part Leader Ryu would be curious, so I went to report to Ryu first.
“Oh, good work.”
Part Leader Ryu only gave a brief answer and asked nothing else.
After spending a few days with Ryu, I understood.
It wasn’t that Ryu was uninterested. Ryu was being considerate so that I wouldn’t feel pressured.
“Assistant Manager Go, how was it?”
As soon as I sat down, Assistant Manager Baek greeted me with a broad smile from the desk beside mine.
“You look so happy. It must have gone well.”
“Haha, do I? Nothing much happened.”
“You’re full of energy. Did something good happen? Tell me about it. What was the writer like? He wasn’t offended, was he?”
“Why would he be offended?”
Assistant Manager Baek smiled.
“Honestly, he’s practically a ghostwriter. A writer might not like that.”
“Oh, come on.”
I waved my hands.
“I’m only providing the idea. The writer is the one doing the writing.”
“I don’t know. I think plenty of people would see it the same way I do. Don’t you think so too, Assistant Manager Go?”
I shook my head.
“I didn’t write the manuscript. Even if there had been a manuscript, adaptation is clearly a separate field. Please don’t call him a ghostwriter.”
Assistant Manager Baek pouted.
“Why are you getting so serious?”
“I’m not.”
Maybe I wanted to defend him because he was a fellow writer.
Assistant Manager Baek cleared his throat and asked, “Did you two communicate well?”
“He didn’t seem particularly stubborn.”
“That’s good. A lot of writers are single-minded, so it’s fortunate he doesn’t seem like that kind of person.”
“And... he was handsome.”
“Handsome?”
Assistant Manager Baek blinked.
“How handsome?”
“Just... handsome enough that you might mistake him for an actor at first glance.”
“Do you have a picture?”
“Haha. No picture. But I got his business card.”
“Let me see.”
Assistant Manager Baek looked over the business card from every angle.
“Oh, there is! There is!”
After spotting something, he immediately turned on his phone.
“What is it?”
“His Byeolsta account.”
“Ah...”
A moment later, Assistant Manager Baek’s eyes widened in surprise.
“You’re saying this guy isn’t a celebrity?”
“He is handsome, isn’t he?”
“This is beyond just handsome! Is he just photogenic?”
I looked at the photo of Choi Ji-hu on Assistant Manager Baek’s phone.
“He looks pretty much the same in person.”
“Wow...”
After checking whether Part Leader Ryu was watching us, I said, “The Part Leader just looked over here.”
“Oh, really? Let’s get to work.”
Assistant Manager Baek and I snickered as we started working.
He brought me an armful of content candidates for acquisition.
“What is all this?”
“I narrowed these down first. Please take a look and tell me whether they seem good.”
I reviewed them one by one and gave him my opinions.
“The plot is decent, but the characters seem too weak.”
“Okay.”
“Hmm... this one isn’t bad either, but I don’t think it has the potential to become a huge hit.”
“Right. A moderate hit isn’t enough.”
“This premise is too predictable...”
For some time, I gave feedback based on my impressions, and Assistant Manager Baek diligently recorded it on his laptop.
“You can just listen casually. Why are you taking it so seriously?”
“Other companies have acknowledged your instincts, Assistant Manager Go. I shouldn’t take them lightly.”
Had it only been about a week since I transferred teams?
I wondered whether it was right to hear something like that from a content veteran.
Still, receiving positive feedback was a good thing.
“Is everyone free tonight?”
Part Leader Ryu suddenly spoke up.
“It’s been a little while since Assistant Manager Go joined us. Let’s have a meal together.”
“Sounds great!”
Assistant Manager Baek was the first to answer loudly.
Part Leader Ryu asked me, “What about you?”
I had sent today’s installment yesterday, and I had written about half of tomorrow’s before coming to work.
“I’d like that too!”
I answered loudly, and Part Leader Ryu smiled.
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