Suddenly, I Became Crazy Handsome, and the World Became Easy
Chapter 23.2: Storm (1)

Even at this very moment, countless people somewhere were probably furiously typing on their keyboards about 'Produce That 100!'. The Room 105 members couldn’t let go of their phones out of sheer amazement. Rojun also wanted to join them badly, but he somehow finished all the workout missions.

About an hour passed?

Rojun and the Room 105 members, having finished exercising, moved back toward the dorm.

“Number 1-nim! Did you see your face all over Instakilo right now??”

“Yeah, it’s being shared like crazy. Even in the communities.”

Yeah, of course he saw it. In fact, Kang Rojun was extremely tired right now.

‘What time did I go to sleep last night... Shit, I couldn’t help it and kept looking it up.’

He had barely slept, spending the dawn obsessively searching and searching.

‘But I have no regrets.’

It was a thrill or ecstasy enough to make him give up sleep. Who could possibly endure such an unimaginable event unfolding before their eyes?

“Yes, I saw it too.”

“Feels amazing, doesn’t it??!! Ha- so jealous, seriously.”

“When Number 1-nim sings ‘Farewell’ in episode 2 today, it’s gonna be even crazier, right??”

“Facts. I saw some comments saying Number 1-nim looks god-tier but probably sings like a tone-deaf.”

Number 19 and Number 37 were talking non-stop in excitement, while Number 88, the reaction robot, kept nodding repeatedly. At that moment, Number 58, with a baby perm and who had been quiet the whole time, chimed in softly.

“...Let’s all watch episode 2 together tonight.”

“Yeah! They said we wouldn’t be gathering like for the first broadcast, so we’ll have to watch in the room!”

After that, including Kang Rojun, the Room 105 members showered and headed to the dining hall. However, Rojun.

“I’m going to the bathroom for a bit.”

He made an excuse and slipped away. The bathroom he arrived at wasn’t on the same floor but on a different one. A place he had previously scoped out for its lack of people. As expected, there was no one in the bathroom, and Kang Rojun settled into one of the stalls and let out a breath.

“Phew- this is crazy.”

He steadied his excited heart and pulled out his phone. First, he checked the “AI Simulation” app.

-[User: Kang Rojun/ Age: 24/ Height: 182.8 cm/ Desired Occupation: Idol/ Coins Owned: 416 coins]

Including today’s mission, the total number of coins had somehow reached 416. After briefly checking his coins, Rojun spent them on stat enhancement as per his routine.

‘Today, I’ll boost Singing Ability and let’s raise Dance too.’

He used a total of 20 coins. Since he had earned a decent amount from recent Hidden Missions, he went ahead with the investment. The status change occurred immediately.

-[Appearance (100/100)│Singing Ability (8.7/100)│Rap (1.7/100)]

[Dance (6.4/100)│Eloquence (6.5/100)│Acting (3.8/100)]

Singing Ability would soon hit 10. Dance had risen quite a bit too. The other stats had also seen some change. Rubbing his jaw, Rojun loosened his throat and quietly sang a tune. Of course, it wasn’t Farewell.

-♬♪

He stopped quickly and tilted his head.

“Hm?”

Getting up, he shook his body this time. He was dancing. He tried mimicking something he remembered another participant doing. Once again, he stopped after a few dozen seconds and muttered to himself.

“Can you really call this tone-deaf and rhythm-deaf?”

There were still some remnants, but his skill had clearly improved. Scanning through his status stats again, Kang Rojun reached one conclusion.

“...10 isn’t a small number.”

It was his own judgment, but a stat of 10 probably meant just slightly below average for a normal person.

‘Raise it by just 20 more and it’d probably be considered decent among regular people.’

Well, he’d find out with time. Kang Rojun decided that once Singing Ability reached 10, he’d invest next in Dance, then Rap, Acting, and Eloquence in that order. Soon his gaze moved. To the last section of his stats.

-[Lyrics Writing (0.4/100)]│[Composition (0/100)│Arrangement (0/100)]

Compared to the other stats, there had been practically no growth in these areas.

‘Hmm- feels like I’ll need these eventually too.’

Around lunchtime.

The domestic broadcasting industry, including public broadcasters, general programming, and cable, was in an uproar. The reason? The sudden explosive popularity of “Produce That 100!”

“Damn- ‘Produce That 100!’ got a 10% rating?? Shit, that’s sickening!”

“Our director’s breathing down our necks like we’re just twiddling our thumbs.”

“Jin-sung’s show got its ratings stolen by ‘Produce That 100!’, no wonder he’s pissed.”

“But seriously, what’s up with ‘Number 1’?? His visual could eat up most actors alive.”

Station directors, high-ranking execs, CPs, PDs, assistant directors, and writers across networks were all talking. Of course, the same went for both variety and drama departments. It was the same at SBC, where PD Jung Soo-ryeong worked. Perhaps because it was a drama department, they talked less about the show itself and more about the “Number 1” contestant who shook viewers with just the first broadcast.

Watching the edited clips on Youtube, they were in awe.

“The more I see Number 1’s face, the more amazed I get... Like, where the hell did Woo Han-suk even find this kind of gem??”

PD Jung Soo-ryeong, who had her frizzy hair tied up, glanced over and answered inwardly.

‘That Number 1 was the grand prize winner in our One-Act Drama Contest and is the writer I’m supposed to work on a project with.’

When another PD chimed in while reading an article.

“On top of that, isn’t Number 1 supposedly not even wearing makeup in this? And he still looks like that? Damn- this guy should’ve been an actor!!”

PD Jung Soo-ryeong cleared her throat and again responded in her mind.

‘He’s planning to appear in the One-Act he wrote himself. He even had a meeting here at SBC!’

Aside from the “Produce That 100!” team, PD Jung Soo-ryeong was currently the only person in the domestic scene who had made direct contact with Kang Rojun. The project had even progressed quite a bit. PD Jung Soo-ryeong was dying to spill the beans. Of course, even she had been dumbfounded when she watched “Produce That 100!” last night. She had assumed Kang Rojun was just a typical idol trainee from a mid-tier agency.

But then.

‘Who knew he’d drop a nuclear bomb like this.’

Soon, the male PD sitting two seats over from her muttered.

“Number 1 completely hooked the viewers with just a face reveal.”

True. PD Jung Soo-ryeong knew that better than anyone. She was the one who had cursed out loud at his insane visuals the moment she first saw Rojun.

‘Writer Kang Chul-soo no, that Number 1’s gonna blow up even if he’s tone-deaf and can’t sing.’

There was no way the production team of “Produce That 100!” or PD Woo Han-suk would just sit on a character with that kind of value. From now on, Kang Rojun would be the viewership magnet of “Produce That 100!”

‘It’s only episode 2 next, and it’s already like this. A few more episodes and it’ll be a full-blown storm.’

PD Jung Soo-ryeong, seated by the window, looked at an article open on her laptop. The article featured Kang Rojun’s face in a large, prominent photo. Even PD Jung Soo-ryeong, who had seen countless actors, found it absurd, imagine how the general public must be reacting. At that moment, a fellow PD passed behind her and spoke.

“PD Jung, you’re looking at ‘Number 1’ too? Isn’t he insane? That face would make even Hollywood fall over in shock, right??”

“......”

Without responding, PD Jung Soo-ryeong stared again at the image of Kang Rojun in the article. Until just a few days ago, she had only thought of him casually.

‘The situation has changed.’

There’s a big difference between launching the One-Act first and then having Kang Rojun rise to fame afterward, and Kang Rojun becoming explosively popular first, followed by the One-Act’s release. With just a single episode of “Produce That 100!”, writer Kang Chul-soo had drawn massive attention. At this rate, not only would he have pulling power, but it was clear he’d soon carry the title of hot rising star.

‘If it gets out in the media and public opinion that the hyped-up Number 1 is actually a writer and that he’s appearing in a One-Act he wrote himself-’

Mixing Number 1 and “Produce That 100!” into a joint marketing campaign? PD Jung Soo-ryeong was practically salivating.

‘This could mean “Rental Lover” ends up a ratings jackpot, right??’

If that was the case, she needed to revise the plans she had set for 'Rental Lover'.

‘Looks like... I’m gonna have to expand the scale a bit.’

*****

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