The places where PD Woo Han-suk from 'Produce That 100!' sent the email were far from few. Starting from the so-called top 5 entertainment companies in Korea to large-scale and medium-large agencies, he sent out more than 20 emails. He made no distinctions.

Various entertainment companies received PD Woo Han-suk's email at the same time.

“C-CEO! We got an email from the ‘Produce That 100!’ side!”

“‘Produce That 100!’?? It’s from Woo Han-suk, right? What does it say?!”

“To summarize, they’ll be gathering soon. It sounds like they want us to come if we have the time!”

“They finally issued a summon.”

However, agencies that were too small were excluded. It wasn’t out of disregard; rather, if major entertainment companies were going to take part, there was no way for the smaller ones to compete regardless of the method. Moreover, while the entire entertainment industry is structured this way, the idol industry in particular is a market where the bigger the agency, the more power it wields.

Funding, experience, network, system, everything creates a significant gap the larger the company.

Occasionally, there are male or female idols who succeed, hailed as miracles from small-to-medium agencies, but they are an extreme minority. One team every few years, if that. It was almost safe to say they didn’t exist. Of course, even if such idols succeed, if the agency doesn’t support them strongly, they shine for a year and then disappear.

The idol market is mercilessly brutal.

Since the smaller agencies knew they couldn’t handle it anyway, they didn’t feel slighted.

“......After checking, it looks like most of the major agencies got the email, but we didn’t.”

“Well, even if we jumped into a fight between dinosaurs, we’d just get crushed in the process. Besides, ‘Produce That 100!’ is now pulling in over 25% viewership. Not to mention the terrifying fandom it’s already built. If we make a wrong move, we might get stomped to death by the public even before we get squashed by the big players.”

“Scary.”

“Agencies like ours should just grab some popcorn and enjoy the show from the sidelines.”

Small agencies have their own ways to survive.

“Don’t waste energy on the big game. Start checking if any of the eliminated kids from ‘Produce That 100!’ are usable.”

That’s why PD Woo Han-suk excluded the small agencies from the beginning. Regardless, the agencies that did receive the email from the 'Produce That 100!' side were thrilled and immediately launched into meetings. While there wasn’t enough information to form detailed strategies, they needed to assess the situation.

“Since ‘JTVM’ can’t keep taking care of them, I figured they’d start pushing them out soon. What do you all think?”

“Once the broadcast ends, I’m guessing they’ll be run under the ‘Produce That 100!’ label for a short period, maybe a couple months, up to half a year, then spun off independently.”

“I think the same. If that’s the plan, now’s the time to strike a deal. So, what do you think Woo Han-suk will say when he gathers the agencies?”

“He’ll probably lay out some conditions, but whether he frames it as part of the broadcast or manages it off-camera is hard to say.”

“Woo Han-suk’s a bit of an oddball.”

The information each agency had was based on their ongoing monitoring of 'Produce That 100!', the contestants, and PD Woo Han-suk’s filmography and personality, well-known in the variety show industry.

“If he sent out summon emails to the agencies all at once, it’s highly likely that the gathering itself will proceed jointly, not separately.”

“Hmm. In any case, whatever it takes, we’ve got to grab him.”

“Yes. I feel the same.”

The agencies, each deeply engaged in their respective meetings, grew passionate and fired up, beginning to assess the surviving contestants. Contestant No. 58, among the popular ones, was mentioned, but unsurprisingly, No. 1 came up the most.

"Ah, I'm interested in the other kids too, but I desperately want No. 1. You won't find anyone in the current idol scene with visuals better than No. 1, plus the professional-level vocals, dance, and performances shown on 'Produce That 100!'. Not only does he have star quality, but he's even working as a writer now, right?"

“That’s right. Although PD Woo Han-suk is keeping things tightly under wraps, making it hard to dig for information, even just what’s surfaced publicly shows that No. 1 is a monster-level catch.”

"An idol who's also a writer- with that kind of tension, doesn’t it feel like he’s hiding some other talents too??”

As the meeting dragged on, the agencies’ desire only grew stronger.

"Anyway, getting him would be like winning the lottery, a jackpot. No, more like powerball."

At the same time.

The location was an outdoor park somewhere in Seoul. Filming setup was in full swing with cameras, lights, and equipment. Familiar faces could be seen, the crew from 'Rental Lover'. Up until now, most of the shoots had taken place on set, and on this Tuesday, the 'Rental Lover' team was attempting their first outdoor shoot.

The 'Rental Lover' team was stationed near an area equipped with wooden benches and exercise equipment.

Crowds of onlookers quickly gathered around them.

“Sorry!! Please take a few steps back!”

“Please refrain from filming on your phones!!”

“Apologies for the inconvenience!! We’ll proceed with filming as quickly as possible!!”

'Rental Lover' was already a hot drama, and since famous actors like Choi Rina could be seen in the filming zone, the crowd screamed and gathered to watch.

“Wow! Choi Rina!! Ugh! Don’t push!!!”

“Unnie!! You’re so pretty!!”

“Whoa- Choi Rina is crazy beautiful??”

This was a typical scene when filming outdoors for dramas or movies. That’s why Choi Rina and the actors remained calm and composed. Looking around, Kang Rojun was nowhere to be seen. Amid all this, sitting in front of the monitor with messy hair tied back was PD Jung Soo-ryeong.

“Hm-”

She was reviewing the filming continuity sheet and checking what they needed to shoot today. At that moment, a young man with acne came running up, it was the assistant director. What was interesting was that he had several stacks of paper in his hand.

“Sunbae.”

“Yeah.”

"Here, what you asked for. I've only printed out the first episodes!"

PD Jung Soo-ryeong turned her head toward the assistant director and smiled slightly.

“Okay, hand them over.”

As if she had been waiting, she took the bundles immediately, and after flipping through a few pages, she stood up. Her destination was a nearby parking lot. Opening the passenger door of her car parked between filming vans, PD Jung Soo-ryeong said,

“Three scripts in total?”

Her smile deepened as if she was in a good mood. And rightfully so.

“I wonder what flavor Kang Chul-soo’s full-length work will have this time?”

The scripts she received were other works by writer Kang Chul-soo. Though she was dying to read them right away, she held herself back. Filming 'Rental Lover' came first for now. That’s why she planned to read them bit by bit whenever she had spare time.

Placing the scripts in the passenger seat, PD Jung Soo-ryeong muttered with anticipation in her tone.

“These are treasures, real treasures.”