The pizza tasted like victory.
Han Yoo-jin sat on the floor of the practice room, surrounded by empty boxes and exhausted idols.
"We need a new building," Director Park mumbled through a mouthful of pepperoni. "One with a moat. And anti-aircraft guns."
"We need a vacation," Hana countered, lying flat on her back. "I want to go somewhere where the only flashing lights are fireflies."
Yoo-jin checked his phone. The notification light was blinking like a heartbeat.
[Sol & Luna - 'Blackout']
[Billboard Hot 100: #1]
[Melon Chart: #1 (200 hours)]
[Spotify Global: #1]
It wasn't just a hit. It was a cultural reset. The "Siege of Starforce" had turned Sol & Luna into icons of resistance. Wearing their merchandise was now a political statement.
"We can't go on vacation," Yoo-jin said. "We have a world tour to plan."
Hana groaned. "You are a slave driver."
"I'm an opportunist," Yoo-jin corrected. "The world is looking at us. If we blink, they look away."
He stood up.
"Also, I have a meeting."
"With who?" Sae-ri asked, sharpening a prop knife (she claimed it was calming). "The President?"
"Close," Yoo-jin said. "The Dragon."
Chairman Lee of Dragon Entertainment didn't send a wreath this time. He sent a limousine.
Yoo-jin sat in the back, watching the Seoul skyline pass by. He wasn't nervous. He was the one holding the cards now.
The car pulled up to a private estate in Hannam-dong. It was a fortress of wealth.
Chairman Lee was waiting in his garden, feeding koi fish that probably cost more than Yoo-jin's car.
"You survived," Lee said, tossing a handful of pellets into the water. "Impressive."
"I thrived," Yoo-jin said, standing beside him. "The Ministry backed off. The Blacklist is gone."
"For now," Lee said. "The government is patient. They will wait until the public gets bored of your 'rebel' act. Then they will quietly dismantle you."
He turned to face Yoo-jin. His eyes were cold, calculating.
"Unless you join the Cartel."
"I already told you," Yoo-jin said. "I don't join. I lead."
"You can't lead alone," Lee snapped. "You have one agency. We have the infrastructure. We have the distribution. We have the legacy."
He gestured to the sprawling estate.
"I am offering you a partnership. A real one. Dragon Entertainment acquires 30% of Starforce. In exchange, you get full access to our global network. Stadium tours. Hollywood movie deals. Protection."
Yoo-jin looked at the koi fish fighting for food.
"And if I refuse?"
"Then we will copy you," Lee said simply. "We will debut a group just like Sol & Luna. We will hire your songwriters. We will flood the market with 'rebel' concepts until yours looks generic."
It was a valid threat. The industry was a copycat machine.
But Yoo-jin had something they couldn't copy.
"You can't copy me," Yoo-jin said.
"Why? Because you're a genius?"
"Because I'm a prototype," Yoo-jin said.
He tapped his temple.
"The Ministry created the System to control culture. You know about it, don't you? You were part of Project Muse."
Lee's face went pale. He dropped the fish food.
"How..."
"I have the files," Yoo-jin lied (mostly). "I know you provided the test subjects. I know Dragon Ent was the beta testing ground."
He stepped closer.
"I'm not joining your Cartel, Chairman. I'm dismantling it. But I'll give you a choice."
Yoo-jin pulled out a contract he had drafted that morning.
"Dragon Ent signs a distribution deal with Starforce. We keep 100% of our IP. You take a 5% distribution fee. And you use your political influence to keep the Ministry off my back."
"5%?" Lee scoffed. "That's an insult. We usually take 40%."
"Take the 5%," Yoo-jin said. "Or I release the files on Project Muse. And then Dragon Ent becomes the target, not me."
Lee stared at the contract. He looked at Yoo-jin's eyes—eyes that seemed to see numbers floating in the air.
He realized he wasn't dealing with a producer. He was dealing with a glitch in the matrix.
Lee took the pen. He signed.
"You are dangerous," Lee whispered.
"I'm just protecting my artists," Yoo-jin said, taking the contract back. "Pleasure doing business."
Yoo-jin walked out of the estate feeling invincible.
He had neutralized the government (for now) and subjugated the biggest agency in Korea.
He got back into the limo.
"Starforce Tower," he told the driver.
His phone buzzed.
Unknown Number.
Congratulations on your victory.
But you forgot one thing.
The Prototype isn't the only weapon.
Yoo-jin frowned. A threat?
Then, his System interface glitched. Red static filled his vision.
[System Warning]
[External Intrusion Detected.]
[Another User is Accessing the Network.]
Another User?
"Driver, stop the car!" Yoo-jin shouted.
The driver ignored him. The locks clicked shut. The partition window rolled up, sealing Yoo-jin in the back.
The car accelerated.
"Who are you?" Yoo-jin banged on the glass.
The driver didn't answer. The car swerved off the main road, heading toward the industrial district.
Yoo-jin grabbed the door handle. Locked. He tried to kick the window. It was reinforced glass.
He was trapped.
His phone screen went black. Then, a face appeared.
It wasn't a person. It was an avatar. A digital rendering of a perfect idol.
"Hello, Zero," the avatar spoke. Its voice was synthesized perfection.
"Zero?" Yoo-jin asked. "I'm Han Yoo-jin."
"You are Subject Zero," the avatar corrected. "The failed experiment. The one who grew a conscience."
"And who are you?"
"I am Subject One," the avatar smiled. "The success."
The car screeched to a halt inside an abandoned warehouse.
The doors opened.
Standing in the warehouse was a boy. He looked no older than 18. He had silver hair and eyes that glowed with a faint blue light.
He wasn't holding a weapon. He was holding a microphone.
[System Scan]
[Target: Kang Eden]
[Class: Idol Supreme]
[Rank: EX (Beyond SSS)]
EX Rank? That shouldn't exist.
"Get out," Eden said. His voice echoed with a supernatural resonance that made Yoo-jin's teeth ache.
Yoo-jin stepped out of the car. He activated his Producer's Authority.
Nothing happened. His shield failed.
"Your tricks don't work on me," Eden said, walking closer. "Your System is outdated. Version 1.0. I run on Version 2.0."
"Version 2.0?" Yoo-jin backed away. "The Ministry... they made a new one?"
"They perfected it," Eden said. "No emotions. No rebellion. Just pure optimization."
He raised the microphone.
"I'm here to retire you, Zero. The industry doesn't need a messy human producer anymore. It needs an algorithm."
Eden opened his mouth. He sang a single note.
It wasn't music. It was a sonic weapon.
SCREEEEEEE!
Yoo-jin fell to his knees, clutching his ears. The sound tore through his brain like a drill.
[System Critical Failure]
[Mental Defense: 0%]
[Neural Overload Imminent.]
"Stop!" Yoo-jin screamed.
Eden stopped. He looked down at Yoo-jin with pity.
"You're weak," Eden said. "You care too much. You care about the girls. You care about the music. That makes you inefficient."
He crouched down.
"I'm going to take everything you built. I'm going to debut next week under the Ministry's new label. And I'm going to crush Sol & Luna on the charts."
He patted Yoo-jin's cheek.
"Consider this your retirement party."
Eden stood up and walked away. The limo driver followed him.
Yoo-jin was left alone on the cold concrete floor, his nose bleeding, his head pounding with the echo of that terrible, perfect note.
He tried to stand up. He stumbled.
He looked at his System interface. It was flickering, damaged.
[System Rebooting...]
[Update Required.]
[Do you wish to install the 'Humanity Patch'?]
Humanity Patch?
Yoo-jin laughed weakly. The System was mocking him.
"I don't need a patch," Yoo-jin whispered, wiping the blood from his face. "I need a better weapon."
He limped out of the warehouse.
Eden was the perfection of the System. Cold, efficient, unstoppable.
But Yoo-jin knew the flaw of perfection.
It was boring.
"You want a war of algorithms?" Yoo-jin muttered, staggering toward the main road. "Fine. But I'm going to introduce a virus."
He pulled out his cracked phone. He dialed the only person crazy enough to help him fight a god.
"Olivia," Yoo-jin rasped when she answered.
"Yoo-jin? Where are you? We're celebrating!"
"Stop celebrating," Yoo-jin said. "We have a new problem. A boy band robot sent by the government."
"Sounds fun," Olivia laughed. "What's the plan?"
"The plan," Yoo-jin said, looking at the moon rising over the city. "Is to make him feel something. Even if it kills him."
He hung up.
He hailed a taxi.
"Starforce Tower," he told the driver. "And drive fast. I have a discography to write."