A Cultural Merit Medal was an award given to those who had made clear contributions to the advancement of culture and the arts, thereby promoting cultural growth and national development.

Originally, one needed to accumulate at least fifteen years of achievements in the relevant field, but in cases of exceptional merit, it could be awarded even before that period. That was why there had been talk about Yoo-Jin and Ju Yung-In recently, and even Haru being considered for it. However, in reality, the chances of actually receiving it were extremely low. As for me, a talent agent, it was even more out of reach.

And yet, Director Kang Ji-Yung, who had come to the meeting room, was telling me that I had been nominated for the Cultural Merit Medal and that I should follow the people who had come with her right away.

"They're not even giving it to our stars, and you're saying they're giving a medal to me?" I asked.

Even my actors were in a position where receiving it would be difficult, so it made no sense that I, a non-celebrity talent agent, would be awarded one. Sure, the overseas sales of projects I had been involved in, like the film Jiri Mountain and the dramas Blue Sky and In the Name of God, had gone smoothly, but I wasn't a producer and my role had only been partial. And Project I.O.A, which involved participants from Korea, China, and Japan, hadn't even produced results yet.

'No way... are they trying to hand it out in advance and then take credit for it? No. If it's Minister Han, he wouldn't do that...'

The current Minister of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, Han Yung-Bok, was someone who took great pride in the medal and wasn't the type to hand it out carelessly. Still, Kang Ji-Yung shook her head as if she hadn't heard any detailed explanation either.

'Well, it's not like high-ranking officials would bother explaining things to someone from an entertainment company.'

Just then, one of the men in suits took a business card out of his inner pocket. "This is my card. Why don't you come with us to our office first, and we can talk there?"

After receiving it, I handed over my own card as well. However, the card I received felt a little strange.

[Kim In-Guk, Secretary to the Second Vice Minister, Ministry of Culture, Tourism, and Sports]

'Second Vice Minister?'

The First Vice Minister handled culture, content, and media, while the Second Vice Minister oversaw sports and tourism. In other words, it wasn't the First Vice Minister's side that awarded the Cultural Merit Medal.

I said, "You're with the Second Vice Minister... wouldn't that put you in charge of sports and tourism? I don't think I've done anything in that area that would earn me a medal."

At that, Kim In-Guk curled the corner of his mouth into a smirk. "You seem to know the Ministry pretty well."

I sure did. Before the regression, I had been subjected to quite a few coercive 'requests for cooperation,' so I had no choice but to learn even if I didn't want to. Still, high-ranking officials tended to dislike outsiders acting like they knew too much.

So I lowered my tone and answered carefully, "I've just heard a little here and there."

"Well, like you said, things are divided that way. But when necessary, we do occasionally cooperate on cultural matters. We're busy, so let's get going."

At that moment, everyone in the meeting room burst into cheers.

"Mr. Jung, congratulations!"

"Congratulations."

It felt strange, but I still gave a brief word of thanks before speaking to Kim In-Guk. "Understood. We're in the middle of a department meeting, so I'll wrap things up and follow you."

Kim In-Guk frowned and spoke down to me. "Hey, do we look like we've got all the time in the world?"

At the sudden shift to informal speech, the atmosphere in the meeting room instantly sank.

'Well, do I look like I have nothing better to do?'

It wasn't like I had asked for the medal. The way they showed up out of nowhere, declared they'd give it to me, and then acted like this was absolutely absurd.

Just then, my phone vibrated.

Buzz.

[Notification: Fortune of the Day has been updated.]

'Fortune of the Day?'

I checked it, and a laugh slipped out.

[Everyday V13]

[Date: April 29, 2021]

[Fortune of the Day: Enduring is the path to victory.]

'Enduring is the path to victory. Right. That is true.'

Unlike dealing with companies, picking a fight with government officials only made things troublesome afterward. On top of that, secretaries who accompanied vice ministers were powerful figures who could sometimes wield authority equal to the vice minister himself, and within a few years, they could even become vice ministers. I had to be careful.

"Hey. What are you doing staring at nothing?"

As expected, Everyday visible only to me was invisible to him. Because of that, Kim In-Guk, who seemed to think I was slacking off, raised his voice even more.

I said, "I'm sorry. We have something going on at the company today as well. I'll wrap it up within five minutes and follow you."

Kim In-Guk shot me a sharp look. I met his gaze calmly, and in the end, he twisted his body slightly and spoke in a cold voice. "For a young guy, you're pretty headstrong. Fine. I'll wait outside, so finish up quickly and come out."

"Yes, sir."

I calmly bowed my head to him as he turned more overbearing. Kim In-Guk barely acknowledged my greeting before stepping outside with the staff member who had come with him.

Kang Ji-Yung spoke with an uneasy expression. "Chief Jung. I'll try to smooth things over, so don't worry."

"Yes, Ms. Kang."

"And I'm sorry. They barged in saying they were giving you a medal, so it was hard to stop them... I didn't expect them to be this unreasonable."

"It's alright. In the meantime, please hold them outside for a moment."

"Okay. And if anything happens while you're heading down to Sejong City, message me on Kk Talk right away. I'll back you up."

Kang Ji-Yung seemed to have sensed that something was a bit off as well.

I smiled. "You don't need to worry."

The phrase "enduring is the path to victory" meant that if I endured, I would win. And that was one of the things I was best at.

Kang Ji-Yung nodded, then immediately rushed out to appease the secretaries.

Thud.

The moment the meeting room door closed, I calmly brought up the key points. "Alright. Writer Nam Jong-Ok tends to have sharp emotional fluctuations, so..."

Everyone looked flustered at how composed I was even in the face of a medal, but I continued the meeting without a hint of agitation.

To me, my actors' success was several times more important than any medal.

***

The moment I arrived at the lobby of The Ministry of Culture, Tourism, and Sports building in Sejong City, many civil servants stared at me and began whispering.

"Isn't that Jung Yoon-Ho?"

"Yeah, I think so. He's been all over the news today. Why is he here?"

"He's with secretaries from the Second Vice Minister's side. Maybe they brought him in to hear something related to the boxing association. Or maybe they called him in to give him some kind of award since he's been doing well lately."

"Who knows. I heard there's even talk about a medal from the First Vice Minister's side."

"Come on, a medal is a stretch. He's not even the company president, just an employee."

"Employee? He's the second-largest shareholder of Hoop Entertainment. Half the company practically belongs to him."

Hearing the whispers among the officials in the lobby, it seemed the talk about the medal was real.

At that moment, Kim In-Guk urged me forward, pointing toward the elevator. "What are you doing? Hurry up."

It wasn't the first time I had seen high-ranking officials treat people from related departments carelessly, but it had been a while since I had met someone like this right off the bat. Still, there was nothing to gain from clashing with a high-ranking official, so I followed him in silence.

After getting off on the fifth floor, I continued behind Kim In-Guk. He had said we were coming from the vice minister's office, but the place he guided me to wasn't the vice minister's office. It was a small conference room.

Click.

When I opened the door and stepped inside, two people were waiting. One of them was Second Vice Minister Choi Si-Hoon of the Ministry of Culture, Tourism, and Sports. And the other was his secretary, Oh Seung-Yong.

Choi Si-Hoon, the Second Vice Minister of the Ministry of Culture, Tourism, and Sports, was forty-seven this year. He was an elite bureaucrat who would go on to become a minister in the future. He had a particularly sly, calculating personality. He also had a strong taste for hospitality, so even before the regression, back when I was with Top Entertainment, every meeting with him had to be held at expensive venues.

The secretary beside him, Oh Seung-Yong, was a young man in his thirties who would become a member of the National Assembly in a few years.

Kim In-Guk bowed deeply to Choi Si-Hoon. "Sir, I've brought him."

Choi Si-Hoon nodded and gestured lightly. "Good work. You can go handle your tasks outside."

Kim In-Guk gave a quick bow, then left the meeting room, closing the door behind him. I glanced around, wondering if the minister might appear, but there was no sign of that happening.

'So there's something else going on.'

Right away, I realized that the suspicions I had on my way here were correct. The Second Vice Minister was responsible for tourism and sports, not the First Vice Minister's duties, which included overseeing the Cultural Merit Medal. In other words, there was a high chance this wasn't about the medal at all.

At that moment, Choi Si-Hoon let out a hearty laugh and pointed to a chair at the meeting table. "Mr. Jung, come, have a seat here. Was your trip here uncomfortable in any way? Hahaha."

His attitude was far more courteous than Kim In-Guk's, but I knew better than anyone the true arrogance he would display after becoming minister.

So I didn't let myself be fooled by the surface politeness as I answered, "No, there wasn't any inconvenience."

"Is that so? That's a relief. In any case, I apologize for calling you here like this."

After briefly introducing Oh Seung-Yong, Choi Si-Hoon straightened his posture. "I'm sorry to call such a busy man all the way here, but you've heard that the First Vice Minister's side is planning to award you a medal, correct?"

"Yes, I have."

"Well... you see, this medal... it tends to attract a lot of public attention. So we have to be cautious about it, among other things."

The way he kept circling around his words made it clear there was a different point he wanted to get to. I wanted to snap back at him, but since enduring was the path to victory, I held it in.

Choi Si-Hoon rambled on for quite a while, getting carried away as he talked at length about the medal. He said receiving it would be an honor for my family and would bring recognition to Hoop Entertainment.

After talking to himself for about five minutes and slipping in some self-praise, Choi Si-Hoon paused to catch his breath before continuing. "However, you see... there's one concern that came up during the review process, which is why I called you here."

Finally, he got to the main point.

"What concern would that be?" I asked.

"It's a bit difficult to nominate you, Mr. Jung, because of the past match-fixing incident... and on top of that, there's the issue involving the boxing association."

'So that's what this is about.'

Last night, Han Dong-Hae had exposed Noh Sang-Jin, the president of NK Construction, revealing the creation of slush funds through the boxing association and the association's corruption. And that very boxing association fell under the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee.

The Korean Sport & Olympic Committee, which oversaw sports and Olympic affairs in Korea, was itself under the Ministry of Culture, Tourism, and Sports. In other words, the corruption in the boxing association also implicated the Second Vice Minister. So Choi Si-Hoon calling me here was most likely to keep quiet regarding the boxing association.

'Using the medal as an excuse to silence me, huh?'

It wasn't a medal I had wanted in the first place, and I wasn't even sure they truly intended to give it to me. What I had done didn't actually meet the usual criteria for receiving such an award. I wanted to get up and walk out immediately, but I held myself back, recalling the fortune shown in Everyday. Enduring this was the path to victory.

'At this rate, I might attain enlightenment today.'

After taking a brief breath, I decided to play dumb. "Well, I haven't been directly involved in any match-fixing."

Choi Si-Hoon's expression stiffened slightly, and the honorific tone dropped from his speech. "Hmph. I heard you were a smart one, so why are you being so dense? That's not what I meant, is it?"

Choi Si-Hoon clicked his tongue and glared at me.

When I continued to keep my mouth shut, Oh Seung-Yong finally stepped in. "Sir, I'll handle this."

"Ahem. Alright. Secretary Oh, try talking to him."

"Yes, sir."

Oh Seung-Yong fixed me with a sharp stare. "Chief Jung, why are you being so difficult for someone your age? Saying you weren't involved in match-fixing is just your claim. You're still officially under investigation, so how could we possibly award you a medal? Wouldn't you agree?"

I was so dumbfounded I couldn't speak for a moment.

'Who said I even wanted a medal?'

"..."

Perhaps mistaking my expression of disbelief for hesitation, Oh Seung-Yong shrugged and continued passionately. "But you see... depending on how we handle things, we could overlook this minor flaw. Of course, that would require some cooperation from your side, wouldn't it?"

"Cooperation?"

"Right. I'll be blunt. You should persuade that 'older brother' of yours to leave out the association and focus only on exposing the personal corruption of NK Construction's president. If you do that, we won't oppose recommending you for the medal. Understood?"

It was a perfect prediction. They were using the medal as an excuse to keep the fallout from the boxing association's corruption from reaching them.

"I've already handed the materials over to the broadcasting station. How would that even be possible?" I asked.

"The broadcast only covered part of it, didn't it? Just part. So you step in and give an interview saying it was all a misunderstanding. We'll handle the rest."

"You're telling me to contradict my brother's interview?"

"Yeah. And frankly speaking, that informant yesterday wasn't even your real brother, right? So what's the problem?"

'How dare he ask me to sell out Dong-Hae hyung?'

Anger surged up to the top of my head, and I felt like grabbing him by the collar right then and there. Nevertheless, I clenched my teeth and barely forced the rage down.

'Right. I'm a Buddha today, damn it.'

If I were to lash out here, they would probably fabricate charges out of thin air. With Everyday's warning in mind, I fixed my gaze on him and spoke slowly.

"Even if we're not related by blood, Dong-Hae hyung is family to me. I have no intention of betraying my family, so I'll have to refuse that proposal."

At that moment, Oh Seung-Yong's eyes widened as he shifted into a threatening tone. "Hey. If you keep being this uncooperative, the medal won't be your only problem. You could end up under investigation yourself."

'Do whatever you want.'

"I think I understand now why the boxing association was so rotten back then... no, why it's still rotten to this day."

"Hey! Watch your mouth. Do you even know where you are?"

"If you called me here because of that matter, then I'll be leaving now. And next time, I'd appreciate it if you sent an official notice."

I had held back enough and said everything that needed to be said. The moment I stood up, Choi Si-Hoon, who had been smiling until now, spoke in a sharp, cutting voice.

"You fucking bastard, I tried being nice, and now you don't know your place, huh?"

"...Did you just swear at me?"

"Yeah, I did, you bastard. And think carefully. If this isn't covered up by today, you're finished as of today too. And Hoop Entertainment? You think they'll be safe? They'll be audited immediately. Got it?"

'At this rate, I might actually reach enlightenment.'

I silently drew the character for patience over ten times in my head and took a deep breath. And then, a sound came from the door.

Knock, knock.

Choi Si-Hoon shouted irritably, "We're in the middle of something important, come back later!"

Then a calm voice came from outside.

-I'm Assemblyman Go Joon-Taek. May I come in?

'Assemblyman Go Joon-Taek?'

Go Joon-Taek, Go Eun-Seo's father and a three-term National Assembly member from Incheon, had just arrived.

'No way... was this why it told me to endure?'

At that moment, I raised my voice toward the door. "Mr. Go! What brings you here?"

Bang.

The door swung open, and Go Joon-Taek walked in with a bright smile. "Well~ Chief Jung. So this is where you were?"

'You've never looked more welcome!'

***

Go Joon-Taek entered with two aides and greeted me with a warm hug.

"Chief Jung. I had some business at the Ministry, and when I heard you were here, I came by. You've been well, right?"

Then, in a whisper, he asked me a question. As expected of a three-term assemblyman, he immediately grasped the atmosphere.

-Chief Jung. The mood here's not great. What's going on?

I answered quietly as well.

-They called me here saying they'd give me a medal, but now they're threatening to take it away unless I keep quiet about the boxing association.

-What? That's insane...

-I know. It's ridiculous.

-Well, NK Construction and the boxing association are tied together, so from the Second Vice Minister's perspective, I guess it makes sense. Alright. Leave it to me.

After pulling away from the hug, Go Joon-Taek signaled subtly to his aide. The aide slightly opened the door to the small meeting room.

I wondered what he was doing, and then Go Joon-Taek turned to Choi Si-Hoon and spoke loudly as if unaware of anything. "Vice Minister Choi, do you still have a lot to discuss with Chief Jung?"

Choi Si-Hoon quickly adjusted his expression. "Ah, we had a few things to discuss regarding the medal. But what brings you here, Mr. Assemblyman?"

"After holding Project I.O.A at Yeongjongdo Jinseong Resort, there's been a report showing it's had a significant impact across Asia. The program's MeTube views are enormous as well. So I came to request cooperation from the Ministry and meet with the Minister. Since I heard Chief Jung was here, I thought I might as well bring him along."

"And why would Chief Jung attend a meeting with the Minister?"

"Chief Jung is the architect behind Project I.O.A, which handles cultural exchange between Korea, China, and Japan."

Choi Si-Hoon's eyes flickered in realization.

"In any case, I have an appointment soon. May I take Chief Jung with me? It looks like you're finished here."

As Go Joon-Taek tried to pull me out, Choi Si-Hoon urgently spoke up. "No, we're not finished yet. Chief Jung is currently being questioned by our side regarding the match-fixing issue with the boxing association."

Go Joon-Taek's tone turned cold. "You said you were awarding him a medal, and now it's questioning? What exactly are you trying to do here?"

"What do you mean? It's just as I said. And if this matter isn't properly clarified, we may have to withdraw Chief Jung's nomination for the medal."

Go Joon-Taek's voice rose sharply. "Vice Minister, are you threatening him with a medal right now?" At that moment, a low voice was heard through the slightly open door.

-What's all this noise echoing down the hallway?

Click.

The door opened fully, and a man in his sixties entered with four aides.

"Assemblyman Go, I heard you were here. What exactly is going on?"

The man speaking was Han Yung-Bok, the Minister of Culture, Tourism, and Sports of South Korea.

Then, my phone buzzed.

Buzz.

[Notification: Fortune of the Day has been updated.]

'Now it updates? Then...'

I quickly checked Everyday.

[Everyday V13]

[Date: April 29, 2021]

[Fortune of the Day: What you intend will come to pass.

(Deleted fortune: Enduring is the path to victory.)]

What Everyday had been telling me was to endure until Han Yung-Bok appeared. And now, it was saying what I intended would come to pass. That meant I could do as I pleased.

'Limit released, you bastards!'

Without even pretending to notice Han Yung-Bok, I immediately shouted at Choi Si-Hoon with pent-up anger. "If that's the case, then I refuse to accept the medal, Mr. Choi Si-Hoon!"

Han Yung-Bok took great pride in such honors, and when I declared right in front of him that I did not need the medal, he was shocked.

"Even being nominated is an honor, and you're refusing it? What are you saying right now?"

'Alright, I've got his attention... Now, instead of being a Buddha, it's time to become a wrathful guardian. Choi Si-Hoon. From this point on, I'm going to make sure you pay for this properly.'