Chapter 14

[ A conference room in the main building of the Han Yewon University of Fine Arts ]

Seven professors were seated opposite each other around a round table. Among them, a man with a particularly plump body muttered,

“The time has come again this year.”

He looked at the faces of the people around him one by one and said, “The prize money has grown. This means that the organizers are also thinking of raising the difficulty of the contest in earnest. But, well, it doesn’t matter.”

His eyes flashed for a moment.

“For this year’s Jeondi competition, Han Ye-won should win the grand prize.”

The rest of the professors nodded seriously.

An exhibition design contest of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism’s Bae University. The so-called Jeondi exhibition, as its name suggests, was a contest in which students from all over the country competed for the best exhibition design.

It doesn’t take a huge amount of money.

It is not a world-renowned contest.

At first glance, there was nothing special.

It’s just a common government-sponsored contest.

Nevertheless, the reason why the professors gathered separately and held meetings to discuss this contest was because this competition has one special characteristic.

‘I don’t want to be pushed back by those at Hankook University.’

It was because the two schools had been fighting over this contest for more than a decade now.

For professors at Han Ye-Won, it was shameful to lose to Hankook.

Until five years ago, the Jeondi Contest was a solo stage for Han Ye-Won. The two schools always shared the prize anyways, but in any case, it was a tradition for Han Ye-won to take the grand prize.

However, Hankook University started slowly rising five years ago and finally won the grand prize last year.

It must have caused an explosive fanfare in Hankook University, but a state of emergency was declared at Han Yewon.

“It doesn’t make sense. They can’t even hold a pencil properly against our students.”

“Yes. At the end of this year, we have to show the difference in talent. It’s going to prove that their way of selecting students is wrong.”

The professors muttered in a serious voice.

Their current behavior was ridiculous.

It’s the students who are participating in the contest, and yet they’re talking as if their pride is at stake.

However, this was also understandable, considering Han Yewon’s history.

Han Yewon, a traditional and practical powerhouse.

And Hankook University, which values theory.

Everything was because the two with such different stances have been looking at each other like bugs ever since the very beginning of their establishments.

“I heard that you can get into Hankook University even if you can’t draw a sketch properly so long as you can study well. What kind of art school is that? Just keep studying what you’re good at.”

“Because you disregard learning like that, all your students at Han Yewon will only have stone heads.”

“What do you mean?”

“As your career and experience builds up, you get better anyways, and you have to select a smart person with good brains to become a great person.”

“Oh really? So there are only critics at Hankook University and no artists?”

“What?”

A childish competitive spirit.

However, it was not strange to think that the childish people from the beginning became professors when they got older.

In a nutshell, there are no professors from Hankook University at Han Yewon, and there are no professors from Han Yewon at Hankook University.

‘Idiots who only know how to study. You guys were only lucky last year, this time I’ll show you the difference.’

The professor who took on the role of the moderator muttered in a serious voice,

“Have you all thought of any students that you would recommend?”

“Of course.”

The professors nodded and began to present the profiles of the candidates they thought of.

“Joo Ji-hoon, a third-year architecture student, has consistently maintained high grades since the first year.”

“Hanseol, also a third-year, was the head of the Sculpture Department last semester.”

A series of talented students came up.

Even in Han Yewon, where there is a wide range of talented people, there were so few students who truly excelled that they could be counted on one hand. In fact, if their names were mentioned here, their evaluations in the undergraduate department had no meaning.

Because their levels have already reached the professional realm.

But even then, if they were told to do high-leveled tasks, they would do their part.

*

It’s been a while since the professors began presenting their top students.

The professor who was moderating muttered as if he was wondering something.

“Professor Lee, do you have any students in mind?”

That’s right.

Professor Lee Jong was particularly quiet today.

He was also famous among professors for his special desire for discipleship.

It was well known that even at the risk of annoying others, he preempted talented students in advance and placed them in his studio, but currently, he was silent.

“Hmm. I see.”

Professor Lee Jong smiled brightly, putting a profile sheet on the table and said,

“I recommend this student.”

“This student… name is Lee Jaeha….currently admitted to the Department of Visual Design. And,···········.”

The professor who checked the profile frowned.

“He’s a first-year.”

“Yes.”

“······.”

There was silence for a while.

A few seconds later, the moderator professor interlocked his hands and said,

“I’ll be honest with you.”

“Yes.”

“No matter how green the bud is, he’s still a freshman. Usually, in the first-year, you haven’t even shaken off your entrance exam’s style yet.”

“That’s right.”

“How can you recommend a freshman when you know that? I understand Professor Lee’s special love for disciples, but I don’t think this is right.”

“Hmm. I see.”

Professor Lee Jong smiled softly and continued to listen to him.

He just kept listening and listening.

[ A few minutes later ]

“I believe you know now.····.”

It was the moment when the moderator professor was about to conclude.

“I still recommend Lee Jaeha.”

“······.”

The moderator professor was gently ignored.

His eyes trembled.

Do you think he’s not listening to you?

He took off his glasses and, in a heavier voice than before, said:

“There are only three TO’s. It’s difficult to entrust it to a student whose skills are uncertain. Moreover, why this particular student? Aren’t there better students in the professor’s studio who are in the same year?”

[ TL/N – Think of TO as the amount of spots/how many students are allowed to participate ]

It was obvious who he was talking about.

There was a student who was quite famous among the professors even before she entered the school.

It was Seo Ji-Won.

She was good enough to be considered a senior student.

‘When she was young, she was already in the media known as an art genius. They said that early exposure to society is bad for education, and so her talents did not see the light thanks to her parents’ hiding, but her talent is real.’

It was the moment when the professor tried to mention her.

Professor Lee Jong opened his mouth first.

“You mean Seo Ji-won.”

“Yes. That student would…”

At that moment, Professor Lee Jong cut off his words and said,

“It’s going to be hard for her because of her poor cooperation.”

“······Huh?”

“She’s a child who ignores what I say if it doesn’t suit her tastes. If it’s from the same undergraduate, she’ll probably pretend to not hear it.”

“······.”

The other professor’s facial muscles twitched.

‘Was Professor Lee this cold-hearted?’

He said she was a disciple whom he had raised since she was young, but when he tried to give her a good position, he began to criticize her.

In truth, this was an accurate evaluation.

Even if you could make your own art, teamwork is still essential for Jeondi. Anyone who lacks social skills like Seo Ji-won wouldn’t make it.

“That’s terrible.”

The moderator professor rubbed his face. Then he gently closed his eyes before opening them and said,

“Professor Lee, don’t you have a student in the second-year who’s good at drawing?”

“He took a semester off.”

“The one in the third-year,·····.”

“He said he would enlist next year.”

“Then the one in his fourth-year…. come to think of it, that student has already participated in the previous Jeondi and cannot participate again.”

Those who have already joined once are prohibited from rejoining. It was a rule set to prevent certain groups from monopolizing subjects.

For a moment. The atmosphere stiffened.

Professor Lee Jong spoke softly with a smile,

“Student Jaeha is competent. He knows well what he can do and what he must do. At least he won’t hamper the other members of the team.”

“Whoo.”

The other professor, who failed to break Professor Lee Jong’s stubbornness, sighed and said,

“But I’m still against Lee Jae-ha. It’s too risky to trust only Professor Lee’s words and put student Jaeha in the contest.”

He’s a freshman.

He has nothing to prove that he’s capable yet.

Several professors agreed as his opinion felt reasonable.

“I agree.”

“This student is better.”

“That’s right. Here’s Cho Hyung-woo, a second-year student.”

The meeting reverted to how it started again.

Professor Lee Jong simply smiled without saying anything.

It was the moment when Lee Jae-ha’s recommendation seemed to drop into the water.

“I think Lee Jaeha is good too.”

Another professor, who had been silent, spoke up.

It’s coming back here again.

A professor who pushes an unnamed freshman.

The moderator professor muttered with a look of disbelief.

“Professor Kang?”

It was Professor Kang Noah.

She launched her support for Lee Jaeha.

“Today, the student showed me a piece of art in my class, and it was quite impressive.”

“Isn’t there a rule that says you won’t do well in other fields because you only specialized in one field?”

The host professor continued with distrust,

“The Jeondi Exhibition is a contest for exhibition designs.”

“Then that’s even better,” Professor Kang Noah smiled and said. “Jaeha’s work had strong exhibition design elements.”

“······.”

“I think student Jaeha is okay, too. He’s so quick and sensible that it’s hard to believe he’s a freshman. Whatever you ask of him, it’ll probably be done.”

“If Professor Kang says so too, then········.”

The moderator professor closed his eyes as if he was frustrated.

There are two people recommending Lee Jae-ha.

You could say that it would be enough to ignore it due to an inferior number of votes, but in fact, there was a superiority and inferiority relationship among professors.

Someone who became a professor at Han Yewon.

And someone who was hired to be a professor at Han Yewon.

At this moment, the two people, Lee Jong and Kang Noah, belonged to the latter.

They are the two who make Han Ye-won’s brand magnificent just by  being in the faculty, so if the two decided to hold hands, even the principal could not treat them recklessly.

“You two, did you really have to?”

“I was just stating my thoughts.”

“Me too.”

Professor Lee Jong smiled, and professor Kang Noah laughed for a while.

The moderator professor took a long sigh and spoke in a resigned voice.

“You two are making dinner tonight.”

As such, Lee Jae-ha was put on the Jeondi’s list of recommended students without even knowing it.

*

[ After a short call with Professor Lee Jong ]

I muttered with a puzzled expression.

“······ I was recommended for the exhibition?”

It was sudden.

It’s not even surprising, it’s just absurd to me.

‘Isn’t it the standard to ask me first and then make a recommendation?’

I can’t believe you decided to recommend me first.

It’s astonishing.

Before you ask me if I don’t like this, that’s definitely not the case.

Rather, I felt like I was going to die of joy.

I was thinking of making a decent amount of emoticons, but I can’t believe such a big opportunity came in at that moment.

“If you join the team and get the grand prize, you’ll have a solid footing from then on.”

Is Jeondi just a contest?

Absolutely not.

All of the design affiliates that won the grand prize, or any prize, were guaranteed free passes for their future. It proves that you are one of the best students in the school even if you just participated.

The right answer was to participate unconditionally if I could.

Of course, even if we receive the grand prize, the total amount will be small because the members have to split the prize money, but Professor Lee Jong also compensated for this.

“We will treat everything from the business trips to the preparation process as working hours.”

It means that I can receive an hourly wage.

‘The question is whether I can go out to Jeondi and participate as a single person.’

When it comes to competition, it’s different from showing off one’s skills in class. Each participant is a representative of each school and an elite in their future industries.

It doesn’t matter if I was a student of Han Yewon or if I knew future trends, there was bound to be a lot of opponents that could not be easily defeated.

I thought about it for a while.

I smiled.

‘Still, it’s definitely a benefit if you go participate.’

I don’t know when the opportunity will come again, so it’s only right to do it if it’s profitable.

But what if I fail?

I gave up everything that was mine for others and ended my life once, but is that my job?

If you think you’re going to fail, you just have to try not to.

Moreover, there must be a reason why Professor Lee Jong, an expert in the field, chose me.

Therefore, I was confident.

‘Ah. It was a good thing I entered Professor Lee Jong’s studio.’

As such, I unexpectedly joined the Jeondi Exhibition Team.

*

The meeting place with the other team members was set as a cafe near Seokgwan-dong.

The name of the cafe was very familiar.

‘Sleeping Loft. Yeah. It was still open at this time.’

It was a franchise that did well in the university districts with fairytale-like interiors and pretty uniforms, but in the future, it went bankrupt and was ruined.

It’s nice to see you again after a long time.

It was the moment when I entered the store and opened the curtains of the designated room.

“Excuse me…. sir?”

It seems that I already knew a lot of their faces.