Chapter Twelve: The Broadcast
May 14th, 2025
8:00 p.m. KST
LIVE on NBS
The title card was simple.
> "The Other Side: Ji-hoon Speaks."
No music. No graphics. Just silence.
Ji-hoon sat across from veteran anchor Han Mira, known for grilling politicians, not actors.
The studio was darker than usual.
His figure — sharp, composed, but with the weight of three years in hiding pressing visibly against his shoulders.
> Han Mira: "You were once South Korea's brightest star. You vanished. And now, you're back. Why now?"
> Ji-hoon: (quiet) "Because truth waited long enough."
---
They played the video.
The one from the hotel suite.
The pressure. The setup. The lies.
Live comments were disabled.
Too much chaos.
> Han Mira: "You could've posted this years ago."
> Ji-hoon: "I wanted to. Every day. But if I did, they'd release things that could ruin her… and others. Not because she did anything wrong — but because they would twist every frame. I thought my silence could protect her."
> Han Mira: "Sae-jin."
He looked down.
> Ji-hoon: "Yes."
---
The anchor leaned forward.
> "What happened the night she disappeared?"
A long pause.
Ji-hoon's jaw tensed.
> "She called me. 3:17 a.m. She was terrified. Said someone came to her apartment. That her manager was gone. She said... 'They're going to erase me.'"
> "Then?"
> "Silence."
> "And you didn't report it?"
> "I did. But the police told me there was no forced entry. That she 'likely ran off.' That she'd been under 'stress.'"
> "You believed them?"
> "No. But everyone else did."
---
A new video played — never before seen.
Taken weeks ago.
A masked woman, her voice trembling.
> "My name is Sae-jin.
I faked my death to survive the people who sold mine."
Gasps echoed from off-camera.
Even Han Mira leaned back, stunned.
> "I've been in hiding. But Ji-hoon… he never once betrayed me. He knew I was alive. And he let the world crucify him because that was safer than letting them chase me."
> "I'm ready to return.
Because the truth matters more than their threats now."
---
When the video ended, Ji-hoon looked into the camera.
> "This isn't about saving my name. It never was.
This is about every young actor, every trainee, every girl who's told to stay quiet so someone else can keep making money.
Let them come for me again. But this time, I won't be silent."
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