Devil’s Music

The next day, at the Juilliard staff-exclusive dining hall, as Lin placed her order facing Leontine Price and Geon, Leontine Price, observing her with a gaze mixed with both friendliness and caution, said,

"So, what brings Ms. Son Lin, hailed as Fantagio's marketing genius, to seek out this old man? Even Kay doesn't seem to know."

Geon, waving his hand dismissively, replied,

"Honestly, I have no idea either, professor. It was Byungjun hyung who suddenly told me today that Director Lin wanted to have a meal, so I just came along."

As the two focused their attention on her, Lin, wearing a light smile on her face, leisurely took a sip of water and began,

"First, I'd like to apologize for arranging this meeting so suddenly without sharing the agenda in advance. It would have been better if I had planned and proceeded with a prior notice, but there isn't much time left until the performance, and this idea came to me quite abruptly."

Leontine Price nodded slightly, indicating for her to continue.

"Professor, and Mr. Geon. This performance is indeed a free concert, but in reality, it's a fundraising event for those starving in Africa, correct?"

Both nodded in agreement, prompting Lin to continue,

"Then, regardless of the set amount, people coming to see the performance will put whatever amount they can afford into the donation box at the entrance. While it's for a good cause, paying to see it makes it no different from a regular concert, right?"

After pondering for a moment, Leontine Price nodded and said,

"While the intention is different, from the audience's perspective, it is indeed similar to a paid performance. But what about it?"

Lin, looking directly at Leontine Price, asked,

"One question, professor. The venue for this performance is the opera house within Juilliard, which has about 1,000 seats, correct?"

Upon his nod, Lin immediately followed up,

"So, how have you decided which attendees will be granted entry to this free concert? Is it on a first-come, first-served basis?"

Leontine Price hesitated, leading Geon to ask curiously,

"What's the matter, professor?"

"Um..."

As Leontine Price struggled to speak, Lin alternated her gaze between the two and explained,

"Mr. Geon might not be interested in this aspect, but the attendees are usually those who donate to Juilliard or those who are economically and socially established, so to speak 'people of leisure'. I understand that selections were made based on applications received by the professor and the school, correct?"

After a brief look at Geon, Leontine Price sighed and admitted,

"Yes, that's correct. Since it was for donations, we needed people who could afford it."

Lin, facing her squarely, said,

"So, essentially, only the selected wealthy can attend this performance?"

Caught off guard by Lin's direct question, Geon asked in surprise,

"What? Was that the case, professor?"

Leontine Price, flustered, hurriedly clarified,

"It may seem that way, but my intention was to help the African famine victims as much as possible. I have not lived as a materialist. Please don't misunderstand."

After a moment of silence from Lin, she raised her hands and said,

"I understand, professor. Thank you for answering my bold question."

Relieved, Leontine Price asked,

"It's good that you understand, but may I ask why you've brought up this topic?"

Lin took a folder from her briefcase and placed it on the table, catching their attention.

"I have a proposition. Would you like to hear it?"

Leontine Price nodded, interested,

"Listening to others is a basic duty of a professor. Please, go ahead."

As Lin opened the folder, Geon and Leontine Price focused on its contents. Geon, looking at the first page, asked in surprise,

"Pay-per-view? Isn't that the billing method used for cable or internet TV services?"

Leontine Price, also intrigued, looked up for an explanation. Lin turned the folder for a better view and explained,

"Yes. PPV is commonly used for sports events. Mr. Geon, having spent his school years in Korea... oh, with the professor here, let's call him Kay. Kay might not be familiar with PPV since it's more common in the US for important or high-profile sports events like soccer, UFC, NBA, NFL games, which Americans are accustomed to buying viewing rights for."

Leontine Price, curious, picked up the document and said,

"Yes, it's a well-established culture here. But why bring this up?"

Lin leaned in closer and said with a direct gaze,

"The initial discussion. It's not me saying this but what people are saying, professor. That it's a performance for

the wealthy few."

"That... that..."

"You wouldn't want to be misunderstood, right? Since it's against your intention. And since Kay from Fantagio is also performing, it would be problematic for us if he were also misunderstood."

Leontine Price looked apologetically at Geon, who waved off the concern,

"I'm fine, professor. I understand your intentions. It's frustrating to be misunderstood, but I don't believe such misunderstandings harm me. Director Lin, please don't entertain such misunderstandings."

As Geon spoke earnestly, Lin shook her head,

"It's not me misunderstanding but others. Kay."

"What should we do, then? Is there a solution?"

Lin looked thoughtfully at Geon then turned to Leontine Price,

"Fantagio has no intention of profiting from this event. However, as Kay's management company, it's our official stance that we cannot afford financial losses or damage to our image, professor. Do you understand?"

After a deep sigh, Leontine Price responded,

"Yes, I understand."

Leaning forward, Lin looked into her eyes,

"So, if there's a way that doesn't damage your and Kay's image, can offer greater support to the children in Africa, and provides an affordable viewing opportunity to those misunderstanding, would you entrust me with it?"

Surprised, Leontine Price stared at Lin for a long moment. That day, their meeting in the staff dining hall lasted for a very long time.

**

That afternoon, journalists scrambled upon seeing the notice posted on Fantagio's website. The world paid attention to the sudden news from Fantagio.

<Fantagio, Kay's Management Company, Decides on Opera Performance PPV Sale!>

Fantagio, a subsidiary of the JC Group under China's Jinsung Investments, is already well-known worldwide. They clinched a contract with the Korean musician Kay, quickly becoming Asia's top entertainment planning company and gaining a reputation as the world's most notable agency. According to the announcement made at 07:00 PM today, PPV will be sold for Leontine Price's retirement concert held at Juilliard Opera House in Manhattan, New York, 12 days from now. PPV, short for Pay-per-view, refers to purchasing video content for a fee, and the service will be provided via live internet streaming rather than TV service. Users can buy PPV on Fantagio's website and access the live performance on the day of the event by entering their PPV number on the LIVE channel. The proceeds from the performance, excluding a 3% transaction fee for third-party payments, will be entirely donated to aid starving children in Africa. Fantagio explained that they made this choice because they couldn't accommodate all the audience members who wanted to attend the opera house concert, which seats about 1,000, and participate in the fundraising activity. They announced the PPV price at an affordable $10 USD to ensure many people could watch without burden. This news led many worldwide to inquire about the PPV sales schedule on Fantagio's website, and the company is increasing physical servers to manage server traffic in response.

<January 03, Die Welt by Germany, Wolfgang Malte>

Numerous articles poured out daily, and the world awaited new announcements on Fantagio's website. On the second day after the first notice, the start of PPV sales was announced, causing Fantagio's server room staff to scramble as server traffic spiked.

"Tsuyu! Server 3 is down!"

"Damn! Server 2 is on the brink too, better shut it down and switch to another!"

"Server 19 is stable! Switch over here!"

Watching the busy scene, Chairman Wang Hao smiled broadly and asked Director Yan'an standing beside him,

"What time did PPV sales start?"

Glancing at his watch, Director Yan'an replied,

"Two hours ago."

"Ah, and it's already this chaotic. How many have sold?"

Checking his phone, Director Yan'an reported,

"We're supposed to receive hourly updates, and the last one came one hour after sales started, showing 1,932,938 tickets sold."

Chairman Wang Hao burst into laughter, pleased,

"Haha, nearly two million in one hour? Kay really is something! Though we won't make a profit, it's the best choice for Fantagio's brand marketing, all thanks to Director Son Lin."

Director Yan'an briefly showed jealousy but soon nodded in resignation,

"Indeed, there's no beating Director Lin. The data analysis team predicts we might sell over thirty million tickets."

"Thirty million? That's a lot. At ten dollars each, that's 300 million dollars."

As Director Yan'an checked his phone again, he looked puzzled,

"Chairman, the second report just came in..."

Curious, Chairman Wang Hao urged,

"Yes? How many now? It must be less than the first hour, right?"

Director Yan'an, sounding shocked, announced,

"Actually...

it's over seven million in just two hours..."

"What?"

>

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