Side Story: The Queen’s Pride
The queen opened her closed eyes.
“Ahjeong.”
She merely called the name, but for a relationship that had lasted a long time, that alone was enough communication.
Beyond the heavily tinted window visible to the queen who had opened her eyes, a red carpet unfolded.
‘Hmm, it’s been quite a while here too.’
A place she had once even set as a goal in life.
But now it had become far too familiar, losing the immense meaning it once held.
At her level of position, no one would dare say anything even if she didn’t come, yet Lee Ahjeong still headed here, to MAMA.
“Really, aren’t I giving the kids too much?”
“Should I turn the car around now? Say your condition got worse.”
At Lee Ahjeong’s murmur, her manager made the suggestion.
Lee Ahjeong had walked her path with considerable sincerity until now.
Even if she pretended to be sick for just one day, it would be hard for anyone to realize it was an act.
“I’ve already come this far, so that feels a bit much.”
At the returned answer, not only the manager but also the stylist sitting in the back let out a small laugh.
It had been a question asked with the knowledge that she would answer exactly like that.
Although she spoke as if regretting it, there was no real regret in her voice.
“I’ll be back.”
With a shrug of her shoulders at the laughter filling the spacious vehicle, she soon took off the cushion she had placed around her neck and set it down.
As she straightened her posture, the vehicle door slowly opened.
“Kyaaaaak!”
“Ahjeong unnie!!!”
Click click click!!
Shouts and shutter sounds poured down.
The queen walked into the passionate cheers directed at her and recalled one memory to bring a smile to her lips.
There was a perfectly suitable reason.
The reason she had come here — the meeting with a certain person who had visited her a few days ago.
***
“So… you want our Zia as the presenter?”
“Yes. Director Lee Ahjeong.”
The proposal from the man who had come to BNW Entertainment in his capacity as a MAMA official.
It wasn’t particularly strange.
Even without the rumor that she was being considered for the rookie award at several award ceremonies, MAMA itself had already placed the music video she appeared in as a candidate.
‘I was the one who wanted to suggest it.’
To be honest, she was grateful.
As one of the executives at BNW Entertainment and the person who had brought her into this industry, she had even considered negotiating Woo Zia’s casting in exchange for attending MAMA.
The fact that they made the offer first was truly something to be thankful for.
Nevertheless, Lee Ahjeong did not immediately bite the bait because the other party was who they were.
“For such a good proposal, you could have just sent someone below you. Coming all the way here yourself is really…”
Lee Ahjeong was also a singer.
It hadn’t been just a year or two since she stepped into Music On Net, and she knew most of the familiar faces.
The person sitting in front of her was a veteran who had already held a fairly high position when she debuted.
‘He’s an executive director now, I think?’
The opponent’s title was the same director as hers, but the weight of that title was by no means equal.
After all, Music On Net was one of the major conglomerates, while BNW was merely a subsidiary of a single entertainment company.
‘A person whose butt has become as heavy as it can get came all the way here in person?’
Lee Ahjeong had seen, heard, and experienced far too much to take something like this at face value.
Fortunately, she had been given grounds to make a judgment.
Our Group.
She had heard directly from the person herself that the name, which carried a weight even she — whose position had grown considerably — found hard to accept easily, had become Woo Zia’s new background.
‘So that side moved as well.’
Because of that, it wasn’t difficult for Lee Ahjeong to find the hidden answer.
When considering that broadcasting companies lived off corporate advertisements, the name of the ultra-premium advertiser “Our” was more than enough to kick that heavy butt into action.
‘If this started from our side, then there’s no reason to refuse.’
The fact that those enormous powers were showing an abnormally favorable attitude that went beyond mere blood ties had already been confirmed through the investments that came into both MyWay and BNW.
The conditions were so generous that they felt less like investment and more like free money — to the point where one might wonder if it was a charity organization rather than a profit-driven corporation.
‘Still, I wish they had at least given us a heads-up about something like this.’
Lee Ahjeong recalled the face of the person who had come when the investment contract was signed.
She thought his name was Woo Ji-hwan.
While Lee Ahjeong was thinking with a slight sense of resentment about that name, which was clearly tied to Woo Zia by blood, the other party began to slither through the atmosphere like a snake.
“How could we do that? Director Lee, you’ve done so much for us. For something like this, it’s only proper that I come in person.”
To Lee Ahjeong, who had already figured out every answer, those words were more than enough to draw a laugh.
Of course, as someone standing at the top both as a singer and as an actress, she did not make the clumsy mistake of revealing her true feelings.
“So, about that, Director Lee. Or rather, AZ.”
With her head already cooled down, Lee Ahjeong quickly grasped the opponent’s intention in calling her by her other name.
And just as she had expected, the words continued.
“It’s not exactly in return, but… well… I was wondering if you could attend this year.”
“Hmm…”
She had already clearly expressed her intention not to attend MAMA, saying it didn’t matter even if they didn’t give her an award.
It was the same for other award ceremonies as well.
In the past it might have been different, but now, with so many things she needed to do, award ceremonies were close to a waste of time for her.
Still, the fact that they were making this proposal meant they had their own calculations.
It was the inevitable nature of their kind — not stopping at giving one and receiving one, but wanting even more.
Her own path had been clearly different, but she had more than enough eyes to recognize that much.
She could have just pretended not to know and let it slide.
But,
‘Wait a minute.’
A thought suddenly flashed through her mind like lightning.
The biggest reason she had declined to attend award ceremonies was obviously her schedule, but there was one more reason she couldn’t tell others.
‘If it’s this…’
A certain song and its owner that had been forced to take a step back because they couldn’t receive proper evaluation due to the gap in name value.
It was none other than Lee Ahjeong herself who had kept that song — which possessed both soft and intense charm — stuck in the so-called “runner-up” position.
Of course, Lee Ahjeong was not soft enough to feel indebted over something like that.
This industry, where one had no choice but to compete even if unwilling, was ruled by the law of the jungle.
The time and effort she had accumulated were also her power and assets, so she had no intention of undervaluing them cheaply.
No, she hadn’t.
Nevertheless, Lee Ahjeong could not shake off that faint feeling in her heart.
There was only one reason.
It was because she herself had long been captivated by the charm of that song and the existence of that singer.
“Yes. I will attend.”
Perhaps that was why.
It was not difficult for Lee Ahjeong to change her mind.
It was time she had originally planned to use as a condition for the deal anyway.
The only thing that changed was the content of what she would gain.
“Really? Oh dear. You made the decision so easily that I feel awkward now. Haha.”
Lee Ahjeong smiled back at the other party, who was laughing without properly knowing her inner thoughts.
She wasn’t underestimating him.
Even if she had been in his position, she wouldn’t have predicted that things would flow this way.
“It might be a bit early to say this, but… after all, it doesn’t look good if the protagonist of the biggest award is absent, right?”
“Ah, about that. Separate from attending, I would appreciate it if you could reconsider the Daesang Artist award.”
“What do you mean…?”
She revealed her inner thoughts directly without dragging it out or measuring the gap, as a courtesy to the other party.
“It’s exactly as I said. I believe there is a song and a singer more fitting for the name ‘Daesang Artist’ than me.”
“Come on, even with modesty — if not AZ, who would dare covet it?”
“Oh my, do you really think so? I’m not joking.”
“Pardon?”
“Was there really no other song worth mentioning besides my song, the affection luck song? Truly?”
That couldn’t be.
From the moment she had declined to attend, they must have already considered it.
Even taking that into account, they couldn’t ignore her presence and had come all the way here, but if they hadn’t recognized that possibility, then there would be even less value in her attending MAMA.
And a moment later.
“Whew…”
A deep sigh escaped, and a white flag fluttered.
“I think I know who you are referring to. Yes… ‘that friend’… He has talent. We definitely had him in mind as well. However…”
“However?”
“He is too young. It is too early. We have prepared a separate award for that friend — no, for that person. One of the More Famous awards. How about being satisfied with that for now? Anything more at this point would actually be poisonous. You know that, don’t you?”
At the steady gaze directed at her, Lee Ahjeong also firmly closed her mouth.
As he said, the biggest obstacle was herself.
Since the song called the affection luck song had already been engraved in the records, controversy was inevitable.
But even that was not without a solution.
“What if I lend a hand?”
“Pardon?”
“If you make the decision, I will also stand at the Daesang Artist position.”
The man’s head tilted slightly, then quickly filled with shock.
“Not as the receiver, but as the presenter.”
If the very person who would become the center of controversy stepped forward, the intensity of the backlash would be greatly reduced.
Award ceremonies without any room for disagreement were not that common to begin with.
Looking at the many precedents so far, the direction of any controversy could shift depending on how the stage was set.
Fortunately, there were more than enough people who could lend a hand.
‘The fact that their investment came not only to BNW but also to MyWay.’
That meant the sphere they considered family was not limited to blood ties alone.
If her presence was added to their support, shifting the direction of the controversy toward a hot topic would not be difficult.
Having already finished her calculations, Lee Ahjeong looked into the eyes where shock had settled heavily into contemplation and rolled up her sleeves.
To drive in a wedge that would cut through his hesitation at once.
“Think about the future, Director. The time when he climbs a little higher. Think about how this year’s MAMA will look then.”
An eye that recognized the possibility of a legend early on.
A decision that boldly put that eye into action.
The result would be a grand coronation ceremony connecting the past to the future — one that would not be seen again for at least the next ten years.
There was no need to deliberately speak those words floating in her mind.
If he couldn’t even calculate that much, he would not have been able to rise to that position in the first place.
So she turned the arrow in another direction.
“It is a bold move that places with hardened authority and tradition would never even consider. Only at MAMA. Only at that place where the splendid red carpet is dyed with the blue color of youth can prejudice be broken.”
The tempting arrow that this opportunity was given only to them.
In response to the sweet challenge against taboo, only silence returned.
“I know well that this is not a matter that can be decided easily here. So let’s stop here for today. When you make your decision, we can talk again then.”
Nevertheless, her face was filled only with a smile.
Because she already knew that, in one way or another, it was an offer they would eventually be unable to refuse.
***
“Who would expect anything less from an artist — your expression was truly poetic.”
The answer Lee Ahjeong heard afterward was only that.
It was not a clear affirmation, but that didn’t matter.
“Hello. I am Lee Ahjeong. Although it is not my first time standing here, the things that catch my eye feel completely different now that my position has changed.”
The fact that she was standing here right now was the clearest answer of all.
“I am truly proud of myself for being able to lend a hand to this honorable occasion.”
Some might disparage it as ‘nothing but a party for mere entertainers.’
In fact, Lee Ahjeong could not confidently say whether there was any honor to be found in ‘this job’ that had no clear, visible productivity.
Even so.
She had never once regretted walking this path where a single voice from her could bring joy to countless people.
Because she had no regrets, she felt not even the slightest shame toward the title of ‘the best’ that had been given to her.
“Then I will announce it.”
But even that now had to bid farewell.
“2025 Music On Net Artist Music Awards Daesang Artist. The artist who received the most love from the greatest number of people this year.”
It did not match the old saying, ‘Where there is a beginning, there is an end.’
At only thirty-three years old, she was far too young — almost too young — to step down from the throne, and Lee Ahjeong knew well that her inner self, matured through years of walking this path, could be loved by even more people.
“The glorious name that will rise to that position is…”
It was too early to put an end to her own path.
She was simply stepping back one pace.
To comfortably watch just how far that mysterious junior — young in age but worthy of respect, and who had even captivated her — could climb.
“You said you would come next year and asked me to wait, but the wait ended sooner than expected.”
So she made up her mind.
If the succession of the throne was already scheduled, then at least the timing would be decided by her own hands.
“Soyagok, Han Yujin-nim. Congratulations.”
The moment she personally placed the crown with her own hands was the last pride the queen who had to step down could protect.