Chapter 42 – Gold in the Spotlight
Behind the Gold: AUREUS Unfiltered – Episode 3 Begins
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The studio lights flared once more as the third episode of Behind the Gold: AUREUS Unfiltered began. The air was no longer playful—it shimmered with a strange kind of reverence. After everything that had happened in Episode 2—the infamous Dare 11, the languages, the revelation, the obsession—this wasn't just a variety show anymore.
It had become a live chronicle of devotion.
[STUDIO – CAMERAS ROLL]
The members were dressed in sleek, new outfits—minimalist black with gold accents—but even designer wear seemed to pale in comparison to the man seated quietly at the far end.
Jaeheon Kang.
He didn't speak. He didn't fidget.
And yet, the air bent around him.
There was something different about him today—something colder, sharper. It wasn't just the aftermath of what he'd written in 138 languages. It wasn't just the haunting image of the woman with a gun to his head and a blade to his neck—no. It was the way he still looked ahead, like none of this mattered.
Like he was waiting.
[BACKSTAGE – WHISPERED CAMERAMAN TALK]
"Is it just me or is he even more…"
"Yeah."
"Dangerous?"
"Beautiful."
"Same thing."
[HOST JEON MIRA ENTERS]
Jeon Mira smiled, a little warily now, clutching her cue cards like a lifeline.
"Welcome back to Behind the Gold! We are officially on Episode Three, and after everything AUREUS gave us last time… I don't know how we're supposed to survive this one."
The crowd laughed lightly, but it was a nervous sound. There was a weight in the air now—every eye subconsciously drawn to him.
[CUT TO – JAEHEON'S FACE]
Still.
Unmoving.
Ethereal in how unreal he looked.
Wet black hair from the previous dare now dry and tousled slightly. Skin impossibly smooth, jawline as if carved from some divine sculpture. Eyes that did not glint, but cut—sharp silver-grey beneath thick lashes, framed in cool detachment.
It was not beauty.
It was weaponized perfection.
[THE HOST – RECENTERING]
"Before we dive into today's questions, I just want to say—thank you. For being real. For showing the world what honesty looks like."
The members nodded.
Minjae reached over and gave Rin a quick nudge, the usual mischief back in his smile.
But then—just for a second—his eyes flicked to Jaeheon.
The mischief faded.
"You good, bro?" he whispered.
Jaeheon didn't blink.
"…Perfectly."
His voice—calm, low, composed—barely audible to those watching. But the mic caught it. And the live chat blew up all over again.
@obsessionin13languages: WHO sounds like that after 138 "I love you"s??? @definitelyhisera: he's not even TRYING to be hot. it's just… how he exists?? @theresnoflameleft: he's empty but not hollow. like everything he is went to her.
[CAMERAS SWEEP THE ROOM]
Jeon Mira clapped her hands together.
"Well, now that the dare segment has finally ended, today we're going to talk about growth. Personal growth. Career dreams. The stuff that comes before and after the spotlight."
The theme shift was intentional. Healing, perhaps.
But as the screen behind them faded from golden flames to a reel of AUREUS career highlights—debut stages, world tours, music videos—the camera panned to Jaeheon once more.
Not smiling.
Not engaged.
But watching.
He saw the footage of their debut—the cheers, the lights, the formation.
His voice, when it came in the performance—flawless. Haunting.
But it was the songwriting credits that lingered on screen now.
"Her Silence is Louder Than Heaven"
Written, Composed, Arranged by: Jaeheon Kang
[YEONWOO – BREAKING THE SILENCE]
"You've written almost all our title tracks since debut."
Jaeheon glanced sideways, not in pride but in acknowledgment.
"It's just work."
"You wrote one song 138 times," Hyunjae murmured.
That silenced them.
Jeon Mira looked at the cue card. She hesitated.
Then:
"Jaeheon. If you weren't doing this—music, idols, fame… what would you be doing?"
A beat.
And then, for the first time since the camera rolled—
A faint smile.
Not soft. Not kind.
But knowing.
Jaeheon leaned back, crossed one leg over the other with calculated elegance, and spoke without pause:
"I'd be helping my brother in business. I'd still write music. Maybe start a company on the side."
Jeon Mira raised a brow.
"You say that like it's already happening."
"It is."
He said it simply, like it wasn't the biggest reveal on a live broadcast being watched by over 600 million.
Minjae blinked.
"…Wait. You already—?"
"He's co-founder of Phoenix-Gold Media Labs," Yeonwoo said quietly. "It was registered last quarter."
The screen behind them flashed the article.
[BREAKING] Phoenix-Gold Media Labs: Joint Venture by Jihoon Kang and Jaeheon Kang—Son and Grandson of Korea's Most Powerful Dynasty
"Cutting-edge innovation, high-end sound engineering, AI-composed backing scores. The tech empire begins now."
Jeon Mira just stared.
"You… you're already building an empire."
"I never stopped," Jaeheon said.
He looked at the screen with mild disinterest—like the headlines didn't matter.
And they didn't.
Because he wasn't building it for power. Not for money.
He was doing it so he'd have something to offer.
To her.
The only one he ever smiled for.
The only one who hadn't smiled back.