Chapter 34 of "The Techniques of an Idol Who Never Fails"

"Ah, bro. If you were going to talk about that, you should have given us a heads up."

In response to Hwang Saebi's words, Shin Hyebeom said over the phone,

-Why, what? I just mentioned it in passing.

"Ah, I'm not saying anything, but..."

-You guys do well. Anyway, you all look like troublemakers, but you're all so timid. Why don't you appear on YouTube once?

"Ah, should we?"

-Hmm?

"I'll let the company know."

-Hey, really? I've been pretty harsh on Gukseona.

"If the company allows it."

After answering, Hwang Saebi hung up the phone and headed to Yang Yi's studio with the members.

Recently, Jeong Hae-won has been having nightmares, so after taking away his private room, he didn't even return to the dorm and stayed in someone else's studio.

* * *

Maybe it's a side effect of Gukseona, but I'm scared of being mentioned on the internet, whether it's good or bad.

I didn't want to receive calls from the company, but fortunately, An Juwon, who had been sleeping under a blanket, woke up at some point and answered my phone. It was just a message telling me not to worry too much.

At that moment, the door opened, and more members appeared.

"What's up? Why are you all here?"

"Oh, just passing by."

"Stopped by on the way."

The owner of the studio, Yang Yi, was at home for his mother's birthday, but the First Light members were all over the place.

"Hey, don't touch anything."

I said to the members who were likely to cause trouble.

Fortunately, the sofa here was bigger than in the dorm, and there were two chairs, so all the members could sit down. Huddled together, Hwang Saebi said,

"Want to listen to the youngest member sing?"

"Ah, I feel uncomfortable when I get attention."

"What's so uncomfortable about an idol getting attention?"

"I mean, it's uncomfortable with the seniors watching."

Park Sunjae stood in front of the microphone with a pop filter and hummed along to the rough guide I had recorded. Then he started the guide recording for "I've Only Been Waiting for the Morning."

Despite saying he felt uncomfortable with the members watching, Park Sunjae finished the guide recording cleanly. His clear and pleasant voice suited this song particularly well.

As soon as the recording was over, An Juwon said,

"Our youngest member is really a great singer."

"Bro, the lyrics are so cute. I really like them."

"You don't have to say that."

"Bro Hae-won, can you play it again? I really like the song."

At Han Hyoseok's request, I played "I've Only Been Waiting for the Morning" again.

It was really amazing; the moment the guide recording started, the heavy feeling in my chest was swept away like dust by a strong wind. It must be because of the studio setting and the music. This is why human life needs spatial separation. Physical separation can also separate emotions.

From the beginning of the guide recording, Shin Jiwon was focused on arranging the rap part, and Min Jihoo was continuously moving to choreograph the dance.

Even during Gukseona, the members didn't start a conversation unless I did first. Today, they were only talking about music, giving excessive praise... I like it when they praise me, but to this extent...

After handing over the guide demo to the A&R team, I left the studio with the members. Hwang Saebi, who had been discussing the vocal parts with Park Sunjae, said to me,

"You said you didn't want the company to provide a studio. Why?"

"Because I can just stay here."

"What did Yang Yi say?"

"He said I could come in and gave me the security key."

"Tsundere?"

Hearing this, Shin Jiwon took out his earphones and interjected,

"Since he's not coming back to the dorm, if he gets a studio, he'll just live there. I used to have a roommate, but not anymore."

Then he put his earphones back on and focused on making the rap. We headed straight to the company.

While on the way to the company, I didn't want to think, but I had to consider how this situation would affect me.

The CEO of the channel that aired Gukseona, TYT, was formerly the CEO of VVV, an entertainment company under VMC.

After the manipulation controversy, two new executives joined TYT, both from the entertainment department. The next survival show would likely have even more sensational editing, if not less.

In such a situation, if these issues keep happening, from TYT's perspective...

'They must really hate me.'

To avoid thinking too negatively, I shook my head and said to the members,

"Sorry, I'll try to fix it somehow."

The car was quiet.

We quickly arrived at the company, and as soon as we got out of the parking lot, Hwang Saebi grabbed me and turned me around. He put his hand in his pocket and said,

"I really don't want to talk about this, but since Jeong Hae-won isn't in his right mind, I'll say it."

"Hey, who's..."

"Shut up. While we're all active, let's make one promise: don't apologize for something that isn't your fault."

Hwang Saebi continued, looking at me.

"You shouldn't be worrying about us right now. Focus on yourself."

"..."

"Hey, go ahead, you guys."

Hwang Saebi told the members, and Shin Jiwon pushed the hesitant members' backs.

"Let's go."

After the members left, Hwang Saebi said to me,

"I always thought you should be the leader. But it didn't work out. I don't have the right personality, so I'll take the leader role for now. I've seen other group leaders, and they have a lot of restrictions when composing. They always have to think about the team before their own music."

"..."

"Of course, you should still manage the atmosphere. But I'll handle reporting to the company. You focus on composing."

"You're not good at that."

"I didn't want to be born quickly either, but I was the first to be born. You need to compose. An Juwon is too gentle."

"..."

"I'll do something that doesn't fit my personality, so you should too. Use this opportunity well."

I glanced at Hwang Saebi and chuckled.

"You really don't fit, going to the CEO's office and asking for what you need."

"I feel like I'm going to die just thinking about it."

With that, I headed to the practice room, and Hwang Saebi went to the CEO's office instead.

* * *

[Hyebeom watched the video and couldn't find any normal scenes of Jeong Hae-won]

[What are you talking about?]

[Well, Hyebeom said Jeong Hae-won wasn't lazy, but there were no scenes showing him being diligent or revealing his personality. He only appeared in negative scenes.]

[But if he keeps appearing in those scenes, it's not just negative editing; it's his personality.]

[That's true. During meetings, he was always rude. If Oh Hajeong hadn't stopped him, there would have been many fights.]

[But even if it's his personality, people laugh and have normal conversations sometimes, right? But there were no such scenes.]

[If someone only appears in angry scenes without any development, it's negative editing.]

[That's what I think too.]

[But after giving the phone back to the Gukseona kids, he only compromised and gave in.]

[That's really frustrating...]

[I looked again, and there are no scenes of Jeong Hae-won practicing at all.]

[I'd be fine with negative editing if I got more screen time.]

[If you get negative editing, you won't say that. It's really frustrating.]

[But if all the scenes of Jeong Hae-won are negative, his image is already ruined. Can it be recovered now?]

[To be honest, I don't think it can be fixed for life.]

[That's what I think too.]

[Why doesn't TYT just apologize for the negative editing and release unedited videos? It feels like eating a hundred sweet potatoes.]

As the topic gained more attention, some recap channels started posting videos about the "devil's editing."

[The Idol Hated by the Nation? ... Negative Editing?]

[YouTube Creator from Gukseona 'Exposes' the Truth]

[17, the Number with a Secret]

The more the internet buzzed, the more chaotic the production site of TYT's new survival show, "The Certain," became.

Especially, Park Kyungseok PD, the main PD and one of the producers of Gukseona, was deeply troubled.

After the arrest of the Gukseona producers, "The Certain" emphasized a fair selection process.

The production team, focusing on "transparent voting process," faced various issues after Jeong Hae-won joined First Light.

After the "17" controversy of First Light's content and a warning from TYT's upper management, the negative editing controversy resurfaced. After Shin Hyebeom's video upload, the production team of "The Certain" received inquiries from the participants' agencies.

-PD, our kid is really sensitive and can't handle that...

-Why don't you have a meal together?

The controversy grew before the show even started, and conversely, the buzz also increased.

Park Kyungseok PD, who had a significant role in editing Jeong Hae-won during Gukseona, was appointed as the main PD, partly due to the ratings he helped achieve.

During Gukseona, he felt sorry for