Chapter 3

03

I still rubbed my sore back, but the manager was still passionately speaking.

"What are you trying to do, getting yourself fired? The CEO is scary."

"Y-yes, y-yes."

"You must be young and naive... "

"Can you show me the practice room? And introduce me to the members."

As I cut off my words, the manager glared at me with fiery eyes. I ignored him with the brazenness I had built up over years of social experience. I’m naturally shameless, after all.

"Seohyun is acting strange today. He’s changed since he got sick..."

He muttered incessantly, as if reciting a mantra.

While walking down the hallway, I still looked at the photos of people I didn’t know. Ah, I know this man. He’s a famous actor who transitioned from theater to romance dramas.

At least it seems like a decent agency for actors...

'An idol in an actor-specific agency...'

"How many trainees are there?"

"What nonsense? There’s only you guys."

"......What?"

"You’re the ones who were gathered to debut. ...I’m really worried."

'...Really?'

Was that the setup?

While I was shocked by the shoddy company system, the manager slyly spoke up.

"Seohyun."

"Yes?"

"The kids... might be a bit sensitive. Because their recent performance hasn’t been good. So don’t be surprised no matter what they say."

"Local favoritism?"

"Local favoritism... Yeah, it might feel like local favoritism to you. But don’t worry, I’ve been watching them, and they’re really nice. They’re just stressed."

Usually, when people keep saying others are nice, they’re not.

As I looked at them calmly, the manager, who was more nervous, opened the door.

"Kids, Seohyun is here!"

...Lord, I’ve been good, haven’t I?

Can’t you give me some decent members to work with?

"Seohyun?"

However, when I saw the members sweating and panting in the practice room, I clicked my tongue.

'No way.'

They were good-looking. And idols should be good-looking, of course. Being good-looking and pretty, singing well, all of that is important. But in Korea, where all the good-looking and pretty people flock to the entertainment industry, just being good-looking isn’t enough.

Then, what’s the way to survive?

It’s star quality.

How much you shine, how cool you are even when you do nothing, that’s a crucial factor.

I scanned the four members huddled together and re-evaluated.

'Not yet.'

Star quality, it seems insignificant but is really hard to get. It’s a necessary element to make fans cheer with just a gesture, but it’s incredibly difficult to obtain. You need to have a unique charm or charisma.

And with my level of experience, I can spot the difference in a glance.

But these members didn’t have it. I sighed and asked.

'Hey... Can’t you see the stats of the others?'

[Can't see them >_<]

'Useless.'

Just as I was about to sigh, a sharp voice pierced my ears.

"Seohyun, weren’t you supposed to leave?"

The tall one spoke. As I looked at him, the system window for him automatically popped up.

[Kim Sung-hyun, Leader and Main Dancer: ???]

[Very sensitive due to the threat of disbanding.]

Yeah, I could tell without you saying.

"But why are you back? What did you do right?"

Kim Sung-hyun glared at me sharply. The manager, flustered, tried to mediate between us.

"Sung-hyun, why are you like this? Seohyun was sick."

"So what? Are we a comeback group? We didn’t even properly debut, so why is he here?"

"Kim Sung-hyun!"

I honestly thought Kim Sung-hyun was completely right. At the same time, I re-evaluated.

'Would a rude character do better?'

Usually, people are more attracted to someone who is rude 99 times and nice once than someone who is nice 100 times. The latter is just seen as a pushover or a fool.

"Sung-hyun, stop it."

[Seung-woo, Main Vocalist.

Note: ???]

[He has a good heart but terrible luck.]

'This one is okay.'

Seung-woo stopped Kim Sung-hyun and gave me a hint. As I shrugged and entered the practice room, Seung-woo greeted me.

"Um... Seohyun, welcome back. Are you feeling better?"

"Yeah. I’m Seohyun. Nice to work with you."

"Who doesn’t know your name?"

"Just a gesture to start over."

"Really shameless..."

Thanks to the saliva I had applied to my lips before leaving home, I could smoothly lie or say anything.

Kim Sung-hyun’s face turned red, but I ignored him and looked at the other two. The one with black hair opened his eyes wide.

"Seohyun, are you really better?"

[Jeong Da-jun, Sub-Dancer.

Note: ???]

[He’s the youngest. ...He’s friendly.]

"Yeah, it’s good."

I didn’t even know what was wrong with me, but I answered roughly. As I looked at the side, a fox-like guy smirked.

"Bro, I thought you were dead when you didn’t come back."

[Kang Eun-jae, Main Rapper. Note: ???]

[He has the same twisted personality.]

'Look at this guy’s character?'

This kid is a red flag.

"I’m back and not dead."

"Hmm? ...Hmm? Haha."

[Quest, 'Talk to the members!' completed.]

[They all seem unhappy that you’re here!]

[Let’s add some charm for now.]

I answered appropriately and looked at the quest window. Main vocalist, dancer, rapper, it seems they’ve gathered a decent lineup. Or maybe they just gathered all the trainees and assigned positions...

The manager, seeing that I had at least greeted the members, smiled widely.

"Well, it’s a relief that the kids welcomed you! Let’s do our best again, everyone!"

"......"

...So cheerful.

No one answered.

Still, the manager continued speaking with determination and enthusiasm. Being a working adult is tough, I looked at him with pity.

"Seohyun might not know, but we’re preparing for a comeback. We have a showcase and broadcast activities in a month. Let’s do our best. The CEO is pushing us hard!"

'I don’t think so...'

Looking around, it seemed everyone knew it was a lie. The members’ anxious faces proved it.

"Seohyun, do you want to listen to a song first?"

[Quest: 'Listen to the comeback song!' This is The Dune's last chance!

Listen to the comeback song.

Success: Next scenario starts, +1 charm.

Failure: The Dune members' trust drops significantly.]

"Yes, play it."

Let’s see how bad it is.

*** [Pineapple, pop pop pop!

Apple, munch munch munch!

Mango, mang mang mang!]

"......"

"......"

Silence hung in the air.

It was really a bad song. It was about confessing to a crush like a pineapple, apple, and mango. Even with a tin ear, it was a terrible song.

When I came in, I vaguely saw their debut single on Nertube, and it wasn’t this bad...

'We’re doomed...'

Ding!

[Mang mang mang!]

"How is it? Isn’t the song good?"

I looked at the manager, who was lying on the ground, grinning widely.

...Can you even laugh? If we go with this song, we’re definitely doomed.

No, we might be mocked on the internet for life.

"Pineapple, pop pop pop! Wow, what a hit. The reaction is already crazy. The planning team is also going wild over how fresh it is."

The terrible beat and lyrics aside, in winter?

It’s been half a year since summer, and they want to do this concept in winter? Is the planning team dead?

I imagined it.

Pineapple, mango, apple... I’d be making a fool of myself singing this, and there would be a few comments on the Nertube video.

- Wow... kinda pitiful... hahaha

- Hahaha now anyone can be an idol~~~ Can I debut too?~~-Do idols like this even have fans? I’m really curious.

The reaction was clear. Shivering, I gave my evaluation, matching the hopeful looks of those around me.

"The song is really fresh."

"Right?"

"Does the CEO have an orchard?"

"Hey, Seohyun!"

Speaking honestly, the members around me got angry.

"Seohyun, even if you say that, that’s a bit... "

"Why? It’s true."

"Right. The pineapple being pop pop pop is fine, but why is mango mang mang mang?"

Kang Eun-jae agreed. I wiped my face and got up, feeling miserable. I probably had a cigarette in my pocket. I needed to take one out.

Misinterpreting this, the manager called me.

"Seohyun, where are you going?"

"I’ll just go get some fresh air."

"Seohyun!"

I ignored the manager and went outside, squatting on the ground and taking out a cigarette. I looked at the opposite company building.

It was small and old. Even with my tin ear, I could do better than that. How did they even get such a song? It’s absurd to bring a summer concept in a season when it’s about to snow, and what’s with the sudden EDM, EDM...

[Are you going to give up?]

"Shut up... I’m thinking."

What do you mean, give up? I can’t give up because of my pride.

I remembered my rookie days, when I was mocked and held back. I remembered the senior who told me to pick up his business card from a trash bag, and the top star who bullied and treated me like dirt. Compared to that, this is nothing, nothing at all...

When I felt a surge of anger, I used to open my bank app, check my balance, and calm down, but that didn’t work now.

I have to feed Seohyun...

"Seohyun."

The main vocalist from earlier approached. His name... right.

"...Seung-woo."

"Uh-huh."

I was barely able to pretend I knew, looking at the system window that appeared again. He was the nice guy who tried to calm the others earlier.

'I can’t adapt...'

Seeing young guys calling my name everywhere, I realize how crazy my situation is.

...No answer, so I took another puff.

"Are you okay?"

"Uh-huh."

"Did we... go too far?"

"It’s fine."

I was just smoking, but Seung-woo’s expression darkened.

I quickly realized. Right, idols shouldn’t smoke. Seeing an idol who needs to take care of their voice smoking is like saying they’ve given up.

What was my position again, sub-vocalist?

I could only sing at company dinners, using a spoon and a bottle. I was already worried about how I would perform on stage.

"Understand the kids. Nothing is going well for us."

"......"

"We’re going to fail soon. Everyone has already given up. The planning team has abandoned us, and this song is the best the company could get."

'Oh.'

I narrowed my eyes and looked at Seung-woo.

"After the disbanding, you’ll have to think about what to do. If you want to study, it will take a long time since you’ve been a trainee for so long."

"How long?"

"About 7 years?"

"Where?"

"Yeah, D.go."

'Not bad?'

D.go is a fairly large agency. There was a group called 'Today' that gained some recognition recently.

So, is he skilled? If he’s skilled, that would ease my worries a bit. I couldn’t be sure yet.

I took a drag on my cigarette, watching Seung-woo fumble.

"Large agency."

"But it didn’t go well, right? Just think of this as leaving a memory. Don’t worry about the kids, just do your best."

I chuckled.

"Why are you laughing?"

A memory at the end?

What are you talking about? I didn’t come here to make memories with you guys.

It’s arrogant to decide we’re doomed before even starting. Especially in this industry, where it’s a matter of life and death.

We haven’t even started properly, I can’t just give up.

I stubbed out the cigarette on the ground.

"Who said that?"

"Huh?"

"Who said it’s the end?"

We haven’t even tasted success and are just hesitating at the threshold. I have to turn these idiots into top idols.

And I was confident.

"I’m just starting."

I have the confidence to take care of your rice bowls too.