“Whew….”
I let out a sigh in the car after finishing the interview, and beside me, Kang Hyung-man asked,
“What’s with the heavy sigh?”
“…I was just wondering if I did well in the interview.”
Na Ah Ah’s reputation for the production team’s ruthlessness was famous even in my past life. I couldn’t help but tremble at the worry that they might use Devil’s Editing on my interview.
“I didn’t see anything wrong with your answers. Don’t worry too much.”
“If the boss says that….”
“If they mess with the editing, I’ll smash their place to pieces.”
“…No, you don’t have to go that far….”
“I just thought you seemed troubled, so I tried to lighten the mood with a joke.”
“…Haha, your jokes are quite intense.”
Still, hearing Kang Hyung-man’s encouragement made me feel a bit better. Upon reflection, the production team hadn’t thrown overly harsh questions at me.
‘They were nicer than I worried they’d be.’
I expected them to hurl tricky questions at me, but they asked me simple ones, as if they had received some kind of warning beforehand.
‘Sure, it’ll be fine. They won’t start with Witch Hunting or Devil’s Editing during the pre-recording.’
I barely calmed my pounding heart.
And then….
“Hmm? But where are we going?”
I realized suddenly that the car wasn’t heading towards our neighborhood.
“Oh, there’s somewhere we need to stop first before heading back.”
“Where?”
“Where do you think? Our company headquarters.”
“Oh, we have a company headquarters?”
“Of course! We’re not a paper company.”
…Well, it’s normal for a company to have a headquarters.
‘But still…, it’s probably just a small office in some corner, right?’
I was the only trainee, and the company was founded by a guy from a gang. I didn’t have any high expectations for the headquarters of Brotherhood Planning.
But….
“This is our headquarters…?”
“Yeah.”
When we arrived in front of the headquarters, I couldn’t close my mouth in shock.
‘Is this really our company headquarters?’
A five-story building in a nice area on the outskirts of Seoul. It had a small garden on the rooftop, and the windows were all made of glass, creating a stylish and modern atmosphere.
“It used to be a design company, but the owner couldn’t pay off his debt… so we took it as collateral.”
“…That’s incredible.”
It truly was a building that left me in awe, no matter how many times I saw it. No one would ever think it was a company run by gangsters….
“Welcome-!!! Hyung-nim-!!!”
“Yeah.”
…Sure enough, my expectations shattered into pieces as soon as I opened the headquarters’ door.
As soon as dozens of people in black suits saw Kang Hyung-man, they bowed at a 90-degree angle.
“There are… a lot of people, huh.”
“Yeah, we’re still in the process of moving. Most of the members are here.”
I slowly looked around at the intimidating-looking members and made eye contact with them.
“Don’t be scared; they may look tough, but they’re all pretty nice.”
“……”
If I see them twice, I might faint…
‘But then again… maybe it’s because I saw a lot of gang members due to my parents’ debts? I’m getting used to seeing them… huh?’
But at that moment, I spotted two people who seemed out of place among the surroundings.
Both were stylish young women with unique appearances, and they were trembled while hugging each other, clearly scared of the surrounding men.
Seeing the two of them, who looked like they had been kidnapped in a gangster den, I asked Kang Hyung-man,
“…Who are those two? They seem quite shaken….”
“Oh, I was just about to introduce them. Hey! You two come over here!”
As Kang Hyung-man waved his hand, the two shaking women exchanged nervous glances before quickly running over.
“Ye-rin, greet them. These are your temporary trainers until the broadcast.”
“…Trainers?”
“Yeah, one for vocals and one for dance.”
…Wait, I’m the only trainee, and they’ve already hired trainers?
With generous contract terms and an advance payment of 50 million won, traveling in a luxury sedan, and personal trainers at a fancy headquarters… this is essentially the life of an emperor trainee.
Do they really have that much faith in me? I’m grateful, but the pressure was undeniably there.
“Teachers, please introduce yourselves. I’m trainee Ha Ye-rin.”
“Oh, hello…”
“Nice to meet you…”
But really, those two aren’t being held hostage, right? Their reactions are suspicious….
“Ye-rin, do you have any schedules today?”
“I don’t, but why?”
“Since we’re all here, how about a lesson too? Time is short.”
“Ah….”
Na Ah Ah has a month until her first shoot.
To show a decent image by then, I definitely needed more practice.
“I’m fine with that.”
“Then let’s all head down. We’ve set up a practice room in the basement.”
Upon arriving at the area guided by Kang Hyung-man, there was a neat practice room covered in mirrors.
“Oooh.”
“It’s better for the three of you to practice without anyone else around. I’ll step out… Oh, but before that….”
Flick.
“……?”
Before leaving, Kang Hyung-man called me and whispered in my ear.
“It won’t be easy to achieve significant results within a month. Treat Na Ah Ah’s experience just as a way to build recognition and practice comfortably.”
“……”
Did he notice I was feeling pressured?
Kang Hyung-man eased my burden with his nonchalant words.
“If you feel uncomfortable about anything, just let me know right away.”
“…No way, I’m always grateful, boss.”
“…Yeah.”
Kang Hyung-man gave my head a pat, shouted to the trainers, and then said,
“Teachers, please take care of her. I’ll make sure no one else comes to the practice room until you say so. Now then….”
He closed the door and went upstairs.
I stared at the closed door for a while.
At first, I thought he was just like any other loan shark, but he was a truly warm-hearted person.
However…, it seemed I was the only one who evaluated Kang Hyung-man this way.
Thud.
Once Kang Hyung-man left, one of the trainers slumped down as if drained of energy.
And then….
“Wahhhh-!!”
She burst into sobs.
“It was so scary-!! It was too scary-!! Wahhhh-!!”
The other trainer, while not crying, patted the sobbing trainer’s shoulder as if she understood.
Seeing that, I couldn’t shake off my rational suspicion.
‘Those two really weren’t kidnapped, right…?’
It’s true that Kang Hyung-man is a warm person, but after all, he’s still a gangster, a loan shark.
What if the trainers were forcibly taken here…?
With a sinking heart, I asked them.
“Umm…, you two weren’t dragged here against your will, were you?”
“…Huh? No, no, we applied after seeing the job listing…”
“See, I knew it! But you seem really scared…”
“…I didn’t know it’d be like this. There’s a reason the pay is high….”
As one trainer clutched her forehead, the one who was crying nodded in agreement and shouted.
“Ugh…, I came in and there were so many tough-looking uncles, and the atmosphere seemed threatening, and they didn’t tell me anything when I asked, and I thought it was human trafficking before the student arrived….”
Yeah…, it’s understandable to misunderstand.
High pay but surrounded by nothing but gangsters? I would’ve suspected human trafficking too.
To put their minds at ease, I patted their shoulders.
“Don’t worry; it’s not like that. This is a real agency. Those uncles are surprisingly nice too.”
“……”
“……”
Hearing my words, the trainer who realized her disgrace stood up and stopped crying.
“…Whew, I’m sorry. I showed such a disgraceful side in front of a student.”
“It’s okay, it’s alright.”
Only then was I able to look at the crying trainer’s face properly.
But this person….
‘…Why does she look familiar?’
Could it be someone I know? I shook my head. Who would I know in this line of work?
Since I was the one learning, it would be best for me to introduce myself first. I tidied my clothes a bit and bowed to them.
“Then I’ll introduce myself first. Nice to meet you. I’m Ha Ye-rin, a trainee at Brotherhood Planning.”
“……”
The two looked at me, and then the trainer on the right began introducing herself first.
“…Yes, even though I’m just temporary, I’ll do my best. I’m Kang Soo-hyun, and I’ll be in charge of Ye-rin’s vocal training. I used to work at JJ.”
“You came from JJ…?”
JJ is one of the top three agencies in the Korean entertainment industry.
Someone who used to be a vocal trainer there came to Brotherhood Planning?
I froze in surprise, and the trainer who’d been crying began her introduction.
And upon hearing her name, I felt even more taken aback.
“I’m also looking forward to working with you. I used to teach at a nameless dance academy; my name is Lee Ji-woo.”
“…Wait? Lee Ji-woo… Lee Ji-woo. No way, is it that Lee Ji-woo?”
“…You know me?”
Of course, I do.
Lee Ji-woo’s name would later become known for winning a dancer audition program and causing a dancing craze a year later.
‘It was so long ago that I’d forgotten her face…!’
But now that I remembered her name, I could see it clearly.
The girl in front of me was indeed that Lee Ji-woo.
“Oh, no, it’s just that I have a friend with the same name.”
“Oh, is that so?”
One was born from a top three agency as a vocal trainer, and the other would later become the winner of a dance program…
With such a dazzling lineup, I couldn’t help but feel astonished.
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