Chapter 77

Chapter 77

Faced with the fierce opposition of Han Gyeoul, James Oh abruptly apologized for his sudden proposal and left with a promise of next time.

As if chasing away the main judge of Girl 100 with my own hands wasn’t enough, Gyeoul grabbed the hem of my shirt, trembling.

“Teacher Taeyang. You absolutely can’t leave.”

“Ah, don’t worry. Where would I go without you?”

If I were to follow James Oh, I’d have to show my prowess as a composer or arranger, but I had no confidence in that.

I was just lucky to get caught up in this situation; there was no genius expectation from James Oh for me.

It would only take him 30 minutes to realize how unqualified I was.

“If it’s money, I’ll gather it up for you. I do get pocket money from Grandfather!”

“Pocket money? I don’t have a hobby of snatching up kiddy cash, so keep it to yourself.”

You’re already getting money from your grandfather every month anyway.

“…I get this much.”

Gyeoul looked around the empty room, then whispered in my ear.

“…You’re actually getting that money?”

“Yes.”

“Every year?”

“Every month.”

“….”

…Grandfather Gyeoul must be super rich.

I thought he was just raking in money as a craftsman, but it seems to be more than that. Does he own a lot of land or something?

“I’ll give you all the money I get. …So please don’t leave.”

Oh my, our little nerd.

I gently ruffled Gyeoul’s hair and said,

“Did you forget the promise we made? I said I would make you the best, right? Until I see you topping the music charts, even if you tell me to leave, I’m sticking around, so don’t worry. Save that money for when you actually need it.”

Honestly, I wouldn’t say I’m not tempted by the money, but if I started accepting it, I wouldn’t be able to treat Gyeoul the same way as before. I’d start feeling more like an employer.

More than that money, my current relationship with her seemed far more important. That’s why I gently declined.

“…First place?”

“Yep, first place. That’s what makes you worthy of being called the best.”

“…”

Gyeoul looked gloomy again, as if something was bothering her.

Despite my attempts at comforting her, her downcast expression didn’t fade away.

…Right, I need to give her praise more enthusiastically.

Her self-esteem is so low that she doesn’t believe me even when I try to encourage her.

I started to cheer her up dramatically.

“Our Gyeoul is beautiful, her talent as an idol is genius-level, she has a kind personality, and she comes from a well-off family. She’s just perfect, right? Whoever ends up with her will be one lucky guy.”
“Isn’t it just perfect? Whoever gets to take her away is one lucky guy.”

Hearing that, Gyeoul chuckled softly, fiddling with the hem of my shirt while glancing around, then said,

“…I think I need the luck more.”

…Just what kind of incredible person are they aiming for?

*

Girl 100 requires all 100 trainees to live in the same accommodation equally.

This was one way to give viewers a sense of reality and immersion, as if they were really preparing to debut with the agency.

On the other hand, it was a pretty ruthless idea to sell even the sight of the trainees sleeping.

Anyway, it wasn’t any different for Gyeoul; she too had to start a new life in the accommodation prepared by Girl 100. So the moment finally came for her to enter.

“Can you go with me?”

“…How could I possibly follow you there?”

Naturally, I couldn’t go that far, so she had to endure the group living alone.

Gyeoul seemed really anxious about it, grabbing my arm and pleading,

“…You’ll come back, right?”

“Yeah, I’ll come back on the regular recording day, so don’t worry.”

“Really, you will come back?”

“I said I’ll come back, didn’t I?”

“…What about after a hundred nights?”

“You don’t need to worry about a hundred nights, I’ll be there in just four days for the external recording…”

No matter how much I tried to reassure her, Gyeoul continued to cling to me and whine.

Her behavior was like a new recruit begging their girlfriend to visit next time.

The helplessness of a soldier feeling he has no way to see her, except for the long wait for his leave, was somehow felt by Gyeoul too.

…But why do I feel that from you? You’re not heading to the military, Gyeoul.

Now that I think about it, when I watched the previous episode, the structure of Girl 100’s accommodation did look like a barrack.

Not even the new model with beds, but the old style where everyone huddled together on the floor.

They probably wanted to give it a refresh, splashing pink and white colors for a girly decor, but painting the whole barrack pink doesn’t erase the smell of the military.

The devilish idea of wanting to sleep humans as efficiently as possible can’t be masked by some color play.

For sure, once it airs, people will have a PTSD meltdown and roast it in the community.

…Well, that might inadvertently go viral, so it’s not a big deal.

After doing my best to comfort Gyeoul and sending her off to the production team, one of the staff approached me.

“You’re the Team Leader Seon Taeyang from TwoBear Entertainment that Han Gyeoul belongs to, right?”
“Right?”

“Yes, that’s correct. May I ask what this is about?”

Despite looking quite young, the production team had an impression of fatigue, with dark circles under their eyes overshadowing any sign of vitality.

Without hiding his tired demeanor, he said to me,

“Our PD wanted to see you. He mentioned you’d know the reason without needing an explanation.”

Well, here we go.

It seems Gyeoul’s displayed ability has come across as quite unpleasant to her.

To be fair, since it was completely different from what we discussed beforehand, she must be furious from her standpoint of trying to manage everything. Her plans to naturally debut the 11 people must have crumbled, especially since only 3 from A Class made it.

…I didn’t think it would get this far.

I just pictured one person missing from the 11 spot with Gyeoul slipping in, you know?

Anyway, the situation has already unfolded, and I had to deal with it.

“Ah, he said you have something going on right now and can’t meet immediately, so he’d like you to come to the editing room at 12. I feel a bit awkward saying this considering your position, but I’m slightly sorry for passing along this message.”

“No, I fully understand. This is a busy time for the PD.”

Honestly, it’s rare for a rookie manager to have a one-on-one with the PD.

It would be a miracle if he even called.

Thinking back on past experiences, it wasn’t all that unpleasant.

“That’s a relief. Then I’ll inform the PD that you’ll drop by at that time. I’ll also let our crew know, so there won’t be anyone stopping you from coming.”

“Understood. I’ll see you there on time.”

*

As the time came, I stood in front of the editing room and opened the reward window.

[Memory of Possibilities (Available)]

There it was, the Memory of Possibilities that Gyeoul received after being rated A Class.

I looked at it with a glance of skepticism.

The memory of it flying away into thin air during Gaeul’s incident lingered vividly in my mind.

What? It was used on an appropriate target?

Why didn’t I get asked or given options about it?

Even if, for the sake of argument, it did have some significance, at the very least, I should at least know who that appropriate target was.

I still have no idea who saw what.

Is it really right for me to receive a reward that looks like this?

“Still, I’ll trust you once more.”

The Memory of Possibilities was a reward I had used quite a bit in the previous rounds.

And every time I used it, it had helped me greatly in my choices.

It would be a waste to dismiss it just because it showed a strange appearance once. So I decided to use it now.
Just because it showed a glimpse, it would be a waste to dismiss it as nonexistent. So, I decided to use it now.

If it performs the same as last time, it would help me negotiate with PD Kim Seon-ye, which is great.

Also, even if it fizzled out like with Gaeul, it wouldn’t be fatal.

Still, it’s painful, but there’s nothing I can do…

“Please, let’s get some value out of this. Use it!”

Despite pouring my desperation into it, nothing happened.

It felt very familiar.

“Wait, is this happening again?”

[‘Memory of Possibilities’ has been used on an appropriate target.]

…Right.

From now on, I’ll just consider that thing nonexistent.

I decided that I would boycott any quests that resulted in the memory of possibilities as a reward and checked the time. It was 11:58.

Confirming that time was running out, I knocked. I heard PD Kim Seon-ye’s voice inviting me in.

As I opened the door and stepped in, Kim Seon-ye, sitting cross-legged in the editing room chair, looked at me and said.

“You know what’s going on, right?”

“I confirmed the entire recording from start to finish.”

“Then, you must understand how uncomfortable I’ve become.”

“I apologize for how things have changed. However…”

“Stop right there. There’s only one thing I want to hear. How are you going to take responsibility for this? My precious viewer rating is on the line because of you!”

“When Gyeoul is revealed, the ratings will probably go up overall.”

“That doesn’t maintain it! Everything besides Han Gyeoul will look like a joke! How are you going to take responsibility for this?”

It’s true that the situation got tangled up, but pushing all the blame onto me is excessive.

All I did was mislead them about Gyeoul’s skills.

The mess was caused by the judges’ rampage. But since I can’t throw a fit at those judges, she must have turned her ire toward me instead.

…What a boring person.

“Let’s drop the unproductive talk about responsibility. I’d love to take the blame if I could, but you know a mere manager like me can’t handle everything, right?”

“Hah, hearing that from you…”

“So let’s make a deal together.”

“What?”

I locked eyes with Kim Seon-ye and said.

“I’m going to propose an extremely productive deal.”

From now on, I’ll make an offer you absolutely can’t refuse.

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