Chapter 104
Seo Eunbyeol couldn’t hide her panic and asked her, “…Yuri, how did you get here?”
“If I decide to act, there’s no one I can’t fool. Plus, I had this electric shock device that allows me to subdue an adult easily.”
“…No, that’s not what I mean. How did you know to come here?”
“You were wearing that phone charm, remember?”
“…This?”
Oh Yoori pointed to the bear paw-shaped phone charm hanging from the cosmetic pouch Seo Eunbyeol had.
“That’s actually a location tracker.”
“….”
It seemed that Oh Yoori had given her a location tracker as a peace offering. What a brilliant idea!
Seeing the confused reaction of Seo Eunbyeol, who didn’t know how to respond, Oh Yoori pulled her along and said, “We can talk about this later, but let’s get out of here. We don’t have time.”
“Wait, Yuri. I’m struggling to keep up with the situation. Why are you…?”
“Like I said, we can deal with the small talk later! Let’s just run away!”
At that, Seo Eunbyeol froze and faced the situation. Through the crack in the door, she saw the massive man who had collapsed. It was hard to distinguish whether he had just fainted or was in a dangerous state.
In any case, it seemed like it’d be tough to deal with the aftermath.
Oh Yoori seemed determined to prevent Seo Eunbyeol from being in danger, even if it meant carrying out such reckless actions. A minor still, sneaking into a bar and using a dangerous weapon like an electric shock device?
“….”
She felt extremely grateful. But just accepting this without any action wouldn’t do. This wasn’t just about Seo Eunbyeol’s future; it could ruin Oh Yoori’s future too.
If this incident came to light, Oh Yoori’s future would be irreparably damaged.
She had overflowing talent, beauty, and diligence—successful future prospects were clearer for her than anyone else.
That absolutely couldn’t happen.
Having made that determination, Seo Eunbyeol spoke with more resoluteness than ever, “You’re the only one running away. I’ll stay here. Don’t worry, I’ll take care of the cleanup.”
In her mind, what Oh Yoori had done should become Seo Eunbyeol’s responsibility. To do that, she couldn’t run away from here.
At that, Oh Yoori exclaimed in frustration, “Ugh, what are you talking about? We don’t have time for this!”
“The frustrating one is you! You shouldn’t be here right now! Don’t you realize how these events could impact your future?! You don’t have to be involved in this! You can shine regardless!”
She had never shared this with anyone, but in truth, Seo Eunbyeol admired Oh Yoori. From the very first day she entered Flower, beating all the existing trainees with her overwhelming talent.
That brilliant talent, combined with her humility and diligence to hone her skills. The poise she maintained in any situation was something she pure-heartedly admired. No matter how much younger she was, she respected Oh Yoori.
She admired her purely. Regardless of being much younger than her, she held Oh Yoori in high regard.
In her trainee life, filled with unreciprocated efforts, it was the first time she genuinely acknowledged someone. A warm realization of “A kid like that should become an idol.”
For Seo Eunbyeol, who was stuck in Flower, unable to let go of the shackles of her dream, it was a comforting understanding.
With Oh Yoori as a star, Seo Eunbyeol felt less shaken. The shattered pieces of her dreams seemed to come together when she looked at her. Just existing like a star could provide a kind of solace.
The words of Ban Seong-cheol, stating he could help with Oh Yoori’s success, played a crucial role in her decision. She wanted to see Oh Yoori succeed spectacularly.
Thus, Seo Eunbyeol didn’t want any dirt to splash onto the star that is Oh Yoori.
“Go back to the Girl 100 accommodation right now. Don’t worry about anything; I’ll take care of it. …I’ll figure out what to do about the person collapsed outside. So just follow your path. Don’t sully your hands here.”
Seeing Seo Eunbyeol say that, Oh Yoori chuckled lightly, surprisingly mature for her age.
“Well then, you’ll regret it.”
Frustrated by that assertion, Seo Eunbyeol replied curtly.
“How can you be so sure of that?”
“What do you mean ‘why?’ You’re crying right now.”
“…Huh?”
At Oh Yoori’s words, Seo Eunbyeol jumped and touched her cheek.
Water was streaming down her face like a lie.
The moment she realized it, the sharp pain in her heart, which she had been ignoring, became clear.
Seo Eunbyeol was in so much pain.
“It must have been hard, right?”
And seeing Oh Yoori stepping up for her, she felt pure joy.
“…I…”
Unable to continue her words, Seo Eunbyeol was met with Oh Yoori’s response.
“I’ll help you, sister.”
“…Yuri, why are you doing this? What on earth have I said?”
Separating her current surging emotions, Seo Eunbyeol couldn’t understand it rationally.
“All I’ve done for you is chat a bit, tidy up the training room, and open the door—nothing special, really.”
“Because I got scolded, I also got angry and fought for you.”
“…Did you know that? …No, but that doesn’t change much anyway. After all, it was just a couple of arguments. A few trivial interactions are no reason to carry this burden.”
Objectively, their relationship was just that.
Colleagues sharing the same training room, friends who occasionally chatted. That was all it was.
Seo Eunbyeol valued even such a small relationship dearly, but for Oh Yoori, it would be different. Thus, it seemed unnecessary for Oh Yoori to make such sacrifices.
“There’s no reason for you to go this far. I’m fine, so just think about your future.”
“…”
That had been Oh Yoori’s continuous question.
A life filled with losses and sacrifices, with the doubt that there would be no one to celebrate even if she stepped up. Yet, why must she take action?
A question arises: Who would be happy about this? Yet, why must we move forward?
Oh Yoori also couldn’t provide a clear answer to that question.
Nonetheless, she said,
“Eunbyeol unni, I’m thinking about the future right now.”
“You’re thinking about the future?”
“Unni, I have objective talent. If I keep honing this talent, I can easily reach the standards people call success.”
“That may be true, but not if you’re getting tangled up in such dirty work.”
“No, it doesn’t matter if I get involved. Even if I blow away Girl 100 or become a whistleblower at a broadcasting station, it won’t change anything. I can overcome a penalty like that.”
She needed to reassure the person in front of her.
“But ignoring this situation will definitely leave me with regrets. Regrets that will haunt me for life.”
Knowing that, Oh Yoori spoke with certainty amidst her confusion, pretending to know it all.
“So you can consider this as something for me. It’s an action driven purely by my personal feelings.”
“That can’t be true. No one can be okay with just that.”
“No, I’m fine. That’s enough for me. I can be satisfied enough with that. So let’s get out of here quickly; I’ll help you ensure we never set foot in this dreadful place again.”
After saying that, Oh Yoori reached out her hand again.
“…. ”
Seo Eunbyeol thought it was all her fault.
Because she lacked talent, she couldn’t meet her mother’s expectations.
Because she dreamt of something extravagant, she got pulled into the world of sponsorship.
And in the midst of it all, she couldn’t hide her pain, causing that warm child to sacrifice herself.
The depths of that guilt would forever ensnare her. So she considered giving up.
…But if holding that hand was also what Oh Yoori wanted, if it meant there was a chance to turn back a life filled with nothing but regrets, Seo Eunbyeol wanted to look at hope just one more time.
So she took that hand.
Seo Eunbyeol rubbed away the tears that had been flowing and said playfully, as if it was no big deal.
“By the way, Yoori, you’ve been using casual speech since a certain point? We have quite an age gap, you know.”
Startled, Oh Yoori hurriedly responded politely.
“…Ah, I’m sorry. I can’t help it when I let my guard down. I’ll try to hold back as much as I can.”
That was a line that warmed a part of Seo Eunbyeol’s heart.
Because of that, she held back her tears once more and said,
“No, I actually liked it because it felt friendly. Keep it up.”
“Is that so, unni? I won’t hold back on this sort of thing!”
The two looked at each other and smiled.
*
As Oh Yoori dashed towards the emergency stairs of the singing room, she asked,
“What did Eunbyeol unni gain by participating in this with Ban Seong-cheol?”
“…He said many sweet things. Opportunities to debut solo, or chances for you, Yuri, to get into Girl 100’s debut lineup.”
“…or something like that.”
“Hey, you knew something similar too. But I don’t think that’s the case. Ban Seong-cheol’s goal wasn’t just to get me into the top 11.”
“Not the goal? Then does he have another one?”
“I’m not sure exactly what it is. But bringing you here after I ignited the voting manipulation scandal of Girl 100 and shattered its value has to mean something else.”
Oh Yoori shuddered as she spoke.
“There’s definitely a dangerous plan we don’t know about. We need to run away before we get stuck in that swamp.”
Just then, a familiar voice echoed behind her.
“…Seriously, Yuri, you’re really smart. I can’t believe you’ve made such a judgment based on the little information you have. You’ve got talent and determination. You’re a person who could succeed anywhere.”
“…”
“But you being perceptive is a problem. There are things in this world that are better left unknown.”
It was Ban Seong-cheol, the mastermind behind all these events.
Seeing him smirking, Oh Yoori grabbed Seo Eunbyeol and ran towards the opposite direction of the hallway. She knew how dangerous it was to encounter that man in this bar.
Outskirts, collusion, credible missing person statistics; all the information she’d gathered pointed to this place being no different from a magical nightmare.
They had to escape. To a place where people could see them.
At that moment, the door ahead of the hallway opened, revealing a horde of tattooed men. It looked difficult to pass them.
She concealed her panic and instinctively turned to flee. Just then, a man suddenly jumped out from the side and kicked Oh Yoori roughly.
Whack!
A middle kick landed squarely on Oh Yoori’s abdomen.
Crash!
Bouncing off, Oh Yoori tumbled to the ground, struggling to breathe with her insides twisted in pain.
Seeing this, Seo Eunbyeol’s strength evaporated, and she collapsed to the ground.
The large man who kicked Oh Yoori asked Ban Seong-cheol.
“What should we do with these kids?”
“What do you mean ‘do’? Just make them shut up.”
“So how do we do that…?”
In response to the man’s question, Ban Seong-cheol grinned sinisterly.
From that smile, Oh Yoori felt an overwhelming sense of despair. She could easily imagine just how far that man could go.
‘I’m afraid Eunbyeol unni will get involved as an accomplice in something like sex trafficking, so I didn’t call the police. There’s no one to help me… Haha, this is really a disaster.’
With her ability to judge objectively, she quickly envisioned her future.
A hell where evil and immaturity would have to be paid for awaited her there.
“Um… for now, let’s take a picture…”
“Take a picture yourself, idiot.”
Then, a voice rang out.
The voice that had guided Oh Yoori, one she could never forget.
“…Huh? You guys aren’t talking about me, right?”
She steadied her breath as much as she could and looked towards where the voice came from.
“Seong-cheol, I’m talking about you.”
It was Seon Taeyang.
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