Episode 91
Oh Yoori looked at my face, not hiding her nervousness, and said.
“That person’s goal is to get me into the debut group of Girl 100’s top 11. If the votes are manipulated, I think it’s possible to include me in there.”
But that wasn’t something Ban Seong-cheol could just decide on a whim.
Kim Seon-ye and the collusion between MNet and 11 agencies was solid.
“I don’t agree with your theory about the manipulation of Girl 100, but even if it’s true, it feels contradictory.”
“Contradictory?”
“Yes, contradictory. If I’m not mistaken, Yoori, you said the top 11 has already been decided, right? Then even if Ban Seong-cheol lobbies or bribes, that’s going to be difficult, isn’t it? If vote manipulation occurred, it means not just PD Kim but MNet itself was involved. That MNet wouldn’t be a fool to mess up the game for just a little bit of money.”
She nodded at my words and replied.
“You’re right, it wouldn’t be easy to wedge in on a scheme that the broadcasting station created. But it becomes possible if there’s a vacancy.”
Oh Yoori, lifting the board marker, pointed her toes to circle the name written in 7th place.
“Manager Ban intends to get rid of Lee Bom, who ranked 7th in the 5th voting.”
As far as I remembered, Lee Bom was just one of the trainees hastily ending her idol career because of the manipulated vote controversy. I wasn’t sure how things would turn out later, but as far as I recalled, she didn’t have a special criminal record that would make her quit during the show.
“What do you mean by getting rid of Lee Bom? I remember her being just a regular girl with no problems in her background.”
“It seems like they’re planning to create a problem if none exists… For example, a history of school violence. If they prepare one accuser and silence a few others, that’s one of the easiest ways to create a controversy.”
I let out a low sigh and said.
“So it means it doesn’t even have to be true.”
“Exactly.”
A picture formed in my mind.
“If Lee Bom raises an objection or files a defamation lawsuit, by then it would already be a point of response for Girl 100.”
“Whether or not there will be a later reevaluation, they just need to make sure she doesn’t debut in Girl 100.”
“Is your mention of the bribe to create that vacancy? Or to fill the vacancy?”
“I see it as both. Ban Seong-cheol seems to be associated with some dangerous people.”
“Dangerous people? As far as I know, Ban Seong-cheol is just a privileged kid whose parents run a business.”
Oh Yoori shivered as if something chilling just crawled up her spine and said.
“…That business is something like a room salon.”
“….”
In the previous episode, Ban Seong-cheol had avoided making direct references to the company his parents ran, contrasting his personality of bravado and pride.
In the episode, Ban Seong-cheol avoided direct mention of the company run by his parents, despite his strong personality traits of arrogance and pride.
The fact that his parents ran a company became clear after a drunk senior made a nasty remark, “That brat’s a golden spoon!”
Hearing Oh Yoori’s words made the past seem quite questionable.
…I really didn’t know anything about Ban Seong-cheol.
Looking back at the trust I had felt earlier only made me feel like a complete idiot.
As I stroked my freshly shaved chin in regret and reflection, I asked her.
“So, what’s your goal, Yoori?”
“My goal?”
“Do you want to judge Ban Seong-cheol for doing illegal things like sponsorships? Or do you want to transfer to another safe agency?”
If it was one of those two, I was willing to help. I felt a sense of responsibility in this situation.
But Yoori’s next answer took me completely by surprise.
“I’m going to bring down Girl 100. I hope you can help with that.”
…Where did Ban Seong-cheol go?
I scratched my head in confusion and asked.
“If your goal is to avoid unsettling demands, isn’t that a bit excessive? It seems enough to gather evidence and report it, and change to a normal agency, doesn’t it?”
Depending on how far Ban Seong-cheol was involved with Flower, simply exposing his crimes might not be enough to ensure Yoori’s safety. It might require a strong decisive blow to cut off the root. But bringing down a broadcast like Girl 100 was beyond the realm of a strong decisive blow.
…Using napalm to catch cockroaches is way too much firepower.
I didn’t hide my doubts.
“Even if everything Yoori says is 100% true, we both know it won’t be easy, right? I’m currently involved with Girl 100 and am the manager responsible for promoting Gyeoul, so I’m planning to prevent any unsettling actions by you. The reason I’m recording your words and planning to pass that data to PD Kim is because of that. Now you want to bring down Girl 100? …Well, I’m not so sure?”
Picking up on my half-threat, Yoori trembled and said,
“C-can you think of it as saving a life and cooperate? Or… I’ll give you money!”
“I’m not someone who would be satisfied with the pocket money of a middle school student. Even if it’s a fortune, I won’t make choices that harm TwoBear or Gyeoul. And right now, leaving you, who poses a threat to Girl 100, unchecked is harmful behavior.”
“…I guess I’m doomed after all.”
Yoori seemed to have no more words, staring down at the floor.
I heard a sniffle, followed by tears dropping onto the ground.
I sighed softly and asked her.
I let out a small sigh and asked her,
“Why are you going to such lengths?”
Wiping away her tears and hesitating to respond, she gave a crooked smile and said,
“I just don’t want to let it go.”
“And if it’s not just that?”
“Honestly, I think Manager Ban Seong-cheol, the ones involved in the manipulation, and the lobbyists should all face consequences. I’ve learned from my grandmother that if I can make it happen, I have to. That’s all.”
“So, you threatened me for that sense of justice?”
“Actually, even if I had to threaten someone, I didn’t intend to harm Team Leader Seon… Still, I’m sorry.”
“…Hah.”
Is it weird for a middle schooler to take on all this risk fueled by a sense of mission, justice, and a thirst for vengeance?
But, hey, it wasn’t worth arguing over. It wasn’t entirely incomprehensible.
“….”
Through this conversation, a rough picture was drawn.
If her words were true, it wasn’t impossible for Oh Yoori to rank in the top 11.
But my doubts remained.
“Why are you specifically telling me this?”
“What do you mean by this?”
“Wouldn’t it be better to bring this up to someone more capable and influential than I am?”
In truth, there was no one more suited than me to dig into this matter.
With my regression, status window, and sheer purpose, I had the perfect combination going for me.
But that was just from my perspective; from Oh Yoori’s point of view, it was different.
To her, I was probably just an average manager.
I was curious about why she resorted to threats to seek my cooperation.
“Because Team Leader Seon has made a deal with PD Kim Seon-ye.”
“I swear I’ve never made a deal with PD…”
“Just a hypothetical! With my life already ruined, I’m not trying to threaten you, so let’s just roll with it! Otherwise, the story can’t move forward.”
“…Fair enough.”
Since she referred to it as a hypothesis, it seemed Oh Yoori was convinced that there was a deal between Kim Seon-ye and me, but now that I confirmed I was the only one recording here, I figured it was okay to play along a bit.
I could always edit out any incriminating parts later.
“To be more specific, Team Leader Seon thought about this because the deal happened later than with other traders.”
“What do you mean by that?”
Nodding at me, Oh Yoori pulled out a board marker and began to sketch a simple drawing as she explained.
“It means that conducting additional deals during the broadcast started from a completely different point than the existing production companies that had already formed a cartel. They probably had it worse off.”
“It means that the starting point was completely different from the existing agencies that were established. In fact, it probably fell into the category of not being well-treated.”
“How can you be so sure about that?”
She spoke while grouping the trainees according to their abilities on the blackboard.
“The fact that three members of the highest-skilled counter were paired with another writer’s attitude and the number of cameras during the first recording can be seen as evidence. This kind of personnel structure is suitable for laying down entertainment characters. It means that Older Sister Gyeoul was a very low-impact personnel within the broadcasting station.”
During the first recording, Oh Yoori, who displayed middle school cuteness while cheerfully greeting everyone, seemed to be gathering and judging such information internally.
Who would expect a middle school student to show such initiative and reasoning skills?
She was truly an amazing kid.
“But once the actual recording started, the picture changed completely.”
Oh Yoori drew underlines on the voting results from the first and second rounds she had previously noted.
Before the broadcast aired, Gyeoul, who was ranked 94th in the voting conducted solely within the existing fanbase, made a miraculous leap to 17th place after just one episode aired.
“This means that Team Leader Seon and Older Sister Gyeoul have stepped beyond the roles designated for them in the broadcast. And PD Kim Seon-ye might have thought of it as betrayal. …No, she probably did think that. From what I observed, she seemed to be the type who wanted to control everything in the show.”
Oh Yoori drew an arrow between the name Han Gyeoul written in the first-round vote and the one written in the second round, then marked an X over it.
“She would have drawn her sword. She demonstrated a lesson to the chess pieces that have gone out of her control and to others. There are so many cards available to PD Kim Seon-ye, such as malicious editing, pressure, recommendations to leave, and blacklisting. Even just one of those cards would be enough to take down Team Leader Seon and Older Sister Gyeoul.”
Then, Oh Yoori smiled faintly and erased the X at once.
“But Team Leader Seon turned that layout upside down in an instant. She switched from being a victim receiving penalties to a beneficiary protected by vote manipulation. It’s a deal that I suspect was done in one go. …This… this is really incredible.”
Oh Yoori seemed to get goosebumps as she rubbed her arms with both hands.
“Just now, Team Leader Seon asked, ‘Isn’t it better to approach someone more capable and influential than me?'”
“…She did.”
“I can assure you, among the people involved in Girl 100, whether it’s about influence or not, there is absolutely no one with greater ability than Team Leader Seon. No one would be able to pull off this kind of thing.”
Oh Yoori looked at me with a peculiar heat in her crimson eyes.
“There’s no one else who knows this, but I do.”
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