Episode: 14
In fact, I wanted to immediately go out and look for new member candidates since I couldn't just rely on Eun Hee-ju to form a group.
But Eun Hee-ju required a lot of attention and was a cause for concern, so I decided to stay with her during training sessions.
There were trainers who were stationed at the company.
There were no issues with Eun Hee-ju receiving training.
It might be silly to have expectations for someone who has just become a "trainee," but the reality was that when I saw the letters "SS" next to Eun Hee-ju's name, I couldn't help but feel some anticipation.
However.
“It was very good. Watching you made my heart flutter.”
“Ahem, let's see. Hmm. How about we stop here for today?”
“Yes.”
Even the vocal trainer...
“One, two, three. One, one, two, three. Whew. Let's call it a day.”
“Yes.”
Even the dance trainer, after a few sessions with Eun Hee-ju, would glance at me with a look of disbelief before turning away.
But this time, I didn't really have anything to say to them.
‘This is a mess.’
At N&P, most trainees already have outstanding skills.
Most of them either applied for auditions on their own or had already learned the basics at an idol academy.
After seeing only those kinds of kids, it must have been shocking and frustrating to face Eun Hee-ju, who showed no potential in things like vocalization, breathing, pronunciation, pitch, dance moves, or facial expressions.
I, too, have been a manager for nearly three years and have seen real idol performances on stages like music shows.
The gap was enormous.
“...”
Well.
It’s the first day, so it's understandable.
She's SS, so she'll eventually shine.
Even as I tried to think that and just let it go, I almost sighed without realizing it.
I put my hand on my forehead.
“Manager.”
“...”
When I looked up at the voice calling me.
Eun Hee-ju, who had been unfazed no matter how the trainers reacted, was looking at me with a slightly worried expression.
“Did I do something wrong?”
“No, that's not it. Hmm. Could lack of skill be considered a mistake? From what I can see, you’ll need to practice for a while. Still, I’ll ask the trainers to continue your training.”
“Yes, understood.”
After saying that, I immediately left Eun Hee-ju in the practice room and started looking around outside again.
“Ah. If you feel like you've done enough, you can return to the dorm and rest, okay?”
“Yes.”
I was a bit disappointed in Eun Hee-ju.
But time is money.
CEO Chun Tae-oh didn’t give me unlimited time.
“Hey, Nobel.”
[Yes, Master.]
“Is Eun Hee-ju really SS grade?”
[That’s for sure. However, even from my perspective, it’s difficult to say her skills are SS. But I can tell you that she has shown SS-grade qualities in areas you don't know about.]
[By the way, Master.]
[If you're that worried, it wouldn't be a bad idea to start having sex with Eun Hee-ju now. Although it wouldn’t be as strong as when you had sex with Han Hye-eun, it would still give you some benefits. And judging by how obedient she is, I don’t think Eun Hee-ju would refuse. In fact... never mind.]
“It’s not like I haven’t thought about that.”
Honestly, I never thought I had high standards when it came to choosing women.
As long as they were decent-looking, I was satisfied if I could have sex with them.
But when I look at Hee-ju now, I don't feel any sexual desire at all.
“Ha. Isn't this already a lost cause?”
Even when Han Hye-eun was drunk and struggling, I licked my lips, thinking it would be nice to have sex with her.
But now, I don’t feel any sexual desire toward a woman I haven't even slept with?
That basically means that Eun Hee-ju doesn’t have that much appeal.
They say the most attractive woman to a man is a "new woman."
Is it real that I’m more drawn to Han Hye-eun than to Eun Hee-ju?
“If it were up to me. Tsk.”
I would just ditch everything and go find Han Hye-eun, have sex with her, and maybe even spank her while doing it.
But I still need to secure at least four members to form a group.
So I need to keep moving.
[How about visiting high schools again, just like when you found Eun Hee-ju?]
I shook my head.
"It was graduation day today. If I go looking for them now, I'd have to wait at least a year until they graduate. I don’t sleep with minors."
[That’s true.]
"And people care more about the story than you might think. If I’m aiming for the top of the world with this group, even the smallest process matters. If I brought Eun Hee-ju from a school, I need to bring the next member in a different way. That way, even in interviews, there will be more to say."
[It seems like you’re getting ahead of yourself, but considering that I'm with you, it’s not impossible.]
"Of course."
Even though Nobel wasn’t helping me as openly as before,
[Moon Yeon-kyung, C]
[Noh Yeon-sun, B]
just displaying the grades above people's heads as they walked by made Nobel a god-tier AI in itself.
No manager could have such an ability.
But even with this ability, if there weren't any talents worth approaching, it would all be for nothing.
“Phew…!”
I struggled to find talent late into the night in the busy streets, but in the end, I barely saw any women who were even A-grade.
Finding another talent right after Eun Hee-ju was almost impossible.
But maybe because I was disappointed in Eun Hee-ju’s lackluster performance, I felt particularly drained today.
I trudged home with heavy steps. But when I arrived in front of my house, I let out a bitter laugh.
“No way, this is insane.”
I should’ve taken a taxi and gone to my place, but without realizing it, I ended up in front of Eun Hee-ju’s dorm at the New Bud Apartment.
‘Since I’m here, I might as well tidy up if there’s anything to clean.’
Check if there’s leftover chicken or cake from yesterday, take out the trash if needed.
Also, I was curious if she properly organized the toiletries and cosmetics she bought today.
‘She’s someone who requires a lot of care, so I can't just leave her alone.’
With those thoughts, I entered the door code and opened the door, my eyes widening in surprise.
“Huh?”
There was no one inside.
No signs that anyone had even been there.
‘Did she give up already?’
The truth is, many trainees drop out early because the training is too tough.
Almost half of them do.
But I didn’t think Eun Hee-ju would be one of them.
“No way, this can’t be happening.”
Just as I was at a loss for words, my phone rang.
I thought it might be Hee-ju.
But then I remembered—does she even have a phone?
“Yes, this is Kim Hyun-woo.”
It wasn’t Hee-ju after all.
It was one of the employees who had just finished working late, calling me.
It was a bit odd for them to contact me at this hour.
But that curiosity was quickly resolved.
“Uh, Team Leader Kim?”
“Yes?”
“When are you planning to come get the trainee Eun Hee-ju?”
At the unexpected question, I reflexively checked the time and replied in the most bewildered voice.
“What?”
[Current time]
[AM 00:20]
You’ve got to be kidding me.
* * *
Mina, who was vigorously shaking her sweat-soaked black crop top, spoke up.
Oasis, who was about to debut.
The leader hadn’t been officially chosen yet, but Mina was de facto acting as the leader.
She was the oldest, but also the most skilled.
“Phew, let’s take a break.”
“Okay.”
“Ugh, I’m exhausted.”
They took a break, drank some water, and went to the bathroom.
As they walked down the hallway, monitoring the parts of the practice they’d just done that were lacking, an unpleasant creaking sound was heard from somewhere.
“Ugh, what’s that noise?”
“Sounds like someone’s messing up their steps?”
“Could it be a trainee from our company?”
The members of Oasis, all sounding incredulous, cautiously checked the source of the noise.
There, they saw a girl with short black hair that was slightly above average in looks, dancing with a blank expression. Her performance was pathetic.
Lee Sora and Serena spoke up after seeing this.
“Pfft. She’s terrible,” Lee Sora laughed.
“How did someone with that skill level get in here? Does she think being an idol is easy?” Serena fumed.
Mina tried to calm them down.
“Don’t laugh at or worry about others. We’re busy enough preparing for our debut.”
“But still. Hmm. Isn’t she the girl that Team Leader Kim Hyun-woo brought in earlier? The guy who recently became a temporary team leader after clashing directly with Team Leader Park Joo-yong. I heard the CEO appointed him directly at a young age, so I thought there might be something special about him. But it seems he’s just all talk.”
“Team Leader Park Joo-yong may have a tough personality, but his skills are undeniable. He’s been in the entertainment industry for a long time.”
“Enough, enough. Instead of talking about others, let’s save our energy and practice our dance moves one more time.”
Mina, thinking there was no good in talking behind someone’s back, strongly urged them to stop once more.
But even she couldn’t help but have the same thoughts as the others as she watched Eun Hee-ju awkwardly and robotically repeat her dance steps.
‘I thought she’d have something special, but I guess not.’
But why?
Watching that pitiful sight somehow made Mina feel lighter and more at ease.
Maybe it was because she was sure that girl would never succeed.
“…Alright, let’s rest for just ten more minutes and then start practicing again. If we do well today, we might even get some chicken breast with salad tonight.”
“Thank goodness. I’ve been eating nothing but boiled eggs every day, I thought I was going to die. Chicken breast is a luxury.”
“Hah, I want tteokbokki.”
“Stop. Talking about that will just make you hungrier. If you really want to debut, you need to lose at least three more kilograms. Let’s stay strong together.”
After a short break and finishing their practice, Oasis gathered their things and prepared to leave the studio.
“Hah, today was really tough. I’m about to pass out.”
“Is there anyone in the world working as hard as we are? We’re definitely going to succeed.”
“Phew, phew… You all worked hard. Let’s eat dinner, go home, and rest. But remember to set aside some time for monitoring. After you get home, wash up, rest a bit, and let’s meet again around 10 PM.”
“Okay! Great job, everyone!”
Feeling both confident and fulfilled after their hard work, the members of Oasis began to leave the practice room.
Creak, creak—!
“Huh?”
It was a déjà vu moment.
The sound of someone practicing their dance, just like during their break earlier.
But it was still the same unpleasant noise from the dance steps.
However, it was even more chilling now.
“No way.”
Without anyone saying a word, the members of Oasis all glanced in the same direction towards the practice room.
And without realizing it, they covered their mouths in shock.
Thud—
There, Eun Hee-ju was repeatedly getting up like a weeble, with a blank expression, continuing to practice the same moves, as if nothing had happened after she had collapsed.
“Hey, hey! You… you’re going to collapse at this rate!”
“Huh?”
Unable to bear it anymore, the overly concerned Lee Sora quickly ran over to Eun Hee-ju and spoke to her.
“No, I’m fine.”
Without even glancing at her, Eun Hee-ju continued to practice and repeated herself.
“I haven’t done enough yet.”
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