Episode: 31
She was bold, and that’s what worked.
“This is interesting. Sure.”
In some ways, it might have started as an impulsive suggestion from Gil Min-seo to grab attention, but in the end, it was Eun Hee-ju who didn’t lose her cool and delivered the finishing blow.
It felt like I was seeing why both of them were important, regardless of their rankings.
“Alright. Why not? I can do that.”
[Seong Seri, SS]
Seong Seri nodded and began walking over to us with the kids.
I felt a bit sorry, but I just watched her approach, observing.
‘She’s definitely got a bit of weight on her. Needs to manage herself a bit more.’
Of course, that’s by celebrity standards.
People might think, “What’s this celebrity standard nonsense?” but that’s just the average person’s thought.
People working in this industry know better.
“Uh, hello. Are you the manager? Or the team leader?”
As soon as Seong Seri saw me, she naturally guessed my identity, and this time, Eun Hee-ju answered again.
“He’s our team leader manager.”
“Team leader manager? What the heck is that? Haha.”
“It’s just a thing. You don’t need to know, unnie.”
Thud, thud.
I thought she might have sobered up a bit after the performance, but apparently not.
Eun Hee-ju buried her head in my shoulder again.
At least Da-young had sobered up enough not to call me “master” over and over again. If she had done that now, it would have been over for us.
“Shall we have a drink together then?”
“Sounds good!”
Confident, bold—she was already taking on the role of the oldest sister among them, despite just meeting them. It was exactly the kind of leadership I was looking for.
“So, where are you guys trainees?”
“N&P. Have you heard of it?”
“Oh, that place. I know it. To be honest, I’d recommend it if you were aiming to be an actor, but as an idol... not so much.”
Hearing such a negative evaluation right in front of the team leader, the other three started glancing at me as if they were more concerned than I was. But Seong Seri’s assessment was brutally honest and accurate.
She wasn’t wrong.
N&P had tried launching countless idols but had failed over and over again.
That’s why the company was on the verge of going under.
‘Honestly, if they had just managed to make one idol group succeed, the company would have made it.’
That’s how lucrative the idol industry is.
It’s no wonder that the company foots the bill for all the training and management expenses until the idols debut.
That’s why Park Joo-yong was always ranting to me about how the costs for trainees weren’t just a drop in the bucket.
“Still, while I wouldn’t recommend it, there are far worse places. At least N&P doesn’t charge trainees, right?”
“They take it out of our earnings after we debut, bit by bit. They also have separate settlements.”
“Just standard practice, then. From the agency’s perspective, that’s fair, but for trainees, it’s still not the best deal.”
“What can you do? There are plenty of crappy entertainment agencies out there, but there are even more kids lining up to become celebrities.”
“Exactly.”
As we continued talking, I realized why she felt like a polished idol.
“You were a trainee, weren’t you?”
At my words, Seong Seri chuckled and nodded.
“Yes, I worked my ass off but never got to debut... Oh, and just so you know, I was in one of those awful agencies that made me pay. I’m still paying off my debt. I never imagined the stuff I took for granted as a trainee would end up being so expensive.”
Debt, huh?
Despite that, she was decked out in luxury brands like Gucci, Nelsa, and Hermes, one of each, as if she was collecting them.
Seong Seri noticed my gaze and smiled, clearly pleased.
“Oh, these are all mine. I bought them with my own money. I love designer brands. Just because I have debt doesn’t mean I can’t buy luxury items, right? I’m slowly paying it off, so don’t worry about it. I make pretty good money here, after all. If I’d known this, I would’ve started working here from the beginning.”
[Just so you know, if you want to win Seong Seri over, the key is ‘money.’ She’s become someone who doesn’t care about much else.]
She’s turned into a rather materialistic person, hasn’t she?
But, I suppose it’s just the way things are at her age.
‘But if she's obsessed with money, that makes things easier.’
Seri blinked as we continued our conversation.
"Oh, wait. Come to think of it, I came here to have fun with these cuties, but somehow, I ended up having a serious talk with you, the manager. Wow, you're not an easy person, are you?"
"That's right. I'm not easy."
'Thud, thud.'
If I left things as they were, I might end up needing a cast tomorrow, so I carefully pressed down on Hee-ju’s head with one hand and spoke.
“So, you’re not with any agency right now? Your contract ended?”
“Yeah, just left with debt.”
“Then why don’t you join us…”
“I’m going to decline. Wow, this manager is something else. After hearing what I just said, you’re trying to push me back into that hell again? I’m sorry, but I like where I am right now. Like I said earlier, I’m making decent money, I’m less stressed, I’m paying off my debt, and I’m buying the luxury goods I want. Is there a better job out there?”
Hee-ju, Da-young, Min-seo.
Out of all the girls I’ve met so far, she’s the one with the most realistic reasons.
That’s why she’s more trustworthy.
The oldest among them, who has experienced the harshness of the real world, can see the situation with cold objectivity.
With talent like this, it’s almost as if the heavens themselves handed her to me, determined to have me take her.
By pure chance, meeting Seri through this series of coincidences.
I must have her.
Even if I have to use a Master Ball.
[A Master Ball? What are you, a Nobel Monster?]
If she's coming at me as an adult, I have to respond as an adult.
“But isn’t your job unstable? How long do you think you can work there? And how long do you think you can earn enough to keep you satisfied? You might not be able to afford luxury goods anymore.”
“Oh my, wouldn’t that apply more to you? You’re aware of how crazy the competition is for idols, especially girl groups, right?”
“But the higher the competition, the bigger the return if you succeed.”
“If we’re just going by end results, that’s no different from me going outside right now, buying 100,000 won worth of lottery tickets, and hitting the jackpot. Stop with the absurdity.”
“It might be similar, but I’m confident that if you join us, along with these girls, we will definitely succeed. Definitely. By the time you renew your contract, you could be looking at a 20 billion won renewal fee, guaranteed.”
For a moment, I could see Seri’s hardened expression waver at the mention of 20 billion won.
Because in this industry, a 20 billion won renewal fee was on par with what the most successful group, White Pink, had achieved.
If she hadn’t tasted money before, it wouldn’t matter.
But anyone who’s experienced the power of money in South Korea would naturally start running the numbers in their head.
Especially someone who’s still paying off debt.
“If we hit it big, you could retire and live comfortably for the rest of your life. If you want, you could buy an entire luxury store. But actually, if we succeed, why would you even buy luxury goods with your own money? You could get sponsored and do endorsements instead. You’d be able to obtain things that money can't buy.”
“…”
Now she seemed somewhat tempted.
But then, she glanced at the girls who were just standing there blinking, and then she slapped the table.
“Hah! This is why people in this industry are scary. Damn, for a second, I almost fell for your sales pitch. Even though I’m not drunk, my mind went completely blank for a moment.”
Seri may be an adult.
But by my standards, she’s still a kid.
Why?
Because the phrase you hear the most from trainees is this:
‘What do I do now?’
Trainees often lack initiative or general common sense to an extent that would surprise ordinary people.
If Seri received proper trainee training, no matter how much time has passed since she entered the workforce, she would still have some gaps.
“But honestly, looking at the level of those girls and saying they’ll succeed just makes me want to laugh. Do you even have any conscience? You, being in this industry, should have a rough idea of what it takes to succeed, right? Or what, are you just a con artist spinning a convincing tale to deceive these girls? I really can’t stand people like that.”
“Our girls? You’re right; they still have a lot of shortcomings. But…”
I pulled Hee-ju, who was rubbing her head, closer to my side as I spoke.
Finally, she stopped hammer-drilling.
“How long do you think they’ve been trainees?”
“Hmm. Well, despite their shortcomings, they seem to have a decent foundation or talent as idols, at least with that girl, Da-young. I’d say about three years?”
“They’ve been trainees for less than a month.”
Seri burst into the biggest laugh I’d seen from her so far.
“Stop lying.”
“Why would I lie? They’re right here.”
“It’s not a lie.”
Hee-ju, looking uncomfortable, pointed at Se-ri with her head still cocked to the side.
“The manager doesn’t lie, and he said, you were the last piece. So just behave… mmph! Mm-mmph!”
“If you join us, the last piece of the puzzle will be complete. Our group needs an older sister to keep them grounded. I can’t be there 24/7. And since you know how tough this industry is, I could trust you to take care of things when I’m not around.”
“…”
Seri seemed to be deep in thought for a moment, then she straightened up and started to carefully examine the girls one by one.
"Team Manager told you to come in. Why are you hesitating?"
"She's in."
Eun Hee-ju.
"What? What the heck! Ugh, seriously!"
"She's in too. I like how she plays hard to get."
Lee Da-young.
"Want a kiss, chuu?"
"Do you like kisses, my little puppy?"
"Woof!"
"She's in too. She's just too cute. I won't be bored with you around. Let's sleep together from now on, okay?"
Judging by what she's saying, it seems like Seong Seri has made a decision in a positive direction.
But.
"I like the girls, and I trust the team manager who found them. But to be honest, I'm not confident I can work as hard as before. I've gotten a taste for alcohol now, and I don't think I can quit. You understand, right? It's like asking a student who's just finished their college entrance exams to go back to studying."
"Hmm. But you still need to quit, right?"
"That's why I want to see if you can help me, if you can keep me in check."
"How?"
"How about we go to my place and have a drinking showdown?"
Hoho.
This is like prey walking straight into the tiger's mouth.
Even though she seemed trustworthy.
Seong Seri had played hard to get for quite a while.
It seemed necessary to make her understand my presence by taking her down a peg.
"Let's drop off the girls first."
"Oh my, such a mother hen."
It might be an act.
Sex is great and all.
But my number one priority has always been these girls.
I picked them myself.
"Once you sign the contract, you'll be like my daughter too."
"Oh, so you're the dad?"
After a brief exchange of small talk and a few smiles with Seong Seri, I took the girls, who were more sleepy than tipsy, back to their dorm in a taxi and then headed straight to Seong Seri's place.
It was a fairly decent one-room apartment.
Once inside, Seong Seri, who was wearing a white T-shirt from the luxury brand Gucci, was ready with drinks, waiting for me.
"Welcome, Manager."
"Yeah."
She was wearing a white T-shirt and black dolphin shorts.
The kind of outfit that drives men wild.
I thought she'd have something like whiskey, but surprisingly, it was just cheap soju.
"Shall we get started then? Oh, by the way, that drinking showdown thing was a lie."
Seong Seri licked the rim of the empty soju glass with a lewd expression.
"I wanted to see if you can handle your alcohol, our Manager Kim. Let's see if you can still get it up after drinking? Oh, and you better be able to drink well. If you can't keep up with me and get knocked out, I'll toss you out the door."
Turns out, she's quite the lustful woman.
I was momentarily taken aback, but then I smirked and mocked her.
"Let's make it so that with every bottle of soju, the other person has to take off a piece of clothing."
Seong Seri nodded confidently.
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