After the challenge video shoot was completed, the chaotic atmosphere in the waiting room gradually began to settle.
And as the RH Entertainment officials and COMA-1 members were exiting the room one by one after finishing the filming, I spotted the man, who had given Taeui a signal earlier, holding onto someone in a threatening manner and having a quiet conversation.
‘What scheme are they trying to pull this time…?’
I wanted to guess the content of their conversation by observing their expressions or lip movements, but the speaker was covering his mouth with a hand, and the listener was wearing a deeply pulled-down hat and a mask, making it virtually impossible.
Just as I was watching them with a sense of unease, the two finished their conversation, and suddenly, the man in the hat started walking towards me.
‘Did I watch them for too long?’
As I stiffened with such uneasiness, the man approached right up to me, bowed deeply, and spoke.
“Hello, Seungbeom-ssi. I’m Lim Seunghoon, the manager of COMA-1.”
‘…What?’
The moment I heard that name, I hurriedly checked the man’s face in a panic. Then, seeing the familiar eyes visible between the hat and mask, I couldn’t help but hold my breath.
‘That person was COMA-1’s manager?’
He was someone I knew.
Those eyes, that voice, and that name belonged to someone I already knew.
“It seems to be a fate that we met like this, and I thought it might be nice if our company also gets a chance to have a conversation with you, Seungbeom-ssi.”
The manager who worked with me the longest during my time at RH Entertainment.
He was the person standing in front of me now.
The man who had been with me for most of Prism’s activities had long since passed the seniority level of working as a road manager for a rookie idol. I couldn’t imagine for what reason he was here, being treated like that and doing a job that a new employee would typically handle.
“Even if it’s not related to work, it’s fine, so could you please contact me once with a light heart?”
As he said that and handed me his business card with both hands, it seemed that the conversation earlier was meant to give instructions like “
Create a connection with Han Seungbeom
” or “
Make it possible to build a friendship with Han Seungbeom
“.
In any case, from the entertainment agency’s perspective, I was no different from a goose that laid golden eggs, as I would become a free agent again once Phanteion’s contract period was over.
‘.…He’s in terrible shape.’
I scanned his features and almost frowned. His appearance hadn’t changed much, but the way he appeared so timid was really strange.
His eyes were fixed on the ground, almost as if he couldn’t bring himself to lift them, and his tone carried a hint of gloom. I remembered him as someone who never lost his energy despite the hectic schedule, and had great communication skills that kept him in constant contact with the company. It was hard to believe that such a person had changed so much.
“…Sure. I’ll try to contact you soon.”
But for some reason, I couldn’t look him kindly, so I stared down at him with cold eyes and took the business card. As I was calmly reading the number on the business card, I was suddenly grabbed by the back of my neck, and my body was jerked backward.
‘Ouch, crazy.’
I barely managed to hold back the curse words I was about to utter. As I turned around with a bewildered expression, I saw Lee Hwayoung’s face, which showed no attempt to hide his irritation. He glanced down at me, his eyes even sharper than usual, and then glared at the manager in front of us.
“All the RH Entertainment staff have already left. You should go now.”
“I-I’m sorry. .. Then, Seungbeom-ssi, I’ll be waiting to hear from you.”
And then, perhaps frightened by Lee Hwayoung, the manager quickly bowed to both me and Lee Hwayoung before hastily running out of the waiting room.
“Wait!”
When I tried to chase after him, as he fled in fear, Lee Hwayoung tightened his grip on my neck and furrowed his brow.
“There’s no way you don’t know that RH is a bad company. Why are you listening to him so intently? Getting involved with them won’t do you any good. You’re not seriously considering signing with them, are you?”
“I’m not, I need to go for a moment. I have something important to take care of.”
“No. If you really have to go, then explain what this important matter is.”
‘Ugh, this childish brat.’
I sighed heavily as I looked at Lee Hwayoung, whose stubborn expression clearly said he would never back down, and the members who were watching me anxiously.
It was hard for me to argue back because I knew I would have acted just like Lee Hwayoung in this kind of situation. And since he wasn’t Do Yuda or Zen, I couldn’t think of anything to say to deceive him.
‘Anyway, I already got his phone number, and there’s a limit to what can be said in front of people, so it might be better to set up a proper meeting instead.’
“Okay. I got it. I’m not going.”
As I nodded obediently with that thought in mind, Lee Hwayoung finally loosened the crease between his brows and let go of me.
“Let’s go! Let’s go! Let’s go!”
“Woooooo.”
And at that exact moment, Do Yuda and Zen entered the waiting room with a loud noise. They had barged into the MC’s break room, grabbed the MC, robbed the challenge video off him, and now had finally returned.
“Did you film the video well and greet everyone properly?”
“Of course! What do you take us for?”
When Woo Kangwon, who had comfortably accepted the two guys charging at him like wild boars, asked them, they nodded their heads excitedly and gave an answer full of confidence.
“…Why do I feel more anxious when they say it like that?” Baek Kiryang looked at them and muttered quietly.
I shook my head at Baek Kiryang’s words and thought to myself.
‘It’s obvious how they filmed it, I don’t even need to see it.’
For your information, the MC of this music show was a rookie actor who was extremely shy and had never met these two idiots before. Those two guys were the bane of introverts, as they would get more excited and tease you if you were embarrassed.
‘The MC must have had a hard time.’
Letting out a sigh at the scene I could already imagine, I held out my hand like a parent checking homework.
Then, Do Yuda quickly ran up to me and gently placed the company phone on my hand. He let out a silly
‘hehehehehe
‘ sound and covered his face with his spread fingers, before running off and hiding behind Nagi Zen’s back.
“What if that hyung is shocked because we filmed it too well?”
“Don’t worry, Yu-chan. We’re ahead of the times. Arrogance, confidence, overwhelming victory.”
“Right? Heh, even I think we did pretty well. When you say
Heracles
, you obviously have to think of the Hydra.”
1
…No, it seemed like it wasn’t
obvious
.
It seemed like there was something more, something that shouldn’t be there.
“Ha…….”
I shouldn’t have let those troublemakers go out on their own. I was foolish.
Holy shit, what the hell have I done?
I wiped the cold sweat that had suddenly formed on my palms with a handkerchief and opened the phone’s album with great anxiety. Then, among the many thumbnails in the album, I noticed something strange.
Yes, the most recent one, the video at the very end.
“…….”
Normally, for a challenge, there would be three people standing side by side, horizontally.
But in that thumbnail, there were three people standing vertically.
‘How can humans be lined up vertically?’
Would you dare ask such a question?
If you dared, let me answer.
There was one overly-confident stupid dog lying on his stomach with his upper body sticking out between the MC’s legs. There was one pitiful victim, the MC, staring straight ahead with his back bent at a 90-degree angle. Above them, standing tall proudly with his arms raised like antennae, was Nagi Zen.
‘Ah, my neck.’
Just looking at it made my brain cells scream and die.
‘Why on earth is that person going along with this nonsense as well?’
Because his personality is so timid, he couldn’t refuse and did everything he was asked to do.
My unnecessarily sharp mind immediately gave me the answer I really didn’t want to hear, and all I could do was close my eyes tightly.
I even started to worry that the MC’s agency would sue us after this challenge was uploaded, but what was done was
done
.
Suppressing my troubled mind, I immediately tapped the video to play it.
Rustle-rustle.
“…….”
‘Is it spinning? That thing.’
A three-part combined lump, which I couldn’t tell whether it was a hydra or a cave cricket
2
, began spinning in place, their feet moving noisily.
Duun. Dun! Dun dun!
And a grand, excessively high-quality intro resounded majestically, matching the form of the cave cricket-like creature. The members who were watching that scene beside me eventually became speechless, covering their mouths and remaining silent.
“This is making me mad.”
All that could be heard was the sound from the video and Lee Danbi’s voice, laced with contempt.
Rustle-rustle.
‘Stop spinning.’
Please stop spinning around, it’s embarrassing.
At the beginning of the challenge, it was customary to perform the key choreography of the other artist as a sign of respect. However, no matter how much they claimed there was nothing to dance because he was an actor, how could they have made him do something like that? It would have been better if they had recreated a famous scene instead.
As Baek Kiryang watched the MC, who had turned into a bedbug-like creature with a face as red as a ripe apple and empty eyes, he buried his face in his hands and groaned, “Ahh… my heart, my heart hurts”. It seemed like he perfectly understood the MC’s feelings, who was mechanically moving as instructed, his energy completely sucked out by the antics of Pat and Mat in the video. Perhaps this was what they called
people with the same illness pity each other
3
.
“…….”
And the choreography for
Heracles
that followed immediately after had no issues. The modified choreography, simplified to be considerate of the other performer’s skill, was neatly presented—omitting finer details but preserving all the highlights—with Nagi Zen and Do Yuda adding a touch of flair from the sidelines.
The problem was that the uselessly high quality of the latter part made the intro feel even weirder.
“Please praise us! We did really well, right?”
“The pinnacle of art…”
As soon as the short video ended, my eyes landed on the two idiots, staring at me with such expectant faces that I could almost hallucinate their tails wagging
‘Should I scold them for this, or not?’
“Haa……”
My head hurt, so I pressed my fingers to my temples and let out a heavy sigh. Those guys, perhaps not liking my reaction, jumped up and started getting angry.
“Why! Are we embarrassing you?”
“We’re members of Leada. No refund because you’re embarrassed.”
I was doing my best to ignore them when, with miraculous timing, our manager called my name. I jumped up and quickly left the scene.
“He’s escaping!”
“Chisapants!”
4
“Oh, chisapants. New word input complete.”
It was none other than Lee Danbi who stopped the guys, who were stomping their feet like an angry group of monkeys.
“Hyungs, please stop. There are a lot of people around. Once we’re done, we’ll have time for snacks, so please stay calm until then.”
Upon hearing the youngest’s stern reprimand, the apes immediately put on a dignified expression and quietly sat down in their chairs. It seemed they realized it was embarrassing to be scolded by the mature
dongsaeng
who always spoke the correct things.
“If you’re a child, act like a child. Lee Danbi.”
“I am a trash child…”
Ha …… what should I do with these idiots?
***
“Pantheion, please stand by now!”
After waiting for the other singers to finish their performances, we heard the staff call our turn.
Then, the members, who had become quite accustomed to the stage and no longer felt great tension, let out a sharp gasp, revealing their nervousness.
“Finally.”
“Is it right after our performance?”
“Yeah, we’re the last to perform.”
It was understandable that they were nervous.
Because today, we were getting nominated for first place for the first time.
I relaxed and smiled as I listened to what our members were chattering.
And I imagined what kind of expressions those guys would have while celebrating their first win.
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Translator’s Corner:
In greek myth, among the
Twelve Labors for King Eurystheus
that Heracles needed to do, the second labor was to kill the Hydra, a serpent-like water monster with nine heads, whose head will grow back if you cut them, that was bred by Hera to kill Heracles. ↩︎
Cave cricket (곱등이) … is an insect. ↩︎
An idiom
동병상련
.
동병
means
same disease
,
상련
means
pity each other
,so that literally means “people with the same illness feel sorry for each other”, It used to express “people in difficult situations sympathize with each other”.
Honestly if you open dictionary, they would tell you “misery loves company”, but I think that’s not correct … “misery loves company” means that someone who’s suffering found comfort in knowing there’s other like them, meanwhile
동병상련
is more like you’re able to feel empathy to someone because both of you are in the same miserable situation. So, you don’t found comfort, you feel sorry for others because you know the feeling. ↩︎
It’s 치사빤쓰 , a pun world from 치사하다. Basically wordplay to call someone acting so cheap/low. ↩︎
I SERIOUSLY GOT SECOND HAND EMBARRASSMENT WITH THIS CHAPTER OMG WHAT DID YOU GUYS DO TO AN INNOCENT VICTIM
And this is why I pointed it out on the last chapter, notice how the MC is referring to Zen in this chapter