Became The Leader of a Girl Group Destined To Fail - Chapter 182

—————

This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

—————

Chapter 182.

Today was the day of StillBlue’s regional event.
This was the first time all five members were participating in a regional event as a complete group.
All the fans gathered at the venue with excited anticipation.

“Man, I watched the girls’ K-App live today and their energy was absolutely perfect.”
“Right? I literally drained my savings and bought a KTX ticket first. I’m living on instant noodles for a while….”
“【Eternal Summer】 summer outdoor concert? There’s no way I’m missing this.”

Bleduck and Prism Homma nodded in agreement.
The two of them had been through thick and thin as Yun Chung’s dedicated fans since the Make a New Color days.
Somewhere along the way, they’d transcended being mere fan friends and felt almost like comrades.
Since this activity’s title track was such a refreshing song, everyone had high expectations for the outdoor concert.

“Oh! The girls are coming out!”

After waiting seven hours.
StillBlue finally appeared.

‘Insane.’

The two of them covered their mouths the moment StillBlue took the stage.

“Today… could it be… the legendary… school uniform… I’m seeing it in person….”
“Ah… even though this is my second time, why can’t I believe my own eyes.”

Today’s outfit was a white shirt paired with a navy pleated skirt.
It evoked the image of a classic school uniform.

“Each member’s tie is different today too.”
“The grace is overflowing….”

Yeon Ju-hong wore a large ribbon, Seo Baek-young wore a loose necktie, Kim Geum wore nothing, Ryu Bora wore a small ribbon, and Yun Chung wore a tight necktie.
Each member’s outfit reflected their individual personality.
Kim Geum and Seo Baek-young had rolled up the long sleeves of their uniform shirts, while the other members wore short-sleeved shirts.

“Bora, your headband today is absolutely adorable….”
“No, Ju-hong’s split hair…! Are you serious, Human? When did you get the hair extensions?”
“Baek-young… Baek-young… even in sneakers, your physical presence is truly….”
“Geum came with a wrist guard too…! What’s the historical accuracy for the Volleyball Club president?”
“Full costume with the name tag…!”
“Well… I wore a name tag too.”

The name tags included in this album’s specifications aligned perfectly with the retro trend.
They were also Prism Homma’s favorite component.

“Wait, hold on. Hold on. What’s Yun Chung wearing right now?”
“What… what am I wearing…?”
“Yun Chung’s wearing glasses out of nowhere, it’s insane.”
“Horn-rimmed glasses? Is the student council president concept insane…????”

Horn-rimmed glasses Yun Chung.
Of course, I’d seen this look frequently on K-App Live and self-content before….
But this was the first time wearing glasses on stage.
Seeing this new styling for the first time, Prism Homma immediately grabbed the camera.
This absolutely had to be captured.
My instincts as a longtime fan were telling me so.
A legendary Yun Blue direct shot is coming today…!

“Camera is ready.”

Current time: 2 PM.
The hottest hour, when the sun hung highest in the sky.
The members sparkled brilliantly beneath the sun.
Yun Chung hummed a couple of bars without the backing track.
As if all preparations were complete, she nodded and took her position for the opening formation.
The moment all the members bowed their heads and clasped their hands behind their backs.

You are my early summer
In the long lethargy
You will be the scorching heat pouring down

The song began.

Every time the clock hand turns
Every time the season cycles
In this repeating everyday
What shines brilliantly is Only

The moment Seo Baek-young’s fingertips rotated like the hour hand of a clock.
The members also traced circles, stepping one by one, turning around.
As the hour hand completed its rotation, Seo Baek-young withdrew her hand, and the members tightened their dispersed circle.
And like flowers blooming, all five clasped hands together.

Give me an endless summer
Our blue season
Will never end
Promise me
Eternal Summer Eternal Wait

Then came the chorus.
The white shirt hems fluttering with every movement of the members.
Hands gathered at the chest, then extended as if making a wish.
After repeating the chorus once more,

Every winter that repeats
Every wound that repeats

Then, as if the microphone wasn’t fixed properly, she gripped it with one hand.
Ryu Bora’s part continued.
Looking at the fans, her expression sincere as if speaking from the heart.
The wind blew.

Still, we must
Move forward brilliantly Always

As her hair swayed slightly.
Ryu Bora swept her hair up with one hand.
The moment she hit the high note on “Always,” the corners of Ryu Bora’s eyes subtly creased.

Because you showed me light
Because you painted me in shades of green

Just as the clouds parted perfectly and sunlight poured down.
With Yeon Ju-hong at center, the members lined up in a row.
Yeon Ju-hong tapped her cheek with her finger.

There’s nothing I can do about this

As if I’m completely blameless.
Then smiles bloomed across the members’ faces once more.
What followed was Kim Geum’s rap section.
It was a part that fans often cited as their favorite.
The reason was Kim Geum’s choreography, where she woke up the four frozen members one by one.

Through our long saturation
A summer to rest in

At first, she tapped Yun Chung’s fingertip and grinned,

Within eyes that had been frozen
A heart coming undone

She playfully glanced at Ryu Bora and linked arms,

Sunlight filtering through the leaves

Before Seo Baek-young, she squinted as if dazzled and leaned her shoulder,

Fluffy cloud vanilla ice cream

She gently pinched Yeon Ju-hong’s cheek,

The heart you showed me is exactly like that

And smiled brightly toward the fans.

***

Putting together the concert’s setlist turned out to be easier than I’d expected.
We had about fourteen songs from the albums we’d released so far.
But when we added in the songs we’d performed during Make a New Color and the survival shows we’d participated in, the total was roughly double that.
There was just one problem, though….

“Units… how should we arrange them…?”
“….”

That was it.

“For starters, it’s better not to include too many unit songs or solo pieces.”

Since this was our first concert, we needed to focus on group performances.

“But.”

That’s when Kim Geum raised her hand enthusiastically.

“I think Yun Chung’s solo song absolutely has to be included, no matter what.”
“I agree!”
“…I agree.”
“Three votes in favor—it passes.”

Kim Geum, Yeon Ju-hong, and Ryu Bora spoke in succession, and Seo Baek-young railroaded it through.
Wait, wasn’t I supposed to be the leader here?

“I said no.”
“Rejected.”
“Hey, if you’re going to do this, why did you make me leader in the first place!”
“Not letting the world hear your voice would be a national loss, so it’s rejected.”

What on earth was she talking about?
I rubbed Kim Geum’s cheeks relentlessly.
She really was something else.

“Honestly, regardless of anything else… we have to perform “Falling Petals,” Yun Chung.”
“…Let’s talk about the units first. I think it would be good to include about two unit stages.”
“Hmm. Does anyone have a unit combination they’d like to try together?”

Seo Baek-young asked the members.
They all eyed each other warily, lost in thought.
Though there wasn’t much to size up, really.

“Honestly, I’m not sure about my own combination, but there’s one I’d like to see!”

That’s when Yeon Ju-hong raised her hand.
Oho.

“First of all, the same-age line!”
“That’s amazing, I totally agree.”
“That’s a good idea, isn’t it?”
“….”
“….”

The rest of us giggled, except for the two who were the same age.
Their combination was pretty popular within the fandom anyway.
Of course we’d support it.

“What do you think? Could you two put together a stage performance?”
“Since you two have made a lot of songs together, it should work out fine.”

When I went boom, Seo Baek-young went clap.
Our timing was always this perfect when we were pushing someone else.

“Why do you keep pairing us up? That radio thing was already driving me crazy.”
“You think you’re the only one?”

Here we go again.
I nudged the two of them with my foot just before they started bickering.

“Alright, that’s settled then. One stage is locked in.”
“Wait, who decided—”
“The leader did.”
“….”

At the word “leader,” the two of them reluctantly fell silent.

“I was thinking… what if Ju-hong and I tried doing something together?”
“Oh?”
“Huh. You and your sister?! I’d love that.”

Seo Baek-young had proposed an unexpected pairing.
Yeon Ju-hong’s face lit up with joy, apparently not expecting Seo Baek-young to choose her.

“What kind of combination is that?”
“Small dog and large dog combo?”
“….”

I couldn’t bring myself to argue back….

“Just kidding. The two of us are the performance line anyway.”

That made sense.
Yeon Ju-hong had the most charisma among the members, and Seo Baek-young was the main dancer.
Besides, the combination of the oldest and youngest member was always popular.
…If we pulled it off well, it could be a solid stage.

“Okay. Let’s move forward with it.”
“And Yun Chung can do a solo stage.”
“That should balance things out.”

So we were expanding to three unit stages.
It was a bit sad that I didn’t have a member to perform with….
But I hoped the fans would understand.

“So, our concert is in November, right?”
“That’s right.”
“This is going to be fun. It’s our first anniversary since debut!”
“Ugh. Three months of prep is going to be brutal.”
“Feels like we’ll just be preparing for the concert the whole time….”

That was true.
Hearing Yeon Ju-hong’s words, the reality of our first anniversary approaching hit me hard.
November….
As the year drew to a close, I felt my breath catch at the thought of the end approaching.
But for the members, it could only be a month of excitement.

“We need to prepare thoroughly for the fan meeting in the meantime, Chung.”
“Right, right….”

I forced a smile.
If I stayed busy, these nagging thoughts would disappear.
Besides, such gloomy thoughts wouldn’t help anyone anyway.

***

Baek Ju-ha stared at the stack of documents in her hand with a troubled expression.
Since entering the entertainment industry, she’d experienced all sorts of things.
She’d seen all kinds of people.
But this was the first time she’d encountered something so peculiar.
Everything she’d handled so far had at least one clear ‘reason’ behind it.
But this time, no matter how much she thought about it, she couldn’t see the ‘reason’.
The task itself was nothing special.
It wasn’t that difficult to look into some ordinary girl—it was just that simple.

…Appeared to be an aspiring entertainer (3er Entertainment trainee)
Had good skills and reputation
Particularly noted for her excellent personality, which made her popular among fellow trainees.

Why on earth had she been asked to look into this girl’s background?
Curious about the reason, she’d even dug into the connection between this girl and Yun Chung.
Wondering if they’d trained together at the same agency.
But Baek Nok-ha was… someone that couldn’t be the case for.
Yun Chung didn’t seem like the type to assign work without good reason.
Something felt off.
But then again, there could be a connection she wasn’t aware of.
Just then.

“You here?”

Yun Chung entered the car.

—————

This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

—————