Became The Leader of a Girl Group Destined To Fail - Chapter 38

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

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Chapter 38.

“Hello~ This is the Practice Room of Colors! We rented it out entirely for today.”

We gathered at the Practice Room once more.
Lee Gyeong-a mentioned she would be slightly late due to a vocal lesson.
Since she said she would join us within an hour, no one harbored any complaints.
Oh PD had given us a camera beforehand and instructed us to film our daily Practice Room routines ourselves, like a vlog.
Of course, there were hidden cameras scattered throughout the Practice Room anyway.
So right now, Jo Hee-on was holding the camera and filming a self-cam.

“Today, we’re going to synchronize our song once more. Since Bora and I haven’t finished recording yet, we need to go back in. We thought we’d use this as practice to align our breathing.”

It was a fairly accurate explanation on her part.
I was preoccupied with memorizing the lyrics.
These lyrics were incredibly difficult.
It was fortunate I had heard this song several times in my past life—otherwise, I would have struggled considerably.

“But, Chung.”

Just then, Jo Hee-on turned the camera toward me.

“How did you interpret the song so perfectly from the very beginning?”

Hmm.
That was an awkward question.

“Oh, no. Perfect is a stretch. I just interpreted it in my own way. I’m just grateful you saw it favorably.”

I laughed it off with a nervous chuckle.

“Even Dan-ha was taken aback. She didn’t say anything, but I think she felt you grasped the essence of it all.”

Well, it couldn’t be helped.
I already knew that song from my previous life.
After all, Make a New Color was quite a hot topic even back then.
“Fingertips” was one of the hit songs from Make a New Color.
However, I hadn’t gone so far as to research the song’s interpretation.
The reason I know even the song’s interpretation is precisely because of—

“So, could you share your secret technique with me?”

This girl right here.
…I feel a bit guilty, as if I slightly stole this from the original owner of the song’s interpretation.
In truth, I obtained the hint from Ryu Bora.
Of course, from Ryu Bora in my previous life.

[Make a New Color “Fingertips,” The Secret Behind an Unprecedented Hit – ★Star Interview with Ryu Bora]

Not long ago, an alert like this came to my phone.
Back then, I wondered why they suddenly sent me Ryu Bora’s interview, but after reading through it all, I understood the reason.
In essence, “Fingertips” was a performance made possible thanks to Ryu Bora’s interpretation.
However, if there’s something different from my previous life—

– Bora│It’s a song optimized for the dance position. Actually, I was quite conflicted about whether to apply for the vocal or dance position. Then, when I saw Baek-young unnie go to the dance position, I just blindly followed her.
– Editor│Why did you make that choice?
– Bora│I think I was most interested in Baek-young unnie back then. She was cool too. Looking back now, it’s a ridiculous reason. Following her blindly could have lowered my popularity ranking. Besides, we didn’t even end up on the same team in the end. Even though we’re in the same position. Well, since I ultimately didn’t debut, it does seem like I followed her wrong. Haha.

It was Ryu Bora’s position.
In her previous life, Ryu Bora had applied for the dance position.
Because Seo Baek-young was curious about it.
But this time, she applied for the vocal position.
What difference could have possibly changed Ryu Bora’s choice?
I couldn’t fathom it.
I glanced at Ryu Bora, who was sitting on the Practice Room floor drinking water.
Even now, she’s such a strong debut candidate—so why hadn’t she debuted back then?
I vaguely waited, assuming the Cotton Ball Entity would explain soon enough.
But the Cotton Ball Entity wasn’t telling me what I wanted to know, only sending me these kinds of notifications.
The Cotton Ball Entity sent alarms far more frequently than I’d expected.
Even after moving into the Dormitory, the alarms kept ringing.
But checking my phone in front of others felt awkward, so I could only verify them in the bathroom.
Because of that, it was difficult to check them right away.
And above all, the Cotton Ball Entity was sending alarms completely on a whim.

[Kim Ryeo-yu, ‘I gave it my all today.’]

[Hong Yeon-seo, Colors comeback? Breaking long hiatus with cryptic SNS post]

[Make a New Color, Yun Chung. Two consecutive on-site votes in last place… Why?]

[Kim Ryeo-yu, ‘1st place by a huge margin over 2nd in Make a New Color. The secret to maintaining consecutive 1st places…]

I couldn’t understand the Cotton Ball Entity’s intention.
It seemed like it was constantly giving me hints, but they felt unclear.
That made sense.
These articles were all from my previous life.
But in this life, many things were changing.
First, I didn’t place last in either of the two on-site votes.
Kim Ryeo-yu also didn’t secure 1st place by a huge margin.
Though it was because of the benefit, she only placed 3rd.

“You said you’d help.”
“Huh?”

Ryu Bora kept looking at me with a puzzled expression as I stood there vacant-minded.
But perhaps because the camera was rolling, she quickly composed herself.

“…I tried to do it alone, but it seems like it might be a bit difficult.”
“Difficult with what?”
“Interpreting the song… You’re not interested in me, are you?”
“What?!”
“You’ve been talking about song interpretation this whole time! Pay attention to me, unnie.”

This brat.
Acting cute in front of the camera.
And now she’s even crossing her arms.
At the dormitory, she’s nothing but ice itself!
Whenever Yeon Ju-hong acts cute, she quietly leaves the room!

“Fine. Then, Hee-on, do you want to listen too?”

I asked Jo Hee-on, who was striking a pretty pose in front of the practice room mirror.

“I’ve already finished interpreting the song! Could you just check my pitch later?”

…From what I can tell, I don’t think you’ve finished interpreting it at all.
I saw exactly one line of interpretation written on Jo Hee-on’s lyric sheet.

‘Sing it the saddest way in the world’

That’s not song interpretation, for crying out loud.
I’m dizzy trying to figure out where to even start pointing out the problems.
Anyway, I straightened my posture.
To share with Ryu Bora the interpretation that Ryu Bora had taught me.

– Bora│I put in an enormous amount of effort to find the source of that song. I felt like I absolutely had to know what novel it was.
– Editor│Did you originally have that competitive streak?
– Bora│No, not at all. That’s not my personality. But that song had something about it that made people frustrated. I completely botched my interpretation of it at first and got scolded properly. It was fine initially, but then something felt suffocating and I got angry. At myself.
– Editor│So what did you do?
– Bora│I think I’ll get some hate once this interview airs. But I’m retiring from the entertainment industry soon anyway, so it doesn’t matter. (laughs)
– Bora│I just showed up at Jae-yi’s studio without a plan. Dan-ha would never tell me, so I went to Jae-yi instead. And I just asked outright—give it to me, I said. I promised I’d sing it better than anyone else. So I just begged her to tell me what that novel was.
– Editor│Did Jae-yi tell you?
– Bora│No. She ran away.
– Editor│Wow.
– Bora│But that senior’s decision to run away showed she didn’t know me well enough.
– Editor│Why?
– Bora│Because at that moment, I had the kind of obsession that would make me steal a glance at papers on a table.
– Editor│Wow.
– Bora│The moment I saw that paper, I understood. Jae-yi had deliberately left it there. And there it was—just one line of interpretation from Dan-ha. “Two people bound by fate in an oppressive world, who achieved something beyond the word ‘lovers’.” The moment I saw that, my mind went blank.

The moment I saw that interview, a certain classic Korean novel came to mind.
I’m not sure if it’s the right one, but my heart had already decided.
And I interpreted it accordingly.

“‘Two people bound by fate in an oppressive world, who achieved something beyond the word ‘lovers’.'”

I returned the interpretation Ryu Bora had given me back to her.
Of course, it was a thought I’d borrowed from Dan-ha.

“…!”
“Did it help a little?”
“….”

Ryu Bora thought for a long while, then fidgeted with the lyrics sheet.
…Did it not help?
That would be a problem.
Why doesn’t it help when I say the same thing?
Just as my anxiety was building, Ryu Bora opened her mouth.

“Yes. It helped… a lot. Thank you, unnie.”
“What are you thanking me for.”

I’m the one who should be grateful.
Grateful that you didn’t make me go to Han Jae-i’s studio.

“I’ll just practice on my own for a bit and come back.”
“Sure, go ahead.”

Ryu Bora practically bolted out of the Practice Room.
She must be heading to the Vocal Training Room.

“Huh?! Where did Bora go?”
“She said she’s going to the Vocal Training Room alone to practice.”
“Ah, I see.”

Jo Hee-on seemed completely absorbed in the self-camera, indifferent to everything else.
She’s got quite the narcissistic streak.

“By the way, Chung.”
“Hmm?”

That’s when Jo Hee-on called out to me.

“Are we going to add choreography to this?”

Finally, the question I’d been expecting.
Somehow, even though I’m not really the leader of this team, I’ve ended up in a leadership position.
It’s probably because I’m the one who chose this song.

“Well, it’s not really my call to make, but… I think it might be worth trying.”
“Really? But wouldn’t that mean we can’t focus on the vocals?”
“As long as we keep the choreography at a reasonable level—nothing too difficult or exhausting—I think it should work. But let’s discuss it with all the other team members present.”

In a team mission like this, there was nothing to gain from acting unilaterally.
I’d persuade them when everyone was together.

“Alright, then.”

Just when I thought the conversation was over, Jo Hee-on suddenly turned off the self-camera.

“Ryeo-yu’s been really sad about losing this song.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. She said you took this song from her.”

Wasn’t she Kim Ryeo-yu’s friend?

“You could see it that way. From Ryeo-yu’s perspective.”
“But you.”

What now?
I was beginning to feel uncomfortable.
Just because I’d turned off the selfie camera didn’t mean the other cameras were off too.

“Your personality has changed so much, hasn’t it? Like you’re a completely different person?”

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

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