Became The Leader of a Girl Group Destined To Fail - Chapter 68

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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 68.

After the part distribution—which reeked of desperation—came to an end.
The first practice session for the first mission song drew near.
The title was “Biker Highway.”
Essentially a song about tearing through this city.
…But wait, there are minors in the group. Is it really okay to have biker content?
Maybe it’s not about motorcycles… could it be about bicycles instead?
Anyway, my verse was exactly one line.

Racing down an endless highway

Is that really it?
Yes. That’s really all of it.
Yeon Ju-hong didn’t have much more than that either.

Don’t block my path ahead, go away

That was the end of hers.
Still, as sub-vocalist number six, she got slightly more than me.
So six is better than seven, I suppose.
In any case, with things as they were, there wasn’t much vocal practice to do.
Just the chorus everyone sang together, and one verse to practice.
Lee Gyeong-a had become the main vocalist for the first time—and not just once, but twice.
She was the main vocalist for both the first and second songs, so she looked incredibly busy.
But it was a joyful kind of busy.
She’d once said she wanted to be the snake’s belly, but now that she’d become the dragon’s head, she seemed genuinely happy.
It was a natural feeling for anyone. I didn’t resent Lee Gyeong-a for it.
Yeon Ju-hong tried not to show it, but she kept glancing at Lee Gyeong-a with envious eyes.
It was pitiful.
All because of Kim Ryeo-yu….
No. Focus.

“Ju-hong, is the choreography difficult?”
“No! Though I might sound strange saying this….”

Yeon Ju-hong glanced around at the others before leaning in to whisper to me.

“With fewer vocal practice sessions, paradoxically I have a ton of extra time for dance training… I’m planning to really master dancing with this opportunity.”

Yeon Ju-hong said this with a bright smile, giving a thumbs up.
Her positivity was truly admirable.

“Ju-hong.”
“Yes?”
“You’re going to succeed.”
“Wow. I think so too.”

…And that’s exactly why she would succeed.
The entertainment industry, after all, is 98% mindset and 2% effort.
At first, I thought Yeon Ju-hong was just someone fragile yet sharp, and strangely bright all at once.
But that wasn’t the case anymore.
Yeon Ju-hong was simply young and inexperienced—but she was stronger than anyone else.
Of course, she was still at an age where she needed guidance.
But when the day came that she was ready to step beyond that fence, Yeon Ju-hong would be stronger than anyone.
I glanced over at Oh PD.
It seemed about time to begin.
Oh PD caught my gaze and cleared his throat.

“Ahem.”
“?”
“Well, I’ll be conducting individual interviews with each trainee. Come to the Conference Room next door in the order I call you.”

Individual interviews were common enough that no one questioned it.
But.
After this interview, much would change.

***

Park Ha-eun waited outside the Conference Room without question, as always.
She was next in line.
The person before Park Ha-eun was Kim Ryeo-yu.
Park Ha-eun was cheerfully listening to the demo track of her part through earbuds, familiarizing herself with it.
Click.

“Oh, noona.”

At that moment, Kim Ryeo-yu stepped out.
But something felt off.
Kim Ryeo-yu’s expression looked anxious.
What was wrong with her?

“Ha-eun, come here for a second before you go in.”
“Huh? I need to go in right now….”
“I know, just come here for a moment.”

What’s this about?
Park Ha-eun found herself drawn by Kim Ryeo-yu’s hand and reluctantly followed her into the restroom.

“Ha-eun.”
“Yes?”
“If… if they ask about me during the interview, what are you going to say?”
“Huh?”

Out of nowhere?
Park Ha-eun tilted her head in confusion.

“I’ll speak positively about you, of course. What kind of question would it be?”
“You’ll keep that promise, right?”
“Y-yes!”

Park Ha-eun had no particular desire to cross Kim Ryeo-yu.
While Director Kim was Kim Ryeo-yu’s most obvious backing, rumors suggested that wasn’t all—whispers of her connections ran deep throughout the entertainment industry.
Kim Ryeo-yu’s family members were embedded in various corners of the entertainment world.
In fact, rumors circulated that her entire family was connected to the underworld.
Such whispers were widespread.
Park Ha-eun didn’t particularly like Kim Ryeo-yu either.
Honestly, she’d consistently thought her character was lacking.
But Kim Ryeo-yu had never directly harmed her, and Park Ha-eun had simply played along with this intimidating senior to keep the peace.

“No matter what. You understand, right?”
“Y-yes.”
“And if Yun Chung comes up in conversation, just say you don’t know anything about it. Don’t carelessly run your mouth.”
“Okay….”

Park Ha-eun nodded, her expression clouded with unease.
What’s gotten into her?

“Unnie, was there something strange during the interview? What kind of questions did they ask you?”
“I didn’t get any.”
“What?”

Then why the odd behavior?

“It’s just… something feels off.”
“…?”

Maybe she’s just being paranoid. Park Ha-eun made a deliberate effort to compose her expression.
Park Ha-eun made a conscious effort to manage her expression.

“What if… by any chance my mouth slips and something gets aired on the Broadcasting Program.”

Kim Ryeo-yu stared at Park Ha-eun with anxious, malicious eyes.

“…Unnie, I already said I understand.”
“…Sister, I already said I understood.”

Kim Ryeo-yu seemed to sense that pushing further would only backfire.
His attitude, as if I had entrusted him with something important, was annoying.
“Fine then. Go on in.”

Park Ha-eun didn’t respond and simply entered the Conference Room.

“Sorry I’m late! I had to use the Restroom….”

“I’m sorry I’m late! I was in the restroom.”
In the Conference Room sat Kang Writer, just as usual.

But it wasn’t unusual enough to raise suspicion, so Park Ha-eun sat down without hesitation.
The only thing slightly different is that it was Oh PD himself who came, not another assistant director.
“Park Ha-eun, trainee.”

“Park Ha-eun, trainee.”
“Yes.”

However, the moment Park Ha-eun heard Oh PD’s next words, she understood what Kim Ryeo-yu had been so worried about.

“What we’re about to discuss is legally very sensitive, so Park Ha-eun’s guardians are here as well. We’ll move to the conference room next door and have a conversation together.”
“!”

***

After all the trainees’ individual interviews were finished.
The Practice Room’s atmosphere had completely changed from before.
Everyone felt very tense.
I could also feel them trying hard to hide the fact that they were nervous.
Since Kim Ryeo-yu couldn’t possibly miss such signs, Oh PD added a bit more strategy.

“Alright, let’s wrap up the full group practice time here for today. Before we move on to the scratch recordings for the first and third songs, you’ll each have individual practice time. The scratch recordings are tomorrow morning, so please keep that in mind. The second song’s scratch recording will be a bit later—around three to four days from now. There’s no additional group filming scheduled for today, so just focus on practice.”
“Yes!”
“You can practice in your respective Vocal Training Rooms, and please note that all Vocal Training Rooms are under camera recording.”
“Understood!”

First, scatter them.
By giving individual practice time, I needed to disperse everyone as much as possible.
Thanks to that, everyone could scatter before Kim Ryeo-yu noticed… but.

“Yun Chung.”

It seemed I couldn’t prevent Kim Ryeo-yu from noticing after all.
Seeing how she blocked my path like this.

“What are you doing?”
“…Huh? What do you mean, Ryeo-yu?”

I tried to smile as innocently as possible.
The cameras were still rolling after all.
Kim Ryeo-yu seemed to notice that too, and I could see her managing her expression carefully.

“Let’s talk for a moment.”
“Sorry, Ryeo-yu.”

She seemed anxious.

“I need to practice anyway. You’re going to practice too, right Ryeo-yu? We have a recording session tomorrow.”

There was no reason for me to accommodate her circumstances.

“Then, would you watch my practice? Yun Chung, you’re really good at singing.”

She smiled brightly, but her eyes were filled with malice.
Ah, how could I refuse this in a way that would be fine for broadcast?

“Sorry. Yun Chung already promised to listen to my vocals.”

At that moment, Seo Baek-young perceptively wrapped an arm around my shoulders and stepped in.

“…Oh, is that so?”
“Yeah. We promised from the beginning of our broadcast that we’d help each other out. You remember, right?”
“I… remember.”

Nice move, Seo Baek-young.
I hugged Seo Baek-young’s waist.

“That’s right, I have a prior commitment with Baek-young! Besides, Ryeo-yu, you’re on the same team as Gyeong-a, so why don’t you ask Gyeong-a? She’s the main vocalist anyway.”
“…Never mind. It’s fine.”
“Why? Should I ask her for you?”
“I said it’s fine.”

At her sharp tone, everyone’s eyes turned toward her.
Kim Ryeo-yu flinched, then deliberately softened her expression.

“Thanks for the offer, Yun Chung. But I’m okay. I’ll give it a try on my own.”
“Sure, sounds good!”

I answered with extra aegyo mixed in on purpose, then Seo Baek-young and I made our exit.
No point in dragging this out any longer.

“Yun Chung.”
“Yes?”

Once the cameras were gone, Seo Baek-young immediately turned off both our microphones.

“What was that earlier? Did you prepare all of it?”
“Which part are you referring to?”
“The individual interview. With the lawyer… even my parents came. I’m an adult so I don’t need a guardian, but both MEN and Colors arranged everything.”

Seo Baek-young’s expression was half bewilderment, half joy.

“The company decided to take your side, right? That’s right, isn’t it? The questions all seemed designed to support you…! Today I’m just getting the questions in advance to think them over, and I’m supposed to answer in two days. I signed a confidentiality agreement too. This is good, right? It is, isn’t it? I’m just trying to support you in every way.”
“That won’t work.”
“Huh?”

I withdrew my hand from around Seo Baek-young’s waist.
There’s no camera here anyway—no need to overdo it.

“Don’t take my side. Just tell them what you truly know. What you’ve seen and heard. The facts. That’s what keeps you safe too.”
“…!”
“This involves me, but I don’t want anyone to be put in danger because of me. If you feel it’s better not to say something, then you don’t have to say anything at all.”
“Yun Chung…”

I smiled ambiguously.

“And unnie. The company will just… be on the company’s side.”

Because that’s the reality.

“Don’t trust the company or the broadcasting station too much. If they really wanted to support me… they wouldn’t have decided positions through a popularity vote.”
“!”
“They just chase controversy and profit. The reason it looks like they’re supporting me now… is simply because it benefits them more.”

Because that’s how the world works.

“So unnie, think about what benefits you. Speak and act in whatever way serves your interests.”

Seo Baek-young stood rigid, struck silent by my words.
I waited for her to process.
It might have been a shock to Seo Baek-young, but it was my reality.
The reality I had lived through.
So I wanted to be as honest as possible.
I could have simply asked Seo Baek-young to take my side.
That would have been the easier path for me.
But I didn’t want to deceive her.
That was my last shred of conscience.
My conscience for dragging her into something she didn’t need to be part of.

“Okay.”

Seo Baek-young seemed to have finished thinking, and finally nodded in understanding.
I was relieved she seemed to grasp it.

“So I should just do what benefits me, right?”
“Yes. That would put my mind at ease too.”
“Then I’m going to expose everything—the truth, all of it.”
!

For the first time, I saw Seo Baek-young’s face radiant with confidence and conviction.
She looked relieved, yet somehow… afraid as well.

“Baek-young.”
“It’s not because of you. I just think that’s what’s truly beneficial for me.”
!
“That’s what I believe. For me, acting with conscience is the real benefit.”

This time, I froze, struck by her words.

“Because standing by someone I care about is what benefits me most.”

In that moment, I understood.
I could finally grasp, even a little, the hearts of those who loved her.

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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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