Became The Leader of a Girl Group Destined To Fail - Chapter 84

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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 84.

Truly, this person never deviates even an inch from expectations.

“But the Shop Owner just told us to showcase our full capabilities.”

Seo Baek-young spoke first with composure.

“Do you know the Shop Owner visits the company once every two or three months?”

Director Kim spoke with unmistakable mockery.

“This time he made a special effort to look after you all, but once you debut, that won’t happen. There aren’t just one or two groups that need managing. Since he’s so focused on his own music and business ventures, he doesn’t really care much about artist management. Even this time, he only paid attention because there was more buzz than expected. Once your debut lineup is confirmed, he won’t give you a second thought.”

Director Kim spoke with self-satisfaction.

“Well, unless one of you causes a scandal, then things might change.”

In other words, unless something truly catastrophic happened, he wouldn’t care about us.

“So just say what the company tells you to say, and act only as the company directs. Don’t worry though. We’ll still present it on the program as something you all carefully planned. That’s what the company is here for. Be grateful. We’ll promote you as a genius group that does self-producing. Even though you actually did nothing.”

Just hearing these words made it hard to breathe.
…Well.
In my past life, Hong President wasn’t someone who put much effort into artist management either.
Rather, he was busy with strange business ventures or releasing his own albums.
The fact that he was being this proactive this time felt like a miracle.
The reason Director Kim could be the real power at Colors was precisely because of Hong President’s peculiar nature.
…This was extremely troubling.
Having no one at the company to support us meant the road ahead would be thorny.
Especially for people like them—

“I can’t do that.”

Even more so for children with no ulterior motives whatsoever.

“…What?”

Every time I see Kim Geum, I notice the same thing.
She really has no weak points.

“No, it’s not that I lack the ability. I can compose, write lyrics, and produce all on my own. So why do I have to leave everything to the company?”

Kim Geum spoke with crystalline clarity.
…She was being respectful in her own way.

“Do you really think you could do better than people who’ve been grinding in this industry for decades, no matter how hard you try?”

Director Kim spoke in a low voice.

“The media calls you a genius, a genius—does that make you feel like a real genius? We created that label for you. You didn’t get into that hip-hop survival show because of your own skills; we pushed you in. Now that people are praising you, does it feel like that praise is actually your own ability?”
“Yes. It does feel like my own ability.”

Kim Geum seemed to genuinely believe that.
Her eyes couldn’t possibly be that innocent.

“If you didn’t have the talent worth developing in the first place, would the company have spent money on you and pushed you into that position? In this capitalist world? Why did you scout me, and why did you put me in? That wasn’t charity work, was it?”

Wow.
Yeon Ju-hong let out a very small exclamation from beside me.
…Though small, there was no way anyone missed that sound.
Director Kim’s eyes began to fill with blood.
He’s not going to collapse, is he?

“Fine. I invested because I saw potential in you? That’s right. The money I spent on you was because I expected you to earn even more than that.”

Director Kim pretended to concede gracefully.
Now the real argument would start coming out.

“But. You’re still just ‘potential.’ What have you actually proven? Getting into the debut group—that’s all. Do you know how many rookie idols debut in a year? You’re just one of hundreds. You’re still nothing.”

Director Kim said that and stood up.

“If you want to insist so badly that you’re an ‘artist,’ then prove your ability. Maybe then the company will listen to what you have to say.”
“Then give me that opportunity.”

Kim Geum, speaking those words, was like a massive boulder.
An immovable boulder.

“I want to prove myself. So if you give me the chance, I’ll prove it too. I’ll do it myself—”
“Geum.”

Director Kim shook his head with an exasperated sigh.

“Forget the debut album. Prove yourself with something else. Nothing major—start small and work your way up. Got it?”
“Then—”
“Stop.”

Director Kim raised his hand to silence her.

“Don’t try to negotiate with me. I have no reason to listen to you. Get out.”

***

And so we were kicked out to the Dormitory.
…The Dormitory I’m referring to is the one we used during the Make a New Color shoot.
We’d be staying here for a while.

“AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!!!”

Kim Geum was screaming with furious rage.
…She was pressing her fist against her mouth so it wouldn’t be too loud and bother others.
Why was it funny that she was just living like that?

“I’m so frustrated.”
“…You have every right to be.”
“What’s even more frustrating is that I couldn’t say anything back to him.”

Kim Geum’s shoulders drooped, her spirit completely deflated.

“I’m still such a rookie….”
“That’s true….”
“So let’s hurry up. Let’s grow together. Let’s become veterans in K-pop.”

The ending was strange in some ways, but at least I’d managed to pull myself together.
Since I needed to head back soon, I had to keep my spirits up.
Because the Dormitory right now… wouldn’t exactly be the best place to lift my mood.
And sure enough.
The Dormitory was shrouded in a heavy, oppressive atmosphere.

“Unnie….”

Our room hadn’t started packing yet, but the others were a different story.
Everyone else was packing their things.
We’d all gathered in Lee Ju-seon’s room.
Lee Ju-seon’s eyes were red and swollen as she hurriedly packed her belongings.

“Oh, d-did everyone come?”

She rarely stammered like this.
She was trying hard to smile brightly, but the signs of crying were unmistakable.

“Do you… really have to pack today?”

Kim Geum asked in a dark voice.

“Oh, not really. They gave me about two days… I just want to get home quickly.”
“…Two days? That’s so rushed.”

Seo Baek-young spoke with a tone of regret.

“…There’s nothing I can do about it.”
“But you’re still staying with Colors, right, unnie?”

Yeon Ju-hong asked worriedly.

“Hmm, I’m not sure yet.”
“Why? Are you maybe transferring somewhere else?”

At Kim Geum’s question, Lee Ju-seon just smiled faintly.

“I don’t know yet… I need to hear what the Company has to say first. While you all were away, someone from the Company came by. They said if anyone wanted to transfer to another company that’s looking for debut groups, I should let them know. They said they’d help us explore options and make the transfer happen.”

So the conversation’s already wrapped up.
Yeah.
Colors doesn’t debut new groups that frequently.
Plus, they just released a rookie female idol group this time… there’s no way they’d launch another female idol group right after.
Even if they do debut someone new, it’s more likely to be a male idol group.
In that case, switching to a different company would have given me a much higher chance of debuting.
Timing and age are crucial for idols, after all.

“For now, I’m planning to greet the fans and take some time to rest and collect my thoughts.”
“You’re not giving up on being an idol, are you?”

Yeon Ju-hong asked carefully.
…It was a question everyone had actually been harboring in their hearts.
While doing Make a New Color, Lee Ju-seon had been worn out too.

“I’m not giving up. I’m pretty sure none of us here will.”

Lee Ju-seon zipped up her suitcase with determination.

“Still, I want to rest for a bit. We’ve all been running so hard this whole time. Of course, you all… are about to start an even longer race from here on out.”

Lee Ju-seon rose from her seat with a grunt.

“I don’t understand why I envy that so much. Even though I’m clearly exhausted right now… I envy you guys and the unnis who still have to keep running.”

***

The next morning.
We saw off the other trainees.
As if by agreement, they all left the Dormitory right away.

“Why are you leaving in such a rush? Isn’t it obvious? Ugh, I’m so sick of this Dormitory. Just looking at it reminds me of all those sleepless nights and how hard it was.”

Lee Gyeong-a laughed heartily as she loaded her luggage onto the Bus.

“Fortunately, I’ve had Entertainment Companies reach out to me since I started Make a New Color. I think I’ll transfer to one of them.”
“That’s fortunate. You’ll definitely do well wherever you go, unni.”

Lee Gyeong-a looked far happier than when she’d shared her thoughts yesterday.
Perhaps it was the relief of it all being over.

“Yun Chung.”
“Yes?”
“I’m saying this now, but I was sorry about something.”

Confused, I stood there blankly until Lee Gyeong-a awkwardly patted my shoulder.

“When you first joined Colors. You were struggling a bit, remember?”

Ah, she was talking about the time before I entered Yun Chung’s body.

“Honestly, I didn’t really like you back then either. I mean, everyone kept their distance from you. But at the time, I was just so exhausted that I had no energy to care for others, so I rationalized it as inevitable, you know?”
“I see….”
“But thinking about it now, you never looked down on people even when things were hard, and you pulled everyone along to the end. Ju-hong and the others too.”

Lee Gyeong-a extended her hand to me, asking for a handshake.

“I learned so much watching you. Let’s meet on another stage next time.”
“I learned a lot from you too, unnie. Next time we’ll meet as senior and junior idols. Of course, I’ll be the senior.”
“Already claiming seniority….”

Lee Gyeong-a laughed and boarded the bus.
I saw off Lee Ju-seon and the others as well.
I wondered if Yun Chung had accepted that apology.
…I hoped she had.
Because the one who should have been apologizing wasn’t me—it was Yun Chung.

***

“Good morning~”

While everyone was drooping as they saw off the others.
Oh PD entered the dormitory, sipping an iced latte through a straw.

“Wow, the cameras are already all set up here, so it’s convenient.”

The same camera we used during the Make a New Color shoot.
The same filming location as Make a New Color.
The same Production Team as Make a New Color.
…Somehow, it feels like we’re filming Make a New Color Season 2.

“Alright, I’ve discussed this with the Company too. You still don’t have a leader, right?”

I was feeling uneasy about having to see more of Oh PD, when he brought up a new topic.

“Yes.”
“Then shouldn’t you elect a leader first?”

….
At the mention of electing a leader, everyone fell silent as if on cue.
Why is everyone struggling with this?
Of course, the leader should be…

“I recommend Baek-young.”

At that moment, Kim Geum quickly raised her hand and spoke.
I strongly agreed as well.

“I agree.”

Seo Baek-young was perfectly suited for this.
She’d been in Colors the longest and was the eldest member.
…Though in reality, I’m the oldest, but that doesn’t matter.
I had no intention of becoming the leader.
I’m someone who lacks leadership entirely.
During all the Make a New Color shoots, I’d never taken on the leader role.
No one had ever asked me to be the leader.
Besides, Yun Chung wasn’t… originally that kind of dependable image.
At first, the best people could hope for was that I wouldn’t troll.
So was another member more appropriate?
No.
I’m sorry, but no.
First, Kim Geum?
She’s too simplistic.
She lacks patience too.
Her straightforwardness is an advantage, but when things get heated, she’d probably blow the whole team apart just as bluntly.
Ryu Bora?
She’s composed, sure.
But she can’t even be bothered to take care of herself.
She’s not someone who’d look after others.
She found eating so bothersome that I’ve been spoon-feeding her breakfast every morning like she’s a child.
Yeon Ju-hong?
Ju-hong isn’t ready yet….
Maybe in about ten years.
Right now she’s too much of a typical maknae—I can’t even imagine her as a leader.
Seo Baek-young was perfect—

“I decline.”
“?!”
“I recommend Yun Chung instead.”

What?

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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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