Debut or Die - Chapter 268

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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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A Fatal Illness if I Don’t Debut – Episode 268
Let me construct a premise.
The Testa documentary production crew came from people who laundered the studio after 【Idol Corporation 2】 went under.
And after selectively editing the contract violation video to their advantage, they attempted to smuggle it out—only for it to leak.
“….”
This damn… I need to calm down.
Now that I’ve laid it out, it’s even more absurd.
‘I need someone to bounce this off.’
My head’s burning hot enough that my reasoning could jump to conclusions, so I need to maintain balance in my thinking.
I decided to lay out the facts to the one person capable of the coldest analysis right now.
“…That explains it.”
The softness drained from Big Sae-jin’s face as he absorbed my reasoning. Now understanding dawned on him.
“For a documentary, they were being awfully aggressive about cutting the story.”
“Exactly.”
I’d mistaken it for documentary madness mixed in with legitimate production staff. But that was entertainment through and through.
Thanks to that, the Testa documentary had been entertaining enough, but since they’d dragged the job into this mess, they’d have to live with the consequences.
‘I need to smash their rice bowl.’
I had no interest in ever seeing these bastards work again, whether in entertainment or under the guise of educational celebrity content.
What would work best?
There’s a simple, convenient method.
“What about tipping off T1?”
“Hmm, wouldn’t the company have already known they were Ajusa 2’s production crew? Now that I think about it, they’re probably their people, which is why they handed our documentary to them too.”
I shook my head.
“That’s not what I’m saying.”
“Then what?”
“Plant suspicion in the circumstances.”
If I just reframe the narrative slightly, it becomes a sentence that’ll make the company hypersensitive.
‘It seems like they deliberately isolated sensitive footage of our contracted artists to sell or make deals with outside companies.’
Suspicion of catastrophic betrayal.
Not an accident, but a deliberate attempt to profit.
As proven when Gold 1’s agency dealt with industrial espionage, major corporations tend to explode with rage the moment they feel they’ve been played for fools.
‘So I’ll just make them feel exactly that foolish.’
I quickly explained the relevant details, then added the finishing touch.
“They’ll be even angrier thinking they got stabbed in the back after nurturing these people.”
We rescued these failures from 【Ajusa 2】, so let’s gently nudge them into thinking these ingrates have gone mad with ambition and forgotten their gratitude.
‘It’s not even a lie, really.’
Then headquarters will make sure these production crew bastards never set foot in the major industry again.
And even if they don’t, I won’t care. Suspicion alone is enough to make them uncomfortable and uneasy. A small studio disappearing is hardly uncommon.
Clean. Powerful. Social annihilation.
“….”
Big Sae-jin rubbed his chin, then let out a bitter laugh.
“Honestly… it might actually work? Moon-dae’s always been good with words.”
“But.”
“Right. That ‘but’… it doesn’t benefit our situation, does it? It’s just revenge.”
“….”
Big Sae-jin shrugged.
“Well, someone like Bae Sae-jin might actually be okay with it… but if we do this, it ends up in the company’s hands, not ours.”
“…That’s true.”
I wasn’t sure if Bae Sae-jin would approve, but the second half was right either way.
This method had side effects.
‘This has to be the end of it.’
It would be difficult to directly mention these bastards in Cha Yu-jin’s public statement.
T1’s pressure would naturally look like unfair abuse of power to the public.
And that overlapped with Cha Yu-jin’s scandal.
-Cha Yu-jin abused his power, and now the company’s abusing power against the wrong documentary crew lolol
-That idol in that company wow
Comments like that would backfire.
Only by handling this quietly behind the scenes could I end these bastards’ careers smoothly without any defense.
And that would be the wise approach.
“….”
But damn it, why did I hate this plan so much?
Big Sae-jin was right.
I slammed the armrest of the sofa.
“That’s what bothers me.”
“Yeah, I knew you’d feel that way.”
It irritated me imagining these production crew bastards getting psychological satisfaction from folding under unfair pressure.
Besides, I had a feeling T1 was already thinking along similar lines without me even bringing it up.
If they had any brains, wouldn’t they have reached the same conclusion?
‘It’s just adding a little wind to an existing game—nothing particularly brilliant.’
And… even if I did this, it wouldn’t actually benefit Cha Yu-jin. That was true too.
‘Damn it.’
I buried my head against the back of the sofa. I needed to make it worse.
“Whoa, Moon-dae, want me to grab you some ice water?”
“No.”
Think.
Was there a way to thoroughly destroy these bastards while actually benefiting Cha Yu-jin?
And I said it almost absently.
“…What if we framed them?”
What if there was a way to throw these bastards to the internet as sacrificial lambs instead of Cha Yu-jin?
Big Sae-jin’s voice became peculiar.
“Ugh, well, I suppose that would be the best case scenario… hmm.”
In other words, it’s unrealistic nonsense.
Right. Being from Ajusa 2 just gets a “so what?” response. They’ll say I’m just stirring up public opinion.
My mind grows cold.
Yeah. Let me stop entertaining pointless fantasies and think realistically.
I can discredit the production crew whenever I want. I’ve already verified that possibility, so I’ll keep it in reserve.
‘And the path that might actually benefit Cha Yu-jin is….’
…I’ve thought about it many times, but there’s nothing right now.
So I need to think further ahead.
When people grow tired and bored of the Cha Yu-jin abuse of power narrative, I need to release a story that might give his fans some consolation and keep them around.
‘Someone who can vouch for Cha Yu-jin’s character.’
What I need is… witnesses.
“I should gather testimonies.”
“Testimonies? Ah, like ‘Eugene is such a good guy~’ stuff?”
“Yeah. It’ll work later on.”
“…I see. For now, that does seem like the best option.”
It’s clichéd, but if I time it right and release it quickly, there’s at least a chance it’ll resonate once some time has passed.
Big Sae-jin offered a bitter smile. A sign of melancholy, perhaps.
‘I’m the one engaging in self-deception here….’
I clicked my tongue and tossed my smartphone onto the sofa. Big Sae-jin patted my back.
“Moon-dae, you’ve done enough. Don’t overthink it.”
“Yeah.”
…I could really use a beer right now.

* * *
Four days passed like that.
And as expected, public opinion never shifted with the passage of time.
With no new incidents emerging, things had quieted down compared to the first day, but there were still plenty of people who, whenever bored, dug up Cha Yu-jin’s old videos and spouted nonsense like “now that I look at it, he seems sketchy.”
As planned, posts defending Cha Yu-jin—some lacking a clear subject, others laden with innuendo—had surfaced from the shop Testa frequented and from people we’d worked with before.
But most of them were drowned out by mockery suggesting “the company is trying so hard.”
‘If Cha Yu-jin appears at the concert like this….’
I had no idea. Whether he looked fine or seemed mentally broken, it would become a scandal either way.
“Sigh.”
I lowered my smartphone. My head throbbed dully.
That’s when it happened.
“Moon-dae, sorry, but could you take a call?”
“…? Sure.”
The Manager, who’d been sitting in the corner of the studio, brought over his own smartphone and handed it to me.
‘There’s no one who would contact me like this.’
Even through my fatigue, I was puzzled when the Manager spoke quietly.
“It’s… a Mirinai Member.”
“…!”
In that instant, several theories about the reason for the call flashed through my mind.
Could it be.
I brought the smartphone to my ear.
“The line’s been transferred. Hello.”
-Hello, senior!
It was the voice I’d spoken with before.
‘The junior who debuted as Ajusa 2, wasn’t it.’
It had been a while, but the situation was too urgent to waste time on pleasantries. I got straight to the point.
“It seems like you called for a reason. Am I right?”
-Huh? Yes!! Well… actually, I was asked to reach out.
My deduction drew closer to reality.
I couldn’t help but speak.
“Did someone from Mirinai’s concert staff ask you to?”
-…!! Yes, yes? No, well….
And finally, the answer I’d been hoping for came.
-Yes. You’re exactly right…!
“….”
Mirinai’s concert staff.
Testa hadn’t brought all the staff he’d worked with in America over to Japan. Japanese performances typically relied heavily on local staff.
Instead, those staff members had been assigned to the small-scale American tour of Mirinai that the Director was pushing forward.
Which meant the staff this junior was talking about now….
‘There’s a high probability they worked with Testa when we were filming the documentary.’
The junior member continued speaking with a slightly trembling voice, but with unwavering resolve.
-That… the unnie who takes care of our muscles said she worked during the seniors’ concert too. Um, I heard you were looking for witness testimonies….
That’s right.
-This is really, I really want to make sure her safety is guaranteed! That’s the condition I want to emphasize….
“Of course it should be.”
-Yes, yes…!
After the junior member swallowed hard, the main point came out.
-That unnie… she made a recording, apparently.
Damn it.
I gripped my smartphone with all my strength.
‘If it’s the massage therapist… she’s the staff member who was right there when the documentary crew was harassing Cha Yu-jin!’
Perfect. Perfect! If I use this as evidence, public opinion would swing at least halfway….
-Senior?
…No, calm down. Verification comes first. I regained my composure.
“What kind of recording is it?”
Tell me the documentary crew was acting up and it got recorded.
-Um… so basically….
The junior member answered with an uncertain voice.
Saying something I never expected.
-That, Cha Yu-jin senior apparently protected her.
…What??

* * *
The staff member who reported the recording told their story like this.
The documentary production crew wanted to conduct interviews not just with Testa, but with various related parties to capture compelling footage.
And this staff member was among them.
-But it seems she refused, saying that matters regarding physical health were sensitive issues.
They told me to obtain personal consent saying ‘it’s fine to interview,’ but the documentary production crew must have realized from Cha Yu-jin’s attitude that it was impossible.
So they persistently and repeatedly requested it from the staff, or encouraged situations where words might slip out accidentally.
It must have been quite stressful, but since the atmosphere wasn’t conducive to asking for help, they endured it for now.
-But when that didn’t work either… apparently several people started mocking and acting threateningly.
Cha Yu-jin witnessed it and came right over to help.
-He was apparently very firm about it.
And due to the nature of the job, there were always people trying to pull stunts, so they recorded everything continuously, and this incident was captured on that recording too.
-They were so grateful that they thought about it a lot before speaking up… they say.
‘…And at the same time, since the industry is sensitive about recordings, they had a lot of hesitation about revealing it.’
Still, they were moved by Cha Yu-jin’s decisive action, and couldn’t just stand by watching the current situation, so they ultimately decided to report it.
I crossed my arms.
“…That’s what they said.”
“Oh, I remember!”
Cha Yu-jin answered brightly.
“I do remember.”
“Yes! The big camera person scared the staff. They said they didn’t like it, but he wouldn’t listen! So I said stop! And then… ugh! Kim Rae-bin, are you insane??”
“If something like that happened, you should have told us right away!”
No one stopped Kim Rae-bin from hitting Cha Yu-jin. Then Cha Yu-jin started shouting that he was being treated unfairly.
[Wait, wait! Just because I say that, everyone will believe me? This is a different issue than me blocking the camera!]
Naive bastard.
“Make it the same issue and call it a day.”
“What??”
“Just watch.”
I brought the members along and called the company. We had already secured the staff member’s recording.

* * *
Five days after Cha Yu-jin’s video leaked.
On the Internet, Cha Yu-jin was already torn to shreds and in free fall.
And having thoroughly chewed through the controversy until all its flavor was exhausted, people sought additional entertainment.
Specifically: the source of the video.
-Definitely a staff leak lol
└I think so too. Cha Yu-jin was acting up so badly they probably exposed him out of frustration
-How severe must the power abuse have been for someone to risk a lawsuit and leak it anyway? Honestly feel bad for them
-If the agency just drops a lawsuit notice right now, it’ll look like a textbook abuse-of-power scandal. Never thought Cha Yu-jin would go this far lol
Moreover, since the agency still hadn’t responded, people interpreted their silence as tacit admission.
-They’ve got nothing to say so they’re keeping their mouths shut lol
-They can’t deny it so they can’t respond
-Why don’t they just claim it’s fake lol
The vague statements of support posted by related parties paled in impact compared to that short, devastating video.
Just as Cha Yu-jin’s scandal was about to crystallize into his permanent image with nothing left to discuss—
-This sounds like the Cha Yu-jin story (link)
Then the article dropped.
But the focus wasn’t on Cha Yu-jin.
[Testa Documentary Filming Controversy… Concert Staff Recording Released]
[Another Broadcasting Power Abuse? Testa Documentary Production Crew Recording Reconstructed]
It was an exposé article about the Testa documentary production crew.
The media outlet was known for invading celebrities’ privacy, but precisely because of that, there was an underlying perception that their materials were more factual.
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[(Exclusive) Why the Testa Concert Staff Provided the Recording… “A Monster Created by Broadcasting”]
January 202X. Testa began their world tour. And they filmed a documentary showcasing the behind-the-scenes of the tour. (photo)
The Testa members in the documentary were earnest and genuine.
But was the filming process of this documentary equally genuine?
Recently, a staff member’s recording was submitted via email.
….
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The article laid bare how coercively the production crew had operated to film the documentary, and more importantly, how disrespectfully they’d treated staff members who had no leverage to push back.
=======================
Production Crew: Are you not understanding what I’m saying? Why can’t you answer properly?
Staff A: ….
Production Crew: Fine, you’re not saying anything good or bad. You’re really being uncooperative. If the footage doesn’t turn out well, that’s partly your fault too, Mr. OO. You get it?
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And toward the end, they revealed their true colors.
By linking Cha Yu-jin’s video with the corresponding recording. Though the video hadn’t originally derived from this, they described it in a way that made it appear so.
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Production Crew: I said, can’t you hear me? This is….
Cha Yu-jin: (rushing over and pressing the camera) Stop it!
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It was the magic of editing.
But even the production crew couldn’t prove it was spliced together.
The audio recording had an original, but the footage data didn’t.
Moreover, instead of mentioning Cha Yu-jin further, the article maintained a strict tone of ‘How severe must the abuse have been for an artist to rush over and stop it?’
Framed as an exposé rather than a defense.
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Through independent investigation, the journalist confirmed that the production crew in question wasn’t originally a documentary production team, but an entertainment production team.
From Idol Corporation 2, no less….
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And as a finale, by revealing they were from the failed Idol Corporation 2—a show that collapsed under excessive sensationalism and reckless decisions—the message was crystal clear.
These were the kinds of people who would torment others without hesitation to extract dramatic footage.
‘This production crew had more than enough reason to be condemned.’
It was nothing short of a targeted strike.
Someone’s powerful will to return the bomb that had hit Cha Yu-jin back to those who created it.
-Insane Ajusa 2 production crew;;;-
-That’s chilling as hell
And that will succeeded.

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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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