Grab the Regressor by the Collar and Debut - Chapter 3

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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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03. In Search of a Lost Dream (1)
Did I do well?
After finishing the song, I studied the judges’ faces intently, biting my lip at their lack of reaction. Though I’d come to this audition prepared to fail, I’d still chosen what I considered my trump card—a song I’d practiced relentlessly during my trainee days, selected with genuine confidence. But now I wondered if I should have played it safer instead.
“Mm, yes. We heard you well.”
The woman seated in the center spoke slowly. When she asked if I’d prepared a dance, I nodded, and the backing track I’d submitted earlier began playing.
‘Is he actually going to dance?’
Manager Jang pretended to rest his chin on his hand, covering his mouth to suppress the corners of his lips that kept trying to rise uncontrollably, biting the inside of his cheek to hold back his smile.
Soon a pop song with a strong hip-hop beat flowed through the speakers—a track that had become popular for its simple lyrics and melody.
As Manager Jang watched applicant number 71 slowly finding the rhythm, he couldn’t hide the anticipation bubbling up inside him, eventually covering his mouth with his hand as a broad smile spread across his face. With eleven years in the New Talent Development Team 1, he was certain this one could dance quite well.
Turn it up!
Let’s pop it up!
Dropped the beat,
I never gonna screw it up!
“Not bad, actually.”
Sure enough, each light, extended movement matched perfectly to the main beat, the rhythm unmistakably embedded in every motion. The somewhat awkward-looking parts suggested this was a self-choreographed routine. While the technically difficult moves weren’t what you’d call his main position, the fluidity of his body suggested he possessed genuine dance DNA.
“Should we have him stay?”
Around the time someone muttered that today’s audition had been a wash, the staff members whispered to each other while watching Manager Jang’s expression, having discovered a rough diamond. With the trainee pool already culled once due to the upcoming male idol debut group issue, they urgently needed to replenish their roster.
“….”
“Manager?”
Manager Jang stared intently at applicant number 71, who had finished dancing and now stood catching his breath, waiting for the verdict.
“…?”
“Um, applicant number 71, Kang Ha-jin?”
“Yes.”
Normally, Manager Jang would have rendered his judgment before the dance even finished—a simple “yes, next” or “see you later.” But his unusually prolonged deliberation left question marks floating above the staff members’ heads. As he reviewed applicant 71’s application form once more, Manager Jang opened and closed his mouth repeatedly as if about to say something.
‘It’s a shame, but….’
While watching my dance, Manager Jang tapped his pen repeatedly at the corner of the application. The song was good, the appearance was presentable, the dancing was quite solid—but there was one thing that bothered him.
“….”
“…Manager?”
After deliberating further, Manager Jang finally reached his decision.
“Thank you for your effort. We heard you well.”
“….”
“Yes, please wait here.”
At Manager Jang’s decision, all the staff members nodded with bright expressions.
“Once you step outside, our staff will guide you to the lounge where you can wait.”
“Ah, yes. …Thank you.”
* * *
Is this actually happening?
I stared blankly at the cocoa the staff had brought for me to drink while waiting, my mind momentarily blank. I’d have to wait at least another two hours—what was I doing?
“…This is actually happening.”
I kept muttering those words over and over. It didn’t feel real somehow, so I just kept clenching and unclenching my fists. Actually, thinking about it, I’d always seemed to reach this stage easily before.
Even though I’d anticipated falling through, I hadn’t realized how tense I’d been until I felt the stiffness in my shoulders.
The white interior with gold accents—the company’s signature colors pushed relentlessly throughout—strained my eyes. Being such a massive space, an artificial waterfall cascaded down one side in an overwhelming display.
What is this, a temple…?
I blew on the steaming cocoa to cool it and studied the photographs of Rene Entertainment singers hanging on the wall. Not a single one of them had a face that wasn’t sculpted perfection.
As someone who once desperately wanted to become like them, and later wanted to create people like them, sitting here felt profoundly strange. Caught in indescribable emotions, I was biting my lip when I noticed the woman who’d looked like the final decision-maker entering the lounge.
Wait, I can’t actually become a trainee here, can I?
“Hello, Kang Ha-jin.”
“Yes, hello. I’m Kang Ha-jin.”
Even in this critical moment where I might become the sole mortal among Greek gods, I had to maintain proper courtesy. The moment I instinctively activated my interview smile, I felt her gaze fixed intently on me.
“I’m Jang Seo-yun, Manager of Rene’s New Talent Development Team 1. It’s nice to meet you today.”
The woman who handed me her business card while crossing her legs got straight to the point.
“I’ll be honest with you.”
“….”
“If you join our company, debuting might be difficult.”
Ah, yes….
I wasn’t planning on joining anyway.
* * *
“What? Why?”
Yoon Deputy, the least experienced among today’s public audition judges, raised his voice unusually loudly in response to his senior colleague’s remark.
From the perspective of someone who was a genuine unparalleled enthusiast and had been a devoted fan for several years, contestant number 71 who’d just finished their audition was exactly the type this industry needed.
Great singer, great dancer, but unparalleled? That’s what matters!
The whole reason I joined was to discover someone like that and turn them into Rene’s next masterpiece! So for Yoon Deputy, it made no sense that Manager Jang had left with a frown saying it was “awkward to hire,” nor could he understand why Kim Senior from Team 3 had swallowed bitterly as if he’d anticipated this outcome.
“From what I saw, they were fine. They’d be similar to the New Rene Z kids right now.”
“That’s exactly why it won’t work.”
Kim Senior shook his head firmly.
“Where would you even place them? They can’t go to New Rene Z because there’s no position to push out, and they’re too old for the next generation group.”
Ah. Only then did Yoon Deputy close his mouth. Looking at it from that perspective, the logic was different.
“At least there’s Jung-hyuk we could pair them with…. But considering his visuals and the team chemistry, there’s no real reason to add them instead of keeping Jung-hyuk.”
Ugh. Yoon Deputy’s mouth was shut once more. This was the moment when the sorrow of being a minority unparalleled advocate in this ruthless Greek Agrippa sculpture appreciation renaissance surged up.
Sure, they didn’t have that Rene look exactly…. But still…!
“From our perspective, having Jung-hyuk do better is the best outcome. Well, we could always sign a contract and see what happens…. But in good conscience, it’s better to send kids like that elsewhere.”
If we were being callous, we could simply take them on as trainees like a useless bone. But Rene was a major entertainment company with hundreds of aspiring stars flooding in every single day.
We’d long passed the point where a trainee or two would be a waste. There was no reason to squander energy holding onto hopefuls with no real chance of debuting.
“Anyway, the manager must have had something in mind to tell them to stay. Are you heading out now?”
“Ah… no. The New Rene Z kids are supposed to practice something today.”
“Working hard on the weekend. Good job.”
Yoon Deputy chewed through the kimbap he’d prepared for lunch but never eaten, now completely cold, swallowing his sadness along with it.
Unparalleled angel…. If only you’d come three months earlier!
* * *
“Well, you must be a bit surprised, right?”
I was certainly surprised by her sudden shift to the main topic, but since it was something I’d already anticipated, I shook my head—and the woman flinched in alarm.
“Ah. I’m not saying Kang Ha-jin has no potential.”
She seemed to be adding words to appease me, but that word “potential” itself touched a nerve somewhere inside.
Still, there was something more pressing right now. They weren’t going to debut me anyway—so why did she make me wait here in the first place?
“I don’t usually meddle like this….”
The woman hesitated for a long moment. It was certainly an attitude that exceeded what was appropriate for a mere applicant, not even a trainee, but what I really wanted to hear was something else.
“In any case, if you’re open to companies other than ours, there’s a place I’d like to introduce you to.”
And finally, the name I’d been waiting for came from the woman’s lips.
“Have you heard of Miro Entertainment?”
Miro Entertainment. A mid-sized agency run by a former manager who’d worked at Rene Entertainment for years—one of my target companies. And,
‘the place I really need to go.’
Miro Entertainment had been growing at a breakneck pace over the past five years, with every single work they released hitting the market becoming a success. And rumors were spreading rapidly through the industry that at the center of that success was “Miro’s Guardian Angel.”
‘Entertainment stock traders call it the Midas touch of Miro.’
A producer who suddenly rose to prominence one day and everything they touch becomes a hit? Isn’t this a setup I’ve heard somewhere before?
‘I need to verify whether this guy really has good instincts, or if he’s somehow connected to this insane regression.’
The reason I auditioned at Rene Entertainment, despite having no shot at debut, was entirely to get into Miro Entertainment. I knew the two companies frequently exchanged trainees like this.
[Is it true that New Rene Z’s Cha Min-seok was originally a Miro trainee?]
(photo)
(photo)
That was taken in Miro’s practice room, right? These days, I’m doing a quick test, but I’m embarrassed because I’m in a practice room that’s used to Gwasa lol.
He was apparently a member of Miro back then.
└ He was probably in Miro’s debut lineup?
└ Wait, really? Why didn’t he debut?
└ Min Seo-gi: Originally, I was practicing with the Endup kids, but I came out to the maze due to an injury.
└ Face genius and god Min-seok everyone knows about it he’s debuting on ★June 12th★ next year everyone please look forward to it
Even that Apollo sculpture guy who was pushed as the center in Rene’s next generation was originally from Miro. There’s talk that he didn’t debut from Miro not because of injury but for other reasons, though nothing’s confirmed—let’s set aside the rumors for now.
What mattered was me. Would this Rene-Miro route, which was far faster and more certain than a general audition, actually open up for me?
If it did, it would be the perfect opportunity to slam shut the revolving door of hell that was my third military cycle in one shot.
“They’re currently recruiting male trainees, so if you’re interested, I’d like to connect you with them. How does that sound?”
Nice!
I felt the private inside me screaming with joy, but I focused on keeping my expression composed. I needed to appear as calm and mysterious as possible on a first meeting.
“…I think I’ll need to consult with my parents first.”
“Of course. If you’re interested, contact me at the number on my business card. It would be even better if you text ’71’ in the message.”
“Yes. If there’s nothing else you’d like to say, may I leave now?”
“Yes, yes. The exit is the same as the entrance.”
“Thank you. I’ll contact you soon.”
I bowed respectfully to the woman, who was gazing at me with a somewhat satisfied smile, and left the Rene Entertainment Building.
“Huh. That was easier than I thought?”
I don’t know why I was so nervous about this as a kid. I gazed proudly at the business card in my hand, and by the time I’d made plans to tell my parents at home and strategize how to tackle the Miro audition, I’d already arrived at the Subway Station.
Haha. Seon-gwi, you bastard, wait. Your hyung is coming.
* * *
Manager Jang stood outside the building, gazing through the window at Ha-jin clutching a business card that seemed barely substantial enough to fit in his palm, and found himself thinking idly.
‘…Like a well-socialized wolf cub.’
When they’d discussed Miro Entertainment earlier, there hadn’t been a tail, yet now it seemed to wag like a propeller—such was the optical illusion. His one regret was never getting to pat that head.
‘No, more like a Doberman.’
As Manager Jang watched the receding silhouette and mentally dressed it in various animal costumes, he swept away the cloudy imaginings with a wave of his hand and stood up. Before the day ended, he needed to contact an acquaintance at Miro Entertainment.
* * *
“That’s absolute nonsense.”
I was screwed.
“You’re turning twenty soon, Ha-jin. Twenty. Mom can’t approve of this.”
Ah… it felt like someone far away was calling me… the training camp… the training camp was calling me….
“You were the one who said you’d stop everything and focus on studying. You said you’d find the right field of study, so I even approved your year of preparation. This sudden change has me quite flustered.”
My mother’s face was so earnest as she spoke calmly that I had nothing left to say.
“In any case, Mom… Mom is opposed.”
The carousel entrance to my life that had been closing suddenly swung wide open again.
I never imagined in my wildest dreams that the gatekeeper would be my mother.
Just as the carousel in my imagination transformed completely into privates in full gear marching across the parade ground, a system window drove a wedge into reality.
[System Alert: Sudden Quest!]
Content: A child’s wound becomes a parent’s scar. Win back your mother’s heart and gain recognition for the dream you’ve rediscovered.
Mom… if your son doesn’t become an idol, he’ll live forever….
There’s no way to explain this.

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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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