The Daughter of a Conglomerate Family Has Debuted - Chapter 44

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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The Chaebol’s Daughter Debuted

Episode 44

“You just arrived at the dormitory and must be busy greeting friends you haven’t seen in a while. How is it? Do you like the dormitory?”

“Yes!”

The beautifully decorated interior, practice rooms scattered just a few steps away, and various facilities.

As I thought before, this dormitory was the most suitable space for focusing on the competition.

“Yes, I’m glad you like it. I hope you’ll create wonderful stages here for a week. Before we begin the full training camp!”

Choi Gyu-jin’s booming voice echoed throughout the auditorium.

“This is the most important part, right? Let me explain the song selection method.”

Song selection method? I guess we can’t choose freely.

It’s disappointing, but it doesn’t matter. I looked at the screen behind the platform with indifferent eyes. Text appeared on the large screen that didn’t match the small auditorium.

“This song selection is…”

[Choosing Each Other’s Songs]

“What the…”

What is this?

“You all selected your opponent teams through a draw during the last Round 2 theme announcement, right? This time, you’ll directly choose the songs for the opposing teams you’ll compete against.”

“Huh? We’re not choosing ourselves?”

“Ah, we can’t do what we had in mind…”

Sighs from the trainees could be heard from here and there.

Of course, it’s a broadcast and image matters, so unless someone’s a villain, they wouldn’t throw us a weird song.

Still, naturally no one would want to entrust an important song to opponents who don’t even know our team’s image well.

When we don’t even have enough time for FLORA, it’s not pleasant to spend time worrying about and selecting songs for a team we don’t know well yet.

Well, anyway… that’s how it’s decided.

“Each team should freely choose songs for the opposing team by dinner time today. Then we’ll all meet again in the evening!”

Ah, this is dizzying.

Whether he knew the trainees’ confused feelings or not, Choi Gyu-jin greeted us with a cheerful voice and quickly stepped down from the platform.

“Hmm… um…”

With only trainees left, the members looked at each other. It was a look asking roughly what we should do.

“Auditorium filming is finished. Everyone disperse.”

The main filming had just ended, and since all the trainees had gathered for once, should we try talking with our opposing team May Rookie?

It would be good if we could ask what kind of songs each other wanted and agree to choose within that range.

Yeah, let’s do that.

“Let’s go over there first and say hello…”

Poke-.

Just as I finished thinking and was about to speak to the members.

Someone strongly poked my shoulder from behind.

“Ah.”

A groan escaped me because they pressed my shoulder blade with their finger.

I unconsciously frowned and turned around to see May Rookie members looking down at us with smiles on their lips.

It was too sudden, and poking someone you’re not even close to with your finger is utterly rude by common sense.

As I sat rubbing my shoulder while looking at them, Han Da-min came over and wrapped her arms around me protectively from behind.

Then she smiled brightly and said.

“Hello. What’s the matter?”

It was the same businesslike expression as when we first talked.

I remember our members were very intimidated back then because Han Da-min was such a senior.

Maybe because they’re SU trainees where such seniors are everywhere, they seemed unimpressed even seeing Han Da-min.

“Ah, it wasn’t anything special.”

The May Rookie member who pressed my shoulder smiled languidly without any sign of apology.

“Just make sure to choose a good song for us. Fighting~”

Then they nodded slightly and disappeared with their members.

“…”

Right, they didn’t say much, but somehow… it feels bad?

‘What was that?’

What’s with them? Why did they talk like that?

Somehow it seemed condescending…

‘Make sure to choose a good song for us?’

The members looked at each other bewildered, then hurriedly got up from their seats as if to smooth over their expressions.

“L-let’s get out of here quickly too!”

“Huh? Yeah…”

Aren’t they managing their image when there are still cameras around? Even if there weren’t cameras, they could have asked more tactfully.

For kids from a major entertainment company, their first impression was worse than expected.

I followed the members out of the auditorium while still pressing my aching shoulder blade.

***

Since there wasn’t much time, I thought we’d start the song selection meeting as soon as we arrived at the practice room.

But…

I rolled my eyes left and right to check the members’ condition.

The members who used to brighten up and talk about this and that during meetings were quiet.

Not only that, their eyes looked somewhat dead too.

“Hmm… what should we do…”

Thanks to the occasional interjections, on the surface it looks like everyone’s thinking about song selection, but well.

The interjections have no soul.

Still, after spending about a week together 24/7 eating, sleeping, and living together, I can roughly read their thoughts.

‘Their minds are elsewhere.’

Everyone looked very troubled. I closed my mouth with a feeling of despair.

The reason the members ended up in this state wasn’t just because of what happened in the auditorium.

On our way here, we had no choice but to see it. The openly prevalent discrimination.

‘How can even the number of cameras be different?’

Even back when I was Hong Yeo-eun, there were rumors about competition programs only filming trainees whose debut was predetermined or doing special reshoots.

It’s surprising that those rumors actually exist, and even more so that we’re experiencing it directly…

The decisive moment was when we encountered May Rookie again as they headed to the conference room right next to ours.

Even though we’re clearly the same participants with the same number of members, they had what seemed like three times as many cameras as us and a much more bustling atmosphere.

I don’t know if our team has few cameras or if they have many, but the members aren’t oblivious to what that means.

The members, who were already in a bad mood, completely lost their energy.

Of course, if a team has more members or is doing special content, it’s natural to have more cameras.

But May Rookie has the same number of members as us, and we’re both choosing competition songs, so why?

‘They said it was like this during the last competition too.’

It’s not just Love Me Idol. UNET has had issues with contestant discrimination every time they hold competition programs.

It was always a subtle controversy until a previous Love Me Idol contestant exposed it through YouTube, making it big news.

Nevertheless, it seems Love Me Idol and Start Plan aren’t particularly different.

Will these petty disappointing incidents continue to happen?

“Sigh…”

I let out a short sigh filled with lament and spoke in a gentle voice.

“Shouldn’t we focus now?”

Being disappointed with the production staff is unavoidable, but staying dejected in this atmosphere would just waste time.

“Ah.”

“Hey! You need to focus!”

The members who were caught spacing out startled and looked up.

“Ah, I was thinking about what song we should do…”

“Does anyone have any good songs in mind?”

“Hmm…”

What song would be good? If it were our own songs, I have quite a few in mind that I thought of during filming breaks, but choosing someone else’s song is really difficult.

Especially a song by a team we don’t know well.

If only I had formed some decent impression of May Rookie or had some conversations with them.

The only conversation we had was that one-sided request-like thing we heard in the auditorium earlier.

As for impressions, I only saw their stage once during the first competition.

They weren’t a team that left a strong impression on me internally or externally like I Meet You or U&DA.

My only impression of May Rookie was that they’re a skilled team from a major entertainment company.

‘But I can’t just choose anything randomly either.’

If I choose just any song without considering May Rookie, it might look pathetic.

To make it look like I chose honestly without tricks, after careful consideration…

What kind of song can only May Rookie perform?

Would it be better to choose a song by other SU artists?

It was when everyone was deep in thought.

“Everyone, could you focus here for a moment?”

The writer who had been quietly watching the filming gathered our attention with a quiet voice.

“We have a gift to deliver to you.”

In the writer’s hand was a pink card envelope with the gold-lettered words [Special Gift] engraved on it.

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