The Gates Opened on the First Day of Debut - Chapter 44

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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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The Gate Burst Open on My Debut Day (44)
“Pardon?”
What was he asking me to do…?
What in the world was he talking about?
“Wait, please. Give me a moment to think.”
Kim Junwoo nodded readily.
‘So… if I become the center of Winter Boys, he’s saying he’ll give me Jiyu’s contact information?’
No, this made no sense whatsoever. Absolutely not. Never.
If anyone should be center, it should be Han Theo or Yoo Sung—or Kang Hae-soo, who actually wanted the position.
I had no justification for being center.
But I desperately needed Jiyu’s contact information.
‘I boasted in front of Seo Ijae that I’d handle it somehow…’
Honestly, if Seo Ijae couldn’t overcome his trauma, I’d need to consider other options.
Changing the arranger, or changing the center position…
‘Ugh, my head’s going to explode.’
Sigh.
I exhaled a deep, heavy sigh that bubbled up from the depths of my chest.
“Have you decided?”
“Yes.”
I decided not to overthink this.
I’d simply act on what my heart wanted.
“I’m sorry, but I’ll have to decline your offer.”
“Hmm?”
“Because Lee Jae being center is more important than composer Jiyu’s contact information.”
I didn’t need Jiyu’s contact information.
Well, not that I didn’t need it—I really did need it—but I could give it up.
I could ask someone else besides Kim Junwoo, or find another way, and somehow obtain it regardless.
‘I could get it somehow… right?’
My eyes drifted toward Kim Junwoo’s pants pocket where his phone was.
Jiyu’s contact information was right there in front of me.
I squeezed my eyes shut and barely resisted the temptation.
“Please forget I made that request.”
I bowed my head slightly and turned to leave.
“Wait.”
Kim Junwoo grabbed me as I tried to exit the Judge’s Lounge.
“Take it.”
Kim Junwoo tossed something toward me.
Startled, I fumbled before barely catching it.
What Kim Junwoo had thrown was a phone.
The phone he’d shown me earlier.
“W-why are you…?”
I couldn’t immediately grasp the situation.
I stared blankly at Kim Junwoo’s phone resting in my palm.
“You can borrow it.”
“Huh?”
“You said you needed it. Jiyu’s contact info is in here. The password is 1125. Nexus’s debut date.”
“No… yes?”
“It’s a secondary phone, so it’s fine. Oh, but don’t let anyone find out. If word gets out that I lent a trainee my phone, it’ll cause problems.”
Regardless of my confusion, Kim Junwoo rattled on without pause, saying whatever he needed to say.
“Um… you’re not doing that center thing, right?”
“I know. Kim Chowol said he wasn’t going to do it.”
“Then why are you lending me this?”
“Do you not want it?”
“No, it’s not that I don’t want it…”
Maybe he’d change his tune later.
Though Kim Junwoo didn’t seem like the type to pull something so petty.
Or did he?
His personality could be surprisingly nasty—who knew.
“Kim Chowol, you’re quite the suspicious one.”
“Mm…”
I couldn’t deny it.
Through dozens of regressions, I’d never once seen Kim Junwoo show favoritism toward any particular trainee.
But right now, Kim Junwoo was clearly treating me as special.
The secondary phone in my palm looked like a chalice laced with poison.
“Tell on me.”
“What?”
“Report me. To the PD.”
“Report what…?”
“If I ever try anything improper with you using the excuse of lending you this phone, tell Jang PD about it.”
Was he seriously encouraging me to snitch on him right now?
What kind of absurd person does this?
“I don’t actually mean report me. I’m just saying—don’t worry.”
“Ah, okay…”
“Anyway, don’t overthink it. I’m lending it to you with a genuinely pure heart.”
Kim Junwoo settled back onto the sofa.
“Actually, I thought you’d refuse.”
“Huh?”
“When I think about it, Winter Boys… the center for that song should really be someone from Winter Boys.”
If he already knew I’d refuse and was going to give me the contact anyway, why make that proposal in the first place?
I grumbled silently to myself.
“Kim Chowol must have thought the same thing I did. What Jang PD wants is… for a Winter Boys member to be the center.”
Ugh.
Hit right where it hurt, I squeezed my eyes shut.
“Anyway, thanks for letting me use the spare phone. I’ll return it.”
“Of course, thank you.”
“I’m looking forward to the performance.”
Kim Junwoo, leaning back against the sofa, waved his hand at me playfully.
I bowed my head and left the Judge’s Lounge.
* * *
I was now in the Judge’s Private Restroom.
There were no cameras, and hardly anyone used it, so it was perfectly quiet.
“Phew….”
I sat on the toilet seat and took a slow, deep breath.
Tap, tap, tap.
I bounced my leg roughly while staring at Kim Junwoo’s spare phone in my hand.
“The password was… 1125, right.”
Having made up my mind, I entered the password Kim Junwoo had given me.
The phone unlocked immediately.
“This guy is absolutely insane….”
Not only did he hand over his spare phone to a mere trainee, but he casually revealed the password too.
I scrolled down through the contacts, thinking I’d call Jiyu right away.
Names of idols, actors, and entertainers that any Korean would recognize flashed past rapidly.
My spine tingled, and I squeezed my eyes shut.
‘What does he think I’d do with these numbers? No, no… stop thinking about it. How would an ordinary person like me ever understand what a crazy person is thinking?’
I didn’t even glance at the other contacts and immediately tapped Jiyu’s number.
―Brrrrr.
The ringing stopped abruptly.
[“Hello?”]
“Hi there.”
A slightly husky female voice came through.
[“Um… who is this? This is Junwoo’s phone, but….”]
The woman on the other end sounded flustered at my greeting.
“I borrowed the phone from Junwoo to call you. My name is Kim Chowol. I’m an idol trainee.”
[“A trainee? Junwoo lent his phone to a trainee?”]
“Yes, haha….”
Jiyu asked again in disbelief.
[“That’s absolutely ridiculous. Junwoo lending his phone to a trainee instead of the members.”]
After I said “Yes, yes, he did lend it to me” about five times, Jiyu finally accepted reality.
[“Kim Chowol? I’ll just call you Chowol. What did you call for, Chowol? You even borrowed the senior’s phone.”]
“Winter Boys… you know them, right?”
Since time was running short, I got straight to the point.
[“Winter Boys… you know them.”]
“I reached out because I wanted to ask you about Winter Boys’ debut track, Winter Boys.”
I swallowed hard, my throat dry.
I couldn’t predict how Jiyu would react.
She might readily agree to my request, or she might call me presumptuous and hang up immediately.
‘As long as it’s not the worst-case scenario… as long as it’s not the worst-case scenario….’
The worst case being that Jiyu and Hwang Min-woo were accomplices.
It was possible that Jiyu had actively cooperated in sabotaging Seo Ijae’s composition.
[“What do you want to know?”]
“I’m curious about what happened between Seo Ijae and Hwang Min-woo during the production of Winter Boys.”
[“Seo Ijae and Hwang Min-woo… it’s been a while since I’ve heard those names.”]
Jiyu seemed to be recalling memories from the past.
[“Why are you curious about that?”]
“That’s….”
[“Difficult to explain, right? Well, if you could’ve said anything, you would’ve done it already.”]
“I apologize.”
[“You don’t need to apologize. It’s just… I’ve been bothered by it too.”]
“What?”
[“Lee Jae, I mean Seo Ijae.”]
The moment I heard Seo Ijae’s name, I exhaled a quiet sigh of relief.
At least the probability of Jiyu and Hwang Min-woo being accomplices seemed low.
[“The fact that you only mentioned those two names tells me you already know roughly what happened.”]
“Yes, I understand that Hwang Min-woo sabotaged Seo Ijae’s composition.”
[“That’s right.”]
Jiyu answered decisively.
Hearing the confirmation felt both relieving and unsettling.
[“He sabotaged it… yes, he definitely sabotaged it.”]
“What exactly happened?”
[“Well, where should I start explaining this….”]
Jiyu, who had been thinking for a moment, began speaking carefully.
[“It all started from Min Woo’s greed.”]
* * *
Hwang Min-woo was greedy.
He became a trainee in the Idol Industry because of that greed.
Perfect looks, money, popularity, and fame.
The idols glittering on Television possessed everything Hwang Min-woo desired.
But Hwang Min-woo lacked talent to match his ambition.
His face was closer to that of an actor than an idol, and his singing and dancing abilities were nothing exceptional.
He had no particular charm or special abilities to compensate.
‘Damn it….’
A small entertainment agency that barely made the cut.
Hwang Min-woo had managed to squeeze into the debut lineup through sheer blood, sweat, and tears, but he was beginning to feel the limits of his situation.
‘What kind of group name is Winter Boys? Winter Boys, seriously….’
Could he even walk around with his head held high?
The agency president had no sense, and the employees were puppets who did whatever the president told them to do.
If the president hadn’t meddled in operations, and if there had been at least a few competent staff members…
At the very least, the group name and concept wouldn’t have turned out like this.
‘This is hopeless, really.’
I could already see Winter Boys’ future unfolding before me.
For someone like me—with mediocre looks and mediocre skills—the only way to succeed was to ride on the group’s popularity.
But at this rate, we’d all sink together.
“I heard self-produced idols are popular these days….”
With Nexus’s success, K-POP was now swept up in a self-produced craze.
Whenever something was labeled as self-produced, people naturally paid more attention to it.
Of course, if the song was mediocre, it would only shine briefly before tumbling down the slope into obscurity.
‘Does anyone in our debut lineup know how to compose… no, never mind.’
If another member excelled and the group succeeded because of them, that would sting.
I knew I needed to ride on the group’s popularity to succeed, yet I hated the idea of the group doing well because of another member’s talent.
It was a contradictory feeling.
But Hwang Min-woo didn’t think there was anything wrong with him or that he was a bad person.
‘The group is one thing, but my own success is what matters most.’
Still, it would be nice to have that self-produced idol label….
Lying on the practice room floor, I’d been thinking about this for a while.
Then I heard an unfamiliar melody from somewhere.
“Huh?”
The captivating melody that caught my ear made me snap my eyes open.
“Oh… s-sorry, Min Woo….”
Seo Ijae was sitting with his back pressed against the practice room wall, holding an MP3 player.
The earbuds weren’t properly inserted, so the song was leaking out.
“Did I wake you? I’m really sorry….”
“You….”
Seo Ijae apologized nervously to Hwang Min-woo.
Hwang Min-woo alternated his gaze between Seo Ijae and the MP3 player he was holding.
Seo Ijae kept glancing at Hwang Min-woo, unsure if he was still uncomfortable around him.
“What was that just now?”
The corners of Hwang Min-woo’s mouth slowly curled upward.
A delicious prey named Seo Ijae had just fallen before a greedy predator.

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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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