The Trashy PD Has To Survive as an Idol - Chapter 217

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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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217

“Well, well.”

Lim Hyun-sung’s face, which I hadn’t seen in a while, looked somewhat haggard.

“How does such a precious person end up in such a shabby place?”
“Come on, it’s the precious person who came to this shabby place.”

The California buzz must have worn off completely—Lim Hyun-sung’s exhausted face radiated sharp, prickly energy. The whole Kang Yi-chae plagiarism controversy seemed to have both angered her and struck a nerve.
It seemed like the plagiarism controversy surrounding Kang Yi-chae this time made me angry, but at the same time, it felt like he’d touched a sore spot.

“That crazy bastard, seriously. Get out here.”

As soon as I entered the Work Studio, I habitually opened the window first, but there was a strange smell that felt different from usual.

“Spooky, right? I switched to an electronic cigarette. For my precious lungs.”
“If you really cared, you’d just quit altogether.”
“Are you trying to keep poking at my sore spots?”
“Do you want me to keep hitting your sore spots?”

Lim Hyun-sung grumbled as she propped her feet up on the table and gnawed at her nails. Empty bottles lined the area beside her feet.

“Seo Ho-yoon, cut out the nonsense and let’s get straight to the point.”

Lim Hyun-sung removed her hand from her mouth and roughly brushed her hair back.

“He seems a bit out of it.”
“…Huh? Yi-chae?”
“…Huh? Yi-chae?”

Though she had asked the question herself, Lim Hyun-sung’s eyes widened in surprise at an answer she hadn’t anticipated at all.

“W-well, that’s kind of unexpected.”
“You’re the one who asked, and now you’re giving me that reaction?”
“No… I mean, you know how he is. That guy’s mental fortitude is practically an alloy.”

Kang Yi-chae was the type who rarely wavered under ordinary circumstances—his composure was practically legendary.
I settled into the chair in front of the computer positioned at one corner of my work studio.

‘Something feels off, though.’

His complete lack of agitation bothered me. There was something strange about his demeanor.
I searched the Copyright Association database for Kang Yi-chae’s name, but the only registered work was the fan song released in September.
As I tapped my fingers against the desk, trying to piece together what I might have missed, Lim Hyun-sung began chewing her lip.

“Have you heard that shameless bastard’s song?”
“Yeah, I did. It’s identical to our fan song.”

I answered dismissively and pulled up SNS to assess the situation.

[Damn, we’re the ones who got plagiarized and this is what happens? I can’t even laugh]
[Where did all those bastards who were ready to strike go? After they ganged up on him, they just slapped a plagiarism label on the kid and ran away. Humanity is dead]

[I’m staying neutral, I don’t know]

└But there’s evidence, so how is that neutral?
└└There’s no evidence he plagiarized either, it could just be a similar song. And it’s not even a released track?]

[We need to clean up the search results right now, looking at it makes me want to explode,,,,,,,,,,,]

[But is it really plagiarism? It’s similar, but there’s no concrete evidence of plagiarism, right? It’s not even a released song??

└It’s way too identical for that]

As expected, the Noeul fans were already discussing the unreleased track and proclaiming Kang Yi-chae’s innocence.
However, with the copyright registration nowhere to be found and the negative image surrounding Kang Yi-chae’s genius having grown so massive, it was painfully obvious that no matter how much the fans shouted, their voices would be drowned out.

‘Maybe I was being oversensitive. Kang Yi-chae’s mental state should be shaken by this.’

So many people were pointing fingers at him for something he didn’t do—how unfair must that feel?

Scrolling through the internet responses again only solidified my conviction.
Right now, there were two problems.
I’d missed the appropriate moment to counter the narrative, and public opinion had hardened into criticism of Kang Yi-chae.
In situations like this, there’s one solution.

‘Reframe the narrative.’

Make this incident be reinterpreted.

“It’s a hundred percent what Kang Yi-chae went through. The composer who started the conflict with him—that bastard’s a repeat offender. He’s plagiarized phrases from my compositions too, cutting out a measure or two here and there.”
“Really? Have you filed a lawsuit?”
“Hah, you don’t know much about this, do you? Plagiarism lawsuits are tricky. Even if you drag it to court, it just drags on and on.”

Despite my appearance, I was a former long-term trainee survival program PD—there was no way I wouldn’t know about copyright and plagiarism issues.
Whether it was lawsuits or anything else, I already knew all about it.
I was simply asking to refresh Lim Hyun-sung’s memory on the matter.

“Hmm.”

I researched the opposing composer and stacked information methodically in my mind while letting Lim Hyun-sung’s words go in one ear and out the other.

“I too!! tried to calm down first and understand it maturely. Yeah, people can plagiarize in their lifetime….”
“….”
“…is that bullshit or what? If someone commits a crime, they should damn well pay the price for it! I’m regretting it like crazy too!”

Watching Lim Hyun-sung grind her teeth, trembling at the mere mention of plagiarism as her own dark history surfaced, I mentally rehearsed what to say next.

‘She’s walking right into it herself.’

This was the perfect moment to gently coax her along.

“Composer, but… when something like this happens, do you usually talk directly with the other composer?”
“It depends on the situation.”
“Is that so? We’re coordinating through the company, but communication isn’t going well.”

As I lowered my eyebrows slightly and murmured, Lim Hyun-sung’s expression hardened.

“This bastard’s at it again. Just ask me directly.”
“Haha?”
“Wait. Let me show you what a mature solution looks like from this Composer.”

Lim Hyun-sung clicked her tongue and pulled out her phone.

“Don’t worry. I won’t bring up Kang Yi-chae.”
“Ooh.”

I deliberately raised both thumbs up for show.
Lim Hyun-sung was quick to pick up on things, which was nice.

“Ahem, ahem. Hi there, it’s Chung Beom.”

Not long after making the call, she greeted them loudly and switched to speakerphone.

[…Ah, yes. Hello, senior.]
“I was calling because I wanted to discuss that song of yours for a moment.”
[Pardon?]

The other party responded with an uncomfortable tone.

‘Straight to the point.’

With my arms crossed, I watched Chung Beom’s mature solution unfold.

“That Survive Mensol song of yours, see, compared to my song—.”
[—I don’t have anything to discuss with you, senior.]
“What?”

But what came back was a complete reversal.
The other end laughed as if dumbfounded.

[Wow, seriously. I never thought Lim Hyun-sung would say something like this to me.]
“…What?”
[Did you make so much money you forgot your own mistakes? Or are you trying to stir up another controversy?]

Lim Hyun-sung’s face hardened instantly.

‘It seems it’s still haunting me.’

Once a stigma is branded, it follows you for life.
Whenever the other party brought up plagiarism, Lim Hyun-sung couldn’t refute it, no matter how angry she became.
She wanted to believe she’d paid the price by listing her mistake as a co-author and surrendering all the income, but the truth was it hadn’t ended there.
If the plagiarism issue surfaced even once more, Lim Hyun-sung would find herself in trouble again.

[Besides, that was from so long ago, why bring it up now….]
“Hey, what the hell are you babbling about?”
[Is it because of Kang Yi-chae? I heard you two were close. Did you call me because of that?]

Lim Hyun-sung was struck by the accurate accusation and could only gape wordlessly.

[You didn’t even register the copyright. If anything, isn’t it you who plagiarized from me?]
“…!”

The other end made a scoffing sound. It was unmistakably a laugh of contempt.

[I’m hanging up.]

The call ended right there, and Lim Hyun-sung grabbed the back of her neck.

“What, what, what the hell is this bastard saying?”
“Right?”
“Hey! Tell that bastard to come out right now. Let’s settle this with a fight right here in this building.”

Ding!

[…Is this what you call handling things maturely?]

My thoughts exactly.
Watching Lim Hyun-sung chug half a two-liter bottle of water right there out of sheer frustration, I racked my brain for how to calm her down.
I dug through the other composer’s tracks again and even checked their StarStar profile.

“Something about the story came up.”
“What does it say?”

It was a hot story that was just posted.

“Would you like me to read it to you? ‘The development and melody may sound similar, but the chord progression is completely different. I even had to answer a phone call with pressure from my senior. Laughing emoticon.’”
“Should I read it out loud? ‘The development and melody might sound similar, but the chord progression is completely different. I even got a call with pressure from a senior. Laughing emoji.’ ”
“Aaaaahhh!”

Thankfully, they took care of laying the board.
How considerate of them to set the stage for me like this.
Even after reading the post aloud, Lim Hyun-sung didn’t seem to believe it, grabbing the monitor and reading through each character again. Her face flushed red and blue in turns.

“Composer, I think you might need it.”
“Composer, you seem to need this.”

What is an electronic cigarette?
Never mind the electronic cigarette.
Lim Hyun-sung snatched the cigarette, stuck one between her lips, and fumbled through her pockets. I picked up the lighter and kindly lit it for her, then played through each of the rival composer’s tracks one by one.

‘It’s obvious that I copied it, and I can reveal it without getting caught. ‘Something that seems appropriate for talking about an issue.’

Then one song caught my eye.

‘So, something worth catching Lim Hyun-soo.’

There was an album made using a classic melody whose copyright was lost a long time ago.
There was an album created by borrowing classical melodies whose copyrights had long expired.

“…Composer.”
“…Composer.”

And this time, I asked even though I knew.
And this time too, I asked even though I already knew the answer.
The outline of the bait was becoming clear.

“I made this by sampling this person’s classic song. Can you make a song like this?”
“This composer here made a song by sampling classical pieces. Can you really make music like that?”
“…If the copyright expired and there’s neighboring rights, then yes?”

Lim Hyun-soo looked very upset.
Lim Hyun-sung looked extremely displeased.

“…It depends on how you do it, but in any case, if the songs are different, it is very difficult to consider it as plagiarism. It may feel bad for the person who was wronged.”
“…It depends on how you approach it, but if the composition is different, it’s very ambiguous to call it plagiarism. Though I understand why the victim would be upset.”

I guess so.

“……hey.”

At that moment, Lim Hyun-soo seemed to realize the intention of the questions I had asked so far.

“Are you going to make a song using the same classic song as this guy and start a fight? On purpose? So that you don’t get caught for plagiarism?”
“You’re not seriously planning to compose a song using the exact same classical piece and start trouble over it? Deliberately? Without it even counting as plagiarism?”

Tiring!

[Wait, what are you doing?]

I ignored the system window that came up.
I ignored the System Window that appeared.

“Don’t do it. No. You may call it an issue mall, but are you crazy? Are you going to order Kang Yi-chae to do something even remotely plagiarized?”
“Don’t. You can’t. Sure, you could stir up controversy, but are you insane? You’re going to ask Kang Yi-chae to do something that looks like plagiarism right now?”
“Then who else in our team will compose? I’ll have to tell Kang Yi-chae.”
“What kind of nonsense is that? Why would he agree to that?”
“He’d listen if I asked him to.”

As soon as he said that, Lim Hyun-soo stood up.

“Seo Ho-yoon, were you shot in the head?”

Lim Hyun-soo’s anger was very short-lived. I was secretly impressed for a moment by her softness as she thought of Kang Yi-chae.

“Don’t you know that’s a handshake? He can’t do that. Why does he do that? Me too!”

Lim Hyun-soo remembered the dark history once again, grabbed the cigarette pack that was on the desk, and took out a new cigarette.
Lim Hyun-sung recalled the dark history once more, then grabbed a cigarette pack from the desk and pulled out a fresh stick.

“Composer, what should I do if that’s not the case?”

The fish was swimming in front of the bait.

“Other than this, is there any other way to bring attention to the issue?”
“Is there any other way to stir up an issue besides this?”

asked.
I asked.

“……for a moment.”

You noticed.

“You… you deliberately told me first.”

Of course.

“What am I?”
“What do you mean?”

[UNTRANSLATED LINE 287]
From the start, I’d never intended to breathe a word of plagiarism to Kang Yi-chae.

“You really want me to cause a plagiarism dispute with the other composer? If I do that, then… that issue will come up again?”

As expected, it is Lim Hyun-soo. Head turns quickly.
That’s Lim Hyun-sung for you. Her mind works fast.
Right—why else would I come to her at this moment, in this situation?
Would I ask Lim Hyun-sung to appeal to the public on my behalf, insisting that Kang Yi-chae isn’t that kind of person?

“What if I don’t do it? If I don’t, what are you going to ask Kang Yi-chae for?”

I didn’t bother to answer that question.
I didn’t bother answering that.

“Composer, do you like people that much?”

Then Lim Hyun-su kept his mouth shut and did not say anything for a long time.
At that, Lim Hyun-sung clamped her mouth shut and said nothing for a long while.
It seemed as though the shame of her exposed transgression warred against her refusal to let her student bear the burden of her sins.

[UNTRANSLATED LINE 308]

So I laughed a little.

“Again?”

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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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