The Trashy PD Has To Survive as an Idol - Chapter 219

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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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219

Kang Yi-chae considered himself a pretty decent person.

Moreover, he was living a rather comfortable life.
Of course, to reach this point, he’d had to endure hardship and adversity, accumulating hatred and rage toward the world, but now he was living with a certain authenticity.

“Brother!! What are you thinking about??”
“How delicious the ice cream the Maknae put in the freezer was.”
“M-my ice cream?!”

To reiterate, he ‘himself’ believed that.
Decent looks, respectable talent, sharp intellect.
From birth, he’d lacked very little.

‘But it’s a bit boring.’

Complete satisfaction had led to ennui.
Yet because he was skilled at concealment, he could maintain a wise attitude toward life while living a tedious, hollow existence.
Then, into his seemingly smooth life, one remarkably conspicuous person appeared.

“Noel, are you having a happy day today?”
“….”
“Aha, I’m doing well too.”

It was none other than Seo Ho-yoon—someone who, for Noel’s sake, would resort to third-person speech, pet names, anything at all, laying on shameless affectation about ten centimeters thick across his face.
Just moments ago, this same person had sprawled across the sofa, refusing to answer no matter how much the members called to him. The instant the camera turned on, he was beaming brilliantly, engaging with fans.
Tired of his duplicity, Kang Yi-chae watched him with narrowed eyes. Seo Ho-yoon pulled his face away from the camera and made a silly mouth shape at him.

“What are you staring at, you brat.”

At first, this faker had seemed like a bulldozer—someone who would push forward recklessly without regard for surroundings if it served his goal.
It was entertaining, and since it was necessary for The Dun, he’d let it slide. But the guy was truly cold as metal.
Yet very rarely, there were moments when he revealed himself to be human.
Like when Jung Da-jun got injured on ‘Victory is Mine’.

“I’ll take responsibility for everything, so just come.”

As I grasped this truth, the figure known as Seo Ho-yoon gradually came into focus.

A person who threw himself into The Dun with sincerity surpassing all others.
The first to roll up his sleeves for the members’ troubles.
Yet someone who rushed to conceal everything concerning himself.

I knew, but I let Kang Yi-chae be.
I was even aware that Seo Ho-yoon engaged in all manner of schemes, but I dismissed it as something that wouldn’t harm me.

‘It’s strange, though.’

His way of treating me was peculiar too.
He seemed to cast me aside carelessly, yet when I came to my senses, he was already seeing through everything and looking after me.
I found this human type fascinating, and at the same time, I didn’t find this unfamiliar feeling entirely unpleasant.

That is, until the moment I was truly irritated.

“That bastard… Can’t you just let it slide since you’re my brother?”

During our Japan expansion, in the dormitory bathroom at the sink.
I found it rather absurd.
How could a person cough up blood without any illness?
It made no sense by my standards, yet Seo Ho-yoon’s clean medical records mocked me.
Still, I pushed that question to the back of my mind.
There was no point asking when I wouldn’t get an answer anyway—

‘He’s human too. There must be things he wants to hide.’

—that’s what I thought back then.

【Black waves crash down
My heart thrashes wildly
Am I suffocating?】

But after going through Shining Star Season 2, my thoughts shifted somewhat.
Especially that final stage. Seo Ho-yoon looked dangerously precarious.

【All the way to the end
No matter what lies ahead】

Even in that state, Seo Ho-yoon insisted on bearing everything alone, and Kang Yi-chae found himself increasingly frustrated. People were riding the wave of the controversy he’d created himself, feigning sympathy and comfort while treating others’ misfortune as entertainment. Yi-chae was genuinely, utterly furious.

At the same time, he revised his perception of Seo Ho-yoon—someone he’d believed only took on what he could handle.

‘Our sub-vocalist.’

Seo Ho-yoon was truly, absolutely insane.

Not just insane—you needed a profanity as an adjective just to properly describe his level of madness.
Even while destroying himself, he never asked for or relied on help from anyone around him.
It was around this point that Kang Yi-chae realized something.
If he kept going like this, he’d cause a real accident.

After that, Kang Yi-chae suppressed his anger and observed Seo Ho-yoon more carefully, experimenting with what might reach him.
Rushing things would only ruin them.
When Ho-yoon wore a displeased expression, Yi-chae would slip over and poke at him. Since he always responded, Yi-chae found some reassurance in that.
But through various experiences, Kang Yi-chae came to understand something.
Seo Ho-yoon had never told the person involved the truth—not once.

‘The beginning was better.’

Back then, he’d openly warn Kim Sung-hyun about devil’s editing or pressure Jung Da-jun to speak plainly.

What kind of change of heart had he undergone?
He always smiled smoothly in front of the members, yet somehow every problem resolved itself—and this wasn’t the first or second time it had happened.

‘Even if I say something, he won’t listen anyway.’

Then the plagiarism scandal broke.

“Yi-chae, did you really plagiarize?”

First came anger, then a hollow laugh escaped him.
But immediately after, a thought struck him—this was the perfect moment to set a trap for Seo Ho-yoon.

‘Is this an opportunity?’

Kang Yi-chae lifted his lowered head and flashed a smile toward the Management Team Staff.

“You’re talking about unreleased tracks, right?”

Perhaps.

‘An opportunity.’

I could finally correct Seo Ho-yoon’s habit.

***

“What did you say?”

Seo Ho-yoon’s already pallid complexion turned even whiter, as if he’d just heard a tasteless joke.

“What nonsense. Are you confused right now? When I searched your name, there was nothing like that.”
“Where did you search?”
“The Copyright Association.”
“That’s why it wasn’t there.”

Kang Yi-chae spoke while observing Seo Ho-yoon.

“I registered it in the United States instead.”

Only then did Seo Ho-yoon’s expression become somewhat more bearable.

“Most people don’t know about it. It’s just my habit. For personal tracks I made for practice, not for release, I registered all the copyrights in the United States. Home recordings can be copyrighted too, you know.”
“Stop lying. I searched Kang Yi-chae and found nothing.”
“I use a stage name.”
“…!!”

Kang Yi-chae spoke at a measured pace.

“I only registered the copyright in the United States, but I had no idea how to transfer it to a released track, so it took some time consulting with a lawyer. Fortunately, it’s possible.”

What the hell is this guy saying right now.
That’s exactly what was written all over Seo Ho-yoon’s face.

“It has legal force, or so they say, but realistically speaking, a lawsuit would take forever and give me a headache. Still, it should be enough to quell the controversy.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“What if I had?”
“…What?”

Kang Yi-chae’s fingers toyed with the candy wrappers scattered neatly across the table.

“If I’d announced it right away, I could’ve suppressed the controversy quickly. But it would’ve dragged on instead. Without certainty, jumping the gun like that would only cause more pain for the Noeul fans if things reversed later.”

Kang Yi-chae was just as attuned to public sentiment as Seo Ho-yoon.
In the previous situation, the more he struggled, the worse his image would become, and eventually people would naturally lose interest. The opposing composer would just repeat similar stunts as time passed.
The response wasn’t delayed. He was waiting for the right moment to handle it more thoroughly.

“Now that it’s certain, I’m planning to post an official statement.”

Among all of Kang Yi-chae’s actions so far, only one had been inappropriate.
Deliberately not informing Seo Ho-yoon of these facts.

“Let me ask you back then. Why didn’t you tell me, Brother?”
“…There was no need for you to know.”
“It’s my matter though?”

For a moment, Seo Ho-yoon had no answer.

“Be honest. If I’d told you back then, wouldn’t you have done the opposite of sharing your plan with me? Wouldn’t you have just hidden things even more tightly, thinking ‘I wasn’t thorough enough in concealing this’?”
“….”

Through time spent with Seo Ho-yoon, Kang Yi-chae had come to understand something deeply.
This man could never be persuaded through reasonable conversation.
He was the type who only understood after experiencing it firsthand.
So just as Seo Ho-yoon had used himself to bait Lim Hyun-sung, Kang Yi-chae had likewise put himself on the line to bait Seo Ho-yoon.

“…Why did you do that?”
“You did the same thing.”

Kang Yi-chae answered plainly.

“I’m not saying I’ll get even with you or anything like that. I just wanted to let my brother know.”
“….”
“If we had opened up and talked from the beginning, we could have resolved this faster.”

We might have been able to suppress it more quickly while still drawing attention.
Just off the top of my head, there were several methods Kang Yi-chae could think of. Among them were approaches that wouldn’t have required involving Chung Beom at all.
The same went for me, but Seo Ho-yoon, who was more seasoned in these matters, would have even more options.
Seo Ho-yoon closed his eyes tightly for a moment, then opened them, his brow furrowed as he roughly ran his hand through his hair.

“Honestly, I made a mistake.”

Kang Yi-chae lowered his gaze slightly, pressed his lips together firmly, then slowly parted them.

“I didn’t know you’d go this far for me.”

If Kang Yi-chae had known Lim Hyun-sung would be involved, he wouldn’t have hidden it from Seo Ho-yoon.
He’d sensed that he would contact her, but he never expected such a bold method to be employed.

From the start, Kang Yi-chae couldn’t comprehend it.
Why would Lim Hyun-sung, blessed with innate talent, commit such a mistake? In the end, she was bearing the full consequences of it.

‘The Composer isn’t someone I need to worry about.’

Chung Beom, who moved forward with unwavering resolve rather than succumbing to despair, was strong.
The other members were the same. Though they stumbled for a moment, they kept walking forward without pause.
But Seo Ho-yoon… I’m not sure about him.

He was a runaway locomotive with a broken brake lever.
He would ram headlong into anyone who dared show thorns to The Dun, indifferent to his own body breaking in the process.

That’s why Kang Yi-chae wanted to convey it all the more.
That there would come a time when you too would need the help of others.

“Thank you for clearing my name. The copyright issue should be wrapped up soon, so I’ll discuss it through my lawyer.”

Kang Yi-chae stood up and spoke in a quiet voice.

“But you made a mistake too, didn’t you, brother?”

It was referring to Lim Hyun-sung’s situation.
I said nothing.
After watching me for a moment, Kang Yi-chae smiled slightly and left the work studio.
Left alone, I threw away the tissue I’d been holding to my nose and collapsed into the chair where Kang Yi-chae had been sitting just moments before.

“…Damn.”

Throughout Kang Yi-chae’s entire story, I kept replaying where everything had gone wrong.
I picked up one of the candies that Kang Yi-chae had been fiddling with earlier.
Then I noticed a small piece of paper folded inside like a scab.

[Hyung, I’m still grateful and sorry
♡When I get the settlement money, I’ll give it to you, don’t be mad♡
-From the pretty, handsome, and lovable Yi-chae]

“…Damn, the student surpasses the master.”

It seemed like something he’d do after learning I chewed candy instead of smoking.
At this point, I could only laugh.
I unwrapped a candy and popped it into my mouth.

“My head’s spinning. That’s impressive, really.”

Knowing this betrayal stemmed from affection, I couldn’t say anything more.
Lost in thought, I turned on my phone and found a contact.

[Lim Hyun-sung]

After hesitating for a moment, I sent a text.

[Me: Composer]
[Me: Are you very angry?]

Surprisingly, the reply came quickly.

Lim Hyun-sung: Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck.

Nothing but middle fingers.

[Lim Hyun-sung: Honestly, I wanted to ignore you for about half a year]
[Lim Hyun-sung: But I can’t help it—I was wrong first]

As I was thinking about how to respond, another message arrived.

[Lim Hyun-sung: Female trait #1]
[Lim Hyun-sung: Admits her own mistakes well]

“What is this?”

Where did she pick up such a strange habit?
Since Lim Hyun-sung’s condition didn’t seem too bad, I shoved my phone into my pocket and was about to head back to the dormitory when it vibrated again.

[Lim Hyun-sung: Male trait #1]
[Lim Hyun-sung: Seo Ho-yoon]

Seo Ho-yoon laughed for a long time looking at her.

There was no helping it.
This time, it was his complete defeat.

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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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