The Trashy PD Has To Survive as an Idol - Chapter 25

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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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25

“You’ve really made it big, Sung Ji-won?”

Who… who was that again?
Kim Sung-hyun seemed to recognize him too, his brow furrowing slightly. Sung Ji-won greeted him calmly.

“Hello, Senior Yoo Hyuk.”
“Haha, just kidding, you punk! That’s creepy as hell.”

The man called Yoo Hyuk draped an arm around Sung Ji-won’s shoulders.
Ah, now I remembered. Today—a boy group that debuted three years ago. They had considerable recognition, probably because they were from a major agency, and I recalled they’d charted at number one a few times.
Come to think of it, if Today was from D.go, that was the major entertainment agency Sung Ji-won used to belong to.

“No matter how much earlier I debuted, it’s been years since we trained together. I was just happy to see you after so long. I’ve been hearing good things about you lately.”
“…Yeah, thanks.”

They must have been training partners back then.

“I’m really glad you made it. Honestly, your failed debut broke my heart. I kept wondering if maybe I pushed you out, if I took your spot. I worried about it a lot.”
“…Me?”
“Seeing you succeed, even if it took this long, makes me happy.”

But this bastard was subtly needling Sung Ji-won, wasn’t he?

“I hope you keep doing well. Though… it’s a game where the ending’s already been decided anyway.”

‘The ending’s already been decided?’

Before I could even decipher what he meant, Yoo Hyuk glanced sideways at Kim Sung-hyun. The way he stared—it jogged my memory. He was the one who’d stared far too long when that girl group member handed Kim Sung-hyun a note earlier.

“Your junior here should work hard too. If word gets around that you’re already getting entangled in messy situations, it won’t look good.”

‘Ah.’

Now the situation finally became crystal clear.
This man, Yoo Hyuk, had taken a liking to the girl group member earlier, but when she showed interest in Kim Sung-hyun instead, he seemed irritated.
Kim Sung-hyun, who had never done anything inappropriate, raised his eyebrows in bewilderment the moment I deliberately dropped a piece of paper to the floor with a flutter.

“Oops!”

With such an obvious display, everyone’s attention turned toward me. I quickly picked up the note again and carefully slipped it into Kim Sung-hyun’s pocket.

“Sung-hyun, keep better track of your things.”
“…Sung-hyun?”
“Look at all this falling out—what’s this, huh?”

Kim Sung-hyun stared at me with bewildered eyes. He seemed completely lost as to what I was doing. Yoo Hyuk’s gaze shifted toward Sung-hyun’s pocket.

“No matter how many you receive, you can’t just drop them everywhere like this.”
“What….”
“Oh right, you said you weren’t interested?”

I swiftly pulled the paper from Kim Sung-hyun’s pocket.

“I’ll hand this over to the Manager.”
“Hey, what is that?”
“Ah, sorry for interrupting. Kim Sung-hyun is just so careless….”

Yoo Hyuk’s eyes couldn’t seem to leave the note. I offered a friendly smile and bowed my head.

“Thank you for the advice, senior. Going forward, we won’t be swayed by such things and will work hard.”

I chuckled and waved the paper back and forth deliberately.
It was a blatant provocation. Yoo Hyuk’s expression twisted into something sinister as he caught on.
Sung Ji-won let out a hollow laugh, and Kang Yi-chae beside him turned red in the face, struggling to suppress his laughter.

“You… what’s your name?”
“Seo Ho-yoon, senior.”

I answered with a bright smile, and Yoo Hyuk stepped toward me from beside Sung Ji-won, snatching the paper away.

“You little bastard, you’ve already lost your mind? You get a few notes and think you’re something special?”

I handed it over without hesitation. A look of shock pierced into me from beside.
‘Hey, didn’t you say to watch your words at the broadcasting station?’
‘Are you insane? A note with a senior’s phone number?’
‘That’s personal information?’
That was the look they gave me.
They were probably worried the note would reach that senior and we’d get caught on camera. But I was confident.
Yoo Hyuk unfolded it with a snort.

“I’m going to pass this to that senior. You guys are already being so disrespectful and full of yourselves… go…”
“…”

Yoo Hyuk checked the folded paper and closed his mouth.

“Pardon?”
“…”
“Excuse me? What did you say?”

Because it was a receipt.
A receipt for the salad we had for breakfast.
I wasn’t crazy enough to carelessly leak personal information.

“A receipt?”

I tilted my head. Kang Yi-chae burst out laughing beside me, almost in tears.

“What is this?”
“Ah, it’s a receipt from the salad we ate this morning. Our Manager always tells us to get cash receipts whenever we buy anything.”
“…”
“But Kim Sung-hyun doesn’t know much about these things. Maybe it’s because he only practices.”
“Then what you said about not wavering earlier was…?”
“Oh, I naturally thought you were talking about dieting…”

As I answered calmly, even Sung Ji-won’s face turned red as he suppressed his laughter.
I, on the other hand, let out a sigh.
This guy’s an idol and he’s still jealous toward his junior about wanting to date…

“Senior, I’m not sure why you’re so interested in our receipts, but if you want them, feel free to take as many as you’d like.”
“So you collect cash receipts as a hobby…. That’s quite unique.”
“Maybe the salad smell soaked into the receipts smells good. …Wait, does salad even have a smell?”
“Hey, hey. You should keep thoughts like that to yourself.”

Jung Da-jun muttered seriously beside me with genuine sincerity. I stifled a laugh while pretending to scold him.
Jung Da-jun—this guy is genuinely hilarious. He’s the perfect character to use on variety shows. Especially when I need to mess with people, I should definitely bring Jung Da-jun along.

“You bastards….”

Yoo Hyuk’s face flushed red and blue. He rushed at me as if to grab my collar, but I slipped away smoothly.
If Yoo Hyuk threw a punch right here, it could actually work out perfectly for the show. I found myself oddly anticipating it.
I wish Kang Yi-chae was recording this. It was the moment Yoo Hyuk was trying to grab me.

“Hey, Seo Ho-yoon!”

A familiar voice called out. When I turned my head, Joo Woo-sung was approaching with his hand raised high.
Now that I think about it, I believe there was mention of him coming as a special MC.
Joo Woo-sung—despite being nothing special, he had top-tier recognition and prominence since his debut, so everyone around him bowed at ninety-degree angles with every step he took down the hallway. It was truly a bizarre sight.
Are you some kind of deity or something?

“What are you doing? You should greet me if you’re here.”

‘Hmm….’

It was similar to what Yoo Hyuk had said to Sung Ji-won earlier, but coming from Joo Woo-sung, it somehow felt different—oddly acceptable.

‘He’s probably trying to help.’

His overly warm tone made my skin crawl inwardly, but I broke into a wide smile anyway.

“Senior, I stopped by earlier but you weren’t there.”
“Senior? That sounds awkward. Just call me hyung like usual. And hello to you guys from The Dun.”
“Hello!”
“Have you been practicing? Did you improve from what I showed you back then?”

Joo Woo-sung chuckled and nudged me. I thought he’d completely missed the social cue….

‘This is actually helpful?’

Yoo Hyuk was nothing but dirt under Joo Woo-sung’s fingernails when it came to career experience and recognition.
Whether Yoo Hyuk had picked up some strange military discipline or not, he bowed at a ninety-degree angle to Joo Woo-sung.

“Hello, Senior Joo Woo-sung!”
“Uh, yeah.”

Joo Woo-sung glanced at him briefly, and Yoo Hyuk’s face transformed instantly as he clung to him affectionately, flaunting their connection.

“Senior, I’ve been listening to that album you gave me last time so much. I can’t tell you how much I was looking forward to hearing you’d be coming as a special MC.”

This bastard should have become an actor instead of an idol.

“Mm… yeah, yeah, thanks. Yu….”
“Yes, Senior!”
“Yu… was it Yu-hyung? Math type?”
“….”
“Workbook?”

Joo Woo-sung burst out laughing at his own joke. Classic senior humor.

“Sorry, I’m not good with kids who have forgettable faces.”

He’d been thoroughly roasted.
Yoo Hyuk’s expression crumpled for a moment before smoothing out instantly.

“…It’s Yoo Hyuk.”
“Ah.”

And with that, Joo Woo-sung turned his gaze to me. There was no way someone as famous as him wouldn’t know the name of a fairly well-known junior idol—he was deliberately ignoring him.

“Seo Ho-yoon, you’ve got some time before recording, right? Come by my waiting room later.”
“Why?”
“Why else—I want to catch up a bit. I’ve been too busy to reach out, you bastard.”

Joo Woo-sung’s acting had improved since we last met. I decided to play along, pretending to look awkward.

“Oh, I forgot. Sorry about that.”
“It’s fine. See you in a bit.”

I threw an okay sign and watched Joo Woo-sung as he walked away. Then I smiled and greeted Yoo Hyuk, whose face was dazed after taking a direct hit.
To think—a senior he’d tried to connect with was treating the guy he’d dismissed as a nobody well?
A guy like that would definitely be irritated.

“Senior, you seem quite hungry. Please make sure to eat well~.”

Go practice, you bastard.

The Dun seized the moment and rushed away from Yoo Hyuk in a flurry. Everyone was biting their teeth hard to suppress their laughter. After a while, Kim Sung-hyun quietly added a comment.

“You’re really annoying, but when you’re on our side, you’re really reliable.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment.”

***

“Oh, you’re here.”
“Right here is Mr./Ms. Shin O-gye Jung X…”
“Come in, come in.”

I walked into the waiting room that Joo Woo-sung used alone and asked.

“I did pretty well, didn’t I?”

Joo Woo-sung tore his gaze from his phone and looked at me, boasting. I let out a snort of laughter and plopped down on the sofa beside him.

“How is an MC waiting room for one person this spacious? Ours is a chicken coop.”
“I’m Joo Woo-sung.”

True enough. He’s genuinely one of South Korea’s top idols. If I reach that level, could I complete the main scenario and escape this obscure game?
I stared at him intently and pulled up his stats.

[Displaying Joo Woo-sung’s Stats.]
[Singing: A+
Dancing: S+
Entertainment: A0
???: ???
???: ???
Charm: S-]

For a moment, I was at a loss for words.

“Wow….”
“What?”
“No, I just… feel like I still have a long way to go.”
“Huh? Why?”

So to reach Joo Woo-sung’s level, I’d need to accumulate stats like him? When do I get out of this game? Can I at least escape before I turn eighty?
Having lost all motivation, I spoke in a sullen, blunt tone, and Joo Woo-sung narrowed his eyes.

“Are you being sarcastic right now?”
“I’m not.”
“Seems like you are though….”

I was genuinely impressed by your stats, you bastard.
But there was no point explaining—he wouldn’t believe me anyway.

“What is it? Why did you call me?”
“It’s awkward to talk out there, and I didn’t want to run into the White Cherry members.”
“White Cherry?”

I raised an eyebrow. Joo Woo-sung laughed awkwardly.

“I became the biggest asshole inside White Cherry.”

Right, they were dating.

“Did you break up?”
“She dumped me.”

Finally, one person escaped.
Of course, I was talking about the White Cherry side.

“These kids nowadays are seriously scary, you know? Just splashing water wasn’t enough for them—they filled a bucket from the bathroom, scooped up this much water, and threw it at me. I got absolutely soaked.”

Well, that’s fair.
I crossed my arms, staring at this legendary scumbag.

“I mean… I deserve it.”

What’s gotten into him?
Is he finally treating fans decently, or is he just covering his tracks after being blackmailed?

“Either way, half the people out there are probably my exes….”
“Hey, it’s not that bad. …Right?”

Joo Woo-sung pondered the question seriously. I ignored him.

“Anyway, that’s not why I called you. It’s something else.”
“What is it?”
“You guys are competing in a competition this time, right?”

I was about to brush it off as nothing important when my ears perked up.

“How did you know?”
“I heard from someone I know. Apparently the Entertainment Division is pushing this program pretty hard. The lineup isn’t bad at all.”

Joo Woo-sung tapped his phone as he spoke.
Shining Star seemed to gather idols with modest recognition so far. But I didn’t know the lineup was actually decent.

“Do you know who else is competing?”
“From what I know, there’s Yoo Hyuk’s Today that was giving you guys trouble earlier, Refined, and Mars?”
“Hmm….”

Today, Refined, Mars. All of them debuted 1-4 years ago. The competition is fiercer than expected. Among them, Today has overwhelmingly higher recognition. Breaking through the competition here might be difficult.

“But don’t expect to win first place.”

I lifted my head abruptly.
I thought he was saying that because of the difference in recognition, but Joo Woo-sung added calmly.

“The winner is already decided.”
“What?”
“Shining Star and Today’s agency have deep connections. They’ve already decided everything and are just running the program.”
“….”

A program with a predetermined winner, a rigged game. There were plenty of those. So that’s why Yoo Hyuk said that earlier.

‘He said the ending was already decided.’

It seems Today already knows about it.
Earlier, I’d considered whether Kang Yi-chae had recorded anything, but abandoned the thought. Yoo Hyuk’s statement alone lacked the firepower to overturn the situation. Since it was such ambiguous language, he could simply deny any such intention and that would be the end of it.
As I pondered what to do, Joo Woo-sung casually spoke up.

“This kind of thing happens all the time. That’s why I’m telling you not to work too hard and then get disappointed.”
“….”
“Still, from what I hear, they haven’t decided on second or third place yet. You won’t be able to appear on programs where you compete with other groups after placing first, but it should be quite useful for raising awareness.”

Seeing that I was disappointed, Joo Woo-sung continued.

“Thank you.”
“Huh?”
“Thank you for telling me. Can I share this with the members and the company?”
“…Yeah, everyone pretty much knows anyway. Just don’t mention that it came from me.”
“Got it.”

Seeing that my spirits hadn’t dampened one bit, Joo Woo-sung raised his eyebrows. A look that said, ‘See this guy?’
But there was something more important on my mind.

“Who’s the PD?”
“All of a sudden?”
“Yes. Have you heard who the Shining Star PD is?”

According to the CEO, they were still searching. Joo Woo-sung frowned at the unexpected question.

“I don’t remember that much. Why?”
“It’s important. Could you look into it for me?”
“Well, looking into it shouldn’t be a problem…. Wait.”

Joo Woo-sung trailed off before suddenly warning me.

“Seo Ho-yoon, you’re not planning to go find the PD and blackmail them, are you?”
“As if.”
“I’d need some reason to trust you.”

While entertainers could be criticized endlessly even while doing nothing, PDs were difficult to undermine no matter how much dirt you dug up. I needed to find a different approach.

‘Rather than blackmail, something more… enticing.’

I was pondering this internally when Joo Woo-sung shrugged his shoulders.

“Anyway, I’ll look into it and let you know. If there’s any information about the Program, I’ll dig up more for you.”
“Why… are you being so helpful?”

Joo Woo-sung was being so generous to a blackmailer that he’d be called a pushover. Unable to understand his reasoning, I asked him directly, and he simply grumbled.

“Even when I’m being nice, you’re suspicious of me, you bastard….”
“I’m joking. I’m grateful, so consider it as me owing you a favor.”
“What good is a debt from some obscure nobody like you?”
“Well, who knows how life will turn out?”

It was fine by me if he helped. Both Joo Woo-sung and Lim Hyun-sung turned out to be softer than I expected.
My attention was already focused on Shining Star. And for good reason—a new Quest window had appeared.

[Quest Arrived!
Claim 1st place on ‘Shining Star’.
Success: Obtain Hidden Trait, All Stats +50
Failure: Unable to release next album for 3 years]

I needed to orchestrate a new game.

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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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