Top Girl Group Scenario Rewritten with My Own Hands - Chapter 63

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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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Episode 63
Something felt off, somehow.
That was what Lee Han-byul sensed.
Evergreat, our group, should be sailing smoothly. But why did Seo Ji-on always carry that faint anxiety and impatience with her?
Lee Han-byul simply loved to sing. She loved it so much that she kept singing steadily, joining a children’s choir recruited by a local broadcasting station.
Simple children’s songs weren’t bad, but after graduating from the children’s choir and beginning to sing popular songs on her own, singing felt like the only thing that mattered. So the moment she became a middle schooler, she recklessly entered youth music competitions.
And so she’d ended up here. Lee Han-byul harbored no regrets. The dancing she attempted for the first time was incredibly difficult, but since it was music-related work, she managed it despite the challenge.
Because her experience differed from others’, Lee Han-byul generally trusted what adults said—and that made CEO Lim Gyeong-taek’s harsh criticism a tremendous shock. In a negative way.
But she could endure it. Because it was true that she was still inexperienced.
— Why did he have to say that? You’re doing more than well enough, our Han-byul.
— I’ve never actually met the CEO, but sometimes you get these kinds of people. Old-fashioned folks who think idols aren’t singers, and that they rank lower than other entertainers, stuff like that.
— Or maybe he wants to pull that MegaStar K judge thing, like “There’s no soul in your singing. No spirit either—are you just messing around?”
So Seo Ji-on’s very existence was a shock too. This time, a positive one.
Maybe it was because she was also an “adult”? The one who taught her to sing, who refuted CEO Lim Gyeong-taek’s words, and who ultimately got her praised by him—Seo Ji-on was truly a solid, dependable presence.
And so Seo Ji-on became lodged in Lee Han-byul’s memory as someone both kind and unshakeable. Whenever something new arose, she’d show a moment of bewilderment before producing a solution like magic—a milestone of sorts in Lee Han-byul’s seventeen years of life.
But at some point, that milestone had begun to waver.
‘Around when the Debut Promotion ended…’
Yes. Things were definitely fine until the Debut Promotion. Even if she showed moments of hesitation sometimes…
“Byul.”
“…Oh, y-yes.”
At some point, the Vocal Room door had swung open.
“I knocked several times. Is something wrong?”
“No, it’s just…”
“Just?”
Seo Ji-on—who had pushed Lee Han-byul into the depths of troubled thought—pressed further, her expression and tone carrying that familiar air of seeming fine while somehow not.
“You haven’t been coming back to the Dormitory much lately, and I was wondering if something was wrong…”
“Ah. The Album preparation is hectic—I’m basically staying up at the Company night after night. You were worried?”
“I was… worried. Aren’t you exhausted?”
“Sure, it’s tough. But does that mean I won’t do the Comeback?”
“N-no, of course not…”
Seo Ji-on really did seem unbothered.
The thought crept back in—maybe she’d been imagining it. Maybe Seo Ji-on really was fine after all. It certainly looked that way.
But…
“Anyway, that settles it. Time’s up and you weren’t at practice, so I came looking. Let’s go.”
“Oh! Yes…!”
Lee Han-byul sprang to her feet.
Worry could wait—right now, she was the problem!
***
Late November.
Evergreat’s third single Album promotion had ended.
As she watched confetti falling during the final pre-recorded performance, Kang Su-ah forced her lips into a smile. She knew her smile was a significant help in attracting fans.
— We’re doing one more Comeback right before the awards season, around late October or early November. I’ve already worked it out with the staff.
— Isn’t that too tight? What about the composition?
— I’ll handle the Composition.
— You…
— It’s fine. If I thought it wasn’t doable, I wouldn’t have brought it up in the first place.
It was May, wasn’t it? When the first additional Comeback schedule was locked in, Kang Su-ah felt some frustration. Not toward the staff, but toward the Leader—Seo Ji-on, who was handling Team Producing on top of everything else.
The way Seo Ji-on had nearly been hospitalized after the Debut Promotion ended due to conditioning issues, and the faint sense of hurry she’d been radiating ever since.
Kang Su-ah suspected the staff felt it too. Even so, Seo Ji-on must have had valid reasons for her decision.
They hadn’t known each other for very long, but having shared a dorm room for one semester, Kang Su-ah could see that Seo Ji-on wasn’t the type to spare her own body.
Even while juggling multiple short-term part-time jobs for spending money, she never let her exam grades slip. And to manage that, she treated staying up all night as if it were nothing.
Sleep has its reasons for everyone, she’d say. Kang Su-ah, who believed that sleep was enormously important for the quality of human life, couldn’t understand that choice at all.
Since Kang Su-ah was the type to think that people have their own ways of living, there’d been no real friction so far. But from when they began Debut preparations until now, the number of nights Seo Ji-on spent in the Studio supposedly doing Composition work had only increased—and Kang Su-ah still didn’t understand it.
That wasn’t to say Seo Ji-on was wrong or bad. Everyone has their own reasons for living the way they do.
So Kang Su-ah had learned to think “I see” and move on, even when she didn’t fully understand.
“Since this was the final broadcast, everyone’s posting on Univers. I have to stop by the Company, so I’ll go in and rest first.”
“Going to the Studio again?”
“Yeah. I need to finish the VMA Arrangement for real this time—like, the actual final final version. And I’ve got to practice the opening too.”
But everything about how Seo Ji-on pushed herself to work when she clearly needed rest left Kang Su-ah feeling oddly unsettled. It bred something close to resentment.
Was it because the strain showed so plainly? Why was she burning herself like this for the first year? The answer hovered at the edge of her awareness, yet Kang Su-ah didn’t want to understand it any deeper.
As Seo Ji-on got out of the car and shut the door, a sigh threatened to spill out. In the end, Kang Su-ah didn’t throw a single proper objection. Not before Debut, not since.
She couldn’t just barge in. Even though she knew what Seo Ji-on wanted, she played dumb—being the decent colleague who read the room just right. If she joked around half-seriously, Seo Ji-on could handle it, but genuine worry would make her deeply uncomfortable.
There was a reason why she and Seo Ji-on got along well: Kang Su-ah knew when to let things slide without pressing her discomfort into words.
Kang Su-ah was satisfied with how things were between them. She just wished Seo Ji-on didn’t look so rushed about certain things.
And because Kang Su-ah had a sense of what was driving that rush, she couldn’t talk her out of it.
Kang Su-ah, who knew internet and Fandom culture reasonably well, understood perfectly that establishing yourself and maintaining momentum mattered enormously in the first year.
She also knew that a carefully-groomed rookie from a major corporation debuting around the same time posed a real threat to their position.
But… weren’t we doing pretty well for someone at a similar level? The question genuinely puzzled her.
They’d already won two Rookie Artist Awards, and would almost certainly secure another. This Comeback, which she’d worried about schedule-wise, had been met with solid public reception and strong Album sales—they might even win the Rookie Artist Award at VMA.
Kang Su-ah wouldn’t claim to know Seo Ji-on deeply. But there was one thing she could say with absolute certainty: Seo Ji-on systematically underestimated her own achievements.
She was someone who didn’t trust her gut sense of public sentiment—only exact numbers and concrete results.
Yes, that was a strength of sorts. But taken too far, it became a weakness. That was Kang Su-ah’s assessment.
Results… if only the results would come in.
Kang Su-ah was satisfied with the team as it stood.
But…
She worried about one of them.
So Kang Su-ah wished the team could do even better.
***
December. VMA.
“The 202X VMA Female Rookie Artist of the Year Award.”
Seo Ji-on lifted her head with an expressionless face.
‘Probably won’t happen. Not this time either.’
If things went as expected.
VMA hadn’t changed. V-Net was still close with P&N, and when the margins were tight, they gave the award to P&N.
Well… I had my own shortcomings too.
Seo Ji-on was under no illusions about that.
“The recipient is…”
Why drag it out like this? Was the gap narrow enough that they were actually in contention?
They’d actually closed the Album sales gap considerably. They hadn’t overtaken P&N, but they’d come much closer than before.
“Ashcode.”
But, yeah. This is how it goes.
Seo Ji-on had done her best. She’d lived through that awful situation of suddenly being sent back in time twice, and she’d still given her all.
She knew life wasn’t a drama where doing your best solved everything, but even so, Seo Ji-on had poured out everything she could.
That didn’t mean it was foolish—but life was ridiculous. You could do your absolute best and still end up being foolish…
Seo Ji-on maintained just enough of an expression to avoid controversy and applauded the Idol in front of her.
Then she turned her head slightly to look at Kang Su-ah beside her.
“Brighten your expression.”
“What’s wrong with my face? You smile!”
“I am smiling. Your face like that is going to cause a scandal.”
“…Seriously.”
As Seo Ji-on smiled playfully, Kang Su-ah slowly returned one.
It was too obvious, wasn’t it? Even the legendary Kang Su-ah got caught worrying about someone else. She’d always managed to seem indifferent and tactless, which was why we worked so well together.
Ding!
[▷ Mission (re): Win the Female Rookie Artist of the Year Award at VMA!]
[……]
[! Mission Failed !]
That System alarm sound—the one she’d never gotten used to—pierced her ear.
[Loading……]
[……]
Sound around her began cutting out one by one. Strength drained from her body, and a loading screen eclipsed her vision.
So we’re doing this again.
This was something she’d anticipated to some degree.
Apart from the shock and disorientation, she needed to have already thought through what “doing this again” meant. Especially since the moment she’d realized this attempt would be difficult too.
‘Mission Failed’ carries the Penalty of HP reduction. “Doing this again” is less a Penalty and more like…, an opportunity?
There needed to be a distinction. A retry felt more like a “chance to fix it” rather than a Penalty. The System’s official Penalty descriptions even drew a different line.
But there was no time to think further.
[Retry!]
Blink.
She opened her eyes, and the scene before her had changed.
Ding!
[▷ Current Mission (re): Win the Female Rookie Artist of the Year Award at VMA!]
“…The hot spot of the music world that comes every Sunday—welcome to Music City!”
“See you next week. Goodbye~”
The bright MCs’ closing remarks, falling confetti, the familiar opening notes of the #1 group’s encore.
It was all familiar. Unbearably so.
[HP ♥♥♡♡♡]
[Due to the Mission Failed Penalty, your HP has decreased.]
[HP ♥♡♡♡♡]
[HP is proportional to your actual health.]
[Your real-world health state is reflected in the System, and when System-caused HP decreases occur, abnormal physical reactions may manifest.]
Seo Ji-on gritted her teeth and held her expression and posture steady. It was a blessing that she stood at the far edge of the lineup, where fans couldn’t see her clearly.
Reacting with panic to unexpected pain happened once. But she could endure predictable problems.
From what she’d glimpsed in the System’s guidance, she probably had one more chance left.
Alright. Let’s do this again.
Let’s see who wins if we go all the way. System, you bastard.
Rewriting the Top Girl Group Scenario with My Own Hands
Author
: Nam Seo-rang
Publication Date
: February 25, 2026
Publisher
: AcesMedia Corporation
Editor
: AcesMedia Editorial Team
Address
: Urban Bench Building 4F, 325 Teheran-ro, Gangnam District, Seoul
Email
: [email protected]
※ This work is published by AcesMedia Corporation under contract with the copyright holder,
and its contents may not be used in any form or manner without permission from the publisher and author.
This e-book is a work protected under copyright law, and unauthorized reproduction or distribution may result in legal liability.
UCI
: G720:N+A129-20260102083

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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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