03. In Search of a Lost Dream (1)

Did I do well?

Hajin bit his lip as he carefully studied the expressionless faces of the judges after finishing his song. He'd prepared this number—his secret weapon that he'd practiced throughout his trainee days—just in case, even though he'd mentally prepared himself for rejection. It was a song he'd chosen with confidence, but now he wondered if he should have gone with something safer.

"Well, thank you. We've heard you," the woman in the center said slowly. When asked if he'd prepared a dance, he nodded, and soon the MR track he'd submitted earlier began playing.

'Is he really going to dance too?'

Manager Jang pretended to rest her chin on her hand, using it to cover the corners of her mouth that kept threatening to curl up uncontrollably. She had to bite the inside of her cheek to suppress her smile.

Soon, a pop song with a strong hip-hop beat began ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠playing—a trendy track known for its simple lyrics and catchy melody.

As she watched Contestant 71 slowly find his rhythm, Manager Jang couldn't hide the anticipation creeping up on her. After eleven years in the trainee development team, she could tell—this kid could definitely dance.

Turn it up!

Let's pop it up!

Dropped the beat,

I never gonna screw it up!

"Not bad, right?"

True to her expectations, each of his light, extended movements carried a clear sense of rhythm. Some moves looked a bit rough, suggesting it was original choreography. While there weren't any technically difficult moves that would mark him as a main dancer, his natural body movements made it seem like dancing was in his DNA.

"Should we keep him for now?"

Around the time someone muttered "We struck gold today," the staff exchanged glances with Manager Jang. With their male trainee pool recently depleted due to selections for their upcoming boy group debut, they needed to quickly replenish their roster.

"......"

"Manager?"

Manager Jang was now staring intently at Contestant 71, who had finished dancing and was waiting for results while catching his breath.

"......?"

"Contestant 71, Kang Hajin?"

"Yes."

Normally, Manager Jang would have given her verdict—either a quick "Next" or "We'll contact you"—before the dance even ended. Her unusually long deliberation had question marks floating above the staff's heads too. As she repeatedly opened and closed her mouth while reviewing Hajin's application once more, it seemed she was on the verge of saying something.

'What a waste...'

While watching Hajin dance, Manager Jang had been deep in thought. Now she tapped her pen against the corner of his application. His singing was decent, his looks were good, and he could dance—but there was one glaring issue.

"......"

"...Manager?"

After much deliberation, Manager Jang finally made her decision.

"Thank you for your effort. You did well."

"......"

"Yes, please wait outside."

At her decision, all the staff nodded with bright expressions.

"A staff member will guide you to the waiting lounge."

"Ah, yes. Thank you."

Is this really happening?

Hajin stared blankly at the hot cocoa a staff member had brought him while he waited, momentarily losing himself in thought. He'd probably have to wait at least two more hours—what should he do until then?

"...It's really happening."

He kept muttering those words to himself. It didn't feel real yet, so he kept clenching and unclenching his fists. Now that he thought about it, he'd always made it this far relatively easily.

Even ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠though he'd expected to fail, the tension must have gotten to him—his shoulders felt stiff and sore.

The white-and-gold interior, featuring the company's signature colors, was painfully bright to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠look at. Being a large company, they even had an artificial waterfall gushing noisily in one corner.

What is this, a temple...?

As he blew on his steaming cocoa to cool it, Hajin looked at the photos of Rene Entertainment's artists hanging on the wall. Each face was sculpted like a work of art.

Sitting here now, he felt strangely conflicted—there was a time he'd wanted to be like them, and another time he'd wanted to create stars like them. Chewing his lip as he struggled to describe his feelings, he noticed the woman who'd clearly been the final decision-maker entering the lounge.

Wait, but I can't actually become a trainee here, can I?

"Hello, Kang Hajin."

"Yes, hello. I'm Kang Hajin."

Even in this life-or-death ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠moment where he might become the only mortal among Greek gods, basic manners were non-negotiable. His interview smile came out instinctively, and he could feel the woman studying him intently.

"I'm Jang Seo-yoon, head of Rene's New Talent Development Team 1. It's nice to meet you today."

Crossing her legs as she handed him her business card, the woman got straight to the point.

"Let me be honest with you."

"......"

"If you join our company, debuting might be difficult."

Ah, I see...

Not that I planned to join anyway.

"Huh? Why?"

Yoon, the junior staff member with the least experience on today's audition panel, unusually raised her voice in response to her senior's comment.

To her eyes—those of a true "visuals are everything" enthusiast with years of fangirling experience—Contestant 71 who'd just left was exactly what this industry needed.

He sings well, dances well, but most importantly—he's gorgeous! Just gorgeous!

Her whole reason for joining the company was to find gems like him and sculpt them into Rene's next masterpiece! So she couldn't understand why Manager Jang had made that face and called him "questionable," nor why Team 3's Kim had just nodded knowingly with that bitter expression.

"I thought he was fine... He'd fit right in with New Renez."

"That's exactly why he doesn't."

Senior Kim shook his head firmly.

"Where would we put him? There's no position in New Renez to push aside for him, and he's too old for the group after next."

Ah. Only then did Yoon close her mouth. Viewed from that angle, it made sense.

"The only one we might replace is Junghyuk... But considering looks and team chemistry, there's no reason to remove Junghyuk for him."

Ugh. Yoon's mouth twisted again. This was the tragic moment when the lone voice of the "visuals matter" minority was crushed in Rene's ruthless Greek statue selection process.

True, he didn't have the typical Rene face... But still...!

"From our perspective, Junghyuk performing well is best. Well, we could sign him as a trainee first... But ethically, it's better to let kids like him go elsewhere."

The unethical option would be to take him in as a trainee anyway, like keeping a chicken rib you don't really want. But Rene was a major agency where hundreds of hopefuls flocked daily dreaming of stardom.

They were long past the stage of clinging to one or two trainees—there was no reason to waste energy holding onto someone with no debut potential.

"Anyway, Manager Jang must have her reasons for keeping him. Are you heading out now?"

"Ah... No. New Renez has practice today."

"Working weekends? Hang in there."

Yoon sadly chewed on her now-cold kimbap that she'd packed for lunch but never got to eat, swallowing her sorrow along with it.

My beautiful angel... If only you'd come three months earlier!

"You must be surprised?"

Of course he was surprised by her bluntness, but since he'd somewhat expected this, Hajin shook his head—which actually surprised her.

"Oh, I don't mean Hajin has no potential."

She probably added that to soften the blow, but the word "potential" only grated on his nerves.

But right now, something else mattered more. If they weren't going to debut him, why had they made him wait?

"I don't normally meddle like this..."

The woman hesitated for a long time. It was unusually considerate treatment for someone who was just an applicant, but Hajin was waiting for something specific.

"Anyway, if you're open to companies besides ours, there's somewhere I'd like to introduce you to."

Finally, she mentioned the name he'd been waiting for.

"Have you heard of Miro Entertainment?"

Miro Entertainment. A mid-sized agency run by a former manager from Rene, it had been one of his potential targets. And more importantly—

'Where I really need to go.'

Miro had been rapidly growing over the past five years, with every project becoming a hit. Rumors were spreading in the industry about the "Guardian Deity of Miro" at the center of their success.

'Entertainment investors call him the Midas Hand of Miro.'

A producer who suddenly emerged and turned everything he touched to gold? Where had he heard that before?

'Whether he's just got great instincts or is connected to this crazy regression phenomenon, I need to find out.'

The whole reason he'd auditioned at Rene—where he clearly didn't fit their debut plans—was to get into Miro. He knew the two companies often exchanged trainees like this.

[Is it true New Renez's Cha Minseok was originally from Miro?]

(photo)

(photo)

Isn't this taken at Miro's practice room? I recognized it from the company tourㅋㅋㅋㅋ

ㅡ Yeah he was a Miro trainee

└ Probably would've debuted with Miro

└ Wait really? Why didn't he debut?

└ Minseok got injured practicing with the debut team and left Miroㅠㅠ

└ The face genius God Minseok is debuting next year ★June 12★ everyone show lots of love to Raneon

Even that Apollo statue they pushed as center in Rene's upcoming group was originally from Miro. There were rumors his injury wasn't the real reason he didn't debut with Miro, but let's set aside unverified gossip.

The important thing was him. Would this Rene-Miro pipeline—much faster and more reliable than regular auditions—open for him too?

If it did, it would be the perfect opportunity to slam shut the revolving door of his three military enlistment hell cycles.

"They're currently recruiting male trainees too. If you're interested, I can connect you with them. What do you think?"

Nice!

Feeling the private in him scream with joy, Hajin worked hard to maintain a calm expression. For this first meeting, he needed to appear as composed and mysterious as possible.

"...I should probably discuss it with my parents first."

"Of course. If you're interested, contact me at the number on my card. Mentioning 'Contestant 71' in your message would help."

"Yes. If there's nothing else, may I leave now?"

"Of course. The exit is where you came in."

"Thank you. I'll be in touch soon."

After bowing politely to the woman who was watching him with a satisfied smile, Hajin left Rene's building.

"What's the big deal? It's easier than I thought."

Had he really trembled so much as a kid over this? He looked proudly at the business card in his hand. By the time he'd finished planning how to talk to his parents and strategize for the Miro audition, he'd already reached the subway station.

Haha. Just wait, you regression bastard. I'm coming for you.

From her window, Manager Jang unconsciously watched Hajin walking away, carefully holding the business card she'd given him as if it were treasure.

'...He's like a well-socialized wolf pup.'

When she'd mentioned Miro Entertainment, it was like she could see an invisible tail wagging like a propeller. She almost regretted not being able to pat his head.

'No, maybe more like a Doberman.'

As she imagined various animal forms onto his retreating figure, waving away the bubbles of fantasy rising in her mind, Manager Jang stood up. She needed to contact her acquaintance at Miro before the day ended.

"That's ridiculous."

I'm screwed.

"You're almost twenty, Hajin. Twenty. I can't allow this."

Ah... I think I hear someone calling me from far away... The training center... The training center is calling me...

"You were the one who said you'd quit all this and focus on studying. I allowed you to retake exams to find what you wanted to study. Now you suddenly want this? It's confusing."

His mother's calm, utterly sincere face left him with nothing more to say.

"Anyway, I... I can't allow this."

The carousel of life that had almost closed its doors to him was now wide open again.

Who knew my mother would be the gatekeeper?

Just as the imaginary carousel transformed into privates in full gear marching around the training ground, the system window drove in the final nail.

[System Alert: Sudden Quest!]

Objective: A child's wounds are parents' scars. Convince your mother to acknowledge your rediscovered dream.

Mom... If your son doesn't become an idol, he'll live forever...

How was he supposed to explain this?