Chapter 415
Chapter 415
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 415
Chapter Title: Idol Maker (53)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
After confirming that Eun-ha's bond level had dropped following Yoo Jin-hee and Ga-eun's, Lee Siwoo stumbled back to the office on unsteady legs, panic gripping him. He'd cut back on sleep to push for a successful second album comeback... and this was the result? A drop in bond levels? It felt like he was trapped in a horrific nightmare.
What the hell did I do wrong?
His mind a whirlwind, he let out a heavy sigh and replayed recent events. But no matter how he thought about it, he hadn't done anything wrong. His words might've been a bit harsh... but they were all aimed at the vice president.
Calling him a pervert reporter and trash... was that really so bad?
Siwoo felt so wronged he thought he might lose his mind.
"Hoo..."
But the bond levels had already dropped. Getting angry now wouldn't raise them back up. Only after puffing on his electronic cigarette did Siwoo realize this. Rubbing his dry face with trembling hands, he quickly pinned all the blame on the vice president.
"Right... it all started when that bastard offered to give them lessons."
These kids were like family to me... and now they're giving me the cold shoulder?
The vice president must have driven a wedge between him and the members with some ridiculous lie. There was no other explanation for their bond levels dropping after just a few months.
Naive girls like them would believe every word from an adult... What a disgusting situation. Siwoo couldn't forgive the vice president for using his authority to gaslight them. To fix everything, he had to expose the bastard's true colors.
"That son of a bitch..."
But he couldn't lose his temper like an idiot again. With the members already turned against him, he had to be careful not to fuel more misunderstandings. Badmouthing the vice president blindly could just paint him as the bad guy again.
So, to gather evidence first, Siwoo headed to the practice room the vice president used. Ga-eun and Ciel were inside, but his goal wasn't to barge in. He planned to hide in an empty conference room and sneak in a surveillance camera when the room was clear.
-Creak
"Ugh... feels weird..."
"It felt good though, right?"
"Yeah, but... hng, walking's hard..."
But Ga-eun and Ciel emerging from the practice room looked suspicious.
Ga-eun grinning from ear to ear, and Ciel somehow unable to walk properly. Seeing their unusually flushed faces, Siwoo felt an inexplicable unease. They wore expressions they'd never shown him before.
And those looks felt incredibly erotic.
Ga-eun's legs, which he'd never thought twice about, now looked lewd today. Ciel, who until just hours ago had seemed so innocent and childlike... was now radiating a fresh, womanly allure, like she'd just become a woman.
Seeing that, Siwoo's heart began pounding wildly.
"Want me to help you walk?"
"......Yeah."
"Here."
"Ha-ut... d-don't touch weird places!"
"Tch."
"Ahng! I said don't touch!"
And that sparked one question in Siwoo's mind.
What kind of lesson did they get... to be sweating like that? Beads of sweat dotted their skin... yet their training clothes looked pristine. Emerging from the conference room, Siwoo sank into deep thought. Their outfits made no sense, complicating his mind further.
Bodies drenched in sweat... but clothes untouched?
Sweat trickling down the napes of Ga-eun and Ciel's necks. That suggestive sight stirred impure thoughts in the pure man... Siwoo thought something he shouldn't have. Their impossibly fresh training clothes shook his trust in them.
No way... right?
"Haa... I just wanna get back to the dorm and sleep..."
"That rough, huh?"
"Yeah... you're used to it, unnie, but it was my first time."
"You'll start enjoying it eventually."
"Ugh... ah, whatever! I really don't want this kind of lesson again!"
Siwoo's mind grew gravely serious.
But he decided to trust Ga-eun and Ciel. It was probably just breathable fabric. He'd entertained dark thoughts, but their reactions seemed too normal for that.
If the vice president had done 'that kind of thing' to them, they wouldn't look so nonchalant. No amount of gaslighting could make victims act like that. So Siwoo felt relieved.
They called it a lesson... probably just pushed them hard. Watching them leave, he forcibly let out a sigh of relief.
-Bang
"Phew... should I wash up too?"
Then, perfectly timed, the vice president stepped out of the practice room.
But that shook Siwoo's resolve again. The vice president was just as drenched in sweat as they were. What the hell did he teach them to end up like that? It was too suspicious to dismiss as a normal lesson.
Uneasy once more, Siwoo dashed into the now-empty practice room.
"Ugh?!"
He involuntarily retched.
A deodorizer barely masking a musky stench. The trash can held no used 'those things,' but the room was a total mess. Unknown liquids soaked everywhere, and the mirrors were fogged with unpleasant humidity.
"This is..."
Cameras positioned around the room for filming... their angles suspiciously lewd, focused on certain damp spots.
"N-no way?"
Drawn like a moth to flame, Siwoo approached a camera. With trembling hands, he checked the memory card. Fortunately—or unfortunately—there were no recordings.
But the camera was still hot.
So it had definitely been filming moments ago. Anxious, Siwoo scanned the room and spotted a laptop on the desk. He rushed toward it.
-Bang.
"Team Leader Lee? What are you doing there?"
But he couldn't check it. The vice president, whom he'd thought gone to wash up, suddenly appeared and called his name. Siwoo's vision darkened.
"Even so... don't you know about privacy? It's my personal laptop."
"Sorry..."
"I get you're swamped with the second album prep, but don't cross the line, okay?"
"Sorry..."
"Sigh... and hey. Why would I leak Citrus's second album title track? You think that'd boost stock prices? Or did you think I was plotting something?"
"I... heard some rumors..."
"Rumors? Who the fuck said that?"
"Jin-su... no, it's nothing. Probably just bullshit."
"Hah... You know making Citrus succeed is the president's dream, right?"
"Yes."
"And it's my dream too. So cut the weird thoughts and get your head straight."
"Sorry. I'll pull myself together."
Siwoo made excuses about hearing rumors that someone was trying to leak Citrus's second album title track—maybe even the vice president—and barely escaped the crisis. The idiot vice president seemed to buy his flimsy story.
Thanks to that, Siwoo had fooled the vice president.
Having thrown Park Jin-su under the bus instead, he subtly asked about today's events. At this point, knowing why the practice room was such a wreck would at least ease his mind.
"Oh, this? I cranked the heater full blast."
"......Pardon?"
"Don't know 'fight heat with heat'? Comeback prep means hot stages ahead. Prepping them with extreme training so they don't slip up. You know I was special forces, right? Learned it there... works for any job."
The vice president spouted nonsense with a straight face. Learning the absurd truth, Siwoo felt hollow. No 'dirty deeds'—just ridiculously intense lessons. That explained the room. Siwoo let out a dry chuckle.
"Oh, the cameras? Noticed the girls get camera-shy lately. Figured I'd record to build vibe and cure it. They focus better with the red light on."
The cameras were on for the vice president's quirky idea. Trying to fix stage fright without even performing... Siwoo genuinely found him repulsive. Plus, no one in Citrus had camera-shy issues. It was pure self-satisfaction.
This old fart's competent?
Bullshit.
Convinced the vice president's "competence" was all fake, Siwoo left the practice room with a brighter face. Ga-eun and Ciel's pristine clothes must've had some mundane explanation he didn't know about—nothing serious.
"Heh heh heh."
No weakness found, but Siwoo felt good anyway. Grinning as he headed back to the office, a 'ding!' sound rang out, followed by a translucent alert window.
"......What the fuck?"
It was because Ga-eun, showering in the bathroom, had badmouthed him in front of Ciel.