Chapter 8
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 8
Chapter Title: Forced Counseling
-----------------------------------------------------------------
"Ye-rin, can you stay behind for a bit?"
008
"Yes. I'll keep that in mind."
I nodded in agreement with Department Head Choi's words.
True to the term "shock therapy," the slap I'd taken from Department Head Choi Hyeong-gyu had all been scripted acting under mutual agreement.
It was my proposal from the start: he'd come to the waiting room, lay into me with a slap to seize control of the atmosphere, and draw the words "I'll do it" from Shin Ye-rin's lips.
'Well, it wasn't like I brought it up with any real intention of fixing her attitude.'
My goal had been to engineer that exact situation and shatter Shin Ye-rin's mental state—and Department Head Choi had no clue.
'Good things are good, right?'
Look at him now, treating me like some star employee.
Department Head Choi took a long drag from his cigarette, exhaled a plume of acrid smoke, and grinned with satisfaction.
"Sung-woo."
"Yes, sir?"
"I've been in this industry a long time, but even back in my day, nobody went so far as to take a slap to the face just to turn a situation around. You've earned my respect."
"How could a manager keep his pride intact and still get the job done?"
Maybe because I'd been screwing around behind the scenes the whole time.
My bullshit had sold itself.
"Damn, you're one diligent kid."
Department Head Choi looked impressed at my sheepish smile, tossed his spent cigarette to the ground, and ground out the ember under his heel.
"Just keep putting in the effort like you are now. I'll make sure you keep your spot here. Hang in there a few more years on the road."
No intention of doing that—not even a speck—and I'd gladly road-manage forever, thank you very much.
'...Can't exactly say that out loud.'
My ambitions had already veered far from promotions toward easier prey. A higher position? That was the last thing on my mind.
Still, I bowed deeply to Department Head Choi, who seemed to be waiting for my response.
"Thank you, sir. I'll work hard."
It hadn't even been long since the last one, and the itch was already creeping back.
* * *
The next day, before heading in, I tweaked Shin Ye-rin's Vocal stat.
Back up from B- to her original A-.
- Temporary decline in vocal ability has caused extreme damage to her mental state.
- Her psychological state is extremely unstable. If the fear and anxiety are left unchecked, there's an extremely high risk of developing a mental disorder.
- She harbors disgust toward 'Kim Sung-woo'.
Vocal cords were in an abnormal state and downgraded by one level. → Temporarily resolved.
'Hate me all you want, a hundred or a thousand days.'
No matter how hard Shin Ye-rin tried to despise me, the dynamic we'd established between us wouldn't change.
Because without my abilities, she could no longer continue her idol career.
"Whoa, Ye-rin's in top form today!"
The recording studio engineer marveled after wrapping up Shin Ye-rin's session.
With her Vocal stat restored to perfection, her throat was back to flawless condition, letting her nail the recording like it was magic.
"Keep this up, and she'll be ready for live stages in no time!"
"Ah... yeah."
Shin Ye-rin responded tepidly to the engineer's rave reviews. Even when the other members chimed in, it was the same.
"Ye-rin must've been drinking all that warm water lately— is that why?"
"Uh, huh?"
When Park Ji-woo tilted her head curiously, Shin Ye-rin panicked. From behind, little maknae Cookie threw her arms around Shin Ye-rin's waist.
"Eek! Unnie, I hope your throat stays like this forever! It won't keep fluctuating like before for a while, right?"
"N-no. It's... getting better, at least."
"Phew, that's a relief~."
Despite the members' concern and relief, Shin Ye-rin seemed utterly dazed.
Something was clearly eating at her—she couldn't even meet their eyes properly.
And then, suddenly.
'...Huh?'
Shin Ye-rin glanced my way.
The moment our eyes met, she whipped her gaze away.
I couldn't help but let out a small chuckle at the sight.
'Oh, it's because of me?'
Well, yeah—no other explanation made sense.
She just found sharing space with me uncomfortable, it seemed. Knowing that gave me this subtle rush of mental superiority.
Idol-obsessed Shin Ye-rin.
How obsessed was she? Obsessed enough to suck off the manager she'd ignored for ages just to keep being an idol.
And LUNIQUE's other members had no idea.
It was a secret known only to me.
"Still, this is great! Gotta keep taking good care of it from now on?"
"We'll look into stuff and help out too."
"Ah, y-yeah? Th-thanks..."
Shin Ye-rin barely mustered genuine gratitude for their cheers—instead, she flinched and shot me a glare.
I flashed her a grin in return, and she recoiled with a creeped-out expression, averting her eyes again.
Her arrogant attitude lingered, but it didn't matter much anymore.
Cute, even.
'With the members this happy? Management? Obviously gotta do it right.'
Bonus points if she listens to me too.
I chuckled inwardly at the thought.
And that's when it happened.
-Bang!
The recording studio door flew open as Department Head Choi strode in.
"Recording go well?"
He seemed curious about the slap's aftermath, and the engineer answered.
"Yep. Ye-rin's condition was perfect today. Man, how'd she struggle with something this easy before?"
"No kidding?"
"Wanna hear it?"
The engineer played back the recording before Department Head Choi could even agree.
-♪~ ♪♬~
Crisp high notes soared from the speakers, and Department Head Choi rubbed his arms like goosebumps had broken out, grinning ear to ear.
"Nice. That's our Ye-rin! Our Main Vocalist! Good work keeping the condition up!"
He even threw up double thumbs-up in praise, but Shin Ye-rin—remembering yesterday's tongue-lashing, no doubt—twitched one eyebrow.
"Yeah. Whatever."
What a rude little punk.
Her icy retort could have frozen the room solid.
Department Head Choi blinked for a second but brushed it off like old news.
"So, Ye-rin. What happened? You struggled for three months, then boom—perfect. Did the hospital switch your meds or something?"
LUNIQUE members and the engineer all turned curious eyes to her at his question.
Shin Ye-rin hesitated.
"Uh, that was..."
I sucked some dick.
Unable to spit out the truth, she trailed off lamely.
Stepping up, I took the reins.
"Turns out it wasn't a vocal cord issue but a mental one from stress. We're doing counseling sessions over video call."
"Oh? Really?"
"Yes."
All eyes—Department Head Choi, the engineer, Shin Ye-rin, and the LUNIQUE members—snapped to me.
Shin Ye-rin especially looked shocked that I'd jumped in.
The engineer nodded thoughtfully, stroking his chin.
"Huh, makes sense. Not unheard of. Happens to main vocalists sometimes."
"Right. She wasn't improving despite long-term meds, so we tried counseling on a hunch. Seems it helped—her throat's fine now."
Sharing a dorm and riding together in the van meant plenty of chances for "private" sessions amid training or makeup time.
No one would question my excuse.
And sure enough.
"Ah, that explains it..."
"Weird it didn't get better after all those meds..."
The LUNIQUE girls murmured quietly.
Department Head Choi rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, grumbling.
"Is that so? Should've said something. Why make me look bad yesterday?"
"No, it's just... uh..."
With the question lobbed back her way, Shin Ye-rin frantically rolled her eyes.
Then our gazes locked again, and she snapped into pro mode like a startled puppy.
"...I didn't want to use an excuse when I wasn't even sure it'd work."
That's right, that's right.
Finally listening a bit.
I smiled contentedly, and Shin Ye-rin—watching my reaction—sighed in relief at passing muster, only to scowl at herself in shock. What a chihuahua pup.
That's when Department Head Choi's words drained the color from her face.
"Guess you'll need regular counseling from now on, then."
"...Pardon?"
"Gotta manage our Main Vocalist's throat. It's a given. Don't worry about costs—we'll adjust the schedule around sessions. Right?"
Department Head Choi glanced my way.
"Let Kim Sung-woo handle it like he's been doing."
Jackpot.
"Of course, sir. Got it."
I answered without hesitation, and Shin Ye-rin—sensing something off—glared at me with trembling betrayal, like a quivering chihuahua.
She clearly hadn't expected Department Head Choi to back me this hard.
Neither had I.
Who'd have thought Choi Hyeong-gyu would have my back?
Shin Ye-rin's face fell into utter despair.
That hopeless expression...
I felt full enough to skip meals all day.
* * *
Daily schedule wrapped.
I pulled the van to a stop and turned back to LUNIQUE.
"Dorm sweet dorm. Good work, everyone—see you tomorrow morning."
"Yeah! See you tomorrow, manager oppa!"
"Good work, Sung-woo oppa."
"Sungwooo! Pow pow!"
"Drive safe, manager."
Maybe because Shin Ye-rin's vocal cords were back?
The LUNIQUE members greeted me far brighter than before.
But my eyes were fixed on the one silent outlier.
As the members piled out, Shin Ye-rin lagged behind—eyes glued to the floor, awkwardly rigid, like a pitiful dog desperate to erase her presence.
I couldn't resist calling out to her.
"Ye-rin, can you stay behind for a bit?"
"...!"
She jolted at being singled out, squeaking in surprise.
"...Why?"
"Got some counseling stuff to discuss."
"...Can't it wait till tomorrow?"
Look at this girl.
She knew damn well why and still tried to brush it off—her spirit not fully broken yet.
Not content with that, she even shot pleading looks at the LUNIQUE members for backup.
But none of them caught on.
If anything, they assumed she just wanted to crash at the dorm ASAP and locked the doors with giggles of "Heehee, no escape!"
"..."
Shin Ye-rin was too stunned by their obliviousness to even snap.
I gave her my best friendly smile.
"Putting off counseling isn't good. What if your throat acts up again?"
That casual line sparked agreement from the LUNIQUE girls.
Cookie first.
"Right! It's finally improving—can't slack off!"
Then Park Ji-woo.
"One good result and you loosen up? That's how it gets worse."
Finally, Lee Ha-neul and Yoon Chae-rin piled on.
"Just do what the manager says. I want Unnie better ASAP—no more solo mala tang!"
"Sick stuff needs treating. Don't delay even if it's tough, Unnie."
Not like coaxing a picky kid to take meds or anything.
"...Hah."
Shin Ye-rin's eyelids twitched like she'd been betrayed, faced with unanimous insistence on staying for her session.
Only she knew it was a threat—no one else got the memo. Expecting their help was plain stupid.
She forced a bitter smile, met my eyes, and wiped it away.
'Yeah. Keep rebelling while you can.'
How long could she hold out? I was curious to see.