Chapter 218
Chapter 218
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 218
Chapter Title: New Roles, New Horizons
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The members of Earl Grey were in the men's practice room with the male and female trainees.
"Why did they tell us to wait here?"
"No idea."
Unlike the murmuring members of Earl Grey, the trainees were staring intently at their planners.
"You don't think... that's some kind of assignment, do you?"
"Why are they making kids who want to be singers study like that?"
To Seo Bang-il's remark, So Joong-han replied.
"Don't you remember that incident where someone saw a picture of the patriot Ahn Jung-geun and called him Kim Du-han? They're probably just building a basic foundation of knowledge."
"That makes sense. And they probably learn foreign languages too, since so many acts go international these days."
The members of Earl Grey nodded at each other.
*Clack, clack.*
The confident sound of high heels striking the tile floor made the trainees flinch, which in turn made the Earl Grey members tense up for no reason.
*Fwoosh.*
The door swung open powerfully, revealing Lee Sun, as glamorous as ever, and Min-jun, dressed in a dark suit.
"Good morning, Director."
"Ah. Hello, everyone. Si-yeon."
The trainee whose name was called as soon as they walked in jumped in surprise.
"Yes, Director."
"What are you so startled about?"
"...It was just so sudden."
Lee Sun approached the trainee, holding a planner in the hand behind her back.
"Saikin Nihon ni shinshutsu shita, Kankoku gaaruzu guruupu no uta no torendo wa? (What's the trend with songs from Korean girl groups that have recently entered the Japanese market?)"
The members of Earl Grey were taken aback by Lee Sun's sudden, fluent Japanese.
For a moment, confusion flickered in the eyes of the female trainee Lee Sun had singled out, but she quickly composed herself and began to answer.
"Ah... aikawarazu kawaikute suiito-sa ga torendo desu ga... ah... masumasu gaaru kurasshu-sa to uma-sa ga tomoni seichoo shite imasu. (Cuteness and sweetness are still the trend, but... ah... the girl crush vibe and skill are growing more and more prominent.)"
Although the trainee spoke shyly and without much confidence, the members of Earl Grey were simply amazed.
"Right. It's a charming contrast, how cute you sound when you speak Japanese compared to when you rap. Chīmu ni Nihon menbā ga inai kara dōka ganbatte kudasai. (Since there are no Japanese members on the team, please do your best.)"
The members of Earl Grey gulped as they watched Director Lee Sun effortlessly mix Japanese into her Korean.
"Hai! Ganbarimasu! (Yes! I'll do my best!)"
Lee Sun gave a satisfied smile and spoke again.
"Anyone here not know that PD Min-jun became a director?"
"..."
"Good, you all know? PD Min-jun has been officially registered as the director-level head of the New Artist Development Team. He'll be managing you all instead of me from now on, so follow his lead."
"Yes, Director!"
Min-jun looked at the male trainees with a calm smile.
"Jung-hyun."
"Yes... Director?"
"Just call me PD or Team Leader, like before."
"Yes, PD-nim."
"What path should Korean rock bands take to succeed in the global market?"
"Whoa."
The ones who let out a gasp at Min-jun's English weren't Hyun-seong, who had been addressed, but the members of Earl Grey.
When all eyes suddenly turned to them, the Earl Grey members quickly shut their mouths, as if to say, "It wasn't us."
"In my opinion, there are too many rock bands in America and Europe. So it's going to be hard to succeed. You'll have to go to Japan to succeed. Like an idol rock band or a unique concept."
Though not as fluent as Min-jun, the sight of the mid-to-late teen trainee speaking clearly, even in simple sentences, made the Earl Grey members feel infinitesimally small.
"I agree with your opinion, Hyun-seong. Your English has improved a lot."
"I'll continue to work hard!"
Hyun-seong, now in a better mood, said with a bright smile.
Min-jun's gaze then fell upon the members of Earl Grey. For a moment, their hearts began to pound, afraid he might ask them something in English.
But his gaze soon moved on to the other trainees, and they all breathed a collective sigh of relief.
"You've all been cleaning the dance floor and the office, and even though it was voluntary, Director Lee and I felt uncomfortable about it. So starting tomorrow, we're going to assign official cleaners."
The words "official cleaners" filled the eyes of the trainees and the Earl Grey members with confusion.
"We'll pick two people from Team A and two from Team B. They'll be responsible for cleaning the dance floor and vocal practice room, and the dance floor and engineer's room, respectively. It's a part-time job with a leadership position at stake."
"?"
"Those chosen as leaders will check on their team members' assignment progress and will be paid 20,000 won for one hour of cleaning per day."
"Ooh."
The trainees let out a cheer, and the members of Earl Grey looked at each other. It was clear Min-jun had created this position out of consideration for their financial struggles.
"I believe a team leader's role isn't to rule over others, but to lead by example. For the next two months, the Earl Grey team will take on this role temporarily, and we'll select the official leaders in two months."
"Woaaah!"
The trainees were ecstatic.
Aside from it being a sweet gig, they no longer had to awkwardly dance around each other to do cleaning that no one had assigned.
Someone could clean ten times and never get noticed, while another could clean once and receive praise—it was as stressful as the arduous life of a trainee.
"And the members of Earl Grey, you heard Hyun-seong's opinion, didn't you?"
"Yes?"
Jang Hyun-seung asked back, startled. It wasn't that he hadn't understood Hyun-seong's English, which consisted of basic sentences, but he had an uneasy feeling.
"The reality is that it's difficult for a band to make it in North America and Europe. To expand your reach after conquering the domestic market, targeting Japan is essential. We'll get you a Japanese teacher."
"!"
The members of Earl Grey began to realize how foolish they had been to think they could easily make money just by signing with a good agency.
But behind that realization, a flicker of hope ignited—the hope that this unexpectedly well-structured system might actually elevate them to superstardom.
"Any objections?"
"None! I believe nothing is gained without effort. We'll work hard for our future."
At So Joong-han's bold declaration, the other Earl Grey members nodded, their passion reignited.
"Good. The problem doesn't lie with others. The problem is?"
"With me!"
"Keep up the good work."
"Thank you for your hard work!"
At Min-jun's lead, the trainees shouted words of encouragement, and the members of Earl Grey nodded as if to say it was a good slogan.
Min-jun approached the members of Earl Grey.
"Will that be enough?"
"Yes! It will."
Min-jun's words were out of context, but the Earl Grey members immediately understood he was talking about the pay for their part-time job.
"Thank you."
Min-jun and Lee Sun left after receiving thanks from the Earl Grey members, and the trainees also dispersed to their own tasks.
"...Those two directors are badass."
"Seriously cool."
Jang Hyun-seung and Yoon Woo-sung said calmly.
"I know, right? There's nothing they can't do. They're even good at foreign languages."
So Joong-han added his own comment, and Seo Bang-il nodded and said.
"Honestly, I used to look down on kids in dance groups... I'm suddenly so embarrassed."
The members of Earl Grey recalled everything from the university festival until now and touched their flushing faces.
"I'm not going to doubt them anymore. Hell, if they tell me to dance in my underwear, I'll do it."
So Joong-han snorted at Seo Bang-il's words.
"Please do. It's embarrassing every time you guys have a fit."
"Hey, have you forgotten we almost didn't get in because of you?"
To Seo Bang-il's retort, So Joong-han replied with a calm expression.
"Isn't the present what's important?"
Fantasies of themselves gaining popularity in Korea and then successfully debuting in Japan began to fill the minds of the Earl Grey members.
* * *
"General Manager Lee Joo-won. Hello."
-Haha. I heard the news, Director Min-jun.
"It's embarrassing. You know it's just a position I got for the show."
-Come on, don't be so modest. You handled the Break Burger situation very well. I guess I have a good eye for talent, huh?
"I didn't do much. We benefited from Managing Director Lee Woon-young's quick decision."
-Haha. Who could possibly dislike you? Anyway, I was also very impressed by Ms. Ro-si's acting.
"It was a minor role. How did you happen to see it?"
It was clear General Manager Lee Joo-won had a great deal of interest in the entertainment industry as a whole.
-No ordinary actor in a minor role could perform like that.
"We saw her talent, so she's been receiving acting lessons in her spare time, despite her busy schedule."
-Hmm, when you look at it, all the Answer members are so talented. I can't tell if JD Enter is amazing for gathering such people, or if Director Min-jun, who's been pulling the strings from behind the scenes, is the amazing one.
"Daepyo-nim Park Jae-yong and Director Lee Sun worked very hard through difficult times."
-Haha. Anyway, our affiliated publishing house held a web novel contest recently, and they're making a drama out of the winning entry. In my opinion, the female lead seems like a perfect fit for Ms. Ro-si, so I was thinking, how about she auditions? It's Director Kim Joon-wook, and he's known for being great at adapting original works.
I had a very good feeling about this. Could this be the catalyst that dramatically increases the number of subscribers to Answer's channel?
"Thank you for this wonderful opportunity."
-No, no. What opportunity? The director doesn't even know I've read the original work. I'm just suggesting she audition for it fairly.
"Of course, I understand. I also know that you, General Manager Lee Joo-won, dream of a just, merit-based industry more than anyone."
-Hahaha. You make it sound so grand.
I spoke with General Manager Lee Joo-won for a few more minutes before ending the call.
The director looked at me and spoke.
"He seems to really like you, Director Min-jun. How long has it been?"
"I'm grateful for it. He said there's a good drama in the works and suggested she audition for the lead role."
"...You don't mean?"
"No. He's someone who purely wants to evaluate based on skill."
The director nodded, looking slightly disappointed.
"Also, the number of Japanese fans on our Answer channel has increased significantly."
"Really?"
"Yes. The concept for the follow-up song is something that would do well in Japan, so I was thinking we should expand our promotional activities to include Japan."
"...Right. Now that you mention it, I've been thinking too domestically."
"When we were first planning, we didn't have the luxury to think about that."
"That's true. We've come a long way."
For a brief moment, the director seemed to be recalling this time last year, but her expression quickly returned to normal.
"It's a bright and cute concept, so it'll definitely do well in Japan."
"So I'm thinking of contacting some agencies in Japan. Releasing a Japanese version of the mini-single shouldn't be too difficult, time-wise."
The director didn't answer, just smiled contentedly.
"It's a little late, but it would be good for at least one of the Answer members to learn basic conversational Japanese."
The director, who had been smiling calmly, spoke.
"Are you some kind of alien? How are you so good at everything?"
"It's from constant study and consideration."
I couldn't exactly tell her it was my second time through life.
"Don't overwork yourself. Make sure you get enough rest. Every hour of sleep you lose shortens your lifespan, you know?"
The director's words were filled with genuine concern.
"I'll try to live as passionately as you, Director Min-jun."
It was Team Leader Lee, who had once again peeked his head around the partition.
It felt incredibly awkward to be spoken to so formally by someone I used to call 'hyung'. But there was a clear hierarchy in the company, so I couldn't just tell him to ignore it.
"I'm rooting for you, Team Leader Lee."
Team Leader Lee nodded with a serious expression and went back to focusing on his work.
"The agency fees are going to be high."
"I have a strategy for that, too. These days, Japanese groups are also trying to break into the Korean market."
"They are?"
"Yes. Since K-pop is doing so well in the global market, it seems the Japanese side wants to debut groups in Korea to establish a foothold for global expansion."
The director nodded, a thoughtful look on her face.
"Speaking of which, it would be nice if we had a Japanese branch, like KGM."
"I know. If the Daepyo-nim had targeted Japan instead of North America, we'd probably already be successful and have a Japanese corporation by now."
"I believe the trial and error we went through back then will ultimately lead to even better results."
"I hope so. Maybe it really will. And—"
The director's face suddenly filled with dissatisfaction as she leaned in and whispered to me.
"I studied Japanese really hard back in the day, hoping to break into the Japanese market. It's such a waste that I never get to use it."
I let out a small laugh at the director's candid words.
I'll make sure her hard-earned Japanese skills don't go to waste.