Chapter 25
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 25
Chapter Title: Dance Midterm Evaluation (11)
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Dry, stinging gazes bore into me.
It felt like they didn't even need to watch, that it was a waste of time, so just hurry up and finish already.
I silently endured those gazes while perking up my ears, focusing intently on the music's subtle rhythms.
Now I get it.
Dance isn't just about performing fixed choreography in a set order.
It's about dancing to the rhythm.
I realized what that truly meant on the second day of having sex with Han Nam-do.
Before, it felt like I was just following the scripted moves in sequence, copying what I saw with my eyes...
Not anymore.
Ears came first.
Listen to the music with your ears first, catch the rhythm... and move your body to it. Only then check for mistakes with your eyes.
Ironically, while audiences perceive dance first through their eyes,
for the dancer, the eyes were the last thing to focus on.
You have to feel it with your body.
That's how the audience gets that undeniable impact through their eyes.
Yeah...
like that one world-famous singer from the past who shook up the global scene.
And to flawlessly deliver choreography synced to that rhythm, talent was important, of course.
But even more crucial was relentless, blood-vomiting effort.
I saw it.
While absorbing Han Nam-do's knowledge and techniques,
I unintentionally glimpsed fragments of his past.
「Fuck! Hey, Han Nam-do! Get your ass up right now? You little shit, pretending to be weak and whining? If we all fail because of you, you gonna take responsibility? You fucking bastard. Get up! Unless your leg's broken, dance properly!」
From a third-party view, those words might seem overly harsh.
But Han Nam-do himself got up, grateful for them.
I saw his past: vomiting on the practice room floor, knees twisted so bad he had to wrap them in bandages at the hospital, popping painkillers daily just to grit through practice.
He practiced so obsessively it haunted his dreams, drilling basics to near-perfection.
It wasn't that he succeeded because he did that.
Ironically, back then, that was just the baseline.
Fail that, and you couldn't even call yourself a K-pop idol.
Of course, having that foundation let him seize opportunities when they came.
Thanks to that, I don't need to practice that hard.
Not only basic up/down rhythms,
but isolations—head and neck, shoulders and chest moving independently—had reached a level where my body moved before my brain could think.
With basic steps perfectly timed to the rhythm on top...
"How was it?"
I was no longer at a level where anyone could say I couldn't dance.
"......"
Silence blanketed the practice room.
Then...
"Unniiiiiii! I believed in youuuu! Chae-rin believed in Hyun-ah unni the whole tiiiime!"
The first to break was Kang Chae-rin, who'd been watching on tenterhooks, looking more tortured than anyone. Tears streaming, she threw herself into my arms for real.
"Waaah! Waaah! Waaaaah!"
But wasn't she rubbing her face into my chest a bit too blatantly?
...My nipples might've perked up a little?
"There, there, thanks. I know your heart best, Chae-rin. You were so worried, huh?"
"Sniff... I was so worried I couldn't sleep at night."
That seemed unlikely with skin that glossy...
But she's cute, so it's fine.
This was Kang Chae-rin to a T.
She could conquer the world with cuteness alone.
Next up.
"Unni, are you actually a genius? Or does Teacher Han Nam-do have some innate talent for teaching? Or maybe you two just clicked perfectly..."
Han Ji-woo muttered in disbelief, making me flinch inwardly.
Our bedroom chemistry was spot-on, yeah.
I had no idea if Han Nam-do felt used or whatever.
But his dick was genuinely the best I'd tasted so far. Number one, hands down.
Ah, regret not doing anal before I left.
Next time I visit, gotta try backdoor too.
That good.
"So, how was it?"
"......Don't you know best yourself? I still can't believe it. How can a person change this much in three days? It's like believing cavemen woke up one morning and civilization had leaped to modern times."
Han Ji-woo was sharp as ever.
Her way with words was on another level. If we ever did interviews, leave it all to her.
"At this level... considering your current buzz and appeal, unni. If we somehow pass this dance midterm, it might actually turn out way better than before."
"Don't make me laugh!"
That was the moment.
Someone who'd been watching, drenched in cold sweat, shrieked like a banshee.
Shocked to her core, her clenched fists trembled violently.
"Th-this is cheating! Fuck! Yeah, has to be cheating! You deliberately showed off that pathetic crap on the first day in front of us! Then staged this on purpose! No other explanation makes sense!"
I flashed Seol Su-bin a sweet smile as her rage boiled over.
"And if it is cheating?"
"......Huh?"
"Isn't life full of that? The cheater's bad, but the one who gets duped is a fool too. Oh, I didn't really cheat, though. Day one, I was so bad I wanted to die of shame—in front of you all, no less. Over three days, I gave it my all and built this skill."
If you ignored that "all" being sex with Han Nam-do.
Honestly, no regrets on my end.
I'd agonized too, felt sorry for them and watched my step.
If anything, I felt more sorry for them than anyone, which made me desperate.
Desperate enough to throw myself at Han Nam-do just to boost my dance skills.
"Even so, your skill's still not..."
"Right, nowhere near you girls who've synced and practiced way longer. But that wasn't our point, was it?"
"......"
Still, I was definitely more adult than Seol Su-bin.
Plus, as a porter who'd survived the towers for four whole years,
I knew how to gently apply pressure in tense situations.
"Yeah, Hyun-ah unni's right. Admit what you gotta admit, Su-bin. And the real scam was Purem Entertainment."
Even Han Ji-woo chimed in from the side.
Seol Su-bin's eyes welled up instantly, left dangling alone.
"Th-this is insane... Just days ago, you were a total amateur, and now you've built basics like this? Anyone'd think you'd taken lessons for years..."
"Calm down, Su-bin."
"...Huh?"
Pitying her, I pulled her into a soft hug.
Like Kang Chae-rin had done to me.
Bury her face in my plush, yielding chest, and oddly, Seol Su-bin settled fast, face relaxing into peace.
Hmm, guess there's something special about these tits after all?
At 300k per paizuri...
I shook off the stray lewd thought.
Just hours after resolving to tone down the sluttiness, and here I was again...
"In the end, it worked out, right? Yeah?"
"...Yeah. Sorry, unni."
Seeing calmer Seol Su-bin apologize first tugged at my heartstrings.
Like turning a stubborn bulldog that ignored me into an obedient pup overnight?
"Oh, of course."
"......?"
"Gotta hold you to what you said earlier?"
"......!"
"You're my dog starting today. No forgetting. You'll obey every word like a good pup. You won't back out on your own words, right?"
"C-can't you let it slide? I mean, back then I was just..."
Shocked, Seol Su-bin begged forgiveness,
but
"Nope. No way."
I shut it down firmly.
For good reason.
I couldn't pass up chaining a rough, violent girl like Seol Su-bin.
She'd screw up big one day,
or cause some massive incident—better collar her while I could.
Like buying insurance.
"Sigh, fine... Just don't push crazy orders. Or run me ragged."
"Duh, obviously. Just wanna bond more with my Su-bin."
"If that's it... Sorry for being prickly, unni."
"No worries, happens."
That was when.
"Waaaaaaaah!"
Whoa.
Kang Chae-rin screeched, wedging between me and Seol Su-bin,
reclaiming my chest on the spot.
She bared her teeth at Seol Su-bin with wary eyes and ridiculous puffed-up fluff.
"Me too! Treat me like your puppy too, Hyun-ah unni!"
"......"
Didn't see that coming...
Seol Su-bin was locked in by her own words, fine.
But someone volunteering to be my dog? Wild.
What is this adorable critter?
"Wanna do a fetch contest later, just you two?"
"Yay! Chae-rin won't lose to Su-bin unni, confident!"
"Unni...!"
I'd said it as a joke.
But Chae-rin took it dead serious, leaving flustered Seol Su-bin next to her clueless.
Kang Chae-rin, dangerously charming in her own way.
Where'd this cute, lovable girl even come from?
And Purem Entertainment signing her? God's biggest blunder, hands down.
If she'd gone to Sun Entertainment, she'd have debuted ages ago,
rocketing to once-in-a-generation idol status, bringing joy and solace to the world...
Well, I'll make it happen as much as I can.
That's why I crawled into this dump of an agency myself.
"Haha, if you're all this buddy-buddy already... guess no need for separate bonding time?"
"Uh, yeah..."
Me included, we all caught Han Ji-woo's meaning a beat late as she grinned.
"......We practice now?"
Han Ji-woo wiped her smile, turning icy at my question.
"Obviously?"
"......"
"You all seem confused. I don't know how Hyun-ah unni pulled this off in three days... but we're barely at the starting line with everyone else now. No— we're way behind."
"......"
"So, what do we do next?"
"......Practice?"
"Not just practice."
Han Ji-woo spoke without a hint of jest.
"Practice till we're puking our guts out... till we drop dead. Got it? Oh, don't worry—I've called ambulances plenty, so I know the drill."
What kind of life calls for frequent ambulances?
One thing clear, though.
Han Ji-woo should definitely be leader.
"Then let's start practicing right away."