Idol Project

Suddenly, Eunha messaged me.

I immediately replied, 'Yeah, hospital.'

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Not long after, another message came from Eunha.

She must have been worried about my condition. I appreciated her kindness and quickly sent her the hospital location.

With that short exchange wrapped up, I slowly lifted my head.

The posters...

I had no idea just how much impact they'd have, but there was a world of difference between Seoyeon posting them on the streets and Ye-eun putting them up on the school bulletin board. The school itself might even step in to handle this. After all, it was a sexual assault that happened on campus—tied directly to the school's reputation. They'd have to make some move to root out the pervert.

...But they still won't catch me.

The ones I'd trained with the app were Eunha, Seoyeon, Minseo, and then Ye-eun plus four other female college students—a total of eight. Four of them hadn't shown any sign of trying to track me down so far. Or maybe they were moving in secret.

Should I look into it?

I fiddled with the smartphone in my hand, pondering seriously.

...Nah. No need to stir up trouble.

It might be complacent thinking, but aside from Ye-eun, the other four had been pretty compliant. That girl Heeyeon had even stepped in to stop her boyfriend from arguing with the security guard. Recalling their attitudes, none seemed eager to confront me like Ye-eun. Of course, piecing together those KakaoTalks, they were sharing some info among themselves.

"Ye-eun, huh..."

As I mulled it over, a sudden thought hit me: What if I turned her into an idol?

Yeah, if she got busy as an idol...

That would definitely cut into her time hunting the perp. Sure, she'd need some actual idol activities for that, but I had the Manager App. With it, success was guaranteed.

...But how?

The problem was how to make her an idol. I had no position-up items or talent for turning civilians into stars—just the app. To make Ye-eun an idol in this situation...

Make a video to go viral?

I didn't know her singing, but her looks were solid enough to hook people. If that flopped, she could build a following on personal streams. Or apply to an entertainment agency—though her age might get her rejected.

"There has to be a way..."

Searching "idol" online, one phrase jumped out at me.

"...This is it!"

It was like the heavens were helping me. I let out a loud cheer without thinking, making a fuss. The other patients glanced over, so I gave an awkward laugh and bowed my head in apology.

Calming my racing heart, I grinned.

Yeah, this'll work.

Applications were next Wednesday—plenty of time.

...Now, how to convince her.

I stroked my chin thoughtfully. Going straight to Ye-eun and saying "Let's be idols" would make her look at me like I was crazy. I needed a solid reason.

Convince her that going on TV would spread the word way more than posters... Yeah, that might work.

It aligned with her poster idea, but on a national scale, not just around campus.

...This might blow up even more.

Of course, every viewer of Idol Project would learn about the masked pervert—a potential downside.

"..."

But on the flip side, they'd probably dismiss it as attention-seeking nonsense. A case of spotlight fever.

Need to think this through.

As I researched application details, a woman entered the room.

"Oppa!"

Eunha bounded in with a cheerful shout, heading straight for my bed.

"You ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠made it? No getting lost?"

"It was right nearby, duh... Here, hospital visit gift."

She handed me a box of Bacchus.

"What am I, an old kid?"

"25 is kid-old."

"Harsh."

I clicked my tongue but gratefully took the box, pulling out a bottle.

"...Thanks, I'll enjoy it."

"None for me?"

"Don't be stingy."

"Gifts are for sharing."

She stuck out her hand shamelessly. I chuckled and handed her one too.

I popped the cap and chugged it down, tossing the empty back in the box.

"...Oppa, how's the wound?"

"Doesn't hurt much."

"Where'd you get hit?"

I tapped my shoulder lightly.

"Shoulder."

"How?"

"Wolf bit me."

"A wolf!?"

She yelped, flustered.

"Huge one. Growling like crazy—I thought it was gonna pass out."

"S-So the masked perv brought a wolf into the room?"

I shook my head.

"Room? Nah, he dragged me to some forest."

"Forest?"

"Yeah. Woke up there, scared the hell outta me. If Seoyeon noona hadn't screamed, I'd have kept sleeping."

"Ah..."

She finally nodded with a small gasp. Smiling faintly, I picked up her empty Bacchus ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠bottle.

"By the way, Ye-eun mentioned posters today."

"Oh, yeah."

"Hearing that made me think—if we're doing it, why not go big?"

"Go big?"

I trailed off, glancing at her. Sure enough, she looked super curious, urging me on.

"Yeah, like announcing it on TV."

"Huh? But... how?"

Normally impossible. How do regular folks get on TV to expose a masked freak? But Idol Project could do it. It'd air like other auditions, maybe even blow up. SuperK had massive hype, right?

"I looked it up—there's this audition called Idol Project."

I eased into the main pitch.