I Built Up Too Much Trust

I had built up far too much trust. It felt like I had stepped into the worst possible outcome among all the scenarios I could have imagined. Clinging to a thread of hope, I asked, “...Are you serious?”

“Of course I am. Did I look like the kind of person who would say something like this lightly?”

No, she didn’t look like that kind of person at all. “...I’m sorry if I offended you. It just seemed like you accepted far too easily.”

Jin Yeoreum spoke as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. “If you were born in Korea and grew up watching music shows, wouldn’t you want to try being an idol at least once?”

...People who had become national pariahs because of doping scandals usually didn’t want to. It was obvious they would be publicly crucified on community sites. How did she plan to handle the fallout?

I tried to steer the conversation while racking my brain. “Well, that’s true, but I didn’t expect you to accept right away without even hearing the conditions.”

“What are the conditions?”

Of course I hadn’t prepared any. I had assumed she would refuse. “It’s a little awkward for me to say this as the one making the offer, but to join Two Bear Entertainment, you have to pass our president’s aesthetic standards.”

Now that I thought about it, if Cheon A-ram said someone had a bad scent, that was the end of it. There was no need to worry. But Jin Yeoreum’s reaction was strange. She nodded as if she already knew.

“The president of the company Team Leader Seon works for is Cheon A-ram, right?”

“...How do you know that?”

“I meet her occasionally because of my parents’ work. A-ram and I are quite close. I also know roughly about her human perfectionism.”

A chill ran down my spine. I wondered if the landmine I had just stepped on was far more dangerous than I had thought.

“Would you mind if I confirm that?”

“Do as you like.”

I pulled out my smartphone ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and called Cheon A-ram. She answered almost immediately. “Yeah, Team Leader Seon. How’s the volunteer work going? ...No, the fact that you’re calling me means things aren’t going well. Did something unexpected happen?”

Her analysis was precise, as expected of an agency president. This was the unexpected situation itself. “Do you know Jin Yeoreum?”

“Jin Yeoreum? You mean the Yeoreum from the Jin Kang Group that I know?”

“That’s correct.”

I flinched slightly at the fact that she knew Jin Yeoreum, but I steadied myself. It wasn’t strange that Cheon A-ram knew her. Anyone who had watched the news back then would know. The important thing was whether Jin Yeoreum had passed the scent test or not. I clung to hope, wishing Jin Yeoreum would give off a sewer-like stench.

“I know Yeoreum. She’s the only chaebol third-generation kid with a clean scent. We used to hang out a lot together before.”

Jin Yeoreum had passed Cheon A-ram’s scent evaluation. I felt a sense of powerlessness, as if I were falling into the abyss. No. It wasn’t time to give up yet. The main point hadn’t even come up. If Cheon A-ram was a sane president, there was no way she would allow Jin Yeoreum to be recruited.

“...What do you think about us recruiting that Jin Yeoreum as a member of the group we’re planning?”

“Sure, let’s give it a try.”

Give it a try? How could she say that so easily? Was I the only one who thought this was insane? Why were both of them agreeing to take on this massive risk without a second thought?

“Um... President Cheon. It’s a little awkward for me to say this as the one making the suggestion, but are you really okay with approving Jin Yeoreum’s recruitment so easily?”

Cheon A-ram let out a small chuckle. Even though I couldn’t see her face over the phone, I could picture that signature serpentine smile of hers. “It’s not like I approved it easily.”

“...Then why?”

“Because it was your suggestion.”

Cheon A-ram spoke in a warm, gentle voice. “I believe that Team Leader Seon saw talent in Yeoreum that could overcome the controversy.”

Damn it. I had built up too much trust. This was all my own doing. “Besides, I know roughly what kind of talent Yeoreum has. Before she started rhythmic gymnastics, she trained at SS for a bit. Back then, everyone was saying a once-in-a-generation genius had arrived.”

Of course they would have called her a genius. Jin Yeoreum’s S-rank dance potential would stand out no matter where she went. But the fact that even Cheon A-ram had noticed that overwhelming talent was nothing but trouble for me right now.

“...Um, that’s still just a simple proposal that hasn’t been confirmed yet...”

“If we recruit Yeoreum too, then Winter, Autumn, and Yeoreum will all be together? ...If we’re thinking of the four seasons, the next one would be Spring. I’m counting on you, Team Leader Seon!”

Beep— Beep— The call ended.

“...”

While I stood there dazed, still unable to put the phone down, Jin Yeoreum asked, “What did A-ram say?”

“...She said you passed.”

Jin Yeoreum spoke with relief. “I knew she would. Even though A-ram used to get taken to the emergency room whenever she was around people, she always got along fine with me.”

“...Our president is very picky about people, so that’s impressive.”

“I should be grateful she thinks well of me. Even in the chaebol third-generation community, A-ram was someone everyone wanted to be close to.”

“Was she that highly regarded?”

Jin Yeoreum lightly brushed her lips as if reminiscing, then spoke. “A-ram had a certain charisma even when she was young. The kind that makes people want to follow her? Or the kind that puts everyone else beneath her? I’m not sure how to define it exactly.”

She tilted her head as if even she found it difficult, then continued. “This is just my personal impression, but if the world still had a class system, I think someone like her would become king.”

I could relate. My first impression of her had been like watching a mafia godfather in a Hong Kong noir film, and that image still lingered in my mind. Though I sometimes forgot when I saw Cheon A-ram acting like an airhead....

Anyway, after receiving Cheon A-ram’s approval, I had been backed into a corner. But I still had one last means of persuasion left. “There’s one question I still have.”

“Hmm... Please feel free to ask.”

I’m sorry, Manager Seok. This is an emergency, so I’ll have to borrow your name. “I heard from Manager Seok Hyeonwu that you planned to continue volunteer work long-term.”

“Manager Seok? So you even talked about that...”

I bowed my head in apology for my rudeness and continued. “Does accepting my proposal mean that plan has changed?”

Where did that resolve to continue volunteer work for fifty or a hundred years go? I had been so impressed when I heard that. “I chose to do volunteer work because it was the best option available to me at the time. I always choose the best option.”

“The best option?”

Planning to do volunteer work for decades was the best option? “My goal is to make sure the name Jin Yeoreum doesn’t bring shame to the Jin Kang Group or my family. To achieve that, I needed to improve the public’s perception of me, which had hit rock bottom. Volunteer work was just a means to that end.”

“So you resolved to continue volunteer work for fifty or a hundred years just for that?”

“That’s right. Even though that method was excessively crude and long-term.”

This was impressive in a different way. “But if a new option like becoming an idol appears, the story changes. An idol who can build a solid ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠fanbase and continuously generate positive images would be much faster and more effective at changing the image of the name Jin Yeoreum than volunteer work.”

Jin Yeoreum’s words were all based on the assumption that she would succeed. And there was no agency that could succeed while including Jin Yeoreum. I could be certain because I knew exactly how Jin Yeoreum would face another barrage of public opinion in the Bubble Shower incident three years later. But ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠if she herself thought this gamble was worth attempting, then it wasn’t impossible. After all, I was the only one who knew that harsh future.

I asked with doubt in my voice, “Then why haven’t you tried to debut with any agency?”

“Because no agency would accept me.”

That would be the case if she tried under her own name alone. “If the Jin Kang Group participates as a sponsor, it wouldn’t be impossible.”

“...My father wouldn’t allow it. He doesn’t want me to be swayed by public opinion anymore. Just like how he opposes my volunteer work now.”

“Would that change if I, and President Cheon, who leads Two Bear, were the ones asking?”

“No. He would still oppose it just the same.”

...Then why did you accept? Jin Yeoreum smiled lightly. Even that small smile felt elegant, and her charm was truly remarkable. I wondered if a first-year high school student could really exude that kind of atmosphere.

“He would oppose it, but he wouldn’t interfere. Just like how he’s letting me do volunteer work instead of going to school now. But if an opportunity to become an idol came my ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠way, the story would be very different.”

Listening to Jin Yeoreum, I couldn’t say that calling this the best choice from her perspective was an exaggeration. This was a perfectly reasonable attempt from her standpoint. Assuming she had the heart of a beast. It was a huge setback for me, who had attempted this without knowing that.

“Anyway, does that mean the conditions have been met now?”

Jin Yeoreum extended her hand again as she spoke. I looked around in confusion. Ga-eul was staring at us intently, having completely exposed herself without any intention of hiding. Seok Hyeonwu was biting his nails as if he didn’t know what to do about this situation either. It was a little pitiful to see a man over thirty doing that. Neither of them seemed like they could help.

I gave up and accepted the outcome. Even if it meant earning Jin Yeoreum’s resentment, I felt like I had to say no. It was a despicable move even by my own standards to scout someone only to have them refuse, but there was no other way. I couldn’t make an idol with the nationally hated Jin Yeoreum.

At that moment, a quest window appeared.

“...”

The starting point of Bubble Shower’s reverse run was ultimately the malicious volunteer work photos of Jin Yeoreum. The quest was telling me to create that beginning with my own hands. For me, who knew both how to avoid Jin Kang’s retaliation and how the issue would be amplified, this choice would clearly be a great help to Two Bear’s success. The reward the quest offered was also one of the most powerful ones.

But this was a quest that went beyond selfishness into cruelty. Because if I followed this quest, it would leave Jin Yeoreum with a wound that would be forever etched as betrayal, destroying her entire future.

The excuse that “it would lead to the same result as Jin Yeoreum getting caught up in the chaebol third-generation gate in the original future, so it doesn’t matter” didn’t hold water. The wound would be incomparably larger. If it were the me from before the regression, I would have rejected this quest without a second thought. Because beyond the benefits, I would have thought it was the right thing to do. Because I would have thought it was what a good person would do.

‘Noona, I’m going to succeed. Even if I have to use people and make them fall. I’ll succeed like that, make a lot of money, and make things comfortable for you.’

‘Your desire for success and that soft heart of yours are hard to have together. If you can’t decide on a clear direction, you’ll get hurt someday.’

‘But Team Leader Seon. If you live like that, someday you won’t be able to hold on and you’ll collapse. ...Then I’ll be very, very disappointed.’

But the current me was different.

‘Taeyang-nim. Let’s stay together for a long, long time.’

‘...Just a moment, ...just hold me for a moment.’

No, I had to be different. If I walked the same path as the previous round, I wouldn’t be the only one who collapsed. Because I had something I was carrying.

I smiled and took Jin Yeoreum’s hand, shaking it. Then I spoke. “Welcome to Two Bear. Yeoreum-ssi.”

I would succeed. And I would protect them. Even if, in the process, I had to personally bring about Jin Yeoreum’s downfall with my own hands.