Acquaintance Chance
“CEO.”
“What is it?”
“Did you already know? That Yerin is moving into our house.”
“Hmm? Weren’t you the one who knew about it?”
Kang Beom-jun looked at me with a puzzled expression.
......Was I seriously the only one who didn’t know?
“Will that be all right?”
“What do you mean?”
“From the agency’s standpoint, it would be better for Yerin to live alone, wouldn’t it?”
“It could invite unnecessary rumors, so you’re right about that. But since you’re there, it should be fine.”
“?”
“?”
Wouldn’t that make it even more problematic?
Kang Beom-jun and I stared at each other, neither of us able to understand the other’s reaction.
Anyway, the reason I had come to RT Entertainment today was because Kang Beom-jun said he had something to tell me.
“I’m planning the first audition that we couldn’t hold before.”
“An audition, huh……”
Hearing those words, a thought suddenly occurred to me.
If I hadn’t sent that email critiquing his original composition to Kang Beom-jun, RT Entertainment would have already debuted an artist who passed that audition by now.
I remembered the results turning out better than average.
It was proof that Kang Beom-jun’s eye for talent had never been wrong.
If that process hadn’t existed in the first place, he wouldn’t have had the leisure to bring along a composer aspirant like me in my previous life.
“Why? Is there some kind of problem?”
“No. It seems like a good idea. The current structure of RT Entertainment is a little atypical compared to regular agencies, after all.”
An entertainment company that ran solely on Baek Yerin.
The problem was that it ran far too well.
From digital releases and album sales to advertising and sponsorship revenue.
Regardless of its size, RT Entertainment was probably sweeping in the most money of any agency at this moment.
And every single bit of it existed because of one person—Baek Yerin.
It was evidence that her recognition had risen to an almost ridiculous level, and where there are positives, negatives always follow.
No celebrity can stay active three hundred and sixty-five days a year.
Moreover, since Baek Yerin was still a student, her schedule had relatively strict limitations.
In simple terms, she had less time available to work as a singer than other artists.
Well… even with those restrictions, she was still producing that level of performance and profit.
“In any case, a rest period is absolutely necessary for an artist. At the very least, I have no desire to become money-obsessed and work our artists to the bone.”
“Isn’t it just because you’re already earning so much your stomach is about to burst?”
Kang Beom-jun gave a bitter smile and shrugged.
It was his way of admitting he wouldn’t deny that the current abundance was thanks to certain people.
He continued.
“Oh, and just so you know, Yerin was very positive about this audition.”
“Really? It must feel somewhat burdensome to be the sole artist carrying RT Entertainment.”
“Haha. You know Yerin well, yet you don’t know her at all.”
“Sorry?”
“Anyway, I’ll just tell you it’s definitely not what you’re imagining.”
For some reason, Kang Beom-jun’s eyes were filled with absolute certainty as he spoke.
It felt a little off, but there was one thing that puzzled me even more.
An audition was simple enough to handle.
But the fact that he was telling me directly like this, face to face……
“It seems like there’s something you want from me.”
“That’s right. I think I’ll need your strength for this audition.”
“Um… You’re not asking me to help judge the audition, are you?”
“Kiya, as sharp as ever.”
“?”
When I made a confused face, Kang Beom-jun tilted his head.
Then, as if he had realized something, he let out a sigh and said.
“Ha… Do I really have to explain this out loud again? All right, who is the only composer in our agency?”
“Well… that would be me, for now.”
“Correct. And whose songs are all sitting in the upper ranks of the music charts? Who composed the masterpiece Your Photo in just a single day?”
“That’s… also me.”
“Finally, who was the first to recognize and unearth the talent of the genius vocalist named Baek Yerin?”
“……”
……It was me.
I wanted to ask why he was suddenly hyping me up like a lunatic, but the problem was that every word was fact.
Riding that momentum, Kang Beom-jun kept going.
“Which is why we need your outstanding talent and insight for this audition.”
“Well… I guess it doesn’t matter. As long as I judge the audition with my face covered as much as possible, it shouldn’t cause any major issues.”
“Good. Thank you for understanding. And since you’ll have to work with whoever passes anyway, your opinion is the most important factor.”
“W-wait a second. Am I the one who has to match with the successful candidate?”
“Who else is there when the only composer in our agency is you?”
“You’re here too, CEO.”
“I appreciate the compliment, but I know my limits. And if I did that with you around, people would accuse me of doing shady things with the money Yerin earned and I’d get roasted alive.”
…….
That was strangely convincing.
But honestly, I still hesitated a little.
In this life, I had sworn to write songs only for Baek Yerin.
Maybe that vow was nothing but my own greed. Maybe it was a childish thought.
Even so, the composer named Ryu Won was that kind of fool. And it was because I was that kind of fool that I stood here now.
At that moment, Kang Beom-jun spoke with a slightly serious expression.
“I know exactly what you’re thinking right now. You’re definitely thinking about Yerin. Because that’s the kind of guy you are.”
“……”
“But have you ever considered what Yerin herself thinks about that?”
“That’s……”
It was a thought I had never really entertained.
Truthfully, lately I had no idea what Baek Yerin was thinking.
The fact that she suddenly moved into our house, the fact that she gladly accepted this audition proposal.
Then Kang Beom-jun gave me a bitter smile and said,
“Then let’s do this. If there isn’t a single person in the audition you want to write a song for, we’ll pretend the audition never happened.”
“……Are you sure that’s okay?”
“What else can I do? From the beginning, I completely trust your insight as a composer. If no one catches your eye, it simply means there’s no talent to be found. And you’re not the type to lie about something like this.”
I nodded at Kang Beom-jun’s words.
I could only feel grateful for his consideration, and he was right.
No matter how strongly I wanted to write songs only for Baek Yerin, if someone who truly moved my heart appeared, who knew what might happen.
Well… that probably wouldn’t happen.
But at this moment, I had no idea.
That such a person would appear somewhere quite close by.
Or that because of it, the historic first audition of RT Entertainment would be canceled once again……
At this moment, I never would have guessed.
.
.
.
……But you know what?
While talking with Kang Beom-jun today, I realized one thing.
“If you’re planning to recruit artists besides Yerin, then eventually you’ll have to recruit other composers too, right?”
“Whoa, Ryu Won. That was actually pretty funny. You’ve gotten a lot better at joking lately.”
“?”
“How could we possibly recruit anyone when the composer named Haon is already standing tall right here? At the very least, no one would want to come here and be compared to you.”
In simple terms, it meant this.
If more artists joined RT Entertainment in the future, I might end up responsible for every single one of them……
Shit?
Wasn’t this going seriously wrong?
Seolhwa Arts High School.
A place where talented high school students from across the country gathered. In the future, many of the celebrities who would receive immense popularity and love would be alumni of this school.
And among those students, the one who had stood out the most recently was……
“Se-a, could you please close this performance practice stage with a finale?”
There was something called performance practice at Seolhwa Arts High.
It was a major event held once for first-years and once per semester for other grades, designed to give students real performance experience.
Still, if it had only been that, it would never have felt like such a big event.
The performance practice at Seolhwa Arts High had one major feature: it was open to the public.
It meant that even people not affiliated with the school could come watch on the designated performance practice dates.
And thanks to that, many entertainment agencies came in person to observe.
Interest especially spiked the later the performance order went.
Traditionally, the performance order was decided by the teacher in charge of the major, and they saved the later slots for students they believed had higher potential.
In other words, the final spot signified the most outstanding student of that grade.
And Ryu Se-a had proudly claimed that final position.
“So, which student are you planning to prepare the performance with?”
The major teacher in charge of this performance practice asked Ryu Se-a.
The practical music department that Ryu Se-a belonged to was split into two majors.
Vocal major and composition major.
And when it came to the performance practice evaluation, vocal major students essentially had only one option.
1. To perform on stage in coordination with a composition major student.
That was it.
But this year, one problem had arisen.
A first-year practical music student had withdrawn for personal reasons.
Since the student who left had been a composition major, one vocal major student now had to prepare their stage alone.
In such cases, the options were to cover an existing song or to use the acquaintance chance.
Given that it was an arts high school, there was a high chance of knowing people in the music industry.
Especially when the student was already affiliated with an agency.
Ryu Se-a was planning to use exactly that advantage.
“Would it be all right if I use the acquaintance chance?”
“Acquaintance chance? Do you have an acquaintance who composes?”
At the teacher’s question, Ryu Se-a nodded.
And for some reason, she grinned.
Yes. Exactly.
There happened to be one composer among the acquaintances she knew well.
And not just any composer.
“Yes. If you give permission, I’m confident I can show you the best stage possible.”
A pretty incredible composer, at that.