Chapter 412
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 412
At that, Jeong Da-jun, who had been clinging to Seong Ji-won like a dangling sloth, shouted at the top of his lungs.
"Huh?! Ho-yun, you’re not coming back to the dorm with us?!"
"I have to go to the office. I left my wallet there."
"Ehh? Can't you just get it tomorrow?!"
"I'll be back soon."
Just as a subtle silence began to settle, Kim Seong-hyeon waved his hand and turned toward the entrance.
"……Come back quickly."
Tightening my lips into a thin smile, I closed the van door and leaned back into the seat.
There was no way I’d head back to the office at this ungodly hour just to find a wallet. It was a pathetic lie, but the members let me go anyway.
They did so because they trusted that I wouldn't do anything to harm The Dawn.
The van pulled into the WH Entertainment building.
As soon as we parked, I thanked the manager for his hard work and stepped into the elevator. My fingers moved habitually, but instead of the floor with the practice rooms, I pressed the button for the floor above—where the management team was located.
A chime announced my arrival, revealing a dark hallway.
I walked straight ahead, rounded a corner, and headed toward the management office, where a faint light leaked out from the distance.
Knock, knock.
I gripped the half-open door, knocked, and stepped inside. Passing the long rows of desks, I reached the only spot where a laptop was still glowing. I saw cute little trinkets and a High Five calendar with today’s date circled.
Korea Music Awards!!
After scanning the desk, I pulled up an empty chair and sat down. I tapped the edge of the partition with my curled index and middle fingers.
"Do you have a moment to talk?"
The person sitting at the very end spoke without taking her eyes off the monitor.
"Seo Ho-yun, isn't it a bit late for a meeting?"
"It’s a great time for a private conversation."
Only then did Jeong Seon-ui let out a small sigh, looking up at me through her glasses. Seeing her for the first time in a while, she looked even more exhausted than before.
"Team Leader Jeong, did you watch the Korea Music Awards?"
"I only received the report."
"Then you must know the results… or perhaps you knew them beforehand?"
Without a change in expression, Jeong Seon-ui slowly closed her laptop.
"Seo Ho-yun, if you're here for the judges' scores, you should leave. That’s not something I can provide."
"Forget the judges' scores—."
The awards ceremony was already over. What use was there in checking something that couldn't be changed now?
"—I want to know why The Dawn has been put on the blacklist."
What mattered more right now was identifying the cause of today’s situation. Only then could I prepare a countermeasure.
The scales had definitely tipped in our favor.
Based on my calculations, The Dawn was superior in album sales. The only way the tide could have turned was if the judges' scores had been heavily skewed toward High Five.
From the minor ceremonies to the GMA (Green Music Awards), the Mango Music Awards, and now the Korea Music Awards.
It was reasonable to expect at least one Grand Prize from any of them. To be so thoroughly excluded meant someone was blocking us from behind the scenes. And that someone was likely WH Entertainment.
But why?
Granted, when Daepasung was first acquired by WH Entertainment, The Dawn was just a tag-along to Min Ji-heon—more of a pebble in High Five’s path than anything else.
But now that we had become the goose that laid the golden eggs, there was no reason to reject us.
Jeong Seon-ui, appearing somewhat on edge, took off her glasses and pressed her fingers firmly against the bridge of her nose. She asked sharply, "What are you going to do once you know? You can't reverse the results anyway."
"Why can't I?"
I flipped through the calendar and muttered, "We still have the DMA Seoul Popular Music Awards left."
At the DMA, The Dawn was also nominated for 'Song of the Year,' one of the general categories. This meant I still had one more chance to aim for a Grand Prize.
No matter how difficult it was for an idol to win there, I figured if I knew the reason for this situation and found a solution, I might at least find some leverage.
Just then, Jeong Seon-ui reached out and flipped the calendar back to its original position, her voice low.
"Seo Ho-yun."
"……."
"Do you really think so?"
In that instant, I couldn't help but realize something.
Until a moment ago, I thought The Dawn was being jerked around by upper-level politics or, at worst, the negligence of the Daepasung Entertainment CEO. But that wasn't the case.
"……Why?"
The faint wariness and hostility scattered in the office suddenly sharpened, directed squarely at me.
"Is there a reason I shouldn't even dream of it?"
But I didn't understand. Since joining WH Entertainment, I didn't recall doing anything that could be held against me.
Jeong Seon-ui met my gaze without flinching. She let out a small sigh, tilted her head slightly, and spoke.
"…Since we’ve built up a bit of a rapport, I’ll tell you one thing."
She rested her chin on one hand and began to narrate in a monotone voice.
"A few months ago, a peculiar task was handed down to the WH Entertainment management team. It concerned the handling of a person who knew a great deal about the man standing in front of me."
My eyebrows twitched involuntarily.
Usually, most matters were filtered at the reception desk. I had even made sure the managers handled any trouble involving relatives.
"We received a tip that someone operating on the edge of legality was helping Seo Ho-yun with both material and spiritual support."
Hearing that, I remembered how Jeong Seon-ui had started blatantly avoiding me at a certain point. I had brushed it off back then.
Suddenly, a murky past began to crawl up from my feet, sticky and cloying.
Yes, I hadn't made any mistakes since becoming part of WH Entertainment.
"The attached materials didn't look fake enough to dismiss as nonsense. The person who sent the information said that if we didn't want this to spread to the public, we should show some 'sincerity'… It was truly unprecedented, so we were quite shocked. And for good reason—."
But what about before I was tied to WH Entertainment?
"—What kind of idol stays in contact with a paparazzi and trades information?"
A hollow laugh escaped me. I rubbed my forehead with my palm.
"……The company held an emergency meeting to examine whether Seo Ho-yun was a fit person to be an idol. We judged you to be a risk factor. So, to answer your question about whether The Dawn should have originally won the Grand Prize…."
Creeeak….
Jeong Seon-ui released her chin and leaned back slowly against the chair, as if pausing for effect.
"……Well. I don't have enough loyalty to Seo Ho-yun to tell you that. Think whatever you like."
But her eyes and expression were already telling me.
It was something that should have been given to The Dawn.
The moment she asked if I really thought the results could be reversed, the answer to my question had already been derived.
"……So…."
Even long after her explanation ended, I couldn't stop chuckling like a madman.
"…That’s why things turned out like this?"
Because my back was exposed.
From her explanation, it didn't seem like Kim Jae-yeon had personally handed over the information. After all, I held his weakness regarding the third-generation chaebol incident, so he couldn't easily do it even if he wanted to. In the end, it meant another bastard had gotten involved in the middle….
Jeong Seon-ui added calmly while looking straight at me.
"Very few people know about this. The legal team leader, myself, the managing director, the vice president, and the CEO. We decided to cover up your incident here and give you one more chance. So, don't expect The Dawn to achieve anything with last year's albums. This decision will not be overturned at the DMA, either."
Listening to the declaration that pierced through me like a sharp blade, I closed my eyes.
Ha…….
Could I overcome this situation? And could I win the Grand Prize at the DMA?
It wasn't that there were no ways at all. The problem was that all those methods were illegal.
If it were just me, it wouldn't even be a concern. I would have acted the moment the thought occurred to me. But there were members here who needed to continue their careers.
I was stupid.
Amidst the rising irritation, the conversation I had with Ju Woo-seong flashed through my mind.
"Our company is a truly scary place. It runs solely on profit. 'Precious artists' my ass. They see humans as numbers and discard them the moment a defect appears."
He was right.
"What if I were at a level where I was easily replaceable? Or if I had a problem more serious than dating? Then they would have replaced me."
Jeong Seon-ui said they decided to give me one more chance.
In other words, WH Entertainment had concluded that I could still make them money for now. Since they were a corporation that moved strictly by calculation, they intended to bury this for now and leave the possibility open for the next awards ceremony.
"…Can I ask one thing?"
I spoke immediately without waiting for her permission.
"If my awareness was high enough that things like paparazzi didn't matter, could we have won the Grand Prize?"
"……Hah."
Jeong Seon-ui let out a scoffing laugh as if she found it absurd, then spoke mockingly.
"You really are something else, Seo Ho-yun. I never even imagined I’d get a question like that. Then again, I never expected something like this to happen either."
"……."
"I can only give you the same answer. Well. Our relationship isn't exactly close enough for me to tell you that."
She must have gone through a lot of trouble to block this incident as well. Realizing I wouldn't hear anything more by staying, I stood up.
"I'm sorry for coming by so late. I'll be going now."
Just as I put the chair back and was about to walk away—
"Seo Ho-yun."
She hesitated for a moment before speaking cautiously.
"Can I ask you one thing as well?"
I turned back to find her eyes fixed squarely on me. Seeing the lingering discomfort in her gaze, I nodded.
"Yes, go ahead."
"Do you regret it?"
What.
"Colluding with a paparazzi. Using him to screw over other people."
Jeong Seon-ui continued dryly.
"And selling out your own past just to win a competition."
"Will this situation change depending on my answer?"
"No. I don't have the power to do that."
"Then I don't have the loyalty or the obligation to answer, do I?"
I turned around and walked toward the door.
What a ridiculous thing to say.
Do I regret it?
The word 'regret' was a useless term in my life. I believed there was nothing more futile than wasting time dwelling on a past that had already passed and couldn't be undone.
However, this time was an exception. Since Seo Ho-jin was involved, I had to realize my mistake to the bone.
"Of course…."
I answered, gripping the doorknob.
"I regret it."
That I should have hidden it better.