Genius Idol’s Strategy to Conquer the Entertainment Industry

Chapter 73

—

I couldn’t understand what context the curse came from at all.

Oh Hyun-jin pretended otherwise, but he looked extremely anxious.

Was it because I mastered the ‘Day and Night’ choreography at once and received exuberant praise from True’s dance trainer, saying, “You’ve got your touch back!”?

Regardless of the reason, being told to get lost wasn’t pleasant, so I mimicked what Ban Yo-han had done earlier, answering smoothly with a smile despite my facial muscles pleading for rest.

“I should think positively because of you.”

Oh Hyun-jin’s favorability dropped.

I didn’t care.

It didn’t take long to figure out why Oh Hyun-jin said what he did.

It was when I stepped into the lobby, illuminated only by the minimum lighting due to the late hour.

“Raon.”

A man dressed casually but not too informal noticed me as soon as he stepped out and approached as if he’d been waiting.

“Hello.”

I responded naturally, as if I knew him.

Of course, I didn’t know who he was.

I only knew his name was Gil Jun-yong from the name floating above his head.

“Can we talk for a moment?”

“I’m with someone.”

I glanced at Ban Yo-han, who was standing a bit away, having walked ahead.

“Come on, what’s our relationship that we can’t talk for a bit?”

Well, my intuition suggested it wasn’t a good one.

Pretending to be busy, I checked the time on my phone and reluctantly said,

“I guess five minutes should be okay.”

“Five minutes is too short since it’s been a while.”

“I can’t stay longer because of the last train.”

His uncomfortably dark eyes slowly moved to meet mine.

“Let’s move somewhere else.”

“Let’s just talk here since there’s no time.”

“You used to be a kid who listened well.”

“Making my companion wait too long doesn’t seem polite.”

[Gil Jun-yong feels slightly displeased with your reluctance to comply. Favorability -2 Current Favorability +15]

The fact that the current favorability was ambiguously positive felt more annoying.

From my experience, favorability wasn’t simply about liking or disliking me.

Even malicious perceptions like ‘This kid is easy to handle’ could raise favorability.

In other words, just because the current favorability was positive didn’t necessarily mean the person was beneficial or friendly toward me.

Only people whose favorability exceeded 50 seemed genuinely favorable.

Gil Jun-yong wasn’t one of those, so it was correct to think he saw me as a ‘kid who’s easy to handle’.

[Remarkable Insight! Wisdom +1 Intuition +2]

I had a sharp eye for people.

Today, the system and I were in perfect sync. I never thought such a day would come. It felt touching.

“Can you dance again?”

Just when I thought, ‘What nonsense is this?’ I met Gil Jun-yong’s eyes.

His jet-black, glistening eyes reminded me of an insect’s chitin shell, and my vision wavered.

It was a sign of an impending flashback.

‘Right now? Here?’

Contrary to the rare synchronization, the system replayed the past without much regard for my consent.

– Raon, what’s wrong with you these days?

…It was the dance trainer who had said earlier that I seemed to be regaining my touch.

Next to him, ‘On Raon’ was in a push-up position, supporting his weight with his hands and feet on the floor.

His pale face showed signs of being consumed by depression.

– I had high hopes for you… At this rate, you’ll get the lowest score in the month-end evaluation again, and then you’re out, out!

The dance trainer shouted in frustration.

On Raon couldn’t say anything and hung his head lower. His arms trembled as if he’d been in that position for a long time.

Isn’t this too different from the past memory where the teachers took care of him and he got scolded?

‘This isn’t taking care of him, it’s grinding him down.’

As if this was the end of the memory, I felt like I was being pulled out from underwater, and I returned from the illusion.

“Why aren’t you answering?”

Asking if I could ‘dance again’ implied there was a time when I couldn’t.

Why would someone as skilled as On Raon, who was good enough for trainers to care about, end up failing consecutive evaluations and facing expulsion?

A slump? Injury?

The information was too fragmented to guess the full story, but anyone who saw the broadcast knew that I could dance now.

The answer was clear.

“Yes.”

Fortunately, it seemed that the reason wasn’t something irreparable, as Gil Jun-yong didn’t find it strange.

Why did he ask when he already knew I could dance?

“You’re good at Korean too. You didn’t improve this much when I was teaching you.”

Isn’t it surprising to improve in such an environment?

There were a truckload of guys who would criticize my pronunciation every time I tried to speak Korean.

“Changing the environment seems to have helped.”

Suppressing my anger, I responded flatly to Gil Jun-yong’s words that felt like they had a hidden sting. I did suppress it.

It’s a fact that True was the worst environment for On Raon.

[With a natural performance, you have deceived someone who knows you. Acting Skill +3]

Gil Jun-yong, who had twitched his lips, spoke up after a moment.

“About that environment.”

Here comes the main point.

“How about returning to our company?”

Ban Yo-han, who had been texting Kwak Sang-hyun to say he might be a bit late, looked up and glanced our way.

“…What do you mean?”

“As you know, when you left the company, the situation was bad in many ways. I wanted to keep you, but the internal situation of the company made it impossible.”

“Well… okay.”

### Chapter 73 (continued)

—

“Of course.”

With this, it was confirmed that ‘On Raon’ had been forced out of True.

As I reacted indifferently, Gil Jun-yong’s words sped up slightly.

“Still, you admit that your performance back then fell far short of our expectations, right? The director was very disappointed with your shortcomings, but aren’t we all part of the True family? We can overlook past inadequacies among family. We will do that, and we hope you will too.”

Such an outdated concept of family. It sounded very familiar…

[That’s bullshit. Intuition +1]

If even the system, a master of bullshit, said that, how much bullshit must it have been?

I shouldn’t have laughed, but it was funny.

I barely managed to open my mouth without mocking Gil Jun-yong.

“Right now, I want to focus on Pick Your Heart.”

“Of course. I’m talking about after that’s over.”

I pretended to be ignorant and asked,

“Why do you think I’ll fail? It’s still uncertain, but I could make it into the top 10 and join the debut group.”

Gil Jun-yong smirked at my words.

“Do you really not know?”

His shameless rhetorical question felt like a judgment.

I had long forgotten that this place wasn’t reality, staring in a trance at the dream I once let go, alongside trainees who sweated and cried as they ran towards debut, and fans who supported them with their bodies, minds, time, and wallets. The irrational verdict fell mercilessly.

I consciously blinked slowly as if learning this for the first time.

“I’ll think about it and let you know.”

My voice sounded somewhat distant.

“Sure. Take your time to think. I’ll promise to include you in the debut group for the next boy group launch and accommodate other conditions as much as possible.”

“Yes. Thank you.”

“I hope you continue to show good performances befitting our company’s trainee.”

Gil Jun-yong patted my shoulder as if in encouragement and walked towards the elevator.

I nudged Ban Yo-han, who had been staring at me.

“Sorry. Let’s go quickly.”

As we returned our visitor passes and stepped out of the True building, Ban Yo-han asked in a subdued tone,

“You’re not going, right?”

“Of course not.”

At my answer, Ban Yo-han looked more relieved than I did.

Setting everything else aside, it was absurd and laughable how they showed no interest before but immediately changed their attitude once I gained some popularity in Pick Your Heart.

“Even if the conditions are really good?”

“I wouldn’t go even if they offered 10 billion won as a signing bonus.”

Ban Yo-han looked at me as if I was out of my mind.

“Then just go…”

It felt like he was about to say, “When will you ever earn 10 billion won…?”

It was a bit annoying because it was true.

* * *

As night deepened, the remaining ‘Day and Night’ B-1 group members began wrapping up their practice.

A True employee approached Oh Hyun-jin, who was doing his final stretches.

“Hyun-jin, Team Leader Gil is calling for you. See him before you leave.”

“Yes.”

With a troubled mind, Oh Hyun-jin headed to the team leader’s office.

Knock, knock.

“Team Leader, it’s Hyun-jin.”

“Come in.”

Gil Jun-yong had On Raon’s scanned medical report displayed on the monitor.

Of course, it was illegal to view someone else’s medical records in this manner.

[Treatment details and opinions on future care ｜ The patient presented with depressive symptoms, insomnia, anxiety, weight loss, memory decline, and cognitive decline on 2016. 10. 5. (abridged) It is deemed necessary for the patient to have a period of rest and psychiatric treatment.]

The report revealed that On Raon had suffered from severe depression.

At the time, On Raon had such extreme depression that his memory and cognitive abilities were reduced to a level where daily life was difficult.

Trying to recall past events felt like his mind was shrouded in fog. He struggled to remember even what had happened the previous day and often forgot what he had been doing just moments before.

It was only after his previously delicate and flexible dancing became a complete mess due to psychomotor retardation, a cognitive symptom of depression, that the staff realized the severity of the situation.

In the end, even the basics he had mastered through countless repetitions fell apart, leading to his discharge from True due to his subpar skills.

No one knew what On Raon was thinking when he accepted Gil Jun-yong’s final offer to appear on Pick Your Heart as an individual trainee.

If it had been the old On Raon, with his striking looks and sensuous dancing, he might have drawn attention instantly, but with his current skills, he’d only face criticism.

Nonetheless, the On Raon of that time, though depressed, hadn’t given up and accepted the offer, leading to the story up to now.