Episode 4
4
Just as Gim Seonguk had said, it was not very far.
It was not far from the busking spot, but it was also quite close to the JK Entertainment headquarters.
The WS headquarters did not occupy an entire building.
Though it was not that small of a building, they were only leasing one floor.
"I hope our headquarters won't influence your decision."
He was speaking with a smile, but he looked quite desperate.
Still, the fact that he had brought him directly to the headquarters must have been to emphasize that they were hiding nothing.
"Don't worry. At some point, I started looking beyond the surface rather than just at the outward appearance."
"Then that's a relief."
For a nineteen-year-old, his was the expression of someone who had tasted the bitterness of life, which made Gim Seonguk a bit puzzled, but if he was mature, that was all the better.
"Shall we go, then?"
"Yes."
When they arrived at the WS headquarters, there was no one there.
It wasn't that they hadn't come to work; they had all stepped away to take care of their respective tasks.
Gim Seonguk guided him to the seat that appeared to be the most prominent among them, then sat across from him and spoke with a serious expression.
"I was just thinking that it's a shame I haven't properly explained anything to you yet."
Gim Seonguk began to explain things about WS, step by step.
As if determined not to repeat the regret he had felt earlier, he covered everything from one to ten in great detail.
He worried that the conversation was dragging on and whether he would be bored, but it couldn't be helped.
That was how much the talent before him—a grown nineteen-year-old—was someone he didn't want to miss, couldn't afford to miss.
'His attitude is good, too.'
Just like a third-year high school student with the CSAT right around the corner listening to a famous instructor's lecture, Hyeonu was listening with intense focus.
Even though he didn't know if he would come here, and even though the choice itself was his to make.
That in itself was something to be deeply grateful for.
"At WS, our first priority is recruiting the best talent in each genre. In singing, dancing, acting, and various other fields."
"This may be a bit blunt, but what is the basis for bringing such talent to WS?"
"This is it."
Gim Seonguk explained confidently, as if he had been waiting for precisely that question.
"Today's entertainment industry, and the idol sector in particular, has a framework that's rigid to the point of excess. The minimum number of members and genres trapped within that mold."
Both in the past and the present, WS had remained the same.
A place that respected the freedom of its artists more than anywhere else.
Of course, there were unavoidable obligations that came with the profession of being an entertainer.
You had to be good at singing and dancing, and at acting as well.
"We will always give you numerous options, and you can make those decisions yourself. No matter how outstanding something is, if you don't feel interest in it, the results will only be halved."
"Then if I... insist on acting, what would you do?"
Contrary to Hyeonu's expectation that it was quite a pointed question, Gim Seonguk showed a bright smile and answered immediately without a moment's hesitation.
"You should. Acting."
In Gim Seonguk's voice, infinite confidence and even trust were revealed.
It was confidence in his own casting ability, and trust in the talents he had cast in that manner.
"I see. Thanks to you, I think I can make up my mind."
"I don't know which kind of decision it is, but I'm satisfied that I could reduce your worries, I Hyeonu-ssi."
"You're quite eloquent."
"It's a profession where we make a living with our mouths, isn't it?"
Realizing that the conversation was now over, Gim Seonguk extended his hand, and Hyeonu shook it before rising from his seat.
"The result will be decided after you have a seat with JK, won't it?"
"Yes. I believe so."
It was regrettable, but public and private matters had to be clearly separated.
It was what Hyeonu wanted, and Gim Seonguk likely wanted it as well.
After finishing a meaningful conversation with Gim Seonguk of WS and stepping outside, it was nearing evening.
"Look at the time already. Shall we grab something to eat before heading back?"
As he was looking for a suitable nearby place—of course, a cheap one—a call came in from a familiar number.
It was JK.
The call came as if it had been waiting for the conversation with WS to end.
"It's a good thing I talked with WS first."
The time to choose was now approaching.
Unlike WS, JK was a place that did not permit even a moment of complacency.
A place like the wilderness that would bite the moment you showed an opening.
He took a deep breath and let it out before answering the call.
"Hello?"
"I Hyeonu-ssi?"
"Yes."
"This is JK. You've passed the audition, and I'm calling regarding the contract. When would you be available to visit?"
Hyeonu looked at the JK headquarters visible right beside the WS building as he spoke.
"Right now. Would that be possible?"
"Right now? Of course. You must be nearby?"
"Yes. I stopped by for a moment because I had some business, and your call came right on time."
"Understood. You may come now."
After an extremely businesslike call ended, Hyeonu headed straight for the JK headquarters.
Because the moment immediately after his regression had been the audition venue, he hadn't truly realized it, but it was a building so massive it stood in stark contrast to WS.
It was a time when, had it been WS, he would have reached the room already, but due to the massive headquarters, Hyeonu was currently inside an elevator.
"I heard they're holding another audition this time?"
"That's what I heard. They're making an eleven-member group, apparently."
"Ugh... eleven seems like too many."
"Well, it's not for us to judge."
'Eleven members...'
Nothing was different from back then.
Because Hyeonu, too, had signed a contract as a trainee for an eleven-member idol group.
However, only seven had debuted.
The three who hadn't debuted had relatively weaker dance skills, but because their singing ability was outstanding, they had debuted as a three-person group.
And among them, just one person.
Only Hyeonu had achieved nothing.
Dance, singing, acting.
Lacking in nothing, yet not outstanding in anything either.
The relationships among fellow group members were neither bad nor good.
They were busy preparing for their own debuts, and making themselves stand out took priority over the growth of fellow group members.
"Is this the place?"
Before he knew it, he had arrived in front of the door, and Hyeonu knocked carefully.
"Come in."
A somewhat familiar voice.
It was Team Leader Bak Ihwan of JK.
Entering the room with slightly surprised eyes, he found Team Leader Bak Ihwan waiting with documents spread out before him.
"Shall we sit?"
"Yes."
Bak Ihwan didn't say much else.
There was no need to explain about JK, as anyone who had auditioned there couldn't not know.
"These are the contract terms and precautions."
Upon checking the precautions first, there was nothing different from his memory.
Things that could be called quite strict: prohibiting all dating, forbidding leaving the dormitory after 10 PM, banning the consumption of any food except the provided meals, and so on.
He felt no aversion to such things.
From their standpoint, it was an effort to truly create the best talent.
However, the feeling of suffocation was something he couldn't help as a human being.
"It may be hard at first, but once you adapt, it will be fine. We will manage all schedules, including your dormitory, meals, and exercise."
"I see."
"And this is..."
Originally, when delivering good news and bad news, it was best to deliver the bad news first.
Bak Ihwan showed a smile with an expression bordering on arrogance and handed the contract to Hyeonu.
"For a trainee, these terms are probably among the very best across all entertainment companies."
It was surprising enough that Bak Ihwan had come in person, but the contents of the document handed over were completely different from Hyeonu's memory.
The contract terms from before his regression had been simple enough to fit on a single page.
They provided all room and board, but of course there was no money, and if one violated company prohibitions without permission, they would be expelled after two warnings.
But this time, it was different.
"Basically, one million won is paid monthly. Of course, there are conditions. You must show meaningful results in the weekly and monthly evaluations."
In the weekly evaluations, one had to place within the top three among the eleven trainees, and in the monthly evaluations, one had to secure at least second place.
If only one of these two conditions was met, one would receive 500,000 won; if neither was met, one would receive nothing.
Trainees didn't receive money to begin with.
Occasionally there was something like an allowance, but nothing tied into the contract like this.
"The trainee contract is for three years. Of course, this period may be lengthened or shortened depending on circumstances."
Bak Ihwan showed a business smile to Hyeonu, who was checking the documents meticulously, and said,
"Well... I have a feeling yours will be shorter, I Hyeonu-ssi. Here is the list of supported benefits next."
The dormitory supported by JK was an officetel they had rented in its entirety.
A place he had already lived in to the point of weariness.
In addition, there was a condition attached to appear on cable broadcasts or YouTube content even if he didn't debut, if not on public broadcast networks.
"You may not know much about contracts, but nowhere else will you find a company that puts appearance guarantees into the contract like this. This is possible because it's JK, and these terms are possible because I am handling the contract personally."
Having finished checking the entire contract, Bak Ihwan naturally pushed the contract and a pen toward Hyeonu.
"If you sign, we will move your belongings from your current residence through our staff."
But Hyeonu did not sign.
Enduring the pressure that came with the position of a JK team leader entirely on his own, he thought.
'Clearly, JK's treatment is different from before.'
The way they treated Hyeonu and the conditions were clearly different, but could this really serve as definite proof?
That the results would be different?
Hyeonu judged that it would not.
The loophole in this contract was precisely the weekly and monthly evaluations.
The results of these evaluations were decided by JK's people.
The moment he signed a contract for three years, Hyeonu would have no means to resist this clause.
All he could do was work hard or become close with the person giving the evaluations.
"...I Hyeonu-ssi?"
Bak Ihwan looked at Hyeonu, who wasn't signing, with puzzled eyes.
Hesitating to sign a contract when it was none other than JK, and the team leader had come personally.
"I'm sorry, but..."
"Wait, if you refuse now, there's no taking it back."
What kind of impression should he leave here?
If he ended up going to WS, he didn't know what JK would do.
Because what was nothing to JK could be a huge problem for WS.
"Ha ha... it just seems like there are too many prohibitions."
"What?"
"It's an eleven-member group, and if I can't endure it, I think it'll cause harm to the others. I think it will be difficult. I'm sorry."
"Tsk..."
His attitude wasn't arrogant, and it wasn't that he disliked JK's proposal.
He simply said that he himself wasn't someone who could handle this pressure, so Bak Ihwan had nothing to say to that.
But if they applied different conditions only to Hyeonu, now that it was set as an eleven-member group, word was bound to get out.
'He definitely has outstanding talent, but...'
They couldn't give up ten members for the sake of one.
In Bak Ihwan's eyes, Hyeonu appeared to be someone who couldn't dream big, someone without ambition.
"Well... then it can't be helped. If you change your mind, please contact us."
"Of course. I'm sorry once again."
Just a moment ago he had said it couldn't be undone.
Hyeonu bowed deeply in apology, and Bak Ihwan, though dumbfounded, wasn't in a bad mood, so he saw Hyeonu out.