Save a Failed Idol's Life C.213:

Translator: MarcTempest

Editor: NicoleTempest

Chapter 213 What You Have to Overcome by Yourself

“Good job, everyone!”

“Go inside and get some rest!”

The meeting lasted for six hours, except for a brief snack break in the middle, and finally ended.

Everyone left the conference room with a drained and blank expression.

We had set a rough direction, but it was still too early to relax.

As soon as the press conference for the disbandment of Floss ended this afternoon, we had to bring them to the office and stamp the contract.

I had to wait patiently and hope that Shim Naru wouldn’t drag it out any longer.

“I’ll see you again in the afternoon.”

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I sent the staff members back to the parking lot and slammed the driver’s seat door shut. Kyunghwa, who was in the passenger seat, stared at me intently.

“What, what is it…”

I looked at Kyunghwa with a flustered expression and he muttered for a while.

“You looked like a totally different person earlier.”

“What do you mean?”

We had been stuck together for half a year already. What was he talking about? I put on my seat belt and started the car.

“Just… like you were living in a different world.”

I didn’t know what had pushed Kyunghwa’s button. I didn’t answer and looked at the dashboard in front of me. Kyunghwa added awkwardly.

“Forget it. Just think I was talking nonsense.”

“What are you talking about, really.”

What should I say?

If it was someone like Yi-jun, he would have brushed it off with a boastful remark like ‘Why? Wasn’t I so cool when I was working?’.

‘But that suits him, not me.’

I wondered why he was saying such a silly thing after participating well in the meeting.

The conversation ended without a proper conclusion, along with an awkward silence.

I stepped on the accelerator and the car arrived at the dormitory parking lot without delay.

“Are you going to tell the kids right away?”

Kyunghwa looked at me and the clock alternately and asked.

“No. Let’s sleep first and tell them in the afternoon.”

“Okay.”

It was already 2 a.m., so it was better to sleep first and talk in the daytime.

When we returned to the dormitory, Yi-jun and Seong-won were awake, and Seon-woo was asleep with Pposili in his arms.

“Let’s sleep first and talk again tomorrow.”

I sent the members to their rooms and came out after washing up. I felt a bit more relaxed and remembered Kyunghwa’s vague attitude earlier.

‘Why did he act like that after the meeting?’

He had expressed his dislike for Kang Yu-geon with his whole body on the way to the office. But as soon as the meeting started, he caught on to how to use Kang Yu-geon very rationally and surprised me.

He knew how to maximize other people’s strengths and cover their weaknesses.

He had a good sense overall. He was so good at catching on to other people’s work that I wondered how much better he would do if it was his own.

‘This was actually the same within the group.’

He had willingly given up his part to Seon-woo in the part competition. That was because he knew that it was more strategically advantageous in the end.

Maybe I should say that he was the opposite of Naru, who shouted “I want to be the most noticed!” without considering the strategic advantages and disadvantages.

Kyunghwa was not without ambition, but he was willing to give up his share willingly if it conflicted with the overall benefit.

‘I wonder if that’s why he had so few parts during the Bobbyam.’

He could have asserted himself more… That’s what I thought.

But he was the type to give up easily if he saw that it would be better not to do so in his own eyes.

He had a tiring personality, but I couldn’t say anything bad about him since he was doing me a favor.

‘Is that why he’s so wary… or jealous of Yu-geon?’

Yu-geon knew what he was good at better than anyone, and he knew how to bet on the areas where he had confidence.

I can do that better? Give it to me. He was good at claiming things and actually snatching parts from others, and he would produce the best output to the point of splitting the opponent.

As someone who always took the role of conceding, Kyunghwa must have felt uncomfortable being constantly provoked by him.

‘But…’

That was also a problem that Kyunghwa had to overcome in order to survive as an entertainer.

In the future, Climax would do more work, and since there were members with overflowing talent, there would be countless times when Kyunghwa would be pushed back.

He could either change his mindset.

Or even if he knew that other members would do better, he could still say, I want to do it, so give me a chance, and demand it confidently.

It was a problem that he had to choose for himself.

I thought I shouldn’t leave him alone like this for my sake.

‘How do I solve this…’

As I stared at the ceiling blankly, thinking, I heard a panting sound, and Pposili was lurking under the bed.

“What is it?”

I lifted him up on the bed as if I was annoyed, and he slipped into the blanket.

You’re not even a real dog. I wasn’t very angry, so I gave him a side of the bed with a snicker, and a warm ball of fur dug into my side.

A cozy, solid, and soft lump gave me a drowsy sense of security. And then my eyes naturally closed.

“Uh…”

As I woke up from my sleep with a feeling of being pressed on my chest, a brown lump blocked my sight.

“…?”

I rubbed my eyes, avoiding the fur, and

“Woof!”

Pposili’s cheerful bark made my eyes open wide.

“Wow, you’re heavy.”

I stroked his head a few times and put him down on the floor. Sunwoo was still in deep sleep. It’s good that he sleeps well anytime. Kyunghwa was in the living room.

“Where are the others?”

I asked Kyunghwa, who was sitting in front of the living room table and tapping on his laptop. Kyunghwa answered without taking his eyes off the laptop.

“They’re sleeping.”

I went to the kitchen and got some water from the purifier and came back to the living room.

“What were you doing?”

I sneaked behind Kyunghwa and looked at the screen. He was making some planning-related materials.

“I can’t write songs or make beats like Oh YI-jun. I’m just trying to come up with some concept ideas.”

He had already made up his mind, judging by the way he had divided the roles and goals of each member according to different scenarios: five-member, three-member, or eight-member groups.

“You’ve made a big decision, Ryu Kyunghwa.”

I playfully turned his laptop screen away from him and patted his shoulder. He quickly slapped my hand away.

“It’s not like it’s up to me to oppose it. You should hurry up and accept it and think about what to do next.”

Even though he had chosen to give in to his stubbornness again, which made me a bit uneasy, it was a positive sign for us.

“Thank you.”

I smiled quietly and he snorted, embarrassed.

“Don’t act like you came here early in the morning to hear that. Just make me some breakfast. I’m hungry.”

He continued to type diligently on his keyboard.

“Okay. Today, I’ll give you one extra egg as a special treat.”

“That’s so touching, I could cry.”

And so another busy day began.

A few minutes later, the press conference for the disbandment of Floss finally started. It was a hellish scene.

“Is it true that there was no ranking manipulation?”

There were two rows of desks prepared on the stage. The front row was occupied by the adults who were responsible for the show: the producer, the broadcaster’s president, and the representative of WePlanet Entertainment.

The back row was where the four Floss members sat. It was their last official activity as Floss, so the agency and the production team had requested them to attend, but five members had skipped it without permission.

The four members who were dragged here were more like they had been struck by lightning than they had come willingly.

Hwijin felt sick as he was bombarded with flashes and taunts disguised as questions.

He knew the atmosphere wouldn’t be friendly, but he didn’t expect it to be this hostile.

“We will prove that there was no manipulation in the voting data by cooperating sincerely with the investigation.”

The producer, Na Yoon-jo, looked like he hadn’t eaten for a week, with his pale complexion.

“Are you not going to reveal how many participants signed the pre-contract?”

“We will explain it during the investigation process.”

All his answers were nothing but variations of saying that he would clear his name by undergoing the investigation.

How long did he have to endure this meaningless abuse? Hwijin wanted to run away from this disgusting place as soon as possible. Meanwhile, outside the press conference hall, there was a protest by the fans.

The fans who opposed the disbandment of Floss and the fans who demanded the re-debut of their imaginary ‘real’ debut team members clashed with each other.

The current debut team was all fake, according to one side, while the other side insisted that they should perform their activities faithfully until the end if there was no manipulation in the voting results. The fierce confrontation eventually led to the police being dispatched.

It was like watching a war. As time passed and the scheduled press conference came to an end, the protesters sobbed one after another.

They had different opinions, but the conclusion was the same. They felt wronged by the shitty program that ruined their kids.

Nothing could change the outcome now. Powerlessness and loss. Anger frustrated both sides.

“Please disperse quickly and go home. Your parents must be worried.”

The staff and the police tried hard to persuade them to leave. By the time the press conference ended and the officials and members left the conference hall, most of the crowd had dispersed.

Dozens of reporters followed the members who were heading to the parking lot and getting into the van, showering them with flashes.

“Can you share your thoughts with us?”

“Did you know about the existence of the pre-contract?”

“What are your plans for future activities?”

With an anxious expression, Hwijin covered his face to avoid eye contact with the reporters as much as possible. He closed his eyes as soon as he got into the van.

It’s all over now. It’s okay. He tried to calm himself, but his heart wouldn’t settle.

Outside, he could hear the noise of the angry fans who hadn’t left yet, clashing with the security guards.

If there was this much commotion offline, online would be worse. Hwijin had been desperately ignoring the online reactions for his own mental health lately.

He didn’t need to check what they were saying. He could guess.

He had already made his decision.

As soon as he arrived at the dorm, he packed up his remaining belongings and headed down to the parking lot. There was a man waiting for him, someone he had worked with several times during his Floss activities.

“Hello, Mr. Lee. It’s been a while.”

He was originally the manager of Climax, but he often came out to support Floss when Climax was inactive.

“Oh, yes. Long time no see. I’ll go straight to the office.”

“Thank you.”

Hwijin silently sat in the back seat and checked his phone. There was a short message from Ise.

[Climax Cheon Ise] Is it over? 3:26 PM

[Climax Cheon Ise] We’re all here, including Naru. 3:27 PM

So Naru decided to join them after all.

That was the only good news among the many unpleasant ones. He felt a little relieved.

Hwijin sighed deeply and leaned back in his seat, closing his eyes.

Floss Hwijin was over. Would he remain as Hwijin, the ‘former’ Floss member? Or would he succeed in his third leap? That was not something he could do alone.

Hwijin felt a deep fatigue as he took his first step towards the Composition office.