The management teams at HS Entertainment were walking on thin ice. There wasn’t a soul who wasn’t aware of the feud between Hyuk and Director Park, and this time, Director Park had been thoroughly humiliated.
What’s more, Hyuk had even turned the situation to his advantage. Managers from Teams 1 and 2 cursed him. Of course, no one openly discussed the issue.
They had their suspicions but no concrete evidence. Even if they had any, bringing it up would do no good. So, they criticized him in a roundabout way.
“Even after leaving the company, Manager Kang is… tsk tsk.”
“Exactly. He’s always been successful here, so he must think everything is easy. He really believes it’s all because of his own ability.”
“He should know when to give up, though. It’s a pity, really. His debut flopped, and now he’s facing bigger issues. He should be more conscious of where he stands.”
The managers couldn’t stand that Hyuk was showing off his abilities even after leaving the company. They had always been compared to Hyuk, which fed their inferiority complex and resentment.
“Not just Hee-yeon, but there’s that other member too.”
“Who? The one doing streams?”
“Yeah, the one who became a camgirl. Calling her an idol is a joke.”
“Maybe she gave up on being an idol. She’s probably making good money.”
“Just the camgirl is doing good. It’s only a matter of time before the company falls through.”
“Exactly. They were just lucky this time, but they’re bound to fail eventually.”
As they were gossiping, they suddenly fell silent. Director Park stormed in, clearly in a bad mood. He was looking for something to nitpick and take his frustration out on.
The managers started to pretend they were busy. Some even snuck out while pretending to take a phone call.
“Phew—”
Only after Director Park stomped out without finding a target did everyone relax. Team 3’s Manager Jang, who had worked with Hyuk, chuckled and spoke to Team Lead Na.
“Didn’t I tell you, Team Lead Na? I told you we didn’t need to worry about him. He can handle himself.”
Manager Shin nodded in agreement.
“Yeah. He’s always been like that. Thanks to this, Hee-yeon only got more popular. It’s the perfect example of positive noise marketing.”
Unlike the other teams, Team 3 supported Hyuk. Team Lead Na also felt the same, but he didn’t show it.
“Stop the idle chatter and get back to work. Aren’t you all busy? Or are you just going to sit in the office all day?”
Managers Jang and Shin smirked and turned back to do their work.
“He’s just being shy.”
“Who says he’s not?”
“I can hear you.”
“Yes, sir!”
“Jeez.”
Team Lead Na shook his head but felt a sense of relief.
‘A talented person will always be talented.’
***
Our song became known as “the song covered by THE Golden Tree.” This title alone increased our performance fees, which were already rising thanks to our high ranking.
Why? Because Golden Tree’s cover videos got a ton of views, meaning more people knew our song. As a result, we received more invitations asking us to perform at events.
“Life is good! Life, is, good.”
Since that incident, we focused on performing at events, and weeks passed since ‘Yeol’s Music Notebook’ aired.
Thanks to our solid fan base, our song peaked at 12th place and stayed in the Top 20. This was after it had been several weeks since the song’s release. It was unbelievable!
This success was due to a combination of streams, memes, the music video, the music itself, performances, the controversy, and cover videos.
The controversy especially boosted our visibility. Usually, controversies caused losses regardless of the truth, but we only gained from it.
“This is much better than being a one-hit wonder.”
We’ve established ourselves on the charts. I knew very well how beneficial this position was. We were already getting offers that would feature us.
Talent aside, Hee-yeon had cemented her image as a fan favorite. However, we couldn’t keep performing endlessly just because we were charting. Since we achieved our goal, we decided to wind down our activities and get some rest.
“Wow!”
“Hee-yeon! Hee-yeon!”
Hee-yeon smiled brightly on stage. We were growing in popularity thanks to our events, so she could enjoy being on stage now without feeling nervous.
As the days passed, the audience’s excitement grew. More people started to sing along, making it clear how popular she had become.
Of course, not everyone at the events was Hee-yeon’s fan. Still, in the moment, they all cheered for her as if they were.
-Wish Upon A Moon.
I wished upon a moon.
There’s no way a miracle would happen, but just in case.
It probably won’t happen, but just in case.
“I wished upon a moon!”
“Just in case!”
Hee-yeon looked at the faces of those singing along, as if imprinting them in her memory.
‘My activities are almost over.’
She sang while soaking in the atmosphere, memorizing the sounds and the feeling.
-Wish Upon A Moon.
I wished upon a moon.
So this was what it meant to be a singer. This is what she had been striving for. She was so glad she did.
Hee-yeon was reminded of how amazed and how grateful she was to President Kang. At first, she thought they might fail, but Hyuk had helped them succeed as he said. Maybe she hadn’t trusted him enough. Or maybe, like the song, the moon granted her wish.
Hee-yeon continued to sing with joy. As she sang, she felt like she was receiving something from her audience. It was a deeper emotional connection to her audience and an improvement of her skills.
***
“Hee-yeon! You’re here? Another fancam just dropped! The response is even better this time!” Jin-ah said.
“Really?”
“You can’t hide that smile from me. Just admit you’re happy.”
“W-what?”
Jin-ah looked at me as she laughed at Hee-yeon’s embarrassed reaction. She had a mischievous look on her face. I guess I was her next target.
“Why do you keep coming to our dorm, dude? Why don’t you just live here?”
“…I haven’t been here for more than a week, though? Or you could come to the office. We’re a management company, so we should meet at least once a week, don’t you think?”
“How did you manage without seeing us?”
“Jin-ah, I feel like we’re getting too close too fast. I’d like to take it slow.”
“Oh, just admit it, Hyuk. You missed us… Aaah!”
“Being cheeky, are we?”
“Eek! President Kang! I’m sorry! I’m sorry!”
She finally surrendered when I planted a playful noogie on her head. This kid was too mischievous for her own good.
“I was going to tell you some big news!” Jin-ah pouted, rubbing her head.
It must have been something exciting. Well, it was probably nothing major. Maybe a new ice cream flavor?
“What is it?” I asked mechanically.
“I’m not telling you!”
“That’s too bad.”
“…”
Her sharp glare pierced me, and I had no choice but to give in.
“…What is it?”
“Should I tell you?”
“Yeah. I’m dying to know.”
“Okay, I’ll tell you. Yumi….”
“Hm? Yumi?”
“She wrote an amazing song!”
“…What?”
She wrote a song, even though she was focusing on arrangements? Maybe this really was big news. I called Yumi urgently.
“Yumi!”
“Oh, President Kang. You’re here? You must have been busy. You haven’t come by in over a week.”
I couldn’t help but glance at ‘someone’ in contrast to her behavior. That ‘someone’ averted her gaze. I turned back to Yumi.
“You wrote a song?” I asked.
“Jin-ah! I told you not to tell anyone!” she yelled at Jin-ah, looking betrayed.
“But it’s really good! Why keep it a secret? It’s such a waste!”
“I told you it’s still not good enough! I just wrote it as an experiment!”
“Then let President Kang hear it! It’s really good! I’m saying it’s too good to waste!”
“Well…Ha… seriously…!”
I agreed with Jin-ah on this. If she thought I’d be disappointed by a subpar song, she was gravely mistaken. I had already seen her immense talent, and there was no way she could create a bad song.
“Yumi, can I hear it?” I asked Yumi.
“Well… it’s… ha… okay,” she sighed and resigned herself to get her phone and earphones. Before handing them to me, she muttered defensively.
“I really just wrote this as an experiment while arranging something. It’s not that good. It would be better not to get your hopes up. Jin-ah is just exaggerating.”
“Yep, got it.”
“Seriously. It’s because of you, Jin-ah!”
“What did I do?”
Ignoring their bickering, I focused on the music. A few seconds passed, and I couldn’t stop my eyes from widening.
‘EDM?!’
It wasn’t surprising that she experimented with EDM after I praised her Daft Punk arrangement, but composing an EDM track was unexpected. In my past life, she didn’t compose an EDM song until much later.
‘Did my praise for her Daft Punk arrangement influence this?’
It seemed plausible. This track felt influenced by Daft Punk music. As I listened, I started to ponder.
‘Should we release this as a single? Or wait a bit?’
The quality was high enough for immediate release, but I decided against it.
“Yumi, let’s upload this to YouTube and SoundCloud.”
“What!? This is just an experiment! It’s still not good enough…” Yumi was shocked by my suggestion.
Truthfully, I was more surprised than her since she considered something this high quality as an experiment.
“That’s why we should upload it. Since it’s an experiment. Keep uploading all your experimental songs. You can upload both your arrangements and your compositions.” I said, “We can see how others would react to it, like what parts they like about it.”
I chose the future. No matter how much I said I liked it, she would feel that it wasn’t true. It was something I wanted to avoid.
She was in the middle of growing her musical talents. Giving her more freedom to explore a variety in her arrangements and compositions would be good experience for her. Plus, she was too talented to keep her confined to short term gains.
“See? I told you it was good!”
“…Can I really upload it?” she asked me, ignoring Jin-ah’s comment.
“Of course. You did great. Don’t feel too pressured. Upload anything and everything.”
“…Just wing it?”
I could see the gears turning in her head. Before my regression, she wasn’t active on YouTube or SoundCloud. Well, there was no need to follow her path from back then. That was then, and this was now.
Besides, I was confident that this path would be more beneficial for her. Yumi clenched her fist with pursed lips and a determined gaze.
A perfectly hamster-like face.
I almost burst into laughter but managed to hold it in.
“I’ll try it! I’ll just wing it! ”
“Yes, yes. Don’t feel pressured by it. Good luck!”
“Thank you!”
At the time, I was unaware. I was unaware of just how hot of a reaction this would receive so early on.
—