The Malicious Member is Back! - Chapter 111
The Day of the Midterm Evaluation Filming for the 3rd Position Competition.
“Phew…”
After finishing my personal interview, which was the last of the day, I cautiously stepped out and sighed.
Since the meeting with President Do Jae Chan, my days had been so busy that I barely remembered how I had spent my time.
The Do Jae Chan I met now wasn’t the president dealing with a problematic member bringing down the company’s stock price, but as a trainee under a temporary contract, he was truly…
“Wow, Trainee Kim Chunyong. You’ve been doing well on your own, haven’t you? You even threw away the stage name I gave you, huh?”
He wasn’t easy to deal with.
“Rex, now that Liu Wei’s out of the picture, you’re the key member in charge of dance, right? Come on, think about the Arrows! I know it’s hard for you. I do. But you’ve got to think about the other members, too.”
Our sentimental President Do had often pleaded with me back when I was the problematic member.
…Because of the situations I’d been through.
Of course, after I lost myself in a drunken stupor, those persuasive attempts stopped, but still.
However, the version of me now was a temporary contract trainee who didn’t even bother with the stage name he gave me.
“Trainee Kim Chunyong was going to do whatever he wanted anyway, so I guess he’s telling me to keep doing that now. It’s a talent to take the stage when the platform’s set for you.”
Now, putting aside his emotional side, the entertainment company president was focusing aggressively on achieving his goal.
He asked me all sorts of things about Logan, and I had a hard time sorting out what I could reveal and what I couldn’t.
“No, I can’t really talk about that….”
“There’s nothing you can’t talk about!”
What I could reveal was how Liu Wei had shown a sly, competitive attitude toward me and Logan. What I couldn’t reveal was Logan’s family matters.
After all, what the president needed wasn’t specifics but enough hints to suspect that “Director Shin was up to something.”
Logan’s family situation… I wasn’t in a position to talk about that, especially since Logan didn’t want to leave.
Even with everything, there’s still a sense of decency between people, isn’t there?
“In the end, it’s as reckless now as it was back then. Ugh.”
Ding!
– X: Wow, you’re feeling all high and mighty after getting praised at the midterm evaluation today? Are you not even thinking about next week’s stage??
– X: Right now, the vocal team is doing the best, aren’t they?! Are you kidding me?!
Frowning at X’s barrage of notifications, I hastily typed out a reply.
– Kim Chunyong: Shut up.
– X: Wow, rude much. Legend. ;;;;
Of course, the team that got the best feedback in today’s midterm evaluation was indeed the vocal position trainees.
After all, they had the most well-rounded members.
“…Tone, rhythm, expression—all excellent. It’s the best I’ve seen so far. Great job, Trainee Son Jae Ha.”
“Thank you!”
Finally able to fully showcase his skills after overcoming the bad luck of the original song stage and the second competition, Jae Ha hyung was performing brilliantly.
“Trainee Bang Yu Chan… I don’t even have anything more to say. Did you do guide vocals for this song or something? How are you this good?”
“Oh, I did guide vocals for a different song!”
“You’ve even done that?!”
Yu Chan hyung, who was dominating the vocal position with overwhelming superiority.
Then there were Si Woo, Seo Bin, and Ahn Jin Woo, who could all naturally handle the high tones of Serenia’s songs.
“…Not bad. You’ve been practicing a lot, haven’t you?”
Even that Kim Joo An received positive feedback.
“Thank… you, hyung. Thanks for giving me that part….”
“No, it fit your tone better.”
He seemed a bit more distant with Jae Ha hyung, but whatever conversations they had, it wasn’t my concern.
Anyway, from what I overheard from the production team, it seemed like they were already planning to push the group under the name “Vocalz.”
Ding!
– X: So, are you the #1 fan of “Vocalz” now? Are you kidding me?
– X: Be more proactive! Act like you’re aiming for the top! Don’t you know? This is your golden chance to finally stand out as the main player!
X only knows half the story.
Suppressing a laugh, I sent a quick reply.
– Kim Chunyong: I’m already doing more than enough right now.
In reality, I was handling the position competition quite easily.
Chemistry? Sure, the chemistry in the vocal team was a hundred, no, five hundred times better than ours.
In our dance position, aside from me and Liu Wei, the others were pointed out for not working well together.
“…It’s a shame. If it were me… Ah, never mind!”
Since the original artist, Senior Choi Gaon, was so anxious that he was practically stomping his feet, there was nothing more to be said.
However, the key point that must be addressed here is:
– Kim Chunyong: You idiot.
– Kim Chunyong: The position competition is an individual event.
Even though they stand on stage together, the position competition is judged individually, with six members lined up to receive scores.
“Uh, uh… I got a lot of help from Yujin unnie.”
“Hye Yoon is ranked first. Yes. I’m ranked fourth.”
There was already a precedent in Dive Little Star, where contestants who had genuinely helped each other ended up ranked first and sixth.
Luckily, they both debuted together in the end. Otherwise, their relationship might have become irreparable.
The conclusion is that this time, there’s no need to pour all your energy into creating perfect team chemistry.
As for our current dance position team, though it’s slightly mismatched, with some adjustments from me, the details can quickly improve.
The problem right now is… someone from another team.
Thinking about this as I reached the second floor where our dorm was located…
“…Huh?”
I faintly saw someone crouching in front of our dorm room.
“…….”
A delicate face, somewhat round and anxious-looking, with a solid build and invisible, drooping ears and tail.
I didn’t expect him to look so openly despondent.
…And the hallway cameras were still rolling.
Clearing my slightly hoarse throat, I called out the person’s name.
“…Logan. What are you doing here like this?”
Logan, who had been crouched in front of the dorm door, quickly stood up and grabbed my sleeve.
“Uh… Chunyong hyung.”
Could we maybe talk for a moment? Is that okay?*
Seeing Logan’s trembling hands and face, I lightly nodded.
“Yeah, man.”
This was the task I had to handle.
– X: It’s going to be a problem if helping Logan pushes your debut to the back burner. ㅡㅡ
Ignoring the latest message from X, I started walking with Logan.
Helping Logan would delay my debut?
…X only knows part of the story.
To be exact, helping Logan is for my debut, my team, and for everyone.
(T/N: The original text is “잠깐 talking about, 괜찮아요?” which translated to “Wait a minute, talking about, are you okay?” It was weird to translate it as is, so I changed it)
