The Malicious Member is Back! - Chapter 71
“Could Mentor Min Si Young give us some advice?”
“…Advice for the two of you? From me?”
Seonbaenim’s eyes scanned me from head to toe. Maybe because her back was to the camera, her disapproval was blatant.
It was as if she was saying, ‘You’re not within my boundary.’ Considering she currently had a grudge against me, it made sense.
And this was exactly why I had anticipated this.
“Oh, we’re not asking for any special treatment. It’s just that we have some free time. When else would we get the chance to hear advice from such an esteemed senior as you, Mentor Min Si Young?”
…I didn’t come alone.
“Hmmm.”
Though I wasn’t sure about the dance, I had brought along Yu Chan, whose exceptional vocals had previously impressed Min Si Young seonbaenim. His presence beside me helped to slightly soften the atmosphere.
“Well. I guess it’ll be okay for a while.”
She opened up earnestly.
“First of all… the song you chose, ‘Beyond the Waves,’ is very special to me. Actually, I was supposed to debut simultaneously in both Korea and Japan with that song.”
“Oh, but didn’t you debut in Korea with a different song? If I remember correctly….”
“That’s right. I debuted with ‘Nonstop Girl’ in the second year of middle school.”
“Yes! I sang that song at karaoke all the time. Wow, hearing this, it really hits home how young you were when you debuted. It’s clear that someone who led an era truly stands out.”
“Oh, well… that does make me feel good. Thank you, Trainee Bang Yu Chan.”
“Oh, it’s nothing. I was just stating the obvious.”
Yu Chan’s smooth talk made seonbaenim shrug her shoulders once. It seemed that having someone with plenty of social experience from the outside world made a difference.
“But isn’t the person who brought this up curious? You’ve been quiet.”
Trainee Kim Chunyong.
Both Yu Chan and Min Si Young seonbaenim’s gazes were fixed on me.
‘Chunyong, now’s the perfect time.’
Responding to Yu Chan’s subtle wink, I quickly opened my mouth.
“…Of course, I have many questions. But this is a rare opportunity! It’s hard to choose which question to ask.”
“Just ask. It’s not like I’m going to answer everything anyway.”
“Then….”
I spoke quickly and loudly, making sure the camera wouldn’t miss it.
“Why didn’t you debut with ‘Beyond the Waves’?”
At my question, Min Si Young seonbaenim’s mouth clamped shut. It seemed she was about to demonstrate that ‘I don’t answer everything.’
However, that wouldn’t do.
I had to push this painful subject because it was the only way to get proper feedback for Si Woo.
“…….”
Min Si Young seonbaenim’s expression was complicated as she looked at me. She seemed to be weighing her options, unsure of what to say.
…Ah.
Did I look too much like a jerk right now?
Recalling my unpleasant expression, I quickly changed to a pitiful, sympathetic look and made my decisive statement.
“I was also dropped from a debut group at another agency and ended up on <Targeting Star>. I wanted to ask you about this, wondering if you had a similar experience…”
“…You were cut from a debut group?”
“Yes. So, I was hoping that if Min Si Young seonbaenim could share some encouraging words, it might help me overcome those memories….”
“…Hmm.”
Perhaps it was because this was the first time she was hearing this. Min Si Young seonbaenim’s expression softened.
Even if she disliked a trainee, learning there was a backstory often changed how one felt.
As I continued to look dejected, seonbaenim, deep in thought, slowly opened her mouth.
“It’s not that I didn’t do it.”
I couldn’t do it.
Yu Chan hyung’s mouth fell open at her words.
“You couldn’t do it? How could you not debut with such a good song….”
“I was ignored.”
“What?”
Biting her lower lip, seonbaenim continued in a slightly angry voice.
“I was ignored. I had no choice but to debut later. Back then, the Korean broadcast stations didn’t see my potential. So, ‘Beyond the Waves’ was only released under my Japanese name.”
“No way. You’re Min Si Young seonbaenim!”
“I was young then. No matter how good I was, I was still a kid. Even if they called me a genius, I was still just a kid.”
The disregard shown toward a talented young girl. The arrogance of broadcast stations, thinking they could tame her before she grew.
That sort of thing.
Min Si Young seonbaenim, who had just dredged up the humiliation she faced in her childhood, took a shallow breath and cleared her expression.
“―It was just like that. Somehow, I ended up talking too much. Anyway, I eventually debuted and got to sing many good songs. Everything turned out well in the end, to the point where I can talk about it on a show like this.”
“But no matter how much of a genius you are at everything… being treated like that must have been really tough.”
At my words, seonbaenim slowly nodded.
Her aversion towards me had significantly diminished by now.
“That’s right. It was tough back then. Knowing you can do everything but still facing comparisons and being disregarded… I wondered if I could ever do better. It’s much better now, though….”
―Now is the time.
I wiped my sweaty palm on my pants and muttered as nonchalantly as possible.
“Well, this is just a guess.”
“…Huh?”
A voice so low it might not even be caught by the camera.
“Couldn’t it be the same for Si Woo?”
Even a self-confident genius like you found it tough to endure such comparisons.
Living under the shadow of an already accomplished older brother, no matter how hard Si Woo works, he’s constantly hearing that name from everyone. Don’t you think he’s struggling too?
You know how that feels, don’t you?
“That’s right. Si Woo… too.”
At my words, Min Si Young seonbaenim, who had been answering indifferently, suddenly widened her eyes and looked at me. Her glassy eyes trembled slightly, as if saying,
‘How does a trainee from another place like you know that?’
How do I know?
Because he was our youngest member.
‘Si Woo, if you keep doing this, you’re tarnishing Si Won’s name!’
And if Yu Chan hyung and I didn’t step in to guide her on how to advise Si Woo, we knew her fiery personality might make things worse.
Instead of explaining and becoming a suspicious trainee who knows too much, I lifted the corners of my mouth into a big smile and bowed deeply to her.
“Please take care of him!”
Because at that very moment.
“Gasp! Is it true that Min Si Young seonbaenim has come to our practice room? To scold us! To scold us?”
There was Ryota, overreacting in his peculiar translated tone of surprise—
“……”
And the central figure of all this commotion.
Our very own Jang Si Woo had entered.
T/N: Hi everyone! Thank you so much for sticking around and supporting this novel. I’m sorry I haven’t been updating as much as any of us would like. Life has been very busy lately 🙁 But I ask for your kind patience and stay tuned for more active June updates. Thank you so much for supporting this novel!!
