Chapter 13

Chapter 13

Raise Three Idols Well And They’ll Launch a Confession Attack.

Episode 13: Can I Have It?.

Bang!

Cheon Jonghoon slammed the marble table with all his might.

“I’m jealous of that guy? Me, Cheon Jonghoon?”

It was an intense emotional expression uncharacteristic of the always arrogant Cheon Jonghoon.

“I’ve never failed to achieve my goals. If I wanted to be first, I was first. If I wanted results, I got results. I got everything I wanted!”

Cheon Jonghoon shouted like a beast facing an intruder.

“Me, jealous? Ridiculous. I’m the one who gets envied, not the one who envies.”

Cheon Aram, who was watching Cheon Jonghoon’s anger with interest, skillfully changed the atmosphere like an actor playing two roles.

“Yes, you’re right.”

The changed atmosphere was like that of a sycophantic flatterer.

“That guy is just a job seeker, while you’re the heir to SS’s foundation. Even with his paltry talent, can he bridge that gap?”

It was a side of Cheon Aram that she had never shown to Cheon Jonghoon.

“Cheon Jonghoon is a man who will reach the top, and that man will crawl at the bottom. This is the unchanging truth. Don’t you think so?”

Even he, who didn’t like sycophantic remarks, seemed enchanted by the sweetness of her words.

It was because it was Cheon Aram who said it.

As a result, Cheon Jonghoon spoke as if entranced.

“Crawl at the bottom? No, he has more talent than that.”

“Really? At best, he has a good eye. He’d make a good scout. But that’s all, right?”

Cheon Aram spoke sweetly, scratching where Cheon Jonghoon itched.

“A well-made knife among many. Just that. He can’t compare to you, the heir to SS’s fortress.”

Cheon Jonghoon shook his head and spoke.

“Having a good eye isn’t just about ‘seeing well.’ It requires expert knowledge of the genre, innate sense, keen awareness of trends, and more.”

It wasn’t a talent that could be called just that.

“But that’s fine. If it was just that talent, as you said, he could be used as a good tool. But he’s a genius in another sense.”

Cheon Jonghoon denied it, but his jealousy towards Seon Taeyang wasn’t because of his eye for talent.

It was the ability to bring a trainee, who had been burdened with bad habits like useless trash, up to his aesthetic standards in just six days.

It was the ability known as producing, and the field in which Cheon Jonghoon had the most confidence.

“Was it possible because of the talent of the kid named Gyeoul? That must have had an influence. A kid without talent couldn’t have followed such a schedule.”

Cheon Jonghoon’s eyes were no longer looking at Cheon Aram.

He was seeing Seon Taeyang in his memory.

“But having a talented kid alone isn’t enough.”

It required the best producer alongside them.

“Judgment, leadership, analytical skills, precise knowledge of music and dance, the ability to calculate and envision a complete image. Most importantly, the intuition to see talent. All of these are needed.”

Cheon Aram asked curiously.

“Don’t you have that kind of talent too?”

“….”

Cheon Jonghoon couldn’t answer.

“Wow.”

Cheon Aram fully understood from his silence.

Cheon Jonghoon, who had that talent, judged that he couldn’t do it.

That meant Seon Taeyang possessed a talent he couldn’t measure.

“Someday, he’ll definitely reach the top. And he’ll surely draw his sword to bring me down. Because I’m the one closest to the top right now.”

Cheon Jonghoon still remembered the look in Seon Taeyang’s eyes when he looked at him.

The look that seemed not to understand why it was impossible.

The look of a genius seeing a commoner.

It was a familiar look.

It was the look Cheon Jonghoon often showed others.

“It’s not about his personality. It’s the fate of someone with talent that sticks out like a sore thumb. He’ll definitely reach the top.”

Cheon Jonghoon shivered slightly and spoke.

“I have no hobby of raising someone who will stab me with a knife.”

Just as Cheon Jonghoon ascended to the throne, so would Seon Taeyang.

Because he was someone who could do it.

“Hmm… I understand your point. From your perspective, it seems like a reasonable judgment.”

Cheon Aram nodded and sympathized with Cheon Jonghoon.

But there was another point.

“…But you know, whatever the reason, you let go of that Seon Taeyang, right?”

Cheon Aram twirled her fork playfully like a trick, then stabbed the snail and spoke.

“Then, can I take him?”

Cheon Jonghoon’s brow furrowed at Cheon Aram’s provocative words.

“Did you listen to what I said? Do you think I’ll happily allow that?”

Cheon Aram smiled brightly and said,

“You and I aren’t competitors, are we? We’re family. Wouldn’t it be better if I managed him instead of him sharpening his knife out of ignorance?”

“You and he don’t match.”

“In what sense?”

“You smell a foul odor when someone with selfish intentions approaches you.”

It was a chronic condition and talent that Cheon Aram inherited from her grandfather.

The ability to distinguish a person’s impure intentions with a supernatural sense of smell.

In times of chaos, it was an ability that could make one a king, but for Cheon Aram, it was not a welcome talent.

It created a hardship akin to suffering from mysophobia.

Under the strict conditions of her ability, most people emitted a foul odor.

If it were food or the environment, it could be changed, but people couldn’t be.

Because of this, she had to give up normal human relationships from birth.

“Well, that’s true. When I’m next to someone with a dirty inside, the foul odor makes me feel nauseous and gives me goosebumps, making it hard to breathe.”

Cheon Jonghoon remembered how Cheon Aram often ended up in the emergency room because of it.

“Even I think it’s a strange symptom. I can tolerate dirty things, but I can’t stand people with dirty insides.”

Cheon Aram playfully covered her mouth with her hand, as if she had forgotten.

“Oh, family is different. Don’t worry, Oppa.”

Cheon Jonghoon gave her a doubtful look but nodded and spoke.

“In the end, he just used a talented kid for his own benefit. Asking SS for a favor was along the same lines. This is completely different from the type of person you want.”

That’s how Seon Taeyang appeared to Cheon Jonghoon.

“So there’s no way you and he will get involved. He’s just one of those ambitious people in the world. He must emit a strong, foul odor.”

“…Well, somehow, I don’t feel like your words are true.”

“Are you saying I’m lying right now? I’ve never lied to you in my life.”

“That’s true. You don’t lie to me. But you do hide information a lot, saying I don’t need to know.”

Just as Cheon Jonghoon knew Cheon Aram, Cheon Aram knew Cheon Jonghoon.

“But right now, my intuition is telling me. You’re hiding something about that person.”

At some point, Cheon Aram’s atmosphere had changed from that of a sweet sycophant to a hungry snake.

Cheon Jonghoon felt the pressure as if he had become prey.

“What reason did he give?”

“…What reason are you talking about?”

“The reason he wanted to join SS.”

Cheon Jonghoon looked at Cheon Aram without saying anything.

Cheon Aram met his gaze, then chuckled and spoke.

“If you don’t intend to tell me, I can find out myself, right?”

Cheon Jonghoon, giving Cheon Aram a disgruntled look, put down his utensils and stood up.

Then, while putting on his coat, he spoke.

“Do as you please. Anyway, the only person who can satisfy your aesthetic sense with your human mysophobia is Seo Soo-yeon.”

“I think so too.”

Cheon Aram said softly as she brought a piece of snail to her mouth.

“But this time, I hope you’re wrong.”

On the folding table in our cramped home, there was chicken, tteokbokki, pizza, and a cake—all popular delivery foods.

They were all bought with Gyeoul’s grandfather’s money.

Gyeoul, with candles on the cake, raised a glass of orange juice and celebrated the joy of her acceptance.

My sister, looking embarrassed by the fuss, still joined in.

It was the stance of an adult.

Neither my sister nor I were the type to celebrate such occasions.

For us, birthdays would just pass by, and three months later, we’d have a short reflection like, ‘Oh, my birthday passed.’

When I revealed this, Gyeoul spoke.

“I’ve never done it either because I don’t have friends! But I wanted to try it once!”

…Oh, Gyeoul.

It felt wrong to dampen her spirits when she said that.

But there was something I couldn’t let slide.

“It might be a nuisance to the neighbors, so put down the birthday fireworks.”

In this apartment, made of cheap materials and with no sound privacy, even those small fireworks could be considered a nuisance.

Gyeoul put down the fireworks with a sullen face.

“…Okay.”

My sister silently threw away something she was holding into the trash while we weren’t looking.

Pretending not to see, I glanced and saw it was the birthday fireworks.

…Sister, you were actually enjoying it.

To preserve my sister’s dignity, I quickly changed the subject.

“By the way, what about your accommodation?”

“…Huh? Accommodation? Since I passed, won’t the company provide accommodation?”

First of all, I wanted to point out the assumption that trainees, not even debut members, would be provided with accommodation.

But fortunately, at this time, SS, being one of the top three agencies, had started providing accommodation for trainees coming from the provinces, so it wasn’t entirely wrong.

But that was only if she had a contract.

“You haven’t signed a contract yet, right? You only agreed to short-term training.”

“…Didn’t I pass?”

“You’re almost there, but not yet. You need to pass the short-term training first to be fully accepted. The company needs to see how you conduct yourself before they can trust and contract you, right?”

There were too many people who seemed very diligent during interviews and tests but turned out strange once they became trainees.

“That’s why you do short-term training before signing a contract. You’ll probably need to do it for at least a week to a month before discussing a contract. That’s why I asked. You need to figure out accommodation if you’re staying in Seoul during that time.”

Gyeoul’s pupils shook violently, as if she hadn’t even thought about it.

Eventually, Gyeoul glanced at my sister and me, then silently knelt and bowed her head.

“A month. No, just one more week, please!”

“Get out of our house!”