Chapter 128

Chapter 128

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

Episode 128: Why Me When There Are So Many Geniuses?.

Cheon Aram, who had been staring blankly at the video, adjusted her hair slightly and spoke.

“What happened, Team Leader Seon? I clearly remember it was around 300,000 views just a while ago. One point two million… this is such an enormous number, I can’t believe it. Is this really not an error?”

“Gyeoul’s first test video for ‘Girl 100’ already surpassed ten million views, right? I was surprised too, but I don’t think this can be considered an error.”

“That’s different. Gyeoul’s video gathered all the buzz from ‘Girl 100’ and was uploaded on MNET’s official channel, which has nearly 9 million subscribers. But Gaeul’s busking video was uploaded to the TwoBear official channel without even proper promotion.”

“There’s no need to separate the two that far. Soo-yeon and I believe that the buzz around MNET had an indirect effect on Gaeul’s video as well.”

“The two of you?”

I opened the comments section on AllTube and explained.

“If you look at the comments, you’ll notice many of them mention Gyeoul. It’s not just limited to Korean; they’re in various languages, with English being the base.”

“Hmm… I see, the algorithm didn’t just target Korea.”

“On top of that, I don’t mean to pat myself on the back, but I think the title also had a significant impact on the view count.”

‘The Manager Plays the Piano Too Well’—even now, the title made me cringe.

Honestly, I’d tried to stop it at the time of uploading, but Cheon Aram had pushed for it, insisting we’d be uploading many more videos anyway. Thinking about how effective it turned out to be, it reminded me how unpredictable the world could be.

“Hehehe, see? I told you clickbait would work.”

“…Yes, it certainly had an effect.”

Fine. If it meant the kids could succeed, I would gladly become the sacrificial lamb of clickbait.

“Not just that, but the unique nature of the busking video also played a role. Unlike idol videos, which are targeted toward specific fanbases, busking videos resonate with a broader audience, making it easier to connect with people of all ages and interests. Plus, there’s the influx of foreign viewers and their translated comments, which triggered a bit of ‘national pride.’”

“…So that’s how it all ties together.”

It really was fascinating.

“Okay, I understand now that this buzz isn’t a glitch and will have a positive effect on us. But what you’re suggesting is to move up the debut, isn’t it? What led you to that conclusion? Are we really doing this to cut company costs?”

“It’s not about the budget. I’m not a fool who’d force an unreasonable schedule just to save a few pennies. It’s simply because now is the perfect time for the debut.”

“And what’s the basis for that?”

Instead of answering, I handed her a folder.

“Provisional title: ‘Girl Revolution’ Planning Report?”

“Please read just the first five pages, and I’ll provide additional explanations.”

Cheon Aram nodded and started reading the report.

“We’ve succeeded in creating buzz, and a fanbase is forming. This isn’t limited to just one person—though the size may vary, this is happening for everyone except Jin Yeoreum. Right now, the next steps for Han Gyeoul, Yoo Gaeul, and Oh Yoori are drawing attention.”

But that attention wouldn’t last long. No, it mustn’t last too long.

“In a world where issues arise daily, public attention shifts so easily to something else. It’s not because people have short memories but because prolonged focus on one issue creates fatigue.”

We’d succeeded in creating buzz, but that wasn’t entirely positive.

“And fortunately or unfortunately, the aftermath of ‘Girl 100’ is still lingering. If we leave this unchecked, the names Gyeoul and Yoori could start feeling tiresome. Simply seeing someone’s face frequently on television can create anti-fans. Before that happens, we need to redirect this attention and anticipation.”

“And that direction is debut?”

“Yes. Instead of negative issues like corruption, vote manipulation, or leaked recordings, we’re shifting the narrative with something new. While this new issue will lose its buzz over time, it’s better to consider that stabilization. Anticipation can last as long as it needs to.”

Flipping through the report and skimming, Cheon Aram asked.

“I understand that the timing is perfect now. But there’s still so much to prepare—producing, directing, art, coordination, albums, promotions, broadcasting, and so on. We’re not sitting idle, right? There’s still so much to decide.”

“I’ve outlined the basic direction in that report. It covers everything: who we’ll hire, why, the concept, the strategy, everything. Of course, the promotion method has been structured to strengthen the approach we discussed, taking Jin Yeoreum into account.”

That report was the culmination of knowledge from my past life, a summary of the career of Seon Taeyang, who had even served as the CEO in the previous round.

Of course, no matter how well-prepared my plan was, without the right materials, it would be nothing but a stack of useless paper. But TwoBear, in this timeline, possessed the most luxurious ingredients imaginable.

We had solid investment funds. I knew exactly which personnel were the best choices. I memorized the next ten years of trends. Most importantly, we had the kids—kids whose world-class talent was already making waves.

Yes. Everything was already in place. All that remained was to charge forward.

Cheon Aram, who had gone completely silent as she read the full report, finally flipped to the last page. After taking a small, deep breath, she looked at me and said,

“Do you remember when I first brought you on board, I told you not to feel burdened by the title of team leader because I’d be bringing in more experienced people?”

“Yes, I remember that.”

It felt like such a long time ago.

“To be honest, at that time, I expected talent and vision from you as a producer, but I didn’t expect you to excel in conventional managerial work. You were young and hadn’t handled responsibilities like this before, so I thought it was natural for you to show some inexperience. But watching you work until now, I realize that was such an unnecessary worry.”

Cheon Aram spoke with pure admiration.

“Team Leader Seon, you’re a true genius.”

Her unexpected praise left me a little flustered, so I asked,

“…What do you mean?”

She smiled warmly, as if proud and satisfied, and said,

“Let’s move up the debut.”

The preparations for the debut were progressing very smoothly.

While the general direction was set by me, the details were continuously shaped by my colleagues, including Cheon Aram and Oh James. As a result, things were quickly falling into place, and we were able to speed up scheduling, staffing, and recruitment.

Oh James, who was tirelessly working under the ambitious goal of making all four songs for the album at title quality, was living a busier life than anyone else. But he displayed a monstrous ability to not compromise on both quality and speed.

I was incredibly grateful to work with him and supported him more than anyone else.

Except for one thing.

“Do I really have to do this?”

“Yes, it’s absolutely something you have to do, Team Leader Seon.”

I sighed and said,

“Honestly, I’m really against this. You know how important these songs are for the kids, right? To have me exclusively handle one of the four tracks… I don’t want to pass on a song with any flaws to the kids.”

“You don’t have to worry about that at all. I know your talents well.”

“That’s an overestimation. I think you might be misunderstanding because of the arrangements I did back then, but honestly, I’m not that talented.”

“Come on, you’ve created dozens of melody lines already, so how can you be so modest? Team Leader Seon, you’re definitely a genius, so don’t worry.”

“……”

Honestly, the fact that Oh James was saying this was my own fault.

Oh James had told me that even if I had never tried composing, just suggesting a few melody lines would be enough.

Rejecting such a request would lower his morale for settling in TwoBear, so I reluctantly played the melody lines of songs that had been hits in my past life, ones that would hit 8 years later and wouldn’t be caught in any plagiarism accusations.

Honestly, even if Oh James accepted them, I had no intention of using these melodies.

Given that we had enough funds and already knew which songs would be successful, it would be better to simply secure the rights to the song from its original composer rather than risk using these inconvenient melodies.

There was no need to use overly experimental melodies in this day and age.

So I planned to let Oh James find a melody he liked, then use it as an excuse to work on another track.

But Oh James kept clapping, saying the hit song melodies were fresh, and continued to ask if I had any more.

“By now, there should be something decent, right? You’ve been praising them non-stop.”

“Well, it’s fresh and good, but it doesn’t feel like ‘this is it.’ Let’s add one more… just one more.”

“Exactly what do you mean by that ‘this is it’ feeling?”

After playing dozens of melodies, I was getting worn out by Oh James’s constant requests for “one more.” It was so difficult to remember what other hit songs we had. So I just started banging away on the keys without thinking.

Suddenly, Oh James stopped me mid-play.

“…Wait.”

I thought I knew why he had stopped me.

It must have been because, after playing these timeless melodies, I suddenly began playing in a rough, off-key style, and he was probably disgusted by it.

“Yes, yes, one more. Just give me a moment to think…”

“Play that again.”

“This one?”

Why on earth this one?

Though I was skeptical, I reproduced the keys again.

“This is it.”

“Huh?”

“This is it, Team Leader Seon! We absolutely have to keep this!”

This isn’t even a hit song; I just played whatever came to mind.

I tilted my head in confusion, and Oh Jinwoo, who had been rummaging in the corner for sample tracks, suddenly widened his eyes and spoke.

“That melody line, may I take a shot at it? As a genius composer, I’m capable of turning it into an attractive song. I’ll even put your name on it as a favor, Team Leader Seon—”

“This guy, seeing it’s so good, is trying to steal it for himself. Did I teach you this way, you little punk?!”

“Ow! Bro! That hit me in the bone!”

“……”

…Oh Jinwoo’s plagiarism radar reacted to my mindless melody.