Echoes of Asael: A Manager's Second Chance

Eun-ju First Attempt to break ASAEL

I saw every ASAEL member's face drenched in sweat from practicing since early morning. Don't they know what tired means? I gestured to Yaara to come over. She walked towards me with her usual displeased expression.

She always looks like that around me. Not that I can complain tho.

"What?" she asked when she got to me.

"I have something important to tell everyone. But I need your opinion first."

She looked at me with a raised eyebrow, then took a towel from her bag to wipe the sweat off her neck.

"What is it?" she asked, leaning against the wall next to me.

"I need to find a way to promote ASAEL widely. Do you have any ideas?"

"Aren't group introduction videos on YouTube popular enough?" Yaara asked in a low tone, maybe so the other members wouldn't hear.

"No, this is just a precaution. You know there are already over 10 new K-pop groups debuting this year. Especially groups from the Big 3. I'm worried ASAEL will fall behind in marketing."

Even though Yaara's return to the industry has made ASAEL famous, I want the other members to get their deserved attention too. But what bothers me now is the news that a Big 3 company wants to debut its artists in the same year as ASAEL debuted.

Is this just a coincidence? In my first life, there was no news about Big 3 artists debuting the same year as ASAEL. That happened a few years later.

But why change now?

"Hey." I was startled when Yaara called me. I narrowed my eyes at her, feeling a bit annoyed by her informal tone.

Have you forgotten how to be respectful to older people?

"Yaara, if others hear you calling me that, they'll definitely give you weird looks," I scolded her.

"What are you talking about? You're the only one I call like that. After all, our age difference is only 7 years," Yaara replied.

'Only' huh?

"Hah... anyway, I want your opinion because of your experience. You were a trainee at MANA."

"...why not ask Eun-ju for her opinion?" Yaara asked, looking at Eun-ju talking with the other members.

I don't trust her words anymore. Yaara, you're the only one I rely on right now.

"Because you're an ex-trainee from MANA, the most famous and high-ranking company in Korea. Eun-ju is just a trainee here," I answered casually.

"MANA promotes new groups by having them participate in popular survival shows. But you can't use that method for ASAEL since most members are new to the industry," Yaara explained, watching the others practice.

"Zuyi and Mel... they're from a modeling company, right? How about making them promotional ambassadors? In Korea, many beauty products use the same models over the years. I think, It's time to revamp the promotion model with a fresh approach, utilizing visuals that align with today's trends to captivate the youth and draw attention to their products." Yaara suggested.

Oh, that's brilliant. I can get their consent to include them in modeling promotions.

"For the rest, ask if they want to join any survival shows or do collaborations with other artists," Yaara added.

I looked at her gratefully, but she returned my gaze with an annoyed look.

"Okay, I'll talk to them one by one after this."

TAP!

Yaara and I looked back at the same time. A bottle of water rolled on the floor, leaking from a crack. It seemed someone had thrown it.