GIJS

Chapter 79 Alternative 3

"Is this Lupi...?"

"Oppa Kang-ho?"

The members of Ponyta stared intently at Min Kang-ho's face. With the pink face paint smeared thickly, his face had turned even redder.

"..."

"Is it really Oppa Kang-ho?"

"... It's Lupi..."

"But Lupi doesn't use honorifics."

"... It's Lupi..."

"Your voice sounds like Oppa Kang-ho's though?"

Min Kang-ho kept his head bowed and clenched his fists tightly. That damn Yoo Gun-ja...

Looking up slightly, he saw Yoo Gun-ja smiling contentedly at him.

Hyung, what are you embarrassed about? The juniors want to greet you!

Seeing that smiling face made Min Kang-ho burn with rage. In the meantime, it seemed Ponyta and the rookies had accepted the fact that Lupi = Min Kang-ho.

"Oppa Kang-ho, what's this~"

"Why is the makeup so well done?"

"Senior, you've appeared on [Today's Quiz]."

"...But how many did you get wrong...?"

Min Kang-ho had always been quite flashy since his rookie days, especially in front of girl group members. Although no member ever came on strongly, he wanted to keep all possibilities open.

Ponyta was also on Min Kang-ho's radar. While not a major success, the group's visuals were impressive.

Moreover, the rookies standing next to them were even more so.

Freshly debuted girl groups were Min Kang-ho's prime targets. Rookies reacted with 120% enthusiasm no matter how flashy Min Kang-ho acted.

Showing off his best would have been more than enough, but in a Lupin costume? With a pink face?

The rookies, all tightly clenching their fists like martial artists and bowing their heads, seemed to be desperately trying to stifle their laughter.

"..."

"Ugh-."

Min Kang-ho could hardly believe his situation. Is he really being forced to endure a rookie girl group's laugh challenge?

"Haha, Oppa. What's going on!"

In the midst of this, one member of Ponyta, oblivious to the situation, laughed and patted Min Kang-ho on the shoulder. Annoyed and infuriated, Min Kang-ho frowned and raised his voice.

"What the hell!"

"Ha ha ha, why is your pronunciation like that!"

"Are you laughing? Is this funny?"

"Ha ha ha ha—."

The damn face paint had ruined his pronunciation. The situation had reached a point where Min Kang-ho couldn't handle it.

"Seon-ah, let's just go..."

"Yes, unnie! Oppa! Fighting! Yoo Gun-ja, too!"

Eventually, the leader of Ponyta managed to gather the members and leave.

After the storm had passed.

Yoo Gun-ja turned around and smiled brightly at Min Kang-ho.

"Hyung, Oppa Kang-ho!"

"..."

"It seems those people don't recognize you, so I might have exaggerated a bit."

"..."

"Haha, even during filming, we must uphold the principles of senior-junior relationships."

But Min Kang-ho didn't smile.

All that remained for him was anger. He wanted nothing more than to wipe off that cursed Lupi makeup, but since the recording wasn't over yet, he couldn't do that.

"Damn... Damn, what am I supposed to do?"

"What's 'what am I supposed to do'? What kind of knife is that, Hyung?"

"... Just wait and see."

The pink monster had already made up his mind.

He would crush Yoo Gun-ja one way or another.

---

Preparations for 7IN's debut album were proceeding smoothly.

Producer Ji Hyun-soo was carefully building up the new song [Origin]. Since the song had been well-developed from the sketch, the professional arranging team quickly enhanced its quality.

Thanks to the title track being completed faster than expected, they decided to add a ballad track to the debut mini-album.

The working title for 7IN's ballad was [Dream of a Dream]. Young Eon-chae, who had been a trainer for the members in Ayuksi, was in charge of composing it.

"...Heh, heh heh... We're giving a song to Yoo Gun-ja... and our debut members..."

Young Eon-chae, who refused to accept any payment, was barely convinced to accept a fee after Team Leader Seo Eun-woo pleaded.

If not for Team Leader Seo's strict adherence to principles, Young Eon-chae might have worked for free indefinitely.

With the double title tracks [Concept: Loyalty], [Origin], and additional tracks like [Unmannered Ones], [PLAY!], and [Dream of a Dream], there were no issues with the debut album's production.

While the company was working hard, the members also kept busy without resting. They practiced choreography daily, honed their skills, and actively engaged with fans through various communication channels like SNS, Z Live, and Hybeverse.

The atmosphere in the dorm was also excellent.

Although everyone's personalities differed slightly, they all shared a scholarly demeanor, so there was little to no conflict among the members.

Yoo Gun-ja enjoyed dorm life more than anyone else.

After spending his youth alone under his uncle and stepfather, living with friends of his own age and doing nothing but eating, sleeping, and singing was a source of pure happiness.

Sometimes he would put on an apron and enter the kitchen to make snacks. Cooking had been of particular interest to scholars in late Joseon.

The cook who handled the ritual food for the Moonwon Yoo family and Yoo Gun-ja had a special relationship. Thanks to this, Yoo Gun-ja had learned a lot in the kitchen.

Although his uncle avoided cooking, claiming it was not a duty for the gentry, Yoo Gun-ja saw cooking as a science for the people, creating delicacies from various ingredients.

He still remembered the cooking methods he learned back then. He had always loved eating sooksoo-bukkeum, a snack made by mixing sorghum flour dough with sweet red bean paste.

"Sizzle—."

"Here, take a look."

"Wow, the smell is amazing!?"

Cooking was enjoyable both during the process and when watching people savor the completed food.

"Eat slowly, take your time."

"Hey, how can you eat something this delicious slowly?"

"Ugh, I guess I'm getting old. This tastes really good."

"Gun-ja, what should we watch on TV?"

"Well, it's time for [Masterpiece Genuine Antiques]."

"That sounds good. It's surprisingly interesting."

"Sooksoo-bukkeum and Masterpiece Genuine Antiques... this is the reality of a rookie idol..."

"Hyung, are we okay?"

With sooksoo-bukkeum and Masterpiece Genuine Antiques, a peaceful and hearty weekend morning seemed to be flowing.

However, as the plates started to empty, Manager Lee Yong-jung burst into the dorm, looking urgent.

"Hey, guys."

"Wow, it's the manager."

"Manager, come and have some sooksoo-bukkeum."

"This isn't the time for snacks."

"Excuse me?"

"We've got a situation."

It was an emergency call from Team Leader Seo Eun-woo.

Thirty minutes later, in the Solar System conference room.

When the members entered the conference room, Team Leader Seo Eun-woo greeted them warmly.

"Welcome. I'm sorry to call you in on the weekend."

"It's okay, we're fine!"

Tae-woong's loud response prompted a strained smile from Team Leader Seo Eun-woo, whose expression was not very pleasant.

"I'll get straight to the point. There's been a disruption in the album production. We are no longer able to work with the music video production team and the choreography team we were collaborating with."

"Excuse me?"

The smoothly progressing album production had hit an unexpected snag. The contracts with the top-tier music video production company 'HDR' and the choreography team 'Payback' had simultaneously fallen through.

"Huh? This suddenly?"

"...W-why..."


"In this situation, the reason isn't crucial, but I'm sure you're curious."

The members nodded with anxious expressions. They were already excited about the prospect of working with the top production teams.

"It has been confirmed that HDR and Payback have signed with Curly Music."

"!"

Curly Music is the agency of 'Favorite.' It seemed that Ji Hyun-su, realizing the situation, frowned and lightly hit the desk.

"So Curly Music stole them?"

"Well, it's not exactly stealing. HDR and Payback were teams working with Solar System, but they were not under exclusive contracts."

"But there are ethics involved..."

In fact, Curly Music had no particular reason to poach the two teams. They had their own teams that were nearly as close in exclusivity.

This contract was clearly an attempt to undermine 7IN.

Having understood the situation, Gunja sighed briefly.

It's a regrettable choice. They're all partners moving forward with the same dream and facing similar struggles. Why must they obstruct each other?

However, Gunja also felt a sense of guilt. When he appeared on [Today's Quiz>, it seemed that Favorite's Min Kang-hoo was quite offended. After filming, he didn't even offer a proper greeting.

Perhaps that was the cause of this situation.

"...I'm sorry."

"Why are you apologizing, Yu Gunja?"

"Perhaps it's because I provoked Min Kang-hoo during the filming that led to this situation."

However, Team Leader Seo Eun-woo shook his head firmly.

"No, that's not it."

"..."

"The date when Curly Music signed with the two teams was earlier than the date you filmed [Today's Quiz>. Regardless of what happened on set, Curly Music had already planned to cause trouble for us."

"..."

"Moreover, I don't think Min Kang-hoo's personal feelings would influence such a significant decision."

"...Is that so."

"Yes."

Team Leader Seo Eun-woo spoke as if there was no room for doubt.

"If you embarrassed Min Kang-hoo at that time, it was not a root cause of the issue but rather a fitting revenge."

Gunja felt somewhat reassured by Team Leader Seo Eun-woo's words. However, feeling reassured did not mean the situation was resolved.

As if the meeting was just beginning, Team Leader Seo Eun-woo stood up and continued.

"First, I apologize. Due to my oversight, we have lost the teams we were working with. If I had been more thorough and made a more rational judgment, this situation could have been avoided. I sincerely apologize."

With a heartfelt apology, Team Leader Seo Eun-woo bowed deeply. Seeing this, Gunja couldn't help but be impressed.

Team Leader Seo Eun-woo's position would be equivalent to at least a 3rd rank official in Joseon.

Even from such a high position, he can acknowledge and apologize for his mistakes so clearly in front of the young trainees. I've felt it before, but he truly has the demeanor of a scholar.

"Now, we need to make a choice."

"What kind of choice..."

"Currently, it seems there are almost no top-tier production companies available to create music videos and choreography in line with our debut schedule."

"..."

"Of course, it is possible to recruit a lower-tier production company or choreographers. However, it might leave some disappointment."

"..."

"Do we delay our debut schedule to work with the best teams, or do we stick to the schedule and work with a second-tier team?"

"..."

"I won't pass the responsibility of making this choice onto you. However, since your opinions are important, I would like to ask."

Team Leader Seo Eun-woo presented two options:

1. Delay the schedule and find a top-tier production team.
2. Stick to the schedule and work with a second-tier team.

However, Gunja felt that a third option might be visible.

A top official from a giant agency surpassing the scale of Solar System and Curly Music.

At the very least, a senior who is obsessed with quality choreography.

Gunja had the contact information for those two individuals saved on his smartphone.

"Hmm..."

"Yu Gunja, do you have any thoughts?"

"There might be a third option."

"What is it..."

"It's a solution where we don't delay the schedule but can still work with top-notch individuals."