Chapter 97. Spreading the Broken Wings (3)

Translator: Synopsis

KangYoon didn’t drag things out.

He paid the 1.5 billion debt that Kim JaeHoon had the day they signed the contract.

It was also Kim JaeHoon’s contract deposit.

Kim JaeHoon felt strange, feeling that this was too good to be true.

“…When was this ever so easy? Haha….”

“You’ll have a headache doing music alone. I can’t let things like these drag you down.

Kim JaeHoon was touched by KangYoon’s words as they left the bank.

‘1.5 billion…. 1.5 billion….’

Behind the two men was Lee HyunJi who was blankly staring into the air.

The effects of an enormous amount of money draining out just like that were immense.

Thanks to that, Lee HyunJi’s gaze towards Kim JaeHoon wasn’t the nicest.

KangYoon said that he would introduce Kim JaeHoon formally to the rest of the company. Then, Kim JaeHoon said that he would go change his clothes, and KangYoon allowed that. Kim JaeHoon’s house was around 40 minutes away from the company.

After returning to his office, Lee HyunJi spoke worriedly to KangYoon.

“It looks like a concert venue will be hard. We’ll only be able to open stable concerts with our own exclusive venue. Isn’t there going to be some hindrances to the plans we had for White Moonlight?”

“For this album, we’ll have to increase the number of concert venues we are under contract with.”

“Ah, I think we overdid things a little. We could have taken it slower….”

Lee HyunJi said in a roundabout way that KangYoon’s plans were very reckless. KangYoon replied in understanding.

“We were reckless. However, we’ll be able to leap ahead faster just as much.”

KangYoon believed in Kim JaeHoon’s skills. He believed that good songs, his skills, and good planning would more than make up for the immediate losses.

‘A person like Kim JaeHoon can leap a step further.’

His current investment would return to him in several times the amount, is what he thought.

KangYoon cleaned up his papers for a moment and headed to the studio. Inside the studio were Kim JiMin and Lee HyunAh doing guitar practice.

“Here, you raise the bar like…. Huh? O…resident.”

“…I said I’m not oreos.”

“Yes, yes president.”

“Hello?”

Lee HyunAh seemed to have come to a liking on that word as she jokingly called KangYoon. Kim JiMin politely stood up and bowed. The two were currently applying harmonics to classical guitar.

KangYoon checked their progress for a bit before speaking his business.

“We’ll have a new addition to the family today. Please go to the studio and tell everyone to gather around.”

“Oh, really? Who is it? A guy?”

“…You’ll see.”

Lee HyunAh spoke out a barrage of questions in curiosity, but KangYoon didn’t easily reply. She grumbled and stood up.

“Unni, I’ll go.”

“No, I’ll go. You need to practice.”

Lee HyunAh left the studio and headed to the practice room.

“JiMin, did you do the copy work that I told you to do last time?”

“Huh? No, not yet….”

“Let’s see it then.”

“Noo…. This is why I wanted to go.”

There was a reason she wanted to run the errand. Kim JiMin had to pay for not doing enough practice.

While Kim JiMin was punished by raising the guitar into the air, the doors of the studio opened and Lee HyunAh, as well as Kim JaeHoon, entered. Kim JaeHoon was wearing clean denim and a white shirt instead of the baggy clothes he used to wear. He even seemed to have done his hair.

“You’re here.”

“Yes. Oh, you can drop the honorifics with me. You seem to be older than me. I’ll also comfortably call you hyung.”

“You can call me that in private spaces. But in formal occasions….”

“You don’t need to worry about that.”

He nodded in understanding.

But then, Kim JiMin’s expression turned weird as she was being punished.

‘It’s Kim JaeHoon!”

There was no way she wouldn’t know about him. Although he was a wannabe singer for all men, there were many female fans as well. To see someone so famous…

“Hm? A trainee?”

“Yeah. Her name is Kim JiMin. JiMin, you can stop now.”

Kim JiMin was properly embarrassed today. She couldn’t raise her head due to the embarrassment. This was their first encounter, and she was being punished.

“Hahaha, hello. I’m Kim JaeHoon.”

“H…. hello? I’m K… Kim JiMin.”

Kim JaeHoon shook hands with the trembling Kim JiMin. Her hands were shaking a lot. After that, Kim JaeHoon formally greeted Jung HyeJin from the office as well as Lee HyunJi. Not everyone knew that Kim JaeHoon would sign a contract with World Entertainment, as such their reactions were quite big.

‘Director, what happened?’

‘Well…. We’ll see even more amazing things in the future. Should I give you some relaxation pills?’

‘Ahaha….’

Lee HyunJi half-jokingly said that to Jung HyeJin’s question.

“The band kids aren’t here yet.”

“HyunAh went to get them so they should be here soon.”

Replied KangYoon to Lee HyunJi’s question. They waited for the band and started a conversation to get closer.

***

“…You too?”

Lee Chahee couldn’t close her mouth at Kim JinDae’s words. She had long since put down the bass.

“Yerang, those guys are so shameless. What the hell are they thinking? It was just a while ago when they only wanted HyunAh. So? What did you say to them?”

“What do you mean, what I said to them? I just said I’ll think about it.”

“Why would you need to think about anything?”

Lee ChaHee scolded Kim JinDae. Then, he asked back.

“Then what did you say?”

“Me?… Of course, I said to them to get lost. Are you crazy? Where else would we go other than here?”

That was a lie.

“R…. right?”

“Reject them outright. That’s the natural… thing to do.”

However, even though she said that Lee ChaHee was shaken as well. She just couldn’t be honest with herself. She also wanted to shine on the stage, even just for a moment.

Not seemingly noticing how she felt, Kim JinDae replied awkwardly again. Unlike usual, the two didn’t say much. An awkward silence took place.

At that moment, the door opened, and Lee HyunAh and Jung ChanGyu came in.

“Hey, we’re to gather up in the studio.”

Kim JinDae asked at Lee HyunAh’s words.

“The studio? Why?”

“We apparently have a new singer.”

Kim JinDae and Lee ChaHee stood up after looking at each other awkwardly.

The members of the band all headed to the studio. When they went in, everyone was waiting for them.

“Welcome.”

KangYoon greeted them first. The members of the band greeted back and sat down in one corner. But then, they saw a rather familiar person sitting opposite to them. Kim JinDae observed him for quite a while before shouting out with widened eyes.

“Ki…. Kim JaeHoon?”

Hearing his words, Lee HyunAh and the rest of the band were all surprised. The new singer seemed to be Kim JaeHoon. Never did they imagine that they would see such a famous singer here.

“…Haha. JaeHoon looks like you scared them. We’re all here now, so why don’t we introduce ourselves first?”

KangYoon dropped the honorifics with him immediately. Kim JaeHoon laughed lightly and stood up to introduce himself formally.

“Hello, everyone? I’m Kim JaeHoon. I’m 31 years old this year, and I’m truly happy to sign a contract with World Entertainment. I hope I get along with everyone. Please take care of me.”

“Waaaah—!”

Kim JiMin applauded the loudest. The male members of the band were loud as well. Kim JaeHoon seemed to feel awkward after receiving such a grand welcome and sat down quietly.

The next was KangYoon.

“I feel like we, World Entertainment, has finally taken form. A band, a solo singer, a trainee, and a composer, as well as the managing staff. My wish is that everyone can get along like one family.”

KangYoon spoke about a lot of things. Most them were about the directions he would take the company towards. He also said that it would be for the best if everyone contributed to growing this yet-small company and mentioned about how he’ll never monopolize the fruits of their hard work.

The reactions were varied. Kim JiMin and Lee HyunAh, who already received a lot from KangYoon, understood everything, and Kim JaeHoon also nodded in understanding. However, the 3 members of the band gave lukewarm reactions. They seemed to be feeling shy.

“…We have a get-together today. Should we go eat some meat?”

“Yay!”

Though, everyone cheered at the end.

***

After the round of introduction, KangYoon grabbed the 3 members of the band for a bit. They became nervous as they approached KangYoon.

“Is there something wrong?”

When Lee ChaHee asked that, KangYoon told them to sit down. When everyone sat, KangYoon started speaking.

“It’s been a while since you’ve joined. How do you feel? Is it doable?”

“…Just so-so.”

Lee ChaHee spoke strangely. Kim JinDae and Jung ChanGyu agreed to her. Although the words were vague, KangYoon understood at a glance.

‘They’re shaken.’

The center of attention in a band was the vocals. And today, they accepted a popular singer.

It was no wonder that these people felt slightly worried. KangYoon wordlessly took out the papers he had on hand.

“What’s this? Lee YoungHak, Kang SunYeol…….”

Kim JinDae asked and KangYoon replied immediately.

“It’s the lessons that you were told last time.”

“Lessons? Oh, personal activities?”

They understood right away. Personal activities from the 3 members of the band, in other words, income.

“But…. There’s a bit too much.”

Lee ChaHee said after looking at the long list of people and KangYoon awkwardly spoke.

“Miss Jung HyeJin had a hard time looking for all of those people. They’re all people that you’ll teach lessons to. You’re currently in a band, and you have degrees as well, don’t you? We had a hard time getting so many people.”

“Oh….”

“You can’t play around now. Go work.”

Hearing KangYoon’s joking tone, everyone burst out laughing. But KangYoon’s words didn’t end there.

“I had a look at your songs, but there weren’t that many that accented the instruments. I want to ask you about putting in an instrumental solo phrase in some of them. The songs are good, but that was a bit of a pity.”

“…….”

Hearing KangYoon’s words, they felt that he was very considerate of them. From money to the band, and even activities. They were worried that the introduction of a big singer may affect his attitude towards them, but the truth was nothing like that.

“And your answer?”

“Ah, yes, yes! We’ll do that!”

Jung ChanGyu represented everyone and answered loudly. KangYoon laughed.

“At least your answer is good. Do you need anything else?”

“No.”

“Good. You know what our aim is, right?”

When everyone fell silent, KangYoon shook his head and spoke.

“10,000 people. Didn’t we say that we’re going to do a concert with 10,000 people?”

“What?”

“Huh? Didn’t HyunAh mention that to you?”

Seeing the 3 band members at a loss, KangYoon smiled sheepishly.

“She forgot to mention about the most important thing. Sheesh, her forgetfulness must be on a different level. Anyway, our aim is a concert with 10,000 people. We’ll take steps towards that aim, so do your best, okay?”

KangYoon told them to tell him if they needed anything and sent them out.

When Jung ChanGyu went up first saying that he had to go to the bathroom, Kim JinDae spoke.

“…Hey.”

“What?”

“I think this place is the best.”

“…Such a simple guy.”

Muttering that he was such a simple guy, Lee ChaHee punched Kim JinDae. Kim JinDae screamed in pain, but there was no holding back.

***

(T/N: the [ ] speech seemed to be spoken in English.)

[HeeYoon! Are you busy today too?]

HeeYoon, who was about to leave after the lecture, was held back by a Caucasian girl.

[Hm? Yeah, sorry. I have work to do.]

[Why do you keep leaving so early? Are you that busy?]

The Caucasian girl left the lecture hall with HeeYon. She had a tall stature with a thin waist and an ample figure. When she walked past, all males would give her a glance.

She didn’t seem to care, and never left HeeYoon’s side.

[Today’s lecture was so boring. Why would he want us to write an essay on the Jackson family?]

[Don’t say that. You’ll only hate it more.]

[You, one happy girlie. So cute.]

The two walked to the gates of the university together. After saying that she should come to a party sometime, the Caucasian girl left HeeYoon.

While HeeYoon was walking home, her phone starting ringing. When she saw it, it was from her brother.

“Yes, oppa.”

– You should have finished school, now?”

“That was fast. Yeah. I’m just heading home.”

After talking about recent matters, KangYoon started talking about his topic.

– Is there a song that a guy could sing?

“A guy? What’s the genre? Ballad? Rock?”

– Ballad. You know about Kim JaeHoon, right?

“Kim JaeHoon, of course, I do. I love his songs. I especially like his song ‘I love’. Why?”

KangYoon told her that Kim JaeHoon just joined World Entertainment.

“Hiiik? Really!? So, uh…. You want a song for him?”

– Is there a good one?

“W… wait. Haha…. This makes me nervous. Can you wait for one week? I’ll clean it up and send it to you.”

Due to the sudden introduction of a large singer to the company, HeeYoon screamed in joy. She felt very excited to give a song to such a person.

After the call, she gripped her two fists.

“Good!”

Her steps home became faster.

***

Although Lee ChaHee drank a lot of alcohol, she didn’t feel like drinking today. She refused to go to a 2nd round amongst the singers and headed straight home. (T/N: remember they had a get-together?)

Lee ChaHee climbed the hill as always and arrived at her rooftop house. However, someone was waiting for her there again.

“You were that….”

“Hello.”

Yerang Entertainment’s scouter, Min HanNa. She greeted politely and smiled.

“I wish to hear the answer to last time.”

Lee ChaHee felt confused. Yes, the goodwill that KangYoon showed them today was very surprising. However, that just didn’t feel real just yet. So, she asked.

“You said you’ll give me a proper stage…. Right?”

“Of course.”

She spoke as though that was natural and continued to speak.

“Once you come to us, Yerang, you’ll work for us as our exclusive bassist. All concerts with the name Yerang entertainment will have you standing on the stage.”

“What if there aren’t any concerts?”

“In times without concerts, you just need to do what you are doing ordinarily. Teaching lessons and doing club performances is fine too. What we want from you is only to play in concerts under the name of Yerang Entertainment.”

It was obvious that Yerang Entertainment would hold large-scale concerts. Standing in a place like that? She felt tempted for a moment.

‘…The president was considerate for us whether it was the lessons or our solo parts. He tried to treat us fairly.’

However, the words that KangYoon spoke to her in the afternoon kept nagging her mind. Lee ChaHee kept asking.

“Concert…. Are there any other things?”

“There are many if you mean proper stages. Under the name of Yerang, that is.”

There were many types of stages. There would be just as many opportunities. Play with us on a bigger field. That was what she meant, summed up.

Yerang’s stages should definitely be big and charming. How good would it be if she could play there? Yerang held large-scale concerts frequently. A bassist on such a place? It was charming.

‘Ten thousand people, ten thousand…….’

But KangYoon’s words kept nagging her mind. Of course, Yerang’s was a bigger company. However, she couldn’t forget his words. It may be that KangYoon was all talk, but he even managed to accept a famous singer, Kim JaeHoon. She didn’t think that he was the type of person to do that.

After thinking about it for a while, she eventually shook her head.

“I’m sorry. I don’t think I can leave the team.”

“Is there anything else you need?”

“No, I just don’t feel like it. Then….”

When she set her mind, Lee ChaHee didn’t even look back and shut her door. Min HanNa, who felt that everything was going to go well, fell on confusion after everything went wrong.

“Miss ChaHee! Miss ChaHee!”

She kept calling out, but there was no reply.

“Oh, sh!t…. I’m so dead.”

Min HanNa’s steps were heavy as she turned back.