NOVEL ONLINE FREE Chapter 12 - There Are About Twenty More
RT Entertainment has a regular meeting scheduled every Monday at 10 AM.
This schedule was set in the recent few months as the formal system was established.
The participants in the meeting include CEO Kang Beom-joon and the managers of each department.
Until just two weeks ago, the meetings were quite lively due to the historic first audition schedule of RT Entertainment.
That is, until Kang Beom-joon suddenly canceled the audition schedule.
This time, at his request, the meeting time was even pushed back to 4 PM.
From the managers’ perspective, it was a situation where dissatisfaction was bound to accumulate.
“Putting aside the delayed meeting time, do you really think it’s right to suddenly cancel the audition in the current situation? You even skipped last week’s meeting… I really don’t understand what you’re thinking, CEO.”
Oh Do-hwan, the manager of the Creative Department, complained with his arms crossed.
And Cha Min-seok, the manager of the Management Support Department who was listening right next to him, opened his mouth with a bitter smile.
“The CEO asked for time until today, so let’s be patient a little longer. He’s not the type to waste time. After all, isn’t the reason we all came to RT Entertainment because we were captivated by his passion?”
“That’s… true.”
Oh Do-hwan nodded as if agreeing.
In fact, all the department managers participating in the meeting room were people that Kang Beom-joon had personally recruited by running around on his own two feet.
So they all knew well.
How deeply their CEO cared for RT Entertainment.
Such a person suddenly canceling the audition must have a good reason for it.
Actually, there were a few people in the meeting room who knew the reason.
“Come to think of it, it seems like the Marketing Department has been busy handling something recently…”
Oh Do-hwan said that while looking towards Yoon Su-ah, the manager of the Marketing Department.
To this, Yoon Su-ah answered with a face full of fatigue.
“Yes. We’ve been extremely busy handling the task the CEO requested.”
“What kind of task is keeping you so busy?”
“We’re currently doing our best to prevent a video of a certain middle school girl’s stage performance from spreading on SNS.”
“Pardon?”
Yoon Su-ah laughed as if she had reached some kind of enlightenment.
And at that timing, the door of the meeting room opened with a clunk.
“I arrived right on time, but seeing everyone already seated makes me feel like I’m late. First, I’m sorry for pushing back the meeting time. There were good reasons for it.”
Kang Beom-joon.
He entered the meeting room with a faint smile.
* * *
As Kang Beom-joon took his designated seat, the meeting officially began.
For reference, a meeting is where multiple people share opinions on a certain topic.
In that sense, this meeting was…
“As I said before, we won’t be proceeding with the audition. There’s no need for it anymore.”
“Why is that?”
“Because I’ve managed to cast some quite interesting friends.”
It was close to a kind of announcement.
But from the listeners’ perspective, it was content that naturally caused curiosity rather than dissatisfaction or disappointment.
Managed to cast some quite interesting friends?
This also meant that Kang Beom-joon had personally brought in someone unique enough to judge that there was no need for an audition.
And not just one person, but several.
At that moment, Kang Beom-joon stood up and headed towards the door of the meeting room he had first entered through.
And as he turned the doorknob, he said confidently:
“Now, let me introduce… those who will become the star performers of our RT Entertainment from now on…”
“I’m Ryu Won, who’s been standing outside all this time because the CEO wanted a dramatic presentation.”
“Hello! I’m Baek Yerin! Nice to meet you all!”
Ryu Won and Baek Yerin.
These two people opened the meeting room door and entered before Kang Beom-joon could open it.
Kang Beom-joon spoke with a slightly sad expression at their entrance.
“Um… kids. Wasn’t your entrance a bit earlier than we agreed on?”
“It’s boring if the first introduction is dragged out too much. Besides, there’s a lot to explain to these people.”
With those words, Ryu Won looked at the scene in the meeting room.
As expected, most people were wearing slightly dazed expressions at his and Baek Yerin’s appearance.
Perhaps they’re doubting because the friends Kang Beom-joon had brought in look clearly of student age.
“Um… how old are you…?”
Just then, Oh Do-hwan, the manager of the Creative Department, carefully asked their age.
And.
“We’re both 15 years old. We’ll be turning 16 in about a month.”
Only then did the managers understand why the meeting time had been pushed to the afternoon.
This was simply timed to match the middle schoolers’ after-school hours.
* * *
It’s quite common for young students to become trainees in entertainment agencies.
But RT Entertainment is a newly started agency, unlike other companies.
In other words, the impact and importance of the first artist they showcase is literally tremendous.
But isn’t it a bit harsh to demand this from 15-year-old middle school students?
Most of the people in the meeting room thought so.
Until they heard the work that Ryu Won and Baek Yerin had recorded together over the weekend.
Kang Beom-joon omitted detailed explanations and immediately played their work.
It would be much easier to understand by listening directly rather than explaining a hundred times verbally…
Kang Beom-joon came to such a conclusion as if it were natural, and slowly, a song began to resound through the speakers in the meeting room.
The cheerful guitar sound of the introduction and Baek Yerin’s clear, pure tone begin to harmoniously blend.
The cherry blossom path falling as the warm spring breeze flutters is so beautiful. How exciting and happy would it be to walk that path with ‘you’?
Ryu Won slowly closed his eyes and appreciated the song.
In fact, this song was inspired and created as he walked alone under a cherry blossom-lined street, and it was a song that played a considerable role for Ryu Won in his previous life.
People evaluated it as a song that makes you naturally want to listen to it when spring comes…
And finally, Baek Yerin’s voice was added to such a song.
I wonder what evaluation it will receive from people this time?
Ryu Won slowly opened his eyes.
What he saw upon opening his eyes was the reaction of the managers who couldn’t close their mouths.
“D-did you really sing this song?”
Oh Do-hwan, with his eyes widened in surprise, urgently asked Baek Yerin.
Baek Yerin nodded with a bright smile and confidently answered ‘Yes!’.
Similarly, Cha Min-seok, sitting next to Oh Do-hwan, asked me with a serious expression.
“And you’re saying that you did everything for this song – lyrics, composition, and arrangement?”
“Yes.”
“Hah… CEO. Where on earth did you bring these monsters from?”
“I was just sitting still when an email came to me first.”
“What?”
“Anyway, more importantly, we still have 3 more songs to play for you all.”
“Th-three more songs?!”
Hearing the shocking news Kang Beom-joon delivered, Cha Min-seok instinctively gulped.
If the songs to be showcased next are also of the same quality as
Probably it’s not just Cha Min-seok harboring such expectations.
The department managers listened to Ryu Won and Baek Yerin’s songs with a much more serious expression than at first.
And the moment they finished listening to all 3 songs in succession, ending with
That perhaps they were standing at the center of an event that would cause a huge ripple in the music industry and entertainment world…
“Now, is there anyone who still thinks we need RT Entertainment’s historic first audition?”
Therefore, no one answered Kang Beom-joon’s question.
More precisely, they could only smile bitterly because they couldn’t answer.
Because it was quite a malicious question.
* * *
Ryu Won and Baek Yerin.
This duo guarantees success just by their existence. But how to promote them further was entirely up to RT Entertainment.
Thanks to this, the managers’ mouths began to open incessantly, and the meeting room instantly became full of energy.
And as expected, the most common opinion was to release an album quickly.
The 4 songs showcased earlier and 1 song that couldn’t be recorded due to lack of time.
With these 5 songs in total, release a mini-album at an early date to announce Baek Yerin’s splendid debut.
There was no room for objection, and in a way, it was also the first thing that had to be done.
In fact, it was quite unusual in the current music market for a rookie singer to release a mini-album from their debut.
From the start, producing and acquiring songs to fill an album costs quite a lot.
Who would take such an inefficient risk by putting out a rookie whose success and failure are hard to gauge?
But Baek Yerin had enough talent to be treated exceptionally.
Moreover, since Ryu Won’s songs were already there to fill the album, there was no need to weigh profit and loss.
However, there was one big problem here.
‘A mini-album… huh.’
It was Ryu Won.
Ryu Won wasn’t quite satisfied with the mini-album talk that was flowing almost as a fait accompli in the meeting.
After all, releasing just a mini-album for Baek Yerin’s debut, which is a big event?
‘That seems a bit disappointing.’
In fact, as Ryu Won had been involved in this industry, he knows all too well which method is best and most realistic.
The same goes for the people in this meeting room. They are all people who have made a name for themselves in this field to some extent, so their thoughts were practically the orthodox view.
But the orthodox view is ultimately just making the most righteous and appropriate judgment in a given situation.
What if we completely overturn that given situation itself?
‘Is it greed…’
And from another perspective, it could be greed.
It might give direct pressure to none other than her.
As Ryu Won was thinking this, he felt a gaze from the side.
…It was Baek Yerin.
Baek Yerin whispered to Ryu Won in a small voice that wouldn’t disturb the meeting.
“Is it a worry or a secret this time?”
“?”
“Your expression looks serious again, like that time.”
Ryu Won suddenly remembered his second meeting with Baek Yerin.
At that time, she clearly said this.
What can be shared with others is a ‘worry’, what can’t be shared with others is a ‘secret’.
From that perspective, this time…
“I think it’s a worry.”
“Really? What’s causing it?”
“Actually… I want you to have a more splendid debut. But I’m a bit worried that it might become a burden to you.”
Ryu Won honestly shared his concern.
If things get bigger due to his greed, it might give quite a big burden to Baek Yerin.
However.
“Then you can just lessen that burden. How about it?”
Baek Yerin just asked back with a bright smile.
Ryu Won felt like he had been hit on the head with a hammer.
Come to think of it, it was such an obvious thing.
All of this stemmed from my greed, so I had an obligation to take responsibility for her somehow.
How?
“I’ll try my best.”
Along with the answer mixed with a resolute voice, Ryu Won’s eyes changed.
Baek Yerin instinctively felt it, and immediately felt curious.
Because Ryu Won suddenly started counting with his fingers.
And after finishing some kind of confirmation, he clapped once loudly enough to resound through the meeting room.
In the situation where attention suddenly focused on him, Ryu Won said this:
“I’m sorry for interrupting the meeting suddenly. But there’s an important thing I’d like you all to hear.”
And it was definitely…
“Actually, there are about twenty more songs of similar quality to the ones you just heard.”
Something that could overturn the given situation itself.