Chapter 358

‘Endure it…….’

Should I just shave my head and join a temple?

I really felt like I lacked the self-discipline to survive in this harsh world.

“However, the notice about identity verification was already posted 20 minutes ago, and reversing it now could cause even more confusion, so it seems that any further changes simply aren’t possible.”

‘No, f*k it, I can’t take this anymore. If you’ve got a problem with complaints, then don’t do your job like shit.’

But no matter how I think about it, those bastards are the ones at fault, so why the hell am I the one who has to put up with this?

So that’s what they were up to? No wonder they couldn’t focus during the whole meeting and just kept staring at their laptop. I wasn’t even expecting proper meeting notes or anything. I figured they were just pretending to work, tapping away at the keyboard like most office workers, so I let it slide. But I never thought they’d actually stab us in the back like this.

I was genuinely trying to play nice.

This shitty world is full of people just waiting to drag me down for some ‘ attitude controversy ‘ if I so much as look the wrong way. If I’ve got a brain, of course I’m going to at least pretend to be nice. But seriously, I don’t get why there are so many assholes out there trying to mess with me when I’m putting in this much effort.

“…Ha.”

At the sound of the hollow laugh I couldn’t hold back, Do Yuda—who had been frozen stiff and barely even breathing—flinched and let out a faint ‘ kkeung ‘ sound. Normally, I would’ve said something like, ‘ What are you, a dog? Why are you making noises like that? ‘, but this time, the fury rampaging through me like a runaway horse showed no sign of stopping.

“You could have just uploaded it after the meeting, so why did you post it the moment the meeting began?”

“We had no choice, because of the schedule…….”

“…Because of the schedule?”

The moment I bluntly articulated the most irritating part of what I’d just heard, an uncomfortable tension instantly filled the meeting room. Even to my own ears, my tone had come off a little sharp, so I guess it was to be expected. If I had to put it in numbers, it felt like Choi Jeokhyeon , whom I’d been barely keeping at 3%, suddenly spiked to about 7%. 1

It’s not like I was installing some software, but every time I felt Choi Jeokhyeon’s presence gradually increasing, I couldn’t help but wonder, ‘ Is this really okay? ‘. However, my annoyance would soon win out, and I’d think, ‘ Just be uncomfortable. That’s what you deserve ‘. So I deliberately left the tension hanging, slowly shifting my gaze without making any effort to ease the mood.

“There was no prior announcement to the fans about when this notice would go up, and it’s not like we were pressed for time, so I simply can’t accept your explanation that it was unavoidable due to the schedule. On top of that, didn’t I specifically ask you to relay to upper management that we’d be discussing the identity verification issue in today’s meeting? If this is how you handled it, I can only assume you decided I wouldn’t back down and took advantage of the moment I was distracted in the meeting to upload it without informing me.”

“We didn’t mean to disregard you, Seungbeom-ssi. It’s just that Pantheion’s members were already so busy with stage preparations that we wanted to avoid bothering you with anything extra. Besides, there are so many decisions that need to be made during the concert process. Realistically speaking, it’s impossible to get the members’ approval on every single one.”

It was the exact same line as before. They seemed to be implying that it hadn’t been done out of malice, but out of consideration for me, so I shouldn’t take it so sensitively.

The moment I sensed the employee was about to start rambling with excuses, I immediately cut them off.

“No. I may be a singer who needs to focus on the performance, but I’m also Pantheion’s producer. No matter how inconvenient it is, I need to be involved in and informed about every single decision. This isn’t something the staff should be deciding on their own.”

“…….”

“And if this was truly done without any particular intention, then that’s an even bigger problem, isn’t it? It would mean the operational staff had no sense of how the situation might unfold. Did you seriously think this approach would lead to a good outcome?”

Faced with the choice of being either a rude jerk who deliberately tried to exclude me from the matter or an incompetent fool who couldn’t do their job properly, the employee chose silence in the end.

A cold silence settled over the meeting room.

No one could easily speak up in that moment, but since the silence didn’t particularly bother me, I quietly organized my thoughts and eventually said this.

“It seems like you think I’m just putting on a show for the sake of image-making.”

“That’s…….”

“That I don’t know anything about the actual work and just irresponsibly say whatever pleases the fans to make myself look good. Isn’t that it?”

I could roughly guess why the employees chose to act this way.

‘I’m busy enough as it is. Do I really need to get into a power struggle on top of that?’

Since they were all grown adults, they probably weren’t doing this to deliberately start a power struggle. Still, they weren’t exactly mature either, so it was likely they just wanted to subtly place limits on my actions.

‘They probably all assumed I only got the head producer position for the sake of image-making, so it must have bothered them whenever I went around getting involved in every little thing as if I were actually in charge.’

Since most of the employees here were unfamiliar faces, it was likely they hadn’t worked with me before. In the entertainment industry, where staff turnover is frequent, this kind of situation wasn’t unusual. But could such employees really trust me enough to move forward with their work, even if it meant defying their superiors?

Right now, I wasn’t the 35-year-old Seo Yutae, a veteran singer and Prism’s producer. So, it was inevitable that everyone, not just the staff, would treat me differently, whether it was because of my physical appearance, my career status, or my age.

‘To be frank, they probably thought it wouldn’t matter even if I got upset about them pushing ahead however they wanted.’

In short, it was a matter of trust.

How on earth was I supposed to resolve this?

If I had it my way, I would’ve snapped at them to stop wasting energy on pointless power struggles and focus on doing their own jobs. Or I could’ve just found whoever orchestrated this mess and made an example out of them.

However, while doing that might offer some immediate satisfaction, it wouldn’t be the mature thing to do. With the concert just around the corner, letting resentment build between me and the operations team would inevitably affect the show.

“As some of you here already know, there isn’t a single aspect of Pantheion, from the songs and choreography to our individual activities, that hasn’t passed through my hands. That’s why I believe I have every right to be involved in Pantheion’s affairs. I’m confident the members would agree with that as well.”

Therefore, I intend to choose a different approach.

“So, I hope you’ll trust me just as much and respect my position so that I can smoothly coordinate between Pantheion and the company.”

When I made it clear in front of the employees how much I had contributed to Pantheion, the members nodded vigorously, as if on autopilot. Faced with the members’ absolute trust in me, the employees, seemingly finding it hard to argue back, simply kept their mouths firmly shut and slightly bowed their heads.

I slowly looked over the sight before opening my mouth again.

“I’m perfectly fine with this footage being released to the public from beginning to end, without a single edit. Because I stand by every word and decision I’ve made. Can the company say the same?”

“…….”

“The entertainment business isn’t like other industries. It’s built on the dedication and love of fans, so we have to prioritize fans above all else. This isn’t just about managing the group’s image or expressing gratitude for their support, although those things matter too. Even if we look at it strictly from a business angle, the logic still stands. If fans feel hurt or disappointed, there’s a good chance their feelings will cool off. And when that happens, the company could face the worst possible outcome, which is losing its customers.”

And then I showed the reactions to the newly uploaded notice through the laptop connected to the projector.

— What kind of unheard-of ID is this? So if my phone battery runs out, I won’t be able to enter?

— Showing my national ID should’ve been enough, what else do they want… they’re being so damn tiresome. I wouldn’t even go through this much hassle if I were going to meet the president

— F**k, I paid for this and I still can’t even go in freely. This is so damn infuriating. Are they really doing all this just to catch macros? Fangirls’ rights are always at rock bottom, ha lolololol this seriously gives me a reality check

“I really hope the company takes this matter seriously as well. If my opinion still gets completely ignored even after I’ve said this much, then … I’m fully prepared to actively explain the situation to the fans to prevent any misunderstandings.”

It was a veiled threat; if you guys keep acting so arbitrarily like this, I’m prepared to expose that the company is ignoring our opinions . The employees glanced at one another, gauging the situation, and eventually backed down.

“…If you’re putting it that strongly, Seungbeom-ssi, then I’ll bring it up to the higher-ups once more.”

.

.

.

“Hello, Muse. How have you been?”

After the meeting ended, I started a live broadcast from the small studio set up at the company. It didn’t take long before a huge number of Muses joined in, each starting to talk about different things.

— So, did Seungbeom lend Yuda those clothes?

— How did Danbi’s contract turn out? ㅠㅠㅠ Can someone please update me

— Please renew Pantheion’s contract, I can’t let you guys go like this

Even among the flood of rapidly scrolling chat messages, one in particular stood out.

— Oppa, are you really 40kg? ㅠㅠ I’m so worried……

— Seungbeom-ah, please, you really need to gain some weight ㅠㅠㅠ

“Hold on, this 40kg thing keeps being mentioned. Where in the world did that even come from?”

— Zen said at the fansign that Leada weighs 40kg

As soon as I read that chat, I turned to look at Nagi Zen, but he just stared up at the ceiling with a shameless expression on his face.

Faced with his crazed eyes, clearly set on avoiding eye contact no matter what, I eventually gave up halfway, pressed a hand to my forehead, and shook my head.

“…That’s just Zen talking nonsense, so don’t believe it, everyone. At this height, if I were 40kg, I wouldn’t even be able to stand up.”

— HAHAHAHAHAHAHA

— Muses are so naive, so gullible

— Maybe not 40kg, but he still looks lighter than me lolol

I could hear Nagi Zen, who was lingering behind me, persistently whispering, “35kg”, but I chose to ignore him and resolutely opened my mouth to carry out what I had originally set out to do.

“We just finished discussing the concert in the meeting room and are on our way back now.”

The moment I mentioned the concert that probably every Muse is most looking forward to right now, the previously chaotic chat instantly snapped into focus.

— Gasp gasp gasp Concert

— I wish the final concert would come quickly. I really want to see the boys on a big stage. But at the same time, I wish it would come slowly, because I’m not ready to say goodbye to them yet. I don’t even know what my heart truly wants anymore.

— Seungbeom-ah, when will the concert preparation video be uploaded? It’ll be up before the concert, right? ㅠㅠ

“Actually, I wanted the identity verification process to be simplified, because if it’s too complicated, it’s obvious Muses will have a hard time.”

— True, TRUE

— That’s right ㅠㅠ it’s so hard every time I have to wait

— This time they’re telling us to use some app certificate, and it’s seriously insane. That thing takes way more time than just showing a physical ID, and if the app doesn’t load or your phone dies, you’re done for

“There were some disagreements between me and the company about the identity verification process, so we kept discussing it.”

The moment I said that, the chat, which had been kindly engaging with me just moments ago, exploded into a storm of swearing.

— Dojun-ah, do you want to join the entertainment industry?

— Are they out of their mind or what?

— If you’re incompetent, then for god’s sake, just shut your mouth and do as the Captain tells you

I didn’t stop those Muses. Instead, I smiled brightly and said, “And I’m so happy to share that we succeeded! A new notice will be posted soon, so please check it carefully, everyone. Let’s meet again with smiles on our faces. I apologize for the inconvenience caused by this change.”

— (This chat has been filtered.)

— (This chat has been filtered.)

— (This chat has been filtered.)

— It really pisses me off that Seungbeom has to suffer because of the company’s stupidity

— As expected, our leader is so dependable ㅠㅠㅠ Pantheion is the only one who truly cares about us Muses ♥

I told them I’d handle the concert preparations well from now on and asked them to trust me, but I never said I’d cover for their mistakes.

Haha!

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Translator’s Corner:

Sorry this is late I need to fight fatphobic-enabler people because of Boys 2 Planet

No long translator corner because I’m currently still writing essays on twitter about it right now

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