Chapter 2
It had already been a week since that inexplicable event occurred.
After the deal with the mysterious entity, I opened my eyes to find myself in a shabby goshiwon1.
Ding!
An odd alarm sound echoed, and a message appeared:
“Congratulations! You are now ‘Yoon Cheong.’ From this moment on, you must save the failed girl group, ‘Steel Blue’!”
This place is slightly different from your world.
To put it simply, it’s a parallel universe.
Everything here is almost the same as in your world, except for one crucial difference: a person named ‘Baek Nokha’ never existed here, nor will they exist in the future.
It felt like a scene from a game. In your world, you’ve inhabited the body of ‘Yoon Cheong,’ who lived ten years ago. Your task is to fulfill two wishes for this ‘Yoon Cheong.’
The first wish:
“Debut as the winner on the agency’s survival program, ‘Make a New Color.’”
…?
I furrowed my brow.
What was this about?
Why did it have to be the top spot?
I remembered something.
Back when I was about to debut, there was a cable broadcasting company’s survival program. ‘Colors,’ one of the top five major entertainment agencies in Korea, launched a debut survival show for their new girl group.
Among the participants was ‘Yoon Cheong.’
I hadn’t paid much attention at the time due to my busy schedule, but I knew the basics.
The program featured all female trainees from ‘Colors’ competing for their debut.
And Yoon Cheong was one of them.
“Wait, didn’t she debut already?”
…What kind of wish was this?
“Make her debut as the 1st place winner on the agency’s survival program, ‘Make a New Color.’”
Did it have to be the top spot?
I recalled that the confirmed debut members from the program eventually formed the girl group ‘Steel Blue’ a year later.
There were five of them, right?
I vaguely remembered overlapping activities with them.
Among them, someone stood out—a trainee who sang well. I had thought, “She must be the main vocalist,” even though I hadn’t paid much attention.
“Did she debut at like, 5th place back then? No, isn’t just debuting enough? Does it have to be 1st place?”
I never expected to wake up in such a bewildering situation.
And then…
Ring!
The sound of a phone came from beside me.
But something was off.
“This phone… it’s mine.”
Wait, didn’t I inhabit someone else’s body? Why is the phone mine? And why is it my phone from ten years ago?
I couldn’t make sense of the situation, and it was eerie. Still, the phone continued to ring insistently.
Reluctantly, I picked up the phone, and an alert appeared on the screen.
…A news notification?
“Yoon Cheong selected as the final member of ‘Make a New Color.’”
It was an article from my world.
I clicked on the article as if fascinated.
The fifth member of ‘Make a New Color’ has been confirmed.
None other than Yoon Cheong, the trainee who had faced controversies throughout the program due to her lack of confidence and social skills.
Although she ranked last in the viewer popularity vote, the judges’ “Color Choice” secured her position as the last member.
Do Hee-young, a judge and a senior member of the 12-year-old girl group ‘Graysh,’ cited Yoon Cheong’s “essential vocal ability” as the reason for her selection.
Ding!
As I read the article, another notification appeared:
“Controversy over Yoon Cheong’s selection as the final member?”
“Always stirring up controversies,” I muttered, clicking on the second article.
I needed to understand the situation.
Kim Mokyung, an executive from ‘Colors’ agency, explained that they chose Yoon Cheong because she could be the group’s vocal centerpiece. She was like the missing puzzle piece to complete the still-inexperienced ‘Steel Blue.’
However, netizens criticized the judges for ignoring viewer opinions and making their own choices.
No wonder she wished to debut as the winner.
…It must have been frustrating to be at the center of such controversies.
Of course, every trainee dreams of debuting. Debuting alone is already a blessing.
But it’s natural to feel upset.
After all, she’s human.
Facing hate comments even before her debut—how could she not be upset?
The whole world probably despised her.
“By the way, what’s up with this phone?”
I unlocked the phone and explored its features. Nothing seemed to work except for the news notifications and the contact app.
“Why can I open the contact app out of the blue?”
It was baffling.
Thankfully, the news notifications seemed accessible even after opening them once.
The phone seemed to have a mind of its own.
“Well, I should be grateful for having this much.”
…Maybe I made a pact with a demon?
That mysterious entity—the demon, perhaps?
Otherwise, none of this would make any sense.
“Yeah. I’d prefer a real demon. At least they have the power to grant wishes.”
I looked at my reflection in the mirror on the desk. Yoon Cheong’s face, now my face, stared back at me.
Indeed, I hadn’t examined her closely before, but Yoon Cheong was quite pretty.
In the entertainment industry, where beauty is widespread, she stood out.
“Seems like I’m prettier than when I debuted.”
Well, ‘Baek Nokha’ wasn’t just famous for her looks.
Ironically, she had a rather ordinary face for an idol.
Of course, fans always said I was the prettiest in the world…
That was something I wanted to say to the fans.
When I first debuted, I felt a bit overshadowed due to mismatched styling, hair, and makeup.
Thanks to the styling that suited me and camera magic, I improved significantly compared to before.
“Hmm. If this is the main performance, it should have been popular.”
My skills were acknowledged, and being part of a major agency should have helped with promotion.
So why… was there no popularity?
As I pondered this, my phone chimed again.
“[Make a New Color Episode 1 Update!]”
“Would you like to watch it now?”
…Can it read my mind?
***
“Seems like there wasn’t much popularity.”
I felt sorry for Yoon Cheong, but the truth was harsh.
After watching Episode 1, I reached a conclusion.
In the short 55-minute duration, Yoon Cheong appeared for only about 3 minutes.
And even those 3 minutes weren’t solo scenes; they were shared with other trainees.
The emotion I felt during those 3 minutes? Disappointment.
Yoon Cheong, the owner of my body, lacked something.
Actually, she had no presence whatsoever.
If only it were just a lack of presence. She lacked charisma, social skills, and even entertainment value.
Both on and off stage, she was utterly… wooden.
Survival shows like this rely on chemistry among trainees, but Yoon Cheong had none of that.
No, she barely spoke at all.
When someone talked to her, her response was a monosyllabic “Uh, yeah…”
“No wonder she lacks screen time and appeal.”
Even the scenes in the practice room were bleak.
While she sang well, her dancing and expressions were disastrous.
She couldn’t even follow the choreography, colliding with other trainees.
Yet, I didn’t pity Yoon Cheong.
Because I suspected the reason behind her behavior.
It was just a guess, but the “original” Yoon Cheong…
Had a fear of cameras.
Stage fright was an added bonus.
***
Ten years.
That’s how long I’ve been in this entertainment industry.
If you count my trainee days, it’s twenty years. While I might not be the ultimate expert, I’ve seen all kinds of people here.
Survivors fall into a few categories:
1. Those with exceptional talent.
2. Those who compensate for lack of talent with hard work.
3. Those with strong mental fortitude who endure.
And then there are those who struggle to survive:
1. Those who cause trouble.
2. Those who lose their initial passion.
3. And… those with fragile hearts.
This industry is tough.
People with fragile hearts can’t survive here. It’s not their fault for not enduring.
The fault lies with an environment that grinds people down.
Anyway, Yoon Cheong fell into the third category.
Incredibly fragile-hearted.
Seeing her, I realized she was weak-willed.
“Well, at least her lack of popularity isn’t due to bad character.”
Helping someone like her would be challenging.
Trainees with character issues often had those problems long before their debut.
Debut could be managed somehow.
It’s what comes after that’s the issue.
Once debut is confirmed, the past already exists.
If controversies arise post-debut—whether about character or past—it’s hard to recover.
Lack of presence and talent isn’t a crime, of course.
At this age, having strong mental resilience is impressive.
She’s only 20. Practically a newborn.
Well, I can help with her fragility.
“I may not know everything else, but I’ll do my best.”
Her mental state and charisma were lacking, though.
Ding!
“[Tutorial Complete!]”
“[Tutorial Reward Assessment in progress…]”
“[~Yoon Cheong’s Memories up to Age 19~ has arrived!]”
“Would you like to check it? (Yes/No)”
“…Was this the tutorial all along?”
And there’s a reward, even if it’s based on my memories.
No reason to decline. I’ll live with this body now.
I pressed ‘Yes.’
And then…
For a long time, I couldn’t speak.