I became the leader of a damned girl group

Episode 5

“Ah, Baekyoung trainee?”
PD Oh raised the corner of his mouth.
“Earlier, Baekyoung trainee also said that she thinks her skills improved thanks to practicing together.”
That’s a lie.
Cheong and Baekyoung have never practiced together, just the two of them, even once.
“Oh, it’s not just that we practiced together. She just helped me grow.”
This is also a lie.
What growth? I grew myself.
“You two seem to have a really good relationship, right?”
“Of course. Unnie is my savior.”
How did this happen, you ask?
Well, we need to go back 30 minutes.

While the other trainees were taking turns with their interviews,
I handed Baekyoung a water bottle.
I knew.
PD Oh was purposely delaying our interview to the very last.
After drawing out all the reactions and sources from the other trainees, he would finally “exploit” us.
I’ve seen this broadcast one day, two days.

“…Thanks.”
Fortunately, Baekyoung looked at me with a suspicious look but didn’t refuse.
“I’m the one who’s thankful, unnie.”
“Thankful to me?”
Baekyoung asked, surprised.
“Yes. Thanks to you, I got some screen time and could show my skills.”
I didn’t really expect that it would get edited out.
I was genuinely thankful to Baekyoung.
Of course, I didn’t think Baekyoung did it with good intentions.
But the result was good, wasn’t it?

“…No. You did well, so the screen time came out. I also helped pull some of the screen time while standing next to you, so the result is good.”
That’s right.
I immediately agreed.
Of course, the spotlight would be on me more.
I’m a completely different case from before and after, so I’ll probably be shown more.
But Baekyoung also properly showed her skills next to me.
And no matter what the behind-the-scenes story was, on the broadcast, Baekyoung had said she would help me.
From Baekyoung’s perspective, there was nothing to lose.

“So, unnie…”
I sat next to Baekyoung.
“Would you consider pulling more screen time?”
“…Huh?”
“Not in an exaggerated way, but in a good direction.”

“Ah, then could you say something to the camera like this?”
The production team kindly asked with a smile.
“Say, ‘I thought Cheong had been hiding her skills until now.'”
As soon as Baekyoung heard the request, she realized.
This was the moment that Yoon Cheong had mentioned earlier.

‘PD Oh and the writers are probably going to be puzzled. They knew me as someone who couldn’t dance, but I danced well in a way they didn’t expect.’
‘I was curious about that too. How did that happen?’
‘I’ll explain later. We don’t have time now.’

At that moment, Baekyoung thought.
Did she always speak so confidently?
She usually felt very passive…
‘When we do your interview later, PD will surely ask if I’ve been hiding my skills.’
‘…Huh?’
‘If unnie says yes, how will that go?’
‘…What?’
‘For a moment, it might look like you’re the one benefiting. It would seem like my image is tarnished. But actually, that’s not it. In the long run, I’ll prove that I wasn’t hiding my skills, but I was just growing. In the end, unnie will just become the “jealous person who badmouths other trainees” because of it.’
‘…!’
‘In that case, let’s go for a win-win. Build a better relationship.’

“Baekyoung trainee?”
“Oh, yes.”
Baekyoung quickly pulled herself together.
And then, she delivered the prepared answer.

“Sorry. Actually, I know why Cheong suddenly improved her skills.”
“…Hmm?”
PD Oh asked with a stiff face.
What is she saying now?

“Cheong and I practiced together all night. For three days. I helped her with her dance details.”
“…Baekyoung trainee helped?”
“Yes. And Cheong—”
Baekyoung stopped for a moment.
Should I really go this far?
But in the end, she made up her mind.

“Cheong helped me with my vocal practice.”

She had nothing to lose.

PD Oh had a strange expression.
Actually, he was planning to turn these two into a conflict.
How fun it would be.
The longest trainee of Colors vs. the shortest training period trainee.
Of course, he knew that Yoon Cheong’s total training period was 10 years. But PD Oh didn’t care.
Her time with Colors was just a few months, so all he needed was to sensationalize the title.
The “old water” vs. the “newbie.”
Or, the “main dancer” vs. the “main vocalist” fight.
He could easily create a headline.
PD Oh was confident.
Until Baekyoung blocked that confidence.
And until Yoon Cheong crushed the last of his confidence.

“Yeah. As you saw earlier, unnie was really worried about my dancing. So, whenever she had time, she helped me a lot.”
I made sure to show an overly apologetic expression.

“Actually, I… was so bad at dancing that I always caused trouble for the other trainees.”
At times like this, I had to look pitiful.
So pitiful that it became boring.

“So, I was embarrassed, but I asked Baekyoung unnie to help.”
“Why Baekyoung trainee, of all people? There are other trainees too.”
But PD Oh didn’t give up.
He had to get some juicy details.
Some sensational material for the broadcast.

“Ah, because she’s been with Colors the longest. She’s really good at dancing.”
But I wasn’t easy to handle.
I couldn’t let it slip!

“How’s your relationship with the other trainees?”
“Everyone is really nice to me!”
I didn’t answer in detail.
The longer I talked, the more they’d have to edit.

“Baekyoung trainee said she’s been helping with your vocal practice?”
“Yes. Although my skills are lacking…”
I quickly added.

“Still, unnie helps me a lot more. But actually, I’m grateful that she helps me… but…”

Let’s smile.

“I just like being with her more than anything. I really like Baekyoung unnie.”
Even if it gets edited out.

Once the pre-interviews were finished, that day’s filming also wrapped up.
It had been a long, long day, really.
If it was this tough from the first day, it would be really hard in the future.
I gathered my things and tried to go to the vocal room.
I was thinking of relaxing my throat for the first time in a while.
But just then,

“Hey!”
Someone called my name.
When I turned around, I saw a somewhat familiar face.
Kim Ryeoyu.
Another trainee from “Make a New Color.”
And—

“I saw your dance earlier. It was really good.”

Originally, she was supposed to debut second.

“Ah, thanks.”
I immediately greeted Kim Ryeoyu.

“Wow, but how did you suddenly get so good at dancing? I was a bit surprised earlier.”
“Baekyoung unnie helped a lot.”
“Baekyoung unnie helped?”

Ryeoyu asked, surprised.

“She’s a good unnie, but she’s not the kind of person who has time to help anyone practice.”
“…We just helped each other out with things we were lacking.”

I had already agreed with Baekyoung that we wouldn’t talk about our deal.
Not to the other trainees.
I didn’t distrust them, but I was wary of PD Oh’s leading questions.
Fortunately, Baekyoung understood well.

“Ah, so you helped her with her vocal practice? Is that right?”
“Yeah. That’s right.”
“Then help me too!”

Ryeoyu said brightly.
…The problem was.

“Huh? Why?”
She wasn’t close with Yoon Cheong in the past.
If anything, she looked down on her.
In Yoon Cheong’s memory, Kim Ryeoyu was roughly like this:
A promising candidate.
The niece of the judge, Mr. Kim.
And someone who subtly looked down on and ignored Yoon Cheong.

“Why? We might debut together, right? Isn’t it better to help each other then? Like you and Baekyoung unnie.”
“Sorry.”

And in Baekyoung’s memory, Kim Ryeoyu was like this:

“I only need Baekyoung unnie.”
“…What?”

She was the one who ruined things after just one year of debut, causing the team to disband.

“Oh, I guess I said that wrong. It’s not like that. I already have a schedule with Baekyoung unnie, so it might be difficult.”
“…Oh, really?”

Ryeoyu had a somewhat uncomfortable expression.
But there was no reason not to agree, so she reluctantly nodded.

“Instead, if we end up on the same team next mission, I’ll help you as much as I can.”

Help?
I wasn’t going to help her. I’d block her debut no matter what.

Vocal training room.
The so-called vocal room.
I came here because—

“Ah, ah.”

I wanted to loosen up my voice for the first time in a while.
For an idol, dancing is important, but vocals are very important.
Since, basically, I’m a singer.

“My vocal cords are all wrecked.”

And more than that, Yoon Cheong had a big problem.
She hadn’t received proper vocal training in her previous agency, so her vocal cords were pretty damaged.

“The only good thing is… I still have my voice.”

That’s right.
The voice I’m using now isn’t Yoon Cheong’s voice; it’s Baeknokha’s voice.
No one around me seemed