IJLMT 56

Chapter 56

[ Akita Shinichi, Nova Girls, and JM to retrace the path of the “New World Girls” ]
[ Was the suspension of the “New World Girls” activities caused by paint?! KAMISUMIRE sues the former facility manager ]
[ Top director KAMISUMIRE collaborates with Nova Girls—what will the result be? Netizens buzzing with anticipation ]

“This… what the hell is this?”

Takahashi Jiro swallowed hard as he read the news.

Imagine someone walking down the street and being asked, “What would you do if the volcano erupts tomorrow?” Would anyone seriously think about it? Would anyone live constantly preparing for that risk? They’d probably consider more realistic dangers and live accordingly.

But the situation Jiro was facing was like a sudden volcanic eruption. No, what kind of person is Akita? Didn’t he say in an old interview, “As a businessman, I have a strict rule: I do not engage in highly volatile businesses. Idol businesses are too volatile, so I do not do them”?

And now he was reversing that statement and supporting Nova Girls? Why? What whim was this?

[ Akita Shinichi: “Yu Hyunjae is extremely wise and logical; SERF’s demands were self-centered and seemed to force a wrong strategy.” ]

“Ishimura Director.”
“Yes… yes!”

Ishimura was frozen. Even he could not have predicted this outcome. That part was understandable, but Takahashi’s frustration was reaching its limit. And it wasn’t as if there was nothing to blame Ishimura for.

“I left everything to you, didn’t I? You were supposed to assess Yu Hyunjae and negotiate with JM. And what did you tell me at that time? That he was emotional and unfamiliar with the local situation?”
“…Yes, that’s how it appeared.”
“But this person is not Akita Shinichi. They say Yu Hyunjae is extremely wise and logical. So whose word is correct?”
“…….”

Ishimura had nothing to say. Questions like this were not really meant to be answered.

“Do you think the words of Akita, who’s been in this industry for nearly 30 years and runs the second-largest entertainment company, are correct? Or yours, Director?”
“…Probably Akita’s words are correct.”
“Then how did you come to make a judgment completely opposite to Akita’s? What attitude did you take toward JM that made Akita call Yu Hyunjae logical and wise while you called him emotional? Director, weren’t you arrogant?”
“I’m sorry.”
Sigh…

Takahashi frowned deeply. He was so irritated that he felt like a blood vessel might burst. “Sorry”? Could there be a more meaningless thing to say?

“Have you checked public reactions?”
“…Yes, we did.”

Ishimura’s voice was timid. Understandably so.

• Nova isn’t an ordinary idol group, we realized that long ago. The fact that KAMISUMIRE got involved says it all.

• I’m a Nova fan, and the thought of KAMISUMIRE directing their performance is thrilling.

• Have you seen Kanzaki’s stage last time? The letters on manuscript paper collapsed, turned into raindrops, and fell to the floor… The emotions were insane. Will we see that in Nova Girls’ performance too?

• Maybe their idol stage is different?

• No, idol stages are insane too. Don’t you remember the New World Girls? That stage felt like heaven.

• This stage will be even bigger. Must watch.

• I only cared about the New World Girls… There must be a reason Akita is paying attention to Nova. Will check out the showcase.

There were many problems. Too many.

• But what exactly did SERF do?

• Acted all high and mighty, then got cornered lol

This wasn’t something to laugh off. This was a real crisis.

If Yu Hyunjae had gone to KAMISUMIRE from the start, SERF would have something to say. But that’s not the case. SERF first approached JM, but negotiations failed because Yu Hyunjae didn’t accept SERF’s “Min” concept.

Both Japanese and Korean public were now aware of this. SERF deliberately publicized the situation through the media. And JM changed KAMISUMIRE’s mind. What would people think?

Was it Yu Hyunjae who was remarkable? Or Nova Girls? Either way, something was so impressive that KAMISUMIRE changed his mind.

And Akita even publicly stated that SERF was wrong and Yu Hyunjae was right. Basically, a declaration of war.

People love a twist. They love seeing the strong embarrassed or falling. They love underdogs winning. Now, the media in both countries cast Yu Hyunjae as the underdog and SERF as the arrogant giant.

On top of that, KAMISUMIRE’s “New World Girls” stage was legendary. Many who had no interest in Nova Girls became interested because of him.

“This is a major blow.”

If Nova Girls succeeded, it wouldn’t just be a minor disappointment. It would make SERF look ridiculous!

Earlier, I called KAMISUMIRE, but nothing changed.

• Mr. Akita, why give an interview like that? Calling Yu Hyunjae self-centered and pushing wrong strategies will make us fight, won’t it? We’ve always maintained our respective territories peacefully. Why suddenly go this way?

Akita answered:

• I’ve never aimed to respect others’ territories. It just happened by chance. Now that we’re a team with Nova Girls, isn’t fighting natural?

• Do you think that’s wise? You know SERF’s scale, right?

• I’m not stupid. Even competing with SERF, I judged it advantageous to ally with JM and Team Leader Yu Hyunjae. That’s all.

“What got him fired up all of a sudden?”

Akita spoke with absolute confidence that they would win. He had never been so aggressive before. He actively promoted the narrative: “JM Nova Girls, backed by KAMISUMIRE, face off against arrogant and dictatorial SERF!”

Did Yu Hyunjae and Nova Girls give him that confidence?

“Tried contacting JM or Team Leader Yu? Even before the contract, did you try offering generous terms to sway them?”

Takahashi frowned deeply. The answer was obvious—if things went well, he wouldn’t look like this.

“…They said there’s no point negotiating with a company that doesn’t recognize Nova Girls’ talent. They just said they’d show them clearly.”
“See, Director! Why’d you make such a slip?”
“…….”

He was about to go mad. The problem kept piling up unresolved. Frustrated, he checked SNS.

‘What now?’

@ARARE Yuri

• It feels like the company thinks we’re fighting dogs. We just want to enjoy singing, but they push us to beat Nova Girls, show we’re superior… That’s not why we formed this unit.
  ? Yuri-chan, get out of that company!
  ? We’ll support you! Back to being utaite!
  ? We’ll buy your merch! Buy your album!

@ARARE Sara

• All Nova Girls members are cool! I watched their dance because the company told us to beat them, and the level was insane.

• Their choreography is amazing and flashy. Then I realized this isn’t AR audio. What the heck? Are they all monsters? Singing while dancing like that? Are their lungs wired differently?

• They were just going to push them as a one-trick dance unit? Is our company okay? lol

• Especially Da-bin’s vocal skills are top-tier. Why ask me to battle? I feel like a Chikorita in front of Charizard.
  ? Sara-chan says that?
  ? Sara-chan is also top-tier! Nothing can beat us!
  ? Don’t stress over company orders

“…Didn’t these girls sign NDAs? In this situation, they post this on SNS?! Do they want the world to think SERF is a terrible company?”
“Uh, I’ll contact the responsible department immediately!”

Yuri and Sara are talented but inexperienced socially. They’ve worked alone for long periods and tend to take the company lightly. I warned them multiple times!

‘Didn’t anyone expect this? Why did the management let them loose like this?’

At that moment, a breaking entertainment news alert popped up. Takahashi collapsed to the floor, already high-strung with blood pressure and dizzy.

“President! Are you okay?”
“Damn… Is my body the problem now? Do something!”
“What….”

The article on Takahashi’s phone read:

[ Korea shaken by Iron Youth Ahn Yeonhong, announces collaboration with KAMISUMIRE. Japanese album production and concert planning too. ]

Before entering the conference room, I checked SNS.

@Lee Joo-ah

• The loudest people pointing fingers and cursing usually know the least about the other person.
  ㄴ How much do you really know about Yu Hyunjae?

The top comment was a flame, but not the original top one.

ㄴ Haha, really. Only clueless people were raging against actress Lee Joo-ah here.
ㄴ Logically, if JM quickly appointed him as team leader, he must be competent.
ㄴ Weren’t there more comments here before? Only that one left?
ㄴ Others were deleted, I guess. Ugly.
ㄴ Of course, actress Lee Joo-ah knows more about Hyunjae and the entertainment industry than anyone writing here. lol
ㄴ Everyone knows KAMISUMIRE is legendary. Check “New World Girls” on YouTube. Real heaven. No wonder Yu Hyunjae refused SERF.
ㄴ Still, the results aren’t in yet. KAMISUMIRE hasn’t touched idols in 10+ years. SERF could do better.

Meanwhile, Hanun Ilbo was still writing from SERF’s perspective. Either out of incompetence or money.

[ Misunderstanding? Why SERF and Yu Hyunjae clashed ]

‘Misunderstanding my foot.’

I had thought of myself as patient, able to stay indifferent to anything.

But now, seeing positive articles and anti-Lee Joo-ah comments deleted, I was boiling inside.

‘I can tolerate people insulting me. But not people insulting those I trust.’ I wasn’t trying to be poetic.

I couldn’t tolerate Yu Hyunjae being treated as foolish. Trusting me is a good thing. Something to value. Maybe I’ve become a creature that lives off “thanks to me.”

Thinking this, I opened the conference room door. Journalists were seated. I had held a press conference right after returning from Japan. Among them was a reporter from Hanun Ilbo.

I handed him the first question.

“Do you think rejecting SERF’s proposal was wise? Even if KAMISUMIRE made legends 10 years ago, SERF is now the mainstream.”

As expected, he was about to argue.

I asked:

“Hanun Ilbo reporter, do you dip dumplings in soy sauce?”
“Eh? Suddenly… yes, I do.”
“If someone says, ‘I eat dumplings with soy sauce,’ what do you think?”
“Uh… that makes no sense. Depends on dumpling filling and wrapper.”
“Then, would you do business with someone who insists, ‘I eat dumplings with soy sauce’? Do you think they’d succeed?”
“No….”

The reporter’s face turned red. I continued.

“There’s no misunderstanding behind the failed SERF negotiation. They said they eat dumplings with soy sauce; we just didn’t agree.”

The reporter had no answer and bowed.

“JM always strives to showcase our talents’ charm to the public. To do so, we must understand our talents ourselves. Someone who doesn’t know why dumplings are delicious cannot tell others they are.”

Other reporters nodded. Some tried to suppress smiles.

Then a reporter from Baekje Ilbo raised a hand. I knew him—Jeong Sun-woo, key figure in the Pale Moon Gate incident.

“What about upcoming plans? KAMISUMIRE is known for stage production. Will the results of this collaboration be seen in the second half of the year?”
“No. You’ll see it soon.”
“Soon?”

The journalists’ eyes widened.

“Yes. KAMISUMIRE will provide technical support for the upcoming mini-album showcase, Blue Heaven. The showcase will also be digitally streamed to 12 TOSU theaters in Japan.”
“Whoa?! Not in the second half… from the upcoming domestic showcase? 12 TOSU theaters… This would have been impossible for JM before…”
“Thanks to Akita Shinichi’s proactive support.”

Everyone murmured in awe. Besides money, convincing the theaters this would be profitable was necessary. Despite Nova Girls’ global impact, their ticket power in Japan was uncertain. Yet the contract succeeded thanks to Akita Shinichi.

“The scale is unprecedented… Akita-san gave very high evaluations of Team Leader Yu. Is his support due to trust in Yu?”
“No. It’s trust in Nova Girls. Akita-san knows how to recognize an artist’s charm.”
“I see…”

The subsequent questions mostly focused on this. How did Akita, who never cared for girl groups, recognize Nova Girls’ charm? What was discussed in meetings?

No need to answer. The key point: to prove that Nova Girls’ trust in me has value.

‘Yu Hyunjae is always right.’

Da-bin said this in an interview. So I must be right. Those who doubted our trust should no longer speak.

“What level of achievement do you ultimately expect?”

I answered:

“Within a year and a half, we plan to fill Tokyo Dome.”

The reporter’s mouth went agape.

“…That’s ambitious. What does KAMISUMIRE expect?”
“This is not ambition. It’s what we agreed with Akita-san. The minimum achievement we must reach.”
“Tokyo Dome… as the minimum?”

The reporters were momentarily stunned, then took notes.

Tokyo Dome as the minimum. Of course.

Because the future I saw through the ring showed exactly that.

[ Bold claim becomes reality? Nova Girls’ 55,000-seat Tokyo Dome concert sells out instantly! ]

• “I knew this would happen. Because you said, if you work hard… this result would naturally come.”